French bread sauce

Shave the light brown crust from the outside of the French stick with a bread knife and discard it. Cut the bready centre into cubes, about 5cm across.

In a saucepan, bring the milk, onion, bay leaf, butter, allspice and 3 tbsp of cream to the boil, reduce the heat then add the diced bread.

Gently simmer, uncovered, for 5 minutes. Add a little salt and freshly ground black pepper, then allow to cool and remove the onion and bay leaf. The sauce can be refrigerated in a covered container overnight.

To serve, warm through gently in a pan, adding extra double cream to give a light, creamy consistency. Grind over some black pepper and serve.