Good Food at The Green

I've had a couple of meals at this Heworth pub and I've felt the urge to photograph most of them.

Is this a sign of having been won over by presentation before a morsel has even passed my lips?

I may have been woo'ed the first time by the fancy presentation but the fact I keep coming back means there is delicious substance to this gorgeous looking food.

Gnocchi with blue cheese sauce, rocket, wild mushrooms and walnuts

The Green's menu offers just enough variety to choose from without being too perplexing (a comment aimed at certain members of my family who are flummoxed by too much choice).

It also has the added bonus of a changing selection of real ales and local brews which gives it an automatic thumbs up in my book.

Not to mention there is always a short but sweet list of delicious desserts to choose from which appeals to my sweet tooth.

Cherry Bakewell Tart with Pistacchio Icecream

 
A recent conversation we had in The Green, inspired by the presentation of our meal, got me thinking...

Does overly posh presentation of food put people off?

 

Crab Fettuccine with chilli and lemon

Realistically, if your food looks less like home cooking and more like a fancy art exhibition will you enjoy it any differently?

I find presentation irrelevant to my enjoyment of food but admittedly I am more likely to photograph the good looking dish over the less attractive one.  

Fish and chips with mushy peas

However, I would quite happily trade fashion for function if it means a bigger portion (is that mini chip fryer basket an attempt at portion control?) but of course this is only relevant if the food actually tastes good. 

Summary: Don't judge a book by its cover when it comes to food, good food tastes good and sometimes looks the part as well.

So, if you happen to be in the area and fancy some decent good-looking grub then remember The Green gets a big old thumbs up from this happy-snapping gal.

A Secret Garden Meal at The Witchery

Special occasions call for special treatment. So, one crisp Sunday afternoon we treated ourselves to a special meal.

It was a strongly recommended little place called The Witchery located at the base of Edinburgh Castle.

This was part of a whirlwind Edinburgh weekend which included a few of my favourite things: running, fantastic company and good food. What more could a girl ask for?

We found the entrance to the Secret Garden at The Witchery down a quirky little alleyway in the basement level of an old building.

Our lunch venue had timber beams and hanging vines, white tablecloths and many, many candles (which I imagine would have been an amazing addition to the atmosphere in the evening). It felt quite secretive and special.

This place was highly recommended by online reviews (ie: Tripadvisor) for providing delicious dishes made from high quality local ingredients.

I was excited about trying the Three Course Set Lunch which looked as though it offered a glimpse into their amazing menu at only a fraction of their a la carte price.  I do enjoy a bargain! 

The set menu also helped to narrow down the selection which was a bit mind-boggling.  

For my first course I chose the Salt Cod with Crostini and Potato. 

Served on a black slate, the creamy potato lump with two crostini masts poking out was a slight disappointment.  

I'm not sure what I expected but I could not taste anything that was noticeably definable as salt cod (nor could I remember what vegetable I was eating).

Sadly, the only flavor coming through was from the fresh dill. 

The identity of this velvety smooth puree remained a mystery until I saw the menu again at the end of our meal...ah yes, potato.

Across the table, my lovely dinner date was tucking in to his picture perfect first course.  I wanted to reach across and steal it. 

The Roast Partridge with a Scotch Quail Egg was right up there with what the reviews had said about the level of quality food to expect.

It had flavour combinations and textures which all came together perfectly in the forkful I tasted. 

I was having some serious food envy but I had two more courses to make up for a less than perfect first course.  

My second course of Pan Roasted Mullet with Celeriac was centred on my plate like a fish fillet planet surrounded by mini roast potato moons (drizzled with a delicious rich mustard cream sauce). 

I was back in the running with this course. 

I was curious to see the second course choice on the other side of the table, Braised Ayrshire Beef Cheek with risotto and greens. 

I was pleasantly surprised to find it was not some grinning bovine head straight from a horror movie.  Instead it was a succulent hunk of tender beef on top of creamy risotto with an amazing tasting gravy.     

Dessert was up next and it was the best course yet.

In an unusual twist, suppressing my sweet tooth, I opted for the cheese plate.

From the choices available, I decided on an incredibly stink-tastic soft goats cheese.  Oh boy did it whiff! 

Each biteful was so delicious when combined with the fig jelly, chutney and oat cakes.   

Meanwhile, on the other side of the table, the Knickerbocker Glory which arrived looked amazing with it's glassy sugar accents and brightly coloured syrup.

