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Roaring log fire at the Cat Inn
When you spot that a cosy pub in a beautiful part of the world will be hosting a vegetarian night, what can you do but book a table and plan to spend the day in the area?
The Cat Inn is in the sleepy Sussex Village of West Hoathly and welcomes locals, diners and walkers alike with a roaring log fire and an excellent menu. When we called in for a break during a walk, we were delighted to see they were hosting an evening with a special vegetarian menu and providing us with an excuse for a visit!
Our starters were a delicious and richly flavourful borscht (a Ukrainian beetroot soup) served with sour cream and feta and watermelon salad, which turns out to be a gorgeous combination! For mains we had a rich and satisfying wild mushroom tart, with rocket salad and a great mixed platter of felafel, tabbouleh and fatoush (a Levantine bread salad) with a butter bean hummous. we loved both, but we noticed that the other item on the menu, a curry served with naan and popadum seemed to be the most popular amongst the other diners!
Our desserts were both gluten free – a chocolate torte served with blood orange sorbet and an almond cake with pistachio ice cream. I would say the almond cake won the awards as it was wonderfully moist, but the rich chocolate of the torte demands a special mention.
It was a very successful evening and the menu showed imagination and a willingness to experiment, while clearly paying respect to a clientele who may be suspicious of a whole meal out being vegetarian! I would however like to encourage the Cat Inn and other restaurants and pubs to put their thinking caps on and come up with other veggie menus – it certainly didn’t seem to keep people away from the Cat Inn anyway!
As well as this lovely pub, the area is full of fantastic views, historic houses and open spaces galore. We visited the National Trust house, Standen, a late victorian home designed Arts and Crafts movement member, architect Philip Webb. Both house and garden were calming and inspiring, with views across the Sussex countryside. We also walked in Ashdown Forest, which, aside from being the largest free public space in the south east of England, is famous as home to Winnie-the-Pooh!
Standen - the house seen from the croquet lawn.
The Standen drawing room
Evening falls over Ashdown Forest
During a trip to Italy last week, we spent a gorgeous afternoon in the city of Balzano. The reason it has three names is that this region has a complicated history and the people speak Italian, German or a local language called Ladin. It has been an important trading post since at least 1190 as it sits between two major cities – Venice and Augsburg
Some of the city’s history is dark. Having been part of the Austro-Hungarian empire, it was annexed by Italy after World War I. It was mostly German speaking at the time, but underwent an intense period of ‘Italianisation’ under Mussolini during the 1920′s. During World War II the city was held by the Germans until the end of the war and for nearly a year there was a Nazi transit camp here.
Today the city is rather serene, with beautiful architecture set against a dramatic mountain backdrop.
The Duomo in the corner of Piazza Walther, completed in 1420.
One of the two lions holding up the porch columns of the Duomo.
Lion number 2!
The Obstmarkt on Goethe Strasse. This famous market is open 6 days a week selling food and flowers.
More colour at the Obstmarkt
Carciofi and carciofini (artichokes) at the Obstmarkt.
The famous Laubengasse or Portici - the heart of the medieval commercial centre, with its historic arcades and archways.
A chemist shop on the Laubengasse.
Advertising the Walter opticians on the Laubengasse.
The historic Amonn House on Rathausplatz (Town Hall Square), at the end of Laubengasse.
There's a beautiful park and walkway alongside the River Talvera / Talfer, with a view up to the Dolomite mountains. The walkway leads from the bridge in the city centre.
Maretsch Castle, from the 13th century. The vineyard within its ancient walls grows Lagrein grapes. The castle is only about 5 minutes walk from the Tafferbrucke bridge along the river walkway.
An evening view from Piazza Walther / Waltherplatz.
It seems that even in the 18th and 19th Centuries, the world of cookery books was dominated by celebrity chefs, when cooks employed by royalty or those who ran famous eating houses were the main beneficiaries of the boom in the publishing of cookbooks. There was also a rise in the number of vegetarian cookbooks published during the 19th Century and the writers of those were often already known too. Mrs Bowdich for example, who published ‘New Vegetarian Recipes’ in 1892, was the owner of a vegetarian restaurant on Gray’s Inn Road in London.
To celebrate all this, the Keats House Museum in London has been showing an exhibition of the period’s celebrity cookbooks, from the collection at the Guildhall Library. This coming weekend is the last chance to see the exhibition as it closes on 26th February.
This is a recipe from one of the featured books ‘The Complete Confectioner’ by Frederick Nutt, and what I love about this is the instruction to include carraway seeds, ‘as many as you think proper’!
