Donal Skehan Archives - Gimme The Recipe - You came for the food now stay for the romance!

I’m Enjoying…. in June 2013

Posted on June 22, 2013June 22, 2013 by sheila kiely

I’m Enjoying….

….Lemon Curd

Is there no end to amazing Irish food producers? Heaven Preserve Us have a beautiful array of preserves selling at Irish Farmers Markets including this amazing lemon curd. {produced in Ovens, Co. Cork}. I used my jar of lemon curd to make an ahhmazing Lemon & Raspberry Pavlova – and yes, I do say so myself 🙂

….Apple Juice

I came across two of my boys and their pal at the Mealagulla Orchard juice stand at the Cork Summer Show last week. They weren’t just trying to snaffle free samples but were digging around in their pockets to club together to by a large bottle between them. Made from locally grown apples in Ovens, the Mealagulla Orchard Apple Juice is delicious and with 11-year-old boys willing to part with their hard-earned pocket-money to buy some it comes with a big thumbs up from them and from me.

….Fromage Frais

It can be very difficult to get your hands on some plain fat-free fromage frais. (How something this creamy can be fat-free? Don’t ask me!) Produced in Ireland by award-winning Kilbeg dairies you will find it in the cheese section. It was just what I was after for the filling of my Lemon & Raspberry Pavlova.

….Bakestone Café, Deli & Bakery

This brand new food offering at Ballyseedy Home and Garden Centre in Fota Retail Park, Carrigtwohill sees Joe and Maura Carey (owners of The White Horse Bar and Restaurant, Ballincollig) joined by Chef Ali Honour. They’re offering food and entertainment {Sunday Brunch is accompanied by a live jazz trio} in an almost arboretum type setting with a café that spills out into the foliage of the garden centre on the fine days. I for one will go anywhere for a decent cup of coffee, I usually drink decaf at home, but when I’m out I’ll be after a hit of something strong and delicious and they’ve a speciality range on offer here. Come for a coffee stay for breakfast, brunch, lunch or afternoon tea. Bakestone is open 9.30am til 6pm Monday to Saturday and 11am to 6pm on Sundays.

….Apron Strings
With much anticipation I finally got my hands on Nessa Robins cookbook. You can check out one of Nessa’s recipe and a writeup on Apron Strings here.

….FEAST: A Dinner Journal

This is one for the coffee table. Breathtakingly beautiful this masterpiece from Donal Skehan {& team of Ross Golden Bannon, Sharon Hearne Smith, Jane Matthew and Sofie Larson} will be one to collect. I could see myself tearing out pictures to frame them (though where would I put the children’s pictures then!). Exquisite photography and appealingly clean yet cosy layout will have you losing yourself in its surrounds. Feast is available to peruse for free online for a limited time via Donal Skehan’s website and hard copies can be ordered from MagCloud.

….Cork on a Fork

FREE. FREE. FREE. Doesn’t everyone love something free? Fenn’s Quay are giving you a copy of their beautifully presented collection of recipes in ‘Cork on a Fork’ free to download here.

….Food Festival Season

While there are now a plethora of food festivals the whole year round the summer is rampant with them. With the finer weather (fingers crossed) bringing us out in search of a quality day of entertainment there is nothing like a wander around a food festival to satisfy you. One such festival kicking off 5th July through to 7th July is Killorglin Festival. Events planned for the weekend include music, taste tours, smokery tours, angling exhibits, lectures and unique collaborations between food and drink providers. Sure what more could you want?! Check out the details on their beautiful website.

Well I hope you get a chance to get out there over the coming months and enjoy blissfully bright hours discovering new products and food festivals for yourself.

Talk to you in July! Enjoy, x Sheila

P.S.
I’m also loving Bloglovin as a very attractive and easy way to view the blog posts you follow, you might like it too.

What's for Dinner Mom?

