This month, Sadie Wilkins of Vineyards in Sherborne is keen to debunk the myth that all great rosé is born in Provence
Shakespeare’s Juliet once claimed, “A rose by any other name would smell as sweet,”. But can we ever truly shake off longstanding reputations made through the power of language? When it comes to wine, the importance of language use has always interested me – partly because in another life I taught English for 12 years, but also because it’s pure linguistic joy. Not only does your sensory language get a workout while describing the sensation on your palate, but then there’s the job of conveying this experience to another – and, of course, it’s all very subjective, isn’t it? Not to mention dealing with the wine classification systems and words associated with different countries and regions. So, it’s fair to say there’s a reason all English teachers turn to wine! Anyhow, I digress …
Judging a wine by its label Making a judgement based on a name is commonplace in the world of wine. Let’s take an obvious example like Champagne; one mere mention and an ice-bucketload of connotations pour out regarding its quality, provenance and price. We expect prestige, heritage and a certain level of complexity in the glass. As Champagne has what we call an AOC (Apellation d’Origine Controlée) – essentially a set of regulations by which you must abide – both the name and wine style are protected and cannot be used for ‘any old sparkling.’ Same goes for any of the Burgundy houses in France – or in fact any appellation across the globe. So why does that matter? Surely that’s a positive? Well, it is to an extent, particularly in terms of managing expectations of what lies within the bottle. However, it really is a double-edged sword and there’s one label that made me particularly want to write this piece – Provence.
Veneto not Provence The flipside of reputations attached to certain labels is that they becomes a sticking point for some folk. We have to fight the cause of some rosés vigorously, just because they don’t come from Provence. Don’t get me wrong, I love a nice glass of Provence and we have some delicious bottles on our shelves. But there really are many wines standing in the shadows of the name. We enjoy showcasing amazing rosés from the Bekaa Valley or the Veneto – some are quite similar style, but we give customers the choice of playing safe in the realms of Provence or giving it a twist. You never know, you might just find a new addition to the wine rack or fridge for the summer from an unexpected source.
Drinking Pink Thursday 11th August, 7pm to 8:30pm
An evening of wine tasting dedicated to the pink stuff – Hannah and Sadie will be romancing you with rosé, busting myths, showcasing different grapes, countries and winemaking techniques and raising an indie glass to a style of wine which is still living life under a heavy Provençal stereotype. Join us – it’s the perfect time of year for a rosé tasting and the six wines we have lined up are simply glorious! As always, no prior knowledge is needed – simply come along, drink great wine and leave knowing something new.
Dorset CPRE and Dorset Deserves Better Alliance ask for more consultation as council delays Local Plan, says Rupert Hardy, chair of North Dorset CPRE
extra time to prepare its new Local Plan; the government has agreed the Council’s request to extend the deadline to 2026. Dorset CPRE and Dorset Deserves Better now call on the Council to use this time to consult and work openly with communities on a Local Plan that responds to Dorset people’s concerns, priorities and needs. DC’s statement to Cabinet on 26 July indicates that they will take more time to consider the new Local Plan for Dorset, as it will set the pattern of housing and other development for the next 15 years. Dorset CPRE and Dorset Deserves Better welcome the delay and the Council’s aim to secure protection for Dorset from speculative development in the meantime. The removal of the ‘duty to cooperate’ with neighbouring authorities also means it does not now need to make up for a shortfall of homes from the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole area. A loud mandate The Council’s statement summarises the key messages it received from the unprecedented 9,000 responses to consultation on the first draft Local Plan. Local people said loud and clear they want a Local Plan which delivers:
the right development in the right places, and of the right quality.
Lower housing numbers based on recent data, not the out-dated assumptions currently being used.
More truly affordable homes, social homes and affordable rental properties for Dorset’s working families and young people.
Protection for Dorset’s unique natural environment and Greenbelt.
Action on the Climate and Ecological Emergencies.
Necessary infrastructure including public transport, health and education services, and utilities.
Dorset CPRE shares these concerns and priorities. The list sets a mandate for Dorset Council to develop a genuinely local approach to the Local Plan for Dorset, including the key issues of housing numbers, locations and affordability.
