The Lost Orchard : French Chef Rediscovers a Great British Food Heritage

The Lost Orchard : French Chef Rediscovers a Great British Food Heritage
ISBN: 9781472267580
Publication Date: 12 November 2019

'I began to dream about an orchard filled with thousands of fruit trees... Today we have an orchard with over 150 ancient varieties of apple. Each one has its heritage in a village or a county that used to thrive on that particular variety. They tell the story not only of what we have lost in Britain but also what we could regain.'

Over the past seven years, Raymond Blanc has planted an orchard of 2,500 trees in the grounds of his hotel-restaurant in Oxfordshire. Yielding about 60 tonnes of fruit for his kitchen each year, it is full of ancient and forgotten varieties of British apples and pears, along with walnut trees, quince, medlars, apricots, nectarines, peaches, plums, damsons and cherries. A further 600 heritage fruit trees have been added from Raymond's home in the Franche-Comte region of France.

The Lost Orchard is a love letter to each of these varieties, complete with beautiful black and white drawings, fascinating information and anecdotes about each fruit, along with recipes and stories.

About the Author

Raymond Blanc is acknowledged as one of the finest chefs in the world. Completely self-taught, his influence on gastronomy has been so great that he is the only chef to have been honoured with both an OBE from Britain and the equivalent of a knighthood from France. His beautiful hotel restaurant, Belmond Le Manoir aux Quat'Saisons, has retained two Michelin stars for over 30 years and has been voted the UK's No 1 hotel and Food Hotel of the Year by the Hotelier Awards.

Raymond has written more than ten books and presented many television shows. He is also Culinary Director for Eurostar Business Premier, Chef Director of the Arsenal Diamond Club and Brand Ambassador to Kenwood for their kitchen applian...