Peak district farmers market

Hartingtons food fair is more than just another Peak District farmer market it will be a complete food experience.

Not only will you be able to meet each of the food exhibitors and hear their fascinating back story on how they came to be in the artisan food business.  But also you will be able to taste the fantastic array of artisan food from in and around the Peak District on the 4th and 5th of December at Hartingtons first food fair.

Where else could you order your Christmas turkey, buy your Christmas pudding and wines in a seasonal one stop Christmas food shop.

Farmer markets in the Peak District offer some great local food produce but we will offer a total Christmas food experience so why not come along and enjoy?!

Food Fair - Peak District - (nr Chatsworth)

Preparations are well under way for the first Hartingtons food fair (nr Chatsworth) in the Peak District.

We have already signed up most of the stalls.

On the weekend of the 4th & 5th December you will be able taste the delights of artisan cheesecakes, mulled wine, chocolates, Christmas puddings, Christmas cakes, organic locally sourced vegetables, relishes, locally produced sausages, breads.

The stalls will cater for your food needs as well as providing an opportunity for you to buy unique Christmas presents for friends and family at the Hartingtons food fair in the Peak District.

The Real Food Market

What is a real food market?  It's one that allows it's visitors to buy direct from the producers in a way that you wouldn't get from your local supermarket.  Talk to the real food producers.  Hear their real story.  And believe me there will be a story.  How the real food producer set up.  What motivated the real producer to do what they do?  Where the recipes for the food that they produce comes from.  Ask them and you'd be amazed.

The real food festival takes place on the South Bank in London on the first weekend every month with over 40 real food producers.  If you don't live in London.  You could come to Hartingtons real food festival.  This real food event takes place in Baslow nr Chatsworth in the heart of the Peak District.

The first real food market takes place on the 4th & 5th December.  Already you will be able to get the real food story from: Heavenly Cheesecakes, Delishas red pepper relish and Peak Ales a fantastic local real ale producer.

Each of these real food producers is passionate about their food and what they do.  So come along and join the real food movement.

HARTINGTONS - REAL FOOD EVENT - BASLOW nr CHATSWORTH

Greek cookery courses

There are lots of Italian cookery courses out there and who wouldn't want to be able to cook the perfect Italian food.  But how about learning to cook authentic Greek food instead?
Well if you are in London you want to check out the Greek cookery courses run by Elisavet Sotiriadou

These cooking class will show you how to rustle up some authentic Greek food and then be able to take the left overs back to share with friends and family.

Elisavet was a recent contestant in ITV's Britains Best Dish and was commended on her Lagana bread.

She recently held a Greek Cookery Course at the renown Divertimenti Cookery School

Here mission according to her facebook page is to:

"teach food lovers how to make delicious home-cooked Greek food and at the same time give all the participants of each session the opportunity to cook and dine."

Sounds great where do I sign up?

Food fair nr Chatsworth, Baslow

Hartingtons can announce that Heavenly Cheesecakes will be one of the local food heroes attending our Christmas Food Fair taking place nr Chatsworth in the picturesque peak district village of Baslow.

Heavenly Cheesecakes was set up in 2009 by Alison Foster.  We can confirm that her cheesecakes are indeed heavenly.  Especially her blueberry cheesecake.

Why don't you treat yourself by coming along to our  Christmas Food Fair on the 4th & 5th December in Baslow nr Chatsworth to come and sample some of Alison's 'slices of heaven'.  Demand for her cheesecakes is so strong that she will only be attending on the 4th December. So make sure you get your orders in quick!


Hartingtons Food Events

Historical Cookery Courses in Cumbria

A small seventeenth century farmhouse in Cumbria, frequently used as a television kitchen, is the location for a fascinating historical cookery school called Historic Food. 

Group sizes are limited to six participants per course, which means you get plenty of individual attention. You will cook your own lunches, but will get to experience a Saturday night dinner of period dishes cooked by Ivan.

Ivan has an international reputation for his research on British and European culinary history. As well as a scholar, broadcaster and writer, he is also a gifted professional cook and confectioner, noted in particular for his re-creations of meals and table settings. His work has been exhibited in many museums, including the Paul Getty Research Institute, Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Museum of London, Fairfax House, the Bowes Museum and the Rothschild Collection.  

All two day cookery courses cost £280 which includes:

• all tuition
• printed materials/recipes
• lunches (cooked by you, of course)
• Saturday evening Historic Food dinner

These fascinating cookery courses include Tudor and Early Stuart Cooking, Georgian Cooking, Victorian Cooking and Italian Renaissance Cooking.

Most of the courses before Christmas are already fully booked so if you are interested in a course in 2011 may I suggest you book it now  http://www.historicfood.com

Food festivals - October

Any foodies wanting to indulge their love of food have a number of food festivals to look forward to in October.

