Print Article

Blog

We now have a new blog so for all our latest news, thoughts and maybe the odd recipe click here...

 

Winter Warmers Still Required!

With the weather being all doom and gloom and reportedly the first couple of weeks in January the most depressing of the year, now is the time to keep warm and seek out the seasonal delights that this wintry time has to offer, thankfully pretty much all of which don’t even come close to breaking the bank!

Butternut squash has to be one of the highlights and as we currently have it in such abundance we’ve been making swathes of Butternut Squash and Thyme Soup. The silky, sweet flavour combined with the rich, velvety texture and sun-like orange colour is a winning combination so if, like us, you can’t resist this wonderfully versatile vegetable belonging to the Cucurbita family then why not try and whip up a batch of your own…..just read on to find out how…..

Serves 6-8

Ingredients

Preparation method

  1. Preheat the oven to 240C/475F/Gas 9.
  2. Cut the butternut squash (including skin) into 7cm/3in wedges and scoop out the seeds using a large spoon. Brush the wedges with 1 tbsp olive oil, place in a roasting tray and season with salt and pepper. Place in the oven and roast for 45 minutes or until soft and caramelised.
  3. After 25 minutes of cooking, add the unpeeled garlic and the sprigs of thyme.
  4. Meanwhile, heat the remaining olive oil in a large pan. Add the onions, carrots, celery, sage and remaining garlic and cook gently for 10-15 minutes until soft but not brown.
  5. Pour the stock into the vegetables, bring to the boil and simmer for 20 minutes or until the vegetables are tender.
  6. Allow the squash to cool for 5 minutes when cooked. Using a large spoon remove the flesh from the skin and add to the stock. Squeeze the roasted garlic from its skin into the stock and discard the thyme.
  7. Simmer the stock and vegetables for a further 5 minutes or until the squash is beginning to break up.
  8. Place the soup in a blender and blend until smooth. Return the soup to the pan and gently reheat. Check seasoning.
  9. Ladle the soup into bowls and serve immediately with buttery crusty bread.

 

Where would I like to be? Seville perhaps….

But as a holiday in Spain isn’t on the cards at the moment, I’m instead reminded of walking through the streets of Seville where oranges lay all over the pavements by making a batch of Seville Orange Marmalade. Now featuring as a main ingredient on one of our delectable puddings – Whiskey and Seville Orange Marmalade Bread and Butter Pudding that we serve up with our home made custard. Exactly what the doctor ordered!!

So, on a dreary January afternoon , tune into your  DAB radio (I love it) or put on your Christmas CD’s (mine - Rumer & Neil Diamond –Dreams ) and start slicing and squeezing. The slicing of the peel is quite therapeutic – and you get the authentic sliced peel . Liquidising is not the same !!

Once mission has been completed, tuck into some toasted muffins, dripping in butter and topped with your HOMEMADE marmalade and I can guarantee your sense of accomplishment and reward will be sky high! Even better – home-made bread with home-made marmalade  - awesome!

 

Clavelshay Rosé Veal – new to our menu and already a firm favourite

Welfare-kind Clavelshay rosé veal is both delicious and guilt free!

Our philosophy is very simple: we pride ourselves on our produce and always ensure that it is locally produced and meets with ethical standards. And this is no different for our veal, which un-like the white-beige colour of meat from animals whose diet is restricted to milk and whose movement is limited, our veal is produced with the animal’s welfare in mind and as a result has a deeper pink tone, hence earning it the name Rosé Veal.

We’re currently serving this splendid meat on our January a la carte menu and our chef Guy Horley has created the tantalising combination of trio of Clavelshay Veal served with rich and creamy Dauphinoise Potatoes and a Root Vegetable Puree, which has been flying off the menu…..   So popular we will be serving it in February as well..

 

October 2011

I can’t believe this year has gone so quickly and we’re already into Autumn! Clavelshay has had an extremely busy 12 months of weddings and parties and only now are we getting back to normal and at last I have some time to write my blog .

Here are some highlights of the year so far –

 

Family

Daughter Laura (21) decided she wanted to go to Australia for 4 months and after working all last summer to save up went off alone in January. It was very hard seeing her walk away at the departure gate – I couldn’t have done that at her age. But I had nothing to worry about as she had a fantastic time and we were all in tears when we met again at Heathrow in May. She is now in her last year at Harper Adams and I am looking after her animals (again) while she is away.

Sons James and Rob are working hard on the farm – James running the dairy herd with assistance from Bill and Rob. Bill continues to work as hard as ever forgetting that he is supposed to be letting the boys do more and Rob has his pigs and a successful first hog roast season behind him which has been much appreciated at the weddings we’ve held.The roast pork on Sundays in the restaurant continues to be very popular due to the superb flavour and crackling and Rob also does a grand job of being relief chef in the restaurant when Guy is away.

