Irish Kitchen Garden - A Connemara Croft

Delaneys new shoes

2012-01-09T03:52:00.000-08:00

Farrier just came to see Delaney to have his hooves seen to. He is living a batchelor lifestyle right now - Dotty having moved home, and has moved to winter quarters with open access to a shed.
Things kind of hectic for me right now, having just got back from Guinea, gone home for xmass, caught that bloody stomach bug in Ireland, gone to Holland I'm now in Aberdeen after finishing a HUET course - next stop East Africa!

Since the 21st, Conakry - Casablanca - London - Dublin, bus to Galway on 23rd.
Then Dublin to Schipol on the 30th, Aberdeen yesterday and this morning, next stop London, on to Dubai, Nairobi and Mombassa - joining a new ship there. Busy - too much airport food!

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Christmas Veggies, oca roast

2011-12-25T06:29:00.000-08:00

Well, for dinner later today I lifted this years Oca from the tyre pile, and it was a very good yield, good sized tubers which will be roasted later today with the turkey.

I'll try to get moe pics up later. Quite tired, it was a long trip home.
Also out of the ground today were carrots and parsnips.
Obviously the brussel sprouts were picked today, not a great haul having been neglected - but the plant tops also make a nice addition to the xmass greens, with some hardy kales to bulk it out.

Spuds are Mr Littles Yetholm Gypsys - the colours on the skin make them wonderful for baking.

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Bee's buzz out for Freedom - the Greatest escape

2011-12-09T12:37:00.000-08:00

Any regular readers of the blog will have probably stumbled on my post about the "Singing masons, building roofs of gold" (thank you Mr Shakespear)- Bee's !

These wonderous creatures are vital in a healthy environment, polinating our crops and keeping our crops producing. I literally love to hear them in the gardemn, when the hedge starts to buzz, spring is starting.

I also wrote, briefly, about colony colapse syndrome. Part of the colony colapse syndrome in the States has been linked to the haulage of bees from state to state, changing latitudes and extending their season as well as moving them from one unfamiliar place to another.
Bee's know their locality, they navigate to find food, and when they find somewhere good, they perform their famous dance to give others directions.
For them to be moves hundreds, if not thousands, of miles in a season must disorientate them.
As well as that there is the daner of desese, bee's from one region may carry pathogens to another area where the local bee's have no immunity, look what happened to our spiecies with the common cold and small pox in the Americas!
I'm not even considering the effect that GM crops may have on the bees, or plants that they cross pollinate!

This October a truck hauling millions of bees overturned in southern Utah and authorities were consulting with the Utah Department of Agriculture to determine how to capture or eliminate them !! There were in the region of 25,000,000 bees!!!

What a shower of bastards? Why Eliminate them? Utah has aggressive winters with deep snows.
This seems like a huge waste of money.
I thought it was a joke when they said they were going to try and capture them or kill them. I say, "Fly onto Freedom bees, pollinate any plant you want"!
A tractor-trailer was carrying an estimated 25 million bees when it overturned on the Interstate.
The driver of the semi and a passenger were transported to a local hospital due to injuries caused by the bees, cuts from the crash and 6 - 12 stings each.
In all fairness, if some idiot put me on the back of a truck in my house and then crashed hundreds of miles away, I would not be the happiest puppy in the world. If some pillock overturned a truck I was riding in, I'd be seriously considering injuring them, too!
Another truck in Idaho also crashed this year, the worry was the 'river of honey' would attract bears, the bee's were blamed for this - I dont see how - they never asked to be stuck by the million on the back of a truck and be jack-knifed on the highway?

Anyway, I hope some of them make it and survive in the wild, not to be trucked across a continent.
In their localised state, they have a season to collect pollemn etc. and to rest. Being trucked means they have an artificially long working season.

