I came up with two recipes for the use of our assignment of cod’s cheeks. One is a “cheeky sandwich” and the other is ”crispy cod’s cheek nugget salad”. The salad and vegetables are from Maple Farm, an organic farm a few miles from the British Larder that produces the most amazing ingredients with a very diverse range.

For both these recipes the cod’s cheeks were coated in either a batter or a crust and then deep fried. The crisp exterior biting into the soft flaky interior makes these little gems rather delicious. It’s a challenge for us to sell these dishes as most people find the thought not as appetizing as I find it interesting. However, perseverance, creative thinking and dish compilation made these two dishes a winner here at the British Larder.

Maple farm is a magical place. A farmer’s dream and a cook’s heaven. From chickens that lay fresh eggs to organic spelt and flour, salad leaves and organic pig. If it can or could be grown or produced organically then they will do so.

Their little farm shop that operates on an honesty basis is usually packed with the finest eggs, perky fresh salad leaves and an array of other organic vegetable, flour and spelt grain and last but not least a freezer stocked with pig.

We love baking with Maple Farm eggs; the yolks are such a vibrant yellow colour that one might be mistaken that food colouring might have been involved.

We hand on heart support the Farm Animal Welfare Week. It’s important that we offer high welfare food items on our menus and tell everyone that we genuinely do what we say we do, and to highlight this, we have joined the Simply Ask Campaign.

The Freedom Food Food Simply Ask campaign is a unique UK assurance scheme run by the RSPCA; not only are all standards mandatory, the standards also cover every stage of the animal’s life from birth until slaughter in a dedication to improving animal welfare. Meat products, dairy and eggs are sourced ethically and locally at the British Larder Suffolk, reinforcing its commitment to animal welfare.

Once we started asking our suppliers about their credentials and “digging” a bit deeper into the rearing and welfare standards they follow we discovered that nearly all of them were either organic or freedom foods approved. I’m not entirely sure why I was a bit surprised, it was a good surprise after all. We realised we are “shopping” at the right places and buy from the right people. We urge chefs and restauranteurs to join the scheme. It’s good for business and if you already fit the criteria why not join the scheme, sign up and get the seal of approval.

Staff food at the British Larder does not consist of dishes from the menu but it’s cooked fresh every day using trimmings and leftovers. It’s also a great opportunity for the all the chefs to experiment, think outside the proverbial box and be creative. Most day’s it’s a bit of a “ready-steady-cook” affair as we might end up with a bit of pig trim, a couple of potatoes and a few hen’s eggs. This Pig Hash is one of Steve’s creations which started off as a staff meal recipe and turned into a “real”dish that we cooked as a lunch special on the menu. It’s a great brunch/ breakfast dish.

Pork is one of the best sellers on our menus. As we are approaching the one year anniversary mark we were talking last week about the amount of pig we have used so far here at the British Larder. Well we are none the wiser as we have no idea…unless I do some serious research…nevertheless we guess that each staff member must have eaten the value of a whole Dingley Dell pig by now! No… that can’t be right, surely…. now that is a scary thought!

Moving to Suffolk always was and still is about the quality of ingredients on offer. We made it our business to move into a region unknown to us and to adapt, absorb and work with the local area. It’s not always been an easy ride however after 10 months we can safely say we still feel the same drive as when we first moved here. We have met some fantastic people along the way and Mark Hayward from Dingley Dell has taken us “under his wing” and supported and helped us along the way. He has also in an indirect way helped us firmly confirm our ethos and what the British Larder stands for.

Dingley Dell farm is no more 2.5 miles from us and and having this high quality ingredient so close provides that all important reassurance we require to ensure that we have made the right choice. We are continuously working with Mark either on new recipes or new concepts. Dingley Dell is a Freedoms Food approved farm and has consequently introduced us to the wonderful world of Freedom Foods. We are proud to say that we take part in the Freedoms Foods Simply Ask campaign and tick six boxes in the freedom food categories of high animal welfare! That is stupendously impressive. We are working hard to tick the final three.

I have a conscience and certainly do not want it to be a guilty one!

Well it all just simply makes sense. I would not serve yet alone work with ingredients where I know an animal might have suffered. Why should my customers have to eat it? I make it my business to know where our food comes from and I know that our customers trust that we take animal welfare and indeed customer welfare to heart. We are also serious about food miles; the closer and more local the better for us.

