Review: Shelford Delicatessen

I have been a huge fan of the Great Shelford Deli from the moment I stepped foot through their tiny cart shed doors to pick up a sandwich order for my colleagues whilst temping in a nearby village late last year. Even in the bitter British winter weather that we suffered (up to a few weeks ago in fact haha!), people were literally queuing outside the doors for homemade hot soups and pasta dishes, as well as their gorgeous sandwiches, so I had to try them for myself to see what the big deal was all about...

...Well.

These guys make the kings AND queens of ALL sandwiches. They use freshly baked bread and the most delicious and moreish fillings I have ever had in a sandwich or baguette ever. And I am not being dramatic here, they are the mummy AND daddy of the sandwich world.  You know sometimes when you ask for a sarnie and it’s just two slices of dull *Shop bought* bread with a measly filling inside?... Well, this is the polar opposite, even a straight forward sandwich can make your day at this place... but trust me, if you are hungry and feel like something a little more indulgent, go for a baguette or a bloomer - you won’t be disappointed!

It got to the point with calling our sandwich orders through to Shelford Deli from our office (You can call ahead and order, it’s brilliant!)  that we would all know which *Number* on the menu we wanted each day in the end... although, on a regular basis, our minds could be easily swayed to go for one of their weekly specials which would include new and even more interesting fillings in their sandwiches to freshly made pastas, couscous, salads, curries and so on. You could eat here every day of the week for a month and still not try everything on offer, I just can’t rate this place enough for that.

In fact, the more people I talk to about this little gem on the very outskirts of Cambridge, just a hop from our beloved Scotsdales Garden Centre, the more people I find out already know about it and go there for a little treat from time to time themselves. The Deli has been here for years now, a little unassuming shop front, with plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables on sale for you to buy, it looks like a traditional British Greengrocers from the outside, but step inside and you are greeted with a brand new and huge extension to this Deli, with shelves filling the shop from floor to ceiling stocked full of oils, breads, olives, cakes, vinegars, pastas of all kinds, sauces, jams, pickles, teas, coffees, Italian breadsticks, Ice Creams and nutritious frozen *Ready Meals* ... the drool-inducing list goes on and on.

If you ever feel yourself in need of a good strong cup of Monmouth coffee (or a pot of loose leaf tea) and a slice of something naughty, this is the place for you. Their chocolate torte is so dense and chocolatey, that not even I, the queen of desserts, can finish a slice without feeling very guilty indeed - perfect for a devilish treat every once in a while.

They also have a fresh selection of pastries, strawberry tartlets, tiffin, brownies, as well as gluten free goodies too.

It’s a cake & sandwich lovers’ heaven.

With the recent takeover of the building next door, the owners have been able to knock through and make this not just a takeaway Deli with an ever increasing queue, but a light and spacious coffee shop, so should you wish to stay in and make the most of your visit, you can. They have designed this so well, making the most of the space they have, whilst keeping the charm of the smaller premises they had before, which is now used as their kitchen.  They haven’t neglected the food, I actually think it’s just got better since the expansion, with much more choice, all freshly made on site – the smell hits you as soon as you enter, it’s lovely.

In fact, it’s my go-to place on a Saturday after a stressful shopping trip in Cambridge (stress and shopping go hand in hand for Miss Sue Flay ; )  Sod the queues in town or the more *Cambridge Canteens*  for mediocre sandwiches (Anne you will know EXACTLY where I mean hehe )

There is nothing more satisfying than craving a Shelford Delicatessen “Jarvis” on a brown Baguette (It’s Pastrami, Chicken, Dill Pickle, Roasted Red Onion, Mayo and Cranberry Sauce) ... Just trust me when I say, it’s the best food-invention ever! 

They also offer catering for parties or corporate events, so do take advantage of this service, should you ever feel yourself in need of some culinary assistance. 

The only downside I would say about this place is that there are not too many tables, so if it’s busy, you have to make do with your car as a lunchtime retreat, but there are quite a few green areas in this rather large village, so do take a wander and have a mini picnic instead, should this happen to you when you check it out.

Get your bum down there now, even if it’s just for a takeaway treat or a sit down with a good quality cuppa and a read of the paper with your lunch... Don’t forget, they do hot lunches too should you need to warm up in this cold British summer weather.

