St Pancras Sourced Market and Foodie Fortnight

Stations in England are not known as destination for good food  true outisde of London it’s Upper Crust and Mcdonalds , in London they sometimes stretch to a Pret a Manger or Paul. However St Pancras is the exception I know all too well ,  I commute to and from there  most days of the week and I love it’s  bright and airy  feel.

Everyone talks about it having Europes longest champagne bar, and I have seen some lovely  seafood platters,   but it also has a massive range of food outlets and shops for those with a more limited budget  including Peyton and Byrne, Gourmet Burger Kitchen ,Yo Sushi , Chopd. I could go on..

Then last month the Sourced Market launched , I thought I had died and gone to heaven.  It is like a tiny fresh and dry produce market ,  cheese , meat counters, vegetables  and salad bars including produce from  Neal Yard Dairy Cheese, Brindisa meats, English Perserves, Monmouth Coffee, Pieminister Pies , Stewed pots  to name just a few. Sourced have even put in some They even have meat and cheese platters you can enjoy with a glass of wine from the extensive wine selection .

St Pancras is overdoing its foodie credentials with a Foodie Fortnight which runs from the 16th -25th of September featuring demonstrations from Chefs including  Oliver Peyton, Richard Corrigan , Celia Brooks Brown , Atul Kochar , Arthur Potts Dawson) and masterclasses ( cheese , sushi , game , pie making, fruit and veg, cake making and terrines) and tastings (  wine, champagne and chocolate) , tonight it was Oysters and Champage after demonstrating butchery.

A discount card is available giving 10% off most of the shops in St Pancras ( this includes Foyles bookstore)including the Sourced Market it should definitely make waiting for my train go a bit faster

Welsh Wine and Bilberry Pancakes

Back from camping and the Green Man Festival  it was a wonderful opportunity to camp on the site a few days before the festival started properly , despite it being the 4th time I have been to Green Man you never get the chance to explore the area.

The festival is held near Sugar Loaf Mountain on the edge of the Brecon Beacons, Wales  the mountains around dominate the festival but I have never climbed them.

During the three days we managed a walk a day but the most major of which was a walk was up Sugar Loaf Mountain

At the foot of the moutain is the  Sugar Loaf Vineyard well worth a visit they do tours, and wine-tastings with welsh cheese.

Apparently the grapes grow well, so long as there is no heavy rain before the grapes fill with juice and the skin become thin and easily bruised. We bought a couple of bottles an Abergavenny, a medium dry fruity wine and a Rose , which is a new wine for the vineyard but is thriving in Wales. While there I heard an ansaphone message placing an order for a few cases of the sparkling wine, so business is good.

We enjoyed the Abergavenny on the campsite it was delicious and nice to be having something so unexpectedly local.

Some other delicious little berries to be found  this time growing wild on Welsh mountains are  Billberries a little like Blueberries or Blackcurrants they are tart little berries growing close to the ground, flame red and yellow leaves and the season wears on.  Plenty still available on the hillsides though it is coming to the end of the harvest.

They take some gathering without a proper tool but are delicious in pancakes should you inbibe a little too much Welsh wine

Pancake Recipe
1 1/2 cups plain flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
pinch of salt
1 tsp sugar
2 large eggs, beaten
2 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled
1 1/2 cups milk
butter for frying

Make a well in the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar, beat in the eggs, melted butter, and milk, and transfer to a jug
Leave the batter for 20 minutes before using it
Add a dot of butter to a hot pan , once the top begins to blister add the billberries and turn the pancake cook for a few minutes

BBQ Bream In Newspaper

We headed out for a long walk but got stuck in endless traffic but we did end up going past a DIY store there are some big discounts on BBQs to be had a result of the no-show BBQ summer,we have a small BBQ that has been doing us proud over the last few months with BBQs most weekends. However  I have been lusting after a lidded affair the easier to cook joints of meat, a few supermarket affairs have been rejected as looking unsteady or being too small , finally we have treated ourselves to a swanky Weber .

It was tested out on Saturday night with Hugh FW recipe for BBQ fish wrapped in newspaper.  We have had a couple of bream in the freezer since a trip to Nottingham Market , last time we cooked bream on the BBQ , they are such thick fish I resorted to slashing them to ensure they cooked through without drying out . Cooking in paper guaranteed the fish stayed moist.

