Odile’s Brown bread
Brown bread is very easy to make. It takes approximately three minutes to pull together, plus 25 minutes in the oven while you are catching up on some overdue college assignments. It is very versatile, working well with soup, as a lunchtime sandwich or even toasted for breakfast.
3 ½ oz (100g) wholemeal flour, preferably stone-ground (you’re looking for flour with lots of wholewheat)
3 ½ oz (100g) plain flour
½ tsp bread soda
Handful seeds of choice (eg sunflower, pumpkin, flaxseed and/or poppy)
1 oz (30g) porridge oats (supermarket own brand is perfect and cheaper)
200ml buttermilk or any gone-off milk in the fridge, whichever you have to hand
1 Before you begin preheat the oven to 180°C. Rub a little bit of butter on a flat baking tray to ensure the bread does not stick to it.2 Next put all the dry ingredients into a bowl and mix. Make a well in the centre and pour in half the buttermilk. Stir to gradually combine the dry ingredients. Add the buttermilk in stages and don’t use all of it, you don’t want the mixture to get too wet. It must hold its own shape on the baking tray. Tip the mixture onto the tray and cut a cross in the middle of it. When I was a child I thought the cross was to let the fairies out during baking, however I have since learnt it is to help the centre bake evenly. 3 Bake for approximately 25 minutes. You will know your bread is done if you tap the bottom and it sounds hollow. If in doubt, you can always put it back in upside down for five minutes at the end to make sure it is baked through.Note: If the mixture gets too wet during mixing all is not lost, you can put it into a 1lb loaf tin if you have one.
Leek and potato soup
In the dark evenings, what can go better with brown bread if it is not a steaming bowl of homemade soup? It is also a great way to make sure you get some of your five a day. This is a basic soup recipe, using the ratio 1:1:3 for onion: potato: vegetable(s). You can tweak it based on what you have to hand and need used up.
1 medium onion
1 large potato
2 leeks
1 oz (30g) butter or any vegetable/nut oil will work
Stock cube
8 fl oz (250ml) water
8 fl oz (250ml) milk or half milk and half cream
1 Peel and chop your onion and potato. Melt the butter in a saucepan and throw in your onion, turn it to a low heat and put a lid on top. Meanwhile, wash the leeks, chop the roots off the bottom and as far as I’m convinced the rest is good to use. Some recipes will tell you to only use the white part, depending on the finished colour of the soup. As soon as that is ready put the potatoes and leeks into the saucepan with the onion and cover again. After about 10 minutes the vegetables should be soft.2 Next add the water and milk. Crumble the stock cube over the top and mix well or blend the stock cube in boiling water before adding to the soup. If you are bringing milk with you from the dairy farm at home it will give the soup a lovely creamy texture. If not you can always make up half milk and half cream, as you prefer. 3 Bring to the boil and take off the heat. Season with salt and pepper to taste. 4 You can blend the soup or leave whole, depending on how you prep your vegetables.1 Cook in batches
I find it difficult to cook for just one person. Often if you are buying meat it comes in portions big enough for four people. Don’t be afraid to cook up a batch of food and put some of it in the freezer for another day when you are in a rush. If you wash out some old plastic takeaway containers these are ideal for dividing up portions.
2 Grow some plants
A simple but effective way to add real flavour to your cooking is to buy a few of those herb plants you find in supermarkets. They are easy to keep once you water them every few days and make all the difference when cooking. At a bare minimum you should have a parsley plant because you can add chopped parsley to almost any savoury dish. If you grow some rocket from seed you will be able to make very tasty salads and it is much cheaper than buying bags of salad leaves in the supermarket.
3 Make your lunch
You will blow your budget pretty quickly if you are buying lunch every day at college. Get yourself organised and make a few sandwiches or a salad to bring with you in the mornings.
4 Buy a recipe book
You can pretty much find any recipe you want online. However if you are new to cooking, a book that outlines the basics is good to have to hand. Irish Country Living recommends Darina Allen’s Ballymaloe Cookery Course or Neven Maguire’s Home Economics for Life. The two of those give a good grounding in basic cooking skills that will stand to you for life. You can get good recipes for free online at the Bord Bia and National Dairy Council websites.
5 Invest in a few good kitchen utensils
The utensils provided in student accommodation are so flimsy it can sometimes put you off cooking altogether. There are two knives you will use over and over again, the chopping knife and the bread knife. You could get a whole set but if you get a good version of those two you won’t need much else. Other items to invest in are a decent vegetable peeler, a spatula, a chopping board, a stainless steel saucepan, a baking tray and a handheld blender. A frying pan is also handy but often there is one already provided if you are renting a house. Some utensils and kitchenware can be a bit of an investment, so don’t be afraid to ask for them as a Christmas or birthday present.
