ArchiveMarch 2025

Concern continues to gather momentum about the Irish National Free School Meals programme which was welcomed with enthusiasm at first. After all, what’s not to like about this progressive initiative, universal hot school meals for our Primary School children. Free for all, no stigma, no worries about school lunches.

Initially, the children were super excited, but for many enthusiasm soon waned and from my research, a growing number no longer enjoy or eat the food. Many meals come home, half-eaten or untouched in school satchels. Teachers and parents are understandably concerned about the quality, the food waste and the single-use packaging, much of which is not recyclable.

But my primary concern, of which there are many, is the nutritional quality of

the food. Much is ultra-processed, which includes flavourings, artificial colourings, stabilisers….

How much more research do we need to convince us of the negative impacts of these additives and processing aids on our health?

I have just returned from a few weeks in India, where government schools have had a free, Midday Meal programme since 1995.

I visited several schools in Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh where local women were cooking a midday meal of dahl and rice and chapatis from scratch for the children which they happily shared with me. One was a small village school, others had over 200 pupils. An inexpensive, but deeply nourishing meal, the children loved it and were visibly healthy with beautiful skin and teeth.

Once again at the Ahilya Fort School in Maheshwar in Madhya Pradesh, several hundred children, eagerly tucked

into a simple meal of ancestral food which their teachers

also shared, a chickpea dahl with nutrient dense drumstick

greens and freshly cooked flatbread. 

The children sit cross-legged on mats on the ground. They also bring in a little tiffin-box and a water bottle, no fizz or pop. I noticed one lunch-box with crispy, deep-fried okra, none had UPS/ultra-processed food.

Not only were the children well fed, but the ingredients were sourced from local farmers with full traceability, the money goes back directly into the surrounding community and also creates local employment.

Back here in Ireland, I spoke to many parents and teachers. All of whom were positive initially but are now deeply concerned about many aspects of the program. However, it has to be said that one parent whose children are attending St Luke’s School in Glanmire, Cork City said she found it brilliant and that her children loved the food. Another parent whose children attend a different school, pulled no punches and her response was ‘it’s s***e, a disgrace’.

It is obvious that there is considerable variation between schools depending on the food provider and the facilities.

My greatest concern of many, is the nutritional value of the food. It’s absolutely vital that we feed our children wholesome, good healthy food, not UPF.

Study after study has shown that the quality of the food impacts positively or negatively on behaviour, attendance, academic achievement and overall health.

The scheme is estimated to cost in the region of €300 million when rolled out across the country. Surely this is not the best use of the tax-payers money. 

Many feel that the model urgently needs to be reevaluated and go back to the drawing board. Is €3.20 per child a realistic amount to provide real health giving food. We must not confuse feeding with nourishing…

I do not underestimate the challenge for the Department of Social Protection, but change is undoubtedly necessary.

At present we are missing many opportunities, not just to nourish but to further educate our children but to give good example.

Use the budget to commission and source chemical-free produce from local farmers, poultry producers, and artisans at a fair price and provide complete traceability of ingredients. 

Practice what we preach about recycling and single use plastic.

Provide real food, not USP/ultra-processed food and artificial additives which many of the meals seem to include thus far.

Educate our children on where our food comes from, seasonal food, the importance of sourcing….

Emphasise that food should be our medicine and not create potential health and obesity problems.

At present 1 in 5 children here in Ireland are overweight or obese. Diabetes, initially a disease of older-people, is now manifesting in young children.

We’re sleepwalking into a health crisis of monumental proportions. There is no need to reinvent the wheel, look at Alice Waters Edible Schoolyard Project in Berkeley, California and the MAD model in Copenhagen where over 70% of food served in schools, hospitals and prisons must be organically produced. The initiative has already delivered remarkable outcomes and benefited the public purse.

Japan’s national school lunch program, where the government prioritises children’s health, is another example of good practice.

After all, the wealth of a nation depends on the health of the nation and the health of the nation depends to a great extent on the food we eat.

Everyone’s Favourite Mac and Cheese

Mac and cheese is a bit like apple crumble, simple fare but everyone loves it, plus you can add lots of tasty bits to change it up. Macaroni cheese was

and still is one of my children’s favourite supper dishes. I often add some

cubes of cooked bacon or ham to the sauce.

Serves 6

Ingredients

225g macaroni or ditalini

50g butter

150g onion, finely chopped

50g plain flour

850ml boiling whole milk

¼ tsp Dijon or English mustard

1 tbsp chopped flat-leaf parsley (optional)

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

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

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method

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

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

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

Spaghetti and Meatballs with Tomato Sauce

Meatballs are a universal comfort food, nourishing and delicious right up there with burgers.  One can do tons of variations on the theme. Use freshly minced meat and include at least 20% fat for extra sustenance.

Serves 6

Ingredients

Meatballs

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1 onion, peeled and finely chopped

1 garlic clove, peeled and crushed

900g freshly minced beef (80% lean) OR 700g beef/225g pork

50g soft white breadcrumbs

50ml milk

2-4 tbsp chopped fresh herbs, such as marjoram, or a mixture of parsley, chives and thyme leaves

1 organic egg, beaten

salt and freshly ground black pepper

Tomato Sauce

3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

225g onion, peeled and sliced

1 garlic clove, peeled and crushed

900g ripe, peeled and chopped tomatoes or 2 x 400g tins chopped tomatoes

good pinch of crushed chilli flakes (optional)

salt, freshly ground black pepper and sugar

120ml rich cream, optional

To Serve

3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

150g Mozzarella and Parmesan, grated & mixed

450g spaghetti

rocket leaves (optional)

Garnish

parsley leaves

Method

First make the meatballs, heat the olive oil in a heavy, stainless-steel saucepan over a gentle heat and add the chopped onions and garlic.  Cover and sweat on a gentle heat for 8-10 minutes until soft and slightly golden. Allow to cool.

Soak the breadcrumbs in milk.

Put the freshly minced beef and breadcrumbs into a bowl with the cold sweated onion, garlic, chopped herbs (and chilli flakes if using) and the beaten egg.  Season the mixture to taste and mix really well.  Fry a tiny bit to check the seasoning, adjust if necessary.  Divide the mixture and roll into about 24 meatballs. Cover and refrigerate.

