A selection of news stories from the latest issue of appetite…
Chocs…hurray!
Chocolate addicts love the new chocolate afternoon tea at Close House Hotel, with its tiny chocolate and raspberry sacher gateaux, double chocolate and Griottine trifles, bitter chocolate and orange tartlets and white chocolate and lime roulades. The experience is completed with an elegant 1920s-style silver tea set and a glass of champagne or a chocolate cocktail is also available.
Indulgent!
Close House, Heddon-on-the-Wall, Newcastle, NE15 0HT, tel 01661 852 255, www.closehouse.co.uk
More more more!
Here at appetite magazine, there’s nothing we like more than café culture, and the new courtyard café at Newcastle’s historic Assembly Rooms is a gem. Positioned conveniently for Central Station, this is a new distraction on the way to work, offering all manner of homemade sandwiches, soups, quiches, cakes, pastries, tarts and – hullelujah! – gluten-free cupcakes and muffins. Try the Cosmo cupcake, which has a vodka and pomegranate-infused topping, and the parmesan and paprika scone fresh out of the oven.
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Taking the biscuit
Surprising news from the usually sedate world of the BBC, where presenter Jonathan Miles is revealing his feminine side and, along with colleagues Carol Malia, Jeff Brown and Alfie Joey, taking over David Kennedy’s Food Social restaurant at The Biscuit Factory for BBC Children in Need.
BBC Radio Newcastle presenter Jonathan has chosen Children in Need on November 8 to unveil his alter ego – sex therapist Vanessa Café from Seaton Delightful (ahem!) – at the restaurant.
Vanessa is a tribute to Jonathan’s cousin, the late Dick Emery (who knew?), whose peroxide blonde creation Mandy (‘Ooh, you are awful, but I like you…’) was much-loved in the1970s.
Now Jonathan hopes Vanessa Café will prove as popular with the audience at Taking the Biscuit for BBC Children in Need.
“I hope people will warm to the dear with a tear,” says Jonathan. “She is no Marilyn Monroe, but I have a talented comedy team writing a sketch and Look North’s Carol Malia alongside me for support.”
Alfie Joey, who co-presents BBC Radio Newcastle’s Breakfast Show, will also perform a stand-up routine and a music act alongside Look North presenter Jeff Brown on the night.
Tickets are £39.50 per person for those wishing to wine and dine, and there is a limited number of on-the-door tickets at £5 each (show only).
David Kennedy’s Food Social, Biscuit Factory, Stoddart Street, Newcastle, NE2 1AN, tel 0191 261 1103, www.thebiscuitfactory.com
Hot news
The World’s first-ever chilli umami paste – from Dan May, founder of Trees Can’t Dance in Northumberland – has been launched following months of testing in Dan’s top secret chilli-cave near Haltwhistle.
This savoury, sharp, sweet and sour paste provides a mouth-watering chilli-infused hit to any savoury dish, whether it be a marinade, dressing, sauce, soup, stir fry, curry or stew.
Umami translates as ‘savoury deliciousness’ (and isn’t it just!) and was first identified as a taste by Japanese professor Kikunae Ikeda (our hero) in 1908.
Joining the four pillars of taste – sweet, sour, salty and bitter – umami was only scientifically verified in 2000. Since then it has rapidly become a favourite among chefs who use it to give depth and roundness of flavour to a variety of dishes.
We like this recipe using the paste, from Dan’s excellent new book – The Red Hot Chilli Cookbook.
Northumberland-made Trees Can’t Dance Umami Paste is now avialable at Sainsbury’s priced £2.20 for a 120g jar. The Red Hot Chilli Cookbook by Dan May is priced £16.99
Moo-vellous news
Congratulations to Acorn Dairy, awarded Best Organic Dairy in the Soil Association Organic Food Awards 2012 (Acorn’s Caroline Tweddle is pictured with farm bull, Frazzle, above). Available through veg boxes, selected milkmen, farm shops, delis, Waitrose and Morrisons, Acorn is a family business based near Darlington. Awards judge Lynda Brown said: “The farm is a gem. Its farming practices, its commitment to care for the environment, animal welfare and its obvious dedication to its customers is inspirational.”
