CategorySaturday Letter

Mary Jo McMillin, our lovely American friend from Chicago returned again this year to spend a few weeks here with us in Ireland. She has been coming for over 40 years. It’s scarcely the best time of the year to holiday in Ireland but she loves this country in hail, rain or snow, even during the crazy storms. 

Mary Jo loves to cook and came originally to learn from Myrtle Allen at Ballymaloe House. She loved Myrtle and her philosophy of writing a menu everyday depending on what food was in season and at its best in the walled garden and local area.

Later, she started her own restaurant ‘Mary Jo’s Cuisine’ in the University town of Oxford in Ohio. Now in her 80s, she still loves to cook, continues to test and develop recipes and is an example to all of us in how she can create so many utterly delicious dishes from bits and bobs from the fridge and sometimes a selection of leftovers. We look forward to every bite she cooks and there’s zero waste.

She’s an example to all of us in how she thinks of ways to use up scraps of this and that.

This Boston baked beans and the choucroute garni were cooked in the time-honoured way in the bread oven as it gradually cooled down after the morning bake, maximising the heat. You can’t imagine how unctuous and delicious they tasted.

The Egyptian recipe for Mujadarah was also a gem but I’ll share that another time. Both these comforting Winter dishes reheat brilliantly and are perfect to share with friends for a kitchen supper.

The tuiles were made from leftover egg whites – you absolutely must make them, they keep well and are irresistible,

The redcurrant panna cotta was made from the end of a bag of last season’s redcurrants from the freezer.

Mary Jo also tested this recipe with blackcurrants, it too was delicious, but we liked this redcurrant version best and it can of course be made a day or two ahead if you are having friends around. Thank you, Mary Jo, for the joy you bring to all of us by sharing your recipes.

Mary Jo’s Choucroute Garni

A whole meal in a pot, one of the most comforting and delicious cold weather recipes

Serves 4

450g fresh sauerkraut

2 thick strips bacon, smoked if possible

1 small onion, chopped

1 medium carrot, peeled and diced

1 stick celery, diced

1 small cooking apple, peeled and diced

2-3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced

branch thyme

bay leaf

110ml white wine

225ml chicken stock as needed

Assorted chunky sausages, perhaps saucisse de Toulouse or Tuscan sausages, even a little scrap of chorizo and a piece of smoked pork or a pork shoulder chop if available.

Drain the sauerkraut and rinse only if very salty. 

Dice the bacon into 1cm pieces and melt off the fat in a heavy Le Creuset dish. Remove the bacon and in the pork fat, sauté the onion, carrot, celery, apple and garlic until softened. Stir in the sauerkraut, add wine and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and add the smoked pork, shoulder chop; cover with parchment paper and lid and gently simmer or bake in a slow oven at 170°C/Gas Mark 3 for an hour.

Brown the sausages and add to the dish and continue to slowly cook covered for another 25-60 minutes.  Serve with boiled potatoes.

Mary Jo’s Boston Baked Beans

THE very best baked beans you’ll ever taste and such a joy to tuck into on a chilly day.

Serves 6-8

225g haricot or other small white beans

1 clove garlic

¼ tbsp olive oil

110-150g streaky bacon, smoked if possible and diced into 1cm pieces

1 small onion chopped 

1 clove garlic chopped

25g dark brown sugar

¾ tbsp molasses OR 2 teaspoons of treacle

¾ tbsp cider vinegar

pinch cayenne

1 tsp dry mustard

110g tomato purée (blitzed tinned tomatoes may be used if you don’t have tomato purée in your freezer)

salt

Wash and soak the beans overnight. Drain and discard the soaking water, place in a saucepan or pressure cooker with fresh water, add the garlic and olive oil. Cook until almost tender, 10-15 minutes. Reserve the cooking liquid.

Meanwhile, gently sauté the bacon; add the onion, garlic and sauté until tender.

Combine the bacon, onion, garlic, brown sugar, molasses or treacle, cider vinegar, cayenne, mustard and tomato purée plus salt. This should be a soupy mixture. Place all in a deep baking dish. Cover and slowly cook in the oven at 150°C/Gas Mark 2 for 3-4 hours. Uncover for the final hour. (Mark sure the beans are meltingly tender before removing the cover). 

Mary Jo’s Redcurrant Panna Cotta

Mary Jo made this for a little bag of frozen redcurrants she retrieved in the freezer, but of course fresh redcurrants would be delicious even if they have come from as far away as South America at this time of the year!

Serves 6 small portions

225g redcurrants or blackcurrants (may use frozen)

80g caster sugar

225g cream

1 ½ gelatine sheets softened in cold water

½ tsp vanilla extract

1 tsp kirsch (optional)

Combine the currants and sugar in a bowl and allow to macerate for 30 minutes. 

In a medium saucepan. Add the cream and macerated currants and heat to the ‘shivery’ stage or until the mixture feels hot to your little finger (60°C) – crush a little with a potato masher.   Add the strained, softened gelatine leaves, stir and set aside for 30 minutes. 

Press through a sieve pushing through most of the berries. Stir in the vanilla extract and optional teaspoon of Kirsch and chill in a glass bowl. Serve with Almond Tuiles (see recipe).

Mary Jo’s Almond Tuiles

Makes 120-140 approx. depending on size

110g butter

110ml egg whites

375g caster sugar

75g plain flour

225g sliced almonds (flaked almonds)

Preheat the oven to 200°C (180°C fan)/Gas Mark 6.

Melt the butter in a medium saucepan. Cool slightly. Stir in the egg whites, sugar and flour, add the sliced almonds and fold in to combine.

Drop by half teaspoons onto Silpat mats or parchment lined baking sheets.

Make sure the cookies are well separated. Bake in the preheated oven (180°C fan preferably) for 8-10 minutes or until golden. The cookies will be very thin and crisp.

Recently I was invited to speak at an event called ‘Mother Earth: A Food Symposium’. The panel included chair Ali Dunworth, Cass McCarthy of Lúnasa Farm, Laurann O’Reilly (nutritionist) and Maggie Roche of the Little Acorn Cafe and was entitled ‘Fab Food and Nourishing Nutrition’, but the main focus was how to encourage children to eat and enjoy nourishing wholesome food. The session was held at the Kildare Innovation Campus to celebrate St. Brigid’s Day was well attended. It was followed by a session on Caring for your Pets which ironically had a much larger audience.

Several speakers on my panel highlighted the challenges faced by young parents who have to try to juggle all the balls in the air. Both parents working full time to pay for childcare and the mortgage. The reality of darting into the supermarket on the way home from work to grab some ingredients or a ready meal. Then dashing home to cook something for the family more often than not with few cooking skills, doing their very best but endlessly feeling guilty.

We talked about the importance of sitting down around the kitchen table and the family eating together and the thorny issue of phones or no phones.

Cass stressed and others agreed that sourcing real food, not ultra-processed food must be a priority. But the reality is that for many, sourcing cheap food is the main priority and cooking chemical-free food is a long way down our list of priorities. Coincidentally, the following session about feeding dogs nutritious food had almost twice the audience. I rest my case!

Here in Ireland, we spend less of our income than ever before on healthy wholesome food.

Many people argue they can’t afford to spend more for fresh food every week, yet we have no qualms about spending lavishly on our nails, mobile phones, magazines…According to EU research, the reality is, that here in Ireland, we spend the highest percentage of our weekly food budget (46.9% as opposed to 10% in Portugal) on ultra-processed food. This is worrying to say the very least, a growing body of research confirms that UPF causes obesity and is connected to an increasing number of health conditions. So, it is undeniably a question of priorities.

Several of the panel stressed that parents need to start as they mean to continue, no cereals, snacks or sliced pan in the house, no phones or other devices during meals at the table.

Family meals at the kitchen table are not just about eating, we learn social skills, table manners, how to lay a table, share, how to chat to each other, even if we are arguing, it keeps the lines of communication open.

Mothers are worried about picky children and what to do but I remembered my father-in-law saying, ‘children will not starve as long as there’s food in the house, but we need to make sure that it’s nourishing, wholesome real food not addictive edible food like substances’.

There is undoubtedly a crisis. Parents are doing their best, but the odds are stacked against them as long as ultra-processed foods are cheaper and addictive and the constant advertising to children continues. I don’t know the answer, but we have an epidemic of obesity and health issues amongst children. Japan is making children’s health a priority…Ireland please follow. 

A comforting Roast Chicken Dinner with Gravy and Julia’s Roasties

A traditional roast stuffed chicken with lots of gravy, a roast dinner is always a family favourite…. a forgotten flavour for many people, partly because unless you have access to a really good bird the smell and flavour will be quite different to one’s childhood memory.  People often feel that making stuffing is too bothersome but if you keep some breadcrumbs in the freezer, it can literally be made in minutes.  Should I cook the stuffing inside the bird or separately?  The best place for the stuffing is inside the bird where it absorbs lots of delicious juices as it cooks.  Do not overfill the bird otherwise the heat may not penetrate fully.  This is particularly important if you are using an intensively reared bird which may be infected with salmonella and/or campylobacter.

Serves 6

1.5 – 2.3kg free range chicken, preferably organic

Giblet Stock (optional)

giblets (keep the liver for a chicken liver pâté), and wishbone

1 thickly sliced carrot

1 thickly sliced onion

1 stick celery, sliced

a few parsley stalks and a sprig of thyme

Stuffing

45g butter

75g chopped onion

75-100g soft white breadcrumbs

2 tbsp finely chopped fresh herbs e.g., parsley, thyme, chives and annual marjoram

salt and freshly ground pepper

a little soft butter

Gravy

600-900ml of stock from giblets or chicken stock

Garnish

sprigs of flat parsley

To Serve

Julia’s Roasties (see recipe)

First, sprinkle the chicken lightly all over with pure dairy salt (2 rounded teaspoons) for 20 minutes approx.

This seasons the meat, enhances the flavour and firms the texture of the flesh.

Next, prepare the chicken.

Remove the wishbone from the neck end of the chicken, this is easily done by lifting back the loose neck, skin and cutting around the wishbone with a small knife – tug to remove, this isn’t at all essential, but it does make carving much easier later on. Tuck the wing tips underneath the chicken to make a neat shape. Put the wishbone, giblets, carrot, onions, celery and herbs into a saucepan. Cover with cold water, bring to the boil, skin and simmer gently while the chicken is roasting.  This is the basis of the gravy. Alternatively, use homemade chicken stock.

To make the stuffing, sweat the onions gently in the butter in a covered saucepan until soft, 10 minutes approx. then stir in the white breadcrumbs, the freshly chopped herbs, a little salt and pepper to taste. Allow it to get quite cold unless you are going to cook the chicken immediately. Fill the cavity with stuffing but not too tightly. Dry the chicken with kitchen paper. Smear the breast and legs with a little soft butter.

Preheat the oven to 180°C/Gas Mark 4.

Weigh the chicken and allow about 20 minutes to 450g (1lb) and 20 minutes over – put on middle shelf in oven. Baste a couple of times during the cooking with the buttery juices. The chicken is done when the juices are running clear.

To test, prick the thickest part at the base of the thigh, hold a spoon underneath to collect the liquid, examine the juices – they should be clear.

