New posts coming soon

I have to apologise for not having posted anything lately. I promise I will get better at it again. I have some plans for the coming months - of course foodie plans. Cheesemaking, wine & cider making, my own spiced beef etc..... so please watch this space

Caz & Jan

Congratulations to Caz & Jan who got married on Friday. It was one of the nicest weddings I have been to (and I am not saying that because I am mad about the two of them). Both are amazing people and they made sure that everyone had a good time at their wedding. Caz looked simply beautiful and guess, Jan was the envy of every man in that church :-)

The ceremony was performed in St. Patrick's Church, Lower Glanmire Road and the reception afterwards was held at Fleming's Restaurant in Tivoli. Both are foodies so it was important that the food was exceptional - and it was. Caz & Jan are both very laid back people and they didn't want the seating plan and formal dinner - so they arranged for a BBQ at Flemings. And Michael Fleming did not disappoint. The food was amazing - I was lucky to grab a bit of the lobster - with all tastes catered for.

I was very honoured when Caz & Jan asked me to create the wedding cake for them. Let me tell you, I didn't sleep for about a week - I was so worried that they might not like it. True in their style, they didn't want a traditional wedding cake but 3 layers combining a chocolate biscuit layer cake, a Dutch spiced apple cake and the smallest one a fruit cake but no icing.....both don't like sugarpaste.....I am not the best in getting chocolate very smooth but I tried my best. Testing all kind of ganaches I came finally up with a lovely mixture that worked. Eve St Leger of Eve's Chocolate was a big help as she tried and tested some mixtures for me as well. Her chocolates are just amazing and there is nothing this woman doesn't know about chocolate.

Anyhow, Caz' favourite colour is purple and her favourite flowers are orchids, so it became clear very quickly that I am using these 2 components. Thankfully, they loved the cake and I was a very happy woman.

I also made the invitations, printed the boxes for her favours and made chocolates for the favours. I was happy to add to the sparkle of the wedding - 2 of my best friends had a marvellous day and I wish them all the best for the future :-)....by the way, I can also be hired as wedding planner :-)

What a busy week so far

....and I want to share some of it with you.

Last Saturday I went to the Slow Food event in Gort Na Nain and what a day it was. The sun was shining, the sky was blue, the wind had a nice blow to keep us cool, Ultan Walsh was just simply the nicest guy on the planet and his partner Lucy was not only amazingly nice but also generous beyond believe. We were treated to a tour along his farm which I may add is impressive. He was so patient and answered all questions. After the tour we had the delights of a wonderful lunch prepared by Lucy who is actually very very good. We had quiches (yum), leafy salads, potato salad, homemade bread (sourdough - and I really have to get my starter up and breathing again), chutneys and and and.....we tucked in and didn't want to leave.

The farm has a guesthouse attached and when you stay there you can have dinner in the house but otherwise they are not open for lunch - which is really a pity cause it could be a foodie destination.

As it was Caz's birthday, a few girls headed to Cafe Bar Deli in Cork. I have been there a once before and had a simple lunch but it was my first time for dinner. We were 10 girls (okay okay, Nick got smuggled in again - next time he will have to wear a skirt) and the waiter dealt very well with us. We had to ask for the daily specials but he knew them (the little note in his pocket helped him a lot) and the food came swiftly. Food was okay - nothing to write home about but the price in this case matched the food. Cheap and cheerful is the judgement in this restaurant and since it was packed to the ceiling - the right recipe for Cork

Sunday, I cooked a 4 course dinner for Anita's dinner party. She had invited her family around to celebrate her mum's birthday. Since I adore Anita's mum, it was a pleasure to cook for her. I made stuffed mushrooms as canapes, onion and goats' cheese tarts as first starter, roasted pepper soup for second. The main was individual beef wellingtons (I used Fois Gras instead of normal liver pate and it was a bit too strong for Anita's taste), potato dauphinoise which Anita served with mangetout. The dessert was a three layered chocolate mousse. Food went down a treat I heard so I was happy enough - just very weird not to be there (I am in fact a control freak and like to be hands on) but Anita managed well to heat and serve the food.

