Stone House Times - Issue 2

Well, after all my good intentions of posting a regular blog - here I am 3 months later sitting down to write only my second instalment of the Stone House Times! But I do have a very good excuse in that we have been incredibly busy throughout the past few months, and a good spell of sunny weather has certainly helped entice people back to the dales. Despite the foot and mouth scares - the many agricultural shows have managed to go ahead even without the livestock. The major gimmer lamb sales held every September had to be cancelled which was a huge blow to the farmers as it is the most important date in the farming calender - pay day! Thankfully - the restrictions have been lifted and the sales have just taken place - breathing life into the economy of the dales once more.
Our Christmas and New Year programmes have now been finalised and we are now fully booked for the Christmas House Party but we do have a few rooms left for the New Year package commencing on the 30th December for 3 nights. So if you are looking for a stylish way to celebrate the New Year with great food and entertainment - give us a call for more details.......
Our Bargain Breaks have now begun - offering a perfect excuse for a few days of relaxation without breaking the bank (Northern Rock customers probably wont appreciate that comment!). We are running Weekend Breaks and even better value Midweek Breaks! Although the clocks go back an hour at the end of this month - and the days are shorter - November can be a lovely time to visit the dales and with roaring log- fires and stone house cooking to retun to - this really is a great way to beat the winter blues!

We have a few Special Interest Breaks coming up over the next few months and there are still places available - so if any of the following take your fancy then please give us a call:

Malt Whisky Tasting ~ 11th & 12th Nov 2007,
2nd & 3rd March 2008,
9th & 10th Nov 2008

Wine Tasting with Derek Smedley ~ 9th, 10th & 11th March 2008

The Art of Fly Fishing with Roger Beck ~ 18th, 19th & 20th May 2008

Other courses available (dates to be confirmed) include~
~Digital Photography
~Painting with Moira Metcalfe (watercolour & oils)
~Relax & Rejuvenate - Holistic Health & Beauty with Kathy Scott

If you have any suggestions for courses you would like to see run here - then please leave your comments!

Our new Health & Beauty Suite the Ginger Tree is proving to be very popular with guests - Kathy Scott and her team are available (by appointment) to offer a range of treatments including Hot Stone Massage, Aromatherapy, Reflexology, Inian Head Massage, Holistic Facial, Pedicures and Manicures etc.... If you are considering adding even more realxation to your break then please telephone Kathy direct on (01969) 667449 to discuss the treatments available.

I did promise to part with a few trade secrets - so here is the first recipee I have managed to prise from the chefs - the Stone House Bread has been a popular request over the years - so here it is...........

The Stone House Hotel Bread Recipe
(Makes two loaves)
Pre-heat oven to gas mark 7 (240 c)

Ingredients:
3lb Carrs stone-ground wholemeal flour
2tsp. Salt
2tblsp. Treacle
12 floz. Tepid water
3oz fresh yeast



§ Combine 3lb of Carrs stone-ground wholemeal flour with 2tsp of salt. Mix together in an earthenware bowl.
§ Grease two loaf tins.
§ Place greased loaf tins and flour/salt mix in a warm place while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.
§ Combine 2tbl sp of treacle, 12fl oz of tepid water and 3oz of fresh yeast in a Pyrex jug. Mix and place with flour/salt and greased tins in a warm place until the mix becomes frothy (like a pint of Guinness!)
§ Once yeast mix has gone frothy make a well in the flour/salt and add the yeast to it. Add extra tepid water until the mixture resembles moist dough.
§ Place dough in the greased tins and leave to rise in a warm place until dough has risen over the lip of the tin.
§ Once risen cook for 20 min at in preheated oven.
§ After 20 min reduce oven temp to gas mark 4 and cook for a further 20 min.
§ After 20 min remove loaf from tin, turn it upside down and place directly onto oven shelf and cook for another 20 min for 1hours total cooking time.
§ Once final 20 min is up. Remove from oven and leave to cool.

Hope you like it - its also very good toasted with strawberry jam!

Anyway - Its getting late, most guests are heading for bed and i'm off to watch the highlights of the England v Russia game (I got through the evening without finding out the score!)

I promise to be quicker with my next blog - in the meantime thanks for reading and dont forget - next time you need a break - head for the hills!

Regards

Chris

Stone House Times - Blog # 1

Well here it is folks - our very first venture into the world of "blogging". This is the first of a series of blogs to give you an insight behind the scenes of running a busy country house hotel high in the Yorkshire Dales! I hope you will find them interesting, informative, revealing & amusing!! Over the next weeks and months I will try to persuade various members of the team to share their thoughts, ideas & maybe a few recipes. I will be glad to receive any comments or ideas that you may have to improve the service that we offer at the hotel, what you would like to see intoduced to enhance your stay etc........

The first thing I want to mention is a great British favourite - the weather. Now I just want to clarify the current situation for all of you who turn on the evening news and hear that Yorkshire is now under water!! Well, there are many parts of the county that are badly affected by the flooding but I am relieved to say that the Yorkshire Dales have escaped relatively unscathed by the recent deluges of rain. It has been very unsettled and showery - but everywhere looks so fresh and green and the waterfalls are spectacular! So if you are thinking of heading out to the dales - then pack your rain-gear, suncream for when the sun does arrive and a sense of humour - after all what else would we talk about if every day were the same!!

Today a group of 12 Americans checked-in to the hotel - they are half way along their coast to to coast challenge and as I write enjoying a well earned dinner, basking in the knowledge that tomorrow is a rest day!

The hotel is 90% full tonight - and I have taken several bookings for later in the week - so we are "ticking over" pretty well. Traditionally Wimbledon fortnight is usually a bit quieter than usual. Not quite sure why - televisions are available in every room!!

My menu recommendation tonight would be the Smoked Salmon & Asparagus Salad, followed by Yorkshire Lamb Hot Pot, then the Bramley Apple Crumble, a slither of Yorkshire Blue and a nice cafetiere of Sumatra coffee (perhaps with a small glass of our new late bottled port - just arrived!). Talking of Yorkshire Lamb - I have now ventured into the world of farming!. Together with my next door neighbour (a retired farmer thankfully!) we have bought some sheep with twin lambs. Here's the technical bit - the ewes are "mules" which are the result of crossing the Blue Faced Leicester Tup with the Swaledale Ewe. These "mules" are then crossed with a Texel Tup to give a lamb that is able to withstand the dales climate and fattens well. Our lambs are fattening at an amazing speed on the lush Bishopdale pastures and should be ready very soon. We will be keeping a few for breeding stock, enjoying a few for our own table and we may be featuring home grown lamb on the Stone House menu very soon! - move over Gordon Ramsey!!

Anyway - I am keen to see how this first blog will look on website - so I will post it now. Hope to report back soon.

Bye for now.

Chris Taplin

Co-proprietor

Stone House Hotel