This course will be delivered as part of our Elmhirst programme at Dartington Hall.
Join us for this seasonal celebration of vegetables in the first of our courses delivered in partnership with Riverford Organic.
This is a chance to get practical hands-on experience in the growing, harvesting and preparation of delicious organic vegetables with the growers and chefs of Riverford Organic and Schumacher College. You will be cooking fabulous meals alongside chefs on location at the Riverford Farm and the gardens and kitchens at Schumacher College and enjoying them in these convivial surroundings.You will learn some of the practicalities and principles of sustainable food production from these pioneers of the organic food movement - people who specialise in growing and preparing organic and local food for restaurants, pubs and community kitchens throughout the year.
You will learn some of the practicalities and principles of sustainable food production from these pioneers of the organic food movement - people who specialise in growing and preparing organic and local food for resteraunts, pubs and community kitchens throughout the year. With your small community of gardening and cooking enthusiasts, you will get the chance to cook fabulous meals alongside chefs on location at the Award-Winning Riverford Farm Field Kitchen and the gardens and kitchens at Schumacher College. Along with learning to prepare fresh and organic dishes, you will also get the rare opportunity to make your very own cocktails using fresh ingredients straight from the garden. At the end of the course, participants will take home a complimentary veg box from Riverford Organic so you can continue to prepare organic meals in your own home for friends and family.
This course will also include a fermentation workshop as well as an artisan bread lesson with Schumacher Kitchen. Enjoy veggie cocktails and canapé making as premiered at the Duke of Cambridge, a tour of the Riverford farm followed by lunch at the award-winning Field Kitchen and lots of garden and kitchen time, picking and preparing vegetable based meals for our learning community.
Schumacher College's team of in-house chefs prepare delicious vegetarian, organic and locally-sourced food at every mealtime. The standard of food is so good that our regular cooking courses sell-out very quickly in advance.
A significant portion of the food is grown in the College’s 3.5 acre grounds, which are managed by the College, with the help of students and volunteers. As well as food growing, the grounds include areas specifically for wildlife, contemplation and inspiration in nature. The gardens are managed on ecological principles, and permaculture design approaches.
At Schumacher College, we believe in a community that lives, works and learns together. You will be invited to start the day with a communal morning meeting to go through the business of the day and to allocate work groups and tasks. All students and staff take part in daily activities of cooking, cleaning and gardening which, apart from being an integral to our learning, helps to foster a sense of community and is a great opportunity to mix with all members of the College.
Beyond the College are the farm and beautiful grounds of the Dartington Hall Estate. Take a walk through the mixed woodlands surrounding the College, along the River Dart which runs through the Estate, or through the ornamental gardens of Dartington Hall itself for art-related events and festivals plus the cinema, theatre and art-spaces.
Venture further afield to the town of Totnes, only 20 minutes on foot, to experience the best the town has to offer in terms of alternative living, green community and complementary healthcare. Or take a trip to the wilds of nearby Dartmoor – an area of immense natural beauty in our neighbouring landscape. The stunning South Devon coast is also close by, with wild rocky cliffs and sandy beaches.
Riverford(link is external) is an organic farm and dairy based in Devon, England, a mile or so from Dartington, Riverford Farm was taken over by the Watson family in the 1950s and followed the conventional path of UK farms until the mid-1980s, when Guy Watson returned home to pursue a passion for growing organic vegetables. By the late 1980s the farm had converted to organic, with siblings Oliver and Louise running the farm and dairy, Ben running the farm shops, and Guy setting up one of the pioneering weekly veg box schemes, to deliver locally grown produce direct to customers’ doors.
Starting from a weekly delivery of around 30 boxes to family and friends, by early 2010 Riverford was delivering veg boxes to around 45,500 homes per week , along with meat and dairy products. Its four regional farms (along with a farm in France conceived to extend the range and fill the ‘hungry gap’), help to keep the core product fresh and reasonably local, as well as pursuing a philosophy of growing ‘right plant, right place’. Riverford supports cooperatives and grower groups of local farmers in each area, further diversifying the range it can grow, and developing a sustainable model of long-term relationships with growers – a model it has extended to a small group of growers in Spain.
Riverford has consistently championed flavour over appearance of its veg, the benefits of eating with the seasons, and a sense of connection with food. They invest a huge amount of effort in helping customers expand their cooking repertoires, explore new veg, understand food politics, and discover the joys of choice limited by season.
Guy Watson, is a Totnes native. . He returned home to the family farm in the 1980s to found Riverford’s pioneering organic box scheme, and pursue a lifelong passion for veg, from cardoons to cauliflowers. As well as running Riverford’s box scheme, relentlessly pursuing Riverford’s mantra of ‘Good food, Good farming, Good business’, Guy lectures on ethical business and is a judge for the Observer Ethical Awards and his leadership has seen six previous Observer awards including Best Ethical Business and Best Ethical Restaurant. And always has a new growing project on the go – last year padron peppers and loofahs, this year cardoons and edamame beans