Tuesday I was with the ladies from the ICA Grenagh for their annual BBQ at Ena's house. A pity that most of the ladies weren't too keen on tasting the wine but the few who did, enjoyed it. All took the little brochure I made home with them - so hopefully they try some more wine.

And ever since I am busy finalising the entries for the Grow Bake Cook Award which I am so excited about. We got some really nice entries and the award ceremony will be a blast as we got bread from Arbutus and wine from Bubble Brothers - both have supported the award immensely. Hope to see some of you at the Feasta Market on Sunday where we will be doing the tasting and judging.

But of course I still had time to have some lovely wine myself. You remember that I got this 12 bottle strong delivery from Curious Wines the other day and had 2 more bottles of the wine. One was the Paarl Heights from South Africa (2008), a dry not too heavy full berry flavoured rose which was nice on its own (and I was even on my own and finished the bottle after I done my weeding duty in the garden) and when Anita came yesterday we were able to finish a bottle of Quinta El Refugio Toro 2007 - a Spanish rose which is more girlie than the Paarl Heights and the Trempanillo grape brings out the strawberry flavour which of course makes it a doodle to drink with a girlie chat. So far, I had 3 wines from the delivery (3 more to go) and I am pleasantly surprised. None of the wines int he box are over €10 which makes it a giggle to buy even when not on offer.

So that's me for now....

Imagine a world without fish

Let me get political again (don't do that very often, so keep reading). I take it for granted sometimes that I can buy anything I want at any given time. And it is only when I see movies like the one below that make me re-think my attitudes towards my behaviour. The movie below highlights what could happen if we continue to eat fish (and I guess it goes for anything really) like we do.



Will I stop eating fish now? - Nope, I like it too much to be honest. But it has been a while since I bought cod (that doesn't mean that I don't order it in restaurants). Farmed salmon is just as good (I bet only a few real gourmets will actually taste the difference between wild and farmed salmon). So I do try to do my part in protecting endangered fish but is that enough??? Does this take the fun out of cooking and eating? I still enjoy both actually. We can't be all veggies, the world couldn't deal with that either.

Anyhow, enjoy what ever you are eating at the moment. It has been made, caught, cooked for your pleasure.

Augustine's

It has been a year since I have been to Augustine's and it was bloody time to go again. Last time I was ecstatic about the food and the service and I was eager to see if they were able to maintain the level - especially as the head chef has left in the meantime to go to England and they took on a new chef.

My worries were unfounded. The restaurant itself looked as polished as it did last year with white table linen and sparkling glasses. The front of house (I keep forgetting to ask her name) remembered us from a year ago (I have to admit, we are unforgettable) and welcomed us back like old friends.

The menu changes regularly and always includes a vegetarian option. Last year it was Risotto Nero (even better than Ivory Tower's version - sorry Seamus) and this time it was Mushroom Risotto (you will say that it sounds boring - but keep reading). The risotto was served with truffle oil and they weren't skimpy on the oil, so that the flavour of the truffles came through nicely. We started talking to the front of house (and I am deeply sorry not to have the name, let's call her Mrs Cashman) and when I told her that I had risotto last time, she offered straight away that the chef would cook something different for me (loved the fact that it was possible but I am glad I took the risotto). Anyway, here is the menu:

Steve: Starter - Tuscan Vegetable Soup with gnocchi (one word from a person who doesn't really like soups - YUM), Main - Hake wrapped in Parma Ham (came with Parsnip puree and potato gratin - perfectly cooked fish), Dessert - We shared a platter of 8 tasting dessert.

Me: Starter - Ravioli stiffed with goats' cheese flavoured with smoked paprika (pasta was just perfectly cooked and the filling was very flavoursome indeed), Main - the mushroom risotto (the truffle oil made the risotto an experience), served with a Parmesan cookie, dessert - shared a platter with Steve

The Dessert Tasting Platter arrived on 2 plates and included raspberry mint jelly, lemon mousse, white chocolate soup, shortbread, brownies, cherry ice cream, and to save my life, I can't remember the other 2 desserts (I didn't have my notebook with me and also forgot the camera). But let's say, it looked not only amazing but was extremely yummy.

