Tag: Irish Food Blogger

Posted in Recipes

Roast tomatoes

Posted on by sheila kiely

Here’s a recipe for a simple side of roast tomatoes.
Especially good for tomatoes that are turning overripe and softening. (Unless they’re mouldy of course then it’s time for the compost).

Roast Tomatoes Recipe ⬇️

How good do they look?. I can’t wait to visit Italy again over the summer and see the tables laden with tomatoes being left to sun-dry outside.

  • Hot oven
  • Small tomatoes
  • oil
  • herbes de Provence
  • salt
  • roast 10 mins
  • & squash slightly with a fork before serving.
  • Recipe Ends ⬆️

Why would you throw an overripe tomato away when you can turn it into something so glorious? Or an overripe banana, freezes perfectly for future smoothies or banana bread. Sometimes a little imagination can redeem a waning ingredient.

x Sheila

Posted in Recipes

Spice it up – Recipe No. 2 for the summer is Ras el Hanout Chicken with Chickpea Mash. & also… how does your garden grow?

Posted on by sheila kiely
Ras el Hanout spiced chicken & chickpea mash – Sheila Kiely


Ras el Hanout chicken strips ⬇️

  • Chicken fillet cut into long strips or mini chicken fillets
  • Ras el Hanout
  • Heat some oil in a pan, add the chicken, dust generously with Ras el Hanout, turn over after a couple of minutes and dust the other side, one last turn and chicken should be done , cut through to centre to check white all the way through

Spiced Chickpea Mash ⬇️

  • The LIST
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 4 garlic cloves crushed or chopped
  • 1 tbsp crushed chillies or ‘easy’ chillies*
  • 1 tbsp cumin
  • 2 tins drained chickpeas crumbled – use food processor
  • Large handful chopped fresh coriander
  • The METHOD
  • Heat the oil in a saucepan, add the garlic and chillies, cook for a minute
  • Add the cumin, mix through
  • Add the crumbled chickpeas and the coriander
  • Mix well, heat through & serve
  • TO SERVE
  • Serve with lime wedges, Greek yoghurt & crusty bread
  • *easy chillies refers to jar of crushed chillies that are long-life, simple to use and stored in the fridge

⬆️ Recipe ends here

Well, the above are old favourites and I have shared these before. Ras el Hanout is a magnificently warming spice blend that will warm up your food and is perfect for enhancing summer dishes. I like to serve this with a side of mashed avocado splashed with lime though in Ireland getting hold of perfectly ripe avocados can be tricky and involves mostly luck!

At last the degrees have decided to start climbing and we have been gifted with some warmth and when the sun breaks through and clouds dissipate there is NOWHERE more beautiful than Ireland as it never gets too hot. We have brightness until 10pm which is magnificent and these stretched days will stay with us until 21st June. Each day awakens shortly after 5am and the darkness of winter becomes a faded memory.

Lawns are being cut and humming mowers and strimmers are a familiar background sound though it’s lovely to see that many gardeners are taking heed of the threatened bee population and leaving strips of dancing wildflowers, daisys, buttercups and dandelions to flourish.

So Instead of mowers I wish you a summer filled with nature’s sounds, chirping birds, buzzing bees, gentle breezes through the trees and meadows.

Slán for now, x Sheila.

Ras el Hanout spiced chicken – Sheila Kiely
Chickpea mash, made in minutes – Sheila Kiely
Sauce required? Sprinkle some paprika over Greek yoghurt, tadah- Sheila Kiely
Posted in Recipes

Summer eating & the living is easy – Irish baby potato salad

Posted on by sheila kiely
Irish baby potato salad by Sheila Kiely

Baby Potato Salad Recipe ⬇️

  • Boiled baby potatoes-chopped bite size
  • Chopped spring onion & chives
  • Salad cream
  • Salt & pepper

An Irish classic potato salad is made with salad cream, no BBQ is complete without it! Whether you’re a ‘Chef’ or ‘Heinz’ salad cream household is a personal choice & up to you.