Remove the chicken to a carving dish, keep it warm and allow to rest while you make the gravy.

To make the gravy, tilt the roasting tin to one corner and spoon off the surplus fat from the juices and return the roasting pan to the stove. Alternatively, use a maigret to degrease*. Deglaze the pan juices with the fat free stock from the giblets and bones (you will need 600 – 900ml) depending on the size of the chicken). Using a whisk, stir and scrape well to dissolve the caramelized meat juices in the roasting pan. Boil it up well, season and thicken with a little roux if you like (the gravy should not be thick). Taste and correct seasoning, serve in a hot gravy boat.

If possible, serve the chicken on a nice carving dish surrounded by crispy roast potatoes and some sprigs of flat parsley then arm yourself with a sharp knife and bring it to the table. Carve as best you can and ignore rude remarks if you are still practicing but do try to organise it so that each person gets some brown and some white meat. Serve with gravy and Julia’s roasties (see recipe).

*Use the cooked carcass for stock. 

Note

*A maigret, though not essential, is a very useful piece of kitchen equipment – it simplifies the task of separating the fat from juices.

Julia’s Roasties

8 potatoes, unwashed Golden Wonders or Kerr’s Pinks

Choose medium to large potatoes of even size. Scrub and peel. Put into a saucepan, cover with cold salted water and bring to the boil. Drain thoroughly. Lightly scratch the surface with a fork and season with salt.

Put the potatoes into smoking hot fat or olive oil. Baste occasionally. Cook until soft in a hot oven 230°C/Gas Mark 8 for 30-45 minutes depending on the size. Drain well on kitchen paper. Serve immediately.

Alternatively, put the potatoes into smoking hot fat in the same tin as the meat, 40-45 minutes before the meat is fully cooked and baste well. Cook until soft. (Baste the potatoes when you baste the meat and turn them over after 25 minutes). Drain on kitchen paper and serve immediately.

Carrot and Parsnip Mash

Sunshine and Green, White and Gold are some of the evocative names given to this popular vegetable combination, still widely made in Ireland.

Serves 4-6

225g carrots

350g parsnips

50g butter

salt, freshly ground pepper and sugar

Garnish

chopped parsley

Wash and peel the carrots and parsnips. Slice the carrot into 5mm slices. Cook in a little boiled salted water with a pinch of sugar until soft.

Cook the parsnips separately in boiling salted water.

Strain both, mash or purée together and add butter, salt and freshly ground pepper.

Country Rhubarb Cake 

This traditional rhubarb cake, based on an enriched bread dough, was made all over Ireland and is a treasured memory from my childhood. It would have originally been baked in the bastible or ‘baker’ over the open fire. My mother, who taught me this recipe, varied the filling with the seasons – first rhubarb, then gooseberries, later in the autumn, apples and plums.

Serves 8

340g plain flour, plus extra for dusting

pinch of salt

½ tsp bread soda (bicarbonate of soda)

55g caster sugar, plus extra for sprinkling

85g butter

1 organic, free-range egg, if possible

165ml milk, buttermilk or sour milk

680g rhubarb, finely chopped

170-225g granulated sugar

beaten organic, free-range egg, to glaze

softly whipped cream and soft brown sugar, to serve

1 x 25cm enamel or Pyrex pie plate

Preheat the oven to 180°C/Gas Mark 4

Sieve the flour, salt, bread soda and caster sugar into a bowl and rub in the butter. Whisk the egg and mix with the milk, buttermilk or sour milk. Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients. Pour in most of the liquid and mix to a soft dough, add the remaining liquid if necessary.

Sprinkle a little flour on the work surface. Turn out the soft dough and pat gently into a round. Divide into two pieces: one should be slightly larger than the other; keep the larger one for the lid.

Dip your fingers in flour. Roll out the smaller piece of pastry to fit the enamel or Pyrex pie plate. Scatter the rhubarb all over the base and sprinkle with the granulated sugar. Brush the edges of the pastry with beaten egg. Roll out the other piece of dough until it is exactly the size to cover the plate, lift it on and press the edges gently to seal them. Don’t worry if you have to patch the soft dough.  Make a hole in the centre for the steam to escape. Brush again with beaten egg and sprinkle with a very small amount of caster sugar.

Bake for 45 minutes – 1 hour or until the rhubarb is soft and the crust is golden. Leave it to sit for 10-15 minutes before serving so that the juice can soak into the crust. Sprinkle with caster sugar. Serve while still warm, with a bowl of softly whipped cream and some moist, brown sugar.

The London food scene is ‘insane’ at present. Despite the challenging climate over there as well as here in Ireland for the restaurant industry, new places continue to open, the choice is mesmerising, and the standards seem to continue to rise and rise.

I spent a couple of days whizzing around London recently and didn’t miss a meal slot. The raison d’etre for the trip was to attend a lunch to celebrate 10 years of Portland on Great Portland Street, co-owned by a past student, Daniel Morgenthau. The original chef, Merlin Le Bron Johnson of Michelin starred Osip in Bruton (Somerset) came back for the day to cook up a super delicious lunch for a group of invited guests and friends of the ‘farm to table’ restaurant which now also has a Michelin star.

We were treated to the most delicious lunch. We started with six ‘Nibbles’ including macaron of mushroom and Parmesan; crispy chicken skin, liver parfait, candied walnuts, Muscat grapes; sausage roll and clementine; smoked cods roe and crudités; Flourish Farm brassicas, smoked egg yolk emulsion, black winter truffle; heritage carrots, salsify, tunworth custard and carrot brioche, one more delicious than the next.

The main course was a game pithivier of layers of wild duck and guinea fowl encased in puff pastry crust with a delicious green pepper gravy and a salad of winter leaves including my favourite speckled Castelfranco and several types of radicchio.

Pudding was Portland Trifle sprinkled with frosted pistachios made with the first of the new season’s forced rhubarb directly from the growers in the famous Yorkshire triangle. Daniel served it with one of my favourite ‘stickies’ – a sweet Chateau de Chantegrive, Cerons, France (from 2015, the year Portland opened). It was so, so good. I had several helpings. 

Can you imagine that I went for dinner after that to another restaurant you need to know about – Mountain located at 16-18 Beak Street. Welsh Tomos Parry and his team cook up delicious simple dishes with superb ingredients. I loved having a table near the open kitchen where I could watch the chefs cooking over fire in the wood burning oven and conventionally, it’s just like having a personal cooking class.

We loved the crunchy pumpkin and sage leaf fritters in the lightest tempura batter, all were delicious, but the mutton chops blew me away. An almost forgotten flavour – go there especially to taste them.

A variety of unusual homemade ice creams including Jalapeño and honey to clear the palette or artisan cheeses in perfect condition if you’d rather. 

My non-foodie highlight was a trip to the National Gallery on Trafalgar Square, a ‘once in a lifetime’ opportunity to see the Vincent van Gogh exhibition, I made sure to arrive early, I was third in the queue so managed to get close to the extraordinary paintings, so grateful and moving to see his ‘Self portrait’, Starry Night over the Rhône, ‘Irises’, ‘Sunflowers’, ‘The Poets Garden’ in real life. 

Lunch that day was at Canteen, located at 310 Portobello Road which opened its doors in November last. They don’t take bookings, but it was packed on a grey and drizzly Wednesday. The vibrant young team with no one looking a day over 25 were properly impressive, the menu was hopelessly tempting.

Once again, the food was super fresh and super delicious.

We loved the starter salad of radicchio (two types), slivers of Pecorino and toasted walnuts, pomegranate seeds and another of shaved fennel, blood orange and mint. 

We also had to taste the gutsy ribollita drizzled with Fèlsina extra virgin olive oil, a meal in itself and the fettuccini ragu dusted with Parmesan.

For the main course, we shared a butterflied mackerel with agretti (monk’s beard) and anchoïade – a delicious combination.

Can’t wait to get some Ballycotton summer mackerel to try that inspired dish.

Despite being totally full, I had to taste a quenelle of the lightest and most exquisite chocolate mousse I’ve ever tasted – you might have to make a detour to taste that too. Also very good wine choices including a selection of low and alcohol-free beverages and cocktails.

While I was there, I met five past students, two of whom Beth O’Brien and George Williams are planning to open a restaurant The Fat Badger upstairs over Canteen in a few weeks’ time, so watch that space too. Apparently, they’re planning to do lots of pies and baked Alaska – a blast from the past, how cool does that sound?

A special thank you to Daniel Morgenthau of Portland (www.portlandrestaurant.co.uk) and Jessica Filbey of Canteen (Instagram: @canteen.310) who shared recipes for our Examiner readers to enjoy.

Portland’s Whipped Cods Roe

Silky and morish, eat as a dip or as part of a mezze…

Serves 8 approx.

Ingredients

2 slices white bread (crusts removed and soaked in milk)

200g smoked cods roe

2 garlic cloves

35g lemon juice

100g extra virgin olive oil

100g water

10g rapeseed oil

Method

In a food processor blend together the bread, cods roe, garlic and lemon juice until smooth.

With the food processor running firstly add the water followed by the oils in a slow steady stream as if making mayonnaise. Season with salt to taste.

Portland’s Rhubarb Trifle

Oh, my good goodness, this was so irresistible, I couldn’t help myself, I had three helpings…it takes time to make but is so worth it!

Serves 8 approx.

Components

Rhubarb Jelly

Genoise Sponge Discs

Grand Marnier Syrup

Vanilla Custard

Rhubarb Compote

Syllabub

Frosted Pistachios

orange zest

For the rhubarb jelly

Ingredients

zest of 1 orange

zest of 1 lemon

1 vanilla pod, scraped

120g strawberries, chopped

600g rhubarb, chopped

75g elderflower cordial, diluted

120ml dessert/sweet wine

120ml water

15g grenadine

150g caster sugar

Method

Place all the ingredients in a metal bowl and cover with a lid. Place the bowl on top of a pan of gently simmering water and cook for around 1 hour until all the liquids have been released and the rhubarb is very soft. Strain off the liquid by pushing through a fine sieve. Measure the liquid and add 4 leaves of bloomed gelatine per 1 litre of boiled liquid to set the jelly.

For the genoise sponge

Ingredients

20g milk

40g butter

6 eggs

180g caster sugar

180g plain flour (sieved)

Method

Firstly, gently melt the milk and butter together. Meanwhile whip together the eggs and sugar (ideally in a stand mixer) until light and fluffy. Gently fold the flour into the egg mixture bit by bit, followed by the milk/butter. Transfer the mixture to a baking parchment lined baking tray and spread out evenly to around 2cm thick. Bake at 170°C/Gas Mark 3 for around 14 minutes until cooked through.

For the Grand Marnier syrup

Ingredients

50g grand Marnier

100g water

75g sugar

Method

Place all the above into a saucepan and bring to the boil. Chill

For the vanilla custard

Ingredients

750g double cream

2 vanilla pods

225g egg yolk

130g caster sugar

15g cornflour

Method

Place the cream in a saucepan, scrape out the vanilla seeds and add to the pan along with the pods. Bring to the boil. Separately whisk together the egg yolk, sugar and corn flour until light in colour. Once the cream has boiled pour over the egg yolks and whisk well together. Return to the pan and cook out to 83°C whilst whisking constantly. Once cooked pass through a fine sieve and chill in the fridge for at least 4 hours and then whisk again.

