Fruit

Satsumas are the first of the soft citrus fruits to disappear after Christmas; clementines will tail off towards the end of the month. Ardent marmaladiers will know that the Seville orange season generally ends about the middle of the month. Some of the finest eating oranges around should be Italian Ruby Red bloods.

Crumbles made with the pink forced rhubarb, now at its best, should be very fine – or make a fool, experimenting with added flavourings like ginger, orange, cinnamon, lemon – even Pernod, as suggested by Margaret Costa.