When I heard of Honor Moore’s recent passing I was deeply saddened. Somehow one felt that this doyenne of Irish food writers would always be with us. I didn’t know Honor very well but remember her support, when I started the Ballymaloe Cookery School and her encyclopaedic knowledge of traditional Irish food. I particularly remember a long conversation about boxty when I was doing research for my traditional food book.

Honor started to cook in an evacuee camp in the North of Ireland in the early 1940s under a chef from Gibraltar who by all accounts didn’t think much of her ability, apparently he advised her to give up all thoughts of being a chef and fortunately she didn’t heed him.

Soon after she started to write articles on food for the Belfast Newsletter under the nom de plume ‘Housekeeper’ and continued until 1968. She went on to write a weekly column in the RTE Guide for many years and also developed a loyal following as food editor of Woman’s Way magazine. She also did an occasional piece for the Farmer’s Journal and then started to work on a book about her life called A Cooks Tale.

Honor had many hats. When her husband Sam died suddenly in 1965, she had to take over the running of his PR (Public Relations) business. She knew nothing about PR but, through necessity, learned in double quick time. Within days, she was representing the interests of Marathon Oil, Irish Base Metals including the Tynagh Mine, Tara Exploration; The Irish Shoe Federation and many more.

Honor also made several appearances on TV with both Tom Doorley and on the Late Late Show.

As one of the founding members of the Irish Food Writers Guild she was highly respected by her journalistic colleagues. The Guild chose her as their President and she was re-elected every year since then, unopposed. In 2005, Eurotoques, the European Community of Chefs presented her with a special lifetime achievement award.

Throughout her 90 years she brought Irish people along with her as she introduced new ingredients and ideas and was always warm and supportive to young chefs, cooks restaurateurs and food producers.

Honor will be sadly missed and warmly remembered by all of us who knew her.

 

Honor Moore’s Smoked Fish Chowder with Carrageen

 

Serves 4

 

450g (1lb) smoked fish, cut in cubes

15g (3/4oz) butter

1 onion, chopped

2 medium potatoes, peeled and diced

2 medium leeks, trimmed and sliced

600ml (1 pint) fish stock or water

300ml (10 floz) milk

good pinch carrageen

freshly ground black pepper

 

Garnish: Dried dillisk.

 

Melt the butter in a saucepan. Add the onion, potatoes, and leeks, cook over a low heat, stirring, well until softened. Add the stock and milk. Simmer until the vegetables are soft.  Season to taste; add the fish and the carrageen. Simmer gently for 7 to 10 minutes more, to cook the fish. Serve with toasted rolls.

 

 

Honor Moore’s Fougasse

 

Makes 2 loaves

 

500g (18oz) strong white flour

3 tsp dried yeast

2 ½ tbsp olive oil

sea salt

extra flour for kneading.

 

Sieve the flour into a large bowl and make a well in the center.  Dissolve the yeast in warm (not hot) water. Pour the mixture into the flour and add the olive oil using a wooden spoon.   Begin mixing in the lukewarm water and continue until the mixture forms a loose dough.  Turn out on to a floured surface and knead for 2 minutes.   Add the salt and continue to knead until the dough is smooth and elastic.   Return the dough to the clean bowl, cover with a damp tea towel and leave in a warm place to rise for an hour. Once the dough has doubled in size, turn it out on to a lightly floured surface.   Knead for a minute or two and divide in two and flatten them into two large ovals.   Transfer to a large baking sheet and using a pair of lightly floured scissors cut diagonal slashes right through the dough.   Using your fingers open up the slashes until they At least 2 ½ cm wide. Transfer to a baking sheet.   And Put the baking sheet into a warm place and leave to prove for 30 minutes.  Either drizzle little olive oil over the top and sprinkle with rock salt or scatter with grated Parmesan cheese. Bake in a pre-heated oven at 450ºF -230ºC – gas mark 8 for 15 to 20 minutes.  Wrap in a clean tea towel and serve.

 

Honor Moore’s Chocolate Orange Bread and Butter Pudding

 

Serves 6

 

Unsalted butter for greasing

 

10 thin slices of white bread, crusts removed

good quality chocolate spread

1 tsp grated orange rind

 

Custard

 

4 large eggs, beaten

3 tbsp golden caster sugar

3 tbsp cocoa

600ml (1 pint) whipping cream

300ml (10fl oz) sieved orange juice

 

To finish

 

1 tsp cocoa

1 tsp golden caster sugar

Grease a shallow ovenproof dish about 26cm by 18cm by 7cm.  Cut the bread into triangles and spread with butter and chocolate spread.   Arrange neatly in the prepared dish. To make the custard whisk the egg, cream cheese sugar and vanilla until smooth. Stir in the white chocolate pieces and set aside.  Return to the dark chocolate mixture; whisk the caster sugar and eggs in another large bowl.   With the whisk still running, gently pour in the melted chocolate.   Carefully fold in the flour with a metal spoon. Pour half the dark chocolate mixture into the brownie tin, and then pour over the much runnier white mixture, dollop in the rest of the chocolate mix evenly over the top.  Using a wooden spoon handle lightly stir the contents of the tin, making large swirls

 

Bake for 35 minutes.   Cool and cut into squares.

 

 

Franny’s Pickled Ramps (Wild Garlic)

 

Makes 2 cups

 

450g (1lb) late season ramps (wild garlic) with well-developed bulbs

112mls (4fl oz) white wine vinegar

55ml (2fl oz) moscato vinegar or (see note)

 

Trim the hairy roots from the ramps. Separate the bulbs from the greens; reserve the greens for another use. Rinse the bulbs under warm running water and pat dry.

In a small saucepan, combine the vinegars, sugar and salt and bring to a simmer. Stir in the ramps, reduce the heat to low, and return the liquid to a simmer.

Let stand, stirring occasionally until cool.

Transfer the ramps and liquid to an airtight container; the pickles  will keep in the refrigerator for up to three months.

Note: For a cheater’s moscato vinegar substitute, whisk together 112mls (4fl oz) apple cider vinegar, 2 ½ teaspoons honey and ¼ teaspoon balsamic vinegar.

 

Hot Tips

Learn classic cooking techniques, over the years we’ve had many requests from busy people who want us to create a course to teach everything from basic knife skills,from  jointing a chicken to making the perfect salad dressing. During the two and half day course of three demonstrations and two hands on sessions, you will learn the essential skills that will make cooking easy and fun.  Classic Techniques – Wednesday, 24th to Friday 26^th July 2013 Ballymaloe Cookery School – phone 021-4646785 to book a place.

Ross Golden-Bannon, busy editor of Food and Wine Magazine has been hatching up a fun new dining experience. He’s teamed up with chef Gareth Mullins of the Marker Hotel in Dublin to create a pop up restaurant in the Hibernian Club on St Stephen’s Green. The six course menu will celebrate the food of many fledgling artisan food producers, craft brewers and natural wine producers. The first dinner was yesterday, to catch the next one check out www.guerillagourmetclub.evenbrite.ie

Elderflowers are in full bloom along every lane and hedgerow in Ireland at present.  Pick them on a dry day and make elderflower syrups, cordials, granita and fritters. The season isn’t long, maybe another 2 or 3 weeks. Remember elderflowers grow on small trees and not by the road side and must not be confused with cow parsley or giant hog weed. You’ll find new seasons elderflower cordial at the Midleton farmers market very Saturday morning 9 – 2pm www.midletonfarmersmarket.ie

Dates for your Diary

The 37th Kinsale Gourmet Festival tickets are now on sale with some events almost sold out already I’m told. The festival takes place in Kinsale 11 – 13 October – Tickets available for purchase from 021 4773571 and further information on www.kinsalerestaurants.com

Kenmare, Co Kerry will hold its second annual Kenmare Food Carnival from 12th – 14th July 2013 – see www.kenmarefoodcarnival.com

I’ve just been thanking the good Lord for the bounty of the earth; we’ve just had the first of the broad beans and new potatoes, such joy.  Several of the grandchildren helped to pick the beans, until we chased them away because they were eating more than they were picking. They love extracting them out of the long green pods, no two are the same but all are furry inside with a different number of beans in each one. They are sweet and juicy and the grandchildren are right, the French and Italians love them raw with just a little olive oil and sea salt and a little salty ricotta. Like asparagus and virtually every other vegetable the quicker you can get them into the kitchen and onto the table the more super delicious they will be.

The asparagus has been slow and late and sluggish this year, as has virtually everything else, all the farmers have had a challenging year and for some it has been terrifying as the stark reality of the effects of climate change on our crops really hits home. The reality that we may have to perhaps drastically change what can be grown in this country is now a distinct possibility as we grapple with the fact that these weather patterns may now be the norm rather than the exception.

It has certainly made many of us more aware of how much we depend on Mother Nature. Food is not something that just appears on supermarket shelves, someone has to grow, care for and harvest it. Animals need to fed and looked after 24/7 and with the relentless pressure to deliver cheap food to the consumer at any cost, those who produce it are rarely paid a fair price for their efforts.

Waste is still a huge problem at many stages in the food chain. Those of us who are fortunate enough to be able to grow even a few radishes or spring onions for ourselves, know the effort that goes into it and won’t waste a scrap.

Here at the Ballymaloe Cookery School the students have the option to see our five Jersey cows being milked and to learn the skill. For many, it comes as a shock to realize that cows have to be milked twice a day every day, over weekends, bank holidays, Christmas day…

Blessed are the farmers, the fishermen, the cheese makers and all those who produce food that nourishes us. It’s time to sit down around the kitchen table once again and to give thanks and celebrate the new seasons produce and to make a wish that we’ll be as well this time next year (and not waste a scrap!)

 

Asparagus and Marjoram Frittata

 

Serves 6

 

8 eggs, preferably free-range (increase the eggs if your pan is bigger)

225g (8oz) thin asparagus

1 teaspoon salt and freshly ground pepper

55g (2oz) Parmesan, Parmigano Reggiano, freshly grated

or

25g (1oz) Parmesan and 25g (1oz) Gruyere

2-3 tablespoons chopped marjoram

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

 

non stick frying pan – 7½ inch (19cm) bottom, 9 inch (23cm) top rim

 

Preheat the oven to 160˚C/320˚F/mark 3. Bring about 1 inch of water to the boil in an oval casserole.  Snap off the tough ends of the asparagus, add salt to the water and blanch the spears for 2 or 3 minutes.  Drain. Slice the end of the spears evenly at an angle keep 1½ inches at the top intact. Save for later.

Whisk the eggs together into a bowl.  Add the sliced asparagus, most of the grated Parmesan and chopped marjoram, reserving a little for the end.  Season well with salt and freshly ground pepper.

Heat the extra virgin olive oil in the pan over a medium heat, add egg mixture, cook for 2 – 3 minutes. Then transfer to the oven and continue to cook until just set – about 12 minutes.  Arrange the asparagus over the top.  Sprinkle with the remaining Parmesan.  Pop under a grill for a few minutes but make sure it is at least 5 inches from the element.  It should be set but not brown.  Serve immediately, cut into wedges and follow with a green salad.

 

Farro with Broadbeans, Peas, Asparagus and Rocket

 

Serves 4

 

250gms (9ozs) of cooked farro

4 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil

freshly squeezed juice of one lemon

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

60gms (2 1/2ozs) of cooked broad beans (blanched and refreshed)

60gms (2 1/2ozs) of cooked peas

a fist of rocket leaves

8 x asparagus spears – quickly blanched

8 cherry tomatoes, cut in half

 

Put the farro, rocket leaves, peas, broad beans, asparagus and tomato halves into a bowl – dress with olive oil and lemon. Season with sea-salt and freshly ground black pepper and toss together lightly with your fingers.

 

Serve quickly while the flavours are fresh!

 

New Potatoes Cooked in Seawater

 

Of course one can cook new potatoes in well salted water but if you happen to be by the seaside, collect some seawater it will add immeasurably to the flavour.

