Mayonnaise

Cooked and smoked shell-on prawns and dressed crab with homemade mayonnaise

It's The Boy's birthday and I wanted to treat him to a tasty meal for two with the minimum amount of complex preparation so that I could maintain (at least for a while) an air of calm and sophistication. Yeah right. Anyway, I didn't want to be running around like a headless chicken and worrying about timings rather than enjoying the company of the birthday Boy.

The day started at 5:30am when I was up to make The Boy a cup of well-deserved birthday tea at his habitual weekday wake-up time. I didn't get a chance to think anniversaire fayre until my lunch break where I trotted off towards St Nicholas' Market in Bristol. Fate was on my side as I didn't realise that Wednesdays sees the Farmers Market invade the pedestrian street, selling fresh fruit, vegetables, meat and fish as well as much more.

I selected single cream from Jessie's Ladies, which proved to be totally divine from the tasters that were out. I also selected a few handfuls of smoked and cooked shell-on prawns and a dressed crab from one of the fishmongers. I was thinking too much about my menu to notice the name of many of the stall holders but I did procure half a loaf of ciabatta from a friendly baker. This was supplemented with a few bits and pieces and turned into an indoor picnic feast of baked Camembert with caramalised balsamic onions, homemade basil pesto and a seafood plate that you can see above.

I decided that now was the time to give homemade mayo a go and I've got to say, it's not as hard as I expected. Give it a go yourself...

Mayonnaise

You will need: (to feed two keen dippers)
1 egg yolk
125ml sunflower oil
25ml extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp dijon mustard
1 tbsp lemon juice
Salt

- Remove all of the ingredients ahead of time so that they are at room temperature
- Place the egg yolk in a mixing bowl (pop a teatowel underneath to stop it sliding about)
- Whisk the egg yolk with a generous pinch of salt until it starts to look thick and sticky
- While whisking the mixture, pour a slow thin but steady stream of sunflower oil into the bowl. The mixture will start to thicken and become paler.
- When the mix comes together into a consistency that you like, add the sunflower oil while whisking quickly until completely combined. If the mixture is too thick, add a drizzle of water and whisk. Repeat if required.
- Add mustard and lemon juice and whisk again.

Variations & Tips:
- As my mayo was for dipping, I wanted it to be slightly runnier and added a dribble of water to the mix.
- Stir in chopped herbs at the end to add flavour. Dill and fennel tops would go well with fish and cooked meats while finely chopped sundried tomatoeswould go well with cruditeé.

Green Olive Focaccia

If you're in need of an easy accompanyment for your barbeque or a tactile starter for that romantic summer meal, focacia is the simple option that can be jazzed up whichever way you wish.

Focaccia ready to go into the oven

Green Olive Focaccia with fresh herbs

You will need:
250g strong white flour
1tsp salt
7g (1 sachet) quick yeast (or the equivalent dried yeast)
50g green olives, chopped
2 sprigs of rosemary
2 sprigs of thyme
1tbsp maldon salt
olive oil

- Combine the flour, salt, yeast and a little olive oil in a bowl.
- Add around 150ml of tepid water, stiring the mixture with a wooden spoon until it comes together and then use your hands.
- Knead, stretch and work the dough until smooth.
- Coat the dough in a little oil and put in a warm place to rise. This will take up to an hour or until the dough has doubled in size.
- Knock back the dough then knead in the olives, a little at a time.
- Stretch out onto a baking tray covered in oiled parchment.
- Sprinkle with salt and push short lengths (approx 2cm) of the herbs into the dough then cover with clingfilm and leave to rize for another 30 or so minute while you preheat the oven to 220C.
- Remove clingfilm and bake for 15 minutes.

Finished focaccia served with homemade pesto

Variations & Tips:
- Be patient when kneading the olives into the dough. It can take a while so relax and take your time.
- This could be replicated with black olives or sundried tomatoes.

The Newt Beer Festival

We've spent a merry few hours in North Petherton at the fantastic annual Newt Beer Festival. With the allure of 101 different bitters, ales and stouts to sample this year, we decided to cycle along the tow path from our town so that we could enjoy a drink or two. The weather was fantastic and the live music on offer added to the atmosphere.

