Celebrity Chefs UK

Recipe for the Ultimate Patriotic Bash - Nutters 40th Birthday Party!

2011-10-31T05:32:00.000-07:00

Take 1 local celebrity chef host, add a London bus and stir in a 4ft canapé serving dwarf, throw in a whole roast Dexter beef, pour in a 4.5 Litre bottle of Grey Goose and mix generously with 150 guests...

You’d have to be mad to try this recipe or maybe just a Nutter!

Andrew Nutters 40^th Birthday Celebrations were in full force as he jetted across Europe. Ballymaloe House, Cork, Ireland and Louis XVI Hotel De Paris, Monaco were top destinations, but the big bash was saved for at his favourite gastro pub the Mark Addy in Salford.

Fellow TV Chefs Brian Turner and Chris and James Tanner joined in the celebrations as a convoy of Bentleys, Rolls Royce’s and a London bus headed from Rochdale down Deansgate to the Salford destination. Guests then took to the river on a patriotic cruise to the Anthems of Rule Britannia and Land of Hope and Glory up the river Irwell.

Whole Roast Dexter Beef greeted revellers on their returns lovingly basted for 14 hours by chef pal Rob Owen Brown and all toasted with lots of Grey Goose Vodka. No stop for Nutter though who spent the following day filming for ITV 1’s new show Britain’s Best Dish - The Professionals.

A recipe for success it was and here’s to Nutters 41^st!!

Gourmet Food Festival Kinsale...

2011-10-25T07:41:00.000-07:00

Gourmet Food Festival Kinsale 2011

Was there ever such an event anywhere? Now in its 35^th Year (why have we never been before??) the festival seems to be as popular as ever. Kinsale is a glorious little town south of Cork, a mere hop skip and jump from the airport on the quietest roads you can imagine. With a population of 3,000, we were amazed that there are 59 places to eat with 12 gourmet restaurants. Numbers obviously swell with tourism, but this fascinating little place is a foodies paradise. No wonder the great Keith Floyd loved it so much, and had a home just a mile away.

Kinsale is twinned with Rhode Island and they send a host of talented chefs to the event each year. A cook off in the street on Friday afternoon, USA v Ireland produced some delicious fare – oysters, chicken livers, scallops etc and we tucked in heartily, then washed it down with a pint of draft Guinness in the homely Jim Edwards bar. Hosted by the delightful Derek Davies, the weekend kicked off with the Bolly Ball, sponsored by Bollinger. Those capable of an early start the following day, super glued their tickets to the Mad Hatters event firmly about their person, and with designated Alice in Wonderland character, donned crazy hats and set off to sample the delights of the best food of Kinsale at four destinations. Derek says the secret of the day is ‘to pace yourself’ …. With dancing at venue three, we jiggled around and braced ourselves for the last port of call, but could barely taste a morsel or lift a glass. The variety of food is overwhelming but crab crumble from Fishy Fishy and the most exquisite lamb from Man Friday will stay for ever in our memory – sublime! Sunday found us smartening up again and setting off for the Fruit de Mer lunch, a collaboration by all the chefs and a seafood feast that you can only dream about. Set before us was a tower of lobster, crab, oysters, mussels and every shell fish you can imagine – all sourced within 50 miles. Accompanied by some stunning wine we tucked in. The rest of the day is a bit of a blur… dancing, pub trawl, Irish bands and shenanigans… Did our Suzie Boots really get engaged to the Mad Hatter…or was it The Doormouse?

Get there, anyway you can… Kinsale – you rock!

Autumn news from Valentina....

2011-10-25T06:48:00.000-07:00

I am writing this from lovely sunny Umbria, where I’ve just finished one of my culinary tours with a lovely group of guests – many black and white truffles, much red wine and lots of new season olive oil were gleefully consumed by one and all! Please do look out for new dates on my website coming soon for 2012 – www.valentinaharris.com I am off to Atlanta, Georgia very soon to represent Les Dames D’Escoffier London chapter, of which I am President. Les Dames D’Escoffier International is a philanthropic organisation that exists to help and support women in all aspects of the food and beverage industry by means of advice and networking and also through our bursaries, which offer financial support to women who may need it. We recently held our first London event and raised money jointly for the Kate Ray Bursary for Patisserie and for Action Against Hunger.

After the recent success of The Cheese and Wine Festival on London’s Southbank, I am now also gearing up with preparations for The Chocolate Festival, also on Southbank, which takes place from 9th to 11th December – do come along and enjoy lots of lovely chocolate and also watch some of the UK’s top chocolatiers and pastry chefs in action at this wonderful free festival. Meanwhile, I am still busy writing my Foodoir – or culinary autobiography, which is almost finished and is scheduled for publication in Spring 2013. I wish you many happy cooking experiences and Buon Appetito! Valentina x

Autum news!

2011-09-23T05:54:00.000-07:00

We love this time of year – everyone wakes up after their summer hols and its all systems go. The chefs seem to be busier than ever with autumn and winter shows, new clients, jobs and endorsements and great news for Daniel Galmiche – his lovely book, French Brasserie Cookbook has gone straight to the top of the cook book lists on Amazon. He’s having a great year and got hitched in August to the beautiful Claire - congratulations to them both!

Nigel Smith has a super new product – his Caffe Crème Coffee. This is available in handy size pouches and will be hitting the shops soon. As ambassador to Ezecook/Kleeneze (who sponsored the Macmillan Coffee Morning UK recently) it was a great product for Kleeneze to support the charity with.

Fabulous food writer and presenter Richard Johnson joins us – his Street Food Revolution goes from strength to strength and the second British Street Food Awards were held at Harvest at Jimmy’s in September. The lucky winner Café Mor takes their beach shack to the London 2012, where they will serve up their food to the best athletes in the world.

Martin B and John Q did a double act for Kenwood at Goodwood revival – dems for three days and enjoyed the whole revival experience at the same time. See them at the BBC Good Food Show in November too.

Ali Benson-Smith hosted the Bolton Food Festival and got to grips with the Bikers, Gino and James Martin. John Benson-Smith also demmed at the festival. The couple work hard for us with their consultation work too and we are as ever, indebted.

The lovely Lily Simpson joins us from Lily’s Lovely Bites – her London based catering company that serves exquisite fare to a high profile client list. Lily will be demonstrating at Grand Designs Show in October.

Valentina is somehow finding time to
work on a new branded food range which we are very excited about, that’s when she’s not demming, running cookery classes/theatres, writing her memoirs or hosting her wonderful courses in Italy.

The every youthful Andrew Nutter had his 40^th Birthday Party – those left standing will recall an amazing evening of brilliant entertainment that only the Nutter could dream up. We love you Andrew!

And we’re all off to the Gourmet Food Festival in Kinsale, Ireland in a couple of weeks and counting the days down...

Happy autumn to you all xx

New blog area coming soon....

2011-07-04T02:45:00.000-07:00

Summer – Hurrah!

Lovely warm days and the chefs are busy!!

We have a brand new blog area coming very soon.

Please visit us again to catch up with all the news.

Watch this space…!

2011-03-10T08:15:00.000-08:00

We catch up with Nutter...

Greetings All

As I write this I am sitting in the bar at the Chester Grosvenor, Champagne in hand about to commence a busy service......but not cooking!!. I've been invited to be chef/host at Gorgeous Grub at the Grosvenor event, the twist being I am allowing Michelin Star Chef Simon Radley cook my dishes for over 100 guests! All for a good cause I hasten to add as all funds go to the Neuro Muscular Centre.

Events are coming in thick and fast at the moment - I am showcasing my talents at The Ideal Home Show at Earls Court on Wednesday, before racing back to Rochdale for my sell out St Patrick's Day evening on the Thursday, judging a Young Chef Of The Year Competition on the Saturday and The Hulme Masterchef Competition on the following Monday.

Phew - I might be able to take a breath of air, although I'm making up for it now. Another glass of Champagne if you please bar man!

I've been involved with quite a few events recently. A big event for me was "A Night With Nutter At The Starlight Supper" with Smooth Radio which got people up and down the country hosting a dinner party simultaneously all in aid of Macmillan Cancer Support and what a night it was - check out YouTube - Andrew Nutter's Starlight Supper. The sell out event saw 44 diners take part in foodie related challenges from peeling onions, flipping pancakes and even cooking their own main course. The losers then had to do the washing up. A total in excess of £4,000 was raised and that was just from 44 diners - not bad going!

See you soon!

2011-02-09T10:00:00.000-08:00

Martin Blunos lands in Liverpool....

This last month has been full on between developing the menu for the new venture in Cardiff to dashing to London for the launch bash of Cookery School for Channel 4 – I appear as a chef mentor to the finalists.

I did however manage to squeeze in a trip to Liverpool to open a brilliant new technology unit at St Edwards College known as ‘St Eddies' to the locals. I loved Liverpool - the city, people and accent! Everybody is friendly and helpful nothing like the stereotypical ‘Scousers’ we see portrayed on the box, I didn’t see one hair perm or shell suit- ha!

Before the grand opening (where I ceremoniously pulled the chord to open curtains revealing a stainless steel plaque) I took a class with some of the students in the new kitchen and had a ball. The alchemy of turning a selection of dry and raw ingredients into something tasty was really satisfying for them. Their reward was to eat the fruits of their labour – much better in my book than a tick and a gold star! I gave a speech to 6^th formers about my career to date and how I got into the business and thought that my words would fall on deaf ears; after all these guys are academics that may go on to become barristers, corporate bigwigs or politicians, but I was pleasantly surprised by how the majority took a real interest in what I had to say – maybe it was the accent!

Laters!….M

Catch up with Valentina....

2011-02-01T02:52:00.000-08:00

New Year with Valentina Harris.... (seen here with the one and only Mr Nutter...)