Genuine sustainable needs We look forward to DC discussing with our communities what housing numbers and locations they now have in mind. The Council’s reference to ‘more focus on new or significantly expanded settlements to help deliver the longer-term growth needs of Dorset’ will ring alarm bells for somes, particularly given concern regarding the 3,750 homes proposal for north Dorchester. DC referred earlier this year to 22,000 houses as opposed to the earlier DC target of up to 39,000. This independent lower estimate of Dorset’s genuine and sustainable needs was supported by Dorset CPRE, Dorset Deserves Better and many others. Since then, population projections have fallen further. DC now say that Dorset can be a pilot for a new national approach to Local Plans, including ‘national development management policies’ and ‘streamlined processes’. It will be vital that national systems do not contradict local communities’ needs and priorities. Peter Bowyer, Chair of the Trustees of Dorset CPRE, says ‘We call on the Council to listen to our communities and stand up for the priorities and concerns that local people clearly expressed in consultation on the first draft Local Plan. We look forward to joining in a positive and constructive discussion with the council about the Local Plan that Dorset wants and needs’. Giles Watts of the Dorset Deserves Better Campaign says ‘We welcome Dorset Council’s announcement which supports many of the issues we have been asking for. We applaud the council’s decision to listen to the concerns of local people and change direction in a way which we believe will be very positive for the future of Dorset. Nevertheless, we still have some concerns over the lack of emphasis on brownfield developments first and the impact of new greenfield developments. We believe that rewriting the Local Plan is a huge opportunity for the Council to progress a radically different and exciting vision of the future based on renewable energy, green jobs, care for the natural environment and, ultimately, supporting the needs of Dorset people.’.
If you’ve not had a chance to flick through the August issue yet, then why not click play below whilst you’re getting on, and enjoy a 30 minutes catch up?
Lead story this week is the visit to Dorset of the two Tory leadership contenders Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak – Fanny Charles was on the spot to ask their thoughts on pertinent rural issues such as farming and housing.
In the month we saw the Lionesses lift the European trophy, Rachael Rowe has spoken to three North Dorset women who have become national champions in their traditionally-male sports. Mark Hix, chef and restaurateur, braves the random 19 questions and reveals a love of a good bargain (eBay, Facebook Marketplace and Poundland are his top shopping choices!).
This month Rachael Rowe met Jen Daly and Ken Peet, London expats who are the proud owners of the thriving Cerne Abbas Stores
image Rachael Rowe
‘We arrived with the Beast from the East in 2018, and on day one, we had no milk or newspapers.’ For Jen Daly and Ken Peet, arrival in Cerne Abbas was a challenge. But what inspired them to come to one of Dorset’s most beautiful villages? Jen said: “We were both working in London and looking for a change. We looked at various businesses, not just village shops – and this one kept coming up. We loved the village and fell in love with the shop. When we arrived in all the snow, people kept telling us ‘Dorset doesn’t get snow’! ‘Cerne Abbas is such a great village. People really support local businesses. There aren’t many villages with three pubs, shops and a GP practice. ‘We have concentrated on getting as much fresh local produce as possible in the shop. So we have fresh fish and fresh meat, and most are locally sourced. We have also adapted to the village. The pandemic was awful, but we still do home deliveries to people who cannot get to the shop.’ The shop is also a tourist information hub and has a Post Office. There’s an excellent range of maps for walkers and no end of tempting treats for a picnic. And many products have the famous Cerne Abbas Giant logo, reflecting the local attraction and appealing to visitors.
