Cook ahead, shop ahead, think ahead – those are the main points of Carmel Somers’ first cookbook. Somers is the chef/owner of the Good Things Café, an acclaimed restaurant and popular cookery school in Durrus, West Cork. Eat Good Things Every Day, however, is not in the least bit cheffy.  Continue reading »

Monterey – Bacon, Eggs & Hash Brown

Monterey – Pancakes

Las Vegas – Room service in The Venetian

Chicago – the healthiest breakfast we ate all week – pancakes with some healthy fruit!

Chicago – Poor Man’s Skillet at the Tempo Café. (Shouldn’t that be called “Fat Man’s Skillet? )

Napa – Bacon, Toast & Granola

San Francisco – Denver Omelette with the ever-present hash brown.  Continue reading »

So, I loved that bread so much I made it twice. The second time I used mini loaf pans (and if I do it again I’ll cut the cook time by 10 minutes because they were a bit dry). As a result, I got pumpkin-breaded-out and it was sitting in my cake box getting old. Inspiration struck– I’ll make bread pudding with it! And it was so delicious. I hate waste. Cormac loves a good pud or custard, so between the two of us and my little monster we nearly finished it off that evening!  Continue reading »

It’s Thanksgiving tomorrow: the American national day of celebration which, like all the best holidays, is centered around a big delicious meal.  Thanksgiving food is absolutely incredible:  it’s a bit like Christmas dinner in that it has turkey as the centrepiece, and features potatoes and stuffing, but it also uses lots of exotic (to us) ingredients like maple syrup, pumpkins and sweet potatoes.  Continue reading »

Fast forward to Friday afternoon or Saturday. Thanksgiving’s over. You can’t fit another turkey sandwich in you and to be honest really don’t want to. The carcass is sitting in the fridge and you’re sick of the sight of it. You’re tinking ‘get this thing outta my fridge and into the bin’ but……. hoooooold up wait a minute. Instead of doing that how ’bout putting it in a pot with some veggies and making your own stock.  Continue reading »

Breakfast by the Grand Canal

From Damian:

Just had a very agreeable brekkie in Herbstreet on Grand Canal Square (it’s on Hanover Quay, I think). A bap with bacon, a good quality sausage, egg and nice relish plus a tea or coffee for €5. Really good coffee.  The offer seems to run until 11.30 or therabouts. Definitely recommend it.
From Chris Mahon:
This is the only opportunity that I’ve found to make a few people aware of a fantastic feast that a friend and I enjoyed mid August.  Continue reading »

We’re joined today by Irish Times journalist Louise Holden for a special guest post on the politics of shopping.
Grocery shopping has become complex to the point of absurdity. There has been a steady convolution of the simple act of shopping over the last twenty years, but recession brings a new and bewildering twist. How does the politically-sensitive and nutritionally-literate shopper get by on a budget?
Consider fruit.  Continue reading »

It’s give-away time in November as we took Curious Wines on the road!

As promised, all visitors to the Good Wine Show were entered into a draw to win a couple of unique mixed cases, featuring four wines each from the three organising wine merchants, Curious Wines, Bubblebrothers and Karwig Wines. Additionally, we had four cases of New Zealand wine to give away, for those purchasing at the Good Wine Show as well as our first Dublin tasting at the start of the month.  Continue reading »

Reading on BBC online, it appears that the latest conflict between Lebanon and Israel is all about hummus – please note that’s hummus not Hamas.
The delicious spread, made from chickpeas is usually blended with sesame paste, olive oil, lemon juice, salt and garlic. It has been eaten in the Middle East for centuries, though its exact origin is unknown.
However, the Lebanese claim it as their own while the Palestinians also claim to have invented it.  Continue reading »

If greens are the outcasts of the vegetable world, then Brussels sprouts must be out-and-out exiles. I think they look like little alien heads, but I love how Kitchen Scraps portrays them, as Mr. B. Russell Sprout, “who lived in a red-brick townhouse on a cobblestone lane near the bank where he worked. Even the other bankers thought Mr.  Continue reading »

“You just can’t get stuff this fresh – it was picked this morning”, so says Siobhan, a salt of the earth middle aged shopper at Clonmel’s farmers’ market. A massive self-serve bag of salad leaves, complete with nasturtium’s for colour and spice, for 3 euros. This leafy vibrant bag is a million miles from the supermarket option: jaded bags puffed out with inert gas and binned 45% of the time, according to research.  Continue reading »

Organic
College, Drumcollagher hosts Christmas Market Saturday December 5th
2-5pm
Here are some of the second years with their lovely veggies, an here is the blurb for facts and figures, please come and support the event.
Christmas is almost with us and what better way to
celebrate than to support local, homegrown enterprise. The students at the
Organic College (an t’Ionad Glas) in Drumcollagher, Co.  Continue reading »

The countdown to turkey time is on, not to mention the nap that comes after it so I figured I’d give you guys a light healthy salad as well as an option for the veggies who might be headed your way. I’ve been doing a few things with persimmons recently (Persimmon stuffed turkey) since I got them in my CSA box. With my missus being a veggie I thought I’d make her a salad for lunch the last day so this is what the end result was.  Continue reading »

The FOOD&WINE Magazine Christmas show will take place next weekend, November 27 -29 in the RDS, Dublin. The first event of its kind in Ireland, this gastronomic gathering is the perfect way to start the festive season.  Continue reading »

 The other day, I was taking photos of sundaes in the shop, and I’m quite proud of the one above. Then, Róisín arrived with her mother, and things got messy quickly.
I think the following series tells the story:

It must be said that Róisín didn’t have any interest in eating it, but never underestimate how much fun it is to stick your fingers in cream!  Continue reading »

We’re moving house this week and there’s a million and one things to do. The kitchen is mostly packed away and even if I could cook I’m just too tired.
So I nipped into Dunnes to get some quick and preferably healthy convenience food that I could just bung in the oven. I came across the Peppered Venison and Mushroom Pie by Paul Rankin which looked fairly tempting.  Continue reading »

Wintry, seasonal, wonderful

Try this cunning little chestnut cake recipe. It’s moreish and gorgeous, and perfect to have on standby for nibbles now, or great Christmas eats. You can easily freeze it and throw it in the freezer for use at a later date. But you’ll want to eat it now; try it on its own, after dinner with a coffee, or served up as a divine dessert with honey and ricotta cheese.  Continue reading »

“I knew immediately it had enormous potential”, claimed Brent Marris, founder and former chief at Wither Hills, as he looked back on his search in 2003 for a special vineyard property that could become the iconic hub of a future winery. Relying on a vast knowledge of the area built up as a youngster exploring the landscape that is Marlborough, he discovered an exceptional 268 hectare property on the banks of Waihopai River.  Continue reading »

I did promise some great winter warmer meals, and here is one!  Coq Au Vin sounds fancy and complicated buts it’s basically chicken cooked in a creamy wine sauce.  It’s a delicious meal which goes great with steamed vegetables, brown rice, or salad.  The other thing to mention is that this is another dish which can be easily frozen and reheated at your leisure.  Wait until the dish has cooled, place in a freezer bag and place in the freezer.  It should last you up to 3 months.  Continue reading »

How does Ina Garten do it? She can take any recipe and somehow make it 10 times better than any other version. What’s her secret? Maybe it’s that she often roasts vegetables to bring out their natural sweetness, and she’s not afraid of butter or cream either — and lots of it. I’ve been making a potato leek soup from The New Vegetarian Epicure as my standby recipe for years, but no longer (sorry, Anna Thomas).  Continue reading »