Center Parcs Gluten Free Food Tasting

A few weeks ago we were contacted by Center Parcs UK asking if we’d like to attend a gluten free tasting session.  What luck – after all, it was being held in Woburn Forest the newest and only village we’ve not been to and also the one we’re hoping to visit later in the year. Previously frequent visitors we'd stopped returning due to concern about the availability of gluten free food options.  Not only would there be food to taste and talk about, but I could also do a pre-visit check, take some pics for J to review whilst also taking the chance to assess things like lighting, toilets and layout.

To get to the point where Center Parcs had decided to offer a tasting session must have taken a lot of planning and thought.  In fact, the Executive Chef, James Haywood, had previously challenged himself to see what it was like to be a diner who required gluten free food. He ate gluten free and blogged about it here. The experience left him "feeling like a second-class citizen" but this, fortunately, didn't deter him from the challenge to offer gluten free food across the Center Parcs restaurants.

Arriving at The Venue in the village, the bloggers assembled (Beth, Kim, Loriley and Lucy) and we were welcomed by Maddy, Steph and Eddie from Center Parcs.  After introductions, we chatted about gluten free gripes and goodies.  We also learnt that the food we were to taste was a range of items from different eateries onsite and is available across all villages… from the restaurants Huck’s American Bar & Grill, Sport's Cafe,The Pancake House, Rajinda Pradesh…  we were shown the specific dietary requirement menus used – more on this later.  It was good to see a range of items on the menus (including breakfast options at The Sport's Cafe) and we were soon treated to a 16 course tasting menu showcasing the delights on offer within Center Parcs restaurants.  Detailed below are the dishes... 

To start off, we were served (warm) artichoke dip with tortilla chips.  It was a tasty starter which would be a good sharing dish as was surprisingly hearty.

Next up was a mini Mac'n'cheese... and what a dish!  I thought it was fantastic and finished the lot (never mind there were 14 more dishes to try).  It turns out this is the SAME recipe served to all diners wherever it's on the menu - the only difference is the addition of gluten free crumb to the top (and the kids' version has a slightly different cheese sauce).  The macaroni and sauce is all gluten free... and fab.

The wings we tasted, from Huck's, were Spicy buffalo hot wings with ranch dressing and also BBQ wings.  Both were served up looking, smelling and tasting great.  The spicy one are SPICY (tabasco standard spice, not Nando's extra hot spice!) and both dishes were tasty.

 

Nachos were served next... nice and spicy with some kick from the Jalapeno peppers.  There was plenty of guacamole, sour cream and salsa to dig into.

Having tasted the Huck's menu items, we moved onto other dishes.

First up were some bite sized pizzas...which can be ordered for eating in at your accommodation through the in lodge dining service. We tried a selection of toppings from the menu.  I tried the seafood pizza and the others all looked and smelt appetising.  

Served in the Sport's Cafe, we moved on to Mini Fish and Chips... OH MY!! What an absolute delight... crisp batter, not too thick and beautifully cooked fish.  Wondrous (and I say this as an East Coast of Yorkshire lass who has had plenty of F&C in her time!!)  Delicious.  Served imaginatively in 'paper' cones for our tasting menu but, usually, the diner is treated to this delight on a 'newspaper' plate.  Asking Chef James about the fab batter, he revealed this is made using Dove's Farm Self Raising Flour and Daura Damm beer - a recipe we'll be trying ourselves soon.

The Grilled Cajun Swordfish was lovely.  The zesty lime added just the right amount of 'zing' and was also served with a refreshing green salad. 

Having read the Menu prior to the event, I was keen to learn what a slider is... turns out it's a mini burger.  We had a lovely selection to try, in specially baked mini buns, to provide a flavour of the burgers.  The burger was moist, tasty and very well cooked.  The food presentation was really appealing.  

Following the burgers, was the Mustard-brushed pork loin, served on a skewer with a mini hasselback potato and sour cream dip (which I dolloped over...)  