To summarise, the highlight of my meal was definitely the horrendously whiffy cheese course which was the envy of my table.  

Even with this superb course forever etched into my taste bud memories, my first course of bland potato mush, which was unmemorable for the most part, has tainted my overall Witchery experience.

That said, if I win the lottery anytime soon I will be heading back to sample their a la carte menu with my bushel basket full o' cash.

Favorite Meal Out in Tours: Le Turon

Any excuse for a good meal really. Perhaps for a half birthday, a monthiversary or maybe one week has passed since I bought a particular pair of shoes and yay, no blisters. Whatever reason to make it a special occasion works for me.

One week into our visit to France, and our last night in fabulous Tours (what, no new shoes to celebrate?) we decided to dine at Le Turon. 

We'd already experienced La Souris Gourmand, the strongly recommended fondue place down the street with the mice & cheese theme running throughout, even in their toilets.

So we opted for another recommendation hoping it would be just as enjoyable. 

Le Turon was listed in the top five restaurants in Tours by reviews on TripAdvisor and it definitely sounded like it would have a delicious selection of local dishes.  

We were seated at one of four tables on the street and enjoyed our bubbly aperitif complete with tapenade snackage while we perused the impressive Menu Gourmand.  

It is always amusing to order from a menu in a language other than your own. 

Luckily we seemed to manage alright with the language barrier and we even successfully ordered scallops, one of my favorites. Someone seemed to know a lot more French than he originally let on to knowing. 

 

These were the most amazingly delicious scallops with chorizo and lime.  They just melted in your mouth.

 

Across the table, the local pate with a blop of fruit chutney and crostini was being enjoyed.

You may note that the number of wine glasses seems to be slowly multiplying.

My main dish was a winner as well. Giant prawns with coconut rice and creamy sauce complete with quenelles of green stuff. We had no clue what they were made from but I suspect it was of the vegetable family. 

The beef with chunky chips and cream sauce, also accompanied by the green quenelles, was enjoyed as well.  

I can happily report that there was not a speck of green mystery stuff left on our plates at the end of the meal. 

Then it was time for dessert.

Ahh.....the desserts.

It was nearly too beautiful to eat (OK, nothing is that beautiful) but it was definitely crying out to be photographed.

Fruit coulis and custardy creme backdrop to a warm apple mixture tucked inside the crepe with caramel ice cream plopped on top.

It was the perfect dessert for my taste buds after such an amazing meal.

Had I not chosen the apple crepe I might have indulged in this chocolate option, but as I did not taste it myself I cannot comment on anything other than its glorious appearance. 

I do have it on good authority that it was very much enjoyed and received a big thumbs up.

Food that is good enough to photograph always makes me smile and Le Turon sure provided its fair share of photogenic food.

It lived up to the positive reviews and even though I'm thinking that the variety of wine enjoyed throughout the meal helped make my opinions extra enthusiastic, I'd definitely recommend it to anyone looking for a special meal to be had in Tours.

A Weekend at the Hotel Du Vin

A little decadence is a big treat and a weekend away in festive Edinburgh is a great opportunity to try some of the local specialities. 

Fried Duck Eggs on Haggis

Staying at the Hotel Du Vin, described on its web page as "Nestled deep in Edinburgh's Old Town and housed within a former city asylum" was a treat in itself.

There was an eery feeling in the twists and turns of the corridor as though you might be sharing the hotel with former residents. The random deep nooks and crannies in the exposed stone walls didn't help matters in this particular department. 

Mini oat muffin with butter

The fancy-pants monsoon shower, fluffy over sized robes and underfloor heating in the bathroom plus the amazing breakfast was the icing on the cake (let me tell you I felt pretty darn spoiled and it wasn't even my birthday!). 

Along with the 'let's stuff ourselves' breakfast on offer, the Nespresso machine  was an unexpected extra bit of culinary fun in the hotel room (who expects to fall in love with a coffee-maker while on a weekend city break?).

Nespresso!

Consequently I am now debating which cute colourful Nespresso machine will share my kitchen counter with my toaster & kettle, roll on January sales!

South Shields: Colmans Fish and Chips

Greasy fingers, the smell of malt vinegar, ketchup dribbling down your chin, the sounds of the seaside, a giant seagull trying to steal your chips...

