English asparagus season is underway, but the season is short so make the most of it while you can!

It’s super-nutritious, packed with folate, Vitamins A, C and K and Potassium, so what’s not to like (except the smelly wee that weirdly comes it!)

For May’s #eatsouth challenge we went to Stansted Farm Shop on the border of Hampshire and West Sussex, and picked up some of the little green lovelies grown at Barfoots Farm in Botley.

If you haven’t visited Stansted before it’s definitely worth searching out. It’s packed with amazing fresh produce from charcuterie and meat to dairy, veg, fruit and home-baked treats. It also has a massive selection of artisan food products and drinks.

As you enter the doors, a display of asparagus from Barfoots welcomes you. Barfoots began as a family farm in Botley in Hampshire in 1976 with four employees, 21 acres and a single crop. They now farm over 7,000 acres and employ over 1,000 people in our region, cultivating 30 crops across a number of farms in Hampshire and West Sussex.

They take great care over what they farm where, only farming crops in the UK that are suited to the local soil and weather conditions. That makes for the most delicious of all produce.

So – we challenged our little team of home cook foodies – they didn’t need much persuasion!

W: Stansted Farm Shop

W: Barfoots Farm