Yemi Adelekan is a food writer and blogger who was a semi-finalist in last year’s BBC TV’s Masterchef  competition. Every Saturday Yemi will be writing on the Stray Ferret about her love of the district’s food  and sharing cooking tips– please get in touch with her if you want her to review a restaurant, visit your farm, taste the produce you sell or even share a recipe.  

One of my favourite things to eat is a rib eye steak which has to be tasty, juicy and tender; topped with a sauce like chimichurri or flavoured butter.

Growing up in Nigeria, meat was broiled with spices and seasoning before frying and adding to a pepper and tomato based sauce, boiled in a soup, slow cooked to make stews, roasted or grilled over open fire.

Our cooking methods meant that I grew up with meat cooked well done.

Decades ago on a work trip to London, I ordered a well done steak; I was warned that it would be tough to eat and it was. It was my first appreciation of how different cuts of meat react to heat and different cooking methods.

I started to ask for my steak as medium well and slowly began to work my way to medium. I love cooking steak but I’m always tempted to leave it slightly longer than it needs to be.

It’s no surprise that learning how to cook a perfect steak remained high on my wish list next to making great sauces. A few years ago, I watched a steak cooking masterclass by Heston Blumenthal on the Australian MasterChef competition.

He suggested using a heavy-bottomed frying pan over a high heat, with a thin layer of oil that is heated until the oil is smoking hot. Cooking the steak involved seasoning it with a little salt before placing in the hot pan for 15–20 seconds. The steak is turned over and cooked for 15 – 20 seconds and this process is repeated for 2 – 3 minutes before it is removed and rested over a wire rack.

Letting the pan heat up between each turn results in a good caramelisation and juicy steak.

During the Yorkshire Dales Food and Drinks Festival, I signed up for the Tomahawk cooking class (main image) as I was eager to pick some pointers for steak cooking.

Yemi’s tips on cooking steak:

1. Choose the right cut: opt for well-marbled cuts like ribeye or filet mignon for the best flavour and tenderness
2. Let it come to room temperature: take the steak out of the fridge and let it sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes before cooking to ensure even cooking. If you’re short on time, leave steak in original water tight packaging and place in slightly warm water to quickly bring the temperature up.
3. Season generously: remove excess moisture and generously season the steak with salt and pepper or your favourite dry rub to enhance its natural flavours
4. Preheat the cooking surface: make sure your grill or pan is preheated to a high temperature before placing the steak on it.
5. Get a good sear: sear the steak over high heat to lock in the juices and create a flavourful crust. Depending on the thickness of the steak, sear each side for 1-3 minutes. Turn every minute.
6. Sear all the edges of the steak to kill off any bacteria which can be on the surface. Add some butter or oil with garlic and fresh herbs; baste the meat for extra flavour
7. Always use a meat thermometer: for precise cooking, use a meat thermometer to check the internal temperature. For medium-rare, aim for 130-135°F (54-57°C), medium 140-145°F (60-63°C), and medium-well 150-155°F (66-68°C).
8. Let it rest: once cooked to your desired doneness, remove the steak from the heat and let it rest for as long as possible. This allows the juices to redistribute and keeps the meat juicy and tender.
9. Add flavoured butter or finishing sauce: for an extra touch of richness and flavour, add some melted butter or your favourite finishing sauce to the steak while it’s resting.

My most important takeaway is to always use my meat thermometer.  I use Thermapen gifted to me by the company during my MasterChef UK competition.

No one should call the shots on how your steak should be cooked, so eat your steak the way you like it. Remember to use the right cuts of meat and a well done steak needs longer resting time.

I am at Yolk Farm and Minskip Farm shop today. Drop by and come say hi if you’re in the area.

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For more stories on food and drink locally why not check out our Lifestyle section.

Harrogate town centre will become a cultural hub tomorrow when it welcomes the return of Harrogate Carnival.

Launched in 2019, the carnival is commissioned by Visit Harrogate – a tourism organisation run by North Yorkshire Council and produced by Harrogate International Festivals.

The free one-day event will showcase an array of world music and entertainment, as well as street theatre, a dance stage, and a food quarter.

Live dance and music performances will fill the streets of the town, including Leeds West Indian Carnival, Zulu performers, Ubunye, and St Aelred’s Irish Dance Group.