Well, the new year has brought me a huge commitment in the form of writing my long awaited Foodoir (as my publishers insist on calling it!) I am desperate (honestly!) for a title, so please please do send me any suggestions. It is a strange and very emotional journey, going down all those old roads, digging out memories and recipes for the book. I know it is going to be truly fabulous by the time it is finished, but this is not easy peasy! I need to deliver the final manuscript in early summer. The new 2011 dates for my residential culinary adventures are all available right now, with a new location in Tuscany to be added soon and also details for Orival, France 2011. I’m really excited about the new Tuscan location – I’m going out to recce very soon, and I will be publishing the programme and photographs next month on my website http://www.cucinavalentina.co.uk

Meanwhile, as usual, lots of other stuff to look forward to this year. I am going to be organising and presenting at The Cheese and Wine Festivals and at The Chocolate Festivals http://www.festivalchocolate.co.uk/index.html this year, plus taking up my position again as the Chef Coordinator for the Teatro del Gusto at La Dolce Vita http://www.ladolcevitaevent.co.uk/ and at the two Real Food Festivals http://www.realfoodfestival.co.uk in May and October.

Something else that is keeping me very busy is being the President of the London Chapter of Les Dames D'Escoffier International, an organisation that exists to help women in the food industry - chefs, wine makers, mixologists, writers, journalists, presenters, producers, retailers et al! See http://www.ldei.org/ for more information, and if you would like to propose anybody who you think would be a worthy Dame, let me know! I would really like to grow the membership this year and have great plans for various ways in which to help young women (and not so young too!) coming up through the ranks.

My best recent discovery is the fabulously elegant Food Room and Library http://www.thefoodroomandlibrary.co.uk/ which, if you have not yet discovered it, is really worth a visit for anybody who loves cookery books, and is also a great location for a dinner party, a wine, cheese or chocolate tasting etc. Meanwhile, I am continuing to teach here and there, so I hope to catch up with you very soon!

How many days to Christmas…..?!!

2010-11-11T09:59:00.000-08:00

Martin Blunos lets his hair down! Seen here with fellow chefs James Martin, Daniel Galmiche and the Tanner brothers at a Princes Trust Dinner, lets not ask too many questions….!

It is busy… very busy as usual with cookery school bookings booming and everyone spreading themselves thin on the ground as the winter shows kick off. All too much to list here but below is a taste of what some of the chefs have been up to…

John and Ali Benson-Smith did some great PR work with Philips on a new product and have been running some amazing events with Range Rover, somehow managing to fit this all into their busy life, look out for them at a VIP day at M & S, Marble Arch on 27th November.

Tiffany is the new Brand Ambassador for British Asparagus – the campaign kicks off later this year and will see her romping through the asparagus fields with appropriate press next season, her regular column in Foodies Magazine starts in December and her latest book is selling well - lots of interesting new work for Tiff in 2011, watch this space!

Our man in the North West - Nigel Smith has just signed to work with Country Range Foods and will be working closely with them testing new products and creating recipes for their Stir It Up magazine. Nigel also goes into his second year as consultant for Kleeneze and the second edition of his Ezecook Recipe Book and DVD is now available. Daniel Galmiche has put the final touches on his first book and this will shortly go to press for autumn publication – it looks wonderful Daniel, well done! He is enjoying working with Philips – see him on-line at their ‘Kitchen Corner’ and his association with Steelite continues. Don’t miss Daniel in the 200th episode of Saturday Kitchen with James Martin on 27th November – it is going to be quite special!

We are thrilled to start work with Justine Forest – the amazing girl who dropped 10 dress sizes all on her own, won the series in Michael Winner’s Dining Stars, started her own ‘Chocolate Brownie’ business and is writing her first book telling us how she lost the weight and changed her life, she is inspirational! Valentina Harris did another amazing job collating and running the Celebrity Chef Theatre for the Prince of Wales Start UK Garden party and our chefs enjoyed demming there. Our relationship with Kenwood strengthens – see our chefs on their stand at the BBC Good Food Show, NEC later this month.

Martin Blunos was brilliant on MasterChef Australia, when the competitors were in London - they had master classes with Jamie Oliver, Heston Blumenthal and our very own Martin – his boiled egg and soldier’s signature dish blew the judges away! Iron Chef returns to the screens in December – be warned! Martin demms all over the country and was at the Caravan & Camping Show for five days in October. Bonfire Night at Nutters was fantastic – as ever our pyromaniac chef lit up the sky over north Manchester and guests dined on a truly scrumptious themed menu. Andrew recently filmed on location at Swinton Park and at Nutters restaurant for Anna and Kristina's Grocery Bag which can be seen on the W network in Canada and the Oprah Winfrey Network in the United States, he has also been demming in store for the 175th anniversary of Kendals in Manchester.

Lovely John Quilter works hard on his consultancies dividing his time between London and Manchester and presented the cookery theatre at Grand Designs Birmingham; you are going to be seeing a lot more of John next year!

Till next time….happy cooking!

2010-09-23T14:30:00.000-07:00

Nutter & Valentina '70's Style!

Summer came…. and went…!

Busy, busy, busy. Autumn is upon us and as another season comes around everyone has lots to do. There have been some fun events recently and we have to mention the fantastic festival that was Vintage at Goodwood. If you didn’t get there be sure to put it on your calendar for next year as it promises to be as good if not better (is that possible?). Fashion, music and food from the 1940’s through to the 1980’s came together and with the brilliant Wayne Hemmingway behind the event in conjunction with the Earl of March and the truly glorious Goodwood Estate was transformed over the course of a weekend. Our own talented Valentina Harris was Curator of Food and came up with some amazing venues/menus and general madness that made the event outstanding. In the Kenwood Theatre our chefs entertained with recipes from either the 1950’s or 1970’s. The stage revolved with a ‘50’s kitchen on one side and ‘70’s kitchen on the other. With timeless period dishes from the appropriate era’s, John Quilter grappled with dried egg white that wouldn’t peak for his ‘Baked Alaska’, Martin Blunos showed us how to make the best ‘spam fritters’, Nutter showed off with ‘70’s garnishes and Steve Walpole valiantly rallied against torrential rain thundering on the roof for his ‘70’s dem. A highlight was the wonderful Marguerite Patten CBE who talked to an enthralled audience about wartime rationing and the austere years that followed. The Tangueray Torch Club became our meeting place as the Mojitos flowed and there is talk that someone had to have a palm plant surgically removed from her head but we’re not mentioning any names……

2010-08-09T03:16:00.000-07:00

Holidays and High Jinks with Shahena Ali...

It’s been a few months since I last wrote, but definitely eventful to say the least! Something that I did do (and which was long overdue) was to take an all too brief Roman Holiday. Indulging in Italian treats…hmmm…now that definitely brings a smile to my face! Looking at the Roman ruins made me wonder about what exactly the Ancient Romans feasted on during their many celebratory orgies. Ahem…on that note, I’ll move along to what happened next when I returned to sunny London.

I recently had the pleasure of receiving an award for ‘Contribution to the Community’ at the glittering Channel S Awards 2010 for my contribution to the British Bangladeshi Community via the food industry. That of course tickled me pink, and the next few days were taken up with my representing the Change4Life campaign during Radio interviews, first at Oak FM with presenter Dee Bahra and then on Westside Radio with presenter, Raj Gogna. My article ‘Top 10 Healthy Cooking & Eating Tips’ for Change4Life was also featured in Eastern Eye newspaper and of course, the summer had to start with some ‘Seductively Scrumptious Recipes’ for Asian Woman magazine. Well, after those shenanigans, I think I’ll have to take another holiday! Enjoy the lovely British Summer guys and girls! Until next time…..x

2010-06-09T05:33:00.000-07:00

May mayhem with Martin.....

MAKE UP AND PROFIT

By now I expect that you all saw Iron chef UK on Channel 4 and hopefully you all love the show. Believe me it really is that frantic and yes like most chefs that ‘glow’ when all hot and bothered, my make up did run a tad. Nothing that the flick of a Mac brush and the dab of a Kleenex couldn’t sort. But guys have you noticed how all that foundation plays havoc with your pores? I’ve found that a good cleansing regime and rehydrating at night helps!
Moving on - It’s all been a bit of a whirlwind for me post recording the series, lots of interview stuff and promotion. Whether that’s been from the kitchen table, at home, via the World Wide Web, filling in Q’s and A’s on the computer for a distant publication to cooking a couple of my Iron Chef dishes on the top deck of a private yacht, £41 million pounds worth of upmarket pedalo I might add – oh how the other half lives, for TV execs at the MIPTV fayre in Cannes. There have been some real chalk n cheese moments, either way it all goes with the territory and they do say that variety is the spice of life.

So with all this hard work and the bad complexion it’s nice to kick back when the opportunity arises to recharge and relax. The fine weather has meant it’s been a blast to get out and about in ‘them thare hills’, around Bath in more fetching attire than a sowester and waders. Ive been casting my beady eye over the nettles that are now growing like crazy and the spring freebie of wild garlic which sprouted up everywhere and made the annual appearance on the menus. Great for profit margins, quick rule of thumb - buy it for £1.00 x by 4 = a selling price of £4.00 so pick it for free x by 4 = still a selling price of £4.00 Simples as the meerkat says!
The late start to spring, as we know it, meant hanging around for the said garlic, asparagus etc but blimey it was worth the wait. Absence makes the heart grow fonder, and when it concerns food, the stomach more so. Does it all really taste better? My thoughts are probably not it’s just being without the taste of the good stuff that has built up a psychological craving that will inevitably disappear by season end. Some of you may have tried to satisfy those cravings with Mexican asparagus in February for example but honestly what’s the point.
Back to the grind stone and May was another mad month – organising the end of season dinner at Bristol City FC, demos at Grand Designs show in London, Bath Coffee Festival, taking over the galley on a cruise ship to St Petersburg and of course the day job.
Will be back next edition with more make up tips and stuff about food, till then, in the words of the Chairman – Allez Cusine.......

2010-05-18T09:21:00.000-07:00

Steve Walpole on clouds of ash at Heathrow....

Strange times at the moment, this volcano business has turned everything on its head. Heathrow went from being a busy hustle and bustle to an absolute ghost town in one fail swoop. One minute we are all full steam ahead and the next the tumble weeds are rolling through...