 

Serves 4-5

 

2 lbs (900g) new potatoes e.g., Home Guard, British Queens (the variety we grow is Colleen)

2 pints (1.2 litres) seawater or 2 pints (1.2 litres) tap water plus 1 teaspoon salt

a sprig of seaweed if available

Bring the seawater to the boil. Scrub the potatoes. Add salt if using tap water and a sprig of seaweed to the water, and then add the potatoes. Cover the saucepan, bring back to the boil and cook for 15-25 minutes or until fully cooked depending on size.

Drain and serve immediately in a hot serving dish with good Irish butter.

 

Note

It’s vitally important for flavour to add salt to the water when cooking potatoes.

 

Blackcurrant Leaf Sorbet

 

Blackcurrant leaves have tons of flavour, we also use them syrup for homemade lemonade.

We also use this recipe to make an elderflower sorbet – substitute 4 or 5 elderflower heads in full bloom.

 

2 large handfuls of young blackcurrant leaves

225g (8ozs) sugar

600ml (1 pint) cold water

juice of 3 lemons

1 egg white (optional)

 

Crush the blackcurrant leaves tightly in your hand, put into a stainless steel saucepan with the cold water and sugar.  Stir to dissolve the sugar, bring slowly to the boil. Simmer for 2 or 3 minutes. Allow to cool completely.  Add the juice of 3 freshly squeezed lemons.*

 

Strain and freeze for 20-25 minutes in an ice-cream maker or sorbetiere.  Serve in chilled glasses or chilled white china bowls or on pretty plates lined with fresh blackcurrant leaves.

 

Note: If you do not have a sorbetiere, simply freeze the sorbet in a dish in the freezer, when it is semi-frozen, whisk until smooth and return to the freezer again.  Whisk again when almost frozen and fold in one stiffly beaten egg white.  Keep in the freezer until needed.

 

If you have access to a food processor.  Freeze the sorbet completely in a tray, then break up and whizz for a few seconds in the processor, add 1 slightly beaten egg white, whizz and freeze again.  Serve.

 

Hot Tips

Newly re-opened Carewswood Garden Centre in Ladysbridge, East Cork has a terrific selection of scented geranium plants including pelargonium graveolens that we use to flavour syrups, sorbets and compotes. All are edible and each has its own individual taste. I was also tempted by their standard olive trees and a couple of kumquat plants and there is also a cute little café with enticing homemade cakes and scones – phone 021-2428494.

In just a few years Sushi has become a universal favourite. It gets the ‘thumbs up’ from cardiologists and nutritionists – not least because it is based mainly on fresh fish, seaweed, vegetables and rice, but it is also low in fat and high in minerals.

Sushi tastes great it’s healthy, nutritious and quick to prepare and great fun for home entertaining. Join the half-day course with Shermin Mustafa and Darina Allen on Wednesday 3^rd July, 2013 at Ballymaloe Cookery School and you will learn how to make seven different types of sushi and can have optional hands-on practice plus the opportunity to taste all the sushi prepared during the course. Price: €125.00 – 021 4646785 to book.

Julian Castagna, of Castagna Wines, Beechworth, Victoria, Australia, will give a wine talk and wine tasting, in The Carrigaun Room of The GrainStore, at Ballymaloe House on Friday 21st June, at 7pm €10.00 – 021 4652531 or www.ballymaloe.ie

The Travel Classics International Writers conference has been held in Ireland several times over the past 19 years. Kenmare, Galway, Belfast, Dublin and this year it was held at Ballymaloe House and surrounding area. The delegates included some of the most prestigious food and travel editors and writers in the world. The weather was good, the country side looked beautiful and they really enjoyed the fresh food from the farm, gardens, local fishermen and artisan producers. They loved the freshly baked soda and brown yeast bread and the dark bitter marmalade and the lamb from Frank Murphy in Midleton and they loved the asparagus from the garden and Tim York in West Cork.   They couldn’t get enough of the rhubarb with the thick Jersey cream, slathered with unctuous yoghurt, the Irish butter, the farmhouse cheese, homemade praline ice cream…The simpler the food the more they liked it. At one lunch at the Ballymaloe Cookery School, we served them a Good Food Ireland plate with accompaniments to give them a taste of the artisan producers and they were mightily impressed.

The plate included thinly sliced Ummera Smoked duck from Anthony Cresswell in Timoleague, West Cork, a little wedge of Jane Murphy’s Ardsallagh goat’s cheese from Carrigtwohill near Cork. Fifth generation family butchers Jack McCarthy, from Kanturk provided Guinness and cider spiced beef. They also loved Pat Mulcahy’s wild boar and venison salami from Ballinwillin House and Farm near Mitchelstown in Co Cork. Both Jane Murphy and Pat Mulcahy joined the writers for lunch and told their story. Wild boar had been extinct in Ireland since the 1600s until Pat reintroduced them onto his farm in 1990s. We also had air dried lamb from the innovative Oughterard butcher James McGeough.

Nora Egan also came all the way from Inch Country House in Co Tipperary; we served her old fashioned blood pudding with grainy mustard apple and cream.

Toonsbridge Mozzarella also held pride of place on the Good Food Ireland plate. We added some accompaniments, a devilled organic egg from our own free-range hens, and a beetroot relish from Janet Drew’s range from Co Wicklow.  We added a blob of our homemade mayonnaise and some horseradish sauce and cucumber pickle to compliment the spiced beef. We piled the table in the centre of the dining room with fresh produce from the garden. New seasons carrots, radishes, spring onions, and a great big bowl of fresh salad leaves. There were lots of freshly baked yeast, soda and sough dough breads with freshly churned Jersey butter, the writers and editors loved it, then there was rhubarb tart made from my mother’s recipe, served with softly whipped cream and soft brown sugar. No bells or whistles, just simple food, a real taste of Ireland and they couldn’t get enough of it – reminded me once again that visitors to Ireland are craving real food – we have it in spades, let’s have the confidence to leave it alone and serve it proudly.

 

Inch Black Pudding with Grainy Mustard and Sweet Apple Sauce

Serves 12 for canapés, 4-6 as a starter

Butter or extra virgin olive oil

6 slices best quality black pudding approx. 1cm (1/2 inch) thick and 6 slices of white pudding

 

Sweet Apple Sauce:

1 lb (450g) golden delicious or Cox’s orange pippins

1-2 dessertspoon water

2 ozs (55g) sugar, depending on how tart the apples are

 

Grainy Mustard Sauce: 

8 fl. oz (250ml) cream

2 tsp smooth mustard

2 tsp grainy mustard

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Garnish

Flat parsley or watercress

 

Make the apple sauce – Peel, quarter and core the apples. Cut the pieces into two and put in a stainless steel or cast iron saucepan with sugar and water. Cover and put over a low heat. As soon as the apple has broken down, beat into a puree, stir and taste for sweetness.

Make the mustard sauce – Put the cream and both mustards in a small pan and bring slowly to the boil, stirring occasionally.  Taste and season if necessary.

Melt a very little butter in a frying pan and fry the pudding on both sides on a medium heat until cooked through. Remove the skin from the pudding.

Make a bed of apple sauce on the serving plate or plates.  Lay the pieces of hot pudding on top of the apple.  Spoon a little Mustard Sauce carefully over the top.

Garnish with flat parsley and serve immediately or pile it on top of a white soda bread scone.

A Plate of Irish Charcuterie and Cured Meats

 

One of my favourite easy entertaining tricks is to serve a selection of Irish artisan charcuterie from inspired producers like Fingal Ferguson from Gubbeen, West Cork and James McGeough from Oughterard, Co. Galway.  The quality is so wonderful that I’m always bursting with pride as I serve it.

 

A selection of cured meats:

 

smoked duck

air dried smoked Connemara lamb

smoked venison

wild boar and Venison Salami

spiced beef

West Cork chorizo

 

a selection of:

crusty country breads, sour dough, yeast and soda

tiny gherkins or cornichons

fresh radishes, just trimmed but with some green leaf attached

a good green salad of garden lettuce and salad leaves

 

Arrange the cured meats and salami on a large platter, Serve complementary accompaniments, eg. Horseradish, sauce, cucumber pickle, beetroot relish, homemade mayonnaise… Open a good bottle of red and tuck in!

 

 

Ardsallagh Goat Cheese Pots with Hot Beets and Croutes

 

Serves 1

 

Allow 60g (2 1/4oz) Ardsallagh goats cheese for each pot

 

scant 1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

cooked beetroot (1-2 small beets per person) (see recipe)

 

Baguette Croutes (see recipe)

Extra virgin olive oil

 

1 x 75ml (3fl oz) ramekins

 

First cook the beetroot (see note below), when the skins will rub off easily and the beets are soft, cut into quarters – allow 6-8 quarters per person.

 

Mix the soft cheese with a spoonful of cream, some fresh thyme leaves.  Season with Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.

 

Preheat the oven to 250°C/500°F.

 

Pop into the preheated oven and cook for 6 minutes or until hot and bubbly.

 

Meanwhile, cut the peeled hot beets into quarters, toss in extra virgin olive oil (if cold reheat in a saucepan or in the oven).

 

Serve a little pot of melted goat cheese with a bowl of beets and 3 or 4 baguette croutes (see recipe).

 

How to cook Beetroot

 

Leave 2 inch (5cm) of leaf stalks on top and the whole root on the beet. Hold it under a running tap and wash off the mud with the palms of your hands, so that you don’t damage the skin; otherwise the beetroot will bleed during cooking. Cover with cold water and add a little salt and sugar. Cover the pot, bring to the boil and simmer on top, or in an oven, for 1-2 hours depending on size. Beetroot are usually cooked if the skin rubs off easily and if they dent when pressed with a finger.  If in doubt test with a skewer or the tip of a knife.

 

Baguette or Focaccia Croutes

 

Serve with salads, soups, snacks or pates.

 

1 stalish baguette or focaccia

 

Cut 4 slices of very thin bread at an angle.  Bake in a low oven 150°C/300°F/Gas Mark 2 for 15-20 minutes or until crisp on both sides.  Store in an airtight box.

 

N.B. Fan oven at 20°C less is even better.

 

Mummy’s Rhubarb Pie

 

The pastry is made by the creaming method so people who are convinced that they suffer from ‘hot hands’ don’t have to worry about rubbing in the butter.

 

Serves 8-12

 

Pastry

8 ozs (225g) butter

2 ozs (50g) castor sugar

2 eggs, preferably free range

12 ozs (300g) white flour, preferably unbleached

 

Filling

2lbs (900g) sliced red rhubarb (about 1/2 inch thick)

13 ozs (370g) -14ozs (400g) sugar.

2-3 cloves

egg wash-made with one beaten egg and a dash of milk

castor sugar for sprinkling

 

To Serve

softly whipped cream

Barbados sugar

 

tin, 7 inches (18cm) x 12 inches (30.5cm) x 1 inch (2.5cm) deep

 

Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/regulo 4.

 

First make the pastry. Cream the butter and sugar together by hand or in a food mixer (no need to over cream). Add the eggs and beat for several minutes. Reduce speed and mix in the flour. Turn out onto a piece of floured greaseproof paper, flatten into a round wrap and chill. This pastry needs to be chilled for at least 2 hours otherwise it is difficult to handle.

 

To make the tart

Roll out the pastry 1/8 inch (3mm) thick approx., and use about 2/3 of it to line a suitable tin. Place the sliced rhubarb into the tart, sprinkle with sugar and add the cloves. Cover with a lid of pastry, seal edges, decorate with pastry leaves, egg wash and bake in the preheated oven until the apples are tender, approx. 45 minutes to 1 hour. When cooked cut into squares, sprinkle lightly with castor sugar and serve with softly whipped cream and Barbados sugar.

 

Hottips

 

Cooking for Baby – Natural and Wholesome Recipes Part 2, Friday 21st June, 2013 Ballymaloe Cookery School 2 – 5 pm. This invaluable half-day course covers everything to feed your baby – choosing the ingredients, recipes, preparation tips, menus, storage, health and nutrition – the lot.  Not only will it save you a small fortune but also it will be infinitely better for your baby – phone 021 4646785 to book.

 

Dates for your Diary

 

Dunmore East Festival of Food, Fish and Fun 21 – 23 June, 2013 – info@lemontreecatering.ie  or phone  (051) 383164

 

The Westport Festival of Music and Food 29-30 June, 2013 – www.westportfestival.com

 

List of suppliers on Good Food Ireland Producer Plates.

