Category Archives: Food

La Maison – French Bistro Dinner

La Maison had been on my list for quite a while to try.  I had seen photo’s some fellow bloggers had posted of tasty looking food so wanted to try it myself.  As it turned out they come up on one of those groupon sites.  €30 for a voucher for €60 to spend in the restaurant on their A La Carte menu.  That just screams good value to me.  It was restricted to Sunday to Wednesday, which actually suited me just fine as I happened to be wandering about town on a Sunday afternoon. Continue reading

Rich Chocolate Pots – Recipe

Having watched the all things chocolate episode of the Great British Bake Off I was inspired to give making chocolate pots a bash.  It’s a quick simple recipe that the most novice of cook can execute perfectly.

Ingredients

So here’s what you will need to make your own.

Ingredients (serves 4):

50g of dark chocolate – chopped (I went with 72% cocoa)

50g of milk chocolate – chopped

40g of muscovado sugar

1tsp of vanilla essence

1 egg

1 punnet of raspberries

Icing sugar for dusting

Fresh mint leaves

Cream, Muscovado Sugar & Vanilla Essence

Step 1: place the cream, muscovado sugar and vanilla essence in a pan. Gently bring to the boil while stirring and then remove from the heat.

Bring To The Boil

Step 2: pour the cream, sugar and vanilla mixture over the chopped chocolate and gently stir until the chocolate combines.

Pour Over The Chocolate

Gently Stir In

Chocolate Combined

Ramekins

Step 3: slice the raspberries and line the bottom of each of the ramekins with them.

Lined Ramekins

Step 4: fill each ramekin to just under the brim with the chocolate mixture and refrigerate to allow it to set.

Ready to Chill

Step 5: garnish with raspberries, fresh mint leaves and icing sugar, and of course then sit back and enjoy your handy work.

Step 9

Brioche – Ranelaghs Culinary Delight, If Only There Was More On The Plate

Brioche in Ranelagh describes itself as a modern Irish tasting plate restaurant and its in the hands of Chef Gavin McDonagh.  His impressive CV before Brioche includes stints in L’Ecrivan and Patrick Guilbaud. The menu offers Irish produce prepared with classic French techniques. Continue reading

Stephen Taylor Winter Cookery Demo

I had the pleasure of being invited along to a cookery demonstration with chef Stephen Taylor Winter recently.  It was part Bauknecht appliance demo and part One Tray Meals cooking demo, but all parts fun. Stephen is absolutely hilarious. It’s like cooking with an excited puppy (that is actually a compliment). Continue reading

Semi-finalist Cono Sur Blogger Competition

 

So the Conosur Blogger Competition is well under way now and I’m thrilled to say that out of 13 Irish entries I have made it to the semi finals. The next step is for renowned Chef Christopher Carpentier to prepare each Semi-Finalist´s dish and select one Finalist from each participating country. We will find out on  2 October, 2015 who will get to travel to France to cook their dish in the final. Continue reading

The Slane Street Food Festival – Boyne Valley Food Series

The town of Slane has a village square with four almost identical Georgian houses on each corner of it. They stand guard over the two main streets of the town.  It’s along these streets that the Slane Street Food Festival recently took place.

Brown Door Georgian House

White Door Georgian House

Blue Door Georgian House

Red Door Georgian House

There were locals as well as those from the surrounding areas out to showcase all they had to offer. While the sun may not have been shining as brightly as it could there was certainly a festive cheer throughout the town.  Take a look at some of the highlights of the day, everything from baked goods to beer and cordial to cheese.

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Hungry For Heritage Dinner – Boyne Valley Food Series

Something very exciting was happening at the Vanilla Pod restaurant in Kells recently. As part of the Boyne Valley Food Series they were hosting a five course Hungry for Heritage dinner and I had the pleasure of taking part. Continue reading

Avenue by Nick Munier – Creative Dishes in Luxurious Surrounds

I’ve heard plenty of buzz, good and bad about Avenue by Nick Munier.  I remember reading peoples outrage that a burger could cost €25 and thinking to myself that value is relative. If you think it such an incredulous thing to ask, there is a very simple resolution, don’t order it.  I prefer to make up my own mind about places, so with that in mind myself and a friend headed to check it out. Continue reading