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Succulent beef This hearty, winter-warming meat is very versatile and can be served roasted, in pastry, minced and fried
Roast beef with herbs Serves 6 2 leeks 600g carrots 800g parsnips 7 tbsp oil Salt and pepper 1.5 kg piece of roasting beef Bunch of fresh parsley and thyme 2 tbsp medium mustard 1 tsp honey Cut the leeks into rings. Peel the carrots and parsnips, and cut into slices. Mix the vegetables with 5 tbsp oil and a level tsp of both salt and pepper. Rub the meat with salt and pepper. Heat 2 tbsp oil in a pan and brown the meat well all over. Put it on a baking tray. Spread the vegetables around it. Pick the leaves off the herb stems and chop up, but leave a few whole thyme sprigs for garnish. Mix the mustard, honey and half the chopped herbs together. Brush the mixture over the roast beef. Cook in a preheated oven (175â—ŚC/gas mark 4) for 35-40min. Use a meat thermometer to check it reaches about 63â—ŚC. Take the meat out of the oven, and leave at room temperature to rest. Arrange the joint on a platter, spread the remaining chopped herbs over the top and the vegetables around it and garnish with the fresh sprigs of thyme.
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Steak and kidney pudding with suet Serves 6-8 people
Beef roulade Serves 4 4 onions 1 celery stalk
4 thin slices of roulade beef (175g)
75g bacon
2 tbsp oil
1 bunch parsley
500ml beef stock
100g shredded suet (or 75g goose fat)
1 cauliflower (800g)
1 tbsp medium mustard
300g frozen peas
1 bay leaf
1 tbsp breadcrumbs
Sugar
1 tbsp lemon juice
1-2 tbsp flour
1 medium egg
Clingfilm
Salt and pepper
Wooden skewers
2 onions
300g calves’ kidneys
Half a swede (600g)
3 tbsp and 500g flour
2 carrots
Salt and pepper
3 tbsp oil
300ml strong beer
2 fresh bay leaves (and a few sprigs for garnish)
300ml beef stock
600g diced stewing steak
250g shredded suet
2 tsp baking powder
Peel and chop the onions up small. Peel the swede and carrot, and cut into 1cm pieces. Heat 1 tbsp oil in a pan and cook the onions, swede, carrot and bay leaves for 2-3min and then take the vegetables out. Dice the kidney into 3cm size pieces. Mix plenty of salt and pepper with 3 tbsp flour and coat the meat in the seasoning. Add 2 tbsp oil to the vegetable fat and heat up. Brown the meat in the fat for 5-6min, stirring continuously. Add the beer and beef stock, and then the vegetables. Cover and cook for about 2hours. Season with salt and pepper, and leave to cool. Sieve the flour and baking powder into a bowl and add 1 tsp salt. Knead in the suet. Gradually add cold water by the dessert spoon and knead into a smooth dough. Grease a pudding bowl (1.5 litre size). Cut off about a quarter of the dough and leave to one side. Roll out the main dough to about half a centimetre thick and line the pudding bowl. Leave some pastry overhanging. Roll out the remaining piece of pastry. Fill the pudding with the steak and kidney mix and dampen the pastry edges. Make and fit a lid from the dough set aside, pressing edges firmly together to seal. Cut off any overhanging pastry bits. Put the bowl in a large oven dish. Fill with water so that the pudding basin half stands in water. Cover the oven pan and cook in a preheated oven (175◦C/gas mark 4) for 1.5hours, adding hot water if necessary. Take out the pudding and leave to stand for about 15min. Use a knife to loosen it from the bowl and tip out on to a platter. Garnish with bay leaves if desired.
Peel and dice the onions and set half aside. Chop the celery into small pieces. Cut the bacon into small pieces. Pick the leaves from the parley stems and chop up, but leave some for garnish. Leave half of the parsley aside for the cauliflower. Mix the remaining prepared ingredients with the suet, mustard, breadcrumbs, lemon juice and egg, and season with some pepper. Cut the meat in half or into thirds, according to the size, and lay between two pieces of clingfilm. Pound to flatten further. Lay the meat pieces on the work surface and season with salt and pepper and cover with the vegetable mixture. Fold in the sides, then roll the meat and secure with wooden skewers. Heat the oil in a large oven dish. Brown the roulades for 5-6min. Add the stock, heat up and sprinkle with the remaining onions, and add the bayleaf. Cover and cook in a pre-heated oven (175◦C/gas mark 4) for an hour, adding water as necessary. Cut the cauliflower into florets. Cook covered in a pan with a little boiling water for about 12min. About 5min before the end, add the peas. Drain and season with salt, pepper and a little sugar, and stir in the parsley. Mix together flour and 4 tbsp water until smooth and use to thicken the cooking stock. Cook for a further 4-5min and season with salt and pepper. Arrange the meat, sauce and vegetables and garnish with parsley.
