Pecan pie is one of my all time favourite desserts. We sampled a lot of delicious pecan pies when we were in America recently, it’s the kind of dessert I can never get enough of. I wanted to make my own pecan pie this week to use up my delicious stash of special pecans that I brought home from “We’re Nuts” near Vienna, Georgia. In America they say Pee-CON, in Ireland we say PEE-can, I say vee-EHN-uh, they say vy-ENN-uh. I love all the different words and pronunciations for food they have. Whoever knew a turnip is called a rutabaga! Continue Reading…
The one thing that I always make sure of at Christmas is to have lots of cream. It’s the perfect time to treat myself and indulge in some delicious Avonmore Irish cream. I have it with mince pies, add it to soups, use it in sauces….cream and Christmas go hand in hand. Panna cotta is one of my favourite desserts so I decided to practice a nice festive version that I can make for Christmas day. This is a slightly different version to my usual panna cotta and I took some inspiration from both Jamie Oliver and The Hairy Bikers. It is a very lightly spiced panna cotta with all the flavours of the festive season, cinnamon, all spice and ginger. I complimented this with a cranberry, brandy and orange compote. This dish looks great served in little espresso cups and is a lighter alternative to Christmas pudding but just as decadent for the holiday season. Continue Reading…
Growing up, we always had apple tress. I would eat so many apples that I would end up covered in hives. I never cared at all though as I loved coming home from school and going up to pick apples. My Mum used to make great use of the big Bramleys. They were used for tarts, apple sauces, apple snow – the list goes on. We never had any need to buy apples at home in the autumn, they were so versatile and tasty. Now we have all flown the nest but the apple trees continue to provide a bountiful crop. The last weekend I was home. I took a huge bag of juicy Bramleys back to Dublin. There had been a slight frost, which my Dad said would make them even tastier. These apples wouldn’t have passed any EU inspection as they were all misshapen with a few brown spots and each one with their own distinctive character. I really wanted to do these beauties justice. Stewed apple and homemade custard was the first thing that came to mind. I used to love this dessert as a kid. The super hot stewed apple and creamy custard straight from the stove was a favourite of mine after school on a cold winters day. Continue Reading…
The winter chill has truly set in. Cold frosty mornings and short dark evenings are the order of the day. This baked apple dessert is a great winter warmer. It’s quick and easy to make, and all those aromatic spices will give your kitchen a lovely Christmasy aroma. I cannot believe I just said the word Christmas and it’s only November! This is a real feel good dessert however, cheap and easy to make, and dare I say it, healthy. If you want to make it a bit more decadent and bold, serve with a nice home-made custard or vanilla ice-cream. Continue Reading…
Thanks so much for all your lovely comments and great guesses. Today I’ll reveal how I made that golden sausage, that gooey egg, sunny side up and that pesky streaky bacon. The egg and sausage were fine, but that streaky bacon had me stumped. I was almost going to leave it out altogether. When I finally came up with the brandy snap bacon, I knew I had it. Though not an absolute likeness (due to the holes!) it looked realistic enough for me, the texture was good and the taste was great.
It’s breakfast Jim…. but not as we know at. Every item on this plate is in fact dessert. It’s the breakfast fry-up that is even suitable for vegetarians. However, I think it should be served with a sweet dessert wine rather than a builder’s tea. After the success of the Rubik’s cake, I really wanted another project and the breakfast fry came to me one day, as it’s so iconic and it’s something that everyone instantly recognises. This dish took a few weeks to figure out, a lot of trial and error with a few delicious disasters along the way. Continue Reading…
