Farmers' Market - Caroline Wright

9:09am Monday 5th May 2008

A couple's decision to have a lifestyle change has led to the birth of a new farmers' market producer making fantastic tarts, salads, soups and desserts.

Mandy Lawrence and Alan Gardner were both working very long hours in stressful jobs, so they decided that the time had come to do something different. A few months later, the Fab Food Company was born.

Mandy said: "I'd always enjoyed cooking. I am always the one who cooks for family parties. After I left school I did some catering but then I got another job and then ended up office-based for 20 years."

Alan used to run a company that bred snails for the table. It was very successful, with his snails being sold all over the country. After about eight years, he was invited to do some teaching, which gradually took over and he sold the snail business.

Until autumn last year, both Alan and Mandy were working at Holme Lacey College and Pershore Colleges. Alan was head of animal care while Mandy was the campus manger.

Mandy said: "We were both working really long hours with all the added stresses of rules, regulations and statistics. We barely had any holidays and really needed to do something different.

"We decided to start doing some catering for private parties as well as producing food for farmers' markets and local markets."

The business has grown fast and the Fab Food Company now has stalls at about 12 markets a month, with occasional food festivals as well.

If you head to their farmers' market stall you'll find a wide range of delicious home-made goodies on offer.

Mandy said: "Our desserts are very popular, especially our chocolate and almond truffles, white chocolate and strawberry truffles, ginger and dark chocolate truffles with a toffee sauce and walnuts, as well as individual cheesecakes customers have requested that we make."

Their speciality, however, is tarts.

"We make lots of tarts. Our sweet ones include lemon, Bakewell, chocolate and orange and the more unusual lime and coconut.

"Our savoury tarts include mushroom and stilton and, my favourite, broad bean and red Leicester. People are surprised by the combination of broad bean and cheese, but once they try it they always come back for more."

The couple buy as many of the ingredients from fellow farmers' market traders and farm shops as they can and get their free-range eggs from their neighbours.

"Everyone has been really supportive. The other traders and customers have been really encouraging," said Mandy.

Today's farmers' market is at Droitwich from 9am to 2pm and tomorrow at Royal Worcester Porcelain from 10am to 2pm.

Next weekend's market is at Bromsgrove from 9am to 5pm.

You can find out more about farmers' markets and their producers at www.wfmg.co.uk.

Caroline Wright

Editor's choice