On a lighter note, I would tell the bees though, they need to improve certain aspects of their species society.
Drones deserve better treatment.
The fact they do no work and have only one thing on their minds is a trait not uncommon in males of other species across the board. Killing them before winter sets in is a little harsh.
Workers need better conditions - bees, unionise, declare a republic for the worker masses.
As for the political bee statement, please bear in mind I have been on Malaria medication since the 15th of last month

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Normal Service will be resumed

2011-11-30T16:23:00.000-08:00

Well, have moved from West Galway to West Africa. Will be based in Conakry, Guinea for quite a while, obviously blogging about the garden while being 6000km south of the actual garden ain't going to work - but will see what i can do

New Winter Veg - Growing Endive Witloof chicons in Ireland

2011-11-10T08:38:00.000-08:00

Having lived in Holland, there is an influence from Belgian cuisine there. A very useful, easy to care for veg that tastes delicious grown there is chicory, or endive.
The plants greens when sliced finely and mixed through mashed potato while still raw is pretty much their version of champ and give a lovely fresh bite to otherwise plain mash.
It also gives a very nice, slightly bitter garnish to contrast with sweeter veg like carrots or parsnips, and gives a great dash of colour to winter lentils or stews

Winter Puy lentils with Endive & nasturtium greens and marigold & nasturtium petals

Chicory is probably best known in Ireland as a coffee substitute or blend, roots are roasted and blended with coffee.

My favorite version of endive is the forced winter Chicon. The technique for growing chicon, or blanched endives was apparently accidentally discovered in the 1850s in Belgium when according to one story a few pots with roots were left down a coal mine and grew the famous white chicon.
Another story says that in 1830 Jan Lammers returned from the Belgian War of Independence to his farm near Brussels, where he had stored chicory roots in his cellar while he was away, intending to dry and roast them and use as a coffee substitute.
But his chicory roots, resting for months in the dark, damp environment, had achieved a different result. They had sprouted small white leaves. Curious, he tried the leaves and found them to be tender, moist, and crunchy, with a pleasant, slightly bitter taste. Thus, a new vegetable was discovered — winter endive, or chicon.

Already this year I have had at least three cuts of greens from the plants, and now its time to force them for the witloof, a Belgian variety for which I found the seeds for Witloof from highly recommended Irish based company Gardenplansbypost.com - And they were not all that easy to source.

The main thing that is required is the total lack of light when forcing, otherwise the winter endive will go green and be bitter.

I grew the greens as a catch crop, like spinach or radish, between slower growing plants like leek, parsnip or cabbage.
After the last harvest I lifted the roots. It is said that they should be grown indoors, but with the mild climate we have on the west coast and a bit of insulation they can grow outdoors here.

After harvesting the last green leaves the roots are lifted and replanted in a way that light can be excluded. If you only have a few and decide to use only flowerpots, then the drainage holes must be blocked to stop light getting in.

The roots are lifted as gently as possible and re-planted using a dibber or a deep stick, then dropped gently into the hole.

Next thing is, with a clean, sharp knife, the last remaining green chutes are trimmed to the nub, right down to the base. Don't throw them away - use them to garnish any meal.

After that the roots are watered with a general fertilizer, or in my case, a nettle and seaweed tea. Smells not so good but it feeds, and in my opinion, puts off parasites as well.
Add to that a dose of organic slug pellets from the Irish Seed Savers Association. The great advantage of course is that being covered and protected from direct rain means that the pellets only need the one application for the season.
At this point I start covering them with old pots. With winter coming it also makes a good, accidental storage space and with the system I use adds extra protection against light ingress.

Next thing I do personally, because of the weather here, is over lay a fish box. This helps to further exclude light and will give the chicons extra winter protection against frost, snow, storms and ice.

After that to totally exclude light and also to offer a layer of insulation, I use an old blanket. This has its edges pushed into the earth to secure it over the winter, and is weighted down as an extra measure. It also has the added advantage of being a warm perch for Vladimir the cat.

Chicons are a great veg, they can be used in salad or wrapped in ham and served with a cheese sauce. I love the fact that from one seed I get three crops, and with a bit of research I am beginning to wonder how many years I can keep getting winter and summer veg from this versatile and easy to care for plant?

I hope you found this posting of use, and please do take the time to comment or leave feedback - I really appreciate it

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Laver Bread with black pudding

2011-10-27T10:07:00.000-07:00

Laver Bread is a traditional Welsh dish, made up of rolled oats and seaweed collected from the shore.
This is a variation on standard laver bread which I find a little bit strong.
This recipe uses cooked, almost caramelised onion to give a milder, sweeter flavour than the original.
Traditionally cooked in bacon fat, I work in black pudding to give it a more Irish flavour - and it works really, really well. I also feel that because of its oatyness and spices, a good black pudding cut through the dough is a very appropriate way of introducing people to edible seaweed.

Main thing you need is a seriously heavy frying pan or even heavy based pot like my latest favorite thing, a dutch oven - the key to success is slow but heavy heat.

