Chive

Carrot soup for dinner. I stared at the pot of orange and wondered what should go with it. We used to have a choice of bakeries within shouting distance. Here, not so. And, as if possessed by the country cook I always wanted to be, suddenly there was damper.

Combine a cup of self-raising flour and a cup of wholemeal self-raising flour with a teaspoon of salt. Rub in 60g of chopped butter. Add a big handful of chopped chives* and a couple of handfuls of grated cheese - I used mozzarella and parmesan. Mix together with a cup of milk and a splash of water, then turn out onto a floured surface and knead for a minute or two.

Plonk it onto a greased tray, slash a cross in the top, brush with milk, scatter on some more grated parmesan, and bake at 180 degrees for half an hour. 

Slice it, butter it, eat it while it's hot.

The four-year-old preferred her damper crumbled into the soup and declared it delicious. The not-quite-two-year-olds weren't much fussed about any of it. The GM was awestruck as he tumbled out the door to join the village choir. (Seriously. He's there now.)

* Chives, in full purple bloom, chanced upon on a recent stroll around the garden.