Food & Drink
Behind the image of a booming Scottish food industry, many brilliant independent producers are struggling. We all lose if they go under
Carina Contini speaks up for independent producers, plus Rose Murray Brown on the rise of orange wine
If you know me you’ll know I say it as it is. No fluff, just straight to the point.
It’s Scottish Food and Drink Fortnight until 16 September, so we should be celebrating all that’s great about our abundant larder. But I’m struggling to celebrate with such sad news surrounding an industry that I love.
Yes whisky, gin, beer, salmon and shortbread exports are beating the records year on year but closer to home the small artisans are struggling.
Some of our smallest suppliers have gone out of business. These include our dear friend Graham Stoddart of Cuddybridge Apple Juice, a Taste Our Best accredited and multi awardwinning Scotland Food & Drink apple juice producer closed his business in June. Increased costs and consumers not willing to pay the price for a quality handmade product has made this business unsustainable.
If you’ve been following the Errington Cheese story you’ll have read that they have laid off two more staff and in short, are on their knees. Another multi award-winning artisan producer that is struggling but this time due to massive injustice and bureaucratic cover up.
As an independent Scottish restaurateur and consumer, I try wherever possible to support our local artisan suppliers and other independent, family-run businesses.
Our reputation as a land of food and drink that now brings visitors from all over the world has been built on the hard work and passion of many of these very small, very hard-working family businesses.
If we’re not careful, not only will we lose them, we’ll hurt the whole industry.
Cream of celery and Lanark Blue soup
This is a soup we usually make in winter but we need to be buying Lanark Blue as often as we can so they are around to supply us next winter.
Serves four
10 chicken thighs or drumsticks 150g unsalted butter 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil 2 large onions, finely chopped 2 leeks, white part only, finely chopped 2 heads of celery, chopped, leaves reserved 1 celery stick, halved 3 large floury potatoes 1 tsp celery salt, plus extra for sprinkling 125g Lanark Blue, crumbled, plus extra for garnish 125ml double cream salt and freshly ground white pepper 2 litres cold water 1 large bunch of flat-leaf parsley, chopped
1
Chicken stock can be very fatty so I recommend making this a day in advance, it makes about 1 litre. Thoroughly wash the chicken pieces and put them in a 2 litre stockpot. Cover with the cold water, add a pinch of salt and bring to the boil.
Reduce to a simmer and skim off the scum that comes to the surface. It will take 5-10 minutes of skimming and simmering until the broth clears. Taste. You may need to add a little more salt.
Add the chopped celery heads and parsley and half-cover the pot with a lid. Simmer for 1½ hours. Strain into a jug, leave to cool and refrigerate overnight. When the stock solidifies, the fat will rise to the surface. Remove the fat with a spoon.
Melt the butter and add the oil to a large pan, add the onions and leeks and sauté until translucent. Add the celery stick and cook until soft. Take your time. The longer you can cook this without browning, the tastier the soup will be.
Peel and dice the potatoes. Season the onions, leeks and celery with the celery salt, then add the hot stock and potato. Reduce the heat and simmer for 30 minutes until the vegetables are tender and the liquid has reduced slightly. Add the celery leaves and cook for 5 minutes or more until these are soft. Add the Lanark Blue and stir to melt through, then add pepper to taste.
Remove from the heat and leave until cool. Transfer to a blender or food processor and blend until smooth. In small batches, sieve the blended soup into a clean pan using a sieve. It’s important to put a lot of elbow grease into sieving the final stalks as these will help to thicken the soup.
Put the pan over a medium heat and when the soup is hot, add the cream and adjust the seasoning. Serve piping hot sprinkled with a little celery salt and a little extra Lanark Blue crumbled on top.
Macaroni cheese with Phantassie Farm tomatoes, Isle of Mull cheddar and buttered crumb crust
Macaroni cheese has got to be a favourite for most people. Adding a vegetable such as tomatoes really lightens this dish and makes it extratasty and a little healthier.
Serves four
a handful of small tomatoes roasted to release their juices 500g macaroni or any short pasta 80g unsalted butter (and an extra knob to fry the breadcrumbs) 80g plain flour 1 tsp salt and ½ tsp freshly ground white pepper ½ tsp English mustard powder 600ml full-fat milk 4 tbsp double cream 350g Isle of Mull cheddar, finely grated a handful of breadcrumbs optional pea shoots for decoration
Cook the macaroni in boiling salted water until al dente. Drain well and set aside.
Preheat the oven to 200C/gas Mark 6.
To make the sauce, melt the butter in a pan over a low heat, then add the flour. Cook for about 3 minutes, stirring continuously until the mixture starts to bubble.
Add 1 tsp salt, ½ tsp pepper and the mustard powder. Slowly add the milk and beat with a metal whisk to prevent lumps forming. When the sauce starts to thicken, add the cream and 250g cheddar. Check the seasoning.
Add the macaroni. The mixture will be wet but the macaroni will absorb the sauce as it cooks.
Transfer to an ovenproof dish and sprinkle the remaining cheddar on top. Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes until bubbling and golden. Toast the breadcrumbs in a frying
pan with a little butter. Add them to the top of the macaroni, along with the tomatoes and peashoots.
Apple and sultana pie
When we started our kitchen garden it was Graham Stoddart from Cuddybridge that advised and supplied us with 46 of our apple trees, which include heritage varieties like James Grieves and White Melrose.
Serves four to six
7 small or 4 large Bramley apples 250g self-raising flour, plus extra for dusting 1 tbsp water and 2 tbsp of ice-cold water 100g caster sugar, and a further 1 tbsp caster sugar, plus extra for sprinkling small handful of sultanas ¼ pinch of cinnamon 125g unsalted butter, chilled, and 25g unsalted butter, melted, for greasing 1 egg yolk, and an egg wash made from 1 egg, beaten pouring cream, chilled, to serve pinch of salt
First make the pastry. Sieve the flour and salt into a large mixing bowl and coarsely grate the chilled butter on top. Rub it into the flour using your fingertips until it resembles coarse breadcrumbs. Add the 100g of sugar and mix through, then add the egg yolk and the 2 tablespoons of ice cold water and blend until the mixture forms a ball. Place on a floured surface and knead gently. Transfer to a bowl and refrigerate for about 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, prepare the apple filling. Peel and core the apples and slice them to roughly the same size. Place in a pan over a low heat with the tablespoon of water and tablespoon of sugar and cook for about 10 minutes, until the apples have collapsed into a soft but slightly chunky purée.
Keep the apples moving in the pan with a wooden spoon to stop them discolouring. Remove from the heat, add the sultanas and cinnamon and adjust the flavouring, adding a little more sugar if required. Set aside.
Preheat the oven to 180C/gas Mark 4 and brush a 20cm ovenproof glass pie dish with melted butter. Remove the pastry from the fridge and allow it to come to room temperature. Cut the pastry in half. On a floured surface, roll half of it out to the same size as the pie dish. Line the bottom of the dish with the pastry. Spoon the apple mixture on top and gently spread it over.
Roll out the remaining pastry and use it to carefully cover the apple mixture. Cut away the excess from the edges and brush with the egg wash. Make one slit in the top to let the air escape.
Bake in the preheated oven for 20-25 minutes until golden, then remove and sprinkle with sugar. Serve hot or cold with a generous spoonful of chilled pouring cream.