Since good old Steve had to drive, I had a Prosecco Le Contesse (available from Wines Direct €13.45) to start with. For the main I choose Domaine de Millet Rose 2007 which was fresh and crisp but went well with the risotto as it was dry and strong enough to cope with the mushrooms and truffle oil. The dessert wine was Muscat de Rivesaltes Domaine Gardiés Flor 2006- quite peachy but the acidity cut nicely through the different desserts.

Bill came to €86 which was a bargain compared to the food we had (I only had glasses of wine).

Occasion: Steve and mine 10th anniversary

My Local Food Heroes in Cork

I am quite picky when it comes to where I buy my food. Especially when I am cooking for friends. Although I always praise them when I am there...I think I should 'shout' it to the 'Rest of the World'. Okay, here they are:

• For Meat - O'Flynn's Brothers in Marlboro Street (they even tell you how to cook the meat) just great. Always a smile on their face (Simon and Patrick know their meat).
• For Fish - The Good Fish Shop in Ballincollig (the girls in there might not know what cockles are, but they are friendly and they fillet the fish if you want to). Prices are much lower than O'Connells in the English Market although they would have more choice. For Salmon - the little stall next to Iago - no better salmon. I think his name is Willie Martin.
  
• For Pesto - it has to be Iago in the English Market. It is pricey but worth it - unless you want to make it yourself.
• For spices and ethnic food - Mr Bells in the English Market. Great value, I buy all my rice and dried pulses here
• For cheese - Iago, On the pigs back and the lovely guy at the farmer's markets (keep forgetting his name - but he knows his cheese).
• For wine - It has to be mostly Bubble Brothers. Austin knows his stuff and his food-wine matching skills are second to none. Saying that, Tesco's got some great wines as well. Barry from Wine Buff in Washington Street is a lovely guy who likes to share his knowledge
• For veggies - My dad. I have to admit that I am spoilt here as we store our veggies throughout the year. We freeze our garden produce fresh and we are just finishing our green beans. But otherwise, you can't beat farmer's markets. But again, price matters in times like these, so don't hesitate to go to a supermarket.
• For poultry - again, I normally ask my dad if he can bear a chicken or a goose and if he can, he is slaughtering it for me. Otherwise I go to the English Market (I never ever buy poultry in a supermarket). I only attempted once to buy chicken from the Chicken Inn and although I stopped halfway through - this had nothing to do with the quality of the meat but simply with the attitude of the person behind the counter. I walked away and never came back.... So I buy mostly from Moynihan's and so far haven't been disappointed.
  

That's about it....let me know where you buy your produce and who your local food heroes are. We should celebrate them

Skibbereen Food Festival Part 3

Having had a great Friday, I had of course great expectations for Saturday. Mona has asked me what time I wanted breakfast and we agreed on 8:30. When I came down, there was no sign of her (and I even waited a bit)...so I went upstairs again to relaxed a bit more. By 9:45 she came out in a fury as her alarm clock was still showing 7:15.....but that didn't stop her to prepare a lovely breakfast consisting of a fruit plate with melon, mixed berries and yogurt and fruit coulis in a very attractive way presented. The 'main course' was slices of very good bacon (saw it, but didn't eat it - forgot to mention that I am a veggie), Welsh Rarebit, fried egg on toast, grilled tomato and pan fried mushrooms. Brown bread and very good butter completed the morning feast.

I was ready to see the country market which was held at the car park. A great mixture of food producer and car boot. I decided to go onto the boat trip offered (Ten island Tour) so I headed to Baltimore. It was my first time in Baltimore...and as nice as the day was, you can't do anything but sailing....anyway, I had a stroll around the village and waited for the boat to arrive. Met Monica Murphy from Le Febvre with her two 'golden' grandsons and we stayed together on the boat and had a lovely chat - not wine related this time ;-). food offered on the boat were sandwiches and cakes with some lovely red and white wine (didn't get to see the label but the red wine was lovely although cooled).

After the boat trip which lasted 2.5 hours, I headed home to open a lovely bottle of 1998 Produttori del Barbaresco...which went so well with the cheese I still had from the night before. Another day which was spent the way it was intended to be.

