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A bounteous harvest set to grace Yorkshire’s largest free food festival Malton Harvest Food Lovers Festival, Saturday 5 & Sunday 6 October 2024

Wednesday, 25 September 2024 11:41

By Barbara Constable

Benoit Blin

Keeping food miles to a minimum and enjoying seasonal produce are two of the pillars that sit behind Malton’s Harvest Food Lovers Festival, which takes place on Saturday 5 and Sunday 6 October, with around 120 stalls spread across the town centre offering the most delicious food and drink made in Yorkshire!

“Malton Food Lovers Festival has been described as the Glastonbury of Food – but there’s one huge difference:  it is free to come to Malton Food Lovers Festival,” comments the man responsible for organising the North’s largest free food event, Mark Brayshaw of Visit Malton.  “We are really looking forward to this year’s second Food Lovers Festival, which returns to its traditional home in the autumn – the perfect time to take advantage of the region’s bounteous harvest for some amazing food and drink.”

As usual, the myriad traders – bringing everything from artisan gins, fresh seafood from the East Coast and game from the nearby moors to home-made cakes and brownies – will be joined by top chefs from around the region in the demonstration kitchen, hosted by Malton’s own Gilly Robinson of The Cook’s Place. 

Chefs confirmed for the autumn event include TV chef Benoit Blin who is returning to Malton to promote his new book “Bake with Benoit Blin: Master Cakes, Pastries and Desserts Like a Professional”. Benoit has been Raymond Blanc's Head Pastry Chef at the award-winning Le Manoir aux Quat'Saisons in Oxfordshire, UK since 1995. A judge and host on Channel 4's Bake Off: The Professionals, Benoit is passionate about supporting future pastry chefs. In 2005, he was awarded the title of Master of Culinary Arts, the most prestigious pastry accolade in the UK, and in 2009 was recognised as Pastry Chef of the Year.

Also appearing on the demo stage are MasterChef UK 2022 Champion Eddie Scott, who launched his own restaurant earlier this year, Ollie Farrar of Forty-Six Malton, Jon Appleby from The Feversham Arms in Helmsley and Josh Brimmell from York Minster Refectory.  The Demonstration Stage runs each day from 10.00am to 4.00pm, with a different food or drink expert every hour.

Given the strong focus on sustainability, the Autumn Food Lovers Festival will largely be powered by solar energy thanks to innovative generator technology. Rather than diesel generators usually used by Festivals, Visit Malton will be bringing in giant battery generators, which are recharged using solar energy.  The technology was trialled at the Spring Festival and worked incredibly well, providing stall holders with lighting, power for cooking and refrigeration as required during the weekend.

“We want our visitors to enjoy the delicious aromas of freshly sizzing sausage and freshly brewed coffee, not diesel fumes, so we’re very pleased to have secured the use of these solar batteries for the festival.  This fits in with our ambitions to be part of the sustainable tourism economy,” adds Mark.  “They operate silently, too, which means people will be better able to enjoy the ambient and lively festival atmosphere.” 

Malton Sculpture Trail will also form part of the Festival, with over 20 pieces of art spread across the town centre, and downloadable maps available to direct people to sculpted animals, birds and abstract designs.

For more information, please visit https://www.visitmalton.com/malton-harvest-festival

 

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