… oh it was a glorious day at the market yesterday… the Autumn sun was shining down on me as I demonstrated my cooking skills in front of the crowds of Lincolnshire folk… it was such a great day and I enjoyed myself thoroughly… so much so that I really would love to do many more… I mean, what’s not to love… I had an audience of adoring fans watching me do what I love to do… people seemed to really enjoy themselves and I had some very positive feedback – as well as many people who had their own opinions and plenty of questions. I was quite nervous at first but as I got into the swing of it the nerves dissipated and the hours simply flew by…
… I was lucky enough to have had much of my produce supplied by many local producers and without sounding too much like an Academy Awards acception speech i’d really like to thank Vicarage Eggs for supplying me with their lovely free-range eggs, Lancaster and Son Butchers, Rectory Reserve and Red Hill Farm for the very succulent Lincolnshire Sausages… i’d also like to thank J North Farm for their wonderfully fresh vegetables… The local Lincolnshire Co-Op also supplied me with bucket-loads of herbs and spices. I must also thank the brilliant team from Market Rasen BIG Market, Sara, Sarah and Jackie… and I can’t forget the brilliant Steve who washed up for me all day and made sure I had plenty of tea to sustain me… there’s a great set of photo’s from the day here
… and when I got home from this crazy day all I wanted was a warming dish of home-made goodness…
veggie sausage casserole cobbler
it dawns on me that in my 25 odd years of cooking i’ve never made a cobbler… for sure, i’ve made a billion scones but never have I placed then atop a hot and bubbly pot of glorious stew, neither sweet nor savoury and for this I have no reasonable answer… for you see this is the most wonderful of culinary delicacies and it seems criminal, negligent even that I have not done this until now…
for the stew
1 medium onion -chopped
2 sticks celery – chopped
1 large carrot – chopped
5 medium mushrooms – chopped
4 veggie sausages – cut into disks – I used Quorn sausages
2 cloves of garlic – crushed
a cup full of frozen peas
8 or 9 small cherry tomatoes
1 glass of white wine
1 pint of good veg stock mixed with a good quality veggie gravy powder
a handfull of fresh herbs of your choice
for the rosemary and thyme cobbler
8oz self-raising flour
4oz butter
salt and pepper
fresh rosemary and thyme
milk to mix
– in a heavy pan sweat the onions in a little butter and olive oil for 5 minutes till beginning to soften, then add the carrots, celery and mushrooms and saute until tender
– remove the veg and set aside whilst you saute the cut sausages until golden
– once the sausages are brown, add the veg back to the pot and then add the tomatoes, stir and then add the wine and stock, put the lid on and let the whole thing bubble away for about 15 minutes
– add the peas, stir and then transfer to your pie dish or oven-proof dish
– to make the cobbler place the flour and butter into a bowl and rub together till it resembles breadcrumbs, add the fresh herbs and seasoning and then bring together with a little milk… if you stir is around using a fork whilst adding the milk it should start to come together into a ball
– flatten out on a floured surface and cut into small circles using a scone cutter – place these on top of the stew and bake in the oven on 180C for 25 mins until the cobblers are risen and golden
eat and of course, enjoy!
What a load of old cobblers! You WILL end up doing your own TV cookery show, you know… Watch out The Hairy Bikers, here comes Dom!
Well done Dom. I knew you would be brilliant. I'm off to look at the photos
Sounds like a great day, let me know when you do get your own show, I will certainly put that in my planner! X
Well done Dom, I KNEW you would be ACE and I wasn't wrong! I LOVE cobblers and especially veggie ones! Karen
Now THAT looks delicious! Glad your day went well too. I was otherwhere engaged and so couldn't get along to heckle, sadly … 😉
Well done Dom, a day of cooking in public and having to wxplain what you're doing. My problem is I loose concentration and forget to talk or forget where i'm up to cooking! I'm most impressed – I checked out the photos. Love the look of the cobbler, perfect for these closing in nights. GG
Well done, your are super talented and it's great experience cooking in public (for a budding career in food!) A lovely delish hearty evening meal by the way x.
Congratulations on a successful appearance, wish I could have been there. The cobbler looks smashing, especially those glorious tall scones!
You have totally got me thinking another cobbler will be just the thing for dinner this week! And … that photo of the dumpling from the side is just heavenly!
Oh my goodness Dom, this looks delicious! Did anyone video your demonstration? I would love to see it if you can post it! I'll bet your were amazing!
Bloomin fantastic Dom, both cobbler and demo. I could tuck into the cobbler with gusto right now and can so see you doing a brilliant job of playing to the crowds. Very well done, no idea how or what you were demoing for but I'm off to find out more.
I love cooking, but occasionally I would love someone to make something like this for my supper. The biscuits on top look amazing.
I enjoyed looking at the festival photos. I also loved how there was a mirror over your cooking station. Handsome pictures of you. I bet your mom is so proud of you!!
I vote for you to have your own show on the Food Network!!! 🙂
The casserole looks amazing.. those biscuits look like perfection!
How exciting about your demo – was it your first one? I know what you mean about cobbler; I too have made many scones but not ever used them to top a stew! Yours looks fab.
Are there any leftovers??? I can be at your door in a few hours ;0)
Well done sir! I loved the photos you provided, I miss those days of small fresh local purveyors..