Roast Squash & Bulgur Wheat Salad

Posted on January 23, 2013January 25, 2013 by sheila kiely

Donal Skehan’s third book ‘Kitchen Hero – Great Food For Less’ is packed full of tasty recipes with plenty of vegetarian options to choose from including this Roast Squash & Bulgur Wheat Salad.

This salad makes a great side dish and I used it to accompany this Cauliflower, Courgette and Goat’s Cheese Pizza.
The cinnamon dusting on the butternut squash before roasting ups the flavour stakes.
You will need:
Butternut squash
Rapeseed or olive oil
half teaspoon ground cinnamon
250g bulgar wheat
1 tbsp cider vinegar
1 tsp honey
100g crumbly cheese – recipe says Blue ,I used Feta
75g rocket leaves
Method:
Preheat the oven to 200.
Peel and cut the butternut squash into chunks and toss in a roasting tin with 1-2 tbsp oil and dust with the cinnamon. Put in oven to cook for 40-45 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside.
Put the bulgar wheat into a cup, check the level, then put it into a bowl and fill the cup to the same level with boiling water and pour it onto the bulgar wheat and cover with cling film.
Whisk 3 tbsp olive, 1 tbsp cider vinegar and 1 tsp of honey together in a small bowl.
Once the bulgar wheat has soaked up the water remove the cling film and fluff it up with a fork.
To assemble the salad, add the roasted squash crumbled cheese, rocket and dressing to the bulgar wheat, mix gently and serve.
Enjoy,
x Sheila.

What's for Dinner Mom?

Rocket-Fuelled Pasta with Avocado and Parmesan (& Crispy Rashers)

Posted on April 19, 2011April 19, 2011 by sheila kiely

Today’s recipe is from Donal Skehan’s new book ‘Kitchen Hero.’ Except for the rashers bit. That would be the carnivore in me going wow, this is amazing, but wouldn’t it be even more amazing with some crispy rashers? I could have been very bold and drizzled the bacon fat on top too but perhaps that would be a step too close to raised cholesterol levels. It’s a wonderfully satisfying, fresh tasting, zingy dish, that, even with the addition of rashers, still feels like healthy eating. The other great thing is the prep time. Chop to chew time is between 10 to 15 minutes maximum.
You will need: (Serves 4)
3 tbsp olive oil
8 rashers
1 garlic clove
Large handful Parmesan
125g rocket leaves (or mix of rocket & baby spinach)
300g dried pasta (Donal uses penne, I used fusilli)
1 tsp balsamic vinegar
2 ripe avocados
Juice of half a lemon
Sea salt and ground black pepper (freshly ground if possible)
Method:
Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a frying pan and begin to fry the rashers.
Boil up a large saucepan of water and start to cook the pasta (Usually 8 minutes – check the packet).
Place the rocket leaves in a large bowl and crush in the garlic and grate in the parmesan.
Drain the cooked pasta and add to the large bowl. Drizzle 2 tbsp olive oil and 1 tsp balsamic vinegar on top and mix well.
Peel, stone and slice the avocados and squeeze the lemon juice over the slices to minimise discolouration (adds a nice flavour kick too)
Add the sliced avocados to the tossed pasta salad and season well with sea salt and ground black pepper.
Place the crispy rashers on top and serve with an extra sprinkling of grated parmesan.
Enjoy.
If you are ever in Dublin and fancy tasting some of the food from Donal Skehan’s ‘Kitchen Hero’, then get yourself over to The Westbury Hotel, off Grafton Street, where you can lose the madding crowd and indulge in ‘The Kitchen Hero’s Tasty Tea’ designed by the man himself. I was delighted to sample it last week along with a number of other Irish Foodies and Donal Skehan as our host.

The Kitchen Hero's Tasty Tea at The Westbury Hotel Dublin — The Kitchen Heros Tasty Tea at The Westbury Hotel Dublin

Kristin Jenkins (dinnerdujour) & Donal Skehan — Kristin Jensen (dinnerdujour) & Donal Skehan

John (The Westbury Hotel Dublin) & Donal Skehan

Til next time, Sheila.