Great British Menu North East Mains and Dessert (BBC Two Wednesday 1 February 2023)

Today Wednesday 1 February 2023, there is a new episode of Great British Menu.

North East Mains and Dessert The three chefs from the North East are under increasing pressure to come up with meals that honour British animation and illustration in honour of Paddington Bear’s 65th birthday, which is being celebrated today.

One chef is serving a mulled wine Tudor-style jelly castle as the main dish, a nod to Terry Deary and Martin Brown’s Terrible Tudors and Horrible Histories (both authored by Deary and illustrated by Brown). Also on the menu is a Funnybones dish, made with parkin wishbone and reminiscent of the Ahlberg images from the graphic novel series Heartstopper by Alice Oseman. Who, then, will have Veteran Judge Angela Hartnett most pleased by their strategy and presentation?

Presenter Andi Oliver requests a pre-dessert or palette cleanser from the cooks after the tense grading of the main courses. Angela, the veteran judge, must blindly taste and rate them in case of a tie. In Charlie Mackesy’s illustrated ‘The Boy, the Mole, the Fox, and the Horse,’ the Mole’s love of cake inspires a beautiful Victoria sponge filled with sorbet. A Wensleydale parfait, including Wallace’s favourite cheese, is served between two ginger crackers, and there is also a dish named after the comic book character Ivy the Terrible.

Dessert comes after a sneak peek at their pudding prowess. Quentin Blake illustrated Roald Dahl’s James and the Giant Peach, and one dish honours Blake’s work with a peach-centered cheesecake, a woodruff lady bug, and a lemon verbena glow worm. Other dishes include a multi-flavor phoenix meteor shower concoction that was inspired by the illustrated book Look Up by Dapo Adeola and a tribute to the visual impact of the popular computer game Worms. Who among the chefs will prove they have the secret sauce to get the highest scores, and who will be sent home?

Only two will move on to prepare a meal for the judges and compete for a spot to represent the North East in the regional Finals.

Airdate: Wednesday 1 February 2023 at 20:00 on BBC Two

Season 18 Episode 2

Top chefs from across the nation compete for the chance to cook a four-course banquet for a high-profile figure.

Featured image credit: BBC Two

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