‘We arrived with the Beast from the East in 2018, and on day one, we had no milk or newspapers.’ For Jen Daly and Ken Peet, arrival in Cerne Abbas was a challenge. But what inspired them to come to one of Dorset’s most beautiful villages? Jen said: “We were both working in London and looking for a change. We looked at various businesses, not just village shops – and this one kept coming up. We loved the village and fell in love with the shop. When we arrived in all the snow, people kept telling us ‘Dorset doesn’t get snow’! ‘Cerne Abbas is such a great village. People really support local businesses. There aren’t many villages with three pubs, shops and a GP practice. ‘We have concentrated on getting as much fresh local produce as possible in the shop. So we have fresh fish and fresh meat, and most are locally sourced. We have also adapted to the village. The pandemic was awful, but we still do home deliveries to people who cannot get to the shop.’ The shop is also a tourist information hub and has a Post Office. There’s an excellent range of maps for walkers and no end of tempting treats for a picnic. And many products have the famous Cerne Abbas Giant logo, reflecting the local attraction and appealing to visitors.
It’s a family business – Jen with her mum Kate in the stores All images: Rachael Rowe
Meet the team ‘It’s Ken and me! My Mum retired about ten years ago and helps behind the counter, and we also have three girls who work in the shop.’
What’s flying off the shelves? ‘We have lovely smoked salmon from Severn and Wye. Cerne Abbas beer is really popular – the brewery is a mile up the road. And our cheeses. We have a large local and continental selection. We also have a huge baked range, including sausage rolls and Cornish pasties.’
Some of the appetising cheeses inside the Cerne Abbas Stores
Who are your local suppliers? ‘Well, we have more than 70 suppliers in this shop. We have Dorset Brie and Dorset Blue Vinny. There aren’t that many places where you can make up a complete cheeseboard (blue, hard, smoked, soft, goats, sheep) sourcing within a 20-mile radius. We also have Viper Gin made in the village and Conker is another Dorset brand. There are also jams and chutneys From Dorset With Love. Our milk comes from a mile up the road and is distributed in reusable bottles from the vending machine.’
Your biggest challenge? ‘Once we had learned how to actually run a shop – the pandemic! We were early to shut the doors here, and set up a table in the doorway. It was exhausting. Everyone’s shopping changed, people did not buy routinely, making ordering harder. We tried not to have too much stock, and luckily, being independent, we were not reliant on one place. Also, we never ran out of loo roll! My sister-in-law was here helping out and she clocked up five miles a day, walking from the stall to the back of the shop to get bread and milk for people!’
Cerne Abbas Stores stocks a wide range from local suppliers, along with Cerne Giant gifts and hampers
What are you most proud of? ‘I think I’m most proud of how we’ve become part of the community. My mum is very popular and knows everyone! She’s always chatting with people.’
What’s next for the Stores? ‘We’d like to keep expanding our local food ranges and the high-end quality products at a fair price. We’re also planning to develop our online hamper service.’
‘Don’t sell the sausage. Sell the sizzle.’ Sophie Baker is managing to do both brilliantly with her award-winning sausage business, reports Tracie Beardsley
In her polytunnel, Sophie grows herbs and tomatoes for her recipes All images: Courtenay Hitchcock
Sophie Baker is a regular face at farmers’ markets and rural shows across the region. And she stands out. Not only because her home-made, award-winning sausages are delicious, but also because, at just 26, she’s one of the youngest local producers on the scene – and one of very few females in the meat industry. The Advertising Standards Authority would agree ‘Farm Girl Sausages’ lives up to its name. Sophie is most certainly a girl and she runs her business from a smallholding in Holt, near Wimborne. On 15 acres, Sophie raises 150 chickens from day-old chicks to slaughter. Her lamb is from Quarry Farm in Shaftesbury and pork is sourced in her own village. She’s just started selling whole roasted chickens and has a brilliant line in tasty burgers and BBQ food. All her products are gluten-free and contain only natural ingredients. She also offers delicious plant-based and vegan options and the recipes are all her own. Herbs for her gorgeous sage and pepper sausages are grown in her own polytunnel, as are the tomatoes and basil for other great flavours. Apples for pork sausages are picked in her garden and she’s just started keeping bees for her new honey-flavoured products.