There will be an interactive display from Close-Act, an inflatable lobster from Lobster A la Cart, as well as moving sculptures from Hebden Bridge’s Handmade Parade.

A Chinese dragon will take centre stage.

Foodies will find cuisines from around the world, from Greek gyros to Japanese rice dishes to Turkish kebabs and churros.

People can also take part is various workshops to learn about international cultures, including a dhol drumming workshop with Punjabi Roots.

The parade will begin at 11am from the war memorial and will finish in the Valley Gardens.

Several roads will be closed between 10am to 1pm during the carnival, including Cambridge Road, Royal Parade and West Park.

More details on road closures can be found on North Yorkshire Council’s website.

A full programme of acts can be found here.

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Harrogate Borough Council’s bid for £20 million of government money to upgrade the town’s convention centre lacked evidence and rationale and may have over-stated the economic benefits.

Government feedback on the bid, released following a freedom of information request by the Stray Ferret, revealed several areas of concerns with the bid.

This is despite the fact the council, which was abolished at the end of March, paid consultants £45,000 as part of its submission to ministers.

More than 100 projects were awarded a share of £2.1 billion from round two of the Levelling Up Fund in January.

But the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, led by Michael Gove, rejected Harrogate’s application.

The decision was a significant blow to the council’s plans for a £49 million upgrade of the ageing centre and cast further doubt on the facility’s future.

The feedback described the bid as “relatively strong” and listed stakeholder engagement and deliverability as strengths. But the economic case was widely criticised.

The feedback said:

“There were some key areas that could have been enhanced, particularly in the economic case relating to the analysis of monetised costs and benefits, and the appropriateness of data sources and evidence.”

The rejection was a blow to plans for a £49m upgrade to Harrogate Convention Centre.

It went on to say although the bid “evidenced the need to revitalise the visitor economy”, it “could have been strengthened by drawing on a broader range of socioeconomic indicators to demonstrate the multifaceted nature of the problems that the intervention had been designed to address”.

It added:.

“There was a lack of supporting evidence and rationale. The bid could have been strengthened by incorporating more evidence to support the assumptions linking outputs to outcomes and impacts, e.g., it would have been good to understand whether there was unmet demand for this type of space, and how the increased capacity of the centre would address the problems identified.”

Benefits ‘may have been overstated’

The feedback also said the council’s economic case was not based on government guidance. Citing one example of this, it said:

“There was no justification for the 40-year appraisal period (typically it would be 30 years) and so benefits may have been overstated. More detail and discussion in relation to the counterfactual could be provided too – for example, the application mentions that they could borrow money and it also states that £115m of investment would be required in the ‘Do Nothing’ scenario, without any further explanation.

“There were only environmental benefits monetised; with no attempt to monetise other categories of benefits that would be typical for this type of proposal, e.g., wider land value uplift, potential wellbeing benefits from arts/culture, etc.”

In a section on deliverability, the council was praised for its “strong, coherent bid with a high level of detail and explanation throughout”.

Read more:

• Consultants paid £45,000 for failed Harrogate Convention Centre bid
• Government rejects £20m levelling up bid for Harrogate Convention Centre
• Warning that Harrogate would ‘wither on the vine’ without convention centre

The feedback also recognised the bid’s “strong levels of engagement with most of the relevant stakeholders”.

North Yorkshire Council, which succeeded Harrogate Borough Council on April 1, provided the feedback following our freedom of information request.

Richard Cooper, the Conservative leader of Harrogate Borough Council at the time of the bid, has said he will not comment on any council issues relating to his time in charge of the local authority.

A Harrogate man has admitted pulling off the wing of a pigeon in Harrogate town centre.

Martin Gilham, 53, of Bewerley Road in Jennyfields, pleaded guilty to the offence on Oxford Street at Harrogate Magistrates Court yesterday.

Gilham also admitted a separate charge of being drunk and disorderly on Oxford Street on the same date.

The incidents took place on May 20 this year.

Gilham initially denied the charges but changed his pleas.

He is due to be sentenced at York Crown Court on August 17.

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A Portuguese dominatrix who ran an international sex-trafficking and prostitution racket, earning over £100,000 in the process, has been made to repay just £1 to the public purse.

