Crumbs Devon - Issue 28

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CRUMBS DEVON NO. 28 AUTUMN 2019

N IF T Y RECIPES

TO S COFF WITH PRID E

A little slice of foodie heaven Why did the cider-maker hang raincoats in his orchard?

N o. 2 8 A U T UMN 20 19

I told him he should get an apple mac!

G N i G G Hu

DELI BNSEIDLE DLEVIOEN'SS

I

FI NEST DELIS

CRU

M BS

MA G .COM

KEEPS THE

DOCTOR AWAY? MAKES THE HAND HANDIEST

BiG

SNACK?

THE

O

OUR FROMAGE GA M E IS ON POINT

CAN EATING ORGANIC EASE CLI MATE CHANGE?

NE -ZO

WHAT’S GREAT IN A PIE?

CH eese

FORBIDDEN FRUIT

AApple

T HE H A N D MADE’ S TALE DEVON'S ONE-OF-A-KIN D HOMEWARE STORE

Of CourS e!

(LUCKILY, EVE DIDN’T GET US ALL INTO TROUBLE FOR NOTHING)

BAD APPLES I, OF COURSE, mean ‛bad’ there in the opposite, excellent sense.

(Not the original sentiment of the Guns ’n’ Roses tune from which I’ve nicked my title, in any case...)

Apples are synonymous with the West Country – thanks largely to our many orchards and cider-producing activities here – so they have a special place in Crumbs’ heart.

They’re also a sure sign that autumn is on the way. Okay, they might not seem like the most seasonally specific of British foods, but that’s because they’re stored up for year-round supply. Now the new harvest is rolling in, though, many different varieties will be coming to fruition in turn throughout the coming months.

This time of year, as we move into autumn, sees a big shift in what we eat – and how we eat it. Light, fresh meals grilled outside on the barbecue give way to hearty, slowcooked dishes, prepared while hunkering down inside. I’m the first one to jump aboard the comfort food train at any opportunity – whatever the weather – but think there’s something to be said for not totally overhauling our eating habits as the temperature drops.

Barbecuing in winter is far more fun than it sounds: gathering around a fire in the garden, suitably layered up in scarves and gloves as you cook is, for some, what winter is about.

So, we’ve merged the seasons with our recipes this issue, for satisfying, comforting food that can easily be cooked out on the barbie. Enjoy!

Jessica Carter, acting editor jessica.carter@mediaclash.co.uk

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TABLE OF CONTENTS ISSUE 28 AUTUMN 2019 ACTING EDITOR

JESSICA CARTER jessica.carter@mediaclash.co.uk DEVELOPMENT EDITOR

MATT BIELBY matt.bielby@mediaclash.co.uk ART DIRECTOR

TREVOR GILHAM CONTRIBUTOR

MELISSA STEWART

STARTERS

MAINS

08 HERO INGREDIENT Apple of my eye 14 SIX PACK Distinguished delis 19 ASK THE EXPERT Get preserving with Pam ‘The Jam’ Corbin

48 DAIRY QUEENS The surprising story of West Country cheese. Plus! We sample a few of the best 54 THE BIG O Can eating organic really help save the planet?

ADVERTISING MANAGER

JON HORWOOD jon.horwood@mediaclash.co.uk

CHEF!

AMAZING REGIONAL RECIPES

ADVERTISING EXECUTIVES

26 Southern fried rabbit,

by James Goulding 28 Smoky beans,

by Marcus Davey 30 Grilled mackerel,

by Reuben Johnson 32 Cured mackerel sashimi,

by Lewis Edwards

NATALIE BRERETON natalie.brereton@mediaclash.co.uK RUSSELL SEALY russell.sealy@mediaclash.co.uk PRODUCTION MANAGER

SARAH KINGSTON sarah.kingston@mediaclash.co.uk DEPUTY PRODUCTION MANAGER

KIRSTIE HOWE kirstie.howe@mediaclash.co.uk PRODUCTION DESIGNER

ADDITIONAL RECIPES

MATT GYNN matt.gynn@mediaclash.co.uk CHIEF EXECUTIVES

JANE INGHAM, GREG INGHAM

MediaClash, Circus Mews, Bath BA1 2PW; 01225 475800; www.mediaclash.co.uk large version

© All rights reserved. May not be reproduced without written permission of MediaClash.

MediaClash reserves the right to reject any material and to edit such prior to publication. Opinions are those of individual authors.

Printed on paper from a well-managed source. Inks are vegetable-based; printer is certified to ISO 14001 environmental management.

large version

09 Crab with apple and celeriac, by Mitch Tonks 21 Best ever raspberry jam,

by Pam Corbin 23 Aubergine larb,

by Meera Sodha 52 Sticky apple and hazelnut for cheese, by David Jones 56 Braised beetroot,

by Riverford Field Kitchen

KITCHEN ARMOURY 38 HOUSE CALL We check out the gorgeous Dartmoor kitchen of local nutritionist Kerry Torrens

AFTERS

NEW & NOTABLE RESTAURANTS, CAFÉS, BARS

60 The Nettlefold 62 Gather 64 Sacred Grounds

PLUS

66 LITTLE BLACK BOOK Where does Karen Skerratt eat when she’s not distilling her rather fine Exeter gin?

PARTY IN STYLE From a sophisticated dinner with a few nearest and dearest, to a lavish Christmas Party Night for 100, The Bedford Hotel in the heart of Tavistock has it covered.

Festive for sure, but with the added touch of sophistication you’d expect from this fine, historic, award-winning Devon hotel.

CHRISTMAS PARTY NIGHTS

FESTIVE LUNCHES

For your office party or simply a good night out with friends, our Christmas Party Nights at The Bedford are the best way to get you into the festive spirit.

Relax and enjoy a delicious pre-Christmas lunch in the elegant surroundings of The Bedford Hotel. Make a day of it and combine your lunch with some Christmas shopping in Tavistock’s great range of independent shops.

Saturday 30th November, Saturday 7th December, Saturday 14th December, Friday 20th December, Saturday 21st December.

Three course dinner, casino and disco until late, £35.

Dates throughout December.

Three courses, £24.

MURDER MYSTERY NIGHT FESTIVE DINNERS 1 Plymouth Road, Tavistock, Devon PL19 8BB

01822 613221

celebrate@bedford-hotel.co.uk www.bedford-hotel.co.uk

Perfect for your office party, or a pre-Christmas get-together with friends or family, our Festive Dinners are ideal for groups of 10 or more people.

Dates throughout December.

Three courses, £30.

Something completely different for your Christmas party! There’s a murder afoot, and it’s down to you to find the clues and solve the crime.

Friday 13th December Three course dinner, murder-mystery entertainment and disco, £44.

A pub for locals & visitors alike We are proud to support local suppliers and serve a delicious range of locally grown produce and drinks.

Fresh, Local and Seasonal Food. An every occasion restaurant

The Bear & Blacksmith The Main Road, Chillington, Kingsbridge, South Devon, TQ7 2LD www.thebearandblacksmith.com 01548 581 171 f a x

01752 253247 • info@thefigtreeat36.co.uk www.thefigtreeat36.co.uk

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INNOVATIONS, REVELATIONS AND TASTY AMUSE-BOUCHES

OUT AND ABOUT

HERE ARE SOME FOODIE FESTIVITIES WE HOPE TO BE ATTENDING THIS AUTUMN… 14-15 September

PLYMOUTH SEAFOOD FESTIVAL

This free festival held at Plymouth’s Barbican and Sutton Harbour celebrates all things fishy. There are live chef demos, seafood pop-up stalls and masterclasses on how to buy, fillet and cook different fish species. Plus, there’s a Kids’ Kitchen where little ones can get handson making tasty dishes, including ‘fish on a stick’ and fishcakes. Free entry. visitplymouth.co.uk 20-21 September

CRAFT BEER BOOM

Held in the grounds of Exeter Cathedral, this is Exeter’s first international craft beer festival and is brought to you by the chaps behind Powderkeg Brewery and Crossed Anchors Brewing. The two-day event will feature 40 beers from near and far, as well as live music and street food.

Entry £5/£4 concessions, which includes a glass and donation to the cathedral. craftbeerboom.co.uk 5-6 October

POWDERHAM FOOD FESTIVAL

Set in the grounds of one of Devon’s most picturesque castles, Powderham Food Festival is like one huge farmers’ market, with loads of stalls selling top-notch

South West produce. The full programme hadn’t been announced at the time of going to press but it promises to be a grand day out. Early bird adult tickets £6, children £2.50. powderhamfoodfestival.com 18-20 October

DARTMOUTH FOOD FESTIVAL

This is one of Devon’s biggest foodie events, and confirmed chefs to demo this year include Mitch Tonks, Matt Tebbutt, Elly Wentworth and Romy Gill.

Pipers Farm is heading up the Kitchen Workshops tent and will run butchery masterclasses, while there will be cheese-making with Quicke’s, autumn preserves with Shute Fruit and bread-making with Richard Bertinet. Free entry. dartmouthfoodfestival.com 17 November

CLOVELLY HERRING FESTIVAL

This historic Devon village is known for its seafood festivals and this one celebrates the arrival of the great ‘silver darlings’, better known as herring.

Learn all about Clovelly’s herring fishing history, while trying out some herring specialities on the quay front, sipping a beer and listening to some cracking live music. Free entry. clovelly.co.uk

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S T A R T E R S

aPPLes HERO OF FOLK TALES AND PUDDINGS BOTH, THE HUMBLE APPLE IS ALSO THE REIGNING KING OF THE FRUIT BOWL – PORTABLE, DURABLE, DELICIOUS. IF YOU DON’T FANCY SEEING YOUR DOCTOR MUCH THIS YEAR, YOU KNOW WHAT TO EAT…

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pples? What’s so special, or seasonal, about them? We can buy them all year round!

Ah yes, but not British ones. And fruit bowl staples they may be – a treat so ubiquitous that it’s hard to imagine a week without one – but there’s far more variety to, and endlessly more usages for, the humble apple than might immediately meet the eye.

In fact, over 2,300 different varieties have been grown in Britain, of every texture and taste, colour and shape – from nutty, spicy late-season types to fresh, light ones that smell faintly of berries.

Okay, so most of us only eat a dozen or so different types maybe, but the boom in heritage varieties mean there are now far more available than ever before: in farmers’ markets and decent greengrocers, farm shops and even the supermarket.

Whatever you choose, they’re at their best right now: the second half of the year, from August through December, is the perfect time for apples.

Of course, apples come in two types – eating and cooking – and woe betide the poor sprat who mistook the second for the first. Eaters are the sweetest – and the tastiest too, combining their sugar with an acidity that’s intriguing. We’re talking Granny Smiths here, and Golden Delicious, and Cox’s Orange Pippins. Though they’re delicious straight from the tree, crunchy and wet, they hold their shape so well they’re good for a certain sort of cooking too. (Many countries don’t really believe in the cooking apple, so they’ve prepared plenty of recipes that feature the good old eating varieties – the tart tatin, say, or various continental pastry things.)

Cooking (or ‘culinary’) apples, meanwhile, are bigger and way more acidic – the Bramley is a classic British one. They’re terribly sour, of course, and demand you add sugar to them while cooking (though not as much as you may think; they mellow quickly when heated, or even if just stored for a fairly long time).

As for what to do with them: what can’t you? Chutney, crumbles, Charlotte, pie and sauce are all classics; apple enjoys being paired with most meat – but pork, sausages and bacon especially – as well as egg and many fish; it works on muesli and pancakes too, and with nuts or cheese. And it’s great with red cabbage or in a salad; strudelled up or simply covered in toffee and spiked down on a stick.

We’ve been eating apples since forever, of course: first in central Asia – there’s a wild species just about hanging on in places like northern Afghanistan that’s the sole ancestor of most of the domestic ones we scoff – then in Turkey and the rest of Europe, too.

Quite when we Brits first got into them isn’t too clear, but they crop up in all the best myths – Greek, Norse, Christian – so it’s safe to say it’s been a hell of a while. In the Norse, eating apples is what gave the gods eternal youth, and fertility too. (In one story, the goddess Frigg sends her crow messenger with an apple. It drops in the lap of a king keen for a child; his wife eats it, has a six-year pregnancy – the poor mare – and eventually gives birth to the hero Völsung by C-section, who kisses his mother as she croaks for loss of blood.)

In Greek and Christian myth, apples are often forbidden fruit – in the Garden of Eden, of course, or as the prize in one of Hercules’ labours. Three silly goddesses arguing over a particular golden apple even indirectly cause the Trojan War. And in fairytales, they’re everywhere: firebirds are forever nicking the king’s prized apples; the nasty queen poisons Snow White with one; and the epic fail that is Twilight (not actually a fairytale, but close enough) quivers with apple imagery.

(Of course, there’s plenty of scope for confusion in all of this: for many centuries, ‘apple’ was a generic term referring to any delicious foreign fruit or nut that wasn’t a berry – Genesis is never specific so, in reality, Eve could just as easily have been tempted by a lovely cherry or almond.)

As with almost everything we bang on about on these pages, the best apples are tree-ripened and recently picked; do it yourself when you can, and some orchards allow you to. When picking, cup the fruit in your hand and twist a tad; if the stalk comes away from the tree easily, that’s the juicy treat for you. As per everything, firm unblemished skin is the thing.

