As the fashion for this kind of multi-dish “grazing” grows, perhaps the smorgasbord will return. “It’s a delightful way to eat,” writes Elisabeth Luard in her book European Peasant Cookery. It would be surprising today to be invited to a smorgasbord, but the meal presaged the current fashion for a host of small dishes presented at the same time.The mezze meal of the Middle East, which spread around much of the eastern Mediterranean, is a parallel tradition. Maybe it was the arrival of Danish furniture or Scandinavian lager, but the smorgasbord became a 1960s classic. What made Scandinavia different is that trading was impossible during the frozen months.

A wide range of preserved foods ensured variety during the long dark winters. While it have been the consequence of necessity, the smorgasbord described by a French visitor to Gothenburg in 1871 was a tempting array including smoked reindeer, gravlax, caviar, Swedish anchovies, herrings both salted and pickled, smoked goose breast, cucumbers, a variety of breads, cheese flavoured with cumin and three kinds of spirits.Surprisingly, perhaps, this celebratory feast from the chilly northlands suddenly became fashionable in mid-20th century Britain. Originally, it was a snack that accompanied the aquavit taken before meals By the 19th century, it had evolved into a large buffet. A family would present this simultaneous feast no more than two or three times a year, with guests often contributing dishes.
The smorgasbord was a celebration of plenty at a time when hunger was a real possibility in Sweden and an indication of a housewife’s skill at preserving food. Of course, the ability to dry, salt, pickle and smoke was important in all regions with a seasonal climate in the days before refrigeration. Better known as a metaphor than a meal these days, smorgasbord still sums up Swedish cuisine for many people.

The literal meaning of the word is “buttered-bread table”, although the modern Swedish smorgasbord customarily consists of a host of dishes, both hot and cold, accompanied by sour dough, rye bread and crispbread. At least you won’t have to contend with Ramsay dismissing you from the kitchen.. Gordon Ramsay Makes It Easy Gordon Ramsay Quadrille, £19.99This is a step-by-step guide to home cooking, and promises to make Gordon Ramsay’s food accessible to a wider audience The book is due for publication on April 1 – no joke. The 2003 book, now in a reprint, celebrates cooking with good Scottish products, strong flavours and easy-to-follow recipes. Sue Lawrence’s Scottish Kitchen Sue Lawrence Headline, hardcover £20The key to this book is its subtitle – Over 100 Modern Recipes Using Traditional Ingredients And it does just what it says on the cover. The recipes drip with oysters, mussels, Guiness, potatoes and a whole basket of foods associated with the Emerald Isle.

She deliberately set out to record some of Ireland’s culinary heritage before it was lost. Irish Traditional Cooking Darina Allen Kyle Cathie, RRP £14.99Classic dishes put together by the doyenne of Irish cooking. Owner Rita Meade is a chef and home economist with over 25 years’ experience and her aim is to produce distinctive Irish country house cuisine.Weekend courses include A Taste of Irish Cookery, which teaches guests to make soda bread and scones as well as dishes using local fish, shellfish and vegetables. Winter Wonders features warming treats such as baked eggs with leeks and smoked salmon, beef and Guinness casserole and spiced pan-roasted pear cake.From £128 including accommodation and meals Berry Lodge, Annagh, Miltown Malbay, Co Clare, Ireland. (00353 65 708 7022) BEST COOKBOOKS Aquavit and the New Scandinavian Cuisine Marcus Samuelsson Houghton Mifflin, available through AmazonThis is a tribute to the food Marcus Samuelsson grew up with.

Born in Ethiopia, he was adopted by a Swedish couple, and trained in Goteborg, Switzerland and Austria He is executive chef and co-owner of Aquavit in New York. Ballymaloe Cookery School, Shanagarry, Midelton, Co Cork, Ireland. (00353 21 4646 785) COUNTY FERMANAGH Belle Isle Cookery School Set on a wooded island in Upper Lough Erne, the Belle Isle Cookery School forms part of the Duke of Abercorn’s estate.Chef Liz Moore uses ingredients from the estate’s gardens as well as local suppliers such as O’Doherty’s butchers to produce a fresh style of modern Irish cuisine with Mediterranean touches. Belle Isle School of Cookery, Lisbellaw, Enniskillen, County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. (028 6638 7231) COUNTY CLARE Berry Lodge Cookery School Berry Lodge is a Victorian family home operating as a restaurant with rooms, and a cookery school. Guests stay in Belle Isle Castle, which has been restored to suit modern life, and decorated with antique furniture and Victorian art.£1,300 including accommodation Flights extra.