Tastes of Lincolnshire...

The Hub, Sleaford

As I write, I am sitting in the cafe of The Hub partaking in a cheeky "coffee and a sit down"!

The afternoon has been made even nicer by virtue of the fact that the latest edition of "Good Taste" magazine has just been published, and there are plenty of copies around the cafe to pick up and have a browse through.

Good Taste magazine

I have managed to receive every copy since the project started (published by Tastes of Lincolnshire) and it's always a joy to read and find out about all the "foody" related things going on in the county. It's also reassuring reading about the people and producers who are passionate about local, seasonal, organic food - a subject becoming more and more important to me. As it should perhaps be more important to lots of people, as Lincolnshire produces a vast percentage of the veg grown in the UK (e.g. Did you know that Lincolnshire produces 57% of all the cabbages in the UK, on just 2.6% of it's area!)

Lincoln Longwool

Now, I can't deny that I am always particularly drawn to the picture and recipes for glorious looking baked goods, cakes, ice-cream, local fruit & veg...I mean...who wouldn't be! But I do also take note of the articles on local growers and producers. This issue has an article on Rapeseed Oil (first grown in Lincolnshire as 'Coleseed' in the 13th century); one about trials growing more than 200 varieties of Tomato at Henrietta's Garden; an article on the ever-so-woolly 'Lincoln Longwool' sheep, one of 23 breeds on the 'at risk' list; and plenty of local news and events in the coming months.

OK. So, this has sounded like a bit of an "advert", but I imagine every county has something similar, and something that supports local business, local growers, and local consumers can only be a good thing.

Coffee finished now. And yes - I did have a slice of home-made cake too!

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A little ash, a little soil, a little flour...

Nope - it's not an odd recipe that I've picked up to use in The Church Lane Kitchen!

I did manage to do a little work on the plot today between some rather heavy rain showers. Just a bit more digging-over of various parts of the plot, and establishing the remaining beds. Hopefully over the next few days I will have that job completed, and what with the majority of the hedgerow a little more under control, I will be able to focus on weeding/sorting each bed to make it a little more 'seedling friendly'. That was the soil part.

The ash part was to spread the remains of the bonfire I had the other day into the beds that I have already created... specifically round the gooseberries and in the bed I've planned for potatoes. Monty Don wrote a discourse on his use of bonfires and ash here which is quite a good read. Although I thought I dealt with about a tonne of cuttings from the hedges, it appears to have become no more than a few spade-fuls of wood ash. Oh well, all gratefully received and recycled into the plot. So there we have the ash bit.

Flour? Surely I can't already be milling my own flour from the plot - I've only had it for a few weeks!! Sadly, that's correct. And to be honest, I am not sure I have quite the room I would need to grow a sufficient amount of wheat or ba(neither, for that matter, do I own a mill!).

Cogglesford Mill flour

I dropped into Cogglesford Mill this afternoon to pick up some flour. It's always a great feeling if you are making some homemade bread to know that the major ingredient has been grown and produced locally, and the 'food miles'have been kept to a minimum. In this case the mill is all of about 4 miles away from The Church Lane Kitchen, so not too bad. I didn't have time to have a proper visit to the Mill today, but having been before, I can certainly recommend it if you are in the Sleaford, Lincs. area. It isn't huge so won't take up your whole day, but has a lot of interesting information, artefacts and photographs of the Mill and it's history. The Heart of Lincs website blurb says:

In a picturesque setting by the River Slea, this award winning, fully restored and working water mill is thought to be the only Sheriff's Watermill still operating in England. Millers have produced flour on this site for over a thousand years. Organic stone ground flour still produced in the mill is sold in the shop, together with locally sourced goods and produce. Special events and working days are held throughout the year.

So if you're passing - why not drop in?

Right, must get on with making that bread!!

Stephen
in The Church Lane Kitchen