Good news for us is that we finished all our summer menu presentations for June, July and August for first class British Airways well ahead. Still a bit strange that I have to design seasonal dishes one season ahead. But we have great suppliers and companies that really help us to get the best products possible.We have now completely changed the way airline food for all our customers is sourced, presented and designed. Yes you will see “chicken or beef” or as the crew call it “feather or Leather" as such, but this is not the only choice. It's hard to try and change something that has a funny reputation as it's been the same for years. The reason is simple; it is such a complex process that certain dishes simply cannot be done, but with the application of new techniques and processes, it means we getting closer to achieving even more than ever before. So what are some of the highlights on the summer menus?... Well where do I start. We have worked closely with Loch Fyne fisheries to come up with locally sourced or farmed fish for the menus and they have come back with Loch Duart Salmon, gilt head bream and monk fish. So we designed 2 assiettes and a bouillabaisse. They have also a new product citrus marinated smoked salmon which is perfect summer product.

We have a good mix of retro, classic dishes and modern twists to try and tantalize the taste buds. The Gressingham duck is fabulous with its roasted crown and confit drumstick served with a celeriac and potato rosti, marinated cherries and roasted vegetables. We have Hereford Sirloin Beef with Pont Neurf and Béarnaise sauce which is a beautiful piece of beef and British. Warm salad of poached egg with English asparagus and a pea and broad bean dressing is another great end of spring start of summer highlight. Also one of my favorite desserts a chocolate fondant with white chocolate ice cream, salted caramel and a hazel nut tuile. Hardly a light summer dessert but works really well.

We design not only the food but the plating guide too. It’s a bit like the chef cooking it and then the front of house staff following a plating manual to the chefs spec. Give them their credit the Cabin Crew have a tough job and the fact they try and cook and plate the food to a restaurant standard as well as serve and do everything else at 30,000 feet, I believe they are worth their weight in gold.

So next time your on a plane have a think about the whole menu and work behind it. You will be amazed what actually goes on. Remember it may not be cutting edge but with what we have to work with, we do try and do a first class job, also as an idea we cater for about 17,500 passengers a day out of Heathrow alone. That’s a lot of food!! Happy Cooking.......

2010-05-18T09:12:00.000-07:00

Valentina is as busy as ever!

As I write this, the car is half packed with gear for the Real Food Festival, where once again this year I am running the Demonstration Kitchen and looking after 23 separate great cooking moments, with chefs as diverse as Laurence Dallaglio (yes, you read that right!) Giorgio Locatelli, Andrew Parkinson, Tommi Miers and many more.
My job is to organise all the back stage prep. Sort out their equipment (pray they’ve all remembered their ingredients!!) Introduce them on stage and make sure it all goes smoothly to plan! Of course the ethos of the Real Food Festival is all about just what the name says…real food produced by real people, so it is wonderful to be associated with a show with principles that are so close to my own heart.

On Tuesday I am heading out to Italy, I am going to spend a few days at my Umbria location La Locanda del Capitano, and also at Badia a Coltibuono, in preparation for our autumn holiday programmes. And don’t forget that we have a special last minute deal on our June French Alps weekend – just £600, excluding flights. We also have just 8 places left for our autumn dates at Badia a Coltibuono. Please do email or call for further details.

The rest of the month looks just as busy as always, with the Streatham Festival on the 16th, another Full House dinner on the 20th and on going preparations for the Vintage at Goodwood Festival, not to mention another book in the planning stages!

I hope you are enjoying the first of the English asparagus and all the other spring produce which is beginning to appear and I wish you happy cooking!

Buon Appetito!

Valentina x

2010-05-18T07:09:00.000-07:00

Daniel Galmiche takes a few moments to update us....

Eh Voila!

In my native France, to be more precise , Franche – comte like of course the rest of Europe it is now spring and that means great produce! We already had the first peas from Italy which we serve as a lovely pea veloute, smoked bacon espuma and a smoke bacon crème-brulee - magnificent! Also what I love at this time of the year is white asparagus, simply poached or steamed served warm with herb vinaigrette - smashing!

My book progresses and (besides the Vineyard) is taking all my free time to write and I am so excited about it. I am looking forward to the festival Taste of Edinburgh at the end of May - come and see me if you are north of the border, I can't wait to go back - I love Scotland. At the Vineyard in June we are hosting a wine dinner, myself and our Master Sommelier Yohan with all the wines coming from the cellars of Sir Peter Michael's winery which are some of the world's top wines and suppliers to The White House. The dinner will be of a high standard and is now nearly fully booked - no wonder when you realise that those wines are indeed rare and mostly allocated stock all over the world, I am really looking forward to it.

At last it was great to have a break in Portugal with my family for 6 days a couple of weeks ago, in the sunshine for a much needed rest - let's hope we get some sunny days here soon too....

2010-03-11T11:53:00.000-08:00

Milan in March with Valentina....

A MAD MARCH BLOG

Just back from a flying visit to Milan to see the family…. Lots of artichokes is all the markets, this is really their moment! One tiny little stall I saw at least 7 different varieties, and all of them used for different things – one for risotto, one to eat raw in salads etc. etc. and a lot of chick Milanese shops using them as flower arrangements, or as part of window displays – so cool to see my favourite vegetable being really celebrated! Back now for a busy few days catching up with Vintage at Goodwood (I am the food and drink curator for this summer’s most amazing Festival - do not miss it!!) and of course I do have a book to write…the photography starts on April 6th and I am a bit behind….eek!! Never mind, always better under pressure….

2010-03-06T00:38:00.000-08:00

We catch up with the lovely Shahena Ali......

A few months of madness…

After lying low swotting up like a complete nerd on my medic exams all summer, (and all because I wanted to get a holistic view on food and see the science behind how the food we eat affects our bodies – which it does, quite dramatically I might add!), I was thrilled to pass with flying colours…cue huge celebration party at home!

But the partying was not over…there were more celebrations to come…in Autumn 2009 I was delighted to take on the role of ambassador for the Department of Health’s ‘Change4Life’ Campaign, something which I wholeheartedly support as I really do believe that the food we eat eventually shows up in our state of health and appearance, whether it’s weeks or years down the line.

But as there’s no rest for the wicked, (and I desperately needed a rest), I trotted off to Belgium and the Dutch Christmas markets in November where I spent a gloriously indulgent time eating my own body weight in poffertjes (small sweet pancakes) and revelling in chocolate and waffle heaven.

I then came back to England to a whirlwind of parties galore once again, (goodness, I’m just a quiet homebody really!), where I attended The British Curry Awards and where the family restaurant, The Maharaja was nominated in the South East category. The Bangladesh Catering Association Awards followed next, and I’m delighted to say that The Maharaja was awarded the BCA Caterer of the Year.

Having had a mini-rest after the New Years Eve in London insanity, Februrary saw me strolling along to the British Asian Sports (BASA) Awards last month, where I was invited as an ambassador of the Change4Life Campaign, to say a few words about the small, yet hugely effective changes we can all make on a daily basis, whether it’s in the food we eat or in the activities and habits we follow. It was a real inspiration to talk to some of the sports personalities such as Amir Khan and Denise Lewis, and a total eye opener at hearing some of their eating plans! My new year’s resolution is of course to make sure I have a bit of everything, including my favorite foods on a regular basis, (namely, ample amounts of chocolate), but only in small doses, and not in industrial sized portions like I’m used to! I know I am all for indulgence, but everything in moderation eh?

2010-03-04T03:45:00.000-08:00

Our 'Iron Chef' Martin Blunos updates you....

The Pikey Vikings back, more metal than ever!

Been busy 'rusting' (it rained a lot) in Glasgow, filming the new series of 'Iron Chef UK' for Channel 4. I am one of the Iron Chefs. Chosen, I believe, for my immense sense of style, presence, culinary prowess, believing my own bull**** and definitely not my humility, Ha!. Seriously though a 'right place - right time' scenario.

People, take it from me, this show is going to be BIG! (if not I'll eat my axe and shield).
It was such an honour to be on board from day one. The production team, home ec's, wardrobe right down to the first aid lady (yep I had to use her services after an incident with a slab of belly pork and a Stanley knife) were so into the show it was a blast not only in front of camera but behind the scenes, a true team effort that made for a memorable couple of weeks.

Long days filming were fuelled by Glasgow breakfasts of Haggis, Flat (Lorne) Sausages and Scrambled Eggs - Back in Blighty, the Longship is moored up till I sort out my constitution - I'm now on a prune and apple diet with sour cream rinse!!!

laters, peace

PV

(transmission date for Iron Chef UK - late April - tbc)

2010-01-26T08:43:00.000-08:00

Andrew Nutter's start to the year....

The snow has finally cleared and the restaurant is now back on track for a great year.

The new year has started so well with an amazing Snow Ball and firework show on New Years Eve to all of a sudden having 460 people cancel in a week due to the severe weather.

Our Burns Night Celebrations went down a storm with flaming haggis and even flashing Scotsmen - Ha Ha!

Just finished filming the pod cast of my dishes for Smooth Radio's Starlight Supper, supporting MacMillan Cancer Appeal, due to be the UK's largest dinner party on 27th February - should be a fabulous evening. Check our details on www.smoothradionorthwest.co.uk

2010-01-25T06:32:00.000-08:00

January days with Valentina....

I’ve just come back from the park with Chef the dog and have been sharply reminded why I hate the winter so much – it is so grey and cold and miserable out there, with a cold wind that feels like cold steel, so I’ve dashed back into the house and have immediately started cooking, which is the only thing to do when the weather out there is so hell-bent on bringing you down! I have a lovely warming stew simmering away….
Anyway, where did January go? I seem to hit the ground running this month and it has all been so busy, great fun and filled lots of wonderful people and delicious food and wine moments. The month began with a seminar for Dance East in Suffolk, and then continued with various cookery classes and the days and days of photo shoot sessions with the lovely Ian Garlick in his Shoreditch studio for my latest book – 500 Great Italian Dishes, due out next year. The great thing, for me, about this book is that it is going to be published in Italian! Another high light of this month for me was doing Woman’s Hour, it was so nice to see Jenny again and to be at Broadcasting House, and I was delighted that my piece (about the protection and preservation of authentic Ragu alla Bolognese and how it is different to Spag Bog) even made it to the best of show at the weekend.
I really hope the rest of the year turns out to be as exciting as this first month has been, hopefully some of the plans that are currently afoot will come together by the time I next write, but meantime I think I’ll just go and stir my stew…..

