Lavenham has always punched above his weight as a destination and in terms of its recognition as one of the finest medieval villages in England. Visitors have been drawn to its unique beauty and evident heritage. There are few days in Lavenham where you wouldn’t spot a visitor pausing along the High Street to look up at one of the fine historic buildings.
However for the first market masterclass of the year, two other big draws to the village have come together to showcase the very best that the village can offer – the award-winning farmers market and The Great House.
Lavenham Farmers Market has grown, from close to closure over 15 years ago, to winning Best UK Farmers Market at the National FRA Awards in 2022 and continues to offer a really special market experience to visitors every month. This popular market showcases over forty of the highest quality artisan producers in the region and attracts hundreds of customers each month. Everything that is sold at the market comes from within a thirty-mile radius with many traders living in Lavenham and others travelling from the neighbouring towns and villages of Preston St Mary, Sudbury and Ipswich. The range of produce includes local apples and vegetables, locally baked, fresh sourdough, fresh mushrooms, Suffolk beef, pork, lamb and venison, home baked cakes and pies, home produced jams and chutneys, local honey, regional cheeses, Suffolk granola, locally roasted coffee beans, fudge, brownies, chocolate, craft ale and local gin and wine – there is also a number of craft stalls with candles, wax melts, pottery, local art and soaps plus there is always street food and barista coffee to keep all the visitors happy during their visit.
“There’s no doubt Lavenham Farmers Market is a really special market and every month we see a lot of very happy faces as they walk around the market exploring all the wonderful produce and it is great that visitors go on to explore the shops, pubs and restaurants in the village as part of the their day in Lavenham”, states Justine Paul, owner of Suffolk Market Events which runs the market each month.
The Great House Restaurant has also grown to be part of the Lavenham story and its owner Onur Ozcelik is determined that it displays the very best of Suffolk cooking and produce. “We are delighted to be working with local producers from the farmers market and we are very excited about being a part of the Taste of East Anglia Food & Drink Festival this June. Using local produce is one of the joys of working in this part of Suffolk and partnering with Suffolk Market Events has really helped us achieve that”
In the kitchen, head chef at the Great House Ben Morgan comes across as a calm measured man, perhaps even a little shy, but when you place him in his kitchen he comes alive – a real confidence appears, you can see his passion and commitment when he cooks and talks about his food and ambitions for the Great House. This same passion is matched by Onur, who purchased the Great House in September 2023 and combined, they make a very impressive duo with high ambitions for the restaurant this year.
This spring Ben will be launching his Tasting Menus which will be served at weekends focussing on seasonal local produce including mushrooms and honey from the farmers market. It all makes sense – Ben is a local (born and bred Sudbury) with cooking experience in the Wagon & Horses in Sudbury as well as the George in Cavendish where he was cooking to 2 rosette standard.” I do feel at home here at The Great House in Lavenham (his mother worked in hospitality in Lavenham when he was growing up) and I feel at my best when I am in a kitchen during a busy service. We’ve learnt a lot in our first 18 months from feedback from customers as well as dishes we have tried on the menu – some worked really well like Lobster Weekends in the Courtyard Garden during the summer and we have an excellent regular following from residents in the village which has been so pleasing. Now we are working towards a high-quality affordable menu”
On a recent visit to the market Ben selected some fresh mushrooms for his venison dish from Mycotek Mushrooms, a new business set up just over the border in Essex where owner Sam Keeley has grown a wonderful variety of mushrooms that are certainly grabbing plenty of attention “We’ve being going for less than 18 months but the farmers market has been an enormous part of our growth. Each month we meet new customers as well as many regulars plus we have met a number of chefs at the market who have ordered mushrooms for their restaurants including Ben at The Great House!”
Ben also picked up some honey for his dishes from Ian Hart – owner of Beehouse Honey and a regular stallholder at Lavenham Farmers Market for many years. Ian has a number of hives across Suffolk and Essex and he provided the Borage honey for the panna cotta dish – a gentle, light, sweet honey, unique in colour, pure white when set, a delicate aroma. This dish will be on the menu in Spring as will dishes with Sam’s mushrooms.
