A new seasonal beer created by Sharp’s Brewery and the Eden Project has been flavoured with some very special ingredients - berries picked from bushes at the project’s site in Bodelva. Sloes, rosehips and hawthorn berries were picked by Eden staff in October and then used by Sharp’s head brewer Stuart Howe to create Winter Berry Ale, the latest in the brewery’s Seasonals range.

Winter Berry is a cask conditioned beer with a dark ruby colour, full of vibrant berry flavours, with the sharp fruitiness of the berries balanced and enhanced by the use of top quality malts and hops. This winter beer is now available in pubs across the country and in the Eden Project’s own restaurants and bars.

For the Seasonals range, the Eden team has unearthed the unusual, sometimes forgotten plant products used to flavour beer. The other beers in the range are 6 Hop IPA (spring), Honey Spice (summer) and Red Ale (autumn).

Complementing the new brew is a special pint glass which has a unique ingredients panel on the back.

Tracey Smith, Eden’s Commercial Relationship Manager, said: “It’s great to have worked with Sharp’s on this range, combining our plant expertise with their brewing know-how. Together, we have produced a selection of beers showcasing the best local ingredients that are proving to be a hit with drinkers.

“The glass adds that extra Eden touch too. We’re all about illustrating the relationship between plants and people and if people sipping on their pints get to the bottom of the glass knowing a little more about what goes into their beer, then all the better.”

The relationship between Eden and Sharp’s is long established and has previously produced Eden Pure Ale, which continues to be a popular part of the brewery’s bottle range.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Williams Bros Historic Ales (pencilandspoon.blogspot.com)
• The Hop Press: Beers to Talk About (pencilandspoon.blogspot.com)
• Real Ale-the way beer ought to be (gadling.com)

Glenilen Farm, based in the heart of West Cork, Ireland, is renowned throughout Ireland for making authentic tasting dairy desserts and products “tasting just like they used to” and now, a selection of these products are available exclusively in the UK at Selfridges Oxford Street.

The range includes nine fruit yoghurts, six cheesecakes, two fruit mousses and a farmhouse butter, made in traditional butter churns from sweet, lightly sea salted cream, wrapped in traditional parchment paper, brown paper and twine – in fact it’s just like you used to buy it in the old days.

Alan and Valerie Kingston let their cows roam and graze freely, pamper them during the cold winter months and never over milk them. All this tender loving care in turn produces the creamiest, richest and most delicious milk. What started as a hobby in 1997 has transformed the small farm into a hive of activity today.

Prices range between £1.49 for 160g yoghurt pot to £5.99 for a 700g handmade cheesecake

Related articles by Zemanta

• How To Make Your Own Butter (howcast.com)
• TV chef Sophie Michell’s top recipes for cooking with South African fruit (thefoodielist.co.uk)

Antony Worrall Thompson reveals the results of a survey showing children don’t know where their food comes from. In attempt to rebalance the scales, AWT challenges three teams of children to make him the perfect, healthy breakfast.

The survey revealed:
• One third of children don’t know that oats make porridge
• 20% of kids think bacon comes from sheep
• 17% thought eggs were the main constituent of bread
• One quarter believe oats grow on trees

How can kids eat healthily if they don’t know the basics?

As part of Farmhouse Breakfast Week, AWT demonstrates the importance of children knowing where their food comes from and highlights the reasons why breakfast is known as the most important meal of the day.

After watching a demonstration from one of the greatest TV chefs, the three teams of children battle it out to make the best breakfast, judged by AWT himself.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Farmhouse Breakfast Week 2010 (thefoodielist.co.uk)
• Anthony Worrall Thompson is the secret ingredient in A Prophet | Michael Hann (guardian.co.uk)
• Cold Breakfasts Can be Healthy Too (momblognetwork.com)

To ensure your mornings get off to the best start in 2010, Rachel’s has created a limited edition Pineapple and Grapefruit yogurt, perfect for providing a mouth-watering kick start to the day!

Renowned for its cleansing and detoxifying qualities, grapefruits are the ideal breakfast fruit. But why settle for just grapefruit when you can treat your taste buds to this zesty yogurt that will leave you feeling revitalised and ready to face the day. The grapefruit is perfectly balanced by sweet juicy pineapple and combined with Rachel’s signature thick and creamy texture makes for an invigorating tasty treat. What’s more at less than 2% fat you can indulge, safe in the knowledge that you are sticking to those New Year resolutions to eat healthily without compromising on taste.

Available online with Ocado and in Waitrose and Booths stores nationwide from 25th January 2010, this bio-live yogurt combines the best locally sourced organic milk with the finest Fruits.

This delicious yogurt can be enjoyed on its own or poured over your favourite cereal or fruit for a healthy, refreshing breakfast. What’s more the new yogurt, priced at around £1.59 for a 450g pot, provides an important source of calcium and natural vitamins, as well as the health-giving bio-live cultures to help improve and maintain a healthy digestive system.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Ocado Lets Shoppers Rate and Review Groceries (thefoodielist.co.uk)
• Online food shopping expected to double in five years (telegraph.co.uk)

What do Madonna, Nicole Kidman and Kate Moss all have in common? Well, all three are said to eat an essential bowl of porridge for breakfast every morning. And, what better way to get into a healthy breakfast habit just like the stars, than this Farmhouse Breakfast Week (24th-30th January 2010).

Established by The Home Grown Cereals Authority, Farmhouse Breakfast Week focuses on the importance of eating a healthy breakfast. We all know that porridge for breakfast has a plethora of health benefits, but do we know what they are? To remind us why porridge should be an essential part of your daily diet, Flahavan’s, Ireland’s leading oats producer, has compiled a list of the benefits below:

• Porridge oats have a low GI (Glycaemic Index), which means the body takes longer to burn the energy, helping to combat mid-morning cravings and therefore stops us from eating between meals, they also:
• Aid concentration throughout the day
• Helps to fight obesity
• Helps to lower cholesterol levels
• Helps to lower blood pressure
• Reduces the risk of heart disease

Oats are delicious too - Flahavan’s has over 200 years of experience in producing high quality oats. The family use a unique milling process which cooks the oats twice resulting in a distinctive creamier taste and texture. So, this Farmhouse Breakfast Week, think breakfast… think Flahavan’s.

‘Berry Nice’ Porridge

To prepare a bowl of creamy Flahavan’s Organic Porridge Oats follow directions on the pack.

To serve: Pour porridge into serving dish. Scatter raspberries and blueberries on top.

Various Flahavan’s products are available in Tesco, selected Waitrose and ASDA.