Ingredients

1kg Venison on Bone

75g Plain Flour

1/2 teaspoon Salt

¼ teaspoon Black Pepper

2 tablespoons Oil

1 Chopped Onion

2 Chopped Carrot

2 Chopped Celery Stalks

1 tablespoon Crushed Garlic

125ml Red Wine

1 teaspoon Sugar

1 teaspoon Thyme

800g Chopped Tinned Tomato

20g Tomato Paste

1 Bay Leaf

125ml Beef Stock

1 teaspoon Dried Thyme

1 teaspoon Dried Basil

1 teaspoon Dried Parsley

Method

1. In a bowl, add the flour and mix with the salt and pepper.
2. Coat each slice of the beef shank in the flour mixt.
3. In a frying pan over medium heat, add the oil.
4. Cook the beef in batches. Cook until each side is browned (Roughly 3-5 minutes).
5. In a slow cooker, add the onion, carrot, celery, garlic, red wine, sugar, thyme, diced tomatoes, tomato paste, bay leaf, and beef stock and herbs. Mix until combined.
6. Add the Venison shanks so that they’re covered with the sauce.
7. Cook on low for 8 hours or until the meat is tender.
8. Season to taste. If needed add corn flour and water to the mixture to thicken.

Recipe by Estate Chef Tom Parry

The post Slow Cooker Raby Venison Osso Bucco appeared first on Raby Estates.

Prep Time 30 min

Cook Time    8hours

Serves 6

Ingredients

Venison Dice 800g
Smoked bacon Lardons 200g
Plain Flour 75g (swap to gluten-free flour if preferred!)
Salt 1/2 teaspoon
Black Pepper ¼ teaspoon
Oil 2 tablespoons
Red Onion (chopped) 1
Carrots (chopped) 2
Celery Stalks (chopped) 2
Garlic (crushed) 1 tablespoon.
Cloves 2
Cinnamon Stick 1
Red Wine 125ml
Sugar 1 teaspoon
Thyme 1 teaspoon
Tinned chopped Tomato 800 grams.
Tomato Paste 20g
Bay Leaf 1
Chicken Stock 125ml
Dried Thyme 1/2 teaspoon
Dried Basil 1/2 teaspoon
Dried Parsley 1/2 teaspoon
Dried Rosemary 1/2 teaspoon
Dried Porcini Mushrooms 10g

Note If you would prefer to use Fresh Herbs instead of dried, please do.

Method

1. Cover the porcini with boiling kettle water and leave to rehydrate.
2. Season the Venison Dice with sea salt and black pepper, roll in flour then brown them in a In a frying pan with a little oil over a medium heat, turning until well coloured all over. Remove from pan and place into slow cooker.
3. Slice the smoked bacon lardons. Peel the celery, onions, and carrots, then chop into rough 1cm dice. Add to the hot frying and colour slightly, then add to slow cooker.
4. In a pestle and mortar, crush the cloves with 1 teaspoon each of salt and pepper, then pound.
5. Add to slow cooker all the other ingredients, stir together. Place lid onto slow cooker and cook on a low heat for 8 hours.
6. Season to taste, serve with freshly cooked pasta, with sprinkling of fresh parsley.

Recipe by Estate Chef Tom Parry

The post Raby Venison Ragu appeared first on Raby Estates.

New festive recipe from Estate Chef, Tom Parry

Christmas is coming and to celebrate we caught up with Estate Chef, Tom to find out how to cook the perfect Christmas Pudding.

Preparation time: 1 hour
Cooking time: 4-6 hours
Serves: 6-8
Equipment & preparation:You will need 1.5ltr pudding basin, mixing bowl, spoon
Allergies: This recipe is vegetarian

Ingredients

• 100g Self Raising Flour
• 75g Butter, Softened (additional 20g to butter cooking container)
• 100g Muscovado Sugar
• 2 Medium Free-Range Egg
• 1 Apple (peeled, cored and small dice)
• 175g Raisins
• 175g Currants
• 100g Mixed Peel
• 40g Fresh Breadcrumbs
• 40g Mixed Nuts
• 45ml Brandy
• 1 Orange (Rind and juice)
• 1tsp (3g) Mixed Spice

