Another year has come and gone and we are near Halloween and Christmas once again. The Aldeburgh Food and Drink Festival took place at the end of September and as per last year, the British Larder contributed in many ways to the fringe events. One of my possibly maddest ideas was the Foodie Booty that we hosted in our car park on the 1st of October.

It’s all innocent and a bit of fun. Simple concept: I invited locals to come and sell their wares from the back of their car, van, horse and cart, tractor… It’s an awareness campaign and reiterated our values of buying local, involving the locals and just being us… slightly different.

We achieved all of that and saw a good turn out comprisig an eclectic mix of produce for sale, from Lottie Lin’s marvellous kitchen paraphernalia, cook books, garden produce, chutneys and wonderful baked goods, Pump Street Bakery’s bread, and Rob Sledmere from Suffolk Providore with his sweetcorn, to Professor Baker with his “wombats” (aka pickled walnuts).

We get plenty of wonderful glut delivered to the pub from our regulars such as the fantastic squashes from Mr. Atkinson, also know as the “Funky Squash Man”, pumpkins from Lottie Lin, quinces and apples from Victoria Sangster’s marvellous garden, to Dianna’s walnuts. We are grateful for these contributions and even more grateful for the fantastic friends we made due to our bartering system. We all have something in common and that is a great feeling.

The foodie booty kicked off at 6am whenDingley Dell Farmer Mark Hayward brought the pig for the hogroast, fired it up and a lot of coffee drinking and nattering took place whilst the piggy was roasting.

The stall holders arrived from just after 9am. It turned out to be a hot sunny day; finally the summer we have been waiting for.

All in all it was a good day. We had a good turnout of people buying wonderful locally produced foods and we got the chance to test drive our new concept of a foodie booty.

This pumpkin chutney is our recipe in celebration  of Autumn, after all I have been inundated this season with the finest pumpkins in East Anglia.

A huge thank you to:

• Mark Hayward,  Dingley Dell
• Roger and Pat, Pump Street Bakery
• Rob Sledmere, Suffolk Providore
• Lin Carter, aka Lottie Lin
• Richard, Sutton Hoo Chickens
• Professor Baker, aka the Wombat man
• Davind and Francess, Village Veg
• Emma, Nut Tree Farm
• Emmerline, Smy Chutney
• Wendy, Melton Cakes
• Richard Isaac, The Old Sweet Shop, Woodbridge
• Graham Owston, The Saxmundham Honey Man

The spring this year was baking hot and we longed for rain. Now that summer is here the skies are overcast with heavy grey clouds and I’m tempted to turn the central heating on. It’s crazy!

The brightness and beauty of this soup is perfect for any occasion; it definately brightens up my day. If grey and cold serve it hot with a large chunk of freshly baked bread or if it’s hot and sunny serve the soup chilled along with a chilled glass of pinot gris.

The best chef’s tip for how to keep a green soup green is to ensure that the cooking time for the greens are as limited as possible and that the soup is chilled, preferably over ice, as quickly as possible. This will ensure a deliciously bright green soup. I also recommended making this soup in small batches, to ensure the bright green colour.

What is buckler leaf sorrel? The buckler leaf sorrel is a hardy perennial herb producing small insignificant green flowers in the summer and has shield shaped green leaves that taste as similarly tart as Granny Smith apples and kiwi fruits. Like common sorrel, buckle leaf sorrel has a sharp citric irony taste. Buckler leaf sorrel is also known as French sorrel and is native to the mountains of southern and central Europe and southwest Asia. This sorrel variety is more succulent and acidic than those of the common garden sorrel. In traditional folk medicine buckler leaf sorrel was used as an antiseptic because of its high vitamin C content and was believed to prevent scurvy. In addition to being rich in vitamin C it is also high in vitamin A and is a good source of iron.

In light of this, however, I think we managed perfectly well. From quince chutney and purees to crumbles, curds and jellies, quinces featured on everything and anything from breakfast items, soups, starters, mains, desserts and also on the cheese boards. We even managed a seasonal cocktail we called a Quince Collins, using a quince vanilla puree mixed with gin and topped with soda water and plenty of ice.

We are now to the bare bones and the last tray of stored quinces. It’s almost sad and I’m slightly panicking as I’m not sure what the next glut is going to be!