The meal is based on a recipe in a great book I recently purchased, Dr. Prannie Rhatigan's Irish Seaweed Kitchen. I find it one of the most exciting cookbooks I have seen in years.

This cookbook I think is an absolute must for anyone living near the shore with an interest in food or self sufficiency. It is full of great recipies, but also advice and clear pictures and drawings of what we can collect around our shores, and the sheer abundance of food.

Advice is given on collection, storage and nutrition, as well as the history of seaweed - or perhaps more properly - sea vegetables in both Irish and international cuisine. We are all familiar with the use the Japanese make of sea weed in Sushi and Miso, but there is a hell of a lot more to it than that.

Coming from Connemara I have always been familiar with using carrageen and crathnach (duileasc) as food but not things like sea spagetti and kelps.

Laver bread is made from Sleabhac - the same seaweed used to make Nori sheets used as wraps in Japanese Sushi rolls.

At the moment my camera is broken, so I will need to update this posting later.

You will need:
1 Onion
1 good rasher of bacon
2 tsp Donegal Rapesseed oil
About 4 oz Sleabhac/Laver/Nori seaweed or 3 Nori sheet wraps re-hydrated
About 2 oz/ 1/2 a cup rolled oats

A great optional extra is 1 slice good black pudding like McGeough's of Oughterard

Take the bacon - if using pudding add this now - and fry in the rapeseed oil until crispy, remove and break up as small as possible.
Put in the finely sliced onion with a slow, steady heat and cook off until soft.

In the meantime, re-hydrate nori sheets, or if using fresh sleabhac boil until soft.
Then mix the oats, bacon, seaweed and soft onions together.
Make into cakes, fry until crispy and serve.

Fantastic with a dash of Worcestershire sauce

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Winter Plantings

2011-10-15T09:05:00.000-07:00

Really the last chance of the year to get winter greens and over winter plants in the ground.

This is the time to plant rhubarb plants, or split up old crowns.

This is also the best time to plant apple and other fruit trees

FRUITS
This year I am very impressed by the Johnstown range, for veg sets and in terms of delivery etc. find them far better than Mr Middletons.

This is the time to plant rhubarb plants, or split up old crowns.

This is also the best time to plant apple and other fruit trees. This is new to me, and Connemara is a challenging environment.
But after research, the best range seems to be English's Fruit Nurseries' here in Ireland.

WINTER VEG
Garlic
Buy garlic for planting in October or early November.
I often get asked how many one should plant, I figure, average house one bulb per week so say 50 cloves.

Onions and Leeks - Autumn onion sets can be planted now for fully ripe onions in June, Radar are particularly good.
Now is also a good time to grow leeks - plant well apart so you can intercrop with faster growing winter greens Tatsoi/Pakchoi now.

Brassica's - Greens like Pakchoi and Tatsoi can be planted to give fresh greens to winter stir fries, great with loads of chilli, garlic and ginger - nice fresh flavours in winter without the food miles.

Certain turnips, swedes and radish will also grow slow and be ready early spring.

Legumes For crop rotation some legumes are also good. I like to buy from seedaholics but there are other fine seed houses in Ireland.
Broad beans like Aquadulce, Aquadulce Claudia and Imperial Green Longpod towards the end of the month.
Peas Round seeded peas can be grown from October/November sowings. An organic variety is the Douce Provence. Other varieties include Feltham First, Meteor or Pilot (probably the hardiest of all varieties).

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Pollack poached in milk and fennel.

2011-08-20T12:47:00.000-07:00

Fennel is a great Italian staple, cooked on its own its wonderful. If you visit an Italian market you're likely to see them in carefully stacked pyramids of fennel, fronds trimmed and the blemished outer layer removed.

But the great thing about it is that it is delicate, and can be used to enhance a meal without overpowering it, and can be used raw or cooked.

I just got home from Naples to a very overgrown garden, but not all the fennel had bolted.

All homegrown and sustainable

I love fennel when added to pinzimonio (raw vegetables), and in winter salads. The best examples of this that use the sweetness of Fennel against sharper flavours come from southern Italy, like in Sicily where it is served with blood orange and olives, or Finocchi del Sud - a warmed fennel salad with anchovies, olives and nutmeg.

Fennel is great in mixed salads, with other vegetables including celery or tomatoes, cheeses, or finely chopped walnuts.

As a general rule, the Italians do not use vinegar in fennel salads.

The leafy fronds are a nice addition to any salad and as a veg itself, braised, it has a unique and delicious flavour.