Meanwhile, make the tomato sauce.  Heat the oil in a casserole or a stainless-steel saucepan.  Add the sliced onion and crushed garlic, toss until coated, cover and sweat over a gentle heat until soft.  Add the peeled and chopped tomatoes and chilli flakes, mix and season with salt, freshly ground pepper and a pinch of sugar (tinned tomatoes take more sweetening) add 120ml rich cream and allow to bubble, optional.  Cover and simmer for 15 minutes, uncover and continue to cook for 15-20 minutes or until thick and unctuous.

Meanwhile, cook the spaghetti in a pan of boiling water.  Drain and turn into a hot serving dish.

Heat a frying pan over a medium heat, add 3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil. Cook the meatballs for 8-10 minutes, turning from time to time.  When they are cooked, transfer to an ovenproof serving dish. Add to the hot tomato sauce, turn gently to cover.  Pop into a preheated oven at 180°C/Gas Mark 4.

Serve immediately. Alternatively serve the meatballs in tomato sauce with crusty bread and/or just a green salad.

Spoon the meatballs and tomato sauce over the top of the spaghetti, sprinkle with grated Mozzarella and Parmesan on top or place under a preheated grill to let the cheese melt.  Sprinkle with lots of flat parsley leaves.

Rice Pudding with Roast Rhubarb

Roasting seems to intensify the flavour, and it pairs deliciously with a creamy rice pudding.

Serves 6-8

Ingredients 

100g pearl rice (short-grain rice)

40g sugar

small knob of butter

850ml milk

1 x 1. 2 litre capacity pie dish

Roast Rhubarb (see recipe)

Method

Preheat the oven to 180°C/Gas Mark 4.

Put the rice, sugar and butter into a pie dish. Bring the milk to the boil and pour over. Bake for 1-1 1/2 hours. The skin should be golden, the rice underneath should be cooked through and have soaked up the milk but still be soft and creamy. Calculate the time so that it’s ready for pudding. If it has to wait in the oven for ages, it will be dry and dull, and you’ll wonder why you bothered.

Roast Rhubarb

Ingredients

900g garden rhubarb

200-250g sugar

Method

Preheat the oven to 200˚C/Gas Mark 6.

Wipe the rhubarb but do not peel, slice into 2 1/2cm pieces and arrange in a single layer in a medium size oven proof dish.  Scatter the sugar over the rhubarb and allow to macerate for 30 minutes.  Roast in the oven for 20-30 minutes approximately depending on size, until the rhubarb is just tender.  Serve alone with softly whipped cream or with a bubbly rice pudding. (Keeps in a fridge for 4-5 days).

All over the world, there are food festivals, some principally focus on food and invite guest chefs from across the globe to share their creativity and skills Others like MAD in Copenhagen (coming up in May) focus on food, farming and environmental issues and try to come up with solutions to remedy your deeply flawed food system.

JR Ryall, pastry chef at Ballymaloe House and I recently travelled to Sri Lanka to participate in the Gourmet Galle festival which is now in its second year. It was originally created by the legendary Geoffrey Dobbs who also initiated the Galle Literary Festival which commenced in 2005. This was my second time participating.

We created a Taste of Ballymaloe Dinner at the chic Charleston Hotel one night. The menu was a fusion of Sri Lankan and Irish ingredients. We brought a beautiful side of Belvelly Smoked Salmon from artisan fish smoker, Frank Hederman all the way from Ireland and served it with a fresh cucumber pickle, devilled eggs and freshly baked, Ballymaloe brown yeast bread. 

Lots of beets in season at the moment so we made a chilled beetroot soup drizzled with Sri Lankan buffalo curd and fresh coriander, very welcome in the sweltering Sri Lankan heat. Main course was roast free-range Sri Lankan pork with crackling, aubergines in the pickling style and rustic roast potatoes sprinkled with fresh rosemary.

Guests particularly loved JR’s sweet trolley and each and every one of the beautiful people tucked into a taste of absolutely everything on offer. Sri Lanka grows wonderful cashew nuts, so the praline ice cream was made with cashew nuts instead of almonds. JR layered up the panna cotta with a Sri Lankan espresso coffee jelly, a huge success. Little coconut meringues were topped with the sweetest Alfonso mango and a spoonful of tangy passion fruit and finally there was a wobbly, gooey chocolate tart. 

All the recipes came from JR‘s Ballymaloe Desserts Cookbook, which we later found on the shelves of a fantastic independent bookshop in Unawatuna called Wild and Sage. It’s also got a sweet little café so put it on your Sri Lankan list if you’re planning to head that way. 

We stayed in The Charleston in Galle Fort for several days, so we had the opportunity to do a bit of exploring. Of course, we visited the fish market on the edge of the lagoon plus the fruit and veg markets and lots of spice shops in the Muslim quarter where we learned how to source the very best Sri Lankan cinnamon, peppercorns, cardamon, nutmeg and mace. 

Out in Tagalle, I watched the fishermen laboriously hauling in their horseshoe nets and sharing the catch. One of the traditional Sri Lankan Orrou boats sustains 8 to 10 families, it was truly an honour to observe this time honoured practice, most of the catch was whitebait and another slightly bigger but still tiny fish. Occasionally, they caught a couple of sear fish which was like winning the lotto for them. 

Food is our subject, so we’re continually researching to add to our depth of knowledge. There are of course many tea gardens, young leaves from the top of the tea plant are handpicked and cured. Tea from Ceylon, now Sri Lanka has been sought after for hundreds of years and at last conditions for the pickers and farm workers are improving. Organic tea leaves from the Diyanillakelle Tea Garden in Lindula within the Nuwara Eliya District of Sri Lanka are included in the special Ballymaloe Tea blend created for us by Henrietta Lovell, The Rare Tea Lady.

