Create at the NHM Ice Rink

create are proudly delivering the catering offer at The Natural History Museum's Ice Rink café this season. The café is available for corporate and private hire and create's designers have enjoyed  designing and delivering  some delicious alpine themed menus over the past few weeks. The café serves a range of winter warming refreshments for those wanting to put their feet up and treat themselves after an energetic skate. 

We wanted to share one corporate hospitality party that took the alpine theme to the next level.

Our menu creator designed a standing starter course for 180 guests that included beautifully decorated soup stalls, a raclette station and passed around charcuterie boards.

winter spinach and roasted garlic soup

with a frogs leg lollipop

leek and potato soup

with parsley and garlic buttered l’escargot

 

Classic french raclette was served from a station dressed with baskets of ficelle breads, kilner jars of cornichons and baby onions in homemade pickle.

The cheese was carved straight form the wheel in front of guests into rustic tapas dishes onto hot new potatoes, home pickled baby onions and cornichons and a selection of toppings including crispy lardons, truffle oil and crispy shallots for guests to help themselves to.

Of course, an alpine themed party wouldn't be right without plenty of Glühwein and hot apple cider...

 

Call us on 020 8944 4900 to speak to our NHM Ice Rink team about corporate and private hospitality in the fabulous café.

The Create British Bake Off!

With our love of cakes and baking here at create HQ, and the return of the fabulous Great British Bake Off on BBC2 this week, we have decided to run our very own baking competition!

Tweet @createfood!

Tweet us a photo of you with your homemade masterpiece and each Friday our very own Paul Hollywood and Mary Berry (aka Alan Lucas, Executive Chef & Lulu Jones-Fenleigh, Menu Designer) will judge and select the Baker of the Week!

To be in for a chance of winning, remember you must tweet @createfood using #createbakeoff

Weekly Pastry Kitchen Prize

The winner of Baker of the Week will receive tasty treats from our very own pastry chefs the following week to share around the office, as well as being awarded a place on our January Baking Master Class (evening) at create food and party design HQ in SW19.

‘Showstopper’ Finale

Clients and venue partners of create food party design are invited to create HQ in SW19 in October for a Champagne afternoon tea and the ‘showstopper’ finale!

Present your ‘Showstopper’ baking masterpiece to our panel of judges for your chance to be crowned…

‘Create Master Baker 2013’

Formal invitations will follow. Please let us know if you would like to guarantee a place on the invite list.

Master Prize!

The crowned Master Baker will receive an exciting weekly surprise from create, delivered to your office for one month in the New Year, alongside a place on our January Baking Master Class held by our expert pastry chefs at create HQ.

On your marks…

get set…

BAKE!

Terms and Conditions apply

Competition ends Tuesday 22nd October 2013

Prizes will only be awarded to clients, prospective clients and venue partners of create

Summer of Street Food

A while back we predicted that "street food" would be the talk of the town, the crumbs on everyone's lips and the most requested "theme" for the urban BBQ of Summer 2013 - and low and behold we were right. Our chefs have been busy all summer stirring paella in Bedford Square, carving kebabs at the Tower of London and BBQ'ing beer can chickens everywhere.

Over the summer we have...

Graffiteed 215 square metres of bespoke pop ups using 40 cans of spray paint...

Cleaned and steamed 80kg of mussels, chopped 10kg of shallots, 2kg of garlic, 12 bunches of parsley and opened 15 litres of white wine for moules mariniere...

BBQ'd 60 chickens sitting on beer cans...

made 350 posh fish fingers...

 And finally stirred a lot of tasty paella...

Not bad for 5 weeks work!

Where there is smoke there is flavour...it's BBQ time

Here at create, we love nothing better than a BBQ.

During the summer months we can be found at some of our favourite venues grilling, charring and spit roasting. We love it so much that our new venue Cannon Bridge Roof Gardens is dedicated to the great British 'barbie'. As we speak the trusty create BBQ is being hoisted up (by crane!) to it's new home above the station, in preparation for tonight's Cannon Bridge Roof Garden Summer Launch.

In honour of our exciting new project we thought we should share with you some of our tips, ideas and general BBQ expertise ahead of the big event.