Fabiana De Souza, 43, and her English husband Gareth Derby, 55, were jailed for a combined 10 years in February last year after they were caught trafficking sex workers from Brazil and Portugal and running a brothel in Harrogate, where many of the sex workers were based after being flown in from abroad. 

Jessica Strange, prosecuting at today’s financial confiscation hearing at Leeds Crown Court, said that De Souza, who was excused attendance at court, had made £136,484 from the human-trafficking plot but had just £1 available in her accounts. 

She said the prosecution’s financial investigator found that she had no hidden assets. 

Derby, who appeared via video link from Moorland prison, had made profits of £28,288 and had £1,045 in cash or assets available. 

Mr Recorder R Ward ordered him to pay £1,045 into the public purse but De Souza was ordered to pay a solitary pound.

The former dominatrix was given one month to pay or face a further four weeks in prison. The former sex worker is due to be deported from the UK when she’s released from jail.

De Souza’s barrister Michael Fullerton said she was due to be deported on August 21.

Read more:

• Couple jailed after Bower Road brothel reveals modern slavery in Harrogate
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He claimed that some of her financial gains during the trafficking racket were from her work as a beautician and in the fitness industry. 

He said this money was “not…earned by her as a dominatrix with her own website during that period”.

Women treated like ‘commodities’

During the trial at the same court in December 2021, the jury heard that De Souza and Derby, from Norfolk, had been “flying in” sex workers from Europe and South America.

Prosecutor Nicholas Lumley KC said the couple treated the women like “commodities” as they made massive sums from their illicit trade.

De Souza, who provided dominatrix services to people in Harrogate, was said to be the ringleader of the “large-scale commercial operation” in which she and Derby, a high-earning engineer and machine specialist, flew in sex workers from Brazil and Portugal, paid for their flights and met them at airports, before sending them to sex dens where men paid for “massages” and “full (sex) services”.

They had exploited the “vulnerable” women for “significant” financial gain by “controlling (their) finances (and) choice of clients”, said Mr Lumley.

The prostitutes were put at a “significant financial disadvantage” and forced to lie to police to avoid detection.   

De Souza and Derby, who ran the lucrative business from their home in East Anglia, were arrested in August 2018 and charged with controlling prostitution for financial gain and human trafficking. 

They each denied the charges, but the jury found them guilty on both counts following a 10-day trial.

The charges related to six named women who worked at the Harrogate brothel and two properties in Norfolk between April 2017 and August 2018.

Mr Lumley said De Souza rented a two-bed flat in Harrogate town centre through a letting agency “so it could be used for sex…which would be advertised on the internet by these two defendants”.

De Souza and Derby would pay for sex adverts within hours of picking the women up from airports around the country and would “set them up” at the flat on Bower Road. 

The adverts were placed on escort websites and included descriptions of the women. 

They took the bookings and “made the arrangements (with the clients)” who would pay various amounts – from £80 for half an hour to over £1,000 for an overnight stay.

Thousands in bank transfers

Between May 2017 and August 2018, some £38,000 cash was deposited into De Souza’s bank accounts at branches in Harrogate and Norfolk. About £9,000 of bank transfers were then made to accounts in Brazil and Portugal using a money-services bureau. 

Mr Lumley said one woman was flown in on an EasyJet flight from Amsterdam and was picked up by the couple who had driven from Norfolk in a 4×4 pick-up. Derby also drove a Mercedes. 

They would arrange for a train ticket to be available at the airport as they moved the women around the country “or put them on a bus and sent them up to Harrogate or somewhere else”.

Following her arrest, De Souza, who is serving her sentence at a women’s prison in Peterborough, told police she had left her husband in September 2017 with the intention of divorcing him and moved to Harrogate “where no-one knew me”.

She had rented the Bower Road flat for over £700 a month and let rooms out to “others”, some of whom were “friends from Portugal”.

Derby said only that he had an “inkling that Fabia worked at the Harrogate flat as a dominatrix”.

In a text sent to a friend in January 2018, he boasted of being a “smuggler of women”.

Police trawled through the accounts of De Souza and her husband and found they had spent “thousands on air fares” and over £2,000 on adverts alone.

