“Heaven at Abergavenny Food Festival”

Posted: 31 Aug 2010 09:09 PM PDT

Heaven at Abergavenny Food Festival

By CATHY STAPELLS, QMI Agency

Last Updated: September 1, 2010 12:00am

ABERGAVENNY, Wales -- I like food. I like to eat. And so do a lot of other kindred spirits who descend on this market town each September for the Abergavenny Food Festival.

This is foodie heaven with no attitude. This year's event, Sept. 18-19, features the best food producers from around Wales, with extensive markets, classes, tastings and talks, all wrapped up in the warmth of real Welsh hospitality. Have a drink, eat some food and make some new friends. That's what it's all about.

Abergavenny is an historic market town on the edge of the beautiful Brecon Beacons National Park, about an hour's drive north of Cardiff. Extensive markets and food stalls take over the streets and laneways, and everyone just strolls about. Events include the True Taste award winners (for outstanding food and drink in Wales), the Cheese and Wine Show, Fish Market, plus hands-on workshops, storytelling, comedy and live music.

Abergavenny has been a gourmet hotspot for years. The Michelin-starred Walnut Tree Restaurant, a few kilometres outside town, is considered one of "the culinary wonders of Wales." Also nearby at Pandy is another culinary wonder, Chef Penelope Lewis and her cookery school, The Culinary Cottage.

Lewis, whose credentials include cooking for most of the British royal family including the Queen and Prince Philip, the King and Queen of Norway, and many other celebrity and well-to-do clients, opened her school three years ago. My husband Tim (the foodie in our house) and I recently spent a day with her.

Lewis, who likes to be called Penny, is so calm and relaxed in the kitchen I often forgot we were having a lesson and thought we were cooking with a good friend. She knows more about food and cooking than I could ever learn, but she wears that knowledge lightly, gently making suggestions throughout the day.

"Most people come for fun, and it's a great social thing to do with a few friends," Lewis says. "Most of my students want to learn more skills, some new ideas and gain confidence in the kitchen."

She offers basic to advanced classes -- one to five days -- on everything from how to put together a stress-free dinner party, to al fresco dining, to specialty cuisines such as Moroccan and Thai (both very popular). About 40% of her clients are men (yes, often sent by their wives). She holds men-only courses because they feel more comfortable asking questions without women in the kitchen.

"I want people to learn to enjoy cooking and take the stress out it. After all, it's only food," she says in her typically calm way. "It's learning about flavours and what goes together. I'm very passionate about seasonal and local foods, and about the quality of the food that gets to the table."

So, throughout the day, the three of us chatted and chopped, sauteed and sampled, and our dinner came together. When we were done we sat down to enjoy our delicious meal that included an avocado, lettuce and pinenut salad in edible parmesan cheese baskets (who knew these were so fun and easy to make); a main course of lamb, medallion potatoes, courguettes (zucchini), leeks and mint-basil sauce with salsa verde; finished with a dessert of meringue, whipped cream and berries.

We may have left Penny's -- and Wales -- a pound or two heavier. But we learned a lot about delicious Welsh food and had so much fun.

More information

-- Cruise the Monmouthshire & Brecon Canal. Almost all of its 56-km route follows the tree-lined River Usk through Brecon Beacons National Park. There are many opportunities to spot wildlife and lots to see as you pass the towns of Abergavenny, Crickhowell and Brecon.

-- Vintage steam trains pull observation coaches along the Brecon Mountain Railway through beautiful scenery into Brecon Beacons National Park alongside the Taf Fechan Reservoir to Dol-y-Gaer on one of the most popular railways in Wales.

-- For details on travelleing in Wales, see visitwales.ca and visitbritain.ca.

-- A one day cooking class at the Culinary Cottage starts at about $163 per person without accommodation and $245 with accommodation. See theculinarycottage.co.uk. -- -- The Bear Hotel (bearhotel.co.uk) in Crickhowell is a cozy inn and pub with good local food. It's part of Welsh Rarebits, a collection of distinctive hotels. See rarebits.co.uk.

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php
Five Filters featured article: "Peace Envoy" Blair Gets an Easy Ride in the Independent.

Cookery

Wednesday, September 1, 2010