We went on several foodie adventures including a visit to the Gradely Cinnamon Estate which was less than an hour from Galle to get a full understanding of the fascinating process from start to finish. Our guide, Hasita, was a brilliant communicator and gave us an in-depth tour, literally from the red earth to the curled up cinnamon bark. We watched a cinnamon peeler sitting, cross legged on the floor, expertly peeling and rolling the bark with the skill passed down to him from his father and grandfather. All Sri Lankan cinnamon is still meticulously hand peeled and rolled, think about that…

We learned the crucially important skill of how to tell the difference between cassia (false cinnamon) and true cinnamon which is regularly passed off as cinnamon. Ground cinnamon, which is regularly cut with cassia, a cheaper and more acrid spice. True cinnamon is sweet and flaky, cassia is a much firmer texture, considerably cheaper, darker in colour and more acrid in flavour. If you have a choice, look for the Alba grade, it’s mostly considered to be the finest. Because of its quality, it’s mostly exported from Sri Lanka. 

All parts of the cinnamon bush are valuable, the leaves are distilled and used to make cinnamon leaf oil, it’s got a high percentage of eugenol, also used in the fragrance industry and is a highly effective antibacterial cleaning agent but NOT for human consumption. Cinnamon oil on the other hand is mainly used to flavour cakes, biscuits, desserts, drinks.

Cinnamon is known to be antibacterial, anti-inflammatory and is a natural cholesterol buster. The trimmings of the quills are used to make cinnamon tea, and the peeled branches are used for barbecue fuel. It’s the plant that keeps on giving…

Black-Eyed Beans with Mushrooms

This recipe uses a piece of cinnamon rather than powder.

Beans are an almost perfect food, they are high in protein and fibre and they don’t contain a scrap of fat or dreaded cholesterol.  They are also cheap and highly versatile, they can however be deadly dull but livened up with fresh herbs and spices the possibilities are endless.

This is a recipe high on my list of favourite vegetarian recipes, basically it is another gem from Madhur Jaffrey’s ‘A Taste of India’ but I have adapted the recipe slightly. Fresh coriander makes a tremendous difference to the flavour. If you have any space now that Spring is on the way, why not buy a packet of seeds, it is really easy to grow and you’ll soon become addicted.

Serves 6

Ingredients

225g dried black-eyed beans

225g fresh mushrooms

6 tbsp sunflower oil

1 tsp whole cumin seeds

2.5cm piece of cinnamon bark

150g onion, peeled and chopped

4 cloves garlic, peeled and very finely chopped

400g fresh or tinned tomatoes, peeled and chopped

2 tsp ground coriander seeds

1 tsp ground cumin seeds

½ tsp ground turmeric

pinch of sugar

¼ tsp cayenne pepper

1 good tsp salt, (it needs it so don’t cut down)

freshly ground black pepper

3 tbsp chopped fresh coriander (fresh parsley may be substituted though the flavour is not at all the same)

Method

Soak the beans in plenty of cold water overnight. Next day cover with fresh water, bring to the boil and simmer for 30 minutes approx. or until just cooked.

Cut the mushrooms into 3mm thick slices. Heat the oil in a sauté pan over a medium-high flame. When hot, put in the whole cumin seeds and the cinnamon stick. Let them sizzle for 5-6 seconds. Now put in the onions and garlic. Stir and fry until the onion is just beginning to colour at the edges. Put in the mushrooms. Stir and fry until the mushrooms wilt. Now put in the tomatoes, ground coriander, ground cumin, turmeric, pinch of sugar and cayenne. Stir and cook for a minute. Cover, and let this mixture cook on a gentle heat in its own juices for 10 minutes. Turn off the heat under the sauté pan. Drain the beans, reserving the cooking liquid, and add to the mushroom base mixture, add salt and freshly ground pepper, 2 tablespoons of fresh coriander and 150ml of bean cooking liquid.

Bring the beans to the boil again. Cover, reduce the heat and simmer for 20-30 minutes or until the beans are tender.  Stir occasionally. Remove the cinnamon stick before serving. Sprinkle with 1 tablespoon of fresh coriander. Serve with boiled rice or as an accompaniment to a rack of lamb.

Spiced Pan Roasted Pear Cake

Use freshly ground cinnamon here but if you buy the already ground product, it should be pale in colour and sweet to taste.

Serves 8-10

Ingredients

110g soft light or dark brown sugar

110g unsalted butter, cut in cubes

175g plain flour

110g caster sugar

2 tsp freshly ground cinnamon

1 ¼ tsp baking powder

½ tsp salt

2 large eggs

150ml sunflower oil

1 pear, coarsely grated

1 tbsp grated ginger

4 pears, peeled, cored and cut into 6

Preheat the oven to 180°C/Gas Mark 4.

Method

Sprinkle brown sugar over the bottom of a heavy 25cm sauté pan or frying pan or a heavy cake tin with 6.5cm deep sides. Add the butter to the pan.  Place the sauté pan on a low heat until butter melts.

Mix the flour, sugar, cinnamon, baking powder and salt together.  Whisk in the eggs and oil.  Mix in the grated pear and ginger.

 Remove the pan or tin from the heat.   Whisk the butter and sugar until the sugar dissolves.  Arrange the pear slices in the frying pan or tin.  Pour the batter over the pears and bake until the cake is springy to the touch and a skewer comes out clean (approximately 1 hour).

Allow to cool slightly (10 minutes approximately); loosen the edges of the cake with a knife and turn out onto a hot plate.

Serve warm with softly whipped cream or homemade vanilla ice cream.

Marzipan Apples

Sweet apples are rolled in butter and then crusted with freshly ground cinnamon and sugar – so delicious!

Serves 12, 1 per person

Ingredients

12 medium eating apples, e.g. Worcester Pearmain, Golden Delicious or Cox’s Orange Pippin. Marzipan will keep for 2-3 months in a fridge. 

Marzipan

Makes 300g 

175g ground almonds

110g sugar

62ml water

1 small egg white

natural almond extract to taste (do not use more than 4 drops)

Coating

110g melted butter

225g caster sugar mixed with 4 rounded teaspoons ground cinnamon. (This is approximate: the amount of the mixture depends on the size of the apples.)

Method

To Make the Marzipan.