Prawn fajita shells were really well received too... the sizzling platter and clever moulding of the shells was a really eye catching way to present the food.  The prawns were moist and spicy and the shell remained crisp.

By this time, I was  definitely starting to feel full up but the presentation of the Grilled Tandoori Salmon was really eye catching and my senses were back in action.  It was a lightly cooked, spicy dish presented beautifully and is from the Rajinda Pradesh menu.

Finally, it was time for dessert.  What a platter of goodies we were offered.  Flourless Chocolate Torte that was rich and smooth accompanied by a tart raspberry compote - delicious (I ate the lot).  Dutch Apple pancake with cinnamon sugar and vanilla ice cream - tasty, very tasty.  A mini slice of Daim cake - always a hit with me. And, finally, Ultimate Chocolate Pancake with chocolate ice cream - the ice cream was fabulous.  What was most interesting about this course, was learning that the Pancake House has a range of gluten free options - I would NEVER have thought of even going to a pancake place as simply would not expect them to cater for those needing gluten free food. 

Although I was really impressed with the food we were served, a bit of a sticking point for me is the term “Gluten Sensitive” used as the heading for the menus.  There was discussion on the day around using this and we learnt that CP’s “legal bods” said Gluten Sensitive was the term to use… not being a specialist in food allergen labelling, it seems positive to have awareness regarding allergens BUT I’d prefer to see "No Gluten Containing Ingredients" alongside information about cross contamination risks. I like to be an informed diner and will go to great lengths to support venues catering responsibly to address dietary needs.

Looking at wider allergens and/or dietary requirements, there are also menus for vegans and lactose intolerant diners which is good (snapshot from Pancake House menu shown). We learnt that there is ongoing consideration within the company regarding potentially seeking accreditation relating to food allergens but there are a number of bodies who organisations can seek to align with so it’s not a simple decision.

The menus are available across the restaurants in all the Center Parcs UK villages which is great to know.  Before the tasting, I visited the onsite supermarket (the parc market) and was pleased to see a decent free from section in ambient, chilled and even some freezer items.

Overall, it was a really enlightening day.  There was a good exchange of views, many opinions shared about products that work well and plenty of suggestions (hot chocolate, marshmallows and waffles, please!) made.  The event was well supported by the Center Parcs team and I hope they learnt as much as I did.

The villages that Center Parcs have within the UK are definintely somewhere to consider visiting if you have dietary needs to take into account when looking for holiday/short break destinations.  As a family, we're planning to visit Woburn Forest later in the year... and have already started preparing J and trying to sort it out.  I feel confident I won't have to worry about taking the contents of the fridge to see us through our stay by bringing our own gluten free food... and, hopefully, we'll also be able to eat out safely and have snacks JUST LIKE EVERYONE ELSE!! What a lovely thought.

Many thanks to all at Center Parcs - it was a real pleasure to be part of this.   

Home Grown Tomato Salsa

We've had a fantastic crop of tomatoes in the garden this year which has resulted in a daily harvest of more than a handful of ripe fruits to 'deal with'.  As Sous Chef J is a big fan of salsa we decided to use our garden haul to make a try at our own salsa. 

Looking round the garden, we gathered a few salad onions, a small bunch of flat leaf parsley and a chilli... to go with the tomatoes.


The tomatoes were washed and chopped.




Having found a small lemon in the fridge, we used a reamer to juice it.


We also washed and chopped the onions before carefully removing the chilli seeds and finely chopping that.

The parsley was roughly chopped, added to the bowl with the other ingredients and the lemon juice was added and mixed through.

That was it - our version of salsa was ready for eating with gluten free tortilla chips.

Blackberry Chutney

It's been a bumper year for blackberries and we've harvested them for weeks.  To try a new 'take' on preserving them, we used a recipe found in a Kilner jar we'd bought earlier in the summer.

