Make My Pie: The Shortlist

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It’s decision time for you all pie lovers out there, as we arrive at the shortlist stage of our Make My Pie competition.

After a brilliant response and some excellent pie entries, our tough panel of Melrose and Morgan chefs have whittled down the list to a shortlist of their eight favourites.

Now, its over to you to decide which of these delicious sounding pies is going to make it through to development, before it goes on sale later this year.

Will it be the indulgent ‘Autumnal’ or ‘Rabbit’ pies, exotic ‘ChiChoChi’ or ‘Spice of Life’ pies, taste of summer ‘Primavera’, vegetarian ‘Squtternut Bosch’ or old favourites ‘English Breakfast’ and ‘Sunday Lunch’ pies?

Our Executive Chef, Caleb Laws who headed up the judging panel, said of the shortlist;

“The Make My Pie competition entries really were top notch. There were some fantastic sweet and savoury pie ideas, but it was the innovative savoury creations which really got our attention. I went for strong flavours with classic, but interesting combinations. As a pie-mad New Zealander I cannot wait to start developing the winning pie!”

The winning entry will get to see their pie on sale at Melrose and Morgan, credited to them as the winner, for a limited run over the month of October. The winner will also receive £100 in Melrose and Morgan vouchers to spend anytime they like.

Voting closes on 31st May.

UK Coffee Week

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Next week, 23-29 April, is UK Coffee Week, the nations biggest celebration of coffee, raising money for the Project Waterfall charitable initiative delivering clean water supplies to Africa’s coffee-producing countries.

In support of this excellent cause, our baristas will be serving delicious espresso and filter coffees from our new friends and master roasters from Broadway Market, Climpson and Sons. After our huge success with Climpson Estate in our shop coffee machines, we’ve added a select range of Climpson and Sons ground and whole coffee beans for you to try at home too.

It’s hard to choose between their exceptional coffees, however, our general manager Josh has developed a favourite in the Ethiopian Yirgacheffe, which our head barista Roee recommends using as a filter coffee. It has a sweetness and lingering chocolatey finish without the expected bitterness, which means even the sweet toothed can leave out sugar and still enjoy the pure, clean coffee flavours.

Whole bean and ground Climpsons Estate and Brazil Daterra Estate, both £7.50, and Ethiopian Yirgacheffe and Swiss water Decaffeinated Brazil, both £8.00, are available at both our stores.

Coffee over ice

If you prefer your coffee a little more on the chilled side, then Jimmy’s Iced Coffee has made its spring/summer debut in the 330ml cartons – perfect for a little pick-me-up or picnic next time the sun decides to show its face.

Jimmy’s Ice Coffee Original and Skinny Love are available at both our stores at £2.40 a carton.

Coffee and chocolate

For those who definitely like it sweet, then there is no better partner than coffee and chocolate. Our Valrhona chocolate tart is infused with coffee for added depth and rich undertones. £2.95 each / £12.95 for a 6 portion tart.

For a serious coffee-chocolate hit, Rococo’s Chicchi di Caffe chocolate covered coffee beans are also back in stock at £9.50 for a 200g bag.

 

Ulrich’s Olive Oil

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We are very lucky that our friend Ulrich Gerza and his wife Barbara Ungaro (old residents and customers from Primrose Hill) kept in touch when they uprooted to the beautiful Podere Fonte Christiano estate in the Umbrian hills of central Italy.

There, Ulrich and his family press olive oil from the olives that grow naturally on the steep hillsides of their estate – the first cold pressing of which he sells exclusively to us at Melrose and Morgan.

The first bottle arrived to us for tasting a few weeks ago and the full consignment has just landed in our shops, the elegant dark glass bottles concealing the vibrant green oil inside.

Umbria is the only one of Italy’s 20 regions to boast DOP (Denomination of Protected Origin) olive oils. Mountainous and dominated by the Appenines, it is one of the smallest regions and the only Italian region having neither coastline nor common border with other countries.

Whilst there is no proof of this producing anything special, there is a certain romance in the idea of this mountainous, landlocked seclusion concentrating flavour into the olives that grow there.

