More cheese please!

Photo courtesy of slowridetoturin,co.uk

We're really excited to be stocking some new cheeses on our stall which we hope you're really going to enjoy!  The first one is the lovely 'Dorset Blue Vinny' made at Woodbridge Farm in Sturminster Newton by Mike Davis and his team.  It was in 1980 that Mike decided to resurrect the 300 year old recipe using unpasteurized milk from his own herd of Friesian cows deep in the Dorset countryside.  This cheese is made using skimmed milk and has a lovely creamy texture, slightly crumbly and a little stronger in flavour than Stilton.

Photo courtesy of dorsetblue.com

Thankfully Mike and the cheesemakers no longer employ the old fashioned method of dragging mouldy old horse reins through the milk to ensure the perfect amount of mould, instead (thankfully) a mould solution is added.

A couple of weeks ago I was lucky enough to be whisked away by a good friend for a few days in Barcelona.  We're always quieter at this time of the year so it really was the perfect excuse to disappear for some rest and relaxation.  Of course for me this also meant eating some fabulous Catalan cuisine and sampling some lovely cheeses.  With the sun on our faces, overlooking the spectacular harbour we feasted on some lovely Manchego cheese and tapas.  The cheese had a fabulous nutty flavour, with a hint of sweetness and really did go rather well with a generous gin and tonic.  On my return I simply had to order some for our customers to enjoy as well.  In fact we sold out at the first market we started selling this cheese!

Photo courtsesy of achat-fromage-fermier.com

Our eagle eyed regular customers will have noticed we now stock this fabulous Brie made by the Donge brothers, just outside Paris.  Quite rightly it was been named the 'King of Cheeses' in 1814 at a culinary tournament in Vienna, it has also won the very coveted Medaille D'Or for the last 9 years.  This is a firm family favourite in our household and coupled with a good bottle of red wine is a feast on it's own.

We'll be at Whiteladies Road Market tomorrow, come and say hello, talk cheese with us and sample some of the lovely new additions we have!

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Christmas is always a very hectic time of the year at Snowdrop Cottage, extra chutneys and preserves to be made, cheese hampers packed and Christmas Puddings delivered.  The house is always a hive of activity until our final market when we collapse and enjoy a quiet moment.  The next day we decorate the house, the children dress the tree and presents are placed ready for Christmas Day  This year has been a little more exciting than normal though as we have a new member of the family who will also be celebrating their first Christmas - introducing 'Teazle', our now 3 month old Wire Haired Vizsla:

She's grown a little bigger since this photo was taken at 9 weeks but has settled in really well, she especially enjoyed her soft Christmas Turkey toy which father Christmas delivered under the tree for her. Every Christmas we take up residence with my Husband's family in North Devon where we enjoy home cooked food and lots of time as a family on the gorgeous rugged beaches. It's a time to kick back, relax and have some fun.

It was Teazle's first time on the beach and she had a fabulous time playing with the children, running away from the waves and generally dashing around like a dog possessed!

It's been a fantastic year and we're looking forward to meeting both new and old customers in 2016.  Thank you to so many people who are too numerous to mention (but you know who you are) for your never ending washing up, helping on our stalls, cooking, babysitting and of course, just being there to listen, without you all Snowdrop Cottage wouldn't be here.

We wish you all a very Happy and Healthy New Year!

Christmas Puddings

Our last batch of Christmas Puddings have just come out of the oven and smell simply divine!  It really is starting to feel like Christmas at Snowdrop Cottage!  They'll be left to cool before being wrapped in traditional muslin and tied with our trademark spotty duck egg ribbon!  They almost look too good to eat!

We have quite a following for our puddings (traditional and also Cranberry & Gingerbread) so if you'd like to make sure you don't get left pudding'less this Christmas please message us and we'll happy keep one to the side for you to collect at one of our markets.  Once they're gone, they're gone!!

Say cheese!

You may have noticed recently that there have been changes afoot at Snowdrop Cottage of late.  In September we took over a cheese stall from friends who were having a change of direction in life and moving onto pastures new.  Thankfully they passed their knowledge on and we're now really enjoying learning all about cheese and this new part of Snowdrop Cottage.

