The Great British Food Festival – the ultimate summer day out – returns to the stunning Harewood House Leeds this May Bank Holiday with even more entertainment.
Yorkshire’s ultimate summer day out returns to Harewood House this May 23rd – 25th with a revamped line-up packed with entertainment for everyone to enjoy. With chef demonstrations and talks, delicious street food and live music, alongside a dedicated kids’ stage, foraging walks and floristry masterclasses, there is something for all tastes. There’s even a woof zone with activities for our four-legged friends.
Located in the iconic grounds of Harewood House, there will be entertainment in every corner. Street food vendors including Ey Up Thai will be serving up classic green curries, corn fritters and drunken noodles. There’s so much choice to tantalise your taste buds while relaxing and listening to live music.
The Artisan Market is a great way to discover new producers who can share the provenance of their food. West Yorkshire based cheesemongers Cryer and Stott are new this year and will be selling their repertoire of cheese. Working with British producers they create some of their own recipes such as Rhuby Crumble a Wensleydale, blended with Yorkshire forced rhubarb and a hint of vanilla.
With different stages around the site, the programme will see non-stop activity with opportunities for visitors to take part in the challenges – including Beat the Chef and the Cake Off.
Yorkshire based Sandy Docherty, who spent time in the tent of the Great British Bake Off in 2015, will be live on the Headline stage. Sandy is a safeguarding officer at a school in her home county, helping young people with emotional issues. She also runs a cookery club where she teaches children to bake on a budget. She is a strong advocate that cooking and baking are life skills.
Sandy says: “Food has become very expensive and I like to show ways that you can still make something very special but really use the ingredients you have. It is about taking the ordinary and making it extraordinary. You could make a casserole one night and then with what is left you can add pastry and you have a pie.
At the Festival, I will be hosting a cooking demonstration and I will be showing you how to make two kinds of desserts – crepe suzette and a steamed sticky toffee pudding with a caramel sauce. Visitors will get the chance to taste them and ask questions. I’ll be showing people how they can adapt recipes, so you could change the crepe suzette into chocolate pancakes and add cherries and transform it.”
On the Headline stage, Masterchef semi-finalist and Harrogate resident Olayemi Adelekan, known as Yemi, will be demonstrating dishes such as Istanbul-inspired spiced potatoes on a bed of labneh with flaked salmon. She enjoys using ingredients from Nigeria or the Middle East and wants to inspire people to make her recipes at home.
Yemi: “It’s so much fun up there and I want people to feel that they can go and buy the ingredients and replicate the dishes. I layer flavours using things like spring onion oil, which is easy to make.
The dishes are colourful and this one has a preserved lemon dressing and the potatoes are cooked in saffron and turmeric, giving a wonderful yellow hue. It is finished with green herbs. It is a delight for the senses and smells delicious.”
Visitors can take part in an introduction to foraging whilst exploring the magnificent estate at Harewood House. Elliot Nicholls of Leeds-based Forage Against the Machine teaches participants how to identify dangerous species as well as those that are beneficial nutritionally, medicinally and in a culinary sense. It’s about foraging sustainably and safely so as not to leave the countryside depleted. The woodland at Harewood House is a great location to get to know some key species.
The family behind the Great British Food Festival are celebrating, with over one million visitors to the festival over the last 16 years. The revamped line up means the Festival is jam packed with entertainment.
Janine Maycock: “Come for the food and stay for the fun, leave inspired. That is our message. Harewood House is such a wonderful setting. We really feel that this is the best way to get together with friends and family and have a wonderful day out this summer.
With a huge range of bars and street food stalls selling a variety of delicious global dishes – it is a treat.
We’ve revamped the stages this year, which means there will always be something on and there’s lots of interactive challenges like Beat the Chef. Don’t miss out.”
Overseeing the whole event will be host Chris Bavin. Chris is a cookbook author and has worked in the fresh produce industry for many years, founding The Naked Grocer, one of the first no plastic retail businesses. He will be familiar to visitors as he has spent many years presenting a variety of tv programmes, including BBC’s Eat Well for Less and Best Home Cook.
Chris: “I’m really looking forward to hosting the Great British Food Festival. There’s a lot going on so I’m going to be busy but meeting people and enjoying great food and drink in a beautiful setting. Feels like an ideal way to spend the day.”
Live music will be performed throughout the weekend from a diverse range of artists including Gina Larner, Groovy Revolution and DRS. The event is dog friendly so there’s no need to rush back home.
Details: Great British Food Festival, Harewood House, Leeds
May 23rd- 25th 10am until 5pm
Tickets are available here https://greatbritishfoodfestival.com/tickets.php
Social media Instagram @greatbritishfoodfestival
