by Heather Fulton, CLIMAVORE: On Tidal Zones
How do we eat, as humans change climates? This question is at the centre of long-term project CLIMAVORE: On Tidal Zones, led by artists Cooking Sections (Daniel Fernández Pascual and Alon Schwabe) which launched in 2017.
Based on Skye, the project looks at forms of eating that address environmental regeneration, developing a series of programmes on intertidal ecologies around Skye and Raasay, as well as the wider Highlands and Islands including the Oyster Table at Bayfield in Portree, and the CLIMAVORE Learning Programme.
The learning programme connects Portree High School’s Hospitality class with local restaurants, food and drink producers, promoting the use of ingredients that proactively respond to the new ecological challenges of Scottish waters.
These ingredients include seaweeds and bivalves, which are crucial in maintaining robust and healthy intertidal ecosystems. Oysters/Eisirean, scallops/creachannan, clams/claban-dubha, razor clams/muirsgeanan or mussels/feusgain; and kelp/ceilp, sea lettuce/lìoran, or dulse/duileasg, all clean the water by breathing. One mussel is able to filter up to 25 litres of water a day, and a single oyster up to 120 litres. They provide an incredible source of easy-access protein without the need for irrigation, medication or fertilisers. These shellfish and seaweeds are not uncommon to the Scottish waters and have been part of the Gael’s diet for centuries.
Since November 2018, 40 students at Portree High School have trained to become ‘CLIMAVORE Cooks’. Scallop shucking with Ben from Sconser scallops, carrageenan seaweed chocolate mousse making with Mania from Skye Bakehouse and transforming the classroom into the Loch Bay Restaurant kitchen with head chef Michael Smith were among the workshops that encouraged learning about species, along the tidal zones of Skye, and food practices that can support them.
“The thing I enjoyed most while working with CLIMAVORE was the class visits we got from people all across the island that use local produce in a sustainable way. These visits really opened my eyes as to how much more we could be getting from where we live.”- Sam, CLIMAVORE apprentice 2020.
Each year, graduates of the course are awarded a CLIMAVORE Apprenticeship in restaurants and food establishments across Skye and Raasay. Working in close collaboration with the chefs, bakers, brewers and kitchen teams, the CLIMAVORE Apprentices develop, prepare and serve CLIMAVORE dishes.
This summer, our CLIMAVORE Apprenticeship programme continued with adaptations in response to Covid-19. Meeting every week over video chat to discuss sustainable aquaculture, CLIMAVORE ingredients, foraging and test recipes, and the apprenticeships continued as a paid opportunity for young people. Each apprentice was paired with a local chef, baker or kitchen team for 1-to-1 sessions online. Using this learning and their own local knowledge, the apprentices have been developing recipes to be published in a new CLIMAVORE: On Tidal Zones Recipe Book.
“Creating a recipe with the CLIMAVORE diet in mind meant looking at the natural ingredients to be found on Skye. I had been interested in cooking with seaweed since I explored the coast near my new home and noticed the variety of seaweeds there. We collected a few different samples and I experimented with different ways to use it.” -Olivia, CLIMAVORE Apprentice 2020.
The book, designed by Raasay based artist Finn Croy, features a dish from each of the apprentices, plus specially developed recipes by CLIMAVORE partners Loch Bay Restaurant, Skye Bakehouse, Cuillin Brewery, Sligachan Hotel and Taigh Ailean Hotel.
Keep an eye out on the ATLAS Arts website and social media for the launch of the recipe book next month. Until then, why not try out the ATLAS Arts recipe for Pepper Dulse and Cheese Scones!
ATLAS Arts’ Pepper Dulse and Cheese Scones
These savoury scones will go down a treat with a bowl of soup and a strùpag. Pepper dulse is a beautiful ruby red seaweed – known as ‘the truffle of the seas’, it gives a rich, spicy, peppery kick to your cooking.
Makes 6 big scones
225g white flour
1 tsp of pepper dulse (dried)
1 tbsp of baking powder
50g butter (cold, cut into 2cm cubed)
150g grated strong cheese (cheddar or similar)
125ml whole milk
Preheat the oven to 200°C.
Sift the flour, pepper dulse and baking powder into a bowl. Add the cubed butter into the dry mixture and crumb with your hands. Add the grated cheese and stir. Then, make a well and slowly add the milk to the mixture to create a soft dough, being careful not to overwork it.
Sprinkle some flour on a surface and roll out the dough to a thickness of 3cm. Cut the dough into 6 then loosely shape into triangles with your hands. Place the scones on a greased baking sheet and brush with egg wash if you want them to look shiny. Sprinkle with a wee bit more cheese and bake for 15 minutes or until golden.