What does the world eat?

Here's a fascinating photo essay by time magazine...http://www.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,1626519_1373675,00.html

Slow Food UK

Slow Food UK has an AGM this autumn members may already know about this. But for those that don't please follow this link. It talks about what we do as an organisation and has some fine writing on the different aspects that Slow Food covers.

http://www.slowfood.org.uk/what-we-do

We are limited to what we can do locally but fully support the ideals of an organisation that focuses on localy produced food, grown or harvested in an ethical manner and paid a fair price for.

Kinfolk

I think we have informed you that August is a break for all of us but we are coming back in September with more ideas and visits.

In the interim I came across a magazine called Kinfolk it has a companion website that in many respects espouses the ideas behind Slowfood. It encourages small gatherings between artistic souls around a table of shared food.

Shared food is a crucial part of what we should be doing in a civilised society. Not just sharing but interacting, discussing and enjoy the fruits of our labours. Then there is the food. The last pot luck night we had was a great example of what happens when like minded people gather together and eat together.

Enjoy the site http://www.kinfolkmag.com/magazine/

Hope to see you soon.

Rod.

Vienna Bakery Artisan Bread

I recently bumped into David Dodge outside his Vienna Bakery stall in the market. He described to me a new method of proving he is adopting for one of his loaves the newly named "Pave du Connetable." So named as the loaves mirror the shape of the cobbles in French Lane.

They are beautiful loaves with a fine crumb and a great depth of flavour. All of this is David's adoption of a slowproving technique, 48 hours, at a low temperature.

Trawling through the web to find any articles supporting the notion I came upon this from the New York Times describing a new technique we can all practice. It includes the idea of not kneading which has been supported by Dan Lepard for some time. His blog is a fantastic source for bakers.

Further info is supplied in the Freshloaf blog.

Below is the making of a fine rare beef and coleslaw sandwich with produce bought from Jersey Market.

If you can't be bothered cooking just try Davids loaves at the Vienna Bakery in the market. You won't be disappointed.

Some New Food Blogs

There has been a recent surge in food blogs here are a couple that have caught my eye.

http://www.101cookbooks.com// By Heidi Swanson. A lovely feel to this site. Informative and well illustrated.

http://aapplemint.com// Here's one beautifully laid out and easy to navigate.


http://smittenkitchen.com/ Great recipes with excellent step by step photography.


http://whatkatieate.blogspot.com/ This one is a favourite of mine with a Scandinavian feel to its layout.

http://www.lottieanddoof.com/ Apart from the title, which I love, this has a good home made feel to it.

http://www.beyondtheplate.net/recipes/bomboloni-meyer-lemon-curd/ The little lemon curd doughnuts described here look delicious. Once I get back to my fighting weight...

http://www.davidlebovitz.com/about/ An American living and cooking in paris. Great baking recipes.

Sadie Rennard cooks at Hamptonne during the Cider Festival

Check them out...mmmmmm...

Fungi Delecti Visit

It was a cold night and the weather previously had not been kind so the crops weren't at their best. That said Jamie gave us a solid introduction to what Fungi Delecti has to offer.

 

Jamie explained the Shitake growing process. Logs had been plugged with spore and the conditions down on the farm were ideal for the growing process. To protect the mushrooms from wind chill over 2,000 trees had been planted. That shows the care and vision exercised on the farm.

 

 All of this grew out his dad's hobby. Challenged to grow mushrooms by a professor Mick accepted the challenge and now we can delight in some of the best produce on the Island.

 

The poly tunnels housed rocket and several crops that were picked early in the morning or late evening when the crops are freshest illuminated with pickers wearing torches.

Rocket

Chives

Beautifully fresh chives and other produce resting in the huge cold store. You can just see the quality. You can feel the passion and pride exhibited by the excellent produce.

Truffle heaven. The value of this small quantity is amazing.

Truffles

 

Fungi Delecti also now operate as wholesalers supplying local chefs with high quality produce.

The cold store was heavily scented with spices carefully sourced from around the world.

The farm also supplies free range ducks, geese and poultry.

The snail marks the spot.

Cyrus gives us Spice World.

A great night with Cyrus and his wife Parvin educating our minds and engaging our senses with Indian food. Cyrus showed how to portion and de-bone a chicken, cook perfect rice and provide twelve delicious dishes. All with locally sourced seasonal ingredients. Rich heady pork and beef dishes quickly cooked but heady with flavour.

