Some of the best Irish dishes are the simplest ones, based on solid, good quality ingredients, not treated in any fancy way but simply with a respect for their basic flavors and the way the ingredients interact with other foods. This recipe is one of those.

It harks back to a time when cooks were intent on making the best of what they had on hand, and didn't have recourse to glossy supermarkets full of ingredients that were in season somewhere else but not at home. Most farmers in Ireland would have been within easy reach of someone growing barley, if they weren't growing it themselves. Besides being good for brewing with, the grain made its way into endless soups and stews, not just for the sake of its own nutritional value, but because of its thickening abilities. Apples, too, grow all over the island of Ireland quite happily. But their season doesn't last forever. The farmers and householders of the days before modern storage technologies were available got very clever about ways to keep a season's apples well into the next spring, even the next summertime. A given year's harvest -- what wasn't eaten fresh or preserved by being made into alcoholic / "hard" cider -- was mostly put down in straw in the coolest place a farmer could find. The apples would wrinkle, and their internal texture would go a little mealy over time, but their flavor would be well preserved.

This recipe for apple barley pudding was clearly developed to deal with those out-of-season apples and a little of the spare barley that would always be hiding somewhere in the kitchen. Cooking the apples down to a puree both removes the problem with their texture and infuses the barley with the apples' pectin, another effective gelling and thickening agent. Then the final result is sweetened a little, sharpened further with lemon juice, and chilled. The finished product is surprisingly light and delicate, with a tart kick: the cream mellows it all down and adds amazing richness.

The original recipe (which we've adapted from one in Ethel Minogue's Modern and Traditional Irish Cooking) calls for cool cream to be stirred into the apple and barley pudding when it's finished and ready to be eaten. However, another approach that works (we think) much better is to layer it in parfait glasses with freshly whipped, slightly sweetened cream. It's your call.

This is, by the way, yet another of a small but select group of Irish dessert recipes that are nonalcoholic. Doubtless there are people who'll want to put Irish whiskey in it anyway. Go right ahead, but we'll disavow any knowledge of your actions. (If you're going to do this, consider flavoring the cream, rather than the basic dessert, as you may run into problems with the pudding mixture thickening up.) The recipe will serve about four people.

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 pounds / 700g tart apples, cored, peeled and thinly sliced
• 4 rounded tablespoons pearl barley
• 4 tablespoons lemon juice (fresh if possible)
• 4 tablespoons sugar
• 1 quart / 1 liter water
• 2 tablespoons heavy cream or double cream (if stirring in): OR,
• 1 cup whipping cream + 1 teaspoon sugar per serving (for layering)

Add the water to a heavy pot, add the barley, and bring to a boil. Add the sliced apples and cook gently until both the barley and the apples are soft (normally about half an hour).

At this point the apples may have gone completely to pieces. This is just fine. Remove the mixture from heat and puree -- either in a blender, right in the pot with a stick mixer, or by pushing through a sieve.

Return the mixture to the pot and stir in the sugar and lemon juice. Bring to a boil again. Boil for about five minutes: then remove from the heat and cool.

When cooled, put into another container and refrigerate until very cold. Serve cold with cream stirred in. Or (for a slightly fancier take on the presentation) whip heavy whipping cream with a teaspoon of sugar per cup of cream, and layer in parfait glasses with the cream, saving a dollop for on top.

Enjoy!