Worthy wors worth a wink

I suggest something that doesn't apologise for itself, and doesn't try - failing dismally - to emulate the look or texture of ground meat.

Soy be dammed

Following my last rant - certainly not the first, and probably not the last - about the ubiquitous and even hazardous over-use of soy as a meat substitute (mainly as the most vile processed sausages), more than one vegetarian friend asked: "What do you suggest instead then?"

I suggest something that doesn't apologise for itself, and doesn't try - failing dismally - to emulate the look or texture of ground meat. The ancient Welsh recipe for a cheesy crumbed item called the Glamorgan Sausage fills the gap. It's a croquette really, only not deep-fried. Hardly served outside of its home continent, it is simpler to make than it looks, and has the great benefit, in comparison to soy sausage, of actually tasting like food.

Four servings

50g butter / 100g leeks, finely sliced / pinch of nutmeg / 170g breadcrumbs / 2 tsp thyme / 2 eggs, separated / 1½ tsp English mustard / 175g Caerphilly cheese or ½ cup mature cheddar, ½ cup feta / 2 tbsp milk / 50g flour. HOW: Melt butter in a pan, and sweat leeks over low heat until soft. Mix 100g breadcrumbs with the thyme. Crumble cheese into the breadcrumb mix, plus the leeks, yolks and mustard. Mix, season to taste, add milk and mix again. Shape into sausagey or croquettey shapes and chill for an hour. Heat oven to 180C. Whisk egg whites until frothy. Put whites, flour and remaining breadcrumbs onto separate plates and roll each sausage in the flour, then whites, then crumbs. Cook the sausages in the remaining butter, on medium heat until golden. Transfer to baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes. Serve post-haste. Brilliant with a caper or horseradish mayonnaise.

Patisserie de Paris

Damn that Paul Zwick. Just when I was convinced that mine was the finest brownie recipe possible, my most recent trip to his tiny patisserie/ bakery proved me wrong.

Anyone seeking a brownie fix must head to his spot: chewy, dense, intensely cocoa-y, with a paper-thin crack-crisp crust, too sweet, just perfect. I know I've written about his fantastic, hidden shop before, but I couldn't resist a second trumpeting. Good baking - really fine stuff - is hard to come by in Johannesburg. Zwick's rigorous training in France shows up in everything he makes, but his finest offerings are the sourdough bread, croissants that taste of butter, and the brownies. In true Parisian fashion, they are dog-friendly.

There is only one area in which Zwick does not equal France, and that's his coffee. We should all be thankful for this: his coffee is far better than the seriously k*k dishwater that seems to be the norm in much of France. So odd.

• P de P, 9 Mackay Avenue, Blairgowrie, Johannesburg. 011-326-0913. Open Monday to Sunday