Simple Kerala stews suffused with tumeric and garnished with fresh coriander. Apparently the only herb to travel from the west to the east.

Cyrus is deeply knowledgeable about all of his ingredients taking us across continents and providing intimate tips and historic details about all of his recipes.
He was clearly in command of the kitchen gently tucking the sharp blades of his knives under the chopping board. His attention to detail whilst making us understand each step showed an experienced hand.

We were swept away by the breadth and style of his cooking and how everything was given due consideration to the strength of flavours, the level of heat, aromatics that reduce the inevitable flatulence, medicinal properties of spices and ultimately the richness of his dishes.

Juggling hot pans to temper spices whilst maintaining just the right temperature to avoid scorching was all over seen by Parvin's eagle eye. Timing was crucial.

We were engaged, entertained and duly sated by a wonderful progression of various plates of food. For me easily the best treat was the rice. I can't remember being so delighted with what seems the simplest of dishes but cooked to perfection.

As it ended I watched Cyrus carefully place his knives and spices back in his case. A professional through and through.

I feel an Indian pot luck night coming on...

Chamber of Commerce Lunch

Below is information relating to Chambers next lunch. This is a real opportunity to hear from a Festival Director about the core values espoused by SlowFood.

Can truly sustainable and ethical businesses cut the mustard when it comes to profit and growth?
A reminder that we will welcome Philip Lowery, Director of the Real Food Festival, as guest speaker for the 22nd June Luncheon.
Sustainable and ethical; how do these values fit with commercial profit? In the world of SME’s does real authenticity pay off versus the (sometimes) cynical “brand authenticity” values of large corporations?

As the founder of the Real Food Festival, Philip Lowery is on a mission to re-connect us back to where our food comes from. A passionate supporter of small and artisan over big and industrial, he nevertheless believes that good real food can be produced sustainably and economically and that the future of food should not be left in the hands of intensive farming systems and a handful of global industrial giants.

The Real Food Festival and Markets address food related issues head-on, by suggesting an alternative to the current, industrialised systems of agriculture, food manufacture and distribution which has evolved to be a generator of profits rather than a system to feed people. Real Food promotes a different approach that aims to feed people good, seasonal, nutritionally dense food and drink that has been produced in a sustainable and ethical way. It is their aim to communicate the major issues of food security namely; climate change, population growth, water scarcity and peak oil and ensure that they remain on the agenda at the highest governmental levels. Real Food organise their annual Festival in Earls Court every May, have issued a book featuring the chefs who support Real Food and now hold weekly markets with over 40 traders and street food traders at London's South bank Centre. For more information please go to www.realfoodfestival.co.uk
The venue for this luncheon is the Pomme d’Or Hotel and guests should arrive no later than 12.30pm with lunch served at 12.45pm. Philip is scheduled to speak at 1.30pm followed by a question and answer session. We will seek to close the event by 2.15pm.

The price is £25 per person, which includes a one-course lunch menu and coffee with mints. Wine is also included and is kindly sponsored by Dunells.

For reservations contact Linda details below.
Linda McGuirk, Office Manager, Chamber of Commerce

Direct Telephone: 01534 721426   Website: http://www.jerseychamber.com/

Fax: 01534 734942

Jersey Food Festival

Here's todays events. There are loads to do, see and taste. Hope to see you there.
http://jersey.com/english/eatingout/jerseyfoodfestival/pages/monday.aspx

Food Festival and more...

Dear Slow Fooders

This is an update on the planned events for May and June.

As many of you may be aware Donna Le Marrec and John Garton have organized the Jersey Food Festival from 14 to 22 May.  This looks like a fantastic week with many events that embrace so much of what we believe in.

Lots of trips to visit various sites and some delicious food to be sampled. Taste the passion.

Please visit the website for full details:

www.jersey.com/foodfestival

In June we have 2 events planned:

A visit to Fungi Delecti for a tour by Jamie Racjan (visit www.fungidelecti.com ). 

Fungi Delecti has become known as the best wholesaler of quality produce on the island.  They supply all the top restaurants and hotels, sourcing produce from all over the world.  They also grow Shii-Take mushrooms and many fresh salads and herbs, as well as producing the tastiest eggs on the island.