 

Jack McCarthy’s of Kanturk Artisan Butchers – www.jackmccarthy.ie

 

Ummera Smoked Products Timoleague – www.ummera.com

 

Inch House Black Pudding – www.inchhouse.ie

 

Ardsallagh Goat Farm -  www.ardsallaghgoats.com

 

McGeough’s Artisan Butcher – www.connemarafinefoods.ie

 

Toonsbridge Dairy – www.therealoliveco.com/toonsbridge

 

Ballinwillin House and Farm – www.ballinwillinhouse.com

 

Janet’s Country Fayre – www.irishfoodproducer.ie

 

A month after the Literary Festival of Food and Wine at Ballymaloe we’re still getting excited feedback and thank you cards in response to the event, from both participants and those who came along over the May Bank Holiday weekend. Plans are already underway for 2014 – looks like 16-18 May so perhaps that’s a date to go into your next year’s diary. We have a long list of tweaks and suggestions for next time around and I’m sure that the list will just grow and grow.

 

The Big Shed at Ballymaloe House which housed the Fringe ‘part venue part food market’ as Michael Kelly of GIY put it, was the lively heart of the festival which throbbed with energy throughout the entire weekend.

 

The workshops and sessions in the Grain Store and the Carrigaun Room inspired and stimulated attendees on topics as diverse as the Grass Roots of the Revolution: Edible Education with Stephanie Alexander, David Prior and Bill Yosses, The Art of Fermentation with Sandor Katz, Digesting Unsavoury Truths with Ella McSweeney, Suzanne Campbell and Joanna Blythman. Nordic Food Revolution with Klaus Meyer, co-founder of Noma and Ben Reade,  Head of Culinary Research and Development at Nordic Food Lab. Food Writing for a Digital Generation with Aoife Carrigy, Caroline Hennessy, Lucy Pearce and Michael Kelly. The Taste of Words: Food in Literature and Performance with UCC who by the way will be part of the new MA in Creative Writing course which starts at UCC in September.

 

We also wanted to nurture the next generation’s creativity. The winner of the Young Food Writers Competition was Sean Clancy from Kilbehenny National School and Clodagh Finn from Ballycotton who wrote beautifully about farm produce and a neighbour John Kennefick’s ‘pops’. The prizes were presented in the Children’s Education area in the Big Shed organised by Camilla Houstoun which was the most creative and stimulating place for to be. Over at the Ballymaloe Cookery School the cookery classes continued, I promised I’d share some of our favourite recipes from Thomasina Miers, Stevie Parle and our own Rachel Allen and that will be the last taste of the Litfest for this year.

 

David Tanis’s Duck Liver Toasts

 

 

These tasty toasts – the Italians call them crostini – perfectly complement the roast duck, or they can become a first course on their own.

 

 

700g (1 1/2lbs) duck or chicken livers

salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil

2 slices pancetta, in small slivers

2 large shallots, finely diced

2 teaspoons chopped thyme

a splash of dry sherry or sherry vinegar

3 tablespoons butter, softened

1 baguette, sliced and toasted

 

Trim the livers, blot on paper towels, and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.  Heat the olive oil in a wide pan over a medium flame.  When the oil is hot, add the pancetta and shallots and cook until the shallots are nicely browned.

 

Add the livers and turn up the flame.  Stir well and continue cooking, shaking the pan occasionally, until the livers are cooked through but still a little pink.  Slice one to check.  Add the thyme and sherry, and transfer the contents of the pan to a chopping board.  Let cool to room temperature.

 

With a large knife, chop the livers with the pancetta and shallots to a rough paste, then put the paste in a small mixing bowl.  Mash the butter into the paste with a wooden spoon.  Taste and adjust the seasoning.  Cover tightly with cling film and keep at cool room temperature until ready to serve (up to 2 hours), or refrigerate and bring to room temperature before serving.

 

Spread on toasted baguette slices.

 

Thomasina Mier’s Caramelised Scallop, Avocado and Orange Salad with Spices

 

Serves 6

 

18 scallops

4 small cloves garlic

2 teaspoons coriander seeds, toasted

2 teaspoons cumin seeds, toasted

1 chile de arbol

1 teaspoon salt

6 tablespoons olive oil

2 avocados

freshly squeezed juice of 1 lemon

salt and freshly ground black pepper

3 oranges

1/2 teaspoon sugar

3 heads chicory, broken up into leaves

a bunch of coriander, washed and stalks removed

 

Bash the cloves, to slip them out of their skins and toast the spices and chilli for a minute or two in a dry pan to release their flavour.  Mash the peeled garlic and spices into a pulp with a pestle and mortar, with the salt and stir in 4 tablespoons (5 American tablespoons) of the olive oil.

 

Cut the muscles from the scallops and marinate them in half the spice mix for at least an hour.

 

Meanwhile cut the avocados into quarters, remove the stone and peel.  Cut each quarter into 2-3 slices.  Squeeze over the lemon juice and season with salt and pepper.   Segment the orange by cutting away the tops and bottoms and cutting each orange segment out from between the membrane.  Squeeze the membranes to get as much of the juice as possible.   Whisk the remaining oil into all the orange juice you can collect and add the remaining spice mix and the sugar.  Check for seasoning.

 

Heat a frying pan over a high heat and when smoking hot sauté the scallops, 6 at a time, for 3-4 minutes the first side and a minute or two on the second side until they are looking caramelized and delicious.

 

Carefully toss the chicory leaves, orange segments and scallops in the dressing and arrange on a large plate.  Top with the avocado and torn coriander and dive in.

 

Rachel Allen’s Lemongrass Coconut Cake

 

Coconut and lemongrass, two quintessentially Southeast Asian ingredients, are combined here in this deliciously moist cake. The lemongrass is added to a syrup that infuses the sponge with its aromatic flavour. Found in supermarkets as well as in Asian food shops, the taste of lemongrass is certainly reminiscent of lemons but has a unique floral flavour all of its own.

Serves: 6–8

 

4 stalks of lemongrass, base and tops trimmed, outer leaves removed but reserved for the syrup (see below)

250g (9oz) caster sugar

4 eggs

200g (7oz) butter, softened, plus extra for greasing

125g (4⁄1 2 oz) desiccated coconut

125g (4⁄1 2 oz) plain flour, plus extra for dusting

2 teaspoons baking powder

 

To Serve

Greek yoghurt or crème fraîche

 

For the Syrup

reserved trimmings and outer leaves of the lemongrass (see above)

75g (3oz) caster sugar

 

23cm (9 inch) diameter cake tin with 6cm (2⁄1 2 inch) sides

 

Preheat the oven to 170°C/325°F/Gas Mark 3.

 

Butter the sides of the cake tin and dust with flour, then line the base with a disc of baking parchment.

 

Slice the lemongrass stalks quite thinly into rounds about 3mm (1/8 inch) thick, then place in a food processor with the caster sugar and whiz for 1–2 minutes or until the lemongrass is finely puréed and very aromatic. Add the eggs, butter and coconut and whiz again until combined, then sift the flour and baking powder together and add to the machine, whizzing very briefly just until the ingredients come together.

Tip the mixture into the prepared tin and bake for 40–45 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.

While the cake is cooking, make the syrup. Roughly chop the lemongrass trimmings, place in a saucepan with the sugar and 75ml (3fl oz) of water and set over a high heat. Stir the mixture until the sugar is dissolved, then bring to the boil and boil for 2 minutes before removing from the heat and leaving to infuse.

When the cake has finished baking, take it out of the oven and let
it sit in the tin for 10 minutes. Loosen around the edges using a small, sharp knife and carefully remove the cake from the tin before transferring to a serving plate.

Reheat the syrup, then pierce holes all over the cake with a skewer and pour the hot syrup through a sieve onto the cake, moving the pan and sieve around as you pour so that the syrup covers the top of the cake. Allow the cake to cool down completely.

Serve with a dollop of natural Greek yoghurt or crème fraîche.

 

Stevie Parle’s Madeleines

 

They are totally delicious as they are but one could dip them in melted chocolate and desiccated coconut as in the photo taken from Cake – Rachel Allen’s cookery book.

 

Makes about 24

 

135g (4 3/4oz) butter, plus extra for greasing tray

2 tablespoons floral honey

1 tablespoon orange flower water

3 eggs

125g caster sugar

135g self-raising flour or 135g (4 3/4oz) plain flour and 1 teaspoon baking powder, sifted, plus extra for dusting

 

Melt the butter with the honey, then pour in the orange flower water and set aside to cool. Whisk the eggs and sugar in an electric mixer for 10 minutes or so, until they are really fluffy and double in size.  Fold in the flour, then the butter and honey mixture.

 

Pour into a container and leave the batter to rest for at least 3 hours in the fridge, or overnight is fine too.

 

Preheat the oven to 190°C/375°F/Gas Mark 5.

 

Butter a madeleine tray (you can also do this in a small muffin tray), then dust with flour and shake off the excess. Fill the molds two-thirds full, and then bake for 10 minutes or so until golden brown and firm to the touch.

 

Hottips

 

Seafood and Shanty in Ballycotton Saturday 1^st and Sunday 2^nd June – Darina Allen will open the weekend followed by a short fish cookery demonstration at 3pm today on the Pier in Ballycotton. There will also be fish tasting by the Ballycotton Fishermen’s Association, ice cream stalls, boat trips around the lighthouse… 3- 5pm on Saturday and Sunday.

 

Taste of Dublin is from 13^th to 16^th June 2013 – four days of summer eating, drinking and entertainment.

Darina Allen will be doing four, thirty minute cookery demonstrations on Saturday 15^th June at 1:30pm, 3:15pm, 6:00pm and 7:30pm. Don’t miss a twenty minute Q & A session with Darina too at 7:00pm – www.tasteofdublin.ie.

 

First Sunday Summer Barbeques at Wells House & Gardens Wexford. Get together with friends and the family for a summer barbeque – with Pat O’Neill’s award winning Dry Cured Bacon Co sausages, steak from Kinsellas Butcher in Gory, freshly made salads sourced from the Saturday Gorey Farmers Market – on the first Sunday of every Summer month. See a falconry display or take a woodland walk… – dates 2^nd June, 7^th July and 4^th August, 2013 – www.wellshouse.ie

 

Love Gourmet Week in Limerick and Shannon is now in its third year and continuing to gain momentum. 1st to 9th June 2013 – see www.rai.ie/lovegourmetweek  for a list of participating restaurants and events.

 

Be one of the first to eat in Yannick and Louise’s new restaurant. Nede opened this month in Meeting House Square – Temple Bar. I’ve eaten their food on several occasions and I’m very excited. They are being dubbed as Ireland newest superstar chefs – a title they don’t relish or court but nonetheless watch this space – 016705372 or www.nede.ie

Last week, I promised that I would share some more of the gems cooked by the guest chefs at the Ballymaloe Literary Festival of Food and Wine 2013. This weekend I have chosen recipes from David Tanis, Skye Gyngel and Claire Ptak who did a cookery demonstration together. What a line up.

David Tanis worked as head chef at Chez Panisse in Berkley CA for over twenty years. He cooked for six months of the year and then had six months off, living the remainder of the time in Paris. He in tandem with all of the others is passionate about the quality of ingredients.

This was his first visit in Ireland and he is totally besotted.  He stayed on for an extra week with another friend who travelled from New York to the festival. They explored south and south west of Ireland and to visited some artisan producers, including the Ferguson family at Gubbeen.

David cooked several duck dishes with Nora Ahern’s and Robbie Fitzsimmon’s ducks.

David is the author of two modern classics A Platter of Figs and Other Recipes, chosen as one of the 50 best cookbooks ever by the Guardian/Observer (U.K.), and Heart of the Artichoke and Other Kitchen Journeys, nominated for a James Beard Award.

