Slow Food UK

Slow Food UK is a non-for-profit organisation that focuses on sustainability and locality to source delicious food. Its focus is to reconnect people with where their food comes from and to help them develop a better understanding about provenance.

This week marks The Slow Food UK Week (18 to 24 June), and to champion its cause the organisation is running a number of foodie events in conjunction with its 53 Slow Food UK Chef Alliance members who are committed to the Slow Food cause. The events are listed on its website and are open to the public. I attended an event on Monday evening hosted and cooked by Francesco Mazzei (L’Amina), Giorgio Locatelli (Locanda Locatelli) and Angela Hartnett (Murano) at L’Amina called ‘Eating the Italian Way’.

L to R: Francesco, Cat Gazzoli (CEO, Slow Food UK), Angela and Giorgio

(Continue reading her story…)

Rocky Road to Caramel Extra Thick Easter Egg

To commemorate the chocolate-y spirit of the Easter holidays, Hotel Chocolat have brought out a deluxe range of hugely fun Easter eggs, including a selection of extra thick chocolate Easter eggs. Fantastic to look at, these eggs have an extra thick chocolate shell which is filled with more chocolate delights inside.

Double the egg-citement

As an added bonus, the Rocky Road to Caramel Extra Thick Easter Egg has been created for double the pleasure. Both extra thick half-shells are made from Hotel Chocolat’s trademark 40% milk chocolate, with one half studded with crispy puffed rice, cookies and chocolate chunks; and the other layered with a delicious caramel chocolate.

The goodness inside

Inside the delightful journey of discovery continues. There are scrumptious pralines with cookies, liquid caramels, solid bunnies and chicks cast in milk, and much, much more. What an egg-stra fantastic way to eat your chocolate-y way through Easter!

This is a paid-for product write-up.

Hotel Chocolat Head over Heels Valentine Box

As you know, next Tuesday is Valentine’s Day. A day for amour, Hotel Chocolat has returned to the golden age of romance with their luxurious Valentine’s Chocolate box selections which will set your heart alight.

Take the Head over Heels Valentine Chocolate Box. As a gift, this will be sure to seduce with its beautiful white box and glamorous satin ribbon. Inside is a lovely range of smooth creamy chocolates containing an irresistible range of fillings. There is the champagne truffle, a milk truffle filled with a classy dash of champagne; and an amaretto amour with a touch of amaretto and crushed amaretti biscuit to complete its allure.

I also couldn’t help but fall for the decadent heart-shaped chocolates. Gorgeous looking in colour and design, these included a raspberry rapture, a white chocolate filled with a tangy raspberry cream that tingles on your tongue. What a great way to celebrate Valentine’s. Here’s wishing you a very romantic and sexy day!

Hotel Chocolat Head over Heels Valentine Box

This is a paid-for product write-up.

Hotel Chocolat

Christmas has to be the most wonderful holiday of the year. And just in time for this special holiday season, Hotel Chocolat has brought out their Sleekster Classic Christmas Selection for some much deserved indulgence. This gorgeous looking box contains a selection their fantastic premium chocolate combined with all the traditional much-loved flavours of Christmas. Christmas and chocolate – what could be better?

Hotel Chocolat Sleekster Classic Christmas

(Continue reading her story…)

It’s hard to believe that Christmas is around the corner. (Where has the year gone?) For most people, including me, Christmas is all about eating (and presents of course), and the meat to grace most dining tables during this time of year is the turkey.

A few weeks ago, I was fortunate enough to be invited to visit the award winning Copas Turkey Farm to see the very very special free-range and free-range organic turkeys that they breed for the Christmas dining table.

Copas Turkey Farm

It is hard to know when you are selecting a product with a free-range label, whether what you are buying is indeed free-range. But it was obvious from our walkabout of the farm that the birds roam freely. (And boy are they noisy as well as nosey!) Copas Turkeys are brought in as chicks from a hatchery when less than 24 hours old and bred for 24-26 weeks to allow them to reach full maturity. Not all turkeys on the market are bred to maturity. Instead, some are bred to a much shorter cycle as it’s more cost effective. But fully mature birds contain about 30% more meat than non-mature birds of the same weight. Furthermore, they yield more flavour.

What is also interesting about the Copas Turkeys is that they are dry hand plucked. Hand plucking is a very labour intensive and costly process. But this is done for a couple of reasons. Firstly, wet plucking poultry increases the chances of bacterial contamination. Furthermore, birds cannot be hung if wet plucked, and Copas Turkeys are hung for about 2 weeks before the Christmas distribution period for greater tenderness.

A proud turkey

Started in 1957, Copas Turkeys is a family business, and the best part of the day was getting to sit down with members of the Copas family in their lovely home for a fabulous full roast turkey dinner with all the works, not to mention Mrs Copas’s fantastic pear tarte tatin made with pears from her garden.

A beautiful roast

Nicely carved by Mr Copas

Fantastic roast potatoes by Mrs Copas

My very full plate

Pear tarte tatin

Genuinely hospitable people, the family live and breathe turkeys with a passion. From what I saw at the farm and from speaking with the family, it is evident from the Copas Turkey is a product you can believe in.

To check out where you can buy a Copas turkey, go to their website. You can also order one online.

And finally, many thanks to the Copas family for their warm and kindly hospitality.

