By Katie Wright
Zooming across the globe on two wheels, stopping off to sample delicious delicacies along the way, best mates Si King and Dave Myers – aka the Hairy Bikers – have been a near-constant fixture on TV screens for nearly 15 years.
The jovial duo had big plans for 2020 – but when the first lockdown began they were forced to retire to their respective homes at opposite ends of England, and didn’t see each other again until July.
“I’ve never been away from me mate for that long – it was five months,” says King, who lives in his native North East.
Myers, who hails from Lancashire but resides in Kent, recalls the last time the pair were together, recording a voiceover for a TV series at the end of February, shortly after King had returned from a trip to Italy.
“Si and I were sharing a voiceover booth and I remember jokingly saying to him, ‘Well, if you start coughing, I’m getting out of here’. It really was very light, nobody took it seriously then.” (‘It’ meaning the virus, of course.)
The bearded BFFs may have been separated for months, but that didn’t stop them from completing one big project together, their first Hairy Bikers’ vegetarian cookbook.
“We did a book a few years ago in the dieters series [The Hairy Dieters Go Veggie], and it was at the back of our minds after that,” says Myers, 63. “We thought, ‘Wouldn’t it be great to do a vegetarian book which is for meat-eaters really?’”
That’s right – the carnivorous cooks aren’t giving up steak and sausages for good. The Hair Bikers’ Veggie Feasts (which also features some vegan recipes) is about “putting veggies centre stage”, King says, explaining that the pals were partly inspired by their own children.
Between gardening, baking, hosting Instagram live chats and finishing the new book, the Bikers have certainly kept themselves busy this year.
Cheese and Marmite Scones
(Makes 8)
150ml whole milk
1tbsp Marmite
300g self-raising flour, plus extra for dusting
1tsp baking powder
½tsp salt
85g butter, chilled and cubed
150g vegetarian hard cheese (such as Cheddar), coarsely grated
1tsp mustard powder
1tbsp caster sugar
Heat the milk in a pan until it is just starting to feel hot – blood temperature. Whisk in the Marmite until it has combined completely with the milk – the milk should turn a colour similar to milky coffee. Remove the pan from the heat and leave to cool.
Mix the flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl. Add the butter and rub it in until the mixture is the texture of fine breadcrumbs. Add the grated cheese, mustard powder and sugar, then, if time allows, leave the mixture in the fridge to chill for half an hour.
Preheat the oven to 220C. Line a baking tray with baking paper.
Reserve a tablespoon of the milk and Marmite mixture for a glaze and pour the rest into the bowl of dry ingredients. Mix everything together as quickly as you can, using either a table knife or your fingers. Don’t overwork or the scones will be tough.
Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface and pat it down until it is about 3cm thick – do this with your hands, no need for a rolling pin. Dip a 6cm cutter in flour and cut out rounds, pushing the cutter straight down without twisting. Squash the remaining dough together – again trying to keep handling to a minimum – and cut out more scones. You should end up with about eight.
Put the scones on the baking tray and brush with the reserved milk and Marmite. Bake for 12–15 minutes until they are well risen and deep golden brown. Eat hot or cold, with lots of butter.
Vegan Brownies
(Makes one 20x20cm tin)
275ml plant-based milk, any sort
150ml groundnut or walnut oil
2tsp vanilla extract
2tbsp ground flax seeds
60ml hot water
125g plain flour
125g cocoa
½tsp baking powder
100g light soft brown sugar
75g caster sugar
½tsp salt
150g vegan chocolate chips
100g nut butter, any sort
Preheat the oven to 180C/Fan 160C/Gas 4. Line a 20 x 20cm brownie tin with baking paper or brush with cake-release spray.
Whisk the milk, oil and vanilla extract together in a bowl and set aside. Mix the ground flax seeds with the hot water and leave to stand for five minutes. Whisk all the remaining ingredients, except the chocolate chips and the nut butter, together in a separate bowl.
Beat the flax seeds into the wet ingredients, then add the dry mixture and fold in as gently as you can. Add the chocolate chips.
Scrape the mixture into the prepared tin. Dot spoonfuls of the nut butter all over the batter, then swirl it through, using the tip of a knife. Don’t mix it up too much!
Bake for 20–25 minutes until the brownies have just set. Leave to cool completely, then cut into squares. If you want them extra fudgy, put them in the fridge for several hours. Otherwise transfer to an airtight container.
The Hairy Bikers’ Veggie Feasts by Si King and Dave Myers is available now
