IT’S FEBRUDAIRY
HAVING written about Veganuary this year, in the interests of balance, it seems only fair that I also mention Februdairy. If you have not heard of Februdairy before, it is hardly surprising as this is the first year it has run, having been launched by Dr Jude Capper, an ex-vegan animal scientist and selfappointed “myth buster”, in response to the Veganuary campaign.
As the Daily Telegraph explained recently, “Some of the key issues up for debate include the nutritional benefits of dairy, the environmental impact of dairy farming, and global economic challenges to the farming industry. Of course, the most emotive topic of all is that of animal welfare.”
Unfortunately, from the dairy campaigners’ point of view and despite the backing of Sir David Attenborough, the idea seems to have backfired and rather than combat veganism, it has furthered the vegan agenda to the point that the #Februdairy hashtag has virtually been taken over.
As a campaign to support dairy farming, Februdairy is going quite spectacularly wrong and, in many ways, that is a great pity. There are indeed aspects of large-scale livestock farming that are appalling, some which are defensible and some indefensible, but as Supportbritishdairyfarming said on Twitter, “Making the choice to reject all dairy produce will not stop the poorly run dairy farms around the world. Support the farms that #doitright.” It was a fair comment but received some vitriolic and really quite abusive replies.
Let’s be realistic about this: livestock farming for both dairy and meat has been around for thousands of years and is not going to go away. It’s factory farming that is the problem. Methods need to be revised, to get away from the abuses that have crept in so that people can have the “cheap” food they want, but there are millions of people who do not have a moral or political problem with eating meat and drinking milk per se and they have as much right to choose that diet as do those who prefer a plant-based lifestyle.
One of the saddest aspects of Februdairy going so wrong is that dairy milk is actually highly nutritious. It contains protein, calcium, potassium, phosphorus, niacin and vitamins B12, B2, D and A — nine essential nutrients that benefit our health. The various plant-based milks all have advantages and disadvantages but only soy milk comes close to dairy milk for nutritional value.
So let’s put politics aside for the moment and look at flavour and goodness-packed recipes combining dairy produce and lovely, seasonal, local vegetables. We’ll start with a couple of soups, perfect for this time of year. I medium cauliflower 1 medium carrot, peeled and chopped 15g butter, melted
1 medium onion, chopped 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped 1 teaspoon dried thyme 1 bay leaf
1 litre light stock (eg vegetable or chicken)
1 tablespoon Turkish mustard (hardal) 250ml milk Freshly ground black pepper and salt Sumac, lemon zest and/or fennel fronds to garnish
Heat the oven to 220°C. Break the cauliflower into florets and discard the coarse stalk and leaves. Spread the cauliflower and carrot chunks out on a baking tray, drizzle with the butter and gently shake the tray to coat the vegetables.
Roast the vegetables for about 15 minutes, then turn them and continue to roast for another 20 minutes or so until they are just tender.
Meanwhile, tip the onion, garlic, thyme and bay leaf into a large pan, add 250ml of stock and simmer gently until the onion is tender (about six or seven minutes). Put a tablespoon of cauliflower aside (to be chopped and used as garnish later) and add the rest to the pan, together with the carrot and the remaining stock. Stir in the mustard and simmer for about 10 minutes, until the vegetables are very tender. Discard the bay leaf, gently stir in the milk and set the soup aside to cool slightly, before puréeing in batches until smooth.
Season to taste with pepper and salt, and reheat gently. Serve garnished with chopped cauliflower and fennel fronds, sumac or lemon zest as preferred.
Look out for knobbly celeriac in local markets. They don’t look pretty but they have fantastic flavour.
Melt the butter in a large pan and cook the onions over a medium heat until dark golden. This will take a good 10 minutes, so stir them frequently to stop them “catching”. Set two tablespoons of onions aside to garnish the crostini, then add the garlic and celeriac to the pan and stir to coat in the buttery onions.
Pour in the stock, bring to the boil and cook for five minutes, then reduce the heat to a simmer. Stir in the milk and season with pepper and nutmeg. Continue to simmer until the vegetables are very tender (about 25 minutes). Blend the soup to a smooth purée; check the seasoning and add a little salt if necessary. This soup is meant to be thick. If you prefer a thinner soup, add a little more milk.
Rub the bread slices with the cut surface of the garlic clove and grill on one side until golden. Turn them over, scatter with kaşar and grill until the cheese is golden and bubbling. Top with the reserved onions.
Gently reheat the soup and serve topped with crostini.
Of course, there’s more to dairy produce than just milk. Locally, we cannot help but be aware of the health benefits of drinking ayran and eating yoghurt. However, this week’s final recipe is slightly more indulgent, using cream and labne for richness. 750g potatoes, peeled and sliced 20g butter, plus extra for greasing 1 medium onion, sliced 1 tablespoon plain flour Pepper and salt Half a bunch of spinach, thoroughly washed 175g broccoli, chopped 2 salmon portions, chopped 200ml cream
2 tablespoons labne 50g kaşar, grated
Heat the oven to 200°C and butter a large ovenproof dish. Cook the potatoes in boiling water until just tender, then drain well.
Melt the butter in a pan and gently cook the onion until softened, then stir in the flour and season well. Pour a kettle of boiling water over the spinach to wilt it, then drain and squeeze out as much water as possible. Stir the salmon, spinach and broccoli into the pan with the onions.
Put a layer of potato slices in the bottom of the dish, spread over the salmon and vegetable mixture and top with potato slices. Blend the cream and labne together until smooth and pour over the potatoes. Sprinkle with kaşar and bake for about 30 minutes, until the golden and bubbling.