It’s not always easy as these ingredients sometimes cost more due to not being mass bread, as they are usually from small independent businesses. Ross and I made a promise to support small local producers, farmers and suppliers as we believe that our penny and pound spend  in the county we live in will boost the local economy and those farmers, producers and suppliers can become stronger, develop and consequently deliver better quality and standards for our customers to enjoy. It’s all one vicious circle and it’s hard to stay inside and do the hamster run with it, but most importantly we must not fall out, keep working at it and persevere. So no foie grass for us then!

These magical scotch eggs are perhaps the single most popular dish here at the British Larder. We have a scotch egg for every season. During the game season the Dingley dell smoked ham are substituted for either venison or pheasant scotch egg.

Our secret to the perfect scotch egg is simple:

1. Use free range organic eggs, large preferably

2. Cook the eggs for 7 minutes and dunk them immediately in ice water after 7 minutes

3. Make sure the sausage meat mixture on the outside is tasty, well seasoned and contains the best ingredients you can find.

Simple! The magical scotch egg…done!

The king of vegies and best of all it grows here on my doorstep. The Suffolk sandlings is the perfect place, with its soft sandy soil.

Early on in the season it’s at its sweetest and most tender. The British asparagus season is short but when it’s here we love it! Simplicity is key. For me the humble egg is the best best companion, whether hens or ducks eggs soft boiled with plenty of Maldon sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper.

The team is working hard, we finally turned the waste land by the back door into a tiny…no lets rephrase that…. minute organic kitchen garden. Inspiration for the boys to go out and pick a few flowers, herbs and strawberries. Well it’s not enough for us to serve the restaurant. We heavily rely on as many freebies, from Dans mums garden and a top up from David keeps our fridges filled with summer lushness.

The garden has unfortunately fallen into the hands, mouths and beaks of the two, four, five, ten and twenty legged creatures living out there. However, I’m turning a blind eye, It’s keeping me sane, when needs must, I pop out to “water” the garden and then all the worldly sins are forgotten.

Let them eat…kolhrabi! if it’s the only price I have to pay for my own sanity!

This Keens cheddar brûlée is one of the simpler recipes that highlights the taste of the fantastic asparagus. It’s easy to prepare and brings a wonderful smile and ‘wow’ to the dining table. I did use my beloved Thermomix for this recipe, however, if you do not have one, do not panic. Simply use a old fashioned double boiler. The traditional method is just as effective however it involves stirring and ones constant attention.

The beauty and purpose of the chive flower: They are spectacular, bright purple blue and interestingly beautiful. Not only are they pretty to look at however have several functions. It’s perfect for eating and brightens up any dish. If planted in the garden the purple blue attracts bees, encourage pollination. On the other hand it acts as an insect-repellant and planted to control pests.

There is a very true saying that all good things take time to create and nurture. Well these two recipes will certainly test your patience - and they did test mine! I’m a bit impatient and want everything to have happened yesterday. Well I had to wait two weeks for these pickled eggs to be pickled and the pork scratchings also need 5 days salting before anything else can be done with them.

To create and complete these two recipes required a lot of reading, testing and eating. The fact of the matter is that there’s not much written word about pickled eggs; hence us making up our own, whereas on the other hand pork scratchings had a lot of references. The panel of tasters, developers and testers consist of James who lead the project and did the most of the doing, Tall Dan (he boiled the eggs), Skinny Dan (mainly eating the pickled eggs), Steve, Ross and myself (the three wise ones). Actually I just do the delegating, talking and eating and the rest are doing the deed! Well I’m a girl who knows what I like so they had to do it until we liked it! Simples!

We tried and tested several versions of the scratchings - 8 month’s worth to be honest. However, finally the literary word that won the taste test was the incredibly well-written Pork Scratchings, A Version Of by Fergus Henderson & Justin Piers Gellatly from ‘Beyond Nose To Tail’. We did however put our own twist on this well created recipe as one does, but the principle of the recipe remains the same.

The pickled eggs are kept in a pickle laden with spice so the pork scratchings had to follow suit.

We highly recommend both these recipes and sell the dishes with pride at the British Larder, however it must come with a health warning. “Consume responsibly in small quantities as sensitive teeth might suffer and a slightly tired heart and well-lived body might feel the strain if consumed in large, lavish quantities.” Or if you have a life motto like mine, “eat and enjoy, you only live once!”

I found the original recipe very rich and the treacle was a bit too much for me, especially when the loaf matured after one day, it was very strong. Nevertheless it’s a superb recipe and I love Dans reference to  this recipe being the original British “energy bar”.

We particularly enjoyed it toasted for breakfast with a thin scraping of slightly salted butter and a cup of ‘builders’ tea. It’s the perfect loaf to start my busy and hectic day.

