‘Cheeeeeeeeese!’

As we hurtle towards Autumn at a rate of knots, aren’t the nights drawing in, I had a lovely day out on Saturday, probably what will be one of the final ‘Summer’ days out until next year, and of course it involved food, when doesn’t it with me?
A group of us ventured to the beautiful old market town of Ludlow, in Shropshire, for the annual Ludlow Food Festival which is held within the walls of the castle in the town centre. What a fab day we had! It was just food, food and more food, oh and maybe a bit of drink too 🙂
There were 160+ food stalls which were all local small companies, demonstrations from Michelin star holders, Masterchef contestants, and 3 previous Great British Bake Off contestants along with interactive classes and many other food related stalls and some not so food related. I approached a book stall and was very surprised to come face to face with Boycey from Only Fools and Horses, flogging his latest book. Between you and me he didn’t come across any more cheerful than he did on the small screen!
We wandered from stall to stall trying all the free samples, it would be rude not to wouldn’t it. A firm favourite was the Salted Caramel Vodka which was just divine. A bottle was swiftly purchased and will be saved for a date late in December – i can’t bring myself to say the word just yet. Several wedges of cheese were also purchased, all locally produced. Wrekin Blue is a firm favourite so far, the wedge having been almost entirely consumed already.
Late breakfast was locally produced rare breed Pork Sausage baps which were heavenly, followed by an organic strawberry milkshake, also heavenly. A local handmade pork pie was added to the shopping basket along with a Violet Garlic bulb – interesting!
My friends husband was ready for lunch by now, but what to choose? There were foods from around the world on offer including some very exotic meats being cooked on a South African Braai – BBQ to you and me. Alligator, crocodile, python and so much more, however we settled for locally produced lamb burgers which were truly delicious.
By mid afternoon we were ready for a small something and as the sun had come out it seemed that an ice-cream would fit the bill nicely – salted caramel was an excellent choice 🙂
All in all it was a truly fabulous way to round off Summer in a stunning location. Ludlow is a beautiful town and well worth a visit if you find yourself in Shropshire.
Today i am back in the office and what a busy day it has been. P&O 2019 Summer cruises are now on sale to past passengers and boy are they making the most of the early booking benefits! September is going to be a busy month for sure – good job I lined my stomach with all that delicious food on Saturday!
Ludlow Food Festival takes place next year 7th, 8th, 9th September 2018
Happy Cruising folks!