The Market Masterclass continues to match the very best local produce that is accessible to local residents as well as some of the finest chefs in the county. Buying direct from a producer at a farmers market empowers every market shopper to feel connected to their local landscape, to support their local rural economy and, just as importantly, enjoy great tasting food whose provenance is assured!
Lavenham will continue to shine as a gem of the Suffolk landscape and with the addition of its popular farmers market and the Great House on the historic Market Place, it looks set to shine for many more years to come…
Lavenham Farmers Market is held on the fourth Sunday of the month at Lavenham Village Hall form 10am – 1.30pm
You can see Ben Morgan, head chef of The Great House on stage at The Taste of East Anglia Food & Drink Festival held at Kentwell Hall on Sat 14th June 2025.
Dishes from The Great House
- Cannon of venison, beef fat Parisien potatoes, pickled, confit and sautéed wild mushrooms with crispy kale & redcurrant and juniper sauce
Serves 4 – Ingredients and cooking instructions
Cannon of venison – 4 x 6oz
Parisien potatoes – 2 large Maris Piper peeled and using lemon baller to create rounds
500g of wild mushrooms
500g fresh kale- picked off the stalk
Pickled mushrooms -250ml of white wine vinegar, 250 grams of caster sugar, 250ml of water, 2 bay leaves, 3 all spice berries, 3 juniper berries ,1 tbsp coriander seeds, 1 cinnamon stick, 1 star anise, 4 black peppercorns – bring to boil and pour over and cover mushrooms and leave for 24 hours -the longer the better.
Confit mushrooms – 140 c vegetable oil – hot and leave in oven x 15 mins
Rapeseed oil Seal it off with rosemary garlic and salt butter
180 for 5 minutes and rest
Sauce – 500ml of good quality beef stock 150 g redcurrants, 12 juniper berries, 250 ml red wine, 1 shallot, 3 garlic cloves, 1 celery stick
Start by preparing the sauce by browning off shallots, garlic and celery – deglaze with red wine and reduce right down to a syrup before adding beef stock and berries. Reduce by half and then finish with red currents and black pepper.
Place the potatoes in oven in beef fat at 140C for 35 minutes and follow in with the confit mushrooms for 15 minutes
Seal off the venison cannons in rapeseed oil with rosemary, garlic and butter and then place in oven for 5 minutes at 180c before leaving to rest.
Sautée mushrooms on a medium heat – hot oil knob of butter & salt till golden brown medium
Deep fry the Kale – at 170c for 30-40 seconds and drain.
- Honey Panna cotta with steamed honey sponge, coriander honey sorbet and a coral tweel
Serves 4 – Ingredients and cooking instructions
6 gelatine leaves
200 ml double cream
600ml whole milk
75g honey
2 vanilla pods
Still honey sponge – 130 g runny honey 100g butter 100 g caster sugar 3 medium eggs 110g self-raising flour
1 teaspoon of baking powder
Sorbet – 500ml of water, 75 g coriander honey, 2 tablespoons lemon juice 25g fresh coriander
Soak gelatine leaves in cold water till soft
Boil up rest of ingredients medium heat till simmering and then whisk in the gelatine leaves
Pour into moulds of your choice – leave in fridge to set
For the sponge – Soften the butter add all other ingredients into mixed bowl and combine to a batter consistency
Using a pudding basin grease in the inside with 10g of butter pour in batter – and then place in a gastro tray add water to cover half pudding basin and then place in oven at 140c for 35 minutes.
For the sorbet bring water to boil in medium saucepan turn off heat and add herbs and honey leave to sit 30 mins- then add lemon juice stir well till all combined. Refrigerate for 2 hours then place into freezer- repeat and give it a good mix and then leave another two hours in the freezer.
For the tweel – 300g water 200g rapeseed oil, 80g of all-purpose flour. Whisk together and then our into a frying pan over medium hear
Cook it until all liquid has gone and left with a thin coral tweel
