tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16085479728321916182024-03-14T05:23:56.273+00:00Lower Buckton Country HouseFood journeys from plot to plate............Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14817865167834734557noreply@blogger.comBlogger35125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1608547972832191618.post-17385977621841050212014-04-22T18:31:00.003+01:002014-04-22T18:36:07.270+01:00Official AGA Approved Home Ambassador<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My AGA dates from 1949!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The beastly Falcon Dominator - now gone!</td></tr>
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Once upon a time I was a very happy girl with my very own beloved AGA which I'd owned for about 10 years. She dates from 1949 and was completely restored, renovated and converted to run on oil just before I bought her. It was love at first sight. For years we've been inseparable. Day in day out, month in month out she's my constant. None of this nonsense of turning off the heat for "the summer months" - for me an AGA is for life not just for winter! The beastly commercial Falcon Dominator gas range on the other side of my kitchen became redundant from word go and was never lit again! It has spent the last ten years with a marble slab laid across its top and worked as a useful pastry board! <br />
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Wanting to do more with my AGA I teamed up with the AGA Home Business gang from the AGA Rangemaster Group and learned more about this iconic brand I've now formed a relationship with AGA to become an official AGA Approved Home Ambassador. In order to be up to date with the latest the company has to offer I realised I had to get with the modern age! Enter my iTotal Control! Here's Shawn from AGA doing a site inspection and measuring up before installation. In the meantime, out goes Falcon and after a bit of wiring the space is ready for the new girl to arrive. Note the AGA biscuit tin awaiting its new friend!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Shawn from AGA, measuring up.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It's official! I'm an AGA Ambassador</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Biscuits</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Plenty of space for an AGA</td></tr>
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Early one morning the yard is filled with the official AGA van and a whopping big lorry carrying its cargo of iron and the latest electronic gadgetry. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Early one morning…..</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My first glimpse….</td></tr>
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Here's my first sight of the iconic logo as the installation team cased the joint!</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Easy does it…..!</td></tr>
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After a bit of man-handling, off she came down the steps and into my kitchen.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Three men at work</td></tr>
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Three men at work, piping, wiring and drilling.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">All done…...</td></tr>
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Here's Barry admiring his handiwork</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Boiling point!</td></tr>
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The first and quickest thing I could think to cook was a pot of potatoes for supper!</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Delicious cheesy souffles</td></tr>
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However, later in the evening I produced a tray of soufflés to celebrate with a bottle of fizz to wash them down.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Simnel cake...</td></tr>
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Easter's just passed and here's my Simnel cake sitting next to matching AGA cake tins.</div>
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This is my AGA iTotal Control which I can operate manually, with a remote control (just like a TV!), via a text from my iPhone and using the App. Total control from anywhere in the World! Apart from the chef Marco Pierre White, I think I'm the only person in the country (World, even, maybe) who has not one but two AGAs in a kitchen!! Spoilt or what?!</div>
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Fancy a cup of tea? The boiling plate is hot for the kettle in about 12 minutes from cold. Make a cake? Just switch on the baking oven and it'll heat to temperature while you'll finding and mixing the ingredients. </div>
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If you'd like to know more about living and cooking with the latest electric AGA - do get in touch and arrange to come for a Cook Dem. </div>
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I've joined Vanessa Kimbell's campaign to change our attitude to buying flowers. To me it's just a short step from "going local, seasonal and British" for food to flowers. I've long had a big problem with those bunches of "garage flowers" seen on fuel station fore-courts which are often bought as last-ditch guilt-presents for un-suspecting hostesses or long-suffering wives and girlfriends! I've long detested those big, blousey bouquets of stinky lillies which "puff" out their over-powering scents. Even worse when they're proudly displayed in restaurants, wafting over the food! Imported, long-stemmed roses on Valentine's Day are guaranteed to turn me off! Out of season flowers, flown half-way round the world to appear in our houses at Christmas are simply one big No! No! to me. <br />
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What I love is to follow our seasons for natural, UK/home-grown flowers. Searching the bare garden for the first sight of January snow-drops. That splash of yellow from the winter aconite. The keen anticipation of the first daffodils is, to me, as exciting as the first shoots of the new season's rhubarb. Spring flowers represent the freshness of the new year and the scent of blue-bells in a damp wood is to me a wonder of the world! A bowl of old English roses, shedding petals over polished wood and posies of summer wild flowers rammed into jam jars are more delightful than any over-done floral display of unnaturally-forced imported upstarts! By following the flower season there will always be interest for your vases and you can set your calendar by it!<br />
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I bought this gorgeous bunch of tulips from my local butcher in Leintwardine and they were grown on a local farm. I just could not resist them. Please show your support for home-grown UK flowers by joining Vanessa's challenge. Click here! <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #515151; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;"><a href="http://writingacookerybook.blogspot.co.uk/">British Bloggers in Support of British Flowers Challenge</a></span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14817865167834734557noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1608547972832191618.post-80633854765629129712012-03-12T17:01:00.000+00:002012-03-12T17:01:30.658+00:00Sprouts. Love them or hate them!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9e_oSzF0ZLE/T14q4hwbdXI/AAAAAAAAAVM/EmHeYrp-Zgs/s1600/IMG_2170.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9e_oSzF0ZLE/T14q4hwbdXI/AAAAAAAAAVM/EmHeYrp-Zgs/s400/IMG_2170.JPG" width="300" /></a>Sprouts may not be only for Christmas however they do make a good, edible door wreath! </div>
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14817865167834734557noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1608547972832191618.post-9533977022879127262012-01-17T19:39:00.000+00:002012-01-17T19:39:57.375+00:00Tomatoes in January<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-tbZn5D_ojx0/TxXNtgZxkkI/AAAAAAAAATA/8y9EwjYaWnY/s1600/IMG_2314.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-tbZn5D_ojx0/TxXNtgZxkkI/AAAAAAAAATA/8y9EwjYaWnY/s320/IMG_2314.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>The other night our on-site weather station recorded -5 and yet we're still gathering tomatoes from our un-heated greenhouse. All these salad leaves and greens are growing in the ground outside and a ladybird visited my kitchen yesterday! Salad days are here again!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14817865167834734557noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1608547972832191618.post-86254144898872914702011-03-30T20:00:00.000+01:002011-03-30T20:00:31.814+01:00Spring at Lower Buckton<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-FPdxbn_HrGw/TZN14AigXfI/AAAAAAAAASM/Ymjs62HBv8M/s1600/IMG_0297.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-FPdxbn_HrGw/TZN14AigXfI/AAAAAAAAASM/Ymjs62HBv8M/s200/IMG_0297.JPG" width="150" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Salad Burnet</td></tr>
</tbody></table><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-nNlwSGsKD90/TZNzfmj4b5I/AAAAAAAAASI/subnOW1zrRI/s1600/IMG_0005.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-nNlwSGsKD90/TZNzfmj4b5I/AAAAAAAAASI/subnOW1zrRI/s200/IMG_0005.JPG" width="150" /></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-dxCY-OB2LUg/TZNy1aW0E2I/AAAAAAAAASE/NlMwlSVNL0w/s1600/IMG_0248.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-dxCY-OB2LUg/TZNy1aW0E2I/AAAAAAAAASE/NlMwlSVNL0w/s200/IMG_0248.JPG" width="150" /></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-dxCY-OB2LUg/TZNy1aW0E2I/AAAAAAAAASE/NlMwlSVNL0w/s1600/IMG_0248.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">For me the changing of the clocks herald spring no matter the weather. To enjoy these lengthening days is nature's tonic for the winter-weary! As I write, the sunny evening shadows are passing over the Wigmore Rolls and there's a busy buzz in the air of birds, insects and animals astir. My window ledges are cluttered with Henry's seedlings being given a "warm start" before he relegates them to the un-heated greenhouse and then to the garden. I was pleased to see the back of "pheasant for dinner" half-way through February. Delicious as pheasant is, it belongs "in season", redolent of chilly winter evenings. We've had plenty of roots and I've made the last of the winter hoard of parsnips into soup, said goodbye to the leeks and the new season's are already sown. Looks like we've lost the Rosemary to acute frost damage. A huge bush, it took a hammering in 2009/10 and I was amazed it recovered but this winter's relentless frost and snow appears to have taken its toll. However not all is lost and we're picking the lemony sorrel, frilly fronds of fennel, peppery rocket, salad burnet, spiky chives, red chicory, lovage, land cress, sage and marjoram which are just left to get on with life and have come through the winter completely unscathed. Then of course there's all the truly wild stuff coming through such as nettle tops and ramsons (wild garlic). I feel a lot more soup on the way!</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hIEKZ4S3CxU/TZN2zlvepvI/AAAAAAAAASQ/5OXvf94K4IU/s1600/IMG_0247.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hIEKZ4S3CxU/TZN2zlvepvI/AAAAAAAAASQ/5OXvf94K4IU/s200/IMG_0247.JPG" width="150" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Daffs out for St David's Day!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14817865167834734557noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1608547972832191618.post-73693324196872396972010-07-19T00:48:00.001+01:002011-01-19T00:19:36.155+00:00HEREFORDSHIRE FOOD CHAMPION 2010<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #666666; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font-weight: bold;"></span><br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Thank you all who nominated me. I was extremely pleased to be shortlisted for the award!</span></span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"><br />
</span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">Please, please would you be kind enough to nominate me as a "Herefordshire Food Champion" in the up and coming Flavours of Herefordshire Awards 2010? As you may know that I've won the Flavours of Herefordshire "Best Breakfast" for three years on the trot and am giving that one a break this year. But the Herefordshire Food Champion award is a new category for this year and I'd love to be considered.</span></span></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black; font-family: Arial, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; font-weight: normal;">Your vote along with a few words to sum up what you feel is my ethos and approach to serving, promoting and supporting local Herefordshire food and food producers would be much appreciated.</span></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black; font-family: Arial, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; font-weight: normal;">Apparently, the HEREFORDSHIRE FOOD CHAMPION is based on the number of votes from the public! If you would like to nominate me please send your entry including the following details:</span></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black; font-family: Arial, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; font-weight: normal;">The following bullet points are the criteria on which I'd be judged and I have made a few notes besides each.............</span></span></div><ol><li style="list-style-image: url(http://www.justrachel.com/assets/images/main_list_bullet.gif); margin-bottom: 3px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"><b>Length of service to Herefordshire Food and Drink?</b> - I opened Lower Buckton Country House in 2000 when I made a conscious decision that my food and drink served would be sourced from Herefordshire and from within a twelve mile radius of Lower Buckton. Everything either home-produced, grown reared, baked stirred & cooked at Lower Buckton or locally sought, bought and caught from small-scale, micro-businesses and farmers' markets which is all served in season.</span></span></span></span></li>
<li style="list-style-image: url(http://www.justrachel.com/assets/images/main_list_bullet.gif); margin-bottom: 3px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px;">Depth and breadth of knowledge of food produced in the county? Describe how aware the nominated champion is of the food produced in the county: </span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black; font-family: Arial, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight: normal;"> My depth of knowledge is demonstrated by the amount of food and drink which is sourced from small-scale micro producers in the county and my utter commitment to supporting local businesses and the rural economy. I have a working knowledge of all the county's food/drink producers and the ability to impart my passion to all who're interested enough to listen!</span></li>