Instructions

1. Measure the raisins, currants, and apple into a bowl with the orange juice. Add the measured brandy, stir, and leave to marinate for about one hour.
2. Put the measured butter, sugar and grated orange rind into a large bowl and cream together with a wooden spoon or a hand-held whisk until light and fluffy. Gradually beat in the eggs.
3. Sift together the flour and mixed spice, then fold into the creamed mixture with the breadcrumbs and the nuts. Add the soaked dried fruits with their soaking liquid and stir well.
4. Generously butter a 1.4 litre/2½ pint pudding basin. Cut a small disc of foil or baking parchment and press into the base of the basin.
5. Spoon into the prepared pudding basin and press the mixture down with the back of a spoon. Cover the pudding with a layer of baking parchment paper and foil, both pleated across the middle to allow for expansion.
6. To boil the pudding, put a metal jam jar lid, or metal pan lid, into the base of a large pan to act as a trivet. Place a long, doubled strip of foil in the pan, between the trivet and the pudding basin, ensuring the ends of the strip reach up and hang over the edges of the pan. This will help you to lift the heavy pudding basin out of the pan of hot water when it has finished cooking.
7. Lower the pudding onto the trivet and pour in enough boiling water to come halfway up the side of the bowl. Cover with a lid, bring the water back to the boil, then simmer for about seven hours, until the pudding is a glorious deep brown colour, topping up the water as necessary.
8. When cooked through, remove the pudding from the pan and cool completely. Discard the paper and foil and replace with fresh. Store in a cool, dry place.
9. To serve, on Christmas Day, reheat in microwave, turn the pudding onto a serving plate. To flame, warm some brandy or rum in a small pan, pour it over the hot pudding and set light to it.

We will be selling our delicious Raby Christmas Puddings in the Stables Shop along with Raby Sloe Gin and Ginger Wine this year. The Shop is open Monday – Sunday from 11am to 4pm.

The post Christmas Pudding Recipe appeared first on Raby Estates.

New recipe from Estate Chef, Tom Parry

We’ve got an abundance of apples and eggs on the estate this year, so to celebrate we caught up with Tom to find out a new autumn recipe that you can try at home.

Preparation time: 30 mins
Cooking time: 1 Hour
Makes: 10 Cake slices
Oven Temperature: 180C/160C fan

Ingredients

250g Orchard Bramley Apples (peeled and sliced)
50g Light brown sugar

 

Sponge

150g Butter
150g Self-raising flour
3  Free-range eggs
150g Light brown sugar
3g(1/2tsp) Vanilla essence

50g Ground Almonds

1.5g (1/2tsp) Ground Cinnamon

Crumble

60g Plain flour
30g Demerara sugar
30g Butter

 

Instructions

Crumble Mix

1        Rub together the sugar, flour and butter until the mixture resembles bread crumbs.

Cake Mix

1. Peel and core the apples and slice into 2cm pieces.
2. Place the apples into a bowl and add 50g brown sugar Roll the apples making sure all are covered with sugar and leave to one side for later.
3. Place butter and sugar into a mixing bowl and whisk until light and fluffy.
4. Add eggs, flour, cinnamon, and vanilla, on a low speed lightly mix until smooth.
5. Using a spatula, fold in the apples.
6. Pour mix into a lined baking tin.
7. Sprinkle all the crumble mix evenly across the top of the sponge mix.
8. Bake in a pre-heated oven for 50-60 minutes, it may take a little less depending on your oven.
9. Leave the cake to cool in the tin for 10-15 minutes, then transfer to cooling rack to cool completely.

If you’d like to try these delicious traybakes, made with locally grown produce on the Raby Estate, come and visit us in the Yurt Cafe at Raby Castle. The Yurt is open daily from 10am – 4pm.

Recipe by Estate Chef Tom Parry

The post Orchard Apple and Almond Tray Bake appeared first on Raby Estates.

Sustainability and the preservation of the natural environment are two of our core business aims across the Raby Estate. We want to build a legacy for future generations to treasure whilst protecting the rich heritage in County Durham.

