Recipes "Butter"

Gratin dauphinois is thinly sliced potatoes baked slowly in milk and cream flavoured with garlic, until soft inside and golden on top. It is the classic side for a roast or a grilled steak, and with…

Apple crumble is soft, sweet apples baked under a crunchy, buttery topping. It is one of the easiest desserts there is, ideal in autumn and winter when apples are cheap. Serve it warm with custard…

Banana bread is a moist, sweet loaf cake made with very ripe bananas. It is the perfect use for brown, spotty bananas nobody wants to eat, it keeps for days wrapped up, and it freezes well in slices…

French chocolate mousse is light and airy yet intensely chocolatey, made from just dark chocolate, eggs, a little butter and sugar. It is made several hours ahead, which makes it a good dessert for…

Crêpes are very thin pancakes made from a runny batter of flour, eggs and milk. Eat them for breakfast, as a dessert or at a crêpe party, rolled around sugar and lemon, jam, chocolate spread or…

A French omelette is pale yellow outside, without any brown, and soft and creamy inside, rolled into a neat oval. It takes three eggs and two minutes. It is the dish to master for a quick lunch or…

French onion soup is a dark, sweet soup of slowly caramelised onions, topped with toasted bread and melted cheese and finished under the grill. It turns the cheapest vegetable there is into a rich…

Leek and potato soup is mild, creamy and very cheap, the kind of soup that warms you up on a grey day. It needs five ingredients and half an hour.

Macaroni and cheese is short pasta in a creamy cheese sauce, baked until the top is crisp. It is pure comfort food for cold evenings and a reliable dish for children and big tables.

Risotto is rice cooked slowly in hot stock, stirred so its starch makes a creamy sauce, then finished with butter and cheese. With mushrooms, it is an autumn and winter favourite. It is not hard, but…

Cotriade is a Breton fish soup of potatoes, onions and chunks of cheap fish such as mackerel and whiting, cooked together in one pot. It is eaten in two courses: first the broth, poured over toasted…

Cullen skink is a thick Scottish soup of smoked haddock, potatoes, onion and milk. It is smoky and filling, and with bread it makes a full meal on a cold evening. It takes about 50 minutes and only…

Moules marinières are mussels steamed open in white wine with shallots, garlic, butter and parsley. They cook in five minutes and are served in the pot, with bread for the juices or fries on the side…

Quiche lorraine is a shortcrust tart filled with eggs, cream and smoked bacon, baked until just set. It is served warm or at room temperature, as a starter in thin slices or as a light main course…

Ragù alla bolognese is a thick meat sauce, cooked slowly for hours, with only a little tomato. It is the real ancestor of what the world calls "spaghetti bolognese". In Bologna it is served with…

A whole chicken roasted in the oven with lemon, garlic and herbs, with potatoes cooking in its juices underneath, is one of the great family meals. It makes Sunday lunch, and the leftovers make…