Red onion jam

Ingredients 

2 Large red onions

2 Garlic cloves

2 Large red peppers

20ml Balsamic vinegar

200g Demerera or granulated sugar

Optional – half a red chilli

Preparation Method

1. Roughly chop all of  your ingredients.

2. Put a splash of oil in a pan and place on a medium heat.

3. Place all the ingredients in the pan and sweat until soft. It’s important to make sure your pan does not get too hot otherwise the ingredients will start to crispen.

4. Add the balsamic vinegar and sugar to the pan, then reduce the heat slightly and let the mixture simmer. Occasionally stir the pan to stop the onions burning and sticking to the bottom of the pan.

5.Take the pan off the heat when the onions are so soft they break when pressed against the side of the pan.

6.Try the mixture and add more sugar or vinegar to suit your taste.

7. Once the jam has cooled down pour the contents into a sterilised jar and store in the fridge for up to two weeks.

Event aid was launched in March 2011 and gave charities an opportunity to hold an event worth up to £10,000, absolutely free of charge. Heart Research UK were the winners and held their first ever ‘Love your Heart Ball’ in celebration of the charity’s 45th Anniversary at Wetherby racecourse.

Barbara Harpham, National Director at Heart Research UK, says: “The ‘Love your Heart’ Ball was a real success and the perfect way to celebrate our 45^th Anniversary. Nearly £13,000 was raised on the night and thanks to the generosity of CGC Event Aid, every penny will help fund pioneering research into heart disease.

“Since the ball, we have received no end of telephone calls, emails and cards, from guests saying how much they enjoyed the event and congratulating us on its success. This is of course a joint victory, the excellent service provided by CGC certainly made the ‘Love your Heart Ball’ a night to remember.”

As Heart Research UK had a successful night we have now put together an event package designed for Charities. We understand that you want to be able to raise as much money as you can for your cause, so we have discounted our menus and thrown in a few extras to make sure you can put as much money as you can into fundraising pot.

The package includes:

- a choice of fantastic venues in Pontefract, Thirsk, Wetherby, Beverley, Doncaster & Lincoln

- a sumptious three course meal, made by our experienced chefs using the finest local ingredients (click here to view our menu)

- a stage for the entertainment and speakers

- a dance floor so your guests can party the night away

- a green room for entertainers

- a manager throughout the day

- we want to do our part for charity, so as a sweetener we will provide a free reception drink and dessert for each of your guests

Don’t forget, an event is not only a great opportunity to raise money but it’s also a fantastic way to raise the profile of your charity within the community and media. 

If you need some ideas for your event, have a look at our example below:

1. Book a charity dinner at one of our exclusive venues at £18.00 (including VAT per person)

2. Sell tickets to 230 guests at £45.00 (including VAT per person)

3. Book a band, & DJ

4. Book your table centres

5. Book a photographer so you can capture your wonderful event

5. Arrange fundraising activities for the event:

- tombola / raffle with donated prizes from local businesses

- stand up sit down bingo ( £10 per head entry)

- silent auction (with a donated prize)

- set up a casino or race night

6. Get everyone on the dance floor and enjoy the rest of the night

Now that you’ve got some ideas on what to do, you’ll want to know how much you can raise. We’ve put together an example of costs so you can see how much you can raise.

Sums based on 150 guests

Terms and conditions do apply:

Priced based on a minimum of 120 guests

The charity package can only be taken in October, November, January, February, March – subject to availability in our diary

Any additional items will be charged at our normal price

Flowers, DJ and entertainment are to be provided by the charity

We’d love to know what new combinations you’ve found, so send us a picture or message on Facebook.

Dauphinoise Potatoes

Although the weather is not as warm as we’d like it does mean we still have a bit more time to eat those foods that give us such comfort and warmth. This dish takes hardly any time to prepare at all, so once it’s in the oven all you need to do is sit back and relax.

Ingredients

1kg  Baking potatoes

3  Garlic cloves crushed

500ml Double cream

Salt and pepper to season

Preparation Method

1. Pre heat the oven to 160 c / gas mark 3

2. Peel your potatoes and slice into rounds using a mandolin or by hand. It’s important to cut the potatoes thinly and to make sure   they are all roughly the same size so they can cook easily and evenly.

3. Place the sliced potatoes in a bowl and mix in the garlic. Now add your cream and season with salt and pepper. Mix your ingredients together and ensure that the potatoes has been coated with the cream.

4. Put the potatoes in an ovenproof dish and pour over the rest of the cream so it can seep through all the layers. The cream should just cover the top of the potatoes but if there’s not enough just a little more.

5. To remove any gaps between the layers, gently use the heel of your palm to push down on the potatoes.

6. The dish needs to go into the oven and bake for 1hour 30 minutes.

When it’s ready take the dish out and your potatoes should be crispy on top and underneath the potatoes should be soft and creamy.

To make a booking you can use our contact form or call Julie Bray on 0113 287 6387.

This recipe has been made with feta cheese which is mild in flavour. If you would like to try something a little different, why not swap the feta cheese for some fine fettle, which is Yorkshire’s equivalent to feta. We use fettle in some of yapas (a combination of Yorkshire and tapas) dishes and it is always popular, plus it is great to know that you’re supporting local suppliers.

The frittata also has a Spanish sibling, which is called a tortilla and has a base made with sliced fried potatoes and is then topped with a mixture of eggs and other ingredients.

Spinach and feta frittata

 Ingredients

1 Small red onion peeled – sliced or diced

1 tbsp Olive oil

9 oz Fresh spinach

4 Large eggs – beaten

2 oz Feta cheese

Salt and pepper for seasoning

1 Small frying pan (ensure your pan is suitable for the oven)

Preparation method

1. Pour the oil into a frying pan and allow the pan to warm up. When the pan is ready, add the chopped onions and cook gently until translucent and soft.