Steps that we are currently undertaking at The High Force Hotel include:

High Force Hotel

• Switching Lonton’s coffee bags to tubs in order to cut down on packaging
• Switching from single use cloths to reusable cloths that can be washed
• Introducing biodegrable spoons and cups for our ice cream
• Offering a 20p discount for visitors using their own coffee cup
• Making use of our flower beds by planting herbs to grow more local produce for the High Force menus
• Entering into a food waste contract to recycle our food waste
• Encouraging our suppliers to develop their own green initiatives
• Monitoring our electricity and propane usage and setting goals to reduce usage

Travel to High Force Waterfall

• Offering a 50p discount on waterfall entry for those arriving by pedal bike or bus
• Recording all green travel and rewarding those who carpool, walk or cycle to work
• Reviewing the origin of all of our purchases to reduce travel distance and find ethical suppliers

As we continue our sustainable journey, we seek to source as much local produce as possible throughout the High Force Hotel, especially when it comes to our food. Recently we have joined Green Tourism, a company dedicated to promoting sustainable tourism around the globe. By following a series of green goals set out by Green Tourism and initiatives from our staff and customers, we aim to continue to implement positive changes at High Force through our very own Green Team.

The post Green Initiatives Actioned at High Force appeared first on Raby Estates.

Hidden in the Raby Castle archives, a handwritten ‘receipt’ book, dating back to the late 18th century, features a recipe for Lady Hewitt’s Mince Pies. Although we have yet to discover Lady Hewitt’s connection to Raby, her recipe was clearly a favourite that was passed on to the Countess of Darlington, who like many modern foodies, carefully copied the recipe into her own notebook for posterity. Lady Hewitt’s mince pies feature all of the traditional ingredients of a good mince pie: from mixed peel to currants, apples and of course a hearty slug of brandy!

Our Raby Castle Christmas Mince Pies will be on sale throughout December at the Stables Cafe and Refreshment Kiosk.

Here’s the recipe for you to try at home.

Raby Castle Christmas Mince Pies

Preparation time: Less than 30 mins

Cooking time: 20 mins

Serves: Makes 12 deep mince pies

Ingredients

For the pastry
375g Plain Flour
250g Butter, Softened
125g Caster Sugar, Plus 20g for dusting
1 Medium Free-Range Egg

For the filling
170g Bramley Apple, Peel, core and finely dice
1 Large orange (use zest and juice)
1 Lemon unwaxed, Cut rind with no pith, juice Half
100g Caster Sugar
120g Vegetable Suet
Pinch Sea Salt
225g Currants
75ml Brandy

You will need a deep muffin mould with 12 holes, a large round pastry cutter, and a medium pastry
cutter.

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas 6.
2. To make the sweet pastry, rub the flour, butter, sugar and egg together with a splash of cold water until it just comes together as a dough. Do not over work the dough. Wrap the pastry in cling film and set aside to chill in the fridge while you make the filling.
3. To make the filling,  boil the lemon rind in water until soft. Discard the water and fine chop the lemon rind.
4. Add the rest of the ingredients, allow to soak for 30 min, or overnight if possible to let the flavours develop. The mincemeat filling will last for up to 2 weeks in sealed jar.
5. Roll out the pastry to a 3mm/1/8in thickness. With the large round pastry cutter, cut out 6 x 9cm/3½in discs of pastry. Press the pastry into the muffin cups and fill each one with a good helping of the mincemeat mixture, so that it reaches three-quarters of the way up the side of the pastry-lined cup.
6. With the medium pastry cutter, cut out 6 x 8cm/3¼ in pastry circles for the lids (slightly bigger than the top of the muffin cups). Place a lid on top of each pie and gently push down. Brush with cold water and sprinkle with caster sugar.
7. Bake for 20 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool.
8. Lightly dust with sugar.

Download our Raby Castle Christmas Mince Pies Recipe

The post Raby Castle Christmas Mince Pies appeared first on Raby Estates.

