Fred's newsletter 11.5.21

Good morning,

I hope you are well.

This Sunday I had a fairly long day at Newton Garden. Things that were planted two, four and six weeks ago are now growing well and quite fast. Putting a cosy blanket of thermacrop fleece over all the planters has helped to keep them warm and has kept the birds away. You might remember the picture I shared in a previous newsletter where the mustard leaves looked like skeletons? The protective covering was a good investment that is paying off already.

We are in May and you know what they say: neglect your garden in May and your garden will neglect you for the rest of the year! Things are really starting to come to life, so don’t wait much longer: now is the time to sow, or plant in the ground. On Sunday the temperature of the soil at Newton was a balmy 12 degrees Celsius up to about 7cm deep, perfect for sowing nearly every vegetable. I am aware that we might still get some cold nights, but I am an optimist and decided to take a chance.

Lady Mary (as I affectionately call Newton’s owner) and I decided to take the plunge and planted purple turnips, beetroot, Cima di Rapa carrots, plus three more carrot varieties. The leeks are in tray containers ready for planting when time is right; the cauliflowers and broccoli are on the planner for next weekend (or this afternoon if I have time).

Our Japanese white onions are plentiful, and this is fabulous news. We started with just three onions four years ago, and now have well over 300. We gave 200 to Robin at Monkton House, the farm next door, and they are doing so well.

We also have artichokes, and they have doubled in number. Again, Robin got a fair few. It’s starting to get quite competitive with next door now, the race is on! Robin and his family have been supplying us, mainly with courgette flowers, for the last few summers. The family has decided to expand and are now growing on roughly three-quarters of an acre of land, mostly with the no dig method. I have no doubt it will yield excellent results with a fair supply. They are a good team too. There’s Robin alongside wife Ellen, and son Alexander - a family business.

Oh, I almost forgot the potatoes. Most of them were planted three weeks ago, and we are putting more in at the end of the week. Lady Mary is on top form and has been helping a lot.

There is a lot going on in the planters (I mean potato crates). Here goes: Sucrine, Batavia, lettuces of all kinds, frisée, plantain, chives, winter purslane, thyme, green and red Arroches, spinach, haricot beans, mange-tout, tarragon, chervil, dill, coriander and many, many more.

The peas and broad beans are doing good. The beetroot that was planted two weeks ago and the lettuces in the main beds are doing very well; it is quite unbelievable. I think the heavy rain last week, milder temperatures and a few sunny evenings helped. I am so happy, and your green salad this week will be very colourful and tasty. Everything will be from Newton Garden.

Last week I was delighted with the spider crabs. Their availability wasn’t guaranteed but I decided to take a chance, adding it to the menu on Tuesday. By Wednesday, delivery still wasn’t confirmed. After a nervous wait, I received the news that 25 were on their way to us. 25 just for me - fabulous! Then, to extend my joy, we received another 22 on Saturday morning that we cooked and served same day. Boom! What a surprise. I hope you enjoyed them. The green shore crab soup was very popular too. It was a very satisfying crab experience last week!

Also on Saturday, we welcomed James Close and his fiancée Maria for dinner at bleu. They own The Raby Hunt, a 2 Michelin-starred restaurant in Darlington, and it is always a pleasure to welcome them. And let me tell you, they are right into food. No less than eight starters were ordered. Black pudding, mussels, pig’s head terrine, crab soup, spider crab, snails, asparagus and a steak tartare. Then three main courses between them, followed by cheese and three desserts. James said it was his first time going out and he wanted the best! Well done James and Maria, and I am so happy you loved your meal. Come back soon. Maria has very kindly shared with us some beautiful images - scroll to the bottom of the newsletter to see them. You may remember James wrote a piece for us earlier this year on 'what makes a great restaurant'. Read it again here.

And of course, we also saw the return of some very old friends and long-time favourite customers. What a joy for us all to be able to make people happy again. Thank you all for visiting l’escargot.

For this week’s menu, we are back to our traditional fish soup made with gurnard and shellfish. It’s an old time favourite of ours, all made in house. New arrivals are a red mullet escabeche, and fresh squid in an Armoricaine-style sauce (depending on arrival ). The grilled snails in garlic and parsley with chorizo can be had as a nibble or a starter.

For this week’s menu, we are back to our traditional fish soup made with gurnard and shellfish. It’s an old-time favourite of ours, all made in house. New arrivals are a red mullet escabeche, and fresh squid in an Armoricaine-style sauce (depending on arrival ☺︎). The grilled snails in garlic and parsley with chorizo can be enjoyed as a nibble or a starter.

Also back are the cruditées variées with a few different vegetables. I received very good feedback (Betty’s included) last time. We shall also cook paté en croûte with pork, chicken, ham and lamb, served with sauce gribiche.

For mains, there is a mash pie with duck confit and caramelised onions; an easy one for you to serve your guests this weekend. Just pop in the oven for 45 minutes and it’s ready!

We also have a petit salé casserole of lentils with pig cheeks, Toulouse sausage and smoked belly of pork. We haven’t had pig cheeks for a long while and I know you enjoy them very much.

I am also cooking a tagine of lamb served with couscous; the combination of the sweetness of the fruits and the spice is a treat on its own. I love it. The fish this week will be cod with saffron and basil sauce. Also new on the menu is confit beef cheeks in duck fat, served cassoulet-style. This is one to re-heat in a pot on the hob, slowly until piping hot. Dijon mustard a must with it. We will put some on the side for you.

There are a few desserts too including a Scottish strawberry tartlet with pecans, gluten-free chocolate nemesis, apple tart for two (or three) to share, pear and almond clafoutis and our traditional brioche and butter pudding. There will be plenty of crème anglaise available.

Sophie makes steak tartare for James and Maria. Picture: Maria Guseva.

This week we are open on Friday evening, and on Saturday for lunch and dinner. Please keep an eye on our social media and website for updates on our opening hours from next week.

Our guest writer this week is Donald Reid who everyone with a restaurant or cafe in Scotland will know as the editor of The List's 'Eating and Drinking Guide'. He writes a great piece about what comfort food really is.

Thank you for reading, and thank you for your support. That’s all for now as I have a garden to attend to!

À bientôt,

Fred