A festival for all the family (would you believe?) with face-painting and trampolines for the kids while Dad (or Mum?) takes part in the Yard Competition...

Fair Play - Bristol Wine & Food Fair

Having explored the sights and sounds of the Bath Food & Drink Festival only the day before, Bristol Wine & Food Fair had a lot to live up to. The atmosphere on entering was undoubtedly different to Bath's offering; this was slightly more formal and, dare I say it, upmarket. Still, I shouldn't compare as the two are very different and both fantastic in their own right.

Arriving fashionably late and just in time for lunch, we were presented with the difficult task of choosing where to start our culinary adventure in form of lunch. After much dithering and deliberation, we couldn't resist the delicious smells wafting over from The Real Olive Company's Kofta Bar. There was quite a queue but this, I feel, is usually a very good sign. I enjoyed a lamb kebab with babaganoush and peppers on a fluffly Lebanese wrap while my foodie friend tried their veggie offering. Both were awarded top marks; what a great way to start!

And so, the wandering (and wondering) started in earnest. The fair was much more about wine and less about food than I expected with one marquee dedicated to food (though there were many foodie bits and pieces in the Food Producers Market) and two reserved for wine. We enjoyed Georgie Porgie's Puddings, particularly the unusual lemon and Pimms and the devilish apple and cider. We got chatting to the lovely people at Lahloo tea who caught my eye with their gorgeous packaging and smoking infusions. I couldn't resist the lovely preserves at The Cherry Tree; it was a miracle that I came away with only one jar (the spicy tomato and caramelised onion chutney, if you're wondering).

Making the most of our free tasters... hic!

With our complimentary tasting glasses at the ready, we threw ourselves into the fray of Wine Marquee A and immediately found the St Germain cocktail bar where the barmen were busy mixing up fantastic elderflower inspired drinks.

The miniature selection at Bramley & Gage

Tempted though we were, we were deterred by the price tag and we were pleased when later, we found the lovely ladies at Bramley & Gage. It didn't take us long to invest in their fruit liqueurs as well as their punchy sloe gin. I came away with a bottle of their elderflower liqueur which, I can honestly say, I would have over St Germain for the taste as well as the more reasonable price tag. It's sweet, refreshing and summery without being saccharine.

Just a little way over, we staggered upon Discover the Origin who were offering shavings of Parmesan which were carved from cheese the size of car tyres! There was also slivers of parma ham, straight from the joint, paired with fine wines to enjoy which got us feeling rather sophis.

One of the humongous wheels of Parmesan on offer from Discover the Origin

I was lucky enough to get my hands on tickets to a complimentary tasting workshop held by Cordorníu where we sampled four of their sparkling wines and got a crash course in wine tasting and champagne history. I must admit that I hadn't heard of Cordorníu or their wines before but they were certainly palatable and would be a fun and more pocket-friendly alternative to the traditional champagnes.

Speaking of champagnes, my friend and I were donated a ticket each to the Champagne & Chocolate Masterclass by two lovely gentleman. Their loss was certainly our gain as we sampled Hotel Chocolat chocolates with a variety of Tattinger champagnes under the guidance of Sarah Jane Evans of the Academy of Chocolate.

Sarah Jane Evans talks the talk

It was a wonderful way to end the day as we were emersed in the wonderful world of bubbly. Sarah threw in some fantastic facts; did you know that there are around 45 million bubbles in a bottle of champagne and that the cork shoots from the bottle at around 40mph from the pressure of the wine which is three times the pressure of a car tyre!? We sampled all sorts of combinations of bubbly with the four chocolates that we had in front of us. Tickets were £8 and, though we got ours for free, I think I would've gladly paid up for such a fun hour. Sarah was insightful and obviously extremely knowledgable while still being approachable.

The weather wasn't on our side but we had a fantastic day at the fair!

Festival of Delights - Bath Food & Drink Festival

You may know Bath for it's beautiful architecture or the healing steamy waters of it's spa. This weekend, Bath's historic Royal Crescent was awash with colour, the promising sound of sizzling and a cocktail of mouth-watering smells. Producers, purveyors, chefs and performers (sometimes the same thing, it seems) happily rubbed shoulders and vied for the attention of the ticket-holding foodies.