Visit Shelford Deli on Woolards Lane, Great Shelford, 

http://www.shelforddeli.co.uk

 

Miss Sue Flay

The Rise Of Pop-Up Tea Parties

.... And hopefully not the fall of them either ; ) 

I am thrilled to bits to have a mention this week on the Jordan’s Cereals Blog. They have been looking into the rise of the Pop-Up Afternoon Tea Party and I’m a very lucky lady indeed to be listed on their write ups

: )

I had a chat with the lovely Cate who wrote this fabulous post and it was so interesting to hear just how many are actually popping up around the country and I absolutely LOVE the look of The Queen of Tart’s secret parlour based in Scotland, as well as Pippa’s pop-up tea room in Kent.

I mean for goodness sake, what afternoon tea lover would turn down a glass of Rhubarb Fizz or Elderflower Champagne (my personal FAVE!)?!... Or the opportunity to indulge in a peaceful and clandestine location whilst nibbling on individual trifles or warm, homemade scones with strawberry jam and clotted cream. It’s a once a month treat for myself and one that I look forward to, so these lovely locations are now on my list to visit when I am travelling anywhere near to these areas in the near future.

I am also a sucker for Jordan’s as a company, not just for their lovely products, but for so many happy childhood memories of this oaty brand. If you didn’t know, they are actually a local company to us here in Cambridge, just a drive away in Biggleswade (Bedfordshire) and literally 10 miles down the road from the farm that I grew up on. My dad used to take myself and my sister to this small market town on a Sunday morning for car boot sale bargains and Swimming in their leisure pool, allowing us all to escape from the chores that Sunday (and my lovely house proud mummy : ) brought at home hehe. (I wasn’t a huge fan of swimming, whereas my sister partook in lessons and did really well, however, if it meant I could escape hoovering and dusting duties... RESULT : )

Dad used to take us to the Jordan’s Mills to buy bits and bobs from their farm shop with our pocket money as a treat and I often drive past there now on the way to one of my good friends’ houses and smile when I pass it. It makes me proud to live in this area, seeing a thriving family run business is always nice to see lately and it always offered a nice Sunday morning out for me and my sister growing up, so I was geekily excited to hear I was appearing on their website with The Secluded Tea Party : )

Why not get yourself down there? Shuttleworth Old Warden Park is one reason to head that way for a lazy afternoon one weekend, followed by a pot of tea at Southill Village Stores & Tearoom which I can highly rate for a cute location in the Bedfordshire Countryside, before heading back past Jordan's for a nosey and a few treats in the shopping basket.

However, if you can't get over there, you can buy lots of their products in most shops and supermarkets and I can't think of any other reason to get dreaming up tasty Flapjack recipes and that idea takes me back to my FIRST ever recipe I tried out myself.

I found this very cute cookery book at a Brownies Jumble sale, when I was all *butter wouldn't melt* Girl Guikding material (Yeah, right ; ) and couldn't resist taking it home and making my teddies a little picnic and making this flapjack with my mum. It makes me chuckle looking back at it, however, laugh as I may, I still use this recipe for a basic and tasty Flapjack recipe should I ever crave it.....

Flapjacks - Brownies' Style! *

Ingredients: 

4oz butter
 4oz soft brown sugar
8oz porridge oats
2 tablespoons golden syrup
Pinch of salt 
(Add fruit or chocolate chips for a more interesting mix, but the plain classic is 
always best for a good old fashioned buttery and oaty flapjack : )


Tools (Ask Mummy's permission first!) : 

Saucepan, Wooden Spoon, Square Baking Tin


Method: 


1) Rub the baking tin all over with buttery paper


2) Melt the sugar, butter and golden syrup slowly in the saucepan. Add the porridge oats, mixing all the time. Stir them all together. 


3) Put the mixture in the baking tin and cook on a medium oven (160*c) for 20 minutes. 
When cool cut into squares and enjoy.

To view the pop-up tea room feature on the Jordan's blog, click here.

Miss Sue Flay

x

* Recipe from The Brownie Cookbook written by Verily Anderson. 
 

Cambridge City WI – Do you (W)ant (I)n ?!

This week has been one very exciting week indeed for the fabulous and creative women of Cambridge and surrounding areas... A group of lovely ladies, including the likes of local bloggers, Jen from "Jenny And The Magic Feather"  and Claire of "Claireabellemakes" have decided to set up their own branch off the WI (Women’s Institute) in the heart of our very own city.

It actually felt quite clandestine and exciting heading down to the Friends Meeting House off Jesus Lane, walking through the puddles and hotfooting it into this friendly building with crowds of other women actually made me feel very proud for some unknown reason to me... The feminist in me has been ignited lately!

 It was more exciting than I had anticipated, I was in awe of these ladies after we realised that we had 53 women sat here waiting to hear the plans for this new WI group and discuss our ideas with them.

