Soreen

I grew up in the late 80s/early 90s, when there was still lead in paints, we didn't have to wear seatbelts and parents could smack children. It's a surprise we've all made it this far.

Most things I grew up with have become outlawed (see above paragraph), outdated (mine and my brother's matching shell suits) or outlived (my rabbit). But some things are still, thankfully going strong.

One of my favourite memories is coming home from primary school, racing my brother up the stairs and getting the malt loaf out (for all of you millennials, that's what Soreen was called when I were a wee 'un) and cutting thick slices off, slathering them in butter and bunging it into the microwave for ten seconds. The result? Ultimate gooey goodness. And it was approved by mother for being vaguely healthy (liquorice was also vested this lofty status).

Over Christmas dinner it transpired that the both of us still continue this tradition (minus the racing each other up the stairs), only this time it is actually butter we spread, rather than the hydrogenated-oil rich margarine replacement everyone was so fond of back then. As I said, how did we survive to be this old?

It seems that the people over at Soreen HQ (did you know it's made in Manchester?) either did EXACTLY THE SAME THING WE DID AS KIDS, or just have a lateral thinking product development team who realised 'we need to make different kinds of Soreen, because in this day and age you need a million new products a day to survive as a brand...'. Anyways they've developed pre-sliced loaves, two different types to be exact - one that's toast shaped and one that's just a normal loaf sliced, so toaster lovers and microwaves lovers can both get into the hot Soreen action (sounds slightly wrong - ed).

These pre-sliced loaves are amazing, no more sticky fingers/squashed loaves for me. I'm still finding it hard to decide whether micro-ed Soreen (melty/squidgy) is better than toasted Soreen (slightly crispy on the outside, gooey in the middle). What I do know is that the Festive and the Cinnamon Raisin versions are divine (sadly unsliced), but then again I'd think cinnamon heavy vomit was pretty damn edible - basically, buy them if you like hot cross buns, Christmas and er, cinnamon.

And yep, I've just written a blog post about a processed, pre-packaged fruit and malt loaf, but guess what it's my blog and I'm sick of naval gazing about the mouth feel of frickin' burgers or the way a plate is drizzled with oil. Get over it.

Soreen - available from most corner shops, supermarkets and other grocery type purveyors; or in my lucky case, from my friend who works there.

Albert Matthews Butchers - Bury

Writing this blog, there are many people I come across, working in all walks of the food sector. There are charming front of house staff, knowledgeable bar specialists and creative chefs - but there's nothing that impresses and excites me more, than someone with passion.

Finding a passionate individual or company is what reminds me why I love food. Luckily for me, I've found another.

Winning an award

Albert Matthews is an award winning butchers based in the historic Bury market, with a pedigree as impressive as they produce they sell. Set up in 1935 by Albert Matthews, from the word go they have only ever sourced local, rare and traditional British breeds.

Albert Matthews built strong links with local producers, many of whom the business still uses today. Albert's dedication to good husbandry, high welfare and the continuation of traditional, rare breeds saw him purchase a farm and abattoir in Cheshire, grow the business to be one of the most successful in the region and become a top supplier to the high end restaurant trade.
 

Bury stall

In the past few years Chris and Sarah Matthews, grandchildren of the great man himself, have set up shop in Bury Market, to bring local, rare breed, quality produce back to the customer. But let's stop talking about history and talk about the food.

The first thing I like about Albert Matthews is there dedication to explaining their produce to you. They are so proud of their producers in fact, that there are pages on their website dedicated to where they source from, why, what feed the animals eat and their high welfare standards. If you go into the shop, the customer service and the knowledge is second to none.

Beef aging

The stand out item I tried was the 56 day, dry aged Galloway sirloin. Yeah, I just said 56 days - that's eight weeks for you struggling with the maths. Dry aged beef is what you want and is a true sign of quality and care on the part of the butcher. Hung on the bone in their cool store, the beef is allowed to age naturally, taking on a dark hue as the enzymes in the meat break down the tough fibres and the beneficial bacteria help develop an amazing taste. Hung like this, the meat loses a lot of water and weight - good for the customer, less profit for the butcher, hence why you won't find dry aged steak in your supermarket. Those wet, bright red lumps on the shelves? Not aged at all (see how much your steak shrinks as it cooks = water loss). Supermarket packs stating 28 days aged? Unless you see the magical word 'dry', the meat will have been sealed in its pack and left for 28 days; no bacteria or enzymes can make their way through that shrink wrapped plastic.


Meat lesson over - the steak was, quite literally, the best steak I have ever tasted. And I'm not exaggerating. The smell during cooking was intensely beefy, akin to a really good stock mixed in with some frying dripping. The taste was intense (I'd cooked them with the merest hint of salt and nothing else); deeply savoury, umami filled, the beefiest beef. To top it all off, the meat was silky soft - think fillet softness, but with a the flavour of a harder working cut. It's taken Albert Matthew's quite a while to develop this product and you can tell.

Another winner was the Black Strap Bacon; rare breed (Saddleback/Old Spot), slow grown, dry cured and then cured with molasses. The bacon is deeply porky, the sweetness of the pork shining through and then a big smoky/bitter hit off the molasses. Thick cut, no water/white ming seeping out - the ultimate bacon sarnie bacon.

I'd asked Chris if he could find me some wild rabbit (if your rabbit packet ain't sating wild, it's reared in appalling conditions a la battery farmed hens. Just so you know) and one of my favourite meats, pheasant. This was no problem for a company with strong links across Lancashire, Cumbria and the Forest of Bowland.

I also tried the diced heather fed lamb, which made a great hot pot and had a beautiful sweetness, plus two minces, pork and beef. It's been a long time since I cooked with mince and have memories
of buying the cheap stuff when I was a student; greasy, flaccid, grey, tasteless meat. Both the Albert Matthews minces had a good fat/meat ratio and the resulting mince (before the addition of any other ingredients) had a fine flavour (yes, I was eating mince straight from the pan, I'm not ashamed), which still shined through on the addition of other ingredients.

