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Wet and wild weather – but warming food! |
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Kathryn Potts writes:
The wet conditions in the autumn are being exacerbated by the melting snow and continue to affect farmers and growers.
Jimmy, The Lamb Man from Wingates tells me he will go home from the January Farmers’ Market in Alnwick to scan his ewes (sounds like yaws). Then, knowing which are carrying twins and triplets, he can adjust their feed accordingly. He knows they are due to start lambing on 5th April and is hoping it won’t be snowing then! The sheep are inside at present enjoying haylage made from the good crop of hay last summer, as there is no grass to feed them in the pastures on the Rothbury hills. Many farmers are short of feed and concentrate prices have increased significantly in the last year. Meanwhile the price of lambs selling at the Auction Marts has fallen by £30 a head because the supermarkets have switched to importing lamb from New Zealand and Australia. Jimmy won’t return to the Alnwick & Morpeth Farmers' Markets until the end of August. I think we are so lucky to be able to enjoy this locally raised hill lamb and the beautiful Northumberland Hill landscape that the sheep graze .... as well as meet their shepherds.
On the game front Caroline Ridley of Ridley Fish & Game will have plenty of rabbit, venison and pigeon - not to mention grey squirrel - for sale through to the end of September, but pheasant and hare has now come to an end.
 Stephen Lowder of Purely Pork, Ord Mains Farm, near Berwick and Carolyn Graham of Greenbrae near Rothbury take great care of their pigs and piglets. Eleven Oxford Sandy & Black piglets were born on 26th January at Greenbrae. Plodding through the mud in the cold to the straw strewn sheds Stephen takes a warm porridge of spent barley to feed to his Tamworth, Gloucester Old Spot and Middle White pigs. All these well looked after pigs will take 6 -7 months to mature compared with the 5½ months for most large scale produced pork. The good food over a longer time is what makes this locally raised pork and bacon so tasty. Stephen now offers dry cure shoulder bacon which is just right for adding, chopped, to a pea soup or bean stew to make an economical warming winter meal.
There are seasons for fish as well and Duane Patterson from Eyemouth reports that flat fish, hake and monkfish are in plentiful supply. Some good haddock are being caught at the end of January and this should continue into February. Then the haddock take off to spawn in March & April and during this time they are rather thin, then, by May they are starting to get fat again, as are the codling and whiting. Duane sells his speciality hot smoked salmon at Alnwick Farmers' Market - he catches salmon with a rod, in the Tweed (which reminds me of Salmon Fishing in the Yemen – a good film I saw last week at a film night at The Ship Inn, Newton which has just been named the CAMRA North Northumberland Pub of the Year). The salmon is filleted, pickled in a salt brine then in a treacle brine and hot smoked for 10 hours. This dark smoked salmon is a favourite of mine with a steaming hot jacket potato and winter salad leaves. I was lucky to have a good crop of potatoes and there are still have a few lambs lettuce and land cress leaves under the snow in the garden as I write this at the end of January. David Ridley says that at present monkfish and codling are being caught off the coast along with crabs and a few lobsters but the weather – especially high winds - has disrupted fishing since the New Year.
A baker at least has a warmer job until they come to market! Andrew Smith bakes in a lovely range of artisan sourdough breads in wood fired oven. Matthew Rawlings of Great Northumberland Bread Co. based in Etal also uses woodfired ovens giving his wide range of breads a characteristic style and flavour. Both source Northumberland grown and stone milled Farmhouse brown and ciabatta flours from Gilchester Organics. Steve Boanas who recently moved Castle Bakery from Ogle to Morpeth uses flours from further afield, producing a superb range of Danish pastries, tartes aux citronnes and Alsatian pflammenkuechen as well as olive- and tomato-breads.
After the worst growing season last year in decades it was clear vegetables were going to be in short supply. David Mellanby still has a good supply of roots such as leeks, parsnips, beetroot, swede and cabbage and sprouts, which should go through to end of March. Julian Negrut who grows greens and roots near Berwick had a poor harvest, especially of greens, and sold out over the Christmas period. He hopes to be back at Alnwick & Morpeth Farmers' Markets at the end of April with cabbages and cauliflowers, but it all depends on the weather. |
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A locally-sourced Christmas |
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Make it a really local Christmas with local produce from your farmers’ market
Traditional North East Christmas food involves local ingredients – and you can get nearly all you need for Christmas at or through your local farmers’ markets
You can order free range turkey or even goose (see the list of local producers on this swebsite) – or you can plan ahead and reserve a bird for next Christmas
There’s also joints of local beef, lamb, pork or traditionally cured hams
For the stuffing there’s proper sausagemeat, locally grown herbs – and several local bakers baking bread that is almost too good for breadcrumbs
all the traditional seasonal veg is there – potatoes, parsnips, swede, carrots, cauliflower, winter greens like kale, broccoli, leeks and sprouts ‘onna stick’ – though you won’t get sugarsnap peas or runner beans at this time of year
And you can buy proper Christmas puddings and cakes - producers start taking orders in October.
