There are a couple of staple ingredients that we all eat around the holidays. One of the most popular and versatile being Butternut Squash, though I bet most of you have probably only had it as soup. My sister loves roasting butternut squash (it’s the only way she knows how to make it) so I…  Continue reading »

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My previous experience with Shepherd Neame brews didn’t inspire me but I felt I should give them another shot. After all, they seem to have a decent pedigree, a good range of product and I have heard others speak highly of them.
Master Brew appealed to me as perhaps a nice hoppy beer. Perhaps it was the name playing with images of Kent and a brewer with a cloth cap dosing a brew with a summer ripened crop of hops. Wonderful.
The reality was different. A strange brew.  Continue reading »

I know what you’re thinking: why are we writing about cranberry sauce twice in a row? Well, for one thing:  it’s Thanksgiving, but also, if you read on you’ll find out why this cranberry sauce post is different than the one below it. Maxine and I both decided to look for a new cranberry sauce for this year’s Thanksgiving, but my quest for a twist on this Thanksgiving staple had a very different ending.  Continue reading »

Compliments of The Today Show:
According to a study by Texas A&M International University, Americans will consume an extra 619 calories per day between Thanksgiving and New Year’s. But, armed with helpful nutrition information, you’ll be able to successfully fight the battle of the bulge throughout the holiday season.
An extra 619 calories PER DAY? I took…  Continue reading »

My first taste of the Delirium brand was on my trip to Brussels where we ended up one night in the Delirium Cafe with it’s 2,004 beers. We didn’t try the Delirium beer there, I think it was the next day in another pub and I’m not sure who had it. It’s a bit of a blur now and back then I didn’t take notes.
So anyway, when a friend of mine got me a couple of bottles of it I eagerly anticipated giving it a shot on my home soil.  Continue reading »

Last night, I had an early Thanksgiving dinner with some of my family since not everyone will be in town on Thursday. My aunt made her famous smoked turkey, my dad took care of the sweet potatoes and I brought the cranberry sauce. I’d never made cranberry sauce before, so when I was browsing through recipes, I was shocked at how simple they were! Cranberries, sugar, water… that’s it! But I wanted MORE!  Continue reading »

After the sheer hedonism of fresh prawns (3rd Nov) followed by self-indulgent pieces on French Wine and eating out (15th & 17th Nov) I have been flooded with complaints. “Are you aware of the recession?” wrote one reader, “Down with this sort of thing” wrote another, “An Taoiseach Brian Cowan and Minister Lenihan have displayed a stunning lack of touch and forward planning by producing a slap-dash budget that John Bruton would be proud of.  Continue reading »

Oh no~I’ve been tagged again! This time it’s Donal over on TheGoodMoodFoodBlog . I suppose it serves me right as I seem to have been hogging his blogging all afternoon; yes that’s right, all afternoon. The reason being very simple; I am obsessed by the pantomime and he’s starring in the one I love…
Anyway one thing obviously led to another and hey presto I am to reveal seven little known facts about myself for public consumption.  Continue reading »

Invited myself again over to Clonakilty to stay the weekend with Marjorie & Gordon and we had a lovely time again. This time we decided to go to Deasy’s. They have been to Deasy’s a couple of times but it was my first time. It is a pub that looks like a pub should and you wouldn’t expect anything but normal grub stuff. A look at the regular changing menu will change your view completely. The menu is short but impressive.  Continue reading »

Here's to the winners!

In June we ran a competition to promote iKi beer and Café Mao, with some meals as prizes.  The winners seem to have been pleased with their winnings so far:
Sandra Gough commented:

Hi all,
Just writing to thank you you for a wonderful dining experience that was had by myself, Mam and Dad on Monday in Mao’s establishment in Dundrum shopping centre.
Food was absolutely first class, fresh, organic and ever so tasty.  Continue reading »

I thought I’d start off my Christmas run down with a comedy moment. I know that just two months ago there was a chance Sarah Palin could well have been the second in command at the White House, but this video just shows up her naivety. Being interviewed in front of a man killing turkeys is hardly the smartest thing to do now, is it?And, well, the food related bit?  Continue reading »

This is a brilliant soup to warm your soul on a cold winter day which was passed on to me by a work colleague and then slightly modified. Its almost a meal in itself with a scone or lump of buttered bread.  Continue reading »

Vignai Da Duline Pinot Grigio 2007
This was the second time that I had tried this wine from Sheridans Cheesemongers. The previous time it was one of a couple of glasses that I tasted with Enrico Fantasia – Click here to see my previous blog posting.
I was a huge fan of the wine the previous time I tasted it referring to it as possibly the best Pinot Grigio that I had tasted EVER !  Continue reading »

Aer Lingus permitting, we’re off to Berlin for two nights early – very early – on Sunday morning. Ever since I was at the Prix Europa in 2006 I’ve been wanting to revisit the city, but with a little more leisure to appreciate it. This time round I’ve plans for lavish amounts of kaffe und kuchen and have been reading up on Berlin street food although I can’t say that descriptions of the traditional Currywurst are exactly appetising!  Continue reading »

[Image courtesy of Petanque & Pastis]
As a Recipe4Living editor,  I receive a lot of emails with questions and tidbits about food and recipes and the like. The other day a woman sent me an e-mail about Beaujolais Nouveau with a little poem she wrote about this apparent wine. She touted: “This my little item about 2008 Beaujolais Nouveau.  Continue reading »

Sofie recently turned 22 and to celebrate her mom and brother came over to visit. Since we are always treated to some tasty traditional Swedish dishes when we visit them, I thought I would try and serve something traditionally Irish for our first meal! One of the few dishes that I know well as being traditionally Irish is this Irish Stew.
We always had it growing up and I’m sure most homes across the country were the same.  Continue reading »

If you recall last year I had my first official Thanksgiving (i.e. I wasn’t working). Not only was it my first but it was my first experience tasting Southern Thanksgiving food. My mouth is watering just thinking about it. This year, we are combining efforts and spending the day at another friends house and ironically…  Continue reading »

Are you ready for the Bookmarked Recipes round up? Well here it is..

Tina is back to the round up with Iced Oatmeal Applesauce Cookies.. minus the icedfrom Martha Stewart.com

Christine from Kits Chow made Soy Sauce Marinade from a sheet she found in a library book!

Ning from Heart and Hearth recreated Moist Pumpkin Bread from www.recipezaar.com

Ben from What’s Cooking? made Capirotada (Mexican Bread Pudding) which is his Mom’s recipe!  Continue reading »