 

Puppies

April saw the arrival of 4 puppies from Millie, my Springer Spaniel – a traumatic process to say the least and one that we won’t be repeating! But as often happens we’ve not been able to part with one puppy, Purdey, that Rob is hoping to train as a gun dog, with the word ‘hoping’ perhaps being slightly optimistic!

So far her training seems to have included chewing the Gun Dog Training DVD, breaking the handle of my favourite Emma Bridgewater mug, my glasses and a milk jug – so as you can imagine her name was something other than Purdey for a while.

Then last night at home, while I was carrying 4 glasses in one hand and a bottle of wine in the other from the kitchen to the dining room she chased the cat through my legs upending me onto some very hard steps. The glasses landed on the hall carpet unbroken and the bottle landed upright without a drop being spilt. If there is an Olympic category for juggling I would win first prize!

I landed in a heap on the steps, banging my elbow, thigh and back resulting in a bruise the size of Asia but otherwise OK. Rob heard the crash and the cursing and came to see what was happening. Dog in disgrace again! Never a dull moment with her around.

 

Music at Clavelshay

One of my favourite moments of the year so far was an impromptu performance by Alice, one of my girls who has a beautiful voice. It was late and there were only a few people left in the restaurant and as I was talking about music to some customers mentioned that Alice was a really good singer and would sing if they asked her, which they did. She started and to say that everyone in the place was spellbound is an understatement. Then one of the guests (Courgette – real name, long story) asked if she could sing with her. They did a rendition of “Amazing Grace”  and we were all in tears. It was a magical moment we will never forget.

In June we had a French Evening with Fany Porte from the Pyrenees, playing her lovely French guitar music which we enjoyed with plenty of French wine and cheeses and in July Clavelshay saw the first appearance of Soal cake – a local group playing music from around the world and everyone had a lovely evening outside with Rob’s hog roast going down a treat.

One August Sunday afternoon saw the Lazy River Jazz Quartet play outside which went with a swing with the superb easy listening music being perfectly complimented by afternoon tea served with an array of sumptuous home-made cakes including lemon drizzle, tangy carrot and of course some scones, chocolate eclairs and brownies…

The people who came loved it but we could have done with a few more attending so maybe next year if you see me advertising the Jazz Quartet come along and enjoy a feast of goodies. That said the family were very pleased if only ever so slightly spoilt to have cake in the tin for days...

We’re continuing with our Film & Food Evenings this season with the first film being Woody Allen’s Vicky Christina Barcelona which takes place on Friday 21st October (visit the event page on our website for full details) and as we’re always looking for new ideas for events all your suggestions are very welcome. Anyone fancy learning to play the ukulele? Just a thought…

 

Art

We are delighted to have had the opportunity to show work from local artists in the restaurant and this year we have exhibited photography by Don Bishop ARPS – www.donbishop.co.uk who captures the fantastic local landscape and shows us just how lucky we are to live in the beautiful West Country.

Then a chance reading of local artist Jo Butcher, who won a Country Living Magazine award in August prompted me to contact her straight away and I was delighted when she agreed to show her work at Clavelshay. Her embroidered pictures are a joy – such delicate and intricate embroidery yet very individual and modern, as she combines wild flowers on reclaimed linens and hand painted backgrounds. They definitely need to be seen so take a look at her website - www.jobutcher.co.uk  

Kate Mears (www.katemears.co.uk) has also been featured in Country Living Magazine and paints delicate watercolours that are full of life and light, depicting life around the Somerset village in which she lives. She has also written, illustrated and published “A Year Around Our House” that is a diary with fantastic illustrations and certainly a beautiful book to treasure.

Jo and Kate are exhibiting at Clavelshay from 12 October 2011 until Christmas so it’d be great if you can come and see!

Also exhibiting will be Sue Heys who creates superb stained glass lamps and fused glass work  and a welcome return will be Alison Jacobs with her amazing animals – they look so at home here  I might have to keep them for ever! Here are their websites if you want to take a peek – www.sueheys.co.uk / www.alisonjacobs.com

 

And finally.....drum roll please - Awards!

We are delighted to have been nominated for the Somerset Life Restaurant of the Year Award 2011 by readers of Somerset Life and our customers. We are one of just 3 finalists in this category and will hear the result at the award ceremony on October 20th.

This gives me the chance to thank my great team – Guy our Head Chef, Rob the relief chef, Alex my right hand man, all of whom do such fantastic jobs and are a pleasure to work with, my lovely waiting staff (my second family), Cress - for organising me and sorting out my newsletters so efficiently and my own family for putting up with me always being in the restaurant and never at home…pass me a tissue please…

Our ethos will always be to use the freshest local produce, cook it well, treat customers as we would wish to be treated and send everyone home happy – simple isn’t it!  If only…have your fingers crossed for us on the 20th!!!