BBQ Bream In Newspaper

2  bream cleaned ( bream have very thick scales which need scraping off
A few bay leaves and thyme sprigs
A few knobs of butter
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 lemon, plus wedges for serving

1. Lay each fish on some newspaper (three sheets of the Guardian) with a bay leaf , wedge of lemon, thyme sprig and knob of butter  in the belly.
2. Season with salt, pepper  then wrap it up so you have a snug parcel.
3. Soak the parcels in water until wet through.
4. The BBQ embers were white hot and we cooked the packages until charred  about 10 minutes on each side , its very strange cooking some on the BBQ but not really knowing how well they are cooking , but 20 minutes was enough to produce deliciously cooked moist flesh scented with the herbs

.Peeling off the paper the skin came too and it was hard not to get ash onto the fish but it was a really fun way of cooking definitey something to bear in mind for our next camping trip.  I was a bit worried about the safety of the ink , originally fish and chips stopped being served in newspaper due to concerns about hygeine and potential toxicity of the printing ink but modern ink are perfectly safe

To accompany, I sliced leeks and carrots thinly and placed them with a knob of butter , thyme , salt and pepper in a foil parcel which also went on the grills for 15 minutes. These were perfectly cooked and served onto the table in the foil

Chimmichurri Sauce

Definitely not a sauce for those not enamoured of garlic or chilli , Chimichurri is a delicious green sauce or marinade from South America that I can feel doing me good as I eat it . Delicious with chargrilled BBQ steaks or fish we had it last night with  lovely Sirloin steaks and new potatoes.

Chimichurri

Makes enough for 8 servings

5 cloves of garlic minced
Large bunch of parsley , oregano & thyme finely chopped
1 large green chilli chopped
1 tsp of red chilli flakes
5 tbsp of red wine vinegar
1/2 cup of olive oil

Mix together all the ingredients and leave them to mature for at least 4 hours

Hamper for a Camper from Natoora

I recently  got offered  a hamper from Natoora .  Hampers sometimes bring up thoughts of tinned spam and Quality Street,  but this is another league offering delicious Continental and English seasonal food, meat cheese , wine and fresh vegetables boxes,  with 24hr delivery anywhere in the UK,  its like Borough Market online

I am a total UI ( User interface) freak  , and this site is a real pleasure to use , details on each item include proper provenance,  clear pictures and  suitable accompaniments including wine  . Everything arrived perfectly packed with freezer blocks, each item wrapped in greaseproof paper with neat labels. The hamper arrived just in time for a camping trip.

I chose a range of cheeses, meat and vegetables . Although we get some lovely English cheese round here it’s pretty hard to find anything continental other than Brie . I even printed out some notes about each cheese from the website. Each cheese was a decent size ,not just tasting amount and at a good level of ripeness

(clockwise from top left)

• Langres a french cows milk cheese was deliciously oozing with background of smoked bacon
• Morbier semi-soft French cows’ milk cheese named with a layer of ash in the middle and a nutty aftertaste.
• Banon a northern Provence goats milk cheese wrapped in chestnut leaves and tired with raffia and straw. This helps to preserves the cheese which has a fruity and woody flavour

For dinner on the campsite I cooked a pasta sauce using Nduja Calabra a soft spanish salami the  flavour is at first quite sweet, then explodes with the full force of chilli pepper.

Nduja Calabra pasta sauce

Feeds 4

2 large onions
50g of Nduja Calabra
500g of tinned tomatoes
2 sprig of fresh oregano

1. Fry the onions in the Nduja Calabra til softened
2. Add the tomatoes and simmer for a few minutes , add a few leaves of oregano
3. Serve with freshly cooked pasta

Another great liver BBQ recipe this time using chicken livers and  prosciutto. from the hamper I have borrowed this recipe from from the Two Fat Ladies. Sweet, salty deliciousness especially with a dash of balsamic vinegar.

Chicken Livers and Prunes wrapped in Prosciutto

6 chicken livers cut in half
12 slices of prosciutto
12 prunes

1. Simply wrap a prune and half a raw chicken liver in a slice of prosciutto
2. BBQ or grill for just a few minutes on each side

I suspect some of my foodie freinds will be receiving gifts from Natoora over the next few months and they are offering free delivery right now ,so it’s a good time to try some new foods.

BBQ Lambs Liver with red onions , parsley and lemon

Who knew anyone could be more infectiously enthusiastic about seasonal food than Hugh Fearnley Whittigstall and then the BBC finds Valentine Warner a self confessed glutton for fresh seasonal food. A man whose eyes and mouth widen constantly at the sight of the latest seasonal produce. His  show What to Eat Now gives you the best of the season . The current series is summer the topic for this weeks episode BBQ .Warner  covered  a range of BBQ meat , fish and veggires with spicy sauces chimichurri and salmoriglio, I counted more than 12 recipes in a single episode. One thing stuck in my mind as a must try a quickly as possible  BBQ liver,  as a total offal obsessive liver is cheap and healthy and delicious.