The co-founders of this group had visited a few of the many local WI groups in Cambridgeshire to check them out, to meet the more traditional members, however they felt that the tradition was going to hold their plans back ever so slightly for some more modern activities & pursuits that many of the newer WI groups around the country offer to appeal to a slightly younger crowd.

This may seem a little harsh sounding to the more traditional approach to the WI, however, as one of the Cambridge WI ambassadors who was there to join us for this evening had mentioned herself, it wasn’t causing offence to the other local groups, in fact quite the opposite was true. They were hugely impressed with the turn out and interest from this much younger than *normal* crowd and they were 100% in support of this WI group going ahead which is just fantastic.

Some of the ladies brought along homemade cake and we donated a £1 or so for a piece or slice to start helping to raise funds for this new group and the venue fees. Tea was served and the tables were filled with chatter, with small groups of us sitting together putting down our own personal thoughts & desires on what we would like to see the new WI group doing, either as a large group together as well as smaller spin off groups should the activities or ideas be a little more unusual. Just some of the thoughts that came from the group were ideas such as dancing classes, crafting sessions, knitting lessons, baking & decorating workshops (Wahoo!), circus skills, fascinator & jewellery making, plumbing courses, learning a new language, yarn bombing, self defence & first aid, even role playing games (no not THOSE kind of games you filthy minded beggar ; p ) and even swishing (clothes swapping to anyone else who didn’t know what this was ; ) and much much more besides. Needless to say, we were in fits of giggles discussing each idea and they all went into a suggestion box at the end for the ladies to use to help them put together some ideas for the forthcoming meets.

It was a very informal meet, purely to listen to the local, more established WI ladies telling us about the WI and a little about the history behind it. Did you know that the WI was not in fact started in the UK, but it was started by a farmer’s wife in Canada?!... A lady called Adelaide Hoodless started up a meeting for the wives of the members of the Farmers’ institute in 1897 and the first British WI meeting didn’t take place until 1915 in North Wales where it was set up to encourage women to become more involved in producing food during the First World War.

The rest, as they say, is history.

Nowadays, with the latest crazes and noticeable fashions on the climb, with retro clothes and hairstyles dominating our magazines and web viewing as well as the baking phenomenon which doesn’t ever seem to calm down (Which is GREAT news! : ) the WI is appealing to many more younger women and they aren’t scared to admit that they want to be making their own jams and labels whilst sat socially networking with a piping hot cuppa and a slice of homemade Victoria Sponge whilst knitting a scarf or two (Well, some may wish to at least ; ) 

 Just look at some of the quirkier WI groups around the country and you can see why it is starting to appeal more and more, with the lovely ladies offering lots of fun at Buns & Roses and the Colchester Wigs for example.

Cambridge will be the next WI group on the map to do things *Their* way, with the support of the Women's Institute to push forward some of the more traditional values and causes along the way. There will be an open forum for people to push forward their ideas & skills and help to make this group a friendly and welcoming place for local women of any age or background to come along to.

I know personally just how important this is in itself, as many lovely ladies I have met through my own Afternoon Tea events have said to me previously, the first thing that they did when they arrived a new girl to the area was check out the local WI groups, but they weren't full of women our age to meet, so this is going to be huge for the new women of Cambridge, as well as the girls who have been here their entire lives, such as myself!

Now that committee know the interest is there (and growing rapidly!) they plan to get the Cambridge City WI group up and running for August/September time, with membership only costing around £30 a year, it’s steal for the best social life we have all had yet in Cambridge!

You can contact these ladies for more information on their Facebook Page or Twitter account, or email them to add yourself to the mailing list:

cambridgecitywi@gmail.com

It’s not fuddy, it’s not duddy, it’s sheer brilliance. Geekery and perfect for anyone who likes tea, cake and meeting new people!

The next meeting is an open meeting on 5th September 2012, so why not

Come along and join in the fun... even our local men will want to put on a wig and join us when they see what they have lined up for the next year & beyond! - Hehe.

Miss Sue Flay

x

A Right Royal Afternoon Tea Party

If you need a sophisticated excuse for a Hen Party in Cambridge, then I am your girl... I can throw quite the afternoon tea party, if you didn't know by now hehe and it's the perfect way to spend an afternoon with your fellow hens and relax with a few homemade afternoon tea treats in a secluded Cambridgeshire location.

I don't like the willy waving hen party, it's really not my bag, however, sophisticated afternoon tea and hen party pampering, I love to offer and see my guests enjoying. 

With all the Jubilee celebrations being held recently, I was honored to witness such a lovely Hen Party with 16 lovely hens in the Cambridge Countryside over the Queens Diamond Jubilee weekend and saw just how lucky the Hen in question was, the lovely Emily, with her fantastic friends, who lovingly put together a relaxed Hen Party to overshadow all Hen Parties!

