Current specials in Dunnes include a selection of €2 specials. Most offers are valid until Saturday February 26. Click here for details.
Current specials at Tesco include 33 per cent off diced beef and three for two on Whiskas catfood. Offer expiry dates vary. Click here for details.
Current specials at SuperValu include a selection of €2 specials. Offers valid until Saturday February 26. Click here for details.  Continue reading »

How often has it happened that you treated yourself to breakfast and ordered scrambled eggs (maybe with bacon, maybe with salmon) and you got served the worste eggs ever…..to all these chefs who can’t make scrambled eggs….. please take a page out of Gordon’s book.  Continue reading »

THE PANTRY 
The Pantry is a cafe, bakery and foodstore in Midleton. It is not the biggest of places but is clean and comfortable and has a well stocked foodie shop with everything from Jim Beam Teriyaki Marinade to Donegal Rapeseed Oil, from the French Lorina Cloudy Lemonade to Cahir’s Sparkling Apple Juice.
Thought I was in for some good basic food when I ordered my Ardsallagh Goats Cheese with.  Continue reading »

Love Paellas!

I don’t get enough fish in my diet, why? Two simple reasons: I hate bones (they make me nervous) and I don’t like fishy smells in the house (yes, yes, it’s mad I know!); when I do get fish, I tend to go for fillets of cod (tail end so there’s little or no bones), salmon or tuna fillets and every now and then I chance a Raywing or a red snapper.  Continue reading »

Love Paellas!

I don’t get enough fish in my diet, why? Two simple reasons: I hate bones (they make me nervous) and I don’t like fishy smells in the house (yes, yes, it’s mad I know!); when I do get fish, I tend to go for fillets of cod (tail end so there’s little or no bones), salmon or tuna fillets and every now and then I chance a Raywing or a red snapper.  Continue reading »

Love Paellas!

I don’t get enough fish in my diet, why? Two simple reasons: I hate bones (they make me nervous) and I don’t like fishy smells in the house (yes, yes, it’s mad I know!); when I do get fish, I tend to go for fillets of cod (tail end so there’s little or no bones), salmon or tuna fillets and every now and then I chance a Raywing or a red snapper.  Continue reading »

I absolutely love to cook and there is always a great sense of achievement and pride when that cooking is complemented by others. They are some that I always want to impress with my culinary skills more than others and that’s my children. I find it so fulfilling when what I cook is actually eaten and enjoyed by my them!  Continue reading »

I have a big admission to make, Im absolutely terrified of cup measurements. For years now I have had monthly subscriptions to US food magazines without ever making one recipe in any of them, all because of the cups! I was brought up to believe that baking was an exact science, one where everything was very carefully measured in ounces and then later grams. Cups, as a result dont make any sense to me and scare me senseless.

the prettiest cake you have ever seen?  Continue reading »

There is something about the whole Gym thing that makes me think of battery farming. I much prefer free-range exercise, particularly as I am fortunate enough to live in one of Ireland’s most beautiful counties.

Sticky Toffee Cupcakes – I’ve fallen for them! 

Free-range exercise offers a dilemma of its own – which route to choose? Which view will be more spectacular today?  Continue reading »

A.  Continue reading »

We got a news shot a few months back to say our 2010 South African wines under the Paarl Heights label would be packaged in new Burgundy-shaped Ecova bottles (pictured). First I’d heard of it, but apparently they use 25% less glass than the traditional bottle.
So the first delivery landed with us this morning (Monday) and I was only reminded again about the Ecova bottles whenever I went to lift a six box.  Continue reading »

Calling all foodies!
A little something to brighten up your Monday we hope! YR are on the look out for the best recipe involving YR original sauce with €1,000 to the winning dish! All you have to do is post your favourite original recipe using YR to their facebook page – ideally upload a photo as well. A highly experienced tasting committee here in Dublin will choose the winner. Closing date end.  Continue reading »

A.  Continue reading »

One must have an appetite for contemporary feeding to fully appreciate FLESH on Sundays at An Cruibin. Cast a sheep’s eye over recent menus and you may gain enough power to break from the self imposed internment that Sundays have become for many a poor sinner.Pigs Head, Teriyaki Shark, Mountain Lamb, Seared Swordfish, Black Sole and Pheasant are but some of the fare on offer and drowned best,.  Continue reading »