Preparation total time: 20min

Cooking time: 45min

Makes: 10 portions

Ingredients

• 4          10 x 18 in. sheets of filo dough
• 60g      Butter, melted
• 30g      Fresh white breadcrumbs
• 16g      Flaked almonds
• 5g        Icing sugar for dusting

Filling:

• 6          Tart apples, quartered, cored, peeled, and sliced
• 1          Lemon- Grated zest and juice
• 40g     Light brown sugar
• 1g        Ground cinnamon
• 1g        Ground ginger
• 120g    Sultana
• 90g      Chopped Nuts

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C/350f/gas 4
2. Make the filling: Peel and slice the apples thinly and put them in a bowl of cold water with a little lemon juice to stop them going brown. Melt the butter in a small saucepan over a low heat and keep warm.
3. Mix the apples, lemon zest and juice, sugar, ginger, cinnamon, sultanas and mixed nuts.
4. Lay the first sheet of filo pastry on a clean tea towel on your work surface and brush with melted butter. Sprinkle over a third of the apple mixture. Lay another sheet of filo pastry on top, brush with butter and sprinkle again with a third of the pecan mixture. Repeat with the third sheet and top everything with the fourth sheet.
5. Drain your apples well and toss with the caster sugar and drained cranberries. Spread them out along one edge of the top sheet of filo pastry. Brush the opposite edge with a little water. Starting at the edge with the apple mixture on, gently lift the edge of the tea towel and use it to help you roll the pastry up lengthways like a Swiss roll – the apples will end up at the centre. Once it’s all rolled up, press your strudel together gently.
6. Brush the strudel with the remaining melted butter and sprinkle with the almonds.
7. Bake for 40–45 minutes until the dough is crisp and golden.
8. Dust with confectioners’ sugar. Serve warm or cold.

Download Raby Orchard Apple Strudel

Recipe by Estate Chef Tom Parry

The post Raby Orchard Apple Strudel appeared first on Raby Estates.

Preparation time: 1 hour

Serves: 12 portions

Ingredients

For the berry filling

• 200g Raby red currants
• 50g Caster sugar
• 2 tbsp Corn flour

For the cake

• 220g Plain flour
• 4g Baking powder
• 2g Cinnamon
• 50g Ground almonds
• 200g Caster sugar
• 80g Butter, melted
• 2 Free- range eggs
• 40g Yoghurt – thinned with 2tbs milk

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4. Grease and line a rectangular baking tin (approximately 26cm x 20cm/10½in x 8in).
2. In a saucepan combine the fruit with 50ml/2fl oz water. Bring the fruit just to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 2-3 minutes.
3. In a mixing bowl combine the caster sugar with the cornflour. Stir into the fruit and continue to cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring frequently, until the mixture is thick and jammy. Set aside to cool.
4. For the crumble topping, add the flour to a mixing bowl and rub in the butter until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs and no large lumps of butter are left. Stir in the sugar and set aside.
5. For the cake, in a large mixing bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder and cinnamon. Stir in the ground almonds until thoroughly combined.
6. In another bowl beat together the sugar with the melted butter, eggs, yoghurt and milk mixture until thoroughly mixed. Stir into the flour mixture just to combine. Don’t overmix it but watch out for big lumps of unmixed flour.
7. Spoon two-thirds of the mixture into the lined tin, gently spreading out evenly to the corners. Spoon the cooled fruit mixture evenly over the top.
8. Using a teaspoon, dot the remaining cake batter evenly on top of the fruit. This will not cover the entire cake but make little hillocks with gaps in between.
9. Sprinkle the crumble mixture over the top, filling in all the gaps to cover the fruit.
10. Bake in the oven for 45-50 minutes, until the crumble topping is golden-brown. Allow to cool for ten minutes in the tin, then transfer the cake in its paper to a cooling rack.

Download Raby Redcurrant Crumble Traybake

Recipe by Estate Chef Tom Parry

The post Raby Redcurrant Crumble Tray Bake appeared first on Raby Estates.

This delicious sweet chutney will be served in our Stables Café and is perfect for every occasion, especially with our homemade sausage rolls.