Odile’s Brown bread
Brown bread is very easy to make. It takes approximately three minutes to pull together, plus 25 minutes in the oven while you are catching up on some overdue college assignments. It is very versatile, working well with soup, as a lunchtime sandwich or even toasted for breakfast.
3 ½ oz (100g) wholemeal flour, preferably stone-ground (you’re looking for flour with lots of wholewheat)
3 ½ oz (100g) plain flour
½ tsp bread soda
Handful seeds of choice (eg sunflower, pumpkin, flaxseed and/or poppy)
1 oz (30g) porridge oats (supermarket own brand is perfect and cheaper)
200ml buttermilk or any gone-off milk in the fridge, whichever you have to hand
1 Before you begin preheat the oven to 180°C. Rub a little bit of butter on a flat baking tray to ensure the bread does not stick to it.2 Next put all the dry ingredients into a bowl and mix. Make a well in the centre and pour in half the buttermilk. Stir to gradually combine the dry ingredients. Add the buttermilk in stages and don’t use all of it, you don’t want the mixture to get too wet. It must hold its own shape on the baking tray. Tip the mixture onto the tray and cut a cross in the middle of it. When I was a child I thought the cross was to let the fairies out during baking, however I have since learnt it is to help the centre bake evenly. 3 Bake for approximately 25 minutes. You will know your bread is done if you tap the bottom and it sounds hollow. If in doubt, you can always put it back in upside down for five minutes at the end to make sure it is baked through.Note: If the mixture gets too wet during mixing all is not lost, you can put it into a 1lb loaf tin if you have one.
Leek and potato soup
In the dark evenings, what can go better with brown bread if it is not a steaming bowl of homemade soup? It is also a great way to make sure you get some of your five a day. This is a basic soup recipe, using the ratio 1:1:3 for onion: potato: vegetable(s). You can tweak it based on what you have to hand and need used up.
1 medium onion
1 large potato
2 leeks
1 oz (30g) butter or any vegetable/nut oil will work
Stock cube
8 fl oz (250ml) water
8 fl oz (250ml) milk or half milk and half cream
1 Peel and chop your onion and potato. Melt the butter in a saucepan and throw in your onion, turn it to a low heat and put a lid on top. Meanwhile, wash the leeks, chop the roots off the bottom and as far as I’m convinced the rest is good to use. Some recipes will tell you to only use the white part, depending on the finished colour of the soup. As soon as that is ready put the potatoes and leeks into the saucepan with the onion and cover again. After about 10 minutes the vegetables should be soft.2 Next add the water and milk. Crumble the stock cube over the top and mix well or blend the stock cube in boiling water before adding to the soup. If you are bringing milk with you from the dairy farm at home it will give the soup a lovely creamy texture. If not you can always make up half milk and half cream, as you prefer. 3 Bring to the boil and take off the heat. Season with salt and pepper to taste. 4 You can blend the soup or leave whole, depending on how you prep your vegetables.1 Cook in batches
I find it difficult to cook for just one person. Often if you are buying meat it comes in portions big enough for four people. Don’t be afraid to cook up a batch of food and put some of it in the freezer for another day when you are in a rush. If you wash out some old plastic takeaway containers these are ideal for dividing up portions.
2 Grow some plants
A simple but effective way to add real flavour to your cooking is to buy a few of those herb plants you find in supermarkets. They are easy to keep once you water them every few days and make all the difference when cooking. At a bare minimum you should have a parsley plant because you can add chopped parsley to almost any savoury dish. If you grow some rocket from seed you will be able to make very tasty salads and it is much cheaper than buying bags of salad leaves in the supermarket.
3 Make your lunch
You will blow your budget pretty quickly if you are buying lunch every day at college. Get yourself organised and make a few sandwiches or a salad to bring with you in the mornings.
4 Buy a recipe book
You can pretty much find any recipe you want online. However if you are new to cooking, a book that outlines the basics is good to have to hand. Irish Country Living recommends Darina Allen’s Ballymaloe Cookery Course or Neven Maguire’s Home Economics for Life. The two of those give a good grounding in basic cooking skills that will stand to you for life. You can get good recipes for free online at the Bord Bia and National Dairy Council websites.
5 Invest in a few good kitchen utensils
The utensils provided in student accommodation are so flimsy it can sometimes put you off cooking altogether. There are two knives you will use over and over again, the chopping knife and the bread knife. You could get a whole set but if you get a good version of those two you won’t need much else. Other items to invest in are a decent vegetable peeler, a spatula, a chopping board, a stainless steel saucepan, a baking tray and a handheld blender. A frying pan is also handy but often there is one already provided if you are renting a house. Some utensils and kitchenware can be a bit of an investment, so don’t be afraid to ask for them as a Christmas or birthday present.
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