The Walled Garden Series: Jake Barwood’s Panzanella

We’re kicking off The Walled Garden Series — our brand-new celebration of seasonal produce and the brilliant chefs we’re lucky enough to work with. Each instalment will highlight what’s growing right now and show you how to turn it into something truly delicious, without faffing about with overly complicated recipes.

First up is Jake Barwood — a classically trained chef with a background in fine dining and private dining. He co-runs Barwood & Schumacher, a London-based catering company, and is passionate about excellence in school meals. Through his work with Chefs In Schools, Jake won Public Sector Chef of the Year in 2022. Between 2023 and 2025, he served as Strategic Lead on the Food Education Mapping Project with the School of Artisan Food, and since 2020 he’s been the lead chef on the Food Museum’s much-loved Thrills and Grills programme.

Jake has a knack for spotting the magic in the simplest of ingredients, then working a bit of alchemy with the chef’s holy trinity — a pinch of good salt, a glug of olive oil, and a splash of vinegar — to make them sing.

For his first Walled Garden Series recipe, Jake’s taking full advantage of what’s coming thick and fast in our greenhouse — juicy cherry tomatoes, fragrant basil — along with courgettes from the walled garden and even a slice of yesterday’s bread from our workshop.

Jake’s Walled Garden Panzanella

Serves 2

Ingredients

• 10 cherry tomatoes

• 1 small courgette

• Olive oil (extra virgin if possible)

• Flaky sea salt

• Balsamic vinegar

• A handful of fresh basil leaves

• 3–4 anchovies in oil

• 1 slice sourdough bread

• ½ small red onion

Method

1. Slice the red onion thinly and pop it in a small bowl. Add a good glug of olive oil, a splash of balsamic vinegar and a small pinch of salt. Mix and let it steep whilst you prep the rest — this helps take the sharpness off the onion and adds a lovely tang.

2. Slice the courgette as finely as you can (a mandoline helps). Toss with olive oil, salt and balsamic vinegar, making sure every slice is coated.

3. Slice the tomatoes into halves or quarters and sprinkle with flaky sea salt.

4. Drizzle olive oil onto a serving plate, swirling the plate to spread the oil along the base.

5. Arrange the tomatoes and courgette slices over the oiled plate.

6. Toast the sourdough until golden, then break into small chunks over the salad.

7. Tear the anchovies into small pieces and scatter them on top along with the marinated onions.

8. Tear over the basil leaves, then give everything a final drizzle of olive oil, a splash of balsamic vinegar and a light sprinkle of flaky salt.

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