On these cold winter days it’s always nice to enjoy a warm and comforting bowl of soup. As the weather has been that bad recently I have tried out a few new ones. I picked up some local mushrooms from Greeba Farm and it all came together really well and packed full of flavour.

Serves 4- 6 depending on how large your bowls are!

What you need

1 large pack of Greeba Farm Mushrooms
2 large knobs of butter
1 finely chopped onion
2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves
1 clove of garlic finely chopped
1 good pinch of salt
1 pint of chicken stock
1 good pinch of black pepper
1/3 cup of brandy
2 cups of double cream
Crusty Rolls and lashings of butter

What to do

Whizz up the the mushrooms till they are all coarsley chopped (in a food processor or by hand if your the patient type!)

In a large warm pan melt the butter and then add the onions, garlic and lightly cook until the flavour are released
Then add the mushrooms thyme and gently cook over a moderate heat for 10- 12 minutes, or until the moisture has come out of the mushrooms
Season with salt and pepper, then add the chicken stock
Let this simmer for around 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally
Finally add the cream and stir well until this has all warmed through.

Gourmet Shark Tip
10 minutes before serving turn your oven on high till its warm and then add the crusty rolls to warm through for 5 minutes.

Serve with warm crusty rolls or bread and lots of butter! Delicious.

Last year I didn’t really pay much notice of what types of eggs I was eating until one day a friend of mine gave me a box of Gelling’s Free Range Chicken Eggs. One Omellete later and I have to say I have never gone back to the bland supermarket eggs that I once ate.

Gelling’s Farm is based in Baldrine and you can see the Chicken barns from the road as you are driving to Laxey. The Chickens have loads of room to run free around the fields and shelter in the barn if they wish, all contributing to the health of the Chickens and ultimately the flavour of the eggs. I also recently read that they are struggling to keep up with local demand, so word has obviously got around and this year it is reported that Gelling’s will produce a million eggs for sale on the Island this year – fantastic.

Compared to the awful supermarket eggs, I would describe the Gelling’s eggs as tasting stronger,  richer with a more buttery flavour, which in my mind ticks all the boxes. Gelling’s will produce a million eggs for sale on the Island next year.

So its a big thumbs up to  Mark Baines and Tracey Gelling (and all the Chickens!) for all their hard work and effort in to producing such a great product. And if you want to get your hands on some, you can purchase them direct from the farm shop,  via Isle of Man Creamery’s daily milk rounds, or local supermarkets.

Gourmet Shark verdict: Eggselent great tasting eggs from happy Manx Chickens. Once you’ve tried you will never go back to the dark side!