THE SUCCESS of the ‘sausage for Sunderland’ competition has led to the creation of a new delicacy – the Mackem Pie.
As part of last month’s (June) Sunderland Food and Drink Festival, organisers Sunderland BID teamed up with city butcher, Ibbitson’s, to encourage people to create their own sausage recipe.
The winning entry, a sausage version of the classic Sunderland dish, panackelty, has been a huge hit with shoppers visiting the stall at Jacky Whites Market.
And now because of the success of the Mackem sausage the team at Ibbitson’s have come up with a new offering, their own Mackem Pie.
The pie is made with Scottish outdoor reared pork, black pudding and herbs and according to owner Joanne Ibbitson, is proving extremely popular.
“The Mackem sausage was really popular and so we decided to make our pie,” she said.
“And that’s also going down really well with everyone who has tried it.”
The positive response to the food festival competition has also inspired Joanne and her team to run a monthly competition for people to create their own guest sausage.
The winner will be chosen on a monthly basis and along with their recipe going into production, they will also receive two pounds of sausage.
Entry forms are available from Ibbitson’s at Jacky Whites Market.
Sharon Appleby, head of business operations at Sunderland BID, said she was delighted that the food festival had led to continued success for the business.
“We’ve had fantastic feedback all round for the Sunderland Food and Drink Festival and a really positive response,” she said.
“And, of course, it’s great news that a city centre business is still benefiting from the event weeks afterwards.”