This week heralds the beginning of the Christmas Market season and we are spoilt for choice in Monmouthshire, Herefordshire and Gloucestershire. I really enjoy visiting Christmas food festivals, they help get over the post Bonfire Night hump and provide the ideal excuse for a cheeky mulled wine or two, not to mention huge present shopping…
Category: Out and About
Bangers and Bonfires #UKsausageweek
Bonfire Night; the air is filled with woodsmoke, a hint of sulphur remains from the recently released fireworks. The sparklers have sparkled and now, hunger strikes. What better warming winter dish to turn to than the humble British banger? A childhood favourite, steaming from the barbecue and tucked into a pappy white roll, maybe a…
The Pheasant Philosophises: Part 4: Queen Victoria’s Pineapple
In a society of sexual equality, I often think to the past and wonder what stories lie behind others. In childhood, I was always regaled with tales of my Great Great Great Grandfather, an interesting character who had, apparently, owned an Italian Fruit Warehouse in Bath during the 1840s and 50s. As a man he…
The Monmouthshire Food Festival – Fit for a King (or the son of one anyway!)
Last weekend, Thomas of Woodstock’s once splendid castle at Caldicot played host, for the second time this year, to The Monmouthshire Food Festival. In general the weather held and there were some moments of dazzling sunshine, as visitors were treated to two splendid days of food, drink, demonstrations and workshops. Although not the biggest in the…
Answering a few of my own questions about Clotted Cream….
What do Tolkien’s Hobbits, the Cornish Giant Blundabore, and Edmund Spenser have in common? The answer; Clotted Cream. Clotted cream is at the heart of every quintessentially British Cream Tea. Slavered onto scones, melting unctuously beside a warm sticky toffee pudding or just in a bowl alongside a pile of freshly picked, fragrant, seasonal berries….
This little piggy went to market….then into the freezer…..and it was yum!
This weekend I’ve gone a little bit pork mad. On Friday I took delivery of 1/2 a free-range, rare breed pig from Martha Roberts’ The Decent Company. I was very impressed by the obvious bond she has with her pigs and (so far) I am certainly not disappointed in the quality of the meat. Rare…
Into the woods…..The Forest Showcase Food Festival 2017
As a great supporter of local food festivals, I am always delighted to share my enthusiasm with anyone who cares to listen. It now being ‘food festival season’, I am spoilt for choice. Last weekend I attended a small but perfectly formed festival in The Royal Forest of Dean, about twenty minutes drive from my…
Season of Mists and Mellow Fruitfulness…A little taster of the project I’m currently working on…
The Forest of Dean is at its best in the Autumn months, when the great oaks, once famed the country over for their strength and height, and used in shipbuilding, are burnished in the golden light of an Indian summer. The forest’s leaves encompass all shades from tawny yellow, to ruby-red and dark earthy brown….
The Pheasant Philosophises; part 2
A couple of weeks ago I trawled my county (and adjacent ones) searching for the best produce I could find to fill my fridge and cupboard for the week ahead. Today I went to a supermarket and it was as though I saw it all with new eyes. I was disgusted by the rows of…
Daylesford Harvest Festival – Organic in bundles!
I have always been intrigued by the Daylesford brand and have intended on paying them a visit for quite some time. Last weekend, I found the perfect excuse as they were holding their annual Harvest Festival. It was a lovely day out and although the day began a little gloomy, the sun shone on Daylesford….
Seasoned with Slow from The Pheasant Philosopher 