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The bell-shaped terracotta forcing pots are placed over the rhubarb crowns
Forcing rhubarb Tender stalks of this perennial plant can be grown out of season in late winter and early spring by following a simple technique that was discovered by chance
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The lids of the forcing pots are removed once the rhubarb crown shoots appear
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hile rhubarb may seem like a sweet ‘fruity’ dessert, it is actually classified as a vegetable and one with a fascinating past. Herbalists used it in Chinese medicines to treat burns, toothache and even appendicitis. It was also once used to make a scouring paste for removing baked on grime from pots and pans. Rhubarb only found its way onto the dining table in the 19th century. Cooks served up the sour tasting and stringy, celery-like stems in savoury dishes. The strong, tart and earthy flavour was enjoyed in soups, stuffing and meat dishes. It was often pickled with spices like cinnamon and nutmeg. It was only after the Sugar Tax was abolished in 1874 and sugar became more affordable that cooks were able to be more adventurous in the kitchen. Now rhubarb was made into jams, pies, desserts and even wines. Its popularity with cooks during this time was driven by the fact that it was easy to grow and readily available. While rhubarb originates from Siberia, it thrives in Britain’s cool climate. The north of England was a particular hot spot as the cooler summers and harder winters encouraged this perennial plant to produce redder, tastier stems. An important discovery Most varieties first mature within two months of the start of the growing season, which begins as soon as the ground is thawed and the days are consistently above freezing. In the garden it can be harvested from May onwards, peaking in
Tender, succulent sticks of ‘Red Champagne’, forced to provide an out of season crop
July. When the weather becomes hot and dry, the stems become stringy and the flavour deteriorates. It was during the winter of 1817 that its food status and desirability changed beyond recognition. Workmen digging a trench at the Chelsea Physic Gardens accidentally threw some soil over rhubarb roots. Later, when the soil was taken off the plant, soft, brightly-coloured shoots were revealed. On tasting, these were more tender and succulent than normal. This chance discovery led to commercial growers springing up, primarily close to the London markets. These growers used the blanching technique of covering the crop with soil or manure to give them a desirable ‘out of season’, more delicious crop. And so the ‘forced rhubarb’ technique was born. Spotting the potential During the late 1800s, the Whitwell family of Leeds saw the true financial potential of ‘forcing’ plants by keeping them in the dark. They designed special ‘black out’ sheds solely for the purpose of growing rhubarb, which saw the plant’s popularity soar. For the earliest and most succulent crop, they would lift their crowns from outside in mid-winter and move them indoors. With just enough light from flickering candles to see what they were doing, they used gentle heat to start the forcing process. As the desire for eating rhubarb increased, so did the number of producers, especially in the Yorkshire area. At one time it was estimated that there were well over 200 dedicated growers in the area. The tender pink stalks of the Yorkshire ›
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The Olive Branch can be found in the beautiful stone village of village of Clipsham, in Rutland
The team strive for an atmosphere that is relaxed and welcoming
Head chef Sean Hope is passionate about locally sourced, quality food
The rustic Olive Branch was formerly a building comprising three farm labourers’ cottages
& A pub with a difference
regional
seasonal
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The Olive Branch is renowned for its delicate balance of delicious
he tranquil lakeside scenery of Rutland Water offers visitors a six-mile walk through nature reserves and sleepy villages. Popular with ramblers, the county of Rutland can be at its best at this time of year, when cold blue skies highlight the natural landscape. And once the hunger pangs set in, one of the nearby country villages offers seasonal dishes of unrivalled quality. Clipsham, known for its limestone quarries, is where you will find an award-winning eatery, The Olive Branch. Despite being situated in the smallest county in England, The Olive Branch has a big reputation. The Michelin Guide awarded it Pub of the Year in 2008 and it is currently ranked sixth Best Pub in the UK by The Good Pub Guide. It is famed for the quality and range of the food it offers – everything from traditional pub favourites like Lincolnshire sausages and mash to locally sourced partridge and Gressingham duck. Garnished with the finest seasonal produce and foraged hedgerow fruit, the food is served up in the casual, intimacy of a lively local pub. Typical foraged produce collected by the
