Speciality Food Magazine June 2024

39 LAST WORDS The final word on fine food BBQ LENTIL CRISPS OLLY’S New launch for the pretzel brand which unveiled two flavours of lentil crisp at this year’s FarmShop & Deli Show. The light as air snacks are high in protein and fibre, vegan, less than 91 calories per portion, come in recyclable packaging, and are HFSS and CQUIN compliant. Above anything else, they are simply scrummy. We’re big fans of meaty flavoured crisps (very on trend) at Speciality Food , and these remind us of those famous snacks beginning with F and rhyming with dazzle. They’re incredibly savoury, with an umami, almost smoked bacon flavour. We just couldn’t keep our hands off them! ollys-ollys.com CHEEKY WEE KISS ANGEL’S DARE We’ve tried a lot of cocktails in cans this year, but so far this is our favourite. With a base of dry gin, the award- winning tipple absolutely brims with juicy flavour, combining rhubarb, ginger, strawberry and cranberry. Served over ice, with a few strawberries to garnish, it’s a mouthwatering drop that tastes like the essence of summer. We also enjoyed the Scottish brand’s Secret Orchard drink, matching gin with peach, apple, elderflower andmint. And the eyecatching design certainly stands out on the shelf. angelsdarecocktails.co.uk PINEAPPLE FRUIT SNACKS THE DORMEN We tried the full range of fruity snacks fromThe Dormen and found them all delicious, from the Strawberry & Banana, to Strawberry, andMango, Passionfruit & Cashew varieties. But Pineapple was one of our favourites, especially as, being nut free (though not suitable for allergy sufferers) the packets are ideal for popping into kids’ lunch boxes. Formed into a little button shapes, almost like sweeties, they are a fantastic innovation in the fruit snack sector, made with 100% fruit and no added sugar or sulphites. In fact, the only inclusion is snappy pops of crisped rice for texture. The gluten-free snacks taste of the essence of pineapple, with a zesty, almost sherbetty sweet twang. We loved them. thedormenfoodcompany.com 10 TRENDS IN ITALIAN FOOD YOU NEED TO KNOW PARTNER CONTENT THE INDEPENDENT SHOPPER was very lucky to be introduced to two young farmers, Jack from Jack’s Veg and Laura from The Wonky Parsnip. Along with Jim’s Family Butcher in Whitstable and the Goods Shed in Canterbury with its superb fishmonger and nose to tail butcher, I was set. The thing about buying local, I soon discovered, is that it means going seasonal too. I found this out after working with Jack and Laura to create a menu of weird and wonderful veg that you just couldn’t buy in supermarkets; from electric daisies that make your tongue dance to bright purple basil for the most powerful pesto. As the leaves started to change and the nights drew in, suddenly I found I couldn’t order the same things anymore. Gone were the fabulous summer squashes, soft fruits and tomatoes. Suddenly I had to be reactionary. I had to reinvent the menu with crown prince pumpkins, apples and pears and if I still wanted tomatoes I needed to get preserving. W hen we started Bangers and Balls in the summer of 2017 we had just moved to hitstable, Kent, right in the heart of the Garden of England. It was madness to me not to make the most of the local bounty. I learned to cook growing up visiting my uncle, deep in the Suffolk countryside. We would pass the happy pigs, the orchards and farms, to the butchers, greengrocers and farmers. We knew everyone who worked there. We knew where the meat had come from and who had grown the vegetables. We knew that that the food, whatever we did with it, was going to taste amazing. Cooking wasn’t really something that was planned out in advance. More often it was reactionary. What was good in the butcher that morning? What veg where available? What could we make from them? It was exciting. It was this excitement that I wanted to bring to Bangers and Balls as chef. I This was exciting. I was learning something new. Soon I discovered that along with seasonality and preserving went foraging, and suddenly a whole new world of food had opened up to me. I could create dishes that people hadn’t had before. Flavours and textures that were totally new, like wild garlic and elderflower. It was exhilarating. So much so that I went on to write three bestselling books on the subject. To me, buying locally means being part of an extended community of growers and farmers, shop keepers, chefs and foodies. It means embracing the changing seasons and getting excited about variety. It means caring about where our food comes from, how it is produced, how far it has come to your plate. Duncan Tinkler, chef patron at Bangers and Balls, Whitstable TRIED & TESTED F rom a quick plate of pasta grabbed after a busy day, to antipasti shared with friends over a glass of wine at the weekend, or Friday pizza night – Italian food is ingrained into British food culture. Here are just a fewmust- stock items shoppers can’t get enough of. • Regional olive oil – Any Italian will tell you there’s olive oil...and then there’s olive oil! British shoppers want to knowmore about the farm, village or town where their olive oil was grown, as a sign of quality, particularly in speciality food stores. • Authentic pasta –Made with heritage wheat, cast in bronze, and with a defined region of origin. Shoppers are getting picky about their pasta. • Pizza –More people than ever before are making pizza from scratch at home. And they want access to authentic ingredients to help them recreate the pizzeria experience – from Italian flour, to sweet Italian tomatoes. . • Pesto – Alongside pasta, a quick meal solution. Stirred into a sauce, a pasta salad, potatoes or smoothed over crusty bread, pesto is a real favourite. • Burrata – An oozy, cream-filled joy of a thing. Burrata has taken off massively in the UK in the last two years. With a drizzle of oil and twist of pepper, and some good bread to mop it up, it’s become a winner for easy dinner parties at home. • Nduja – Another new staple being popped in baskets. Jars of nduja are Italian cuisine is still coming out on top as themost eaten international cuisine in the UK...but what are consumers looking for? nice to have, but also think about stocking it on the chilled counter with your charcuterie. • Truffle – Awhisper of truffle brings a bosky, earthy, unforgettable taste to almost any dish. Make it accessible by stocking products at a variety of price points, from relatively inexpensive truffle dusts, through to truffle oils and pastes. • Aperitivo – Sales of classic aperitivo drinks such as Aperol spritz, bitter sprits, and Negronis are on the up. Stock up on interesting spirits and antipasti options, from bruschetta toppings to olives, roasted peppers, artichokes and, of course, the finest curedmeats. • Dolce – Customers are reaching for cantuccini, amaretti and baci to go alongside their morning coffee. • Wellbeing - Shoppers are thinkingmore frequently about the functionality and health benefits of what they eat, and are paying more attention to grains, pulses and tinned fish, which form a huge part of the Mediterranean diet. Offer tastings and recipe inspiration to help themmake the most of these store cupboard essentials.