Just what does constitute a British breakfast? If one goes back a hundred years or more you will find that wealthy households had sideboards groaning with various meats and other foods, and alcohol at breakfast time was quite normal. That is not the breakfast menu served in some homes and in good hotels today. Most menus would look something like this:
Orange Juice or Grapefruit
or Compôte of Fruit
Cereal or Porridge
Bacon, Eggs and Sausages
with Black Pudding, Mushrooms and Tomatoes
Toast or Rolls
Butter, Marmalade or Honey
Of course orange juice, grapefruit and cereals have no savoury flavour but porridge can have. Many Scots disdain sugar on porridge, serving it with salt instead.
Assembling a perfect breakfast is not unlike preparing a mixed grill (see page 121). One needs to plan the order of cooking, so everything comes to the table cooked to perfection.
Both eggs and cheese are excellent ingredients for quick dishes, and there is a good selection of egg dishes on pages 218 to 222. The golden rule when cooking any egg or cheese dish is to time the cooking carefully so they are not over-cooked. A guide to British cheeses can be found on pages 344-346.
The savoury dishes that follow are ideal for light and speedy meals.
Cheese Soufflé
Cooking time: 40 minutes 
Serves 4
This is not one of our classic dishes but it has been served as a dinner party savoury or light luncheon dish for such a long time that perhaps we may regard it as British.
Put 25 g/1 oz (2 tablespoons) butter into a saucepan, add 25 g/1 oz (¼ cup) plain flour, cook for 2 to 3 minutes, then add 175 ml/6 fl oz (¾ cup) of milk. Bring to the boil and stir over a low heat until a thick sauce forms. Remove from the heat. Stir in 100 g/4 oz (1 cup) finely grated Parmesan or mature Cheddar cheese and 3 egg yolks. Season to taste. Preheat the oven to 190°C/375°F, Gas Mark 5.
Whisk 4 egg whites until they form soft peaks. Fold into the mixture then spoon it into a buttered 15 cm/6 inch soufflé dish. Bake for 40 minutes, or until well-risen but slightly soft inside. Serve immediately.
Cheese Straws
Cooking time: 7 to 12 minutes Makes about 48
These are probably Britain’s favourite cheese savoury and are served with drinks. There are many more economical recipes but the ingredients given below produce the classic crisp rich biscuits. Although Parmesan is not a British cheese, it has been appreciated and used in this country for many years.
Metric Imperial 
Ingredients 
American
75 g/3 oz 
Parmesan cheese 
¾ cup when grated
110 g/4 oz plain flour 1 cup
to taste salt and cayenne pepper to taste
1 teaspoon mustard powder, or to taste 1 teaspoon
110 g/4 oz butter ½ cup
1 egg yolk 1
To glaze: 1 egg yolk or 1 egg white
Preheat the oven to 220°C/425°F, Gas Mark 7. Grease several baking trays or line these with baking parchment. Finely grate the cheese.
Sift the flour with the seasonings. Rub in the butter, add the cheese and then the egg yolk. Mix thoroughly then gather the mixture together with your fingers. If the cheese is fairly dry and the yolk small you may need a few drops of water to bind the mixture. If slightly sticky, chill for a time.
Roll out on a lightly floured surface until 6 mm/¼ inch in thickness and cut into fingers 6 mm/¼ inch in width and 7.5 cm/3 inches in length. Place on the baking trays. Beat the egg yolk with a few drops of water and brush over the straws or use an unwhisked white.
Bake for 7 to 10 minutes until firm and golden in colour. Cool for a few minutes before removing from the trays. When cold, store in airtight tins until ready to serve.
Cheese Pudding
Cooking time: 30 minutes Serves 4
This could be described as a homely version of a soufflé, for the mixture rises well and is light in texture. Choose a mature cheese to give the maximum flavour. Do not over-cook the pudding, it should be pleasantly soft and moist.
Metric Imperial Ingredients American
300 ml/½ pint milk 1¼ cups
40 g/1½ oz butter 3 tablespoons
75 g/3 oz fine soft white breadcrumbs 1½ cups
to taste salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 teaspoon made English mustard 1 teaspoon
175 g/6 oz Cheddar, Cheshire or Lancashire cheese generous ⅓ lb
150 ml/¼ pint single cream ⅔ cup
3 eggs 3
Heat the milk in a saucepan with the butter. Remove from the heat, add the breadcrumbs, salt, pepper and mustard. Cover and allow to stand for 30 minutes.
