HARTFORD HIGH SCHOOL A HIT AGAIN AT ARLEY HALL

Essential Cuisine have once again been working hard with Hartford High School pupils, turning their school grown vegetables into soups and salads at the 17th Arley Hall Garden festival.

Three years ago Rob Mainment, the IT teacher at Hartford High School, was tasked with finding a project to captivate the imagination of the school children. He came up with a sustainable “grow your own” and “raised beds” project that the kids really took to it.

The project has since grown and, with the help of the Academy of Culinary Arts, the idea of a Hell’s kitchen was born. Last year the children helped cook for 100 people using the produce they had grown. It was a great success and raised enough money to help build more raised beds and buy equipment.

Nigel Crane, chef and managing director of Essential Cuisine has been working alongside the children turning their produce in to seasonal, tasty delights. This year the children served up their home made soups and salads during the Arley Garden festival at the food fair in the Cruck Barn. Money made from the sales will ensure the continuity of the project and help expand the school allotment.

A visitor to the Arley Garden Festival was quoted as saying "Following my visit to the Arley Hall Festival on Sunday I would like to say how enjoyable and delicious my lunch was; and the fact that it had all been grown on the school allotment added to it.....the elderflower coordial was exceptional. Not only was the food excellent but the service was wonderful too; and the students were so polite....it was like eating in a top class alfresco restaurant!!"  

04/07/2011|