Put the sugar and water into a deep saucepan.  Stir over a medium heat to dissolve the sugar in the water.  Bring to the boil.  Cover the pan for 2 minutes to steam any sugar from the saucepan sides.   Remove cover and boil rapidly just to thread stage: 106-113°C.

Remove from the heat.  Stir the syrup for a second or two until cloudy.  Stir in the ground almonds.  Set aside to cool briefly.

Lightly whisk the egg white, add the almond extract and stir into the almond mixture.  Transfer the paste from the saucepan to a bowl.  Cool.  Knead the cool marzipan, it should feel like moulding clay.  Put in a bowl or jar, cover and use as required. 

Meanwhile, peel and core the apples.  Stuff the cavities with the marzipan filling.  Roll the apples first in melted butter and then in the castor sugar and cinnamon.  Place in an ovenproof dish and bake in a moderate oven 180°C/Gas Mark 4, for 1 hour approx.  The apple needs to be very soft.

Serve warm with a bowl of softly-whipped cream.

Note

Apples may take less/more time to cook depending on the variety and time of the year.

St. Patrick’s Day is just around the corner, Tourism Ireland and Bord Fáilte have been in overdrive throughout the past few months, working to make the very best use of this annual holiday to promote Ireland and all things Irish around the globe.
This year there is a palpable air of anxiety in diplomatic circles as our Taoiseach, Micheál Martin heads to Washington once again to wish the unpredictable President Trump, Happy St. Patrick’s Day and present him with the traditional bowl of Shamrock. Much rests on the outcome, so we all keep our fingers crossed and hope that the luck of the Irish holds true and that Micheál’s charm will save the day for the sake of US /Irish relations, not to mention the Irish economy.
I loved how up to recently, Tourism Ireland illuminated iconic buildings around the world in green to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day. It was a brilliant ploy to focus attention on Ireland from the Sydney Opera House to the Colosseum, Wat Arun in Bangkok to the gateway of India…Sadly, however, this has now been discontinued for a variety of reasons.
I’m in India as I write and the Irish community here are much like Irish communities around the world, planning a variety of celebrations to make St. Patrick’s Day special, an excuse to get together, to party and reminisce.
I love an excuse to celebrate, St. Patrick’s Day brings memories flooding back of when I was little, attending the National School in Cullohill in Co Laois. We looked forward to every feast day and searched around the edge of the playground for little rosettes of shamrock to give to our Mums and Dads and grandparents to pin on the lapels of their coats. Us young ones preferred to wear St. Patrick’s Day badges with kelly green ribbons and glitzy gold shamrocks from the village shop. Mum always made a cake for tea.
This year we are told that the St. Patrick’s Day parade in Dublin will be bigger and better than ever. It’s all about inclusivity and will also celebrate the cultures of the Irish travellers and the Roma community showcasing their heritage, through storytelling and forgotten skills like the iconic wagon wheel.
I’m often in America over the St. Patrick’s Day holiday, spreading the word about the creative and vibrant Irish food scene, but despite what they may have been led to believe over there, we don’t live on corned beef and cabbage and many, many Irish people have never tasted that combination, delicious as it is.
Closer to home, how about having a few friends and family around for a  St. Patrick’s Day lunch or supper? Check out your local butcher, many still make corned beef and those who live in Cork, need to go no further than the English Market to pick up a fine piece from several of the traditional butchers. Cook it with lots of carrots, cabbage quarters and potatoes and of course, some parsley sauce.
I’m often asked what’s the best known traditional Irish dish, most people have just heard of Irish Stew but my favourite is bacon cabbage and parsley sauce with some scallion champ and lots of butter, a really comforting feast and who doesn’t love it, a trip down memory lane for many people.
Seek out a nice piece of bacon with a generous layer of fat either streaky or back bacon and a fresh head of Spring cabbage, makes me hungry to even write about it.
Many would argue that the US is the very best place to be to celebrate and embrace the spirit, I love the way everybody wants to be Irish on St. Patrick’s Day. The Americans take the wearing of the green really seriously, nothing is too wild or naff, it’s all about fun and the craic. I love the riffs on the badges that almost everyone seems to wear, that say RIP – real Irish person, HIP – honorary Irish person, JIP – jolly Irish person, FIP – fake Irish person, WIP – wanna be Irish person…..
At the Ballymaloe Cooking School, we share the story of St. Patrick with our students from around the world and tell them how he banished snakes from Ireland and used the three leaves of shamrock to explain the Holy Trinity.
We encourage our students to search their wardrobes for a splash of green, to dress up, even a green ribbon in their hair to get into the Paddy’s Day vibe and have fun in the kitchen, the possibilities are endless. Shamrock shaped bread and scones. How about sprinkling crunchy green crystallised sugar on top of cupcakes or a cake. If you want some lessons in Paddy’s Day bling, there are a myriad of ideas online, forget about ‘good’ taste, just have fun!

Happy St. Patrick’s Day to you and all your family.

Shamrock Bread with Wild Garlic for St. Patrick’s Day

Soda breads are the traditional breads of our country. How about shaping it into a shamrock shape for a bit of gas on St. Patrick’s Day.

Soda bread only takes a few minutes to make and 30-40 minutes to bake, the possibilities are endless for the hitherto humble soda bread.

Wild Garlic season is in full swing now so keep an eye out for clumps of the three cornered lily along the roadside in your local area. 

Makes 1 loaf

Ingredients

450g plain white flour

1 level tsp bicarbonate of soda

1 level tsp salt

3-4 tbsp chopped wild garlic, (allium triquetrum)

350-400ml sour milk or buttermilk (the quantity depends on the thickness of the milk)

Method

Preheat the oven to 230°C/Gas Mark 8.

Soda bread is best cooked in a conventional oven rather than a fan or convection oven.

Sieve the dry ingredients into a large bowl, add the chopped wild garlic. Make a well in the centre and pour most of the milk in at once. Using one hand with the fingers stiff and outstretched, mix in a full circular movement from the centre to the outside of the bowl, gradually drawing in the flour from the sides.  Add a little more milk if necessary – shop bought buttermilk is thinner than farm-fresh, so you will need less rather than more. The dough should be softish, not too wet and sticky. The trick with all soda breads is not to overmix the dough – mix the dough as quickly and as gently as possible, keeping it really light and airy.  When it all comes together, a matter of seconds – turn it out onto a well-floured work surface. 

