Tasting notes

A culinary adventure in Devon

HOW OFTEN DO YOU visit somewhere with food in mind? I’ve trekked across the Lake District fells for a bite of Grasmere Gingerbread and booked trips to the Cotswolds, the Isle of Mull and Snowdonia to taste, respectively, the local beer, fresh oysters and Welsh wagyu beef (and I daren’t even describe a week in New York that was structured entirely around the best doughnut bars and cookie shops). So I’m a sucker for books that are recipe collections and travel guides rolled into one (The Desserts of New York: And How to Eat Them All ,by Yasmin Newman, was my backpack guru for the sugar-fuelled Manhattan blowout). The Devon Cook Book is the latest title in Meze Publishing’s regional series, a 28-strong collection of British (bar one for Amsterdam) mini-guides, which celebrate independent restaurants, cafés, delis and producers everywhere from Sheffield and Manchester to Norfolk and Sussex. Their stories set the scene – budding organic entrepreneurs; Michelin-starred chefs; inventive ice-lolly makers – and their recipes share the buzz. It’s as nice to see wellknown places and products listed (such as Salcombe Gin, a favourite of Telegraph wine writer and Devon local Susy Atkins, who also tips Ben’s Farm Shop in Totnes) as it is to discover the team behind Column Bakehouse, who reinvest profits into setting up apprenticeships – as well as turning out superior loaves. There’s enough to inspire a month and more’s grazing across the county. And with the backlist to work through, I think I’d better join a gym.