by Tom | Apr 6, 2021 | Recipes
Head Chef Chris’ wild garlic pesto has been something of a hit on the deli this week. So much so that we thought we’d share his recipe with you here, in case you want to try making it at home. Here’s what you’ll need: Couple of good handfuls of wild garlic 30g toasted...
by Tom | Apr 2, 2021 | Farm Journal
Our Opening Hours for Easter 2021 are as follows: Good Friday 9 am – 5:30 pm (The Barn is open for takeaway until 8 pm, order here) Easter Saturday 9am – 4pm Easter Sunday 9 am – 4 pm Easter Monday 9 am – 4 pm Have a great...
by Tom | Feb 2, 2021 | Farm Journal
It was hard to see past the doom and gloom of January. Another national lockdown, grey skies, storms, a flurry of snow and more than enough rain thank you very much. There is, however, a definite sense of a light at the end of the tunnel as we head into February. The...
by Tom | Dec 12, 2020 | Farm Journal
We’re heading towards the end of quite a year here at Hartley and indeed for everyone. Thank you to everyone for your support through the year and for your Christmas orders. Our order book is now closed for Christmas with some availability left for collections...
by Tom | Nov 17, 2020 | Farm Journal, Uncategorized
As a farmer and a food lover, I’m a firm believer that when it comes to meat, in particular, eat local where you can, but always eat British. We are a nation built on the solid and rich heritage of great British food and farming. There is very little reason to...
by Tom | Nov 3, 2020 | Farm Journal, Uncategorized
‘Tis the Season Christmas will be a little different this year but rest assured our intentions remain the same, to bring people together over the best local and seasonal food. We are so proud and grateful to work with so many wonderful local farmers and food...
by Tom | Oct 20, 2020 | Farm Journal
The Barn is now open! The Barn is now home for our farm kitchen. If we’ve learned one thing this year it is to stay nimble and not plan too far ahead! However, we knew that returning to the previous cafe space wasn’t an option as it just isn’t suitable to keep...
by Tom | Sep 21, 2020 | Farm Journal
With beautiful misty mornings and woodsmoke hanging in the evening air, we’ve well and truly landed in autumn. Despite a mini-heatwave for a couple of weeks in this month, the nights are certainly getting chilly and winter preparations have begun. Considering what we...
by Tom | Aug 13, 2020 | Recipes
As we move into harvest season, the biggest excitement on country walks is monitoring the progress of the hedgerows as the red dots mature into plump and juicy blackberries. This is the one time of the year where the overstock of Tupperware of all shapes and sizes...
by Tom | Aug 12, 2020 | Farm Journal
August has brought with it searing, stifling heat to top off what has been an excellent summer, and we certainly needed it. Not just to put a spring in our step with all the doom and gloom of the world but we’ve had some much-needed rain dotted throughout which has...
by Tom | Jul 9, 2020 | Farm Journal, Uncategorized
With the news at the start of July that cafes can reopen, we got our thinking hats on to see what we could do to make this summer a special one for everyone as we move into our new normal. We love seeing people enjoying the outdoors at our farm and have a wonderful...
by Tom | Jul 1, 2020 | Recipes
This salad has been going down a storm in our pop-up coffee cabin this summer. It’s a classic salad, born within Italian households of old as a way to use up stale bread. It’s best when tomatoes are in season as they really are the stars of the show....
by Tom | Jun 15, 2020 | Recipes
This delicious recipe is inspired by a classic Spanish brunch. Serves 1 A slice of sourdough bread A couple of ripe Isle of White tomatoes (delicious at this time of year) Sliced cooking chorizo 1 egg A few basil leaves a drizzle of rapeseed oil (for a British touch,...
by Tom | Jun 3, 2020 | Recipes
Sunny days are for foraging and right now is all about those fragrant elderflowers that you’ll see blooming right now. The large white flat-topped clusters of beauty can be found in most hedgerows and gardens around Wiltshire usually around mid-May to June....
by Tom | May 13, 2020 | Farm Journal
If you’ve been up to the farm shop over the last few weeks, you’ll see the calves at Hartley Farm have been the main focus of attention for us on the farm. Our calving season has now finished on the farm and the next big job is silage making. We’ve had near-perfect...
by Tom | May 6, 2020 | Farm Journal
We’re almost at the stage where we’ve begun to find some rhythm and dare I say it, routine in our day’s work. Which in recent times, means it is time for another government announcement to shake it all up again. It’s hard work planning a business at the moment. On the...
by Tom | Apr 8, 2020 | Farm Journal
Let it be known that there is no doubt about it, the real heroes through this current climate are those front-line NHS workers. Knowing the risks involved and having to turn up every day to face those risks is truly remarkable. They deserve all our support and more. I...
by Tom | Mar 3, 2020 | Recipes
A delicious light lunch or healthy supper. All the goodness of some steamed purple sprouting broccoli, a protein kick from the poached eggs and a zingy drizzle of some bang in season wild garlic pesto. Serves 4 Shopping List 1 bunch of...
by Tom | Mar 3, 2020 | Recipes
As spring kicks into action and with Easter around the corner, lamb takes centre stage once again. Our lamb hotpot makes the most out of the beautifully flavoursome shoulder of lamb and a nice comforting dish for the crisp spring evenings. Serves 4 Shopping List 1...
by Tom | Feb 28, 2020 | Recipes
This is a bit of an American classic and we thought it would be a great dish to kick off the spring with, all the health benefits of fresh salads and vegetables with a comfortingly rich homemade dressing with blue cheese for when the sun is looking a bit shy in the...
by Tom | Feb 17, 2020 | Farm Journal
March comes in like a lion and out like a lamb as they say. I can’t help thinking about this as I write this month’s blog just off the back of two bracing storms in Ciara and Dennis. The latter part of the old saying sheds a little hope at least after an extremely...
by Tom | Feb 4, 2020 | Recipes
This recipe is a bit of a play on the traditional Scottish Cock-a-leekie soup. Leeks are right in season in February and this recipe matches them beautifully with the smoked bacon and prunes. If you had some leftover roast chicken from the weekend’s roast then...
by Tom | Feb 3, 2020 | Recipes
As the snowdrops start to appear the early signs of spring are here. It’s best not to put all your eggs in one basket though and start dreaming of warmer weather yet, for February usually has a sting! This recipe is a perfect compromise for the time of year, a...
by Tom | Jan 2, 2020 | Farm Journal, Uncategorized
January is about reflection and goal setting for the year ahead. Many of my musings recently have been regarding the press and their portrayal of livestock farming and the environment. The key message has been that we need to eat less meat as intensive farming...