As the summer holiday season gets underway it has so far been a very disappointing start for us in Ireland weather-wise and I had to turn the heating back on last week to ward off the cold. We’ll take the sunshine when we get it though and will cook and eat for the season. I’ve lots of summer recipes to share with you and you will find accompanying reels (videos) over on my Instagram for each of the recipes that I will post. I’m planning on one a week at least and the photo below shows some that I will be sharing.

I’ve often seen comments re recipe blogs where disgruntled readers are like ‘okay, I don’t want to wade through your life story before I get the recipe’ and with my blog being called ‘Gimme the Recipe’ that’s what I’ll be doing first. The recipes will be as succinct as possible and will generally be just a matter of combining some delicious ingredients with very little faffing.

We’re on a holiday weekend here in Ireland at the moment so I’m off to try and get the dog to walk the beach in the drizzle of soft misty rain that has decided to descend on West Cork today. It will be in the freshest of air and with a background lull of breaking waves. Life is good.

x Sheila

Selection of Summer Recipes by Sheila Kiely
Posted in Recipes

Kerry Again! Eat in Killarney, Stay in Annascaul.

Posted on by sheila kiely

A recent family celebration saw us foray over the county bounds yet again and  enter the Kingdom of Kerry.  I’ve been on so many trips there of late I’ve lost count.  And again she was glowing in her splendour.

Inch Beach

Our trip had to be quick owing to sporting commitments but it’s amazing what you can achieve in 24 hours.

First up was lunch in Killarney and Cafe du Parc will now be one of my go-tos for food, service and location.  Set in the Killarney Plaza Hotel you are in the heart of the town and we had seats beside the window where you could watch the horse-drawn jaunting cars go by.   Food was delicious and speedily delivered by very friendly and efficient staff.  The pictures will speak for themselves.

Killarney Plaza Hotel

Cafe du Parc

Cafe du Parc

Cafe du Parc

Cafe du Parc

Cafe du Parc

Onwards then to Inch Beach (if you choose to drive on it, do not go too far or you may end up having to be rescued by a tractor – but that’s another story!).  A vast and spectacular beach you simply have to stop there every time you pass it.  A short drive from Inch brings you to the cosy village of Annascaul.  Ancestral home of the Antarctic explorer Tom Crean a visit to the South Pole Inn was next on the list.  A wonderful ambience awaits you here and in our other watering hole Patcheen’s an equal welcome.  Good food is provided in both.

Some of our party stayed in a large air b&b house and I stayed in The Old Anchor B&B which was scrupulously clean and comfortable.

Annascaul has a touristy, welcoming vibe but without the noisy bustle of close-by Dingle.  For a more relaxed Kerry break I recommend it.

Sheila.

 

Posted in Recipes

One Tray Fish Bake. A simple fish supper.

Posted on by sheila kiely

I have to share today’s triumph with you and YOU have to make it. I’m not commanding you, I’m simply imploring, I’m pleading because it is so simple and so tasty that I don’t want to be the only person in the world who has made this. Share this with me. Please.

You will know how many people you are cooking for so use your judgement in the amount of the following ingredients you will need. I’m giving quantities that cook for 5.

You will need:

10 baby potatoes

5 pieces of fish (I used hake)

2 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp tomato pesto

1 tbsp mixed herbs

3 large spring onion

2 handfuls baby spinach leaves

3 tbsp chopped sundried tomatoes

Lemon to serve – optional

Method

Heat a fan oven to 200C and follow the method in the following words and pictures. You will need a large baking dish and tin foil.

Note : test your fish is cooked through to the centre before serving. Smaller / thinner fish pieces will take less cooking time.

Note 2 : my previous microwave would have cooked baby potatoes in 5 mins, my current one takes 8 mins so that time will vary. (You could boil if you prefer)

Lots of pluses for this dish. Simple, tasty, healthy & minimal washing up. I do hope you get to give it a try.

Enjoy! Sheila