For the rhubarb compote

Ingredients

325g roughly chopped rhubarb

50g butter

75g sugar

1 x vanilla pods

400g nicely diced rhubarb

Method

Place everything except the diced rhubarb into a saucepan, cook until soft and blend in a blender until smooth.

Place the purée into a pan and add the diced rhubarb, cook gently on a low heat until the diced rhubarb is just cooked. Chill

For the syllabub

Ingredients

325g cream

juice of ½ orange

75g sherry

30g Grand Marnier

75g sugar

Method

Whisk the cream to a stiff peak and gently fold in the remaining ingredients.

For the frosted pistachios

Ingredients

300g caster sugar

75g water

2g ground cardamom

175g green pistachio

Method

Place the sugar and water into a saucepan, bring to the boil and reduce by half until just starting to change colour. Take off the heat and throw in the ground cardamom and pistachios and keep stirring until the sugar crystalises. Scrape out the pan onto baking paper and let cool.

To build the trifle

Take your preferred trifle bowl and pour in a layer of the rhubarb jelly until it comes one-fifth of the way up the side of the glass. Place in the fridge until completely set (ideally overnight).

Cut out the genoise sponge into discs the same circumference as your trifle bowl. Place this on top of the set sponge (it should be the same thickness as the jelly). Generously spoon over the Grand Marnier syrup until the sponge is thoroughly soaked. Now spoon over the custard and spread out, again it should be the same thickness as the previous two layers. You may not need it all. Next repeat the process with the rhubarb compote and then add a generous dollop of the syllabub. Lastly, sprinkle over a liberal amount of frosted pistachios and finish with a few gratings of orange zest.

 Enjoy… 

Canteen’s Ribollita

A delicious, comforting meal in a bowl, make a big pot as it reheats brilliantly.

Serves 4

Ingredients

2 carrots, 180g approx.

1 heart of celery, 80g approx.

1 red onion, 175g approx.

salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 cloves garlic

a few sprigs rosemary

a few sprigs sage

a few sprigs thyme

1 bay leaf

400g tinned tomatoes

1 big bunch Cavolo Nero (kale)

800g cooked borlotti beans

500ml chicken stock

½ sourdough loaf

extra virgin olive oil

Parmesan to finish

Method

Chop the carrots, celery heart and red onions finely and fry in a heavy based pan with a good glug of olive oil until soft. Season with salt and pepper. Chop the garlic and herbs and add this to the sofrito mixture and fry for another 2 minutes.

Break up the tinned tomatoes with your hands and add to the base, cooking for a further 5 minutes.

Shred the Cavolo Nero from its stalks, roughly chop and add to the base, fry for a further 4 minutes.

Take half the borlotti and blitz in a food processor until smooth. Add the blitzed beans and the whole borlotti beans to the base.

Heat the chicken stock and add to the vegetables, add the bay leaf and season again to taste with salt and pepper.

Take the crusts off the sourdough loaf and slice.

Place the slices over the top of the soup, add a good glug of oil all over and simmer for 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally so that it doesn’t catch on the bottom, until the cavolo is soft and the bread has soaked up the soup.

Stir the bread through the soup until it is broken up.

Serve with another good glug of oil and a generous sprinkling of Parmesan.

Canteen’s Chocolate Mousse with Olive Oil and Sea Salt

This was truly the lightest, silkiest and most delicious chocolate mousse I ever ate, thank you to Jessica Filbey at Canteen for sharing the recipe but do go and taste the original.

Serves 8-10

Ingredients

400g good quality dark chocolate (Callebaut 54%)

210g good quality extra virgin olive oil

230g egg yolks with 90g caster sugar

200g cream

360g egg whites with 60g caster sugar

pinch Maldon sea salt

Method

Melt the chocolate over a bain-marie and stir in the olive oil.

Whisk the egg yolks and 90g caster sugar until pale and very thick.

While this is happening, whisk the double cream by hand until very soft peaks form.

Carefully fold the whisked egg yolks into the chocolate and oil mixture in three increments, until incorporated.

Take two large spoons of the chocolate mixture and fold it into the whipped double cream. Set this aside.

Whisk the egg whites, 60g caster sugar and the salt, until firm peaks form. In thee increments, fold in the whipped egg whites to the chocolatey, egg yolk mixture until incorporated. Finally fold in the double cream. Pour into a large serving bowl and put in the fridge to set for a few hours.

Scoop and serve with a drizzle of your finest olive oil and a pinch of sea salt.

As promised, this week’s column is completely devoted to what is probably my favourite but most underrated winter vegetable – Jerusalem artichokes. Despite their name, they’ve got nothing to do with Jerusalem and aren’t even related to artichokes. The flavour is reminiscent of globe artichoke hearts – sweet and nutty. The name appears to be an adaptation of girasole, the Italian word for sunflowers.

They wouldn’t win any prizes in a veggie beauty contest. They resemble misshapen, knobbly potatoes and can be white, pale purple or yellow depending on the strain.

The variety we grow has been passed down from generation to generation in the Allen family. They are ridiculously easy to cultivate, just pop into the soil like potatoes once the weather is dry from the end of February/early March, allowing about 9-12cm between each one. Next winter, you’ll be rewarded with at least 8 or 10 plump rhizomes where you planted a single Jerusalem artichoke.

In the US, they are called Sunchokes, they are in fact a species of the sunflower family. The foliage grows about 8-10 feet tall and the yellow flowers in August resemble small sunflowers and are loved by bees. You could plant them at the back of an herbaceous flower bed to give height and colour. Some folks have had fun creating an annual maze with them – how fun is that?

The leaves are frost tender, but the tubers are hardy and can stay in the ground throughout the winter – we harvest from November right through to the end of February even into March depending on the weather. They begin to sprout if it’s particularly mild.

Choose the largest rhizomes and replant in a different location so the next harvest will be healthy and fulsome too.

Some supermarkets are now selling Jerusalem Artichokes, you’ll also find them at Midleton and Mahon Point Farmers’ Market and the English Market in Cork city.

If you haven’t already got some growing in your garden, jump into the car and make a pilgrimage to our Farm Shop in Shanagarry, I’ll give you a present of a few artichokes. Where you plant one artichoke, you’ll have ten next year – it’s like magic! 

By the way, Jerusalem artichokes have the highest inulin content of any vegetable, super important to stimulate the microbes in your gut biome, so here’s a really valuable hot tip…

If you’ve recently been on a course of antibiotics, go out of your way to get some Jerusalem artichoke, I love the flavour but for some they can be a little difficult to digest, hence the nickname ‘fartichokes’ but that’s just an indication that they are definitely stimulating your gut biome!

So now what to do with this ugly vegetable.

They are wonderfully versatile, of course they make a wonderful soup which I sometimes scatter with chorizo crumbs or add a topping of avocado and hazelnut salsa. We love to roast them until the edges are caramelised, they’re delicious hot or cold, as a side or as a basis for a salad.

Slice them thinly and fry until crisp for artichoke chips, crunchy and gorgeous to nibble with a drink or scattered on salads.

Slice and cook to melting tenderness in butter or extra virgin olive oil, whizz to a purée and mix with mashed potato – so good!

They also work brilliantly in a gratin layered up with potato and maybe celeriac or parsnip. That can be an entire meal, maybe with a few bacon or pancetta lardons added. It’s good to know that they can cook a little unevenly but that’s part of their charm.

Crunchy raw Jerusalem artichokes are also irresistible but if sliced ahead, they need to be kept in acidulated water to prevent them from discolouring. Just put a teaspoon of vinegar into the water, strain and discard the liquid before cooking.

We also love these fermented Jerusalem artichokes with even more nutrients – try these as a nibble or delicious crunchy accompaniment.

A simple purée makes an irresistible accompaniment to scallop, and a dice of caramelised Jerusalem artichoke raises a simple risotto to a new level – try it.

Now you see why I am so passionate about raising awareness of probably the most underrated of all winter vegetables!

Here are a few recipes to whet your appetite.

Roast Jerusalem Artichoke, Avocado and Hazelnut Salad

Everyone loved this delicious combination – a recent addition to our repertoire. The winter salad is particularly good with goose, duck, pheasant or as a starter.

Serves 4-6

450g Jerusalem artichokes, well-scrubbed.

2 tbsp sunflower or extra virgin olive oil

salt and freshly ground pepper

Avocado and Roast Hazelnut Salsa

1 ripe avocado, halved, stone removed, peeled and diced into neat scant 1cm dice

3 tbsp of hazelnuts, roasted, skinned and coarsely chopped

3 tbsp of hazelnut or olive oil

1 tbsp of chopped flat parsley

Maldon sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Garnish

sprigs of flat parsley

Preheat the oven to 200°C/Gas Mark 6.

Leave the artichokes whole or cut in half lengthways, if large. Toss the Jerusalem artichokes with the oil.  Season well with salt.  Bake in a shallow gratin dish or roasting tin for 20 to 30 minutes until soft and caramelized at the edges.  Test with the tip of a knife – they should be mostly tender but offer some resistance.  Season with pepper and serve.

Meanwhile, make the avocado and roast hazelnut salsa.

Mix the ingredients for the avocado and hazelnut garnish. Taste and correct seasoning. This mixture will sit quite happily in your fridge for an hour as the oil coating the avocado will prevent it from discolouring.

To Serve

When the artichokes are cooked, allow to cool, sprinkle with avocado and hazelnut salsa.

Toss gently, taste and tweak the seasoning if necessary.

Scatter with sprigs of flat parsley.

Jerusalem Artichoke Crisps

We serve these delicious crisps on warm salads, as a garnish for Roast pheasant or Guinea fowl and as a topping for Parsnip or root vegetable soup.  Delicious crisps may be made from other vegetables apart from the much loved potato.  Celeriac, beetroot, leek and even carrots are also good.  Careful not to have the oil too hot or the crisps will quickly turn and be bitter.

Serves 6-8

3-4 Jerusalem artichokes

sunflower oil

salt

Heat good quality oil in a deep fryer to 150°C. 

Scrub the Jerusalem artichokes well and peel if necessary. Slice in wafer thin rounds.  Allow to dry out a little on kitchen paper.

Drop a few at a time into the hot oil, they colour and crisp up very quickly.  Drain on kitchen paper and sprinkle lightly with salt.

Pan-grilled Scallops with Jerusalem Artichoke Purée and Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Serves 8

8 super fresh scallops

sea salt

Jerusalem Artichoke Purée

450g Jerusalem artichokes (weighed after peeling)

450g potatoes, scrubbed clean

4 tbsp cream

25g butter

salt and freshly ground black pepper (optional)

To Serve

extra virgin olive oil

flakes of sea salt

little sprigs of chervil

First make the artichoke purée.

Cook the artichokes and potatoes separately in boiling salted water until tender and completely cooked through.  Peel the potatoes immediately and place them with the hot artichokes in a food processor.  Add the cream and butter and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.  Blend until a silky consistency is achieved.  Taste and correct seasoning.

