2009 at FoodFight.ie
Photo by peterastn
A post by Ruth E at ruth's kitchen experiments
The August 2009 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Angela of A Spoonful of Sugar and Lorraine of Not Quite Nigella. They chose the spectacular Dobos Torte based on a recipe from Rick Rodgers’ cookbook Kaffeehaus: Exquisite Desserts from the Classic Caffés of Vienna, Budapest, and Prague.
This was an exciting challenge and a delicious one too. I made this and took it to youth group, which resulted in a request for me to make it again for someone’s birthday cake!!!! Continue reading »
A post by Elke at Dine & Wine Club Cork
You might remember (and I know you read this blog viciously every day) that I had a lovely weekend with friends in Kerry a few weeks back when we went to Valentia Island. My visit in the Knightsbridge Cafe ended with the buy of 2 cookbooks. It took me a while to read them properly (yeap, I am a busy woman these days) but now I have finished the book ‘Above & Beyond Parsley‘ and have to say, the subtitle ‘Food for the Senses’ is matching the photographs in the book. Continue reading »
A post by ollie at olliesplace: organic food, farming, research, news & views with Oliver Moore
One of my favourite things about autumn, along with the fact that we often get an Indian summer, is the food festivals.
There are a plethora in the south west. The season and the region begins with Mitchelstown (August 28th-30th), features a real gem with Skibbereen’s a Taste of West Cork (September 14-20th ), and is bookended by the gorgeous Dingle Food and Wine festival (October 2-4th). Continue reading »
A post by Hillary at Chew On That
Every Friday at Chew on That, we test your foodie vocabulary by quizzing you on a new foodie word and supply delicious recipes to match!
This week’s word is: pappardelle (noun).
(Note: this word was in the 2009 National Spelling Bee.)
Please choose the most appropriate definition for pappardelle. (No cheating!)
a.) the hollow fruit of a pepper that is usually red or yellow when ripe.
b.) a sour gherkin usually flavored with tarragon
c.) is macaroni formed in a spiral tube shape. Continue reading »
A post by peter at CheapEats.ie
That’s all folks. Continue reading »
For those of you who are regular followers of the site, now you will no doubt be experts in using spices from that infamous spice rack in your kitchen. For the entire month of August I gave you guys recipes containing the most popular spices requested. What I’ve decided to do today is give a run down of what we made as well as highlight some other recipes that I’ve used containing your requests. Continue reading »
A post by Kieran at Ice Cream Ireland
My brother Sean wants to head over the the US to visit ice cream shops, and he would love your suggestions as to which ice cream shops he should visit.
(Could he manage 100 shops in 7 days?)
He will definitely be going to New York, so suggestions in the New York area especially welcome, but where else should he go?
What are the unmissable US ice cream shops at the moment?
Please leave comments with your suggestions! Continue reading »
A post by Michael Kane at Curious: The Curious Wines Wine Blog
All new customers of Curious Wines, and indeed readers of this blog from the start, will be well aware of our love of the humble but splendid Pulltap’s corkscrew. I wrote an ode to the Pulltap’s in December last, praising it’s strength, reliability and most of all it’s simplicity.
To my dismay, this week I discovered an even simpler method of uncorking a bottle of wine. Well, simpler in the sense of not needing a corkscrew. Just a, er… tree.
Watch this. Continue reading »
A post by noreply@blogger.com (Donal) at The Good Mood Food Blog- Donal Skehan
Hi guys,
Just a quick note to say I have been so busy with the band that I haven’t had a chance to stick up any new recipes this week, but the hard work has paid off as I am so proud to announce that we just went number 1 in Ireland!
Thanks so much for all the support!
Cheers,
Donal
Ps. New post coming on Monday! Continue reading »
A post by admin at Robert Francis Wine Blog
O’Briens Wine Stores are coming to Galway
Galway wine consumers will soon another option when it comes to where they are going to buy their next bottle of vino. O’Briens latest premises will be at the Galway Shopping Centre on the Headford road. With the store due to open at 10am on Saturday the 5th September 2009.
Cora- Jane from their marketing dept. Continue reading »
A post by peter at CheapEats.ie
I met my friend Marc for lunch yesterday, and we ended up in The Reader’s Cafe in Waterstone’s on Dawson St. Some of you may remember Jean pointing and laughing at a rubbish offer they had a few months back: scrambled eggs and tea or coffee for €6.75.