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restaurant’s team includes sloes for their own gin, rosehips, crabapples, blackberries and mushrooms. Head chef Sean Hope was born and bred in Rutland and has been working in the restaurant trade for most of his life. Having worked under Marco Pierre White at The Criterion in London, Sean looked homeward to open up his own restaurant with business partners Ben Jones and Marcus Welford, both also locals. The trio wanted to offer the best of both worlds: the traditional hospitality of a village pub, with the fine gourmet dining of a top restaurant. “This was before the term ‘gastro pub’ had even been invented,” says Sean. Although there had been a pub on the Clipsham site since 1890, when three former farm labourers’ cottages were knocked together, the business closed in 1997. For two years, the villagers of Clipsham had no local but then in 1999, Sean, Ben and Marcus renovated the dilapidated pub and opened for business. Since then The Olive Branch’s repertoire has been expanded to include a number of hugely popular food
The courtyard, as seen from one of the pub’s mullioned window
A light, delicious salad that’s ideal as a starter or a quick snack
Crab Waldorf salad fine dining in a casual ambience
Serves 4 For the crab 280g fresh white crab meat Juice of ½ lemon Salt and pepper
demonstrations throughout the year, presenting expert cookery tips and showing how to make the most of local produce. “It’s a very social affair. We present a balanced, three-course, seasonal menu that will hopefully encourage people to have a go at home,” says Sean. The food demonstrations are themed around what is in season and so vary throughout the year depending on what is available at the time. “Everything we do can be done by people at home,” says Sean, “you really don’t need any specialist equipment or a huge kitchen. We show people a few professional techniques and give them a selection of all the recipes for that day. We show them just how easy it can be.” • Words: David Taylor • Photography: Clive Doyle
Contact The Olive Branch, Main Street, Clipsham, Rutland LE15 7SH; 01780 410355; www.theolivebranchpub.com
For the dressing
For the garnish
1 tsp English mustard
8 celery slices
1 tbsp sherry vinegar
4 black seedless grapes, cut in half
2 egg yolks
4 honey roasted walnut halves
1 tbsp clear honey 50ml walnut oil
4 thinly sliced maris piper potato crisps, deep-fried until golden brown
100ml rapeseed oil
Handful of mixed salad
2 tbsps warm water
Smoked paprika
In a mixing bowl, the white crab meat is seasoned and the lemon added. The seasoned crab meat is divided between 4, pressed into a suitable ring mould and placed on plate. For the dressing, the mustard, vinegar, yolks and honey are placed into a beaker and blended with a stick blender until smooth. Then the walnut oil and rapeseed oil is gradually added to create a smooth dressing. The water is blended in, then the mixture is seasoned to taste. Add the garnish and season the salad with a pinch of smoked paprika.
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Pods can be stuck to each other to form a beautiful window display. Here the dried seeds are also used for decoration
Honesty seed cases can be turned into earrings by attaching a pair of fish hook findings to the top of each pod
A simple sprig of honesty, secured with twine, is a natural and beautiful way to decorate a wrapped present
The flat, translucent, papery seed cases of honesty orbit each stem like glowing moons. Winter is when this spring flowering plant is at its best. Whether touched by frost or glistening in the winter sun, the delicate seed pods are spheres of light in an otherwise muted garden.
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A single paper snowdrop resting in a glass bottle makes a simple but effective table display
Making paper snowdrops The fragile beauty of snowdrops can be simply re-created with crepe paper • Photography: Richard Faulks • Styling: Emma Kendall
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Right: the tools needed and attaching the petals and leaf
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he arrival of the nodding heads of pure white snowdrops is one of the most anticipated sights of the season. Typically arriving in February, they herald the end of winter, symbolising new beginnings and the coming of spring. However, there is no need to deprive the garden or woodlands of these bell-shaped blooms by picking them. Realistic snowdrops can be easily made using crepe paper. Not only will these delicate flowers never wilt, but their wire stems enable them to be crafted into a variety of decorations for the home.