Skye Gyngell has written three books; A Year in my Kitchen was named the Guild of Food Writers ‘Cookery Book of the Year’ in 2007 and ‘Best Food Book’ at Le Cordon Bleu World Food Media Awards. The sequel, My Favourite Ingredients, was published in 2008, and the third, How I Cook, was published in Autumn 2010. Skye cooked the most beautiful food at a Literary Dinner in my house, fresh from the garden and local area. Try her asparagus with Romesco sauce and crème fraiche, I loved Skye’s food at Petersham Nurseries in Richmond and can’t wait to hear news of her new restaurant – not yet confirmed.

Claire Ptak of Violet Cakes in Hackney, London, is another of my favourite cooks. Her fans traipse all across London to get some of her delectable food and her wedding cakes are a ‘must have’ at the chicest weddings. Buckwheat butter cookies with a strawberry geranium fool were a huge hit over the LitFest weekend. Claire is also a food stylist and the author of three cookbooks: Leon: Baking & Puddings; The Whoopie Pie Book; and The Home-Made Sweet Shop. All of which I have in my library also. Each one of these cooks and chefs write such beautiful prose that it’s worth buying their books even if you never picked up a whisk or a wooden spoon.

Several past students of the Ballymaloe Cookery School shone at yet another cookery demonstration – Stevie Parle of the Dock Kitchen restaurant in London shared a platform with Thomasina Miers of Oaxaca restaurant fame and Rachel Allen.

Almost every chef mentioned how much they loved cooking with our Irish butter – wasn’t that nice to hear.

Next week I’ll include some recipes from Stevie Parle, Thomasina Miers and our own Rachel Allen.

 

David Tanis’s Duck Liver Toasts

 

 

These tasty toasts – the Italians call them crostini – perfectly complement the roast duck, or they can become a first course on their own.

 

 

700g (1 1/2lbs) duck or chicken livers

salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil

2 slices pancetta, in small slivers

2 large shallots, finely diced

2 teaspoons chopped thyme

a splash of dry sherry or sherry vinegar

3 tablespoons butter, softened

1 baguette, sliced and toasted

 

Trim the livers, blot on paper towels, and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.  Heat the olive oil in a wide pan over a medium flame.  When the oil is hot, add the pancetta and shallots and cook until the shallots are nicely browned.

 

Add the livers and turn up the flame.  Stir well and continue cooking, shaking the pan occasionally, until the livers are cooked through but still a little pink.  Slice one to check.  Add the thyme and sherry, and transfer the contents of the pan to a chopping board.  Let cool to room temperature.

 

With a large knife, chop the livers with the pancetta and shallots to a rough paste, then put the paste in a small mixing bowl.  Mash the butter into the paste with a wooden spoon.  Taste and adjust the seasoning.  Cover tightly with cling film and keep at cool room temperature until ready to serve (up to 2 hours), or refrigerate and bring to room temperature before serving.

 

Spread on toasted baguette slices.

 

 

Skye Gyngel’s Asparagus with Romesco and Crème Fraîche

 

Serves 4

 

For the Romesco Sauce

 

12 blanched almonds

12 hazelnuts

2 tomatoes, peeled and ripe

100ml (3 1/2 fl oz) extra virgin olive oil

1 whole red chilli (the ancho variety if you can get hold of one)

2 cloves of garlic

1 tablespoon good-quality sherry vinegar

1 teaspoon sweet-smoked paprika (I prefer Spanish to Hungarian)

1 thick slice of chewy, peasant-style bread (such as ciabatta)

Sea salt

 

For the Asparagus

20 asparagus spears

a good pinch of sea salt

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

a few drops of lemon juice

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

 

To Serve

2 tablespoons crème fraîche

 

Heat the oven to 180°C/350°F/Gas Mark 4.

 

Place the nuts on a baking tray and roast on the middle shelf for 3 minutes to colour them slightly, then roughly pound to a paste.

 

Next, place the tomatoes on a baking tray and drizzle with a dash of olive oil. Place in the oven along with the whole chilli, and roast for 10 minutes. Remove and mix with the nuts. Add the garlic, sherry vinegar and paprika, and mix. Blitz the bread in a blender until you have crumbs, lay them on a baking tray and bake until golden. Add to the nut mixture, pour in the remaining olive oil and season. Stir well to combine.

 

Place a large pot of water on to boil and season liberally with salt. While the water is coming to the boil, prepare the asparagus by snapping off their woody ends. Plunge the vegetables into the water and cook until just tender when pierced with a knife. Cooking time will largely depend on the size and thickness of the spears, but as a general rule of thumb, it should take about 1 minute. Drain and dress with the olive oil and lemon and a little sea salt and pepper.

 

Divide among 4 plates or one large plate if you prefer.

 

Divide the crème fraîche between the plates and sprinkle the Romesco sauce over the top.

 

Serve immediately.

 

 

Claire Ptak’s Strawberry-Geranium Fool with Buckwheat Butter Cookies

 

 

Makes 6 fools

 

For the compote:

3 tablespoons caster (superfine) sugar

2 tablespoons water

4 geranium leaves, washed and dried or a drop or two of geranium essential oil

250-300g (9-10oz) ripe strawberries

1 tablespoon lemon juice

 

For the cream mixture:

2 large egg whites (save the yolks for the buckwheat biscuits)

100g (3 1/2oz) caster (superfine) sugar

1 teaspoon golden syrup

pinch salt

400ml (14fl oz) double (heavy) cream, cold

100ml (3 1/2 fl oz) plus 1 heaped tbsp. plain yogurt

 

In a small but heavy pot over a medium low heat, dissolve the sugar and water without stirring. Stirring can cause the mixture to crystalize.

 

Roughly tear up the washed and dried geranium leaves and place them in the bottom of a small bowl. When the sugar syrup has completely dissolved but before it starts to get any colour, remove it from the heat and pour over the torn leaves. Set aside.

 

Hull the strawberries to remove the calyx. I use a small teaspoon rather than a knife to avoid wasting too much of the berry. Depending on the size of the berries cut into quarters or eighths for small bite-sized pieces. Cover the berries with the lemon juice.

 

Once the sugar syrup has cooled, remove the geranium leaves and discard them. Tip the berries and any juice into the syrup and stir to combine. Now make the cream mixture.

 

In a heatproof bowl, place the egg whites, 100g (3 1/2oz) caster sugar, golden syrup and salt. Place the bowl over a small pot of boiling water, whisking continuously until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture starts to become frothy and opaque. If you have a candy thermometer, use it to bring the mixture up to 75°C/167°F. Remove from the heat and use an electric mixer with a whisk attachment to make stiff peaks of meringue.

 

In a large clean bowl, whip the cold double cream and yogurt to soft peaks.

 

Fold in the meringue just to combine. Fold in the 2/3 strawberries (reserving some of the juices that have formed, stirring in some). Do not over mix. The fool should be marbled and have lots of different textures.

 

Divide the fool between 6 small bowls or glasses and chill for at least one hour. Just before serving, top the fools with the remaining strawberries and drizzle with the sauce.

 

 

Claire Ptak’s Buckwheat Butter Cookies

 

These cookies are gluten-free naturally because they are made with buckwheat flour.

 

150g (5oz) whole almonds with skins on, toasted and roughly chopped

150g (5oz) buckwheat flour

200g (7oz) unsalted butter, softened

100g (3 1/2oz) palm or coconut sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

50g (2oz) candied grapefruit or cedro peel, chopped

2 medium egg yolks

 

Makes 24 cookies

 

In a mixing bowl, combine the chopped almonds, flour, and butter. Mix into a coarse meal. Add the sugar, salt and grapefruit peel. Mix well.

 

Add the egg yolks and mix just until the dough starts to come together.

 

Divide the dough into two pieces. Lay out two long pieces of cling film and shaping each ball of dough into a roughly 2.5cm (1 inch) log, lay down the middle of each piece of cling film. Roll up and shape into nice and even logs, twisting the ends to seal. Place the logs on a small cookie trays and place in the fridge for about an hour.

 

When ready to bake, heat the oven to 170°C/325°F/Gas Mark 3 and line two baking trays with parchment. Remove the cling film from the cookie logs and slice 5mm (1/4 inch) thick slices and place 3cm (1 1/2 inch) apart on the prepared tray.

 

Bake for 10-14 minutes until just starting to turn golden.

 

 

HotTips

 

 

Wine Tasting Event at Ballymaloe House

Wine talk and wine tasting with two passionate and experienced wine experts – Eric Narioo, of Les Caves des Pyrène and Pascal Rossignol, of Le Caveau on ‘Real Wine – Celebrating the Artisan Grower’. Sunday 26th May, 6.30pm €15 (includes wine tasting of eight different wines) at The Grain Store, Ballymaloe House. To reserve a place email colm@ballymaloe.ie or phone 021-4652531.

 

Foynes Irish Coffee Festival – 31 May to 02 June 2013 – three days of free family entertainment with floats, food & craft fair, fireworks, regatta, pet farm, bands, carnival, children’s forest party, ceili, historical walks and the Powers Irish Coffee Making Championship at Foynes, Co. Limerick – Telephone: +353 (0) 69 65416

 

If you have always wanted to grow your own fresh herbs here is your chance to learn from one of the best – Garden Workshop: Designing a Herb Garden with Susan Turner at Ballymaloe Cookery School. Half Day Course on Monday 17th June 2013 9:00am to 2:00pm – €95.00 with lunch included Phone 021 4646785 to book or online www.cookingisfun.ie

We’re all still buzzing here since the Literary Festival of Food and Wine at Ballymaloe over the bank holiday weekend. The thrill of having some of the top food and wine writers and chefs from all over the world with us for the weekend was immense both for us and for the people who poured in to hear them speak, watch them cook, taste and learn about their wine, whiskey and fascinating craft beers.

It was such a joy for people to be able to meet and mingle with many of their food heroes as they wandered around Ballymaloe, the Big Shed and the Cookery School. For this weekend’s column, I have picked out just a few of the highlights from the guest chefs cookery demonstrations to share with you, there are so many that is was difficult to choose but more later.

From Madhur Jaffrey, Whole Roasted Masala Chicken, a perfect choice for Sunday lunch. Claudia Roden tantalised us with a delicious selection of dishes – you’ll love her chocolate and almond cake which has become her family’s favourite. Camilla Plum from Denmark whose name is not so well known to many, thrilled her large audience with her chic and simple dishes using an abundance of fresh herbs from the garden. Elderflowers are just coming into season so you might like to try this inspired combination of carrots, mint, lemon and elderflower.

David Thompson one of Asia’s most admired chefs and food writers make food that had people jotting down the details of his Nahm restaurant in Bangkok and if they couldn’t manage a trip at least dashing to buy his book Thai Food. Try the delicious recipe for scallops stir fried with spring onions; monkfish would also be good here.

Next week some gems from Skye Gyngel, Claire Ptak, Thomasina Miers, Stevie Parle and our own Rachel Allen.

A special thank you to all who attended the first ever Ballymaloe Literary Festival of Food and Wine. For those who missed this year’s LitFest, don’t worry, we’ve already started to plan next year’s event. www.litfest.ie

 

 

David Thompson’s Scallops Stir-Fried with Spring Onions

hoi shenn pat dtom horm

 

Paste

 

1 tablespoon peeled garlic

pinch Sea salt

 

4 large scallops

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

cleaned spring onion, cut into 2cm (3/4 inch) lengths on a slight bias

a little chicken stock

3 – 4 tablespoons light soy sauce

pinch white sugar

pinch ground white pepper

 

Make a coarse paste with the peeled garlic and salt. Place to the side of the cleaned scallops.

 

Prepare and heat a well-seasoned wok. Add the oil then almost immediately the scallops and stir-fry for several moments before adding the garlic paste. Be careful not to let the garlic burn.

 

Add the spring onions (and perhaps a drizzle of additional oil) and continue to stir fry for a moment or two before moistening with the stock. Season with the soy, sugar and white pepper.

 

Camilla Plum’s Carrots with Mint, Lemon and Elderflower

 

 

Serves 4-6

 

1kg (2 1/4lb) new carrots, scraped

3 cloves garlic, peeled

50ml (2fl oz) olive oil

salt and freshly ground black pepper

juice and zest from 1 lemon

150ml (5fl oz) elderflower cordial

generous bunch Moroccan mint

generous bunch flat leaved parsley

fresh elderflowers if available

 

Combine the carrots, garlic, oil, salt, freshly ground black pepper, zest and cordial in a skillet. Boil without a lid, until the carrots are cooked, but still a little crunchy. Remove, and reduce the sauce to a syrup. Pour over the carrots, and mix with coarsely chopped herbs, and elderflowers, when cooled a little. Adjust the seasoning, serve cooled, but not cold.