<li style="list-style-image: url(http://www.justrachel.com/assets/images/main_list_bullet.gif); margin-bottom: 3px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"><b>Charisma and enthusiam of the individual? Describe the nominated champion's enthusiasm for the county - do they do anything special? </b>Well, I'll leave you to comment on that but I hope that my enthusiasm is reflected in the passion I have for our local seasonal food in the county and that I believe that our food has a history, provenance and story to tell from plot to plate. The fact that I can tell our guests not just the name of the person who makes the cheese but can show you the fields in which the cows grazed that produced the milk and the name of the farmer who milked the cows and so and so on. The women who make our apple juice collect the apples from friends' non-sprayed, private orchards and press them at their small-holding about eight miles away; we think their juice sublime. All our meat is either our own home-produced free-range pork or from Doug Griffiths' Butchers in Leintwardine who has the only remaining slaughterhouse for many, many, many miles at the rear of his traditional shop. A true Food Hero indeed! These are sort of food producers who interest me. The small, the struggling, the ones who battle against all the odds. The farmers who've diversified, who've learned a new art in order earn "value added" from their product. The ones who've not been afraid of change but have remained principled and true to their roots in agriculture but developed to meet a more discerning and enlightened market.</span></span></span></span></li>
<li style="list-style-image: url(http://www.justrachel.com/assets/images/main_list_bullet.gif); margin-bottom: 3px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"><b>How they promote Herefordshire in their work to the county, the UK and the rest of the world? </b> My Cookery Courses and Food Safaris are specifically devised to promote our local food and drink and to inspire participants through taste adventures exploring Herefordshire's food and drink rich culture and heritage. The Cook Days evolve around whatever local, seasonal food is available at the time from which we're inspired to create spontaneous dishes. My Food Safaris are magical mystery tours and regularly visit a cross-section of food and drink producers across the county. Over the years I've made various TV and radio appearances: from a networked radio station in USA to prime-time TV in the UK all promoting Herefordshire produce. The most recent was being featured on BBC R4 Traveller's Tree in May of this year when the reporter followed one of my Food Safaris. I'm a founder member and committee member of Slow Food Herefordshire which organises various food-related events through the county. I've twice represented Slow Food at the Salone del Gusto in Turin. First as one of 30 cooks/chefs representing the UK at Terra Madre2006 and secondly as the Herefordshire representative at Terra Madre2008</span></span></span></span></li>
<li style="list-style-image: url(http://www.justrachel.com/assets/images/main_list_bullet.gif); margin-bottom: 3px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"><b>FOOD FESTIVAL</b> I regularly give cookery demonstrations at local shows and food festivals but the reality of my passion for local produce in Herefordshire is "my own" Mortimer Country Food Fair which I co-organise with a neighbouring business(Aardvark Books). We started the fair as a show-case to specifically highlight our local businesses within our community and to bring them together for a day to promote our own special corner of north Herefordshire. This fair has grown in size and takes place every year in Brampton Bryan. It is living proof of my commitment to promoting our local businesses and therefore supporting our local community.</span></span></span></span></li>
<li style="list-style-image: url(http://www.justrachel.com/assets/images/main_list_bullet.gif); margin-bottom: 3px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black; font-family: Arial, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; font-weight: normal;">I'm constantly promoting Herefordshire food and drink through my websites, blog, Twitter and Facebook</span></span></li>
<li style="list-style-image: url(http://www.justrachel.com/assets/images/main_list_bullet.gif); margin-bottom: 3px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black; font-family: Arial, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; font-weight: normal;">http://www.lowerbuckton.co.uk</span></span></li>
<li style="list-style-image: url(http://www.justrachel.com/assets/images/main_list_bullet.gif); margin-bottom: 3px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black; font-family: Arial, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; font-weight: normal;">http://www.foodtourism.co.uk</span></span></li>
<li style="list-style-image: url(http://www.justrachel.com/assets/images/main_list_bullet.gif); margin-bottom: 3px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black; font-family: Arial, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; font-weight: normal;">http://www.mortimerfoodfair.co.uk</span></span></li>
<li style="list-style-image: url(http://www.justrachel.com/assets/images/main_list_bullet.gif); margin-bottom: 3px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black; font-family: Arial, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; font-weight: normal;">http://lowerbuckton.blogspot.com</span></span></li>
<li style="list-style-image: url(http://www.justrachel.com/assets/images/main_list_bullet.gif); margin-bottom: 3px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black; font-family: Arial, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; font-weight: normal;">http://twitter.com/agaqueen</span></span></li>
</ol><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: red;">BUT MOST OF ALL, I ENJOY SERVING MY BED AND BREAKFAST GUESTS "HEREFORDSHIRE ON A PLATE"..........</span></span></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black; font-family: Arial, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight: normal;">Please, please send your nomination details to:</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">Food Champion at Flavours of Herefordshire 2010, Visit Herefordshire, PO Box 4, Plough Lane, Hereford HR4 0XH</span></span></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/TEOMbBCWdVI/AAAAAAAAARc/O39X5kFZIRc/s1600/creative_cooking.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/TEOMbBCWdVI/AAAAAAAAARc/O39X5kFZIRc/s320/creative_cooking.gif" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black; font-family: Arial, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; font-weight: normal;">or email it to jlewis2@herefordshire.gov.uk</span></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">Don't forget to include my name and address, so that they know who you are nominating!</span></span></span></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: red;">Carolyn Chesshire, Lower Buckton Country House, near Leintwardine, Herefordshire SY7 OJU</span></span></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: red; font-family: Arial, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; font-weight: normal;">Please hurry because entries have to be in by Sunday 1 August which really means by Friday 30 July, I suppose!</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: red; font-family: Arial, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; font-weight: normal;"><br />
</span></span></div><div apple-content-edited="true"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; border-collapse: separate; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; border-collapse: separate; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><div style="-webkit-line-break: after-white-space; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; word-wrap: break-word;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; border-collapse: separate; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; border-collapse: separate; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><div style="-webkit-line-break: after-white-space; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; word-wrap: break-word;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; border-collapse: separate; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; border-collapse: separate; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><div style="-webkit-line-break: after-white-space; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; word-wrap: break-word;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; border-collapse: separate; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; border-collapse: separate; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><div style="-webkit-line-break: after-white-space; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; word-wrap: break-word;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; border-collapse: separate; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; border-collapse: separate; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><div style="-webkit-line-break: after-white-space; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; word-wrap: break-word;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; border-collapse: separate; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; border-collapse: separate; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><div style="-webkit-line-break: after-white-space; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; word-wrap: break-word;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; border-collapse: separate; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; border-collapse: separate; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><div style="-webkit-line-break: after-white-space; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; word-wrap: break-word;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; border-collapse: separate; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; border-collapse: separate; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><div style="-webkit-line-break: after-white-space; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; word-wrap: break-word;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; border-collapse: separate; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; border-collapse: separate; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><div style="-webkit-line-break: after-white-space; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; word-wrap: break-word;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; border-collapse: separate; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; border-collapse: separate; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><div style="-webkit-line-break: after-white-space; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; word-wrap: break-word;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; border-collapse: separate; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; border-collapse: separate; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><div style="-webkit-line-break: after-white-space; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; word-wrap: break-word;"></div></span></div></span></div></span></div></span></div></span></div></span></div></span></div></span></div></span></div></span></div></span></div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14817865167834734557noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1608547972832191618.post-88759192660674499082010-05-11T17:05:00.001+01:002010-05-11T17:06:29.388+01:00Sausage Making for BBC R4 Traveller's Tree broadcast on Monday 10 May 2010<object height="344" style="background-image: url(http://i1.ytimg.com/vi/hEmq7xAl_WU/hqdefault.jpg);" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/hEmq7xAl_WU&hl=en_US&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/hEmq7xAl_WU&hl=en_US&fs=1" width="425" height="344" allowscriptaccess="never" allowfullscreen="true" wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash"></embed></object>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14817865167834734557noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1608547972832191618.post-80399633295939454542010-04-05T22:36:00.002+01:002010-04-05T22:46:08.651+01:00EASTER MONDAY TREATSI'm slowly winding down from a very busy Easter weekend and there's still much hilarity issuing from the dining room. Henry's managing to eat something while all the guests are onto coffee and water-mint infusions. (It is nearly 11.00 pm so I let him eat....!)<br />
<br />
Full-house for dinner plus a refugee from the Shepherd's Hut (which was extremely cosy with its wood-stove puffing away earlier) so we did Lower Buckton Pork. Always a winner!<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/S7pTmCn6LAI/AAAAAAAAARE/zehpvm3Dqpc/s1600/P1010001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/S7pTmCn6LAI/AAAAAAAAARE/zehpvm3Dqpc/s200/P1010001.JPG" width="150" /></a></div>A week or so ago I won a basket of fruit in a raffle. It was full of the sort of unseasonal stuff which I do<br />
