Suzanna's - Little Scotland, Blackrod, Bolton

When we moved out of the city centre to the 'provinces' a couple of years ago it was to the mouths agape of our peers; where would we socialise? Where would we eat out? Contrary to their belief it hasn't been an uphill struggle, we've found good places to eat - albeit we rely mostly on upmarket pubs rather than fine dining; but Manchester's restaurant scene wasn't that good for it to be such a marked difference. Though sometimes, just sometimes, I hanker after some good old fashioned fine dining.

In my wildest dreams I didn't think that fine dining would come to Blackrod; a small parish town on a windy hill with a population of 5,300, two chippies, two curry houses and two butchers. But the opening of a new pub/restaurant called Suzanna's may just be the culinary answer we've been looking for.

Suzanna's used to be a grotty pub with a non too salubrious reputation; but now on entering you are confronted with light colours, velvets, leather and chrome; which is a stark contrast from the traditional pub style building Suzanna's is situated in. There's a pub side to the building that serves traditional grub during the day; then ales, cocktails and drinks in the evening. The main dining room is off to the side and has been equally decked out, if not better. Cool creams and taupes, leather banquettes and white linen set a sophisticated tone.

Glancing over then menu underlines right away that this isn't a local pub; there's foie gras, scallops, cote de boeuf and a nod towards the locality; very on trend, black pudding.

Gazpacho

Whilst we drank at the bar we were treated to complimentary canapes. No outdated vol-u -ants here; but some deliciously, garlic heavy gazpacho and the most expertly fried squid I have encountered; light, dry and tender with a good dose of spice; akin to the Dishoom squid popcorn, but far better (I know, in Blackrod!).

Best squid ever

Starter of monkfish cheek with sauce gribiche from the specials menu was a simple affair of a forgotten delicacy (mostly shipped out to the continent now); the fish lightly cooked, the gribiche cutting through the breadcrumbs, which added a pleasing crunchy texture but slightly masked the beauty of the fish.

Monkfish cheek

Feeling decadent I ordered the duck with foie gras - this really was a masterpiece of a dish. The duck was cooked bang on the nose, complimented by rich squares of fried fois gras and brought to life with the sharp acidity of the accompanying apple compote. Unlike a traditional apple sauce; laden with sugar, this was sharp, tangy and cutting, livening up what could have been an overly heavy dish. The accompanying dried apple slices were a aesthetically beautiful addition adding a fragrant top note.

Duck - messed up the presentation as I was so hungry I forgot about the photo!

Best end of lamb was daintily presented considering the size of the portion. Again the meat was cooked to perfection, the aubergine crisps so thinly sliced as to be almost transparent and not holding oil at all, the ratatouille quenelle moist and flavoursome - the only bum note in the whole dish was the over-salting in the fondant potatoes.

Best end of lamb

For pudding we picked the assiette so we could sample everything (greedy, us?); a tipsy trifle, chocolate fondant, an espresso ice cream, a carrot cake with sugared carrots, a sticky toffee pudding AND a lemon tart. Each little bite was a burst of well considered flavours and textures on the palate. A special mention needs to go to the insanely perfect lemon tart with the thinnest pastry I've come across since the dear departed Modern.

Assiette of dessert - the picture doing it no justice

Each course was a testament to the skill and aptitude of the kitchen, meticulously thought through and well executed. Headed up by Mike Jennings, they are turning out food that equals some of the best in the city centre and blows many of the overpriced eateries Manchester has to offer out of the water. A local lad, Chef Jennings has spent the last ten years travelling around the country working under such luminaries as Gary Rhodes, Nigel Haworth at Northcote and Shaun Rankin at Bohemia; now coming home to bring good food to the sleepy town of Blackrod.

So often in new restaurants you find an excellent kitchen can be let down by poor waiting staff. Seeing as the restaurant has only just opened, the service operation is smooth and faultless. Lead by a professional and friendly General Manager (who really knows his wines) the staff glide through their tasks as if Suzanna's is an establishment with many years trade under its belt.

Granted the food isn't cheap; however for the price you pay here for the blatantly obvious time and consideration lavished on the constrution of well thought out dishes, the amazing service and the relaxed atmosphere, would mean at least another 50% on the bill in the middle of Manchester. At £50 a head for three courses, amuse bouche and wine is a steal.

Hopefully the word will get out about this culinary gem to local foodies and far flung gastronomes alike; convincing people to make the pilgrimage up to my small town, so I, and they, can enjoy Chef Jenning's and his team's wonderful work for years to come.

