When I think of “rye bread” I think of “pastrami on…” and that’s about it. Yet I can’t think I’ve even tried it or not. So I was sent some Village Bakery Rye Bread recently and looked at it with arched eyebrows. Mrs. Spud jumped on it, being a fan of the German bread of this type.

I tried some with a little cream cheese at first – it was the savouriness that really got me, and deep flavour. I really enjoyed it. I tried some lightly grilled too and the crispness gave it an interesting texture.

I was sent some with a view to promoting the Try Rye challenge – replacing regular wheat bread with rye bread to lose weight and / or feel less bloated. It’s definitely an interesting alternative, head over to the Facebook page for more information.

I’m always looking for the recipe angle – and it was the flavour possibilities of the rye bread with coriander that interested me. Combined with some superb Farmer’s Choice cod I had the idea of making chunky fish fingers. With a few extra spices and flavourings the rumbling rye flavour and silky cod are brought together to create a great combination.

Cod rye fingers (makes 8):

1 cod fillet

4 slices of Village Bakery Rye Bread with Coriander

1 teaspoon cumin seeds

1 tablespoon flour

¼ teaspoon paprika

1 egg, beaten

A lemon

1. Pre-heat the oven to 200°C, and have a baking tray in there already warming up.
2. In a hot dry pan toast the cumin seeds until popping and then tip on to a plate. Whizz the bread in a food processor to crumbs and then tip on to the cumin and mix together.
3. Mix the flour and paprika together and season well.
4. Slice the cod into 8 pieces. Roll the cod in the flour, dip in the egg and then press the breadcrumbs on to the fish. Brush with a little olive oil and place on the baking tray. Bake for 10 -15 minutes until the crumb is crispy and the fish cooked through. Serve with a drizzle of lemon (and pretend it’s fish & chips & peas like in my pic above).