Midlands Foodie Events – July 2011

Here is a round up of the foodie events happening in the Midlands during July. If we have missed any out, please email us at midsfoodbloggers@hotmail.co.uk and we will add it to the list.

As mentioned in last months post the Nottingham Food and Drink Festival is on till 10th July.

Saturday 2nd and Sunday 3rd July 

Fabulous Places Summer Food & Gift Fair is taking place with lots of stalls of gorgeous food and gifts at The Roundhouse, Derby, DE24 8JE

Monday 4th July

The first event for Slow Food Peak District and Staffordshire is taking place at Freedom Brewery with a BBQ featuring Packington Pork. A few of the MFB members will be there. See here how to register.

Sunday 10th July

Baslow Artisan Food Fair takes place near Chatsworth with a handpicked selection of stalls. Read more about it here on the blog.

Don’t forget to let us know of any upcoming events in the next few months that would interest our readers

Prepped Cookbook Launch

One of our member’s, Vanessa Kimbell has just written and released her first cookbook. She left her job in IT in May 2010 and decided to follow her dream to write a cookbook designed for time short foodies.  Vanessa persuaded her local newspaper in Northampton to take her on as a food writer, she set up a blog to chart her book writing progress and used social networking to promote, ask for recipe testers and bring her book to the world!

‘Prepped!: Gorgeous Food without the Slog – a Multi-tasking Masterpiece for Time-short Foodies’ was released at the end of May 2011. MFB members were highly involved in recipe testing for the book before it was published.  Julia of A Wannabe Foodie tested Chocolate Cookies, Lemon Polenta Savoury Muffins and Lemon Pork Risotto.  Jules of Butcher, Baker tested Chocolate Beef and Rhubarb Tart.  I tested the Eccles Cakes recipe as well.

As we were recipe testers, we were invited to the cookbook launch in Northampton. Jules was unable to attend but Julia and I attended and had the picture with Vanessa taken above. At the launch, there was lots of chatting about blogging and cake. We were able to meet many bloggers from around the country including Ruth from The Pink Whisk. We had a fantastic time.  Vanessa is going to start writing ‘Prepped 2′ soon and we here at MFB wish her lots of luck for the future and hope we can help with the recipe testing for the second book too!

By Jo of Jo’s Kitchen on behalf of MFB

Midlands Michelin Cookbook and a competition

Michelin Restaurant Simpsons of Harbourne, Birmingham launched their long awaited follow up to their successful ‘Modern French Cooking’ book launch in 2006. Their new creation, simply called ‘Simpsons Cook Book’ promises to be more accessible in style, and more innovative in content – offering a perfect table top book for the modern gourmand.

Chefs Andreas Antona, Luke Tipping and Adam Bennett have chosen their favourite and most popular dishes for this Cook Book which have been set out in an easy-to-follow format. Aimed at amateur chefs and passionate foodies, Simpsons – the cook book is brimming with starter, main course and pudding recipes that will impress any gourmet guest. The book  handholds its readers through impressive but realistic Michelin-starred recipes and is ideal for dinner parties or simply for those who want to up their game in the kitchen.

Simpsons – the cook book is available to purchase in the restaurant, or at Waterstones in Birmingham, or on line at Amazon ~ LIMITED EDITION signed copies available in the restaurant to diners priced £19.95.

You can read a review from founder and member of Midlands Food Bloggers Jo’s Kitchen here, together with her version of one of the recipes – Tagliatelle with Black Mushrooms.

WIN a Signed Copy of the Simpsons Cook Book . Visit the Simpsons Website to see how you can enter the Book competion

MFB Members Blog Round Up – June 2011

Throughout the past month our members have been growing in number and busy posting some delicious recipes and great reviews.

Here’s a small selection of what they’ve been up to:

Lou and Chris of Is it Worth Waiting For are one of most recently listed members and in their journey to not cook the same dish for one whole year, June has seen them sample a confusing Rhubarb and Carrot Soup, delight in Scandinavian Meatballs which look lovely, and go east with a flavourful Lamb Biryani and a sweet Vietnamese Caramelised pork,  amongst many other dishes.

Jules of The Butcher and Baker shared with us some healthy, low cost lunchbox treats like Chocolate Bran Flake slice and how fun cooking with children is with an Italian flare by a Calzone feast.

Craig at We Grow Our Own has given us his usual low down on what we need to do in our allotments/gardens for the month – June is apparently one of the busiest months of the year. He also has some fab tips on Waging the War on Weeds.

Becky at Girl Interrupted Eating has been enjoying the seasons best greens with Pasta with Broad Beans, Peas and Spinach & feta pesto and is in full nesting mode ready for the arrival of her baby. She’s even made a Sticky Toffee Date Cake ready to take with her for the midwives. They’ll be some happy midwives – so wished I’d thought of doing something like that.

Kath at The Ordinary Cook has been baking a delicious looking Almond cake, her second attempt apparently. However, the first did not go to waste as she used it in a Almond trifle – what a great way to use cake that’s not going to be enjoyed!