When she’s not making or selling her sausages, Sophie will be found with her horses
Entrepreneurial genes Leaving school at 16, Sophie (a keen horsewoman) worked at breaking-in horses and at a local meat factory. She explains: ‘I had lots of ideas on how products could move forward from traditional to more trendy. I knew there was a growing market for gluten-free and rusk-free products, that people also wanted different flavour combinations and vegan options. When the factory closed, I thought why not start up my own sausage-making business?’ It’s no surprise that Sophie has entrepreneurial drive and vision. Her whole family are self-employed in businesses as diverse as selling boats, running a caravan park and maintaining farm machinery. Sophie says: ‘I’ve always admired people like my mum, dad and brother who run their own small businesses. It’s been part of my growing up and I’ve seen first-hand how much hard work it is.’ Her boyfriend, also self-employed, supports Sophie fully in the long hours she’s working. Summer is a key time, with food festivals and country shows every weekend, as well as her regular weekly stalls at Shaftesbury and Salisbury Farmers’ Markets. It’s a seven-day working week.
Sophie’s farm is working towards Soil Association organic status
“I make around 300 sausages for a market. For festivals, it’s more like a thousand. I’m up at dawn tending chickens, then making sausages and products from mid-morning onwards. Radio is my soulmate at the moment.’’
Chemical free Clearly passionate about her food provenance and her environmental footprint, Sophie is working towards the coveted organic certification from the Soil Association. ‘I’ve got through the mountain of paperwork,’ she explains, ‘and I’m now in what’s called a conversion period with the land. I’m so excited. I know a lot of customers want organic products. My customers are my free market research. I offer samples on my stall and get immediate feedback.’ She adds: ‘I’m inspired by the producers I meet at farmers’ markets – I have free business mentoring every week! Kensons Farm in Wiltshire has been organic since 2001 and I really admire their ethos. They encouraged me to get onto social media to promote my products and this has really helped grow my business.’ Sophie now produces videos and recipes for social media and customers can order products online and pick up directly from the farm. ‘I love showing customers the chickens and my set-up here so they can see exactly where their food is coming from.’ Sausage-making workshops at her farm may be on the cards in the future. That’s really selling the sizzle!
Sophie uses all local ingredients – apples for pork and apple sausages are picked in her own garden
Shop for Sophie’s produce online at FarmGirlSausages.com You can see Sophie – and sample her wares – at the Gillingham & Shaftesbury Show on 17 August. Look out for her bright yellow tent!
Quick Fire Questions with Sophie:
A-list dinner party guest? Emily Pankhurst – what an incredibly brave woman!
Books on your bedside? Cookery books – they help me with new seasonings and ideas. My favourite chef is Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall. His recipes are simple, fresh and with lots of ingredients from the garden.
Favourite sausage? In this hot weather, it has to be sweet chilli and lime – I like the combination of sharp and zesty flavours. Chicken and Marmite is another favourite – marmite works so well in sausages.
Local producers Durslade Farm and Hollis Mead Organic Dairy are among the star turns in this year’s awards, reports Fanny Charles
Hollis Mead Organic Dairy – was awarded three stars in the Great Taste Awards for Benville Organic Triple Cream Brie-style Cheese
THE results of the 2022 Great Taste Awards, organised by the Gillingham-based Guild of Fine Food, include 529 Great Taste star products from the south west, with multiple awards for Durslade Farm Shop at Hauser & Wirth’s contemporary art centre at Bruton and a coveted three stars for Hollis Mead Organic Dairy at Corscombe. From blood orange marmalade to hot and cold smoked salmon and kimchi, the awards demonstrate the amazing variety and creativity of food producers around the country and the world. The south west’s food producers have won 29 three-star awards, 159 two-star awards and 341 one-star awards. Less than two per cent of the 14,205 entries in 2022 received three stars, given for ‘extraordinarily tasty food and drink’.
