The tastes of summer

The taste of summer

This is our new BBQ being fired up for the first time - a little taster of what our guests have to look forward too.

Ox eye daisies

Look what we have right here on our doorstep. This photo was taken just outside the hotel. We use the leaves on salads. It makes a lovely interesting salad leaf, you can eat the closed buds, and the petals are great sprinkled over salads. They have a lovely fragrance and flavour to them. The leaves can be tough, so pick young fresh ones.

Yesterday our chef Adam got really excited while out walking with his family. Not only did he find a bountiful supply of sea purslane, he got his first glimpse of local marsh samphire, or sea asparagus.

The season is just beginning, so the purslane and samphire is still young, but there’s plenty of it, so our menus will feature them heavily over the next few weeks as one of our seashore vegetables served with different species of local best market fish.

Young plants can be eaten raw, but older ones should be cooked in boiling unsalted water. You can also fold them into an omelet, toss in salads or deep fry for a snack.

Gorse icecream, anyone?

Ever wondered what gorse-flavoured icecream would taste like? We did, so we went foraging for some on the cliff overlooking Mawgan Porth beach.

While we were there picking gorse flowers and lapping up the view, we spotted a smiley face someone had drawn in the sand and that seemed to sum things up here at Bedruthan.

Gorse flowers have a unique scent and flavour that really comes through in icecream. Our chef Adam Clark dried the flowers overnight, then infused them into an icecream base. The result was a banana and coconut-like flavour. He served it with spiced pineapple tart.

Adam also found some three cornered garlic, which is different to wild garlic (Ramsons. The stalks give a lovely garlicky chive flavour and the flowers are bursting little buds of garlic just delicious on salads or, as we used them on Saturday night, to garnish our spring chickens.

It's Purslane today!

This morning chef has been foraging down at the cliff path again and found some beautiful sea Purslane .

Purslane is an excellent seashore vegetable that we are really lucky to find on the cliffs around here. It is usually found growing on salt marshes below the high tide mark and especially fringing channels and pools in salt marshes.

Now we're really looking forward to our lunch! Chef's been telling us how these leaves have a very interesting flavour and are excellent either just raw through salads, or quickly blanched in boiling water then served with butter, parsley, lemon juice and seasoning. Yummy.

Another great excursion to do on your holiday!

Another great tip from chef, although not food related this time! He has been back to his youth on a 2hr BMX ride!

"It was brilliant! It was an adrenalin rush. I experienced a range of terrain, most of which is off road bridleways, farm tracks, back lanes, byways and woodland single track. The circular route (between 10 and 25km) twists and turns around scenic countryside and whilst riding I got to see many traditional tin mines as we rode in and around areas such as witches woods, the disused quarries and Mars! It was called Mars because of the terrain and the water in the disused quarry is deep red!

It started over in Scorrier, near Truro and took me through all the Countryside near St.Day and Caharrick, the Bissoe trail ran nearby which is a bit like the Camel trail - handy for those that would like an easier cycle!"

The bike ride was organised with Mobius and is a great way to see some Cornish countryside. It certainly left me feeling exhilarated!

http://www.itsadventuresouthwest.co.uk/main/en/provider-15058.html

Chef's been Foraging Again

We're perfectly placed here on the coast to forage the best seaside veg Cornwall has to offer. Infact I think we need to spare a thought for Paul the barman who looked up from the beach to see Chef hanging from the clif! But for the benefit of our guests, he has been returning with some fresh sea beet, ramsons (or wild garlic) and Alexander's. Amongst other dishes, guests have enjoyed an amazing Braised shin of beef with a nettle and ramson risotto. For those of you who can go yourselves, Sea beet is bang on season and can be found around the cliffs; it cooks like spinach and chef has been using it with fish and other seaside veg. Ramson's are nearing the end of their season as they are starting to flower but can still be used, like us, in risotto's, soup and as a garnish. If you find Alexanders, chef's tip is to blanch the stems for a good 10 minutes, ensuring the strong tough taste is replaced with something soft and angelic.

Pancakes stuffed with seabeet:
Large bunch of seabeet
150g Cheddar Cheese (grated)
2 peeled tomatoes
Salt & pepper

Wash the sea beet and pull the leaves from the stems. Cook for 10 minutes in a sealed pan, drain and chop. When cool, mix together with the grated cheese, salt and pepper. Peel the tomatoes and slice. Use the filling to stuff in cooked pancakes. (Make sure you wrap the mixture up well by putting the filling in the middle of the pancake and folding two facing edges over and tucking the remaining two underneath). Heat for a couple of mins each side before serving. Delicious!

Our chef Adam Clark can't stop cooking even when he's left the kitchen. He spent his weekend roasting, drizzling and seasoning in a marquee in St Austell when he dished up a cookery demonstration to visitors to the local farmers market.

"It was a bit challenging," said Adam. "All I had was two burners and a table top to work with, but the crowd were really good. They came up with some good banter and asked some really good questions."

Adam's emphasis was - as ever - on local and seasonal produce. Adam foraged mussels* from Mawgan Porth beach for the event and also prepared Fresh Mackerel with Roasted Rhubarb followed by Celery Cornish Blue Cheese and Pickled Walnut Salad.



Happy Birthday to Adam, who celebrated his 41st birthday last Friday with a trip to The Ferry Boat Inn in Mawnan Smith to suprise his old chef, the magnificent Mark Hix who was guest chef at The Ferry Boat for the evening.

Mark is a renowned restaurateur and food writer who has become widely known for his pioneering role in reviving interest in British gastronomy. His unrivalled passion in sourcing and cooking with great British ingredients has inspired chefs across the country, Adam included.

"I used to work with Mark and saw in the Cornish Guardian that he was coming down," said Adam. "Mark is one of my inspirations and mentors. He's all about good, British, seasonal food, which is everything The Bedruthan Steps Hotel is about too."

*Please note that the season for foraging for mussels safely (September to April) is coming to a close.

Come cook with us

Our chef Adam Clark will be roasting, drizzling and seasoning away this weekend when he dishes up a cookery demonstration at St Austell's Farmers Market.

The emphasis is on local and seasonal produce; Adam will prepare:
Fresh Mackerel with Roasted Rhubarb
Celery Cornish Blue Cheese and Pickled Walnut Salad
Pavlova with Roasted Rhubarb Fool.

Yummeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!