For a look at what all our other members have been writing about click through to their blogs from the Members Page.  If you’re based in the Midlands and have a food blog, then email us to find out how to become a member.

Written by Louise of Comida y Vida on behalf of MFB

Slow Food Peak District & Staffordshire

The first event of newly established Slow Food Peak District & Staffordshire group is at Freedom Brewery, incorperating a brewery tour, beer tasting, sausage making demonstration using Packington Pork and BBQ.

This will be a relaxed, informal event where people can meet, talk and sample some of Staffordshire’s finest produce.

Date - Monday 4th July

Location - Freedom Brewery, Bagots Park, Abbots Bromley, WS15 3ER

Time & details:

7:00 Arrival
7:15 Brewery Tour & Beer tasting
8:00 Sausage making demonstration with Packington Pork and BBQ

Free entry.  (BBQ tickets £5)
Pre Booking is required so that we know numbers –

please e-mail clare@seasonedcourses.com to be added to the guest list.

Freedom Brewery (our kind hosts for the evening):

Freedom Lager was originally founded in 1995 in Fulham, London. In 2004, Freedom Brewery moved to its current home in the heart of rural Staffordshire, near the world famous brewing town of Burton-on-Trent.

Freedom Brewery lies in an idyllic country setting, benefiting from its own source of sustainable, pure limestone Spring water. This water, filtered over millions of years through layers of natural alabaster, is the water that has attracted brewers to the Burton area for over three hundred years. Prior to brewing, this water requires no chemical treatment or additives, as it already has the necessary ‘hard’ qualities.

A combination of the finest quality ingredients and optimum maturation period (four to six weeks) ensures Freedom Lagers are satisfyingly full of flavour.

For more information please visit the Freedom Brewery Website - www.freedombeer.com

Packington Pork (kindly sponsoring the BBQ)

Packington Pork is truly free-range meat, with a delicious taste hard to find elsewhere.
Packington prides itself on:

* Healthy, happy, stress-free pigs
* Free-range means free-range! Our pigs are bred and live outdoors for their whole lives
* Packington pigs are produced to the highest of welfare standards (RSPCA Freedom Food accredited)
* Freedom Food – RSPCA Monitored Antibiotic, growth promoter and additive free – natural meat with no water added
* High in selenium

Packington Pork is run by Staffordshire based, fourth generation pig farmer, Robert Mercer. The first Packington farm was situated at Packington Fields Farm near Lichfield in Staffordshire. Since then we have set up several other free-range farms around the local area for our pigs, to ensure they all have plenty of space. The farms are premium, well drained grassland perfect for raising the very best pigs.

For more information on Packington Pork and for stockists please visit  www.packingtonpork.co.uk

MFB Meet up at 99 Station Street and Staffordshire Fine Foods

Last weekend we had our most recent Midlands Food Bloggers (MFB) meet up. We were a group of 10 that met up including the organiser of this particular event Louise of Comida y Vida and her other half Owen, creator of MFB Jo of Jo’s Kitchen, Becky from Girl Interrupted Eating,  Julia of A WannabeFoodie, Jules of The Butcher, The Baker and Georgina of Culinary Travels. We were joined by some foodie friends  including Gavin from To Bizzy 2 Bake and James and Kate from Eat the Midlands and Gourmet Life.



The venue for our meet up was a perfect fit with what we at MFB are most interested in – seasonal and local food! 99 Station St in Burton-on-Trent is an award winning Modern British restaurant that sources as much as possible from local suppliers. When we contacted owners Ross & Susan Boardman about hosting a MFB meet they were more than happy to allow a “bounty of bloggers” to descend upon them and also offered some extra special treats.




We sampled their 3 course lunch menu for a bargain price of £10.95. All the dishes are based on local and seasonal ingredients as was explained by the Head Chef, Daniel Pilkington, who explained that wherever possible they made the products in-house including  homemade sausages, ice-cream and pies.

After lunch we journeyed to just outside of Burton-On-Trent to the home of Susan and Ross and the HQ of Staffordshire Fine Foods (SFF). Launched earlier this year to satisfy customers who dined at 99 Station Street and wanted to get their hands on some of the menu favourites, SFF sells sausages, pies and smoked products online here or in specialist retailers like Brown and Green.



During the afternoon we spent a fabulous couple of hours with Ross, lapping up his knowledge and enthusiasm on curing, smoking and foraging.

We sampled all manner of smoked ingredients including peanuts, salmon, venison and pigeon breast. Then we had a stroll into the local woods to learn about foraging and picked some nettles and wild garlic and then headed back to the house to make a lovely fresh broth with some chicken stock that had been flavoured with some of the new air-dried Chorizo that Ross is trialling.

It is with a massive thank you to Ross, Susan and the staff of 99 Station Street and Staffordshire Fine Foods that the meet up was enjoyed by all. You can read more here.