The panel The Great Taste judging panel is made up of more than 500 food and drink professionals, including critics, chefs, recipe creators, buyers, retailers, journalists, broadcasters and other experts in the field. This year, they included buyers from Selfridges, Whole Foods, Fortnum & Mason and Waitrose, delicious magazine editor Karen Barnes, Bake Off contestant and author Chetna Makan, MasterChef Professionals finalist Santosh Shah, the BBC’s Nigel Bardem, restaurateurs Kavi Thakrar (Dishoom) and Amy Poon (Poon’s), journalists Felicity Cloake, Xanthe Clay and Joanna Blythman and food-writers Gill Meller, Melissa Thompson and Georgina Hayden. Guild managing director John Farrand says: “We are chuffed to be unveiling the list of award-winners for 2022 today. It’s been another exceptional year of high quality, innovation and creativity. We’re seeing a steady increase in plant-based products year-on-year and the fermented and functional foods are really starting to hold their own in terms of taste. I was extremely impressed to see that many of the entries have come from businesses which started trading in the last year or two. It isn’t easy doing what these producers do, neither for the start-ups nor the established businesses. I have the utmost admiration for them all.” Overall, 5,556 products received either one, two or three stars. The highest scoring producers go through to the regional finals and the winners (and the supreme champion) will be announced at the Golden Fork ceremony on Monday 5th September at Southwark Cathedral.
Local winners Local three-star winners include:
Durslade Farm Shop t/a Artfarm Ltd, Bruton for air dried beef, beef x wagyu short ribs, and leg of lamb;
Beanpress Coffee of Winterborne Kingston for Rainbow Juice
Coombe Farm Organic, Roundham near Crewkerne, for whole goose
Hollis Mead Organic Dairy, Corscombe for Benville organic triple cream Brie-style cheese (and two one-star awards).
Local two-star winners include: Ajar Of, Hazelbury Bryan, Jumbleberry Jam with Cassis (and one-star awards for Dorset Raspberry Jam and Black Garlic Ketchup); Durslade Farm Shop, Durslade Summer Honey, piccalilli, beef x Wagyu Cote de Boeu, rack of lamb, grass-fed Wagyu x sirloin steaks, Boerewors, Durslade Farm potted beef with wild horseradish (and 14 one-star awards); Baboo Gelato, West Bay, Madagascan Vanilla Gelato, Strawberry Gelato, Brandy Gelato; Bad Hand Coffee, Bournemouth, Shaka Espresso; BeanCraft Chocolate, Bradford on Avon, Orangettes; Blackmore Vale Butchery, Henstridge, Tomahawk Steak; Capreolus, Rampisham, Guanciale; and seven one-star awards; Chococo, Wareham, 80% Uganda origin hot chocolate flakes, Speculoos Caramel, Molasses and Brown Butter Caramel; and three one-star products; Fussells, Frome, garlic extra virgin rapeseed oil; Madjeston Milk Station, Gillingham, pasteurised unhomogenised whole milk; Meggy Moo’s Dairy, Iwerne Courtney, sea-salted butter and peppered butter; Mure Liqueurs, by Mat Follas, Dorchester, Properly Bitter Lemon Liqueur and Old Tom Liqueur; Purbeck Ice Cream, Corfe Castle, Ecuadorian Dark 72% Chocolate Bar with Natural Peppermint; Somerset Cider Brandy Company, 10-year-old Somerset Cider Brandy; The Dorset Ginger Company, Lytchett Matravers, Dorset Ginger Original, Dorset Ginger Extra Strong; The Wasabi Company, Wareham, Dried Donko Organic Shiitake Mushrooms.
The full list of this year’s winners and where to buy them can be found at www.greattasteawards.co.uk – a wide range of the award-winning products are available to buy in delis, farm shops and independent retail outlets across the country.
