Beware the politics of austerity. Gordon Brown has let it be known that his favourite dish is an unsubtle peasant recipe containing reheated cabbage and potatoes.

The Prime Minister has chosen the Scottish dish “rumbledethumps” — or bubble and squeak – for his contribution to a charity fundraising book.

While one suspects that Mr Brown would have been unlikely to choose oysters and chilled champagne, even when the FTSE was through 7,000, his enthusiasm for leftover cabbage and potatoes reinforces the notion that a tone of shared hardship is de rigueur for 2009.

Eating cold kale, of course, also fits his caricature of a dour Presbyterian son of the manse who eschews all earthly pleasures.

In a book of celebrities’ favourite recipes for Donaldson’s School for the Deaf, in Edinburgh, Mr Brown said that his mother would prepare it for him when he came home from watching Raith Rovers play.

He does concede that the dish – so called because of the noise made as the tatties and cabbage are rumbled and thumped in preparation – may be made slightly more interesting with a slice of bacon on the side.

The addition of bacon, and indeed, turnip, leeks, spring onions, nutmeg, cheese or chives are all ways of poshing-up rumbledethumps, which was originally just a greasy refrying of the previous night’s leftovers.

Mr Brown is not alone in espousing peasant food. Others asked to name their favourite recipes in the charity book have also sought the low end of the food chain. Jim Murphy, the Scottish Secretary, claimed that the meal he yearns for is a bowl of “hearty lentil broth”. Alex Salmond, the First Minister best known for his addiction to curries, claimed that his favourite dish was cullen skink, the soup made traditionally from smoked haddock, potatoes and onions.

A la Brown

A traditional recipe for rumbledethumps, which is usually served as part of a meal with meat, but can be eaten on its own

1Take equal amounts of boiled tatties and cabbage and mash and mix together

2 Add salt and pepper

3 Fry or brown in the oven and sprinkle with grated cheddar

Modern rumbledethumps recipes suggest adding two tablespoons of cream to the cabbage potato mix, plus crispy pieces of bacon, spring onions, leeks or nutmeg grated on top

Other recipes say that the potato, cabbage and spring onion mixture should be placed in an ovenproof dish after being boiled and mashed together. This dish is topped with grated mature cheddar and put in a preheated oven at 190C for 25 minutes

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