Ingredients
| 250g tired sourdough bread, sliced 1cm thick, crusts removed | |
| 60g butter | |
| 100g dark cane sugar | |
| 1 pinch allspice (in winter I add more allspice plus ground ginger, cinnamon and sometimes ground black pepper to taste) | |
| 2 tablespoons golden syrup | |
| 2 pots of premium vanilla ice cream |
This has been a staple dish from the sourdough bread-making workshops I held at home before Covid made sourdough mainstream and a tad monotonous. However I really don’t think I’ll ever find bread boring and dull; I eat it daily without fail and have done for as long as I can remember even when as skinny as a rake. Alert the authorities if it’s ever known I’ve not devoured my daily toasted slice, crunched a crouton or at least slurped some pasta showered in its delectable crumbs, as something will be drastically amiss. Dire thoughts aside, this my friends is one of the best ways to use up sourdough that’s had its day and happily it’s easy as hell to make. Shamefully – (I’m relatively new to these pages so reckon I can get away with it) – I use premium vanilla ice cream as my base. No faffing about with churns for me, life’s too short for that sort of palaver when it comes to preparing dessert in the summertime. Sweet, creamy, salty and crunchy, you won’t be disappointed, I promise. Heading into winter I like to ramp it up with extra spices and serve it fireside with a wee dram, so keep that thought in your repertoire.
View the recipe collection here
Instructions
| 1. | Using your hands, roughly tear the sourdough into 2-3cm chunks. |
| 2. | Heat the oven to 180°C. |
| 3. | Melt the butter in a shallow, heavy-based pan over a medium-low heat, then add the sugar, allspice and golden syrup. |
| 4. | Stir occasionally until the sugar is dissolved and the mixture is smooth and glossy. |
| 5. | Flop in the torn sourdough and toss using two forks until all the sourdough is coated in sugar mixture. |
| 6. | Spread the bread on a lined tray and bake in the oven for 20 minutes until toasted and almost burnt – don’t be worried, you want to capture a bit of dark bitterness. Set aside to cool slightly. |
| 7. | Take the ice cream out of the freezer to gently soften for a few minutes. |
| 8. | Blitz the warm toasted bread to a rough, medium breadcrumb consistency in a food processor. Don’t worry if there are a few chunky bits; they’re delicious and chewy. Season with flaked salt to taste. |
| 9. | Stir this into the softened ice cream until well combined and spoon the mixed ice cream into a loaf tin. |
| 10. | Cover with plastic wrap and place back into the freezer to firm up until you’re ready to serve. |
Food and recipe styling, photography Fiona Hugues