Excess is everywhere, too many choices to make, too much information. Excess even affects what we eat. Where to shop? Too many choices in the supermarket, too many highly processed foods. Supermarkets don’t give priority to your health. Should we be fat free, meat free, dairy free? We are bombarded with information and, for most of us it makes life difficult. Balance is a good start and there are so many benefits to be gained from eating fresh, organic, seasonal food sourced as locally as possible. The challenge is finding the best sources for you. But it is surprisingly easy to get used to once you find your favourite suppliers.
You will probably be surprised how simple it is to plan meals based around what is in season and readily available. Having a vegetable box delivery helps enormously. The Soil Association has some information on suppliers in various parts of the UK and there are many other online resources. Look also for Farmers Markets in your area, many of them are particularly good for vegetables. For meat there is Coombe Farm Organics, a delightful company. As well as selling the usual cuts of fabulous meat, it also sells delicious nitrate free bacon and ham and some more alternative cuts. And for ethically caught fish there is the lovely Sole of Discretion which is part of the Open Food Network.
There are currently lots of delicious vegetables and fruits in season in the UK. Carrots, Kale, Leeks, Purple Sprouting Broccoli, Spring Greens, Cabbage, Forced Rhubarb, and there are still some varieties of apples and pears. There are also cockles, clams and mussels and red gurnard. Click on the green highlights for relevant recipes in these pages.
Good news for UK wine is that Sauvignon Blanc from the Cotswolds has been voted one of the best in the world. Woodchester Valley, a family-owned vineyard in Stroud has won top prize for its 2021 vintage, beating tough international competition.
It is the highest possible award in a blind tasting by a panel of experts at the global Sauvignon Blanc masters. It is the first English still wine to win a major prize (master Medal) in the competition. Not surprisingly it has all sold out but look out for the brand in future.
Sherbhert recently revisited The Gunton Arms in North Norfolk and are happy to say that it is still as good as reviewed in November 2021 in these pages. Revisited in 2023 and the staff, food and setting are still fabulous. We tried two new dishes – beef offal and suckling pig and both were outstanding. Booking in advance is essential. Do try it if you are in the area and do also try Socius in Burnham Market which is an outstanding place to eat and again book early. See also North West Norfolk.
The Great Plant-Based Con is a book by Jayne Buxton who explains “Why eating a plants-only diet won’t improve your health or save the planet”. It is an interesting and compelling read which is not against veganism or vegetarianism but expertly points out that diets which exclude animal foods can damage your health, how BIG FOOD and BIG PHARMA profit when you eat more plants, how SCIENTIFIC STUDIES can DISTORT the evidence in favour of plant-based diets and how the MEDIA often act as plant-based advocates rather than reporters.
Sherbhert champions delicious, healthy and sustainable food where its production minimises environmental damage, exploitation, animal suffering and subsequent processing. Sherbhert’s recipes are simple and use mainly UK seasonal produce sourced as locally as possible.