Laura Beddow is a Dorset councillor, a parrot rescuer, and dreams of an itinerant life playing her viola around a campfire with a cider in her hand
Laura Beddow Dorset councillor
Councillor Laura Beddow covers the ward of West Purbeck, about as far as you can get from the Blackmore Vale while still staying in Dorset. But she’s also in the Dorset Council Cabinet, and is Portfolio Holder for Culture, Communities and Customer Services. And if, like me, you have no idea what that actually is, Laura’s happy to explain: ‘Just think ‘museums and bins’ and you’ve got it! It’s basically anything that the public will directly use – it’s such a varied remit. I deal with Parish and Town councils. The protection of the razor clam beds off West Bay. All household waste and recycling (actually I’m a completely boring recycyling nerd now). The Arts Development Company (did you know that Dorset is the only council in the country that works with an arts company to deliver its cultural strategy?). Records and archives… No day is the same, that’s for sure.’ Among local politics, Laura’s known as a straight talker; sometimes causing ripples as she cuts to the heart of issues and focuses on finding solutions: ‘I feel like it’s just really important for us as a council to translate the local-government-speak for residents. That’s literally our job. Instead of sending out two pages of information about refreshing the library strategy, what people really want to know is “are there any changes to opening hours or staffing? Are there any closures?” And that’s it.’ In an interesting, wide-ranging and often off-topic conversation, I discovered that her fantasy Cabinet to run the country would include Optimus Prime as Secretary of State for Transport (‘I mean, he’s literally a lorry. He totally understands the brief’) and Martin Lewis as Chancellor.
Limpy Steve the seagull When Laura’s not out admiring the inner workings of the council’s recycling technology, she’ll be found at home looking after a menagerie of broken animals. ‘Current count is three rescue dogs, a rescue tortoise, some rescue rabbits … and there’s often a broken limpy parrot in the house.’ Laura’s not joking – she has an aviary in the garden and works with Birdline Parrot Rescue, taking in rescued parrots and nursing them back to health. Along the way she gets side-tracked by non-parrot rescues; a friend recently handed over a baby dormouse which she had to feed with an eyedropper, and a dodgy-footed seagull named Steven has just been released ‘I just seem to collect random animals. We stick them in a safe space, feed and look after them, and then release them when they’re ready.’
A life in music And so to Laura’s eight music choices, along with how and why they stuck in her life:
A Case Of You Joni Mitchell Well, come on. Why wouldn’t you? Frankly it could have been any Joni Mitchell song. I love her, she’s incredible. But this one in particular – I know it’s a breakup song, but it’s the ultimate love song too.
Raise Your Glass P!nk This one’s a sad one for me, despite the fact that it’s so aggressive and life-affirming. Nearly ten years ago my daughter was diagnosed with leukaemia. As a terminally ill child she was offered a ‘wish’ and she chose to go and see P!nk in concert at the O2 in London. It was a brilliant, special night; what an incredible show it was – she’s such a great performing artist, not just a terrific singer. When Issy died, her friends were really struggling. We decided we wouldn’t have a funeral, and instead we would have a memorial party with balloons and sweets and music. I’m not religious at all, but our local vicar was fabulous and she wore a spotty onesie and silver wellies to take the service. This is mine and Issy’s song, and of course we played it that day.
Under The Bridge Red Hot Chili Peppers This is just me as a young teenager – that age when you’re starting to work out who you are, what you’re going to be about. My friends were all in bands, and we were the grungy kids getting into Nirvana, painting our Doc Martins. This was the song all my friends learned, and we went to grotty little gigs at local youth clubs and it was completely beautiful. I saw the Chilis recently with my own 20-year-old, and they’re still amazing. I could have picked any Chilis song really, but this one in particular is just my grungy little teenager heart.
Violin Concerto No.1, movement three Bruch I started playing violin at the age of five – I wasn’t brilliant so I switched to the viola (I worked out that viola players are more rare, so you can get away with being less good). I joined the Dorset Youth Orchestra and was a total band geek. My granddad’s name was (genuinely) Ivor Head, and he loved this piece of music. When I was about eight I got to see Nigel Kennedy play, during his amazing punk classic era. The concert was brilliant – it opened my eyes to the fact that classical music could be fun and COOL – and he played this piece. I queued up afterwards to get his autograph, and asked him to sign my ticket for my grandad, who would have loved to hear him play but was just too poorly to go to the concert. Nigel Kennedy asked what my grandad’s name was, and when I told him he tore the ticket in half and wrote ‘Ivor half a ticket from Nigel Kennedy’.
My Immortal Evanescence I just … really like this. Amy Lee has such an amazing voice, so other-worldly. Sorry, there’s no big story I want to share with this one. I just love it.