BBQ Lambs Liver

One lambs liver makes two large liver steaks or you can cut into strips and place on skewers. Brush the steaks with a little oil ,BBQd  for just a minute on either side keeping them pink in the middle . The taste was exquisite rich liver,  smoky from the BBQ  served with a squeeze of lemon , red onions & fresh parsley to cut the richness of the meat.

Usually we end up with pitta bread when BBQing but again inspired by Warner I wanted to try cooking flat bread on the BBQ people having been doing it for thousands of years and it really was very easy so no more shop bought.

BBQ Flat Bread
4 cups of mix wholemeal and plain flour
2 cups of water
1/2 cup of oil
2 tbsp of yeast
1 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar

1. Mix together the ingredients to form and dough
2. Knead for 5 minutes, leave for a further 5 minutes
3. Divide into 6 , flatten each and place on the hot BBQ grill for a few minutes either side. The bread can be placed straight on the grill bars no pan is required.

The liver would have been enough but like Warner we are gluttons and these little lamb chops have been in the freezer a while

BBQ Lamb Chops

Tiny lamb chops marinated overnight with rosemary lemon and garlic cooked in a few minutes over the BBQ served with olives and sundried tomatoes

BBQ Rib of Beef with new potato & broad bean salad with homemade mayonnaise

I don’t buy meat from the supermarket with great local butchers near my work and close to home and the sadness that usually descends when I look at all the plastic packaged meat in the supermarket.  However  yesterday I did pop into the mecca of shopping for a few bits and pieces .  I did a little swing by the reduced meat section and was surprised  there looking forlorn amongst all the reduced breaded chicken ,a 28day organic aged rib of beef  reduced from £14 to £7.

I scooped it up feeling a little like a shoplifter and stole away to the checkout, managing to forget the washing up liquid I had gone in for .  All Saturday I kept looking up at the sky one second cloudy,then it rained ,then finally the sun and swallows came out. Sun meant I could BBQ the rib (beginning to sound like  a stalker but the idea came from Dinner Diary)

After seasoning the meat well with salt and pepper , it cooked over hot coals for around 25 minutes, turning several times. A water mister sprayed every so often over the coals stops the dripping fat from flaring up and scorching the meat. After cooking I left the meat to rest for twenty minutes covered in foil,  I think resting is very important especially for BBQ or roasted meat , if you have ever struggled with carving resting is the answer.

The result of BBQ and resting was a caramelized outer layer  circling mouth meltingly sweet meat oozing with flavour. This picture shows just half of the meat,  it carved like butter and we only have leftovers due to incredible restraint on my part.

Was debating what to rest the beef with, serendipitously Mark Hix in the Independent was extolling the virtues of homemade mayonnaise . Loving so many of Mark Hixs’ seasonal recipes,  his seasonal cookery book recently won Guild of Food Writers award for Cookery Book of the Year).

I am now a happy convert to making my own mayonnaise ,  using a food processor made it very easy  the recipe is available here) but be  warned it made a good 300ml of mayoniase which will keep us going for a while.

I thought it might be too much just to dip the meat in mayonnaise (though it did happen) so had mixed together a nice seasonal salad of new potatoes ,broad bean & salad onions dressed with lashings of mayonnaise. Perfect summer food

BBQ Pork Ribs with Jerk Seasoning

I am trying not be sad that on a glorious bank holiday weekend we are eschewing our usual camping trips and getting stuck into some DIY , I moved into the lovely Nicks’ house a few months ago , after several years weekends commuting the 100 miles between our respective homes. It’s lovely living with him in many ways but the  floral wallpaper from the previous owner just has to go.

My only break yesterday in six hours of wallpaper stripping was to season some pork ribs Nick has picked up from the butchers , they are becoming firm pals describing meat and as it turns out the butcher knew before I did he was secretly  building a smoker inspired by the online antics of Domestic Goddess in Trainings’ smokin Hubby . I am sitting watching him play with it right now. Thank you Wi-fi

The one kilo of pork ribs had been cleaned by the butcher so all I needed to do was rub plenty of jerk seasoning ( a blend of chillis cinamona , coriander , peppercorns, allspice( jamaican pimento ) garlic and nutmeg ) all over them . I  gave them a bit of a start in the oven 25 minutes at 200deg meant they only needed 10 minutes either side on the BBQ some recipes a read reccomended boiling them first . I have to confess I have never really like ribs viewing them as sticky
sauce covered overpriced bones, but given the noises I was making last
night I think I am a convert perhaps even as an evangelist

They were incredibly meaty with the delicious fragrant heat of the jerk seasoning  and less fat than something like pork belly .  Finally  given my truely pathetic carving of meat I am delighted ribs
pretty much have the dotted line saying  “cut here”.  If the butchers
was open on a Bank Holiday the lovely boyfreind would be dispatached to
buy more

Charcoal Grilled Spiced Leg of Lamb

Yesterday was just about my ideal day , delcious breakfast, long walk full of the joys of spring; lambs skipping everywhere , meadows full of flowers ,picnic in the sunshine .