When I first read the recipe I was baffled about malt extract as I had neither heard of  nor used it, so I was slightly unnerved as I did not no where to get it  or what I could use instead. I was determined to make this recipe as it was meant to be, so after a bit of internet research I realised it’s a normal regularly used ingredient. I found that the Julian Graves stores stock malt extract so I trotted off to our tiny town centre and to my sheer delight  I found a jar.

Dan’s recipe says that you can use raisins or prunes, I decided on prunes as I’m not a great fan of raisins. I also chose to use St Peters golden ale and Woodbridge Mills whole meal flour that I had bought from the Snape farmers market last month. I could nearly call this loaf a Suffolk Power loaf, I wonder if Dan would approve ?

I liked the tip of lining the loaf tin with oats, I thought it gave my loaf the perfect professional touch. It looked well rounded off and also added to the final taste.

I feel less guilty about indulging in this loaf as it’s got all the makings of a healthy product, shall we just turn a blind eye to the butter and golden syrup!?

As I found this loaf keeps well and after a day or two it’s even more delicious. I have frozen a few leftover slices and it comes in very handy to be toasted for breakfast.

This malted prune loaf will be lovely in a picnic basket at the seaside as it gives everyone extra energy to enjoy a swim in the sea.

As you know by now I’m not quite normal and find it hard to do things the standard way, there has to be a twist somewhere along the line. Perhaps I’m putting too much pressure on myself to be slightly different or perhaps it just comes naturally.

Mr.P and I enjoy eating a good chicken Caesar salad as it is satisfying and has lots of different textures and does not leave you feeling heavy and bloated.

I made this particular dish into a portion big enough for a main coarse but if you wish you can  make a smaller amount and serve  as a starter.

It’s not always about the gimmicks and twists  that make a great dish but it’s also about good quality ingredients that are to be enjoyed when in season. These baby gem lettuces are from my small kitchen garden and this year I had better success as I introduced kolhrabi, a member of the brassicas. This was planted next to the lettuces and this helped to minimise  the pest problems which allowed us to enjoy a lovely harvest of baby gems. The chicken is from a farm near Sutton Hoo in Suffolk, I go specially to the Snape farmers market to buy these chickens as they are plump and delicious.

These Sutton Hoo Chickens are very big, the average weight is 2kg. This is enough to make stock from the bones and at least two meals for the two of us from the legs and breast or alternatively its sufficient for four people. I roasted the legs, flaked the meat down and then made the small pots of chicken. It’s fun and adds that extra texture and enjoyment into eating the dish. The Caesar dressing and Parmesan cheese also found itself revamped into a mousse textured foam, I served that in a small glass jar on the plate.

It’s great fun, gets a wow at the dinner table and would also make a great dish to take along on a picnic.

At first I thought it would be a quick cook like the wonder couscous, where you add hot water  and it is ready in a flash, but no you must boil it as you do with pasta. I’m not sure if I am disappointed as the preparation is not snappy, however cooking it for 15 – 20 minutes is not that time consuming and it gives me enough time to prepare the rest of the ingredients and make a delicious vinaigrette.

If you cook quinoa it’s got a fairly pale and un-appetising look so I add a teaspoon of turmeric to the boiling water to stain the quinoa a bright yellow colour, perfect for summer.

What is Quinoa? It originated from South America and from the goosefoot specie, a grain like crop mainly grown for its seeds. Quinoa is closely related to beetroot and spinach and has great nutritional value and can be eaten either hot or cold in salads or as part of a main meal or in soups. It’s also makes a delicious high power breakfast mixed with honey, almonds and berries.

This salad is one high powered meal suitable for lunch time, packed with the high protein quinoa, chickpeas and haricot beans along with the crisp celery and peppers. Quinoa has a nutty taste and for that reason I added this lemon tahini vinaigrette. The lemon lifts the nutty taste and the tahini gives the salad that roasted sesame flavour.

This salad is one of those that matures well, I like to make a large quantity and take some to work the following day. It  goes a long way and is perfect for large number of people at a BBQ or a picnic.

Granddad only knew farming and  how to drive a bus, but due to severe diabetes he had to give them up and consequently the illness took him away from us. He was a firm man with very strong morals and beliefs, however he had a heart made of one giant marshmallow.

They had a half an acre of land to the side of the house and granddad tried to grow nearly everything. From paw paws, mangoes, avocados, pecan nuts, tomatoes, cucumbers, plums, peaches, physalis also know as Cape Gooseberries, he tried them all. The house bordered onto a river and amazingly there was enough space on the bank for nasturtiums to grow in abundance. I remember visiting during the summer school holidays and picking these pretty little flowers and putting them in a vase for my gran.