Ps - the boy asked me to add that they only serve one ale and unfortunately it's served through a chilled tap; not being a beer drinker I don't much understand, but apparently it's crucial!

Pps - if you want something more traditional, the pub does a good range of sandwiches and pub grub from 12 noon-6pm for a very reasonable price; and for all you traditionalists Suzanna's serves up a proper Sunday lunch with all the trimmings too.

Price for  canapes (complimentary) four starters, four mains, two desserts (sharing assiettes), one bottle of wine (£26), one bottle of dessert wine (£20), two cocktails (£14), one glass of orange juice and four beers - £206.85

Food - 9/10
Service - 9/10
Atmosphere - 8/10
Value for money - 8/10

Total - 35/40

Go again - yes, I'll take my parents, my friends, my peers who think I live in a back water, the postman - any excuse!

Suzanna's, Little Scotland, Blackrod, Bolton, BL6 5LW - 01942 832629 - reservations@suzanna.com - Twitter

http://www.suzannas.com/

Blundell Arms - Horwich

There's nothing more rewarding after a long walk across the moors than a good pint supped in cosy, comfortable surroundings.

Certainly the Blundell Arms in Horwich, part of the Chef and Brewer chain, delivers on that front. It's close to the moors, has a roaring fire and there's plenty of exposed wood and warm colours to cosset you from the bleak expanses of heather and rocks that splay out from the back of the pub and there's always a good selections of traditional ales on tap that change often. They're not always local, but they're always pretty good.

Blundell Arms with thanks to Chef and Brewer

Great? No, not great. With a brand name including 'chef' in the title, the comfiness of the surroundings and the high standard of drink available, it would be a logical step to assume that the food would also be produced at an equally high standard.

Rocking up following a wet, after work walk, we chose hearty, warm food to chase away the chills; and indeed it was very warm. The food came out from the kitchen at such an extreme temperature that I can only guess it came from the electronic oven that goes ping, rather than being heated up conventionally/cooked fresh. The result was that we couldn't approach our food for a full five minutes. Ho hum.

Salty pie

The pie was more pastry than meat and what meat could be found in the middle had been heavily salted; which at least gave it more flavour, even if it was just one dominant, salty high note, than any of my dish put together. What lead me to order a curry in a pub I'm not sure, but it certainly was a mistake. On first impressions it did look good; two bowls of different curries, nann, rice and what looked like home made bharjis.

Tasteless curry

The meal is summarised thus - chickpea curry; thin, watery and tasted like a tomato cup-a-soup. Bharjis; oily, overcooked, stale tasting. Chicken curry; hotish, that’s about it – no layers of flavours, no fragrance. Nann: packet, cold. Mango chutney; famous green labelled brand name, at best. It's a travesty that this is being served up when the North has such a rich culinary heritage when it comes to Asian food and Spice Valley is churning out constantly good fare for less money only half a mile down the road.

Packet nann and rice

As our bellies still rumbled after this disaster of a meal, we took a chance and ordered something else off the menu. I wasn’t in the frame of mind that we should give this establishment any more money for food; however we were starving and it was included in a meal deal with the boy’s pie.

Never in my life has there been such a disparity in cooking between courses. The crumble was a bubbling dish of hot, cinnamony plums topped in a delicious, buttery crumble accompanied by very creamy, vanilla ice cream AND custard. A treat indeed!

Plum crumble

Looking over The Blundell Arm’s menu there’s the general feel that they’re trying to operate outside the usual pub realms, introduce people to new foods and offer over and above standard pub grub. There’s a highlight on seasonal ingredients; dishes using these are on a separate specials menu. There’s Fish Night and Game Night; the pub’s version of a tasting menu, five smaller courses for £20 introducing punters to wild boar and guinea fowl. All of which is to be applauded; however there’s no point trying out the clever stuff if you can’t get your basics right.

Cost for two mains, one pudding and two drink – £27.48

Food – 4/10
Service – 6/10
Atmosphere – 7/10
Value for money – 6/10

Total – 23/40

Go again? Yes for a pint after a walk as it really does suit it, plus there's a good view of the sunset; but we'd give the food a miss.

The Blundell Arms, Chorley Old Road, Horwich, Bolton BL6 6PY – 01204 898662
http://www.chefandbrewer.com/pub-food/blundell-arms-bolton-horwich/pid-P1527

Clandestine Cake Club @ Bean and Brush Cafe, Sale

Another month, another excuse to meet up with the lovely ladies of Manchester's clandestine cake club and another excuse to eat cake because "it's good to try other people's recipes in the aid of gastronomic research." Yeah...er...