Steve and I are flipping coins as to who is getting the final few. Well, as two grown ups we decided that we should share it equally, how civilised!?

I made the final batch of medlar and quince jelly with quince curd for desserts and Steve is serving his quinces up in this delicious and dare I say very festive starter.

We have already discussed that once the quinces run out we shall change over to pears.

If like us you have a glut of quinces, try these recipes:

• Medlar and Quince Jelly, Quince Curd and Garibaldi Biscuits
• Twice Baked Quince and Hazelnut Crumble with Quince Custard
• Quince Brule Tarts
• Quince Curd

For me it’s not really Christmas unless I make my own cranberry sauce. There is something so very gratifying and satisfying about making my own. It’s much cheaper to buy ready made cranberry sauce but to have the Christmas feel and spirit going I’m sorry to say; I have to make my own. The great people from Suffolk Mud make a delicious version that is just as good as home-made cranberry sauce.

This recipe is simple and very easy to make, there are no tricks and it’s not even that time consuming either; it just needs a bit of love, care and attention. In my case it gives me good reason to buy a bottle of Port, crack open a box of cheese biscuits and get the Stilton out. It’s a great tradition for me to make cranberry sauce whilst indulging in the seasonal Stilton and sipping on a glass of port.

I suppose for what it’s worth if this gets the Christmas spirit going then the cost of making your own is actually…lets say… priceless!

Pomegranates are coming into season and butternut squashes are perfect for harvesting and cooking. This dish is perfect at this time of year and can be tossed together simply and quickly. It’s a delicious recipe to pull out of the drawer on a miserable day, and brings a real splash of colour to dull wintry weather.

Autumn and Winter is not only about hearty stews and boiling hot soups but the occasional salad served either warm or cold is a refreshing break. We regularly enjoy meals without meat or fish and this dish is that all in one nutritious meal without the meat. Saying that it’s also perfect to be served as a side dish with whole baked wild sea bass or a joint of roasted shoulder of pork.

This really is an ideal one tray wonder recipe. If you like the “family style” presentation of food then it’s one of those pretty numbers to serve up in the same roasting tray that you used to roast the squash in. It’s a great idea, looks rustic and seriously home-made, and best of all is it saves time. Less washing up is always a preferred option!

I drizzled a wonderful and tasty yoghurt dressing over this salad. I used an interesting ingredient called tahini that is mixed in with the Greek yoghurt and the zest and juice of one lemon. Tahini is sesame paste and one of the main ingredients for making hummus. You can purchase tahini from most high street or middle eastern supermarkets.

We have some amazing people popping by with their wares and even the staff are working hard at it. We have Zac’s family, Kaz and Wane who regularly contribute their duck eggs, wild plums and puff ball mushrooms. Steve’s mum also picked and supplied rosehips for us.

Richard and Jan are known as the “funky squash people”; they regularly drop by with the most amazing squashes, and when we needed fig leaves for the amazing fig leaf ice cream that Brett made for Monday evening’s food festival celebration dinner; they were eager to supply us with wonderful fig leaves.

There is Jeremy who brought us a large load of elderberries, and Jon the forager, who regularly brings us some marvellous looking puffball mushrooms. Jon also supplied the Douglas fir tree for the 3 Michelin starred event.

The lovely Lin has become a good friend of the British larder Suffolk. She supplies us with fantastic organic fruit, herbs and vegetables from her rather large allotment nearby.

How lucky are we?? As chefs we are certainly living the “good life”. We are spoiled for choice on produce and wild foods, and most importantly we are so lucky to have our customers and staff contributing with so much enthusiasm and pride.

I call it fun cooking. We have fun most of the time as our menu changes on a daily basis from lunch to dinner, and we have the flexibility to change and adapt as we receive the wonderful produce.

Then again we must also point out that we do not just take anything from anyone. We are selective and if it’s not looking “safe” we simply say no!

My palate always used to be known as a good one, I had the privilege to taste the food in the restaurant as I was the only lady in the kitchen at that time. They said a woman’s palate is more refined and finely tuned. I loved every moment of the “glory” as I managed to taste nearly everything we served. It honed my palate and made me a very interesting chef. I was looking for perfection with the desire to taste every ingredient and it had to be  perfect otherwise it would have not passed my taste bud test. So I felt privileged that I was not only  learning the very best tricks of the trade but I had something that no one else had at that time in that Michelin kitchen, that’s pretty spectacular. It was so finely tuned that when I went on a wine tasting and palate identification course I guessed 50 out of 50 of the ingredients we had to taste, the gentleman was bemused and lost for words.