Most commercial fruit is picked too early, when under-ripe, and stored in air with a high carbon dioxide level to make it last, sometimes as long as six months.

Occasionally an imported apple may even have wax on the outside to keep it looking fresh, the cheats. We’d rarely recommend avoiding any sort of apple, but we might be forced to make an exception there…

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CRAB WITH CELERIAC AND APPLE

BY MITCH TONKS

“Fresh, crisp apple gives a satisfyingly sweet and juicy note to this dish,” says Mitch. “I like an apple with a more tart and acidic side like a Granny Smith, something with a little more punch than red varieties such as the Gala. The white flesh with bright green skin also adds to the appearance of this dish. Despite being not much of a looker, celeriac, with its knobbly and rather irregular shape, has a fantastic peppery crunch and tastes great raw. It’s also packed with good stuff: vitamin C, antioxidants and the like.

“Combined with some of the best crabmeat from England’s Seafood Coast – white only, for this recipe – these ingredients make for a light, fresh dish that is perfect for the change in season from summer to autumn.”

SERVES 2 75g celeriac, cut into matchstick-size pieces ½ Granny Smith or similar, cut into thin slices on a mandolin 2 radishes, finely sliced 1 tbsp chervil 160g white crabmeat 2 tbsps olive oil 1 lemon, juice only 2 slices rye bread (or sourdough) 1 tbsp mayonnaise 1 Put the celeriac into a bowl with the apple, radish, herbs and crabmeat.

2 Dress with the olive oil and add a good squeeze of lemon.

Season with salt and pepper.

3 Lift out of the bowl in one handful and then let it fall naturally into a neat pile on the plate. Serve with the mayo and bread on the side.

Mitch Tonks has seafood restaurants in Devon and Dorset; therockfish.co.uk

Openings etc

BEACH RETREAT

North Devon-based street food vendor and caterer Seadog has opened its first brick-and-mortar business in the seaside town of Woolacombe. Located just above the beach, with panoramic views out towards the sea and Lundy Island, The Porthole is a café and takeaway. The menu changes daily and you can find freshly-filled sandwiches and a range of salads as well as cakes and pastries, all made using local ingredients. Coffee comes from small-scale local roasters Sabins and ice cream from Verney’s Molton Ice, made in South Molton.

“Our ethos is to source as locally as possible and to limit our impact on the local environment, which we feel so privileged to be a part of,” explains Jim Coslett, who runs Seadog with sister-in-law Beth Newsome. “Since day one we have chosen not to offer takeaway disposable cups, instead encouraging people to bring their own reusable cups, or borrow one of our china cups and return it later. We don’t sell bottled water or any other drinks in plastic bottles, and instead offer a free refill scheme – even if guests choose not to buy anything else.”

The Porthole is open seven days a week from Easter to October and weekends throughout the year. facebook.com/theportholewoolacombe

A NEW HOPE

Hope Cove is one of those little gems, nestled on the South Devon coast, that’s picturesque no matter what time of year. So, we’re thrilled to hear that a new boutique bed and breakfast, café and bar has recently opened. Hope Cove House, with a terrace overlooking the sea, is a sister venue of Six Portland Road in London, which got a four-star thumbs up from Grace Dent in the Evening Standard a couple of years back.

Rob Shipley is heading up the kitchen and serving simple yet elegant coastal fodder, such as John Dory with samphire and lobster bisque, and onglet, crispy potatoes and anchovy butter. If that’s not enough, there’s also a selection of over 120 wines.

Devon-based food writer and cook Jane Baxter has already raved about it, so we reckon it’s well worth checking out. hopecovehouse.co

EDEN PROJECT

Cornish-born chef Chris Eden is heading across the border to take up the reins as head chef at Gidleigh Park. Chris, who for the past 12 years has been in charge of the kitchen at Driftwood, where he earned a Michelin star in 2012 and four AA rosettes, takes over from Chris Simpson, who left the hotel earlier this year after a year-long tenure.

“Having grown up in the South West, to take up this role at Gidleigh Park is the stuff of childhood dreams,” says Chris. “Gidleigh Park’s great team, beautiful setting and iconic reputation combine to make this such an exciting opportunity, and I can’t wait to get started.”

Chris follows in the footsteps of Michael Caines, who was head chef at Gidleigh for 21 years before going on to set up Lympstone Manor, and Michael Wignall, who left in 2018. gidleigh.co.uk

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New KId ON The BLOCK FARM SCHOOL

King of the Devon meat box trade, Pipers Farm, has opened its first cookery school. Chef Connor Reed will be teaching craft cookery techniques from the old cider orchard at Pipers Farm HQ, just outside Cullompton.

Pipers is known for its Saddleback pigs, which are outdoor bred and roam freely on the farm. Cookery school guests, who sign up to the school’s first course, will learn how to butcher and prepare a pig, ready for making terrines, sausages, puddings and cuts for curing, smoking or roasting.

The farm is also venturing into supper club territory with the launch of regular feast nights, where guests can tuck into a five-course meal made using produce reared on the farm for just £30 per person. Head to the website to find out more. pipersfarm.com

SPELT IT OUT

Bampton-based husband and wife team Paul and Donna Berry, who run award-winning gastropub The Swan, have announced the opening of Spelt. The restaurant – due to open on 12 September – will be housed in the village’s old bakery and, while details of the menu are still very much under wraps, we’ve been told that the focus will be on tapas-style sharing dishes.

“It’s going to be very different from The Swan in style, but we’ll still be very much focused on the wonderful local produce we use and serving up the tastiest dishes going,” says Donna. “We’ll offer a selection of dishes that have been developed for sharing, so no starters as such and no mains either. If two people are going to eat, possibly they’d have four or five plates of food.

“Spelt represents a wonderful adventure for us, and it’s great having something new in the pipeline. Whatever happens, though, rest assured that we will not be taking our eyes off the ball at The Swan. We have a deep-rooted passion for the pub, and it is just as important to us today as it was eight years ago when we took it on.” speltbampton.co.uk

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LOOK! IT’S CHARLOTTE VINCENT, RECENTLY APPOINTED HEAD CHEF AT THE FIVE BELLS INN, IN CLYST HYDON

So, Charlotte, when did you first start cooking?

It was with my grandmother and mother when I was very small. I have fond memories of licking cake batter from the spoon and bowl.

Tell us what first inspired you to cook professionally.

It was a French chef who was a friend of the family. I used to watch him cook and held an aspiration to cook like that one day. He had a way with food, a true love for the produce and it came out in his cooking.

And what was your first job in the hospitality industry?

Working front of house. I was a waitress in a French bistro but quickly moved on to become commis chef.

What is your proudest career achievement so far?

Besides working in a fiverosette hotel, my appointment as head chef at The Five Bells!

How would you describe your cooking style?

Modern contemporary with huge influences from French methods – the old ways are coming back, and I’m very happy about that.

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How have you approached the menu?

By focusing on seasonal produce. For instance, I took a night walk after a service in July to breathe in the air and take in the smells, which were then reflected in the menu in the form of nettle pesto, wild strawberries and hawthorn.

Which other restaurants do you like to eat in?

There’s a local pub called the Rising Sun in Lynton where they do good food – simple and honest – and, further afield, I like Emily Scott’s cooking at the St Tudy Inn. Fave ingredients right now?

The soft fruits of late summer and early autumn, and the first crop of apples popping out of the leafy trees.

What’s your current favourite flavour combination?

Pistachio and vanilla fondant.

Anything floral violet. Rose – especially in meringue. Also, deep, rich chicken flavours – a good caramel coloured chicken sauce is the best, and is great with crusty bread.

Favourite suppliers?

Forest Produce, MC Kelly and Dart Fresh… Oh, and the best fish ever from Devon Quality Fish. Hawkridge Dairy do the best cheeses and cream.

What piece of kitchen kit couldn’t you live without?

A very old spatula that has been my pass buddy for about 20 years!

Tell us about the best meal you have ever eaten.

While boating in Portugal we hand-dived scallops and cooked them over a fire on the beach with a squeeze of lemon. Nothing beats simple food, with nature as your host. fivebells.uk.com

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hIP ShOPS

NKUKU WHAT: HANDMADE HOMEWARES WHERE: BROCKHILLS BARNS, HARBERTONFORD, DEVON TQ9 7PS WHEN: MON-SAT 9AM-6PM; SUN 10.30AM-4.30PM

T

he Nkuku brand has thoroughly infiltrated the home and lifestyle market in its 15 years, with cool, independent interiors shops falling over themselves to stock its handmade goods.

After wholesaling for over a decade, founders Alex and Ali Cooke eventually decided to open a brick-and-mortar store of their own – so a derelict cowshed in Habertonford became the home of Nkuku in 2016. Now, the gorgeously restored barn – with its hefty iron door, repurposed scaffolding planks and industrial-look corrugated iron – is a destination shop and café, embodying the brand’s style and values.

It was long before then, though, that the ideal for Nkuku was born, on Ali and Alex’s trip to Africa and Asia. They were struck by the skill of the local craftspeople and what

they were making, so began buying these unique finds – initially bowls – to ship back home for when they returned, paying attention to the traditional materials of each region. The business plan was, fittingly, written on the beach, and the brand named after a remote village they passed by.

The pair began selling at markets on their return, quickly realising what an appetite there was. Fast forward to 2019, and Nkuku has 1,500 stockists in the UK alone, and is synonymous with authentic, ethical homeware. For Alex, it’s the stories behind the products that cement that sense of authenticity. She works with the artisans (many of who have now grown successful businesses, employing other locals), visiting them regularly to develop products and maintain the decade-long relationships.

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“These,” she says, gesturing to the pair of tactile, half-glazed mugs that we’re currently drinking out of as we chat at the Habertonford store, “they’re made in Southern India, in a hand-built brick kiln lit by open fire. The terracotta’s from Rajasthan.”

The majority of Nkuku’s suppliers are in India, with a handful in Vietnam and some in Indonesia, Morocco and Portugal, too. As well as terracotta, other sustainable materials like mango wood, jute and recycled glass are favourites of this company. They’ve nothing if not solid principles when it comes to ethics.

“We are, of course, importing, though,” Alex points out. “It’s a big challenge. We’ve always used sea freight instead of air, and are still working on our packaging; we’ve changed our boxes and saved four tonnes of card.”

Right now in the shop, the oven-to-table cookware is remaining popular, the Nzari range being a favourite – sturdy and reliable at high temperatures but more than beautiful enough, with its simple design and creamcoloured glaze, to earn a place at the table.

There are also new 100-percent-cotton tablecloths, napkins and aprons, hand-forged cutlery, several ranges of crockery (check out the splatter ceramics from Vietnam), wire storage racks and impressive tables. All handmade. All with a story. All unique. nkuku.com

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Six Pack

DELIGHTFUL DELIS

WE LOVE AN INDEPENDENT ONE-STOP SHOP THAT CAN SATIATE OUR DESIRE FOR ALL KINDS OF LOCAL PRODUCE. HERE WE SALUTE SOME TOP DEVON DELI COUNTERS…

1 Johns of Instow This North Devon deli business dates back to 1926 and the current proprietor, Anthony Johns, is the fourth generation of his family to run it. Driven by a passion for local and homemade food and drink, Johns has built close relationships with independent producers to create a deli that showcases the South West’s finest produce.

“We’re known for our range of local cheeses and accompaniments, such as sourdough crispbreads, baked figs, Devon crab, homemade sausage rolls and our famous home-baked chocolate brownies,” says Sue Johns, who co-owns the business. “Our deli kitchen mix ’n’ match self-service salad bar remains very popular, while our newly extended ‘gin-wall’ has been a great hit this summer.”

As well as the deli in Instow, there’s also an on-site café, as well as another shop and café across the estuary in Appledore.

“Customers are increasingly enjoying ‘experience’ time from us as much as tangible products, which sets us apart from many stores. This may take the form of new product launch events, community gatherings, personal shopping sessions or pre-filled picnic hampers, most of which can be seen on our website.

“It’s all about upgrading food shopping into a welcoming and enjoyable sensory experience.” johnsofinstow.co.uk

2 Wildmoor Deli Here’s another deli with history: Wildmoor Deli in Bovey Tracey opened in 2015 on a site that’s been home to a deli for over 150 years. It is

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4 particularly well-known for its cheese and wine selection, with owner Jeremy Clevett drawing on his years of experience making wine in Australia.

“We are cheesemongers, wine merchants and foodies first – with all the great produce that goes hand in hand with that: local chutney, biscuits, spirits, jams, chocolates...

“We have an extensive wholefoods section, as well as free-from, cooking and baking products.

Then we have a café with a small indoor eating area and a covered courtyard. We also have our online shop, dedicated to cheese and wine.”

In terms of popular products, Jeremy says local produce is always a winner: “Clare’s Preserves fly off the shelf. We were also one of the first to sell Barnaby’s Brewhouse, which has been cleaning up with awards this year, including Best Organic Beer in the World at Soil Association’s BOOM Awards.

“Anything local always does well, and we have a whole area dedicated to local produce. We also take pride in our wine shelf; we’re picky, but we still offer over 80 bottles.” wildmoor-deli.co.uk

3 Deli at Dartmouth Sue McGirr was inspired to open her deli in Dartmouth after living in the French Pyrenees for nearly a decade. She wanted to emulate some of the inspiring Spanish food shops in the nearby town of Puigcerda, though – on her return – she found British tastes were somewhat less exotic.