To serve, reheat the artichoke purée if necessary. Heat the pan on a high heat, dry the scallops well, drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and season with a little salt. Pan-grill for a few minutes on both sides, put a generous tablespoon of artichoke purée on each small plate, top each one with a pan-grilled scallop, drizzle with extra virgin and sprinkle each plate with a few flakes of sea salt.

Top with a little sprig of chervil.

Who doesn’t love a big bowl of chunky soup with a few lardons of pancetta, chorizo or sweet streaky bacon.

A welcome supper to chase away the January blues, a satisfying and comforting meal in a dish.

I love to add some beans and/or chickpeas to add extra oomph, not to mention hearty richness.

A little drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, some finely grated cheese and a sprinkling of freshly chopped parsley or coriander and there’s a feast in a bowl. 

I’m never without some frozen soup – a brilliant standby, frozen in 520ml tubs that take no more than ten minutes to defrost and are ample for two people.

A few chunks of freshly baked bread or a Cheddar cheese scone and you’re sorted.

Myrtle taught me this brilliant 1,1,3,5 formula that we use in Ballymaloe House and here at the school for many of our soups.

It results in a delicious soup in any season:

1 cup of chopped onion 

1 cup of chopped potato 

3 cups of any vegetable or a mixture of your choice 

5 cups of chicken or vegetable stock or water if all else fails 

I sometimes use 4 cups of stock and 1 cup of creamy milk, particularly for potato and fresh herb or onion and thyme leaf soup.

These soups can be whizzed in a blender for a silky texture or left whole for aficionados of chunky textured soup. 

I love my soups to reflect the season. You might wonder what vegetables are in season while we’re still in the depths of winter. Well, the answer is lots, leeks are great just now, kale and broccoli of course, parsnips and my favourite winter perennials Jerusalem artichokes – the knobbly inulin rich rhizomes that keep on giving until the end of February, sometimes well into March.  Look out for them in the shops and farmers’ market because I will devote my next column to Jerusalem artichokes (I’ll give recipes next week). They also make a delicious soup using the 1,1,3,5 formula.

Kale is another of our brilliant winter vegetables. We plant it at the end of July and start to harvest it around the middle of September and then it will continue to crop until March.

We grow three varieties – green and red and Cavolo Nero also known as black cabbage or Tuscan kale. They are absolutely bursting with flavour and goodness and also make one of my various winter soups, Kale and Lentil. I got this recipe from Rory a few years ago. Rory likes to keep the texture very thick, but I’ve added more stock for a less robust soup – I’ve given you both options, each is delicious, just a different texture.

You can almost feel every mouthful doing you a power of good…

Ballymaloe Basic Soup Technique

Well over half the soups we make at Ballymaloe are made on this simple formula. 1.1.3.5.

Use the same receptacle to measure each ingredient and liquid – a cup, mug, measure, bowl…

Serves 6

1 part chopped onion

1 part chopped potato

3 parts any chopped vegetable of your choice, or a mixture

5 parts stock or stock and milk mixed

seasoning

One can use chicken or vegetable stock or water and season simply with salt and freshly ground pepper.  Complementary fresh herbs or spices may also be added.

So, one can make a myriad of different soups depending on what’s fresh, in season and available.

If potatoes and onions are the only option, one can still make two delicious soups by increasing one or the other and then adding one or several herbs.  We even use broad bean tops; radish leaves and nettles in season.

Serves 6 

Example:

50g butter

150g chopped potatoes, one-third inch dice

110g peeled diced onions, one-third inch dice

340g chopped vegetables of your choice, one-third inch dice

1.2 litres homemade chicken stock or 1 litre stock and 150ml creamy milk

Melt the butter in a heavy bottomed saucepan. When it foams, add potatoes and onions and turn them until well coated. Sprinkle with salt and freshly ground pepper. Cover and sweat on a gentle heat for 10 minutes. Add the vegetables and stock. Boil until soft, taste and serve or liquidise, sieve or put through a mouli. Do not overcook or the vegetables will lose their fresh flavour. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary. 

A Green Vegetable Soup 

Ingredients as above… but with green vegetables e.g. spinach, watercress, wild garlic, nettles, chard greens, radish leaves, broad bean shoots, kale, mustard greens, leek greens, foraged greens or a mixture

Melt the butter in a heavy bottomed saucepan. When it foams, add potatoes and onions and turn them until well coated. Sprinkle with salt and freshly ground pepper. Cover and sweat on a gentle heat for 10 minutes. 

Add the stock and continue to cook until the onion and potato dice is tender… Add the freshly chopped greens, return to the boil, uncovered for 3 or 4 mins or until just cooked. Taste and serve or liquidise for a thick soup. Taste again and correct the seasoning… 

NOTE… If the green vegetables are added at the beginning, they will most likely be over cooked and the soup will lose its fresh taste and bright green colour… 

Vegan Option

For a vegan option, use vegetable stock or water and substitute soya, almond or cashew milk for creamy milk and proceed as in master recipe. 

Chunky Winter Vegetable and Bean Soup with Spicy Sausage

We make huge pots of this in the Winter, I usually keep some in the freezer. Kabanossi is a thin sausage now widely available, it gives a gutsy slightly smoky flavour to the soup which although satisfying is by no means essential. Gubbeen chorizo would be a good substitute for the kabanossi sausage. There’s lots of chopping involved here but the end result is so worth it, how about a ‘chopping fest’ with some of your family or children.

Serves 8-9

225g rindless streaky bacon, cut into 5mm lardons

2 tbsp olive oil

225g onions, chopped

300g carrot, cut into 5mm dice

215g celery, chopped into 5mm dice

125g parsnips, chopped into 5mm dice

200g white part of 1 leek, 5mm slices thick approx.

1 Kabanossi sausage, cut into 3mm thin slices

400g tin of tomatoes

salt, freshly ground pepper and sugar

1.7 litres good homemade chicken stock,

225g haricot beans, cooked *

Garnish

2 tbsp parsley, freshly chopped

extra virgin olive oil (optional)

Prepare the vegetables. Put the olive oil in a saucepan, add the bacon* (see note at bottom of recipe) and sauté over a medium heat until it becomes crisp and golden, add the chopped onion, carrots and celery. Cover and sweat for five minutes, next add the parsnip and finely sliced leeks. Cover and sweat for a further 5 minutes. Slice the Kabanossi sausage thinly and add. Chop the tomatoes and add to the rest of the vegetables and the beans. Season with salt, freshly ground pepper and sugar, add the chicken stock. Allow to cook until all the vegetables are tender, 20 minutes approx. Taste and correct the seasoning. Sprinkle with chopped parsley and drizzle with extra virgin olive oil, serve with lots of crusty bread.

* Soak the beans overnight in plenty of cold water.  Next day, strain the beans and cover with fresh cold water, add a bouquet garni, carrot and onion, cover and simmer until the beans are soft but not mushy – anything from 30-60 minutes.  Just before the end of cooking, add salt.  Remove the bouquet garni and vegetables and discard.

Note

If the bacon is very salty, put into a small saucepan, cover with cold water and bring to the boil. Strain and dry on kitchen paper. 

Rory’s Lentil and Kale Soup

This is a nourishing combination of ingredients that makes a soup that is deeply satisfying to eat. I serve this soup with a very thick consistency in the Italian style. If you prefer the soup thinner, just add more stock to the lentils when cooking. A drizzle of the very best olive oil is the perfect finishing touch, and that last minute addition seems to elevate this really rustic soup to a much more sophisticated plateau.

Serves 6 -8

250g green lentils

1 red chilli

1 bay leaf

3 cloves of unpeeled garlic

branch of thyme

1 onion halved

1.2 litres chicken stock

500g curly kale, weighed after the tough stalks have been removed

150ml cream

salt and freshly ground pepper

Place the lentils, chilli, bay leaf, garlic, thyme, onion and 1 litre of chicken stock in a saucepan and bring to a simmer. Cover and cook very gently until the lentils are tender. Do not allow the lentils to become overcooked and mushy but at the same time they do need to be completely cooked all the way through. I add a good pinch of salt to the cooking lentils 5 minutes before they are cooked.

 Remove the bay leaf, thyme and onion and discard. Peel the skin off the chilli and discard the skin. Split it in half lengthways and remove and discard the seeds. Chop the chilli flesh finely and add back into the lentils. Press the flesh out of the cooked garlic and discard the skins. Stir the soft garlic into the lentils. Taste and correct seasoning.

Bring 3 litres of water to a boil in a large saucepan and season well with salt. Add the kale leaves and cook uncovered until completely tender. Strain off all of the water and place the leaves in a food processor. Puree briefly, add the cream and continue to puree to a smooth consistency. Taste and correct seasoning making sure to add some freshly ground black pepper. Both elements of the soup can be put aside now for reheating later.

When ready to serve the soup, Heat the lentils and kale in separate saucepans. When both mixtures are simmering, add the kale to the lentil saucepan and gently fold through. The soup can look streaky at this stage and that is the way Rory prefers to serve it. Add more boiling stock to thin to your preferred consistency. Ladle into hot soup bowls and drizzle each serving with new season extra virgin olive oil. Serve immediately

Don’t we all need comfort food to ease us gently in the New Year?

I’ve been longing for a bubbly cauliflower cheese or a creamy mac and cheese, flecked and golden on top with crispy bits around the edge of the dish. All that’s needed as an accompaniment is a robust green salad. Some shredded Savoy cabbage, watercress sprigs and whatever winter lettuce I can still forage in the garden.

Keep an eye out for hairy bittercress (Cardamine hirsuta) or wintercress too, there will be lots of it growing in little rosettes in your flower or vegetable beds.

Don’t dream of spraying it, eat it – it’s delicious added to salads or a starter as soon as the weather warms a little, it will flower and go to seed. It’s abundant and at its best at present and is packed with Vitamin A and C as well as iron and calcium folinate and it’s free. What’s not to like about that with the added bonus of ‘weeding’ your garden. Let 2025 be the year when you start to eat your ‘weeds’, a very high percentage of what we call weeds are edible and super nutritious. So, instead of trotting off to the health food shop or pharmacist, swot up on the wild food around us.

There are many excellent books on foraging but if your budget has run a bit low after Christmas, just do a GOOGLE search for a ton of information. Careful as once you get started, you’ll become obsessed with nature’s medicine cabinet, and you’ll be a nerd in no time.

Back to a gratin of cauliflower and mac and cheese – both of these dishes are dependent on being able to make a silky béchamel sauce, one of the ‘mother sauces’ in culinary jargon, but don’t let that put you off, it’s super easy to make and can be converted into countless, daughter sauces with fancy names by adding another flavour at the end. For example, lots of grated cheese and it becomes Mornay Sauce. Copious amounts of chopped curly parsley added at the end, make Parsley Sauce, the very best accompaniment to bacon or corned beef and cabbage. Sweat a pan of chopped, Irish grown onions until meltingly tender, add to a basic béchamel with a dollop of cream and hey presto, you have Sauce Soubise, one of the very best accompaniments to serve with a roast shoulder of lamb, as well as redcurrant sauce and fresh mint sauce made with the first of the new season’s mint – watch out, spearmint will make an appearance in a sheltered part of your garden before too long.

