October personifies the season of mists and mellow fruitfulness, of harvest festivals and Halloween, when autumnal evenings draw in, and the first frosts turn the countryside to petrified white. October sees a big change in the climate; the early days can be truly an Indian summer, but gales and rain may follow, and by Halloween, scarves and gloves are the order of the night. Produce in the food markets also changes, ready for a style of food befitting to winter.

For the gourmands it's an exciting time of the year. Game is in season, wild mushrooms abound, the first winter vegetables, particularly marrows, pumpkins, roots and winter greens, nuts and wild berries, suggest a richer style of comfort food to warm the body from within. Oysters are in season, and turbot, the king of flatfish is in prime condition. The abundance of rich produce heralds the start of the season of feasting, when in the Middle Ages the bards toured the great houses of Wales, providing entertainment at the most lavish of dinners.

The growth of farmers markets in many small towns and villages throughout Wales has brought an abundance of local produce to all those who seek out natural, fresh, seasonal foods. The quality of the natural, wild foods, and those from farms and smallholdings and small producers, can be a joy, and should stimulate culinary creativity in home cooks and chefs alike.

Food to look out for in the markets:

Wild mushrooms

Cepes, porcini or penny buns (boletus edulis), are the finest eating mushroom of all. Small ones may only be 3 - 5 cms in diameter, but they can grow up to 20 cms or more. They are easily recognised by their bulbous stem, and domed cap that looks like a freshly baked bread bun. The underside is sponge like as opposed to gills. The more open the cap, the older it is, and stronger in flavour.

Younger species are delicious fried in a little oil or butter, perhaps with a little shallot and garlic, or some finely sliced bacon. Use to accompany meat, seafood or eat on their own. Older ones are best in sauces, risotto, with pasta, soups or stews. It's worth segregating them, as the stronger flavour can mar the succulence of the small, young ones.

Girolles or chanterelles, are easily recognisable by their conical shape and distinct apricot-yellow colour, and similar rich aroma. They are particularly fine with poultry and seafood. Prepare as cepes, grading smaller and larger.

Field mushrooms, white capped and pink gilled, the cap flattening as it develops and the gills turning brown, are considered very fine eating, not to be confused with cultivated mushrooms. Grade them as cook in the same way. Older ones have a stronger flavour, and are good in soups and stews. Never soak them as they are natural sponges; wash quickly and dry immediately; cook straight away as they deteriorate quickly - they will re-heat perfectly.

MOST IMPORTANTLY never eat any species of wild mushroom you are unsure of. The death cap - amanita phalloides is fatal and there is no effective cure once eaten. Other varieties can cause stomach upset.

Halloween

Marrows, squashes, gourds and pumpkins are all part of autumn and winter food. They come in many different shapes and sizes. The pumpkin is synonymous with Halloween. For centuries these have been made into 'Jack o'lanterns' by hollowing out the pumpkin, inserting a candle, and cutting a face that glows in the dark to ward off evil spirits!

The easiest way to cook all these squashes etc is to bake them in the oven until just soft. The tasty pulp can then be scooped out easily. If the skin is tender it's delicious, served simply in wedges as a vegetable. The pulp can be made into soups, pies (pumpkin pie), gratins, a risotto, a mash, and any use in place of potatoes.

Game

The season for most game starts on October 1, but most shoots don't begin to shoot pheasants until November. Wild duck, partridge, snipe and woodcock all begin to appear, the latter two depending on the weather. Wild duck has a particularly fine flavour, due to its natural feeding, particularly on corn fields.

Game shooting is becoming a very popular pastime, but many estates have given way to highly organised massacres of pheasants on a large scale. The more birds shot, the larger the fee.

In Wales there are some of the finest natural shoots that use the terrain to make the most exciting and challenging true shooting, that tests the skill of the guns to the full. Estates as the Glan Usk in Gwent, the Wern near Tremadoc, Gwynedd, Stackpole in Pembrokeshire and Tregoed near Brecon are genuine, fine sporting shoots. They supply the local game dealers and processors with plentiful quantities of pheasant, and mixed bags of partridge, wild duck, and some woodcock, snipe and hare.

