WHO IS THIS COURSE FOR?

This course is for serious food lovers who want to treat themselves to real foraging in all of West Cornwall’s wild landscapes, to learn to cook with passionate and professional chefs in our new bespoke kitchen and to saviour the delights of the freshest wildest produce in the comfort of the beautiful Fat Hen barn.

The course is suitable for wild food novices as well as keen foragers. The focus here is on showing you the amazing potential these wild ingredients have in your kitchen and how to incorporate them into your everyday cooking just as you would any other spice, herb or vegetable.

This course bridges the gap from hedgerow to plate by showing you how to turn these humble ingredients into rustic, earthy dishes that will blow your culinary mind. There is nothing worthy about our cooking at Fat Hen, it’s all about complete enjoyment and gastronomic satisfaction. As well as delving back in time to our traditional hedgerow fare we also look at countries that still have a thriving wild food culture adopting and adapting their recipes to suit our wonderfully forgotten wayside and seashore produce. The gourmet weekend is a journey of discovery that may span the culinary globe and will include a bit of everything: bread making, fish filleting, game butchery, pasta making and of course complete immersion in the wilds of West Cornwall to forage for herbs, vegetables, seeds, roots, fruits, seaweeds, fungi, flowers and nuts.

The highlight of the weekend is the Saturday night feast where we dine by fire and candlelight in the beautiful Fat Hen barn. The evening kicks off with hedgerow cocktails and wild canapes. We then move on to a 3 course dinner showcasing all that’s good about wild Cornish food. We normally have fish and game though vegetarian options are always available. A glass of wine is included with the dinner and we also have a wine list if you would like to indulge and make a night of it!

SAMPLE COURSE OUTLINE:

SATURDAY

9.30am Arrive – tea, coffee, cake & introductions.

10.00 Cooking demonstration: dispatching & cooking Cornish brown & spider crab.

10.30 Hands on cookery workshop: Soda bread with wild herbs & seaweeds.

11.00 Foraging trip to collect seasonal greens, seaweeds, herbs, vegetables, berries & fungi (depending on season).

13.30 Wild Foraged Lunch at Fat Hen.

15.00 Hands-on cookery workshops: Skinning and butchering a rabbit & filleting and preparing mackerel for hot smoking.

17.00 Return to your accommodation to refresh/change for dinner.

19.30 Back to Fat Hen for Hedgerow Cocktails and canapes.

20.00 3 course wild feast with wine.

22.00 End. Taxi service back to accommodation if required with a pick up on Sunday morning. Please ask Caroline in advance.

SUNDAY

10.00 Arrive – tea, coffee, toast with wild preserves.

10.30 Cooking demonstration: Nettle pasta, Rabbit sauce.

11.00 Foraging trip to collect seasonal greens, seaweeds, herbs, vegetables, berries & fungi (depending on season).

12.30 Wild lunch.

13.30 Cooking demonstration & dish to take home: Pickled rock samphire; soused mackerel.

15.00 End

SAMPLE GOURMET WEEKEND MENU:

Foragers snack: Wild greens spanikopita, sparkling elderflower drink.

Saturday lunch: Cornish crab bisque, homemade soda bread with wild herbs and pepper dulse butter, wild salad, three cornered leek aioli. Elderflower & rosehip ripple ice cream.

Saturday night hedgerow cocktails and canapes: Blackberry and rose bellini, crispy laver seaweed, rock samphire fritters, smoked rabbit loin with hedgerow jelly, soused mackerel with pickled rock samphire, seaweed crackers with cheddar & pickled crab apples

Saturday night dinner: Venison carpaccio with horseradish crème fraiche, roasted shallots & hazelnuts, seaweed poached hake with pepper dulse, nettle gnocchi, wild cabbage. Carragheen seaweed pannacotta with blackberry and geranium compote; fennel flower shortbread.

Sunday morning: Tea, coffee and toast with blackberry & apple jam, hedgerow jelly or japanese knotweed jam

Sunday lunch: Hot smoked mackerel with laver seaweed cake & 3 cornered leek aioli, seaweed focaccia. Rustic braised rabbit & prunes with nettle tagliatelle, Wild greens (Sea beet). Sea buckthorn & orange cake with whipped coconut cream.

WHAT IS INCLUDED IN THE COURSE?

Tea/coffee & cake on arrival, refreshments throughout the weekend, foragers snack, 3 course lunch on Saturday, wild feast on Saturday night with hedgerow cocktails & canapes, 3 course dinner with wine, Sunday lunch, something to take home for later, e-mail recipe pack.

WHAT SHOULD YOU BRING?

A bottle of water, waterproof clothing, walking shoes/boots or wellies, pen & notebook, camera, bag or basket to take home seaweeds and other foraged ingredients.

IS THE COURSE SUITABLE FOR VEGETARIANS?

Yes, there are always vegetarian options. We also cater for gluten and dairy free diets. Please notify us in advance (at least a week’s notice please)

DATES:

18th – 19th May 2019 / 28th – 29th Sept 2019

DURATION:

Sat 9.30am – 10pm & Sun 10am – 3.00pm

PRICE:

£225 (excluding accommodation – please see website links for recommended local accommodation. A taxi service can be arranged on Sat night back to your accommodation with a return pick up on Sun morning). Camping is possible by prior arrangement.

SATURDAY NIGHT FEAST-ONLY OPTION:

£40 – Contact Caroline for availability

TUTOR:

Caroline Davey & Mark Devonshire

MEET:

Fat Hen | Map

MAXIMUM NUMBER OF PEOPLE ON EACH COURSE:

16

 

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