We all know that dinner parties are secretly about point scoring and very little to do with actually entertaining your guests...

You know the scenario: you do your best Jamie Oliver impression with organic rocket from Borough Market and all that. Your guests return the invite with a soiree at which they fly the truffles AND the chef in from deepest Lyon. Or you put on that latest Hotel Costes CD, only to find your next invite includes a DJ set by Carlos Eesaregud - a resident at Ibiza's Cafe Del Mar.

Some people you just can't compete with, but now there's a guide that helps you shove two fingers up to even the hottest hostess. 'The Edible Garden' has just been launched by French chef Jean Christophe Novelli, and not since the 'Road Kill Cookbook' has your supper come quite so fresh.

So, relax, light a few joss sticks and get your guests reminiscing about days of student travels, nu-austerity chic, and fruit-picking in third world countries. Each Novelli garden is intended to reflect the individual grower's personality - so you won't even have to rifle their drawers and CD collection to find out the host's guilty pleasures - a quick look in the garden should tell you all you need to know.

Who ever thought that parsnips would replace property as dinner party conversation? Of course someone's bound to go one better soon with kitchen reared duck or some such absurdity - so get in there now and score some points.