Cakes - before sampling

This time we were hosted by the quirky Bean and Brush Art Cafe, set in the centre of Sale; it's a revelation in do-it-yourself arts and would be a brilliant place to take the kids. If I had any. Never fear as there is plenty of great coffee, food and beer action that also makes this a wonderful place for the adults to hang out too (and you can join in the arts too if you like!). Indeed their coffee is very good and the staff are very friendly. The menu looks good for a light bite or spot of lunch too - it's kid friendly enough without being overly patronising to the little people.

Bean and Brush Art Cafe - with thanks to Gumtree

This month's Clandestine Cake Club theme was Fruit and Veg and this gave me the opportunity to, not only stuff my face with some very unusual cakes (courgette, sweet potato, avocado and pumpkin all made an appearance); but to bake my very favourite cake; my fall guy, my stand in, my back up, the cake I know works every time and always tastes fab.

Courgette, Cinnamon and Walnut Cake

As I was once again accompanying the talented, but dietary restricted, Pin Ups in Pinnies; I was inspired to create another gluten and dairy free cake. Instead of inventing my own this time (see my last CCC post for an invented recipe); I stuck to something tried and tested and just tweaked it to suit my, or rather Alex's, requirements.

Alex of Pin Ups in Pinnies and my 'muse' for the cake

The cake in question is Nigel Slater's Beetroot Seed Cake, which runs along the traditional type lines of a carrot cake but so much lighter, fragrant and full of an earthy sweetness from the beetroots. It's never let me down and do you know what? Even with the gluten free tweaks the cake shone through and I felt it was generally appreciated by all who tasted it; plus the gluten free flour retained the brilliant, vivid purple of the beetroot that is usually lost when combined with 'normal' flour.

Wheat and dairy free Beetroot Seed Cake

Don't wait to have a glut of beetroots for this one, it's too good not to be baked straight away!

Beetroot Seed Cake - gluten and dairy free
Feeds: 8-10 slices
Prep: 20 min Bake: 55 min

225g gluten free self raising flour - I use Dove Farm's blend
1/2 tsp cinnamon
180ml light olive oil
225g light muscavado sugar/soft light brown sugar
3 eggs - separated
200g raw beetroot - grated coarsely
Juice of half a lemon (a big one)
100g mixed seeds (I used pumpkin and sunflower)

For the icing:
8 tbsp icing sugar
lemon juice or orange blossom water
poppy seeds

1. Set the oven to 180c/gas mark 4 and grease and line a 2ld loaf tin.

2. Beat the egg whites; be sure there's no oil/fat in the bowl or on the mixer. The idea with the gluten free cake is to get as much air in as possible, so start off on the lowest setting and work up. Beat to soft peaks. Set to one side.

3. I another bowl beat the sugar and the oil together.  Then introduce one lightly beaten egg yolk at a time. With both the sugar/oil and the eggs, work through your mixer speeds to combine as much air as possible. You need to spend a good five minutes working on this stage.

4. In a food processor coarsely grate the beetroot (or use the coarse side of a box grater), then add to the mixture with the lemon juice and the seeds. Fold in carefully, trying not to knock the air out. Don't worry, it will look mostly like beetroot and not much else right now.

5. Fold in the flour and cinnamon, again being careful.

6. Fold in the beaten whites with a metal spoon (so not to knock the air out) and the pour your quite wet and very pink mixture into the lined tin.

7. Pop in the oven for about 50-55 mins. After about 35 mins pop a tin foil cap on the cake so the top doesn't burn. It's ready when it springs back on being touched and a skewer comes out clean. As gluten free flour is slightly thirsty, be careful not to overcook.

8. Take the cake out of the oven and let it cool in the tin.

9. When cool, make the icing; you'll need about 3tsp lemon juice/blossom water, but just add as you go, then add about 30g poppy seeds. You want the icing to be wet enough to drip down the sides of the cake.

Enjoy!

Ps You can add raisins as well if you like. Only use 50g of seeds and add in 50g of raisins.

Bean and Brush Art Cafe, The Old Sorting Office, 12 Hayfield Street, Sale, M33 7XW - 0161 973 2140 - michelle@beanandbrush.co.uk - Twitter

http://beanandbrush.co.uk/

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/

Bolton Market

Foodies have long heralded the farmers' market; fair trade jute bag in hand, chatting to the suppliers over ears of freshly harvested corn and handmade gluten free cupcakes.