Béchamel is also an essential component for a fish pie, another of our all-time favourites. Try this riff, a back to front version with a few crunchy buttered crumbs on top, I think it may become a family favourite. But the fish MUST be fresh – easier said than done. First learn how to recognise fresh fish…your challenge for 2025.

Cod, Hake or Haddock with Buttered Crumbs

Cook and eat as soon as possible.

Fresh fish with a crunchy topping in a creamy sauce is always tempting. There is an added bonus with this recipe because one can do many variations, all of which are delicious.

Serves 6-8

1.1kg hake, cod, ling, haddock, grey sea mullet or pollock

salt and freshly ground pepper

15g butter

Mornay Sauce

600ml milk

a few slices of carrot and onion

3 or 4 peppercorns

a sprig of thyme and parsley

50g approx. roux (equal quantities of softened butter and flour, cooked together for 2 minutes)

150-175g grated cheddar cheese or 75g grated Parmesan cheese

¼ tsp mustard preferably Dijon

salt and freshly ground pepper

225g mushrooms

1 tbsp freshly chopped parsley (optional)

15g butter

salt and freshly ground pepper

Buttered Crumbs

25g butter

50g soft, white breadcrumbs

First make the Mornay sauce. Put the cold milk into a saucepan with a few slices of carrot and onion, 3 or 4 peppercorns and a sprig of thyme and parsley. Bring to the boil, simmer for 4-5 minutes, remove from the heat and leave to infuse for 10 minutes if you have enough time.

Strain out the vegetables, bring the milk back to the boil and thicken with roux to a coating consistency.  Take off the heat, allow to cool for 1 minute then add the mustard and two thirds of the grated cheese, keep the remainder of the cheese for sprinkling over the top. Season with salt and freshly ground pepper, taste and correct the seasoning if necessary. Add the parsley if using.

Next make the buttered crumbs. Melt the butter in a pan and stir in the breadcrumbs. Remove from the heat immediately and allow to cool.

Slice the mushrooms, melt the butter and sauté them on a very hot pan, season with salt and freshly ground pepper, add the chopped parsley and keep aside.

Skin the fish and cut into portions: 175g for a main course, 75g for a starter. Season with salt and freshly ground pepper. Lightly butter the ovenproof dish, spread a little mornay sauce on the base, lay the fish on top and coat generously with more sauce. Mix the remaining grated cheese with the buttered crumbs and sprinkle over the top. 

Cook in a moderate oven, 180°C/Gas Mark 4, for 25-30 minutes or until the fish is cooked through and the top is golden brown and crispy. If necessary, flash under the grill for a minute or two before you serve, to brown the edges of the potato.

Darina’s Favourite Mac and Cheese

Mac and cheese is a bit like apple crumble, simple fare but everyone loves it, plus you can add lots of tasty bits to change it up. Macaroni cheese was and still is one of my children’s favourite supper dishes. I often add some cubes of cooked bacon, guanciale, chorizo or ham to the sauce.

Serves 6

225g macaroni or ditalini

50g butter

150g onion, finely chopped

50g plain flour

1 litre boiling whole milk

¼ tsp Dijon or English mustard

1 tbsp chopped flat-leaf parsley (optional)

225g freshly grated mature Cheddar cheese or a mix of Cheddar, Gruyère and Parmesan

25g freshly grated Cheddar or Parmesan cheese, for sprinkling on top (optional)

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Bring 3.4 litres water to the boil in a large saucepan and add 2 teaspoons of salt. Sprinkle in the macaroni and stir to make sure it doesn’t stick together. Cook according to the packet instructions until al dente (a very slight bite). Drain well.

Meanwhile, melt the butter over a gentle heat, add the chopped onion, stir to coat, cover and sweat over a gentle heat for 6-8 minutes. Add the flour and cook over a medium heat, stirring occasionally, for 1-2 minutes. Remove from the heat. Whisk the milk in gradually, season well with salt and pepper, then return to the boil, stirring constantly. Add the mustard, parsley, if using, and cheese. Add the well-drained macaroni and return to the boil. Season to taste and serve immediately.

Alternatively, turn into a 1.2 litre pie dish and sprinkle the extra grated cheese over the top. Bake at 180°C/Gas Mark 4 for 15-20 minutes.

Good Things with Mac & Cheese

* Smoked Salmon or Smoked Mackerel

Add 225g smoked salmon or smoked mackerel dice to the mac and cheese before serving.

* Chorizo

Add 225g diced chorizo and lots of chopped flat-leaf parsley to the mac and cheese before baking.

Cauliflower Cheese Gratin

Ah, cauliflower cheese, who doesn’t love a big dish of bubbly cauliflower cheese with a layer of golden cheese melting on top? Make more than you need, save the cauliflower cooking water and transform any leftovers into the most delicious soup that will have all the family begging for more. Follow the recipe below but instead of browning in the oven or under the grill, liquidise the lot with any leftover cauliflower cooking water and 850ml light chicken stock to make a nice consistency. Season the soup to taste and serve with croutons, cubes of diced Cheddar cheese and freshly chopped parsley.

Serves 6-8

1 cauliflower with green leaves

pinch of salt

For the Cheese Sauce

600ml whole milk with a dash of cream

½ onion, cut in chunks

1 small carrot, cut in chunks

6 black peppercorns

a sprig of thyme and someparsley stalks

roux (equal quantities of softened butter and plain flour, cooked for 2 minutes)

salt and freshly ground pepper

150g grated cheese, such as Cheddar or better still, a mixture of Gruyére, Parmesan and Cheddar

½ tsp Dijon mustard

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Garnish

freshly chopped flat-leaf parsley, to garnish

Preheat the oven to 230°C/Gas Mark 8.

Prepare and cook the cauliflower.

Remove the outer leaves and wash both the cauliflower and the leaves well.  Put no more than 2.5cm of water in a saucepan just large enough to take the cauliflower; add a little salt.  Chop the leaves into small pieces and cut the cauliflower in quarters or eighths; place the cauliflower on top of the green leaves in the saucepan, cover with a lid and simmer for 8-10 minutes until cooked. Test by piercing the stalk with a knife – they should be tender right through. 

Meanwhile make the cheese sauce.

Put the cold milk into a saucepan with the onion, carrot, peppercorns and herbs.  Bring to the boil, simmer for 3-4 minutes, remove from the heat and leave to infuse for 10 minutes.

Strain out the vegetables, return the milk to the boil and whisk in the roux until it reaches a light coating consistency. Add most of the grated cheese (save enough to sprinkle over the dish) and mustard. Season to taste. Spoon the sauce over the cauliflower and sprinkle with the remaining grated cheese. The dish may be prepared ahead to this point.

Put into the preheated oven or under the grill to brown. If the cauliflower cheese is allowed to cool completely, it will take 20-25 minutes to reheat in the oven at 180°C/Gas Mark 4.  Serve sprinkled with the coarsely chopped parsley.

For those of us in the food and hospitality industry, it’s a crucially important to keep an eye on the food and drink trends.

My late mother-in-law, Myrtle Allen used to say ‘be aware of trends but don’t follow them slavishly’ – good advice as ever…

So where to start? I’ve been trawling through a myriad of food lists to identify the latest excitement in food and beverage areas – of course TikTok continues to influence trends more than ever before…

Those who live in built up areas, even quite small towns can’t have failed to notice, the ever increasing number of food delivery bikes. They haven’t arrived in Shanagarry yet but are already a feature of some local villages.

Sometimes the information seems contradictory, as we become more aware of the effect of ultra-processed foods on our health, more of us are striving to do more home cooking. We’re also told that steadily increasing numbers are prepared to seek out and invest in organic and chemical-free food rather than shelling out for added supplements to build up the health of the family.

In an increasingly volatile world, food and drink production is being steadily impacted by both climate change and geo-political politics, hence the price of coffee, cacao (chocolate), olive oil…continues to skyrocket.

1. ‘Grab and go’ is increasing even in high end restaurants.

Many pragmatic restaurateurs believe this is the only way to go to survive…

2. Green menu design will be a thing.

3. Depending on who you read, the plant based food ‘meat’ sales are growing exponentially or ‘tanking’ as awareness grows of the ultra-processed nature of many of these foods and their impact on the environment. This is a hugely politicised area in the US, ‘fake’ meat has been used by the far right as an example of how the left threatens citizens’ rights to real meat. Some US politicians, according to Food Navigator, claim that plant based companies are part of a ‘soy globalist conspiracy’ and are determined to make meat illegal. Watch that space…

4. It’s all about protein these days, the protein powder market is on fire.

5. Millennials and Gen Z referred to as the super snacking generation, seem to have an insatiable appetite for snacks. This is an international trend, over one-third, prefer snacks to meals so the snack market will continue to grow with an increasing emphasis on fancy snacks and affordable luxuries. Snack makers are paying close attention to this trend and are cashing in by designing more upmarket, individually packaged indulgent treats to brighten up your day without breaking the bank. Crunch is the texture of the moment.

6. Have you heard of SWICY food, where sweet meets spicy, all the rage and gathering market share.

7. As our basic mass produced food becomes less flavourful, condiments are an essential staple in everyone’s pantry. We can’t seem to get enough of spicy foods. We’re becoming hot sauce connoisseurs, chilli in everything, chilli honey, lattes, coffee, sriracha popcorn…

8. A growing interest and curiosity around plant based aquatic foods as seaweeds have been relabelled.

Duckweed ‘is the new green superfood’ and is becoming the ‘go to’ for health conscious foodies, a brilliantly high source of protein – 33.5%.

Irish moss is also having its moment. Carrageen moss is super cool…(see Examiner column 14^th January 2023).

9. Fermented foods continue to gather momentum and are now mainstream. Expect prebiotic and probiotic foods to become kitchen staples.

Turmeric has not lost its spot.

10. Mushrooms are definitely having their moment, lion’s mane and grilled king oyster mushrooms are becoming menu stars, everyone’s loving their ‘meaty’ flavour. Vegetarians and vegans truly value mushrooms as a protein

11. Jackfruit with its pork like flavour and texture is finding its way into sandwiches and tacos as well as vegetable and vegan stews.

12. Chickpeas are in everything from salads and tagines to creamy sauces. These spiced crunchy chickpeas are one of my must have larder ingredients to slather over salads and roast vegetables.

13. Companies are increasingly being called out on the internet for false claims about ingredients.

AI is fast penetrating restaurants; we will see hyper personalised dining experiences soon – how about asking Chat GBT for dinner ideas? Oh, my goodness, what is the world coming to!

Take out restaurant apps now learn from our previous orders and suggest new dishes we’re likely to enjoy.

Interestingly, zero waste is really becoming a significant buzz word, this isn’t just a trend, it’s a movement and all big food companies are incorporating it into their mission statement.

As it becomes evident that consumers prefer restaurants that focus on sustainability, the movement is set to reshape the entire food industry.

Food manufacturers are being forced to go back to the drawing board, there’s a growing emphasis on real and recognisable ingredients as consumers become more knowledgeable and alarmed about the additives in ultra-processed foods.

Simple labels will be more of a selling point.

At last, there’s a realisation that fresh local food from small production systems is often best, both in flavour and nutrient density. Traditional artisan methods continue to make a comeback. Conversation about climate curious agriculture is gathering momentum.

