It’s time… It’s Roast week here at Big Barn

Us Brits are happy to have a roast whatever the weather and at any time of year; it’s a brilliant meal to bring the family together for and it’s the perfect excuse to ban the phones, tablets and the TV for an hour to eat great food and catch up.

‘Roasts’ should never mean that non-meat eaters amongst us don’t feel too left out either. A great roast should have plenty of veg and a caring host can easily make a separate veggie stock gravy.

While the supermarket shelves are stacked with imported meat joints at lower prices, it’s often very tempting to opt for these, but while it’s cheaper, what you’re buying has lower animal welfare standards and we really can’t tell what kind of life the animal has had and how much weight has been added by pumping water in to the meat. That’s not the case if you shop locally and pay a visit to your local butcher. There you can ask about the meat you buy, whether it’s grass fed beef, free range chicken or lamb, or even slow growing rare breeds for extra flavour.

Sunday lunch for the family

If you’re lucky enough to grown your own veg, the humble roast is a great way to use up your bounty from the garden. Now’s the time to consume your Cabbage and Leek crops and they’re perfect by themselves or in a cauliflower bake. If you want something different, try roasted squash to partner your golden roast potatoes. They’re brilliant with left over peppers and a beef or lamb joint. Just halve and stuff them with some tomatoes and a touch of basil pesto, bake for 30min at 200c and you have a perfect accompaniment to a rich joint with some mashed potatoes.

You need look no further than our local food map for producers and retailers offering everything from delicious British meat, to condiment companies making the tastiest mint sauce and mustards.

And, whatever your meat preference – lamb smothered with mint sauce, or pork with a dollop of apple sauce and a chunk of crackling, you’ll find the best meat for sale on the BigBarn marketplace.

If you have a favourite roast dinner recipe, why not share it with us? For the chance to win a prize, please video your recipe and add it to KIS (Keep it Simple) Cookery. Please have a look at existing videos here and try and keep your video less than 2 minutes long.