FARMHOUSE FAYRE
Food has always been a huge part of my life. When you’re surrounded by amazing produce it’s hard not to be inspired to cook. And so from a young age, I’d help Mum in the kitchen. At that time, the mid-1960s, we had cows, sheep, chickens, turkeys. Then we started growing potatoes, sweetcorn and strawberries, and started a ‘pick your own’ business. We also set up a tearoom, serving scones and jam and clotted cream made from our own milk. But making clotted cream left us with a problem: what to do with the leftover skimmed milk? Then Dad had the genius idea of making yogurt. I say ‘genius’ but the idea seemed bonkers – these were the days before supermarkets. Thankfully, there was a food revolution in this country and people realised that yogurt was good for you – it was delicious, too. Gradually, it became the centre of the family’s Yeo Valley farm.
In 1979, I traded my beloved West Country for London and a career in catering, before I was lured back to Somerset, where I settled down to have my three children. We’re a big family – nine grandchildren at the last count – so my recipes (classic farmhouse dishes with a modern twist) are about family food – food to eat together. I hope you enjoy the results.
Yeo Valley: The Great British Farmhouse Cookbook by Sarah Mayor, with photography by Andrew Montgomery, is published by Quadrille Publishing, priced £20.
Serves 4
Rinse the asparagus, snap off the woody ends and chop them. Put chopped ends in a pan with the stock, bring to the boil, cover and simmer for 15 mins. Strain, discarding the ends, and set the stock aside.
Meanwhile, cut the tips off the asparagus spears and halve lengthwise. Roughly chop the remaining stalks. Bring 2 small pans of lightly salted water to the boil. Drop the asparagus tips into one pan and cook for 2 mins until just tender. Drain, refresh under cold water and set aside. Add the vinegar to the second pan and lower the heat. Swirl the water with a spoon to make a whirlpool, crack in an egg and poach for 3 mins, then remove with a slotted spoon and set aside on kitchen paper. Repeat with the remaining eggs, leaving the water to simmer.
Melt 50g butter in a large pan, add asparagus stalks, leeks and celery, cover and cook over a low heat for 10 mins until soft but not browned.
Uncover, stir in the flour and cook for a further minute. Stir in the asparagus-flavoured stock, cover again and simmer for 10 mins until the vegetables are tender. Remove from the heat, cool slightly, then liquidise the soup in batches until smooth. Pass through a sieve back into a clean pan, bring back to a simmer and stir in the cream. Season to taste.
Melt the remaining butter. Lower eggs back into the simmering water and leave for 30 seconds. Remove and drain on kitchen paper. Ladle the soup into warmed bowls and scatter over the asparagus tips. Place a poached egg into each bowl, season, drizzle over the melted butter and serve.
Serves 4
For the custard
For the custard, put vanilla pod and seeds into a small pan with the milk and cream. Bring to boil; set aside for 20 mins to infuse. Whisk yolks and sugar together until pale and thick, then whisk in the cornflour. Return milk to the boil, strain over egg yolks and whisk in. Return mix to the pan and cook over a low heat, stirring, until the custard is thick and coats the back of a spoon. Pour into a bowl and leave to go cold.
Put the blackcurrants and redcurrants into a pan with the sugar and 1 tbsp water and cook gently for 2-3 mins until the fruit has softened and just burst. Take off the heat. Blend 1½ tbsp currant juice with 50g raspberries until smooth, then rub them through a sieve into a bowl. Stir the raspberry purée back into the cooked currants with the rest of the raspberries, strawberries and liqueur, if using. Tip mixture into a sieve set over a bowl and let three-quarters of juice drain away.
Cut a disc from each brioche slice with a pastry cutter, so they fit snugly inside the dessert glasses. Spoon fruit mixture into bottom of each glass. Dip half of brioche discs, one at a time, into berry syrup until well soaked, then lay on top of fruit. Cover with rest of the fruit mixture, then the rest of the syrup-soaked brioche slices.
Pour the custard evenly over the trifles. Chill for 2 hours, or until custard has set. To serve, decorate with cream and redcurrant sprigs.