It was held at one of my most favourite and most secluded secret tea party venues and the girls arrived early to decorate the venue and make it their own. And they did this in true *British* style!... 

Union Jack bunting adorned the venue from floor to ceiling, paper chains curved around every decorative arch or doorway and miniature flags were pushed into meringues and tartlets as well as a service bell at the *Bride-To-Be*'s place setting for her to ding every time she needed something or anything. She was one pampered lady, which is just how it should be on your Hen party. 

Bunting and flags had also been set up outside the venue for a right royal welcome once the lovely lady arrived. Hens waved her in just like they would The Queen Herself, as she was driven up the drive to the stunning village hall of which she knew nothing about until she arrived. It was quite amusing watching her friends giving her the royal wave and helping her inside like royalty, with her genuine excitement being a really nice feeling for me, as she was expecting afternoon tea, she just hadn't realise it was with The Secluded Tea Party much to her happiness, as she had heard about me a while back, so bless her friends for arranging this for her - It was as much for me as it was for them : ) 

The afternoon tea party menu consisted of open top sandwiches (cucumber, fresh mint & soft cheese and egg mayonnaise & cress), warm cheese scones with herb butter & red onion chutney, chocolate and also raspberry meringue kisses with lemon curd swirled clotted cream, raspberry tartlets with vanilla creme patisserie, a Jubilee-inspired layer cake with blackcurrant & cassis jam (Home made by Deborah, my lovely jam lady) and decorated on top with blueberries & raspberries in the shape of the Union Jack to keep it in line with the weekends' celebrations. 

After my recent tea tasting tea party with Kandula Tea (a local tea supplier), I also offered these lovely ladies their very own private tea tasting within the afternoon tea festivities, with various tea options open for them to sample and they embraced into the spirit of this and enjoyed sampling the different teas on offer and enjoying them all, which was great to see. 

I even offered a Chai Tea course, serving some home made chocolate truffles with it, which went down very well and will be something that I offer at future events, should guests fancy trying this. 

The guests did play a few silly games (including a quiz on the Bride and also a *Dress the Bride* with toilet paper which was just hilarious to watch unravel... literally!) of which helped everybody get to know each other and to help break the ice before they all spend time together again at the wedding and I thought this was such a great idea, especially after the event, when a few of the later leaving ladies mentioned to me that this helped them to get to know some of the bride-to-be's family and friends, what a nice feeling to know this afternoon tea party helped them to feel more excited about the upcoming wedding : ) 

This hen party was going to be an all day affair in Cambridge, with my afternoon tea party being followed by cocktail making & a meal, along with a night of dancing to end this lovely day of celebrations. It was the perfect and very civilised Cambridge Hen Party and it was a delight to be a part of just a fraction of it. 

More importantly, congratulations to the happy couple, who tied the knot this month, I genuinely wish them all the happiness in the world in their new marriage. 

Miss Sue Flay 

xx

Afternoon Tea Baking Classes with Giuliana Orme

I have been following the website of the Talented Giuliana Orme from the very start of my afternoon tea infatuation and in my eyes has been a million miles away from my own life and experience - she has been the object of my affection (from afar!) for a very long time. Until now that is.

This lovely lady offers beginners and advanced afternoon tea baking lessons in her stunning London Townhouse, only a stones throw from Primrose Hill and as a country girl visiting on a very rare visit to our capital, I was in awe from the minute I stepped out of the tube station. The houses here are more than houses, they are homes. And when I say homes, the sort of luxurious homes that you can only read about in my favourite country and home magazines.

With lots of posh cars littering this area, I knew right away that there would be a super little coffee shop somewhere on these roads, as I had arrive 45 minutes too early to start knocking on my hostesses door... So I wandered in the drizzle and sure enough, passing (and ignoring in my pursuit for something better) a Starbucks, I rounded the corner and found an independent bakery stroke coffee shop filled with amazing smells and every variety of bread, cake, pastry and coffee known to man, with approximately 4 tables for customers to sit at.

This was the sort of coffee shop I have only personally read about and chuckled to myself, the ones where the group of 10 mums sat next to me on the communal table where they were all off to their personal trainer after their skinny latte. They were in that coffee shop to sniff the cake and not touch, so kept staring at me as I tucked into a cappuccino and full fat, most stunning crisp-on-the-outside, yet soft-in-the-middle almond croissant I have ever had the pleasure of enjoying! I didn't care that I being watched, it was worth every calorie after my stressful commute from Cambridge : )

Off I then hopped, trying to rope in my brolly as it turned inside out in the wind, to my baking lesson, arriving at the very same time as my fellow student for the day who was just as sweet as our tutor. She was a Japanese lady, not a stranger to Giuliana and her baking lessons, she has been a few times prior and was here to join me in the more specialised baking lesson, which moves on from her afternoon tea basics.

