Four recipes from The Times.

Side Dish

Chop a bunch od spring onions and cook in a large knob of butter until soft. Simmer a handful of broad beans in 300ml of chicken or vegetable stock for about 5 minutes until cooked. Add beans and stock to onions. Add one shredded  little gem lettuce and a small handful of taragon, and cook for 30 seconds. Season. Serve with grilled fish or meat.

Canapé

Separate the leaves of 1 little gem lettuce and crumble a little Stilton (200g) into each one. Toast 2 handfuls of peacan nuts in a dry frying pan for about 5 minutes, tossing regularly. Scatter over filled lettuce leaves. Drizzle with honey and serve.

Wrap

Season 300g of pork mince. Fry in a splash of oil over a high heat until browned and crispy, for about 10 minutes. Remove meat with a slotted spoon and set aside. Chop 6 spring onions and 2 lemongrass stalks, add to pan with 3 cloves of crushed garlic and 3 cm ginger, grated, and a large pinch of chille flakes. Cook for a few minutes until lemongrass is softened. Return mince to pan with 2 tbsp honey, 1 tbsp fish sauce, zest and juice of a lime, and a handful of toasted shelled cashew nuts. Warm through. Separate the leaves of 2 little gems and divide paork between them. Roll up and serve.

Risotto

Bring 1 litre of chicken or vegetable stock to simmer. Heat 3 tbsp of olive oil in a large pan and sweat 1 finely chopped onion until soft. Add 350g of Arborio rice and cook for about 2 minutes, stirring all the time. A a glass of white wine and, once evaporated, add boiling stock, two aldles at a time, stirring continuouslyand waiting until all is absorbed before adding more. Once rice is tender (about 18 minutes), stir in 80g of grated parmesan, 50g butter, 300g cooked prawns, 2 shreaded little gem lettuces and 6 sliced sprng onions. Leave to stand with lid on for about 5 minutes. Stir in a handful of chopped mint, season and serve.