An undercover officer posed as a client to make appointments for the brothel on Bower Road. De Souza would answer the calls in “broken English” and arrange the appointment.

The officer was offered a “range of services”. On his first visit, dressed in civilian clothes, he was met by a sex worker named ‘Lisa’ who buzzed him into the flats above shops. 

De Souza and Derby, of Town Street, Upwell, south-west Norfolk, were each jailed for five years in February 2022. 

A new “beeping” sound coming from a car park barrier will be removed in the next few weeks, Harrogate Hospital has said.

A resident contacted the Stray Ferret to say the noise, which activates every time the barrier at the entrance is used, was causing a nuisance.

David Spain, who lives around 100m from the hospital, said the beeping sound had originally been present when the barrier was first installed many years ago.

After residents complained about the noise, it was switched off. However, the barrier was recently repaired and, when switched back on, the beeping had returned.

He said:

“With my doors and windows closed, I can hear it clearly from about 6am when people start coming to work.

“Being retired and not having to get up at that time, I don’t really want to be woken by it. It’s not going to shatter any windows, but it is irritating.

“It’s when it goes up that it beeps. When it comes down, it doesn’t beep, which seems strange.”

Mr Spain said he had contacted the hospital to raise the issue when it started around 10 days ago, but had no response.

However, he said he was still pleased to live close to the hospital, which had treated him in an emergency, adding:

“They saved my life – I’ve got no beef with the hospital. I would be dead if it weren’t for them.”

A spokesperson for Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust (HDFT), which runs the hospital, said:

“The Trust holds a duty of care for the safety of our patients, visitors and colleagues. Our barriers at the main visitor car park at Harrogate District Hospital are fitted with an alert noise with a set volume as a safety measure to ensure we warn and protect anyone in the vicinity of them.

“This is to ensure that we adhere to our health and safety commitments of keeping our patients, visitors and colleagues from harm and injury.”

Read more:

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Parking at the hospital has been under review for some time, in a bid to reduce the amount of queuing onto the road at peak times.

HDFT announced earlier this year that a new system would be introduced later this year.

The spokesperson today confirmed this, adding:

“We have recognised that improvements are required to our car parking provision and we are implementing a new car parking management solution across the hospital site that will be in place by September 2023.

“This new car parking system will have number plate recognition which will replace the current barrier system, ensuring no further warning noises are necessary.”

A long-standing sandwich takeaway in Harrogate is up for sale.

Wedges & Co has been a mainstay on Cold Bath Road for many years.

But the owners are looking to sell the business and have a “well-deserved retirement”, according to listing agent Alan J Picken

Wedges, which sells hot drinks, breakfasts and cakes as well as hot and cold sandwiches, is on the market as a leasehold business for £149,950 plus stock at valuation.

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Alan J Picken, which is an Ilkley firm that specialises in selling businesses, says the company’s 2022 takings were £268,397 and net profit was “in excess of £100,000”.

The listing says:

“The business currently operates on most convenient opening hours five days a week, however there is scope to extend opening hours particularly Saturday to Sunday to increase sales and maximise profits.

“There is also scope to maximise sales via increasing the outside catering book and large sandwich orders for events/lunches.”

Wedges declined to comment about the sale when contacted by the Stray Ferret.

An historic Knaresborough hotel will reopen next month after a refurbishment and renaming by its new owners.

The Knaresborough Inn – previously known as the Dower House – is set for an official opening on August 31.

It follows the closure of the hotel last summer, with a contractor appointed for the work at the end of the year.

Visitors to the refurbished facility will find its spa and gym have been replaced by an additional nine bedrooms.

A new portico entrance has been built on the Grade II-listed 15th century building, with an accessible ramp to the entrance and repairs to its roof and brickwork.

News of a reopening date follows the company’s unveiling of The Harrogate Inn, formerly the St George Hotel, on July 3 after a 152-day refurbishment.

Chris Moor, operations director for The Inn Collection Group, said:

“We’re excited that The Harrogate Inn has been received so positively since reopening and we are looking forward to unveiling The Knaresborough Inn as our second North Yorkshire site to complete refurbishment in a few weeks.