Because I'm a greedy guts I also tried the beef topside (tasty roast) and the Goosnargh corn-fed chicken supremes - oh my gosh these were a) tasty b) stayed moist and c) massive, great value for money.

I'm a convert to Albert Matthews - I care about the provenance/welfare of my meat, so it's great for conscious carnivores like me and all the produce is top quality and great tasting. The good news for lazy people like me, or those that live a little too far from Bury, is that they have a wonderful website, which has all the finer details of their producers, their products and some cracking offers; my favourite being the Choose Your Own Box (comes in totally recyclable packaging) - a good value box of a selection of different meats that you choose yourself; like a meaty veg box but without getting items you don't want that rot at the back of your fridge for a year.

So get off your bottom/get your laptop out; stop buying cheap, mass produced, grey tasting meat from the supermarket and get some passion in your mouth.

Albert Matthews Butchers, The Meat and Fish Hall, Bury Market, Murray Road, Bury, Lancashire BL9 0BJ - sales@albertmatthews.com - 0161 341 0528 - www.albertmatthews.com - Facebook - Twitter

Please note, I was given my box of meat for free, but am under no obligation to say anything nice - it's just hard to say something bad against wonderful, passionate people.

The Brownie Post

Chocolate - much loved, much craved and some would argue, much needed. Synonymous with giggly girls getting together and often heavily marketed towards the fairer sex; it can be both a cheap, sweet pick-me-up and and expensive, single-estate luxury that has critics melting it on the tongue and rolling it round their mouths.

Whatever the reason and whenever the occasion, chocolate is one of life's little luxuries that I just can't live without. I can eschew sweets and crisps. I can (sometimes) forget about wine and gin. I can even go without cheese for a while. But 3pm on a dull afternoon, or sitting on the couch with a movie, or if I need a little pick-me-up - a trusty bar of dark chocolate is the thing I'll always choose.

When offered a box of brownies from The Brownie Post; which are handcrafted with organic flour, local free-range eggs, quality chocolate and fair trade sugar in Didsbury by the people who run And The Dish Ran Away With The Spoon Cafe - how could I say no? Especially when they offered to drop them off at work (prime chocolate eating location).

Delivered in a nifty envelope shaped box, opened at my desk (to admiring oohs/jealous sighs from colleagues), the brownies come tied up in paper and blue ribbon with a little card (with an amazing font) describing just what's in the box - a very pretty treat to brighten up any day.

Chocolaty and pretty - what more could I want? (notice amazing font under brownie)

Being of an indecisive mind, I had opted for both the plain chocolate and the white chocolate and pistachio, good decision if you ask me! I put some in my mouth, realised how heavenly they were, then did that thing where I slow-motionally turned to everyone and nearly wet myself in delight. Yes. I loved them that much.

The chocolate brownies were dark and dense, but not overly heavy or unpleasantly cocoa-powdery. A slightly bitter note ensured they weren't overpowering and they had a pleasing crispy crust to set off that soft (but not wet) inside. If the chocolate were a heady hit of cocoa, the white chocolate pistachio were a perfumed, floral delight. I had feared they would be more blondies, that they would be a super saccharine combination chock full of sugar and not much else (as you can tell, I'm not a white chocolate fan; it's a sickly sweet non-chocolate abomination created for people with tastebuds that stopped advancing age five).

LOOK! I did sharing! Note how fudgy the brownies are (and how small I cut them for people...)

Luckily the white chocolate was a mere scattering of chunks, dotted through the usual dark chocolate brownie alongside crunchy nuggets of pistachio - the whole thing was lifted up by the heady, almost soapy, exotic fragrance of cardamon - an excellent addition and a taste I am very fond of.

Being the generous soul that I aim (read, watching my figure) - I taste-tested the brownies at the office (with a crowd of drooling faces gathered round my desk, it was hard not to). Opinion was split between whether the plain were better than the white/pistachio/cardamon; but all agreed they were some of the best brownies they had ever tasted and even better that they had magically arrived in the post.

Whether it's a birthday, a cheer up, a thank you, MOTHER'S DAY (ALERT, less than seven days!!) or just as a present to yourself - Brownies by Post is a tasty, if somewhat naughty treat. They're not the cheapest in the world; but they're made by hand, from excellent quality ingredients, they last for five days and postage is included in the price - all in all each brownie works out way cheaper than the ones you can buy in a cafe.

All gone, very quickly...

Guess what? The Brownie Post whole range can also be ordered gluten free - great to see a company catering for as many people as they can.

And how do you get your hands on these amazing bites of beautifulness? Go online HERE and order yourself some. It's chocolate, it's fab, WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?

Price for six brownies (massive choice of flavours) inc postage - £12.95

www.thebrowniepost.co.uk

Please note, I was sent my brownies for free - but you know that I'm a grumpy curmudgeon, so you know I'd slag them off if they were anything but perfect.

Custom Cakes from Andrew Nuttall

Here's another blog about cake. Yes indeed, it really is another blog about cake. I realise I might talk about cake a lot and often blog about it too, however it's a) nearly Mother's Day (good reason for cake) and b) I've found someone who makes really ace cakes. Not cupcakes, not cake pops, not homemade lumpy things or twee sugar craft flowers; but the most imaginative cakes you could think of and even some you can't!

I thought I'd have a chat with the talented Andy Nuttall and see where he gathers his inspiration from and what it's like to be a budding baking genius (and where we can get our hands on his designs).

Andy Nuttall - minus a cake

How did you get into baking?
I started baking at a very early age, my Auntie Lynne always baked for the family (and she is amazing!) - I was lucky and always had a great birthday cake, it seemed to me that this could make or break my party when I was a kid. Baking as a kid meant I could make a mess with ingredients and got to lick the spoon at the end - I mean, which kid doesn't like liking spoons? It wasn't just baking - fresh ingredients were a big thing in my house when we were growing up and I was always encouraged to use them, trouble is I started using the lot! (Andy is a chef at Southern Eleven when he's not creating cakes - ed).


