Butternut Squash and Apple Soup

Ahh, Autumn is upon us. Season of mellow fruitfulness and all that jazz. And also of Squash. I love me some squashes. So sweet and mild that you can make them into pudding (pumpkin pie) or roast them to accompany virtually any cold-weather dish. Some green Kabocha squash turned up in our Riverford vegetable box this week. We promptly roasted them with nothing more than a little salt, pepper and olive oil to accompany some roast chicken. Incredible, so sugary and delicious we fought over the last piece.

This soup is very mild and subtle. The sweetness of the squash blends well with the sharpness of the apples. The bread acts a thickener. You might like to tart it up a little by stirring a mere smear of harissa into each bowlful. I liked it with a splodge of plain yoghurt dropped in too.

Butternut Squash and Apple Soup

Serves 6

1 medium butternut squash
2 eating apples - a sharp variety would be good
1 onion
1 litre chicken stock
2 slices white bread
1 tbsp light oil such as groundnut

Dice the onion finely and sweat for a few minutes in the oil. Let the onion soften but not colour, and then add the deseeded and roughly chopped squash and the cored, peeled and roughly chopped apple. Saute for a few minutes on a low heat, without colouring. Add the chicken stock (homemade is best, but if not I like this.) Add the bread, roughly torn into chunks and bring to boil. Lower the heat to a simmer and bubble for the next 40 minutes or so, until the vegetables are distentegrating to a mulch with a poke of your wooden spoon. Blend and serve with the aforementioned yoghurt or harissa. A snipping of green herbs might be nice too. Parsley perhaps, or chives.

Fevertree Tonic

You may by now be aware that the Bristol Foodie Girls favoured tipple is a well made Gin and Tonic. Until recently we believed that tonic was tonic was tonic. The crucial ingredient in a GnT is the G, no? Well yes. And also no!

We have been accustomed to mixing our Gins and Tonic with the kind of tonic you buy for 35p a bottle in your local Superhellmarket. After all we have never been able to taste the schweppervesensce, so why pay more? Now onto the market has come Fevertree tonic who do not seem to have a website but is manufactured by Millers Gin. The tonic is made with quinine from the bark of the Cinchona or Fever Tree, hence the name. But who gives a toss about that, it makes hands down, the most fabulous GnT EVAH. Make it with Millers Gin for a wonderful, floral, almost parma violety drink. Do not use with inferior Gin, get out the good stuff.

99p 200ml. Available from Waitrose, but I buy is from Corks of Cotham

How to do Ashton Court the Bristol Foodie Way

Bristol Foodie loves Ashton Court oh yes we do! We love the music, the people, the cheap sunglasses and the drinking.

The drinking. Yes. Tradition has it that everyone brings their own cocktails. Ashton Court is really one big outdoor cocktail party, only with more vomiting and loud music. Usually everyone brings some revolting mixture of coke and vodka in a 2 litre bottle. Bristol Foodie disapproves. Just because one is at a festival is no reason to drink a warm, poorly made and over strong cocktail from a plastic bottle. Not when you can do it the Bristol Foodie Way!

Ashton Court Lemonade

1 2 litre plastic bottle of sparkling water
500 ml Gin (We like Millers)
250 ml elderflower cordial (Bottlegreen or homemade)
Mint

Pour out 750 ml of sparkling water into a measuring jug. Tip down the sink
Measure out the Gin and cordial into the water bottle. Replace the cap and tip upside down a few times to thoroughly mix.
Tear a small handful of mint leaves and push through the neck of the bottle. If you feel like it you could squeeze a few lemon slices through there as well.

Take some small disposable plastic cups with you to serve - everyone will want some! We recommend an insulated back pack and some ice packs to keep the bottle cool or failing that, place the bottle in the freezer for an hour or 2 before departure. Don't forget it though, or it will explode and make a mess in your nice freezer.

The Bristol Foodie girls also recommend: A hat (We like straw), sunglasses and lots of suncream! Drink sensibly and enjoy the festival.

Summer Pudding

Summer pudding is one of my absolute favourite things about this time of year. Sod summer holidays and being able to drink outside in the evening and give me my summer pudding. My mother made it every year when I was a child and my memories of summer are mostly to do with long weekend lunches eaten on the terrace under the Tree of Heaven. We often ate summer pudding and I've always loved the sodden, carmine bread and the sharp sweet taste of the barely sugared berries within.

