Ponderings of a Foodie!

Hello all!!

Here at the office we love a bit of foodie gossip and are forever ploughing through interesting food and recipes sites to keep ourselves entertained (whilst working incredibly hard putting together a fantastic day for all you food fanatics out there as well obviously!). Anyway we feel like there is so much going on all of the time that we just simply HAVE to share it with you all so here it is! It’s not going to be rocket science and we aren’t going to be solving the big bang theory it’s going to do exactly what it says on the tin so welcome to the Ponderings of a Foodie! I also want to let you know that there is no paying to appear on this page if we find a product and we love it we will tell you all about it!!

If you want to make any comments or add anything to the page please do email me at ginny.braynsmith@haymarket.com – I really do welcome any suggestions or comments at all.

09 March

This has got to be our favourite story here in the organisers' office at the moment!

Alwyn Williams - a former Welsh Guardsman is planning on sailing across to the isle of man - nothing exciting about that I hear you cry - untill you realise he is planning to do it IN A PUMPKIN!

And you thought pumpkins were just for cooking and halloween!!

Can this really be true?

It is indeed - this pumpkin will weigh in at a minimum of 7000lbs and measure 14 feet in circumference, powered by an outboard motor for the 45 mile trip!

Alwyn is not in this alone however he comes from a line of horticultural stars - his father is Medwyn Williams - 10 times gold medal winner at the Chelsea Flower Show - so he is sure to be a great help!

The scariest part of all...

Alwyn hasn't even sown the pumpkin yet! - He is planning to sow at the beginning of April hoping to get a growth rate of 35lbs a day between July and August.

It's all for a good cause though - Alwyn will be doing this to raise money for Help For Heroes.

For more information please follow this link

http://www.iomtoday.co.im/news/Madcap-plan-to-sail-to.6124348.jp

04 March

Fantastic tea!!

Everyone knows the first thing one looks for in the morning is that cup of tea (well for some it's coffee but I am definately a tea girl!). Katy (Section Manager for the Producers' Village - remember she found the Graze boxes!!) has found the most fantastic company which is sure to bring style and panache to your morning cuppa! The company is called Tea Forte and not only do they have the most fantastic range of teas from Coco Truffle to Orchid Vanilla

but they also have the most fantastic range of Cocktail Blends: Make a fabulous Mojito with their Lemongrass Mint or my favourite is the Lavendar Citrus which can be used to "Infuse the natural flavours of white tea and lavender into Martinis, Cosmopolitans or your own inspired creations." WOW!!!! Tea all of a sudden got seriously interesting - if it helps make a better Cosmo then really what more do you need!!
 

For more information on these fantastic range of teas please click here to visit the website!

01 March

Its all about Rhubarb!!!!

The news seems to be going a bit rhubarb crazy recently and we are loving the fact that Forced Rhubarb has now joined the ranks of Champagne and Parma ham on a list for Europe's specially protected food and drink!

The Yorkshire post said:

'It means only companies who produce the vegetable - in this case in the so-called "rhubarb triangle" between Bradford, Wakefield and Leeds - can use the name, guaranteeing the product is authentic and preventing imitation throughout Europe.'

http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/thereporters/markeaston/2010/02/the_rhubarb_triangle.html

Rhubarb is in season at the moment and BBC Good Food website has some great recipes for you but our favourite is definately James Martins Rhubarb, ginger, whisky and custard crumble tart with rhubarb compote - YUM!!!

Here it is for you - If you give it a go then do let us know what you think!!

