5 Things to Savour

First of the asparagus at The Swan at Chapel Down

The best food and drink I’ve had this month

1/ Starter of Chargrilled Leeks, Comté Fonuta and Gremolata in the crumbling grandeur of the antique-filled dining room at Brunswick House www.brunswickhouse.co

2/ A cup of Cannoli tea inspired by the classic Sicilian patisserie. Sweet, honeyed rooibos with vanilla, orange, cinnamon and cocoa shells www.dandyliongroup.com

3/ The first flush of Kent Asparagus with morel mousse and truffle dressing by Head Chef Tom Genty at The Swan at Chapel Down www.swanchapeldown.co.uk

4/ Several glasses of English wine-maker Chapel Down’s newly released Kit’s Coty Estate Chardonnay 2013. Apple, apricot and hot, buttered toast, just like a white Burgundy www.chapeldown.co.uk

5/ A mind blowing taste of Butterfly ‘Yka’ leaves. With stunning burgundy and violet colours and striking shape these culinary and decorative leaves are tart and refreshing just like a granny smith apple www.koppertcress.com

 

How to nurture little chefs

Imi. Jenny's nine-year-old daughter and inspiration for Cool Kids Cook. (credit: Eat Pictures)

Cool Kids Cook!

Cooking is one of the most useful, rewarding and fun things children will ever learn to do. Whether they hope to become an astronaut, play international football, breed ferrets or win The X Factor, one things for sure, they will always have to eat.

Cool Kids Cook is a wonderful new book by Jenny Chandler, published today by Pavilion Books. Ideal for children aged 7 upwards, the book empowers kids to put a great meal on the table (with a little help from a grown up) with recipes for noodles, dahls, meatballs and chicken wings not forgetting a few sweet and savoury treats such as banana bread and the really delicious cheese, courgette and sweetcorn muffins.

Jenny is a superstar and such a great writer. She teaches at her own cookery school, Plum Cooking in Bristol and also at Richard Bertinet’s Kitchen in Bath, Leith’s and Borough Market in London. She’s also the author of The Food of Northern Spain; The Real Taste of Spain and Pulse.  Jenny will be giving a talk and demo from Cool Kids Cook at the Cheltenham Food Festival on 11 June.

Coverage highlights included the cover feature in Telegraph Weekend, Crumbs and the Bristol Post.

Cook Kids Cook by Jenny Chandler, Pavilion Books, priced £14.99

Cool Kids Cook in Telegraph Weekend

Tea, chocolate and hot new chef talent

Tea, chocolate and hot new chef talent

There’s been a lot of noise about new London restaurant The Woodford and its ferociously talented Head Chef Ben Murphy whose young age (25!) belies his ambition to succeed and excel at the top of the cheffing industry. He has a huge amount of skill, determination and passion.

A former Young National chef of the Chef winner 2012 and protégé of Pierre Koffman, Eric Frechon and more recently Arnaud Bignon, Ben is classically French trained and has worked in Michelin starred establishments in London, Paris and the South of France.

I was there for a meeting and tea tasting with the lovely Dandylion Teas, a beautiful range of teas which pair specially with pastry, dessert and cheese. So of course we had to sample a few puds alongside the teas. The best was Textures of Chocolate with Lavender and Milk paired with Dandylion’s Coffee Frangipane. The phrase ‘rising star’ is used a lot for young chefs but it is patently obvious that Ben has a stellar future ahead of him and is a talent to watch and admire. Am definitely planning a trip back to The Woodford for the full dining experience.

When networking is five star fun

Onion & potato soup, charred spring onion, truffle

When networking is five star fun

I’ve just had a really fun Saturday evening at Pennyhill Park. Dressed up as toe-curling ‘networking’ evening it was actually a really delicious dinner with a group of like-minded, passionate people in the food industry.

The brainchild of Duncan Garland at Rhubarb Food the evening was a real treat hosted in the private dining room, known as The Chefs Table of the Latymer restaurant during Etch Food’s residency pop up.

The attendees were a wonderful group of people from all walks of foodie life… Daniel Galmiche - former Head Chef at the Michelin starred Vineyard at Stockcross, now consultant and author of Revolutionary French Cooking and French Brasserie Cookbook; Lavinia Davolio, founder and owner of the delicious and beautiful Lavolio Confectionery; Francesca Booth of Dandylion Teas; the bombastic and funny Alison Trerotoli from The Pop-Up Deli sourcing authentic products from Italian nonnas; Lucy Trice, events manager at the magnificent Hedsor House; and Duncan Garland, General Managerfor the Royal Ascot Racing Club for rhubarb Food Designand very talented food photographer. Duncan brought us altogether and is an expert in his field. What he doesn’t know about the little details which make an event special, isn’t worth knowing. He managed to expertly match us all. Perfection.

Marmite bread, seaweed butter

The menu was a tasting menu by Steven Edwards and Josh Stanzl, the talented duo who have created Etch Food. The food was to die for, from start to finish. We started with a potato soup with charred spring onion and truffle with marmite bread and seaweed butter. Steven and Josh are both Sussex lads and enthuse about the produce from the South Downs and coast. Cured and flamed sea trout, picked beetroot, horseradish followed and then a lovely dish of Sussex lamb showing off both rump and shoulder with a beautiful lamb and rosemary sauce. Two puddings arrived, the first a light honey parfait and poached rhubarb, followed by a rich chocolate ganache and Guinness icecream which paired beautifully with the Coffee Frangipane tea from Dandylion Group.

It was such a fun evening and everyone hit it off so well – I know there will be future collaborations from this group!

What do women and water have in common?

What do women and water have in common?

I was so pleased to be invited to an event hosted by water charity FRANK, at Carousel, one of London’s hottest event spaces for chef residencies and pop ups.

On the eve of International Women’s Day 2016, FRANK Water joined forces with Carousel to host some of the UK’s best-known women chefs, speakers, writers and broadcasters to raise and much-needed funds for FRANK Water’s safe water and sanitation programme in India where it is women and girls who are responsible for collecting enough water for their families to drink, cook and wash with. This daily chore is all-consuming. Women often walk up to 5km to collect water, several times a day. They are sometimes at risk from attack and are put under intense pressure in the summer months when the springs dry to a trickle and they MUST find water elsewhere to keep their families from going thirsty. It stops girls from attending school and women from earning a living.

Hosted by Lisa Markwell (ex-editor of Independent on Sunday) and Pinky Lilani CBE DL (Founder of the Women of the Future Awards & the Asian Women of Achievement awards) the event was a grazing style feast with some really amazing cooking talent including Olia Hercules, previously of Ottolenghi and author of critically acclaimed Mamushka; Maria Elia, former head chef at Delfina and author of the Modern Vegetarian; Romy Gill, head chef at Romy’s Kitchen, FRANK Water Ambassador and marathon runner, Paula McIntyre - chef, teacher, Slow Food ambassador and broadcaster and last but not least, James Whetlor from Cabrito, chef, producer and winner of 2014 OFM award for best ethical producer.  Dish after dish rolled out including a beautiful goat version of Kibbeh from James made with finely chopped kid meat, parsley, lemon and sunflower seeds to keep it British; knock-your-socks off Ukrainian buns made with enriched dough and stuffed with slow braised pork, cabbage and paprika and fresh samosas from the Samosa Queen Romy Gill.  It was a great night and hopefully raised lots of money for FRANK Water