A neighbour of mine, Con, very kindly dropped off a few pollack fillets, pin boned and cleaned caught the day before. He has always done this, but in keeping the garden it's nice that I can finally return his generosity with homegrown veg. I really do have too much, particularly when one has a glut.

We had a very pleasant young French couple, Thomas and Estelle, visiting, so it was a real pleasure to be able to cook a meal like this using all local produce.It's quite a small world - I met Thomas and Estelle at the Pony show, they had no real plans of where to stay so they camped on the croft.
The meal was put together with available produce, and the fact I have just got back from the Italian Maritime Academy has my cooking brain on one track, so thats where the meal came from.

But as it turned out later, Thomas has worked with Catherine Fulvio - Ireland's leading expert in Italian cuisine - hows that for serendipity!!!!

Whitefish poached with milk and fennel

This dish is very simple, using Irish dairy produce to enrich an Italian style flavour.

Using milk to cook fish is not something I found in Italy, but in more Northern countries it's quite common.

The poaching in milk process enriches the fish, and gives it a more creamy texture.

Fish poached in milk is actually quite a regular Scottish way of preparing whitefish like haddock, whiting, pollack and on occasion even herring. The Scottish will also cook smoked fish like haddock or kippers in milk.

In Nordic cuisine, the Finns soak salted or sometimes even fresh herring in milk before cooking.

You will need:

Filleted and pin boned pollack - enough for each person. Another sustainable white fish like whiting is also good.

1 fennel bulb - trimmed and finely sliced

2 small shallots

knob of cuinneog butter

enough milk to barely cover fish

Salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 180 deg centigrade

Grease the dish with a little butter

Arrange the fish fillets in a single layer

Sprinkle over the finely chopped fennel and shallot

Add salt and pepper

Pour over milk until the fish is barely covered

Cook for 20-25 minutes at 180

When the fish is done, the liquid can be strained off to make the base of a parsley sauce.

I tried to use sorrel instead, but it is tricky because the milk can curdle a little, so I would advise sticking to a parsley sauce only. It was my first time using sorrel, so there is more I need to learn about it.

Spuds, peas, carrots and local fish - a little confused perhaps, but still good.

Served with new potato's (different varieties, Orla, Nicola, Kerr pink and Mr.Littles) and a quick Moroccan carrot mix.

The potato's were buttered and garnished with samphire and salsola, pretty much everything on the plate came from within 5 miles.

The samphire really adds to the meal, that nice crispy, salty bite makes it more than just a decoration.

The poaching process takes about 20 minutes, so timing wise, get the potato's and other veg down first.

In hindsight however, I think in future when doing this, I would cook the fish and potato's - but rather than have cooked carrots, I'd go for a carrot and fennel salad with a lemon based dressing as the veg.

Thanks for reading and please take the time to comment

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Clifden Pony Show 2011

2011-08-20T10:57:00.000-07:00

Got home to Connemara just in time for one of the best days of the year. The weather was fantastic and there was a great turn out this year.
For us here in Connemara, show day is a great time to catch up with people, even though you need to be careful where you step for horse manure and political candidates - equally hazardous on occasion.
Being such a widespread community its nice to be able to see so many old acquaintances who one might not have seen in a while. It's the end of the summer so everyone is more relaxed, its a great time of year.

My cousin Morgan with his entry, Morgans Pride the second.

It draws people from all over the world - and the horses are the major part of it, for the breeders and the association it is the major annual event.
The horses are the reason the show exists, and the amount of work that goes into preparing the ponies for show is immense. I got to the show early as one relative had an entry and did well, and with all the work that goes into it some year I hope he will win the overall prize.

The serious business of judging

But for me there is another highlight, the competition for crafts, home grown produce and home cooking and preserves.
The crafts section is really for kids, and in such a show with all the grown up horse trading.
Its great that this less serious but I feel equally important part of the show is there to include all ages and interests in our community.

Home grown foods prize table

I was very disappointed not to be able to enter this year as I could not find an application form online for the baking, preserves and homegrown section, and hope this can be arranged for next year.
No offence to the winner, but I really think my Tipperary Turnips could have won a red ribbon - I could have been a contender, the turnip king of Connemara.

3 table turnips, looked like Milan Purple Tops

I spoke with the chief steward and she will look into it. If the application form for 2012 goes online or is emailed to me I will make it available here by download or by link.