Finely grate the cheese. Preheat the oven to 190°C/375°F, Gas Mark 5. Grease a 1.2 litre/2 pint (5 cup) soufflé or pie dish.
Beat the cream with the eggs and strain into the breadcrumb mixture. Add the cheese. Spoon the mixture into the dish and bake for 30 minutes or until well risen and golden brown. Serve at once.
Cheese Butterflies
These attractive biscuits are made with the same rich cheese pastry as the Cheese Straws on page 215. As they have a filling, a less strongly tasting dough could be made by using very finely grated Cheddar cheese in place of Parmesan.
Roll out the dough until just over 6 mm/¼ inch in thickness. Cut into rounds about 2.5 to 4 cm/1 to 1½ inches in diameter. Cut half the rounds about 2.5 to 4 cm/1 to 1½ inches in diameter. Cut half the rounds through the centre (these are the ‘wings’). Bake as the Cheese Straws.
Make Cheese Cream by blending 50 g/2 oz (¼ cup) butter with the same amount of finely grated Cheddar cheese (or use a cream cheese and no butter). Season well. Pipe a narrow line of the soft creamy mixture down the centre of the round biscuits and press the ‘wings’ in position. Top with paprika or parsley.
Egg Dishes
Apparently the Romans considered eggs boiled in their shells the most wholesome way to eat them. In Britain they rarely were boiled before the sixteenth century; instead they were baked in the soft ash of a wood fire. In the past eggs were not eaten during Lent, which is why pancakes were made on Shrove Tuesday to use up the eggs in the house before Lent began.
Boiled eggs, as well as chocolate ones, are a part of the Easter Sunday tradition. Often the breakfast boiled eggs are decorated or coloured. Onion skins can be put into the saucepan of water to tint the shells instead of using a culinary colouring.
The following are some of the classic ways in which eggs are cooked in Britain.
Baked Eggs
These are generally baked in small individual dishes or ramekins and served with a teaspoon. Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F, Gas Mark 6. Coat the dishes with a generous amount of butter. Break an egg into each container, top with a spoonful of cream and a little seasoning. Bake for 6 to 10 minutes, depending upon how firm you like eggs.
Variations:
Asparagus Eggs: place a few cooked asparagus tips into the dishes before adding the eggs and cream. Allow an extra 1 to 2 minutes cooking time.
Cheesey Baked Eggs: put a little grated cheese into the dishes before adding the eggs and sprinkle a layer of cheese over the cream before cooking.
Ham Eggs: place finely diced or minced cooked ham at the bottom of the dishes before adding the eggs and cream. Allow an extra 1 to 2 minutes cooking time.
Boiled Eggs: Eggs should be stored in the refrigerator to keep them fresh but, if time permits, bring them out for a short time before boiling and there is less possibility of the shells cracking. Allow enough water to cover the egg(s); if you do not the egg will be cooked unevenly. Either place the egg(s) in boiling water and boil for 3½ to 4 minutes for a soft-boiled egg or put in cold water and bring this steadily to the boil, then time the cooking. A soft-boiled egg cooked this way takes 3 minutes. Hard-boiled eggs take 10 minutes by either method. Crack the shells of hard-boiled eggs and plunge them into cold water if you are having them cold as this prevents them over-cooking and developing a dark line around the yolk.
Coddled Eggs: Put the egg(s) into boiling water, cover the pan and allow this to stand in a warm place, but one where there is no possibility of the water beginning to boil again, for 7 to 8 minutes. The eggs should be lightly cooked at the end of that time and less solid than when boiled in the usual way.
Eggy Bread: This was popular during the Second World War when eggs were rationed. Cut a fairly thick slice of bread into several fingers. Beat an egg, season this and coat the fingers of bread in the egg. Fry in a little hot fat.
Fried Eggs: make sure the butter or bacon fat is really hot before adding the eggs. Break the first egg into the pan, or on to a saucer first and then slide it into the pan. Allow the white of the first egg to begin to set around the edges before adding the second egg. If you dislike the uncovered yolk spoon a little of the fat from the pan over this and it will be covered with a white film. Modern non-stick (silicone) pans mean only a very small amount of fat, or few drops of oil, are needed to cook the eggs.