To avoid having too many people to enjoy this visit Jamie is happy for us to split into 2 visits – Thursday 9^th and Thursday 16^th June at 6.30pm. 

If you would like to come then please let us know which date you would prefer and then we can try to ensure even numbers over the 2 evenings.  Fungi Delecti is at Les Platons in Trinity.  By visiting in mid-June the fresh produce should be at its peak.

There is no charge for this event but please inform us if you are coming.

An evening with Cyrus Todiwala  - Indian Chef extraordinaire

Monday 20^th June – Highlands College – 7.30pm to 9.30pm

This is planned as the highlight/show piece of our Slow Food year.  Cyrus is a renowned Indian chef and he is coming specially to Jersey for this Slow Food event.  Cyrus is passionate about local food and so he will be sourcing local produce for his demonstration, and will be taking us on a tour of Indian spices.  (This is purely a demonstration and so no food will be served, but there will be small tastings).

This is for Slow Food members only. There will be a charge for this event to contribute to costs – more details to follow (we haven’t done our sums yet!).  Numbers will be limited. 

We would be grateful if you could email us to let us know if you are interested in either of these events as soon as you can. 

Please do try to attend some of the Food Festival events.

See you all soon.

The Slow Food Committee

"Best before Dates"

A debate is brewing on the whole issue of "Best Before Dates". Mainly championed by  anti-waste campaigners who suggest that this poor labelling is responsible for large amounts of wasted edible food.

The BBC offers an insight on all this.

Worth taking a look at.

Pot Luck Night - 14th April

We're off again!

Unfortunately Emma, our resident chef, is under pressure so we have had to postpone the Cake making demo but we have a great alternative...a Potluck night!

Donna Le Marrec is going to talk to us about the Food Festival she has organised for May.

If you are not sure what happens at a Pot Luck event then this article gives a taste. /http://tmagazine.blogs.nytimes.com/tag/pot-luck/ 


Slow Food is not just about spreading the message but cooking, eating and sharing food. 

Local and seasonal if possible, one dish per person is fine.

So on the 14th April - 7.00pm - 10.00pm we are meeting at Les Creux Scout Hut. (We'll provide directions nearer the date.)

Easy to find and ample parking. We'll provide some wine, soft drinks, plates and cutlery.

Cook anything you want and bring it along. It doesn't matter whether it's sweet or savoury if the Pie Night is anything to go by it'll all get eaten.

Here's the chance for those that missed out last time and want to show off their skills.

There is a kitchen so we can heat food up and wash up...

The idea is to keep the flavour of what we did last time but take the competition out of it.

Spread the word it's completely free.

If you have any questions then please call Rod Bryans on 07797721559.

New website...

Check out this lovely site. Slow Food is keen to promote the notion of reducing the distance from field to plate this website takes a step closer in illustrating how to grow your own veg...

www.seedtoplate.co.uk provides great information on how to make it all possible. A seasonal calendar, growing tips, videos and recipes.

Worth a look.

Breaking News...

People love Pies!

Beef and Liberation Ale Pie

And the winner is.... this beautiful Beef and Liberation Ale pie (see the initials) from Alison Vautier. This was just one of a fine pair of pies from Alison and Steve.
It not only came top but was the winner of Liberation Groups extra prize for the best pie incorporating Liberation Ale.
Her Rhubarb and Ginger Pie came a respectable joint 3rd. A winning combination and a winning couple.

2nd Prize Balderson's unctious Pork Pie!

 Over 40 pie makers and pie tasters herded themselves into the St Mary's Pub. 14 pies were presented for the competition.

We wanted pies made with locally sourced ingredients, home cooked by skilled cooks and that is exactly what we got. The labours of love got the most points. Handmade pastry, hand reared pork or beef. Home grown rhubarb and a few emotional moments as family recipes were exposed to the discerning taste buds of Slow Food members.

Amazing choice and flavours...

Little left...

 

Ben tastes the winner...

French Apple Tart

Making notes

The points are totalled

Chairman Julia Quenault presents the 
Slow Food Trophy toAlison Vautier

The Great Pie Challenge...

Hello Everyone,

Just an update to let you know how many tasters and bakers we have confirmed for the upcoming pie event. 

 

So far we have 37 tasters bringing 14 pies. 

 

Only half have confirmed what type of pies they're bringing but that gives us a good indication that the vast majority will be savoury.