14. Dumplings are hot, delicious dough pockets filled with savoury fillings, highly versatile. Every type of dumpling from Chinese to Asian to Polish– comfort foods at their best.

We’ll continue our love affair with noodles becoming ever more adventurous.

15. Sourdough isn’t slowing down anytime soon, sourdough, flatbreads, pizzas, crackers, brownies….

16. Offal is no longer awful, it’s back with a vengeance. Americans who wouldn’t allow a scrap of liver, tongue or sweetbreads to cross their lips up to recently are now searching for variety. We see them often with Asian flavours on restaurant menus, some over here and in the UK. Restaurateurs are loving the lower food cost…

17. Tinned fish and fish caviar continue to gain popularity, best sardines, mackerel, tuna….and so convenient. 

18. Are we tired of charcuterie and butter boards, try the Nordic version to ring the changes.

19. Buckwheat will pop up everywhere in 2025, apart from its flavour, nutrient density and versatility, it’s gluten-free and gaining popularity as a cover crop that’s beneficial to soil health.

20. Apparently there’s a gradual shift in society’s attitude to ‘imperfects’ in fruit and veg…’Perfectly imperfect’ is becoming an eco-conscious option as folks realise the phenomenal amount of waste that ensues from the supermarkets’ insistence on standard size and ‘perfection’.

21. Micro restaurants are opening up in LA, a new law allows people to operate mini restaurants out of their homes and the trend of at home cafes, supper clubs, coffee shops and cocktail bars is all over TikTok.

Watch that space…

22. The beverage market, cocktails become more and more exciting, Gen Z are looking for non-alco drinks.

Moderation not abstention seems to be the trend, and bars are providing more creative options than ever before.

The growth in demand for natural wines, biodynamic and organic continues apace as people discover the real cause of their hangovers are the ninety plus chemical additives that can legally be in wine…

Super exciting beverages (both alcoholic and non-alcoholic) of all kinds, beers, wines, spirits, this industry is in a hyper creative period and the public are loving it.

Electrolyte drinks and powders to add to your water bottle – a new option.

Matcha and real tea leaves, meticulously sourced is definitely a growing trend among those in the know.

Have fun and Happy New Year.

Debbie Shaw’s Gluten-free Buckwheat and Flaxseed Bread

I love this nutty and nutritious whole grain loaf. It is ideal for sandwiches and great for toasting. It’s a light yeasted dough that doesn’t require any xanthan gum or psyllium husk, a bonus if you have run out! I make it frequently.

Makes 1 loaf

1 tsp of black treacle or honey

120ml tepid milk

15-18g fresh yeast or 10g Doves Farm gluten-free quick yeast

1 large egg

2 egg whites (50g)

50g freshly ground brown flax seeds

100g buckwheat flour, sieved

30g brown rice flour, sieved

½ tsp of salt

110g tapioca starch, sieved, measure into a separate bowl

olive oil for greasing

Add the treacle or honey to the tepid milk, stirring to dissolve it, then sprinkle the fresh or dried yeast on top. Allow to stand somewhere warm for 10 minutes to froth up.

Whisk together the large egg and the egg whites in a large bowl. Stir the milk and yeast mixture into the whisked eggs, then mix in the ground flaxseeds. Set aside to allow the flax seeds to absorb the liquid for 10-15 minutes. The resting time is important, as it helps the mixture to thicken.

Stir in the sieved buckwheat and brown rice flour and the salt and allow to absorb for a further 5 minutes. Add the sieved tapioca starch to the rested dough.

Preheat the oven to 230°C/Gas Mark 8.

Oil a 13cm x 20cm (450g) loaf tin very well.

Transfer the dough to the well-oiled loaf tin, cover with a clean tea towel, put it in a warm spot and allow it to rise until it reaches 1cm before the top of the tin, approximately 50-60 minutes, until it reaches 1cm below the top of the tin. Bake in the preheated oven for 10 minutes, reduce the temperature to 200°C/Gas Mark 6 and bake for a further 30-35 minutes, until the bread sounds hollow when you tap the bottom, and the loaf feels light. Remove the loaf from the tin and put it back on the rack of the oven to form a crust for a further 5 minutes. Cool completely on a wire rack before cutting. This bread keeps well.

Chicken or Duck Hearts with Teriyaki Sauce

Make your own teriyaki sauce or use your favourite brand.

Makes about 12 skewers

450g chicken or duck hearts

230ml teriyaki sauce, divided in half (see recipe)

2.5-5cm fresh ginger, peeled

2 tsp sesame seeds (optional garnish)

scallions or chives, thinly sliced

1 red chilli, sliced at an angle (optional)

watercress or crunchy leaves

Start by preparing the chicken hearts. Trim any veins/arteries and remove any blood clots. Slice each heart lengthwise, cutting three-quarters of the way through to open it up so it lays flat. If you find any blood clots upon slicing, just rinse under cold water.

Put the prepared hearts into a bowl with 115ml teriyaki and allow to marinade for 30-60 minutes.

Light a grill or pan-grill to medium high heat.

Remove the hearts from the marinade. Thread about four hearts onto the skewer. Repeat until all skewers are full.

Put the remaining teriyaki sauce into a small bowl. Use a Microplane or fine grater to grate in the fresh ginger.

Lay each skewer onto the grill, brush with the teriyaki/ginger mix. After 2-3 minutes, flip the skewers and baste them again. Cook for a further 2-3 minutes, baste and flip over again.

To Serve

Sprinkle with a few sesame seeds, sliced scallions or chives, red chilli and a few sesame seeds and serve immediately on some watercress sprigs or crunchy leaves.

Teriyaki Sauce

Teriyaki sauce will keep well for at least a month in the fridge.

200ml mirin

100ml sake

100g caster sugar

200ml soy sauce

1-2 tbsp potato starch (or substitute cornflour)

First put the mirin and sake into a saucepan and bring to the boil.  Simmer for a couple of minutes.  Next add the sugar and allow to dissolve.  When the sugar has dissolved add the soy sauce, keeping back approximately 20ml of the soy to mix with the potato starch (or cornflour).  Mix the required quantity of potato starch, approximately 1-2 tablespoons with the soy and add to the simmering teriyaki sauce.  The starch is used to thicken the sauce and give it a syrup texture.  If you think it’s not thick enough, add some more potato starch.  Take a little of the sauce out of the pan and allow to cool, add the starch and put it back into the saucepan.

Spicy Roast Chickpea Crunch

These chickpeas are seriously addictive – I’ve used freshly ground cumin and coriander here but garam masala, smoked paprika, chilli powder, chopped rosemary or thyme leaves are also delicious.   The chickpeas will get crispier as they cool.  Enjoy as a nibble or sprinkle over salads or roast vegetables. 

Also delicious drizzled with chilli honey (see recipe).

Serves 4-6 as a nibble or add to salads.

Makes 100g roasted weight

400g can chickpeas

1-2 tsp each of cumin and coriander seeds, toasted and ground

Preheat the oven to 220°C/Gas Mark 7.

Drain the chickpeas, rinse under cold water and drain again. Lay on kitchen paper, shake and pat gently until dry. Spread the chickpeas out in a single layer on a small baking tray, drizzle with extra virgin olive oil. Sprinkle generously with sea salt and the cumin and coriander seeds (if using). Shake to coat. Roast for 25-30 minutes or until crisp and golden. Cool, taste, add more salt and spices if necessary. Store in an airtight jar.

Chilli Honey

This delicious, sweet, perky chilli honey is a delicious condiment to drizzle over pizza, bread, toast….

Makes 1 x 360g jar

360g runny honey

2-3 tbsp chilli flakes, depending on how hot you like it

pinch of salt

1 tbsp apple cider vinegar

Pour the honey into a small saucepan, add the chilli flakes and a generous pinch of salt.  Warm gently on a medium heat, just as soon as it begins to simmer, turn off the heat and stir in the cider vinegar.  Pour into 1 or more sterilized jars.

Store in a cool dark place, no need to refrigerate.

How about a family movie night – a super chilled evening where you all sit down together, feet up around the telly to binge on that box set you’ve been meaning to watch for ages.

Even if you’ve had supper, it’s still good to have some snackable snacks ready to nibble at intervals.

Depending on the theme of the film you could choose to have fun and stay on theme – one way or another, think about some easy to pass around, easy to nibble savoury treats with a few sweeties to round off the evening.

We must have popcorn, right? It’s super easy to make a huge pot of popcorn. If there are kids around, they’ll love to help and then you can keep some plain or do lots of riffs on the original.

How about caramel popcorn, toffee popcorn, sriracha spicy popcorn…(see Edible Christmas Column, 17^th December 2022)

We also love cheese straws; they are a bit more filling than potato crisps but disappear just as fast. We’re loving these cacio e pepe crisps, but one or two dips are also a brilliant standby, a good guacamole with crunchy nachos is hard to beat, that’s if you can get a decent avocado – no easy task nowadays. There are still lots of beetroot around so a beetroot hummus could be good as is a basic silky hummus perked up with cumin.

Sticky, delicious chicken wings are always a winner, provide lots of napkins. If you want to go Asian, cook off a batch of pakoras – spicy vegetable fritters sold by street vendors all across the Indian subcontinent.

Samosas are also irresistible – little peaky pastries stuffed with a savoury filling, mostly though not always vegetarian.

Here is the version Madhur Jaffrey showed me years ago with spiced potatoes, sweet onions and peas but could be fish or chilli mince. They also come in different shapes depending on the region – triangles, cones or crescents…

Cookies or little morsels of brownies hit the sweet spot, particularly if it’s a tearjerker, why not make one of your favourite traybakes? So easy to cut into squares to pass around and so morish.

Here’s a few snacks to play with….

Madhur Jaffrey’s Samosas

Madhur made the pastry from scratch but one could use filo. Make sure the filling goes right into the corners.

Makes 16-24

1 packet of filo pastry

For the Filling

725g potatoes, boiled in their jackets and allowed to cool

4 tbsp vegetable oil

1 medium sized onion, peeled and finely chopped

175g shelled peas, fresh or frozen (if frozen, defrost them first)

1 tbsp finely grated peeled fresh ginger

1 fresh hot green chilli, finely chopped

3 tbsp very finely chopped fresh green coriander

3 tbsp water

1 ½ tsp salt – or to taste

1 tsp ground coriander seeds

1 tsp garam masala, see recipe

1 tsp ground roasted cumin seeds

⅓ tsp cayenne pepper

2 tbsp lemon juice

vegetable oil for deep-frying

Make the stuffing.

Peel the potatoes and cut them into 5mm dice. Heat 4 tablespoons of oil in a large frying pan over a medium flame. When hot, put in the onions. Stir and fry them until they begin to turn brown at the edges. Add the peas, ginger, green chilli, fresh coriander, and 3 tablespoons of water. Cover, lower heat and simmer until the peas are cooked. Stir every now and then and add a little more water if the frying pan seems to dry out.

Add the diced potatoes, salt, coriander, garam masala, roasted cumin, cayenne and lemon juice. Stir to mix. Cook on a low heat for 3-4 minutes, stirring gently as you do so. Check the balance of salt and lemon juice. You may want more of both. Turn off the heat and allow the mixture to cool.