Far From Home The Levellers This is ALL about that fiddle playing! The Levellers always show me the life I thought I would have as a teenager. An itinerant wanderer, sitting around a campfire playing the fiddle and drinking cider. Now I’m a Tory politican. It didn’t quite pan out, did it? But a part of me still believes I could totally do this.
The Storm Tanya Donelly Another amazing voice from the 90s – and really it’s the evolution of the Joni Mitchell track. It’s another break up song (aren’t they actually the ultimate love songs?), but it’s amazing. The lyrics are so carefully chosen and placed. It’s casual, slightly ethereal, and yet it’s so well constructed. I have an absolute horror of trite pop rhyming, and this is the exact opposite.
Starman David Bowie I had to – and yes, it could have been any Bowie. I was born and brought up in Lulworth Cove, and I’m sorry to say I got to the age of 15 without knowing Bowie at all. But in those days Lulworth was a small village, and we used to just gather and hang out together – no age groups, it was just a big sociable village community. We would drag an old cut up oil drum to the beach for barbecues (yes, way back in the days before I myself had to propose a ‘no disposable barbecues’ rule for Dorset), have a few drinks, the local who ran boat trips from the cove would take kids out on water skis and an inflatable doughnut … One night we were on the beach, and this song was playing. I just thought ‘wow. This is actually amazing. I’m on my beach, my parents are over there, my friends are here, I have a drink in my hand, the stars are bright …’ It’s not what the song is about, but when I hear it, it’s just everything that was growing up in a small seaside village.
The final choices And if a giant wave was washing in, and Laura could only save one disc? I’d save Joni. Obviously. Laura’s luxury item? A blanket. And no, not for any of its incredibly practical uses, because that would break the rules: ‘I tried to think of something clever and unusual but everything is better if you can tuck yourself in. Also, when I sleep, even on the hottest of nights, I have to have my feet tucked in. Because monsters.’ And the book Laura would like to take with her? Good Omens by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman. I mean, I have every single book Terry Pratchett wrote, but this one is the Best Book Ever. The relationship between Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett is really interesting, and the combination of the two of them in this book is pure magic. My ten-year-old asked me recently why I loved Terry Pratchett ‘because reading’s a bit boring’. So I read him Johnny and the Dead – now he gets it.
I was recently at a wedding, and my eight-year-old niece (a budding baker) was scrolling through my cake photos. She stopped on the one for this recipe! Millionaire’s shortbread is always a decadent bake, and it’s such a crowd pleaser. Don’t be daunted – it may look complicated at first glance and it does have steps for each layer, but each step is quite simple. Just be careful when cooking the caramel. I will be sending this recipe to my niece, for sure. If we get a return of that glorious sunshine, you may want to store this in the fridge – unless you want to make the most of the oozy, gooey chocolate and caramel! Heather x
Ingredients
Base:
125g plain flour
50g soft brown sugar
2tsp cornflour
1/4 tsp salt
1tbsp water
1 egg yolk Caramel:
1 can condensed milk
100g soft brown sugar
85g soft butter
2tbsp golden syrup Chocolate Topping:
200g dark chocolate
3tbsp double cream
A little white chocolate to finish.
Directions
Preheat the oven to 180º fan/gas 5. Grease and line an 8″ square cake tin.
Mix all the ingredients for the base together in a large bowl and smooth the mixture into the cake pan.
Bake for 15 minutes until the base is golden brown and then leave to cool.
While the biscuit base is cooling, make the caramel. In a large saucepan, add the condensed milk, sugar, butter and golden syrup and heat until the mixture reaches 225ºF. Keep stirring continuously otherwise the mixture will burn (if it catches a little, it doesn’t matter). You may want to stir with an oven glove on as the hot sugary mixture may bubble and spit. If you don’t have a thermometer, you want to heat the mixture until it gets to a strong boil, and then for about one minute more.
Once the mixture reaches the right temperature, remove from the heat, tip onto the biscuit base and spread out. Leave to cool.
Once the caramel mixture is cold and set, gently melt the chocolate and stir in the cream. Pour this creamy mixture onto the caramel and smooth out.