It's hard to give a recipe for this - it depends how big your basin is and what you can find in the market. I don't recommend using strawberries although they might seem like an obvious choice- the flavour is completely destroyed by the currants. You might use cherries if there are any around still, but you should really stone them first which is a pain. The classic recipe calls for a ratio of 4:1 raspberries to red currants, but I think you could use cherries and blackcurrants too. If you needed some bulk, I suppose you could add some frozen blackberries should you have any knocking about, but then it's not really a summer pudding. I like some blackcurrants as well as redcurrants. Tinker with the ratio – you might like it a little more or less tart.

Heat about as many berries as will fit into a medium sized, deep basin in a stainless steel pan. Add a little water and some sugar to make sure plenty of juice is produced. Boil for a few seconds and then simmer 3 or 4 minutes. The berries should mostly have burst and there should be lots of magenta juice. Put aside to cool.

Now it’s time to line your basin which is the annoying fiddly bit. Slice about 7 or 8 pieces of white bread. Slightly stale is great but not essential. Don’t use Mother’s Shame, it’ll go all slimy on you. I used the Herbert’s Overnight Loaf reviewed below. Cut around a mug or saucer to make a circle to fit in the bottom of the basin. Then cut the crusts off the rest of your slices (which should not be too thick) and fit around the sides of the basin as best you can, squidging here and cutting patches there.

Pour the fruit into the basin, reserving a few tablespoonfuls and fit more bread over the top to seal it in. Put a plate or sauce on top of the pudding which fits into the basin and weigh it down with cans and jars. Put the basin in the fridge overnight, but stand it in another bowl in case of overflows.

When you come to serve the pudding, first run a knife around the edge to loosen it. Then place a plate on top, flip the basin upside down and shake gently. The pudding should come loose and land on the plate. Spoon the reserved compote over the top 'for pretty' and serve with gallons of the best cream you can lay your hands on. The cream is essential. I like Manor Farm organic, but anything will do so long as it positively isn’t aerosol or UHT.

Bread Tasting Panel

Bread is great isn't it? It make you toast in the morning, wraps itself round your sandwich at lunchtime and mops up the juices from your steak in the evening. My favourite bread is baked by my brother-in-law and so is sadly not available commercially as when he's not baking he's a GP in his spare time. Even I only get to eat it occasionally. But there are lots of good breads available and Bristol seems to have lots of bakeries where it's possible to buy a loaf baked on the premises that morning.

Supermarket bread is awful - light as cotton wool and about as claggy on the roof of your mouth, it taste likes nothing. And that's the stuff they like you to believe was lovingly hand crafted on the premises (it's not). Don't get me started on the branded breads, or Mother's Shame as my mother used to call it. That's not even worthy of the name of bread. With this in mind I thought it would be interesting to sample a few breads available from independent Bristol bakeries. All loaves are as close as possible to a plain white loaf and are marked out of 5 stars.

Herbert's Bakery
Herberts Bakery, Wellington Avenue, Montpelier, Bristol BS6 5HP open 8am -4pm. Bread available at locations throughout Bristol. See here for a list.

Large Overnight Loaf £1.05
A beautiful, classic split tin white loaf. Slightly salty taste with a fairly dense crumb. A true 'bready' flavour. This is far superior to anything available in supermarkets and would make superb sandwiches or morning toast.

Best for: Bacon sandwiches, Marmite on toast
4.25 stars

Quartier Vert
85 Whiteladies Road, Clifton, Bristol, BS8 2NT. Bread only available as aminimumm order of 10 loaves from the restaurant itself (or with your meal). However single loaves are available from other outlets, mostly within Clifton. Try Papadeli across the street on Alma Road.

Organic Pain de Campagne - £1.90
Exquisite round loaf, a perfect example of it's type. A more open crumb with a rustic taste. The flour used is stronger than that for the overnight loaf giving a deeper flavour. Our French panelist said the flavour 'takes me back to France'.

Best for: dipping in olive oil, eating with a meal.
4 stars

The Bread Store
45 Gloucester Road, Bristol, BS7 8AD 8am-5pm

Small White Poppy Seed Loaf 66p
Exactly like a supermarket loaf, it looks to have been steam baked. I wouldn't be surprised if the loaves were bought in unbaked and frozen and then baked on the premises. Just like a supermarket. Tastes of bland whiteness and has that claggy, stick to the roof of your mouth quality I associate with Mother's Shame.