n't usually buy like hard, bullet-like unnaturally-looking black plums and under-ripe avocados. Anyway, by tonight the avocados had, at last, softened so, as I abhor waste of any kind and the avocados didn't ask to end up unwanted and unloved in my kitchen I set about "doing something with them". I thought they'd probably be pretty discoloured when cut open and even if not, did I have a lemon to squeeze over them to stop the rot? No! Oh well, ............ Henry had already brought in from the garden some French sorrel and Welsh onions so I thought, sorrel, that's a bit "lemony", that will do! A quick mash of the avocados (and amazingly they weren't discoloured at all), mix in the finely chopped sorrel and snipped chives, a grind of pepper, sprinkle of salt plus a slug of lemon-infused rapeseed oil <a href="http://www.justoil.co.uk/">www.justoil.co.uk</a> saved the day! Spread over some toasted soda-bread, it was delicious............<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/S7pWoZDYVkI/AAAAAAAAARM/IEbMOeCtu0o/s1600/P1010004.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/S7pWoZDYVkI/AAAAAAAAARM/IEbMOeCtu0o/s200/P1010004.JPG" width="150" /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"></span></a></div><div style="text-align: auto;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/S7pXDinWhnI/AAAAAAAAARU/4qTJ4UKNAJI/s1600/P1010006.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"></span></a><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/S7pXDinWhnI/AAAAAAAAARU/4qTJ4UKNAJI/s1600/P1010006.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" height="150" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/S7pXDinWhnI/AAAAAAAAARU/4qTJ4UKNAJI/s200/P1010006.JPG" width="200" /></a>Pudding was off the cuff........ I had a basin of tangy blackcurrant syrup-juice from last season's crop and had a sudden urge to make some grown-up jelly. I have a collection of over fifty antique molds which cry out to be used. So I chose a classic "sand-castle" type with turrets and things and made the jelly with a good glug of Herefordshire Cassis <a href="http://www.britishcassis.co.uk/">www.britishcassis.co.uk</a> from Jo Hilditch and it turned out a real treat especially after the battlements were plastered with whipped Mawley Farm double cream. Eat your hearts out, Bompas & Parr! (Oh and there was more chocolate as well........!)</div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14817865167834734557noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1608547972832191618.post-62383950214454496522010-04-04T16:49:00.003+01:002010-04-04T22:40:38.812+01:00HAPPY EASTER! MUTTON BAKED in HAY<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/S7imVsiM5LI/AAAAAAAAAP8/ZHLLG80_l6s/s1600/P1010005.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/S7imVsiM5LI/AAAAAAAAAP8/ZHLLG80_l6s/s320/P1010005.JPG" /></a></div><br />
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">For this year's Easter Sunday Feast I've decided to bake some mutton in hay. I'm writing this post in "real time", having just returned from gathering some ransoms (wild garlic) from my secret place beside a babbling brook. It's a gorgeous afternoon and I also tramped down to a hidden piece of water and sat on a log for a few minutes watching wild-fowl: swan, mallard, coot, moorhen, heron plus some unidentified (by me) wading birds.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">The ransoms are smothering the vegetation on either side of the little stream, still young with leaves no more than about five inches and no sign of any flowers yet. I scrabbled and slipped in the leaf mold on the banks of the stream, enjoying the dappled sun-light filtering through the bare hazel branches above. Delighted to find a flowering primrose peaking through and a sweet patch of violets.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/S7iv4_1YQFI/AAAAAAAAAQE/LVS3t0xZNBE/s1600/P1010006.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/S7iv4_1YQFI/AAAAAAAAAQE/LVS3t0xZNBE/s320/P1010006.JPG" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">After filling my trug I returned home along a country lane which passes this delightful little church at Pipe Aston with its very special, early tympanum <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial; font-size: 13px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16px;">over the door. I then travelled on in the hope of find the Jersey girls out at grass enjoying the afternoon sunshine. They're some of the organic herd which supplies milk and cream for The Dairyhouse's delicious, organic yoghurts I serve at breakfast. Anyway, there they were, chewing cuds and giving me curious looks as a sneaked some photographs of them. However I'm such a rubbish photographer and the results are way too poor to publish here! So I'll just have to catch them another day.</span></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/S7ixTT35CtI/AAAAAAAAAQM/zraGn-LW8NA/s1600/P1010015.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/S7ixTT35CtI/AAAAAAAAAQM/zraGn-LW8NA/s320/P1010015.JPG" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Stopping on Burrington Bridge afforded me a lovely view of the meadering river Teme plus a few ewes with lambs at foot. Well, it is Easter and I am preparing to eat one of their relatives! Goodness! From this photograph you can't even see any but I can assure you they are there,,,, some where!</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Now, on with the mutton story........</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">I've been out the garden and gathered some woody herbs: sage, thyme, rosemary, marjoram and bay. Henry's brought in some sweet meadow hay from the centre of a fresh bale. Jasper and Ayesha not too impressed at our commandeering their winter forage, but hey ho!</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/S7iyn3WcUCI/AAAAAAAAAQU/_K_nwBdgdzk/s1600/P1010017.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/S7iyn3WcUCI/AAAAAAAAAQU/_K_nwBdgdzk/s320/P1010017.JPG" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Here are all the ingredients laid out ready to go............</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Note the Easter eggs with hen-cup, just to set the scene!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/S7iza8-dJHI/AAAAAAAAAQc/WG1n8bKXIGY/s1600/P1010019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/S7iza8-dJHI/AAAAAAAAAQc/WG1n8bKXIGY/s200/P1010019.JPG" width="150" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">A rough chop of the ransoms then bash it altogether with some softening, local farmhouse butter, Welsh sea-salt and black pepper before slathering it all over the mutton.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">Below is the mutton nesting on the hay before being covered with more hay, having some Herefordshire cider poured around it, getting covered with foil, a tin lid and going in the AGA for "as long as it takes". Long and slow I think...........</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/S7iz8bJu2fI/AAAAAAAAAQk/LbMf_qoFBTc/s1600/P1010020.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/S7iz8bJu2fI/AAAAAAAAAQk/LbMf_qoFBTc/s320/P1010020.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Shall catch up with this blog later. In the meantime I've a date with an Easter cake and a nice cup of tea!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/S7kA1yZvQcI/AAAAAAAAAQs/j7mg8nAhzdQ/s1600/P1010003.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/S7kA1yZvQcI/AAAAAAAAAQs/j7mg8nAhzdQ/s200/P1010003.JPG" width="200" /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">Mutton baked in hay with wild garlic, part two!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I gave the guests a plate of oat biscuits topped with beetroot and chicken liver pate which I'd made yesterday. I love beetroot and had pureed some with coriander and seasonings then added it to a basic chicken liver and garlic mixture before blitzing the lot together. Ate some yesterday but by tonight the flavours had really developed well. Will certainly be doing that again!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/S7kDKgNwI0I/AAAAAAAAAQ0/eGSNUPqyRX0/s1600/P1010004.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/S7kDKgNwI0I/AAAAAAAAAQ0/eGSNUPqyRX0/s200/P1010004.JPG" width="200" /></a>Decided to whizz up a quick soup from the some water-mint, lemony French sorrel, Welsh onions and chives Henry had brought up from the garden this afternoon. What a combo! Threw in a pack of frozen peas, simmered then blended.........through the mouli. Shan't be doing that again in a hurry. Now I know why someone had donated the thing to a charity shop. Next time, get out the Magimix and never mind the washing up! Took a huge pot-ful through and served it with a basket of freshly made soda-bread - they all had seconds and some thirds!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/S7kFY2itCJI/AAAAAAAAAQ8/tVBiSpiL4bU/s1600/P1010005.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/S7kFY2itCJI/AAAAAAAAAQ8/tVBiSpiL4bU/s320/P1010005.JPG" /></a>After languishing in the Aga on a long slow cook the mutton beast was removed, unwrapped from its nest of hay and placed on a platter to rest. I strained off the juices (which have a wonderful, grassy smell!) through the hay, threw in some chopped ransoms with a slug of cream and gave it good bubbling for a few minutes while Henry carved the meat in the dining room. Fluffy roast potatoes, steamed purple sprouting and braised celeriac, carrot, parsnip with fennel fronds brought up the rear. The mutton was SO sweet and meltingly tender and plates were licked!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">With a pudding of apple and pear crumble and some meringues with lashings of cream followed by a round of The Ludlow Food Centre's "Cheese with no Name" with more homemade oat biscuits I think the only non-UK ingredient used was black pepper. Absolutely everything else was either sourced/grown by us at Lower Buckton or was grown/produced within a ten mile radius of where we live. True local, seasonal food with love.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14817865167834734557noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1608547972832191618.post-59851548090329117952010-03-15T18:58:00.001+00:002010-03-16T00:24:25.293+00:00My pro-Aga rant on The Guardian's "Word of Mouth"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #0000ee; text-decoration: underline;"><br />
</span></div><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Earlier today, Oliver Thring wrote </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia; line-height: 20px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">something for Word of Mouth at The Guardian about Agas and all that's wrong with them. <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black; font-family: Times; line-height: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia; line-height: 20px;"><a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/wordofmouth/2010/mar/15/aga-cooking">http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/wordofmouth/2010/mar/15/aga-cooking</a> </span></span></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia; line-height: 20px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black; font-family: Times; line-height: normal;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"></div></span></span></span><br />
<div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia; line-height: 20px;">I was pretty incensed so quickly knocked-up the following as a "reply" in the comments section below his article.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia; line-height: 20px;">So read on.......</span></div><div><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 15.0pt; margin-bottom: 10.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">My Guardian AGA rant</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 15.0pt; margin-bottom: 10.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">What twaddle! You don't need one of those silly tennis racquet thingys to make Aga toast!<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 15.0pt; margin-bottom: 10.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/S57PcGLDNJI/AAAAAAAAAPI/EjSj8dsVJls/s1600-h/DSC01680.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"></span></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/S57PcGLDNJI/AAAAAAAAAPI/EjSj8dsVJls/s1600-h/DSC01680.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/S57PcGLDNJI/AAAAAAAAAPI/EjSj8dsVJls/s320/DSC01680.JPG" style="cursor: move;" /></a></div><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">I run a busy bed & breakfast business and since installing my Aga I've turned off three radiators, don't use an electric kettle, toaster, bread maker, microwave or use other heat source for drying clothes. I'm very capable of cooking souffles, stir-fries and charring the best steaks on a griddle to perfect "blueness". Anything can "grilled" in the oven from comforting cheese on toast to rosy-pink lamb cutlets. The crackling from our own home-reared pork is the stuff of (culinary) dreams and amazing Yorkshire puddings are perfectly possible! There is nothing it can't cook. It's ready to go all the time and can turn out a five course dinner for 25 in two hours. Anytime! Oh and I rarely do stews! A properly running Aga does NOT take ages to heat up & doesn't cool down at the drop of a hat. Breakfasts are the best!<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 15.0pt; margin-bottom: 10.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">My Aga is like the Olympic flame: it never goes out. On its six-monthly service days I leave home, allowing my husband to tinker with its bits & I won't return until it's up to speed again! Sadly (luckily for me!) any hot summers we may have never permeate my kitchen enough to consider turning it off. Anyway it's my work-horse from which I earn my living. I also run Cook Days & Demonstrations from around my Aga specialising in cooking with local seasonal food from small-scale artisan producers.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 15.0pt; margin-bottom: 10.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">There are no cooking smells, grease, condensation and steaming up to contend with. It's clean, cosy and comforting.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 15.0pt; margin-bottom: 10.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">Never mind the stereotypical reasons for Aga ownership to dry boots & dogs, hatch eggs & keep tiddly lambs alive and just be a glorified meringue-maker! The Aga is truly my necessity and is absolutely not an extension some ego-centric-country-dwelling dream! (Although I do dry boots, make meringues and live in the country!).<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 15.0pt; margin-bottom: 10.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">I'm sitting beside it right now, laptop on knees, tea on the side and scones in oven, waiting for guests to arrive......<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;">Come and experience my Aga in action! Stay at </span><span lang="EN-US"><a href="http://www.lowerbuckton.co.uk/"><span style="color: #1d5786; font-family: Arial; text-decoration: none;">http://www.lowerbuckton.co.uk</span></a></span><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial;"> or follow me on </span><span lang="EN-US"><a href="http://www.twitter.com/agaqueen"><span style="color: #1d5786; font-family: Arial; text-decoration: none;">http://www.twitter.com/agaqueen</span></a></span><o:p></o:p></div></div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14817865167834734557noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1608547972832191618.post-6995231980842178742010-03-11T19:03:00.002+00:002010-03-11T19:06:31.700+00:00Brock Hall Farm's Brockette goats' cheese with new-season's Worcestershire rhubarb & Seville orange relish.Sarah at Brock Hall Farm near Ludlow rears and keeps a dairy-herd of goats and makes the most delicious, fresh-tasting cheeses. Brockette is her latest addition and I think it makes a creamy partner to this zingy rhubarb sauce.<br />