“I’ve submitted to what the tourists and people of Dartmouth want, which is a much more British deli,” she says. “We have a very strong tourist following, so our chiller is full of mostly local,

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6 as well as the odd continental, cheese and charcuterie. We sell a huge amount of the usual deli items, such as sausage rolls, Scotch eggs and pasties (including some excellent vegan and gluten-free ones!), and our salads, pâtés, soups and cakes are all made in-house.”

The Deli at Dartmouth, which also has an on-site café, is popular with both locals and the town’s abundant visitors, who are always keen to try local produce.

“We try to stick to local, but if the quality isn’t there we go further afield. Just because it’s local doesn’t mean it's the best,” says Sue. “I think Devon has an extraordinary range of cheeses – and they seem to be on the increase.

I also think we have a few exceptional jam makers, like Clare’s Preserves, Louise’s Larder and The Kitchen Garden.” thedeliatdartmouth.co.uk

4 Me and Mrs Jones Having worked in hospitality and catering for years, husband and wife John and Penny Jones fulfilled the dream of opening their own deli in Torquay in 2015.

“We wanted to recreate our family kitchen in this beautiful old butcher’s shop in the community we live in,” says Penny. “We aren’t just a deli, as we have 50-plus covers. We stock products from around the world and specialise in those made in Devon, Cornwall, Somerset and Dorset. We have cheeses, charcuterie, olives and antipasti on our deli counter, and hundreds of ambient products, like local jams, chutneys, honeys, dressings, oils, vinegars, artisan snacks, chocolates, breads and homemade cakes. We

are also licensed, so have a wine room and craft beers, ciders, locally-produced gins, vodkas and fruit wines.”

The deli is a real community hub, where fresh herbs grown by locals are traded for coffee, and people regularly pop in to pick up their lunch for the day.

“We bake Chunk of Devon pasties, pies and other pastry goods, and sell wonderful organic sourdough from the Almond Thief bakery in Dartington,” explains Penny.

New items in stock include Willy’s Cider Vinegar, wine from Lyme Bay Winery, Brixham Honey and Brixham Red Sails Gin. facebook.com/meandmrsjonesshop

5 Mercado This Topsham deli, which specialises in Portuguese produce, opened just this summer.

It was the brainchild of Sara Faro Leite, best known for her other Topsham-based business, Sara’s Petite Cuisine. Sara was born in Portugal but raised in Plymouth. Having graduated from Ashburton Cookery School, she decided to put her skills to use by starting her own patisserie.

This year she has branched out into retail, selling freshly-baked bread and sandwiches, with Portuguese-inspired fillings, alongside grocery items imported from Portugal.

“Mercado Topsham is a place where old and new literally meet,” says Sara. “Not just in the interior design, but also the integration of new and upcoming products with more well-known Portuguese food.”

Inside you can expect to find extra virgin olive oils from Alentejo and Jose Gourmet Sardines

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from the Portuguese coast, alongside Britishmade grocery items like Oatly Milk and Little Pod vanilla paste. facebook.com/mercadotopsham96

6 Ashburton Delicatessen The village of Ashburton is a hub of independent shops, and right at the heart of it is Ashburton Delicatessen, run by mother-and-son team, Sue and Robin Hudson.

They stock a large selection of cheese, charcuterie, salads and bread. There are also sweet and savoury biscuits, chocolates, chutneys, jams and pastas.

“Cheese is a great favourite with our customers, and we have tasters out on the counter daily to encourage people to try something new,” says Robin. “Customers trust us to make recommendations for them – for cheese boards, party food and hamper contents, as well as new ingredients they have not tried cooking with before.”

Particularly popular are the bakery products, most of which are made on-site, like the awardwinning fruity sausage rolls. There’s also hot smoked salmon pâté; courgette, beetroot and cheese slices; and a variety of Scotch eggs, quiches and pies.

“We are so lucky to live in a county which produces such wonderful food,” says Robin.

“We get fantastic cheeses from Sharpham and Quicke’s, other wonderful dairy products from Riverford Dairy, delicious chutneys from Clare’s Preserves, Ottervale and Hillside, and ice cream and sorbets from Salcombe Dairy.” ashburtondelicatessen.co.uk

S T A R T E R S

In the Larder

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haRvest hauL

LOCALLY-MADE PRODUCE THAT’S WINGING ITS WAY INTO OUR ONLINE SHOPPING BASKETS THIS AUTUMN 1 Exmoor Distillery Northmoor Gin, £35/70cl Made in rural Somerset, this gin was born just a year ago and is infused with handpicked botanicals such as coriander, angelica root, grains of paradise, lemon, cinnamon, rowanberries and kaffir lime leaves. It packs a punch to the tune of 44% ABV while retaining a smoothness and versatility that means it can be sipped simply with ice as well as with the usual tonic, or as part of a cocktail. Buy it online, direct from the South West distillery. exmoordistillery.co.uk 2 Sea Arch, £24.95/70cl Non-alcoholic sips are a growing trend and this gin-

inspired drink offers a nice alternative to ABV-free beers and wine. It’s made using sea kelp, juniper berries, angelica root, cardamom, cucumber, grapefruit and blood orange.

Each botanical is distilled, then the alcohol removed, making for a crisp, refreshing tipple which, when served with tonic, tastes just like a G&T. Buy online, direct from the distillery. notginltd.com 3 South Devon Chilli Farm Dried Aleppo Chilli Flakes, £3.50/85g These new dried chilli flakes can be scattered on everything from stir-fries to kebabs. Fact: Nigella uses them in her Turkish eggs

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recipe. The Aleppo peppers get their name from the Syrian town on the Silk Road spice route, and are also known as Pul Biber. They’re not overwhelmingly hot but give dishes a nice warmth and an aromatic, fruity flavour. Buy online, direct from the farm. southdevonchillifarm.co.uk 4 Many Hands Brew Co The Tribe, £13.50/6 x 330ml This micro-brewery was set up in 2017 by three beer enthusiast mates, Rich, Andy and Simon. Their mission: to brew small batches of beer to sell locally in restaurants and pubs, donating 10 per cent of their profits to good causes.

We were smitten by The Tribe, a smooth and fruity red ale,

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fusing coffee and raspberries.

It was a recent Great Taste award winner, don’t you know.

Buy online from the brewery. manyhandsbrew.com 5 Otter Vale Ginger and Spiced Rum Marmalade, £2.75/315g Devon’s award-winning preserve maker is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year and, to mark the impressive milestone, it has teamed up with Exeter-based Two Drifters Distillery to create this ginger marmalade infused with Black Sails Spiced Rum. Use it as a glaze for autumnal hams or enjoy it on a simple piece of toast. Available from the Otter Vale website. otter-vale.co.uk

Ask the Expert

whaT the jam-maKeR KNOws GOT A GLUT OF SUMMER FRUIT (OR VEG!) AND DON’T KNOW HOW TO USE IT UP? NEVER FEAR, NEWLY PUBLISHED AUTHOR AND COOKERY TEACHER PAM ‘THE JAM’ CORBIN IS HERE TO SHOW US HOW TO MAKE THE MOST OF IT...

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harvested), but others with tougher skins, like apples, pears and quinces, can be carefully stored for a while before preserving.

Speaking of fruit going off, some – like apples – decay quickly after peeling. How do you stop them from going brown before you use them? Plunging prepared fruit into lightly acidic or slightly salted water; the juice of half a lemon or a teaspoon of salt should do the trick.

However, you will find this browning will disappear with any cooking process.

Are there any fruit or veg that you can’t preserve?

It’s possible to preserve pretty well most fruits and veg in some form or another – although some will be more successful than others! I’ve never preserved potatoes, but I do happen to have an interesting Indian recipe for potato pickle…

What are the most common mistakes people make when preserving? I find most people overcook their preserves – particularly jams and marmalades.

Remember, they set in the jar and not in the pan!

What basic equipment do you need to create your own preserves? A purpose-made, tapered-sided preserving pan is ideal, although any deep and roomy, heavy-based pan will do. Then you’ll want a couple of long-handled wooden spoons, a sharp knife, reliable scales and a good pouring jug. That should be sufficient to get you started on your preserving journey.

So, Pam. Take us back: when did preserving become a thing here in the UK? Since the beginning of time, mankind has preserved foods in some form or another; naturally drying and salting food were both early ways of preserving it. The credit for modern-day preserving – canning and jarring – must go to two great French pioneers. First, to the 18th-century chemist Nicolas Appert, who discovered that sealing food in an airtight container could save it from rotting. Then, and some years later, Louis Pasteur discovered the link between the presence of microorganisms and the spoiling of food, and how pasteurisation could destroy many of the food-spoiling bacteria and enzymes. Home preserving became fashionable in the mid-19th century when bottling jars were patented and became readily available to housewives. Many late-19th century cookery tomes are full of recipes for preserving fruit and vegetables, most of which are still used today.

Having founded a successful preserve business before becoming a tutor and writer for River Cottage, Pam has just released her first solo book on the subject

What’s the deal with sterilising the jars: why is it important and how do we do it? Freshly sterilised jars and lids are key for making sure your preserves keep well and don’t decay. Sterilising is best done in a ‘water bath’ – a large pan filled with hot water – although you can also use the dishwasher or the oven to kill off any nasties.

What is the best way to store a jar of jam or chutney (preserve our preserve, if you will)? It’s best to keep any preserve in a cool, dark, dry place, as light can make it

It’s pretty old, then! But how has the practice of preserving changed over the years? Over the last halfcentury, perhaps one of the biggest influences for better preserving has been the availability of high-grade jam jars with twist-on lids, for both the food industry and home preservers. Combined with the correct procedures, these allow us to keep preserved foods sound for extended periods of time.

What do you reckon are the best fruits and vegetables to preserve? Any fresh seasonal glut! Softskinned fruits and berries need to be preserved quickly (i.e. turned into jam within a day or so of them being

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S T A R T E R S

BEST EVER RASPBERRY JAM Here’s my favourite jam. Of course, I love all the jams in this book, but I make this one most often – it’s super-easy, quick, highly fruity (about 80 per cent fruit) and as reliable as the sun rising. Using jam sugar, which has had pectin added to it, means you get a good set without overcooking the raspberries and reducing them to a mass of woody pips.

Sometimes I replace 50g of the jam sugar with coconut sugar (made from the sap of the coconut palm) to add another level of flavour to this already gorgeous panful. Or you can fortify the jam by stirring in 50ml gin as soon as it reaches setting point and has been removed from the heat.

Raspberries are in season from June to October. If you miss the raspberry season, then look out for frozen raspberries; they work just as well and you can use them straight from the freezer. discolour. It’s also important for the sealed jars to be kept dry, to prevent the lids from going rusty.

MAKES 6 × 200ML JARS 1kg raspberries 650g jam sugar (i.e. with added pectin) dash olive oil (if needed)

What would you recommend a beginner to start out with – jams, chutneys, pickles? It doesn’t really matter, because they are different processes. But for absolute ease and success, raspberry jam, made with jam sugar (this has a small amount of added pectin), will certainly give confidence to a beginner jam-maker. On the savoury side, bread and butter pickle (lightly spiced cucumbers) is dead easy to make and a brilliant way of using up a surplus of home-grown cucumbers.

1 Sterilise the jars and twist-on lids. Put the raspberries in a large, heavy-based pan or preserving pan. Lightly sprinkle in the sugar, a third at a time, gently shaking the pan so the sugar is well distributed. Cover and leave for an hour or so for the juices to draw out.

2 Lightly stir the mixture with a wooden spoon to break up any clumps of sugar.

Place over a medium heat and bring to a steady boil, then boil for 5-6 minutes for a soft set jam, or 7-8 minutes for a firmer set.

3 Remove from the heat and stir lightly (in one direction only) to remove any foam, adding a drop or 2 of the oil if it doesn’t dispel easily.

4 Tip into a wide-necked jug with a good pouring lip, then fill the warm sterilised jars to the brim. Seal at once.

5 Invert each jar for a minute or so, to ensure the lid is sterilised, then turn the right way up and leave to cool. Store in a cool, dark, dry place. Best eaten within 9 months. Keep in the fridge once opened and eat within 4-6 weeks.

Sounds good to us. Now, we’re keen to know all about the strangest preserve you’ve created, please!

Oh gosh, I’ve made and tried so many things over the years. But I do remember in my commercial jam-making days when, by mistake, a pan of gooseberry jam was added to three-fruit marmalade. Although we couldn’t market this ‘four-fruit marmalade’, it was delicious. Over the years, I’ve learnt nearly as much from mistakes as from successes.

And what is your favourite preserve to make (we won’t tell all the others, promise)? I like the seasonal rhythm of marmalade. Seville oranges are only available for a few weeks in January and February, so marmalademaking fills those long dark evenings when there is little else available to pot up and preserve. Nowadays, I often make my marmalade over two or three days: slice, soften, steep, then finish. It may sound a faff, yet no stage takes that long and, most importantly, the resulting marmalade is wonderful.

And before we let you return to your preserving endeavours, tell us what’s next for Pam the Jam. Potato pickle!