Place the whole pan into the fridge to set. After at least an hour, remove from the fridge and remove the bake from the tin. Using a sharp knife, cut
the bake into pieces (the colder the bake and the sharper the knife, the easier it is to cut!) without the caramel escaping. If you want clean edges, clean the knife between each cut.
To finish, melt the white chocolate and drizzle over each piece.
Heather Brown is on the committee of the Guild of Food Writers; she is a home economist with a passion for Dorset’s brilliant foodie scene. She runs Dorset Foodie Feed, championing Dorset’s food and drink businesses, as well as working with her food industry clients.
Heather’s tips – ‘You can replace the melted chocolate and cream mixture with Malteser chocolate spread and finish with whole Maltesers for an extra decadent slice (see image opposite), or try adding some Nutella to your chocolate mix for an extra nutty flavour.’
Dorset Opera Festival delights with Mozart – but Manon Lescaut disappoints
Paul Carr’s new production of Mozart’s Magic Flute brings Sarastro’s Magical Travelling Circus to town
MOZART’s great operas are rightly considered among the finest works of the operatic stage and Dorset Opera Festival demonstrated again this year just why they are so loved and admired. Last year, in a scaled down post-pandemic festival, opera-goers were wowed by their first DOF Mozart – a sensual and stunning Don Giovanni. This year it was Die Zauberflote – The Magic Flute. The brilliant English libretto, updated and moved to a circus setting, was witty and clever. There wasn’t a weak note anywhere, from the three clowns (usually the Three Boys) to the saucy Three Ladies and the mighty bass, Sorastro (a great performance from recent Royal College of Music graduate Ossian Huskinson.) The Queen of the Night – here the star of the high trapeze (not to mention the high Cs) – was Hannah Sawle, prowling and snarling like a caged tiger, with the evil and lustful Monastatos (Aled Hall) as her knife-throwing servant. The leads, dazzling soprano Jamie Groote as Pamina and Ted Black’s Tamino, with his gorgeous tenor voice, were convincing in every detail, and had real chemistry as lovers at-first-sight. The opera’s other lovers, Papageno and Papagena, were, of course, show-stoppers – Felix Kemp was hilarious as the love-lorn bird-catcher and Caroline Kennedy channelled Mrs Overall to brilliant effect as his true love. Conductor Jose Miguel Esandi took the glorious score at an energetic and exciting pace and the whole performance was, simply, magic!
A flat Puccini If Pamina and Tamino sizzled, the same could not be said for Manon Lescaut and Des Grieux in the week’s other opera. Sadly, this production of Puccini’s tragic opera, based on the Abbe Prevost’s 18th century novel, fell flat, mainly because of the lack of any kind of credible relationship between the leads. The situation was not helped by a production that many in the audience clearly found baffling (it was obvious if you knew the story or if you had read the programme notes first – but how many people actually do this?). When a director has a Big Idea, one thing is essential; the audience has to get it. Director Christopher Cowell had a big idea for Manon Lescaut – set the whole performance within the prison ship which will transport Manon – and Des Grieux – to exile in the French American colonies. So the action is seen in retrospect by the spirits of two (silent) doomed lovers (actors Iona Crampton and Eduardo Nunez), who are on stage throughout. On the deck of the ship, patrolled by heavily armed guards, little groups of prisoners huddle in misery. A ragged young woman is dragged on, followed by a priest (the Abbe Prevost, Tony Kent) and by an anguished young man. There is only a brief moment when the two ghost lovers actually touch, but their chemistry is palpable. The chorus of prisoners becomes townspeople, singers, servants and more, observing and interacting with the central quartet of Manon (the stunning soprano Anna Patalong), baritone Gyula Nagy as her gambler brother, Eddie Wade as Geronte, the old man whose mistress she becomes, and Todd Wilander as Des Grieux. The absence of chemistry between the two leads – Des Grieux never seemed even to make eye contact with Manon – left a vast hole at the centre of the opera, which could not be saved by Patalong’s glorious voice and affecting performance, nor by Nagy’s fabulously pantomimic (but characterful) Lescaut. The chorus and orchestra, under conductor Jose Miguel Esandi, were on splendid form.
