Summer Cooking

With the optimistic title of ‘Summer Feast’ our recent cookery demonstration took place in our upstairs cookery school.

Claire started with a delicate cucumber, chili and lemon mousse. Served in individual ramekins this makes a light and fresh starter for a summer dinner party. However it can also be made in one dish and presented with green salad and ciabatta bread as a main course for and outdoor luncheon. 

As the other starter Claire made baked tomatoes stuffed with salmon and capers. Again making use of seasonal fayre this dish had a Mediterranean feel to it. It also had the benefit of been able to be served either hot or at room temperature. Ideal to be so flexible when we never quite know what the British weather is doing! 

For the first main course Alison made lemon chicken escalope’s with pumpkin seed pesto. Using free-range locally reared chicken this dish was flavorsome and filling. The pumpkin was an unusual twist on a pesto sauce. It was a powerful accompaniment and a lovely sauce in its own right. The pesto stored in a kilner jar will keep for a week in the fridge and could be used with other dishes. We served this with a lentil, green bean and parsley salad.

The other main course was paccheri pasta with asparagus. Using local Sand Hutton asparagus Alison made a green vibrant sauce. The pasta tubes were then stuffed with a vegetable filling, stood on their ends and covered with asparagus sauce. This was an unusual and inventive way of using the glut of fresh asparagus around at present. It would satisfy both vegetarians and meat eaters alike for a substantial lunch or supper party main course.

For puddings we had a grape and tarragon pavlova. This dish looked amazing-with an almost psychedelic colour due to the tarragon in the egg whites it was certainly a conversation piece. The AGA cooks pavlova so well and our customers must also have thought the same as the entire dish was polished off! 

The final pudding was a sharp and crisp passion fruit and white chocolate posset. This was served with a freshly made passion fruit curd, which was absolutely delicious. Again this fruit curd made a lovely dish on its own and stored in the fridge will keep for up to a month. 

All in all this was truly a summer feast.

Our next demonstration in the upstairs cookery school will be in September. Please contact us to be put on the mailing list to receive details of all our cookery demonstrations and events.