The home crafts section had been in decline for a few years, and there has been talk of moving out of the showground to make way for more commercial ventures - but this year with I think 80 entries, it's on the up again.
It has always been a great favorite of mine, my Grandmother who was great at knitting and crochet would meet friends and relatives there like Mrs Gibbons (who generally won) - it was a part of growing up.

To lose this part of the show would be a real loss to the ethos, the fun of the show. And of course kids would have less interest and involvement.
The show is one of the major social community events of the year, it is vital in my opinion to maintain and even expand the home crafts and produce competition - after all, not everyone owns or has an interest in horses.

In attendance was Mr. John O'Hara, President of the Irish Shows Association and a neighbour of our county in Co. Mayo who quite rightly said that to have variety in a show that is so focused is a great thing.

5 veg basket winner

There were several entries for the 5 veg selection, and this would probably be the hardest to win. There was a wide range of veg. Cabbage and beets featured in most. Great cauliflowers were there as well - and a few fennel. With the advent of pollytunnels it is obviously now easier to produce very good examples of what I would call borderlines crops like cauli's and fennel, those plants that have a tendency to bolt outdoors.

Potato winner - could have had a chance at this

I felt the potato section was a bit disappointing this year, one would like to see more notes on variety presented etc. and I think my Mr.Littles would have been an unusual and eye catching entry.
Unless I am corrected, I think I am the only person on this Island that grows them. I opened up the ridge a few days ago and the results look really promising.
Roosters, Orla, Records and Nicola also did well. Because of the late planting, the Kerr pinks still remain to be seen.

There was a great selection of onions at the show this year, all perfectly presented and tops tied off French style with twine - that's probably the trickiest entry to win in Clifden.

Jams and preserves

Then there is the jams and preserves section, this years winner was blackcurrant. There is also a section for home made marmalade, and I feel the Mrs Beetons carrot marmalade would be a nice entry for next year - and I'm posting it here so if someone beats me with one of my own recipes I can point it out ;-)

Sponge contest winners

There is also a section for home cooked sweets, cakes, apple pie, soda bread and sponges. I would not even attempt to compete against the matriarchs of Connemara when it comes to soda bread, but maybe next year I might give some of the others a go.
One thing that was a bit of a downer on the day was chickens. I have always liked chickens, and there were some for sale. But being away so much it is pointless to even consider them, even though there was poultry for sale on the day. I loitered so much looking at them I started to worry I might be told to move on by the Gardai!!
My neighbour, whose chickens get all the kitchen scraps in return for eggs, generally wins a rosette for her eggs. I wonder if it is possible to rent chickens?

Anyway, it was a great day out and if ever readers get a chance to visit, you should really try to make it down to this part of the world on this special day.

Range of jam sponge cake

Thanks for taking the time to read the blog and please feel free to comment, I appreciate the feedback - and its reassuring to know that someone reads this blog on occasion.

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Simons Super Simple Cider Mackerel

2011-07-24T03:14:00.000-07:00

A great dish, very simple and very very good with new potatos boiled in seawater.
Im sure regular readers here know I tend to look to Northern Europe for inspiration for a lot of my dishes, but really it is to Normandy we Irish should look.

I am uploading this while at work - on a ship - so you will have to wait for some better photos folks - sorry, some even upload sideways from here!

Why we never developed a better cuisine culture in Ireland I will never know, probably has something to do with a landless peasant class, and a virtual fuedal system lasting so long, but that is too big a divergence.

I feel that Normandy, with its climate, mixed Celtic and Norman heritage and its food produce is a great place for us to look at, with dairy, seafoodmeat and fruit more like our own than the rest of France.

This dish could not be simpler, with sustainable fish and home grown veg and fruit.
This really is one of my favorite meals.
Use a good medium-dry cider to make a fairly sharp sauce.
This will contrast well with the rich definite flavour of the mackerel.

There's nothing fancy about this dish, the only advice I'd give is to try and find a good real cider if you can.
English and Welsh readers are spoiled for choice when it comes to organic ciders, especially in the west country, make really good but astoundingly potent ciders they call scrumpy.

I have not tried it yet but there is an artisan cider producer in Ireland I can find based out of Dublin.
Fruit and Vine who produce, among other things, Double L cider, are available from several outlets that you can find online at their website, I'm looking forward to trying their cider and especially the Balsamic Cider Vinegar when I get home.