Bacon and Eggs: cut the rinds from the rashers and use this to give the extra fat in the pan. Add the bacon, fry to personal taste then either remove to a heated dish and keep hot while frying the eggs or pull the rasher(s) to one side of the pan and fry the egg(s).
Eggs in Brown Butter: use a generous amount of butter. Fry the eggs then lift on to a heated dish. Heat the butter until dark brown. Spoon over the eggs.
Poached Eggs: While these can be cooked in hot butter in cups over water in a poacher, they are much lighter if cooked in water. Use a frying pan or wide saucepan. Add a pinch of salt to the water; a few drops of vinegar can be added too to help prevent the white from spreading. Slide the egg into the water that is just boiling, then boil gently until the eggs are set.
Scrambled Eggs: Heat a small knob of butter in a pan. Beat and season the eggs, a little milk or cream can be added. Pour the eggs into the pan and cook very slowly, stirring from time to time. Do not stir too much. Add flavouring in the form of chopped chives, or other herbs.
English Monkey: add several tablespoons of grated cheese, plus the same amount of fine soft breadcrumbs to the eggs as they cook, plus mustard to flavour the mixture.
Mumbled Eggs: allow at least 1½ tablespoons (2 tablespoons) double cream to each egg and scramble lightly.
Anglesey Eggs
Cooking time: 45 minutes Serves 4 to 6
This simple, but satisfying, savoury dish is an interesting way of using leeks. Do not over-cook the leeks, let them retain a fairly firm texture.
Metric Imperial Ingredients American
450 g/1 lb old potatoes, weight when peeled 1 lb
450 g/l lb young leeks 1 lb
6 to 8 eggs 6 to 8
100 g/4 oz Cheddar or other good cooking cheese ¼ lb
to taste salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
50 g/2 oz butter ¼ cup
25 g/1 oz plain flour ¼ cup
300 ml/½ pint milk 1¼ cups
To garnish: chopped parsley
Peel the potatoes, wash and slice the leeks. Use some of the tender green stalks as well as the white part. Hard-boil and shell the eggs. Grate the cheese.
Put the potatoes into boiling salted water and cook until soft. The leeks can be added towards the end of the cooking period or they can be cooked in another pan of boiling well-seasoned water for about 10 minutes. Strain the vegetables. Either mash the potatoes and leeks together or mash the potatoes and then add the leeks. Stir in 25 g/1 oz (2 tablespoons) of the butter and season the mixture.
Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F, Gas Mark 6. Melt the remaining butter in a saucepan, stir in the flour and cook over a gentle heat for a few minutes then blend in the milk. Stir or whisk as the sauce comes to the boil and thickens. Add three-quarters of the cheese and seasoning to taste.
Arrange the mixture of potatoes and leeks on the bottom and sides of a shallow ovenproof casserole. Slice the eggs and blend with the sauce and spoon in the centre of the vegetables. Top with the remaining cheese and heat in the oven for 20 minutes. Garnish with the parsley.
Variation:
If the vegetables and sauce are hot they can be put into a flameproof dish, then heated and browned under the grill for approximately 5 minutes.
Bacon and Egg Flan
Cooking time: 45 minutes Serves 4 to 6
This is a British version of a French quiche. It has a slightly firmer filling.
Metric Imperial Ingredients American
For the shortcrust pastry: 175 g/6 oz flour, etc. (see page 295) 1½ cups
For the filling:
225 g/8 oz bacon rashers ½ lb
3 eggs 3
250 ml/8 fl oz milk 1 cup
to taste salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Make the pastry (see page 295); roll out and line a 20 cm/8 inch flan tin or dish. Preheat the oven to 190°C/375°F, Gas Mark 5 and bake the flan ‘blind’ (see page 240) for just 15 minutes or until firm but still pale in colour. Reduce the oven setting to 160°C/325°F, Gas Mark 3.
Meanwhile, de-rind and grill or fry the bacon until just crisp. Cut into small pieces and put into the pastry case.
Beat the eggs, add the milk and a little seasoning. Strain over the bacon and cook for 25 minutes or until just firm. Serve hot or cold.
Scotch Eggs
Cooking time: see method Serves 4
This is the version of the recipe that has been made for a long time. In the past however, before sausagemeat was available, the classic Scottish recipes were based on a forcemeat made from minced or finely chopped cooked ham, anchovy fillets, breadcrumbs, herbs and spices.