The recipe ingredients are -

1 Tbsp olive oil
1 red onion, finely chopped
3 cm root ginger, peeled and finely chopped
2 large red Chillies, finely chopped
1 lb blackberries
45g caster sugar
30ml red wine vinegar

We didn't have red chillies so used a whole, dried smoked chipotle chilli.  Also, we only had 11 oz of blackberries, so the ingredients we used to make our chutney were - a dessertspoonful of oil, 30g sugar, 2cm ginger, 20ml vinegar and a small red onion.

The blackberries were rinsed and drained.  Any stray tops or greenery were removed.

The oil was heated and the onion, ginger and chilli were added to the pan.  This was lightly fried for about 5 minutes until softened.

Next the blackberries were added and cooked gently until soft.

Adding the sugar and vinegar to the pan and the ingredients were mixed well.  The chutney was then brought to the boil and allowed
to simmer for 15-20 minutes until thickened.







Whilst it was still hot, the chutney was spooned into clean, sterilised jars.

This is a speedy and simple chutney to make (taking about 30 minutes to cook in total).   As an accompaniment for a mature cheddar cheese it makes a change from the usual chutneys we make.

It looks lovely in special pots and, presented like this, would make a great foody gift.

Stir Fried Kale

This stir fried kale dish was decided upon when our veg box provided a bag of kale and a 'free' red chilli.  Sous Chef J liked the idea of "something spicy" and we decided to try using it with kale.












We gathered the ingredients and prepared them for cooking.  To do this, the kale was washed and sliced and the garlic and chilli were chopped.

Next, some oil was placed in a frying pan and heated before adding the garlic and chilli.

Once the garlic and chilli was sizzling nicely, the chopped kale was added with a dash of gluten free soy sauce (tamari).

After a few minutes, the kale had fried well and the chilli and garlic was mixed through.

We served the kale with some steamed salmon and purple sprouting broccoli. 

A very quick and easy way to serve kale with a spicy kick!

Kale Crisps

 
Having found something tasty to do with curly kale, we have also made these crisps using cavalo nero.  It really could not be simpler.


We wash the greens, shake them to remove excess water, lay them on a baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil and season with a little sea salt.  Then place in a hot oven (200ºC) for 8-10 minutes... and, hey presto, tasty veggie crisps.

Sometimes Cavalo Nero has quite thick stems - if so, cut them out and use the leaves for making crisps this way.  We use the stems, chopped fairly small, in stir fries.


If, by some miracle, the trayful isn't immediately consumed, they crisps can be crumbled onto soups, mince or pasta sauce as a tasty, crunchy seasoning.

Give it a go and let us know what you think.

Butternut Squash and Spinach Curry

 

Looking for something to do with the contents of our veg box we decided a curry would be a good idea.  Having searched online, we found this recipe.

The ingredients we used were:-

 

• 1 butternut squash - peeled, de-seeded and cubed
• 1 packet fresh spinach - washed and drained, stems removed 
• 1 onion - sliced
• 1 thumb-sized knob of fresh ginger - peeled and diced finely
• 2 tablespoons oil
• 4 bruised cardamom pods
• ½ teaspoon turmeric
• ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• ¼ teaspoon chilli flakes
• 500 ml vegetable stock - we made ours up from Gluten Free Bouillon powder
• tin coconut milk - we used about 100ml 
• Sunflower oil for frying

The onion was fried until starting to soften in a little sunflower oil.  Once it was starting to caramelise, the spices and ginger were added and cooked for about a minute.

Then the prepared butternut squash was added and covered with the vegetable stock before being simmered until the squash was cooked.




At this point the coconut milk was added - we used about half a tin - and combined it through before returning to the heat.


Next, the spinach leaves were added and the curry was covered and heated over a moderate heat until the leaves were wilted.

Finally, after a few minutes and whilst the spinach remained a vibrant green, the curry was ready to serve.