In the Bleak Midwinter

from Sky News

I didn't find it easy to select seasonal produce between Christmas and New Year, which is hardly surprising given few food deliveries or traders open for business. Marlborough Market was a shadow of its usual self, and the butcher had only limited prepared goods.

But seasonal means appropriate as much as available. So I decided on some braising steak in order to make a Steak and Stout pie.

The starting point is a basic casserole, but I ignored one recipe's advice to mix the stout 50:50 with water, and another's suggestion that dry-tasting stout needs something sweet like dried prunes to balance it. The crust was unashamedly out of a packet, but it is some years since I last made pastry, and I don't feel guilty about making things a little easier.

I used Guinness, but within 15km there are at least 5 breweries, so it strikes me that if my Steak and Stout pie is to become a staple recipe in my repertoire, I ought to source more locally. I recall when I was in the pub trade that one customer often brought along a jug so as to return home with beer for the pot. So perhaps I'll follow suit when taking myself off for a drink. To quote Vernon Amor of Wye Valley Brewery: "Drink your local beer. [...] Wherever I go, whenever I travel, I always drink the local brewer's beer." Sounds good to me ...