There’s a whole range of local Northumberland cheeses, and delicious home-made chocolate and fudge
And, while you can’t buy locally produced claret – you can get fruit wines, liquors and a wide range of beers and winter ales from North East microbreweries.
And – beyond food – you can get:
decorations including holly wreaths and garlands and tree ornaments
and a wide range of original present ideas from walking sticks to candles to original jewelry
Come along to your local Christmas farmers’ market! |
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Slow coming but worth waiting for… |
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Kathryn Potts writes:
My friend Tommy Dixon, now 87 and a retired market gardener, told me this was the coldest Spring he could remember. Certainly hill farmers had a really hard time during lambing with extra food has had to be given to the ewes – and June rain and lack of sunshine has played havoc with the haylage (dried silage) crop. But the sweet, tender hill lamb – delicious with new potatoes and mint – will be at market from midAugust through to March next year.
Julian Negru t, growing vegetables in Berwick, says that with the cold start everything will be later this year. His peas, broad beans, runner beans and signature Romanescu cauliflowers weren’t ready for Farmers’ Markets until August.
Katrina from Bluebell Organics tells us that the fruit and vegetable season is just getting going – with new potatoes in late July and the first of bunches of carrots, onions and beetroot in August. By September there should be a good crop of celeriac and then leeks, kale and Savoy cabbages will come in.
Tomatoes seem to be the only thing that has ripened on time and again lots of different ones – yellow and a favourite pink one called Olirose that people loved last year – also they have two black varieties this year – Black Russia and Black Beauty
Katrina also says that there is likely to be lack of fruit this year because of the cool, wet summer – some apples and pears in October but few plums. |
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Spring Greens and Old Spuds |
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In May the potatoes’ roots are beginning to sprout and the root vegetables are coming to an end, only to be replaced by some real Spring greens – cabbage, purple sprouting broccoli and spinach.
 Until local new potatoes are ready Pommes Dauphinoise is a good way to serve old potatoes – just peel, thinly slice and put in boiling water and boil for a maximum of 5 minutes. Place the slices of potato in a layer on the base of a buttered oven proof dish, then sprinkle some finely chopped onion and lightly season with salt and pepper. Continue layering up and then fill up to top layer with milk (full cream milk or the addition of some cream makes it a creamier) and bake in a hot oven until the potatoes are tender and the top is golden – about 55 minutes at 170ºC.
These are good accompaniments to some tasty sausages, bacon or pork chops.
Fresh shoots of parsley, oregano and tarragon add delicate flavours to many dishes and are especially good with eggs, chicken and fish.
Small young broad beans and asparagus (if you can find any this year!) are real tastes of early summer - asparagus is perfect just lightly steamed or boiled and served with locally churned butter. |
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Leeks, Lamb - and Wild Garlic |
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Leeks , onions, curly kale, purple sprouting broccoli, sprouts, cabbages of all kinds, swede, parsnips, beetroot and carrots are in good supply to give taste, colour and vitamins this winter. “The Boxing Clever Cookbook” by Jacqui Jones and Joan Wilmot groups recipes by month for the vegetables in season – there are nineteen for purple sprouting broccoli alone!
Leek and potato soup is easy to make and wild garlic can add to the flavour – it’s best picked when it is young. Leek omelette makes a tasty supper – sauté the sliced leeks until they are soft and then pour over the lightly beaten eggs with a little milk and seasoning added.
The mild January got forced rhubarb off to a slow start - but there's some about now. The colour and taste of rhubarb crumble is a favourite at this time of year - try cooking the crumble topping separately and then spread over the cooked rhubarb (sprinkle a little arrowroot or cornflour over with the sugar to thicken the juice during cooking).
Northumbrian Hill lamb is available until March and here’s a great recipe for casseroled lamb chops  with mushrooms.
Brown 4 chops and transfer to casserole and place 130 g sliced mushrooms on top. Slowly melt 2 tbsp redcurrant jelly with 1 tbsp Worcester sauce,1 tbsp lemon juice, add a pinch of nutmeg and seasoning.
Add 1 dsp of flour to the fat in the frying pan and blend in 250 ml of stock and mixture from saucepan. Bring to the boil and cook for 2 minutes. Adjust seasoning and pour over the chops. Cook in a slow oven for 1.25 hours.
Venison steaks are good value for money – they so easy to just grill or fry and are tender and filling.
And after a good season for bees last year we can now enjoy local honey – you can really enjoy the taste of the heather honey on buttered hot toast. |
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