Food at Mill on the Brue
We know that everyone coming to us needs delicious tasting,
high energy, well cooked & plentiful meals
Barry, our catering manager, ensures that all the food is child friendly whilst at the same time healthy. We also source as much of the produce from the local area such as:
- All meat from Coles Family Butchers 5.4 miles away
- Cheese – Wyke 0.3 miles
- Milk from the local organic dairy, Bruton Dairy - 1.2 miles
- Free range eggs from Radstock - 15 miles
- All our delicious cakes are freshly made every day
Home Grown
Our History and Ethos
We try and grow as much fruit and vegetables at Mill on the Brue using organic methods.The relationship between the estate team and the kitchen is vital, ensuring very little waste and creating menus depending on what is in season. We have three separate apple orchards as well as the kitchen garden with two polly tunnels.
If you have specific dietary requirements it is not a problem! The catering team have wide experience cooking for different diets such as specific food allergies, health conditions or religious requirements. We are a nut aware kitchen.
“SHOCK HORROR FOR THE FIRST TIME IN MY 10 YEAR OLDS LIFE HE HAS REQUESTED TO HAVE SOME VEGETABLES!!!!! He has an extremely limited meat heavy diet so this is joy to my ears! He suddenly remembered trying your tomato soup whilst on a schools residential stay last October and thought he would like to try some again. Do you have a recipe I can use?” Email from parent.
We were runners up in BBC Radio 4’s Food and Farming Awards which we think says a lot!
In 2013 we still wanted to do something more so started a Zero Hero competition between our visiting schools to encourage reducing the food waste. It’s been a huge success cutting down our total food waste by 50%!
In 2012 the overall customer food waste for that year was a 1000kg. We were shocked and knew we had to do something about it. We introduced the food waste challenge. If schools didn't throw any food away during their stay they became "Zero Heroes" receiving a certificate for their school and a prize for each child. In 2016 we bought a Ridan food composter which composts any food waste. In 2012 eight schools were "Zero Heroes". By 2018 an average of 40 schools per year became "Zero Heroes". Even if the remaining schools do not become "Zero Heroes" the food waste has been reduced dramatically and many teachers take our practices to their schools and the children back to their families.
No food waste at all from Mill on the Brue goes to landfill.
A quote from a Yr 6 pupil on their first day “That lunch was so delicious I actually can’t wait for tea!”
A quote from a student "I'm Spanish and that Paella was fantastic!"
A Typical 5 Day Sample Menu
Plenty fruit and vegetables are grown at Mill on the Brue using organic methods. The relationship between the estate team and the kitchen is vital, ensuring very little waste and creating menus depending on what is in season. We've planted an edible hedge last winter with all sorts of pickable fruits.
Monday
| Snack | Breakfast | Lunch | Supper |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spaghetti bolognese or veggie bolognese | Margherita pizza | ||
| Garlic Bread | Coleslaw | ||
| Salad | Baked Beans | ||
| Afternoon snack - Sponge with sprinkled icing | Australian crunch with chocolate sauce | Fruit Cheesecake |
Tuesday
| Snack | Breakfast | Lunch | Supper |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cereal | Sweet & Sour Chicken or Sweet & Sour Vegetables | Jacket potatoes | |
| Toast and Preserves | Noodles | Cheese | |
| Yoghurt | Baked beans | ||
| Fruit Juice | Salad | ||
| Afternoon snack - Shortbread | Homemade Chocolate Brownie | Yogurt |
Wednesday
| Snack | Breakfast | Lunch | Supper |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cereal | Veggie Chilli | Mac & Cheese | |
| Toast and Preserves | Tortilla Chips | Home Grown Salad | |
| Yoghurt | Grated Cheese | ||
| Pain au Chocolat or Croissant | |||
| Afternoon snack - Cheese scone | Fresh Fruit Salad and Cream | Jelly |
Thursday
| Snack | Breakfast | Lunch | Supper |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cereal | Chicken & Chorizo or Veggie Jambalaya | Homemade soup | |
| Toast and Preserves | Filled ciabattas | ||
| Yoghurt | Grated cheese | ||
| Fruit Juice | Salads | ||
| Afternoon Snack - Carrot cake | Eton Mess | Raspberry Pancakes |
Friday
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| Snack | Breakfast | Lunch | Supper |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cereal | Homemade fishcakes or lentil bakes | ||
| Toast and Preserves | Wedges | ||
| Yoghurt | Peas | ||
| Afternoon Snack - Flapjack | Bacon Bap | Homemade cookies |
Recipe of the month
Chicken Korma (we have found that our curries are a hit!)
For 100 people
10kg of Diced Chicken
30 Cloves of Garlic
10 tsp Chilli powder
20 Chopped onions
10 tbsp Ground Corriander
10 tsp Turmeric
10 tsp Garam Masala
4 litres Coconut milk
Fresh corriander for garnish
- In a large saucepan gently heat the onions, garlic and spices, until the onion is soft and the spices have released their natural oils.
- Add the coconut milk and blend until smooth.
- In another pan brown the chicken on all the sides and pour over the korma sauce then bring to the boil.
- Reduce the heat to low, cover the pan and simmer until the chicken is tender (30-40 minutes).
- Remove from the heat, add seasoning to taste and garnish with fresh corriander.
- Serve with rice, poppadoms and mango chutney.