Today we found ourselves sat at Giulianas huge kitchen table chatting to her as if she was an old friend from the very start. She has such a warm personality, she hugs you the minute you walk through the door and makes you feel at home in this lovely green kitchen (of which was decorated by her sons friend who became an interior designer & told her to trust him on the colour, of which she did and is very pleased with as a result she told us : )

The kitchen is not a show kitchen, it is loved and used, you can tell. It's full of mismatching china, teapots, photos, thank you cards, you could stare in awe for hours and it made me smile at just how family orientated this kitchen is. You can tell its the hub of the home, as a bakers kitchen should well be.

On the menu were 3 afternoon tea treats, the first was a family favourite in Giulianas' household, The Ritz Torte, of which appears at every birthday table with candles without fail she proudly told us. It was stunning, and I have made it several times since, with it's salted meringue base, a secret ingredient gives this dessert a taste like no other (but I shall keep you guessing as to what is in this delicious concoction ; ) and once cooled, given a generous stopping of whipped cream and grated chocolate. It's  new addition to my own afternoon tea table for my friends and family and the love for this will keep on going!

We then had great fun trying out different zesters and squeezers for the lemons in  fruity and simply stunning Lemon Curd recipe. Some of the equipment we played with had been picked up in the US whilst on our hostesses travels, one of which I have since found in a local shop and very quickly whipped up as its a life saver when it comes to lemon squeezing! Lemon geekery was had with this simple method, using (no apologies made here!) the microwave - who knew Lemon Curd could be SO easy to make?!

We then stopped for a break, sitting down to tea , Giuliana played "Mother", teaching us exactly where this phrase came from and poured us each a teacup full of loose leaf tea, serving a plate of home made shortbread made by the previous days' students which was to die for.

We were very relaxed by then, with the chilled out background music helping us to feel even more at home and moving on to the Cheese Scones, with just a pinch of Paprika and plenty of mature cheddar, amongst other delicious ingredients. We formed them into bite sized treats and enjoyed them fresh out of the oven, served alongside a fresh afternoon tea feast of cold ham, leaf salad, salsa and herb butter to spread onto our warm scones.

Once we had set the world to rights, discussed our love of afternoon tea and travel (what a wealth of advice from two of the most well travelled and cultured ladies in London on this day it was too!) as well as discussing the fun she has had over the years with foreign students and teaching them the perfect English tradition of afternoon tea and how to make it. Giuliana loves what she does, even modestly shares her fun stories of how she has even appeared on Japanese television doing what she is most passionate about, what a hoot!

I had decided to finally treat myself to a visit to Giulianas home as a special treat to myself with a recent bonus I received in my day job. I can honestly say it was the best day I've spent my money on for a VERY long time and one I want to relive again in the very near future, as she just has a way of making everything so exciting and new. She doesn't talk down to you and she treats you like a son or daughter, lovingly imparting her afternoon tea wisdom and baking skills on you for the day. Nothing is too much effort and she cuts corners like the best of us....and isn't scared to admit if she has found a shortcut or trick that makes life faster & easier. I love her for just this alone.

I was allowed to take some of our hard work home with me, which just about made it on the train for my family to try and they were chuffed to pieces that I did! It was a hands on day, we took it in turns between us both as students to try everything at least once, sharing our thoughts and experiences, tips and tricks, everything and anything from getting egg shell out of your mix to which teas to serve with which dishes. With a Japanese influence in the room that day, I learnt so much more than any local baking class could have offered me in Cambridge and I may be as bold as to say I learnt many things from my fellow student here that money just couldn't buy. And what a gem she was too : )

I can also honestly say that I made two very lovely baking friends here and I will be seeing them both very soon in fact, as they both have booked to come to my Etiquette of Afternoon Tea event in September, which I am so very excited about. I cannot wait to see them again and share the lovely William Hanson with them both!

Giuliana has also written her own book on afternoon tea, with recipes, history of tea, etiquette she has learnt and much more and it is one of the best books on afternoon tea that I have ever read. I'm not just saying that, I cannot believe  that I haven't come across is before and I urge anybody who loves baking and/or afternoon tea to gain a copy of this little treasure immediately!

For more information on Afternoon Tea Lessons, visit her website here:

www.afternoontealessons.com

Miss Sue Flay

x