 

Madhur Jaffrey’s Whole Roasted Masala Chicken

 

Serves 4

 

For the Marinade

 

4 tablespoons lemon juice

2 tablespoons finely chopped, peeled fresh ginger

2 tablespoon finely chopped or crushed garlic

3 fresh hot green chilies, chopped

1 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons olive or sunflower oil

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon ground coriander

1 teaspoon garam masala

 

1 3/4kg (3 1/2lb) chicken, skinned whole

 

1/2 teaspoon red chili powder

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

 

Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F/Gas Mark 6

 

Place all the marinade ingredients in a blender and grind to a paste.

 

Using a sharp knife make two deep, diagonal cuts into each breast, going all the way to the bone. Make two equally deep slashes in the thighs and two in the drumsticks as well. Place the chicken, breast side up, on a roasting tray lined with enough foil to completely cover the chicken. Pour the paste over the chicken, rubbing it well into all the cuts. Leave aside for 30 minutes.

 

Sprinkle the chili powder and black pepper over the chicken evenly. Wrap up the chicken so it is completely covered, with the tightly-closed seam at the top. Bake the chicken in the middle of the oven for 1 hour. Unwrap, without letting the juices run out, and cook, uncovered, for 15 minutes, basting 2 or 3 times with the juices. Rest for 10-15 minutes before serving.

 

 

Claudia Roden’s Chocolate and Almond Cake

Pastel de Chocolate y Almendras

 

This is a moist cake that is good to serve as a dessert with cream.  The recipe comes from a little book that Carolina Zendrera, my Spanish publisher, gave me, entitled Recetas tradicionales: La ermitańa de la cocina, cocina burguesa del siglo XX (‘Traditional Recipes: The hermit in the kitchen – bourgeois cooking in the twentieth century’), published by Zendrera Zariquiey in 1999.  The recipes are those of Águeda Bienzobas, who cooked for Carolina Zendrera’s grandparents and family in Catalonia for fifty years.

 

Águeda was born in a village in Navarre in 1907 and went to work in the Martí-Codolars’ kitchen in Barcelona as a young girl.  The Martí-Codolars, Zendrera’s grandparents, were an illustrious family involved in shipping.  On their farm they kept rare animals, including an elephant that was later donated to Barcelona Zoo.  What Águeda learnt from the family cook, and what became her repertoire gathered over the years, which her husband wrote down, is a distinctive mix of Spanish and French haute cuisine.  A family friend of the Martí-Codolars called her ‘the hermit’ because she spent her time alone in the kitchen.

 

Serves 10

150g (5oz) dark bitter chocolate or baking chocolate such as the Menier Chocolat Patissier, broken into pieces

3 tablespoons water

150g (5oz) unsalted butter, cut into pieces

4 large eggs, separated

100g (3 1/2oz) caster sugar

100g (3 1/2oz) ground almonds

1 teaspoon baking powder

4 tablespoons rum

 

Topping

 

50g (2oz) dark bitter chocolate, broken into pieces

2 tablespoons water

50g (2oz) caster sugar

25g (1oz) unsalted butter

 

butter, to grease the cake tin

flour, to dust the cake tin

 

Heat the chocolate with the water in a Pyrex bowl or small pan that is sitting on top of a pan containing water over a low heat so that the top pan or bowl does not touch the boiling water (this is a double boiler), until almost melted.  Add the butter and let them both melt.

 

In a bowl mix the egg yolks, sugar, ground almonds, baking powder and rum very well.  Add the melted chocolate and butter and mix vigorously.  Beat the egg whites until stiff with an electric mixer and fold them into the mixture.

 

Grease a spring-form cake tin about 23cm (9 inch) (in diameter (preferably non-stick) with butter and dust it with flour.  Pour in the cake mixture and bake in an oven preheated to 160°C/310°F/Gas Mark 3 for about 35 minutes until firm.  Turn out when it is cool.

 

For the optional topping, melt the chocolate with the water in the small bowl or pan over boiling water, as above.  Add the sugar and the butter, let them melt and mix well.  Spread over the cake.

 

Hot Tips

 

 

Wexford Food Festival – Friday the 24th May to Sunday 26 May 2013 – is spread out over 3 locations across the town this year including Selskar/Trimmers Lane, The Bull Ring Market and South Main Street.

 

Rory O’Connell’s much anticipated cookery book ‘Master It – How to Cook Today’ is available at the Farm Shop at Ballymaloe Cookery School – if you call ahead you can get a personally signed copy – 021 4646785. Available in all good book shops by the end of May.

 

Hard Currency – unusual gift tokens from Brown Envelope Seeds, ‘Seed Bank Notes’ in denominations of €5.00 (valid for two packets of heritage seeds) and up to €50.00 (for 20 packets of seeds) Perfect gift for any keen gardener – order online at www.brownenvelopeseeds.com or phone 00353(0)2838184.

 

The Glebe Garden Club near Baltimore in West Cork meets on the last Thursday of every month. Get access to the best of the gardens and experts in the surrounding area and a variety of presentations, workshops, and garden tours, Meetings at The Glebe will be accompanied by refreshments (prepared from the Glebe garden produce) There is a €10 registration fee  and members are entitled to a 10% discount on all Club events and advanced notice of all meetings, workshops and Club events. A full summer program will be available at the next meeting on Thursday 30th May where Rosari Kingston will give a talk on growing and using herbs – booking is advisable for this event. www.glebegardens.com or phone 02820232.

 

A little update from San Francisco…

Every town has its ups and downs and San Francisco has had its fair share but boy, is it throbbing at present. I’m here for a few days to attend the IACP (International Association of Cooking Professionals) Conference and to catch up on food trends,

Every restaurant is turning over tables like you can’t imagine, Nopa , one of my favourites served over 7,000 meals last week and the food is still super delicious.

The hottest new place seems to be State Bird Provision on Fillmore, We managed to get two seats at the counter despite the message on the answering machine which says no chance of a table for six weeks, and here they do Mediterranean and Asian dim sum, a brilliant concept, why didn’t someone think of that before now. Lots of small plates with zany combinations most of which seem to work well. Among the many delicious things I ate was the State bird and Provisions , a deep fried quail with the crispest coating with fresh pea shoots on a bed of caramelized onion  and Peking duck …spiced confit leg, chive crepes, cloud ears and plum sauce. An oyster with a citrus dressing was also gorgeous as was ruby red grapefruit and lime granita, rhubarb and yoghurt.

Lots of new ice cream, granita, gelato and sorbet places around doing interesting combinations, Scream and ICI are two of the best in Berkley.

Out in Oakland, the Brooklyn of San Francisco, I popped into Market Hall Foods, a collective of food shops and met Julianna Uruburu whose particular passion is cheese, her fromage section was incredibly impressive. It’s rare to see so many American farmstead and international cheeses in great condition. She organised for me to have a mozzarella demonstration there and then, they made their own Mozzarella a couple of times a week from fresh Jersey curds they get from a cheese maker in Vermont.

House-made charcuterie and bacon is a definite trend and the good news is new butchers are opening again but this new generation are showcasing heritage breeds and are really concerned as are their customers about sustainability and animal welfare. I visited Fatted Calf on Fell St and Olivier in Dog Patch.

Piggy plates of mixed pates, terrines and salumi are a feature of many menus; I particularly loved this one at Nopa.

Bi rite, family owned, is the hippest supermarket in San Francisco,  According to my sources over here Wholefoods are on the wane, be that as it may I really admire their meat grading system which I really think all supermarket and butchers would do well to emulate. They clearly illustrate how the animals are reared and fed, whether they are raised in a feed lot or pasture raised, organic, free range or caged. The prices vary accordingly but the consumer can make a decision based on the unvarnished facts.

Still out in Oakland ( about an hour from San Francisco) we checked out Bakesale Betty’s , an iconic spot on the corner of Telegraph  Avenue. Betty who used to wear a blue wig was famous for her chicken sandwich and pot pies but now because it’s such a favourite she only does the sandwich. There’s pretty much always a line outside, at least 25 people and almost as many more sitting at tables on the sidewalk made of recycled ironing boards. Five or six people are going flat out inside the counter churning out crispy buttermilk fried chicken and coleslaw with jalapeños and herbs (no mayonnaise ) inside a roll. It looks so good but we decide to head for Charlie  Hallowell’s Pizzaiolo instead but guess what, they are closed for lunch so they send us off to their new cafe on Grand Ave called Boot and Shoe Service, it’s got the same industrial look that so many of the new hipster places have. We had a delicious lunch from the short menu, several bright little lettuce salads, one with thinly sliced fennel and shavings of Pecorino, another with this new watermelon radish that’s looks great but doesn’t have a lot of flavour,

We also had a meatball sandwich in a roll with a tomatoey sauce and a little bit of frizzy lettuce and finely grated cheese on top. Really good, meatballs are everywhere .they also do a couple of great wood fired Neopolitan pizzas every day, I had the home made sausage, cimi di rape and mozzarella.

They also did a fantastic chopped chicken sandwich with mayo, teency capers, tiny celery and red onion dice, a little parsley , tarragon and lemon juice on warm chargrilled bread with gorgeous extra virgin olive oil. It was served with a half semi-hardboiled egg and a little rocket salad on the side. The sweet girl who served us insisted we have the Jasmine pot de crème with rhubarb compote and pink peppercorn shortbread and it was indeed sublime.

Shortbread is everywhere, flavoured with all manner of flavourings from lavender to espresso coffee. Chad Robertson at Tartine and Bar Tartine is using many different flours including buckwheat and kamut to make his shortbread.

Here, I had another very interesting chicken sandwich, a Vietnamese chicken salad on a potato brioche bun with aioli and a little dish of pickles carrot and mushrooms on the side. At Bar Tartine everyone is crazy about fermentation and pickles. Courtney Burns showed me around and their fridges and larders were like an Aladdin’s cave with all manner of pickles, sodas, infusions, dried herbs piled to the ceiling.

They make their own yoghurt, cheese, kefir, buttermilk, cultured butter and cream, the whey is used for pickles and drinks, really interesting stuff.

The chocolate and coffee craze continues to become ever more purist and specialised.

Blue Bottle, Four Barrel and Ritual are three of my favourites. They all roast and grind their own beans and have cafes where the coffee is by far the most important element and the small selection of buns and cookies are secondary.

Food trucks are still very much in evidence but now a collection of trucks called Off the Grid move to different locations around the city every day, which keeps the bricks and mortar guys happier. Cocktails and craft beers are still huge.

That’s a taste of the food trends in California.

 

Olive Oil and Rosemary Shortbread

Taken from the Bluebottle Craft of Coffee Cookbook

 

Makes 35 shortbread cookies / hands on time 20 minutes / from start to finish 4 hours

 

8oz (227g) unsalted butter at room temperature

4oz (115g) powdered sugar, sifted

1 teaspoon finely minced fresh rosemary or ½ teaspoon dried rosemary

1 ¼ teaspoon kosher salt

10oz (280g) all-purpose flour sifted

extra virgin olive oil for brushing

 

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter on low speed until smooth, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the sugar, rosemary and salt and mix on low speed until well combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, and then add the flour. Mix on low speed just until uniform in texture. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and mix on low speed for 1 minute. Gather the dough into a ball, transfer to a piece of plastic wrap and flatten to form a rectangle measuring 7 by 10 inches (18 by 25cm) and about ½ an inch (1.3cm) thick. Wrap tightly and refrigerate for at least 3 hours and up to 5 days. Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/Mark 4. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Cut the dough into small rectangles measuring 1 by 2 inches (2.5cm by 5cm) and place the cookies on the lined baking sheet, spacing them at least 1 inch (2.5cm) apart. Bake for about 18 minutes, until golden around the edges, rotating the pan midway through the baking time.

