Serves 8-12
Ingredients:
400g (12oz) Comber Earlies potatoes, scrubbed clean
A large pinch of salt
175g (6oz) cheddar or Parmesan and cheddar cheese, mixed
A good drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, about 50-75ml (2-3 fl.oz)
450g (1lb) plain flour
Half teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
1 teaspoon salt
400-425ml (14-15 fl.oz) buttermilk
1 tablespoon finely chopped rosemary (thyme can be used instead)
Sea salt flakes
Method:
1. Preheat the oven to 230’C/450’F/Gas Mark 6.
2. Place the Comber Earlies potatoes in a saucepan with a good pinch of salt and cover with boiling water. Bring to the boil and cook the potatoes until just tender, the cooking time may vary but check the smaller potatoes after 15 minutes. When the potatoes are cooked, drain them and set aside for a couple of minutes until cool enough to handle, then slice the potatoes half a centimetre thick.
3. Grate the cheese and set aside.
4. Brush the inside of a small Swiss roll tin or roasting tray generously with olive oil.
5. Sift the flour and the bread soda into a large mixing bowl and add in the salt then mix together with your hand, and make a well in the centre.
6. Pour most of the buttermilk in at once, leaving just a couple of tablespoons left in the jug as you may not need it all. Using one hand, shaped like a stiff claw, mix the flour and buttermilk together by moving your hand round in wide circles avoiding kneading the dough. Add more buttermilk if necessary. The dough should be soft and a bit wet and sticky.
7. When it all comes together, turn it out onto a floured work surface, turn over in the flour once but making sure not to knead it in any way or you will make it tough, and gently roll it out so that it will fit into the oiled tray. Transfer into the tray using your two hands.
8. Make dimples with the tips of your fingers , to make little wells for the olive oil. Scatter half of the grated cheese over the dough and a small sprinkling of the chopped rosemary. Place the potato slices all over the dough pressing them all down gently so that they don't fall off the bread when it is baked then scatter the remaining grated cheese and chopped rosemary. Drizzle with a little olive oil, and sprinkle with sea salt.
9. Bake in the preheated oven for about 25-30 minutes or until golden brown and cooked in the centre.
10. If the bread gets a good golden colour and you don’t want it to darken any more, while cooking, turn the oven down to 200’C/400’F/Gas mark 5, and continue cooking.
11. When the focaccia is cooked but still hot, drizzle a little more olive oil over the top. Allow to cool slightly before cutting into squares to serve.
Parsley pesto
Makes about 150ml (5 fl oz)
This is a surprisingly good sauce. Sometimes I even prefer it to the classic basil pesto. Serve it as you would basil pesto: with pasta, over roasted or chargrilled vegetables, with barbequed or grilled meats, as part of a salad or on a simple crostini or bruschetta with some roast peppers and cheese. This quantity makes 1 jam jar full. To keep it at its best, store it in a sterilised jar in the friedge and always keep it covered in a layer of olive oil 1 cm (1/2 in) thick.
Try replacing half the parsley with mint, coriander, rocket, wild garlic leaves… The possibilities are endless.
Ingredients:
25g (1 oz) parsley, chopped
25g (1oz) freshly grated parmesan cheese
25g (1oz) pine nuts
2 cloves of garlic, crushed
75ml (3 fl oz) extra virgin olive oil
salt
Method:
1. Put all the ingredients except the olive oil into a food processor and whiz up. Add the oil and a pinch of salt and taste.
2. Pour into a sterilised jar, cover with 1cm (1/2 in) of oil and store in the fridge. Keeps for months.