Metric Imperial Ingredients American
4 eggs 4
350 g/12 oz sausagemeat ¾ lb
For the coating:
25 g/1 oz plain flour ¼ cup
to taste salt and pepper to taste
1 egg 1
50 g/2 oz crisp breadcrumbs 1 cup
Hard-boil and shell the eggs. Divide the sausagemeat into 4 portions. Blend the flour with a little seasoning and lightly coat the egg whites.
Press out the first portion of sausagemeat until it is large enough to wrap around an egg. Seal the joins firmly and mould into a good shape. Continue like this with the remaining eggs. Coat in a little seasoned flour. Beat the egg and brush over the sausagemeat, then roll in the crisp breadcrumbs.
To deep fry: heat oil or fat to 170°C/340°F (a cube of day-old bread should turn golden in 1 minute – no shorter time). Fry the Scotch Eggs steadily for 10 minutes, then drain on absorbent paper.
To shallow fry: heat 2 tablespoons (3 tablespoons) oil in a frying pan. Add the Scotch Eggs and fry steadily for 15 minutes. Turn over frequently. Drain as above.
To bake: preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F, Gas Mark 6. Grease and heat a baking sheet. Add the Scotch Eggs and bake for 25 minutes. Turn over once during cooking.
Halve the Scotch Eggs lengthways and serve with salad.
Buck Rarebit
Cooking time: 5 to 6 minutes Serves 2
This makes a Welsh Rarebit twice as sustaining. Prepare the Welsh Rarebit and toast (see page 226). The quantities given in the recipe are for 4 small portions, but it will serve 2 people for a more sustaining savoury dish. Poach 2 eggs (see page 219), place on top of the piping hot golden-brown cheese and serve.
Variation:
York Rarebit: put slices of lean ham on the hot buttered toast, top with the Welsh Rarebit mixture and brown under the grill.
Aberdeen Toasties
Cooking time: 15 minutes, plus time to cook haddock Serves 4
This is a delicious way of using up a small amount of cooked smoked haddock. Undoubtedly the dish got its name from the sensible Scottish habit of using up all small quantities of good food and Finnan, where the finest haddocks are smoked, is only six miles from Aberdeen.
Put 50 g/2 oz (¼ cup) butter into a pan, add 1 oz/25 g (¼ cup) plain flour, then 150 ml/¼ pint (⅔ cup) milk, stir or whisk as the sauce comes to the boil and thickens. It will look very ‘buttery’ at this stage.
Flake 225 g/8 oz (½ lb) cooked smoked haddock. Grate 50 g/2 oz (good ½ cup) Arran or Cheddar cheese. Add the haddock to the sauce, blend thoroughly and cook for 1 minute. Beat 2 eggs, add to the haddock mixture with the grated cheese and a little salt and pepper to taste. Scramble lightly and serve on hot toast.
Sausages as a Savoury
Sausages have many different roles – small cooked sausages can be served on sticks as a cocktail savoury; larger sausages are served at various times of the day, for breakfast, for a main meal with creamed potatoes (bangers and mash), as a snack with crusty bread or toast or in the dishes that follow.
Sausage Rolls
Cooking time: see method makes about 36 tiny rolls or 12 larger ones
These are probably one of Britain’s favourite savouries; they can be bite-sized for parties or large and sustaining for picnics or buffets.
Make flaky pastry (see page 296) with 225 g/8 oz (2 cups) flour, roll out thinly and cut into long strips. Roll about 450 g/1 lb sausagemeat in a roll just under half the width of the pastry, lay the lengths of sausagemeat down the centre of the pastry strips. Damp the edges of the pastry, fold over to enclose the sausagemeat. Seal and flake the edges; cut the rolls into the required lengths.
Make 2 slits on top of each sausage roll, brush the pastry with beaten egg. Preheat the oven to 220°C/425°F, Gas Mark 7. Put the rolls on baking sheets or trays. Bake small sausage rolls for about 15 minutes, larger ones for 25 to 30 minutes. Reduce the heat slightly after 15 to 20 minutes, to about 190°C/375°F, Gas Mark 5 when the pastry has risen. Serve hot or cold.
Variations:
Use 350 g/12 oz (¾ lb) frozen puff pastry instead of flaky pastry.
