AUTUMNAL DELIGHTS
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AUTUMNAL DELIGHTS
BY PAUL ASKEW , CHEF PATRON OF THE ART SCHOOL RESTAURANT
Autumn is one of my favourite seasons . It won ’ t surprise Wirral Life readers to know that one of the things that gets me the most excited is good quality produce and the variety . This is absolutely the harvest festival time because the game has started , venison , partridge and it ’ s the fantastic beginnings of autumnal vegetable like Cavolo Nero , local corn , pumpkin and squash .
It ’ s simply a beautiful time of year , although we all love the summer , the autumnal air and changing of the seasons is a wonderful time for Chefs and dinners alike . We get to ring the changes on the menus – that brings a real excitement in the kitchen and in the restaurant as new dishes are added and you can really feel the excitement in the kitchen as they are developed .
Autumn is a great season for our wild food , partridge and venison have been on the menu for a couple of weeks and I ’ m expecting the first pheasant to arrive next week . As well as the game , it ’ s lovely to have the Romanesco cauliflower and small root vegetables to develop our vegetarian options too .
Obviously the changing of the seasons does mean some of the things we ’ ve really enjoyed working with are no longer available , so we ’ re coming to the end of some of the edible flowers and the amazing Hooton Watercress from that most loveable of characters , Peter Jones , at Wirral Watercress – it may mean he ’ s out of shorts and wellies too , so perhaps it ’ s not all bad .
At the moment my favourite dish of the season so far has to be the loin of Venison , or Red Deer . Which I did at a guest chef dinner in Stafford last week – I was very pleased with the reaction there and also in The Art School where it ’ s been on the menu for around the last 10 days .
We take the loin , which is the equivalent of a sirloin from a cow , with Cavolo Nero , Girolles in truffle butter and fantastic pink fir apple potatoes with a little parmesan reduction and breadcrumbs . The sauce that goes over it is a game stock , made from venison bones , partridge bones and herbs , and it ’ s finished with a Damson puree , pink peppercorns which is quite punchy , there ’ s a little bit of port and red wine vinegar to add sharpness . They really complement the sweetness of the venison , and to finish , my favourite vegetables to go with venison are parsnips .
The dish really sums up the Autumn for me and where our menus are going . It ’ s not just the game season that shapes Autumn , the fish is also seasonal so we ’ re moving from Turbot to Halibut and we ’ re seeing Monk Fish loins coming in and the end of the Liverpool Bay Sea Bass . The Scallops have been fantastic of late and we ’ re excited to have them on the menu .
They ’ ll also feature on the menu in the Art School Cellars , our new champagne and wine bar that recently opened and will see hot food served from the end of October in addition to our charcuterie , cheese and bread selection . The cellars also has a tutored tasting room , our tasting table has proved a hit on social media , the room itself is a sommelier led tasting experience , fine wines and champagnes paired with fresh local taster dishes . I ’ ve tried to create something of capital city standard for the people of Wirral and the region to enjoy – a little closer to home .
As I write I ’ m on the eve of my last photoshoot for my debut book – “ Onwards and Upwards ” - it too captures the seasons and the very best local suppliers . Out in time for Christmas there ’ s a whole host of Art School dishes for you to recreate at home ! Enjoy the bountiful harvest of Autumn – until next month .
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