1. INGREDIENTS

We never thought we would say it but BBQing isn't all about meat. Fish and particularly shellfish are a great alternative; what could be nicer than a half 

lobster and crab claws basted with lots of delicious flavoured butter, or  scallops cooked in the shell giving off salty toasted sand aromas.

Grilled cheese is always a winner, but try thinking beyond haloumi. Why not bake some feta or goats cheese in a tin foil parcel with oregano and lemon juice.

Or how about baking a whole wheel of brie in it's wooden box studded with garlic, thyme and honey (just remember to soak the wooden box first, I have known people to soak it in white wine but water does just as well!)

2. MARINADING

A delicious homemade marinade is a marvellous thing, you ideally want to marinade overnight but avoid using:

extra virgin olive oil - it will burn at a lower temperature and produce a lot of

smoke, use a light olive or vegetable oil and save the extra virgin for your vinaigrette or dressings

citrus fruits -  will break down the proteins of the meat and dry it out although a good squeeze over the meat during cooking is a better option, you can always rub the grill with half a lemon once the grill is hot, this will also remove any grease, add some flavour and hopefully stop the meat from sticking!

be adventurous - try using a few unusual flavours in your marinades, buttermilk tenderises meat and hold spicy flavours really well, but just don't pack too much punch, you want to be able to taste the meat not mouth fulls of marinade!

3. GETTING STARTED

BBQ'ing is still cooking! You're best to have someone at the BBQ who can cook rather than a have-a-go hero, if they can't cook inside they shouldn't be cooking outside!

Try putting some fresh herbs on the BBQ coals. Sage, rosemary and thyme work particularly well and will give off amazing smells as well as imparting a

flavour into the food. You can always throw on some soaked wood chips to impart a smokey flavour to the coals if you aren't using wood.

Don't use lighter fluid, it will taint the food you are grilling!

4. GRILLING

Try not to overload the BBQ, you run the risk of the food steaming rather than caramelising!

Don't prod, poke, turn frequently or flatten the meat with your BBQ tools, although it may look good or like you are doing something beneficial, it actually just forces the juices out of the meat and reduces the likeliness of an all over golden crust. Just put the meat on, turn once or twice during the cooking and sit back with a glass of Pimms.

You don't just have to use the grill, you can use the coals or wood embers. Wrapping vegetables like potatoes in heavy duty tin foil and placing around the edge of the fire will allow you to concentrate on getting everything else cooked to perfection (or making that special glass of Pimms.)

 5. EATING

Time to go condimental; no BBQ is complete without an array of sauces. 

Here at create we like to do things ourselves from making our own BBQ sauce using left over coca cola, to roasting apples until soft and sweet for hog roasts. 

Even the humble chicken thigh will taste amazing with some herby homemade mayonnaise. 

April 'Create the Seasons'

April marks the culinary gateway to Spring, and without being too ambitious, Summer, which should be just around the corner (perhaps with a few April showers in-between to be expected).

Cold hands we can handle, but when the recent weather has been threatening to affect the English asparagus season, enough is enough! With the weather a little warmer now, English asparagus is slowly making it's way into our kitchen, we just need a few more warm days to really get the ultimate spring treat in abundance. In the meantime, how about enjoying a day out at the market to get your hands on a few other bits and pieces April has to offer...

Spring Lamb: not just for Easter!  

Lamb is such a forgiving meat, it works well paired up with robust spices, anchovies and classic provencal herbs. 

However, to show off it's true colours, try it with some best of British flavours like a wild garlic and hazelnut stuffing or a heather honey and lavender crust.

 

Wild Pickings: there is such thing as a free meal! 

Follow your nose and go foraging for wild garlic, battle the elements and scour the cliff tops for sea beet, or rummage through the undergrowth for wild mushrooms. Spring means juicy little shoots; some of which are on your doorstep. Just make sure you know what you are picking and who you are picking it from! 

Coastline Crab: get cracking

Our crab comes from the fishing town of Salcombe in Devon, famous for it's crustational catch. The fisherman swear by a secret "sweet spot" which produces some of the most delicious meat. Although it is a closely guarded secret in the crabbing community, it is the location of the catch which makes all the difference in the meat. The fishermen avoid "crabbing" along the coastline and head out to deeper waters, where the undercurrant encourages the crab to grow strong muscles, making the meat even more delicious!

