Over a decade ago, Bondholder Dorothy Organ, sadly no longer with us, approached the HPB editorial team with an idea. What if Bondholders contributed recipes linked to their favourite HPB locations, and the collection was turned into a cookbook? The idea was warmly received, and soon enough, the project went ahead. The resulting volume was published around 2012, as Dorothy’s foreword references HM the Queen’s jubilee year.
The book’s development proved challenging. Over 120 recipes were submitted, far more than expected, and the final product, though imperfect, sold well. Around 1,500 copies found their way into kitchens, with proceeds going to Macmillan.
Years later, a copy of the cookbook was rediscovered when Jonathan Bloom, editor of HPB’s Bong magazine, was sorting through some old piles of papers. Blowing off the dust and leafing through its pages, inspiration struck. What if a multi-course dinner was cooked using recipes from the book, with each course representing a different HPB location? Since the plan was to do this in late May, it seemed natural to focus on a Mediterranean-style summer menu, highlighting dishes from sunshine destinations.
And so, Bloom and HPB’s Creative Director, Steve Mew, headed north to the Kings Arms, HPB’s pub and hotel in North Yorkshire, Here, Head Chef Julie Moore, Breakfast Chef Terry Lavin, and Assistant Chef Kerry Ward brought the dishes to life.
The Menu Begins
The first dish was Potatoes de Berros, a traditional Canarian soup, particularly associated with La Gomera, home of El Balcón de Santa Ana. Most ingredients were easily found, though pumpkin was replaced with butternut squash due to seasonality. The soup didn’t look promising during cooking, but once blended (a step oddly missing from the printed recipe), it turned a lovely golden colour and, more importantly, tasted fantastic. “Delicious and refreshing,” as the book aptly put it. Find the recipe below.
Main Courses
Three main options were selected: a vegetarian dish, a meat-based course, and one with fish.
Vegetarians were somewhat limited in choices, with only nine vegetarian recipes in the book and just one tied clearly to a sunshine site. That was Mücver; Turkish courgette cakes, likely inspired by memories of Physkos. Though the recipe didn’t specify which white cheese to use, cheddar worked well, though feta would have added a salty sharpness. Served with chopped tomatoes, the cakes proved tasty, with a squeeze of lemon offering extra balance.
The meat dish was Leg of Lamb, boned and stuffed with sobrasada, a raw, cured sausage from Mallorca—evoking the Balearic atmosphere of La Reserva de Biniorella. A miscommunication meant that the kitchen used minced pork only in one version, but a properly stuffed lamb, prepared beforehand, used chorizo as a substitute and was later declared “delicious.”
For pescatarians, the standout was Fillet of Espada with Banana, Madeira’s national dish, which often surprises visitors to Encosta Cabo Girão. This version included a passion fruit sauce for added flair. Bloom was particularly proud of this dish, having cooked most of it himself. Using hake instead of the hard-to-find scabbard fish, he caramelised the bananas, sautéed the potatoes, and brought everything together into a surprisingly elegant plate. The result, according to all present, was sensational. Even Head Chef Julie seemed (possibly) impressed. “That’s going ont’ menu,” she said – though Bloom admits he might have imagined that part. You can find the recipe for yourself at the end of this article.
Dessert & Finale
Dessert was Fig Ice Cream with Chocolate Sauce and Strawberry Coulis, a treat from Lanzarote (recipe below). While fresh figs were unavailable, dried ones soaked in water and rum did the trick. The rest involved a fair amount of whisking, folding, and freezing. The end result was sublime, and a few lucky diners at Pratt’s Restaurant at the Kings Arms were even treated to a small sample (though not individual portions, as the supply was limited).
Before finishing, they managed to whip up a couple of Sagres-Style Honey Cakes, evoking Rocha Brava and Portugal’s Algarve. The cakes were sweet and satisfying, if a little dry. A splash more honey or olive oil might solve that next time.
