Autumn offers up oodles of wild food, Autmnoodles...

Ingredients (serves 2-3):

1 apple, grated
3 cloves of garlic
1 medium onion
30g prickly sow thistle leaves roughly chopped
50g hogweed, stalks chopped into 8mm pieces, green parts finely shredded
50g chestnuts
150g whole wheat noodles
rapeseed oil
Salt
20g fresh (grated then finely minced with a knife) / 1 tsp ground dried ginger.

Method:
1. Put a slit in each chestnut then (optional) for ease of peeling, deep fry for two minutes; peel once cool.

2. Slice the onion and gently fry for 30 minutes then set aside.

3. Meanwhile, grate the apple and place in an oven proof dish with the chestnuts and the garlic cloves.

4. Stir in a tablespoon of oil and a good pinch of sea salt.

5. Roast for 20 minutes at 180 °C, then allow to cool.

6. Once cool, squeeze the garlic out of each clove, after cutting off the tip and if need be, peel the chestnuts and chop them roughly. 

7. Whilst all this cooks and cools, cook the noodles in salted water for 4 minutes, drain (retaining a cupful of cooking water) then cool under a cold tap and set aside.

8. Next, stir fry the hogweed, sow thistle and root ginger in 1 tablespoon of oil for ten minutes or until beginning to get crispy.

9. Now fry the noodles, with generous splashes of soy sauce until they are piping hot and beginning to crisp a little, then add everything else and warm through, moistening with a few splashes of the reserved noodle water.

Serving suggestion

Serve with this Wild leaf salad.