However we need to remember that the raise of the farmers' market is not just a modern phenomenon, but an extension of the traditional market that has been the mainstay of the populace's shopping experience for the past thousand years.

Bolton market is very much a product of the town's industrial past, housed in a Victorian market hall it's all tile, brick and iron. The town has held the charter to hold a market since 1251 and I can happily say this tradition is still going strong.

Last Saturday I did my usual shop at the market accompanied by the excellent food photographer, Christelle Vaillant (whose wonderful photos illustrate this edition of the blog - more of her work can be found on http://easydoesitrecipes.blogspot.com/). We spent a very enjoyable morning at the market, which won praise indeed from Christelle who hasn't seen such a market outside of her native France.

We've started shopping at the market after becoming increasingly depressed wandering round brightly illuminated isles, being over-charged for intensively packaged shiny fruits in the supermarket, or not being able to find much on the farmers' market in our price range - lovely for a spot of browsing or picking up something specialist; but not great at filling the shopping basket for the whole week.

Bolton's a usual mixed market, split in two; with general wares in one section and food in the other. You'll find the food market by following the fresh fishy smell and shouts of "seabass for for a fiver." Get ready for your senses to be assaulted as you're greeted on all sides by amazing sights, smells and sounds.

First stop is the fish stalls - there's a great selection at HJ Grundy; a good looking stall with spanking fresh fish. There's always the usuals, including staples such as cod and seabass, but it's also a great place to pick up the unusual. Last Saturday there were razor clams, live brown crab, prawns the size of my forearm, catfish and many others I've neither seen nor tasted before. The staff at Grundy's will clean, fillet and give you any bones of the fish you want. They're also very helpful when asking questions about what's fresh and when certain catches have come in. AND they stock local potted shrimps (Southport), something I stock up on at every opportunity!

On to Meat and Poultry for large, free range duck eggs and then over to Choice Cuts where you can get a good big slab of pork belly including nipple, a proper black pudding (Bury no less) and a cheeky chat with the guys on the stall. There's a handful of meat and fish suppliers here, so there's always plenty of choice for anything you need, including pigs feet and boiling chickens. As Bolton has a large ethnic community there are also a couple of Halal meats stalls with one specialising in super fresh Halal offal.

After the meat and fish you pop through to the fruit, veg and bakery section; which really is a riot of colour. Browse amongst the stalls for the best fruit and veg - most providers have grown savvy to the current localism trend and now mark on whether the stock is from the UK and even where about it's from; one of the stalls has some cracking Hesketh tomatoes at the moment. There doesn't seem to be one veg stall that's better than the others; it's a case of browse them all, picking up the freshest and the best. However there is a stall right at the back that's overflowing with chillies, fresh dates, Asian vegetables and humongous bunches of gorgeous herbs adding their heady fragrance to an already mind blowing shopping experience.

Special mention needs to be paid to Purdons cheese stall, selling a wide range of European cheeses and a large selection of local ones - this week I purchased a cracking Garstang Blue, which I decided upon with the help of staff (who kindly let me try quite a lot of samples).

Also worth a mention is Unsworth Deli, a places where real bread reigns supreme and you can pick up specialities like proper pancetta - not the flabby, little, flavoured lardons you pick up at the big four; but  a whole piece of cured meat off which you're sliced a lovely hunk. Plus the boy is very happy with their selection of pies (well he is Northern).

And last but not least Sweet Treats, found in the general side of the market. It’s a small, white sweet shop, but the only place you can find cream soda, plus you can put in a request for something you can’t find anymore and they’ll try to track it down for you. It’s recognisable by the yellow trays of Swizzles Matlow sweets reminiscent of the corner shop when you were eight.

Bolton Market's a brilliant alternative to the weekly big shop, you can sort all you food out but can't get everything there (such as toiletries); there's plenty of choice, the food's fresh and it's good to know that your money stays local.

Ps - Bolton Market has a market kitchen where they host cookery demos, even the Hairy Bikers have cooked there and they won Best Indoor Retail Market 2010. Even more reason to pay them a visit!

Pps - there's no parking at the market, however park at Sainsbury's on Trinity Street, parking's free for two hours. The train station is a five minute walk from the market and there's plenty of buses running in from the surrounding area.

Bolton Market is open Tue, Thurs, Fri and Sat - 9am-5pm. There's a second hand section on Friday and a car boot on Sunday.

Bolton Market, Ashburner Street, Bolton BL1 1TQ.

All photography in this blog has been taken by Christelle Vaillant, Food Photographer - check out more of her wonderful work here and here.