New Cookery Book by Tracey Slocombe (AKA Mrs Slocombe) from North Devon
Blue Poppy Publishing are immensely excited to be about to launch* “Mrs Slocombe’s Bull at a Gate Cookery Book on the good people of Devon and beyond. This is definitely not your run-of-the-mill cookery book. While there are plenty of great recipes for a wide range of dishes straight from Mrs Slocombe’s own personal repertoire, it also includes humorous stories of her misadventures in search of good food and convivial company. So if you like a full belly, and plenty of belly laughs then this is the book for you.
* At time of writing the book is due in a couple of weeks.
Serious Recipes – With a Fun Accompaniment
Mrs Slocombe’s Bull at a Gate Cookery Book is packed full of great tried and trusted recipes accompanied by mouth-watering photographs of the finished dish, so you know what it was supposed to look like. And then, interspersed with the serious stuff there are the funny stories, such as how Tracey Slocombe came to produce her famous chilli beef, or her lengthy recipe for rice pudding (the hard way!). Tracey’s style includes plenty of humour even within the recipes as she just can’t resist a double entendre if one presents itself.
Famous Guest Recipes
Tracey has called on one or two of her friends to make a small contribution to her Bull at a Gate Cookery Book.
- Simon Dawson; smallholder, radio presenter and published author, has contributed his recipe for Beer Bread.
- Oliver Tooley; former radio presenter, author and publisher, has contributed a tongue-in-cheek recipe for drunken cooking. (We don’t recommend you actually follow that recipe).
- Julie Kingdom; has provided the recipe for her fruit cake, which was always a favourite of her husband, the late great Johnny Kingdom.
- Julian Seager; the TV and film actor known for such things as Fisherman’s Friends, Poldark, Doc Martin, and Viking Legacy doesn’t have much time for cooking, but Tracey does create an easy Viking mead for him.
Gingerbread Montys
Mr Slocombe, as Tracey Slocombe’s other half has become known by default was involved with the All New Monty on ITV this year 2019, along with celebrities like comedian Joe Pasquale, and snooker ace Willie Thorne. In honour of the appearance, Mrs Slocombe cooked up a special batch of gingerbread. The book includes the recipe and takes a moment to extol the virtues of regular check ups for such things as prostate cancer.
North Devon Inspired Recipes
Included in Mrs Slocombe’s Bull at a Gate Cookery Book are several recipes which take a touch of inspiration for the Devon countryside that Tracey calls home. There are a couple of tasty cocktails, the “River Taw” and the “Ilfracombe Slammer”, the South Molten pudding, Milton Damerel Pork Pie, and Hartland Tiddy/Teddy/Toddy Pastries. There’s also Beef Torrington, which is inspired by the Torrington Cavaliers.
Speaking of Charity…
As well as the Beef Torrington there is a brilliant recipe, inspired by K9 Focus, called “Lickin’ Lips Liver Cake”.
This one is strictly intended for the beloved pooch or pussy in your life.
Where Can I Buy Mrs Slocombe’s Bull at a Gate Cookery Book?
You can buy this book from any bookshop anywhere in the UK. (Even if they don’t have it in stock they can order it. All Blue Poppy Publishing books are distributed via the standard book ordering system used by all book retailers and libraries.) There’s a list of bookshops in Devon in this blog post.
You can also order it direct from this website or in person from Tracey Slocombe, and there will be a long list of other outlets stocking it that I will try to post up for you at a later date. Before you buy it online, have a think about where you want the profit to go. If you buy it from us, we get the most profit which is nice for us, but if you want to support local business feel free to get it in your local bookshop. Use it or lose it, as the saying goes. Alternatively, if you are good friends with Tracey she will probably sign it for you, and she has worked like crazy on this book and she deserves to make something back from it.