What's cake making about for you?
Making/eating cakes and sweet stuff is what my childhood was about and I’ve been lucky to carry that passion and enjoyment into my adult life. Baking has allowed me to channel my creativity - the sponge is my canvas and the fondant is my paint. The other great thing is that my two beautiful daughters are able to get involved - they show loads of interest (and yes, just like me, they love to make a big mess!). One of the best things is that if you make a mistake you can eat it and nobody will ever know. I’ll spend till 4am on a cake, even after a 13 hour shift in the restaurant kitchen because I love it, the creativity and the feeling you get when you reveal it. I made a replica of an 18 year old’s bedroom and when I delivered it his Mum cried with joy; I had no idea my work could touch people like that, it’s a great feeling.

Fancy a cake? Or three!

Is there someone who influenced/inspired you?
From an early age I was influenced by my family and also through school, I had an amazing Home Ec/Cooking teacher called Mrs Thornton, who was passionate about food and just loved to teach – this really rubbed off on me. From there I went to Blackpool College and they lined up the opportunity of working in some pretty cool kitchens such as Buckingham Palace, where they had this really flamboyant pastry chef. He knocked out things I’d never seen and as a 17 year old and this really fired me up. From there I worked at Paul Heathcoat’s in Longridge, a two Michelin star kitchen where I was actively encouraged to play with food and experiment with the puddings.


Was it cakes first and then sugar craft, or did you know you wanted to make really pimped up cakes?
Cakes are the easiest way for me to bring my ideas to life, however the sweet stuff has always attracted me; from simple bread and butter puddings to homemade ice creams. I’ve always made cake but have only recently come to cake creation as the knowledge I’ve learnt as a chef has allowed my ideas to become reality. Having kids started me with the sugar craft as it’s just like an adult version of Plasticine – it really gets the creative juices flowing!

Grrr!

Is there a reason for such inspired cakes or is it just what your customers ask for?
I get so bored of seeing the same kind of cakes everywhere, the same cakes being reproduced year after year. I want to make cakes that are personal and have some kind of meaning. You won’t see me making a flat white cake with happy birthday scribbled across it, which can be knocked up in an hour. If you want that, then get down to the supermarket because I’m not what you’re looking for.


Where do you get the ideas from for your designs?
I often visit art galleries and find inspiration for ideas; I look also around and take note of what’s around me on a day to day basis, simple things like buildings can just spark me. I seem to look at objects now and break them down into separate parts, almost deconstructing then reconstructing them in my mind. I also take inspiration from my clients, so you could say I was inspired by them, I just channel them in a very creative an unusual way.

What’s the artistic process like?
When I’m asked for a cake I want to know everything about the person it’s for to get an idea of what makes them tick so I have an initial consultation where I find out as much as I can about the person and ask lots of questions, some of which are not even related to cakes. Then I research as much as possible, draw out some sketches and make mock models of the final cake. It all helps to iron out any problems with the design. Sometimes people will come with a very bog standard idea and the end result will be totally different once I’ve seen what they’re like and explained just what it is I can achieve for them.


Have you ever been asked to do something really weird as a design?
Yes, there have been some very strange requests, such as a unicorn with a badger’s head and I’ve also been asked to design a few ‘adult’ cakes (but only for the over 18s!). I prefer designing and making the stranger cakes, it’s what I want to do. I do have some crazy ideas locked up inside my head for a rainy day – like a flying wedding cake! I’ve got some really out there ideas for that one!


What's been the most difficult design for you to do? Why?
Definitely the Apache helicopter; I made it 3 times before I was happy with it. As the client worked on one I to research it inside out, it had to be spot on. Making it was hard going as it was almost if it didn’t want to be made – parts not fitting together, rota blades flopping and the tail snapping were just a few of the problems. Luckily I got there in the end (I’m not one to give up) and the client still has the Apache part of the cake on his desk, which makes me very proud.

The complex Apache cake

I also struggled with the Bolton Wanderers’ Reebok stadium because of the sheer amount of engineering in the building; but I learnt a lot of skills and cake decorating tricks, so it was a really enjoyable process. The original brief had been for a basic BWFC logo on a flat cake, however you know that I don’t do those! But by far the most difficult cakes have been for my two girls. They’ve not been amazingly difficult, a fairytale castle cake and a make up bag, but they are the most important and hardest critics I’m ever going to come across. I’ve made a rod for my back though as each year I have to make a better cake than the year before!

Where can we get your cakes from?
Just from me, I don’t sell through any shops and don’t have a studio yet (thought that’s a plan for the future). I’m local to Bolton and will deliver locally (and further afield for an extra charge).

You can contact me through: Facebook or Twitter. Or drop me an email on anuttall79@gmail.com.
Plus check out the blog for up to date pictures of my latest creations.

Look forward to creating something as crazy as you!

Please note - all photos are courtesy of Andy Nuttall so please ask him if you would like to reuse them.

Pin Ups In Pinnies Launch - Matt and Phreds

Cakes, booze and pretty ladies all in one room sounds too good to be true; however this Tuesday, such temptations were in abundance at the Pin-Ups and Pinnies' launch at Matt and Phreds in Manchester's trendy and, quite aptly, vintage obsessed Northern Quarter.

Amaretto and Limencello mini cupcakes (I ate at least six, then I stopped counting...)

Welcomed by a very vintage lady (not old, just glamorous) and handed a glass of fizz, we were whisked by Alex, the brains behind Pin-Ups in Pinnies, in to the moody darkness where we were plied with more bubbles and oodles of mini cupcakes brought round by some delectable pin-ups, al a cinema interval ice-cream ladies from the good old days.

Alex Barnett - owner of Pin-Ups and Pinnies

Pin-Ups in Pinnies is a bespoke cupcake company, which has created a unique approach to help them stand out from the raft of other cupcakeries that have sprung up in the last year; offering boozy cupcake flavours injected with that 50's glamour that is so sought after at the moment.

