Memoirs of an Amateur Cook

Yesterday I spent a wonderful day at Bridge 67 Cookery School in rural Leicestershire. 

It was a perfect, frosty winter’s morning and although the views on my drive to Debdale Lane were beautiful, I was a little concerned about the car getting stuck in the snow!  Still, I arrived unscathed and was greeted by a friendly Roy and a, much-needed, cup of steaming hot coffee.

I would thoroughly recommend spending the day at Bridge 67 to anyone.  The chefs who ran the course, Roy and Ian, have a wealth of experience.  They are patient and fantastic teachers; their passion for good food is clear and each participant seems to take a little bit of this passion away with them. 

The itinerary for the day sounded fantastic and the eight of us couldn’t wait to get started!  In the morning we prepped the desert and then made a slightly larger version of the starter to have with a glass of wine over lunch.  The afternoon saw the arrival of the main event and side dishes, chocolate truffles and finishing off all three courses with lots of tips and tricks along the way. 

Menu

Starter

Winter salad with soft poached duck egg and black pudding

Main Course

Supreme of chicken stuffed with sun-dried tomatoes with a selected fungi and sherry wine sauce, roast parsnips with thyme and parmesan, quenelle potatoes with snipped chives and a carrot puree

Dessert

Pear frangipane tart with butterscotch sauce

Chocolate truffles to follow

Not only did I come home with some wonderful food, I came home with a head full of ideas and the desire to do a lot more cooking but also something more, hence why I started this blog.  I hope that I will be able to share some of my cooking success and recipes as well as, no doubt, some unmitigated disasters along the way!!!