This week we’re going to have a bit of fun with a quiz!
What started off as a humble dish consumed by peasants in the fields of the Mediterranean is now the UK’s favourite. We are talking of course about pizza, the most popular food purchased in British restaurants today, and the second most popular item bought in supermarkets for dinner.
But how much do you know about our favourite food?
Bread has long been a principal form of food. The British museum has loaves which were baked in Egypt over 5000 years ago!
The first bakers guilds were formed in ancient Rome and baking became a respected profession with about 300 bakers in the city at the time of Christ. The Romans took baking with them as they built their empire.
In the middle ages most landlords had a bakery which was a public oven.
Bread became such an important staple in our diet that in 1202 King John introduced the first laws governing the price of bread.
Today in the UK we can purchase over 200 varieties of bread; but baking your bread is very satisfying and the smell of freshly baked bread is fantastic.
Try this Soda Bread Pizza recipe, it’s great for easy
weekend baking and the kids will love making it too.
Recipe taken from Year Round Dairy Cookbook
25 minutes preparation time
20 minutes cooking time
406 Kcal per portion
14.2g fat per portion of which 4.6g is saturated
4 servings
For the topping:
Olive oil 2 tsp
Onion 1 small, peeled and diced
Garlic 1 clove, peeled and crushed
Chopped tomatoes 200g can
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Sugar a good pinch
Double Gloucester cheese 75g (3oz), grated
Kabanos sausages 2, totalling 75g (3oz), sliced
Cup mushrooms 75g (3oz), wiped and sliced
Basil 8 leaves, finely shredded, to garnish
For the base:
Plain flour 250g (9oz)
Bicarbonate of soda 1⁄2 rounded tsp
Salt 1⁄2 tsp
Buttermilk 284ml tub
1 Make the tomato paste for the topping first. Heat a small frying pan, add the oil, onion and garlic and cook over a low heat for 5 minutes until softened.
2 Add the tomatoes. Season well, adding sugar. Cook for 8–10 minutes until thickened to a paste.
3 Preheat the oven to 230°C/450°F/ Gas 8. To make the base, sift the flour, bicarbonate of soda and salt into a large bowl. Pour in about 250ml (9fl oz) of the buttermilk and mix, using a fork, to make a soft but not too sticky dough. Add more of the buttermilk if you need to, or more flour if it gets too sticky.
4 Put the dough onto a work surface lightly dusted with flour. Knead briefly then divide it into four. Form each piece into a ball and place it on a greased heavy baking sheet. Flatten out with your knuckle each to a 15cm (6in) round.
5 Spread the tomato paste over each pizza, almost to the edge. Scatter with half the cheese, then the slices of sausage, the mushrooms, basil and, lastly, the rest of the cheese. Bake for 20 minutes. Serve warm with salad.
Recipe taken from Year Round Dairy Cookbook
Onion, mushroom & goats' cheese pizza
Thin and crispy pizza base 1
Organic onion relish 2–3 tbsp
Tomatoes 2, thinly sliced
Baby mushrooms 50g (2oz), wiped and sliced
Goats’ cheese 110g (4oz), sliced and broken into chunks
Green pesto sauce about 1 tbsp (optional)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Wild rocket about 15g (½oz)
1 Preheat the oven to 220ºC/425ºF/Gas 7.
2 Put the pizza base onto a baking sheet. Spread the onion relish on the top to make a thin layer. Scatter the tomatoes and mushrooms on top. Add the goats’ cheese and bake for 10–12 minutes or until the pizza is golden and cooked.
3 Quickly spread green pesto sauce over the top of the pizza, if using. Season to taste and serve with a handful of rocket in the centre.
Cook’s tip
Don’t go mad with the onion relish – it is strong and quite sweet but cuts through the richness of the goats’ cheese beautifully.
Recipe taken from the new Just One Pot, Dairy Cookbook. Available now.
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