The city’s picturesque country-side surroundings were reflected in the mix of stalls that were neatly squeezed into the park. Amongst the real ales on offer, the increasingly trendy ciders were well represented (though I wasn’t impressed by the Gaymers stall) and the Pimms tent was predictably popular as the hot and balmy Saturday wore on.

The Cosmic Sausages

The festival atmosphere was fed by the live music performed on and around the music stage; the musical highlight of our afternoon was the quirky (and rather aptly named) Cosmic Sausages. Jarvis of St James had picked a prime spot to set up shop as their cute teak be-parasoled tables and chairs had a great view of the stage - great for sipping a glass of bubbly and enjoying the chaos unfolding before you.

The main food tent was a feast of interesting chutneys, crusty bread and sweet things. We were disappointed by Med Food UK; despite their fantastic selection of olives and antipasti, everything we tried tasted as if it was from a jar, overly salted and was all incredibly expensive. Still, everything else looked so wonderful that it was hard to know where to start. We'd arrived at lunchtime and eventually started with a chicken wrap from Natural Game. We were very glad that we did - food festivals can be wallet emptyingly expensive (stall holders know they have a captive and enthuastic audience) but for £5 we had lunch for two in just one wrap.

Antonio Carluccio

Once we were suitably fed, we headed to the Chef's tent to see Antonio Carluccio do his thing. Now, Antonio might be 73 but he certainly doesn't act it. He's very much full of the joys of spring and in rather rude health. Half an hour in his company was filled with giggles (he tells the most wildly outrageous jokes!) and smiles as he whipped up some simple, hearty food. He told us that he has just returned from filming a food documentary for BBC 2 out in Italy which will be out sometime next year so keep your eye out for that.

Me and another unsuspecting audience member with Richard Bertinet

Later, we had the pleasure of Richard Bertinet's company. Richard is probably best known for his baking skills and we were treated to a live demonstration of how to knead dough in the traditional French way. It's mesmerising to watch but certainly not easy as proven by an innocent audience member who was tugged out of his seat to help with the proceedings. It just so happened that I put my hand up to the wrong question (or should that be right question?) and ended up on stage cooking a smoked fish chowder with the man himself. I've got to say that the recipe was surprisingly simple and, with some freshly baked bread to dunk, absolutely heavenly.

We ended our day with a cookie sandwich from Mendip Moments - a generous scoop of honeycombe icecream crammed between two freshly baked chocolate cookies! Bath Food & Drink Festival was a fantastic day out and comes highly recommended when planning your trips for next year.

All the fun of the fair!

Summer is the season of the fair and we food-geeks are somewhat spoilt for choice in the coming months. This is very much the case this weekend as there seem to be numerous food events going on all over the place. To me, it seems slightly counter-intuitive to spend what often totals months organising a packed few days of fun on a weekend that clashes with things that will pull the public away from your proceedings.

Bristol and Bath, two culturally rich cities less than 11 miles from each other, are throwing separate foodie celebrations. Sadly, this also clashes with Theo Jansen's public showing of his kinetic sculptures at Exeter's Summer Festival – it may not be food but this really shouldn't be missed. Decisions, decisions… for quite a while, I really couldn't choose – they all look so good. This time, I've decided to stay true to my culinary leanings; I hope that my waist line (and feet) will forgive me with time! Sorry Theo, some other time? (Please!?)

First impressions are good though. Bath have been incredibly organised; I've already received my advance ticket in the post with the program which is pretty informative though their website could be more useful. Bristol are lagging far behind as they haven't confirmed anything with me though their website is more comprehensive. I'm looking forward to having a good mooch around, sample lots of glorious products and take in some talks. If you're in Bristol on Saturday, I hear that the Whiteladies Road Farmers and Fair Trade Market is having a relaunch party with all sorts of fun stuff going on.

Bristol Wine & Food Fair runs from 2nd until 4th July and can be found at the Lloyds Amphitheatre and Waterfront Square at BS1 5LL.

Bath Food & Drink Festival can be found in the historic Royal Cresent on the 3rd and 4th July with talks from the wonderful Antonio Carluccio and Richard Bertinet

Today's foodie fact

 

Did you know?

 

Egg yolks are half water!