Yemi Adelekan is a food writer and blogger who was a semi-finalist in the 2022 series of BBC TV’s Masterchef competition.

Yemi writes for the Stray Ferret about her love of the area’s food and shares cooking tips.

The first ever Nidderdale Feast, a celebration of food, farming, people and place, kicked off in style with a feast curated by none other than the legendary, Michelin-starred Frances Atkins and local chefs from across the region.

The feast started a three-year initiative to firmly put Nidderdale on the food map and spark a conversation about food production, supply chains and sustainability.

The team, led by Matthew Trevelyan, will work directly with farmers and producers on various projects to build food systems with conservation, climate and stewardship of protected landscapes at the heart of it.

Other priorities include expanding public understanding of food and farming, improving access to healthy, nutritious and locally produced food, helping Nidderdale become a ‘sustainable food place’, and supporting farmers and producers to build resilient and nature-friendly businesses.

Being in the same room as the amazing men and women behind food production in Yorkshire was awe-inspiring, and the talks highlighted the importance of working together to ensure we continue to have access to nutritious produce and meat whilst supporting the farmers and producers.

The event opened with a welcome speech from Stephanie Moon, a respected chef and chef consultant who has worked in impressive institutions including Rudding Park.

Kir and canapés

With food royalty Frances Atkins – who won a Michelin star while at the Yorke Arms at Ramsgill – running the show and an excellent array of local chefs in the kitchen, I knew the food was going to deliver an incredible experience. The evening started with Kir Masham and local apple juice prepared by Tim Barker at Masham Cider Press. Kir Masham is a refreshing cocktail made with crème de cassis and dry Masham cider.

Canapés were by Huda and Mohammed Alhamwi, the couple behind Road to Damascus Catering Company and A Taste of Syria supper evenings and pop-up restaurant events. The couple, who are Syrian refugees resettled in Nidderdale, make and sell authentic and delicious Syrian food locally.

Their canapés included ouzi, which is spiced rice with green peas balls wrapped in filo pastry with a creamy dip; qatayef, a sweet folded pancake filled with Yorkshire cream cheese and drenched in syrup; UK carlin pea hummus with – flatbread and fatayers with za’atar. Fatayers are savoury turnovers filled with spinach, onions and lemon or lamb.

Starter and main

Who doesn’t love bread and butter? The bread, a sourdough, using Shaw’s farm wheat blended with organic Yorkshire-grown rye was baked by Jim at the Secret Bakery in Harrogate, and the Daleview butter was churned by Melissa Graham in Middlesmoor, using Kingston Farm and Acorn Dairy milk specially for the feast.

The starter was Swinton Estate cured trout, allotment-grown spiced red beetroot relish, horseradish and ginger, golden beetroot kimchi and wild garlic oil. This was hands-down the best cured trout I ever had, with great texture and it looked stunning and ate really well with the garnishes. The vegetarian version had the same garnishes, with the trout replaced with goat's cheese by Lacey's in Reeth.

The main course prepared by Aled Williams, the head chef at the General Tarleton in Ferrensby and Mikael Paylor, head chef at the Craven Arms at Appletreewick, was Haver Close Farm Dalesbred shearling fackle, loin and faggot, charred hispi cabbage topped with a sauce that tasted like a wild garlic emulsion.

The meat was tender, but the seasonal green vegetables and braised carrots tossed in a green sauce almost stole the show because they were so delicious. I didn’t taste the vegetarian alternative but the spelt and celeriac casserole was also served with the hispi cabbage and nasturtium.

Desserts and cheese

Desserts prepared by Jon Atashroo, chef proprietor of Masham's Where There’s Smoke, and Melissa Graham comprised a pre-dessert of Millie’s Kingston Farm gelato with Jerusalem artichoke and a dessert of Mallard Grange egg custard with Nidderdale rhubarb.

The Jerusalem artichoke pre-dessert was a perfect bridge between mains and dessert, and the richness of the eggs shone through the egg custard tart. Every element on the dish was well made, precise and stunning.

The cheese course, provided by Low Riggs Farm, Curlew Dairy and Botton Creamery, was a celebration of Yorkshire cheese made using vegetarian rennet and comprising Stonebeck Raw Wensleydale made in Nidderdale, Yoredale Wensleydale made in Wensleydale, and Summerfields, which is an alpine-style cheese made on the North York Moors. The Rosebud Preserves were Great Yorkshire pickle and traditional piccalilli.

I must say, the Yorkshire rye crispbreads were a showstopper. Drinks comprised Yorkshire water, Masham ciders and whisky and gin from Whittaker’s Distillery, followed by hot drinks from Wildish coffee shop, whose profits fund the Wildish Club, a community project helping people experience the outdoors together in Pateley Bridge.

The night was an introduction to the richness of Yorkshire’s produce, producers, and chefs and I left feeling so proud to call this county home, and inspired to write about the people who make our tables ‘deliciously’ Yorkshire.