Warm black pudding salad is the perfect meat lovers salamagundi. Cheese and greens? Check. But is there something meaty to add a bit of pep? For those of a carnivorous bent it doesn’t quite get the green light without that little extra. And warm black pudding salad is the perfect way to do it. Alternatively try pigeon and blue cheese salad with russet dressing. If we imagined the pigeon were Waterloo messenger pigeons, it might just work…

The best black pudding is a closely fought thing, between Bury in Lancashire and Stornaway on the Isle of Lewis. We would plump for Stornaway. Philippa Davis gives us her recipe below.

WARM BLACK PUDDING SALAD WITH BROAD BEANS AND WATERLOO CHEESE

Serves 4
■ 200g (7oz) young broad beans
■ 1 tbsp olive oil
■ 400g (14oz) black pudding
■ 1 large clove garlic
■ 100ml (31⁄2fl oz) dry cider
■ 2 tbsp finely shredded mint leaves
■ Juice of 1 lemon
■ 2 tbsp good-quality extra virgin olive oil
■ 100g (31⁄2oz) baby-leaf spinach
■ 150g (5oz) Waterloo cheese
■ Salt and pepper

Waterloo cheese is made on the Duke of Wellington’s Stratfield Saye estate on the Berkshire/Hampshire border. The creamy, rich flavour goes well with the freshness of the mint and the brightness of the spring broad beans.

Blanch the broad beans in boiling, salted water for a couple of minutes then drain.

Heat the olive oil in a frying pan and fry the black pudding for the warm black pudding salad until crisp on both sides (don’t move the black pudding around too much or it will break up). Add the garlic and continue cooking until the garlic just starts to colour. Add the dry cider, broad beans and half the mint and turn the heat up to full.

Cook until the liquid has almost gone then add the lemon juice, extra virgin olive oil, the rest of the fresh mint, baby spinach and slithers of Waterloo cheese. Season with salt and pepper and serve immediately.