Four bacon-wrapped saveloys filled with prunes and melted tasty cheese on a ribbed glass plate against a burgundy background.

RECIPES FROM 1979

Savoury Saveloys

Saveloys filled with sweet prunes and tasty cheese, wrapped in bacon.

SURPRISINGLY GOOD

35 MINS

SERVES 4

ABOUT THE RECIPE

Savoury Saveloys has just four instructions: slice the saveloys, fill them with stoned prunes and grated cheese, wrap them in bacon and bake until cooked.

It gives no quantities, cheese type or cooking time beyond “until the bacon is cooked”. I chose to make four, with an educated guess to decide on the measurements below.

JUMP TO RECIPE

THE ORIGINAL RECIPE

Original 1979 Ward 9 cookbook page for Jiffy Mussel Chowder

THE MODERN CONVERSION

From 1979 to today’s kitchen.

The original recipe, reworked with clearer measurements, modern steps and everything you need to make it now.

Ingredients

4 large saveloys

12 pitted prunes

1/2 cup grated tasty cheese

4 rashers streaky bacon

Method

Preheat the oven to 180°C fan forced and line a baking tray with baking paper.

Slice each saveloy lengthways, taking care not to cut all the way through.

Place 3 pitted prunes inside each saveloy, then divide the grated cheese evenly among them.

Wrap one bacon rasher securely around each saveloy. If the rasher is too short, cut it lengthways almost all the way through, then open it out to create a longer strip. Place on the prepared tray with the loose end underneath.

Bake for 25 minutes, or until the bacon is cooked and golden and the cheese has melted. If the bacon needs more colour, increase the oven to 190°C for the final 5 minutes.

Recipe book compiled by Ward 9w Hutt Hospital December 1979 City Slicker.

THE TASTE TEST

So, was it worth making again?

The honest verdict after cooking from the 1979 page.

These were genuinely yummy, which I did not expect at all. The sweetness of the prunes was balanced by the saltiness of the bacon, and melted tasty cheese is delicious almost anywhere. Somehow, the whole combination worked.

I would definitely eat these again. They taste far better than they look, although before serving them to guests I would try to make the finished plate a little more enticing.

SAMANTHA'S NOTES

Stoned means pitted

Make the bacon crisp

The quantities are mine

The original recipe uses the older term “stoned prunes”. It simply means prunes with their stones removed.

Although 350°F converts to about 160°C fan forced, starting at 180°C fan forced gives it better colour, with a brief increase to 190°C at the end if needed.

The 1979 recipe gives no quantities at all. These are the amounts I used to make four Savoury Saveloys, rather than measurements provided by the original recipe.

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