Capital City College students wow with Stilton creations

Britain’s rising culinary talent is putting a fresh spin on blue Stilton PDO for modern menus and new audiences.

A selection of Capital City College students demonstrated the cheese’s versatility by creating innovative contemporary small plate and dessert recipes as part of a creative cook off event held at the London college on 26 January.

Organised by Clawson Farms, the competition saw student chefs and pastry chefs demonstrating skills and vision in their execution of both sweet and savoury dishes, while the front of house team met a challenge to create drama and theatre when serving Stilton as part of a cocktail or starter.

Judging criteria considered the student’s creativity, skill and working methods along with their use of ingredients, dish innovation and taste.

The panel comprised Tom Egerton, Capital City College chef lecturer; Andrew Green, chief executive, Craft Guild of Chefs; Gary Hunter, former deputy executive principal and co-founder of Hunters Academy of Food; Kim Kettle, farm liaison director, Clawson Farms; and Bill Mathieson, managing director, Clawson Farms.

A closely-fought competition saw Aritz Valtuena Repes win for his starter of ‘stilton and beetroot asparagus cannelloni with black Chinese Stilton bread’. Judge Kettle said: “We liked the thought put in and the innovation Aritz brought to this dish; Stilton remained the hero throughout the different techniques used. A well-deserved win.”

Valtuena Repes added: “Stilton carries tradition with it but can easily be used in a contemporary way, as an ingredient it has lots of flexibility. I used thinly sliced asparagus to create the illusion of cannelloni; this was filled with a blend of beetroot, Stilton and cream cheese, and accompanied by a honey cracker. The dish also included a crispy Chinese bread, with a soft and airy interior. The bread was filled with frozen Stilton, which melted on cooking resulting in a warm doughnut-like texture.”

Second place was awarded to Rory King’s ‘twice baked Stilton and chilli soufflé with chilli jam and candied walnuts’ and third place was taken by Nida Olendra’s ‘roast pumpkin soup with Stilton-infused foam served with Stilton and herb sourdough’.

The front of house contest produced joint winners: Prashaki Suthagar crafted ‘The Blue Hour’ cocktail, inspired by Irish coffee, which featured a creamy Stilton-infused, cocoa dusted topping, while Shiloh Dixon created ‘The Fonblue’; a Stilton fondue with Stilton pastry twists, truffle honey and complementary crudités.

All student finalists will be hosted on a funded visit to Clawson Farms including a dairy tour demonstrating the milking to the cheesemaking process and cheese tasting, whilst emphasising the importance of sustainability, provenance and of the skilled craft of heritage cheesemaking.

Each competitor will receive a Craft Guild of Chefs membership, while the winning student chefs also received cash prizes and Russum’s vouchers.

Clawson Farms’ Mathieson added: “Clawson Farms believe passionately that future chefs of the UK should understand and value British produce and especially British cheese.

“Sharing the same vision and ambition to educate and inspire these young chefs, cements our partnership with Capital City College – we hope by having Stilton on the curriculum these student chefs will continue to use the cheese throughout the years, exploring its adaptability and relevance on the modern menu.”