Ben, Rod and I will come up with scoring sheets, making them similar to the ones we used for sausage tasting but using the ideas Emma C sent earlier in the week. 

 

We will also organise getting these printed.

Have a good weekend.

Kathryn

The Great Pie Challenge..

OK it's not that I'm competitive...I just love pies...

 Tuesday the 8th March...7.00pm at St Marys Pub an open competition for Pie aficionados... 
Test Steak Pie *1

• 1lb Stewing Steak - Lidsters in the Central Market
• Bottle of Liberation Ale
• Carrots, Celery, Onion,Thyme,
• Store bought Puff Pastry.
• Seasoning- Salt,Black pepper and a splash of Worcestershire sauce.

I marinaded the steak over night, with shards of carrot, trimmings of celery, onion and a sprig of thyme.

I sieved out the marinade discarding the veg. Sauteed the diced onion, followed by carrot and celery. Floured meat was then browned and the veg added back along with the marinade and beef stock. Then into the oven on a low heat for 4 hours.

After blind cooking a pastry bottom I filled with stew and added the lid. 30 mins later ...voila.

Verdict ...lovely but not a prize winner. Back to the cookbooks...see you there!

Highlands in 2011

Highlands was such a success for our AGM meal, the food was fantastic, we wanted to promote it again to give people the opportunity to book in advance.

In particular as we are such a romantic bunch you might want to consider Valentines night for something a little different...its not on the actual night but it maybe the something special you were looking for...

Anyone wishing to make a booking please call Joan on 608563 (between 9.00am and 1.00pm)

Tuesday 18th January – Healthy Eating Lunch
Wednesday 19th January – Big Breakfast

Monday and Tuesday 24th/25th January – Burns Night – this is run by our Culinary Skills students who attend an evening course

Thursday 27th January    – An evening working with Chefs from Bohemia Restaurant
Wednesday 9th February – Afternoon tea
Tuesday 15th February    – Valentines Lunch
Thursday 17th February  – Valentines Dinner

WEEK COMMENCING 21ST FEBRUARY – HALF TERM

Thursday 3rd March   – Restaurant closed for private function

Thursday 10th March – Italian night
Thursday 17th March – St Patricks Night Dinner

Thursday 24th March – Restaurant closed for private function

Thursday 31st March – An evening working with Chefs from Atlantic Hotel

WEEKS COMMENCING 11TH, 18TH AND 25TH APRIL – RESTAURANT CLOSED FOR EASTER BREAK

Thursday 5th May – Last Dinner production
Tuesday 10th May – last Tuesday lunch production
Wednesday 11th May – last Wednesday production

Thought for the month...

"If you are not hungry enough to eat an apple, you're not hungry."

New Year Promises

I was considering what to write to kick off 2011 and thought I should revisit why I joined Slow Food a few years back.

There was a Slow Food conference set up by Alasdair Crosby at Haute Vallee School. I was intrigued by the range of information offered there and decided to Google everything I'd made notes about. That led me to Michael Pollan.

If you ever need a single source of inspiration to realise the situation we find ourselves in when it comes to understanding food then Michael Pollan is your man. He is currently compiling a new book of homespun wisdom provided by readers to a New York Times article.

His book "In Defence of Food" provided me with the simple idea of "Eat food. Mostly plants. Not too much." His twenty rules are sound examples of good advice. One of the best was"don't eat food your grandmother wouldn't recognise."

His investigations in to our eating habits and the science behind the food constructed for us really opened my eyes to what lies we are being pedalled and how much junk food surrounds the needs we have created. The choices of what we eat and how we cook it are ours.

Jersey has some of the best produce in the world promoted by some of the best chefs. Cultivate in the fields or found in the cold waters surrounding us. Reducing the distance from field to plate provides not just the freshest and nutritionally sound food available food but ensures we keep local producers employed. So by applying the common sense principle of buying local we realise the ambitions of both Slow Food and Fair Trade in one simple act.

Our small but growing band of Jersey Slow Food enthusiasts are trying to spread the message of "Good, clean and fair" and get as many people interested in promoting and eating good food. Cooking and eating are implicitly on our agenda for this year and we hope to see you at as many events as you can get along to.

We are also open to any suggestions for the kind of events you would like to see as this convivium is driven by its members. We would love to hear from you.

As for my New Year resolutions - eat as little processed food and adopt the simple idea of "eating less and moving more"... Happy New Year.