Recipe taken from Pam The Jam: The Book of Preserves (Bloomsbury, £20); photography by Mark Diacono

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BOOK OF THE MONTH

THERE IS NOT ONLY A HORDE OF NEW RECIPES TO BE MADE IN THIS MONTH’S BATCH OF BOOKS, BUT NEW TECHNIQUES TO BE LEARNED AND NEW APPROACHES TO COOKING… A FLASH IN THE PAN

SOUR

EAST

This new tome from the ever-likeable Great British Bake Off champ John Whaite comes seven years after his televised triumph – evidence that he’s not just gifted in the realm of competitive baking.

Indeed this, the 30-year-old’s fifth book, has nothing to do with baking, instead focusing on simple but flavoursome dishes that can be made without fuss on the stovetop. You can do a lot with a pan and a hob ring, he reckons, and certainly presents a solid argument with a strong collection of recipes.

Nothing takes more than 45 minutes here, which, coupled with the minimal equipment requirements and often-concise ingredients lists, promises a new breed of convenience food. Macaroni cheese frittata has barely 10 ingredients and only three steps, while the simple-enough aubergine katsu curry is, give or take, as tricky as it gets. There are pan-to-table meals for one too, and new incarnations of oven classics (hey there, frying pan lasagne) as well as tempting puds. JESSICA CARTER

This is some book: with its acid green cover and lemon-sharp title pages, it celebrates “the magical element that transforms your cooking” in a most striking and entertaining fashion. Mark Diacono is a professional food writer rather than a chef, and it shows – his intros to each dish are full of delightfully unexpected references to everything from Singing in the Rain to Bristol restaurant Flinty Red and actor Peter Lorre, making this a book you’ll want to read in one sitting. It doesn’t hurt that the subject matter – kefir and kombucha, sourdough and pickles, vinegars and shrubs, escabeche and ceviche – is so fascinating. While there’s plenty of science and technique, most of the book is given over to beautifully shot recipes: gooseberry and sage focaccia, lime pickle chicken with kosambari ’slaw, Sussex pond pudding, each more tempting than the last. Mark’s A Taste of the Unexpected won the Guild of Food Writers’ Food Book of the Year in 2011 and we can see this one troubling the judges too. MATT BIELBY

Award-winning vegetarian cookbook author and the Guardian’s New Vegan columnist, Meera Sodha sure knows her way around an edible plant. Her newest recipe collection is made up of 120 vegetarian and vegan dishes, some from her column, some new, and all inspired by the cookery from Eastern regions such as India, Japan, Thailand and Indonesia. The aim is not to convince anyone to go vegan, it feels, but simply help us to get more plants onto our plates. These are approachable recipes with manageable cook times, widely available ingredients and accompanying imagery that sings with colour. Organised into 12 chapters – including curries, snacks, noodles and condiments – the recipes range from hearty plates, like autumn pilau with squash and smoked garlic, to fun snacks like mushroom bao and comforting dinners along the lines of white miso ramen with tofu and asparagus. I’m all over the Sichuan chilli oil, and honey, soy and ginger-braised tofu.

John Whaite (Kyle Books, £20)

Mark Diacono (Quadrille, £25)

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Meera Sodha (Fig Tree, £20)

JESSICA CARTER

S T A R T E R S

THE WHOLE FISH COOKBOOK

Josh Niland (Hardie Grant, £25) It’s hardly rare for a cookbook to come festooned with recommendations from peers, of course, but those surrounding young Aussie chef Josh Niland’s first effort are exceptionally gushing: “a genius,” says Nigella; “a mind-blowing masterpiece,” says Jamie; “a game-changer,” says Outlaw. Josh once worked at Heston Blumenthal’s Fat Duck, but now runs two Sydney institutions: the fish restaurant Saint Peter and, perhaps even more significantly, The Fish Butchery, a unique sustainable fishmonger where they push nose-to-tail eating. What’s got everyone so excited are dishes like glazed fish throats, fried scales, milt mortadella (a sausage made of mackerel sperm) and fish-eye crisps. That might make it sound interesting but, well, not for you – a feeling exacerbated by copious references to little known Oz species like hapuka and striped trumpeter – except that the techniques and approaches are so universal. Josh wants us all eating more fish and challenges everything we thought we knew about it.

MATT BIELBY

ROASTS

Laura Mason (National Trust Books, £16.99) There’s a sense of ceremony that surrounds a roast. And with meat needing to be treated more as an infrequent luxury than an everyday commodity, it’s likely that this feeling of occasion will only become greater. Luckily, this new book, dedicated to that most ceremonial of British meals, is all about making the most of it. As with skinning cats, there are more ways than one to roast a joint (think of all the possibilities with aromatics, stuffing and marinating) and that’s before we even get started on the choice of joints themselves.

Chapters are arranged by meat and include Sunday lunch mainstays like beef, chicken and lamb, but also the more experimental likes of mutton (roast leg with anchovies and orange peel, anyone?), quail (roasted, with vine leaves and grapes, for instance) and game (venison with port and redcurrant jelly), as well as festive turkey and goose.

Recipes for leftovers (pilaf, ragu, broth) make sure that none of that precious meat goes to waste, either. JESSICA CARTER

AUBERGINE LARB WITH STICKY RICE AND A SHALLOT AND PEANUT SALAD There is something primally delicious about larb, a salad from Laos in which the dressing is king. Larb is sweet, sour, salty, bitter and has bags of umami. This recipe is based on one I ate at Supawan in King’s Cross, London, one of the finest Thai restaurants I’ve ever visited.

A food processor or spice grinder will make quick work of grinding the peanuts, but you can also crush them with a pestle and mortar.

SERVES 4 350g Thai sticky (or glutinous) rice 4 medium aubergines (250g each) rapeseed oil 2 tbsp palm sugar 1 ½ limes, juice only (for 2 tbsp) 2½ tbsp soy sauce 2 tsp tamarind paste 1 ½ bird’s eye chillies, very finely chopped For the salad: 3 tbsp rapeseed oil 2 large shallots (200g), halved lengthways and finely sliced 40g peanuts, ground large handful coriander, finely chopped 40 Thai basil leaves, finely chopped ½ bird’s eye chilli, finely chopped 1 lime, juice only (for 1 tbsp)

1 Preheat the oven to 220C/425F/gas mark 7. Put the rice into a sieve, rinse it well under the cold tap, then cover with cold water in a bowl and leave to soak for 20 minutes.

2 In the meantime, cut the aubergines in half lengthways and score a criss-cross pattern on the cut sides. Brush all over with oil and put cut side up on two baking sheets. Bake for 20 minutes, brush the cut side with more oil and bake for another 20 to 25 minutes, until creamy inside.

3 Meanwhile, make the rice and the salad.

Drain the rice, put it in a lidded saucepan, cover with 520ml cold water and add ½ tsp salt. Bring to the boil, then turn down the heat to its lowest setting and simmer for 15 minutes, until all the water has evaporated and the rice is cooked. Cover with the lid, and leave to stand for at least 10 minutes.

4 To make the salad, heat the oil in a small frying pan on a medium flame and fry the shallots for around 20 minutes, until brown and crisp. Take off the heat and stir in the ground peanuts, herbs, chillies and lime juice.

Season with salt (a scant ½ tsp).

5 To make the larb dressing, put the palm sugar, lime juice, soy sauce, tamarind paste and chilli in a small saucepan with 8 tbsp water. Heat, stirring, until the sugar melts, then take off the heat, taste and add up to ½ tsp of salt, if need be.

6 To serve, put a flat mound of rice on each plate, layer over two aubergine halves, pour on the dressing and sprinkle the salad on top.

Recipe from East by Meera Sodha (Fig Tree, £20); photography by David Loftus

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Trencherman’s Pub of the Year 2016

The Swan is the oldest pub in the charming historic town of Bampton, near Exmoor National Park, an area well known for its hunting, fishing, shooting and popular with ramblers and cyclists.

We have a passion for food and with this we like to embrace the use of local produce, keeping menus simple, yet bursting with flavours and imagination.

We take pride in our well kept, locally sourced ales and fine wines, to whet the appetites and suit all tastes.

Eat, Drink & Sleep At the Swan, Bampton

T. 01398 332248 E. info@theswan.co www.theswan.co Bampton | Tiverton | Devon | EX16 9NG

Come and visit Devon’s largest vineyard Vineyard tours and wine tasting May to September Gift vouchers and booking at pebblebed.co.uk

CHEF! WHAT TO MAKE AND HOW TO MAKE IT – DIRECT FROM THE KITCHENS OF OUR FAVOURITE FOODIES

HI HLI H HIGHLIGHTS

26 GRAB IT, RABBIT FORGET SOUTHERN FRIED CHICKEN, IT 'S ALL ABOUT THE GAME

28 PIG LOVE

THESE SMOKY BEANS MAKE SPECIAL APPEARANCES AT THE PIG AND PALLET

30 GRILL SEEKER

PREP THIS MACKEREL DISH ON THE BARBIE OR UNDER THE GRILL

Mackerel appears in two dishes this issue, once grilled and once cured, Japanese-style

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C H E F !

FESTIVAL FRIED RABBIT SERVES 4 2 rabbits, butchered as above 3 eggs, beaten rapeseed oil, for deep frying For the brine: 4 ltrs water 600g salt 520g sugar 4 sprigs rosemary 2 garlic bulbs, cut in half 20g black peppercorns For the spicy flour mix: 500g flour 70g celery salt 70g paprika pinch cayenne pepper

EMLI BENDIXEN

FRY aNOTheR daY

THE PIG HAS JUST RELEASED A BOOK, AND WE SNATCHED THIS CORKER OF A RECIPE BY JAMES GOULDING FROM ITS PAGES, ALMOST BEFORE THE INK WAS DRY...

Known for its picturesque locations and tastefully styled interiors, hotel and restaurant group The Pig – which has a cracking venue in Gittisham, on the edge of the East Devon AONB – has branched out into cookbook writing.

From the hot-off-the-press tome comes this recipe. It uses meat that’s wild and abundant, and was created by The Pig’s chef director, James Goulding.

This unusual but brilliant dish started life as a way of encouraging more people to eat rabbit, James writes. Our grandparents would have been used to it, but the appeal seems to have been lost now. We’ve got lots of good game around – top-quality lean meat such as rabbit, pigeon, partridge and pheasant – that we’re not using, which is crazy. So we came up with this recipe, and it’s proved really popular at all the festivals.

Ask your butcher to joint the rabbits into shoulders, loins, legs and thighs, removing the bones from the thighs.

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1 First, put all the brine ingredients in a pan, bring to a simmer, then allow to cool.

2 Place the rabbit in the brine for 20 minutes and, while it’s soaking, make the spicy flour mix by sifting all the dry ingredients into a bowl.

3 Remove the rabbit from the brine, rinse and pat dry with a clean tea towel or kitchen paper.

4 Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/gas mark 6.

5 Fill a deep-fat fryer with oil, or half-fill a large saucepan and heat to 190C, or until a cube of bread browns in 30 seconds. Coat the rabbit by dipping the pieces in the beaten egg then the flour, and then repeat the process so that they’re evenly coated. Fry in the hot oil for 3 minutes until golden.

6 Transfer to the oven and cook for 10 minutes, then allow to rest for 5 minutes. This recipe can be made in advance, in which case, recoat the rabbit and fry for a further 2 minutes to crisp up.

TIP: The taste of rabbit is somewhere between chicken and pheasant. If your children like fried chicken but they’re a bit unsure about rabbit, this is a great way to get them to try something a bit different. Kids love it!

Recipe taken from The Pig: Tales and Recipes From the Kitchen Garden and Beyond (Octopus Publishing, £30)

by Robin Hutson, Gill Morgan, Paul Croughton and The Pig team; photographs by Emli Bendixen

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C H E F !

Marcus is known as the ‘Food Dude’ at Devonian cured meat specialist Good Game and its sister restaurant, The Pig and Pallet in Topsham. This dish combines his favourite Good Game product – the Devon Dog – and Pig and Pallet’s ‘Big Jim’s BBQ Sauce’.

Regularly cooked up as a special at The Pig and Pallet, this is a hearty side dish that will take any barbecue to the next level.

“It’s also a banging way to use up any barbecued or roasted meat, or other leftovers, and is great served up ‘family’ style, with everyone getting involved,” says Marcus.

COW BEANZ SERVES 12(ISH) AS A SIDE knob butter 2 tbsp smoked paprika 1 tbsp chipotle powder 6 x smoked frankfurters, chopped into bitesized chunks 250ml bourbon 750ml Coca-Cola 2 x 400g tins chopped tomatoes 3 x 400g tins borlotti beans 3 x 400g tins cannellini beans barbecue sauce, to taste crusty bread, to serve

SMeLLS LIKe BeaN SPIRIT

NEGLECTING THE SIDE DISHES AT BIG MEATY FEASTS IS NOT SOMETHING MARCUS DAVEY HAS EVER BEEN ACCUSED OF…

1 Warm the butter in a heavy-based pan on the barbecue or stovetop, then mix in the paprika and chipotle powder. Cook for 1-2 minutes.

2 Chuck in the diced up frankfurters and cook until they gain a bit of colour, although for no more than 2-3 minutes.

3 Add the bourbon – being sure to try some first! – and the cola. Cook until the liquid has reduced by half.

4 Add in the chopped tomatoes and bring to the boil, stirring so it doesn’t catch on the bottom of the pot. Strain and rinse the beans then add those too, along with barbecue sauce, to taste.

