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 What’s Cooking in the Cairngorms National Park?

 This is the last week for the Cairngorms National Park’s budding Jamie Olivers and Delia Smiths to take part in What’s Cooking in the Cairngorms National Park? 

The exciting culinary competition challenges chefs young and old to create the dish of the Cairngorms National Park.   They have to come up with a mouth watering three-course menu that is inspired by the Park’s huge choice of local produce.  NO cooking is necessary – all they need to do is send in their menu idea. 

There are a number of delicious prizes up for grabs. The winner, which will be chosen at a special cookathon and Fun Day in Tomintoul on Saturday August 2^nd, will win a meal for two at the Ptarmigan Restaurant, Cairngorm Mountain, where their winning menu will also be featured!  The two runners-up will win vouchers for the Cairngorms Farmers Market. 

The competition is split into three age groups – under 12’s, 13-18 and 19 and over.  Chefs from around the Park will pick one menu from each age group and cook them at a special cookathon in Tomintoul.  Richard Lochhead, MSP for Moray and Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs and Environment, will be the guest judge on the day and choose the winning entry. 

Eleanor Mackintosh, a Cairngorms National Park Authority Board member, said:  “This is a fantastic way to reconnect people to the landscape that produces their food and it will be interesting to see how the Park will inspire them.
“This event celebrates the variety of local produce we enjoy in the Park – from food to arts and crafts and I would really encourage people to get involved in the competition and also come along on the day.”

 Judge Lydie Bocquillon, from Auld Alliance Restaurant and Gourmet Academy in Kingussie, said:  “I am very keen to raise awareness and passion about cooking with local produce and this is a fun way of doing that.  This will get more people, especially young people, talking about and understanding local produce.  I am really looking forward to their menus.” 

The event is to celebrate National Parks Week 2008 – which raises awareness of the UK’s 14 National Parks.   The theme this year is local produce and the Cairngorms National Park event will celebrate the best of all its local produce.  As well as the What’s Cooking competition, there will be the Cairngorms Farmers Market, an exhibition by Creative Cairngorms, games and local musicians.  The day lasts from 12-6pm. 

Barry Horning from Creative Cairngorms said:  “Creative Cairngorms showcases the very best work produced by artists and craftsmen working within the Cairngorms National Park and highlights their broad range of artistic talent and expertise. National Parks Week 2008 gives us an ideal opportunity to show residents and visitors the wide range of arts and crafts within the Park.” 

There will be no difficulty in getting to the event – the popular Heather Hopper bus service which runs between Grantown and Ballater stops at Tomintoul and extra services are being put on for the day, with the last bus leaving Tomintoul just after 6pm. 

A number of businesses and organisations in the Park came together for the event including the Cairngorms National Park Authority; Cairngorm Mountain; the Clockhouse, Tomintoul; the Crown Estate, who kindly offered the use of the Square; Coopers Tourmaster and Stagecoach. 

The day promises to cook up a treat for all, so don’t miss out! 

To take part in the competition please submit your three-course menu to:  Stephanie Bungay, 14 The Square, Grantown-on-Spey, PH26 3HG or stephaniebungay@cairngorms.co.uk    Entries in the under-12s category can be individuals or in pairs.  All entries must include name, age, contact details and must be submitted by Monday 28^th July.  For more information contact Stephanie Bungay, 01479 870 507 or Bell Macaulay, 0776 9947233, Bell@aofcc.co.uk 

For Heather Hopper timetable information is available from www.cairngorms.co.uk and www.visitcairngorms.co.uk