Finished decorated dummy cake
(a little bashed around the edges after being transported home)

(Apologies for dark pics but the sky has been depressingly grey lately)
On Sunday the 13th of February I attended a one day Celebration Cakes course in Cooks Academy.  Cooks Academy has recently relocated from Dun Laoghaire to South William Street in Dublin’s City Centre.  Cooks Academy offer a range of courses from 1 month cert courses, 1 week essential cookery courses and weekend workshops, as well as evening and lunch and learn courses.  The venue is light and bright and airy with a demonstration area to one end and a practical learning area with work stations to the other end.  Each station is equipped with the essential utensils needed by each student and any additional utensils or equipment can be easily located around the room. 
Our tutors for the day were Evelyn and Deirdre and they were both super lovey, really helpful and they gave us lots of great tips and tricks to take away with us.  To start off the day Evelyn demonstrated how to make a delicious chocolate truffle cake.  Demonstration over it was time to pick a work station and then bake our choice of chocolate truffle cake or lemon poppy seed cake.  I chose the chocolate truffle cake, not just because of my grá for all things chocolate, but because I am fairly confident in my lemon cake baking but had had an issue with a chocolate truffle cake recently.  I thought it would be best to bake it while the professionals were around so that I could iron out any issues with their help.  There was plenty of hustle and bustle as we all hurried around the room gathering mixing bowls, ingredients and whatever else we needed to mix up our cakes.  It was a bit of a monster cake and my little arms were exhausted from all of the mixing, but got there in the end. 
With our dishes washed up and put away it was time for a cake icing demonstration by Deirdre.  She explained some of the basics to us before starting and then proceeded to cover a dummy cake in almond icing, followed by sugar paste.  She explained some of the more common mistakes made and how to avoid these, and if that fails how to repair them.  It was then our turn to cover our own dummy cakes with sugar paste.  I have covered a fair few round cakes with sugar paste and so opted for a square ‘cake’ so that any problems I came up against could hopefully be addressed and rectified with help from the professionals.  My first problem came in the form of uncooperative sugar paste that decided it was going to roll out into a most ridiculous oblong shape.  Rolling round two proved a better success and I was ready to cover my ‘cake’.  Two sides worked out perfectly as I had guessed but I encountered some problems smoothing out the excess on the remaining sides.  A little bit of help from Deirdre and I had a pretty decently covered ‘cake’ and board bar a few cracks on the corner edges, but sure we can live with that on our first attempt, right?  Continue reading »

Cork Free Choice Consumer Group presents

What’s in our Food?
With Joanna Blythman
Distinguished British investigative journalist and broadcaster who is passionate about good quality foods.

Crawford Art Gallery Café
Thursday 24th Feb at 7.30pm
Entrance 6 euro including tea & coffee.  Continue reading »

FENNS QUAY
Slaney Valley Lamb
The folks at Fenns Quay, including Head Chef Kate Lawlor, were delighted last week to receive their confirmation letter  that they were again on the Michelin recommended list. It is a well deserved recommendation as we discovered, not for the first time, last Friday night.
We had a little celebrating to do ourselves and having enjoyed a similar occasion there last.  Continue reading »

Just the other week I remarked, with regard to Schlenkerla Eiche, at its ease-of-drinking for a doppelbock, a type of beer I associate most with big sticky textures full of burnt caramel. At least, that’s my memory of things like Salvator and Maximator, though it’s a while since I’ve tasted any of them.  Continue reading »

It was a spur of the moment Sunday.
Instead of remaining glued to my weekend pillow, this morning found me beating a path towards the Crawfordsburn Growing Festival in Northern Ireland’s County Down. It was a mission undertaken, as ever, in the name of spuds.

Helen’s Bay, gateway to Crawfordsburn Country Park

Now, the thing about Northern Ireland for a southerner like me, is that it manages to be both foreign and familiar at the same time.  Continue reading »

Just like a puppy, a cranberry is for life you know, not just for Christmas!  I had bought a bag of dried Cranberries in December but had forgotten about them until I did a clearout last week – their ruby squidginess makes them a great baking ingredient & I’ve seen them paired with orange before.  I always like to go one step further and decided to add chocolate to the mix.  Everybody loves chocolate cookies so I knew they would be a hit.  Continue reading »