The Strawberry Field
Sneem
On the road from Sneem (Co. Kerry) to Moll’s Gap, there is a place called A Strawberry Field  where you will find Pancake Cottage, which is open all year round. The views from the garden are splendid but not so last Saturday as the rain was coming and going.
Warm inside Pancake Cottage
We had earlier called to Sneem for a quick walk around, having a look at.  Continue reading »

I am always wary when I make a classic dish like chili as there are a lot of chili aficionados out there, who probably have a lot to say about the exact ingredients that go into a true chili con carne. So, from the outset, I am not claiming that this is an original chili that follows all strict ‘chili guidelines’ (if they exist), it is simply my interpretation of chili. I know technically this dish shouldn’t contain beans, but I like mine with beans.  Continue reading »

I made this for Richard’s birthday about a fortnight ago. He is mad for meringue so I surprised him with a  special pavlova that he could have all to himself. Instead of topping the crunchy-on-the-outside-soft-on-the-inside bowl of sweet and light eggwhite delight with traditional fruit and berries, I decided to go with an Irish Cream whipped topping, and finished later with white chocolate curls scattered over the top before the big celebration. Meringue + Irish Cream + Chocolate.  Continue reading »

I made this for Richard’s birthday about a fortnight ago. He is mad for meringue so I surprised him with a  special pavlova that he could have all to himself. Instead of topping the crunchy-on-the-outside-soft-on-the-inside bowl of sweet and light eggwhite delight with traditional fruit and berries, I decided to go with an Irish Cream whipped topping, and finished later with white chocolate curls scattered over the top before the big celebration. Meringue + Irish Cream + Chocolate.  Continue reading »

Warm Welcome in Mulcahy’s
Walked in off the cold of Henry Street to the warmth of Mulcahy’s Restaurant one evening last week. For a second or two, thought there was no one home but that was just the dim lighting in the Kenmare restaurant.
The cold outside was soon forgotten and, after a warm welcome, we were shown to our comfortable seats and, now accustomed to the lighting (it wasn’t.  Continue reading »

Irish horses destined for the food chain

As the horsemeat scandal widens to include giant food labels like Nestle and the worlds biggest beef processor JBS, again we see food fraud not happening at farm level but at secondary processing level and the trade of “beef” in a snakes and ladders game encompassing a global set of players.In short, the DNA tests carried out in Ireland by the FSAI opened a Pandora’s Box of food chain nightmares.  Continue reading »

Photo: worldirish.com

There’s a hamper of Irish treats for grabs over on the WorldIrish website. Bags of Tayto and Banshee Bones (surely one of the most quintessentially Irish snacks), Cadbury’s Curly Wurlys, and Chef ketchup sit alongside some very 1980′s packets of soup and – ugh – Club Milks. The hamper is provided by Foods of Éire.
Not the healthiest box of treats, no, but still enough to keep you sásta for at least a month.  Continue reading »

I do! I do! But I’m too lazy to drive to McDonald’s… Good thing I can make this copycat recipe!
If you have a blender you can make this popular shake at home anytime of year. If you’re more of a visual learner, we even created a how-to video.
Ingredients:

-3 C. vanilla ice cream
-1 1/4 C. milk, 2% or whole
-1/4 tsp. mint extract
-4 drops green food coloring
-Whipped cream, to top with
-Green sugar sprinkles, to top with
 -cherry

Directions

1.  Continue reading »

A few weeks back, I challenged my friends Lucy and Ferdia to a Come Dine With Me 2013. Very 2011, I know, but we had been talking ALL year about cooking for each other last year and it never happened. I thought putting a competitive spin on it might get us all together long enough to cook a meal for each other.  Continue reading »

Darina asked me to get the word out about some special transition year courses they’ve added at Ballymaloe. The demand for places on our Transition Year Work Experience Program in recent years has been very high, and they are now fully subscribed until September 2014. They have therefore decided to offer a few, One Week…  Continue reading »

Today I’m showing my leftover love to Bubble and Squeak; known in some parts as the Housewife’s Monday Lunch.
Traditionally if you made a Sunday Roast and you had any leftovers you’d pop the meat into a pie or a bake on Monday. In fact it’s pretty similar to how I work a roast. Sometimes I will take the meat and pop it into the freezer for another day but the main idea is that I use every last bit that there is for taking.  Continue reading »

Peter made passing reference yesterday to his article getting deals on food that appeared in this week’s Pricewatch in the Irish Times; but I think it’s worth a post of its own.  In it he visits a range of retailers – ‘euro’ shops, ethnic shops and market stalls – to see how their prices compare to those in the supermarkets.  The results are really interesting and there’s some good tips on picking up brand name items in slightly unexpected places.  Continue reading »

Eating at BT Dublin
Parmesan crusted chicken
Shop ‘til you drop they say but there really is no need to go that far, especially if you are in the Brown Thomas Store in Dublin. Here they have a superb in-house restaurant on the third level, run by the sisters Peaches and Domini Kemp. It is a stylish bright area with stylish bright food but the style is always accompanied by a genuine.  Continue reading »

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If you’re heading for the Healy Pass, call to Manning’s in Ballylickey to fuel up.Full story and more pics here.  Continue reading »

“Growing in a Different Climate” is the theme of this year’s Organic Growers of Ireland (OGI) conference. The event, to be held in the County Arms Hotel, Birr, is on Wednesday 20th of February.
“Climate change is very pertinent to growers and also something that had not been looked at in any great depth” says Jason Horner of the OGI, organiser of the conference.  Continue reading »

Beertastic

Time to grab some beer and head out for a couple of events with Eight Degrees Brewing.
First up, I’m taking part in a Slow Food East Cork event at Ballymaloe Cookery School tomorrow night with Cam, aka the Eight Degrees Brewing Aussie. He’ll be talking about Irish craft beer, microbrewing and setting up a small food business in the middle of a recession while I’ll be concentrating on encouraging everyone to savour, match and cook with Irish craft beer.  Continue reading »

Fourteen of Ireland’s most-talented and gifted student Chefs have won their place in the finals of the 2013 All-Ireland Knorr Student Chef of the Year competition. 

Representing culinary colleges and institutes from across Ireland and for the first time, Northern Ireland, the student chef finalists will travel to IT Tralee on Wednesday, 27th February to battle it out for the title of ‘Best Student Chef’ in Ireland’s premier student chef competition.  Continue reading »

In today’s Irish Times Pricewatch, you’ll find my article on value (or lack of value) outside the main supermarkets.
Aldi and Lidl now control 14.4 per cent of the Irish grocery market, with their growth largely driven by customer perceptions that they offer the best value. Tesco, Dunnes, Superquinn and SuperValu have over 75 per cent between them.  Continue reading »

Just a little note to say that i am still around and will be cooking up some new items in the coming weeks, as well as having a good play around with some ideas.
The last few weeks have brought a lack of internet, isn’t it odd how we rely on it so much now and a busy time at work. However after a huge catch up and clear out i am back up and running and ready to get a good plan under way for the year.
Until the next post, enjoy all your baking!  Continue reading »