FOOD AND DRINK Time to Make

 

Emily Scott is not a fussy cook. She lets a few seasonal, high-quality ingredients shine. She says that sea bass, baked in olive, thyme, and lemon juice with greens and new potatoes, is the perfect dish. “There’s joy in simplicity.”

Emily’s restaurant is located on the seawall in Cornwall’s Watergate Bay. As they watch surfers bobbing in the Atlantic Ocean and enjoy roasted scallops with brown butter hollandaise, hake, pickled samphire or crab, guests can enjoy roasted scallops with brown butter hollandaise.

The sea is rushing beneath the restaurant at high tide. At low tide, the golden sand is sweeping across the shore. Emily says that being by the sea inspires her to cook. She often goes foraging along the coast for sea purslanes, rock samphires, and gorse flowers.

Emily shares her passion for gorse flowers fudge, a recipe that she has developed, and the importance of seasonality.

When was your passion for cooking born?

I’ve been doing it my whole life. My mother, who was an excellent cook and often hosted dinner parties, grew up with me in Sussex. She created dishes like prawns and avocados, which were very trendy at the time. Our family’s life revolved around wine and food. Papa, my grandpa, was half French, so we spent summers in Provence eating cheese and charcuterie at the market.

Have you always dreamed of being a chef?

Always. At 15, I worked in a beautiful Burgundy restaurant. Later, I moved to Cornwall and ran the Harbour Restaurant at Port Isaac. I moved in 2015 to St Tudy, where I transformed the pub into an upscale restaurant. Here I was awarded a Michelin Bib Gourmand, a fantastic recognition. The pub was not without its challenges, so I jumped at the chance to open a pop-up in Watergate Bay in 2021. The experience was so good they asked me to stay permanently. Now, it’s my home away.

Tell us about your proudest moment.

It was an honor for me and my team to be selected to prepare food for world leaders at the G7 Summit. I spent 20 minutes chatting with Joe Biden. The menu consisted of turbot from the coast, Cornish potatoes, wild-garlic pesto, and local greens grown in Padstow’s kitchen gardens. As petit fours, we served a mini vanilla ice cream cone, a clotted-cream fudge, and English strawberry pavlova. The menu showcased the best of Cornwall’s ingredients and nostalgia for high days and holidays.

Fudge is a nostalgic treat.

Fudge brings back such wonderful memories. As a child, I visited a Cornish fudge store and watched with great interest as the confectioner weighed, cut, and transferred the pieces into a paper bag. You could buy fudge. For me, nothing is more rewarding than making fudge for friends or family. I add gorse flower to mine. The coconut and almond scent of these flowers reminds me a lot of the Cornish coastline.

Has Cornwall stolen your heart?

My grandmother owned a home in Porthilly, and I’ve spent many holidays here. It’s like entering a magic world when you cross the River Tamar. Whipsiderry Beach is near Watergate Bay and one of my favorite beaches. You can’t walk across the bay at low tide. At high tide, you have to climb up steep steps. It’s another world. It’s like another world. When I moved from Burgundy to Cornwall, it was natural for me to cook what I could find locally. I enjoy throwing out a line, catching mackerel, and cooking it right on the beach. It’s hard to beat freshly-caught fish.

Are you always tempted by simplicity?

Less is More. During my childhood holidays with my grandparents in Provence, we would sit in the sun and eat ripe peaches as breakfast. This is one of my fondest memories. It taught me to use only the best ingredients. Just because food is easy to prepare doesn’t mean that it hasn’t been considered. It takes time to choose the right ingredients. It’s hard to beat a perfectly ripe, in-season strawberry or asparagus spear. But I won’t buy them if they have been shipped from another country. The universe will tell you what is best.

What are the ingredients that you cannot live without?

I always have lemons, olive oil, and sea salt in my pantry. The combination of salt, olive oil, and citrus lifts a dish up to a new level. Cornish sea salt is my favorite. It has a delicate flavor and a lot of minerals. Saffron from The Cornish Saffron Company is another local star ingredient. Saffron adds a special depth of color and flavor to many dishes, from golden saffron rolls and saffron sauce to sunshiny and bright saffron rice.

What are your favorite recipes?

The recipes I have included in my new book, Time & Tide, are based on memories. My grandmother made my sugared fruit jellies, and my treacle tart was inspired by Sunday lunches as a child. My kitchen is my favorite place to be. I love cooking at home as well as being a chef. It’s not just my physical health that is sustained by cooking food, but also my spirit. Baking is therapeutic; the stirring, folding, and icing bring me so much joy.

Making dinner is not a chore, then?

Never. Mark and I are always thinking of what to cook next. We enjoy making pasta with courgettes and asparagus. Lemon, thyme, and creme fraîche are also great additions. Crab linguine, however, is a firm favorite. I love hosting supper parties. It’s fun to bring people together.

What is your ideal dinner party?

I would make Cornish bouillabaisse with saffron-infused aioli and then roast scallops in their shells with butter, garlic, thyme, and saffron. Then, I would make a Cornish mature Gouda and a dessert of orange and almond pudding topped with fennel flower ice cream. We make this ice cream ourselves at the restaurant, and the flavors are constantly changing. Julia Child, David Attenborough, and Keith Floyd would be among the guests.

Sounds wonderful. Emily Scott: What’s next?

My life has become more hectic as my business and my brand have evolved. My team has grown with the new opportunities that have been presented to me. I still curate each detail of my restaurant and am fortunate to have worked and collaborated with many wonderful people. I love to write books. My first book, Sea & Shore, was published in 2021. Time & Tide is my second book. It will be released in June. I have so much more coming from me.

A recipe for Gorse Flower Fudge

Cornwall’s wild landscape is dominated by the windy moors with their bright yellow gorse. Gorse has delicious coconut-scented flowers. This sweet treat is available in soft, crumbly and chewy forms.

Ingredients

150ml double cream

45g golden syrup

900g of caster sugar

300g Butter (extra melted to grease the tin).

The thickest part of the tin is 150ml

Gorse flowers in a good bunch

In a heavy-based pan, melt the butter, sugar, syrup, coconut milk, and cream. Bring to a boil and let it simmer until it reaches about 115°C. Turn off the heat and allow 10 minutes. Line a 9 x 9-inch tin with foil. Stir in a handful of gorse flower petals, and continue stirring until the mixture thickens and starts to come away from the bottom of the pan. Pour the mixture into a lined tin sprinkled with coconut and gorse flower petals. Set in the refrigerator for 3 hours or overnight. Cut into squares.

Cook’s Note: Be cautious when picking Gorse. The stalks and leaves are prickly. However, the flowers will make up for their initial unfriendliness.

Place a piece of wax paper in between each layer if you need to store the fudge. This will prevent it from sticking. Butter the foil lightly. The foil can be used to remove the fudge once it has set. In an airtight container, fudge can be stored for up to 3 weeks. Store in a refrigerator or a cool area.