Buon Appetito!
Valentina x

2009-12-16T07:45:00.000-08:00

Christmas catch up from our Essex Boy....

Well it is now only 9 days till Christmas and for the first year ever I am actually organized. The goose is ordered the Christmas pudding is ready just need to get the last few presents and I can relax. So looking forward to this year as Jessica is old enough (just) to understand the whole Christmas thing. Bless she has seen Santa twice now and although she thought Martin Blunos with his moustache and long hair was Santa, she knows he will be bringing her presents if she is a good girl. She even told me on Monday that if I eat her advent calendar chocolate again then Santa wont be bring me a present this year. Don’t you just love the whole naivety of children? Christmas is all about them really.

Made my mother very proud this Christmas, as I have a four page spread in Essex life Christmas edition. Although she now wants to know why I have not made her a Christmas cake this year OOPS. Damn the media and my big mouth lol. But nice all the same for her to show the neighbours. Going to keep it low key this year and it will be just the three of us. Love doing the rounds to all the family but it can be quite a mission. So decided open invitation to the family, scrambled eggs and whisky cured smoked salmon breakfast, that way Jess can enjoy nanny and granddad and the rest, seeing her open her presents without having to load the car up or look like a present delivery service is a nice thought. One present in particular I cant wait to see her face with is her pink motorbike that my parents have brought her as she loves my Motorbike and wants to be like daddy. Sure mummy wanted a pony for Jess but glad she is a daddy’s girl.

So another year draws to a close and it’s been a busy one. Not a great year with the recession but we have all learnt a little or a lot and it is amazing how people pull together in times like this. So here's goodbye to 2009 and hello to a hopeful 2010. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you all.

May you all have an enjoyable time!

Speak to you all again soon.
Steve

2009-11-25T06:37:00.000-08:00

This is so short and sweet and I apologise in advance!! Its amazing how things start to slot into place and new projects arise...

My legendary Chrimbo Puds have had a make over (order one from Celeb Chefs UK and get a free choccie bar!Christmas Pudding Offer remember to add 'Celebrity Chefs UK Offer Code' in the details of your order) and I'm pleased to say apart from popping them in a new presentation box, I've also just changed the recipe slightly so now there also veggi & gluten free.

This is very good news as now Purbeck's Ice Cream from Dorset have turned my wonderful creation into a fabulous Chrimbo Pud Ice Cream and to add to this they supply British Airways who now want the pud also... but alcohol free! Full steam ahead! A little bit of jiggling and sampling and I've came up with a gluten & alcohol free Christmas Pudding using an Apple & Pear juice which just lifts the pudding beautifully.

The newly packaged puds are starting to shift and I've just heard from my press office The Alan Titchmarsh Show have requested samples.....Oh.... And Kharma (my puppy) is doing well 4 months old now and she knows how to misbehave perfectly and she only does it at puppy class!... On this note I must dash more Christmas puddings to wrap and I can honestly say I'll be smelling like Christmas pudding now till January...

Paul xxxx

2009-11-14T02:51:00.000-08:00

November News from Nutter....

What a month. From food festivals, judging cooking competitions, hosting award dinners, putting my new book to print, oh and of course nearly blowing up Rochdale with my firework display on November 5th.

The great Northern Cook Off went down a storm – held at The Midland Hotel. I’ve now hosted it for 3 years and have to say it was the best ever.

Our sell-out Guy Fawkes event was a blast and I’m still recovering now – it’s one night I really allow myself to let my hair down and party.

Really excited about the next few weeks – my new book (it had to be extended to 224 pages as there were too many great recipes) is out. “Nuts About Food” will be hitting the book shelves from December and is being billed as the must have cook book – so anyone looking for a fab Christmas gift – that’s the answer! Cheers! Nutter...

2009-11-11T09:22:00.000-08:00

Steve Walpole takes a break in Yorkshire then returns with the pikey Viking.....

I finally got a holiday this month and for the first time in a long while stayed in this country. We had a family break in Yorkshire. Being an Essex boy I had thought I had seen my fair share of farms and fields but where we stayed in Ingleton was truly a beautiful picture. My daughter loved the fact that outside her bedroom window we had cows in the field and the farmer had sheep dogs and puppies. Even got to sample a lot of the local food and one place in particular took our fancy and that was the Riverside Restaurant in Barnard Castle. One of the best meals we had by far. You never know I may have been converted to Yorkshire life.

Anyway back now and straight into a great event, not in Essex this time but sunny (Not) Leeds. Typical I go all the way to Yorkshire for a holiday then return to go all the way back again. Need to organize my diary better lol. This was a different type of event than I have done before, we had four chefs all showcasing their own dishes in a taste of celebrity chefs style. So I was pitched against the very talented Martin Blunos, the Irish master Paul Rankin and the French Mistro Franck Pontais. Being the cocky chappie that I am I had complete faith in my menu until Mr Blunos unleashed his show case dessert of egg and soldiers, with that my posh bananas and custard ( banana tart tatin, almond brittle and traditional custard) had a bit of work to do. Especially as SOMEONE ( yes you Mr B) spread a rumor that I was using birds instant how very dare you. But it was a great day and the clients were bowled over that they could pick and choose as well as interact with us chefs. Plus it was in a fabulous venue of Harewood House, so all in all a long day but an enjoyable one. Judging by the feed back I am sure the Essex boy cleaned up, pikey Viking was definitely 2nd but gave me a run for my money. Good news for me is I will be nicking his ideas for British Airways First Class but don’t tell him.

Catch up soon people

Steve

2009-11-04T05:16:00.000-08:00

We (try to!) catch up Martin Blunos.....

the Pikey Vikings back (albeit slowly):

'been running around like a 'nutter' (no disrespect Andrew - love him to bits) anyway for my troubles Ive picked up two speeding tickets in as many weeks. So now up to nine points my driving has become, how shall I put it, 'more sensitive to the environment = slow'. Mind you there are pro's and con's to this form of driving - on the plus side my fuel bills are much much lower - on the minus I get overtaken by anything with the semblance of an engine (a mobility scooter towing a four birth caravan had me on the A46 last week - he'll see who the daddy is when I'm back to six points!!).

Strange how things happen in threes. Those two brushes with the law led to an invite to prison (maybe the big man is trying to tell me something?). The gig at HMP Earlstoke, a category C venue down my way was to attend a formal dinner cooked by the inmates followed by a ready steady style cook off between three prisoners that I was asked to judge. The dinner was triffic and the cook off was a blast. The winner received a tidy engraved silver salver - and whilst posing for the obligatory pics he whispered to me that the last time he had anything like that in his possession he got five years for it - wicked what!

Also my boy Max, the drummer, got me an acting part in another music video, my second to date (check out you tube / trigger the bloodshed / laceration video for the first, I'm the one chained to the floor - yeah I thought that would would make you have a look), at this rate I reckon I could be to rock videos what Harvey Keitel is to Tarantino films (small parts but integral to the plot. Ha! I had play a bit of a lech (stereotyping or what?). I'll keep you posted on release date (sometime early 2010).

laters peeps

2009-11-02T03:26:00.000-08:00

John Quilter films in Wales and raves about the produce....

Octobers been a busy month for me. I'm working on a new menu for an exciting new business thats launching in London next year – I'll keep you posted. Also I had a cooking demonstration at Manchester's Arndale market and three days filming in Pembrokeshire south Wales for a TV pilot.

Hundreds of visitors helped Haverfordwest Farmers Market celebrate its 10th birthday at this year's Harvest Fayre. The annual autumn fayre, which was held in glorious autumn sunshine, celebrates the best seasonal local produce as well as British Food Fortnight. Stall holders reported bumper sales as visitors browsed through the tempting choice of delicious local produce on offer.

There were cookery demonstrations, recipe ideas, tastings and me running round like a man on a mission. I had a day to visit suppliers to find the right local produce to turn into a mouth watering and profitable lunchtime offer. I visited local mountain farm Cig Lodor and got some fantastic lamb that I minced on site with owner Benny. The next day I was feeling the pressure a bit as I struggled to make 120 Lamb burgers for the lunch time rush. I made it with 10 minutes to spare, of course, and sold out 2 hours later, whooo. It was a real hoot although I thought the camera crew were a bit lazy to be honest......well I was the only one doing any work.

Pembrokeshire is a foodie heaven with a selection of the finest producers in the UK with a number of great restaurants, my top tip is try Cwtch in St Davids. Rachel who owns and runs the place used to be an advertising exec in a former life. She gave it all up to follow her dream of becoming a restaurateur and this passion comes through in the service and food thats served.

The award-winning Haverfordwest Farmers Market is held every other Friday and is managed by Pembrokeshire County Council. It was the FARMA Farmers Market of the Year and True Taste Gold Retail winner in 2005/6, a FARMA regional winner in 2006/7 and runner up in the FARMA rural Farmers Market of the Year this year. Well worth a visit.

I'd like to say a big thank you to Kate from the County Council, the guys from the tourist board and John, Phil, Alex and Lee (the work shy camera crew!).

See you soon
JQ

2009-10-30T03:10:00.000-07:00

The ever smiling Paul Da Costa Greaves updates us and introduces his latest addition!

Sun's shining & what have I done these last few months!.....

August - It's now been 7 years now since loosing my little girl.(dog)...my energetic Weimeraner, her ashes still placed in a lovely oak box sitting above the log fire. As a madness moment I decide to pop a Google alert on for 'Weimeraner puppies!' yes as you can see from the picture my new little girl called kharma!. Lets face it could you say no to her..? The 1st week so far into august and exactly 1 month to go for this years Speciality Fine Food show in London. I'm ready with samples, press releases and promotional merchandise, and the new packaging for the Christmas puddings look FAB....

On another note the restaurant is busy which is to be expected and yippee no cooking demo's or business meetings so far booked in, this makes a lovely change not to pop on a face pack!...

The suns still shinning and the chickens are all laying, lots of lovely soft fruit to be picked from the fruit section of the paddock and apart from a few hit and misses my lettuce has certainly been in abundance ....