Judges Biscuits by Frederick Nutt, 1819
Take six eggs and break them into copper pan, yolks and whites together, whisk them well for above five minutes, mix half a pound of powdered sugar with the eggs, and whisk them for ten minutes, put as many carraway seeds as you think proper, and half a pound of sifted flour, mix it well with a wooden spoon, and put three papers on your plates; then take a spoon and drop them on papers about the size of a crown-piece, sift some powdered sugar over them, let them be rather thick in the middle, and the oven rather sharp, and when they come out, cut them off the paper while hot.
Regency ‘Celebrity’ Cookbooks
Keats House Museum
until 26th February 2012
Keats Grove, Hampstead, London NW3 2RR UK
Lake Orta
After a long weekend in Stresa on the shores of Italy’s Lake Maggiore, it’s official: I’ve fallen in love! I know it’s not a new discovery, but this really is one of the most beautiful places on earth. Blue shimmering waters surrounded by majestic mountain peaks receding into the mist. Gorgeous!
Isola Bella, Lake Maggiore
It was one of those trips that just fell into place, with beautiful sunny weather, and unually for vegetarian travellers, great food at every turn. Each day seemed to bring another delicious lunch in a yet more spectacular location. There was a real sense of seasonal eating here, with much use made of local mushrooms, pumpkins and root veg. There were top quality simple meals of pasta with tomato sauce, fresh bread and salad, but also unusual dishes of herby polenta and sweet pumpkin gnocchi. We only had four days, but as well as Stresa we visited Arona, also on Lake Maggiore and Orta San Giulio on Lake Orta. We ate well everywhere and below is a list of recommendations.
Sunrise over Lake Maggiore
La Piazzetta, Piazza del Popolo, Arona (http://www.lapiazzettadiarona.com)
Overlooking Lake Maggiore to the Rocca de Angera on the far side. The had a special 3 course mushroom menu here and we had a wild mushroom tagliatelle as well as gnocchi in a rich tomato and mozzarella sauce.
Al Buscion, 18 Via Principessa Margharita, Stresa
We stopped in here twice for pre-dinner drinks and nibbles. It has a great atmosphere and excellent wine list.
La Botte, 6/8 Via Mazzini, Stresa
Excellent herby polenta with garlicky roast vegetables and a rich wild mushroom risotto.
The New Bar, Isola Superiore dei Pescatori, Lake Maggiore – on the far shore of the island from the ferry port.
Another spectacular location on the lakeside with views over to Verbania. A simple meal of pasta and tomato sauce, mozzarella and basil panino with a goats cheese salad and bread.
Cafe Torino, 23 Piazza Cadorna, Stresa
Great value pizza with salad and bread, served with style in a lively atmoshpere.
Trattoria Due Piccioni, 61/63 Via Principe Tomaso, Stresa
Top class cuisine with knowledgable and friendly staff. We had Tortino Rustico, an eggy savoury cake with grilled courgettes and Gnocchi with pureed pumpkin topped with crumbled amaretti, sweet and intriguing.
Ristorante Due Santi, Piazza Motta, Orta San Giulio
An even more sublime view over Lake Orta towards Isola San Giulio accompanied by another simple, but perfect meal of pasta, bread and salad.
For a more detailed article on our trip see here.
Isola San Giulio, Lake Orta
I had lunch in one of my favourite roadside restaurants at the weekend, the Lime Tree in Chepstow (See my review on Offmotorway M48), where I had a ‘Superfood Salad’. I have to confess that I rather undid all the super-ness of the meal by ordering a side of fries, but hey, I was delighted to find something vegan, gluten free and highly nutritious for my lunch.
When the waiter came to clear our plates, he asked me what I had thought of the salad, as it was the first time it had featured on the menu and I was the first to order it! I hadn’t been prepared for the question, and as I had cleared my plate with relish I just said that it had been very good. But later I found myself wondering what the ingredients would be in my perfect superfood salad.
This one had come with blueberries and pumpkin seeds, undoubtedly on anyone’s superfood list, but also with apples, grapes, oranges and iceberg lettuce. Certainly apples, grapes and oranges are pretty good nutritionally speaking, but the iceberg lettuce should probably have been replaced with a dark green leafy mix including watercress, spinach and maybe some baby kale.
Also, without the chips the meal would have left me pretty hungry, so I think I would have added some roast sweet potato or squash and added more protein with some beans and walnuts. Then to make sure I was eating the full rainbow in one meal, I’d add beetroot, red pepper and grated carrot. All topped off with a dressing made with omega 3-rich cold pressed canola oil. Any other suggestions?
