This is a great time of year for brassica buds. I’m not sure if buds is the correct term. Sprouts maybe? Shoots? For most people this means broccoli, but you can eat the buds from all brassicas. At least, I do.

We picked the brussels sprouts long ago, but I left the plants, and now they’ve just started producing tender shoots. It’s the same with the broccoli. After you pick the main crop the plant will put out another lot of shoots, just smaller.

The buds and flowers from rocket (which is also a brassica) are great in salads. Some varieties seem to overwinter better than others.

Here are some kale buds. We’ll have them for lunch with some pasta.

Kale buds