Best for: Feeding the ducks
1.5 stars

Cotham Hill Bakery
8, Cotham Hill, Bristol, Avon BS6 6LF 8am -5pm

Small White Organic Loaf 80p
Very cute looking baby split tin loaf, but- blleargh! What a revolting flavour. Very yeasty, leaving an unpleasant vinegar aftertaste in the mouth. One taster ventures that it might be okay if you toasted it. I say nothing can get rid of that unpleasant taste, not even an inch thick coating of foie-gras. Perhaps it was a bad batch? I am hesitant to think that someone would deliberately make such a revolting loaf.

Best for: Feeding your enemies
1 star for appearance

Kitchen Log (Klog?) 30.06.06

With apologies to Nigel Slater whose idea it is...

Oof. It's been so hot recently that actually cooking anything makes me break out in a sweat just contemplating the idea. But Mrs Top Hat* is investigating Tovey's fishmonger on Stapleton Road and asks if I want anything. Mackerel springs to mind so I request two. They arrive beheaded, cleaned and as Mr Slater says 'glistening with freshness' I use his recipe, rubbing cumin into deep slits cut in the sides and basting with an oil, garlic and lemon juice mixture. The fish blacken satisfactorily under the grill and I serve them with a simply dressed green salad and some cous-cous into which a heavily ripe chopped tomato has been stirred, for colour more than anything else. Heaven on a hot evening, washed down with cold beer.

*Mr Top Hat is my boss at the moment

Tovey's Seafood
198-200 Stapleton Rd
Bristol
BS5 0NY
0117 951 0987

Mon 0900 - 1200
Tue - Sat 0900 - 1700
Sun Closed

Deco Lounge

Deco Lounge is the fourth in a very small, very successful chain of restaurants. I have never been to any of the other Lounges, why would I want to do that? Deco Lounge is above all a neighbourhood restaurant. It’s not a destination, you can’t make reservations, and it’s the place you go when you want a good meal, without spending too much or walking too far. Since the Lounge opened sometime last year I have been there countless times. I have been there at 10 am for a coffee, I have been there for breakfast at the weekend and I’ve been there for a bottle of wine with friends. I’ve had a sandwich lunch there and I have had many dinners there. The success of Deco Lounge is that it does all of these things equally well. It’s your local bar, café and restaurant all at once. It is something many local restaurants claim to be able to do, but few manage it, either charging too much, making those who are merely drinking unwelcome or not offering a decent lunch menu. Deco Lounge does not fail on any these criteria.

The interior is warm and friendly with dark red walls, chunky wooden tables and old sofas giving it a vaguely Central Perk atmosphere. There are mysterious black and white photographs on the wall, that I have been told are of the one of the owners family. Frankly I could live without them as they are not especially aesthetically pleasing, but they add some instant history. Strangely for restaurant that has been open less than 2 years the overall effect is slightly dated, but it is welcoming and comfortable. My one quibble is that the disabled loo is up a fairly steep flight of stairs in the main body of the restaurant. This doesn’t seem very accessible to me, but it’s hard to see where they could have put it on the ground floor.

The service is okay I suppose. The employees are mostly young and pretty and are as friendly as they need to be. However I do take issue with the speed of service – I have often waited an hour for my food although usually it’s about 30-45 minutes. This is too long I feel. There is a sign near the bar warning that service is slow ‘We serve good food slow not fast food good’ or some such nonsense. Fine. But an hour? Not good enough.

Enormous blackboards provide the menu, which offers a selection of paninis, ciabattas, salads, meze and specials. There are also standbys such as the Deco Burger and steak and chips. The most interesting section is the Specials which is large and changes frequently and is almost always very good. In the past I have had dishes ranging from razor clams with chillies and coconut broth to coq au vin with buttered linguine. Both were excellent and perfectly cooked. I would normally hesitate to order razor clams from this type of bistro menu, as it could so easily go horribly wrong. My faith was repaid however and the clams were delicious, the chilli and coconut milk adding a much needed Thai flavour. I ate the coq au vin when I had a disgusting head cold, so my palate was not working at full flavour analysis steam. But it was just what I wanted. Soft, comforting, with strong winey flavours to penetrate the thick coating of goo in my head, it was the best dish of coq au vin I’ve had in a long time.

Deco Lounge 50 Cotham Hill. Tel: (0117) 373 2688
Mains £4-12
Wine available by the glass or bottle
Disabled Access? Yes so long as you don’t want to use the loo.
Major credit cards accepted
Opening hours 9am -11pm