WASH AND DRY YOUR HANDS, then dust them with flour.

 Tidy up the dough and flip it over gently.  Divide into three equal pieces and pull off a tiny bit for the stem. Pat each into rounds, about 4cm deep. Transfer to a lightly floured baking tray, use a little buttermilk to attach the leaves of the shamrock to each other. Add a little stem at the base, make a little indent at the top of each leaf to imitate the shamrock shape. With the tip of a sharp knife, prick in the centre of each leaf to let the fairies out otherwise they will jinx your bread!

Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes, then reduce the temperature to 200°C/Gas Mark 6 and bake for 30 minutes more, until cooked. If you are in doubt, tap the bottom of the bread – if it’s fully cooked, it will sound hollow. Allow to cool on a wire rack and serve. 

Bacon and Cabbage  

Without question Ireland’s national dish – less widely known abroad, but much more widely eaten, particularly in rural Ireland, than the legendary Irish stew.  Nowadays, bacon is far less salty than in the 1980’s so may not need to be blanched before cooking. 

Serves 12-15

Ingredients

1.8-2.25kg loin or shoulder of bacon with a nice covering of fat

1 head of cabbage: Savoy, Greyhound or spring cabbage, depending on the time of year

butter

white pepper

To Serve

Parsley Sauce (see recipe)

Method

If the bacon is too salty, cover in cold water and bring slowly to the boil (uncovered), white froth will rise to the top.  Pour off the water. Cover with hot water and simmer until nearly cooked through, allowing at least 20 minutes per 450g.

Meanwhile, remove the outer leaves from the cabbage. Cut the cabbage into quarters, discarding the centre core. Cut each quarter into thin strips across the grain. About 30 minutes before the bacon is cooked, add the cabbage. Continue to cook until the cabbage is soft and tender, and the bacon is fully cooked through. Remove the bacon to a hot plate and strain the water off the cabbage. Return the cabbage to the pan with a lump of butter, season with white pepper. Serve with the bacon and, traditionally, boiled potatoes and Parsley Sauce.

Parsley Sauce

Unquestionably our favourite traditional Irish sauce but a must with bacon and cabbage…

Serves 6-8

Ingredients

4-6 tbsp finely chopped fresh parsley leaves (retain the stalks)

600ml fresh whole milk

30-45g roux (equal quantities of plain flour and butter cooked for 2 minutes on a low heat, stirring occasionally)

salt and freshly ground pepper

Method

Put the parsley stalks into a saucepan with the cold milk, bring slowly to the boil, then remove the stalks. Whisk the roux into the boiling milk until thickened and add the chopped parsley. Season with salt and freshly ground pepper. Simmer for 5-10 minutes on a very low heat, then taste and correct the seasoning before serving. 

Pamela Black’s St. Patrick’s Day Cake

A scary green cake but delicious and fun and just happens to be green, white and gold….

Serves 6-8

Ingredients

175g butter

175g caster sugar

¼ tsp green food gel colouring

1 tsp of vanilla extract

3 eggs, preferably free range

175g self-raising flour

3 tbsp kumquat compote (see recipe)

300ml cream, stiffly whipped

icing sugar

fresh marigolds to decorate

2 x 18cm cake tins

Method

Preheat the oven to 180°C/Gas Mark 4. 

Grease the tins with a little melted butter and put a round of greaseproof paper on the bottom of the tins.

Cream the butter, add sugar, green colouring and vanilla extract. Beat until light and fluffy.  Add in the eggs one at a time, each time with a tablespoon of flour. Beat very well and then fold in the remaining flour gently. Divide the mixture between the tins and bake for 25-30 minutes or until the cakes are well risen, golden and feel spongy to the fingertips.

Allow the cakes to cool for a few minutes in the tins and then turn out on to a wire rack to cool completely.

Next make the kumquat compote.

Ingredients

235g kumquats

200ml water

110g sugar

Method

Slice the kumquats into four or five rounds depending on size, remove the seeds.  Put the kumquats into a saucepan with the water and sugar and let them cook very gently, covered, for half an hour or until tender.

Note: This compote keeps for weeks in the fridge.

To Assemble the cake.

Spread the compote over the bottom of each sponge. Fill a piping bag, fitted with a plain éclair nozzle, with the whipped cream. Pipe the cream evenly over one base, starting at the outside edge of the sponge, working inwards. Place the remaining sponge on top and dust with icing sugar. Garnish with Marigold Flowers.