Colmans, South Shields

I suppose the above description is more relevant to grabbing some fish & chips to wander along the coast with but that is what I envision when going out for this famous British meal.

This particular time, however, I sat in the white tiled seaside themed restaurant of the Award Winning fish & chip establishment known as Colmans.

There are plenty of good fish & chip shops in the North East of England (see previous post) because we are so close to the sea but some stand out a great deal more than others.

Colmans which bills itself as “Famous for Fish & Chips since 1926” is located in South Shields and has a restaurant attached to their extremely popular take away shop. On my visit there it was chock full of groups of older folks and whole families getting their mid day meal. 

We still managed to get a table quickly and soon we were joining in on the eating of delicious fish & chips. We then had the rest of the day to explore and enjoy.

Lakeshore Railroad, South Shields

Of course when in South Shields you have to head over to check out Lakeshore Railroad for a ride or just to take snaps (like some of us who obsess over getting a picture of the steam looking “just right”).

A gentle ride around the park on the mini steam train is the perfect thing if you are feeling rather roly-poly after finishing off your huge plate of carby goodness.  

And who knows, maybe after the digestion lethargy has finally passed you might even fancy a go at the amusement arcade across the street. 

Whirlwind Taste of the Northeast

I had a whirlwind visit recently from an old friend who had never been to England before and was only going to be in the Northeast for a single day. 

Marshalls Fish & Chips

I felt obliged to show him not only the visual highlights of the area (see my non food blog entry) but also a few of the culinary highlights.

We headed to the seaside to enjoy fish & chips, complete with mushy peas, in its natural surroundings.  We had our typically British meal at Marshalls in Tynemouth which came very highly praised by a friend.

From now on I will be the one strongly recommending Marshalls.  

Neither one of us had room in our stomach to completely finish our tasty meals but it was so good we just wanted to keep trying.

Tasty treats

This could have been because they serve quite generous portions, or it could have had something to do with the delicious selection of sweet things we had just enjoyed whilst sitting on a breezy bench along the coast.

We chose these little beauties from a lovely bakery along the main road to the Priory in Tynemouth, which unfortunately I don’t know the actual name of but I know exactly where it is for future.

There was an unfortunate cake casualty due to the slightly slippery strawberry tart not coming with a warning label of some sort or perhaps simply because one of us was a bit over excited about eating it and got a tad bit clumsy. 

Luckily we had two other treats waiting in the wings to indulge in. Phew!

Slippery strawberry tart

The chubby coconut macaroon with a little maraschino cherry on top was superb. The other item shall remain nameless (just like the bakery, darn it!) because I have no idea what it was called. The anonymous treat was an almond flavoured shortbread-esque bar with dried fruit sprinkled throughout with each end of the square dipped in chocolate for an extra sweet touch. So good!

There was also a nice selection of real ales enjoyed during this extremely brief visit to the Northeast. The choices available at the Bodega and The Bridge Hotel pubs were fantastically varied from blonde beers to dark brews and all the stages in between.

Real ale at Bodega

The evening was rounded out with a four-course meal at The Raj Tandoori off the Bigg Market in Newcastle’s city centre, but unfortunately I did not get a decent photo of the delicious curries we had, but trust me they were very flavourful and got thumbs up all around.

It has to be said that all involved parties enjoyed this little whirlwind taste tour of the Northeast, and I personally can’t wait to head back to Tynemouth very soon to discover more sweet treats from that fabulous bakery.

Easy Mac and Cheese Muffins

Brits and Americans seem to have very different taste when it comes to certain dishes.

I always get funny looks and raised eyebrows from Brits when the idea of  brunch consisting of maple syrup on pancakes and sausage comes up. And on the flip side, if you try to explain to an American that Brits mainly eat pancakes (which would actually be called crepes if we were on the continent) with lemon & sugar for their dinner on Pancake Day, they think it’s pretty odd.

So as you can imagine it can be a bit of a challenge to find common ‘taste bud’ ground on dishes that seemingly have the same ingredients but are in fact very different.

Enough of the pancake talk though, this is actually a post about a certain deliciously stodgy comfort food which thankfully seems to span the two cultures quite well from my tiny experience.

The superstar comfort food combo of pasta, cheese, and butter, fondly known as Mac & Cheese.  It is a warm & fuzzy edible hug that sticks to your ribs and makes you need a little nap when eaten in large quantities. 

I was very pleased to find that this dish was readily available on both sides of the pond and the differences between the two were not that apparent, if there are any at all. 