In 1979, I traded my beloved West Country for London and a career in catering, before I was lured back to Somerset, where I settled down to have my three children. We’re a big family – nine grandchildren at the last count – so my recipes (classic farmhouse dishes with a modern twist) are about family food – food to eat together. I hope you enjoy the results.
Yeo Valley: The Great British Farmhouse Cookbook by Sarah Mayor, with photography by Andrew Montgomery, is published by Quadrille Publishing, priced £20.
Cream of asparagus soup with soft-poached eggs
Serves 4
- 600g fine asparagus
- 1 litre good vegetable or chicken stock
- ½ tsp white wine vinegar
- 4 large fresh free-range eggs
- 65g unsalted butter
- 150g leeks, white part only, trimmed and thinly sliced
- 2 small celery stalks, thinly sliced
- 30g plain flour
- 1½ tbsp double cream
- salt and black pepper
Rinse the asparagus, snap off the woody ends and chop them. Put chopped ends in a pan with the stock, bring to the boil, cover and simmer for 15 mins. Strain, discarding the ends, and set the stock aside.
Meanwhile, cut the tips off the asparagus spears and halve lengthwise. Roughly chop the remaining stalks. Bring 2 small pans of lightly salted water to the boil. Drop the asparagus tips into one pan and cook for 2 mins until just tender. Drain, refresh under cold water and set aside. Add the vinegar to the second pan and lower the heat. Swirl the water with a spoon to make a whirlpool, crack in an egg and poach for 3 mins, then remove with a slotted spoon and set aside on kitchen paper. Repeat with the remaining eggs, leaving the water to simmer.
Melt 50g butter in a large pan, add asparagus stalks, leeks and celery, cover and cook over a low heat for 10 mins until soft but not browned.
Uncover, stir in the flour and cook for a further minute. Stir in the asparagus-flavoured stock, cover again and simmer for 10 mins until the vegetables are tender. Remove from the heat, cool slightly, then liquidise the soup in batches until smooth. Pass through a sieve back into a clean pan, bring back to a simmer and stir in the cream. Season to taste.
Melt the remaining butter. Lower eggs back into the simmering water and leave for 30 seconds. Remove and drain on kitchen paper. Ladle the soup into warmed bowls and scatter over the asparagus tips. Place a poached egg into each bowl, season, drizzle over the melted butter and serve.
Summer pudding trifles
Serves 4 - 75g blackcurrants
- 125g redcurrants, plus 4 sprigs to decorate
- 75g caster sugar
- 150g raspberries
- 100g small strawberries, hulled and cut into small pieces
- 2 tbsp crème de cassis or crème de framboise (optional)
- ½ x 400g-500g brioche loaf, cut across into 8 slices 6mm thick
- 100g crème fraîche or lightly whipped cream, to decorate
For the custard
- ½ vanilla pod, slit open and the seeds scraped
- 75ml whole milk
- 75ml double cream
- 2 medium free-range egg yolks
- 15g caster sugar
- 7g cornflour
For the custard, put vanilla pod and seeds into a small pan with the milk and cream. Bring to boil; set aside for 20 mins to infuse. Whisk yolks and sugar together until pale and thick, then whisk in the cornflour. Return milk to the boil, strain over egg yolks and whisk in. Return mix to the pan and cook over a low heat, stirring, until the custard is thick and coats the back of a spoon. Pour into a bowl and leave to go cold.
Put the blackcurrants and redcurrants into a pan with the sugar and 1 tbsp water and cook gently for 2-3 mins until the fruit has softened and just burst. Take off the heat. Blend 1½ tbsp currant juice with 50g raspberries until smooth, then rub them through a sieve into a bowl. Stir the raspberry purée back into the cooked currants with the rest of the raspberries, strawberries and liqueur, if using. Tip mixture into a sieve set over a bowl and let three-quarters of juice drain away.
Cut a disc from each brioche slice with a pastry cutter, so they fit snugly inside the dessert glasses. Spoon fruit mixture into bottom of each glass. Dip half of brioche discs, one at a time, into berry syrup until well soaked, then lay on top of fruit. Cover with rest of the fruit mixture, then the rest of the syrup-soaked brioche slices.
Pour the custard evenly over the trifles. Chill for 2 hours, or until custard has set. To serve, decorate with cream and redcurrant sprigs.