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It’s an age-old debate…. should we buy bread fresh each day from a local bakery, or have frozen alternatives now caught up on quality?In most kitchens buying frozen bread was seen as cutting corners, a sign of laziness or imagination/skill. Still, most kitchens didn’t have the spare time, space or staff capacity to ferment their sourdough mother and dedicate time to a long process to create a great loaf.For years I had a hybrid approach. My “speciality” loaves always came in fresh each morning from the local bakery, but my burger buns and standard bread were from my dry store supplier and were frozen; here was my thought process.I, along with the whole of the UK, became obsessed with real bread, proper sourdough with a long fermen...

Now we all know this to be true; take care of your body, and it will take care of you…Admittedly for a long time, it was adding avocado to anything and seeing it come back on the plate and end up in the bin. I believe that most customers doing this wanted it to seem like they had ordered something healthy to be seen doing it rather than actually consuming it.Now there’s a hidden truth here about menu and recipe writing. Nearly all of our menu items could be tweaked in the kitchen and be way more healthy and just as tasty, and most diners wouldn’t even know. So why do we bother to advertise it as a healthy option?We could just do it, and that becomes the new normal, or are we still under the impression that healthy feels like some deli...

Soup’s rise in popularity is continuing, with international ingredients delivering a worldly flare, creative toppings turning a basic bowl into a restaurant-quality dish and the transformation of a simple snack into a hearty and filling meal.This delicious, nostalgia-inducing meal can be served all through the year. From warming and comforting veg-packed soups and creamy veloutés to refreshing, cold soups like Gazpacho, soup is incredibly versatile, used by chefs everywhere from pop-ups to fine dining, cafes to schools. CLASSIC WINTER WARMERSWith the wave of chefs ‘cooking with the seasons’, it’s no surprise that classic winter warmers dominate menus and even social media feeds across the globe during the colder months.Here are so...

From steak bakes to veggie delights, cheesy wonders and even Asian-inspired sweet and savoury phenomenon’s, these are the savoury pastry trends to get behind this year, whether you’re a care home, school, cafe, restaurant or bar.Savoury pastries, flakey, buttery and oozing with delicious fillings, pastries are a thing of beauty. Not to mention they’ve taken social media by storm with mouth-watering photos and reels showing the best spots to get them.SAVOURY BREAKFAST PASTRIESYou may think it’s all about sweet when it comes to the morning pastry and coffee run, but actually, savoury pastries are becoming incredibly popular. With the addition of eggs, avocado, and in some cases a Full English, a savoury pastry can be a little more ful...

Despite the cost of pasta increasing by almost 20% in recent months, it’s still a cost-effective meal solution that will continue to trend up in 2023. We’ll take a look at chefs who are getting creative and getting noticed.From school dinners to restaurant meals, pasta is an ever-popular choice thanks to its great versatility. It brings comfort in times of need (like the cost of living crisis), and whether you cater for schools, care homes, restaurants or cafes, pasta will always be a winning dish, but we need to keep innovating!For the past few years, we have seen a huge surge in more artisanal, custom-made pasta dishes such as black truffle pappardelle and seafood ravioli. Another growing trend is whole wheat and gluten-free pasta tha...

With no sign of slowing down, burgers remain a beloved staple on menus around the world. From bold new flavours to different types of patty and bun combos, get ready for an exciting array of innovative offerings coming in 2023.For something that’s essentially a bit of bread and a meat patty, the burger scene is highly competitive. From pop-ups to burger joints, the burger space is full of discerning foodies and chefs trying to make the next burger that will go viral on social media. But aside from ‘instagrammable’ burgers, what’s truly remarkable about burgers is how versatile they are: great for schools, cafes, pubs and restaurants alike. They’re also easy to switch-up for those who eat plant-based or are gluten intolerant. So, ...

A look at six ways chefs are responding to the shifting consumer trend towards comfort food and the use of cheaper ingredients, all driven by the cost-of-living crisis.The cost-of-living crisis has led people to look for ways to save money, including on their grocery bills which explains why we’re seeing a resurgence in comfort food and cheaper ingredients. Innovative chefs are embracing this trend by using humble ingredients to create gourmet dishes and twists on old favourites.TREND 1: ELEVATE VEGETABLESWith the rise of plant-based diets, vegetables have gone from a side piece to the main event. And as cooks try new ways to cope with costs, they look for extra flavour in humble veggies like carrots and beets – cue fire cooking! They c...

With a record number of people predicted to sign up to Veganuary this year, it’s time to start brushing up on those delicious vegan recipes. The days of simple tomato pasta and boring mushroom risotto are gone, as we’re now in a whole new era for vegan food. You can find a substitute for just about anything these days, like chicken, steak, mince, yoghurt, butter, cheese and even eggs, not to mention how easy it has become to really pimp up the humble lentil or chickpea with some herbs and spices. To help get your Veganuary 2023 off to a flying start, here are five delicious recipes to try, from healthy poke bowls to fragrant curries and comforting Italian dishes.FALAFEL PITAINGREDIENTS: MAKES 25 FALAFEL1 warm, toasted pita½ large beef...

Christmas pudding is one of the biggest family dividers every single year – a close second being brussel sprouts (cook them like this for a dish everyone will love). Some people can’t wait to dive into the dense and fruity, booze-filled cake, drenched in custard or cream – probably all laced with further brandy. Others can’t stand the rich pud and long for something a little lighter but just as fulfilling.Giving a festive edge to some of the nation’s favourite desserts is actually quite simple, all you have to do is spike them with spices like cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg, or add fruits such as orange and cranberry – a little brandy or whiskey wouldn’t hurt either.Everyone loves a crumble. Give it a christmassy edge but combin...

As the FIFA World Cup approaches (21st Nov – 18th Dec), it is set to offer a huge opportunity for the foodservice and hospitality industries. Instead of beer gardens and al fresco celebrations in the sunshine, we’ll see supporters wrapping up and heading indoors to bars, pubs, restaurants, and cafes to escape the cold weather and fill up on their favourite winter warmers!BIGGEST EVENT IN THE SPORTING CALENDARThe World Cup can be very lucrative for pubs, and it’s vital that publicans and bar owners take full advantage of one of the biggest events in the sporting calendar. During the last World Cup in 2018, it was found that pub spending jumped by 33% whenever England played a World Cup game and research carried out by KAM and FANZ...

Catering definitely needs flavoured chips; here’s why….Pomme Frites, fries or the Great British chip, I’m not sure I’ve ever met anyone who doesn’t like them….Whether cooked in peanut oil, vegetable oil or triple cooked in good old beef dripping down the local gastro pub or chippy and even the smell of an oven chip sizzling away on a baking tray, there’s something alluring about the smell, the feel and the golden crispness that gives way to fluffy, steaming potato. Chips are the 7-day replacement for the Sunday roast potato, which is the perfect thing to go with so many other flavours in a roast, so why not take the same approach with chips?Every time I smell freshly cooked chips, drenched in salt and vinegar, I am instantly ...

The FIFA World Cup 2022 is drawing ever closer. Can Gareth Southgate and Harry Kane go one further than the recent European Championships? And how will Robert Page’s Wales fare in Qatar? If you’re planning on throwing a watch party for any of the matches, why not go all out and create a FIFA World Cup-themed menu? We’ve got some great ideas to help get you started.While you may be supporting multiple nations, for this article, we’ll be focusing on the three England and Wales games (that we know so far!), offering recipe ideas for dishes from the opposing nation:England V Iran on the 21st NovemberWales V USA on the 21st NovemberEngland V USA on the 25th NovemberWales V Iran on the 25th NovemberEngland V Wales on 29th November Menus...