September - 2 weeks to go before I pick up Kharma! I've never done so much gardening!....filling in the garden holes made by badgers and replacing the holes also in the fence with chicken wire so she can't get out or get the chickens. Business is starting to pick up with a few new chocolate sales which is good and the billboard campaigns we have had running has certainly driven new interest. Speciality fine food show went very well, met with Fortnum & Mason's buying department and now Selfridges are wanting samples, wow suddenly I'm again in demand....! Ahhh I can fee the face pack ritual coming back.

Oooooo 1 week to go now and I'm pleased to say I'm very much ahead of my schedule, I've spent the day planting my winter seedlings for the restaurant, and the eggs from the girls are going down a treat in the restaurant, nothing like being a little self sufficient. The big day arrives and shes so gorgeous, alas I know she won't stay like that for long..!!..but lovely to enjoy the moment and to have another dog in the household, and shes already found her favorite spot in front of the Aga.

Big week end 26th & 27th and what glorious weather still. I've got a full on packed weekend of cooking demo's, which I've organised for one of our new major wholesale accounts. At least I suppose all the recipes are on how to use our branded retail seaweed sauces and to showcase our new Christmas puddings in a box. Ha some days I feel like 'George Foreman' promoting his lean cuisine cooking machine!!...

Staying one step a head I'm also ready with my Christmas menu which is also available as a download.....http://WWW.galleyrestaurant.co.UK/assets/alternative_menu.PDF

Well peeps See you in a few weeks for next blog where I'll be posting a fab sensory chocolate cake recipe!

2009-10-11T11:40:00.000-07:00

Update from Steve Walpole...

well after weeks of hard work, up to birmingham and back, photos, recipes, videos, removing half a ton of flour from my hair ( take a look at the steve walpole tab on the web site and you will see), Aspire2 cook is up and running. i mentioned this a few months back but steve myers and the team have worked tirelessly to get this going and i think its fabulous. take a look at the site ww.aspire2cook.co.uk I believe this is a major step forward for healthy eating and food education in schools. also i am loving the fact i have become a cartoon character too. not quite superman or batman but all the same i have now been imortilised into a 2D format. good news is i will now never age ha ha.

also been busy demonstarting around essex. was at the RHS chili fire weekend last weekend, although ended up with lips like Katie price for a couple of hours after using the wrong chilli in a chocolate fondant but fun all the same see us professionals are not all perfect oops. then 5 course dinner party event at the smart cookery school this weekend great fun and a real laugh, nice to meet people who love to cook, have fun and enjoy trying new things, so looking forward to a rest over the next few days. chance to recoup and recharge ready for the next few months and dare i say it the build up to christams gee its only 14 weeks away. well if the shops have christmas crackers already i am allowed to mention it

happy cooking people catch up soon

steve

2009-09-22T05:19:00.000-07:00

Valentina updates us.....

It has been a very busy summer! I spent what now feels like most of it in Suffolk, at The Crown in Framlingham
where I hosted several very well-attended special dinners, and some cooking classes, as well as taking over the daily specials menu...a lot of headless chicken behaviour, but I loved every minute, except for the tardy arrival of the (completely uncleaned) seafood for the Seafood Extravaganza on the final Friday night. It is really not funny at all to be presented with the task of cleaning 5 courses and 70 customers worth of scallops, mussels, squid etc. at 3 p.m. in the afternoon, single-handed, for a 7 p.m. start!! Various members of staff got roped in to clean and prepare, undertaking gooey, messy activities that were certainly not in their original job description! I’m back in London now, starting yet another cookery book (Pasta Galore, the latest published, is in your shops now!) and having a bazillion meetings about all kinds of wonderful potential projects, so who knows where I’ll be this time next month? I am keeping a few plates spinning, as usual, and will let you know more once one or more of them lands safely – keep your fingers crossed for me won’t you?

Last weekend I was at Goodwood, for the Revival, which is a truly incredible bit of theatre on an enormous scale, I dressed up, and I’m glad I did because almost everybody else there is beautifully authentic in their vintage gear. Went to see Julie and Julia yesterday, for a little light relief and to stop my head spinning out of control with all these ideas and proposals to prepare, and if you haven’t seen it yet, you simply must go! The filleting of the Sole Meuniere, right at the start, is an epic moment of food cinematography! Bon Appetit! In the inimitable accent of Julia Child, (or do I mean Meryl Streep?).

2009-09-17T02:26:00.000-07:00

Keith Floyd....

We are incredibly sad by the news that Keith Floyd enjoyed his last lunch on Monday and will no longer be entertaining us with his charm, knowledge and unconventional cooking style.

In my cooking days my team frequently referred to me as a ‘female Keith Floyd’ and I was flattered to be placed in the same sentence (though on reflection the ‘odd slurp’ was probably the only comparison…). He inspired me enormously and his ability to bounce back was a great inspiration. My fondest memory was the Ostrich scene in Africa when he eventually gave up and the ostrich’s took over – classic!

RIP Keith, there will never be another legend quite like you.

Rosemary

2009-09-15T04:40:00.000-07:00

Prepare To Go Nuts!!

Andrew Nutter's second book, Nuts About Food will be hitting the shelves this Christmas. 192 pages of fabulous recipes, top tips, techniques and ideas, plus dazzling photography by Tim Bradley - What more could you ask for?

Roast pig anyone??

2009-09-03T00:42:00.000-07:00

Steve Walpole gets judging...

Well its now the day after my 2nd full day of judging at this years Quality Food Awards and I have booked into the gym for a monster session to burn off the excess food I have eaten and all I can think is I still have another day to go on Friday. Ahhh!!

This is my 3rd year now of judging this event and I must say its great. The people who organize this event Metropolis Business Publishing are fantastic and especially Nancy Mok, Helen Lyons and my favorite home economist lady Iris from Woman’s Weekly who manages single handedly to keep me in line. When the cheeky Essex lad gets all excitable over anything about products well mostly the cakes section

The Quality Food Awards celebrate their 30th anniversary this year – they are the most prestigious awards for food and drink products on sale in the UK. Obviously I do not eat and judge on every category other wise I will end up swapping the motorbike for a fork lift. There is a vast panel of judges from across a broad section of industries to help with this mammoth task and so we get asked to judge on set days and certain categories. This year I judged local food, fresh produce and frozen items on one day and then I also judged breads, cheeses and sauces and accompaniments on another day. The standard this year was good and although I cannot give much away there were some great products. It is a real eye opener to what the supermarket, retail and consumer markets are up to and what they are focusing on. Its great to see everyone cleaning up their acts on ingredients list, packaging, and quality products. Even the value catagories have seen a massive improvement. It has certainly changed my shopping habits and also shows that the under dogs are not as far behind as you might think.

Anyway check out the site and look out for the quality awards mark when shopping - trust me it means what it is. We do endeavor to give the best awards to the best products (even if I do favor the cakes ha ha ) so you can rely on the logo.

Regards, Steve Walpole

2009-08-17T01:59:00.000-07:00

Daniel Galmiche gives us an update...

I must say, I had another challenging and eventful year, moving to the Forbury, a beautiful boutique hotel in Reading, Berkshire. We opened the fine dining last year in November and everything was going according to plan, we were working hard to try to retain the Michelin star and all was well. Then to every one's astonishment, the owner announced that the hotel was in the hands of administrators. It was a very difficult situation for everyone, but we pulled together and got through as a lot of people have had to this year. What a year it has been!

Fortunately my luck has changed recently and I have been offered the opportunity to join the Vineyard, a two Michelin star hotel in Stockcross, near Newbury, as the new Executive Chef. John Campbell, the previous Executive Chef, is leaving to join the Dorchester Collection Group so I will be taking over later this year and I'm very much looking forward to it.

Now, finally, I can take a deep breath and go on what I think I can call a well-deserved holiday!

2009-08-14T03:26:00.000-07:00

Whew....Tiffany is busy...!!!

Thought I would just let you all know my very first cookery book; From Pasta to Pancakes-the Ultimate Student cookbook is out now and the feeling is quite extraordinary. From finishing Ballymaloe Cookery School and realizing my ambition was to write a book aimed at young people/students to now has been quite a journey. What have I been getting up too in preparation for publication date which was last Friday 7th August. Well I did a half hour live interview on LBC Radio with Bill Buckley and spoke at length about the relationship young people have with food and cooking today. He was great and we had some fab callers in telling us about their food and uni experiences. One guy said that someone tried to make mashed potatoes at his uni without cooking the potatoes before….ekkkk… Funny though! It was then a LOT of interviews with journalists and bloggers chatting about the book and what I’ve been up too. I demonstrated at TASTE of London with John Quilter and Sophie Michell and it was brilliant although there was a bomb scare which saw us all standing around outside the park for about 2 hours grrr but all’s well that ends well. It was then North to Birmingham where I did TASTE of Birmingham alongside the wondrous Gino D’Acampo-the ladies went wild for him, quite hysterical… I had my very first photo shoot for the Daily Mail’s YOU magazine and looking forward to the book being BOOK OF THE WEEK this Sunday in YOU magazine again. Went to Newcastle on Friday and had a day of nonstop promo. Got very nostalgic to walk the streets of the toon and remember the days of when I was a student, only a year ago mind, that I dreamt of all this. An awesome feeling!! It kicked off with the amazing Charlie Charlton on Radio BBC Newcastle then I did BBC Wales. It was then onto lunch with a glass of vino and chatted to Dan Howarth from Newcastle alumni about the book and how I was influenced by Newcastle. Next a phone interview with Black Diamond FM with the wonderful ‘Women on the Loose’ who provided lots of giggles and cheeky banter and did a marvelous job of plugging the book. Onto South Shields where I did an interview for the local Shields Gazette, great but he whipped out a video cam and I was like yikes need make up… Then onto the train, poured myself a very large G and T and wallowed in the day’s excitement.

Next week I’m off again to Newcastle for a talk then Edinburgh for the Foodie’s Festival there where I will be demonstrating and also presenting the theatre and introducing the likes of Tom Kitchin etc, who will be showcasing their finest recipes. I’ll be doing book signings there too. Very exciting. Then back down to film for Market Kitchen on Thursday 27th Aug… busy but such fun… That’s my latest goss… x

2009-08-04T06:54:00.000-07:00

Tiffany's first book published!! From Pasta to Pancakes...