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Serves two as a shared dish for light starter with some crusty bread<br />
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1 whole Brockette<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/S5k9klx0ByI/AAAAAAAAAOc/C11DZX7B6sI/s1600-h/P1010003.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/S5k9klx0ByI/AAAAAAAAAOc/C11DZX7B6sI/s320/P1010003.JPG" /></a></div>for the relish..........<br />
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">3 cups diced rhubarb (rinsed)</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span lang="EN-US"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">¾ cup sugar</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span lang="EN-US"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">1 Seville orange, zested & juiced</span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span lang="EN-US"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">quarter tsp chili flakes</span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span lang="EN-US"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">1 tsp grated fresh ginger</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span lang="EN-US"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">1 small onion, minced</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span lang="EN-US"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">(extra liquid)</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span lang="EN-US"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Place all relish ingredients in a medium saucepan. Slowly, bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer, stirring every so often, for about 10 minutes or until mixture thickens. Add more juice/water as required. Cool and serve alongside the cheese</span></span></o:p></span></div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14817865167834734557noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1608547972832191618.post-53417845099140350232010-03-02T17:48:00.001+00:002010-03-02T17:58:40.561+00:00Fried smoked salmon skin"Fried smoked salmon skin" doesn't sound like the most appetizing description for my next recipe! You can hardly call it a recipe either: it's so simple and the best way to use up something that would in all probability be thrown away. That's just pure waste. So the next time you have a side of skin-on smoked salmon, here's what to do with it after you've enjoyed the flesh.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/S41N_38JZBI/AAAAAAAAAOE/UrPIGbGbU3c/s1600-h/P1010016.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/S41N_38JZBI/AAAAAAAAAOE/UrPIGbGbU3c/s320/P1010016.JPG" width="320" /></a>I get all my smoked salmon from The Organic Smokehouse which is just up the road from me at Clunbury Hall about seven miles away. Michael and Debbie <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial; font-size: 13px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16px;">Leviseur have recently been awarded a Royal Warrant from HRH Prince of Wales and when I went there the other week their (huge) plaque had just arrived and they were lunching at the House of Lords! All very grand. However, they truly deserve it, their salmon is delicious and they smoke all sorts of other products including butter, cheese and salt. So now you know!</span></span><br />
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Cut the salmon skin into strips, heat a heavy-based frying pan with a little olive oil and toss in a few strips at a time and fry until crisp and puffed. Tip out onto absorbent paper and do the rest. Easy! Just serve on a platter with maybe a wedge of lemon, although I don't think they need it and they certainly don't need salt. Eat alongside a glass of champagne as an appetiser before dinner or just anytime to you damn well like!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/S41PUP5XWSI/AAAAAAAAAOU/UI9PgBlbSeE/s1600-h/P1010017.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/S41PUP5XWSI/AAAAAAAAAOU/UI9PgBlbSeE/s320/P1010017.JPG" /></a></div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14817865167834734557noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1608547972832191618.post-17877128458649926172010-02-13T18:02:00.000+00:002010-02-13T18:06:29.515+00:00St Valentine's Day Chocolate Pots<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #424037; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px; line-height: 21px;"></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #424037; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px; line-height: 21px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Seriously perfect chocolate pots to make for St Valentine's Day</div></span><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/S3bo54DPjwI/AAAAAAAAAN8/_UbLL99OA-w/s1600-h/P1010184.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/S3bo54DPjwI/AAAAAAAAAN8/_UbLL99OA-w/s320/P1010184.JPG" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">4oz/125g the best quality/organic 70%+ dark chocolate you can buy</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">1 large, organic egg yolk</div></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">1/4 pint/150mls organic double cream</div><div style="margin-bottom: 18px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 18px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Have six espresso cups lined up ready........</div><div style="margin-bottom: 18px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 18px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Put the egg yolk into a mixing bowl with a pouring lip and fork lightly</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Break up the chocolate smallish into pieces and lay them on a flexible board or sheet of paper</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Heat the cream in a small saucepan to just boiling point and immediately pour over the cream egg yolk, beating with a wire-whisk then quickly throw in the chocolate pieces and beat/stir until melted and smooth. Add a small slug of alcohol (brandy or fruit liqueur) if you want to but I like the pure unadulterated version.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 18px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 18px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Pour evenly into the pots - scraping every last drop with a silicon spatula. Chill for a couple of hours in the fridge. They also freeze excellently so I always make a batch when I've yolks to use up after cooking meringues! Always remove from fridge about half an hour before serving - way too cold straight from the fridge!</div><div style="margin-bottom: 18px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 18px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">The very first time I made these pots I honestly thought that the amount would be too little for six servings so I doubled it up and poured it into six ramekins. Absolutely no one, not even the hardiest of chocoholics could finish a whole pot so my greed won the better of me and I lost! Since then I've always used espresso cups and tiny glasses until I found these cute, heart-shaped cups which seem just perfect.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 18px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 18px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">In this photograph I've served them with blobs of home-made mint and vanilla ice-cream for a change!</div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14817865167834734557noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1608547972832191618.post-62053521918579167322009-12-04T00:04:00.000+00:002009-12-04T00:04:26.233+00:00A True Taste of HerefordshireA few days ago our free-range, rare breed Berkshire pigs went off for slaughter. Not always a sad day even though they've been part of the family for quite sometime. We keep just a couple on average twice a year and "Built like hippos, behave like thugs" is a suitable description for Berkshires; these two were no exception. We give them no names, just numbers and I've lost count without consulting the paper-work, which is extensive; I think they must have been about P19 & P20. But who cares! Once you've been knocked off your feet for the umpteenth time whilst distributing tasty windfalls, parsnip tops and other vegetable garden trimmings for their delicatation, Pig Day down at AH Griffiths of Leintwardine can't come soon enough! Seriously though, Doug Griffiths' slaughter house is five minutes' away and we are SO lucky to have it. At present it's the only one of its kind in Herefordshire/Shropshire: traditional butchers' shop at the front (complete with displays of flesh & fowl on marble slab in the window) and slaughterhouse in the rear premises complete with rules and regulations to make the most compliant weep. For some good old country humour mixed with black comedy and a good smattering of political incorrectness, venture if you dare, to the cutting-room with your carcass instructions carefully prepared..........!<br />
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</div>Today was Sausage Making Day and so for my demonstration/hands-on Cook Day I decided to make my own-recipe Pork with Perry, Little Herefordshire cheese and fresh herb sausages.<br />
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Firstly we gathered together a good lump of Monkland Dairy's unpasturised Little Hereford cheese, a bottle of Dunkertons' goodly organic Perry, some of our own pears, onions, garlic and fresh, green herbs from the garden. All sausages require a little "rusk". This is not just a padding and excuse to get away with using less meat. It really does help to bind the mixture and absorb the fat thus making for a better texture and taste. I like to make my own and today used a mixture of organic, UK grown porridge oats which I ground in the Magimix and some crumbs made from a good sourdough loaf from the Ludlow Food Centre.<br />
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After chopping, grating and mincing all the flavourings I added them to the coarsely chopped meat which was taken from the hands of pork and then poured over a good slug of Perry after which, the only thing to do is to get down and dirty, mixing with your hands to get everything amalgamated.<br />
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We then passed all of the mixture through the sausage-making machine on a coarse-mince setting<br />
to get the consistency right..........<br />
At this point it's a good idea to sample some of the mixture just to check you like it! So we passed some through the machine in "sausage mode" but without using the skins and frizzled it up and ate it with some toasted sour dough bread for a late breakfast. Add seasoning adjustments now:- some Halen Mon salt and the only imported ingredient: black pepper.......<br />
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</div>After rewarding ourselves with a pot of Lavazza coffee and some homemade biscuits, sausage-making proper can begin.<br />
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</div>The runners have to be prepared by unravelling them into little individual mounds of skins and then each one has to be sluiced through with cold running water to wash them out and lubricate them to ease the filling process. <br />
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At last sausage-making proper can begin!<br />
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It's always exciting when the first run is completed....<br />
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There's a definite art to looping-up the links.....<br />
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.......and the old kitchen stool has many uses!<br />
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......... They do say that the proof of the pudding is in the eating. However all that we cooked at the end of labours were eaten so fast and the rest were destined either for today's Cook Day participants to take home with them or for my own freezer, all I had left to photograph were a couple of "rejects" which Henry and I had for supper!<br />
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Oh well, here's to remembering P19 & P20!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14817865167834734557noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1608547972832191618.post-41305460753624868432009-11-13T11:55:00.000+00:002009-11-13T22:53:06.743+00:00BBC Radio 4 "Lives in a Landscape" broadcast Friday 13 November 2009<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/Sv1FRBan-FI/AAAAAAAAAL0/4WcZFkmS2lU/s1600-h/P1010008.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/Sv1FRBan-FI/AAAAAAAAAL0/4WcZFkmS2lU/s320/P1010008.JPG" /></a>As I write this I'm listening to BBC R4's "Lives in a Landscape". Listening to local people from my nearest shopping/market town, Knighton, just seven miles up the road across the Welsh border into the old county of Radnorshire, now known as Powys. Knighton has a split personality: the river Teme runs through and the town to the south bank is in Wales and the town to the north bank is in Shropshire, England. But that's not the only way the town is split. I'm listening to people, many of whom I know, talking about the proposed windfarm planned for Stonewall Hill which is just to the south east of the town. I'm listening to the people of Knighton who're bound together in this ancient market town yet opinions are split and views divided about the wind turbines which threaten to dominate this most beautiful wild place with its panoramic views for miles; sparsely populated with outlying farms and cottages along this ancient border between England and Wales. I ride up there. Through its old green lanes, mediaeval roads and sunken bridlepaths. It's home to red kites, buzzards and ravens..... and sheep. This photograph shows Knighton in the valley and we're riding through a mediaeval road which is the proposed access road for vast construction lorries and subsequent service vehicles. This road leads to a spider's web of ancient foot paths and bridlepaths across Stonewall Hill and if the planners and the rich landowner get their way these will be lost to all for the future. <br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">For a </span></span><span style="font-family: Verdana; line-height: 18px;"><span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">A </span></span><strong><u><span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: medium;">MUST</span></span></span></u></strong><span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> read, the "</span></span><strong><span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Wind Farm Scam" </span></span></span></strong><span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">by Dr John Etherington - this book literally blows the wind industry away.</span></span><a href="http://www.swindlefarms.com/"><span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">www.swindlefarms.com</span></span></a> <span style="font-family: Times; line-height: normal;"> </span></span><br />