Sunday morning saw me heading back to Skibbereen (guess the car finds its way by itself by now) for the open air food and craft market. And I am glad I did as it was the type of market we should have more than just once a year. There were food producer, crafters and gardeners offering their products...and it was hard not to go overboard. You should have seen the cakes, chocolates, chutneys, lemonade, oils, meats etc....Simone from Slowfood Cork City was there to offer some really great olive oil from a small Italian producer. It tasted fresh and summerly...as soon as I have finished the bottle I have still at home, I will head to Interior Living in McCurtain Street in Cork City to get some of this fantastic oil.

The weekend ended with a visit at Lindas who was minding her nephew and niece....learned a new game as well called Hide & Seek...and of course I lost....

Hope you all had a weekend that can match mine ;-)

Leek Week

All good things have to come to an end at some stage and the end is here for my leek week. The last few have been converted into yummy food. And since my camera gave up on me (at least the battery doesn't charge anymore), I can't even give you a picture of the fantastic Leek-Butternut-Quash-Bake I made....and it was yummy. I cooked some sliced leeks in a bit of butter, finished it off with some cream, mustard and white wine. In the meantime I had roasted the butternut squash, which I had cubed, tossed in a bit of oil. Mixed it all together and poured it into a shallow ovenproof dish. Melted some butter, mixed breadcrumbs with chopped nuts and parmesan cheese and poured the melted butter into it. Stirred until the breadcrumbs were coated with the butter and sprinkled it over the leek mixture....and off it went into the oven for about 20 minutes.....hmmmmmmmmmmmmmm wish you could have seen my face....;-)

I have now lots of butternut squash.....so be prepared to get some ideas from me...happy cooking

Leek Part 3

Leek Week is still going strong….Made a leek quiche….nothing to write home about but comfort food as it should be…..a lovely leafy salad and a nice dressing….and you are sorted ;-)

My herb garden

Over the last few weeks I started to complete my little herb garden and I think I am almost done. I have now Lemon Verbena (still very grateful to Kate for that), Lemon Balm, Moroccan Mint, Curley Parsley, Oregano, Purple Sage, Thyme and Basil….so I should be prepared for almost any cooking fest….;-) Not sure if I can grow Tarragon outside….(by the way, made some lovely tarragon vinegar the other day)….

...and the leek week continues

And we continue the leeky week. Today I made some lovely supper for me….creamed leeks with a baked egg. For that I cooked some sliced leeks in butter until soft but not browned and added a bit of cream and cooked it for a few minutes until the cream thickened a bit. Seasoned it with my herbed salt and some nutmeg. Greased two ramekins with butter and poured the cooked leeks into them. Broke an egg in each dish and drizzled a bit of cream around the egg yolk. Baked it in a bain marie for about 10 minutes (I like my yolk runny) and may I say….the dish was a nice supper dish on a dark and coldish August night (by the way, I even had the fire lightening). It may also be a nice starter….have to serve that next time.

Leek Weeks Starts here

My dad and myself had to pull all the leeks as the wet weather made the leeks go to seeds…I personally prefer them young and thin as they are much tender and sweeter than the biggen ones. My mum is freezing most of her share of the leeks but I love them fresh so in the next couple of days, I will be trying a lot of dishes with leeks and you can read all about my week of leeks…

Today for example I made a lovely risotto. Simply heat olive oil in a pan, add the sliced leeks and fry until soft but not brown. Add the risotto rice and coat with the oil and keep frying for a couple of minutes. Add some white wine and - while stirring - cook until the wine has disappeared. Then add hot stock (fresh stock makes for a better risotto) a ladle at a time. Just before the rice is ready, add defrosted peas and some chopped sage…..and et voila…..a perfect risotto which I have to say put a big smile on my face

Bottle Stopper Mania

May I introduce you to my selection of bottle stoppers??? I started the collection 3 years ago when I saw some funky Christmas stoppers at Brennans in Cork City...at this stage it is more about Christmassy stoppers but I am always on the lookout of some more....what do you think??

Irish Farmer's Markets

Sofie suggested recently that I should join a Farmer's Market to sell my preserves (I brought a jar of homemade cheese along) as she thinks they would sell like hot stones. That got me thinking....why not. So I went out to get some information....and do some planning....

