Chefs Corner

Hot Trends – Food and Drink Expo

BY Steve Walpole

This show in Birmingham is massive. It’s always nice to browse and look for the latest hot trends. The trouble is that it’s the usual suspects sometimes. Visiting is about the networking but sometimes you do come across a diamond.

A wonderful company called Patchwork Pates are doing an excellent dairy-free chicken liver parfait. To make a parfait it usually has to be a high butter content, pork fat and stuff like that. But to make a product that still feels like a parfait – in this day and age people are also counting the calories.

Another was DeJong Cheese in the Netherlands. Although I am big advocate of British the fact is that these guys are amazing. They are doing these flavoured goats cheese pearls. Goats cheese is really on trend. I realised that the flavour profile are really good. The quality is amazing. They are doing everything from goats’ cheese bries to camemberts. They are also doing the usual cheese logs.

The one I really want to shout about are Boozy Udders ice creams. It’s ice cream for grown ups. It’s a couple – a very small company who make these ice creams and sell it just to grown ups. They are in Kent. It’s really quite quirky – the packaging and everything.

They are making very good proper ice cream with no corners cut but you really do get that flavour punch. They do most of the cocktails – Margarita, Pina Colada …. They do a Jamaican rum punch which is superb. They are looking at doing a Kir Royale. I really like them because for me ice cream is one of those things that’s all or nothing in this country.

My final tip is Holy Lama spice drops. They have got these natural extract spice drops. Imagine the old fashioned the little brown bottle with pipette – well this is the new way forward. You only need a drop – they do things like lemongrass, saffron, cinnamon, cardamon. They have got hundreds of flavours. It’s to die for. What I love about these is that they taste natural but they are so powerful. You don’t need to mess about with out of date spices. Like when you’re making a pannacotta: add a couple of drops of cardamom and you have this wonderful taste without much effort. They are also cost effective.

The other thing I liked about Holy Llama is they are trying to do a sustainable business model as well – working with the local farmers. Apparently 90% of their workforce are women.

Steven Walpole is a leading chef and food consultant, working with a wide range of clients developing menus, recipes and other products. See www.stevewalpoleltd.com for more detail. ____________________________________________________________ Steve's CV includes stints at some of London’s best eating establishments including Browns Hotel, Home House, City Rhodes, Quaglinos, The Four Seasons, The Lanesborough, The Intercontinental, Le Champenois, Lloyds of London, The Boulestein and the Waterside Restaurant at Bray. He has been a finalist and medal winner in countless competitions including UK Parade de Chefs Olympia, Toque d’Or, Roux brother’s scholarship, Nestle Grand Prix Masterclass, Academy of Culinary Arts. Born in Essex, Steven has been passionate about cooking since he started a Saturday job in a local restaurant at the age of 15 – a whole host of college qualifications, diplomas and awards followed in rapid succession and he became a full time lecturer at the famed Westminster College in London. In 2000 Steven was the highest performing candidate in the Kitchen category at the Academy of Culinary Arts Awards and in 2003 came second at the grand final in one of the most prestigious competitions on the competition circuit – the Roux Scholarship Finals making him the youngest ever lecturer to do so. He is considered to be one of the finest young chefs in the country. Having co-presented a 10 part television series (Kids Fit Squad) with Jane Wake (fitness guru Celebrity Fit Club) for Discovery Health, Steven appeared at The Vitality Show and also at The Homes Show at Excel in London. Steven also lectures on childhood obesity, and healthy eating for children is a subject that he is passionate about. He ran a Junior Chefs Academy for children at Westminster College and held nationwide workshops teaching children how to cook. He is chef consultant to the charity HOPE (www.hopeuk.info) producing healthy recipes and inspiring children and adults to get into a healthy eating scheme and well balanced diet and worked recently with Weight Watchers UK. He is a member of the Academy of Culinary Arts. Steven has appeared at food festivals worldwide including Karachi, Pakistan and the Gourmet Food Festival in Johanesburg and Capetown, South Africa and he is part of www.celebritychefsuk.com. Looking good is equally as important and Steven regularly trains in a gym; his other interests include extreme sports and he recently participated in a parachute jump for charity – an experience he can’t wait to repeat!

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