ONE of Dorset’s best-known farm shops celebrates its 10th anniversary this year. Udder Farm Shop at East Stour, on the A30 west of Shaftesbury, began as a diversification project for farmer’s wife Jane Down and has become one of the success stories of the area. Jane and husband Brian have won many awards for the shop…
HISTORICALLY, the Brits have been brilliant at producing ham and bacon but rubbish at charcuterie – which is why most of the best-known examples of classic charcuterie have French or Italian or Spanish names, saucisson, confit, salami, guanciale, lardo, pancetta, jamon iberico, chorizo et al. But there is a quiet revolution going on in farms…
SUPERMARKETS are losing their power over us all; dodgy accounting on their part and changes in our habits as shoppers are conspiring to make the behemoths nervous. As a result there’s a vicious price war going on – no-one can fail to notice that, and of course we are all going to take advantage of…
IT is just over six weeks to Christmas (scary thought) so it’s time to start gathering some inspiring but affordable presents. Delicious and attractive, a new range of pestos from Pink’s could be the ideal thing for foodie friends. The range includes Watercress and Wasabi, Smoked Tomato, Rocket and Lemon (delicious with grilled chicken or…
by Simone Sekers FACING the chores of everyday life after returning from holiday is never easy, and when that holiday was ten days living in Venice it is doubly difficult. From sitting on our wisteria-hung balcony, watching the humming bird moths hover over the late flowers of a white petunia, as the sun sunk over…
THERE’s a slightly odd question that I’ve been asked more than once: “I’ve never had sheeps’ cheese before – is it very goaty?” Many people assume that anything other than cows’ milk will give a strong flavour of goat that they’ve experienced, perhaps on holiday on the continent, or as part of a recipe. Recipes…
IN the middle of September we were at the 15th annual Sturminster Newton Cheese Festival, and as we sat on straw bales in the warm Indian summer sun, drinking perry, our shopping clustered round our feet, I realised how much things had changed since I first started writing about regional foods. It was a long…
IT’s a sad fact that Britain’s biggest selling “smoked” cheese isn’t actually smoked: look at the labelling and you’ll see that Applewood is described as “smoke-flavoured” and “smoky”. We won’t sell it in our shop – if a thing is worth doing, it’s worth doing properly. Our suggestion to anyone who arrives looking for this…
TO say that my husband is fanatical about beans is an understatement. He collects them as a numismatist collects stamps. When abroad he seeks out shops which sell the seeds, a hobby which has taken us to some interesting back streets in major towns and cities abroad, while our friends spend time in galleries or…
THE National Trust has signalled its commitment to the long term future of one of the country’s favourite heritage breeds of cattle with the arrival of a new Red Devon bull, at the National Trust’s Kingston Lacy estate near Wimborne. For more than a century Kingston Lacy has been one of the main places to…