Sadly the majority of British crab ends up on the European markets, so get cracking (sorry bad pun again) and buy British crab.

Are you ready for Spring Summer 13? We certainly are

After weeks of tastings, plating and cooking we have launched our new Spring Summer 2013 menus. In an attempt to encourage the summer sun we have scoured the UK coastlines, farms and fields for the finest seasonal produce that our fair isle has to offer.

The menus this summer have a strong theme of "re-invention", whether it is taking a cult classic like a summer pudding, jamming it full of delicious cherries and beetroot and serving it with a perfectly pink duck breast or pressing a classic club sandwich and serving it along side a marinated breast of spring chicken, this is 'meat and two veg' with a difference. 

Our desserts are always a talking point, beautifully presented, scented and tasting - this summer is no exception. We have retro chocolate mud pie with summer berries and chocolate popped rice and an amazing peach and miso arctic roll. They are the perfect talking point for any dinner, assuming people will want to talk rather than just indulge in our desserts.

A small taster...
english pea pannacotta (v)

with chargrilled pea pods, whipped cornish yarg, red mustard frills and poppy seed white toast wafers

salcombe bay crab

with honeydew and watermelon tartare, pineapple vinaigrette, pineapple crisps and baby coriander

breast of chicken rolled in tomato flakes and thyme

with pressed club sandwich, sautéed sugar snaps, baby beetroot and herb cream sauce

chocolate mud pie

with tarragon and fresh honeycomb ice cream, strawberry pesto and freeze dried strawberry and popped rice

pink rhubarb sherbet

with homemade custard creams, marshmallow with pink peppercorn and orange gel

What you have all been waiting for...dessert!

“The Masque”

Beetroot, Apples & Pears

candied baby beetroot, beetroot crisps and sweet beetroot crumble, apple blancmange “scotch egg”, spiced apple cake & free form apple sponge

& pear chantilly and honey cress.

Words don't really do this beautifully designed dessert enough justice, so here are some photos....

180 edible white chocolate red velvet sprayed cloches...

'The Masque'

Now it's time to head downstairs to the transformed Undercroft; James I's original drinking den. Enjoy a damson gin martini, grab a scoop of baked somerset brie studded with garlic and rosemary, a slice of vintage farm house cheddar, blue cheese and some marzipan fruits from the petit four station.



Dinner for our 180 guests is served...

Quick look up at the ceiling whilst you have the chance, in a few minutes time you will not want to look away from your plate. Painted by Reubens and installed onto the ceiling in 1636 it is the last remaining in-situ ceiling painting. It depicts The Union of the Crowns, The Apotheosis of James I and The Peaceful Reign of James I.

 Have you seen the waitresses and waiters in their masks? This is our nod to the Masque's, a type of play written as court entertainment and often performed at Banqueting House. What's in front of you though, what's in the little kilner jar, it looks exciting? Un-hinge the lid and breath in deeply..... can you smell and see the smoke? This is your amuse of smoked salmon tartare. Smoking has been a common method of preserving meat and fish for centuries, this salmon has smoked over oak wood chips.

It must be time for the main course, those trumpets can only mean one thing. 

How Regal, a three bird roast of goose, duck and chicken encapsulating pistachio and winter herb force meat stuffing. Make sure you get a glimpse of Adam Byatt and our chefs carving in front of the throne. It's not all about the meat though, don't those vegetables look amazing parsley mash, confit thyme roasted sand carrots and braised red cabbage with apples and pears. Dig in and help yourselves there is plenty to go around. Just save room for dessert, trust us, it is seriously worth waiting for.

Adam Byatt and Alan Lucas, Executive Chef

Canapés in The Undercroft, Banqueting House

No, no, your eyes and taste buds are not deceiving you, that was meat fruit, the clever create kitchen have been practicing for weeks on this historical delicacy, but don't eat too many there's more to come...

Did you like the cauliflower blancmange with crispy sage? They were originally made in James I's era to show off the skills of the chefs. We think, in 2013 that our little rounds of black pudding with fried quails egg show of our creative chef skills. How about those corn fallow deer with damson cheese, whipped curd and baby cress canapés?