Brush the tops with olive oil as soon as the cookies come out of the oven. Let cool on the pan for at least 10 minutes before removing, and then cool completely before serving for optimal texture. Cooled completely and stored in an airtight container, the cookies will keep for up to 3 days.

 

Chad Robertson’s Nettle Fritatine

 

Serves 1 or 2

 

3 tablespoons olive oil

8oz (225g) approx. nettle leaves

Croutons (see recipe) made from 3 slices sough dough bread, crushed to make coarse bread crumbs

1 large egg

12oz (350g) home-made tomato sauce

salt and freshly ground pepper

1 lemon wedge

 

Heat a heavy skillet over a medium heat and add 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. When the oil is hot but not yet smoking, add the nettle leaves. Remove the pan from the heat and stir and toss the nettles for about 2 minutes as they continue cooking. When the nettles are completely wilted, remove them from the pan and chop roughly.

In a bowl, combine the nettles, coarse crumbs and egg. Stir well to coat the crumbs and nettles with the egg.

Heat a 6 – inch skillet over medium heat and add the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil. When the oil is hot, add the nettle mixture and distribute evenly in the pan. Cook until the edges appear crisp, about 2 minutes. Fold the omelette in half and cook for 30 seconds. Transfer to a plate.

Pour the tomato sauce into a skillet and heat over high heat. Carefully place the omelette in the sauce and simmer for about 30 seconds. Serve with a squeeze of lemon.

 

Croutons

 

3 slices day-old bread, each 1 inch thick torn into 1 ½ inch chunks

2 tablespoons olive oil

salt

½ teaspoon herbs de Provence (optional)

 

Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F/Mark 6. In a bowl, toss the torn bread with the olive oil and a pinch of salt. If you are using the herbs, add them too. Spread the bread evenly on a baking sheet and bake until golden brown and crisp, about 15 minutes. Midway through the baking time, redistribute the croutons if they are colouring unevenly.

 

Bread Crumbs – use your hands or a rolling pin to crush the croutons to the desired consistency. For a superfine texture, sift the crumbs through a sieve.

 

Tomato Sauce

 

1 yellow onion, finely chopped

1 carrot, peeled and finely chopped

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 x 3oz can tomato paste

3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 teaspoon red pepper flakes

1 x 16 oz can whole tomatoes

red wine vinegar

salt

 

To make the tomato sauce, heat a deep skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion, carrot and 2 tablespoons of the olive oil and sauté until the vegetables are soft about 10 minutes. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil and the tomato paste and cook, stirring occasionally, until the paste turns a deep rusty red, 6 – 8 minutes. Stir in the garlic and the red pepper flakes and cook for two minutes. Add the whole tomatoes, raise the heat up to high and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 20 minutes, using a wooden spoon to mash the tomatoes into chunks. Season with vinegar and salt.

 

Chad Robertson’s Kale Caesar

 

Serves 4 – 6

 

Caesar Dressing

 

 

2 lemons

3 cloves garlic

6 olive-oil packed anchovy fillets

1 large egg yolk

salt

16fl oz (450ml) olive oil

2 lbs (900g) black kale, centre stems removed and torn

croutons made from 4 slices of sough dough bread (see recipe)

3 ½ oz (100g) grated or shaved aged Parmesan cheese

 

 

To make the dressing, grate the zest from 1 lemon. Cut both lemons in half. Place the garlic, anchovies and lemon zest in a mortar and pound with a pestle to make a thick paste. Add the egg yolk, a pinch of salt and a squeeze of lemon juice and stir thoroughly to combine. Continuing to stir, pour in half of the oil drop by drop. The mixture should look smooth and creamy, a sign that you are building a stable emulsion. Continuing to stir, begin adding the oil in a slow stream. The dressing should thicken. Periodically stop pouring in the oil and add a squeeze of lemon. Taste the dressing and add more salt and lemon juice to taste. Add water, a small spoonful at a time, stirring to thin dressing to the constituency of heavy cream.

In a large bowl, combine the kale and croutons. Pour the dressing over the top and toss to coat. Add the Parmesan, toss again and serve.

 

Hot Tips

 

Celebrate World Sherry Day on Sunday 26^th May 2013 – Manning’s Emporium will be hosting a sherry tasting event in Ballylickey, West Cork from 1pm – 5pm. An opportunity to taste sherries from the finest bodegas in Jerez and Sanlucar de Barrameda, matched with best artisan food Cork has to offer – www.manningsemporium.ie

 

The 7th annual Burren Slow Food Festival on 17th, 18th, & 19th May 2013

Sample local artisan foods, meet local producers and growers, engage with fellow foodies, and enjoy cookery demonstrations. Events to look out for include Burren Food Forum with Sally & John McKenna, Michael Moran, world champion oyster shucker, Suzanne Campbell writer and broadcaster on food, farming and countryside, Seaweed Foraging, Beer Tasting & Organic Salmon tasting – www.slowfoodclare.com

I’ve just learned the secret of how to give a totally stress free dinner party! So here’s how it’s done. On a recent trip to San Francisco Mary Risley invited eleven mutual friends around in my honour. It was to be an early dinner. The guests were invited for 6:30, I arrived in around 5:30, Mary was having tea – totally relaxed and there was absolutely no sign of any activity, not to mention food.

As six approached, I tentatively enquired whether I could help in any way, maybe lay the table, how about food! Mary remembered the Ballymaloe Bread with some of Bill Casey’s Shanagarry Smoked Salmon that I’d brought over – “let’s have that for starters.” I took the loaf out of the freezer and hastily popped it into the oven and as per instructions I laid the table, then ran out into the garden to pick a Meyer lemon from the tree (yes, literally!.) The doorbell rang and the guests started to arrive. Mary was totally unfazed, lots of hugging “The glasses are in the cupboard, here’s the bottle opener, Jim you open the wine”

By now the ingredients for the main course, a San Francisco Fishermen’s Stew, were on the island counter, not sure who got those out of the fridge, I was busy slicing salmon and buttering warm semi frozen bread one slice at a time then popping it back into the oven to thaw another few centimetres just enough to cut another slice.

“Paula, can you chop the onions and that fennel bulb and Kiki can you open that can of tomatoes?”  We all followed instructions, everyone was having a hilarious time plus an impromptu cooking lesson on how to make this classic San Francisco Fishermen’s Stew.

The onion, chilli, garlic, fennel, and fresh marjoram was bubbling away in a big Le Crueset Casserole. Not sure who got the job of cracking the crabs claws.

Everyone loved the smoked salmon, “Open another couple bottles of wine”, add the fish to the tomato, next the crab and clams. Bubble, bubble, toil and trouble. Taste, maybe a bit more salt, “Who’s chopping the parsley; scatter it over the top of the pot!”

“Frances and Darina, you are in charge of the pudding – there’s a couple of (defrosted) discs of Lady Baltimore’s cakes and some raspberries over there, sandwich them together with cream and lemon curd.”

We did as we were bidden and produced an impressive looking confection in a couple of minutes, decorated with lemon balm from the garden and sprinkle of confectioners’ sugar.

By then the Cioppino was being ladled from the big red skillet into wide shallow bowls and we all tucked in, some of us even had second helpings. A green salad emerged from somewhere, not sure who or where that came from and then Frances and I produced our masterpiece to lots of appreciative noises. There was coffee, more wine and lots more convivial chat.

The washing up somehow seemed to be effortlessly done and a fantastic evening was had by all – so now we all know how to give a stress free dinner party – thank you Mary.

 

Mary Risley’s Cioppino

 

Every country has its version of a fishermen’s stew–I understand the origin of this recipe is Genoa – it’s a San Francisco tradition!

 

Serves 8-10

 

24 well-scrubbed live clams or cockles

extra virgin olive oil

coarse salt and freshly ground pepper

2 onions, chopped

3 cloves garlic, chopped

1 fennel bulb, chopped

1.1kg (2lbs 8ozs) fresh tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and chopped

(or 3 x 400g (14oz) cans Italian plum tomatoes)

1 tablespoons tomato paste (optional)

450ml (16floz) dry white wine

1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes

1 3/4 tablespoons fresh marjoram, chopped

900g (2 lbs) fresh white fish (sea bass, rock cod, halibut or monkfish)

450g (1lb) sea scallops (optional)

450g (1lb) raw shrimp (or prawns), peeled

meat from 1 large cooked crab, (optional)

25g (1oz) fresh parsley, chopped

 

To Serve

 

Sourdough Bread
To steam the clams or cockles, place them in a heavy bottomed pot with 2.5cm (1 inch) of water.  Cover and cook over high heat, shaking occasionally, until the clams are open.  Keep covered until ready to use.

 

To make the soup base, put the onions with half a teaspoon of salt in a large casserole with a generous splash of olive oil and cook, stirring from time to time, until the onions are softened.  Stir in the garlic and continue to cook and stir another minute or two.  Stir in the fennel, then the tomatoes, tomato paste, wine, red pepper flakes, and marjoram.  Then add the broth from the steamed clams leaving the last tablespoon in the pot since it probably has sand.  Bring this mixture to the boil, stirring, and let simmer gently for 20 minutes.

 

Meanwhile, cut the white fish into large chunks, coat with olive oil, and season with salt and pepper.

 

Remove the little tough part from each scallop.  Remove the shells from the shrimp.  Place these on another plate and coat with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.

 

To make the cioppino, fifteen minutes before you are ready to serve, bring the soup base to the boil, stirring, and stir in the fish.  Cover and let simmer 5 minutes.  Next, stir in the scallops and the shrimp and let simmer another 5 minutes.  At this point stir in the steamed clams and the crab meat, if desired.  Taste and adjust the seasoning.  Cover and let sit a minute or two. Sprinkle with lots of fresh parsley and serve in warmed bowls with sourdough bread.

 

 

Mary Risley’s Pear, Gorgonzola and Walnut Salad

 

Serves 6

 

This salad is a contrast in colour and texture: the pears are sweet and soft, the cheese is soft and salty, and the walnuts are hard strongly flavoured when toasted. To decide whether or not to peel the pears, taste the skin to see if it is acceptable. The best pears for this salad are French Butter pear, d’Anjou, or Comice.

2 heads butter or leaf lettuce, or a mixture of red and green lettuces, washed, dried and torn into 1 inch pieces

 

4 pears, such as French butter pear, d’Anjou, or Comice, peeled and cut into ¼ inch wide slices

225g (8oz) Gorgonzola, broken into ½ inch chunks

55g (2 ½ oz) walnut pieces, lightly toasted

3 tablespoons red wine vinegar

1 teaspoon Dijon-style prepared mustard

125ml (4fl oz) extra-virgin olive oil

coarse salt

freshly ground pepper

 

Put lettuces in a large salad bowl. Add the pears, cheese and walnuts. To make the vinaigrette, combine the vinegar, mustard and salt in a measuring cup. Stir to dissolve the salt. Mix in olive oil. Add salt and pepper to taste. Mix well with a small spoon. To serve, mix the vinaigrette again and pour over the salad, tossing gently with your hands. Add salt and pepper to taste. Mound the lettuces in the centres of salad plates. With your hands arrange the pears, Gorgonzola and walnuts on top. Serve with French bread.

 

Lady Baltimore Cake with Raspberries and Lemon Curd

 

This is Mary, Frances and my adapted recipe for Lady Baltimore’s cake.

 

Yields two 8 inch cakes

 

200g (7oz) white flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

pinch salt

110g (4oz) butter, softened

275g (10oz) caster sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

180ml (6fl oz) milk

3 egg whites

 

450g (1lb) raspberries

lemon curd (see recipe)

 

300ml (10fl oz) whipped cream

fresh mint or lemon balm leaves

 

2 x 8-inch round cake tins

 

Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/Mark 4.

 

Grease and flour two 8-inches round cake tins. Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt, and sieve them together onto a piece of parchment paper.  Put the soft butter and sugar in a mixing bowl, and beat until smooth and well blended.

Stir the vanilla extract and the milk together and add to the butter-sugar mixture in two stages alternately with the flour mixture, beating until the batter is well blended and smooth after each addition.

In a separate mixing bowl, whisk the egg whites until they are stiff but moist.

Gently stir one-third of the beaten whites into the batter, then scoop up the remaining beaten whites, drop them onto the batter, and fold them in.

