Happy New Year from Partridge Farm!!

What a year 2012 has been for us on Partridge Farm. It's been a rollercoaster journey from start to finish although we most certainly don't look back with any regrets.

We have had an amazing time starting up our market stalls in Tiverton, Dartington, Hatherleigh and Minehead. Thoroughly enjoyed having stalls at a few of the Spring & Summer Fayres. Met many likeminded people and made some very good friends.

The butchery is now up & running and our new home-cured bacon has been flying off the shelves along with our chorizos and cured hams!! I have loved making all the sausage rolls for events and to order for many of our customers & Having a kitchen full of delicious smells at various times of the year when i have made stews and other delicous ready meals has been a test of my will power to not eat or tuck into the yummy food!!!

We have really enjoyed running the Partridge Farm  Barbeque at a few very well supported events this Summer/Autumn and look forward to this Spring when we will be back out there with our delicious Aberdeen Angus beef burgers and Rare breed Sausages cooking away to feed all our customers!

The farm despite being very wet and muddy is finally working how we want it to work & we have some exciting plans for 2013. Our cattle are looking very good and are now all in their barns for Winter, we look forward to a drier Spring and getting them back onto their lush green fields. Our first lot of sheep are in their barns for lambing and we have now begun the exciting process again!! As for the pigs, we now have 1 fantastic pedigree Large Black boar & 4 pedigree breeding sows. They are looking fabulous and have had 2 healthy litters since Christmas to start the New year perfectly!

Here's to an exciting and prosperous year ahead... Bring on 2013!!! Happy New year to you all xx

New Years Eve calls for a special treat!! Slow Roasted Shoulder of Pork!!

I can't believe it's New Years Eve tomorrow, the end of a very exciting and nail biting year here on Partridge Farm!! So to celebrate we have filled our kitchen with delicious smells as we have a beautiful shoulder of pork slow cooking in the oven for tomorrows dinner. That's the beauty of our business, we get to eat the best meat!!!

Partridge Farm Slow roasted shoulder of Pork

1 whole shoulder of pork from Partridge Farm!!on the bone weighing around 5-8kg (we have done this with smaller cuts just reduce the cooking time slightly)

5 garlic cloves peeled & 5cm piece of fresh Ginger

2 tsp dried chilli flakes & 2 tsp ground ginger

1 tbsp brown sugar & ½ tbsp. flaky salt

1 tbsp sunflower/groundnut oil

5 spice mix – 2 star anise, 2 tsp fennel seeds, ½ cinnamon stick, 4 cloves & black peppercorns

1 tbsp soy sauce

Instructions

*Score rind of pork with a Stanley knife in parallel lines about 1cm apart, to a depth of ½ - 1 cm.  *Grate the garlic & fresh ginger in a small bowl and mix to a paste with chilli flakes, ground ginger, brown sugar, salt, oil & soy sauce. Pound the 5 spices in a pestle & mortar & mix 1 tbsp into the paste(we add a little more than this usually as we love the flavours).

*Place pork, skin side up in a roasting tin. Using your fingertips rub half the spice paste into the scored rind of pork & place in the centre of a very hot oven (230oc/gas mark 8) for 30 mins.

*Remove from oven & turn pork over, using a knife or spoon smear the rest of the paste onto the pork, turn oven down to (110oc/gas mark ¼) & replace meat, leave in the oven from 16-24 hours, turning it skin side up again and basting with fat & juices half way through.

* 45 mins before you want to eat it turn oven up to (230oc/gas mark 8) to crisp up the crackling. Keep an eye on it as it can burn!

*To serve the pork, simply take off crackling in one piece & break up, scoop the tender, melting meat onto a plate and serve with a simple green salad. Delicious mouth watering perfection!!!!

The perfect Sunday....

What's your idea of a perfect Sunday...?  I guess everybodys  idea of  a perfect Sunday is somewhat different. I also expect in reality our ideas of perfect Sundays rarely happen!!

Living and breathing life on a farm certainly puts a stop to having lazy Sunday mornings reading the papers in bed. Infact being parents to 19 month old twins does as well!! I feel as though i have already done a day and should getting ready for bed and it's only quarter past ten in the morning!

However the one thing i do insist on every Sunday no matter how much work there is to be done is that everyone stops for  a roast dinner and sits together to eat!! It is amazing how we let the monotonous patterns of everyday life take over us and just accept it as the norm. We may not have the time for lazing about with cups of coffee, a round of golf or indulging ourselves with a sauna or steam room after a heavy session in the gym but instead settle for a satisfying lunch round our choatic farmhouse kitchen table. Eating the amazing Rare breed joint of Pork we have bred, cared for and produced ourselves is a treat & privilidge in itself.

My idea of the perfect Sunday may begin with a lazy morning reading in bed with freshly made croissants & hot chocolate followed by a gentle walk with the family taking in the amazing views from our farm and then somebody else cooking a delicious lunch and doing all the clearing away whilst i lie back infront of a roaring fire and watch an old romantic film. But in reality having the family altogether for lunch eating our very own meat and vegetables & home-made pud is almost perfect & really i wouldnt want to be anywhere else, or have things any other way!!!

Did you know? Large Black breed of pigs was once common in the Westcountry, sadly today there are fewer than 300 breeding sows left in the world, which makes them rarer than the Giant Panda! By breeding Large Black pigs for meat we are not only helping to keep this breed for future generations but producing tasty, succulent meat with the BEST flavour!!

Rare Breeds are the best

Did you know? Large Black breed of pigs was once common in the Westcountry, sadly today there are fewer than 300 breeding sows left in the world, which makes them rarer than the Giant Panda! By breeding Large Black pigs for meat we are not only helping to keep this breed for future generations but producing tasty, succulent meat with the BEST flavour!!www.partridgefarmtiverton.com