The following questions needed to be answered by myself...:

1. What produce shall I sell
2. What do I need in order to make the produce
3. Which market should I choose
4. What are the costs involved
5. How much do I have to charge?
6. Are there regulations I have to consider

To the last question....yeap there are regulations (would have been to easy otherwise). You will need a public liability insurance to cover up to a minimum of €1.4m. And depending on the food you are selling, you will need one or more certificates from the food board. If you are preparing food at home for re-selling you will need a cert from NSAI called I.S 344:2002 etc etc etc...I started to read about it and thought then....that life is too short (I only consider it a past time and not my main means of support).

Then, what are the costs involved? First of all, I only use jam jars I already have (clever brains call it recycling) and there were always enough to make a batch and give it to friends as gifts but suddenly, I tried to buy jam jars....and surprise surprise, I didn't find any. I got 2 jars from Brennans for 3.50 each (considering the costs of the food added....not feasible I think) - and that would answer also the question on what to charge - a fortune at that.

And these information before I actually decided what to produce....I didn't even try to find answers for the rest of the questions. So I will continue to make my chutneys, jams, relishes and the cheeses....just for fun and friends....

But I take a bow to all the great producers out there who went through the bureaucracy to stand at the market in rain, wind and hail (and the odd sunny day) and are always great in sharing their knowledge.....I admire you all and I will keep coming and buying but no selling - for sure :-)

I am back

...I know it has been a while but now I am back. I didn't have access to broadband in the last few weeks and uploading stuff on a dial-up connection is a nightmare.

Didn't do much in the last 2 weeks other than relaxing and relaxing. Done a bit of cooking but not much actually. Invited myself back to Clonakilty....a bit cheeky but worth my while. Marjorie and myself cooked together some Indian dishes from Atul Kochhar's cookbook and it was yummy. We cooked spuds in a melon seed paste which had a nice kick to it as we added a bit of chilli. The chickpea curry was to die for with a real punch of chilli added to it. Forgot my camera and therefore no pics. We then headed out to Inchidony again and had a lovely walk down the beach and watched some brave surfer facing the 'waves'. We had a small bite to eat at the hotel and headed then back to Clon to jump right into the mad nightlife... ;-) Next day we decided that Italian is on the menu and we paid Mio in Clonakilty a visit. Nice food - nothing to rave about but also nothing to give out about. A stroll through Clon emptied my purse a bit but filled my shopping bag nicely :-)

Gordon and Marjory prepared some lovely samosas and I ate again too much but gosh, they were yummy. Gordon made them with puff pastry rather than the pastry the Indians normally use....that way it is a lot easier to re-create the dish.

Sunday, I cooked rabbit (dad had to get rid of some of his rabbits as the baby-rabbits needed some space). Marinated the rabbit with some oil, white wine and brandy, garlic and chilli. After a couple of hours of marinating it was thrown into the oven on a medium heat and the result I heard was tasty and tender....at least it looked the part. A visit in Hosford was a bit disappointing as I hoped that the Farmer's Market a bit bigger was but at least I got a honeysuckle for Sofie.

Monday saw me heading to Midleton to pay Sofie a visit. She loved the plant and we 'celebrated' by going to Shanagarry (Stephen Pearson had a sale on) and after a stroll around the galerie we went to the beach and had a lovely walk - a prefect ending to a lovely weekend.

And I promise that you will get some nice pics from the kitchen garden in the next few days.... so long

Came back Saturday night and enjoyed a lovely glass of rose and called it an early night.

My Weekend

It is Monday again and I can look back at a lovely weekend. Friday after work I went to town to get a nice piece of beef filet at O’Flynn’s Brother as Lorraine, Jill and Wendy were coming for dinner on Saturday. So, after putting the beef in the fridge, I drove to Anita who prepared a scrumptious risotto for us. She made also a lovely starter with tortillas (2 tortillas filled with mixed spicy veggies and baked in the oven) – really yummy. She offered a nice cooling Martini to go with the starter….and of course a really soft and smooth Prosecco. Main course as I said was a really yummy risotto and for afters we had the chocolate terrine I prepared the day before, which Anita liked very much). The Amaretto she served with it underplayed nicely the rich chocolate.

