There is much excitement abound at the moment. This time next week I will be on the way to the province of Bari in Apulia staying in the town of Pezze Di Grecco at Masseria Montenapoleone. The reason for this trip is a 8 day cooking course on an organic fortified or walled farm. I hope to post some blogs of my attempts at the end of each day if time allows!

My wife of 25+ years is not a fussy eater, but we both share a view (that we have recently proven on numerous occasions), that buying meat from a decent local supplier is both cheaper, and better.  Having tried a range of protein from beef, lamb to chicken and bacon we are really lucky to have found such an excellent supplier in Casey Fields Farm Shop. A trip this weekend after the boss said she fancied something of a treat and the following was the result!


Côte de bœuf

Côte de bœuf for us is THE best cut of meat from the humble cow. A slice of RIB, bone in weighing about 650 Grams is a serious piece of beef, and cooking it right was going to be a challenge. Looking through various books and the trusty (sometimes) Internet there were various methods and timings. We like our beef rare to medium, cooked on the outside, but pink in the middle, so this is what I did.

Switch on your oven and set to 200 Deg C (Ours is a fan oven so would be 220 on gas/electric).

With some butchers string, tie a loop around the longest part of the joint, then, bring the string back round and put a couple of loops over and under. You can see the starting point on the picture above, when the rib is on the top right, with the two loops towards the bottom left.

Heat your frying pain, and add about 125 Grams of unsalted butter, and a good glug of oil (to prevent the butter burning). I fried the Côte de bœuf for two minutes at a high heat (8 on a NEFF Induction Hob). You can see the result below.

Turn the Côte de bœuf over and fry for another 2 minutes. The meat was about 1 1/2 inches thick, and once the frying stage was completed, I added 4-5 sprigs of fresh thyme and the meat then went into the oven for 15 minutes. If you have a double oven, put in a plate and warm to 90 deg, this is used for resting the meat.

After 15 minutes has passed, take out the joint, and put on the warm plate, and into the cooler oven to rest for 10 Minutes. 

Job Done, Côte de bœuf, with a salad garnish.  The result was WoW, not a cheap cut of meat but you don’t need anything to go with it, except maybe some Bearnaise sauce. The meat still pink in the middle, and was really tender due to the resting. When you are told “its the best steak I have ever had”, it made me smile inside 😉

Please go and try to find that local butcher or abattoir and get a real taste of food and at the same time, support the small producers who need that extra bit of help to survive, but bring you the best and usually cheaper produce without the middle man taking an un-necessary cut.

Family and friends that I have shared much time with know I have a couple of addictions (of the food variety!), Sausages and Cheese!

As a child, I would regularly scoff down some cheese and biscuits, usually with a large glass of milk, at ridiculous times of the evening. The taste for sausages developed slightly later in life, if you can get good ones that is, the usual suspects still seem to have horrible casings even though quoted as natural!

Now I am a bit(!) older I have become much more fussy about where I get my favourites. In my own mind, there is only one place to buy sausages, I have been using Gardeners of Ludgershall for over 10 years, its a trip worth taking, they have won over 120 national and international awards for their sausages. For Cheese, Greys of Pangborne offer a quality a range unsurpassed for miles around.

With age I think tastes do develop and get refined, the well known Pickles are OK, but for me, having a go at home made makes things more interesting. 

The heading of this entry is about………………….Chutney!

The word “chutney” is derived from the Sanskrit word caṭnī, meaning to lick. When munching a Gardeners Championship Pork sausage, or Lincoln Poacher cheese from Greys a decent chutney or pickle can make a big difference.

Our well loved organic veg box supplier Riverford promoted a Red Onion and Sultana Chutney kit last week, so I ordered one to have a go.

Chop up loads of red onion, my mandolin did that as quick as a flash (with parental assistance), slowly fry to soften, add some of the sugar and continue, then add the vinegar, garlic spices and cook on a low heat to evaporate most of the moisture.

Mine looked like this after a 1 1/2 hours of slow bubbling, it filled the house with lovely smells. So there you have it, a tasty accompaniment to go with your favourite ham, cheese or sausages.  This made 5 jars which should last a few months (hopefully)!

 If you like good cheese, quality ham or sausages, have a go at making some chutney as it’s really easy and the results are fab.

CRUSTARDES OF FLESSH. XX.VII. XIIII.

One of my lasting childhood memories was the tradition of home baked Chelsea Buns at Easter, so guess its my turn to pass onto the next generation and have a go myself.

Doing some research, it seems in Jane Austin’s time, the Chelsea Bun was a favourite treat and if you were lucky enough to live in London, ‘The Bun House’ was the place to go as they were apparently invented at this fine establishment, with crowds of 1000’s milling outside waiting to purchase some.

Looking for a suitable recipe I turned to The Great British Book of Baking. There are some lovely recipes in this book and particularly one for Chelsea Buns. So where is my Kenwood Chef?

On the cooling rack!

The dough is left to rise once rolled, and layered with the fruit and sugar, after brushing with melted butter to act as a glue. Cut into strips and placed into a suitable baking tray for a second rise and then into the oven for baking.

We’ve just come back from a week in Cyprus, 20 degrees and a quite a lot of sun was just what the doctor ordered. A week’s indulgence in a family orientated all-inclusive holiday was a fantastic experience, re-charging the batteries and vitamin banks on the freshest tomatoes, peppers, Feta cheese, Swordfish and the usual local delights made you feel really good. I’m proud to say I only had 1 full english breakfast during the week.

So back to the UK, and this weeks organic veg box. Being inspired by the fruit trees in Cyprus, and seeing an offer for a “Seville Orange Marmalade” kit I decided to order one, having never made a preserve before and loving the bitter/sweet tang of  this particular variety it was a ‘no brainer’.

The Peel of 1.5kg’s Seville Oranges!

Oranges & 2 Lemons

Almost everything was to hand, except muslin, Google came in and after a few minutes looking at various options, a well known supermarkets baby section provided the desired result, cheaper than a cooking shop and on the shelf!

Following the instructions was dead easy, the smell of Orange filled the house during the 2 hours of simmering needed to soften and cook the peel.

After the simmer

2 Hours of Simmering with all the bits!

Rapid boil to get to a setting point.

Homemade ORGANIC marmalade.

Se rappellent de la France

Winter is the time for wholesome stews, curries and stomach lining food.  A recent food hero of mine is Yotam Ottolenghi, his ability to mix unusual ingredients a get a fantastic outcome is truly inspiring. Originally from Israel, he has teamed up with Palestinian Sami Tamimi and opened several eateries in London, as well as writing some excellent cookery books.

When I think of a stew, its usually Beef with Dumplings, a French Daube (preferable Boar if i can get it), or a Belgian Carbonnade. So this Yotam inspired stew really mixes it up with Butternut Squash, utterly delicious. The recipe is here. I am not keen on chick peas so replaced them with green beans for some added texture.

Butternut Squash Stew

It’s really easy to make, and uses mostly store cupboard ingredients, the interesting thing is the use of Madras Curry Powder to add punch!

Apple & Celeriac Salad