5 Cook at a simmer for a further 30 minutes.

(Meanwhile, finish off the bourbon and, in the words of the master Keith Floyd, “when the bourbon is gone the food is ready.”) Serve with warm crusty bread.

The Pig and Pallet, Topsham Quay, Topsham EX3 0JB; 01392 668129; pigandpallet.co.uk

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C H E F !

WHOLE GRILLED MACKEREL WITH BEETROOT, WATERCRESS AND HORSERADISH SERVES 4 2 tbsp crème fraîche 1 tbsp fresh horseradish, finely grated 4 whole mackerel, gutted 150g organic watercress 1 shallot, finely sliced handful capers 1 tbsp dill, chopped 4 beetroot, cooked, peeled and sliced olive oil 1 ½ lemons

SALMON LIKE YOU

THIS SIMPLE BUT EFFECTIVE DISH BY REUBEN JOHNSON CAN BE WHIPPED UP IN A MATTER OF MINUTES You’ll find Reuben behind the pass at The Leaping Salmon – a Horrabridge inn, sat on the edge of Dartmoor.

“This is a real classic,” he says. “We use fresh mackerel, caught just down the road in the Plymouth Sound, with beetroot and horseradish from our own veg garden. We pair this dish with a delicious organic white wine, Fedele Cataratto Sicilian Pinot Grigio, which we source from Ben’s Farm Shop in South Devon.

“If the British weather is on your side, this recipe is also perfect for a barbecue with family and friends!”

1 Preheat the grill to high.

2 Prepare the horseradish sauce by combining the crème fraîche with the grated horseradish in a bowl. Season to taste with sea salt and leave to chill in the fridge.

3 Next, use a sharp knife to lightly score the mackerel several times across each side.

Season with olive oil and sea salt, and grill on a high heat for 3-4 minutes on each side until the skin becomes golden and starts to blister.

Once cooked, leave to rest while you prepare the salad.

4 Combine the watercress, shallot, capers, dill and beetroot in a large bowl and dress with a slug of olive oil and the juice from ½ a lemon.

Mix carefully to coat the watercress thoroughly in the dressing.

5 Cut the remaining lemon into wedges.

Squeeze over the mackerel with a drizzle of olive oil as you plate it up, then add the salad and horseradish crème fraîche.

The Leaping Salmon, Whitchurch Road, Horrabridge, Tavistock PL20 7TP; 01822 851541; theleapingsalmon.co.uk

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C H E F !

CURED MACKEREL SASHIMI SERVES 4 4 fresh mackerel fillets 30g salt 200ml rice wine vinegar large handful mixed salad leaves 190g sushi rice For the pickled onion: 500ml pickling vinegar 1g seaweed flakes 4 peppercorns ¼ cinnamon stick 4 red onions For the miso mayo: 2 tsp white miso paste 6 tbs mayonnaise 2g black sesame seeds, ground 2 tsp rice wine vinegar

COaSTING LEWIS EDWARDS MAKES THE MOST OF THE LOCAL COASTAL BOUNTY IN HIS JAPANESE-STYLE FOOD – LIKE THIS MAKE-AT-HOME SASHIMI… Lewis is the guy behind Koto, a pop-up kitchen and catering company that specialises in Asian-inspired cooking and fresh sushi.

“Located in Kingsbridge on the south coast, we’re lucky to have amazingly fresh fish on our doorstep – and mackerel is one of the best,” says Lewis.

“This dish makes the most of (and even enhances) its freshness, while giving a Japanese classic a bit of Devon style.”

Lewis worked in kitchens all over the country before settling in Devon and establishing his own business. He makes all his food fresh on the morning it is to be served, and shops in local stores, using as much native produce as possible.

“I’m lucky enough that we still have a fishmonger in Kingsbridge that is thriving, and I work closely with them to get me the freshest, local product. Often I’m in the shop at 6am, choosing my ingredients for the day.”

Koto, instagram.com/koto_devon; photography by Christie Brown, instagram.com/brahmastudios

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1 Start with the pickled onions. Put the vinegar, seaweed, peppercorns and cinnamon stick into a pan and bring to the boil. Once boiling, remove from the heat and leave to infuse.

2 Thinly slice the onions and place in a colander. Pour boiling water over them from the kettle to lightly blanch them, then place on a clean kitchen towel and pat dry.

3 Pour the pickling liquid into a jar or other container and add the onions. Seal and leave to pickle for 24 hours, for best results (although they can be served after 2 hours).

4 Pin-bone the mackerel fillets and coat all over with salt. Place in a flat dish, cover with cling film and refrigerate for 2 hours.

5 After 2 hours, carefully rinse the fish with fresh water and pat dry with kitchen cloth.

Once dry, lay the mackerel in a container and cover with the rice wine vinegar. Refrigerate for a further hour.

6 Remove the fish from the vinegar and pat dry once again. Thinly slice against the grain with a sharp knife.

7 For the miso mayo, add the miso, mayonnaise, black sesame and rice wine vinegar to a small mixing bowl with a pinch of black pepper. Combine thoroughly.

8 Place the sushi rice in a mixing bowl and soak in water for 5 minutes. Once soaked, use your hand as a whisk to gently mix the rice until the water turns cloudy, then drain and rinse until the water runs clear.

9 Place the rice with 200ml water in a heavybottomed bottom pan with a lid. Bring to the boil and then turn off the heat and leave to rest for 10 minutes before removing the lid.

10 To serve, place a bed of sushi rice, a bunch of washed leaves and some pickled onions on small serving plates. Lay the mackerel on the rice and add a dollop of miso mayo. We top the fish with crispy shallots.

( advertising feature )

NICE ONE! Luscombe Estate, in picturesque South Devon, is where you’ll find private chef biz Eat Nice Be Nice.

With an ethos that’s all about sustainable and ethical food, it couldn’t have a more apt home...

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uscombe Estate provides the Eat Nice Be Nice chefs with everything they could ever want – from fell trees for cooking over to a steady stream of top-quality game, vegetables, edible flowers, herbs and fruits, all from the walled kitchen garden. It also provides ample space for them to rear their Zwartbles (sheep which they take to mutton) and rare breed pigs.

Chefs Sam, Megan and Skye are passionate about getting the most from the land and promoting healthier, sustainable diets.

“We believe that local, organic growing is the direction in which the food industry needs to be heading and we’re keen to lead by example,” Megan explains. “We believe that good food is simple and unpretentious; it should be fresh, vibrant and enjoyed by everyone.”

These specialists in private dining and bespoke catering have been on tour this summer in their vintage firetruck where they cook on ceramic wood ovens and run on solar power. This is a new venture that they run alongside their private dining events, with the aim of bringing a

taste of their vision of sustainable food production to music and food lovers across the South West.

We chatted to Skye in the garden, where she spends much of her time.

“It’s been a really rewarding summer and we’re so happy to see all our hard work come into fruition,” she says. “It was a busy spring prepping and sowing in the garden and then to be able to harvest our food in-line with our ever-evolving firetruck menu meant that our customers were eating the freshest produce. It also enabled us to reduce our use of plastics, chemicals and transportation which is incredibly important to us.”

With the festival season now drawing to an end, daily life continues to be as busy as ever for the small Eat Nice team, with

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on-going harvesting and preserving to be done to ensure nothing is wasted from the garden, as well as a shift in focus towards the up and coming shoot season.

“The winter is our busiest time of year, with three different shoots to look after as well as private dining. It keeps us on our toes!”

For Eat Nice, the shoot season is all about hearty, warming lunches in stunning locations. A huge effort goes into ensuring as much game is used as possible, so pheasant, partridge and venison feature highly on their menus as well as an array of scrumptious potatoes and greens from the garden.

As the company expands it has started a search for an enthusiastic full-time apprentice chef to join the team.

For more information on Eat Nice Be Nice check out the website eatnicebenice.com or follow it on social media @eatnicebenice

The Church House Inn is a family-run pub situated halfway between Exeter and Plymouth.

• Sunny beer garden • Family friendly • Dog friendly • Local produce • Separate dining room which can hold functions for up to 40 people

Rattery, South Brent, Devon TQ10 9LD Tel: 01364 642220 • www.thechurchhouseinn.co.uk

CHOOSE YOUR WEAPONS

The Eva Solo measuring trivet is £24, available from mid-September; formahouse.co.uk

FIVE STAR

NO, IT’S NOT A TOY STARFISH, GIANT CHRISTMAS DECO OR ESOTERIC ANCIENT WEAPON, SAYS MATT BIELBY. IT’S A SCANDINAVIAN TRIVET, BOTH ULTRA-MODERN AND MULTI-TASKING (AND STYLISH, TOO) That looks like the glaive. You know, from Krull.

Sorry, you’ve lost me.

The glaive! From Krull! That magic spiky thing you throw, and it whizzes around doing untold damage, then comes back to land softly in your hand like a boomerang.

Still no idea.

[Sighs.] Okay, imagine a giant shuriken, one of those Japanese

THIS MONTH

throwing stars. Or a hunga munga, the curved African throwing daggers. Or the chakram, that flat, circular Sikh thing, sometimes called a war-quoit…

Yes, yes. Where are you going with this?

I like it, I guess.

And you’ll like it even more when you find out what it can actually do. (A clue: it’s not for throwing.)

Instead, this is a measuring trivet

from the Eva Solo range, and it’s got two distinct but compatible functions. Eva Solo is a Danish, family-run company which for over 100 years has specialised in kitchen equipment that’s stylish enough to leave on display. In the UK their stuff’s available through Forma House, and is stocked by places like Darts Farm and Bath online store Prezola.

Still not telling me what it is.

Okay: on the one hand it’s a

heat-resistant stand to protect the table from hot pots, pans and dishes, and on the other, it doubles up as a clever measuring spoon, each prong a different, regularly used option: a teaspoon, a tablespoon and so on. The idea is that it saves space, which it does – a bit – but really, the important thing is that the measuring spoons are right there in front of you the whole time, not hidden away and lost at the back of some drawer.

STAR SIGN + WOOD YOU RATHER + CHEESE, PLEASE 037

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House Call

HOME IS WHERE THE DART IS THE HAND-CRAFTED KITCHEN OF FOOD PRO KERRY TORRENS IS INSPIRED BY ITS RURAL DARTMOOR SURROUNDINGS

WOR D S BY JESS I CA CA RT E R PHOTOS BY M AT T AU S T I N

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ain is rarely welcome in August, in my book. Being one of those solar-powered humans (who are happy as Larry and full of energy all summer, then click into hibernation mode come winter, with an average bedtime of 9.45pm), I need to soak up as much of that vitamin D as I can during the warmest season and have no time for grey skies and soggy feet.

That said, an off-season rain shower can scarper to leave a far more attractive summer’s day in its wake, with the thick, warm air feeling lighter and fresher, and wild greenery looking vivid and juicy.

That’s exactly how Dartmoor National Park presents itself on the drive to Kerry’s home, post-downpour, with the foliage shimmering with moisture, its colour intensified by the rain. That and the now-bright blue sky made it seem as if I could be driving through somewhere far more tropical than south Devon.

It’s evident, then, why Kerry Torrens – nutritionist and food and health writer – ended up here, when she was actually planning to move to the coast. And it also makes clear why she was so keen on having a kitchen that represented her picturesque patch of Devon so wholly as it does.

When they moved into their 19th-century home back in 2011, Kerry and her husband knew they were going to relocate the kitchen from inside out into this glass extension. The full-length windows here blur the lines between the outside and in, which, along with natural wood and blue limestone touches, means the room embodies a real sense of nature.

“Now we’re in here all the time,” says Kerry, “and always spot lots of wildlife out the windows, like deer and kingfishers.”

The house – a former rectory – sits on five acres of lush green grounds, and even has a walled garden. Kerry uses the space to grow all sorts of food – although sometimes misses out on the harvest to the local wildlife.

“Our cherry tree was loaded with fruit and we were just about the net it when a squirrel beat us to it,” she says. “I started growing asparagus seven years ago too, but Honey [Kerry’s Cavachon – she also has an American Cocker called Chutney] loves it, so she munches it!”

The walled garden is older than the house, the former building having burned down before the existing one was built in the 1800s.

There are other signifiers of the residence’s history too – like the 15th-century listed gate at the top of the pathway.

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While the kitchen certainly nods to its rural location and the building’s past, it also has more contemporary flourishes, having been completed in 2014.

The solid wood units – a cluster of cupboards flanking a doubledoored pantry-style affair at the back, a surround for the impressive five-oven, dual-controlled AGA adjacent, and a kitchen island in the middle – are made from Dartmoor oak (sourced from Anton

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KITCHEN CONFIDENTIAL

Coaker at Princetown) by the clearly skilled local carpenter Scott McCarthy, founder of Woodscott Joinery.

“We met Scott at the Axe Vale Show and got talking to him about ideas,” Kerry explains. “I’d been having trouble finding a fitter who could do what I had in mind, but he could make everything truly bespoke.”

And Kerry had a rather solid spec. “We wanted these curved display cupboards, but everyone said no, they couldn’t do it. Scott was able to make them, though. He found a taxidermist to work on the curved glass.

“I also knew I’d like the units to be solid wood – another thing that people don’t like doing, as it’s difficult to accommodate the natural movement and expansion of the wood over time, but Scott built in mechanisms for that.”