That's not so different, you say, but do other cake companies come to your event and serve the sweet treats dressed as 50s glamour pusses? Or provide you with your own glamorous pinnies so you can come over all Mad Men in your own kitchen? Or teach you burlesque in the privacy of your own home, whilst feeding you cakes and cocktails in the process (indeed, Alex is a professional burlesque performer with the stage name Fanny Divine)?

The versatility of the company, combined with Alex's creative approach and her development of a unique  experience means that Pin-Ups In Pinnies looks like it'll out last the simple fad for cupcakes and bring 50's glamour to all.

Some of the cakey delights we got to sample at the event

(Oh and the event was a super success, we gorged on cakes and bubbles - my favourites were the light and tangy limencello, the smooth amaretto; plus the wonderfully punchy anis and almost savoury notes of the absinthe mini-cakes).

I grabbed a few short minutes with Alex to quiz her about the ins and outs of Pin-Ups In Pinnies before we were sucked in and spellbound by the night's entertainment - a powerful serenading from the wonderful Em Brulee and some tantalising, naughty, nipple-covered fun from the aptly named Sherry Trifle.

Sherry Trifle teasing the launch party guests - with thanks to Nick Beedles

Alex, How did you get in to baking?

I used to bake a lot with my mum when I was younger and have always loved to make pretty, tasty cakes. I took a slight break from baking (and anything that didn't involve a microwave or kettle!) during my student years, but got back in to it again with a renewed sense of passion once I moved in to my own place.

Not sure Alex looked like this when baking with her mum!

Why did you decide to set up your own cake making business?

Due to the recession I found it very difficult to find a job that I actually wanted to do. Despite the fact that I have qualifications in both philosophy and law, I found myself working in mind numbingly boring jobs where I would spend the days daydreaming about what I wished I could be doing instead. So I decided that instead of sitting around waiting for the perfect job to come to me, I would go out and create it for myself! It was then just a matter of deciding what it was I was going to do. I had been baking cupcakes for my work colleagues and people would often say “oooh..you should do this for a living” and every time I would answer with the usual “oh, don't be silly!” Then one day it occurred to me, why couldn't I do it for a living? So, I combined my loves of vintage, Pin-Up, events and cakes to create the unique business that is Pin-Ups in Pinnies.

What has been the hardest thing in setting up a business?

It has been quite difficult setting up a business in the current economic climate; I would say that the hardest thing really comes down to the cost of it all. I'm lucky in that the type of business I have chosen to set up has relatively small set up costs (which is part of the reason I decided to give it a go!) However, as they say - nothing comes for free. So it has been a matter of doing as much promotion and advertising for as small a cost as possible, which just takes a little creative thinking.

How did you settle on the 50’s theme?

I absolutely love the 1950's so it was natural for me to go for this type of styling as I've always been drawn towards the era. I generally dress in a 1950's style myself and am rarely seen without red lipstick and 50's hair! I think that cupcakes and the 1950's go hand in hand. The 1950's was all about big hair and even bigger dresses and it was also a time that thrived on home baking and boozy treats!

50's inspired Alex

How do people react to this theme?

So far we've had a great reaction. It helps that there has been a recent resurgence in all things vintage so people are more in tune with the 1950's and home baking. The 1950's was such a feminine era that sits perfectly alongside pretty, girly cupcakes.

Have you had any strange requests?

Not yet, but I look forward to having some!

How is the business going?

Cath Kidston, so I think this is a great sign of things to come! I feel quite optimistic about the future of Pin-Ups in Pinnies and think that business will hopefully keep getting better. We have also been getting a fair amount of press lately and were interviewed on BBC Radio Manchester last week.

Cakes!

What next?

I hope that this will be the year that I finally succeed at world domination (we've all got to have dreams, right?)! But in all seriousness, I am hoping to be able to expand the business to its own venue (whether that is just an industrial kitchen or a bakery) and also to have my own custom made vintage ice-cream van that I can take to festivals and vintage weekends along with my delicious boozy treats and my gorgeous pin-ups to hand them out. Soon I’ll be getting some merchandise made so hopefully people will be able to wear their own Pin-Ups in Pinnies t-shirts and pinnies soon (ooh yes please – ed).

Ps Pin-Ups in Pinnies run special girly nights and also run a monthly competition to find the perfect pin-up, get yourself entered!

Essential Cuisine Stocks

Without a good stock we’d be nowhere in the kitchen; a proper stock adds body, depth and flavouring, it is the cornerstone to many a recipe. Where would we be without a stock? No gravies, no risottos, no consommes...

In the past, nothing was wasted in the kitchen – huge pots bubbled up on the stove with all the trimmings  popped in to create the basis of dishes we know and love; lob scouse, Lancashire hot pot, soup. However those days are gone and with them the need to save every last penny. With long hours worked and less meals cooked from scratch, many home cooks find there’s no time to prepare this liquid gold.

Apart from a monthly chicken stock (family tradition) I don't have the time for stock making (ie I'm lazy) or we never eat enough meat to stockpile the bones for something like beef stock. My freezer’s already full to burst, so meticulously adding in bone after bone to a stock bag and then remembering to use them just doesn’t happen in our household. So it’s to the trusty prepared stocks, mainly cubes and powders, that I turn.

Usually it’s a Kallo cube – it’s all organic so I know what I’m getting and can eat easy, but it's a pain in proverbial to dissolve, or there’s the low salt Swiss bouillon for when I’m on a health kick. But a few weeks back an interesting parcel dropped on to my mat; a selection of stocks made by Essential Cuisine.

Essential Cuisine have been making stocks for the past 17 years, since Nigel Crane couldn't find anything on the market to suit his needs. The company has been selling mainly to professional kitchens and catering outlets, but are now opening up to the home market - their little pots make about six litres if you follow the instructions.

