Black Pudding Pancakes with Apple & Fennel Sauce

And more 'bloody' puddings

My first experience of eating blood pancakes was on a trip to Finland a number of years ago. Eaten with a healthy dollop of lingonberry jam (read lashings here rather than a dainty teaspoon) I would have been hard pressed to identify the ingredient that gave the pancakes their dark hue and deep, almost earthy flavour. As they were brown my young children naturally assumed they were made with cocoa and wolfed them down. I didn’t bother to correct this assumption (does that make me a wicked mother?) and they have been none the worse off for the experience.

As we heard in last week’s podcast blood has been used in a variety of dishes over the centuries (think jugged hare or the stir about described by Kate Ryan). Kate and I also chatted about a unique type of blood sausage in Ireland called drisheen. Unfortunately, I had to cut this segment out of the main episode but you can listen to the short excerpt below.

You can buy dried blood online but unless you are planning to make black pudding or copious amounts of these pancakes I have found it more convenient to use black pudding instead. You can make these in advance and reheat them in a low oven, wrapped in foil, for 5-10 minutes (depending on how many you have in the parcel). The apple and fennel compot is also great stirred through yoghurt but by all means substitute it for lingonberry jam which you can buy from suppliers like the ScandiKitchen.

Ingredients for 16-20 Pancakes

• 175g/6oz black pudding, plastic casing removed

• 50g/2oz dark rye flour

• 1 tsp baking powder

• ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda

• ½ tsp ground allspice (optional) *

• ½ tsp ground black pepper (optional) *

• 50g/2oz dark rye flour

• 284ml/½ pint buttermilk

• 1 egg (I use medium but a large egg should be fine)

* I like to extra spice to these pancakes but it really depends on the brand of black pudding you use and how much of a kick you want

Method

1. I found it easier to make these in a blender although a food processor should do a similar job. Roughly chop the black pudding and place in a blender with the other ingredients. Blend until you have a thick dark, pinky coloured mixture. I usually let the batter rest for a least 30 minutes at this point.

2. Heat a griddle or large frying pan over a medium to high heat. Drop a generous tablespoons of the mixture onto the hot surface. They will spread quite a bit due to the fat content of the pudding but firm up pretty quickly. As they cook bubbles will rise to the surface which will also change from dark pink to brown. This takes around 1-2 minutes. At this point you can carefully flip them over to cook the other side. The underside will have turned a very dark brown (bordering on black). Cook for a further minute or so before removing to a plate. The pancakes will need to be cooked in batches so keep them warm in a low oven, lightly covered with foil.

3. Serve the pancakes warm with the apple and fennel compot. A few slices of smoked salmon is an admirable addition.

Apple & Fennel Sauce

Ingredients

• 2 large Bramley apples (or other variety of cooking apples) c. 450g/1lb

• 50g/2oz caster sugar (or more to taste - I prefer my compot on the sharp side)

• 2 tbsp water

• 1 tsp fennel seeds

• 1 tbsp chopped sweet cicely *

Method

1. Peel and core the apples. Chop into small chunks or finely slice. Place in a saucepan with the sugar, water and fennel seeds. Cook over a medium to low heat until the apples have collapsed and are pulpy. Allow to cool before stirring in the chopped sweet cicely.

* Sweet cicely is a fern like herb with a slight aniseed flavour. I grow it in my garden but if you can’t get hold of this you can leave it out or substitute it for rather less finely chopped dill or tarragon. Dill and tarragon are rather bossy herbs so start with 1 teaspoon, then add more if you think it needs it.

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