‘Bespoke’ is a term that gets chucked around all the time in the world of kitchen design, but only rarely can the result be so individually tailored as this, with the cupboards built specifically for Kerry’s appliances and the handles crafted to match the vintage-style doorknobs throughout the house.

It’s not just the woodwork that’s local here: the AGA is from Darts Farm (Garton Kings) as are the mirrored tiles behind it and the Belgian blue limestone floor (both Fired Earth). Devonian through and through. woodscott.co.uk

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Name: Kerry Torrens.

Occupation: Nutritionist and health editor.

Must-have kitchen item: A dishwasher.

Most prized piece of kit: My Sage Dual Boiler espresso machine – a muchcherished birthday present!

Favourite kitchen hack: Getting my husband to do the cooking – typically, it’s a curry!

Secret kitchen skill: Rustling up something from nothing.

You love the taste of... Butter on toasted sourdough.

Coffee or tea? Coffee in the morning and green tea in the afternoon.

Beer or cider? Neither – a glass of chilled white, please!

Go-to recipe: Lamb tagine.

Guilty pleasure: Fresh cheese scones.

A food you couldn’t live without: Has to be Nairns Oatcakes.

Favourite condiment: Whole Greek yoghurt – I add it to everything, from my morning breakfast bowl to pasta, salads, curry, chilli and tagine. Its uses are endless!

Unexpected item in your kitchen cupboard: Binoculars – we get some amazing wildlife out in the garden.

The style of your kitchen in three words: Sociable, functional, home.

One thing your kitchen is used for that doesn’t involve cooking or eating: Chilling on the sofa with a dog on either side.

Your kitchen is awesome because...

It’s super local, crafted from Dartmoor oak by a talented Axminster craftsman.

K I T C H E N

A R M O U R Y

The Want List SWEET DREAMS ARE MADE OF CHEESE, SO THEY SAY… AND WE’RE DREAMING OF THESE CHEESE-THEMED PIECES OF TABLEWARE FOR OUR NEXT DINNER PARTY

Rosa Butter Dish, £20 Okay, technically you don’t need to serve cheese with butter, but sometimes we reckon it’s the more dairy the better, and we’re smitten with this Swiss-style butter dish. Available from Oliver Bonas in Exeter. oliverbonas.com

Cheese Fondue Set, £54 Nothing screams retro dinner party quite like a fondue set, and we’re rather obsessed by this copper-finished number from Distinctly Living in Dartmouth. distinctlyliving.co.uk

Jimbob ‘The Cheese Sloth’ Side Plate, £23 You gotta love this tongue-incheek side plate designed by UK-based artist James Ward.

The perfect reminder that going into a cheese coma is a-okay. Available from online stockists Wolf and Badger. wolfandbadger.com

Bwari Round Marble Board, £59.95 Chop up your cheesy wedges and garland them with grapes on this stylish white marble and mango wood presentation board.

Available from Nkuku. nkuku.com

Osko Cheese and Butter Knife Set, £29.95 Knives forged from brass and brushed with gold?

Now, that’s some classy cutlery right there. These rustic tools are just the business for slicing and spreading. Available from Nkuku. nkuku.com

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MA INs

EATING-OUT INSPO, INSIDER KNOWLEDGE AND FOOD PIONEERS

54 EAT SMART

HIGHLIGHTS

ATE CAN WE HELP THE CLIMOUR CRISIS BY CHANGING EATING HABITS?

48 CHEESE TO MEET YOU

WEST WHY THE SOUGTHREAT HAS SUCH E CHEESE GAM

INCLUDING!

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TRIED AND TESTED SOUTH WEST CHEESES FOR YOUR CHEESEBOARD

RINd FaIth

NOW AUTUMN IS UPON US, OUR ATTENTIONS ARE TURNING TO COMFORT FOOD TO HUNKER DOWN WITH OVER THE COLDER SEASONS. COMFORT FOOD LIKE EVERYONE’S FAVOURITE COAGULATED DAIRY PRODUCT: CHEESE. LUCKILY, WE HAVE SOMETHING OF A HISTORY WITH FROMAGE HERE IN THE SOUTH WEST...

Dorset Blue Vinny, circa £4/200g

In the ’80s, Michael Davies happened upon a 300-year-old Dorset cheese recipe and resurrected this once-prolific style. Eventually, he secured a Protected Geographical Indication for it and is still the only producer of it to this day.

Firm and crumbly, this award-winner has a poke of salty tang, albeit with an intensity that’s a notch or two below what you might usually expect. Given the salty smack of it, a sweet chutney is going to work a dream alongside, as are figs and honey. Use any (unlikely) leftovers in winter risottos or, as we’ve been doing, by crumbling on top of warming leek and potato soup.

The lower intensity of this blue compared to some others means it’s neither too sharp nor overwhelming, we reckon, and that you can taste the subtle differences in each mouthful.

Trethowan’s Dairy Gorwydd orwydd Caerphilly Caerphilly, £7.75/250g

Y you’re right: this does sound like a Welsh number.

Yep, So, what’s it doing amongst all these South West cheeses, then? Well, the makers actually moved production a few years ago from Wales to Somerset. What’s more, this recipe (which is about 100 years old) is, in fact, native to the county.

Cut yourself a chunk (’cause that’s why we’re here, right?) and you’ll see that it looks smooth, with a slightly crumbly middle, sandwiched by yellow, creamy-looking layers at the top and bottom. It’s fresh tasting at its pale core, while the darker, creamer edges are a spot richer and more savoury.

The flavour is quite gentle, making it a great mediator on the cheese board between more pungent beasts.

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M M A I N S

Quicke’s Extra Mature Clothbound Cheddar, £5/200g

Mary Quicke reps the 14th generation of her family to work on their farm, and has an MBE for her efforts in both farming and cheesemaking. The latter they’ve been at since the ’70s, using milk from their 600-strong herd of specially-bred, pasture-grazed dairy cows.

The truckles of Cheddar are turned every 10 days throughout the 18-month ageing process to ensure an even texture.

Punchy but well-balanced, it’s got a tang of maturity and rich, complex flavour and the even, melting consistency allows you to sink your teeth into this cheese like butter. Aside from the cheese board, it’ll bring a new dimension to herby pesto and deliver a kick to a soufflé. We’ve got our eye on any leftovers for a leek and bacon mac ’n’ cheese with attitude, too...

Bath Soft Cheese Merry Wyfe, £2.80/100g

Bath Soft Cheese – most famous for its Bath Soft and Wyfe of Bath numbers – makes entirely organic products using milk from its own cows. It all happens on Park Farm (in Kelston, just outside of Bath), where the same family have been working for three generations now.

The The lucky ol’ Merry Wyfe is washed in cider every other day for four weeks – yup, hence the ‘Merry’ part – to make this champion organic cheese, as crowned at the British Cheese Awards 2018. Said cider is made on-site by Graham Padfield from organic apples – harvested, again, on the farm. The resulting cheese has a golden orange rind which hints towards the bold, well-balanced flavour of the cheese, which also has a lovely smooth, dense texture.

Feltham’s Farm Cheeses Renegade Monk, £9.50/220g

Made from pasteurised cow’s milk, this cheese is modern in terms of both age and attitude. Marcus Fergusson left his job in London to turn his attention to a 22-acre smallholding in Somerset – Feltham’s Farm.

This cheese was released in February 2017 and immediately made a great impression, swiftly picking up awards.

Marcus uses organic milk from a local farm to create this cheese in very small batches. It has a washed rind – ale from Frome’s Milk Street Brewery is the liquid of choice – and blue cultures are added. While there are no visible veins in this fella, it does perhaps have a hint of the blue style in its punchy flavour. It’s bold in terms of taste, although this confidence is rounded by an almost sweet, floral character.

Sharpham Ticklemore Goat, £10/450g

Sharpham, down in the South Devon countryside on the edge of the River Dart, makes cheese and wine (because, presumably, the team know how to have a good time). Several different styles of cheese are made here and have been for decades, accumulating a decent stack of gongs from the likes of Taste of the West and the World Cheese Awards over the years.

Ticklemore (made with a vegetarian rennet) might be a goat’s cheese, but it’s a relatively mild one. It’s matured for three to four weeks, so expect a young and almost zesty flavour, with a brief suggestion of that infamous goat-like pungency. Underneath the thin rind, the semi-hard cheese is soft and a little crumbly, with delicate but fresh character – you might even pick up on a whisper of lemoniness.

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Would you like to work in Media Sales? teaonthegreen.com green.tea@zen.co.uk 01392 276913

We are always looking to hear from talented individuals who would like to work for MediaClash, presenting advertising opportunities and marketing solutions across our portfolio of fantastic magazines and events. We are a growing business and anticipate there being various opportunities over the next few months.

If you would like to join our continuing success story please email your CV to steve.hawkins@mediaclash.co.uk or give us a call anytime on 01225 475827 for a chat about the company, our magazines and available positions.

www.mediaclash.co.uk

M A I N S

MILKING IT

As the relatively small sample of the bounteous supply of cheeses we have here in the West Country on the previous pages demonstrates, this is a product that comes in countless guises.

From Southern Italian balls of mild-tasting buffalo mozzarella to gooey and pungent French brie and sharp, buttery Armenian string cheese, the spectrum is huge. Steven Lamb is a food author and teacher with a specialist interest in cheese – last year he penned Cheese and Dairy: River Cottage Handbook No 16. There’s little he doesn’t know about this historic milk product, and cites its diversity and tradition as what began his fascination.

“I’ve always been drawn to artisanal or traditional food methods, and cheese ticks all the boxes,” he says. “Food is about more than the finished dish. Every ingredient is a culmination of a series of happenings, decisions and interventions. Cheese is made from just a few ingredients and yet there are thousands of different cheeses worldwide, so I’m interested in the slight variances of technique, time and terroir. I wanted to investigate and celebrate those nuances. I also particularly like the fact that cheese champions regionality and diversity.”

Despite cheese coming in such a broad spectrum of styles – using different animals’ milk from

There’s no need to get obsessive about matching your cheese to chutney, but Dorset Blue Vinney does go especially well with fig...

different regions, and being made to different recipes – it’s actually a simple product that’s easily defined. “The common denominator that links all cheese is milk,” says Steven. “Whether from cows, buffalo, sheep or goat, cheese is the separated curds from the milk which are cultured – then eaten fresh, or left to mature.”

Milk, however, is a pretty complex liquid, he continues to explain – there are, of course, differences in the milk from different animals, while outside variables play a part, too.

“It’s comprised of a variety of minerals, proteins, sugars and fats, and contains at least 80 per cent water. The different types of milk from each animal have unique flavour characteristics and, in terms of the finished cheese, these differences help create the final flavour spectrum. There are all sorts of other variances, such as yield, pasture or feed and seasonality, which affect the final cheese, too.”

HOW TO BUILD A CHEESEBOARD Ian Wellens from The Cheese Shed says: “Start with a Cheddar, a blue and a brie as the core trio, then add a sheep’s or goat’s cheese and some sort of non-Cheddar hard cow’s milk cheese. Allow about 100g per person.”

CHISTORY

Cheese is an ancient foodstuff. Basically, since humans began domesticating and milking animals (around 8,000-10,000 years ago; it was mostly sheep at first), we’ve been making it. And thanks to Britain’s grassy rolling terrain and, er, generous rain supply, this isle is an ideal one for farming.

With weather tending to move inland from the west, this particular region gets more of said rain – meaning the drier east is generally great for arable endeavours, while the west is best known for livestock, and therefore dairy farming.

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Hence the South West’s strong links to the cheese industry – although, the cheeses we’ve got to know over the last couple centuries are all, of course, relatively contemporary.

“Much of our area would, at one time, have been big sheep farming country, producing wool,” says Ian Wellens of Devon-based online cheese shop, The Cheese Shed. “So it’s probably a reasonable guess that there would have been a great deal more sheep’s cheese made here if you went back a few centuries. And I imagine that, alongside hard, long-matured cheeses which enabled you to ‘store’ milk, there would also have been quickly-made, soft and fresh cheeses.”

Think West Country fromage and you’ll likely think Cheddar, that famous hard variety named after the Somerset village.

“It’s made all over the world now, but modern factory versions don’t necessarily have much connection to the real thing,” continues Ian. “Fortunately we have some great makers who are still doing genuine Cheddar, created in the traditional way.” (One great example of traditionally made Devonian Cheddar being that aforementioned version from Quicke’s.)

Back in the day, most households would make their own cheese – it was a good way of using up and preserving milk before refrigeration was available. And, due to people following family recipes, using the milk from different animals and raising them in different landscapes, there was much more regional variety.

There are a number of reasons as to why this kind of cheesemaking died out. Firstly, after the Industrial Revolution, cheese began to be made commercially on larger scales. Then there was the fact that British people were emigrating to the New World, meaning we lost many farmers and cheese makers to Australia, America et al. And, most famously, the social and economic effects of the World Wars saw the number of farmhouse cheese makers drastically decline, either shutting shop completely or selling their milk to large-scale factory producers to make homogenised cheese.

Although many of our regional cheeses are lost for good, artisanal production began to gain momentum again in the late 20th century, and we’re now seeing more and more small scale cheese makers and specialist shops crop up, with modern, imaginative and well-made varieties proliferating.

These cheeses often promise not only superior flavour and texture, but also higher welfare for the animals involved in supplying that all-important milk. For instance, organic cheese comes from animals with guaranteed outdoor access and which cannot be subject to the routine use of antibiotics, which intensively reared animals are.