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Stay for bed and breakfast here at Lower Buckton <a href="http://www.lowerbuckton.co.uk/">www.lowerbuckton.co.uk</a> and we'll introduce you to this unique "Life in a Landscape"Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14817865167834734557noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1608547972832191618.post-36847228578374968542009-11-12T21:39:00.000+00:002009-11-12T23:28:30.655+00:00LOCAL TO LUDLOW MARKET<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/Svx3dfUBvMI/AAAAAAAAAK8/vXnkwjJd7ok/s1600-h/P1010001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/Svx3dfUBvMI/AAAAAAAAAK8/vXnkwjJd7ok/s320/P1010001.JPG" /></a><br />
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<span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: medium;">On my way to Ludlow this morning I called in at my local butcher, Doug Griffiths of Leintwardine to order 56 lbs of his "pet mince" with which to feed my pride of Ginger Cats and all the local felines who've discovered this source of fresh meat without the bother of hanging around a rat hole for hours on end. Opposite his shop is a strip of raised grass verge with some old tree-stump remains, beside which was a carpet of funghi. I took this photograph in the hope of meeting someone who'd tell me if I should pick and eat........</span><br />
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</span></span><span style="color: black;">Ludlow today was holding the bi-monthly local farmers' market which is so called, "The Local To Ludlow Market". Self-explanatory, really. I love this time of year with the cross-over from autumn to winter and always make a bee-line for the vegetable and fruit stalls, of which there are few. My first port of call is often the first I see or as, of today, I smell.</span></a><br />
</div>The scents of the quinces waft through the narrow lanes leading to the market square, luring me siren-like to unmistakable smell of ripening frui<span id="goog_1258054128406"></span><span id="goog_1258054128407"></span><a href="http://www.blogger.com/"></a>t. How I love these misshapen golden orbs which will transform a humble apple pie, create a glorious autumn tart and render into jewel-like jellies to serve with winter game and cheese.....These quince are from Old Sandlin Fruit Farm near Malvern, stalwarts of the Ludlow Market and from whom you can buy apples and pears almost until the next season's is ready<br />
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SvxyVA-ViPI/AAAAAAAAAKs/fMQFIOSz2RI/s1600-h/P1010001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SvxyVA-ViPI/AAAAAAAAAKs/fMQFIOSz2RI/s320/P1010001.JPG" /> </a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SvxyVA-ViPI/AAAAAAAAAKs/fMQFIOSz2RI/s1600-h/P1010001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; display: inline !important; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: black;"></span></a>Bearing in mind I'm running a Non-meat Cooking Day this Saturday I was on the look out for fresh vegetables other than those Henry will give me from Lower Buckton's garden. I struck gold at "Roots at Rushwick", organic farmers with a passion for their craft. I quickly filled my basket with bunches of beetroot still with their stalks and leaves attached (more of those later), bundles of Tuscan black cabbage & Russian spinach plus some pack choi. After chatting away with Will for sometime he eventually offered me his "under the table" special. These were certainly not on show! Imagine my delight on being offered bags of cannellini beans still in the pod. <a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SvxyVA-ViPI/AAAAAAAAAKs/fMQFIOSz2RI/s1600-h/P1010001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; display: inline !important; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: black;">Part of the pleasure of visiting your local farmers' market is strolling around, meeting and chatting with friends, showing them your purchases and sharing the delights of what you've bought and from whom. Luckily, when I bumped into my friend Lesley Mackley and found her coveting my cannellini, there were some left for her to buy. We were lucky indeed because Will had brought them in for my fellow Terra Madre cook Clive, down at the Green Cafe on Dinham's Millenium Green. Clive has a fab daytime cafe which serves simple food, beautifully prepared and cooked with style and panache. It's good news for we in and around Ludlow that his first evening opening is tomorrow and his second will be for a Slow Food Terra Madre event on Thursday 10 December.s</span></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SvxyVA-ViPI/AAAAAAAAAKs/fMQFIOSz2RI/s1600-h/P1010001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; display: inline !important; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: black;">Some Staffordshire oatcakes from fellow Twitterer @Fareground caught my eye. Shall use them on Saturday and fill them with a delicious vegetable and green salad mixture....... although I liked the sound of his bacon/cheese suggestions......</span></a><br />
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</div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SvxyVA-ViPI/AAAAAAAAAKs/fMQFIOSz2RI/s1600-h/P1010001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; display: inline !important; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: black;">I also bought a fresh, young round of Welsh goats' cheese, some Gilly flowers which I may get round to planting in the old trough by the entrance to Lower Buckton plus a huge bag of fresh walnuts from Augernik Farm which is just outside of Ludlow. Shall make a parsley paste using these and some of Lightwood's Little Urn cheese which I bought at Mark's Mouse Trap shop in Church Street. Pictured above is Mark in his shop thinking of a £number£ to write on my account!</span></a><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/Svx28T0GOOI/AAAAAAAAAK0/K-zjaLLOfng/s1600-h/P1010005.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/Svx28T0GOOI/AAAAAAAAAK0/K-zjaLLOfng/s320/P1010005.JPG" width="320" /><span style="color: black;"></span></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SvxyVA-ViPI/AAAAAAAAAKs/fMQFIOSz2RI/s1600-h/P1010001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; display: inline !important; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: black;">I paid a visit to the Tickmore Farm girls to order more of their delicious, home-pressed apple juice. Ruth and Judith specialise in pressing apples collected from traditional, unsprayed local orchards. Their small-holding is just south of Ludlow on Brimfield Common where they make wonderful hay and keep sheep. </span></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SvxyVA-ViPI/AAAAAAAAAKs/fMQFIOSz2RI/s1600-h/P1010001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; display: inline !important; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: black;">As for the funghi photographed above....... the delightful Guy from Romy cuisine, on being shown the picture on my camera pronounced them "Not for eating. Non!"!</span></a><br />
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</div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SvxyVA-ViPI/AAAAAAAAAKs/fMQFIOSz2RI/s1600-h/P1010001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; display: inline !important; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: black;">Down to Clive's to pay for Terra Madre dinner tickets and I couldn't resist staying for some lunch and a chat....... Delicious leek and rosemary soup with homemade soda bread. His lively cafe is beside the River Teme in a restored mill building on the site of the old swimming pool. Obviously the mill-site is heaps older than the pool-site but I do have loads of memories of sunny days spent splashing about in the pool and scrabbling about on the river bank beside the mill-race and weir netting water-creatures into jam-jars tied with string as carrying handles.</span></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SvxyVA-ViPI/AAAAAAAAAKs/fMQFIOSz2RI/s1600-h/P1010001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; display: inline !important; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: black;"><br />
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</div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14817865167834734557noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1608547972832191618.post-28667926681158519922009-11-05T20:40:00.000+00:002009-11-06T00:03:12.875+00:00Guy Fawkes Night Country Beef Stew<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SvMqOMF_9_I/AAAAAAAAAIY/B-YkGJaW4mU/s1600-h/P1010017.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SvMqOMF_9_I/AAAAAAAAAIY/B-YkGJaW4mU/s200/P1010017.JPG" /></a><br />
</div>Tonight I wanted something really warming and to feed some German guests who're staying here. Had to be totally "English style", seasonal and of course completely locally grown. So, you can't get nearer than our garden and the Leintwardine village butcher......this is how I started.........<br />
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Three pounds of Mr Doug Griffiths' prime beef stewing steak, especially selected by the ever-obliging Gordon (known by me as GallopingGordon).<br />
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Three onions from Henry's stash in the shed - he really must grow more next season.<br />
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A clove of garlic, from same stash - he really is a hoarder!<br />
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Couple of tbs of Bacheldre Mill flour<br />
Tsp of Coleman's English mustard<br />
Grind of black pepper corns<br />
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Pinch of Halen Mon salt - only tad, because will be adding pickled walnuts later and they can be a little on the salty-side.......<br />
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</div>Ensure the beef is "dry" (press in a clean tea-towel if necessary) then mix the flour, mustard & pepper on a flat dish. Heat some oil, (I like to use Shropshire Rape-seed Oil) in a heavy-bottomed frying pan and add a knob of English butter. Roll chunks of beef in the flour mix and place in the hot fat enough to cover pan base. Quickly brown on all sides using tongs to turn. The butter helps to caramelise and brown the meat. Transfer the pieces to oven-proof stew-pot as you go along. Add a little more oil/butter as needed to sizzle-brown all the meat.<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SvMxLyr7XBI/AAAAAAAAAIw/yU1xXihHFZk/s1600-h/P1010021.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; color: black; text-decoration: underline;"></span></a><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SvMyogyh65I/AAAAAAAAAJA/M4qKWSDDDhw/s1600-h/P1010022.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SvMyogyh65I/AAAAAAAAAJA/M4qKWSDDDhw/s320/P1010022.JPG" /> </a>Peel and dice the onions, add more oil/butter to frying pan and cook till softened and slightly coloured. Bash the garlic on a board with the back of a chopping knive, remove the skin and crush then add to onions and cook together for a minute. Scrape all into the meat in the stew-pot then pour some liquid into the frying pan and bubble up, scraping all the meat residue in the pan. (I used apple juice from the Ludlow Vineyard) Pour into the stew pot then top up to just about cover the meat with some cider. The one here is a new to me, found it at the Herefordshire Food Festival and is call Orgasmic Cider. (Just hope it works for both of us!) Add some bay leaves (these are from the tree in garden of our holiday cottage in Ludlow), chopped sage leaves and some fennel seeds - these are all from our garden. Bring everything up to a simmer, stirring all the time then put in oven for a couple of hours. Bring out, check that the meat is becoming tender and add some quatered pickled walnuts............ Bring back up to the simmer and put back in a low oven for a minimun of another 30 minutes. Remove from oven and check for seasoning, you may need to add salt if preferred........<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SvMxLyr7XBI/AAAAAAAAAIw/yU1xXihHFZk/s1600-h/P1010021.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: black; text-decoration: underline;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Here it is, straight out of the oven served with a dish of Lower Buckton leeks in cheese sauce and a bowl of the creamiest, buttery mashed organic potatoes you'll find! The leeks' sauce is made with Ludlow Food Centre's new blue cheese, Mawley Town Farm milk and Netherend English organic butter. Bliss!<br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The Germans loved it all............<br />
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</span></a>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14817865167834734557noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1608547972832191618.post-70332782343816475952009-11-01T20:40:00.000+00:002009-11-10T22:04:42.210+00:00Halloween Night Stuffed Pumpkin<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/Svnecs5yEmI/AAAAAAAAAKc/JZMB5GvMPvI/s1600-h/P1010034.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/Svnecs5yEmI/AAAAAAAAAKc/JZMB5GvMPvI/s320/P1010034.JPG" /></a><br />