Cut a sheet of filo into 10cm strips lengthways.  Put the strips on top of each other.  Brush the top one with melted butter.  Put a heaped dessert spoon of chosen filling at the front edge.  Wrap the pastry around and then fold over and over into a triangle, seal the edge with melted butter.  Repeat with the others until all the filling is used up. 

Heat about 4-5cm of oil for deep-frying over a medium-low flame. You may use a small, deep frying pan for this. When the oil is medium hot, put in as many samosas as the pan will hold in a single layer. Fry slowly, turning the samosas frequently until they are golden brown and crisp. Drain on kitchen paper and serve hot, warm, or at room temperature.

Cacio e Pepe Crisps

Try this combo for your next movie night.

Cacio e Pepe is one of my absolute favourite pastas, but the flavour combination works on lots of other things – polenta, cauliflower florets…My latest obsession is to have it on crisps.

125g olive oil potato crisps (e.g. Torres)

40g Pecorino, finely grated or Parmesan

1 tbsp coarsely cracked black pepper

Preheat the oven to 220°C/Gas Mark 7.

Spread the potato crisps out in a single layer on a baking tray. Sprinkle half the cheese evenly over the crisps.

Bake until the cheese is melted, and the crisps are just beginning to brown at the edges – 4 minutes approximately.

Remove from the oven, sprinkle with the remaining cheese and freshly cracked pepper. Allow to cool a little before tossing into a serving bowl.

Enjoy.

Indian Spiced Vegetable Pakoras with Mango Relish

These can be cooked ahead and reheated or served warm with mango relish or a relish of your fancy.

Serves 4-6

A selection of vegetables:

1 thin aubergine cut into 5mm slices or into chunks at an angle

1 tsp salt

2 medium courgettes, cut into 2.5cm slices, if they are very large cut into quarters

12 cauliflower florets (walnut size approx.)

6 large field mushrooms, cut in half

spinach leaves

Batter

175g chickpea or all-purpose flour

1 tbsp chopped fresh coriander

1 scant tsp salt

2 tsp curry powder

1 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice

175-225ml iced water

vegetable oil for deep frying

Garnish

lemon wedges and coriander or parsley.

Put the aubergine wedges or slices into a colander, sprinkle with the salt, and let drain while preparing the other vegetables.

Blanch and refresh the cauliflower florets separately in boiling salted water for 2 minutes. Drain, refresh under cold water, and dry well.

Rinse the aubergine slices and pat dry.

Put the flour, coriander, salt and curry powder into a large bowl. Gradually whisk in the oil, lemon juice and water until the batter is the consistency of thick cream.

Heat good quality oil to 180°C in a deep fry.

Lightly whisk the batter and dip the vegetables in batches of 5 or 6.  Slip them individually into the hot oil. 

Fry the pakoras for 2-3 minutes on each side, turning them with a slotted spoon. Drain on paper towels and keep warm in a moderate oven (uncovered) while you cook the remainder. Allow the oil to come back to 180°C between batches.

When all the vegetable fritters are ready, garnish with lemon wedges and fresh or deep-fried coriander or parsley. If you fancy, you could serve alone or with mango relish.

Persian Squares (Lemon, Pistachio and Rose Petal Squares)

Cut these into little squares for lots of irresistible nibbles.

Makes 24 squares

175g soft butter

150g caster sugar

2 eggs, preferably free range

1 tsp vanilla extract

zest of 1-2 lemons

175g self-raising flour

Icing

300g icing sugar

freshly squeezed juice of 1 lemon

1 tbsp boiling water

Topping

40g Persian pistachios, chopped

1 tbsp rose petals

30 x 20cm Swiss roll tin, well-greased or lined with parchment paper

Preheat the oven to 180°C/Gas Mark 4.

Put the butter, caster sugar, eggs, vanilla extract, finely grated lemon zest and self-raising flour into a food processor. Whizz for a few seconds to amalgamate. Spread evenly in the well buttered tin. Bake in the preheated oven for 20-25 minutes approx. or until golden brown and well risen.

Meanwhile make the icing.

Sieve the icing sugar into a bowl.  Add enough lemon juice plus 1 tablespoon of boiling water if necessary to mix to a malleable icing.  Spread the icing evenly over the cake mixture with a palette knife. 

Sprinkle chopped pistachios and rose petals over the surface. 

When set, cut into squares and enjoy!

Note

In Winter when the butter is harder to cream, we add 2-3 tablespoons of milk to lighten the mixture and texture.

Well, that’s Christmas over for another year, hope you all enjoyed a happy and delicious family feast and a chilled and carefree few days.

If you’ve done a lot of cooking coming up to Christmas, it’s possible that you won’t want to go anywhere near your cooker for at least a week, but I love the excitement of poking around in the fridge and pantry and dreaming up delicious ways to use up bits and bobs.

There are bound to be some delicious leftovers lurking around in there and I love the improvisation and creative challenge of incorporating dollops of this and that into something entirely different. Think Thai, Vietnamese, Mexican, Middle Eastern, Indian, Moroccan…as well as traditional flavours.

So, let’s mull over what you might have leftover apart from morsels of turkey and ham maybe, plum pudding, trifle, stale bread, Brussels sprouts, cranberries. The latter are definitely not a problem, they can be popped into the freezer, they’ll keep for months but better still, throw a fistful into a batch of scones, a muffin mix or a white soda bread. Leftover cranberry sauce will keep for weeks, maybe even months, add oomph to a salad, an apple tart or roast chicken as well as the end of a jar of minced meat.

A good turkey carcass makes the best stock of all but first strip away the last little morsels of both meat and stuffing from the carcass, there’s a million ways to use those precious leftover bits after the family have hoovered up what they fancied for the epic turkey and stuffing sandwiches that we all love. 

Turkey stock is super easy to make, it just takes time but not your time. Chop or break up the carcass as best you can. Toss into a deep saucepan with the giblets if you have them (not the liver, use that for a buttery pâté). Add a couple of quartered onions, 3 or 4 stalks of celery, a couple of chopped leeks and carrots. Add a few sprigs of thyme, lots of parsley stalks – no bay leaves. If you have some ginger peelings, add them too. Toss in ten or twelve black peppercorns, no salt. Add the ham bone if available, cover with cold water. Bring slowly to the boil. Cover the saucepan and simmer for three to four hours or longer. I put the saucepan into the cool oven of my ancient Aga. Strain, cool and refrigerate or freeze.

It’s crucial to make a batch or two of mayonnaise as a condiment. Divide it into aioli, watercress mayo and coriander and chilli mayonnaise. There’s also a myriad of ways to use up the remains of the ham, add it to pasta dishes, mac and cheese, a frittata, cauliflower cheese or a leek and potato gratin or toss a little dice into a Brussels sprout soup. I love all those ‘homesey’ one-pot dishes, so comforting to tuck into on chilly January days.

Slices of plum pudding can be fried quickly in a little foaming butter and served piping hot with whiskey cream, a blob of brandy butter or the end of Mrs. Hanrahan’s Sauce. By the way, there’s no rush to use up plum pudding, it will keep perfectly well wrapped for several weeks or can even be frozen until the urge for a little fruity boozy sweetness comes again.

Little ends of cheese can be grated and added to gratins, scones and biscuits. Whizz scraps of blue cheese with butter, maybe add a little chopped parsley and melt over steaks or burgers.

Leftover bread, croissants or panettone make a delicious bread and butter pudding or just throw it into the freezer to make breadcrumbs for stuffing on another day or French toast and on it goes…

Can’t bear to waste a scrap, perhaps it was my 50’s and 60’s upbringing that left me with a deep understanding that food waste was unthinkable, it doesn’t make sense at any time particularly with my recent trip to East Africa so fresh in my mind.

And most people don’t even have a few hens to eat up the scraps and convert them into eggs a few days later.

Why not ask some pals around for a celebration Leftovers Feast (a marathon fridge clear out).

New Year’s resolution – invest in three or four hens!

Vietnamese Turkey Noodle Soup

A delicious way to enjoy both your turkey broth and morsels from the carcass.

It is vitally important to use really good-flavoured stock for this noodle soup – super quick to make once you’ve assembled the ingredients and it’s an entire meal in a bowl.

Serves 4

1.2 litres well-flavoured turkey stock

1 tbsp Vietnamese fish sauce

60g galangal, finely chopped

2 star anise

2 cinnamon sticks

1 teaspoon sugar

225g shredded, cooked turkey meat

225g rice noodles

Accompaniments

4 spring onions, diagonally sliced

225g fresh bean sprouts (if available) – use finely shredded Chinese cabbage otherwise

2-4 small red chillies, finely chopped

2 limes, quartered

crispy fried shallots

coarsely crushed roasted peanuts

handful of fresh coriander leaves

salt and freshly ground pepper

Pour the stock into a large saucepan and add the fish sauce, galangal, star anise, cinnamon, sugar and season to taste with salt and pepper. Simmer for 2-3 minutes, add the shredded turkey and simmer for a further 4-5 minutes. Taste, add more fish sauce and lime juice if necessary.

Cook the rice noodles according to the packet instructions and divide them between 4 large wide bowls. Divide the soup and turkey shreds between the bowls.

Put all the remaining ingredients into small bowls so that everyone can help themselves to the soup accompaniments.

Brussels Sprout and Kimchi Salad with Asian Dressing

We’ve got lots of Brussels sprout salads, some of my favourites are just tossed in a French dressing with some nuts (pecans, hazelnuts or pumpkin seeds), a sprinkling of raisins and maybe a few slices of ripe avocado and a couple of red chicory leaves.

Serves 6

300- 400g fresh Brussels sprouts or sprout tops, topped, thinly shredded

4 scallions, both white and green parts, thinly sliced at an angle

100 – 150g kimchi 

Dressing

2 tbsp rice vinegar

2 tbsp sesame oil

1 tbsp honey

1 tbsp white miso paste

1 tbsp tahini

1 tsp grated fresh ginger

2 tbsp of water

To Serve

1 heaped tbsp of sesame seeds

2 tbsp of shredded coriander

First make the dressing. Whisk the rice vinegar, sesame oil, honey, miso, tahini, grated ginger and water in a bowl until smooth.

Put the shredded Brussels sprouts or sprout tops into a bowl with the scallions and kimchi. Mix well, drizzle the dressing over the top, toss well, taste and tweak the seasoning if necessary.

Sprinkle with the sesame seeds and shredded coriander.

Serve immediately.

Mincemeat and Bramley Apple Meringue Tart

Serves 10-12

A wonderful Christmassy Tart and also a particularly good way to use up leftover mincemeat.

Pastry

175g white flour

75g butter

pinch of salt

1 beaten egg to bind

Filling

450g mincemeat

125g Bramley apples

Meringue

3 egg whites

175g caster sugar

egg wash

icing sugar to dust

edible sparkly glitter (optional)

1 x 23cm tart tin (2.5cm deep)

First make the pastry. 

Sift the flour and the salt into a large bowl. Cut the butter into cubes, toss in the flour, rub in with the fingertips until the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs. Whisk the egg with 2 teaspoons of cold water and add enough to bind the mixture. But do not make the pastry too wet – it should come away cleanly from the bowl. Flatten into a round and wrap in cling film and rest in the fridge for 15 minutes. Roll out thinly on a lightly floured worktop and use it to line the flan tin. Line with kitchen or greaseproof paper and fill to the top with dried beans. Rest for 15 minutes in the fridge.