With consumers more switched on than ever about the ethical and environmental implications of ‘conventional’ farming, the market for this kind of artisanal cheese is surely going to continue on the up – and for all the right reasons.

NICK HO O K

M A I N S

STICKY APPLES AND HAZELNUTS FOR A CHEESEBOARD

BY DAVID JONES FROM MANNA FROM DEVON This is a top recipe to go with those cheeseboards – and is far quicker to rustle up than a traditional jarred chutney. It makes the most of new-season apples, local cheese, and those barbecues that are often neglected over the cooler season.

David, from Devon cookery school Manna from Devon, cooked this over a Morsø Forno outdoor oven, but you could use your regular barbie, fire pit or stovetop.

“This is delicious with a sharp cheese – we used some Quicke’s Cheddar, which goes really well with the sweetness of the apples,” says David. “The sticky apples with hazelnuts are a great alternative to a more traditional apple chutney and can be eaten at once.”

4 red-skinned eating apples (we used Braeburns), cored and cut into wedges 90g butter 60g hazelnuts 90g caster sugar 1 small cinnamon stick 1 Heat a wide frying pan over medium heat, or place to the side of the heat source if using a barbecue, and toast the hazelnuts in it until they get a little colour on them and start to smell nutty. Take them out of the pan and put to one side in a bowl.

2 Wipe out the pan and gently melt the butter in it with the sugar, cinnamon stick and apples. Cook until the apples are tender and caramelised in places.

3 Take the apples and cinnamon stick out of the pan with a slotted spoon and mix with the hazelnuts.

4 Either turn up the heat or put the pan closer to the fire and bubble the mixture until it becomes golden brown and sticky. Pour this mixture into the bowl over the apple segments and toasted hazelnuts, mixing carefully as the sugar-butter mixture will be very hot.

5 Cool for 10 minutes and serve with your cheeses. We love it with a glass of chilled Lyme Bay sparkling rosé. mannafromdevon.com

Want to make your own cheese?

Steven Lamb teaches classes for just that purpose at River Cottage – the next dates are 9 November and 2 February; rivercottage.net

For more, visit thecheeseshed.com

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ESTABLISHED 1985

B���, ���D� A���F�� on our organic farm

ORGANIC SPECIALISTS SINCE 1985 Own grown veg and everything for your weekly shop Visit our shop in Northam or shop online for local delivery Marshford Organic Foods Churchill Way Northam North Devon EX39 1NS

Tel: 01237 477160 sales@marshford.co.uk | www.marshford.co.uk

F��� ����E��F���G���� M���S����I��R�� From our Devon farm to your door 01769 560909 w��.h���e����k��l�.c�.u��

EAT TO BEAT CLIMATE CHANGE WITH THE EFFECTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE SNOWBALLING, WE’RE MORE AWARE THAN EVER OF THE IMPACT WE’RE HAVING ON THE PLANET. FOR ORGANIC SEPTEMBER, JESSICA CARTER LOOKS AT HOW SUPPORTING ORGANIC FOOD PRODUCTION COULD BE AN ACT OF KINDNESS TO MOTHER EARTH – NOT TO MENTION OURSELVES – IN A TIME OF CRISIS...

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F

aced with the damning effects of climate change (something we know is very much exacerbated by our current food systems), many of us are looking for ways to make our lifestyles more environmentally friendly.

This may be the reason that organic farming has become such a quickly growing field in Europe, its expansion driven by conscientious consumers and the rise of evidence showing how these once ‘alternative’ agricultural practices can benefit our rather ravaged planet.

“Organic works with nature, not against it,” says Claire McDermott of organic certification body, Soil Association. “This kind of farming doesn’t rely on chemical and fossil fuel-based fertilisers and pesticides, so the risk of water or soil contamination is a lot lower. It also allows wildlife to flourish – studies have found that there is up to 50 per cent more wildlife on organic farms.

“It means, too, that soils on organic farms are healthier and able to act like a sponge, storing water, nutrients and – importantly – carbon. Soils hold three times more carbon than the atmosphere – if all UK farming was converted to organic, at least 1.3 million tonnes of carbon would be taken up by the soil each year, the equivalent of taking nearly a million cars off the road.”

Although lots of the research into the relationship between farming and the environment is relatively new, there were some early adopters of organic practices who, it seems, saw trouble arising from our post-war industrialisation of food production. Essential is a South West-based food supplier – a co-operative outfit with strong ethical principles – that was founded in 1971. Organic has always been a huge part of its environmental focus, Lila Teasdale tells us.

“Promoting organic goes hand in hand with our values around environmental sustainability,” she says. “Buying organic food contributes to healthier produce and more ethical farming methods.

“We support organic for the biodiversity and soil health that it promotes. There are plenty of farming methods that contribute to the environmental crisis – for example, mono-cropping, intensive livestock farming and depletion of soil through the use of chemicals, which kills the insects needed for a healthy soil culture.”

We know that our current food system as a whole just isn’t sustainable for our planet. But if we changed the way we farmed, would it be possible to produce enough to feed the globe’s booming population? It’s estimated that by 2050 there will be 10 billion humans – that’s compared to around 2.5 billion in 1950. Some jump in numbers there, right?

Research released earlier this year as part of the ‘Ten Years for Agroecology in Europe’ report suggests that an ecological approach to agriculture (agroecology – shunning pesticides and harnessing the power of sustainable ecological systems to our benefit) across Europe is a very plausible way to feed and maintain the health of the continent’s residents while not exhausting Earth’s natural resources.

“That was a really important study,” says Claire, “showing that it is possible to have a farming system in Europe that can provide a sufficient and healthy diet for a growing population, whilst also tackling climate change, phasing out pesticides and maintaining wildlife.”

The success of this theoretical system, though, isn’t solely down to the producers – we have to change our eating and shopping habits for it to work. For the whole population to be fed healthily using solely sustainable farming systems, said population (yep, that’s us) would need to be “eating more plant-based proteins and less, but betterquality, meat, especially high welfare grass-fed livestock like cows and sheep,” says Claire.

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Eating more veg and less but better-quality meat, and increasing our support of organic farming, can benefit the environment

And that’s where organic farms like Higher Hacknell come in. This is a 350-acre patch of land between Dartmoor and Exmoor where cattle and sheep roam, and veg is grown.

“We started farming organically in 1988, a system which we believe offers many common-sense answers to the problems facing agriculture, the food industry and our environment,” says farmer Jo Budden.

“Organic standards embrace all aspects of the farming system, most especially animal welfare, wildlife conservation and food safety. We believe that for our future health and well-being, it’s the way forward.”

Of course, when conversations about the environment come up in relation to food production, meat and animal products are often huge parts of the topic – something that Jo and her family are all too aware of.

“There is misinformation and negative publicity surrounding meat,” she says. “Recently, it’s been said that livestock farming is bad for the environment as it produces methane and is therefore in part responsible for global warming. This is true for intensively reared, feedlot cattle, but not grass-fed organic beef.

“The idea of regenerative farming practices, which capture and store carbon by restoring degraded soil and grassland, is dependent on livestock. Grazing increases the ability of grass to store carbon in the soil, where a complex web of roots and mycorrhizal fungi decay, increasing the amount of carbon stored. It is now thought

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that by improving soil quality and the amount of organic matter it contains, we can actually reverse the effects of climate change.

“In terms of food miles and the environment, [local, organic meat] is a better form of protein than imported soya grown in fragile ecosystems, or almonds grown in regions where there is a lack of water.

“To use the words of Patrick Holden of the Sustainable Food Trust, ‘there is farming that is part of the problem and farming that is part of the solution’. By being more aware of how and where our food is produced and what we are buying, we can all play our own part in that solution.”

Indeed, local, seasonal eating has several benefits – not least that it can help us manage our budgets as well as carbon footprint.

See, organic food and drink carry heftier price tags than their conventionally made alternatives, thanks to lower yields and higher labour. But when foods are in plentiful supply, their price often drops, and if they’ve not needed to be transported far, this saving can also be reflected in the cost, meaning that if we’re savvy enough, some organic ingredients might be more affordable than we think.

Another way to squeeze out the mealtime value of organic ingredients is to apply nose-to-tail eating principles, making sure you’re eating as much of the animal as possible (less fashionable cuts can bring really great value) or, in the same vein, the ‘root-to-fruit’ principle when it comes to your veg. This means making the most of the whole crop and eating all of the edible parts that often get binned – think carrot tops and the leaves from cauliflower and beetroot. This recipe (left) is a great example of how you can put these oft-binned offcuts to work to get more value from your organic veg.

Find out more from higherhacknell.co.uk; soilassociation.org; essential-trading.co.uk

SWAPSIES!

If you don’t usually shop organic, Soil Association’s Claire McDermott has some ideas for the most beneficial swaps to get started

BRAISED BEETROOT

BY THE RIVERFORD FIELD KITCHEN

Milk and dairy

SERVES 3-4 AS A SIDE 4-5 small beetroot, with leaves 1 onion, chopped 1 garlic clove, crushed 1 tbsp olive oil lemon, juice only

Organic dairy contains around 50 per cent more omega-3 essential fatty acids than non-organic.

Eggs

Organic chickens are given much more space to roam than their free-range counterparts, reducing stress and the use of routine antibiotics.

1 Cut the leaves from the beetroot, wash them well and chop coarsely. Peel the beetroot and cut them into wedges 1 ½ cm thick.

2 Gently cook the onion and garlic in the olive oil until softened, then add the beetroot segments and enough water to cover.

3 Season and cook slowly for about 30 minutes, until the beetroot is tender. Add the chopped leaves (ruby chard can be added at this stage, too) and cook for 5 minutes. Season and sprinkle with lemon juice.

Carrots

In 2014, a team at Newcastle University found organic carrots and other crops are up to 60 per cent higher in a number of key antioxidants than conventionally grown ones.

Drystore staples

Organic pulses, pasta, rice, whole grains and ranges like baby food are often the same price as non-organic, and we all use them regularly.

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AFTERS

NEW W RESTA RESTAURANTS T URANTS TA T DEVOURED, NE TS NEW CCAFÉS AFÉS FREQUENTED FREQUENTED, T TED NEW BARS CRAWLED, AND WHAT WE THOUGHT OF THEM HIGHLIGHTS

BURGH ISLAND'S NEW SEAFOOD RESTAURANT

62 HUNTER GATHERER

TOTNES' NEW FINE DINING GAFF, GATHER

64 GROUND WORK

VEGAN LUNCHING AT EXETER'S SACRED GROUNDS

Before we’d even tried the food, we knew Sacred Grounds had style thanks to its cool decor

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60 ISLAND HOPPING

H O T H O T E L R E S TA U R A N T S

THE NETTLEFOLD

THIS PLACE HAS BEEN A HOT TOPIC SINCE IT OPENED IN THE ’20S. NOW, A NEW RESTAURANT AND MULTIMILLION-POUND REFURB HAS PUT IT BACK ON THE LIPS OF DEVONIANS – AND FOR GOOD REASON, SAYS JESSICA CARTER

I

’ve arrived at dinner in more conventional ways, it has to be said. But then – fair enough – I usually eat at more conventional restaurants.

Burgh Island is anything but orthodox. This 1920s hotel sits on an island that’s cut off from the mainland when the tide comes in – and, by its prevailing Art Deco style, you may think it’s cut off

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from the world entirely, not to mention the concept of time. When the water does prevent walking or driving up to the hotel, the sea tractor steps up – a huge beast, built in the ’60s, which transports visitors through the surf atop its beefy wheels.

In hopping off on the other side, we swap one surreal scenario for another – namely what looks like the set of a 1930s film. (Okay, I don’t know if it’s actually been in a film, but it’s definitely been in a music video – and a TV adaptation of a novel by onetime regular resident Agatha Christie.)

The Art Deco hotel received a cash injection to the tune of millions recently, bringing the 90-yearold venue – originally built by filmmaker Archibald Nettlefold – back to its former razzle-dazzle glory, reminiscent of the days when it would welcome the likes of Noel Coward and Winston Churchill.

Rooms are individually decorated with ’30s furniture – right down to the vintage lamps, sideboards and wardrobes. Our suite’s balcony looks out onto the ‘mermaid pool’ – a natural, secluded lake that’s filled by the sea – and the rolling greenery that the beach gives way to, complete with rabbits hopping smugly around, as if showing off to visitors that they get to live in this picture-postcard landscape.

And so, onto the food (sorry for the wait, but there’s a lot of ground to cover here, you know). There are

Burgh Island Hotel, Bigbury-on-Sea, Devon TQ7 4BG; 01548 810514; burghisland.com

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a couple of dining options for both guests and nonresidents: the black-tie restaurant housed in the Grand Ballroom and the recently launched – hence the reason for this particular trip – seafood restaurant, The Nettlefold. (Also on the island is a third option: 14th-century pub, The Pilchard Inn.) The hotel’s more casual dining room – in as much as there’s no formal dress code – The Nettlefold still has plenty of ’20s glam. The floor is black and white check, tables are cloaked in pristine white linen and retro mirrors and lamps sit on the walls. There’s a light and airy feel here, the pastel blues and white reflecting the coastal scenery that the room looks out onto (the greenery of the South Devon Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty is visible beyond, too).