Hotel Chocolat Sleekster Easter Egg Box

Hotel Chocolat have brought out a cracking array of Easter chocolates for Easter sharing. The slinky Sleekster EGG BOX Collection contains an exciting range of mini eggs filled with irresistible fillings.

For fruit lovers, white chocolates filled with tangy strawberry and blueberry ganaches are available for your eating pleasure. Caramel enthusiasts will surely enjoy the caramel egg filled with a luscious liquid caramel centre.

Hotel Chocolate Easter chocs

If like me, you’re a praline girl (or boy), then you might find yourself captured by the scrumptiousness of the melt-away hazelnut praline egg with a mellow caramel chocolate shell, or the milk egg with a velvety smooth hazelnut praline centre.

And for something a bit more adventurous, what about the single malt (Speyside whisky) egg, or the creamy amaretto and white chocolate egg?

With something for everyone, this Sleekster EGG BOX Collection will satisfy all your Easter chocolate eating fantasies.

Hotel Chocolate Easter chocs

This is a paid-for product write-up.

Hotel Chocolat Valentine's Melting Hearts

For Valentine’s Day, Hotel Chocolat have brought out a selection of chocolates to win over your sweatheart. The H-Box Melting Hearts selection is a gorgeous assortment of heart-shaped milk, dark and white chocolates filled with meltingly delicious centres and prettily decorated in passionate pink and cherry red swirls and twirls which make a perfect Valentine’s Day Gift.

For the zesty fruit lovers, there are the ‘Raspberry My Heart’ and ‘Strawberry Love’ white chocolates filled with tangy raspberry creme and dreamy strawberry ganache.

For those who lean towards a bit of nuttiness, there is the ‘Pistachio Praline’ which delivers a melt-in-the mouth pistachio experience, not to mention the explosive ‘Peanut Passion’.

Inside the box

And if caramel is your poison, then you will never be able to pass up the ‘Liquid Caramel’, a 40% milk chocolate filled with oozy, salted caramel.

You may buy a box for your love, but after tasting one of these chocolates, you may want to eat the whole box yourself! I certainly have…

This is a paid for product write-up.

So here is a list of my top ten UK restaurants of 2010. I wish I could take the credit for coming up with the idea of doing this list, but I can’t. TopTable emailed me a few weeks ago and asked if I would come up with a top ten which they have kindly published on TopTable. Here is the link to their site if you want to check it out (click here). Anyway, I thought it was such a cool idea that I’ve replicated my list below.

It was pretty tough trying to decide which restaurants to include. There were so many factors to take into consideration, eg, food, price, overall experience, etc, but on balance, these are the restaurants which I have enjoyed the most this year. All the restaurants are UK based, but for good measure, I’m going to throw in Providence in LA as one of my top eats of 2010 as they were absolutely fab.

So here’s the list of my top ten UK restaurants of 2010:

(1) Barrafina

This has to be one of the best restaurants in London at the moment and it’s easy to see why it draws in the crowds. The food is simple, but delicious and fresh. The experience of dining at Barrafina leaves you wanting more.

(2) Apsleys

My first visit meal at Apsleys was uninspired, but my second visit was mind blowing. Head chef Massimiliano Blasone executive sous chef Marco Calenzo really know how to cook. Flawlessly executed, the meal was so exquisite I still dream about it.

(3) The Ledbury

Aussie boy Brett Graham serves wonderfully creative haute cuisine at this Notting Hill gem. He deserved his second start this year.

(4) Galvin La Chapelle

Brothers Chris and Jeff Galvin again serves up top-notch French cuisine in what must be one of the most stunning dining rooms in London. If you ever wanted a venue to impress someone, this is a choice that cannot be overlooked.

(5) Bistro Bruno Loubet

Solid French cooking boasting of tasty, robust flavours. Their pea soup à la Française was a jaw-dropper. It’s the kind of place you know you can’t go wrong in. Pretty reasonably priced as well for this standard of cooking.

(6) Polpo

I think the wait for a table here is horrid, but the food is good and great value for money. Their flourless cakes are to die for.

(7) Ottolenghi

I am not a vegetarian, but the dishes at Ottolenghi, a lot of which are veggie, are good enough to make me want to become one! Yotam Ottolenghi only uses the best seasonal ingredients and spices it up to produce a balance of wonderful flavours. With a stint in the pastry kitchens of The Capital and Baker and Spice, it’s easy to understand why his desserts are an unadulterated pleasure.

(8) Sedap

Cheerful hole-in-wall which, in my opinion, serves the best char kway teow in London.

(9) Dean Street Townhouse

The cooking is very good, although the service can get a little rushed during peak times. But the atmosphere is great fun and the vibe is cool.

(10) Harwood Arms

The Harwood Arms was better before it got its first star (surprisingly). But on the whole, it still serves up great food. For the price and quality, it is still one of the better restaurants in London.

Finally, it wouldn’t do to not mention my worse eat of 2010. For their ludicrously overpriced lobster spaghetti, I am going to have to say Bob Bob Ricard.

And, if you would like to check out the top ten lists of some other bloggers that were also featured on TopTable, click here.

Readers, thanks for hanging out with me and sharing my eating adventures throughout 2010. Merry Christmas, and I wish you all the best for the new year.