TV chef cooks up some treats (From Gazette Series)

TV chef cooks up some treats

Berkeley Castle and Dyrham Park are featured in a new television cookery series with top chef Martin Blunos, delving into the history of the properties and cooking recipes from the archives of both.

The 10-part series, Tasting Time, runs daily over two weeks starting on Monday through to Friday, July 9, then Monday, July 12, through to Friday, July 16 (ITV1 West 2.30-3pm).

Berkeley Castle will feature next week and National Trust-owned property Dyrham Park the following week.

In the first programme the presenter and chef takes his first look around Berkeley Castle and cooks venison in cinnamon sauce and beef with braised leeks.

Berkeley Castle is famous for its lamprey pie, made from an eel-like creature which was a delicacy in Medieval times.

In the second programme Martin talks to John Berkeley, the castle's current owner, about lampreys, eels and other castle favourites before he recreates the dish followed by squab pie made with pigeons from the estate.

On Wednesday Martin visits a beekeeper, who keeps bees and makes mead the old-fashioned way, and who joins him to taste today's dishes - honey-glazed ham and fruit crumble with honey.

In the penultimate programme of the week Martin cooks haddock in ale and rabbit with three different sauces.

The following week Martin enjoys the tastes of the Georgian and Victorian kitchen at Dyrham Park.

In the early 18th century Dyrham Park was the grand country estate of the Blathwayt family. He cooks recipes from the household records.

In the week's second programme Martin talks to Dyrham's archivist about grand dinner menus and visits a chef colleague at nearby Lucknam Park.

At Dyrham Martin cooks two dishes with exotic fruits produce which would have been grown on the estate.

In the week's penultimate programme he is making ice cream and lamb dormers.

The last programme in this series on Friday, July 16 brings Martin to the end of the Victorian era. He looks at the Victorian garden party and just why the British are mad about tea.

Martin Blunos was born and brought up near Bath, his parents having come to England from Latvia just after the Second World War.