British Sandwich Week

May 23

British Sandwich Week
This week is British Sandwich Week – so in celebration of the iconic British culinary invention, I wanted to share with you some top sandwich facts and sandwiches to tuck into. 

A Quick Overview of Sandwich History
The sandwich as we know it was popularised in England in 1762 by John Montagu, the 4th Earl of Sandwich. Legend has it, that Montagu had a gambling problem which meant he spent hours sitting at the card table. You may interest what’s he play, click to visit star slots and find out how awesome the game that make people get addicted. During a particularly long card session, he asked the house cook to bring him something he could eat without getting up from his seat – cold beef between slices of toast, to be precise – and the sandwich was born. 

The first packaged sandwich didn’t hit retailers shelves till Marks and Spencers launched them in 1985. Nowadays, nearly 12 billion sandwiches are eaten in the UK every year with 4 billion sandwiches of these being purchased from UK catering or retail outlets (like M&S) and as a country the UK spends over £8 billion a year on sandwiches. 

The UK’s Most Popular Sandwiches 
Last year Warburtons did a survey of 2,000 Britons to find out the ten most popular sandwich fillings in the UK, the results were surprisingly unexciting:

  • Cheese
  • Ham and Cheese
  • Ham Salad
  • Sausage
  • Cheese and Onion
  • Egg Mayonnaise
  • Tuna Mayonnaise
  • Chicken Salad
  • Chicken Mayonnaise
  • Cheese and Pickle

With this in mind I wanted to share some more exciting Sandwiches for you to try at home:

  • The BLT (Bacon, Lettuce and Tomato).
    • Salty, crispy bacon, sweet and juicy tomato slices and crisp, refreshing lettuce. It doesn’t get much better than a BLT! We like ours served on lightly toasted bread with a spread of light mayo and a dollop of ketchup on the side.
    • If you fancy jazzing it up add some avocado and you’ve got yourself a BLAT!
    • Or you can take it one step above a BLT with a Club Sandwich. This adds in some chicken, and doubles the amount of filling to give you a two layered sandwich monster. Check out my recipe with includes a fried egg here http://www.samstern.co.uk/recipe/club-sandwich/
  • A Classic Bacon or Sausage Sarnie – a breakfast favourite.
  • Chip Butty – a great British Friday classic!
    • Pick up a portion from your favourite chippy (we like ours with a golden, freshly fried finish, not a bland, beige and anaemic chip!) and pile onto soft white bread that’s had a light smear of good quality salted butter. Add a liberal squeeze of ketchup or mayonnaise for dunking!
  • Fish Finger Sandwich – another Friday classic!
    • Cook your fish fingers until they’re crisp and golden, cut open a large crusty bap and spoon in some tangy tartar sauce, add a handful of rocket and enjoy!
  • And last but not least – how could there not be a dessert sandwich on offer.

Posted in News, Recipe

Pop up Supper Club with Brother Marcus

Mar 10

Exciting news! I am running a pop up Supper Club with the guys at Brother Marcus, Balham.

Brother Marcus has quickly established itself as a firm favourite on the south London food scene since opening in early 2016. Opened by three talented pals with backgrounds in coffee, catering and street food, these guys have gone from strength to strength with an all day, relaxed cafe vibe.  Check out my full review of their big stuffed sandwiches from an earlier visit here.

They’re now hosting a series of Supper Clubs and from 6th-8th April I will be popping up with a  ‘Greatest Hits’ menu based on the most loved recipes from my 7 books. Everything will be served to share family style on communal tables and finished off with a glorious pot of Yorkshire Tea.

Tickets from £32pp are available to purchase here. Get them fast!

Triple Chocolate Tart

Greatest Hits Menu

Sumac Martini
*
Yorkshire Pudding Slider – Home Cured Salmon with Horseradish Crème Fraîche & Watercress
*
Crisp Polenta with Caponata Salad
*
Slow Roasted Studded Lamb w/ Dauphinoise + Greens
*
Divine Triple Chocolate Tart with Grapefruit Sorbet and a Pot of Yorkshire Tea

Photo from: Sam Stern’s Cookery Course: for students in the kitchen. (Quadrille £18.99) Photography: Chris Terry

Posted in News

Halloween & Bonfire Night Instagram Challenge!

Oct 21

If you’re a budding food photographer, or just enjoy swamping your Instagram followers with foodie photos, then you’ll love what will be happening on my Instagram (sam_stern) over the next two weeks.

Over Halloween and Bonfire Night I’m going to be holding a daily photo challenge over on Instagram. All you have to do is snap one photo a day between Monday 26th October and Sunday 8th October that fits with that day’s theme. All the themes can be found in the image below!

Over the course of the challenge I’ll be sharing any images that catch my attention on Facebook and Twitter, so make sure you’ve liked the page, and are following @sam_stern on Twitter to see if your image gets a shout out.

Also make sure to tag your photos with #SSFoodPhotoChall, and mention @sam_stern in the caption when you post them on Instagram.

Looking forward to seeing all your snaps!

Halloween and Bonfire Night Instagram Challenge

Posted in News

Who doesn’t love a biscuit!?