The food is sourced from within 30 miles – why wouldn’t it be, with this local bounty? – so there are lobsters and scallops caught in Beesands just the other side of Salcombe, and sea bass and sole fresh from the Brixham day boats.

West Country oysters (£3 each) come in all kinds of guises; I knock back a Japanese-style motoyaki number (you’ll see British, French and Asian inspiration on the menu), which is topped with a creamy sauce and baked until golden.

Caviar is also a draw of this menu, although, naturally, not a cheap one at £48 for 10g. After a brief and unnecessary when-in-Rome-style exchange between my dinner date and me, both of us having already made up our minds individually, we go all in. A small mound of tiny brown-black spheres is contained in a glass bowl, suspended over ice, with blinis, finely chopped shallot and a quenelle of sour cream sat alongside. Waves of earthiness and oceanic flavours spill over my tongue as I roll the soft, tiny beads of sturgeon roe on the roof of my mouth.

For starters proper (got there in the end), handdived king scallops (£14.50) had been seared for golden crusts and almost melting middles, and come with cauliflower and a rich and mellow black garlic purée.

We seem to barely be able to make a dent in the mound of spaghetti vongole (£20), the pasta flecked with chilli and parsley, and tangling up a generous number of clams. Honestly? We crave more oomph in flavour and bite from the thin spaghetti.

Beesands lobster Thermidor (market price) arrives on a bed of salty sea veg with edible flowers. It’s impressive looking, although the shell’s fleshy, cheesy filling is firm and lacking delicateness. The meat to be found in the claws is soft and plump, though, and we clear out those pincers entirely.

There are myriad reasons to visit this magical Art Deco hotel: the scenery, the decor, the history – and, yes, the food too.

Quat’Saisons and Lympstone Manor behind them, the trio started a pop-up dining concept before Harrison secured the Fore Street premises and asked his friends to join him.

The name ‘Gather’ reflects the restaurant’s ethos of using as much local and seasonal produce as possible, be it fish fresh from Brixham or fruit and veg bought directly from a nearby farm. The restaurant is open Tuesday to Saturday, for lunch and dinner. The bill of fare is updated weekly and split into set and tasting menus for lunch and a la carte and tasting menus for evening meals.

We rock up on a rainy Wednesday night and are pleased to see there are a few seats occupied. Pine tables and chairs provide around 25 covers, and a mix of photography and artwork adorns the walls. It’s an attractive space but has more of a daytime feel than intimate restaurant. Mainly, I think, because of the bright lighting. What is nice, however, is the relaxed vibe inside. This may be fine dining but there are no dinner jackets or starched tablecloths here; it’s all very laidback and contemporary.

Keen to see what the young chefs have to offer, we plump for the tasting menu (£55), beginning with some perfectly pillowy sourdough and a hearty taster of hog’s pudding, served with chutney made from

N E W R E S TA U R A N T S

GATHER

THERE ARE A BUNCH OF BRIGHT YOUNG THINGS ON A MISSION TO BRING FINE DINING TO TOTNES’ FOOD SCENE. MELISSA STEWART HEADS THERE TO FIND OUT MORE

t

he hipster town of Totnes is known for its range of cafés, delis and coffee shops, many of them serving up high-quality plant-based grub. What the town lacked (along with decent B&B accommodation) was a good fine dining establishment. Well, not anymore.

Back in April, spritely 20-year-old Harrison Brockington opened Gather, a restaurant on Totnes’ busy Fore Street. As chef patron, Harrison (a former South West Student Chef of the Year) recruited two friends he met while at the Michael Caines Academy at Exeter College – Declan Wiles and Oli Rosier – to help run the kitchen. With stints of work experience at prestigious venues like Belmond Le Manoir aux

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Gather, 50 Fore Street, Totnes TQ9 5RP; 01803 866666; gathertotnes.com

Devon’s oldest apple variety, no less. Next is egg – this one’s been removed from its shell, poached and returned to its casing, before being given a foamy topping. Sure, it sounds odd and complicated, but tastes truly divine.

Tortellini with garden green velouté is next, made from chard, spinach, hogweed, yarrow and cavolo nero. Fresh and vivacious, it smacks of summer.

Then, cured salmon topped with caviar. It’s bold and creamy; slivers of cucumber helping to cut through the richness.

The star of the menu, though, is undoubtedly the rabbit Wellington, the meat caught locally by McCabe Butchers in Totnes, in true shot-to-pot fashion. It’s presented as a classic Wellington, wrapped in spinach, mushroom duxelles, crepe and puff pastry and served with braised leg and root veg. The meat is exquisitely cooked: silky, rich and enveloped in buttery, melting pastry. The braised leg is mighty fine too, with no gristle or chewiness, which is so often found in gamey meat.

We move onto blue cheese served with apple tarte tatin – creamy cheese and acidic apple happily playing off against one another – followed by a mint ice cream with chocolate. Both dishes are tasty but lack a bit of wow factor. The dessert of raspberry mille-feuille and vanilla ice cream makes up for this, bringing a satisfying end to a satisfying meal.

Like Elly Wentworth’s The Angel in Dartmouth, Gather is a fresh and bold concept, showcasing the skills of the next generation of British chef talent. Where it lacks a bit is in inventiveness with the ingredients. Having gone almost straight from college into their own kitchen, the team perhaps lack the culinary confidence they might have gained

had they worked for longer under more established chefs. But that’s a minor criticism; I’m certainly not about to knock these guys for trying where so many others fear to tread.

What’s encouraging is the passion and ambition evident in this young team. The duo in charge of front of house are young and enthusiastic and genuinely interested in what they’re doing. Likewise, you can see that Harrison and his kitchen team are a talented bunch, refining and honing their skills as they develop and gain more experience. It’s nice to see such hard work and ambition in action. I look forward to watching these chefs grow.

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COOL CAFÉS

SACRED GROUNDS

THE RUN-UP TO ITS FIRST BIRTHDAY SEEMED TO JESSICA CARTER THE IDEAL TIME TO GO AND SEE WHAT’S GOING DOWN AT ONE OF EXETER’S MOST NIFTY CAFFS

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P H OTO S : A N G E L A WA D E

A F T E R S

a

ll those of-the-moment, style-related adjectives would be put to good use to describe the look of Exeter’s Sacred Grounds. Urban. Industrial. Scandi. Retro.

They all sit particularly well with this contemporary café.

Natural wood clads the ceiling while the entire length of one wall is a mixture of bare and painted brick. Furniture is vintage, with mid-century colours, patterned Formica-topped tables and Ercol-style, spindle-backed chairs. An abundance of plants hang from the ceiling and sits on shelves, spilling their greenery down the walls. Naked bulbs, fashioned from twisted neon tubes, are suspended overhead, while underfoot is polished concrete, partially covered with thickly woven jute rugs. A charcoal-coloured steel support provides both form and function in the wellput-together space – which doesn’t, somehow, feel too self-aware or try-hard.

The café’s style has not a small amount to do with the trio behind it – Becca Allen and Nathan and Hayley Maker – having worked together on several design projects, including cool lifestyle shop No Guts No Glory, just across the road.

Sacred Grounds, which opened in October 2018 in the former Camper Coffee Co site, is a large presence within McCoys Arcade on Exeter’s Fore Street – its frontage of wall-to-wall glass folding doors helping with that (as well as allowing light to rush in, keeping the space feeling bright and airy while still cosy). The café’s bleed into the rest of the shopping space is also accomplished by the large collection of chairs and tables that spill out of the dining room proper, and into the arcade and up towards its entrance. It’s unclear where one ends and the other begins.

Sacred Grounds, McCoys Arcade, Fore Street, Exeter EX4 3AN; 01392 791440; sacredgrounds.co

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The arcade looks rather different now to the way it did a handful of years ago too: from an oft-forgotten corner of town, it’s morphed into a characterful little pocket of cool independent businesses, having undergone a bit of a spruce up not long ago. And it’s buzzing on the Tuesday lunchtime we swing by.

The menu’s pretty concise, the team having but a very small, very open kitchen to work with – although that doesn’t seem to limit their creativity in any way. Brunch is at the core of the offering, in the form of waffles (which come savoury with caponata, confit tomatoes and watercress pesto, and sweet with roasted peach, macerated strawbs and crème anglaise), overnight oats and things on toast – although there’s a healthy helping of lunch options here too, with soup, sarnies, salads and smørrebrød-style loaded slices of sourdough.

The latter come piled with creative toppings – ours, for instance, stars Korean barbecue-glazed tofu (£8). The flavour of the sticky, tangy crust holds its own among the colourful muddle of pokey kimchi, satay paté, miso chilli mayo and zingy pickled red cabbage. Finished with sliced spring onion, sesame seeds and dressed salad leaves, it’s a really decent lunch – adventurous but not fussy.

More of the same cooking comes in the form of a vivid salad (also £8). A jumble of summer veg, golden chickpeas and brown rice forms the bulk of it, while sliced avocado, pink pickled onions and a lemon and tahini dressing sit on top. It’s the kind of lively, filling salad that couldn’t be further from the image of limp lettuce that the word usually conjures up.

Coffee comes from local Roastworks Coffee Co and sits on the drinks list next to a collection of lattes starring homemade syrups (think beetroot and orange, turmeric and ginger), as well as juices and smoothies. Speaking of which, the Indulge ’n’ Nuts smoothie (£4.50) is all kinds of sweetsavoury deliciousness, with cacao, peanut butter, maca and lacuma (fear not, smoothie novices, you don’t need to know what those last two are to enjoy it), and it was a struggle to make it last the whole meal.

It hasn’t come up yet, but Sacred Grounds is a vegan café. Shunning animal products doesn’t seem to be in any way restrictive to the food, though – it certainly doesn’t make the brownies less dense and decadent, or the ‘cheesecake’ any less popular (alas, it had run out by the time we arrived).

This is a really likeable caff that’s got the looks and the charm – and, most importantly, the food to back the rest of it up.

L I T T L E

B L A C K

B O O K

KAREN SKERRATT

AS ONE OF THE BRAINS BEHIND EXETER GIN, KAREN SURE KNOWS HOW TO GET THE MOST OUT OF HER LOCAL AREA…

Favourite grocery shop? Darts Farm, so that we can support local producers.

Best wine merchant? Christopher Piper Wines has a fab selection – as does Jaded Palates.

Sunday lunch? There are so many I love, but mostly we head to our local, The Ship Inn on Teignmouth back beach, for a scrumptious roast and the best views.

Posh nosh? River Exe Café. Seafood is such a precious and delicious food source – it takes a lot to beat it.

Food on the go? Scotch eggs (both vegan and regular) from Chandos Deli. The egg is always runny in the middle.

One to watch? The Big Kebabski. This vegan street food vendor is completely smashing it wherever it goes, and followers are growing massively by the day. It’s converted so many to vegetarian food.

On the hit list? The Salutation Inn, Topsham. We get very little time, but this is definitely top of our list to visit next.

With friends? Crabshack in Teignmouth. It’s small and intimate: we can have a great meal at a great location and enjoy the time without feeling overwhelmed by noise.

Child friendly? The Turtley Corn Mill, South Hams. The outside area is incredibly beautiful with lots of ornate fowl and peacocks that eat out of your hand. And it has a beautiful lake setting.

Best curry? The Old Workshop does curry and quiz nights, which are always sell-outs.

Best atmosphere? Hanlons has a great vibe. You can see the award-winning ales being made while enjoying a drink and eating hearty food.

Something sweet? Granny Gothards. Amanda made a sorbet with our gin, which was incredible.

Pet-friendly? Beer Head Bistro, Beer. They welcome pets, and not only is the food amazing but the hospitality and views are unbelievable.

Super service? Gidleigh Park stands out for me – the staff are all over it. The service is of such a high standard.

Cheeky cocktail? Southernhay House Hotel, Exeter. The location and surroundings are so decadent.

On a budget? Fish and chips at The Fish Shed at Darts Farm, sitting outside. Simply delicious.

Quick! Now add this little lot to your contacts book...

Darts Farm, Topsham EX3 0QH; dartsfarm.co.uk Christopher Piper Wines, Ottery Saint Mary EX11 1DB; christopherpiperwines.co.uk Jaded Palates, Chagford TQ13 8AH; jadedpalates.com The Ship Inn, Teignmouth TQ14 8BY; theshipinnteignmouth.co.uk River Exe Café, River Exe; riverexecafe.com Chandos Deli, Exeter EX1 1GN; chandosdeli.com The Big Kebabski; facebook.com/thebigkebabski The Salutation Inn, Topsham EX3 0HL; salutationtopsham.co.uk Crab Shack, Teignmouth TQ14 8BY; crabshackonthebeach.co.uk The Turtley Corn Mill, Avonwick TQ10 9ES; turtleycornmill.com The Old Workshop, Bishopsteignton TQ14 9TD; oldworkshop.org Hanlons, Newton St Cyres EX5 5AE; beerfactorykitchen.com Granny Gothards, Budleigh Salterton EX9 6LE; grannygothards.co.uk Beer Head Bistro, Beer EX12 3AH; beer-head.com Gidleigh Park, Chagford TQ13 8HH; gidleigh.co.uk Southernhay House Hotel, Exeter EX1 1NX; southernhayhouse.com The Fish Shed, Topsham EX3 0QH; dartsfarm.co.uk

exetergin.com

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