Got up early the next morning to start on my vegetable stock. I also wanted to make the pineapple soup from Gordon Ramsay’s *** Chef cookbook….A lot of work for almost no pineapple juice. I peeled the pineapple, removed the core and cut it into chunks. I then tossed the fruit in sugar and pan-fried them until they were slightly caramelized. Pureed the pineapple and passed it through a sieve and chilled the collected juice after topping it up with sparkling wine and some pineapple juice. The soup was supposed to be served with a fromage frais foam. For that I mixed milk and fromage frais. Heated stock syrup with lemon juice and let it reduce a bit. Soaked some gelatine and added it to the syrup. After a short cooking period I whisked it into the fromage frais and chilled until set. I also wanted to serve the soup with chilli syrup for which I heated some of the stock syrup and sprinkled in some dried chilli flakes and let it infused for a while. As I said…a lot of work which was not worth the effort. The fromage frais foam should have been applied with a soda siphon but according to good old Gordon…..it should also have worked with being whisked with an electric beater – for the records….it didn’t.

The rest of the dinner worked out a bit better. As a canapé I served Roquefort biscuits with walnuts. The first starter was Mushroom Risotto Cakes served with homemade tomato chutney. Second starter was an Indian Pea Soup. Main course then was the beef filet which I stuffed with prawns and crabmeat. This was served with herbed rice and creamed leeks. Until then I was kind of okay with the food…until it came to the flipping dessert….don’t get me wrong, the flavour was nice but it would have been perfect as a cocktail rather than a dessert. One dish down in Ramsay’s ***.

With the canapés I served Prosecco which I got from Sabrina and as Saturday afternoon was so sunny and lovely, we sat in the garden and enjoyed the sparkly wine. With the two starters I served a Chenin Blanc (not sure who gave me that wine but it went so well with the cakes and soup) and a nice rich Tempranillo which I had opened around 3 o’clock. All in all the food was okay but the company was excellent. I really enjoyed the night..

Sunday was spent in a lazy dazy state….

And since I got a dial up connection at home...it is almost impossible to upload pics.....sorry guys....

Chocolate Anyone ??

Anita invited me over tonight and so I was thinking what to bring...I know she loves chocolate so I decided to try something new....a chocolate mousse terrine....For that I roasted and skinned some hazelnuts and processed them together with a tablespoon of flour and some caster sugar until well combined. Eggwhites were whisked with Creme of Tartar and some more caster sugar until stiff. Folded the nut flour into the eggwhites, poured it all into a square tin and baked it for about 20 minutes. White and milk chocolate was melted separately and each was mixed with dissolved gelatine and an egg yolk each. I added some vanilla extract to the milk chocolate. The meringue was cut into slices and then put on the bottom of a loaf tin (I used individual ones) and then layered with the two types of chocolates - separated by another slice of hazelnut meringue). All that was put in the fridge to set and this morning a very attractive terrine smiled at me....hope that Anita will love this type of mousse
Anyhow....I have no idea what else is on other than that the Crosshaven Week and the Arts Week in Kinsale are at their height this weekend and that I will cook dinner tomorrow night for Lorraine, Jill and Wendy (still owe Wendy a proper dinner since the last time, she had to eat between piles of fabric for hand puppets ;-) . So watch this space for a review of the weekend.

All of you out there.....have fun at the weekend....and enjoy good food and wine...

My Weekend (2)

As already mentioned, we started the Sunday morning with scrambled eggs and roasted peppers. It was actually a morning where you would love to cuddle up with a blanket and a good book but Marjorie got other ideas and so we went to the sea side - not difficult when living in Clonakilty. We went to Glandore, a lovely little village at the sea - quiet and sleepy on a Sunday morning (but I don't want to be there with hundreds of tourists swarming in). We found a charming old church and walked up to it. Unfortunately it was closed and it was only used for service during the months of July and August (I bet we were too early for mass). So we wandered around a bit and Marjorie told me how she used to spend time up there when she was a kid...(and that wasn't too long ago). By the time we were finished with the walk and the mist got through the cloths - hunger started to kick in and so we headed back to Clonakilty and went to Richy's Bar and Bistro in Wolfetone Street.

It was a lovely restaurant with stylish interior. And it seems to be family friendly....too family friendly. We were greeted by the waitress with 'hi guys, how you doin' and pointed to a free table next to a family with one child in a kiddy chair. I don't go into the discussion if kids should be in restaurants or not.....this particular one shouldn't have been (or the parents shouldn't have been) and after 10 minutes we asked for a new table further away.