We've continued to stock a lot of cheese which existing customers loved, but also decided to add a few of our favourites too!  We now sell a very lovely Comte vielle reserve, a protected cheese produced in the Jura Massif region of Eastern France.  This mountain cheese is hidden away in the dark silence of caves where it gets its unique taste, texture and colour.  This Comte is matured from 18-24months and there are apparently 83 flavours of which the most noted is a brown butter, roasted nut aromas and a sweet finish. This particular cheese has been judged to be one of sixty two finest cheeses in the world and partners a Rhone red wine perfectly.

We're thrilled to be stocking cheese from 'The Somerset Cheese Company' too.  The dairy is located in Somerset close to the Bath and West Show ground which was founded by three friends with over 40 years of cheese making experience.  Fosse Way Fleece is a particular favourite of ours, made from Ewe's milk with a wonderful clean taste and smooth, silky texture.  Pennard Vale is a goats milk cheese which has a nutty, fruity but quite sweet flavour.  It has a close, smooth and creamy texture and works well with our honeyed fig chutney.  You'll only find us and one deli stocking this cheese in the Bristol area.

With Christmas coming we're pleased to be able to offer a cheese hamper of either our favourite cheeses we think would look good on any Christmas table or you can of course choose your own selection.  Each cheese is wrapped in wax paper sealed with a signature Snowdrop and then presented in a plain kraft box with ribbon and gift tag. If you would like to order a cheese box please email us (snowdropcottagefinefoods@gmail.com) or use the contact button on our front page.  You can collect at Whiteladies Road Market on either Saturday 12th or 19th December.

Please do come and say hello and we'll happily offer tasters of any cheese you'd like to try.  

An Indian Summer?

It's been very busy throughout the summer at Snowdrop Cottage.  Whilst the weather has been somewhat variable at times, today whilst I ate my breakfast the sun streamed through the windows whilst a low mist hung on the hills and an Autumnal nip was in the air - apparently we're set to have an Indian summer - hurrah!  The girls are now back at School and quiet descends on the house enabling lists to be made and chores to be caught up on.

At the start of the summer we welcomed some 'new girls' into our home, or perhaps more accurately into their home under the Quince tree at the bottom of the garden.

We have four 'Lowmans' - like the one above who has been named Sneaky for her persistent ability to escape constantly only to be found pulling the lettuces to pieces in the kitchen garden!  We also have a 'Cream Legbar' (Hermione) who will lay lovely blue eggs and another gorgeous girl whose breed we're not sure of, that will lay us green eggs (Pip). They've settled in really well and my youngest daughter loves nothing more than checking eagerly for any eggs laid whilst rewarding then for being so clever with very enthusiastic cuddles.

We're lucky to live in the heart of the countryside so we often take walks around the village and across the fields.  The girls love checking to see whether the damsons and blackberries are ripe enough to pick or throwing sticks into a nearby tree to release the ripe apples into eager mouths!

This is the view across the village and out towards the start of the Cotswolds hills

Such a gorgeous plant!  

Today though, a chance to breathe and catch breath before another hectic weekend ahead. Do take a look at our events page and come and say hello if you're nearby, we'd love to see you!

Bristol Good Food Awards 2015 - Results

Enjoying our night at the BGFA 2015 with Liam from Psychopomp 

Thank you to all our lovely customers and friends who voted for us and enabled us to go through as finalists at The Bristol Good Food Awards 2015.  We had a fabulous night, meeting some lovely old and new friends as well as chatting to some of the judges who gave us an insight on how it all worked!

Unfortunately we didn't win our categories this time round (boo, hiss!) but already we've dusted off our aprons and will be bringing you even more delicious pies and preserves and hoping you'll put us through to next years final where we'll give it our best shot once again.

It was great to be part of the celebrations and finally swap my flour dusted apron for a little red number and my favourite leopard print high heels and fabulous to see Mr Snowdrop in his wedding suit still looking pretty dapper I have to say!  Thanks once again to all you lovely people that enabled us to have a night out and celebrate the amazing variety of food and artisans out there well and truly putting Bristol on the foody map!

Competition time!

If you fancy winning a hamper full of our own Snowdrop Cottage goodies then take a look at this competition being run by Guide to Bristol (click here to enter). The competition closes on 24th April so be quick!!  Good luck to everyone who enters!!