</div>We had a house party of people staying over the weekend of Halloween which happened to fall on the Saturday. I took them all hunting during the day and wanted a simple, tasty dinner to prepare and cook for when we all returned, weary and tired in the afternoon. I'd previously bought a couple of pounds of quality stewing beef and minced it myself. I like to do it this way so that I'm in total control of what goes into my mince.......! Then I peeled and chopped a couple of onions and softened them in butter/oil mix in a large, cast-iron cooking pot, adding a couple of crushed garlic cloves as well. For the fiery spiceyness I tore up a last year's dried red chilli and pounded it together in a pestle with some freshly grated ginger and some fresh coriander seeds gathered from the garden. Gave it all good bashing and add to the onions then add the meat, turn up the heat and brown it all, grinding in some black pepper too. When beef all browned, I threw in a large spoonful of flour, cooked that into the mix for a couple of minutes before adding a pound of chopped-up soft tomatoes from the greenhouse. Cook it all up to a simmer adding water or stock until bubbling as you like it. Add a good handful of chopped flat mushrooms and some green herbs from garden. Put on lid and cook for sometime until all thick and amalgamated. Taste for seasoning and add salt as required.<br />
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Meanwhile slice "lid" off chosen pumpkin and scoop out the seeds. Place in pan and spoon in the mince mix. Replace lid and secure with wooden cocktails sticks if necessary. Cover with sheet of silver foil and bake in a low oven for "hours"! Check for tenderness of pumpkin flesh as you go along.<br />
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To serve make a large batch of blue cheese sauce, I used the Ludlow Food Centre's new Ludlow Blue. A big batch of garlic bread and crisp green salad is just perfect!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14817865167834734557noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1608547972832191618.post-84464377489191021942009-10-08T23:23:00.000+01:002009-10-09T01:09:11.188+01:00Brock Hall Goats' Cheese Delish-Dish<div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">Brock Hall Goats' Cheese Delish-Dish</span></span>: perfect as a starter for four or supper dish for two....This recipe was devised from fresh ingredients from my "fridge & field" this evening. I love the taste of this tangy, fresh soft goats' cheese from Shropshire-based Brock Hall Farm and the excuse to use Dairy House's creme fraiche is never one to be missed. Combined with the lemony/citrus taste of fresh sorrel and the subtle green fennel from a fresh head of seeds, this simple recipe is delicious served straight from the pan or left to cool and serve at room temperature. While I was picking the sorrel I found some salad leaves, rocket & peppery mizuna, coriander sprigs & flowers, a few cherry tomatoes & basil leaves and the nasturtium flowers, leaves & dill flowers all gathered together to create an attractive salad.<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/Ss5ob1UNOfI/AAAAAAAAAHY/Tb_XvwZV9_U/s1600-h/P1010038.JPG"><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/Ss5ob1UNOfI/AAAAAAAAAHY/Tb_XvwZV9_U/s200/P1010038.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5390360631386651122" style="float: left; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px; " /></a></div><div>Gather your raw ingredients together: </div><div>2 largish shallots</div><div>1 clove of garlic</div><div>1 oz/25 g Netherend organic farmhouse butter</div><div>splash of Shropshire Oils rapeseed oil</div><div>six largish leaves of sorrel with their stalks</div><div>2 organic free-range eggs</div><div>2 oz/50 g Brock Hall Farm soft, goats' cheese</div><div>2 oz/50g Dairy House creme fraiche</div><div>splash of non-homogenised/GM Mawley Town Farm milk</div><div>green fennel seeds</div><div>pinch of Halen Mon sea salt</div><div>grind of Malaysian black pepper</div><div><br /></div><div>Melt the butter with a splash of oil in a 8"/20 cm shallow frying pan. </div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/Ss5r-gdh5PI/AAAAAAAAAHg/ksEOK_piWgo/s1600-h/P1010040.JPG"><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/Ss5r-gdh5PI/AAAAAAAAAHg/ksEOK_piWgo/s200/P1010040.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5390364525618914546" style="float: left; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; cursor: pointer; width: 150px; height: 200px; " /></a><div>Add the shallots and soften in the butter. Crush the garlic and add to the onions after a couple of minutes. Remove the stems from the sorrel leaves and cut into 1/2"/1cm lengths and add to the onions continue to stir until all are softened.</div><div>Sprinkle in the green fennel seeds at the end of the softening process.</div><div><br /></div><div>Crack the eggs into a roomy mixing bowl then add the creme fraiche and the soft goats' cheese. <br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/Ss5uL2vFUDI/AAAAAAAAAHo/uOZOZgfnfAU/s1600-h/P1010041.JPG"><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/Ss5uL2vFUDI/AAAAAAAAAHo/uOZOZgfnfAU/s200/P1010041.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5390366953959673906" style="float: left; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; cursor: pointer; width: 150px; height: 200px; " /></a><div>Beat with a balloon whisk, adding a little milk if the mixture is too thick. Season with salt & pepper.</div><div>Shred the sorrel leaves and fold into the egg mixture along with with softened onion mixture from the frying pan. </div><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/Ss5u_M4UbKI/AAAAAAAAAHw/FXgFI4wGqeY/s1600-h/P1010044.JPG"><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/Ss5u_M4UbKI/AAAAAAAAAHw/FXgFI4wGqeY/s200/P1010044.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5390367836077321378" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px; " /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div>Wipe the frying pan with some kitchen roll, smear the pan with a little butter/oil and heat. When the pan is hot pour in the complete mixture, swirl across the base of the pan and level with a spatula. Cook for a few minutes until the underside is brown and the mixture is shrinking away from the sides a little. </div></div><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/Ss5wt66ZTDI/AAAAAAAAAH4/y4Oy17Sewx4/s1600-h/P1010045.JPG" style="text-decoration: none;"><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/Ss5wt66ZTDI/AAAAAAAAAH4/y4Oy17Sewx4/s200/P1010045.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5390369738219670578" style="text-align: justify;text-decoration: underline; display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px; " /></a></div><div style="text-align: right;"><div style="text-align: left;">Transfer to under a hot grill or to a pre-heated oven and continue cooking until the top has set and browned a little. It should be soft & springy. Run a palette knife around the inside edge of the pan to loosen then invert a flat plate over the top, carefully turn over and out. Serve with freshly picked salad leaves and a honey/ginger dressing.</div></div><div style="text-align: right;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); text-decoration: underline;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); "><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/Ss5xhMXiqLI/AAAAAAAAAIA/P_xcNq9aZZ4/s1600-h/P1010046.JPG"><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/Ss5xhMXiqLI/AAAAAAAAAIA/P_xcNq9aZZ4/s200/P1010046.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5390370619078650034" style="text-align: left;display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px; " /></a></span></span></div><div style="text-align: right;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="text-decoration: underline;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); text-decoration: underline; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); "><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/Ss5ySeGDQFI/AAAAAAAAAII/Slox5RnIRx8/s1600-h/P1010049.JPG"><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/Ss5ySeGDQFI/AAAAAAAAAII/Slox5RnIRx8/s200/P1010049.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5390371465650716754" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px; " /></a><div style="text-align: center; ">GOOD, CLEAN, HONEST & FAIR are the watch words of the International Slow Food movement and ones which I also like to follow. Anyone who knows me knows that I love to use ingredients that are as local to me as possible and of course only those that are grown, produced and made by small-scale independents hence all the "name-dropping" in my recipes. Even the black pepper corns are from a Slow Food producer in Sarawak, Malasia! Obviously substitutes can be made and a recipe is just a guideline - do as you will or wish!</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div></span></span></span></div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14817865167834734557noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1608547972832191618.post-88485177130278824342009-09-19T00:23:00.000+01:002009-09-19T00:28:58.734+01:00Our free-range, rare-breed pedigree Berkshires...<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SrQW8HkmVCI/AAAAAAAAAHI/T9KpzIHq58U/s1600-h/P1010008.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SrQW8HkmVCI/AAAAAAAAAHI/T9KpzIHq58U/s200/P1010008.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5382952676695102498" /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium; font-family: arial;">Our Berkshires have generous neighbours who bring them their cabbage-white-caterpillar decimated cauliflours. (That was a bit of a mouthful!)</span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14817865167834734557noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1608547972832191618.post-26086321831670440872009-09-15T17:38:00.000+01:002009-09-18T23:17:34.561+01:00DEMMING AT WORCESTER FEAST - Friday 4 September 2009<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SrQEelhVbpI/AAAAAAAAAF4/3c4PwwVHWnA/s1600-h/P1010009.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SrQEelhVbpI/AAAAAAAAAF4/3c4PwwVHWnA/s200/P1010009.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5382932378129100434" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SrQEG_fncVI/AAAAAAAAAFw/yvRT5YX9Crw/s1600-h/P1010008.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SrQEG_fncVI/AAAAAAAAAFw/yvRT5YX9Crw/s200/P1010008.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5382931972784353618" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SrQDZbI6ipI/AAAAAAAAAFo/WGKDvKoDv78/s1600-h/P1010007.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SrQDZbI6ipI/AAAAAAAAAFo/WGKDvKoDv78/s200/P1010007.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5382931189931346578" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SrQDAbc51MI/AAAAAAAAAFg/IM2w5haD9T0/s1600-h/P1010006.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SrQDAbc51MI/AAAAAAAAAFg/IM2w5haD9T0/s200/P1010006.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5382930760518456514" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SrQCTQZGOuI/AAAAAAAAAFY/e8owvDZio3w/s1600-h/P1010005.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SrQCTQZGOuI/AAAAAAAAAFY/e8owvDZio3w/s200/P1010005.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5382929984455588578" /></a><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Heart of England Fine Foods invited me to dem at the first ever<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"> Worcester Food and Drink </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">Festival</span> aptly named <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">Worcester Feast</span> which took place around the Cathedral Close and within the walled gardens of The Commandery just down the road. I had the lunchtime slot on Friday 5 September and was asked to present "Worcestershire on a Plate"............ and took care to choose ingredients available from various stall-holders at the show. I enjoyed catching-up with David McCaw from The Fold Bransford & on conferring all our chosen recipes were similar, seasonal & made from local produce. Which was more than I can say for the other demmers on the day: not sure what prawns, pineapples, corned beef and tinned milk/cream have to do with the food of Worcestershire!</span><div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;font-family:arial;font-size:24px;"><br /></span><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/Sq_JGEHOwrI/AAAAAAAAAFI/LsDE0UBQ_KM/s1600-h/P1010031.JPG"><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/Sq_JGEHOwrI/AAAAAAAAAFI/LsDE0UBQ_KM/s200/P1010031.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5381741185751499442" style="float: left; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px; " /></a><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">BAKED AUBERGINES with FRESH WALNUTS & LITTLE URN CHEESE - very appropriate because this cheese is made just outside of Worcester and was named to commemorate England winning the Ashes in 2005 and of course this has just recently happened again!</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style=""><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">2 Aubergines from Evesham</span></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">rape seed oil - I used some of Just Oils from Staffordshire, who were at the show kindly gave me some to use. Love their smoked and flavoured varieties (I couldn't find a rape seed oil producer which comes from Worcestershire)</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">1 Garlic clove, crushed</span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">1 tbs chopped onion</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">2 Drews' tomatoes, diced</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">1 rape seed oil</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">S&P</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">25 g/1 oz walnuts, chopped</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style=""><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">15g/1 oz breadcrumbs</span></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">50g/2oz little Urn Lightwood, Lower Broadheath, 2005 Ashes</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style=""><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">(pomegranite dressing: pom syrup, plain yog, lemon juice, mint, garlic, oil)</span></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style=""><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(42, 60, 11); font-family:Arial;">Preheat the oven to 200C/440F/Gas 6</span></span></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style=" color: rgb(42, 60, 11); font-family:Arial;"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family:arial;"><span lang="EN-US" style=" color: rgb(42, 60, 11); font-family:Arial;">Slice the aubergines </span><span lang="EN-US" style=" color: rgb(42, 60, 11); font-family:Arial;">lengthways</span></span></span></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style=" color: rgb(42, 60, 11); font-family:Arial;"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">Smear a baking tray with a little oil and lay aubs on it then drizzle with olive oil and salt and pepper. Bake for about 10 minutes until soft</span></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style=" color: rgb(42, 60, 11); font-family:Arial;"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">While cooking, sauté the onions and garlic in oil and add the tomatoes and herbs and cook to soften add the chopped walnuts to the tomato mixture and season well.