Co Down chef makes Great British Menu banquet with ‘perfect’ dessert
A chef from Co Down has had his dessert included in the Great British Menu’s final banquet after getting a perfect score for it on the hit BBC show.
He continued: “My dessert, Trifle Derry Girls, is born of my love for the show and an episode in particular where Ma Mary borrows Michelle’s Aunt Sarah’s “big bowl”.
“This scene really struck a chord with me when I first saw it as the same was a weekly occurrence in my house growing up. My mum and Aunty Karen were constantly sharing each other’s “big bowls” depending on whose house we were going to for tea.
“When I read the brief and realised it was related to broadcasting, I knew my dessert just had to be a trifle of some sort, and no trifle is more classic than a retro sherry trifle.”
A friend who works for Copeland reminded him that their Navy Strength was aged in Oloroso sherry casks and the residual sherry from the casks was shipped to him in Padstow.
“I combined the sherry and the gin to make the jelly, and used some more to soak these incredible moelleux raisins and finally the Trifle Derry Girls was born,” he explained.
“Being a proud Irish man, it’s great to see so many incredible producers like Gareth creating truly special food and drink items on home turf.
“I also used a stunning apple ice wine by Mark Jenkinson at Anum Ull in Co. Meath, and I know first-hand that what Peter Hannan of Hannan Meats is doing with his grass-fed Glenarm Shorthorn is nothing short of excellent and deserves the rave reviews it gets.
“I think it’s really important to remember where you came from and at my roots is a great sense of gratefulness and respect for the world class produce that’s available across Northern Ireland. When it comes to running a restaurant it’s important to have that innate awareness though that hospitality is so much more than just the food on the plate.”