Ingredients

For the tart
500g/1lb 2oz sweet pastry, rolled out to 5mm/¼in thickness
1.5kg/3lb 4oz rhubarb, cut into 5cm/2in lengths
3-4 tbsp caster sugar
4 tbsp whisky
3 pieces stem ginger, finely chopped
For the custard
150ml/5fl oz double cream
150ml/5fl oz whole milk
3 free-range eggs
2 free-range egg yolks
75g/3oz caster sugar
For the crumble topping
75g/3oz butter
150g/5oz plain flour
75g/3oz demerara sugar
Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180C/365F/Gas 4.
2. Place the rolled-out pastry into a deep loose-bottomed tart case and press the pastry into the sides. Place into the fridge to chill for 30 minutes, then remove and line the pastry case with baking parchment. Fill the tart case with rice or baking beans and place onto a baking sheet.
3. Place into the oven to bake blind for 15 minutes, then remove the rice or baking beans and baking parchment and return the tart case to the oven. Bake for a further 10-12 minutes, or until golden-brown and cooked.
4. Meanwhile, place the rhubarb onto a baking tray and cover with the sugar, to taste, whisky and ginger. Transfer to the oven to roast for 15 minutes, or until the rhubarb is tender.
5. For the custard, place the cream and milk into a pan and bring to the boil.
6. Place the eggs, egg yolks and sugar into a bowl and whisk to combine.
7. Pour the hot milk and cream mixture over the eggs mixture and whisk well to combine.
8. Return the custard to the pan over a low heat and bring to a gentle simmer, stirring constantly, until the custard has thickened.
9. For the crumble topping, place the butter and flour into a bowl and rub together with your fingers to form a breadcrumb-like mixture.
10. Add the sugar and mix to combine.
11. Pour the crumble mixture onto a baking tray and place into the oven to bake for 15 minutes, or until golden-brown. Remove from the oven and stir the crumble topping to break it up into pieces.
12. To assemble the crumble, place three-quarters of the rhubarb into the tart case, packing the rhubarb as densely as possible.
13. Pour the custard over the top, then transfer to the oven to bake for 15 minutes, or until the custard has just set.
14. Remove from the oven and sprinkle the custard with the crumble topping.
15. Place the remaining rhubarb into a small food processor and blend to a purée.
16. To serve, place a slice of tart onto each plate and serve with a spoonful of the rhubarb compote alongside.

For more rhubarb recipes and seasonal advice visit the BBC Good Food Website

09 Feb 2010

The Hairy Bikers are really funny guys and here you can see just why we love them so much! Every year at the Show we do our filming for next years' Show video and here are just a couple of the outtakes from said filming!

05 Feb 2010

Looking for an amazing Sunday breakfast? (don't forget guys it's Valentines day so treat your ladies right!). The fantastic Mr Darren - senior sales exec on BBC Gardeners' World Live - did just this and headed to Wallace & co in Putney (It is south London but worth the journey for all you non London readers out there!). Said he had the most delicious Cumberland Sausage with bubble and squeak and an egg - best thing about this dish though HP Gravy!! Seriously what more can you ask for in a breakfast!!

http://wallaceandco.com/about-us

Anyway Darren gave a rave review so check it out here and of course it is run by the amazing Gregg Wallace from MasterChef whom we absolutely love - Just a bit of icing on a fantastic cafe cake!

03 Feb 2010

It is still really horribly cold out there (roll on summer that's all I can say!!) so what a perfect time it is to warm yourself up on a Sunday with Roast Turkey!! Bring back all those warm fuzzy feelings of Christmas day which seem to disappear so quickly over January and recreate your Christmas Lunch!! Actually we in the office are planning on doing exactly that - have you seen the price of christmas crackers at this time of year? - Lets put it this way - we will be getting the good ones!

Well I was having a little look for tips from our favourite Turkey farmer Mr Paul Kelly and he sent me this through - I thought it only right that I share it with all you lot out there! Step by step instructions on the perfectly carved turkey!!

Mr Kelly we salute you!!

02 Feb 2010

Wow Wow Wow - Check out these amazing graze boxes that the manager of our Producers Village (otherwise known as the delightful Katy) found!

http://www.graze.com/

These are delivered directly to your desk once a week and healthy too!! You can choose your favourite types of fillings and the lovely people at graze will give fill your graze box with all the things you love! How handy is that!! Our official favourite in the office is the strawberries and cream mix (seriously I did a poll!). Now this may sound not so healthy but the best bit about it is that it's 2 of your 5 a day!! It doesnt get better than that!!