The Curragh in Co Kildare is usually associated with the Irish army barracks or a fine days horse racing at the Irish Derby, Oaks, Irish Guineas, St. Ledge…but recently butchers from all over the country, north and south converged on the Curragh clutching boxes of precious homemade sausages, black puddings and their finest steaks.
They were there to compete in the National Irish Steak Challenge and I was invited to be a judge along with 30 others including master butchers, meat scientists, industry professionals and chefs. What a day, we tasted and judged over 25 sirloin, rump, and fillet steaks. Other teams of judges tasted the sausages and the black and white puddings.
Chefs Dolan Heaney, Sean Owens and their team, laboured non-stop all day cooking the steaks in the kitchen of the Curragh restaurant normally frequented by hungry racegoers.
The awards are a serious business, we worked in threes, examining, first the raw steaks then tasting mostly juicy morsels of the cooked meat. We each marked them for appearance, flavour and tenderness then we tasted.
Finally it was narrowed down to six finalists to ascertain the winners. We tasted and pondered over 100 steaks in total.
I know you have no sympathy for me, but by the end I wasn’t craving a juicy steak any time soon but I have to say I was mightily impressed and heartened by the standard.
Here in Ireland, despite the fact that we’ve lost quite a number of butchers, we are fortunate to still have many local butchers, this is not the case in many countries where the meat business has been lost to the big meat plants and supermarkets. Animals are slaughtered and butchered in large meat factories. They can undoubtedly be traced back to the farm or increasingly feedlot where they are reared but the skill and knowledge of being able to choose an animal at its optimum stage of maturity is not needed. Nor are the butchering skills or the in-depth knowledge of the carcass and how to utilise every scrap of the animal.
However, here in Ireland, we are still beyond fortunate to have a number of butchers who still have to have their own abattoirs so they can humanely kill the animals they have purchased at local marts or have carefully chosen from local beef farmers who proudly rear their animals on rich pasture to produce the very best quality meat.
Many of these butchers are second and third generation and in some cases even fifth generation so you can imagine how the skill and knowledge has been passed down from father to son through the years although there are indeed some talented women butchers also.
Those who are still fortunate enough to have butchers with their own abattoirs close by are fortunate indeed, for me they are the ultimate craft butchers. They know the story of the animals from the farm to the fork, how to dry age and are in total control of the quality. They are deeply knowledgeable about the different cuts of meat and how to cook them.
An animal is made up of many different cuts, some muscular, others like the fillet are super tender. Some can be flashed on a hot pan or grill for a few minutes while others need to be coaxed to melting tenderness by slow, gentle cooking.
Ironically the more muscular, less expensive cuts usually have far superior flavour but need more care and a different type of cooking.
If you are fortunate to have such a butcher in your local area, go out of your way to raise awareness and support them, otherwise they will be lost in the struggle to compete with supermarket prices.
Most people don’t realise that we are not comparing like with like. Dry aged meat is quite different to meat that is vac packed and aged in plastic, more economical and convenient of course, but less succulent and for me, often less flavoursome.
Skills are being lost for a variety of reasons, regrettable but understandable, economics and convenience are major factors. All the more reason to value and  show our appreciation for the dwindling number of family butchers throughout Ireland, both north and south who continue to hone their craft and are anxious and determined to pass on the skills to future generations.
For a list of the winners in the Irish Craft  Butchers Association Awards go to www.craftbutchers.ie
I will mention just two, the overall winner of several awards was Millar Meats (fillet and striploin steak category), a passionate family butcher for the past 20 years in Irvinestown, County Fermanagh who finishes the animals he buys from local farmers on his own land.
Winner of the ribeye steak with a Kingsbory Irish Wagyu ribeye was Kerrigan’s butchers from north County Dublin founded in 1973.
Just to be clear, not all butchers are members of the Craft Butcher Association. Some exemplars understandably just want to be independent; others are not joiners. If you have such a butcher close to you, celebrate and enjoy every morsel of their carefully chosen product on your plate. Chefs too can raise awareness by identifying the butcher and the farmer who raised the premium animal on their restaurant menus.
So this week, here are some steak recipes for you to enjoy.

Pan-grilled Steak with French Fried Onions and Béarnaise Sauce

Sirloin is more textural than fillet, with lots of flavour, but you can use either here or indeed a juicy ribeye either.

Of all the sauces to serve with steak, Béarnaise sauce is the classic combination and my absolute favourite. We find a heavy-ridged cast-iron grill pan best for cooking steaks when you don’t need to make a sauce in the pan. If the weight of these steaks sounds small by your standards, the portion size can be increased and the cooking times adjusted accordingly.

Serves 6

Ingredients

6 x 175g sirloin or fillet steaks

1 garlic clove

salt and freshly ground pepper

a little olive oil

To Serve

Béarnaise Sauce (see recipe)

French Fried Onions (see recipe)

fresh watercress (optional)

Method

To prepare the steaks, about 1 hour before cooking, if time allows, cut a clove of garlic in half and rub it on both sides of each steak. This simple step intensifies the beefy flavour. Then grind some black pepper over the steaks and sprinkle on a few drops of olive oil. Turn the steaks in the oil and leave aside. If using sirloin steaks, score the fat at 2.5cm intervals.

Make the Béarnaise sauce and keep it warm (see recipe).

Heat the grill pan on a high heat, season the steaks with a little salt and put them down onto the hot pan.

The cooking times for each side of the steaks are roughly as follows:

                              Sirloin        Fillet

rare                       2 mins        5 mins

medium-rare      3 mins        6 mins

medium               4 mins        7 mins

well-done            5 mins        8-9 mins

When cooking a sirloin steak, also turn it over onto the fat side and cook for 3-4 minutes or until the fat crisps up nicely. Put the steaks onto an upturned plate resting on another plate and leave them for a few minutes in a warm place while you make the French fried onions.

Transfer the steaks to hot serving plates.

Serve with French fried onions, béarnaise sauce, some homemade chips and a sprig of fresh watercress if available.

French Fried Onions

The mere mention of French fried onions put fear and dread into those watching their figures, but these involve only a little milk and seasoned flour, so they have a delicious crisp coating. Recently, my nephew Ivan Whelan gave me a great tip. He found that when he added a lightly whisked egg white to the milk it made the onion ring even crispier. The watch point here is not to cut the onion rings thicker than the recipe calls for, or else the coating will be overcooked while the onions are still raw. French fried onions are wonderful with beef, but we pile them up on salads and pan-fried venison, too. Paprika, Sichuan pepper, cumin and coriander can all be added to the flour to ring the changes.

Serves 6

Ingredients

1 egg white

300ml milk

2 large onions, peeled

225g seasoned flour

good-quality oil or beef dripping for deep-frying

Method

Whisk the egg white lightly and add it to the milk. Slice the onion into 5mm rings.

Separate the rings and cover with the milk mixture until needed. (The leftover milk may be boiled up, thickened with roux and used for a white or parsley sauce).

Just before serving, heat the oil or beef dripping to 180°C.

Toss the rings a few at a time in well-seasoned flour. Deep-fry for 2-3 minutes or until golden in the hot oil.

Drain on kitchen paper and serve hot.

Béarnaise Sauce

The consistency of Béarnaise sauce should be considerably thicker than that of Hollandaise or beurre blanc, both of which ought to be a light coating consistency. If you do not have tarragon vinegar to hand, use a wine vinegar and add some extra chopped fresh French tarragon.

