A.  Continue reading »

Daily deals websites are changing the way we eat. The concept is simple and there’s no catch: Groupon.ie offers cheap deals on restaurants, hotels, leisure activities, and beauty treatments.
Here’s a selection of recent Groupon deals.  Continue reading »

It was Friday evening, and we were faced with a dilemma – what to do with ourselves. I’d had a stressed week at work, which when combined with two hours of daily driving, means that I’d finished the week tired and drained. I’d managed to leave an hour early for the weekend, and all I wanted to do was to relax and not do anything strenuous, but he wanted to get out of the house for a bit.  Continue reading »

 
OLDFARM
Redwood
Lorrha
Nenagh
Co. Tipperary
www.OldFarm.ie
 
A few weeks ago, via the Twitter machine, the Chef & I received an invitation to visit Margaret & Alfie O’Farrell at their beautiful home in Tipperary. Less than a one-hour drive from our home in Galway we found a haven for pigs.
I had met Margaret a few times over the summer at different foodie events and had been drawn to the very nature of who she is.  Continue reading »

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WEST CORK WEEKEND
Just back from Clonakilty and a packed two days in the area. First stop was Dillon’s in Timoleague for lunch on Friday and to see owners John and Julie Finn. Highlight here was a multi-fruit pie, worth the trip for this alone. But before that we had a brilliant plateful of Ummera smoked products and just as well as Anthony Creswell soon made an.  Continue reading »

I’m always talking about how good Duck Eggs are! Omelettes are fluffier, sponge-cakes rise better and scrambled eggs taste creamier. Although the cholesterol level in them is a little higher than hen’s eggs, they are worth the odd temptation as they just taste divine and we don’t eat them too often!

A Scotch Egg consists of a hard-boiled egg, wrapped in sausage meat, coated in breadcrumbs, and deep-fried. They are commonly eaten cold, typically with salad.  Continue reading »

With winter days setting in earlier than usual, hearty one pot wonders will once again start to become the star at the Irish dinner table. This stew is a really tasty one pot wonder, that is perfect for the colder days ahead of us. I grew up eating beef and mushy vegetables in my stew, which to be honest ruins the whole stew experience. So I’ve opted for lovely little picking onions, chunky carrots and whole baby potatoes.  Continue reading »

The Foodie Roundup returns for the October Bank Holiday weekend and from next week onward will be joined by a second series of posts in a similar vein. The past two weeks have been consumed with Devious Theatre’s Bash, which finished last night after a six night public run and as I’ve mentioned before, I’ll only do the roundup when there’s been time in the week to actually sit down and digest all that Irish bloggers have to offer.  Continue reading »

Last weekend the entire family had a get together in Dublin for the first time in almost 6 months. Busy lives and competing priorities mean that these meetings, where everybody is present, are a sporadic occurrence these days so it was important that we made the most of it. Ely Bar & Brasserie was our venue of choice and they were kind enough to concoct a superb menu to match our wines.  Continue reading »

Hey Internet, Here are few quick recommendations for places to grab lunch, as captured in recent weeks by my phonecam. Fafie’s Creperie   A CityDeal led us to Fafie’s Creperie on Lower Kevin Street (along with every other patron on a recent Sunday near the voucher expiry date). I’m so glad it did. Fafie’s makes…  Continue reading »

RECIPES FROM A PUMPKIN
youtu.be/ccQnw4uV_X4 latest video from Irish Examiner – Roz Crowley in the kitchen.  Continue reading »

Doonbeg (Co. Clare) launce new food range under the title of "The Lodge Kitchen at Doonbeg"

Doonbeg, the award winning County Clare resort is to launch a collection of artisan food products under the title “The Lodge Kitchen at Doonbeg”. The new range which features many locally sourced ingredients has been created by Doonbeg’s executive head chef, Wade Murphy and his team.  Continue reading »

Due to a small scheduling snaffoo, I was at a loose end a few weeks ago so arranged an impromptu Saturday evening rendezvous with my brother along with a few quiet drinks. I picked up my bro early in the afternoon and we head off to various local suppliers for treats to enjoy. By the time we were finished foraging it was still early so we went for a quick bite in the French paradox in Ballsbridge (a decision that we would regret later in the evening).  Continue reading »

This is Donal Skehan, isn’t he lovely? More on that later. This Friday I’ll be locking horns in a debate with some premier Irish and international food writers at Savour Kilkenny. The topic is “Irish cuisine – embarrassment of riches or plain embarrassment?” Funnily enough I could debate either side of this but on Friday I’m on the “embarrassment” bench.  Continue reading »

This was the first week since before the summer that the heat lamp behind my desk had to be switched on. Autumn is well and truly underway and that signals the start of soup season. So here is a surefire soup recipe to heat the belly through on a cold afternoon, or to be enjoyed as a starter to any meal.  Continue reading »

Four Little Piggies…

As most of you know, I am working with the lovely people from Old Farm in a really exciting Mexican Cooking Demo this November, so when Margaret & Alfie asked us over to see the farm last Saturday and taste some of their amazing free range pork products, we were really quick to say yes.  Continue reading »

October 21st is National Pumpkin Cheesecake Day, and this is a food holiday that is sure to please all of your friends and family. Keep reading about the tips and tricks to making a pumpkin cheesecake, and how you can get a head start on cooking for Halloween this weekend.
For National Pumpkin Cheesecake Day, there are lots of great ways to celebrate. Here are some great recipes that you can cook up to enjoy with your family.  Continue reading »

Twitter can be really good to me sometimes. Last week, I saw a tweet from Stoneybatter gastropub, L. Mulligan Grocer, offering places at a whiskey tasting where Tullamore Dew whiskey would be paired with specially made desserts from the L. Mulligan team. Best of all, places were free! One email later and I had secured two places at the event.

Glasses at the ready for Tullamore Dew at L.  Continue reading »

I thought I had better post a Halloween recipe to the blog considering it is just around the corner and I have already started posting Christmas recipes.  Apologies for that again.  Brack was always popular in our house.  Dad loves a fruit cake and my sister is rather fond of dried fruit concoctions too.  Even though I didn’t eat it I was always given a slice, just to see if I would be lucky enough to find the ring baked inside.  Continue reading »

To be honest, I’ve being far too nice to you lot with icecream and birthday competitions, but I’ve had rather a nice few weeks what with the Birthday, followed by the epic holiday and now I’ve a fantastic new job on the horizon so yet again, I am sharing the love…
So, babaduck.com in association with Groupon.ie has a competition for all of my very lovely and very much appreciated readers!  We.  Continue reading »