Homestead Farm Shop

I thought I'd start this post with a picture of my lunch - a Rag pudding!  It's a savoury dish popular in Lancashire where minced beef and onions are wrapped in a suet pastry and then boiled or steamed in a muslin "rag".

I've visited Homestead's Farm Shop at Holmeswood, near Ormskirk, which is proud of all things from Lancashire:

It's a proper farm shop, with good produce from the farm and also other local producers.

Anywhere that sells Mrs Dowson's ice-cream gets a vote from me, and there's lots of other items from Lancashire as well:

They sell Leagram's organic cheese, made at Chipping:   

including Bob's knobs:

In case you were wondering, Bob Kitchen is a cheese maker at this dairy.  

Meat comes from H Greaves and Son in Upholland.

Some of the vegetables couldn't be more local:

They'll show you the field where these leeks:

have been grown.  

Amongst the fruit there's a sign: 

showing you how to walk to local attractions like Martin Mere, Windmill Animal Farm and Mere Sands:

How many shops can boast 2 excellent (and quite different) bird reserves within easy walking distance?

After all that you've probably got a good appetite, which is just as well as there's a good restaurant (where I had my rag pudding):

The chef properly understands and uses local foods.  He can even point to the field where his new potatoes come from.  They were under plastic when I called, but could well be on your plate now:

Homestead Farm

Wiggins Lane
Holmeswood
Ormskirk
Lancashire
L40 1UJ

Tel: 01704 821358

Web: www.homesteadfarmsshop.co.uk