Looking Ahead
It was, in all, a fun and informative exercise, and Bloom hopes it honoured Dorothy’s original vision. While there are no plans to make this a regular thing, there is talk of a winter-themed menu in the future—perhaps featuring roast venison from Scotland (Tigh Mor), pork casserole from Shropshire (Upper Norton), or lavender ice cream from Norfolk (Barnham Broom).
As for where to cook it? Encosta Cabo Girão seems like the only sensible choice.
Recipes
Potatoes de Berros – Watercress soup (Serves 6-8)
This is a typical Canary Island dish. Delicious and refreshing, it’s ideal for (a rare) English sunny day!
- 200g watercress
- 50g beans previously soaked
- 150g potatoes cut into chunks
- 100g pumpkin
- 50g green beans
- 25g coriander
- 30g peeled garlic
- 10g ground cumin
- 50ml olive oil
- 2 corn on the cob
- 100g chopped onion
- 100g green pepper
- 2 ltrs water
Chop the watercress finely and put in the pot with the oil, the onion, the pepper and the green beans, finely chopped.
Add the soaked beans, the pumpkin, sweetcorn cut in large rounds, and water.
Add water. Bring to the boil.
Boil vigorously.
Then add potatoes, crushed garlic and coriander, and cumin.
Add salt and cook until ready (around half an hour).
Fillet of Espada with Banana and Passion Fruit Sauce (Serves 4)
A delicious combination of soft white fish with a strong tropical flavour. Espada is native to Madeira and will be hard to get here – but other white fish is a worthy substitute.
- Fillets of white fish, 2 per person
- Salt to taste
- Lemon juice to taste
- Pepper
- Crushed garlic (or chopped) to taste
- Egg and flour to baste fish fillets
- 4 bananas
- Olive oil to taste
- Vegetable oil for frying
- Half can of passion fruit pulp
- 200ml cream
Marinate the fillets with salt, pepper, garlic and lemon juice approximately an hour beforehand and keep in the fridge.
Meanwhile, prepare the sauce of passion fruit.
Add a small pinch of salt.
Mix well and turn off the heat when it starts to boil.
Keep the sauce to one side.
Dust the fillets with flour and egg and fry in hot vegetable oil.
Meanwhile, peel the bananas and cut lengthwise and brown both sides in a little hot olive oil.
Place the banana on a dish, fish fillets on the banana and ladle the passion fruit sauce on top.
As accompaniment, make some fried potatoes with garlic, thyme and parsley or quite simply boiled potatoes served with butter and chopped parsley.
FIG ICE CREAM WITH CHOCOLATE SAUCE AND STRAWBERRY COULIS (Serves 10)
This is a very simple-to-make recipe for fig ice cream that takes advantage of the wonderful flavour of fresh figs.
- 150g dried figs
- 50ml white rum
- 500g double cream
- 3 egg yolks
- 100g sugar
Chocolate sauce:
- 100g chocolate
- 200ml water grated lemon rind
- 100g sugar
Strawberry ‘mermelada’:
- 100g strawberries
- 50g sugar
- 5ml lemon juice
- 50ml water
Cover the figs with water and rum. Leave for a few hours. Chop figs finely.
With a blender beat the cream until stiff.
Prepare a light syrup with the sugar and a few drops of water. Slowly add the beaten egg yolks, add the figs and whipped cream.
Put in a dish and leave for 6 hours.
For the chocolate sauce: bring water, lemon juice and sugar to the boil. Add the chocolate.
For the strawberry coulis: put all the ingredients in a pan and cook for about 20 minutes The sauce can be blended or served as it is.
When ready to serve, drizzle the coulis on the bottom of a plate, lay a slice of biscuit on top, with
a generous dollop of chocolate sauce.
A Taste of HPB
Whether you’re inspired by Canarian soup, Turkish courgette cakes, or Madeira’s national dish, HPB offers a world of flavour and adventure. With over 1,500 beautifully maintained holiday properties across more than 30 stunning destinations, from the rolling hills of the UK to sun-drenched Mediterranean shores, you can discover new recipes and new cultures all year round.
Ready to explore for yourself? Request more information today and start your journey with HPB.