The first difference with this stock is the texture – it’s a very fine, loose powder with no lumps in or freeze dried vegetable bits. This means it dissolves in a flash with no loose bits floating on the top (annoying for a risotto or clear soup), plus if your seasoning’s not right you can put a bit more in with no fear of lumps forming or having to mash it in. Over the past weeks I’ve substituted the Essential Cuisine stocks and monitored the results, which I’ve been very happy with.

The veg stock is lighter than my usual two and has a less salty flavour. Essential Cuisine use celeriac in their stock and this flavour shines through rather than being drowned out by other flavours - there's also tomato and garlic; not traditional but they add a deeper, almost smokey flavour and a big hit of umami. There's also a pleasing ratio of oil - my other stocks have oils quite near to the top f the ingredients lists (meaning there's more in the recipe), but it's the last thing in the Essential cuisine stock. On an environmental note they use vegetable oil rather than palm oil as all my other stocks do (my issue with palm oil is enough to fill a blog, even supposedly environmentally sustainable palm oil). I’d say it was a little sweeter than my usual stock, but this wasn’t a bad thing; adding a rounded flavour to everything I made. Towards the end of the week I became a little lazy and started using the stock as a general seasoning to every dish I made. Tut tut.

I’ve never used a fish stock before as I’d usually use a veg stock, or maybe even chicken for a robust dish. Whilst t’boy was out I took the chance to cook up a squid risotto, not something he’d touch with a barge pole.

The fish stock is a bit of an odd colour, a dull dun pink; but this goes when added to water – the preparation you end up with looks a little like miso soup. I had worried this would be overly fishy, but the flavour was delicate and light with a hint of sweetness to balance everything out.

Making the risotto I was astonished at the flavour; sweetly salty, deeply savoury and a little fishy in a good way. Suddenly I was making restaurant tasting risotto in my little kitchen - a revelation! Towards the end of cooking the rice I switched to using the veg stock, so not to overpower the squid. This worked extraordinarily well, adding a little extra favour to the risotto.

Essential Cuisine’s stocks are brilliant; they’re very well put together, balanced and bring a touch of restaurant cooking to your own kitchen. The stocks are gluten free, low in salt, have no MSG and there's even a Halal range, so everyone can get in on the benefits!

Essential Cuisine - Website - Twitter - Facebook - Shop

Please note I was sent these stock samples for free, but it was under no expectation of writing nice things – I was just very impressed with what I received.

Ps check out the website for lots of interesting recipes.

Squid and Tomato Risotto – Serves 1 – Prep 5 mins – Cooking 20 mins

100g Risotto rice – I used carnaroli

200ml Essential Cuisine Fish Stock and 100ml Veg stock (or can just use all fish stock if you like)

One small glass of white wine (optional, I didn’t use as I didn’t have any in)

Half a small onion, diced small

One garlic clove, chopped small

15g Parmesan cheese (I actually used Gouda as I like the more farm-yardy taste, rich)

150g of squid (I used small squid tubes, but you can use more)

Left over tomato sauce from pasta (had tomatoes, roast pepper and smoked paprika in) or 6 cherry tomatoes
EV olive oil for finishing

Basil leaves

2. Make up the stock in a small pan on the stove – you need to keep the stock warm so keep it on a low heat whilst you cook your risotto.
3. Pop some olive oil (or butter) in a heavy based frying pan and put it on a low-middle heat, sweat the onions for about five minutes till soft. Do not brown them.
4. Add the garlic and cook for another couple of minutes – do not catch or brown.
5. Add the rice to the pan and cook for a few minutes until the grains are coated with the oil and a bit translucent. Keep on a medium heat.
6. Add the wine (if using) and stir in to absorb – I just used an extra ladle of stock as I’d forgotten to get some wine in.
7. Keep adding stock a ladle at a time and stirring in until all the stock is absorbed.
8. Keep tasting the risotto and stop when there’s a little bite in the rice (al dente) and there’s a creamy texture to the whole thing.
9. Take the risotto off the heat and grate in some cheese, stir, then pop a lid on and put to one side.
10. Heat up your tomato sauce and while this is going on fry up your squid in a frying pan, don’t add too much to the pan or you won’t fry it, it’ll steam!
11. Add your tentacles first as they take a little more time to cook, then add the squid and cook for about 1-2 mins each side. Make sure you keep cooking time short, but with the tentacles, get them to brown slightly as it adds a really good flavour.
12. Taste the risotto and season as necessary (the cheese and the stock should be salty enough, but you might like to check). Add salt if needed.
13. Assemble your risotto on a plate, tomato sauce on top and around, squid on top, then topped off with basil leaves and some extra virgin oil.

Please note, if you are using the cherry tomatoes; pre-heat the oven to 180c, put the tomatoes in a baking try with some balsamic vinegar, salt, pepper and olive oil. Roast for 25 mins and then top your risotto with them.

Chorizo and Butter Bean Homemade Pot Noodle (inspired by Hugh Fearnly-Whittingstall)

Serves 2 – Prep 10 mins – Cooking 5 min

Two nests of noodles – I like to use medium egg

Half a red onion or four spring onions – sliced really fine

Eight cherry tomatoes

Two mushrooms

One pak choi – sliced

Two small green chillies – sliced

Half a tin of butter beans (please don’t put dry ones in, must already have been cooked)

Half a pepper – sliced – or can used roasted peppers from a jar

Some chorizo, diced – I buy a whole ring and slice bits off rather than the awful supermarket sliced stuff

Some fresh parsley

2 tsp smoked paprika (1 tsp each)

3 tsp Essential cuisine veg stock powder (1 ½ tsp each)

½ lemon cut in quarters

Salt and pepper

1. Get a container you can put all the ingredients in AND pour hot water in – we save the plastic soup cartons and use those.
2. In each container add the stock and paprika, add the smallest dash of salt and a good grind of pepper.
3. Add the noodles and break them up fine as you’ll need them to get soft with out stirring them up.
4. Layer up the veg in each pot – I tend to put the denser things nearer the noodles (pepper, pak choi stems) and the more delicate stuff at the top ie parsley leaves and the tops of the pak choi.
5. Add your butter beans, chorizo and lemon and pop the lid on.
6. When you want it, add hot water to the top, put the lid on, leave for five mins, stir, squeeze in the lemon and then eat.
7. Be careful of the chilli when you’re chomping down and take out if needed!

