Two farmer’s daughters who run their own local catering company launch their first ever recipe book next month.
Joan Gate, who lives at Rosley near Wigton, and Margaret Brough, who lives near Hesket Newmarket, are the team behind Food & Company which operates out of the Garden Hall in the grounds of the historic Mirehouse near Keswick.
To mark 30 years in the world of catering, on September 10 they release The Food & Company Cook Book – home cooking from the heart.
Priced at £22, the 192-page hardback is published by Meze Publishing and is described as a “fount of knowledge” for home cooks of all ages.
Each chapter of recipes has a distinct theme, from California Dreaming to Christmas on a Plate and A Taste of Cumbria.
The publishers said the recipes include meals to cook for big family gatherings, sweet treats to enjoy at coffee mornings with friends, simple yet stunning canapés and seasonal ideas to lead you through a year in food.
There is also a section dedicated to Ladies Who Lunch for three-course dinners complete with suggested wine pairings.
The sisters said: “We are thrilled with the Food & Company Cook Book, as it marks 30 years of working together in business, in which we have developed recipes for all occasions.
“We have used the opportunity created by the pandemic to produce this book which has the ethos of Food & Company at its heart; this is using local produce and ingredients from our beloved county of Cumbria, to produce stunning recipes for home cooking.”
Between April and November every year, the sisters hold a programme of ever popular seasonal cookery demonstrations from Mirehouse.
Prior to the pandemic, they usually held about 30 a year with additional private events.
They began with JM Caterers in 1991 and moved on to Food & Company in 2005.
The book is described as all about real honest cooking, drawing on years of experience in catering and cookery demonstrations alongside an appreciation for local produce in their native Cumbria.
It also features a foreword by Cumbrian-born writer and broadcaster Melvyn Bragg. As Melvyn puts it: “This book, like the Lake District out of which it comes, is in a class of its own.”
The book is available to buy from www.foodandcompany.co.uk as well as Waterstones both online and in stores.