“Creating a new-look for a much-loved venue has been a painstaking process as has the renovation programme, making sure we take great care of what in parts dates back to the 15th century but we are confident that we have done what we set out to achieve.

“The inn will breathe new life into the venue and retain it as a resource and vital hub for the local community as much as guests coming to stay.

“We will be announcing plans for our reopening celebrations very shortly and I look forward to seeing the doors back open before the end of the summer.”

Meanwhile, The Ripon Inn, which used to be the Spa Hotel, is now set to welcome guests from October 2.

Its opening has been delayed from an initial expectation of spring this year, later updated to August, and now put back a further two months.

All three hotels were bought by the Inn Collection Group over the last two years. Based in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, the company owns 32 hotels across northern England and north Wales.

Read more:

• Harrogate district stately home to be converted into hotel
• Historic Harrogate hotel reopens after 152-day transformation

A developer has appealed a council decision to refuse a plan to convert Simpson House in Harrogate into flats.

Bramhope Property and Investments Limited tabled the proposal to North Yorkshire Council to convert the the former office block off Clarence Drive into 12 two-bedroom flats.

It would have seen the ground, first and second floors converted.

However, the authority rejected the plan in May this year on the grounds that the flats would not have enough natural light.

In a decision notice, the council said that existing trees and hedges at the site which would lead to “large amounts of shade” to the flats during the day.

Now the developer has taken the decision to the government’s Planning Inspectorate, which deals with planning disputes.

In documents submitted to the inspector, the developer argued that the council’s reason for refusal was “not based on any detailed technical evidence”.

It said:

“The local planning authority considers that the proposal would fail to provide adequate daylight within all apartments.

“However, the appellant has provided a detailed assessment following national guidance.

“This demonstrates that appropriate levels of daylight can be provided and as such the proposal is acceptable.”

Read more:

• Council rejects Harrogate office block conversion over natural light concern
• Developer withdraws Harrogate office block flats plan

A government planning inspector will make a decision on the appeal at a later date.

The move comes after two previous proposals to change the use of the office block to residential were refused in 2022.

Meanwhile, another application by Artium Group was withdrawn in July 2022 amid concern from the former Harrogate Borough Council officers over the impact on neighbouring trees.

A Harrogate company has manufactured its 10 millionth in-home display for smart meters.

Chameleon Technology, which is based on Otley Road, has supplied the devices to energy companies since 2012.

The devices connect to a home’s smart meter in order to show how much energy is being used.

The company delivered the 10 millionth in-home display this summer. It has manufactured on average 1.6 million devices a year.

An example of an in-home display manufactured by Chameleon Technology.

Mike Woodhall, co-founder and chief executive of Chameleon Technology, said:

“Manufacturing and delivering 10 million IHDs to UK households is a milestone to be proud of.

“Access to real-time energy data is a crucial step to enable low carbon solutions to have maximum impact and provide tangible benefits to all UK households.

“Continued uptake of smart meters, alongside the real-time data provided by IHDs, will help build a flexible, decarbonised and digitalised energy system that will benefit both the environment and consumers through lower energy bills.”

Housing developer acquires new site in Leeds

A Harrogate housing developer has acquired a 223-home site in Leeds.

Casa By Moda, which is based at Beckwith Knowle, will take on the site which is called Abbey Court and is based between Kirkstall and Headingley.

The company acquired the site from Artisan Real Estate and it is set to include 223 family homes.

The site in Leeds which has been acquired by Casa By Moda.

The houses will range from one, two and three-bedroom homes.

Matt Townson, director of development and projects at Casa by Moda, said: 

“We’re entering an exciting phase with the delivery of our first neighbourhoods, and as a business headquartered in Yorkshire, Casa, Abbey Court is special for us, as it marks our first neighbourhood that will open in our home region.

“With demand for rental accommodation remaining high, our approach as a long-term owner and operator is to create not only high-quality, sustainable homes, but new communities that go beyond bricks and mortar by actively supporting the wellbeing of our residents.”

James Bulmer, regional director for Leeds-based Artisan Real Estate North, said: 

“The collaboration with Casa by Moda provides a significant opportunity to deliver much needed new homes for rent in one of Leeds’ most desirable suburbs for young professionals and families alike, offering fantastic connectivity to the city centre.”

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