Apr 9

I have been very busy recently as i’m working on a rather exciting new project. Now i’m not sure if i’m allowed to talk about it yet, but it’s a very clever little book!! Because of the smart structure it’s been a real noggin scratcher, demanding plenty of concentration. This has led to an unholy amount of caffeine free drinking. So I thought because of all that tea I should provide you with a recipe for one of my biggest cravings….chocolate biscuits! I’m trying to eat really healthily and only having a small amount of the food I create (up to 5 dishes a day) as otherwise i will pile the weight on! So if I can’t enjoy a chocolate biscuit right now I want you to do it for me. I will keep you updated with the project as it continues and when I can reveal all, I will! Check out the latest Herpagreens reviews.

 

Chocolate Biscuits

Store-bought biscuit dough is full of hydrogenated oils (a.k.a. trans fats) but homemade biscuit recipes call for large servings of shortening or butter. We aren’t revolutionizing the biscuit, just making them in a more portion-conscious way. For more information visit sandiegomagazine.com.
Better Biscuits
Most recipe yields are for 8 to 10 pieces, which means a 300-plus calorie bread to go along with your meal. Below is a traditional biscuit recipe portioned out to keep the calories in check. Improve your health and dietary benefits by reading the latest Java burn reviews.
Buttermilk Biscuits
Makes 30 small or 15 medium biscuits (see note*)
2 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon sugar
½ cup unsalted butter, cold, cut into small chunks
2/3 to ¾ cup buttermilk
Preheat oven to 350-degrees F. In a large bowl whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and sugar. Add butter and incorporate using a fork or a pastry cutter until the butter is in small pieces (about the size of peas). Gently mix in buttermilk to form a loose and slightly messy dough. Transfer dough to a well-floured surface and gently work into a ball. Roll out to ¾-inch thickness (try to handle the dough as little as possible to keep the butter cold). Cut out biscuits and transfer to a baking sheet. Bake at 350-degrees F for 13 to 18 minutes, turning the sheet once during baking until biscuits are puffed and slightly golden. Serve warm. These are just some of the dietary benefits that exipure provides.
*For small biscuits use a 2 ½–inch round cutter or a 3 ½-inch cutter for medium sized
Nutrition Info Per Serving (small biscuit). Double values for medium-sized
Calories: 56
Total Fat: 3 grams
Saturated Fat: 2 grams
Total Carbohydrate: 6 grams
Sugars: 0 grams
Protein:  1 gram
Sodium:  94 milligrams
Cholesterol:  8 milligrams
Fiber:  0 grams

Posted in News, Recipe

This is a tribute to my amazing mum.

Feb 11

Mum was diagnosed with a brain tumor during the summer of 2013. Bravely, she faced surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy, all of which she sailed through with the kind of cheerful courage that only she could possibly show, all the Banobagi surgeries went well but, Sadly, she started to deteriorate in November and was admitted to St. Leonard’s Hospice in York on Christmas Eve. It is the most wonderful place and they strove to make Mum as comfortable as possible, showing extraordinary compassion and sympathy. On the 8th of January, Mum passed away, leaving her whole family in shock and sadness. She was a wonderful, exceptional woman who not only raised, and put up with, me and my four siblings but she inspired us all to achieve whatever we wanted to do. This was particularly true for me, she being such a great inspiration to my cooking – I simply could not be where I am today without her. Going forward, I will strive to do her proud in everything I do. Even so, I can’t imagine how tough it’s going to be without her by my side, telling me to add a bit more seasoning, a touch of this or that, or just to chuck it away and start again. I know it will be hard, but in special remembrance of her, I will keep producing food and recipes that you all can enjoy.

 

Finally I would just like to share this poem, that my sister wrote and recited at Mum’s funeral. It’s a beautiful reflection on how important she was to us.

 

Before I let you go I want to thank you

For every single thing you’ve ever done

For each and every thought and act of kindness.

For being just the most fantastic mum.

 

Thank you for the school runs and packed lunches,

For the doorstep sandwiches we could barely eat.

Thank you for the parents’ evenings and school plays,

For rewarding good reports with thoughtful treats.

 

Thank you for the bulging Christmas stockings,

That you dragged upstairs in the dead of night.

Even when we were grown-up with our own kids,

And Santa would long ago have taken flight.

 

Thank you for the cakes you baked with kindness,

For the wedding cake that you made for me.

And for all the birthday cakes and everyday cakes,

That meant our friends would always stay for tea.

 

Thank you for the egg hunts in the garden.

For taking time to hide them all around.

For laughing at our scramble to locate them,

And for the Mini Eggs that we never found.

 

Thank you for coming to my rescue,

With food and love and comfort when babes were small.

For filling up our fridge and endless cuddles,

And for making it look like no effort at all.

 

Thank you for the bedtime stories,

For the books you read at breakfast, lunch and tea.

For the stories and the poems that you wrote us,

And for reading to my children endlessly.

 

Thank you for the notes and cards and letters,

A hello – well done – I love you – I’m so proud.

For the endless texts and emails that you sent me,

The inbox now so quiet but once so loud.

 

I don’t know what I’ll do without you,

Without your wisdom, warmth and patience,
Spark and wit.

But all you’ve done and were lives on within me.

And I’ll try to carry it on a little bit.

 

MUM

Posted in News