And it is getting great reviews!!

Whilst at university, Tiffany Goodall wrote From Pasta to Pancakes with a student budget firmly in mind. It covers key basic skills such as how to cook pasta, pizza, pancakes, couscous, rice, or bake a jacket potato, each with many variations, and moves on to explain how to whip up delicious breakfasts, filling lunches, proper dinners and delicious treats. With recipes ranging from Minestrone Soup to perfect Roast Chicken, from Spanish Omelette to Thai Green Curry, and from Chocolate Brownies to Vodka Watermelon, this book will set young adults up for a lifetime of enjoyable cooking. With its brilliant cartoon-strip design, more than 750 photographs and over 90 recipes, From Pasta to Pancakes makes it easy to learn to cook.

Buy it here:
Pasta to Pancakes

`A rising star...her delightful food is a bubby as she is` Jason Atherton, Maze

2009-07-27T11:21:00.000-07:00

John Quilter gets to work on his butchery skills....

I'm sharpening up my butchery skills at the moment and so wed saw the arrival of a lovely Gloucester Old Spot delivered by my old mate Rob Owen Brown. Rob's pub, the Angel, is just over the road from where I live and we've been mates for years. Rob is up for best chef at the Manchester Food & Drinks Awards this year, good luck mate. After dividing the pig into its classic meat joints I set about boning out the leg to produce my first ham. Its a slightly tricky maneuver for a novice such as myself but I finally managed to get the bone out and I was as happy as Theo the dog at the extraction. In order to prepare the ham for air drying it must be cured in a brine mixture of salt water, aromatics and soaked for 3 – 4 days. After this its dried off and wrapped muslin. Its hanging from the rafters now in a shaded place, drying out nicely................role on Christmas.

The rest of the meat was then stored in the freezer, which has mostly all gone now. I'm having lots of dinner parties at the mo as I'm developing recipes for a book. The pork belly was a particular highlight, cooked slow in cider for 3 hours and served with me mums apple sauce and mashed potato. It was just like having a culinary hug. Next week will see me cooking the trotters and pig cheeks and then it will be time for the arrival of my first whole lamb......bring it on!

2009-07-21T01:45:00.000-07:00

We catch up with Valentina's summer travels....

I have been travelling a great deal since my last blog – namely Portugal, then Greece and then several trips to Suffolk!

Portugal involved an absolutely amazing press trip to the stunning Douro valley to discover the secrets of Port and the delicious wines produced in the area. I had never been to Portugal before, and walking up and down the terraced vineyards on the steep slopes of the valley was a wonderful introduction to this extraordinary country. I tasted so many different kinds of port, including the deliciously cooling dry white port served with ice, tonic water and lemon or mint. This has to be one of the most perfect ways to cool down on hot days, and it gets very hot indeed in the Douro Valley! The trip also included a couple of days in the city of Oporto, which offers fantastic architecture, wonderful cafes and great shopping, not to mention more port and fabulous food. I can thoroughly recommend a visit to both and would suggest you try one of the lazy river boat trips along the Douro, punctuated by visits to the wineries and some tastings, combined with a taste of Oporto itself; a really magical recipe for a wonderful break.

I then went to Greece for the first time in many years, back to the lovely estate of Candili on the island of Evia, and realised just how much I’d missed it! I was there on a ‘getting to know you’ trip with the owners of the hotel in Suffolk, the Crown in Framlingham, where I am going to be taking up residency for a couple of weeks of cookery classes, tastings, culinary quizzes and lots of other exciting gastronomic events during the first two weeks of August. I can thoroughly recommend Evia as the perfect island to come up with great ideas! Naturally, I have been going to and from Suffolk organising my fortnight there, which kicks off on the 31st July, so if you are in the area please do drop by any time until August 16th for some wonderful food and some culinary adventures not to be missed!

2009-07-16T07:43:00.000-07:00

Steve Walpole hosts a cookery day....

Sunday is supposed to be a day of rest but not for most chefs! Last Sunday I was off to do a days cooking at the Smart Cookery School in Danbury Essex. Today’s dishes were all shellfish based and knowing all the seafood will be from Maldon Oysters the rest was easy. If you haven’t been to the cookery school and fancy brushing up or just have an interest in food I suggest you have a look. They have some great half day and one day courses as well as speciality events. But the main reason I liked it so much was the venue. It’s a lovely little shop in this quaint little village with the cookery demo part on one side of the shop where guests sit around on raised chairs and a breakfast bar set up which for me was a great set up. It meant they could see everything be right there to hand and of course meant they had to get involved. Ann the lady who runs the school is another key to why the school is good she is very passionate about food.

So we had a cosy little class of 5 people today and we covered everything from types of shellfish and cooking techniques to making pasta, curing, bisques and sorbets. This was a lot to cover but there was more than enough time and the guests were very keen to know everything. It’s amazing how food can bring different walks of life together in such a good way and also get people talking. If only every demo was like these it would be amazing! It was nice to hear how food is so important again and people want to be able to do more. So after 5 hours cooking I said my goodbyes and was thankful for glorious sunshine and the fact I turned up on the motorbike because I had the pleasure of lovely country roads all the way home - who said Sundays should be relaxing!
Happy cooking! Steve.

2009-07-16T07:34:00.000-07:00

Our 'King of Rock ' Martin Blunos lets us know what happens when he is let out of the kitchen.....

from Pikey the Viking ....

Keeping it turned up to eleven!

On the Sunday of this years Download festival I was drum tech'ing, on the 2nd stage, for Trigger the Bloodshed, my boy Max is the drummer in the band. They played a mental set. It was sooo hot and the crowd went nutz the swirling pit was led by an overweight sun burnt bloke in combat cutoffs and a black bra! How metal is that?
So there I was with my access all areas pass chilling in the artistes paddock. I'm sat there hanging, (humping drum kit too and fro in 27o is hard graft), chugging down a cold bevvy and up comes Marilyn Manson, (he played the day before on the main stage), the conversation went like this:-

MM - 'Hi Martin - saw you on Saturday kitchen, great show loved your dish shame about the omelet, blah blah blah'
After letting him blabber on and on for what seemed like an eternity I looked up from my cold beer and said -
MB - 'Manson - not now mate I'm knackered'

I am so Rock and Roll - Yeahhhh!!!!!!!!!!

Rock 'n' Roll Chef Wanted!!!!

2009-07-07T10:19:00.000-07:00

Rock ‘n’ Roll Chef Wanted!!!

What’s it all about? Productions and RDF Television (makers of Secret Millionaire, Ladette To Lady and Don’t Forget the Lyrics) have joined forces to develop a new TV features series – ‘Rock ‘n’ Roll Chef’. The show host will not only be a brilliant and ambitious chef aged between 18 and 30, but he or she will also have a passion for music, bags of personality and be able to present in the style of a Rock God or Goddess! If you think you have all the right ingredients to star in this new series email roe@celebritychefsuk.com explaining why you think you could be the ‘Rock ‘n’ Roll Chef’ along with a CV and up-to-date photograph. If successful an interview and screen testing will follow in central London.

2009-07-06T02:31:00.000-07:00

Andrew Nutter has a hectic June.....

Who could say that a chef’s life is a boring one, June was a crazy month.

Unfortunately, Nutter’s was pipped at the post for the Good Food Guide Restaurant of the Year Awards. Although had a chinwag with Heston Blumenthal and I’m off to his restaurant next week for a slap up lunch.

With the horseracing season well upon us, Nutters staged Ascot Ladies Day for those not able to travel to the actual race, what a cracking day. Packed to capacity and raising in total over the few years we have now done it, a staggering £20,000 for the N.S.P.C.C. North West. Demonstrations were in full force as well, one in particular at Clifton Primary School was a resounding success with young pupils being taught about the diversity of fresh fruit and vegetables.

Jam week came around yet again and this time I competed to build the tallest jam sandwich against my mate and partner in crime David Gale from the Hilton Hotel in Manchester. It took place at Harvey Nichols and I romped to victory with a tower measuring a whopping 16 ½ inches in just two minutes. Unfortunately, no one told me that it couldn’t be held to keep it upright and it was disqualified only to be then beaten by David with an immaculate sandwich measuring a measly 11 inches, what a fix!! The battle will recommence soon!!

2009-07-03T06:10:00.000-07:00

Steve Walpole cooks Charity dinner party for Dineathon....

Charity events are great fun and always for good causes. This one in particular myself and other chefs really feel is worth backing. We had a fund raising event back in September and as I believe in standing up and be counted I volunteered to cook a six course meal for six – eight people at their home. So I bring the food, crockery, etc and turn up cook serve and clean up ( yes ladies and gentlemen a chef that actually clears up after themselves) and leave. So you get a first class dinner party in your own home and its all for a good cause all you have to do is donate and the rest was down to me. Well the bidding was fun, lots of offers although some thought being the biker chef I would cook in leathers thank god they never won. But the bidding finished and a nice sum of money was now on its way to help people in Britain and abroad. All I had to do was cook. So the evening arrived rather quickly and as ever Steve “lastminute.com” Walpole was just about on the ball only one little trip to the nearest supermarket to acquire some cream that my Sous chef reminded me about 5 minutes from arriving at the venue. But the evening went very smoothly the guest were a delight and food was well received. so a job well done. Something about the sense of doing something worthwhile gives you that feeling of I am tired but it was worth it. Looking forward to the next event which is on 18th October check out the site and have a look it is a worthwhile cause and there are some great chefs and sponsors involved. You never know I could be cooking for some of you next time round. But the main thing is lets do what we can for the less fortunate.... all the best, Steve

www.Dineathon.com

2009-06-19T01:37:00.001-07:00

Taste Festivals....

Our Chefs are currently enjoying the Taste of London Festival in Regents Park which showcases the fantastic cuisine available in the Capital.

Over the weeked John Quilter is hosting and demming at the BBQ AlFresco theatre for Calor, Thomas Smaile is hosting and demming at the French Flair Theatre for Peugeot and Tiffany, Michael Moore, Steve Walpole, Daniel Galmiche & Martin Blunos appear throughout including the Waitrose Theatre.

