Apley Farm Shop – Cake of the Week, Cheese of the Week

Appleyby’s Double Gloucester

If I was dishing out MBEs, I’d give them to many of our Apley staff, including Julie our cake maker – for perfectly satisfying so many people’s cake requirements ! Our Cake of the Week at Apley Farm Shop are of course Easter cup cakes which look especially delicious as I’ve just been for a run & have come back feeling rather peckish !

Meanwhile, on Apley’s delicatessen counter, our Cheese of the Week is Appleby’s Double Gloucester. Read on to hear the impressive & special MBE story behind it:

It’s locally made by the Appleby family at Abbey Farm, Hawkstone, Shropshire. Lance Appleby (MBE) & Lucy Appleby (MBE) both grew up on farms. Lucy’s farm was in Shropshire so she studied cheese making skills in the county’s Reaseheath College. They were both awarded MBEs for their services to cheese making in 2001. The family researched the making of Appleby’s Double Gloucester using the original recipe. Eventually, the family found their preferred recipe from the archives of the Ministry of Agriculture fisheries & Food. The traditional recipe used the same ingredients as Appleby’s Cheshire with variations in the timing, temperature & acidity. After a little experimentation, including use of too much annatto in the first batch (since the old recipe was for single strength annatto & the family were now using double strength annatto), the Appleby family developed the recipe that they are still using today.  It is a rich & nutty yet mellow flavour, the texture smooth & buttery.

Sounds delicious !