Up coming in October is the second annual celebration of London's restaurant scene the London Restaurant Festival.  The event takes place from October 4-18 and is designed to celebrate the diverse restaurant scene in the capital with food events and special menus.

Those foodies that love watching a good chef in action should check out the Love Cooking Festival coming to a city near you.  The event includes top celebrity chefs such as Rick Stein & Gary Rhodes demonstrate some of those cooking skills that have made them household names.  These food events are taking country wide right up to Christmas.

Christmas Food festival - nr Chatsworth, Baslow

Cookery school at Billingsgate

Billingsgate Market in London has always been synonymous with fish but I wonder how many people realise there is a fantastic Seafood Cookery School at the market!

The school is run as a charity and not only do they have an amazing selection of specialist courses for people in the trade but they also have a host of really interesting cooking classes for amateur enthusiasts.

Courses include Fish Preparation Knife Skills, Shellfish Courses, a fascinating Sushi Masterclass called Feng Sushi, various evening classes, a Passionate About Fish course ........but what really caught my eye was their 'Catch of the Day' cookery course.

On this course you arrive at 6.15 a.m. when you are taken on a guided tour round the market identifying the different species of seafood which are on offer that day followed by breakfast.

After breakfast the first session is fish preparation, where you cover the many aspects of fishmongering and are shown how to prepare a number of different fish and make a rich fish stock to use for lunch.

The second session covers how to cook fish with a number of the fish demonstrations being served as part of the lunch along with fish you cook on the day. Wine is served with the lunch and the course finishes around 2.15 p.m. with everyone attending taking home 6 species of seafood.

The cost is £185 and it is a measure of how popular this course is that a number of dates before Christmas are already fully booked.

The testimonials on the website for all the courses are full of praise so if fish interests you check the cookery school out at http://www.seafoodtraining.org/

Food Fairs nr Chatsworth, Baslow

This weekend has been very exciting.

Hartingtons have just signed up to put on over ten food fairs in Baslow Village Hall nr Chatsworth.

The first food fair is taking place just before Christmas over the weekend of the 4/5th December.

There will be 16 stalls exhibiting local food heroes. This food fair will definitely have a festive theme with artisan food to suit all tastes and budgets. Whether you are looking for some festive food treats or presents for foodie friends and family come along.

The great thing is that entry is FREE. Come along and join us for a real celebration of local food producers and retailers located within the magnificent Peak District.

For more info go to Hartingtons facebook page

The best Italian cookery courses

I love Italian food. Rich comforting risottos. Wholesome pasta dishes and what about some of those fantastic warming Italian stews.

Italian food is like many forms of cookery is intensely regional. The north of Italy is dominated by the hearty meat based food with lashings of rich cheese sauces. Down in the south in places like Puglia the food is based around olive oil, fish and tomatoes.

The reality is that anybody can boil up a bowl of pasta and add a cooking sauce. But how do you learn to cook real Italian food. Italian food with a heart, just like mama used to make?

The chances are if you want to cook up some really authentic tasting Italian food you will have to book yourself on a Italian cookery course.

Don't worry there are plenty. Here a selection of Italian cookery courses in the UK.

Caldesi in London has an extensive range of Italian cookery courses allowing you to learn how to cook everything from the perfect Italian pizza, to advance courses on how to prepare Italian recipes using game.

If you want to learn how to cook the perfect risotto then the Gables School of Cookery in the Cotswolds puts on a series of Italian cookery courses.

If you are curious about making the perfect Italian pasta or Italian breads or classics like gnochi then the award winning Ashburton Cookery School in Devon holds regular Italien cookery courses.

If you really fancy pushing the boat out what about a 7 day cookery course and gastro tour in Tuscany. As part of that tour you get to go to the central market 'Mercato Centrale' in Florence to check out the fantastic locale produce. The highlight for me has got to be to learn to cook the 'Tirimisu tradizionale' – Traditional Tiramisu. What a way to finish.

After learning to cook proper Italien food you life will never be quite the same again.

Check out Hartingtons Food Fair - Baslow, Peak District

Pudding Pie Cookery School - innovative childrens cooking class

Pudding Pie Cookery School based in the Heart of England are offering fantastic childrens parties in the comfort of your own home, school, village hall; basically any location with kitchen facilities.
Childen of all ages love cooking with their friends and with Pudding Pie they can make tasty delights ranging from cupcakes to pizzas and pasta.They also get to learn important nutritional cooking tips.
At their own Pudding Pie cooking class children can eat their own creations. They also get to take home some of their home made goodies in a party bag as well as some cookery gifts, recipes and their very own chef’s hat.

A novel idea which is worth checking out at Pudding Pie website.