Seen here is John, Tiffany, Michael & Steve.

2009-06-15T00:50:00.000-07:00

Martin Blunos gets hungry in Hungary....

from pikey the viking 10th June

'Been in Budapest for past three days taking part in a foodie convention.

An amazing city, met some great characters, drank some blinding (not literally) wines and ate far to many wicked meals (mind you there is only so much paprika'd sausage, pigs snout and creamed tripe a guy can deal with before he starts to feel like jabba the hun - now back on special K, sweetex and skimmed milk!).

Looking at the pic you can clearly see I was working my do-das off!

Next event - Drum tec; at the Download Rock festival 09 (Sun 14th June) for Trigger the Bloodshed - I kid you not!!! (see next blog entry)

2009-06-12T01:39:00.000-07:00

Claire Bassano has a busy week....

Mathew Benson-Smith looks on in the background...

Great start to the week I was invited to the Villeroy and Boch new product launch. It was held at ‘The Cookery School Dean Clough’ in Halifax. So right on my doorstep. The cookery school is unique in that all the profits go back into the charity which teaches cooking in schools. If you’ve not been or heard of it look it up on as everything from the equipment to the staff is top notch. It’s a real gem of a place and a good reason to visit Yorkshire.

The event was fun and I caught with a few chef mates from the past. There were cookery demonstrations and then a cook off competition which I got roped in to doing. I didn’t win but my dish did look good on the Villeroy plates.

Back to the day job now (home economist for BBC2 Something for the weekend). Just testing the fruit cake recipe so the kitchen smells good. While that’s in the oven going out to my little veg patch to construct something to stop the rabbits digging it up!

2009-06-05T03:54:00.000-07:00

Nutter gets silver at Chelsea and hopes for more awards.....

Chelsea Flower Show saw the start of the summer season. What a cracking day it was demonstrating on Pat Fox’s Aralia courtyard garden in front of the worlds media, although once 3pm arrived we were all kicked out for the royal family entourage of the Queen, Prince Charles and Princess Royal. A bit different to when I cooked for them all when I was 16 at The Savoy Hotel. Back then I was their flavour of the month. Ha Ha.

Great news that my restaurant has been voted the North West’s Favourite in the Good Food Guide. We’ve all got our fingers crossed for the big awards bash next week at the British Museum. We go head to head with the 9 other regions in the UK to find the overall champion. I’ll keep you all posted.

2009-06-03T01:43:00.000-07:00

From Pikey The Viking....aka Martin Blunos..

"the haricots and following wind tour 09"

It's that time of year again, and I am fully into festival mode - most recent gigs performed - Hampton Court (posh 'n' hot) and Edinburgh (hotter 'n' not quite as posh).

At these events the fact that we were in the midst of a mini heat wave meant that liquid refreshment of the alcoholic type was imbibed more vigorously by some of the audience than is the UK norm - basically a couple of punters were wasted. Now believe me Dear Reader, foodie hecklers are triffic entertainment and ones that are off their t*** more so, but sometimes just sometimes you need to listen to what they are saying.

One particular endearing, glass of something fizzy clutching, character (Rab - I found out his name later) in Edinburgh kept shouting out to me, from the depths of a massive Blunos loving audience (well it looked massive to me!) whilst I was bigging up the virtues of rape seed oil - " Is it Jim?, Is it Jim" I thought to myself - who the f*** is Jim and no it ain't? So I blanked him and continued with my performance.

After serving up and taking the applause, for those that knew who the hell I was and/or wanted - I posed for pics, this included my new best mate Rab and as I held him up for the obligatory smiley portrait I asked him "who's Jim?"

Jim isnee Jim it's GM ya soft southern tw**!

and oh yeah for what its worth - It was (GM)

Rock on.

P.S. I'm getting my ears syringed before my next gig (Budapest - Hungary 9th June)

2009-06-01T07:26:00.000-07:00

Tiffany tells us about the Hampton Court Food Festival....

As the title of this blog suggests the festival I was part of last bank holiday weekend was foodies paradise. Hampton Court was home for 3 days over the glorious bank holiday weekend to a festival where top chefs, proud producers and foodie fans flocked to Hampton Court to sample delights from action packed demonstrations to a day drinking champagne from the Veuve Cliquot stand and eating everything from Rossmore oysters, Wild Boar chorizo from the Harvey Nichols food market and brilliantly seasonal lamb burgers with punch tsatsiki.

I was the MC of the Chefs Theatre and had the joy of working with top chefs from Cyrus Todiwala (Cafe Spice), Jun Tanaka (Pearl), Mark Read (Mango Tree) and Gary Lee (The Ivy) and the gorgeous and cheeky Martin Blunos, to mention a few. It was amazing to watch all the chefs and see how different they all performed and what they all cooked up. I was most impressed with Jeremy Bloor form the OXO tower who made a glorious WHITE GAZPACHO served in whisky tumblers and accompanied with a pan fried tiger prawn curled around the edge of the glass - sensational!

Alan Coxon was there with his wonderful Ale-Gar Vinegars, Awana and Mango Tree had restaurant stands along with Cafe Spice and were serving some amazing samplers from their restaurants. It was a totally sublime weekend and I felt very fortunate enough to be a part of it! Catch the foodies festival again on the 21st August where it will be up in Edinburgh and I'll be demonstrating.

Now it is an eager few days awaiting a sensational holiday where I am off to Tobago!!

2009-05-28T07:49:00.000-07:00

Valentina Harris returns from a 'working' trip to the Maldives....

So where does one begin to describe a trip to Paradise....the Maldives is extraordinary and beautiful in a thousand ways, but my stay at the Beach House on the northern island of Manafaru (you need to really want to get there – it is not the easiest or shortest of journeys, for people or cargo!) gave me something I really was not expecting – I had the best pizza I have ever eaten outside of Naples! Not to mention the absolutely consistent and most extraordinary level of quality, variety and choice of superb ingredients, all cooked with the skill worthy of any top hotel or restaurant anywhere in the world... And many of the staff were part of the original construction team, who stayed on and re-trained – how cool is that!? I was totally blown away by the food, as if the azure waters, amazing service, gorgeous, huge rooms, private plunge pool and perfect snorkelling were not more than enough to make this my most unforgettable trip to date... Guess where I’d rather be right now....!

2009-05-14T01:50:00.000-07:00

Paul Da Costa Greaves details his day without cracking his face pack!

2.45am and thank God for being able to multi task, a glimpse into the mirror confirms not a pretty sight: Me sitting there scoffing tea & toast delicately trying not to split my seaweed face pack....I can tell you a very much needed ritual!
Contemplating how I managed to squeeze in a couple of client therapy sessions, a full on cooking and training demop and to top it all an hours filming for new regional program.....

Am grinning away as I'm juggling happily through screens sorting through the days emails along with trying to finish off the recipe proposals for Devon's County Council 'Love Food and Hate Waste' campaign.. Mmmm the recipes are coming along very nicely even if I say so myself. Still munching slowly on my toast trying not to crack the face pack as I look back on todays events - what a day! Mind you this years Cooking Demo's went very well at Exeter's Festival of Food & Drink and a couple of teenagers wanting to do their work placement with me this Autumn, that'll do very nicely just in time for wrapping my retail Chrimbo puddings, a very good day indeed... Certainly brings a smile to your face when you see the fire, passion and excitement from teenagers wanting to learn to cook.

All that chatting nearly made me late for my weekly therapy clinic where I offer various therapy treatments to the public, that definitely keeps me grounded. Must dash - my alarms started buzzing for my face pack to come off..!

2009-05-11T03:58:00.000-07:00

Martin Blunos creates the 'Robin Pie'.....

From Pikey the Viking aka Martin Blunos:-

"Dear Reader had a cracking evening at Bristol City football club at their end of season dinner to celebrate an ok 10th place in the championship. Amongst other things, I helped organise the food offering - a fine dining experience for fans, players and the oh so important corporates - dinner comprised pie, mash and mushy peas - and not just any old lips and a******* pie but a Robin Pie (BRFC are nicknamed the Robins - their colours are red and white!) the pie contained chicken/white (not Robin) and chilli/red - geddit? Anyway all went blindingly well and for my efforts I was presented with a signed ball (gold dust in these parts) - I was made up!

Check out the pic - suit, tie and ball! Make the most of it 'cause ties are normally reserved for weddings and funerals and job interviews - Pikey Vikings dont do ties!" ........

2009-05-05T11:46:00.000-07:00

John Benson-Smith ruminates on life back in good old Manchester...

"Tis a funny old world .....

Twelve months ago the Boss and I (Mrs B-S) were living on Airplanes 80+ times a year . There was a weekly trudge of whizzing and working between Jersey Mallorca and Manchester with 4am starts at airports , three very different cultures, foods, peoples and lingos ! So it was all about planning and driving three openings of three new Restaurants , one minute Jersey beans, then Thai, then Espagnol and then don't forget the Mancs.

Now for us its back to modern City centre living in Manchester and only the UK to deal with, back to roots , stability, networking and frequenting the Mancunian way. Yes we are missing the sunshine and the very different seasons even the food cultures - embracing the very clear Fish style in the Channel islands and you cannot forget the warmth of the Spanish Cuisine and their ripe home produce and our team over in Palma. So do we miss the travel and the buzz? ...well one year on ..NO ..but yes.. (a bit anyhow). So for us its never going to be only about Lancashire Hot Pot , Black pudding , Fish and Chips and it never can be..

Twas a funny old existence so whats next?"

John Benson-Smith

2009-05-03T03:17:00.000-07:00

Valentina Harris reminisces about Clement Freud.....

Thank goodness for a weekend off! Seems like I’ve not had a weekend with nothing much to do for ages, as I’ve been all over the place teaching recently. And then of course there has been the ongoing book project, just finished book 4 and hope to start book 5 (of a series of 7) in early June. Apart from writing them all, I’ve also been cooking and styling all the food photography, so I feel like I’m constantly either writing, editing, proof reading, shopping or cooking and styling...