The walls of the restaurant are filled with magazine articles of Richy's (the restaurant was opened by no other than Bertie Ahern) and Richy even published a cookbook. The lunch menu didn't look impressive but the a la carte one showed some promise. Unlucky for us, it was only available after 5pm. We weren't that hungry so Gordon and I ordered goats' cheese tart with buttered leeks and Steve went for the seafood chowder. My tart came crumbled with a big fat slice of goats' cheese. Underneath the cheese were some sad looking leeks whose original colour could only be assumed. The side salad was simply just a slice of tomato, slice of cucumber, a bit of diced onion and I think I saw a drop of balsamic. Steve liked his chowder. Gordon and Steve chose fish and chips as the main, while went for the chicken breast stuffed with mushrooms wrapped in bacon and mash. The side vegetables were kohlrabi, cauliflower and carrots with no seasoning and the few carrots being the only colour in the whole dish. Gordon's fish was dry and the side salad seems to be standard. I tried the baked potato.....lucky me that I wasn't hungry as it was the smallest potato I have seen in a long time. At least they were generous with the sour cream. I wanted to see if the desserts at least are something to write home about so I asked for the banoffi pie which came in a pastry case, warmed and topped with ice cream. It was actually nice although it was the first banoffi pie I had warm. Who ever is responsible for the pastry in this restaurant should go back to catering college as they leave a lot to wish for. Marjorie loves sticky toffee pudding and she loved her portion.

Will I go again - maybe in the evening. Does this restaurant got potential?? It could. The chef is definitely ambitious but not quite there yet. His staff needs to be trained properly as they couldn't cope with all the little people around them, cleaning up was very slow (tables were wiped but food that was on the floor was left there so I had the pleasure of stumbling on some rice cakes) and some of the waitresses didn't even know what they were serving. I bet Richy wants to be up-market.....way to go in my humble opinion.

After coming back to Marjorie's lovely home, we had a nice cup of tea and got back on the road to Cork. I could have stayed on another month or so.....one thing is sure, I will be back for more.

My weekend

I love making plans – sticking to them is a different matter altogether. Came home Friday night to get ready to meet Sofie and Linda. Plan was we go for a bite to eat and then to the cinema….we never made it to the cinema. We went to Bacco in Chapel Lane in Ballincollig. A lovely little restaurant with friendly staff. Linda loves mozzarella, so went for the salad, tomatoes and cheese while I had the bruschetta. We chose a Sardinian wine and it went well with the food we ordered. For the second bottle, we asked to leave it to breathe a bit and it improved the deep richness of the wine. Sofie skipped the starter and had Ricotta Cannelloni, while Linda went for the steak and I opted for pan-fried cod with tomatoes and olives. This wasn’t first class food but comfort pure. Your next door Italian that didn’t pretend to be something they are not. The staff was very patient with a couple of girls who got gigglier by the second. We finally got the hint when the staff started to eat their own food and we noticed that we were the last ones. Sofie had enough of Linda and me giggling and laughing, so Kevin (Linda’s poor boyfriend) was put in charge to look after us and Sofie went home. But the 2 gigglers decided that the night was young and that we needed some more entertainment. So Kevin had to drive us to town….and seriously, I lost the last few hours a bit (just know that I should not go onto the dance floor…I CAN’T dance).

Anyway, Kevin – all gentleman – drove us home and I giggled my way to bed and into dreamland….the waking up was not so dreamy actually and on advice of my ever so wise mum decided not to risk to get arrested and didn’t go to Mallow as I actually had planned for me. So I spent most of the morning on the couch, drinking plenty of water. But nothing would stop me from going to Clonakilty to visit Marjory and Gordon….and what a wise decision that was. I had a fantastic time. Both are eager cooks with the talent to match it. Keen in Indian food – just like me – they created some amazing dishes. Potatoes roasted with cumin, okra mixed with spices and baked, marinated chicken, lentil dhal and a vegetable that was new to me called Kerella (not the Indian city) which looked a bit like a miniature crocodile. This was simply mind blowing. The first bite was bitter…then it went over to a gentle sweetness and afterwards you got sourness on the back of your gums….Gordon got this recipe from a friend and I hope he is handing it down to me. The basmati rice was fluffy and perfectly cooked, we had tomato salad, onions and freshly made poppadums…Mini-me was in heaven. Marjorie and myself had a glass of Chardonnay with the food and it did not distract from the excellent food. The dessert was ice cream and rice pudding with roasted almonds….

