Take a trip down memory lane... at the East Midlands Food and Drink Festival

The East Midlands Food and Drink Festival is returning to the exhibition halls at Melton Mowbray Cattle Market from 1-2 October 2011. Now in its eighth year, the festival attracts thousands of visitors to the town as well as boosting footfall in the town centre.

New this year will be our ‘Vintage Gadget Roadshow', bring along your retro kitchen appliances and discover a little bit about their history from our experts. We will also have a selection of our own museum pieces so you can take a trip down memory lane and learn how our grandparents used to produce fabulous meals without the help of food processors and appliances which we now take for granted. Remember the good old ‘mincing' machine which clamped to the work top to produce mince meat? Forget ‘Meals in Minutes' back in the day it would have taken hours to produce a humble shepherd's pie! Come and discover more in our Retro Kitchen. Travel even further back in time and discover ‘Food Through the Ages' with fascinating facts and a wonderful display of fare from as far back as Mediaeval England.

Following the success of the Family Food and Fun Zone last year we will once again be featuring lots of hands-on activities for children of all ages, food tasting, competitions, pasta making, bread making and lots more.

There will be a variety of activities for the grown-ups too including demonstrations from Linda Hewett of the School of Bread Making who will be showing us how easy it is to make bread. By mastering a few simple techniques you will be able to create all manner of breads. Many people are daunted by the thought of bread making, however it is deceptively simple and extremely satisfying. Come along and get to grips with the five stages of bread making and have lots of fun at the same time.

With so many stalls you'll be spoilt for choice, aside from the legendary Melton Mowbray Pork pie and Stilton cheese, visitors can also enjoy Melton hunt cake, elderflower cordial, bison, Melton red beer, local sausages, cheese and a host of other delicious gourmet foods.

Matthew O'Callaghan, chairman of the Melton Mowbray Food Partnership responsible for hosting the festival said "I am delighted the event is moving back into the town. We have listened to the town traders and people in Melton and believe the move will enhance the visitor's experience of attending the festival and will also offer them the opportunity to visit the many other local attractions."

www.eastmidlandsfoodfestival.co.uk