Preheat the oven to 180°C/Gas Mark 4.

Bake the tart base blind for about 25 minutes in a moderate oven or until pale and golden, remove the beans and paper.  Brush the pre-baked tart shell with a little beaten egg and pop back into the oven for 3-4 minutes or until almost cooked. Cool.

Be careful not to overcook because if this pastry gets too brown, it will be bitter, hard and unappetizing.

Reduce the temperature to 150°C/Gas mark 1/2.

Peel and core the cooking apples. Cut into 1/2cm dice.

Whisk the egg whites with the caster sugar until it reaches stiff peaks. Mix the diced apple with the mincemeat and spread over the cooked pastry base. Slather the meringue on top or using a plain round nozzle (no 9), pipe the meringue in your favourite pattern.

Return to the oven and cook for 50 minutes, until the meringue is crisp.

Cool on a wire rack then dust heavily with icing sugar and if you fancy, add some edible sparkly glitter for end of season festive cheer…

Serve with a bowl of softly whipped cream.

Food for thought before Christmas…

I’ve recently returned from a week visiting smallholder farmers in East Africa.

It may well have been the most interesting, inspiring and educational trip of my entire life. It certainly rearranges one’s priorities.

The program was organised by the Ripple Effect NGO, formerly Send A Cow. We spent nine days between Kenya, Uganda and Rwanda visiting farming families.

I had never even heard of Ripple Effect until a couple of months ago when Guy Watson from Riverford Farm in Devon who has been working with this NGO for over 20 years asked me to join a small group to see first-hand the impact of their training schemes and projects in changing lives of individuals and communities in rural Africa. People in these areas have multiple challenges, they are fighting hunger and poor or no harvests due to the soil quality and the climate crisis. They fluctuate between drought and floods. In some countries, particularly Kenya and Uganda, it is the culture for men to make all the decisions while women do the lion’s share of the manual work and child rearing. In Kenya and Uganda, polygamy is legal and, in both countries, the government encourages people to have large families. The population overall is deeply religious. However, things are slowly changing and one of the farms that we visited, the farmer introduced himself and his family saying, ‘and I’ve just got one wife’. Rwanda however bans polygamy both in the constitution and in the Civil Code and actively encourages smaller families with two or three children as opposed to six or seven in Kenya and Uganda, particularly in rural areas.

The average size farm is ¼ hectare – 1 acre.

We visited a variety of farms that had been working with Ripple Effect in some cases for only six months, others for up to three years. Every square inch of the land was cultivated. Virtually all had one or two treasured cows, all were making compost – organic compost which not only improves yield but helps restore tired land.  When the cow has a calf, they gift it to a neighbour, hence the name Ripple Effect. They were convinced of the value of working with nature to implement tangible change through Ripple Effect training schemes. There were a variety of growing systems to max yields on small holdings with dramatic results. Over and over again, we saw how families whose major preoccupation had been just to manage to feed the family, are now producing some surplus to sell and are at last able to send children to school.

Fruit trees provide food, shade and income, rainwater harvesting techniques help farmers to weather climate induced droughts. Ripple Effect enables people to have access to microfinance through savings and loan associations.

Every project begins with workshops for families that help to empower women to take part in family decision making and reduce their unpaid workload. This policy has had transformative outcomes. When men and women work together, they can achieve so much more.

The big agri-chemical companies are targeting these African countries and in some cases, governments are supporting farmers to buy chemicals to boost their yields – a short term fix which will ultimately damage rather than increase soil fertility with predictable results.

Rwanda, the fastest growing economy in Africa was perhaps the most remarkable of all, the countries we visited are an example of what can be achieved with strong visionary leadership.

This country, torn apart by what now appears to have been a carefully orchestrated genocide is now in the midst of a reconciliation programme that is enabling its citizens to heal and forgive, utterly extraordinary.

On several of the farms we visited in this area, we met numerous genocide orphans and a genocide widow with three children starting a new life with help from Ripple Effect. Her husband and other four children were taken and then murdered during a raid on their village.

Despite all this, everywhere we went, people of all ages were super cheerful. They sang and danced and chanted in their tribal gear to welcome us, insisted on sharing their food and in several cases sent us home with hand crafted presents.

I could write a book about what I learned and observed in those eight or nine days in East Africa but how about the food…. 

Well, needless to say, the food overall was tasty and nutritious, not quite what one might term a gastronomic experience although I did have Nsenene, a Luganda word for long horned grasshoppers – a wet season speciality which I would definitely describe as a Ugandan delicacy. They were sold by street vendors, sometimes at gas stations or outside supermarkets.

I also loved the BBQ chicken on a stick sold along the roadside on the road to Kigali. These vendors are particularly famous for this specialty. 

My friends needed a bit of persuasion to taste the smoked tilapia that I spotted and bought from a young vendor along the Kampala Masaka roadside in Nkozi-Mugge district. One bite and they were hooked, as ever many of the best foods were street foods, cooked or smoked on the spot.

Meals in our hotel were for the most part substantial and tasty. In Uganda, the staple is Ugali, a thick white maize porridge and of course rice and beans usually eaten in conjunction with a goat or beef stew and greens. The greens, sometimes kale or spinach but often a type of highly nutritious annual nightshade (Solanum scabrum) which I grew to love.  There was often roast or more correctly charred chicken, a cabbage slaw and chunks of arrowroot.

In Rwanda we ate the staple matoke (plantain) cooked in banana leaves and cassava. Chapati was the all-purpose flat bread and sometimes a peanut sauce.

The meat was always tasty but because hanging is not possible in that climate, it was ‘pretty chewy’ by our standards but no criticism from me, it was all part of the experience.

I also loved the smoky honey from the tiny wild African bees collected from handmade hives, made from folds of tree bark, hidden high up in the trees – quite the challenge to harvest!

Dessert was mostly fresh fruit, pineapple, watermelon, mangoes, passion fruit, tamarillos and lots and lots of bananas, I particularly loved the small, slightly tart bananas, wish we could get them over here.

Milky African tea is the drink beloved by all but not necessarily a favourite among non-Africans, sometimes it has a few added spices, and can be reminiscent of chai which I love.

In the midst of all the festivities if you feel like looking up Ripple Effect, here is their website www.rippleeffect.org

You can’t imagine how little can change people’s lives and to change even one person’s life is a huge contribution to mankind.

A merry and blessed Christmas to all.

Ugali

Ugali is a beloved staple in many African countries including Kenya and Uganda. It’s like a thick, solid porridge, hearty, satisfying and deeply nutritious and an accompaniment to virtually every meal, often served with a meat or vegetable stew.

Some recipes contain no salt, and others add some milk to the water and a blob of butter to the ugali – experiment and enjoy.

Serves 6-8 

225g coarse white maize

950ml (4 cups) water

1-2 tsp salt (optional)

Put the water into a deep heavy bottomed saucepan and bring to the boil, add salt (optional), then sprinkle the polenta flour in very slowly letting it slip gradually through your fingers, whisking or stirring all the time, (this should take 3-4 minutes).  Bring to the boil and continue to cook for about 5 minutes stirring constantly* (I use a whisk at the beginning but as soon as the ugali comes to the boil I change to a flat bottomed wooden spoon.) The ugali is cooked when it is very thick and comes away from the sides of the pot as you stir and furrs the bottom of the saucepan. It should be thick and smooth.

Flatten into a flat cake (about 7.5 – 9cm in height), then cut into wedges or alternatively, fill into individual moulds.

Goat Curry

Ballymaloe Cookery School alumni, Nompumelo Mqwebu from South Africa kindly shared these recipes with me.

Recipe from ‘Through the Eyes of an African Chef’.

Serves 4

goat curry marinade

1kg goat meat

500ml water with juice of 1 lemon

1 tbsp onion, very finely chopped

1 tbsp crushed garlic

1 ½ tsp salt

for the curry

15g curry powder (mix of turmeric, coriander, cumin, fenugreek and masala)

water

salt and pepper to taste

20ml coconut oil

1 large onion, diced

10g fresh ginger

8 pimentos, seeded

3 spring onions

3 sprigs fresh thyme

1 large potato, peeled and cubed

1 scotch bonnet chilli, deseeded

garnish

slivers of fresh coconut

To make the goat curry.

Overnight: first rinse the meat in lemon water. Season the goat with finely chopped onion, garlic and salt, then place in a container. Cover and set aside overnight.

The next day.

Toss the meat into a large saucepan over medium heat and let it brown in its own fat for about 10-15 minutes; then pour in enough water to cover the meat and let it cook until tender (add more water, if necessary). Season with salt and pepper. Goat can take 2 ½ – 3 hours to cook until tender.

In a separate large saucepan, warm the spices (curry powder) on a low heat. Remove the spices, pour the coconut oil in the saucepan, then add the onion and ginger. Stir, then add the curry powder. Add pimento, spring onion, thyme, potato and the scotch bonnet chilli, stirring for 3 minutes. Add the cooked goat to the onion mixture and simmer on a low heat for another 30-60 minutes until the sauce thickens and the goat has absorbed the curry flavours. Adjust the seasoning according to preferred taste.

For the garnish.

Place a few fresh coconut slivers on a baking tray and pop into the oven for 5-10 minutes at 180°C/Gas Mark 4. Keep a close eye on them to prevent them from burning.

To Serve

Sprinkle the roasted coconut slivers on top of the goat curry and serve with boiled rice.

Venison Mushroom Burger

Recipe from ‘Through the Eyes of an African Chef’.

Serves 4-5

for the venison patties

600g venison, minced

salt and pepper to taste

2 cloves of garlic, crushed

3g parsley, finely chopped

2 shallots, finely diced

3g chives, finely chopped

1 egg

for the burger

8-10 large black mushrooms

sliced tomatoes (2 slices per serving)

sliced mature Cheddar cheese (1-2 slices per person)

1 small red onion, sliced

1 washed lettuce

In a bowl, season the minced venison, then combine with the garlic, parsley, shallots and chives. Add the egg, ensuring it is mixed thoroughly.

Separate the mixture into portions and mould into patties using your hands. Indent the centre with your thumb or a teaspoon and place in the fridge to firm up.

Place the burgers on a hot grill and seal each side, turning them over to cook to desired preference. Grill the mushrooms for 1 minute on each side next to the burgers.

To Serve

Place a slice of tomato on a mushroom, then top with a cooked venison patty, 1-2 slices of cheese and a few onion rings; close off with a second slice of tomato, some lettuce and a cooked mushroom.

Mango Ice

Recipe from ‘Through the Eyes of an African Chef’.

If the mangoes are not super sweet, add caster sugar and freshly squeezed lemon juice to taste.

Serves 4-6

3-4 sweet, ripe mangoes, peeled and cubed

ice cubes

Garnish

fresh mint leaves

Blend the mango and a handful of ice cubes in a food processor until smooth. Scoop into a container and freeze for 4-5 hours or until solid.  Serve in bowls garnished with mint leaves with softly whipped cream if you like.