Friday 23 February 2018

Laverbread


Laverbread is probably one of the most iconic of Welsh dishes, but something of a niche ingredient and an acquired taste!  A taste well worth acquiring too!  It isn’t actually a bread but a cooked edible seaweed, found along the Welsh coastline.

It was a traditional breakfast staple for mineworkers, served with bacon and cockles for those who could get them fresh, or eggs for those living further inland.  Some cook the laverbread simply by reheating it in a pan with some bacon and cockles before spreading it on top toast, with the bacon and cockles on the side; others mix it with oatmeal before frying it and serving with bacon and cockles or egg on the side. 

My method is a simple one and the ingredients simply a matter of ratio – for every tablespoon of laver you mix in a tablespoon of oatmeal (porridge oats).  Season with a little black pepper but no salt because the laver is salty enough.

Per person :

1tb laverbread

1tb oatmeal

Black pepper to taste

2 rashers of bacon

1 egg or a handful of cockles

In a basin mix the oatmeal and laverbread together, seasoning with a little black pepper.

Heat a little lard or bacon grease in a frying pan – or, with the lovely Tefal non-stick pans just cook a few rashers of bacon for a few minutes until they release some fat, then drop spoonfuls of the laver and oatmeal mix into the pan and shape into patties.  It only needs heating through so cook it for as long as the bacon takes to cook through on both sides and turn the patties over once to cook through from the other side. 

If you’re adding cockles simply add them for the last few minutes to heat through properly.  

If you're using egg instead of cockles simply fry or poach as you prefer and serve alongside the laverbread patties and bacon.

Tuesday 20 February 2018

Wholemeal Cheese and Ale Bread


I saw an idea recently for a Bara Brith made with stout and walnuts, a brief Google episode lead me to ale and cheese bread recipes and I looked no further! 

This isn’t a yeasted bread so is very quick to put together, it’s simply a matter of folding wet ingredients into dry.  It would make a lovely accompaniment to soup or a Ploughman’s lunch and is absolutely delicious toasted and buttered generously.

For one loaf you need :

200g wholemeal self-raising flour
175g self-raising flour
40g golden caster sugar
150g grated cheddar cheese (extra mature or vintage by preference)
1 ½ tsp mustard powder
1tsp cayenne pepper
1tsp salt

350ml ale (I used Gower Power)

30g grated cheddar to scatter over the top of the loaf before baking


Weigh out the dry ingredients into a mixing bowl and stir together to combine well.  Measure out the ale and add to the mixing bowl, folding gently to bring it all together. 

Spoon into a lined 2lb loaf tin and level off the top.  Scatter over the 30g of grated cheese. 

Bake at 150oC (300oF, gas mark 2) for 50 minutes – until a skewer comes out clean.