This can be amended to suit any tastes or any veg you have in the fridge. We often cook extra salmon and have a salmon ramen the next day, or go French and put in left over roast chicken and roasted garlic. Have fun!

Farmer's Choice Online Butcher

Operating a strict dietary policy of organic or free range meat and dairy, I often find myself at a culinary loss. Large items aren’t a problem – free range chicken is available at the supermarket, lamb is free range and anything else I can source from the network of local-ish butchers I have built up.

The questions is, where do you get free-range chicken livers for pate? What if I want to make sticky wings or BBQ ribs? How about bacon? Or pancetta? Luckily there’s a place I can turn to and I don’t even have to leave my lounge. Famer’s Choice is an online cornucopia of free-range products, dedicated to sourcing from a range of free-range suppliers with rare breeds, no GM/hormones and good husbandry. The company has been in the same hands for twenty years and this leads to a flexibility of service and huge range of choice, there’s over 600 products and cuts you can order.

Tony - the orignal Farmer's Choice butcher, still looking after the business today

My delivery was sent to work; Farmer’s Choice will send anywhere so you don’t have to worry about meat being left on your doorstep or in a sunny porch. Packed in a sturdy cardboard box and insulated with wool, the meat arrived frozen and stayed rock solid until I got it home five hours later. I had initially been worried that it would start to defrost, but the care taken over packing and the sensible use of materials ensured everything stayed as frozen as when it left the Farmer’s Choice depot.

The wild boar haunch I ordered was two good slabs of dark pink steak that we fried up and ate with caramelised apples and a juniper sauce. The meat was gamey with resistance in the bite, without being tough or chewy and had that lovely sweet porcine flavour, but deeper, more robust and more savoury.

Wild boar with thanks to Farmers Choice

I chose the slower growing, free-range chicken from Farmer’s Choice as I was intrigued at how an older bird, slaughtered at 56-60 days, would taste compared to a supermarket free-range bird killed between 36-40 days. They source their birds from Childhey Manor in Dorset, who have specially selected a breed that suits this slower growing. I was impressed that Farmer's Choice/Childhey Manor free range is properly free range; hens live small flocks in insulated arcs and are allowed to go out after three weeks to scratch around and become 'proper' chickens (apparently before they're a favourite food of the magpies!) - supermarket free-range birds live in enriched, open sheds, but hardly roam out as they like to stay by the food troughs.

Chicken as it arrived

Following my usual roasting times I cooked the chicken on a trivet of stock veg, added apples, sage and onions to the pan and roasted my potatoes around the bird – pretty usual fare in the Nosh household. There was a definite difference in the quality of the bird, the boy noticing it as soon as he put the first mouthful in. Compared with a supermarket chook, the Farmer’s Choice bird had a fuller flavour and the meat had more bite. This is not to say the bird was dry or tough, just wonderfully chewy rather than dull and pappy.

Ready for the oven

The accompanying juices that came off the bird also had a depth of flavour I haven’t had from a supermarket free-range bird before. Indeed they were so thick and flavoursome that I didn’t need to make a gravy from them, but used them strained straight from the roasting tin. We ate the cold meat over the next few days and the dark meat was superb, adding deep savoury flavours - I can't wait to taste what the stock is like from the bird.

Ready for my tummy

Initially I had been put off Farmer’s Choice as the meat is all frozen, however when it arrived I realised this was far more beneficial for me, as it stayed fresher as I was at work and I could bung it straight in the freezer (which was where it was going anyway!). After processing the meat at Farmer's Choice is blast frozen to ensure it's frozen properly, with no loss of taste or quality - this was obvious from the meat we ate, there had been no deterioration.

The produce from Farmer’s Choice isn’t cheap, but that’s something to be expected from a specialist producer sourcing rare breeds and quality meat - it's certainly not overly expensive or charged at a premium. The old adage that you get what you pay for is certainly true in relation to Farmer's Choice.
Farmer’s Choice is an excellent resource for those of us who care about the food that we eat and it’s the choice and variety they offer which is the real bonus here. There’s free range stock bones, offal, chicken wings, game, cured meats – products I usually can’t get hold of, even at other online suppliers and have had to fore go many a time.

Please note I was sent my delivery for free, but the views expressed in this article are my own.

http://www.farmerschoice.co.uk/

WH Frost Butchers - Chorlton

It's good to support your local shops and indeed I try to. I have a local butcher and he's very good for your standard fare; the meat's well hung, the sausages are made by the butchers themselves, they're friendly and the meat's local. Sounds perfect you might think, but there's one big snag; when asking for free range chicken, game, mutton or anything a bit, well, different I get the following: "ooh not much call for that round 'ere." This article is a confession; I'm seeing another butcher.

WH Frost and Sons has been selling meat to Chorltonites since 1910 when the shop was opened by Jack Frost; the business is still in the family and is growing from strength to strength. Dedicated to sourcing quality local produce, Frosts won the Manchester Food and Drink Award 2011 for Best Food and Drink Outlet and is a member of the Guild of Q Butchers. Chorlton is not local to me and has never been; but I have yet to find anything that beats them for quality, dedication, customer service and scope of produce.

The dedicated commitment and care that WH Frost displays in their attitude to working is not only appreciated by Chorltonites and foodies like me; WH Frost is an ever expanding empire with 22 full time members of staff sourcing and delivering produce to pubs, supper clubs and restaurants - with some Michelin starred customers having kept long running accounts. Unlike other catering butchers they do not find the cheapest meat from the easiest source (usually countries like Poland and injected with water to plump it up); instead they ensure everything is British unless it is a specific product eg. poulet de bresse.

