People are always asking me what it was like to live, cook and work at the Manor. I thought I would do a post today  about that experience in my life. To be honest, it was, to a humble girl from a small town in Nova Scotia, Canada,  a bit of a dream come true!

When I was a child I used to dream of one day living in a pretty cottage in the English countryside, but I never ever thought that this would be a dream of mine that would come true.   When I moved over to the UK in 2000 that dream came a little bit closer to coming true for sure, but it still seemed to be pretty remote to someone like me.

I decided to go to culinary school when I first arrived in the UK. This was something which I had always wanted to do, and the time seemed right. I was an empty nester without any obligations, and so I took the courses I needed to take in order to be able to work in the food industry. I had always been a very good cook, and I had run my own coffee shop at one point in my life, and I had, in fact, worked as a pastry chef (sans training) when I was a very young woman.

After I graduated from Culinary school, I started looking for a job. I did not want to work in a restaurant.  At the age of 46, I  reallyfelt that was too old for the fast pace of restaurant work. Restaurant work is a young person's game.  

There is a magazine in the UK called The Lady.  It is one of the primary places that wealthy people advertise to recruit staff.  I decided that I would try to find a job working for a private school or a family cooking on a much simpler and easier pace.  I began looking at adverts in the magazine and applying for jobs.

I  received call backs from several positions but there was one job in particular that appealed to me. and so I went down to Kent for an interview. It was to work as a Chef for an American family living in the U.K.   Kent is one of the most beautiful counties in England. It is known as the Garden of England and is host to a lot of beautiful little villages.

  

 

On Chocolate Chip Cookie days, all the staff made a visit to the kitchen. They all adored my cookies, and would pop into the kitchen, one at a time for a freshly baked cookie.

There would usually be a soup course to begin, with perhaps some cracker breads or tiny muffins on the side.  It would only be a simple soup like Potage Crecy.  

The soup was often served in these vegetable shaped ceramic soup dishes which each had their own lids to keep them warm.  They were all different shapes and very pretty.

The main course would usually be a salad of some sort, sometimes grilled chicken with a few vegetables, or salmon.  All very dainty, and of course, beautifully presented.

There would be a dessert to finish.  A favorite of the ladies was the Frozen Lemon Souffle which would have been prepared by myself as small individual souffles and served with some berries or a coulis.

There would be iced water and a variety of wines to serve with each course and chocolates and coffee to finish.

I loved doing the luncheons.  Sometimes they would be held outside on the patio, but more often than not they were held in the conservatory, which was just off the kitchen.  (See photo above.)

I did all of the planning, shopping, prepping, cooking and serving.   I was also responsible for setting and dressing the table, an example of which you can see above. Plus all of the clean-up afterwards. I tried to pick dishes that I could do in advance for the most part for the first and dessert courses. That way I had only to really concentrate on the main course on the day.   

They involved long hours of preparation, and many hours spent on my feet on the day, but I loved the challenge of being able to pull it all together and I can tell you, they were always very happy with what I had prepared.   I was right in my element, and, as tired as I would be at the end of it all, I always felt a great sense of accomplishment when it was done, and really enjoyed all of it.  They were considered to be quite casual affairs.

As fun to plan and prepare as the luncheons were, the dinner parties were what I loved doing most of all!  I planned, cooked and served dinner parties for as few as 6 or 8 people and as many as 25. Usually six courses, including the coffee's and chocolates afterwards.

Dinner parties were always quite a bit more elaborate and involved a lot more in terms of preparation and effort.   They were silver service and consisted of appetizers and drinks upon arrival, usually served in the main reception room.   I would usually prepare 3 to 4 different appetizers.  Some favorites were this delicious Smoked Salmon Spread with crisp breads,  boiled Quails Eggs, Toasted Cheese Rounds, Smoked salmon on little rounds of brown bread with lemon, etc.

 

Another favorite were these Stilton and Walnut Shortbreads which were served spread with cream cheese and topped with a dollop of Mango Chutney and a toasted walnut half. Real party fare.

Coffee and chocolates were always served in what was called the Linen Fold Room. This was a room which had special oak wood paneling which dated back to the Elizabethan age which had been carved in a specific linen fold pattern. There were several chairs and a comfortable sofa in the room and a huge inglenook type of fireplace. The fire would have been set so that is was glowing and soft lighting would add to the ambiance of the room.

We always used a large wooden antique tray for this with handles. A hand crocheted antique lace cloth would be places over top and then the coffee things would be placed on top of the cloth. Small demi-tasse cups with silver spoons, and a silver basket covered with a doily and filled with a variety of quality chocolates.

By that time my work would have been almost done for the day. I would be busy clearing, cleaning and washing up.  Leftovers, if any, would have been covered and refrigerated. The silver and crystal hand washed and put away and the dish washer would be humming. 

Normally I would clean up the coffee things the next morning.  That way they were free to socialize as they wanted and I could go home and get a well deserved good night's sleep before work the next day.

All did not always run smoothly.  I remember the first Thanksgiving dinner I cooked, the turkey burned.  It was a really large turkey and I had it in the electric oven. I went back to our cottage for a wee break and when I returned it was to discover that the bottom of the turkey was burning.  It was so large that it was too close to the bottom element .  We quickly ran to the shops, picked up two smaller ones and the first one was used as a show piece (elaborately garnished with plenty of parsley) and the guests were served meat from the other two.   We did have a great laugh over that one. 

The Mrs. said that it wouldn't be Thanksgiving if nothing happened to the turkey! 

All in all I really enjoyed my years working at the Manor. I got to work in a beautiful environment with the finest equipment and ingredients. I got to stretch and expand my culinary skills more than I had ever thought myself capable, and I left there with a really good reputation intact.

So much so that a few years ago, they contacted me from their home in the Bahamas asking me could I come to work for them again.   They said I had been the best Chef that they had ever  had working for them.  The offer included a cottage on the beach, etc.  I had to turn it down though. I was very content now to just do what I am doing and to be near my family. I do admit I was very flattered to have been asked to return,  however, and I was really chuffed that they thought so highly of me.

It really was a great experience and one that this simple girl from rural Nova Scotia had never thought that she would ever get to live.   Living and working in a beautiful spot in the Garden of Kent.  If I had my life to live over again, this experience would always be a part of it. Through it I learned a great deal about fine cooking and dining, proper service, and entertaining on a grand scale. This I will always be grateful for.