These are the fantastic memories I have of my grandparents, amazingly one does not realise how fortunate you are when your actually living the dream but how invaluable those memories are today.

What is Borage? Borage is a edible plant and both it’s flowers and leaves are enjoyed throughout Europe and the Mediterranean. The flowers are traditionally used in Pimms drinks as it has a ‘cucumber’ taste which can  be substituted with fresh cucumber and mint. The leaves are commonly used in Germany for making a green sauce. In Liguria ,the northern region of Italy, its  used to fill raviolis. Borage is also known for it’s medicinal and cosmetic uses.

I have a bit of everything in my garden and the main aim is to have a large percentage of plants that are edible or have edible fruits. It’s not all successful, however gardening gives me great pleasure. I was suprised when the horseradish re-appeared this year, it’s going wild alongside the lemon balm under the olive tree, which  also bore fruits last year. I planted the borage and nastirtium into pots to liven the patio up and to disguise the very ordinary wooden panel fence.

Last year I also grew carrots but this year I simply ran out of time and did not get round to sow the seeds. So I have to do with carrots from our local farmers market. This dish is made up of two elements, the recipe is mainly about the pickled carrots and the use of the borage flowers and not so much about the gravalax, so I would not be offended at the slightest if you  substituted the gravalax  with smoked salmon.

I’m a pickling and jam making fan, so I  pop anything into a jar which is good for me to keep. These pickled carrots are great, the chillies provide  a bite, which means it’s spicy but nice. It keeps for a long time and comes in ever so handy when you are short of time and need to rustle up an amazing lunch in minutes. I even used the pickled carrots to spice up a stir fry which is unusual but it adds that absolute unexpected and exciting element to the dish.

My motto is ‘make the most of the season’…… happy pickling and jam making!

A few of my other favourtie pickled recipes:

• Sweet & Sour Pickled Green Beans
• Star Anise and Cinnamon Pickled Beetroot
• Cauliflower and Shallot Piccalilli

Upon arrival at Richardson’s smokehouse you are greeted by the smoke  that hangs in a pleasant and welcoming cloud, the grill is laden with fresh fish and ready to go into the smokehouse. Inside the shop you are greeted by Steve and Veronica who are both knowledgeable hard working individuals who can definitely teach me a thing or two about smoking fish, ham and other delicacies.

Steve is an interesting character who does not mince his words and in his own charming manner makes small talk and if you are lucky he might crack a smile but that only happens when pretty ladies walk through the door. His face tells a million stories and he’s the kind of person I would love to listen to on a cold stormy evening, sitting next to a roaring fire in the village pub with a pint of bitter. I bet he has some marvelous stories of the sea and life in general.

The delicacies on display makes my heart pound even faster, I came to buy a smoked ham hock because they are super delicious cured in treacle and cider but I cannot  make up my mind as there are so many wonderful items on display. The super size smoked mackerel with it’s golden silvery skin, glistening rainbow trout, kippers, smoked chorizo sausages and other British bangers, smoked cheddar and blue cheese, woodpigeons, cod roe, smoked garlic and plenty of other interesting goodies fit for a foodies feast and delight.

I walked away with two bags filled with Richardson’s Smokehouse delights. Mulling over his customer service techniques,  it made me smile and I would not have changed a thing as he was charming in his own way and I shall find it hard to forget Richardson’s Smokehouse.

Once we arrived back home with a cool box filled to the brim with Suffolk’s finest from a plump Sutton Hoo chicken, Richardson’s Smokehouse delights, Orford-landed sea bass, sea purslane, asparagus, apple juice, Woodbridge mill’s whole meal flour, St.Peters Honey Porter, Suffolk Gold cheese, to chicken carcasses  from the Sutton Hoo people to make fresh chicken stock.There were plenty of other yummy goodies so  it was time to lay it all out onto the kitchen table and decide what I’m going to cook.

The first thing that came to my mind was to make this delicious smoked mackerel spring salad with smoked ham and rocket cakes and dill crème fraiche served with a chilled glass of the St.Peters Honey Porter.’ Mm’ perfect food to help the thought process on what to do with the rest of the ingredients from my day’s find. This dish plates up beautifully but after lunch and careful consideration I toyed with the concept and realised it would plate up just as beautifully on a serving platter, placed in the middle of the table for diners to help themselves, either way it’s tasty and delicious.