To finish off the perfect day it had to be a BBQ in the evening ( first of the year) .  I have been reading Claudia Roden Picnics and other outdoor feasts, I found it reduced to 2.50, published in the early 80s and  lacking the glossy pictures of modern tomes its packed with tonnes of delicious recipes from the Middle east to classic British Jellied meats its inspirational and already well thumbed.

Claudia describes grilling a butterflied leg of lamb with rosemary and garlic,  inspired I decided I would try moving beyond my safe zone of kebabs and fish , in part since  the BBQ often stays hot a long time and these foods cook very quickly making me feel a but wasteful.  I decided to got a  bit middle eastern using what has become one of my favourite flavours  Ras al hanout ( blend of roasted cardamom, cloves, cinnamon,parpika ,coriander, cumin, tumeric and rose petals ) .

I couldn’t believe how delicious this was , the lamb had stayed moist it stayed to moist but with that only a charcoal BBQ can give sweet crunchy  smokiness on the outside ( feeling mere twinge of guilt having watched zillions of lambs hop skip and jump there way around the Dales all day). Will be trying this again with some other marinades . Served with a salad made from chargrilled veges and cous cous

Its still a bit cold once the sun goes down so we were wearing hats ,
drinking warming red wine and a bit huddled round the BBQ but the food
tasted amazing so good I think I had thirds.

Charcoal Grilled Spiced Leg of Lamb

1. Rub 3 tbsp of  Ras al hanout spice and half a preserved lemon all over the leg of lamb with 2 tbsp of olive oil, leave for a few hours
2. Once the BBQ is ready to cook .
3. Grill the lamb for 5 minutes on each side close to the coals on each side to sear the meat
4. Moving the meat to the top tier of the BBQ cook for 25 minute on each side
5. Wrap the meat in foil and allow to rest for 20 minutes.
6. Slice thinly and serve with plenty of pitta bread , salad and hummus

Roasted Cauliflower & Cous Cous Salad

BBQ kebabs of cauliflower , pepper and aubergine brushed with a little chilli oil
Once grilled with cous cous , red peppers , olive oil , lemon juice fresh parsley

Some other lovely BBQ recipes

Baked Scotch Eggs

Nick is not a big chocolate fan so when thinking about Easter eggs  decided to make scotch eggs for our camping trip which I thought they would be perfect fuel for walking .
 

We don’t have a deep fat fryer so I was a bit worried about attempting these with a shallow frying pan , fortunately over at FoodStories Helen had carried out a full scientific experiment proving they could be made baked.

These were monster scotch eggs 3 inches wide but totally delicious , I now want to try making with plenty of other fillings , if you are looking for inspiration for sausagemeat flavouring I can definitely  reccomend The Handmade Scotch Eggs Company pages. If my pictures don’t inspire you you can mail order packs of six with morrocan options ,chocolate , black pudding , cheesy  they even have vegetarian options with kidney beans .

Baked Scotch Eggs

Makes 4 Scotch eggs

5 eggs
400g of good quality sausages or sausagemeat ( if you are using sausagemeat you will need to add seasoning , salt , pepper , parsley , sage and nutmeg)
1 medium leek finely chopped
100g of breadcrumbs , made from toasted bread finely chopped in the foodprocessor

1. Hardboil 4 of the eggs , for 6 minutes , remove and plunge into cold water
2. Remove the sausage meat from the skins or  if you are using sausagemeat at this point you will need to add seasoning
3. Mix in the chopped leeks
4. Remove the shell from the eggs .
5. Divide the sausagemeat into four
6. Flatten a piece in your hand , put the egg in the middle squeeze the sausagemeat over to completely cover the egg , complete with all the eggs
7. Refridgerate for 20 minutes
8. Take the uncooked egg and beat on a plate
9. Heap the breadcrumbs on another plate
10. Roll each sausagemeat coated egg first in the egg , then in the breadcrumbs
11. Place on a baking sheet lined with greaseproof paper
12. Bake at 180degc for 30 minutes , turning halfway through.