Preparation time: 55 minutes

Serves: one 400 gram pot

Ingredients

• 200g Red currants
• 140g Light muscovado sugar
• 200ml Red wine vinegar
• 2 Medium red onions- peeled and cut into wedges
• 1 Medium red pepper- seeded and chopped
• 2 Cloves of garlic
• 20g Fresh ginger grated
• 1 tsp Five spice
• 1 Small red chilli, seeded and chopped
• 2 Tbsp olive oil

Method

1. Roll the onions with red peppers and Olive Oil in a frying pan for 5-8 minutes over a high heat until lightly charred and softened. Remove from the pan and set aside.
2. Put the chilli, garlic and ginger in the pan with half the vinegar. Bring to the boil then simmer for 2-3 minutes. Add the onions and pepper plus remaining vinegar, all the sugar, spice and 1tsp salt.
3. Bring to the boil then simmer for 5 minutes until thickened. Add redcurrants and simmer for about 5 minutes more.
4. Remove and pour into a large heatproof jar and seal whilst hot.
5. The relish will keep in the fridge for up to 3 weeks.

Download our Raby Redcurrant & Red Onion Relish Recipe

Recipe by Estate Chef Tom Parry

The post Raby Redcurrant & Red Onion Relish appeared first on Raby Estates.

This rich slow cooked Longhorn Beef pie is best prepared in advance and is the perfect dish to enjoy after a long walk. Simply prepare the beef filling and keep in the fridge, then add the pastry topping when ready to bake.

Preparation time: 30 mins

Cooking time:  3 hours

Serves: One large pie feeds six people 

Ingredients

• 900g     Diced Longhorn Beef steak
• 15g          Butter
• 4g            Sweet Paprika (not hot)
• 30g         Plain flour
• 28g         Olive oil
• 250g      Red onion, sliced into rings
• 2              Garlic cloves finely chopped
• 400g     Sliced Button mushrooms
• 3 stalk   Celery (cut into 1-inch pieces)
• 100g       Carrot (cut into 1 inch dice pieces)
• 700ml   Beef Stock
• 4g            Chopped fresh thyme
• 4g            Chopped fresh parsley
• 30g         Tomato purée
• 30g          Dijon mustard
• 150ml     Crème fraiche
• 500g       All butter puff pastry (shop bought)
• 1                Egg yolk, lightly beaten
• 30g          Red Currant Jelly
• Sea Salt and cracked black pepper to taste

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 160°C/fan 140°C/gas mark 3.
2. Pat the meat dry with kitchen paper. Put the flour on a large plate or tray, and season. Coat one-third of the meat in the flour. Heat the oil in a large, non-stick frying pan until hot and fry the floured meat over a medium-high heat to seal. When the meat is just brown, remove it from the pan using a slotted spoon and transfer to a flameproof casserole dish. Divide the remaining meat into 2 batches and repeat the flouring and browning, adding more oil if needed.
3. Add the butter and onion to the frying pan, with a little more oil if necessary, and fry for 3 minutes or until golden brown, stirring frequently. Add the celery, carrots, mushrooms, garlic and paprika and stir to mix, then fry for 2 minutes before tipping the vegetables on top of the meat in the casserole dish.
4. Pour the beef stock, tomato puree and add the redcurrant jelly into the casserole dish. Mix well and bring to the boil, stirring. Cover the casserole and cook for 2½ hours or until the meat is tender. Remove from the oven, add Dijon mustard, taste the gravy for seasoning and leave to cool. If you prefer, the filling can be transferred to a slow cooker and cooked on a medium heat setting for 4 hours.
5. Fold in the crème fraiche to the cooled mixture, which will give the pie filling a creamy richness.
6. Preheat the oven to 220°C/fan 200°C/gas mark 7. Roll out the pastry and cut out a lid and a strip for the lip of the pie dish. Stir the parsley and thyme into the filling, then transfer the meat and vegetables to the pie dish using a large spoon, together with enough of the gravy to come just below the lip of the pie dish. Brush water around the lip of the pie dish then cut the pastry strip into smaller pieces and place the strips on the moistened lip. Moisten the strips with water, cover with the lid and press to seal.
7. Trim and crimp the edge with a fork, then brush the pastry lid with beaten egg to glaze. Use the trimmings to make decorations and re-glaze with as much of the remaining egg as needed. Cut a small slit in the centre of the pie lid.
8. Bake the pie for 30-35 minutes or until the pastry has risen and is golden brown. If you have any gravy left over, reheat until bubbling, pour it into a jug, and serve alongside the pie. Serve the pie with new potatoes a selection of seasonal spring vegetables.

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