Although one American boxed version is practically flourescent orange in colour which doesn’t seem natural, and it doesn't seem to be popular in the UK but in its defence, it is easy to make and in a pinch it does the trick.

There is no argument that homemade Macaroni and Cheese is best and it has a firm footing on my list of favourite things to eat. It is also a welcome dish for most taste buds(unless you are on a diet).  

So of course when my friend gave me a copy of this recipe I was rather curious.  The title of ‘Easy Mac and Cheese Muffins’ brought images to mind of a bready muffin with tubes of macaroni sticking out in all directions with some crusty melted cheese dotted on top. 

Luckily that isn’t actually how this recipe works. In fact, it is a recipe for individual portions of comforting and delicious Macaroni and Cheese baked to perfection using muffin tins (hence the ‘muffin’ title).  

How ingenious is that?

Charity Bake Sale - DEC East Africa Crisis Appeal

Our Charity Bake Sale

In my place of work we have built quite a reputation for our ability to raise money for charity purely through the power of baking.  

We have worked hard to nurture this reputation over the years and this week’s Charity Bake Sale was certainly no exception. 

There were delicious goodies a plenty!

Near: Stained Glass Jello
Far: Guinness Chocolate Cake

The beautiful buffet of treats consisted of both homemade and shop bought deliciousness all spread out on tables in one corner of our office with colleagues from across departments tempted by our efforts coming and going throughout the day.

Let me tell you, it is incredibly difficult to resist trying one of everything or just digging in and eating it all when it’s right in front of you all day.



The sweet and savoury dishes sat side by side, with delicately constructed desserts nudging up against their sturdier savoury counterpart.  A plate baked Steak Pie and a lattice topped Spinach Pie alongside the Blueberry Lemon Millefeuille and Coffee Kisses. 

Left: Coffee Kisses
Right: Cinnamon Apple Muffins



I have to admit that the Coffee Kisses are one of my all time favourite bake sale treats and I love it when they make an appearance at our Bake Sales.

The recipe comes from the Bero cookbook and they are incredibly more-ish.

They go especially well with a mug of coffee or cup of tea, well heck, technically they are great even with a glass of water! 

I’m not ashamed to say that my mouth is watering now whilst just gazing at the photo of them, mmm...



Blueberry Lemon Millefeuille

All my drooling aside, I’m very pleased to confirm that we raised a whopping £247 in aid of the DEC’s East Africa Crisis Appeal.

It really warms my heart that I am lucky enough to work with such wonderfully generous and giving people, thank you to everyone for making it such a success!

Mussels Provencal

Mussels are one of those foods that can be a bit scary to try for the first time. I managed to avoid officially trying them for a very long time. 

It was only when a certain someone, who absolutely loves mussels, gently nudged me to overcome my fear of the unknown seafood and give ‘em a go.  

Let me tell you, I am so glad he was so persistent on the issue because they are absolutely divine!

Plus the fact that this certain someone really enjoys cooking them as you can see from these photos (yay!) and doesn’t seem to mind going solo on the de-bearding/scrubbing process that goes along with it (yuck!).  

Long may these delicious edible epiphanies continue!

I’ve been told that the following link is for the recipe which was used: http://www.ehow.com/how_4611881_mussels-garlic-white-wine-sauce.html

Cauliflower Stilton Soup

When you think about summertime, it isn’t traditionally the time of year when you would choose to have a thick & warming soup for your dinner. However, if you live in England it could well be on the menu and you’d be grateful for that fact.  

A steaming bowl of delicious soup served with crusty brown bread on the side is just what you want after a drizzly morning or a chilly afternoon.  

It’s even more of a treat when the soup is made for you to enjoy by someone else!

This recipe was adapted from the Easy Cauliflower Soup recipe found on the Waitrose recipes page.  It is pretty simple and gets points for frugality too since it uses items already in the average store cupboard.

Cauliflower Stilton Soup

1 tbsp olive oil

1 small onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1 fresh bay leaf

1 large potato, peeled and diced

1 large cauliflower, cut into florets

3 tbsp greek yoghurt

250g Stilton

In a large saucepan, heat the oil and gently cook the onion and garlic for 3-4 minutes until softened. Add the bay leaf and 1½ litres of cold water, then the potato and cauliflower. Bring to the boil then simmer gently for 15-20 minutes until the vegetables are just tender.

