As Strong As Soup

There are thousands of soda bread recipes on the net and this one isn't so very different, but I wanted to record my basic, perfect-for-soup (and other things) soda bread recipe. Forgive me if you've heard it all before.  Apart from the buttermilk, this recipe uses ingredients that I normally have to hand in my kitchen cupboards and fridge and so this is a bread that can be put together quickly with minimal effort. To that end, I use the packaged crispy onions that you can buy at pretty much any supermarket but don't let me stop you frying your own crispy onions, if you're so inclined.  Like other soda breads, this does not store well and should either be eaten quickly or frozen. Happily, it does freeze very well. The amount of buttermilk specified here might seem strange but buttermilk is most commonly sold in ½ pint measures in the UK. Let's just say that the reason for this is historic. 160g self-raising flour 160g wholegrain flour  1 tsp bicarbonate of soda  40g...

La ficelle is a local speciality in the Baie de Somme area, although it's not immediately obvious what's local about it. Like many of the dishes from that region it's definitely rich and filling (as well as delicious) but, let's face it, it could be made anywhere. It seems that la ficelle Picarde was actually invented in Amiens in the 1950s by a chef trying to outdo his rivals in a contest to produce a dish for a banquet. (If you're familiar with the Great British Menu TV series then this idea will sound strangely familiar). La ficelle really caught on and has never disappeared from local menus. This is the sort of food that fortifies you for cold winter days or just gives you that sense of being thoroughly fed that we all need now and then.  I know that some cooks in the Picardy region like to use a little beer in their crêpe recipe but, apart from that, there's nothing special or different about the crêpes used for the ficelles and you can use any recipe ...

A lot of the recipes on this blog are pretty easy, but they really don't get much easier than this. Not too long ago I was wandering around a local supermarket in my usual bemused manner and I stumbled across some particularly fine produce: Lamuyo peppers from Spain, smoked duck breast from Scotland and, one of my favourite cheeses, Ossau-Iraty from the southwest of France. Then from some particularly murky corner of my mind I remembered that these were just the kind of ingredients that Guy Martin put together on one of his TV programmes. Thanks to Google I've realised that the name Guy Martin often seems to refer to a bloke that rides motorbikes mystifyingly fast. I definitely don't mean him. I mean the chef of Le Grand Véfour in Paris. (Please be careful if you're tempted to peruse the prices at Le Grand Véfour - you may need to have someone nearby to administer strong drink to aid your recovery). Mr Martin intended this combination of ingredients to celebrate the...

Bonjour tertous ! OK. that's just about all the ch'ti I can speak but I thought it was about time for a ch'ti recipe. After all, it's from just across the channel so it's almost a local dish. In case you're not familiar with Maroilles, it's a soft cow's milk cheese with an orange rind that's made in northern France. Those simple facts sound harmless enough but there's a little more to it than that. The aroma of Maroilles can be scary. If you don't eat it quickly, it could start to set off fire alarms and endanger low-flying aircraft. On the other hand, it tastes great. As well as being a fine addition to the cheese board, it’s also a superb cheese for cooking. One of the commonest dishes using this pushy little cheese is the Tarte au Maroilles. You can find different versions of this tarte around Nord-Pas-de-Calais and Picardy but the most traditional form has a yeasted dough base rather than a layer of pastry. Think of it as a sort of e...

If you happen to wander down to south west France, then sooner or later the Pyrénées will come into view. At that point, hungry and tired from your journey, you may be tempted to sample some of the local sheep’s milk cheese. Don’t be surprised if you’re offered some jam with it. The black cherry jam of the region is a classic accompaniment to the slightly sharp, rather nutty and definitely delicious cheese. This is my somewhat anglicised and eccentric version of cherry jam inspired by that region. It makes a fine alternative to membrillo or similar quince jelly or paste. Any good, ripe cherry can be used. I know it’s not very serious jam making but this recipe will make just a single jar. I keep the amount small because cherries can be expensive and, more importantly, because I tend to shove jam to the back of a cupboard and forget about it if I make too much. It’s easy to scale the recipe up, if you want to make more. I know that if you’re not used to making jam then the setting p...