Certainly Ulrich’s 2011 ‘vintage’ is quite special. The unusual weather conditions in central Italy last summer; a cold dry July, followed by a heat wave in August and an unusually warm dry autumn, resulted in a low yield but very high quality olive harvest. Ulrich pruned his trees to further exacerbate these qualities in the fruit giving his oil an intense but smooth character.

Pablo, our resident Italian (Lazio born and bred, so no regional bias) describes Podere Fonte Christiano as; “A unique olive oil. Gentle at first, then becoming peppery and almost spicy at the end.” He continues; “This is a ‘finishing oil’ not something to cook with – and don’t use strong vinegars, you don’t want to mask its flavour.”

To get the best from this oil, use it at the end of cooking, drizzled on chargrilled meat and fish or to lightly dress salads. Crucially it should be used cold to preserve its delicate flavour and nutrients.

We think it’s best poured liberally onto charred Artisan Bakery sourdough, first rubbed with a little garlic and a few flakes of Cornish Sea Salt.

Podere Fonte Christiano is exclusive to Melrose and Morgan and available at both our stores at £14.95 for 500ml.

Long Weekend

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Hurrah, the first official long weekend of the year. And, what better way to celebrate than with a little low key experimentation in the kitchen. Days off are, for us, a great chance to try out some new recipes and get excited about seasonal ingredients in a more gentle domestic way.

To help inspire your own kitchen dabbling we’ve put together some of our favourite ideas and combinations for you to try at home.

Happy Easter.

Weekend breakfast

Lie ins and lazy breakfasts have got to be the ultimate luxury, so make the most of the four opportunities ahead of you with the perfect ‘wake me up’. Slice segments of pink grapefruit and dress with warmed Regents Park Honey and thyme leaves - lovely with thick River Cottage natural yogurt.

Warm salad

A salad of warm purple sprouting broccoli topped with a dressing made from salted capers, lemon zest, Ortiz Anchovies, parsley and mint. Delicious with new season roast lamb and a great way to update your Easter entertaining.

Classic leeks mimosa

Celebrate lovely, young new season vegetables - poach baby leeks in white wine and water with a few Steenbergs whole peppercorns and a couple of bay leaves. Finish with a simple vinaigrette and the finest grating of a hard boiled Fenton Farm egg.

Indoor picnic

If the weather turns out as bad as they say, then fret not, here’s your solution - cheat the season and have a Spring indoor picnic with our new British charcuterie from Native Breeds, some Caperberries, Gordal Olives and a bottle of 2007 Riesling Grand cru ‘Vorbourg’ Pierre Frick – the perfect way to spend a rainy afternoon.

Super side

Roast long, fine slices of Jerusalem artichoke with garlic and fresh thyme till caramelised and finish with Sun and Seed Organic Walnut Oil to bring out their lovely nuttiness. A great accompaniment for roast meats and just as delicious on its own with a good sourdough to mop up the sticky pan juices.

Easy supper

Steam and generously butter some Jersey Royal new potatoes then lightly crush with wilted spinach and steamed samphire and serve with one of our Roasted Salmon fillets and lemon mayonnaise. Deliciously light and perfect for when you need a break from the rich Easter feast.


Local school children create Easter window

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Children from 2H, 2S, 2SB and Rainbow class at Primrose Hill Primary School are behind the amazing Easter Egg window display at our Gloucester Avenue store this year.

The children from Key Stage One, aged 5-7 years, painted the eggs for the display as part of a ‘Signs of Spring’ project.

Working on the project, the children said; “We have already learnt about the life cycle of a chicken, and watched some eggs hatch in our Nursery and Reception classes, so we could all talk about where the eggs had come from. We all designed our eggs on paper and chose the colours before we coloured them in with either felt tip pens or acrylic paint. We all enjoyed mixing the acrylic paints to see if we could change the shade of the paint. We found it trickier than we expected, as we’re not used to painting on curved surfaces and the eggs sometimes cracked.“