Remove the bay leaf then purée the soup using a hand blender or a liquidiser until smooth. Pour back into the pan, add the yoghurt and crumble in the Stilton. Heat through gently to melt the cheese then season generously with freshly ground black pepper.



Festival Food



Stoats porridge



Experiencing the Wickerman Festival this weekend was a fantastic way to break myself into the festival phenomenon. 

It was friendly, fun and full of fantastic food (all my favourite f’s in one place!).    

We had a hearty start to the morning: Porridge from Stoat’s Porridge Bar with flakes of toasted almonds, pear and cinnamon.

The Wickerman Festival is a music festival near Dumfries in scotland which has occured for the past ten years over a weekend in July. It takes place in the middle of rolling farm land with a view of amazing landscapes on all sides and moody clouds in the sky above.

Pimm's

I enjoyed my first official Pimm’s complete with a cute branded stirrer which of course I kept (my Dad would be proud!). 

Musical highlights from the weekend include: The Pigeon Detectives, Noisettes, and Feeder. 

Plus some great scottish bands (Miaoux Miaoux and We Write Letters in particular) played the Solus Emerging Artist Stage and I'll be keeping my eye out for them in future. 

There were also some awesome DJ sets in the dance tents (Utah Saints drew us in for the long haul even when bedtime called!)

 

Pasta Shells with Broccoli and Anchovies

Recently I’ve been trolling through my Good Food magazines from the past few years scouting out new recipes to try and this was quite a simple looking recipe which I thought would make a nice change from the usual weeknight meal routine.

The Pasta Shells with Broccoli and Anchovies recipe uses only a handful of ingredients, most of which were already in the house (who doesn’t have olive oil, lemons, garlic and a cute little tin of yummy anchovies in their store cupboard these days?).

It was quick to make (on the table in less than half an hour) and was rather tasty too!

I left out the chili by choice since I didn't want to have a bright red face for the rest of the evening, but I absolutely loved the combination of anchovy, lemon and broccoli with the satisfyingly chewy texture of the pasta. Delish!

This is definitely going on my list to make again soon.

Lake District Delights

A weekend away is just another excuse to seek out some delicious treats whilst in a new location and of course, a weekend camping in the Lake District is no exception.

In deciding what to explore during a soggy weekend in the Lake District, we were happy to have an insider’s tip for a local speciality in a nearby village.  We had been given a very strong recommendation to try Grasmere Gingerbread. We were told that not only was it amazingly tasty gingerbread, but that the shop itself was in a sweet little village worth visiting.

 

After tasting it first hand, I’ll go further to say that this is one of the best gingerbreads I have tasted yet. It really deserves to have its own unique category. It is a cross between a biscuit and a cake with a slightly chewy yet crumbly texture. It is definitely worth the long queue out the small shop doorway with the many, many tourists(bus loads!) to get into the tiny shop.

The village itself is also worth a visit with all of its interesting shops and old buildings intermingled along the path. I’m definitely going back to Grasmere in future.

While there, we managed to stumble upon a fantastic little restaurant for lunch. The Jumble Room was just a stone’s throw from the gingerbread shop and had a wonderfully cosy atmosphere with colourful cushions on the seats, children’s artwork and professional paintings of various animals covering the walls.

We ordered the soup of the day, Carrot Orange, which came with two pieces of the most delicious fresh homemade bread (a piece of white and a rustic, nutty brown bread) alongside the bowl. It was just what we needed to refuel for the rest of our afternoon of exploration.

Our next treat came the following day and was a completely random find down a cobblestone alleyway in Kendal. 

After learning that the Chocolate House was not open on Sundays(d’oh!) we were keen to locate a suitably quaint & cutesy alternative place to grab something to eat.  

We wandered along an olde worlde looking alleyway and happened upon the Hamper Tea Room. I knew straight away from the look of it that it was a gem.  It was a very welcoming little tea room tucked away off the main high street. 

We ordered our toasted sandwiches and a cafetiere of Farrer’s Italian Roast coffee and after finishing that off we didn’t hesitate to order one of the many desserts on offer. 

It was hard to choose which dessert to try, with all the traditional British puddings represented as well as local ice creams and whatever cake and other baked goodies were on offer that day.

In the end, I chose Sticky Toffee Pudding with custard and I was not disappointed.     

Hampers Tearoom: 14 New Shambles, Kendal, Cumbria LA9 4TS