I would have been happy by just sitting at the table and talk and never ever moved again from there but our hosts had planned for a lovely evening so we went for a spin to Inchidony where we looked over the sea and since it wasn’t the most pleasant of evenings we went inside the Inchidony hotel. Marjorie and Gordon must have been there before as they were greeted by the staff by their names….just a guess on my part tho ;-). We sat in the resident lounge and listened to a wonderful piano player. Again, it was so relaxing that I thought I have arrived in heaven. But we still had to go back to Clonakilty to experience the nightlife of the town. We started off in An Teach Beag, one of the smallest pubs I’ve ever been but one of the nicest as well. It seems that every pub in Clonakilty has some type of live music on and we went to most of them – I think. Friday night was still catching up with me so we made it almost an early night.

Sunday saw a misty morning but that didn’t stop me from enjoying a wonderful breakfast of scrambled eggs with roasted peppers - a combination I never had for breakfast – but hey…surprise surprise, it was yummy. We headed then towards the beach – this time to Glandore…and I will tell you more about this day tomorrow….

Hope you all had a great weekend as well……may all days be Sundays….

How was the Salmon.....

Last night was one of the few nights where I just simply came home and didn’t have to do anything (apart from the usual chores). Anyway, I had time to sit down and watch telly for a bit and what a good timing. Guerilla Gourmet was on RTE1 and Kevin Dundon created a restaurant in a boxing club. They put up his kitchen in the middle of the ring so that he was seen from the tables around him. 40 guests paid € 25 to get in and eat a 4 course meal. This is a repeat and has been shown last year or so….(you see, I am not a telly person to begin with as i missed it completely then).

Next week, my food hero, Dennis Cotter, will set up a restaurant in a cattle shed… will make a note in the diary not to miss that one.

But now to the detailed report about the final stage of the Great British Menu. I test-cooked the last dish of the GBM last Sunday and it turned out quite well, apart from the fact that I forgot to buy the cockles for the cockle popcorn and that I didn’t even attempt to try the potato crisps filled with salmon and crab meat. Even Stephen Terry had difficulties with that….and life is too short…

So, I got some lovely salmon belly from the English Market (not Kay O’Connels but the lovely old man opposite – keep forgetting his name). He cut me some nice slices of the salmon belly. The smoked salmon I got from the Midleton Market, Frank Hefferman being still the number one when it comes to smoked salmon.

I cut the trimmings off the smoked and unsmoked salmon, mixed the trimmings with crabmeat and processed it with a bit of cream to a mousse. Line a terrine tine with clingfilm and spooned the mixture into it. Covered it with more clingfilm and baked it in a bain marie for about 15 minutes. Left it to chill. Since

I wasn’t going to do anything else from the recipe (having no cockles etc), I started on my pommes dauphenoise for which I sliced potatoes very thinly and cooked them in a milk-cream mixture which I seasoned with herbed salt and nutmeg. After a couple of minutes, I spooned the lot into a baking dish, sprinkled some lovely mature cheddar over it and baked it in the oven for 45 minutes. Just before serving time, I heated some oil in a pot and made a tempura mixture of flour, egg yolk and cold water

Dipped the samphire into the mixture and deep fried them until crunchy. Heated some olive oil in two frying pan and pan-fried the smoked salmon in one and the unsmoked salmon and the terrine slices in another pan for a few minutes on each side. Arranged the lot on a plate (it would have looked a lot nicer on a oblong plate), a slice of the potatoes and some samphire….the presentation lacked a bit finesse but the flavour of the salmon made well up for it. At least Wendy ate it all – and I love the samphire….

For the grand finale I will only cook the terrine slices as the dish is very very rich (even without the baked potatoes) and it might be just simply too much as a second course. I feel a bit more confident now to be able to cook the lot in one day (might need a full vacation afterwards) and have to set a date now for the big day.