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A Still Life Spring Market

We’re so thrilled to be part of A Still Life’s second market! A wonderful intimate location with a small cluster of creative and talented individuals. (So obviously we’re thrilled pink to be asked to be involved!)

I was introduced to Vicky and Kirsty creators of A Still Life through a family friend, Elaine, whom took me to one of Vicky’s garden parties. Through that meeting Elaine and I had attended other events that Vicky hosted. All of which were creatively inspiring. I managed to meet Sally who was Davide’s and my wedding photographer. I even purchased my wedding dress at one of the wedding fairs they once hosted. Clarey and Barney of The Manor Garden who hold the most wonderful wreath workshops, which I have to attend at least one a year! Daily I am inspired by all these unique individuals and think you will be too.

So if you fancy a drive out on Saturday 25th March then you must drive along to this special market…

It’s the perfect place to pick up a beautifully unique gift for your Mum for Mother’s Day.

You can even pre order a beautiful bouquet of flowers ranging in price from £15-£40 by the super talented Kirsty of Darling & Green.

Just click on the link below to pre-order such a beautiful floral surprise for your Mama!

https://www.astill-life.co.uk/collections/march/products/mothers-day-spring-bouquet-pre-order

Other exhibitors include Vicky of The Linen Garden, who sources the most stunning floral linen and creates timelessly beautiful products ranging from bags to napkins.

My infectiously enthusiastic and kind friend, Susannah will also be exhibiting at the event, my absolute favourite product from &Mead is the linen aprons. Obviously I wear mine with pride in the bakery!

That’s just to name a couple of the exhibitors!

And of course, I will be there with some goodies from The Olive Stone and you will be able to have a seat while you took into one of our special financiers and a good brew! (And natter!)

 

Hollie Monteleone

 

 

Loveheart Workshops

At the weekend, my friend Lottie came up from Worcester to visit. Both of us, love crafts and spent most of our university days knitting, sewing and baking. Lottie is planning her wedding to Lewis next year so I decided to organise a trip to Loveheart Workshops, owned by Alison, a wonderful friend and regular visitor to The Olive Stone.

Oh and what fun we had!

Alison is a very enthusiastic and inspiring lady. Her passion for pottery and art is infectious! Lottie and I left the workshop in a creative daze and could have spent the whole day making pretty clay decorations!

 We made vases and cute decorations. Lottie has created a wonderful ring dish for their wedding day too. 

There are boxes upon boxes of cutters and stamps. Allowing you to create the most unique gifts and decorations.

Alison organises weekly pottery, art, felting and even book making classes so take a look at her website http://www.loveheartworkshops.co.uk/home or search for Loveheart Workshops on Facebook. We had a private booking on Saturday. It would be great also for hen or birthday parties.

Our pieces were waiting for the kiln when we left so when they are all finished, we will share the finished articles when we pick them up! Thanks again Alison!

The Simplest Rice Pudding

This is my Mam’s favourite! Rice Pudding reminds me of many fond family memories. I always remember my Grandma making rice pudding on a Saturday and it was a real treat, classically baked in the oven. Even at primary school I remember when rice pudding was available for dessert it was so exciting. You used to be able to add strawberry or chocolate flavouring, making the rice turn either pink or brown!

However now, I love mine with lots of freshly grated nutmeg and strangely enough, lemon zest! So I am going to share my super simple recipe for my baked rice pudding. It would be perfect for a dinner party and it lasts for a good few days in the fridge.

 

Celeriac

HAPPY NEW YEAR

2017! Where has the time gone?!

I promise this year to make the time to share recipes, travelling adventures and places Davide and I recommend to visit!

Starting today I’m sharing a super simple recipe for Celeriac Coleslaw!

A humble yet tasty vegetable. I must say as unfortunate as it is, I have never previously bought a celeriac. I have come across many recipes before but only recently when having lunch out, I tried it for the first time!

Celeriac Coleslaw 

One Celeriac 

6 Tbsp Mayonnaise

1 Tbsp Dijon Mustard 

Juice of half a Lemon

Salt and Pepper

1. Remove the skin of the celeriac using a sharp knife or a vegetable peeler. Rub a little lemon juice over the celeriac to stop it turning brown in colour.
2. Cut into thin slices, then cut into long matchstick strips. (I cheated and used a mandoline and then  I cut into matchstick strips.)
3. Put the celeriac matchsticks into a bowl and mix with the mayonnaise, Dijon mustard, lemon juice and add salt & pepper to your taste.  

