Hello and a warm welcome to our end of year newsletter,
If you’re anything like me, 2022 will have whizzed by in a flash, but looking back it’s been a year filled with so many thrilling, creative projects, and 12 months of working with fascinating and inspiring people. I’ve pushed the business forward and refreshed my own brand ready for what I hope will be a big year for Culpepper in 2023.
I hope your year has brought you moments of joy and success, and that you are now able to slow down and take stock of all the year has offered, enjoy some festive treats, and spend wonderful time with family and friends.
Why not kick off the Christmas break by settling down with a cup of something hot and a read of my December newsletter? If you’d like to book a catch up in the New Year, I’d love to hear from you. Please drop me a line and we’ll get a date in the diary.
Culpepper Client – Tip of the month
It was such a joy to work with chef Paul Evans earlier this year. I created a contemporary and elegant brand for his private dining business, The Season Kitchen, based here in the Cotswolds, and I’m now delighted to treat you to a Festive Foodie tip from the main man!
(I am very excited to have Paul booked to cook for us here at Culpepper HQ to celebrate a family event in 2023!)
Brine your turkey like a pro
By Culpepper Client, Paul Evans
Turkey is quite a bland meat and can dry out very easily. By submerging the turkey in a wet brine before cooking it retains the moisture and makes the meat juicier. It can be quite daunting if you haven’t done a brine before but it’s so easy, takes very little time and makes such a big difference to the end product.
For best results you should brine your bird on the 23rd of December. This means that you can dry it out on Christmas Eve ready for roasting on the big day.
Equipment
You will need a large vessel to contain your turkey and brine, and if you can’t fit it in a fridge then it’ll need to rest somewhere nice and cold – a garage or outbuilding in cold December weather will do nicely!
Ingredients
As you’d expect, the all-important ingredient for brine is salt. Use about 50g of salt for every 1 litre of water needed to cover the turkey. But it’s also nice to add aromatic flavours such as cinnamon sticks, orange peel, star anise, cloves, garlic, thyme, bay leaves or rosemary.
You can even add some wine or whisky!
Method
Toast off spices (if using) in a frying pan
Boil up the salt in quarter of the water to dissolve the salt and add in the spices and any other flavours being used
Take off the heat and add the remaining water and leave to cool completely
Submerge the turkey in the brine and leave to sit for approx 1 hour per 500g of turkey (so for example, a typical turkey to feed 8 people is about 5kg so that would be 10 hours)
Refrigerate the turkey in the brine
Once the turkey has been brined for the amount of time needed, take it out, give it a little rinse, pat dry and pop back in the fridge until ready to roast
Note
It is very important to sterilise your sink and wash your hands thoroughly after rinsing the brine off the turkey to avoid any cross contamination.
Follow these instructions and you’ll produce a superb turkey dinner for your family. But remember, if you don’t have the inclination to brine it’s a great idea to hire a private chef to take care of all your shopping, cooking and clearing up on Christmas Day!
Visit theseasonkitchen.com to find out more.
Stroud Womens Refuge – The Joy of Giving
Being able to pick a present or fill a stocking is so important for parents, and extra special for their little ones. This Christmas we created a new fundraising package for our Charity of The Year 2022, Stroud Women’s Refuge, that gives mums at the refuge the joy of choosing, buying and wrapping their children’s Christmas gifts.
If you have any money to spare this year, please Donate a Gift Pack for a child and give both mother and child a joyful start to their Christmas Day at the Refuge.
Stroud Women’s Refuge help women to get back on their feet, including finding employment. But until this happens, they often have no bank account and no money. Kind people donate toys and games to the refuge, but the joy and independence a mother feels choosing and buying gifts for their children is something they are forced to live without. And even worse, their children are denied presents chosen just for them by the person who knows and loves them best.
Please donate as much as you can afford to give a really special and meaningful gift this Christmas.
Bring your dreams to life in 2023
Have you been dreaming of creating a new product, space, service, campaign or project in 2023? Let’s join forces.
From wallpaper designs and window displays to children’s books and wellbeing journals, whatever the creative project I can help. This past year I have repeatedly stretched beyond brand and design to support clients with product design, branded photoshoots, animations, packaging, gifting, book design, fundraising packages, eco-publishing and so much more.
Your ideas + my vision + my family of fearsomely talented freelancers = making unbelievably brilliant things happen.
Tell me what is in your mind and let’s start bringing it to life.
Let’s arrange a date today!
Make 2023 YOUR YEAR!
The coming year is just around the corner and I’m right here ready to help you make it a success. As always I am devoted to making your dreams a reality, and I have a good feeling about 2023.
Please let me know when you’re free for a cup of tea in in the New Year – an hour or two spent planning together could give you a tremendous boost and a clear picture of the year ahead. I and the Culpepper gang will be here to support your plans, however we can.
As this is a difficult year for so many, I will be donating to the Stroud Women’s Refuge this year, rather than sending you all parcels and cards in the post.
Thank you for being a part of the Culpepper story. I feel amazingly lucky and proud to work with such exciting businesses and such talented individuals.
Love and festive wishes
Tash x