Food Awards

The judges in the 2003 True Taste Awards are coming to their conclusions after much sifting, tasting and sampling, and the winners will be announced at the presentation ceremony on November 14 to be held again at the Celtic Manor Resort. In the meantime Welsh companies have been scoring well at the Fine Food Fair Great British Taste Awards and the British Cheese Awards.

Albert Rees took the top prize at the British Taste Awards for a Welsh product for his dry cured Carmarthen Ham, that they have been producing for many years for their shop in Carmarthen market. It's now widely available (though production is still limited) through wholesalers as Vin Sullivan in Blaenavon and Blas yr Fwyd in Llanwrst. Chefs are using it in creative ways in many dishes. Chris Chown, Michelin Star Chef at Plas Bodegroes shrouds seared foie gras with the wafer thin ham in a superb dish with pickled pears. On a simpler theme Janet Williams at Pilgrims Tea Rooms at Brecon cathedral makes a delicious quiche flavoured with Carmarthen Ham.

The Gold Medal at the Great British Cheese Awards was won by Teifi Farmhouse Cheeses for their Teifi Gouda Style cheese (see below). Cheesemaker John Savage in 1999 took the overall prize at the same show for his now well renowned Celtic Promise.

Cheese of the Month

Teifi farmhouse Gouda style cheese

Teifi farmhouse Cheeses was established in 1982 by John and Patrice Savage-Ontswedder. They are true artisan cheesemakers who make a whole range of unpasteurised cheeses from hard to soft cheeses. They source all their fresh, unpasteurised milk locally and do not make cheese from anything but natural raw milk. Their cheeses have a rich, creamy texture and a wide range of flavours - influenced by the complexity of the milk - thanks to the richness of the soil and variety of grasses, flowers and herbs that grow in the meadows and surrounding hedges

The cheese making process makes a firm gouda style cheese to a Dutch recipe brought to Wales by Patrice. The cheese is set into 5 kilo rounds and forms a hard, natural rind, and is then aged for 18 months, turned by hand several times a week. It's also made in smaller rounds of approx 750 gms. Some of these are flavoured at an early stage into the curds to give a natural integrated flavour, then the cheese is matured in the same way. Flavours include laverbread, nettle, pepper and garlic.

Teifi farmhouse Cheeses, including the Celtic promise, and the larger format Saval, are available in Wales from Caws Cymru, Cegin Cymru, Blas ar Fwyd, and nationally from Vin Sullivan and in London from Jeroboams and The Cheese Cellar Company. Also from their own stall in Camarthen Market on Wednesday, Friday and Saturday. Open to the public from Monday to Saturday 9.00-17.00 cheese and butter can be brought in the farm shop.

Teifi Farmhouse Cheese
Glynhynod,
Ffostrasol,
Llandysul,
Ceredigion,
SA44 5JY
Telephone / Fax: 01239 851528

Recipe

Gratin of pumpkin with Carmarthen ham and Teifi cheese

1 whole pumpkin, squash or gourd about 2 kilos
100g shallots, chopped
50g butter
100g chopped tomatoes or tomato juice
6 sprigs parsley or coriander, chopped
Halen Mon sea salt and freshly milled pepper
50g Carmarthen Ham, cut into 2cm pieces
100g Teifi Gouda
Paprika

Heat oven to gas mk 6, 200C 400F

Wash pumpkin and cut in half and remove seeds and fibre. Put on a tray and bake in the oven for 30 - 40 minutes or until the pulp is quite soft and can be easily scooped out. Fry the shallots gently in the butter until just colouring. Roughly mash these into the pumpkin pulp, plus the tomato, half the herbs and seasoning. Put into a gratin dish, or individual dishes, top with the ham pieces then grate the cheese over to completely colour. Return to the oven and bake for 5 - 10 minutes until the dish is heated through and sizzling on top. Dust with paprika and fresh herbs and serve immediately. It's a delicious snack or a vegetable to accompany plainly grilled meat or fish.