Seaweed relish

50g dried kelp
25g fresh nori sheets for sushi
50g dried bladderwrck
2 tbsp fresh white breadcrumbs
150g butter
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1 pinch ground cinnamon
1 pinch freshly-ground nutmeg
1 pinch ground mace
1 pinch ground ginger
1/4 tsp crumbled dried oregano
a few generous twists of freshly-milled black pepper

If using dried seaweed then place in a bowl, cover with hot water and set aside to re-constitute for 30 minutes. Transfer the seaweed to a pan along with the soaking water (add any fresh seaweed at this point) then bring to a boil and cook for about 30 minutes, or until the laver just starts to break down to a slurry. Drain then place the seaweed in a food processor and render to a paste (add just enough of the cooking liquid to form a stiff slurry). Stir-in the breadcrumbs, spices and pepper then spoon the resultant paste into a large ramekin. Cover and chill then serve.

This makes an excellent accompaniment to scrambled eggs, toast or as an addition to savoury sauces. It can also be used in any recipe calling for the Japanese seaweed paste, momoya.

Taken from CELTNET website: celtnet.org.uk