As Strong As Soup

This is not a bread for making toast and marmalade or a quick sandwich; it’s a simple, dense bread for tearing apart and dipping into spicy soups and stews. I resurrected this recipe from an old notebook that I had been ignoring for some time and I’ve no idea where the original idea came from. You’ll need a frying pan of 23 cm diameter or thereabouts – it will be easier if it’s a non-stick one. This should serve 4 people. 450 g strong white bread flour 1 tsp salt 1½ tsp sugar 170 ml coconut milk 1 egg, lightly beaten 1 tbsp olive oil 2 tsp fast-action dried yeast For the topping:      2 tsp sesame seeds      ½ tsp dried thyme      1 tsp sumac      1 tsp sea salt flakes Put the flour, salt, sugar and a grind or two of pepper in a bowl and make a well in the centre. Combine the wet ingredients in a jug and stir in the dried yeast. Pour into the bowl with the dry ingredients and mix to form ...

I’ve always liked the idea of the very English, very old-fashioned Queen of Puddings – anything topped with meringue has to be a good thing after all. But the reality is that I find the sweetness can be overwhelming and the texture of the breadcrumbs can seem a little odd. For this version I’ve used a combination of lemon and almond flavours and I’ve substituted cake crumbs for the bread. This recipe works best using a zesty, sharp lemon curd and, though you could make your own, your local supermarket probably has a decent alternative (Waitrose sells a particularly good zesty curd). It’s possible to add more than the 2 spoonfuls of the lemon curd which will give more of a lemony sauce, but which will very possibly make the pudding look just a bit too messy for its own good. 600 ml milk Finely grated zest of 1 lemon 20 g butter, plus a bit for greasing the dish 75 g cake or brioche crumbs (Madeira cake works very well) 25 g ground almonds 4 eggs, separated 250 g caster sug...

Toward the end of this long, cold winter I have to admit that I’m getting a bit fed up with the idea of yet more root veg. It’s not that there’s anything wrong with them, but carrots seemed so much more interesting at the start of the winter. However, using a good can of Italian tomatoes adds a bit of sunshine and balances the sweetness nicely. This should make 5 or 6 portions 1 onion, finely chopped 500g (prepared weight) carrots, chopped 1 potato, about 150 g – 200 g, peeled and chopped Pinch of dried chilli flakes 1 litre chicken stock 400g tin of chopped tomatoes ½ tsp sugar Sprig of fresh rosemary 2 tsp sherry vinegar A little lemon juice In a large frying pan, soften the onion in a little oil, adding a drop or two of water to prevent it browning or cooking too quickly. Add the carrots, potato, chilli flakes and a grind or two of black pepper then pour over 750 ml of the stock. Bring to a simmer, cover the pan and cook gently for 15 minutes. Add the can of tomatoes, the su...