Also, a big thanks to the beer revolu, a regular poster at boards.ie who also suggested Stonewell cider from Cork.

I really think it is important to support and promote our own artisan producers, so I'd give them a shot over the big corporations like Magners/Bulmers whose cider need to be mass produced to the same consistency, thats fine for some-like MacDonalds, and has its place, but I like to have variation and choice as well.

Fresh whole mackerel, cleaned and filleted as you like (one each)
Enough dry cider to come half way up the fish (about 1 or 2 wine glasses)
1 large Bramley Apple,diced
1 large onion, sliced
White Pepper
tsp whole grain mustard

Preheat the oven to moderate hot 180 C - gas 4
Gut, clean and fillet fish.
Wipe the mackerel with a bit of kitchen paper.
Put it in an overnproof dish with the onion, cider, mustard and a little pepper.
Peel, core and chop the apples into smallish chunks.
Push some of them into the middle of the mackerel and place the rest round.
Spoon the cider over them and the fish.
Cover the dish and put in the oven or 15 mins.
Remove the cover and cook for another 15 mins.
Lift the fish out onto a warm plate and pop in the (now switched off) oven leaving the door ajar.
Pour the juices into a small pan with some of the apples.
Cook fairly quickly, mashing up the soft apples, to make a sauce.
Put the remaining apples round the fish and pour the sauce over.
Serve with potatoes and some nice garden green - spinach or chard is great with this.

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Radish Carpaccio salad with anchovy dressing and a steak sarnie

2011-07-08T12:14:00.000-07:00

Radish is a very easy to grow crop. I find it most useful as a marker crop for slow growing plants like leek or parsnip.
Quite often radish is thrown into a salad almost as an afterthought. This simple recipe shows off the radishes finer qualities, and that peppery flavour is an ideal accompaniment to beef steak.
Essentially it is a carpaccio of radish

Carpaccio traditionally is meat or fish sliced very thinly and sometimes pounded, but I like to use the term for veg served like this. For the very daring, the beef could also be served raw, very thinly sliced and with a mustard dressing - but I just fancied a warmed salad.

To add to that I use an anchovy and Parmesan based dressing to add a salty tang to the meal.
The recipe itself was influenced by a kohlrabi recipe by Hugh Fernley Whittingstall.

This is a real surf and turf meal, using beef and fish - Anchovy are a member of the herring family and found in the ocean in coastal areas in large shoals all around the world. They are very strong tasting, but more salty than fishy in taste. For a variation on this recipe, capers would be a good alternative.

At the moment I am back at work, sitting in Inebolu port, Northern Turkey, but had enough sense to bring away some photos of meals etc. with me to update the blog now and again.

My radish were quite small, but my mate Damiens were huge, about the size of a small carrot.
I have two types of radish at the moment, a red French Breakfast 3 type that is available in nearly all seed outlets, and a yellow french type called Jaune d'Or Ovale.

Many people don't like large radish, or find them too hot. For this recipe I like that peppery kick, and the large size makes for better presentation.
For 4 people you will need about 4 large or, of the more usual size that you get in the shops, about 16.

INGREDIENTS
SALAD
Enough radishes for people to be fed - 1 large of 4 small per person
50 grammes Parmesan cheese, grated
2 tablespoons lemon juice
4 tablespoons of Donegal Rapeseed oil.
Tablespoon chopped chives
1 clove garlic, finely minced
4-6 sustainable anchovy fillets, cut into small pieces
For the Anchovy HFW recommends fish-4-ever.com

STEAK
Small steak, 1 for every two people
Onion stem cuttings, sliced
tomato - 1 per person, cut in half
French bread stick or turkish flat white bread, sliced
Mustard, whole grain
Mayonnaise

Wash the radish. Using a veg peeler, slice into thin slivers as long as possible into a bowl.
Make a dressing using the garlic, oil, lemon juice, anchovy and grated Parmesan.
Pour the dressing over the radish and mix well.

Plate up and sprinkle over some chopped chives and a few shavings of Parmesan.

I cooked the beef quickly with some onion greens from the garden, using onion stalks that have gone to flower with some tomato's to add bulk and sweetness.
This was simply cut into strips, places on a slice of crusty white bread with a little mayonnaise and wholegrain mustard and plated with the salad. It is a good way to stretch steak, and I do think we Irish tend to overdo red meat consumption.

