Cooking with the G-force (From Living Northeast)

Cooking with the G-force

11:38am Friday 1st January 2010 in

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A new cookery school has been set up within the sumptuous settings of a Georgian stately home. David Roberts packs his pinnie (but forgets a map) and heads off to Middleton Lodge.

THE lovely, little old lady in Middleton Tyas who gives me directions to Middleton Lodge could not have been more helpful…or more wrong. When I finally make it, 20 minutes late, down the drive to the Georgian mansion, I am beginning to suspect some sort of conspiracy. You can see why the locals might want to keep this place to themselves.

Walking through the main door into the stunning entrance hall with its sweeping staircase I am met, not by a sniffy receptionist put out by my tardiness, but by a roaring fire and the owner James Allison, who thrusts a glass of champagne into my hand and immediately sets about making me feel at home.

Which he is… in more ways than one. James was brought up at Middleton Lodge, and now owns it and runs it as a hotel and weddings venue.

However, this is not your traditional stately home turned hotel. Guests are not treated like paying customers, but more akin to old family friends who have come to stay. There are no locks on the doors to the rooms and no televisions in the rooms. Instead, if you want to watch TV, then you can just come and down and turn on the one in the lounge.

This mentality has transferred itself to the new cookery courses which the Lodge is now offering. Lady Georgina Anderson and Caroline Whalley quickly put you at your ease.

If you expect a cookery class to be run by a sweary Gordon Ramsay-style chef in the industrial confines of a restaurant kitchen, think again. Although that’s not to say you won’t get a gentle reprimand if you leave the stalk on the thyme leaves – as I very quickly find out.

Middleton Lodge can cater for 15 people, sitting around the beautiful big table in the airy kitchen.

As Lady Georgina, or G as everybody refers to her, explains, the aim of this particularly cookery school is to give people the confidence to cook good food well. It is about making what appears difficult easy and reinvigorating people’s passion for cooking.

The enthusiasm of G and her colleague, Caroline Whalley, is infectious. The pair of them both have an impressive pedigree managing restaurants, catering companies and working as chefs. But this doesn’t mean their lesson will go over the heads of the average person.

We begin making canapes – one of G’s specialities and something I would never have dreamed of cooking.

I had previously dismissed them as being too time and labour intensive. G is quick to quash such perceptions with a number of tips to save and time and money.

Gsays canapes can replace a starter at a dinner party.

They can be served while people are mingling and provide a much more convivial way to enjoy food before the main course. This is Caroline’s forte and we are to learn how to prepare deconstructed lamb Wellington with spinach and ricotta stuffing.

Both chefs are passionate about buying quality local food, from local suppliers. Caroline is effusive in her praise for good quality butchers.

“If you use a local butcher regularly, you will always ensure that you get a good deal”, she says. “A proper butcher will never sell you fillet steak,” she adds, confirming a theory I have always held that the so-called premium cut of beef is very much inferior in taste to some of the cheaper varieties.

The deconstructed part of the lamb Wellington is in keeping with ‘cooking with confidence’ motto of the school. The traditional dish is broken down into its constituent parts with the pastry sitting in a layer on top.

The idea is to make the preparation less fussy whilst keeping the essential flavours.

Finally the dessert, is a lavender panacotta (a perfect accompaniment with lamb incidentally) with a blackberry compote.

At this point the majority of cookery courses would end. Here at Middleton Lodge, though, we now get to enjoy the fruits of our labours in the sumptuous settings of the lodge. As the finishing touches are put to the meal, we can enjoy the attractions that the house has to offer – the games room with snooker table, the hot tub, the parkland surrounding the house or a pre-prandial drink in the bar.

As you sit down to eat in the dining room, you get the best of both worlds. A lovely meal served to you in glorious surroundings, with the sense of satisfaction of knowing you have cooked it.

“We triy to keep it as simple as we can with tried and tested things that I’ve given to my family and friends and they really enjoy, so I know it’s going to taste good,”

says G. “We feel that if guests make a mistake, let them make a mistake, but then show them how to make it right. Then hopefully they will go away and try it at home.”

A whole range of cookery courses is planned for the future, ranging from a course for chalet girls to one for students heading off to university.

It is easy to see how with the combination of the beautiful surroundings of Middleton Hall and the enthusiasm and knowledge of G and Caroline the cookery school can easily take off. It certainly gets my recommendation.

Just make sure you get good directions...

■ The one-day residential cookery course costs £195 per person and includes one night’s accommodation. For more information visit ladygscookeryschool.com

Cajun Salmon Skewers with Lime and Yoghurt Dip

Makes 20

400g salmon fillet (skin removed)

2tsp each of thyme, rosemary, oregano (dried)

1tsp smoked Paprika

1tsp sweet Paprika

½tsp cayenne pepper

2tsps cumin seeds (dry roasted)

1 clove garlic (crushed)

3tbsp olive oil

½tsp salt

20 bamboo skewers (soaked for 20 minutes)

Dip

Mix together the following ingredients:

400ml pot Greek yoghurt

Zest and juice of two limes

1tbsp chopped coriander

METHOD

1 Cut the salmon into 1½ inch squares (approx).

2 To make the marinade, toast the cumin seeds and dry herbs in a frying pan until they start to smell and pop. Mix with the spices, crushed garlic and olive oil to make a paste. Place the salmon pieces in a mixing bowl, pour on the marinade and toss the two together. Leave to marinade for at least one hour.

3 To cook, place each salmon square onto the end of the skewer and lightly fry in a dry griddle pan for two minutes each side. NB: no oil is needed for frying. Place each salmon skewer on a baking sheet and put in the fridge until serving.

4 To serve, warm the salmon skewers in a medium oven (160°) for seven minutes and serve on a platter with a ramekin of the yoghurt for dipping.

Mini Turkey Burgers with Brie and Crispy Pancetta

Makes 20

300g minced turkey

2 pork sausages

½ onion, finely diced

50g butter

salt and pepper

10 sage leaves, finely shredded

4 English muffins

1 pack of pancetta (8 slices)

100g Brie

Cranberry sauce

METHOD

1 Slice each muffin in half and using a one-inch canapé cutter, cut out 20 rounds using the tops and the bottoms, place on a baking sheet and toast under a hot grill.

2 Fry the onion in butter until lightly browned, leave to cool.

3 Remove the sausagemeat from their skins and mix with the turkey, onion and sage. Season with half a teaspoon of salt and grind of black pepper.

4 To shape each burger, take your canapé cutter and place it on a lightly oiled tray. Take a heaped teaspoon of your burger mix and drop it into the cutter and press down lightly to forma neat round. Remove the cutter and repeat 20 times.

5 Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a non-stick frying pan and lightly fry each burger on both sides until browned. Leave to cool.

6 To cook your pancetta, line a baking tray with silicon parchment, arrange the slices of pancetta and then place another baking sheet on top, cook in the oven for five minutes at 200°C until crispy. Leave to cool, then break into shards.

7 Slice your brie into finger-top sized pieces.

8 To assemble your canapé, place the toasted burger buns on a baking tray, add a small blob of cranberry sauce, then your turkey burger and finally the brie. Warm in a medium oven (160°C) for five minutes. Remove and top with the shard of pancetta.