Prince of Wales visits Ayrshire
Royal samples the best of local produce
Prince Charles declared Dumfries House educational garden was “genius” as he admired the extensive range of fruit and veg grown on the Ayrshire estate.
The Prince, who is the Great Steward of Dumfries House, was admiring some of the 140 varieties of vegetables and fruit grown in the educational and Queen Elizabeth Gardens on the Cumnock estate.
On Tuesday, students from secondary schools across South, East and North Ayrshire were taking part in a cookery challenge.
They had been asked to come up with a recipe and use local produce, including some of the famous chocolate mint herb from Dumfries House’s garden for their final dish.
Brandon Patton and Rebecca Steele from Doon Academy in Ayr were preparing flash fried prawns when Prince Charles asked about their culinary tastes.
Beaming with pride, Brandon, who was frying the prawns as the prince spoke to him, was asked if he liked spicy food.
“The Prince suggested we add pepper to the pan to spice up the prawns,” said Brandon.
“He was very interested in where we got our ingredients and I could tell he liked cooking.”
Home economics teacher Aileen Emerson, of Belmont Academy, also spoke to the prince.
“He was asking about the number of Home Economics teachers in Scotland and we agreed there was a demand for them.
“He seemed genuinely interested and agreed that teaching children about where ingredients come from and broadening their menu to new foods and tastes was an important part of education.
“I am honoured to have spoken to him.”
The Taste Ayrshire event hosted in a marquee in the grounds also saw a host of small businesses show off the cream of Ayrshire fresh produce.
One stall the prince was impressed with was Pieroni’s fish selection.
As he discussed his love of seafood with Clare Pieroni, she asked if he wanted to hold a live lobster.
The Prince boldly grabbed the lobster for a closer inspection.
Clare said: “You could tell he loved seafood and I was surprised when he lifted the live lobster up to have a look.
“He avoided touching the crab, though, I would have hated him to have been bitten by it.”
Ralph Porciani, genereal manager at the Turnberry Resort, was on hand to offer a cookery demonstration to the youngsters using fresh produce from the grounds.
And Willie Mackie, chairman of Taste Ayrshire, walked proudly around the marquee introducing Prince Charles to the businesses involved in the Ayrshire Larder project.
One woman who was filled with pride on the day was the chief executive of East Ayrshire Council, Fiona Lees, who is a trustee of Dumfries House.
She said: “There are around 4000 people in Ayrshire who work in the food industry in Ayrshire and how lucky we are to have such an impressive larder of vegetables, fish, and meat to offer the world. This is a wonderful way for us to show the Prince just how important it is to our area and our economy.”
After the morning session, the Duke of Rothesay returned to the marquee for a cookery competition hosted by Ayrshire College students.
And on Friday night a grand banquet was organised at Dumfries House, to be hosted by Prince Charles.