Perfect to accompany pie, quiche or even a fancy burger. Of course, we had ours with some homemade Olive Stone pie!

Buon appetito!

Customer Notice

Happy 2016!

Happy New Year!

 

We hope you all had a fabulous Christmas. We certainly did! Eating and testing plenty new recipes in preparation for new creations for The Olive Stone.

One of the favourites had to be a gluten free chocolate, walnut and chambord torte!

It’s mouth-wateringly good!

Anyway back to The Olive Stone, this month at the bakery we are going to have a change of menu so watch out for new sandwich combinations in addition to a refreshed pizza menu!

Have a special celebration in 2016? Order your cake from The Olive Stone. Speak to Hollie for bespoke cake orders. Remember Julia Childs always said, ‘a party without cake is just a meeting.’

 

 

How to crystallise flowers

Personally I just love flowers and I love to use them for decorating cakes. They are just so simple but transform a cake into a piece of art.

So all you need is a lightly beaten egg white, superfine caster sugar and a pastry brush.

I used violas and pansies! Just very lightly brush with egg white and sprinkle over the sugar. I placed my sugar coated pansies onto baking paper but I would probably suggest using a metal cooling rack as I found that some of the flowers had stuck to the paper once they had dried.

Leave to dry ideally overnight. And then they will be ready for decorating cakes or even cocktails!

Here’s some beautiful ideas decorated with fresh flowers!

Béchamel Pasta Al Forno Recipe

As promised…

I wanted to share a really simple recipe inspired from a pasta dish I had in Grottammare Alta.

Simply courgette, mushroom and béchamel with penne giganti.

The beauty of this dish is you can use any ingredients you want!

Ingredients

Béchamel Sauce

100 grams Butter
100 grams Plain Flour
1 litre Whole Milk
1 White Onion (peeled and cut in half)
1 Bay Leaf
Handful of grated Parmesan
Pinch of finely grated Nutmeg

And the rest

500g Penne Gigante
3 Garlic Cloves (chopped finely)
400g Mushrooms (I like to used a mixture of chestnut, white and wild mushrooms)
Handful of dried porcini mushrooms
3 Courgettes
A glass of White Wine (for the sauce!)
Sale e Pepe!
1 Mozzarella Ball

Preheat oven to 200 degrees.
1 Let’s start with your béchamel sauce. Pour your milk into a saucepan. Add your onion and bay leaf. Gently bring to the boil. Turn off the heat and leave to infuse for around 20 minutes.

2 Melt the butter in another saucepan, then add the flour. Stir continuously until a paste forms (roux). Continue cooking for 2 mins.

3 Remove the onion and bay leaf from the milk with a slotted spoon and discard. Add the infused milk to the roux gradually, stirring as you go, until you get a smooth sauce. Cook for 5-10 mins, stirring continuously, until the sauce has thickened. Season to taste. Add the Parmesan and nutmeg, stir until fully incorporated.

4 Cook the pasta, according to the manufacturers instructions.
When you strain the pasta, preserve some of the water. It’s great for loosening a sauce if too thick but it helps the sauce stick to the pasta.

5 Meanwhile roughly chop the mushrooms and dice the courgettes.

6 Tip the mushrooms, courgette and garlic into a large non-stick saucepan and add 2-3 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil and water. Cook gently, stirring often, until the vegetables are soft.

7 Meanwhile put the porcini mushrooms in a small bowl and just cover the mushrooms with boiling water. Leave to soak until the porcini has softened.

8 Pour the white wine into the saucepan with the courgettes and mushrooms. Turn up the heat and bring to the boil. Turn to a simmer, add the porcini mushrooms and the infused porcini water. Cook for a further five minutes.

9 Now mix your three elements together. Pour the pasta into your béchamel sauce and add the courgette/mushroom mixture.

10 Transfer the pasta into an oven proof serving dish. Roughly tear the mozzarella ball over the top of your pasta and pop in the oven for around 10-15 minutes until the top of the pasta bake is golden.

11 Perfecto it’s now ready to serve, this would easily serve up to eight people. Serve with some fresh bread and a crisp salad.

Bon Appetit!