2. Add the spinach to the pan and cook until the leaves have wilted. This should only take a couple of seconds so keep an eye on the pan so the spinach doesn’t over cook otherwise the spinach will start to release a lot of water. If this does happen just pour the water out of the pan

3. Season the beaten egg mixture and add to the pan along with the feta cheese. Gently mix all the ingredients together until you can feel the frittata cook at the bottom.

4. Now place the pan in the oven at about 160 c or gas mark 3 for 6 – 8 minutes until cooked.

A frittata is an easy and fulfilling dish that can make a few ingredients go a long way. If you want to try some more frittata combinations, why not try chorizo and sundried tomatoes or smoked salmon and peas. The dish can include whatever you want and can fulfill anyone’s tastes.

Pesto

The first recipe in our series is pesto, which is traditionally put with pasta, but for something a little different drizzle over roasted fish or add some pesto to some toasted French or Italian bread to make a bruschetta.

Ingredients

Large bunch of basil (washed and dried)

50g  Pine nuts

50g  Parmesan cheese (or vegetarian alternative)

150ml Olive oil

2 Garlic cloves

Preparation method

1. Place all the pine nuts into a dry non-stick pan and place over a medium heat. Keep an eye on the pine nuts as they can easily burn, to prevent this, toss the pine nuts every 30 seconds. Then when they have lightly browned on both sides pour the nuts into a food processor.

2. Add the rest of the ingredients into the food processor and blitz until smooth.

3. Season with salt and pepper

4. Pour the pesto mixture into an airtight jar and pour in some olive oil till the pesto is covered. You’re batch of homemade pesto will keep in the fridge for two weeks, so you can eat it at your leisure.

Now that you’ve made the traditional pesto, why not experiment with some other ingredients, like sun-dried tomatoes to make red pesto.

Keep an eye out for next week’s recipe, which is a spinach and feta cheese frittata.

Keith Stewart, Business Development Director collects the award on behalf of CGC Events

The Cost Sector Catering awards are the pivotal point of the foodservice calendar and are recognised as the most coveted award that a company can receive.  CGC Events were nominated for the Event Caterer category, which recognises an outstanding contribution to this wonderful industry. It is also the highest acknowledgement of merit that can be bestowed from within the foodservice industry.

Commenting on CGC Events success, Darran Coulson, Managing Director of CGC Events said ”We are delighted to have won this prestigious award. To have been shortlisted for the Event Caterer Award was an accolade it its own right but to have been chosen as the winner is a great honour, especially as we have been nominated by our peers. People and exceptional service are what sets CGC Event Caterers apart from the crowd and this award is a testament to everyone’s hard work.”

The office Christmas party is the main event everyone is looking forward to. Not only does it raise everyone’s spirit by bringing the office together for a fun filled occasion, it also marks the end of a successful year and can be a way for organisations to acknowledge and thank their staff for all their hard work.

So, when you start to plan a Christmas party you’ll want to ensure that it’s a great success. Here are a few tips to make sure your Christmas party is one that no one will forget:

- Start looking early. To make sure you don’t miss out on your ideal venue option, start looking at venues early, especially if you’re big organisation as large capacity venues get booked fairly quickly. Many venues also have special discounts on early bookings, which means it definitely pays to look early.

- Look for something a bit different. If you want a party to remember you’ll want to go somewhere a bit different. While dinner in a restaurant is the usual Christmas party format, a dinner and party at a unique venue will be something memorable. The added bonus of choosing somewhere that has dinner and entertainment, is that you can keep everyone together. All too often people leave the restaurant and go from bar to bar, all the time losing people along the way or bars become so packed it becomes harder to find somewhere that has enough space for everyone in your group.

- Location. Think about where most of the people in the office live and what location would be the best option. This will then focus your search to a particular area, which will make the search a lot easier.

If you’re thinking about Christmas, why not have a look at our offers on the events page

Event Aid was launched in March 2011 and gave charities the opportunity to hold an event worth up to £10,000, absolutely free of charge. Yorkshire’s own heart charity, Heart Research UK, were the winners and wowed the CGC Event Aid judges with their plan to host their first ever ‘Love your Heart Ball’ in celebration of the charity’s 45th Anniversary.

The Ball was held at Wetherby racecourse and was a huge success, with over 200 guests attending from far and wide to enjoy an evening of glitz and glamour. After being greeted with a champagne reception, guests had their first surprise when the ‘All for one Choir’ from Hull, disguised as waiting staff, emerged from the crowd and burst into song.

When guests sat down they were treated to a scrumptious three course meal made with the finest fresh and locally sourced ingredients. The menu included; Harrogate smoked trout served with a Russells of Leeds bloomer platter, a cannon of North Yorkshire lamb and to finish  guests were served a trio of puddings which included a stick toffee pudding, blackberry crumble and Charlottes of Whitley Jersey ice-cream.

After dinner the guests then went on to dance the night away.

Barbara Harpham, National Director at Heart Research UK, says: “The ‘Love your Heart’ Ball was a real success and the perfect way to celebrate our 45^th Anniversary. Nearly £13,000 was raised on the night and thanks to the generosity of CGC Event Aid, every penny will help fund pioneering research into heart disease.

“Since the ball, we have received no end of telephone calls, emails and cards, from guests saying how much they enjoyed the event and congratulating us on its success. This is of course a joint victory, the excellent service provided by CGC certainly made the ‘Love your Heart Ball’ a night to remember.”

We have several packages to suit all budgets and we are giving a £5 discount on each ticket (for bookings made for a Thursday and  selected Saturdays).

To make a booking you can use our contact form or call Clare Mortiboys on 0113 287 6387