Pig in a Hole
Cooking time: 1¼ hours Serves 4
This rather odd title is the name by which I was introduced to this dish. It is made with large onions and pork sausages. It was stressed to me that you need the spiciest pork sausages possible. British onions, with their strong taste, are ideal.
Peel 4 large onions and put them into a saucepan of boiling water, add salt and pepper to taste. Cover the pan and simmer for 40 minutes. Lift the onions out of the pan, save a little liquid to make a gravy (see page 159). Pull the centres out of the onions, these can be chopped and simmered in the gravy. Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F, Gas Mark 4. Melt 25 g/1 oz (2 tablespoons) of butter.
Push a large pork sausage into the centre of each onion. Place in an ovenproof dish. Brush the outside of the onions with the butter. Bake for 35 minutes.
Savouries on Toast
Quick snacks on toast, such as baked beans, cheese, eggs in various forms, or sardines have always been part of family fare. The following savouries serve two for a light meal or four as a classic savoury; cut the crusts off the toast and halve large slices of toast if serving as an after-dinner savoury.
Classic Savouries
Cooking times: 5 to 10 minutes Serves 4
Savouries at the end of a meal have long been a feature of British dinner menus. They are served instead of a dessert or after this course. The portions are small, but they are quite adequate for the end of a meal. More generous amounts make an excellent light lunch or supper dish.
Angels on Horseback: de-rind 4 long rashers of streaky bacon. Stretch the bacon with the back of a knife by stroking it very firmly. The bacon rashers become longer and more pliable. Halve each bacon rasher. Squeeze a little lemon juice over 8 small or 4 halved large oysters, and wrap the bacon around them. Secure with wooden cocktail sticks. Place under a preheated grill and cook for about 5 minutes, or until the bacon is very crisp. Serve on small slices of hot buttered toast and dust with paprika pepper. (Pictured opposite.)
Devils on Horseback: follow the recipe above but use large cooked and stoned prunes instead of the oysters. The prunes can be filled with potted ham or game. (Pictured opposite.)
Bengal Toasts: heat 25 g/1 oz (2 tablespoons) butter in a pan, stir in 25 g/1 oz (1¼ cup) flour, then add 150 ml/¼ pint (⅔ cup) milk. Bring to the boil and stir as the mixture forms a very thick sauce. Chop 100 g/4 oz (¾ lb) lean ham, add to the sauce with 2 tablespoons (3 tablespoons) double cream, a pinch of curry powder and seasoning. Spread on small slices of hot buttered toast. Top with chutney.
Scotch Woodcock: heat 1 oz/25 g (2 tablespoons) butter in a saucepan. Beat 4 eggs with 2 tablespoons (3 tablespoons) single cream or milk and a little seasoning. Pour the eggs into the pan and cook gently, stirring from time to time, until they are lightly scrambled. Spoon on to small slices of hot buttered toast and top with a lattice of well-drained strips of canned anchovy fillets.
Welsh Rarebit: this is the classic cheese on toast. There are many different opinions as to which cheese to use, each one gives a different flavour. Double Gloucester is considered one of the best. (Pictured page 225.)
Heat 20 g/¾ oz (1½ tablespoons) butter in a saucepan. Add 20 g/¾ oz (scant ¼ cup) flour, blend well then add 2 tablespoons (3 tablespoons) milk and 2 tablespoons (3 tablespoons) beer or ale. Stir well until the mixture forms a very thick sauce. Add 1 teaspoon made English mustard, a good shake of black or cayenne pepper and a little salt. Finally stir in 175 to 225 g/6 to 8 oz (1½ to 2 cups) finely grated cheese. Spoon the mixture on to 4 small slices of hot buttered toast. Put under a preheated grill until golden brown and bubbling.
Herring Roes on Toast
Cooking time: 10 minutes Serves 2 to 4
Poach 450 g/1 lb of soft herring roes in well-seasoned milk, or steam them between two plates over hot water. In this case top the fish with a generous knob of butter and a little seasoning. Either of these methods keep the herring roes in a good shape. They can be fried in hot butter instead, but stirring, so they do not burn, is inclined to break the roes, so they do not look quite as appetising. Serve on 2 to 4 slices of buttered toast and top with cayenne pepper.
Hard herring roes could be fried in butter and served in the same way.