The Mileburn Restaurant

I was incredibly lucky to be taken to the Mileburn in Melbourne for my birthday this year.  I've no idea why it's taken me so long to go there, as I have read they are champions of local food.  What I didn't realise is how fresh and exciting their take on local seasonal produce would be.  We had the six course taster menu on Thursday night for an incredibly good value £26.00.  Their house white was exceptionally good, and for £16 was not overpriced.  My only gripe about the wine would be that we do have good local wine in Swadlincote which could have been on the menu.  All the wines were from the new world so air miles were large.  I do think that any restaurant serving local food should also think about local drink too!

Anyway, back to the food, the six course menu (8 courses at the weekend for £35) allows the chef to prepare good food for a good price with, presumably little waste as he know exactly what everyone is going to eat.  Great idea.  The first course was celeriac soup.  Now, if you are a grow your own or vegbox person they you will have had celeriac soup coming out of your ears by this time of year, but this soup was exceptional - smooth, sweet but with bite.  The second course was something my other half said he never would have thought he would have enjoyed - grilled cabbage and humous, but the cabbage was sweet and the humous had a little crunch of seeds on top.  Course 3 was smoked trout, which was exceptional fresh and unusual, served in a cup with fruit and a tangy sauce.  This guy definitely knows how to put flavours together.  Course 4, the main, was the most disappointing - only because the duck was not cooked well and was a little tough.  Otherwise the flavours was intense, although the promised rhubarb (seasonal tick) didn't hit the palate.  Course 5, the cheese course was  unusual and exciting, being a sandwich of biscuits and cheese, with a creamy blue cheese which was both rich and moreish.  I also approved of serving the cheese before the pudding in the French style.  I do like to keep my sweets and savouries separate.  Finally, a deconstructed lemon meringue.  I think it was called lemon meringue, although I'm not sure where the meringue part was, but maybe the chef was just too clever for me and was hiding the egg whites somewhere.  Anyway, when the separate parts were mixed together on the palate they were incredibly fresh and zingy.  It would have been good to have had a good glass of pudding wine for that course but sadly they don't serve it.  They are missing a trick I think on that one, as it was the perfect meal to end with a nice glass of something sweet.  But minor are my criticisms - it is certainly the best value for quality meal I have had in a very long time and I will be back...

Melbourne Food Fair at Assembly Rooms

Today was the first Food Fair held at Melbourne Assembly Rooms.  The organisers are hoping that it will be repeated every two months.  There was a great selection of stalls selling everything from cheese, pies, cakes, chocolate, fudge, fruit and veg, and much more.   Our lunch therefore consisted of cheese from the Leicestershire Handmade Cheese Company, a Pork Pie from Brocklebys of Melton Mowbray, Indian Snacks, fudge and homemade cakes.  The photo is of Brockleby's Blue chesse, and "real" Red Leicester.   A steady stream of local people arrived throughout the day, and the atmosphere was really friendly.  It was lovely to be able to ask the stallholders what was in their produce, and I even managed to buy a wheat-free slice of chocolate cake. 

Home-made yogurt in the AGA

Home Made Yoghurt in the AGA

- thank you to Helen B for this recipe.

This is a recipe designed for an AGA, but it should in principle work just as well in a slow cooker or the airing cupboard!

1 tablespoon natural yoghurt

1 tablespoon dried milk

1 pint (600ml) sterilised milk*

Cream together the natural yoghurt and dried milk with a little of the cold milk. Heat the remaining milk in a saucepan to blood temperature. Pour the warmed milk onto the yoghurt mix and stir to combine.

Cover the bowl with a plate, then a tea cosy or towel.

If you have an AGA stand in a colander on top of the simmering plate and leave overnight to set. Next day transfer to the refrigerator to cool.

If using a slow cooker the low setting should work. Airing cupboards may require some experimentation.

Use to make a yoghurt sundae. Spoon fruit puree, coulis or honey into the base of a sundae glass, cover with a layer of home- made yoghurt, and top generously with granola** or muesli.

*Your milkman will deliver sterilised milk on request or it can be readily found in the milk section of your local supermarket.

**Jordan’s granola is especially good for this.

Local Christmas dinner

We are lucky to have no end of local suppliers for our Xmas lunch. I read in the paper that Selfridges sell the Packington chickens that are sold in Chantry Farm shop. We didn,t raise turkeys this year but had one in the freezer from last year. It was a bit of a risk but it appeared just as fresh! The veg were from Heaths - red cabbage, sprouts, carrots, parsnips, onions and accompanied by Chantry pigs in blankets. I have tried unsuccessfully to grow cranberries ( They don't fruit for me) but red currant jelly is just as good.
Xmas pudding is a decidedly international affair as most of the fruits are imported. I wonder if it would be possible to make a local one - a challenge for a future year, perhaps when the fruits from the forest garden are matured.
Boxing Day is even more enjoyable, with all the cooking done we can feast on leftovers.

Pumpkin and Raisin Tea Loaf

This loaf comes from Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall in Saturday's Guardian.  I though it was worth a go as there is a lot of pumpkin around at the moment.  I didn't have a lemon so substituted orange as pumpkin and orange is a classic combination.

Grated pumpkin or squash works just as well as carrot in a cake, making for a sweet, moist result. This delicious loaf is also made without any oil or butter. Makes 12 generous slices.
200g light muscovado sugar
4 large eggs, separated
200g finely grated raw squash flesh
Finely grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
100g raisins
100g ground almonds
200g self-raising flour
Pinch of salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
Generous grating of fresh nutmeg
Heat the oven to 170C/335F/gas mark 3 and line a 10cm x 20cm loaf tin with baking parchment. Use an electric whisk to beat the sugar and egg yolks for two to three minutes, until pale and creamy. Lightly stir in the pumpkin, lemon zest and juice, raisins and almonds. Combine the flour, salt and spices, sift these in, then fold them in. Beat the egg whites until they hold soft peaks. Beat a heaped tablespoonful of egg white into the batter to loosen it, then fold in the rest as gently as you can.
Tip into the prepared tin and level the top. Bake for about an hour, until a skewer comes out clean. Leave to cool for 10 minutes in the tin, than transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before slicing.

Bread

Bread using the River Cottage Bread Handbook method. This is 50 per cent wholemeal. It looks quite authentic, I hope it tastes it!

Toffee Apples

For Halloween party this week. So much better made with local apples. This recipe is so easy too. I did have the help of a sugar thermometer though, which is a worthwhile investment if you make jam or sweets.

Makes: 15 toffee apples

• 15 apples
• 400g caster sugar
• 350g golden syrup
• 350ml water
• lollipop sticks

Lightly grease a few baking trays. Insert lollipop sticks into the whole, stemmed apples.

In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, combine sugar, golden syrup and water. Heat to 149 to 154 degrees C or until a small amount of syrup dropped into cold water forms hard, brittle threads. Remove from heat and stir in food colouring.

Holding the apple by its stick, dip in syrup and remove and turn to coat evenly. Place on prepared trays to harden.