Divide between the prepared cake tins.  Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick or straw inserted in the center of a cake comes out clean.

Remove from the oven and let cool in their tins for 5 minutes, then turn them out of the tins onto a rack to cool completely.

Spread a layer of lemon curd on each cake base, sandwich together with softly whipped cream and raspberries. Spread a little cream and lemon curd on top and pile on some fresh raspberries. Decorate with a few fresh lemon balm or mint leaves and dust with a little icing sugar.

 

Lemon Curd

 

110g (4 oz) castor sugar

50g (2oz) butter

finely grated rind and juice of 2 good lemons, preferably unwaxed organic

2 eggs and 1 egg yolk (keep white aside for meringue)

 

On a very low heat melt the butter, add castor sugar, lemon juice and rind and then stir in well beaten eggs. Stir carefully over a gentle heat until the mixture coats the back of a spoon. Draw off the heat and pour into a bowl (it will thicken as it cools.)

 

Hottips

 

Today, tomorrow and Monday many of my food heroes will converge on Ballymaloe for the first ever Literary Festival of Food and Wine and the free fringe events in the Big Shed beside the Grainstore. Madhur Jaffrey, Claudia Roden, David Thompson, David Tanis, Thomasina Miers, Camilla Plum, Stevie Parle, Rachel Allen, Sandor Katz … will all do cookery demonstrations at Ballymaloe Cookery School. It’s being described as the Glastonbury of Food and Wine Festivals, let’s hope the weather’s better but actually it doesn’t matter because virtually all the events are indoors – apart from the treasure hunts and GIY gardens – check out www.litfest.ie

 

Charity Vintage Tea Rooms at Saint Mary’s Church of Ireland, Dungarvan, Co Waterford. Afternoon tea as it used to be, sipped out of antique tea cups with homemade cakes and dainty sandwiches to the sounds of Bing Crosby and Nat King Cole – and all for a good cause. Every Saturday from 2 – 5pm.  Email Ria charitytearooms@gmail.com

 

Polytunnel Gardening Course at The Hollies, Enniskeane, Co Cork. Learn how to get the most from your poly tunnel year round, grow summer crops including sweet corn, tomatoes and peppers and extend the growing season to have fresh greens even during the winter period.  Sunday 12th May 9.30-4.30. €60.00 lunch included – 023 88 47001 or 0860883116 – info@thehollies.ie

 

Don’t miss Saturday Pizzas and Sunday Roasts at Ballymaloe Cookery School during the Literary Festival of Food and Wine 3^rd – 6^th May 2013

 

Sandor Katz described himself as a DIY food activist and fermentation revivalist. He has a global cult following – so what exactly is all that all about? Well I met and heard him speak recently at the IACP (International Association of Culinary Professionals) conference in San Francisco and I have to say it was an inspirational experience.

I’ve been following his trail and becoming more and more intrigued and fascinated since I bought the Art of Fermentation in a book shop in Skibbereen a couple of years ago.

I have felt for some time that our Western diet is seriously deficient in fermented foods and the paranoia around food hygiene and food safety has led to a lowering of immune systems. A growing body of research seems to indicate that children who are totally protected from bacteria seem to have higher rates of allergies and asthma. Sanitising the world can be counterproductive. The overuse of antibiotics has produced resilient bacteria more lethal than those we’ve managed to kill.

How arrogant and naïve are we who imagine that we can win the war against bacteria – over and over they out-evolve us, the battle is futile and in many cases counterproductive. We need to learn to work with bacteria and nature to re-establish healthy gut flora and guess what, they really like fermented foods like sauerkraut.

For the majority of us making fermented foods is an unknown or forgotten skill, unfamiliar names like sauerkraut and kimchi sound scary – we have no idea where to start. Nowadays most people are convinced that bacteria are all bad not realising that the majority of bacteria are beneficial and benign. Bacteria are everywhere, we are all made up of different types of bacteria and of course there are some pathogenic bacteria but the healthier we are the most resistant we are to dangerous bacteria. Ironically the more sterile our environment and more processed out diet the lower our resistance, so challenge your system with lots of live food, organic produce, natural cheeses and fermented foods.

So where do we start, whatever about bacteria the population at large is totally terrified of moulds – again people are convinced they are all scary and bad. Apparently the growing ignorance and paranoia about moulds is adversely affecting the growth of the cheeses, so people are missing out on that brilliant penicillium roqueforti.

In the past decade or two as food has become more and more processed, we’ve lost faith in our own judgment and become increasingly deskilled and put our faith in food manufacturers and sell-by dates.

We need to take back power over our own diet and re-learn forgotten skills, shake off our fear and learn to trust our instincts once again. As soon as I read the Art of Fermenting I googled Sandor Katz for his contact and invited him to speak at the inaugural Ballymaloe Literary Festival of Food and Wine – 3^rd to 6^th May 2013.

My pantry larder is now full of bottles, crocks and jars full of experiments and ferments, I’ve been empowered by Sandor Katz who spoke so eloquently of his fascination with fermentation – and told us that there have been no recorded instances of food poisoning from fermented foods in the US so just scrape off that mould and enjoy the sauerkraut underneath.

Fermentation is the hottest new interest for many top chefs particularly in the US. I visited several during my visit to the West Coast. Apart from sauerkraut they are also and making pickles of all kinds. Kefir is now widely sold in supermarkets, so soon you’ll see fermented foods coming mainstream. At present Environmental Health Officers and food inspectors in the US are having difficulty coming to terms with this revolution. This new development, though time honoured, is unfamiliar and can be scary territory.

Sandor Katz is leading the way in our rediscovery of the ancient art of fermentation. His book the Art of Fermentation is the most definitive do-it-yourself guide to homemade fermentation ever published. There are two opportunities to meet Sandor at the Ballymaloe Lit Fest of Food and Wine – he and Ben Reade of the Nordic Food Lab will speak about The Art of Fermentation on Saturday 4^th May at 11:30am in the Grainstore and a Practical Fermentation Demonstration at 9:00am on Sunday 5^th May 2013 www.litfest.ie

 

Sandor Katz Sauerkraut

 

Timeframe: 1-4 weeks (or more)

Special Equipment:

Ceramic crock or food-grade plastic bucket, one-gallon capacity or greater

Plate that fits inside crock or bucket

One-gallon jug filled with water (or a scrubbed and boiled rock)

Cloth cover (like a pillowcase or towel)

Ingredients (for 3 3/4 litres)

2.2kg (5 lbs) cabbage

3 tablespoons sea salt

Process:

Chop or grate cabbage, finely or coarsely, with or without hearts, however you like it. I love to mix green and red cabbage to end up with bright pink kraut. Place cabbage in a large bowl as you chop it.

Sprinkle salt on the cabbage as you go. The salt pulls water out of the cabbage (through osmosis), and this creates the brine in which the cabbage can ferment and sour without rotting. The salt also has the effect of keeping the cabbage crunchy, by inhibiting organisms and enzymes that soften it. 3 tablespoons of salt is a rough guideline for 2.2kgs (5lbs) of cabbage. I never measure the salt; I just shake some on after I chop up each cabbage. I use more salt in summer, less in winter.

Add other vegetables. Grate carrots for a coleslaw-like kraut. Other vegetables I’ve added include onions, garlic, seaweed, greens, Brussels sprouts, small whole heads of cabbage, turnips, beets, and burdock roots. You can also add fruits (apples, whole or sliced, are classic), and herbs and spices (caraway seeds, dill seeds, celery seeds, and juniper berries are classic, but anything you like will work). Experiment.

Mix ingredients together and pack into crock. Pack just a bit into the crock at a time and tamp it down hard using your fists or any (other) sturdy kitchen implement. The tamping packs the kraut tight in the crock and helps force water out of the cabbage.

Cover kraut with a plate or some other lid that fits snugly inside the crock. Place a clean weight (a glass jug filled with water) on the cover. This weight is to force water out of the cabbage and then keep the cabbage submerged under the brine. Cover the whole thing with a cloth to keep dust and flies out.

Press down on the weight to add pressure to the cabbage and help force water out of it. Continue doing this periodically (as often as you think of it, every few hours), until the brine rises above the cover. This can take up to about 24 hours, as the salt draws water out of the cabbage slowly. Some cabbage, particularly if it is old, simply contains less water. If the brine does not rise above the plate level by the next day, add enough salt water to bring the brine level above the plate. Add about a teaspoon of salt to a cup of water and stir until it’s completely dissolved.

Leave the crock to ferment. I generally store the crock in an unobtrusive corner of the kitchen where I won’t forget about it, but where it won’t be in anybody’s way. You could also store it in a cool basement if you want a slower fermentation that will preserve for longer.

Check the kraut every day or two. The volume reduces as the fermentation proceeds. Sometimes mould appears on the surface. Many books refer to this mould as “scum,” but I prefer to think of it as a bloom. Skim what you can off of the surface; it will break up and you will probably not be able to remove all of it. Don’t worry about this. It’s just a surface phenomenon, a result of contact with the air. The kraut itself is under the anaerobic protection of the brine. Rinse off the plate and the weight. Taste the kraut. Generally it starts to be tangy after a few days, and the taste gets stronger as time passes. In the cool temperatures of a cellar in winter, kraut can keep improving for months and months. In the summer or in a heated room, its life cycle is more rapid. Eventually it becomes soft and the flavour turns less pleasant.

Enjoy. I generally scoop out a bowl- or jarful at a time and keep it in the fridge. I start when the kraut is young and enjoy its evolving flavour over the course of a few weeks. Try the sauerkraut juice that will be left in the bowl after the kraut is eaten. Sauerkraut juice is a rare delicacy and unparalleled digestive tonic. Each time you scoop some kraut out of the crock, you have to repack it carefully. Make sure the kraut is packed tight in the crock, the surface is level, and the cover and weight are clean. Sometimes brine evaporates, so if the kraut is not submerged below brine just add salted water as necessary. Some people preserve kraut by canning and heat-processing it. This can be done; but so much of the power of sauerkraut is its aliveness that I wonder: Why kill it?

Develop a rhythm. I try to start a new batch before the previous batch runs out. I remove the remaining kraut from the crock, repack it with fresh salted cabbage, then pour the old kraut and its juices over the new kraut. This gives the new batch a boost with an active culture starter.

 

Asian Prawn Salad

 

Poached monkfish, scallops or squid (see recipe) also work well with this recipe.

 

Serves 4 – 6

 

 

500g (18oz) – peeled, freshly cooked Dublin Bay or organic prawns (see recipe)

 

 

Asian Dressing

 

 

1 tablespoon nam pla fish sauce

1 teaspoon caster sugar

juice of one lime

2 – 5 Thai green chillies finely sliced

1 stalk lemon grass finely sliced

2 kaffir lime leaves finely shredded

2 red shallots or 1 small red onion finely sliced and refreshed

1 scallion or spring onion cut at an angle

lots of fresh mint leaves or fresh coriander

½ – 1 cucumber cut in half and then in diagonal chunks

 

Whisk the fish sauce, freshly squeezed lime juice and sugar (you may need more) together. Add the other ingredients, toss gently, taste and correct seasoning and serve immediately with lots of coriander sprigs and a wedge or two of cucumber.

 

Hot Tips

The Burren Slow Food Festival in Lisdoonvarna is on from 17^th to 19^th May and showcases the best elements of food culture in County Clare. Visit the largest indoor and outdoor market in County Clare. Attend a food symposium, gala dinner, cookery demonstrations from local and celebrity chefs, and food and nutrition talks. There is also a range of events and demonstrations for children to enjoy. www.slowfoodclare.com/festival/

 

Ballymaloe Literary Festival of Food and Wine 3^rd – 6^th May – In addition to the main program, there will be a Fringe festival in “The Big Shed” with a host of other food and wine related activities for young and old alike. Gardeners will rub shoulders with cooks, foragers with food historians, critics with musicians, artisan producers with bloggers – a melting pot -of eating, drinking, speaking and thinking. A place to be quiet or to make noise. A place for new ideas, words old and new, inspiration, learning and fun.