</span></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style=" color: rgb(42, 60, 11); font-family:Arial;"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">Remove aubs from oven spread the mixture onto the slices and layer up to reform the shaped aubs. Remove carefully to a baking dish with high sides which will just hold the two aubergines. </span></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style=" color: rgb(42, 60, 11); font-family:Arial;"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">Top with the cheese and breadcrumbs mix, drizzle over some more oil and bake in the oven to brown</span></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US" style=" color: rgb(42, 60, 11); font-family:Arial;"><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">Serve with fruity dressing on a crisp green salad - I have some pomegranite syrup brought back from holiday by a friend which is an ideal partnership with aubergines, but at the food festival I saw various piquant, fruit sauces for sale. Experiment by whisking a fruit syrup, lemon juice, oil and plenty of chopped mint ............</span></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;">MUDDY BOOTS FOODS special burgers with green been & mint salad with crème fraiche & chilli jam sauce<br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal">Once again I'm indebted to the lovely Muddy Boots peeps for their generous contribution of some of their delicious Aberdeen Angus beef burgers which sell themselves really and require absolutely no "messing about". Just fry or griddle to rare/medium as you like them - please do not even dream of over-cooking to Hell and back! Then serve them with some salads such as this GREEN BEAN, HERB & MINT ensemble.......</p><p class="MsoNormal">Lightly steam some French beans (leaving them whole). While they're steaming, add to some oil: a clove of garlic crushed with salt, black pepper and a handful of finely chopped green herbs. I used coriander, rocket & lovage, all picked from or garden that morning then finely chop half a handful of fresh mint and add to the rest - aaaaah, that smell! Remove the beans from steamer whilst they'll still "snap" when bent in half (or thirds). Whatever their size, cut/snap them into inch long pieces. Whilst warm, throw them into a bowl and scrape in the oil/herb mixture - toss together and serve with the burgers........</p><p class="MsoNormal">COURGETTE & GINGER HONEYBUNS with CURD CHEESE/HONEY/HAZLENUT topping</p><p class="MsoNormal">these ingredients make 24 buns</p><p class="MsoNormal"><!--StartFragment--> </p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:15.0pt;mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align: none;text-autospace:none"><b><span lang="EN-US" style=" font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-Trebuchet MS"font-family:";"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">250 g trimmed courgettes</span></span></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:15.0pt;mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align: none;text-autospace:none"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial;mso-bidi-Trebuchet MS";mso-bidi-font-weight:boldfont-family:";"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">1 tbs of grated fresh ginger</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:15.0pt;mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align: none;text-autospace:none"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial;mso-bidi-Trebuchet MS";mso-bidi-font-weight:boldfont-family:";"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">2 large eggs</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:15.0pt;mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align: none;text-autospace:none"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial;mso-bidi-Trebuchet MS";mso-bidi-font-weight:boldfont-family:";"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">125 mls rape seed oil</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:15.0pt;mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align: none;text-autospace:none"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial;mso-bidi-Trebuchet MS";mso-bidi-font-weight:boldfont-family:";"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">100g silver spoon granulated sugar</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:15.0pt;mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align: none;text-autospace:none"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial;mso-bidi-Trebuchet MS";mso-bidi-font-weight:boldfont-family:";"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">50g runny honey</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:15.0pt;mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align: none;text-autospace:none"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial;mso-bidi-Trebuchet MS";mso-bidi-font-weight:boldfont-family:";"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">225g s/r flour plus1 tsp baking powder</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:15.0pt;mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align: none;text-autospace:none"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial;mso-bidi-Trebuchet MS";mso-bidi-font-weight:boldfont-family:";"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">cup cake or muffin tins</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:15.0pt;mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align: none;text-autospace:none"><b><span lang="EN-US" style=" font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-Trebuchet MS"font-family:";"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">topping </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:15.0pt;mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align: none;text-autospace:none"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial;mso-bidi-Trebuchet MS";mso-bidi-font-weight:boldfont-family:";"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">200 g cream/curd cheese</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:15.0pt;mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align: none;text-autospace:none"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial;mso-bidi-Trebuchet MS";mso-bidi-font-weight:boldfont-family:";"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">50 g honey</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:15.0pt;mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align: none;text-autospace:none"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial;mso-bidi-Trebuchet MS";mso-bidi-font-weight:boldfont-family:";"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">a little, freshly grated ginger & crushed hazlenuts</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:15.0pt;mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align: none;text-autospace:none"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial;mso-bidi-Trebuchet MS";mso-bidi-font-weight:boldfont-family:";"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Coarsely grate the courgettes with mandolin or in food processor and squeeze out the excess moisture in a clean tea towel</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:15.0pt;mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align: none;text-autospace:none"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial;mso-bidi-Trebuchet MS";mso-bidi-font-weight:boldfont-family:";"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Cream together the oil, eggs & sugar in a bowl and mix in the grated ginger.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:15.0pt;mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align: none;text-autospace:none"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial;mso-bidi-Trebuchet MS";mso-bidi-font-weight:boldfont-family:";"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Sieve in the flour, bp & whisk until mixed then fold in the grated courgettes</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:15.0pt;mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align: none;text-autospace:none"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial;mso-bidi-Trebuchet MS";mso-bidi-font-weight:boldfont-family:";"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Spoon into muffin/cupcake tins and bake until firm to the touch and light brown. 190c/375f/g5 10 – 12 mins</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:15.0pt;mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align: none;text-autospace:none"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Arial;mso-bidi-Trebuchet MS";mso-bidi-font-weight:boldfont-family:";"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Leave to cool a little before turning out and cover with the cream-cheese topping when cold & sprinkle with chopped hazlenuts</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:15.0pt;mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align: none;text-autospace:none"><b><span lang="EN-US" style=" font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-Trebuchet MS"font-family:";"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">For the topping</span></span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family:Arial;mso-bidi-Trebuchet MS"; mso-bidi-font-weight:boldfont-family:";"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Beat 200 g cream cheese with the grated ginger </span><o:p></o:p></span></p> <!--EndFragment--> <p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">Worcestershire Pear Snow - Pears! The emblem of Worcestershire!</span><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><!--StartFragment--> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">Peel and core chosen amount pears.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US"><o:p>Cube and place in saucepan with vanilla pod/s & 1 tbs of honey per pear and cover with perry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>Cook until soft and then puree.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>Then leave to cool completely</o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US"><o:p>Whip one egg white per pear then fold the pear puree into the egg white.</o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal">Spoon into decorative, stemmed glasses and stud with fresh blackberries</p></span></div></div></div></div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14817865167834734557noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1608547972832191618.post-3848460386564363462009-07-12T23:38:00.000+01:002009-09-19T00:21:25.612+01:00Mortimer Country Food Fair - Saturday 11 July 2009<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SrQVX1WzEqI/AAAAAAAAAHA/oVQFSn6HsXU/s1600-h/P1010132.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SrQVX1WzEqI/AAAAAAAAAHA/oVQFSn6HsXU/s200/P1010132.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5382950953818460834" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SrQVXXrMXQI/AAAAAAAAAG4/x7z0Lc340IU/s1600-h/P1010137.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SrQVXXrMXQI/AAAAAAAAAG4/x7z0Lc340IU/s200/P1010137.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5382950945850940674" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SrQVW7UFWVI/AAAAAAAAAGw/ly0fL3P4NDc/s1600-h/P1010133.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SrQVW7UFWVI/AAAAAAAAAGw/ly0fL3P4NDc/s200/P1010133.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5382950938237819218" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SrQVWuqWtpI/AAAAAAAAAGo/gX4YthCYZCI/s1600-h/P1010136.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SrQVWuqWtpI/AAAAAAAAAGo/gX4YthCYZCI/s200/P1010136.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5382950934841570962" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SrQSGN7_SHI/AAAAAAAAAGg/n3ZMWS30n1Y/s1600-h/P1010129.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SrQSGN7_SHI/AAAAAAAAAGg/n3ZMWS30n1Y/s200/P1010129.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5382947352644372594" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SrQRpYGdtsI/AAAAAAAAAGY/bnxCaAMQoM8/s1600-h/P1010127.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SrQRpYGdtsI/AAAAAAAAAGY/bnxCaAMQoM8/s200/P1010127.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5382946857156458178" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SrQRJ-8g2ZI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/bpBNUhwmJt0/s1600-h/P1010128.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SrQRJ-8g2ZI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/bpBNUhwmJt0/s200/P1010128.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5382946317827889554" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SrQPmJzaJkI/AAAAAAAAAGI/59dr9-qsspw/s1600-h/MortimerFoodFair+09.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SrQPmJzaJkI/AAAAAAAAAGI/59dr9-qsspw/s200/MortimerFoodFair+09.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5382944602755573314" /></a><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Our second annual Mortimer Country Food Fair took place at The Bookery in Brampton Bryan and Aardvark Books and I worked really hard to create a successful day show-casing over 30 local businesses specialising in artisan food producers</span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14817865167834734557noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1608547972832191618.post-10979235536723476172009-06-12T11:35:00.000+01:002009-09-15T22:41:29.059+01:00<!--StartFragment--> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><!