This is the time of year when sage allotment-holders are harvesting brassicas, always assuming they can trudge through the floods to their plots!

If you don’t like cabbage, or Brussels sprouts or other winter greens, it may not be your picky nature. Recent research shows that people who dislike the taste of cruciferous vegetables have extra taste receptors that respond to the ‘bitterness’ of their component flavours. This is not good news because these are vegetables that are packed full of anti-oxidants but there are ways of eating them that either reduce the bitterness or cut through it by adding other flavours. Try this …

Cabbage Pie

Serves 4 (even those who don’t like cabbage!)

Ingredients

1 pack frozen puff pastry

200 grams cream cheese

1 peeled chopped onion

1 cabbage, outer leaves removed

250 grams sliced mushrooms

4 hard-boiled eggs, sliced.

25 grams butter

Olive oil

Thyme, fresh or dried.

Seasonings to taste

Directions

Defrost pastry and roll out to form a large rectangle Fry onions in olive oil until soft Chop or shred cabbage and add to frying pan with thyme and black pepper. Cook until cabbage is wilted.

Remove from pan, add more oil and fry the mushrooms until soft.

Spread the cream cheese across half the pastry (this will form the base) Slice the eggs and lay over the cream cheese. Sprinkle with pepper and thyme. Top with cabbage mixture and then mushrooms.

Fold the top of the pastry over the base, pinch the edges together and cut some slashes in the top for the steam to escape, plus a small hole right at the highest point Cook until golden.

Take from oven and melt the butter – pour it into the hole in the top of the pie and leave to stand for a few minutes so the butter sinks through all the layers.

Slice and serve.