I was really sad about Clement Freud, and took myself to his beloved Walberswick last weekend on a personal pilgrimage to just feel close to him and think about how much he meant to me. I met him on various Radio 4 occasions, food quizzes and such, and he was always magnificent to me. When I was a little girl growing up in Italy, my dad used to subscribe to Punch, and I would revel in Clement’s column, sitting on the loo for hours reading and re-reading... I always wanted to tell Clement that story, and now I regret I never did.

Building up now to the fabulous Real Food Festival at Earl’s Court next weekend. As last year I shall be looking after all the chefs, introducing them on stage and making sure they have everything they need for their demonstrations. Go to http://www.realfoodfestival.co.uk/ for all the details, and hope to see you there!

2009-04-27T08:59:00.000-07:00

Steve Walpole tells us what is happening in the world of airline food and his new projects.....

It's been a busy few weeks for me. I have just finished presenting the summer menus for First Class and Club Class for British Airways. Had great fun sourcing and finding local seasonal produce to enhance the menus. It’s a different world designing menus for airlines, but the fact that we can design them based around the varying seasons, and where possible using British ingredients, means I have the best quality of food at the best time of year. Something a lot of people don’t realise can be done on a plane. So it’s not all chicken or beef honest!

Getting stuck into Autumn now which seems strange as we are still in spring. Thank god for my friends at Mad for Food (Kirsty and Mary) who work tirelessly to help us chefs find new and seasonal produce. They actually put us in touch with the farmers and growers themselves, and it’s always nice to meet the people at the source. It instills so much more passion and care for that ingredient to hear the story of its growth rather than a ‘salesman’ effectively just trying to get you to buy it.

Am just starting work on a few new projects that have got me really excited. First up is a great concept, and one that is particularly close to my heart, that involves healthy eating and educating people on food, cooking and ingredients. It’s called Aspire2cook. This concept will be taking food, health and cooking fun into primary schools to arm and educate the next generation. The great thing is we have designed the ideas to fit in around the curriculum, so it will not disrupt or alter anything that kids already have to do in the classroom. Common sense really as food is based around, history, religion, geography, science and maths and with these forming part of the curriculum already it is quite easy to make these fit around a lesson. Can’t believe it, I was rubbish at school and hated every minute and here I am trying to make it fun and enjoyable as well as pushing the message of food to kids! I like this idea as health and food is a hot topic as well as obesity, making the message fun but serious and aiming it at the 5 – 11 year olds is a good age.

The second project is more on the culinary side where I will be working with a great company called Fruit for the Office. They are starting up a sub-company called fruitandveg.co.uk which will be available for the catering industry and general public to purchase produce. I will be working closely with them on recipes, seasonal highlights, information of what is in or out in the foodie world and how best to use it, etc. As with my agent Celebrity Chefs UK I will be doing a regular blog on what I am up to and what I have been doing meaning you will see information and photos of visits to the farms, demos, tours of the markets and new and exciting foods I will be dealing with. The idea is to help people, especially the younger chefs or foodies, to know what is out there, when foods will be in season and what to do with it. As I have a great passion for food and produce it’s a great forum to pass on and share knowledge with people. It was one area we thought was lacking slightly. You can always find recipes or seasonal info but here you can get it all and order the produce as well. So not only can you buy it you can find out where it was from, how it was grown and how best to cook it, which will certainly make your menus that bit more interesting.

The guys down at New Covent Garden are great, it’s such a buzzing atmosphere and nice to see everything, although not sure about all these early starts – I need my beauty sleep! Which reminds me of sleepless nights and my beautiful little baby girl, who is not quite a baby any more and will be celebrating her first birthday in a few weeks which just seems crazy, I don’t know where the time has gone. She is great and fortunately, like her Daddy, loves food – I have 100% enjoyed the weaning process and cooking (and experimenting with!) lots of different baby dinners. She is on to ‘grown-up’ food now, although I’m sure more of it ends up plastered all over the kitchen at times than actually in her tummy… It’s just amazing to watch them eat and try new foods for the first time.

Take care and will update soon,

Steve Walpole

2009-04-20T06:00:00.000-07:00

Alan Coxon tells us about his new Unique Historic Food Ranges.....

As summer gently eases into lighter healthier foods and ingredients, it has been all hands on deck promoting my Unique Historic Food ranges . Having developed the three main products in the form of Ancient Greek Vinaigre, Roman Vinaigre and the Unique Mediaeval Ale-Gar I have now extended the product range to offer a wider selection , all with a point and flavour difference.

My aim is to offer a “ taste of the past for kitchens of the future” , and quality without compromise! Whilst my range is not the cheapest , I do believe that there are many people that love quality food and ingredients.

I have very little profit margins within the ranges , and I am under no false illusion that this is not a get rich quick scheme. I have invested heavily financially and physically to create a range that offers something totally different , a range that feeds the mind and stimulates the pallet .
A range that will hopefully be my legacy and contribution to the world of food and for foodies, for many years to come!

Over the past few months I have been lucky to win three major awards for the vinegars that incorporates two Innovation awards of the year and a winner of winner Gold Award. I am now delighted to announce that my Roman Golden Beetroots have been nominated for a Diamond award preserved in the Roman Vinaigre.

The Golden Beets were the first varieties consumed by the Romans thousands of years ago.
Whilst they did not eat the bulb preferring to save this and use instead as a medicine (for trapped wind!) they did however eat the leaf just as we do spinach today. I have used a heritage seed that I had grown in Worcestershire and Staffordshire to keep to a strong origination and theme to my range, interestingly the seeds name is Burpeese, obviously a reference to its former medicinal usage !

A few weeks ago I launched the ranges in Tokyo and then Madrid , both countries were fantastic and it was wonderful to know that these two extremely different cultures and lovers of food took to my ranges . Over the next few months I will be travelling to various parts of the country in an attempt to get the ranges into quality stores and deli`s across the UK. Having lost my first UK distributer to the economic downturn, it has taken me nearly 12 months to obtain a new one!

The ranges are now being distributed and available across the USA, New Zealand, South Africa, France, and Spain , anyone wishing to obtain the products in any country please do not hesitate to drop me a line or alternatively get your store or deli to order it for you . In a couple of weeks I do a presentation to over 200 journalists so I will hopefully get some coverage there too!
For more details , please log onto www.alancoxon.com

Until next time
Keep well
Alan x

St George's Day with Nutter!!

2009-04-17T16:47:00.000-07:00

Andrew Nutter celebrates St George's Day....

Headlined the Chester Food and Drink Festival last week - sun shone all day on the Saturday, which saw record crowds watching my dynamic demonstrations.

Just getting final preparations together for our sell out St George's Feast at the restaurant, should be a cracking day - I've already got my vocal chords tuned up ready for the Land of Hope and Glory and Rule Britannia anthems!

2009-04-17T06:53:00.000-07:00

Tiffany Goodall tells us what she has been up to in the last few weeks......

Just sitting to write this is a good time to catch breath; the last few weeks have been hectic, but don’t get me wrong hectic in a very, very good way. I have just finished an almost 2 weeks stint demonstrating three times a day at The Daily Mail’s Ideal Home Show along with some top chefs who I was truly honoured to work alongside.

The glorious and superbly equipped chefs kitchen saw chefs including Lesley Waters, Ed Baines, Martin Blunos, Aldo Zilli, Jun Tanaka grace the stage over their three and a half week stint at the show which seemed slightly quieter than usual but that definitely didn’t denote to quieter audiences. Everyone seemed to love the chefs’ demonstrations which ranged from Mike Robinson skinning a rabbit, Martin Blunos being thrifty and adept at jointing a chicken and using all the meat in different ways and Jun Tanaka dishing up some restaurant style food made easy. I cooked a range of dishes that I cooked and prepared in front of the ladies and gents who had dropped after they shopped in our theatre. It was a brilliant chance to meet great people and hone my demonstration skills.

Whilst I was there I also spent 2 days at a girls dream destination; The Vitality Show, which was on for 4 days over at Earls Court 2. A place of spray tans, manicures, pedicures and aerobics classes and not a man in sight! I was using low fat Philadelphia and cooked Thai Tuna Salad, Mexican Quesadillas; all very healthy and apt for summer on its way. I had a ball and on the Friday night after my last dem popped into St.Tropez for a quick spray tan, perfect for the next night’s ball I was going to at The Mandarin Oriental Hotel in London. There, I was being auctioned off for cancer research to cook in your own home for 2 people, 3 delicious courses.

The next week I was finishing off my last 5 days of demming at The Ideal Home Show and having completed the lot worked out I had done 27 demos over a nearly 2 week period-such fantastic experience.

Then it was off to Portugal for a slight relax over the Easter weekend but as always I spent the morning in the kitchen of our favourite fish restaurant right on the beach where they dish up the most glorious food. The African rice which is served with all the fish is glorious; rich in garlic, bacon and soy and the recipe is in my book out in August. The local Algarvian fish is Dourada which is baked with tomatoes, onions, red peppers, potatoes fresh herbs and lots of garlic in the oven and then brought to you with the African rice and simple but never minimal in taste baked tomatoes.

It was then back to London and straight into Quadrille, my publishers where I saw the new pages of my book and had a good catch up with the as ever enthusiastic team. Then onto the National Gallery for a breakfast interview with the Bookseller magazine who are doing a feature profile on me and the book which is great. My first proper interview with a journalist was uber exciting. However I couldn’t reel in that for too long as it was back home to prepare for my private cookery class with my top lawyer QC student who is learning to cook for 2 ½ hours a week with me. It’s one on one session and they are just wonderful. Last night we cooked a creamy and sinful spaghetti carbonara with garlicky pancetta to crisp it all up and then we braved our way to prepare squid for a chilli salt and pepper squid-absolute food heaven. Finishing with pan fried sea bream which we cooked with pepperonata and caper butter. A good 3 hour cookery lesson chatting, cooking and eating-what more glorious a job could you ask for.....!

Celebrity Chefs UK Blog Coming Soon

2009-04-15T07:37:00.000-07:00

Hello and welcome to the brand new Celebrity Chefs UK Blog!

Our chefs are going to be letting you know what they are getting up to and what is like to be a 'Celebrity Chef'.

Let us know if there is anything you would like to see in this section .... happy blogging!!

To visit our website, please click here!!