--[if gte vml 1]><v:shapetype id="_x0000_t75" coordsize="21600,21600" spt="75" preferrelative="t" path="m@4@5l@4@11@9@11@9@5xe" filled="f" stroked="f"> <v:stroke joinstyle="miter"> <v:formulas> <v:f eqn="if lineDrawn pixelLineWidth 0"> <v:f eqn="sum @0 1 0"> <v:f eqn="sum 0 0 @1"> <v:f eqn="prod @2 1 2"> <v:f eqn="prod @3 21600 pixelWidth"> <v:f eqn="prod @3 21600 pixelHeight"> <v:f eqn="sum @0 0 1"> <v:f eqn="prod @6 1 2"> <v:f eqn="prod @7 21600 pixelWidth"> <v:f eqn="sum @8 21600 0"> <v:f eqn="prod @7 21600 pixelHeight"> <v:f eqn="sum @10 21600 0"> </v:formulas> <v:path extrusionok="f" gradientshapeok="t" connecttype="rect"> <o:lock ext="edit" aspectratio="t"> </v:shapetype><v:shape id="_x0000_i1025" type="#_x0000_t75" style="'width:145pt;"> <v:imagedata src="file://localhost/Users/lowerbuckton/Library/Caches/TemporaryItems/msoclip/0/clip_image001.png" title=""> </v:shape><![endif]--><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><img width="147" height="132" src="file:///Users/lowerbuckton/Library/Caches/TemporaryItems/msoclip/0/clip_image002.png" shapes="_x0000_i1025" />APPLE & GINGER MUFFINS</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">4 oz Silver Spoon British golden castor sugar</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">2 oz soft Netherend organic butter</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Spices – ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, mixed spice (a little of what you fancy) Use fresh, grated ginger if available</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">9 oz Bacheldre organic stone-ground unbleached plain flour</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">3 tsp baking powder</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">8 fl oz </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Mawley Town Farm milk</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">4 oz chopped Herefordshire apples</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">1 oz chopped Herefordshire walnuts</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:36.0pt;text-indent:-18.0pt;mso-list:l0 level1 lfo1"><span style=";font-family:Symbol;"><span style="mso-list:Ignore"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">·</span><span style="font:7.0pt "Times New Roman""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"> </span></span></span></span><span style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Cream together the sugar and butter</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:36.0pt;text-indent:-18.0pt;mso-list:l0 level1 lfo1"><span style=";font-family:Symbol;"><span style="mso-list:Ignore"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">·</span><span style="font:7.0pt "Times New Roman""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"> </span></span></span></span><span style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Add the spices</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:36.0pt;text-indent:-18.0pt;mso-list:l0 level1 lfo1"><span style=";font-family:Symbol;"><span style="mso-list:Ignore"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">·</span><span style="font:7.0pt "Times New Roman""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"> </span></span></span></span><span style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Sift the flour with the baking powder together and fold into the sugar/butter a little at a time alternated with the milk.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:36.0pt;text-indent:-18.0pt;mso-list:l0 level1 lfo1"><span style=";font-family:Symbol;"><span style="mso-list:Ignore"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">·</span><span style="font:7.0pt "Times New Roman""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"> </span></span></span></span><span style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Fold in the chopped apples and nuts</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:36.0pt;text-indent:-18.0pt;mso-list:l0 level1 lfo1"><span style=";font-family:Symbol;"><span style="mso-list:Ignore"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">·</span><span style="font:7.0pt "Times New Roman""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"> </span></span></span></span><span style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Spoon into greased muffin tins or paper cases</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><o:p><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"> </span></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Makes 12</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Bake 200c gas 6 for 15 minutes or so. </span><o:p></o:p></span></p> <!--EndFragment-->Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14817865167834734557noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1608547972832191618.post-2989714016368002372009-06-12T10:19:00.001+01:002009-06-12T10:33:06.600+01:00TEME VALLEY HUNT FUN RIDE<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SjIgHF_0III/AAAAAAAAAEU/2teQ9Cafpf0/s1600-h/IMG_0868_2.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SjIgHF_0III/AAAAAAAAAEU/2teQ9Cafpf0/s200/IMG_0868_2.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5346371013883207810" /></a>SUNDAY 14 JUNE 2009<div>BRAMPTON BRYAN PARK, SY7 0DH</div><div>between Knighton (Radnorshire) & Leintwardine, </div><div>just off the A4113</div><div><!--StartFragment--> <p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align:none; text-autospace:none"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:13.0pt;font-family:Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family:Verdana">By kind permission of<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align:none; text-autospace:none"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:13.0pt;font-family:Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family:Verdana">Mr & Mrs Edward Harley & Mr and Mrs Jonathan Coltman Rogers,<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align:none; text-autospace:none"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:13.0pt;font-family:Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family:Verdana">local farmers and land owners<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center;mso-pagination:none; mso-layout-grid-align:none;text-autospace:none"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:13.0pt;font-family:Verdana;mso-bidi-font-family:Verdana"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align:none; text-autospace:none"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:13.0pt;font-family:Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family:Verdana">Approximately 15 mile ride in the glorious, private estates of Brampton Bryan<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align:none; text-autospace:none"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:13.0pt;font-family:Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family:Verdana">and Stanage on the borders of north Herefordshire and Radnorshire-Powys.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align:none; text-autospace:none"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:13.0pt;font-family:Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family:Verdana">Grass rides, tracks and trails through woodland, grassland and upland.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align:none; text-autospace:none"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:13.0pt;font-family:Verdana; mso-bidi-font-family:Verdana">Spectacular scenery and views. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center;mso-pagination:none; mso-layout-grid-align:none;text-autospace:none"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:13.0pt;font-family:Verdana;mso-bidi-font-family:Verdana"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align:none; text-autospace:none"><b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:16.0pt;font-family: Verdana;mso-bidi-font-family:Verdana;color:#E71A11">OPTIONAL JUMPS, SHORTER CHILDREN'S ROUTE, ROSETTES<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align:none; text-autospace:none"><b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:16.0pt;font-family: Verdana;mso-bidi-font-family:Verdana;color:#E71A11">BBQ with LOCAL FOOD, TEAS, COFFEES & HOMEMADE CAKES<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align:none; text-autospace:none"><b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:16.0pt;font-family: Verdana;mso-bidi-font-family:Verdana;color:#E71A11">TRADE STANDS, LOADS OF PARKING, EASY ACCESS FROM A4113<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center;mso-pagination:none; mso-layout-grid-align:none;text-autospace:none"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:13.0pt;font-family:Verdana;mso-bidi-font-family:Verdana"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align:none; text-autospace:none"><b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:13.0pt;font-family: Verdana;mso-bidi-font-family:Verdana">ADULTS £15.00 ~ CHILDREN (Under 14) £7.00<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align:none; text-autospace:none"><b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:13.0pt;font-family: Verdana;mso-bidi-font-family:Verdana">All riders enter at their own risk and hard hats must be worn.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center;mso-pagination:none; mso-layout-grid-align:none;text-autospace:none"><b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:13.0pt;font-family:Verdana;mso-bidi-font-family:Verdana"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="mso-pagination:none;mso-layout-grid-align:none; text-autospace:none"><b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:13.0pt;font-family: Verdana;mso-bidi-font-family:Verdana;color:#817E19">For further information contact 01547 540 532 – 07960 273 865<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:13.0pt;font-family:Verdana;mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria;mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-font-family:Verdana; color:#817E19;mso-ansi-language:EN-US;mso-fareast-language:EN-US">email </span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:Cambria;mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin;mso-fareast-font-family:Cambria;mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;mso-ansi-language:EN-US;mso-fareast-language: EN-US"><a href="mailto:carolyn@lowerbuckton.co.uk"><b><span style="font-size: 13.0pt;font-family:Verdana;mso-bidi-font-family:Verdana">carolyn@lowerbuckton.co.uk</span></b></a></span><b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:13.0pt;font-family:Verdana;mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria;mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-font-family:Verdana; color:#817E19;mso-ansi-language:EN-US;mso-fareast-language:EN-US"> - </span></b><span lang="EN-US" style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:Cambria;mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin;mso-fareast-font-family:Cambria;mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;mso-ansi-language:EN-US;mso-fareast-language: EN-US"><a href="http://www.lowerbuckton.co.uk"><b><span style="font-size:13.0pt; font-family:Verdana;mso-bidi-font-family:Verdana">www.lowerbuckton.co.uk</span></b></a></span><!--EndFragment--> <br /></div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14817865167834734557noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1608547972832191618.post-55777896438758759092009-06-07T17:56:00.000+01:002009-09-15T22:43:33.469+01:00HEREFORDSHIRE SQUIRREL PIE<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SrAKdsvL9PI/AAAAAAAAAFQ/EYkzH9pjMHc/s1600-h/P1010004_2.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 192px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_rWy-5cnYITM/SrAKdsvL9PI/AAAAAAAAAFQ/EYkzH9pjMHc/s200/P1010004_2.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5381813060049302770" /></a><br />Squirrels are back in season down at my local butchers', AH Griffiths of Leintwardine and the following is a tasty recipe for an open squirrel pie in savoury pastry.<div><br /></div><div>Take TWO SQUIRRELS which have been skinned, gutted and cleaned in fresh water. Pop into an oven-proof pot and throw in a small, quartered onion (with skin), a carrot cut into chunks, a bay leaf, some fresh sage, half a dozen peppercorns and a tad of salt. Cover with fresh, cold water put on lid, bring to boil on hot-plate, simmer for a couple of minutes, skim off any scum and simmer gently for about an hour and half either on a hot-plate or in the oven.</div><div><br /></div><div>Meanwhile make the PASTRY: You will need a 6"/7", deep, loose-bottomed cake tin</div><div>8 0z Bacheldre Mill wholemeal flour</div><div>4 oz Netherend farmhouse butter</div><div>1 large garlic clove crushed</div><div>1 tsp chopped fresh thyme</div><div>1 tbs tomato paste, thick tomato sauce or a skinned, de-seeded minced tomato</div><div>water + S&P</div><div><br /></div><div>Sift the flour into a large-ish mixing bowl, tipping in the "wholemeal bits" at the end.</div><div>Melt the butter, garlic, thyme, tomato, black pepper from a mill + pinch of salt in a small saucepan. When liquified, pour over the flour and stir/mix well until it turns 'doughy'. Whilst it's still hot push it with your fingers into the base of the tin and up the sides. Pushing and moulding with your fingers. Try and get it as far up the sides as possible whilst ensuring that the pastry evenly covers the base. Chill it in the fridge until required.........</div><div><br /></div><div>THE FILLING</div><div><br /></div><div>When the squirrels have finished poaching and are cool enough to handle, cut/pick all the flesh from the carcasses and put it in the bowl in which you made the pastry........(retain the poaching liquid for stock)</div><div><br /></div><div>Have the oven heated to 400f/200c/g6 and bake the pastry case for 20 mins or so until golden, remove..........turn down oven low to 325f/170c/g3</div><div><br /></div><div>THE FILLING.........<br /></div><div>2 tbs Shropshire Oils rape-seed oil</div><div>1 onion, chopped</div><div>1 fat garlic clove, crushed</div><div>1/2 lb Lower Buckton Berkshire pork mince</div><div>1/2 lb steamed vegetables, cut into small dice: eg carrot, celery, celeriac, parsnip</div><div>flesh picked from the squirrels</div><div><br /></div><div><div>In a frying pan heat the oil and soften the onion then add the garlic and pork mince, cook/fry to brown the meat then stir in the cooked vegetables, season with a little salt and pepper. Put the whole lot into the bowl with squirrel flesh and mix up.</div><div><br /></div><div>TOPPING<br /></div><div>Warm 1/2 pint whole milk in the saucepan you used for melting the butter.</div><div>Into a bowl, break 2 eggs plus on egg yolk and break-up with a fork. Pour the warmed milk onto the eggs and whisk well with a fork, add a little S&P.</div><div><br /></div><div>Now fill the pastry case with the squirrel/pork mixture then trickle over the milk/eggs mix and place on a baking sheet. Put in oven for half an hour or so........... remove and sprinkle with a cheese/breadcrumb topping made from 4 oz Little Hereford cheese & 2 oz breadcrumbs from a good quality loaf.<br /></div><div>Replace in oven for another 15 minutes or so until golden brown on top.</div><div><br /></div><div>Allow to cool a little before un-clipping the tin and removing the pie. Good hot/warm/cold!</div></div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14817865167834734557noreply@blogger.com0