Now back to the bar again to grab a glass of champagne as all this food is making you thirsty! Apparently there is a tray of sustainable rope grown mussels with crispy english pancetta, parsley breadcrumbs and parsnip puree served in the shells and gilded quails eggs with celery salt being passed around in that direction, who doesn't love edible silver?

Did you get distracted by the beautiful looking smoked eel with horseradish curd, beetroot caviar and rock chives and the london gin cured salmon on toasted sippets with whipped caviar sour cream and borage cress. Who knew eel was so tasty!

It must be nearly time for dinner but not before you try the scotch woodcock of creamy scrambled egg served in little egg shell with anchovy soldiers, what fun presentation! Oh and there goes a tray of olde sussex rarebit trencher.

Did you hear the trumpet? It must be time for dinner; get ready to dine like a King at the opulent banquet. Enjoy the speeches!

Create Venue Dinner 2013

Welcome to the virtual tour of 
create's 2013 Venue Dinner!

Set up is underway at Banqueting House, here's a sneak peek...

create are taking inspiration from the fascinating history of Banqueting House and the origins of a party at the prestigious venue. Our team of food and party designers have devised an evening based on a journey through typical hospitality of the Stuart era; farm and field peasant life, an opulent banquet with a “royal roast” and finishing with (create's homemade) damson gin cocktails in James I’s original drinking den.

The Undercroft Market Stalls
Once you have bustled passed Adam's Byatt's seafood station and picked up some delicious crab mayonnaise on baby gem leaves and tasted the freshly shucked oysters, make sure you get involved in James I pie and pint station from Alan Lucas and the create chefs and warm up with a little pint of beef consommé with horseradish foam. Why not ask the chef to carve you a slice of quails egg gala pie or wild boar and apple amongst others?

Now quickly get to the bar and have a mini tankard of warm spiced apple cider and grab a quail and pineapple lollipop, you can regale to your friend that pineapples symbolise hospitality and in the ol be hired by the hour to show off to your guests!

Next, the glorious canapés...

Who says Valentines Day has to be all about chocolates and flowers

To the create kitchen, Valentine's Day is all about cooking the food we love for people who love our food; although chocolates and flowers are obviously appreciated too!

Rather than big pink cupcakes, lollies, marshmallow hearts and strawberries dipped in chocolate, try adding touches of pink to your dishes like pink rhubarb, sour cherries or perfectly pink lamb. We think this year we're all about avoiding the Valentines overkill (although we won't deny, we do still like the big pink cupcakes, marshmallow hearts and strawberries dipped in chocolate!) 

Here's what has been coming out of our tasting room love nest recently...

dark chocolate and salted caramel verrine

poached scottish salmon 

with lightly pickled ribbons of cucumber and pink rhubarb

wasabi pea crusted rack of lack

chargrilled quail with pickled rapsberries and pear

juniper seared duck with sour cherries and rosemary

Happy Valentines Day to all!

February 'Create the Seasons'

We admit this time of year is pretty gloomy, so why not cook yourself into a good mood, as there are an abundance of seasonal fruit, vegetables and other British produce to perk you up.

Seville Oranges
Marmalade was invented in Scotland in the late 18th Century by a savvy shopkeeper who unknowingly bought a cargo of bitter oranges. In a desperate plea to get his money's worth his wife turned it into jam; it seems that behind every successful man there is a quick thinking woman! This weekend, venture to your local market and buy yourself some Seville or blood oranges and cook up a batch of marmalade. A pretty sticky affair but definitely worth the effort.

Yorkshire Rhubarb

Yorkshire rhubarb or forced rhubarb is at it's pinkest at this time of year. The rhubarb is grown in pitch black sheds in a 9 square mile triangle in West Yorkshire, deprived of natural light and picked by candle light to keep it sweet and pink. Rhubarb is technically a vegetable, however you decide to eat it, it is delicious especially with homemade custard!

create's humble pink rhubarb and elderflower custard tart

with ginger bread cream, poached rhubarb and rhubarb curd

Mussels

The general rule with shellfish is to only eat them in months that include the letter "R", but at this time of year they are at their best. Mussels are not the most beautiful shellfish, but are packed with the flavour of the sea, and the shells make the most perfect natural canapé spoon.

create's sustainably rope grown mussels 
with parsley and shallot salsa