Take time to venture out and enjoy the changing season for yourself or an early Christmas gift?
Autumn is a big month in the culinary world; it’s one of the best times for foraging, it’s a time when artisans and producers are preparing for Christmas, and it’s also when cookery schools launch their autumn and winter courses. Here’s what we recommend for the months ahead and some early Christmas gifting ideas – happy Autumn!
#1. Get wild in the English countryside – Your gourmetXperience gift certificates can be redeemed of 100’s of foraging courses Uk wide, run by our specialist foraging partners, who will equip you with all the skills you need to find, safely identify, pick and cook a feast of wild delights, from delicious mushrooms to seasonal berries.
#2. Spend the afternoon at River Cottage – the River Cottage Experiences offer a range of the delightful cookery courses on offer at Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall’s famous Devon HQ; you can bake the signature farmhouse loaf, explore the gardens and create a spectacular wood-fired pizza for a late lunch – all with a glass of fizz and a seasonal cocktail.
#3. Create delightful Christmas gifts – it’s never too soon to start planning, and many of our Cookery Collection schools have devised the perfect set of presents. Each showing you how to create things like macarons, raspberry jam, chutneys, pickles, terrines and all manner of festive treats for your loved ones, as well as more hands-on courses cooking the perfect steak or the ultimate Beef Wellington at the Gordon Ramsay Academy.
Your GourmetXperience Gift certificate is redeemable at ALL our cookery collection sites!
#4. Get creative with plant-based ingredients – the Vegetarian society COOK! Cookery school in the heart of Manchester have created wonderful all seasons cookery classes, with favourites each inspired fresh seasonal produce.
#5. Get well for winter – the Natural Chef’s range of courses at the College of Naturopathic Medicine in London are designed to introduce you to toxic-free, ethical and organic food. Their popular short course in Herbal Medicine will show you how to use herbs for a range of common ailments, from headaches and low moods to the common cold.
#6. Up your gifting ‘game’ – for those looking for the perfect gift for Christmas and beyond, the Swinton Estate Cookery School Head Chef Tutor hosts seasonal course celebrating Yorkshire produce form their 200 acre estate in North Yorkshire – including Game, fishing & foraging courses. Why not stay the night in the Coach House located above the famous Farmhouse Cookery school overlooking the Estate and fishing lake beyond?
#7. Celebrate National Curry Week. The start of October is a great time to learn how to make hearty curries, either online or in person. How about a private Thai Cookery Experience with ‘Curry Chef of the Year’ Chef Suree Coates, in her Shropshire restaurant ‘Suree’s Kitchen located in Historic Ironbridge Gorge, operated by the National Trust’. More details here