The natural droop of the snowdrop flower is made by gently manipulating the wire stem
Materials • White crepe paper • Green crepe paper • Floral stub wire (appoximately 20cm/8in long) • Floral tape (also called stem tape) • Scissors
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The lovespoon maker Intricately carved lovespoons are a part of Britain’s heritage and they’re still being made today in a small village in North Wales Les discovered his passion for spoon carving as a teenager
Les has scores of different lovespoons templates in his workshop
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A heart carved into the spoons represents true love
Each motif has a special meaning, for example, a bell signifies a wedding, while a cross symbolises God’s blessing on the union
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he tradition of carving and giving lovespoons in Wales goes back centuries to a time when wooden utensils were used in daily life. The earliest known dated lovespoon from Wales, displayed in St Fagans National History Museum near Cardiff, is from 1667, but the tradition is believed to date back long before that. Young men carved intricate wooden spoons both as a demonstration of their practical skills and as a way of conveying the emotional feelings they had for a young woman. They vied to attract the attention of a girl by whittling away at a piece of wood to make a romantic keepsake. The more intricate the design of the lovespoon, the deeper the love of the suitor for his chosen lady. Today, the tradition is going strong in the Pageant Wood Crafts’ workshop of Les Williams in Llanrwst, North Wales. “Today, we feature around 100 different designs, each of which is unique to us,” he says. “Each individual motif holds a symbolic meaning, which has been handed down over generations. A heart is a token of true love, while a key represents a young man entrusting the key to his heart to the woman he loves. One of the hardest symbols to carve into the lovespoon handle is a cage containing a number of balls, each ball representing the number of children a couple hope to have, or the number of years a suitor would be prepared to wait for an answer.” A talent discovered Les’s workbench is hidden under a layer of corkscrew wood shavings as he carves the intertwined handles of a Welsh lovespoon with a chisel. It’s the latest in a batch that he’s making for Conwy Castle. He’s been making lovespoons ›
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The winter sun sets over Whitby harbour
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Picture of the wild
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Documenting the notoriously elusive mountain hare in its natural winter habitat has been a life-long passion for wildlife photographer Mark Hamblin
S
itting perfectly still, camouflaged by the snow, his brown eyes warily examine the man holding a camera. Mark Hamblin has a matter of seconds before the white mountain hare will turn on its agile legs and bound away to the safety of a nearby snow hole. It’s a familiar scene for Mark, who has spent endless winter days tracking and photographing this fascinating animal. There aren’t many creatures that are able to survive in the closest habitat we have to the Arctic, the high tops of the Cairngorm plateau in the Scottish Highlands. But the aptly named mountain hare is one of them. It is one of just three British creatures that turn white in winter. The other two, the ptarmigan and the stoat, also share the hares’ upland home. But of the three, it is perhaps the one most closely associated with this harsh and challenging environment. This is the coldest, snowiest, and windiest place in Britain. During the winter temperatures can plummet to -20C (-4F). In fact, the UK’s record low of -27.2C (-17F) has been logged twice at Braemar. Winds regularly gust at storm force and the highest wind speed ever recorded in the UK – 277kph (173 mph) – was on the summit of Cairngorm itself in March 1986. Even in summer, there are permanent patches of snow lying on the ground, and conditions can be treacherous, especially for the unwary visitor.
Mark has worked as a wildlife photographer since 1995. His photography is part of a project called 2020Vision, which promotes the British countryside
A challenge embraced For Mark, capturing photographs of the hares during the Scottish winter is one of his greatest challenges. He is based near Aviemore, a small town close to the heart of their stronghold, so he has access to many of the best sites where they can be found. Even so, his task is made difficult by the animals’ shyness (their scientific name, Lepus timidus, translates as ‘timid hare’), and their predominantly nocturnal lifestyle. During daylight hours the hares are most active in the hour or two after dawn, before they settle down to rest for the day, and become much harder to find. “If I want to see them at their best I need to set off in the
The summits of Sgòr an Lochain Uainewith (The Angel’s Peak) and Bod an Deamhain (The Devil’s Point) in the distance, viewed from the summit of Braeriach, in the mountain hare’s Cairngorms home
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The wool spinner Yorkshire woman Phillippa Joad has spent years honing her skill in the ancient, essential craft of wool spinning
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eople have been making yarn to clothe their families for thousands of years. The woollen fibres were twisted by hand for centuries but ingenuity and necessity led to the development of the drop spindle. This was a simple handheld device that sped up the time-consuming process. It was also the precursor to the spinning wheel, which allowed spinners to drastically increase their production. Spinning twists of fibre together allows the spinner to create a yarn that is much stronger than the individual fibres. Phillappa Joad is an expert in the ancient, traditional crafts of both hand and wheel spinning. Her interest was piqued in her teens. “I was 16 years old when I went on a one-day course and that was it, I was hooked,” says Phillippa. ›
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An old brass jam pan sits on top of a rocket stove, which is used to heat the dye mixture
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