This is a unique event being staged in a special place – a gathering for all who love food and wine – www.litfest.com

 

Check out the new Fish Bar at the Electric on the banks of the River Lee – 41 South Mall, Cork City, it takes its inspiration from the simple Portuguese fish shacks and San Sebastian’s taverns. They serve the freshest fish, simply cooked – half a dozen oysters, grilled sardines, crab and crayfish salad – how delicious does that sound! +353 21 4222 990

Down here in Ballymaloe we are all so excited about the first ever Ballymaloe Literary Festival of Food and Wine.

It’s taking place in Ballymaloe House and at the Grain store and Ballymaloe Cookery School.

We have a fantastic line up of speakers – many of my food heroes from all over the world said yes to the invitation to come to Ireland for a gathering of cooks and chefs and food writers over the May Bank Holiday weekend.

This is your chance to meet and mingle and chat to the icons whom we never imagined we’d meet face to face.

And it’s not just food, every wine buff’s hero Jancis Robinson MW and her husband Nick Lander restaurant critic for the Financial Times will give a presentation on the wine book, “Wine Grapes – A complete guide to 1,368 vine varieties, including their origins and flavours”,   of which she is the co-author with a wine tasting to illustrate her presentation.

We’ll have a whiskey tasting and Ger Buckley from Midleton Distillery will give a cooperage demonstration and we have a number of iconic craft beer brewers (West Kerry, White Gypsy, Metal Man, 8 Degree…) They will all be part of the fringe events in the Big Shed at Ballymaloe. Madhur Jaffrey is coming from New York to teach a class at the cookery school on Saturday 4^th May and on Sunday 5^th May she will also do a talk in the Grainstore about our love affair with curry – based on her new book The Curry Nation. You can’t see her anywhere else in the world, she just doesn’t give classes.

Same with Claudia Roden, much loved author of over 18 cook books including A Book of Middle Eastern Food, considered to be the standard work on Eastern food. Claudia was awarded a Lifetime Achievement in 2012 by the Guild of Food Writers. She’ll demonstrate recipes from her new book ‘Food of Spain’ on Saturday 4th May.

For those of you who love Asian food, David Thompson chef owner of Nahm restaurant is coming from Bangkok to show us some of his favourite Thai street food. He’s a super guy and we’ll choose recipes you can reproduce at home.

The new voices in food – Stevie Parle from Dock Kitchen in London, Thomasina Miers from Wahaca and Claire Ptak of Violet Cakes and our own Donal Skehan will strut their stuff.

Alice Waters – author of ten books – of Chez Panisse in Berkley CA, started the Edible School Yard project in California. Bill Yosses, pastry chef at the White House will tell us about Michelle Obama’s vegetable garden. And Stephanie Alexander, bestselling author of 14 books and whose project the development of a primary school kitchen garden program the Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Foundation is supported by the Australian government and has resulted in 295 Australian schools having gardens and kitchens for the children to learn how to grow and cook. Those interested in the education of our children, both parents and teachers, will find this session totally inspirational.

Budding writers and food bloggers will find much food for thought in sessions like Lucy Pearce’s Workshop, Food Writing for the Digital Generation (with  Aoife Carrigy, Caroline Hennessy and Michael Kelly) on Saturday 4th May. John McKenna In Conversation, Evolution of Food Writing (with Matthew Fort) on Sunday 5^th May and In Conversation, How to Get the Best from a Restaurant (with Nick Lander, Tom Doorley and Hazel Allen) on Sunday 5^th May.

Michelle Darmody who self-published her Cake Café Cookbook is also happy to share her secrets of how it’s done.

The centre of the gastronomic world has moved from Spain to Copenhagen in the past couple of years. Co-founder of Noma the best restaurant in the world will tell us how this Nordic food revolution came about. Are there lessons for Ireland here?

This session will be particularly fascinating for chefs and cooks, food writers and those involved in the hospitality industry.

Alys Fowler – who was the editor of the Landscape Review and has also presented her own successful TV series, The Edible Garden in 2010. She has published four books including The Thrifty Gardener, The Edible Garden and the Thrifty Forager – will do a foraging master class with Micheal Kelly of GIY (Grow it Yourself). The growing number of people, me included, who are interested in food issues should not miss Joanna Blythman’s workshop Digesting Unsavoury Truths with Ella McSweeney and Suzanne Campbell on Sunday 4^th May. Joanna has won numerous awards and accolades including five Glen Fiddich Awards, a Caroline Walker Media Award for Improving the Nation’s Health by Means of Good Food, a Guild of Food Writers Award. Bring your questions… Food historians will be thrilled with the opportunity to hear Regina Sexton – Literary Conversation, The Early Food Writing of Myrtle Allen on Monday 5^th May.

And then there are the fringe events in the Big Shed and farmers market and honestly there’s much more but not enough room to tell you about it. We reckon to have many exciting events for all the family, so check out the website www.litfest.ie for details and deals.

Meanwhile here are some of my favourite recipes from the guests chefs to whet your appetite.

 

David Thompson’s Nahm Sweet Pork

 

This sweet pork is addictive.  The sugar balances the heat of the chillies.  It is eaten as an accompaniment to Nam Priks (Relishes).

 

Serves 4 as a nibble

 

10 ozs (300 g) pork shoulder or neck

4 ozs (125 g) sugar

1 tablespoon water

2 tablespoons fish sauce

1 tablespoon dark soy sauce

2 tablespoons water

10 shallots, sliced, dried and deep-fried until golden

 

Cook the pork in boiling water until cooked, then cut into ½ cm (¼ inch) cubes.  In a small pan combine the sugar and water and cook until it caramelises.  Add the pork, fish sauce, soy sauce and extra water.  Simmer for 5 minutes until sticky.  Mix in the deep-fried shallots and serve.

 

Thomasina Mier’s Green Chilli Vinaigrette

 

This is a delicious, bright salad dressing that is perfect for simple green salads.

 

2 green chillies
1 small clove of garlic
3 tablespoons water

100ml (3 1/2 fl oz) extra virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons white wine vinegar

a teaspoon castor sugar

a handful of chopped coriander

Roast the chillies and garlic in a dry frying pan until they are blackened, blistered and soft (5-10 minutes approximately).  Remove the garlic skin and de-stem and de-seed the chillies.  Check the heat of the chillies with the tip of your tongue.  If they are hot you may only want to use one.  Roughly chop them and put in a blender with the garlic and the rest of the ingredients.  Blitz to a smooth-ish vinaigrette and serve at once (this dressing does not keep).

 

Madhur Jaffrey’s Rogan Josh

From  “Foolproof Indian Cookery”

 

Serves 4-6

 

5cm (2 inch) piece of fresh root ginger, chopped

7 garlic cloves, chopped

6 tbsp olive or groundnut oil

10 cardamom pods

2 bay leaves

2½cm (1 inch) piece of cinnamon stick

2lb (900g) boneless lamb from the shoulder, or beef cut into 2½-4cm (1-1½ inch) cubes

7oz (200g) onions, finely chopped

2 tsp ground cumin

2 tsp ground coriander

1 tsp cayenne pepper

1½ tbsp sweet, bright-red paprika

2 tsp tomato purée

1¼ tsp salt

10fl oz (300ml) water

 

Drop the ginger and garlic into a food processor or blender, add 4 tablespoons of water and blend to a paste.  Put the oil into a wide pan, preferably non-stick, and set it over a medium-high heat.  When it is hot, put in the cardamom pods, bay leaves and cinnamon stick.  Quickly put in the lamb pieces – only as many as the pan will hold easily in a single layer and brown on all sides.  Remove with a slotted spoon and put in a bowl.  Brown the remaining meat in the same way.

 

Add the onions to the oil left in the pan.  Cook, stirring, until they turn brown at the edges.  Add the paste from the blender and stir for 30 seconds.  Add the cumin, coriander, cayenne and paprika, stir once and then add the tomato purée.  Stir for 10 seconds.

 

Add the meat and any whole spices that are still clinging to it, plus the salt and water.  Stir well and bring to the boil.  Cover the pan, turn the heat to low and simmer gently for 1 hour or until the meat is tender.

 

* If using beef, cook for 1½ hours rather than 1 hour.

 

Claudia Roden’s Medjool Date and Coconut Chutney

 

Claudia Roden introduced me to this Jewish recipe when she taught a class at the school in 2007. It’s a gem, keep some in your fridge and you’ll find yourself eating it with everything.  Serve with everything or as part of a plate of mezze.

 

Makes 3 x 200ml (7fl oz) jars

 

150ml (5fl oz/1/4 pint) water

125g (4 1/2oz) desiccated coconut

50g (2oz) coriander leaves

juice of 2 limes or lemons

2 garlic cloves crushed

10 Medjool dates, stoned

1 tablespoon tamarind paste dissolved in 2 tablespoons boiling water

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon cayenne

2 tablespoons water

 

Pour the water over the desiccated coconut and allow to sit about 15-20 minutes until the water is absorbed. Chop the coriander in the food processor, then add the lime juice, crushed garlic, dates, coconut and the tamarind paste dissolved in 2 tablespoons boiling water.  Season with sea salt and a good pinch of cayenne, and blend to a paste.  Add 1-2 tablespoons of water if necessary to make a soft creamy paste.  Fill into small jars, cover with non-reactive lids and store in the refrigerator.

 

25g (1oz) block of tamarind soaked for 20 minutes in 50ml (2fl oz) boiling water makes 1 tablespoon of tamarind purée.

 

Claudia Roden’s Fruit Salad with Honey and Orange Blossom Water

From “The Book of Jewish Cooking”

 

For this delicately scented fruit salad, have a mix of fruit chosen from three or four of the following: peaches, nectarines, apricots, bananas, plums, grapes, apples, pears, strawberries, mangoes, melon, pineapple, dates, and pomegranate seeds.

 

Serves 4

 

Juice of 1 large orange

2 tablespoons honey

1 teaspoon orange blossom water

750g mixed fruit

To garnish: a few mint leaves

Mix the orange juice, honey and orange blossom water straight into a serving bowl. Wash or peel the fruits, core or remove stones and drop them in the bowl as you cut them up into pieces so that they do not have time to discolour.

Leave in a cool place for an hour or longer before serving, garnished with mint leaves.

 

Hottips

Slow Food International and Sandbrook House are hosting the second International Slow Food Grandmothers Day Celebration on Sunday 21st of April 11am-6pm.  There will be a celebration of Forgotten Skills and a series of workshops and demonstrations from some of Ireland’s most passionate Slow Food experts.

Darina Allen, Pamela Black, Florence Bowe and Niall Murphy and Sophie Morris of the Kookie Dough company…. will do cookery demonstrations. Sign up for a hands on sausage making sessions with Ed Hick and a series of workshops and demonstrations on topics including butter, cheese and chocolate making, preserving, foraging, cooking bastible bread over the open fire will be free to attend.  Grandmothers are invited to bring along a favourite recipe that they would like to pass onto their grandchildren to include in a Slow Food Grandmother’s scrapbook.

Admission is €10 with free entry to all children with one adult, free car parking and free entry to all workshops.  Cookery demonstrations are €10.00-15.00 and are on a first come, first served basis. See www.grandmothersday.ie  for more details.

Wine events at the Ballymaloe Literary Festival of Food & Wine 3rd – 6th May 2013.

The inaugural Ballymaloe Literary Festival of Food and Wine, 3rd – 6th May 2013 will include well known wine & drinks writers Jancis Robinson MW, Mary Dowey, Tom Doorley, John Wilson, to name but some of the 40 national and international speakers attending. www.litfest.ie

Two Herbal Health Talks in May by Herbalist Kelli O’Halloran at Ballyseedy Garden Centre – Carrigtwohill.

The Sneezing Season! Saturday 4th May – 10:30am – 11:30am – How to prevent and alleviate the symptoms of hayfever with herbal medicines.

Happy Heart Weekend Saturday 11th May 10:30am – 11:30am To coincide with the Irish Heart Foundation’s ‘Happy Heart Weekend’, Kelli looks at the natural herbal and dietary approach to preventing and reducing high cholesterol. Both talks cost €10, Slow Food Members €8, a cup of herbal tea included. Phone 087 965 2822 to book.