These sweeties are pretty special but at the same time I think they are an acquired taste. I planted the camomile bush in my garden two years ago but overtime I had forgotten what it was as the tag had disappeared. Only when Mum came to visit last year she pointed out that it was camomile.  It makes me laugh as I’m so forgetful and a real plonker at the best of times but what a lovely find. When we moved to Suffolk we brought most of our unusual herbs along and luckily this time we tagged them all, just to avoid the confusion.

The smoking process is a interesting but equally tricky one. Suffolk is known for it’s wonderful smoke houses and there are plenty of them around. All with their own style and their own interesting smoked items.

The smoking process for these pears must be controlled, if you smoke the pears too much it will overpower the rest of the flavours and consequently if you to serve it at the end of a meal it could be a bit too strong. Serve them as petit fours or bag them up in pretty see- through cellophane bags and give them as a gift, it makes a pretty decent treat.

We stayed in the glamorous Hudson Hotel with it’s beautiful minimalistic but striking interior and super tiny rooms. You need to be a size 6 to stay in the rooms because there is no room to turn around, Philip Stark did a good job and designed a beautiful hotel but boy oh boy did he not allow any space for ones suitcase. Anyhow we did not spend that much time in the room as we were busy testing out all the foodie establishments.

The hotel is situated near the foot of Central Park near the Time Warner Building and home to Bouchon Bakery. Thomas Keller is a very creative and clever business man. We visited the bakery every morning for a coffee and a different treat every time. We loved sitting at the high tables, close to the counter to watch the chefs at work through the hatch. We found the perfect spot and sometimes found ourselves there for too long observing them. They were superb craftspersons and produced the most stunning and beautiful goods.

Mr.P became partial to a biscuit fairly similar to this salted peanut brittle biscuit. He had the ideas in his head for quite some time to recreate that indulgent buttery salty taste of those Bouchon Peanut Butter Biscuits. The recipe is entirely a development of our own and after a few attempts we finally recreated a recipe that we feel represents the taste sensation of the biscuits of New York.

Watching the world go by in New York City is wonderful and sometimes very amusing too. At Bouchon they baked Foie Grass Dog Biscuits as the early joggers with their posh pooches stopped off for a skinny de-caf, a slice of watermelon and a delectable treat for the dog. We struck up a conversation with the ladies behind the counter as they eagerly told us a tale about a chap that came in regularly to buy himself one of these doggy treats. He was constantly told that the biscuits were for his dog and not for  him but he insisted that  it was delicious and continued nibbling away. Well that story left us giggling all day, typically a tale of New York.

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.

Elderflower cordial has so many wonderful uses and is not only good for a refreshing elderflower drink on a hot summers day but is also perfect for delicious jellies and works a treat in sorbets and ice-creams. The flowers  could be dipped in a light tempura batter and fried until crisp to serve as a garnish for added texture.

I used the elderflower cordial to flavour this delicious crème fraîche tart and paired it up with a lovely array of strawberry treats. Its great fun, you might not have all the tools to make all the garnishing bits, but if you can give the tart a go as it’s simply wonderful.

The recipe for this tart has been in Mr.P’s little black recipe book since he began cooking in 1996. This recipe did cause us a bit of drama and distress as we had filed it’ in a safe place’. We must have  tipped the house upside down looking for it, you can imagine as I do not quite know what it looks like, all I know it’s written in pen on a small piece of paper belonging to this little black book that had lost its cover. We were searching high and low for about a week, Mr.P hardly spoke to me as I obviously got the blame for it’s disappearance. He was walking around like a bear with a sore head who had just lost his best friend. Finally we found the piece of paper and  we could actually get on with making this dish.

To top it all off, the ingredients that we had purchased to make this dish had gone off by the time we found the recipe, so back to the beginning and we started the journey again from scratch. It was definitely worth the effort as it’s delicious and well worth the time, tears, tantrums and effort. I think the lesson learned was not to store things’ in safe places’ or do not purchase your ingredients until you have located the recipe. We are now giggling over the chaos that we caused ourselves; at the time it was quite a traumatic event. Boy’s and their….not really toy’s…but …..well recipes!