Make My Pie: The Winner

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We are very pleased to announce the long awaited winner of our Make My Pie competition - Nadia Arbach stole the show with over a third of the votes for her sunshine filled Primavera Pie, beating off Charlie Goldblatt’s innovative Squtternut Bosch Pie and Lansley and Martyn Ware’s spice filled ChiChoChi Pie, which took second and third places.

We counted over 500 votes for the eight shortlisted recipes, but it was Nadia’s creation that caught our customers’ eye, with its delicious fresh green beans, petit pois, cherry tomatoes, crispy bacon and hard boiled eggs in a parsley and saffron infused sauce, peaking out from under a lattice work top.

Nadia told us when she heard of her win; “I’m thrilled that my Primavera Pie has been chosen! I can hardly wait to see what the Melrose and Morgan chefs will do with the recipe. I hope that the fresh and tasty flavours will inject a ray of sunshine into this otherwise rainy season.”

Nadia’s pie has in fact been such a hit with the Melrose and Morgan team that we have decided to bring the launch forward, so our customers can enjoy her lovely fresh ingredients while they are in season and at their best. So look out for Primavera Pie in store at Melrose and Morgan from this August.

Thank you to everyone who entered and voted and congratulations to Nadia on her brilliant win.

Eating up a storm at Taste of London

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This year we had the privilege of being guests at Taste of London thanks to the lovely events team. The damp weather held and it was great to take in the sights and smells as visitors again after hosting our first store there last year - we had a chance to bump into old friends, suppliers and try some very good food and wine.

Star of the show for us, and a worthy winner of Taste of London’s Dish of 2012, was Club Gascon’s inspired Marmite royale and soldiers – a delicious duck liver parfait with a marmite glaze, served in little marmite pots alongside an almost malty dark sourdough for dipping. Clever, inventive and so good we devoured ours in a matter of seconds.

Next up was Bocca di Lupo with their charcoal grilled cuttlefish salad with raw courgettes, gremolata, lemon segments and Pantellieria capers – light, fragrant and summery and just the kind of thing to be washed down with a minerally chilled white wine.

Then there was a major flavour hit from the Padpi channa chaat from restaurant Tamarind. Their interpretation of this simple Indian street food was brilliant – lovely soft spiced chickpeas, tamarind chutney, sweetened yogurt, gram flour crisps and blueberries, which provided a totally unexpected and very clever flavour burst at the end of each mouthful.

Alongside the dishes on offer, the stars of the culinary world were out in force - we said hello to our neighbour from last year Michele Roux Jr. who was doing his Le Gavroche Daube de boeuf a la nicoise with braised beef cheeks, olives and polenta – a real winner from last year which we were glad to see back on the menu.

Angela Hartnett, our Camden neighbour from when she was at the York and Albany, was doing a demo from her Whitechapel Gallery Dining Room menu, while Jason Atherton mixed with the crowds outside his Pollen Street Social stall nearby.

Before we knew it our whistle stop tour was up – mental note to take the full four hour session next year – and we had to go, only leaving time to say a quick hello to our friends and suppliers from the Tomato Stall who were showcasing their exceptional heritage tomatoes, sauces and juices from the Isle of Wight.

Tickets to Taste this Saturday can still be bought from their website.

 

Edis Street Jubilee Party

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Last Saturday the residents of Primrose Hill organised a party on Edis Street to celebrate the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee.

The soggy morning didn’t phase residents as families gathered to embark on a day of fun, picnics and jollity - aided by a couple of huge Melrose and Morgan hand made swiss rolls filled with strawberries, blueberries and butter cream in patriotic red, white and blue and Will Borrell from Vestal Vodka who was dishing out his Amber Summer Cup cocktails to the crowds.

The day started off with the Edis Street 2012 Children’s Olympics hosted by Formula One’s James Allen. Children of all ages leaped through hula-hoops and raced against one another to win medals and cupcakes, followed swiftly by local mums and dads who also joined in the fun.

Local musicians played music throughout the day. Guy Chambers made a surprise appearance to play the piano, which he then signed and put up for auction to benefit the Primrose Hill Community Association, which the day was in aid of.

Queens No1 pub owner Tony Peters’ dog, Pepsi, went on to win the Pup Idol fancy dress competition and many children showed up in their best red, white, and blue to compete in their own fancy dress contest judged by no less than The Times fashion editor.

The party ended with local resident, David Milliband, auctioning off a variety of amazing prizes, including the piano and signed autobiographies, which collectively with the raffle raised over £1,500 for the local Community Association cause.

A brilliant day out in London indeed.

Pie Time

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We are drawing near to the end of voting for ‘Make My Pie’ and the competition is hotting up.

We’ve already had hundreds of votes for the final eight shortlisted pies, but there is still time to make sure your favourite is the one chosen to go on sale at Melrose and Morgan this Autumn.

This time we’ve asked the people behind the pies and our own Melrose and Morgan staff to tell us about the pie they think has got what it take to be a winner.

 

Recipe of the month: Coronation Chicken Salad

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In a just a few week’s time we will be celebrating the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee. What better time to share our recipe for the ultimate celebration food - Coronation Chicken. Here’s our take on the classic with a simple and delicious Coronation sauce paste and toasted flaked coconut. Available in store now and as part of our Diamond Jubilee street party menu.

Coronation sauce paste:

  • 3tbs good quality medium curry powder
  • 5cm piece fresh ginger
  • 1 bunch fresh coriander
  • 150g passata
  • 1tbs vegetable oil
  • 1tsp sugar
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Salad components:

  • Medium free range chicken
  • 200g Camargue red rice
  • 4 heads little gem lettuce
  • 1 red pepper
  • 1 yellow pepper
  • 100g shallots
  • 150g dark raisins
  • 175ml apple juice
  • 50g toasted flaked coconut
  • 150g Greek yogurt
  • 150g Mayonnaise
  • 1 x quantity Coronation sauce paste
  • Juice of half a lemon
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Serve 4-6

Method:

  1. To make the Coronation sauce mix, blitz together the curry powder, fresh ginger and ¾ of the fresh coriander (roughly chopped including the stalks), the sugar and passata to make a paste.
  2. Cook the spice paste in the oil for 10mins uncovered until there is no raw taste left and you have a dark flavoursome cooked paste. Set aside to cool.
  3. Season the chicken inside and out and roast in the oven for an hour or until the juices from the thickest part of the leg run clear when pierced with a skewer.
  4. Once cool enough to handle, shred the chicken to bite sized pieces and then set aside and allow to cool fully.
  5. Cook the red rice on a gentle simmer in salted water, drain and set aside to cool.
  6. Heat the apple juice and once boiling add the raisins and allow them to plump up and absorb the juice. Allow to cool.
  7. Very finely slice the shallot and separate into rings.
  8. Finely chop the red and yellow peppers into a small square dice and set aside.
  9. Break the baby gem apart, rinse and dry.
  10. To make the salad dressing, mix the yogurt, mayonnaise and the Coronation paste till you have a smooth dressing.
  11. Gently coat the shredded chicken with the Coronation dressing adding a squeeze of lemon at the same time.
  12. Start to layer the salad, beginning with the baby gem, red rice, chicken, peppers, shallots, raisins, the remaining fresh coriander and the toasted flaked coconut.
For a chance to sample the whole Diamond Jubilee menu come along to our ‘Rare Tea’ Party 7-8.30pm Wednesday 23 May at our Hampstead store.