Presenter: Trevor Cochrane and Melissa King

Melissa King has just written a book called Garden Feast. It is simply a fantastic book for garden and food lovers. Home-grown, handpicked and home-cooked: it is the essential guide to growing and cooking your own fruit and veg with old-fashioned flavour.

Melissa introduces us to a world of fruits and vegetables never seen in the shops, with a particular focus on heirloom varieties which have been lovingly preserved by generations of gardeners. From the rich, sweet flavour of the charcoal-fleshed Black Russian tomato to the deliciously tender pods of the Purple King bean, from the juicy tang of the Australian rainforest native Finger lime to the luscious melt-in-your-mouth texture of the Red Noonan peach, the spectacular colours and flavours are a true feast for the eyes and the tastebuds.

Detailed, practical information for the gardener on everything from climate and soil type to watering and harvesting means everyone can enjoy these reliable, productive, easy-to-grow garden treasures. As each chapter moves from the garden to the kitchen, there are simple-and simply delicious- recipes which have been specially designed to showcase the natural flavours of garden-fresh produce. With additional features on the health and nutrition benefits and creating gardens in small spaces, a guide to bottling and preserving, and information on complementary herbs, this is an essential reference for the gourmet gardener.

A sumptuous book full of colour, texture and flavour, Garden Feast will delight the senses.

The photography by Virginia Cummings is spectacular and Melissa has been working with the Heronswood Café who have been growing all the vegetables featured and have been working with them for about 30 years.

Melissa has tried every single one of the recipes and is not too bad in the kitchen either. She decides to whip up a feast for Trevor to show him how much of a domestic goddess she really is!

Figs with Persian fetta wrapped in prosciutto and cauliflower fritas with cream freche and some fresh smoked salmon are just a couple of the fantastic recipes in the book!

http://www.melissaking.com.au/