Paul Kitching's 21212 is just one of WH Frost's famous customers

For a high street butcher, Frosts is well stocked; the meat sourced from farms in and around Cheshire and the North West. The meat is hung properly, the beef for a full 28 days (you can ask for it longer) so you'll find no bright red, sweaty polythene packs or the 'aged' steak you find in supermarkets (most supermarket steaks are cut and put in the packs from freshly slaughtered animals, they are then held in refrigeration units for a set number of days; so not matured properly allowing the fibres to relax and water to come out).

As well as beef, lamb, chicken, pork and the handmade sausages, there's plenty else to tickle your taste buds. Venison chorizo, game from local shoots, whole legs of serrano ham, pickles, duck eggs and even cheeses such as the wonderful  Burt's Blue from Altrinham and the hard to source Norwegian Brunost.

The variety of choice doesn't end there. Want something special for that Masterchef menu you're perfecting or a quality bird for Christmas? Frosts will source what you need (marrow bones, rose veal, bath chaps, goose, smoked back fat) or they can suggest meats, foods, cooking techniques and even life advice.

Obviously you're impressed and want to pay them a visit; this is where WH Frosts is moving with the times and keeping abreast with the modern customer. My local butcher opens at 9am and closes at 5pm sharp; they don't open on Wednesday afternoons and are only open until noon on a Saturday. I'm out before they open, home after they close and am pretty lazy on a Saturday morning/go away a lot. WH Frost is open Mon-Sat 7am-5pm (plus if you follow them on Twitter you can get a sneaky order in at midnight when you're craving some chicken livers) and they've even been known to drop orders for repeat customers at a location to suit them.

One of the Frost brothers (Lee) with his sausages out!

You're not going to find bargain basement prices, lucky dip meat bags or chickens for less than a fiver here. What you will find is consistent quality and pride in the way they work and what they sell. You can get carried away with the expensive produce, however shop wisely and ask questions; the staff will point you in the direction of cuts you can't get in the supermarket and you'll be rewarded with something that tastes fantastic and something you can resolutely trust is good quality produce.

Ps - Get your Christmas meat orders in quick! WH Frost sources quality free-range birds such as Copas turkeys and Gressingham geese; plus they ensure the birds are slaughtered as close to Christmas as possible. Some butchers and supermarkets will have their birds slaughtered from late November and then kept in bubbles of inert gas to keep them fresh until Christmas - not a concept I find appealing and I'm sure you don't either.

WH Frosts, 14 Chorlton Place, Chorlton-Cum-Hardy, Manchester M21 9AQ - 0161 881 1827 - Twitter

Farmison.com - online butcher, greengrocer and dairy

I’m not a lover of veg boxes. As I’m a Guardian reading, left leaning Liberal it may come as a bit of a shock to you, but I find there’s either too much trouble with delivery (I don’t have somewhere or someone to leave it with), there’s too much repetition of produce, there’s far too much produce that’s not from the UK – even when it’s in season, or that the produce is a bit ropey. I may be asking a lot from a box scheme, but I’m a picky old thing; that’s why I write a blog!

Farmison are a new online retailer that have started a box scheme and are approaching things from a different angle. Sure there’s the boxes for families and basic boxes, but there’s an emphasis on good quality, hard-to-source produce; plus gourmet products thrown in for good measure (there’s a foodie box, for those that are that way inclined).

From the lovely marketing ladies I chose the Foodie Box (of course) and chose this with relish – big juicy garlic cloves, beautifully fragrant unwaxed lemons, sticky figs, romesco cauliflower, two varieties of cress, shallots, massive Muscat grapes, yellow beetroot, jura potatoes, cheese and yoghurt. My box arrived quickly and I was heartened to see that most of it could go in the recycling/compost – they’d even used paper straw to pad out the dedicates rather than polystyrene beads.

Foodie box with dairy - with thanks to Farmison.com

Opening the box I was like a child at Christmas – all the produce was in peak condition and lasted longer than supermarket produce. However the potatoes didn’t last very long at all and had gone mouldy by the end of the week.

The inclusion of the dairy in the box is a good idea – allowing you to mix and match what you get and add a little extra for your weekly menu. The quality of the dairy products was even better than the fruit and veg. Montgomery’s cheddar was an unpasteurised delight with a rich, almost farmyardy smell and a real tangy bite. The yoghurt was from Preston; thick, creamy and a true delight – it was hard not to eat the whole tub in one go.

Farmison’s philosophy is to offer excellent seasonal produce from traditional and artisanal producers across the UK – offering products that are not available elsewhere online. This commitment's splashed right across their website; their stock of cheeses is enviable and a fromageophile’s equivalent to online porn.

Cheese box - yes, you can even pick your own cheese and put it in a box - with thanks to Farmison.com

Compared to other box schemes Farmison’s prices aren’t much more expensive, but for me I still prefer to be able to fondle my fruit and veg; plus only the cress, cauli and potatoes were from the UK in the foodie box I received. I appreciate that certain products (ie the wonderful lemons from Italy) can’t be sourced in the UK; but for me, even as a foodie, I’d rather fore go most items that are out of season, rather than substitute with those that from a different country (though not those lemons!).

For me, rather than the box scheme, Farmison excels on their meat and dairy; each cut of meat has multiple choices for the consumer, for example there’s four different types of lamb noisettes from North Yorkshire, The Isle of Man, Lancashire and Suffolk. Each entry has details about the farm it’s from, the breed and which chefs in the country use it. You can even click on farm name or the breed and you’re linked to more detailed information. 

Photo of Abbotts Farm, Yorkshire from their producer section - thanks to Farmison.com

Farmison’s dedication to quality sourcing and care of provenance shines through from their well thought out and well designed site. Farmison are putting choice and power back in the hands of the consumer and that’s a good thing in my book. It might be a little pricey, but I like to think that I'm paying for quality, good husbandry and utter trust in the provenance of the produce I buy. I doubt I'll use the box scheme, but that's just me, however for meat and dairy I'm already there!