Serves 8-10

Ingredients

4 tbsp tarragon vinegar

4 tbsp dry white wine

2 tsp finely chopped shallots

pinch of freshly ground pepper

2 organic egg yolks

110g butter

1 tbsp freshly chopped French tarragon leaves

Method

Boil the first 4 ingredients together in a low, heavy-bottomed, stainless-steel saucepan until completely reduced and the pan is almost dry but not browned. Add 1 tablespoon of cold water immediately. Pull the pan off the heat and leave to cool for 1 or 2 minutes.

Using a coil whisk, whisk in the egg yolks and add the butter bit by bit over a very low heat, whisking all the time. As soon as one piece melts, add the next piece; it will gradually thicken. If it shows signs of becoming too thick or slightly scrambling, remove from the heat immediately and add a little cold water. Do not leave the pan or stop whisking until the sauce is made. Finally, add 1 tablespoon of freshly chopped French tarragon and taste for seasoning.

If the sauce is slow to thicken, it may be because you are excessively cautious, and the heat is too low. Increase the heat slightly and continue to whisk until all the butter is added and the sauce is a thick coating consistency. It is important to remember, however, that if you are making Béarnaise sauce in a saucepan directly over the heat, it should be possible to put your hand on the side of the saucepan at any stage. If the saucepan feels too hot for your hand it is also too hot for the sauce!

Another good tip if you are making Béarnaise sauce for the first time is to keep a bowl of cold water close by so that you can plunge the bottom of the saucepan into it if it becomes too hot.

Keep the sauce warm in a Pyrex bowl over hot but not simmering water or in a Thermos flask until you want to serve it.

Mushroom and Ginger Sauce

This sauce will keep deliciously in the fridge for 4-5 days.

Serves 4

Ingredients

15-25g butter

75g onion, finely chopped

1-2 tsp freshly grated ginger

225g mushrooms, sliced

salt and freshly ground pepper

a squeeze of lemon juice

110ml cream

2 tsp freshly chopped chives

roux (equal quantities of plain flour and soft butter cooked on a low heat for 2 minutes stirring regularly)

Method

Melt the butter in a heavy saucepan until it foams.  Add the chopped onions, cover and sweat on a gentle heat for 5-10 minutes or until quite soft but not coloured. Add the ginger.

Meanwhile, cook the sliced mushrooms in a little butter, in a hot frying pan in batches if necessary.  Season each batch with salt, freshly ground pepper and a tiny squeeze of lemon juice.  Add the mushrooms to the onions in the saucepan, then add the cream and chives, allow to bubble for a few minutes.  Thicken with a little roux to a light coating consistency.  Taste and correct the seasoning,

Pan-grilled Steak with Roast Red Peppers, Anchoïade and Rocket Leaves

I love this combination, the sweetness of the peppers, salty anchovy and peppery rocket leaves, a perfect accompaniment to a juicy steak.

Serves 6

Ingredients

6 x 175g sirloin or fillet steaks

1 garlic clove

salt and freshly ground pepper

a little olive oil

3 plump red peppers

To Serve

Anchoïade (see recipe)

Method

To prepare the steaks, about 1 hour before cooking cut a clove of garlic in half and rub it on both sides of each steak. This simple step intensifies the beefy flavour. Then grind some black pepper over the steaks and sprinkle on a few drops of olive oil. Turn the steaks in the oil and leave aside. If using sirloin steaks, score the fat at 2.5cm intervals.

Next, roast the red peppers.

Preheat the grill or better still use a charcoal grill or barbecue.  Grill the peppers on all sides, turning them when necessary – they can be quite charred.  Alternatively, preheat the oven to 250°C/Gas Mark 9.  Put the peppers on a baking tray and bake for 20-30 minutes until the skin blisters and the flesh is soft.

Put them into a bowl and cover for a few minutes, this will make them much easier to peel. 

Pull the skin off the peppers, remove the stalks and seeds. Do not wash or you will lose the precious sweet juices.  Divide each into 2 or 3 pieces along the natural divisions. 

To cook the steaks.

Heat the grill pan, season the steaks with a little salt and put them down onto the hot pan.

Cook to your preference – rare, medium rare, medium or well done (see Pan-grilled Steak with Béarnaise Sauce for timings).

Allow to rest.

Transfer the steaks onto hot plates.

Serve with roast red peppers, rocket leaves and a little blob of anchoïade.

Anchoïade

Makes 450ml approximately

Ingredients

110g tinned anchovy fillets (weigh out of tin)

300ml olive oil

2 cloves garlic, chopped

½ tsp thyme leaves

1 tbsp chopped basil

1 tbsp Dijon mustard

1 tbsp red wine vinegar

lots of freshly ground pepper

Method

Whizz all ingredients together except the oil in a food processor. Add the oil gradually. Taste and add a little more oil if necessary.  (The anchovies act in the same way as egg yolks in mayonnaise and as a protein, will emulsify the oil). Be careful and keep a close eye as the oil starts to emulsify. If you feel it becomes too thick, add a little water. This will do two things; it will thin the anchoïade and will also stabilise the emulsion too which will stop it from splitting.

When all the oil is incorporated and you have a lovely thick garlicky, anchovy emulsion, store in a covered jar in the fridge.  Serve with crudités or just slathered on toast, bruschetta, or warm pitta bread.

The Sunday Times best seller One Pot One Portion arrived on my desk last week. The quote from Nigella on the front cover ‘A brilliant, beyond brilliant idea’ made me curious. It’s written by Eleanor Wilkinson, a viral social media sensation @eleanorgwilkinson on Instagram.

When Eleanor Wilkinson’s long term relationship ended, she quit her job and began to live alone once more.  Eleanor loved to cook but found it difficult to gather the enthusiasm to cook yummy food just for herself. It took a while to adjust but gradually she ventured back into the kitchen and started sharing the recipes online. The response was truly overwhelming, she suddenly realised how many others were in the same predicament and everyone yearned to eat really well.

People of all ages, in a wide variety of situations, young and old, eagerly tuned in awaiting the next creation.

From 20 somethings to parents whose children had flown the nest, single parents, older people, widows and widowers. All craving delicious food and wanting to find the joy in cooking something comforting for themselves.