• Louise at Comida Y Vida writes her thoughts on the visit here
• Becky of Girl Interrupted Eating was inspired to create a Summer Caldo Verde
• Jo of Jo’s Kitchen sums up her views here
• Ross of Staffordshire Fine Foods lets us know what hosting an MFB meet up is like on his News page

It was such a fantastic day we can’t wait for the next one.

If you’re a local food business in the Midlands and would like to host a MFB meet up then please drop us an email, as we’re always on the look out for interesting places to visit.

 If you’re a blogger that wants to come along to the next meet up then contact us to be included on our mailing list.

Written by Louise of Comida y Vida on behalf of MFB

Celebrating the Bakewell Tart

I love Britain, in particular Derbyshire because not only do we have awe inspiring scenery but fantastic food. The Bakewell Pudding is one of the most famous foods coming from these Derbyshire peaks. Now there is lots of myths surrounding Bakewell Pudding/Tart. Don’t let Mr Kipling make you believe a Cherry Bakewell is traditional. The Bakewell Pudding is believed to have begun in a pub in Bakewell when an inexperienced chef in the kitchen was meant to make a strawberry tart, but made something very different. The Bakewell Pudding is a tart made with puff pastry shell, layer of jam and eggy custard topping and an alleged “secret ingredient” (No I’ve never been able to work the ingredient out). The Bakewell Tart however has evolved from the Bakewell Pudding and is made with a sweet shortcrust base, layer of red jam and a rich almond sponge topping.

Bakewell Tart is one of my favourite cakes and I believe a perfect Bakewell tart should have a thin, but supporting layer of sweet pastry, thick layer of raspberry jam and a deep, dense, moist frangipane sponge. A dry, tasteless Cherry Bakewell it is not!

Bakewell Tart
Serves 8-10

PASTRY
125g plain flour
75g unsalted butter, cold and diced
25g caster sugar
1 egg yolk
1 tsp cold water
1 egg white

FILLING
100g raspberry jam
100g butter, softened
100g caster sugar
2 large eggs
25g plain flour
100g ground almonds
1 tsp almond extract
30g flaked almonds
1) In a large bowl mix together flour, salt and sugar then rub in butter until you have the consistency of breadcrumbs. Stir in the egg yolk and water until you have a smooth dough. Flatten into a disk, cover in clingfilm and refrigerate for 45 min.
2)cOn a floured surface roll out the dough until it is about 3mm thick then line a 20cm tart tin with the pastry. Lightly prick the base with a fork and chill for 30 min.
3) Preheat the oven to 180oc (160oc fan). Line the pastry case with baking parchment and baking beans then bake for 20min until pastry is a light golden colour. Remove the beans and parchment, brush the inside of the pastry shell with egg white and bake for a further 2 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 5 min
4) While the pastry is cooling beat together the butter and sugar until pale and fluffy. Gradually beat in the eggs and almond extract. Stir in the flour and ground almonds until well combined.
5) Spread the jam generously over the pastry base then pour frangipane mix on top of the jam. Level out with a pallet knife. Sprinkle with sliced almonds then bake for 35-40 until risen and golden.
6) Allow to cool in tin before eating.

By Jules of Butcher, Baker

Midlands Foodie Events – June 2011

Here is a round up of the foodie events happening in the Midlands during June. If we have missed any out, please email us at midsfoodbloggers@hotmail.co.uk and we will add it to the list.

Saturday 4th June

Midlands Food Bloggers Meet Up at 99 Station Street, Burton Upon Trent. A great afternoon is planned, spending time with other fellow Food Bloggers over a spot of lunch then some fun with smoking, curing, brining and foraging. Details here.

Big Green Food Weekend, Northfield Eco Centre, 53 Church Road, Northfield, Birmingham, B31 2LB 11am-4pm , Join Midlands foodies including Loaf and Barrow Boy as they share The Big Lunch and enjoy a local food Market.

Wednesday 15th June to Sunday 19th June

BBC Summer Good Food Show, NEC, Birmingham – the return of the annual summer show to the region. Top chefs doing demonstrations, lots of great producers exhibiting and also entrance to BBC Gardeners World Show. We’ll be there … will you?

Saturday 18th June

24 Carrots Farmers Market, Jewellery Quarter, Birmingham. One of the fabulous farmers markets in Birmingham showcasing local producers. See here for details of our visit to a previous one.

Brown and Green, Trentham Shopping Village, Stoke-On-Trent. Big Cheese Day arrives in store including making cheese, expert cutting of a whole parmesan and lots of cheese tastings. For more information regarding the store see here.

Thursday 23rd June

Summer Strawberry Tasting, Peopleton, Worcestershire. Celebrating the strawberry with both traditional and unusual ways of serving them,  £5.00 for members of Slow Food Worcestershire, £7.50 for non members. 

Wednesday 29th June to Saturday 10th July

Nottingham Food and Drink Festival, Nottingham. A 12 day celebration of the food and drink on offer in the City with events at special venues across the city and between 30th June and 3rd July there will be a Food and Drink market in the Old Square with over 70 stalls.