But it got better. A few weeks later, they were offering a hot chicken sandwich, glass of wine, and coffee or tea for €8.95. Not too shabby, said Jean. Continue reading »
A post by peter at CheapEats.ie
I noticed this large shiny sign in the window of Ray’s Pizza, beside the Foggy Dew at the Central Bank. Three euro for a slice of cheese pizza, and four for a pepperoni slice! Sheesh… A full pizza in most similar places might be around the €10 mark, and contain, let’s say, six slices. So Ray’s, to put it kindly, costs at least double what it should. Perhaps it’s amazingly high-quality? Continue reading »
A post by Hillary at Chew On That
When it comes to pasta, penne is my favorite. Maybe you noticed when I used it here, here and here. To me, it’s a blank slate pasta that catches the flavors with which you pair it with. Spaghetti falls off the fork too easily. Linguine noodles are too wide. And shells, well, they just don’t do it for me. Continue reading »
A post by Thom at Black Cat Brewery
Calcium is essential to every step in the brewing process. Most water supplies used in brewing are deficient in calcium and additions of salts are required to increase calcium to a more suitable level. The main actions of calcium are:
It influences mash pH in a beneficial way, ensuring that the pH is kept low enough for effective mashing. This is achieved through interaction of calcium with carbonates in the water. Continue reading »
It all started when our lovely neighbor, Erica (the green thumbed guru in our Urban Gardens series), brought me a big bunch of fresh parsley plucked from her garden. The timing couldn’t have been better. I had already started making this tabbouleh but I was going to make it without parsley because I had just used my last bit in homemade veg stock. Now my recipe just got better! Continue reading »
A post by Caroline at Bibliocook: All About Food
My Clonmel Cousin has been getting into the gardening gifts lately – and I’ve been the lucky recipient, getting a cheerful pink petunia and fuschia pot for my birthday and a Christmas present of a hazel tree with a pair of blueberry bushes. We had tried blueberries in the garden previously but they’re big fans of acidic soil and I don’t think we added enough peat moss into the spot where we planted them. Continue reading »
A post by jean at CheapEats.ie
Our favourite promotion is on again this weekend: dinner for two for €12.50 in M&S. This week the choice includes:
Mains:
British Steak
The Grill Ginger, Lime & Coriander Chicken Breast
Fresh to dress Seabass with Mediterranean Dressing
Cook! Chicken Breasts with Mozzarella & Pesto
Cook! Lemon Sole Fillets with White Wine & Herb Butter
Lasagne Al Forno
Roast Whole Chicken
Rotisserie Chicken
2 Mushroom… Continue reading »
A post by peter at CheapEats.ie
Special buys at Aldi this Thursday August 27 include:
Ratchet Pruner – €5.99
Cadbury Chocolate Fingers – 99c
Tayto Bumper Bundle (5 Sxax, 5 Wheelies, 5 Chickatees) – €3.29
Special buys at Aldi for Sunday August 30 include:
Free to air Satellite System (100’s of channels) – €69.99
Chisel Set – €8.99
Long Handle Roller Brush Set – €9.99. Continue reading »
A post by peter at CheapEats.ie
This week’s food offers at Lidl include half-price blueberries, oranges, apples, lettuce, tomato and radishes. There’ll be new food offers from next Monday. Click here to see the current specials.
Special buys for Thursday August 27 include:
CD Language Course – €9.99
Livarno Office Chair – €49.99
Comfort Speakerphone – €11.99
Special buys for Monday August 31 include:
Solar Garden Light… Continue reading »
A post by The Beer Nut at The Beer Nut
I know of only one Indian take-away in Dublin that has phall on its menu. It’s a stupidly hot curry, invented in England to give macho arseholes something else to be obnoxious about, and though I lack a peer group made up of braying idiots, I’m not above a bit of chilli-based machismo. So phall it was.
This prompted a bit of a crisis: curry requires beer, and it was exceedingly unlikely I’d be able to taste much of what I was drinking. Continue reading »
To celebrate the publishing of the book The Country Cooking of Ireland by Colman Andrews, we have one of the books to give away and also for Foodfight readers we have a recipe from the book for you. The competition is after the recipe.
Serves 4
The late cookbook author Theodora FitzGibbon adapted the recipe for this unusual and delicious soup from “a handwritten recipe book, 1735”; she doesn’t specify the family name or country. She does note, though, in her indespensable Irish Traditional Food, wherein her version appears, that “Almonds were immensley popular in richer homes in 18th century Ireland. They were not only used for cakes and puddings, but also with meats, fish, vegetables and in soups.” Watercress is a far more ancient food in Ireland, eaten since prehistoric times.
Combine the milk and cream in a small saucepan over high heat. Add the lemon rind and almonds. Bring almost to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 5 to 7 minutes.
Remove from the heat, cover, and set aside to infuse for about 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, melt the butter in a medium pot over low heat, add the celery, and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon. Add the stock in a slow, steady stream, stirring constantly, and cook for about 5 minutes, continuing to stir until the sauce thickens.
Strain the infused milk into the stock. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Add the watercress and continue to cook for 6 to 8 minutes more.
Puree the soup in a food processor or blender. Adjust the seasoning if necessary.
Serve hot or cold.
To win the book, leave an answer to the following question in the comments: Is it beef or lamb that is the meat in Irish stew?
Those with the correct answer will be added to a draw and the winner will be randomly selected.
A post sponsored by Irish Mist
This is a sponsored post by Irish Mist. Have a look at their Irish Mist Facebook Page and become a fan.
Ingredients:
Oven Temperature: Pre-heat to Gas Mark 6 – 400ºF – 200ºC
Preparation:
1. Soak ham overnight in cold water.
2. Remove ham from the water. Rinse under cold tap.
3. Place skin-side down in a large pan, and cover completely with cold water.
4. Bring slowly to the boil, removing any scum which arises.
5. As soon as it comes to the boil, turn the heat down to a simmer, cover with a lid and cook very gently, allowing 25 minutes to the lb./450g plus 20 minutes extra.
6. Approximately ½ hour before the cooking time is completed, remove the ham from the water and cool a little.
7. Strip the rind and score the fat in diamonds. Place a clove in each diamond and place the ham on a rack in a roasting tin.
8. Paint the ham all over with half the Irish Mist.
9. Mix the sugar and mustard with the remaining Irish Mist and spread on the scored fat.
10. Cook in the pre-heated oven for approximately 30 minutes until the glaze is golden brown. Relax before carving.
Important:
Top up the pan with extra boiling water, whenever necessary.
A post sponsored by Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs
And another competition. Two goodie bags for the movie Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs
Blurb: 
When Flint’s latest machine, designed to turn water into food, accidentally destroys the town square and rockets up into the clouds, he thinks his inventing career is over. Until something amazing happens — cheeseburgers start raining from the sky.