The Good Food Show NEC Birmingham June 2015

Last weekend saw the annual 'Good Food Summer Show' arrive at the NEC Birmingham.
For the past 3 years my interest in food has grown immensely and when I received tickets for the show as a birthday present I was really excited at the prospect of an interesting, educational and inspiring day out. 8



The Good Food Show at NEC Birmingham June 2015

 

 

Lots of people made the journey to Birmingham. There were many stalls ranging from oils, pastries, artisan breads, sweets, wines and spirits.

Crowds gather to the NEC Birmingham for The Good Food Show

This section was cakes and bakes.  

Cakes and Bakes section of The Good Food Show NEC Birmingham

 

 

 Meringues to die for!

 

Meringues

Flapjacks of all varieties.
My favourite had rocky road topping.

Flapjacks

                                     Enormous éclairs.

Pastries!

Sponge cakes. Sticky toffee sponge was delicious.

Individual sponge cakes

                            Various flavours of focaccia

Artisan focaccia at The Good Food Show

This man was demonstrating and selling whisks. He was quite the salesman and always had a crowd around him to entertain.

 

 

Spiralised vegetables and fruit, wow!! A very entertaining German was demonstrating how to transform vegetables.. I must confess to buying a spiraliser.

Spiralised fruit and veg at The Good Food Show

 

 

As we walked round I spotted tv chef  Phil Vickery doing a demonstration so we stopped to watch.

It was so interesting to listen to stories of his travels and listen to the food knowledge he shared.

Phil Vickery demonstrating at The Good Food Show

 

At 4pm we headed to the main theatre to be entertained and inspired by another tv chef, James Martin. In the space of half hour he treated us to a show producing 4 dishes, food knowledge and rather witty banter!

 

James Martin at the NEC Birmingham June 2015

I was rather intrigued at how much butter James used in all his dishes. Definitely not healthy eating but a great show.

James Martin at The NEC Birmingham

 

 

Our tickets also included entry into Gardeners World so we spent our last hour walking around the flower displays. Below are a selection of my favourites.

 

 

 

                              Al fresco dining display.

 

 

                             An English Garden display.

 

 

I don't know what these were but so so beautiful.

 

Brilliant day out and our tickets are valid for Novembers show as well. Looking forward to another lovely day out .

Linking up with:
Tasty Tuesdays
Foodie Friday and Everything Else  

Ham, Potato, Leek and Herb Hotpot.

I have now adapted the lunchtime menu at The Nook to change every couple of days which keeps me interested in always looking for new ideas and trying new dishes as well as the customer always having a new experience each time they come.
The menu always consists of our signature quiche dishes and then a couple of paninis or focaccia, a light bite and a hot dish of the day.
Searching through recipe books takes up a lot of my time but is well worth the effort when I find something that works well as a dish, and that customers love.

Few weeks back I found a James Martin recipe book in a local charity shop which had a few good ideas for ne to try and what a bargain at £2.00!
The book, called "Eating In With James Martin", contained a brilliant recipe for Ham, Potato, Leek and Herb which I tried and had great success with in the cafe and, since posting photos of my completed dish, I have been asked for the recipe.

So below is a photo of my dish and underneath the photo is James Martin's recipe for everyone who asked for it.

Ingredients:
1 Red Onion (peeled and finely chopped)
4 Garlic Cloves (Peeled and finely chopped)
2 Small Leeks (cleaned and sliced)
225g Butter
200ml White Wine
500ml Fresh Ham Stock (if you don't have the time or inclination to make ham stock, use fresh chicken stock, available from supermarkets)
450g New Potatoes (cooked)
550g Cooked Ham (cut into chunks)
Salt and Pepper
65g each of chopped, fresh Basil, Parsley, Chives and Coriander

Serves 4

Method:
1. Using about 55g of the butter, sauté the onion, garlic and leeks in a large pan until soft.
2.Add the white wine, ham stock, potatoes and ham and cook for 5-10 minutes until everything is hot.
3. Drain off the liquid, keeping the meat and vegetables warm. Gently simmer the liquid, adding the remaining butter bit by bit, whisking all the time to thicken the sauce. Do not boil.
4. Put all the ingredients back into the sauce and season. To finish, add all the chopped, fresh herbs. Serve piping hot.

Many other really good recipes can be found in this book. Well worth the money!!