Eleanor spent hours pouring over cookbooks for added inspirations. She developed her own recipes. Some are made in minutes, others take several hours and many ingredients to make. She had already started her book when she joined us in Ballymaloe Cookery School for the 12 Week course in 2023. One Pot One Portion was published by Ebury Press in 2024, to immediate acclaim.

Eleonor divided the chapters of the cookbook into:

Comfort: recipes to bring you ultimate warmth, for days when you need to feel cosy and homely.

Fresh: food packed with colour and vibrancy, for times when you want your food to energise you and bring a little zing to your day.

Simple: for when you have enough on your plate, and you’d like your food to require little time or fresh ingredients. Satisfaction without stress.

Special: When you want to show yourself a little extra love. Recipes that take more time or money but bring another level of joy.

Sweet: for when you need extra sweetness in your day, food that is impossible not to enjoy, and not just for dessert.

In Eleanor’s words, ‘hopefully, across the capers in this book, you’ll find everything you need to fulfil all requirements. So have fun, eat well, and enjoy it as much as possible’.

There’s also an emphasis on zero waste, lots of recipes have partner recipes to use up one or more of the same ingredients and suggestions for using the freezer cleverly.

Here are a few recipes for you to try – so many delectable recipes, it was difficult to choose just a few to tempt you…

All recipes are from One Pot One Portion by Eleanor Wilkinson published by Ebury Press

Spiced Lamb and Aubergine with Pitta

This recipe is based on the Middle Eastern dish, fatteh, which is made for sharing but this version is a feast for one. A plate piled high with the most delicious flavours – we start with a garlicky yoghurt which cools and warms all at once. Then it’s onto a layer of lamb mince and soft aubergine fried in olive oil and spiced with cumin, coriander and cinnamon. Next, spoonfuls of the most luxurious toasted pine nut butter, finished with pops of sweet pomegranate seeds and all scooped up with toasted pitta bread. You’ll be glad you’re not sharing this one.

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

½ large aubergine (approx. 125g), sliced into 1cm batons

5 tbsp natural yoghurt

1 garlic clove, grated

125g lamb mince

1 tsp paprika

1 tsp ground cumin

½ tsp ground coriander

½ tsp ground cinnamon

5g fresh coriander, finely chopped

knob of butter

1 ½ tbsp pine nuts

3 tbsp pomegranate seeds

salt and black pepper

To serve:

pitta bread

Method

Heat the olive oil in a pan over a medium-high heat, add the aubergine, season with salt and fry for 8-10 minutes until golden and mostly soft.

While that’s frying, spoon the yoghurt onto your serving plate and add the garlic. Mix together and spread over the bottom of the plate.

Once the aubergine batons are golden, add in the lamb mince and fry for 4-5 minutes until brown and starting to crisp slightly. Add the spices and season with salt and pepper, then fry for 2-3 minutes. Toast the pitta bread while this is cooking. Add in the fresh coriander and mix everything together, then spoon the lamb and aubergine mixture over the yoghurt.

Place the pan back on the heat and add a knob of butter and the pine nuts. Let the nuts toast in the butter for 3-4 minutes until golden, then spoon them over the lamb/aubergine layer.

Sprinkle over the pomegranate seeds, then cut the pitta into triangles to serve alongside.

Ginger Chicken Rice Bowl

Usually, I would consider a brothy meal that you eat with a bowl and a spoon a form of comfort food, however, the flavours in this dish are so fresh and vibrant that it has to go in this chapter. I love the fiery freshness of ginger and it’s the predominant flavour in this rich chicken broth. The finished dish isn’t a soup as such but there is just enough broth to make every mouthful deliciously juicy. It also takes minimal time to make so it’s a useful recipe to have on hand for days when you’re short of time.

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients

1 tbsp sesame oil, plus extra to serve

2 garlic cloves, finely sliced

10g fresh ginger, chopped into matchsticks

300ml water

½ chicken stock pot

1 tsp soy sauce

1 tsp rice wine vinegar

55g basmati rice

1 chicken breast, cut into 2cm thick slices

55g broccoli (regular or tenderstem), chopped into small pieces

5g fresh coriander, finely chopped

1 spring onion, thinly sliced at an angle

salt (optional)

Method

In a pan, heat the sesame oil over a medium heat. Fry the garlic and ginger until they have softened slightly and smell fragrant but haven’t coloured too much.

Add in the water, stock pot, soy sauce and rice wine vinegar. Bring to a simmer and taste – if needed, add a little salt. Bring to the boil, then add in the basmati rice and cook for 5 minutes.

After 5 minutes, turn the heat down to a gentle simmer and add in the chicken and broccoli (tenderstem broccoli will take slightly less time, so add this in when you only have 4-5 minutes left). Put a lid on and cook for 8 minutes. You want it to stay at a gentle simmer, so the chicken poaches but doesn’t toughen.

Place the coriander and spring onion slices in your serving bowl. Once the chicken and rice are cooked, spoon into the bowl with the coriander and spring onion and mix together. Finish with a final drizzle of sesame oil to serve.

Cinnamon Bun

This is the easiest cinnamon bun recipe you may ever find, relying on no dough, no yeast, no kneading and no proving time. I use ready-made puff pastry here to make the bun and, whilst usually you want to keep puff pastry as flaky and delicate as possible, for this recipe you’re actually looking for the centre of this pastry to melt together to create a consistency more akin to a yeasted dough. It stays crisp on top too, which I love.

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients

80-85g ready-rolled puff pastry

10g softened butter, plus extra for greasing

3 tsp soft light brown sugar

½ tsp ground cinnamon

Method

Preheat the oven to 180°C (160°C fan)/Gas Mark 4.

Unroll the puff pastry and cut off a long strip that is 5cm in width. Spread the butter on top of the pastry, then sprinkle the sugar and cinnamon over the top

Fold the pastry over so it halves in length, then press together to seal slightly. Cut into three strips. At one end, press the three strips together, then plait the strips, taking one outside strip and bringing it into the middle, then bring the other outside strip into the middle, repeating until the end.

Lightly butter one hole of a muffin tin, or a small ovenproof ramekin, then roll the plait up and place it in the tin/ramekin with the loose end at the bottom of the tin/ramekin. Bake for 25-30 minutes until golden.