Ps - I was sent a box by Farmison, but not in the expectation I'd write super nice things about them - all the thoughts are my own and they haven't seen this piece before I publish it.


Pps - Sorry for the lack of pictures, technology problem.


www.farmison.com

Burt's Blue Cheese - Altrincham, Cheshire

It's British Cheese Week; the time of year which fromageophiles such as myself use as an excuse to stock up on the good stuff, retreat indoors and only emerge after the last gooey globlet has been wiped out of the fondue.

So taking a break from the annual face stuffing, I'm resting my mandibles and sitting down to write a piece about the one cheese you should be searching out this week.

Burt’s Cheese is the new kid on the artisan cheese block. Handmade with all natural ingrediants by Claire Burt in Altrincham since 2009 it's since gained such critical acclaim that the cheese took Gold in the Specialist Cheese Makers Class at the International Cheese Awards 2010 in its first year and is now featuring on the menus of some of the best restaurants in the North West.

Claire Burt with her gold award

Focusing on quality rather than quantity, Claire Burt hand makes the cheese herself in small batches with pasteurised milk from the local dairy co-op, in a small dairy one mile from her house. The cheeses are pierced during maturation, which encourages the blue veins to develop, along with the cheese's flavour.

So, what's it like? Burt's is a small cheese; a dainty blue truckle, with an interesting blue mould bloom covering the surface. Each cheese comes in an individual paper wrapping and sealed with the date it was made and when it will keep to. On opening you are presented with a very pretty, lopsided, circular cheese with a faint aroma of mushrooms. As Burt's is handmade in small batches, each one tastes slightly different and looks unique. If you can face cutting open something of such beauty, revealed is a beautiful off-white, soft cheese with blue veins running through the middle.

Burt's Blue - with thanks to Smell My Kitchen Blog

This isn't a knock your socks of piquant blue that you can smell from the other side of the room; it's far more subtle than that. Burt's Blue is very creamy and soft, with a luxurious mouth feel. After the initial heavy dose of cream, there's a marked sharp top note, followed by a salty, warmer finish.

The creamy density and slight sweetness of Burt's Blue is great with the sharp fruit around now, some cox apples went particularly well, as did the slightly under ripe pears I 'borrowed' off the tree at work. I wouldn't suggest you pair the cheese with overpowering flavours, but sitting on top of an oatcake really shows off the full range of flavours in the cheese. Chef Jason Palin has also come up with quite a few recipes for cheese including the Welsh RareBurt - proving it's versatile as well as tasty. However, for me, simple is the best - wedges of Burt's on its own – pure and delicious.

Burt's Blue showing blue veins

So impressed was I with the cheese I managed to pin Claire down in between cheese batches and caring for her young son Noah to give me a brief insight into how Burt’s got started.

How did you get in to cheese making?
I was working for Dairygold Food Ingredients in Product Development and was lucky to be sent on a cheese making course, plus got to visit dairies across Ireland, UK, Italy and Denmark. I got really interested in it, then I made some cheese in my kitchen and it started from there.

What was your first cheese like?
It actually turned out like a cheese! But I didn't unfortunately get to taste it as I'd just found out I was expecting, so my husband had to be my guinea pig. Luckily it didn’t do him any harm so I carried on.

How it all starts - the curds and why of Burt's Blue

So how do you get from cheese making in the kitchen to a proper product on shelves?
I kept making cheese at home and when I worked out it was something I wanted to do, I spoke to Environmental Health about a fit for sale product. From there it was about getting into the local shops and luckily both Red House Farm and my local deli in Goosegreen, Altincham were impressed enough to take the cheese on. I did go back to work as I'd been doing this on my maternity, but my heart wasn't in it and now I produce Burt’s Blue full time.

Do you still turn out the cheeses in the kitchen?
No! I've been very lucky to find a small room that adjoins the Cheshire Cookery School just up the road from my house, which is very handy. I had a few false starts finding places, but this is my permanent home now. I've kitted the room out with plastic wall cladding, vats, moulds and all the other cheese making paraphernalia. It's a proper dairy. The cheese is both made, matured here and packaged here.

Any disasters?
Thankfully not too many and not what you term proper disasters. We initially used a single farm to produce the cream and the milk, however they couldn’t change their rounds to suit us and this was a big problem in the warm weather. We now buy off a local co-op instead and this suits us much better. I think the only proper has been during the cold weather all the pipes froze so we had no water to make the cheese with. As they thawed they burst and we had considerably too much water!

Burt's Blue at four weeks old

What have you learned in the last year?
It’s been a massive learning curve and I learned so much, each day I’m learning new things and think I always will. Finding the right suppliers, working with stockists, getting the cheese right, all the different coats on the cheese; it just carries on. However sometimes you realise things are beyond your control. There's a saying that cheese never sleeps; I think that goes for the cheese maker as well! I still very much feel like a beginner and am very excited about what the future holds.

Ps The cheese is suitable for veggies too, so we can all enjoy!
Burts is now stocked in the following places: Cheese Shop, Chester; Cheese Hamlet, Didsbury; Barbakan Deli, Chorlton; Cheese Emporium, Altrincham Market; Red House Farm, Altrincham; Cheshire Smokehouse; Good Cheese Company; Pendrills, wholesaler (supplies into Northcotes); Sam's Fresh and Local, Bramhall; Cheerbrook Farm Shop; De Fine, Sandiway; The Hollies Farm Shop, Cheshire; Hopley House, Middlewich; Williams & Sons, Holmes Chapel; Yellow Broom, Twemlow; Sextons, Lymm; Pokusevskis Deli, Heaton Moor; Ken's deli, Westhaughton. And you can catch Claire at the Altincham Producers Market, held every third Saturday of the month.
Burt’s Blue Cheese, 14 Grosvenor Close, Altincham, Cheshire WA14 1LA –
07709 394292 – Claire@burtscheese.com – Twitter

http://www.burtscheese.com/