The salad takes about 5 minutes to prepare, the steak about 10. The meal has great flavours that compliment each other and I love the texture of the radish, that crispy water chestnut like bite.
With that you have the onion and salt tang, the rich chewy beef, sweet warm tomato and the peppery radish kick.

I hope you like the recipe, and as always please feel free to comment - I really like to hear feedback.

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Fatai- panni, sweet potato cake

2011-06-19T04:57:00.000-07:00

This is a lovely, rich, moist cake that is very economical and easy to do. Like the Sephardic orange cake, it is flour free so good for those with gluten issues.

Basic elements

The look and texture reminds me a little bit of Frangepani, the Italian almond and pear cake.
The Gaelic word in Connemara for Potato's is Fatai (faah-tee) as opposed to thge more common pratai used in Munster and Ulster Irish, hence the name I gave this recipe - fatai-panne. It could easily have been called Henry Hill Cake (from the movie Goodfellas, Half Mick, Half Guinea)

Its an unusual pudding, based on a Minorcan recipe. You don't need the rhubarb in this one but I feel the tartness and flavour really adds to the overall dish, and rhubarb to me is the taste of an Irish spring, far more so than strawberries.
The gang from Garrai Glas really liked this cake.

Ingredients:
500g of floury potato's
120g Sugar
3 eggs, separated with whites stiffly beaten
Zest of 1 lemon
Knob of Cuinneog Butter
200g Rhubarb

If you want a lighter texture you can always add a teaspoon of baking powder.

Boil the spuds in their skins until done, then cool slightly, peel and mash or pass through a processor or food mill.
Preheat the oven to 180 deg C or Gas Mark 4
In a large bowl, work the egg yolks, sugar and lemon zest into the potato, then slowly add the stiff egg whites and sliced rhubarb.
Pour the mixture into a buttered baking dish; I use a fairly shallow one for this recipe.

Then bake for 35-40 minutes or until a cocktail stick can be inserted in the middle of the cake and come out clean.

If desired sprinkle sliced almonds over the cake about 10 minutes before cooking is finished.

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Super Simple Sephardic Orange Cake

2011-06-15T06:45:00.000-07:00

I think, apart from shortbread, this may have been the first cake I ever baked. I first saw the recipe in the UK's Times back in 2005 by Jill Dupleix. I still have the cutting from the paper.

There has been a gap since my last posting, a very dear friend of mine passed away.
When I came home from the funeral, I guess I just wanted some comfort food - so this very simple and easy to follow recipe was just the ticket.
Regardless of age difference she was a great mate, and her Granddaughter is planning to become a baker.

Maeve was a great gardener, far better than I, with flowers and fruit trees in particular. I would send her tulip bulbs every year from Holland when I was living or working there.
Something that makes me both happy and sad is that on her last trip home from Hospital a few bulbs from two years ago decided to put on a show for her, and her favorites - a deep dark purple type - were in full flower, and this posting is dedicated to the fond memory of a woman who meant a great deal to a great many people.

I think she would have loved Seville where the streets are lined with beautiful pruned orange trees.
The Spanish don't really like this type of orange, Seville oranges are thick-skinned and bitter; good for marmalade-making.
The other orange, the navel, is the one eaten, sliced into salads of onions and olives or pressed into juice.
But they do use the Seville orange to make this flourless cake, suitable for those with issues with gluten.
This is one of two flourless cakes I bake, the other - Fataipanni, I will write up soon.

The cakes origins are in the Sephardic tradition. These were the Jewish diaspora in Iberia before their expulsion in the late 15th century.

This light and delicious half cake-half sponge is very easy to do and can be prepped in two simple ways.
I kind of plan to enter in in the Clifden Pony Show this year so wish me luck.

Ingredients
3 medium oranges
6 eggs, separated
200g sugar
200g ground almonds
1tsp baking powder

Method
Place the clean, whole and unpeeled fruit in water to cover, and bring to the boil. Simmer for 1½ hours or until soft, adding more water when necessary.
Drain the oranges, cut into quarters, discard any major pips, and whiz the rest, including peel, in the food-processor, then cool.
Heat the oven to 180C/Gas 4.
Beat the egg yolks and sugar together in a large bowl until pale.
Beat in the oranges, almonds, and baking powder.
Beat the egg whites until softly peaky and fold gently into the mixture.

Pour into a 23cm /9" spring form cake tin and bake for an hour, until firm to the touch (cover with a loose sheet of foil if over-browning). Cool in the tin and dust with icing sugar to serve.

In this case I did the cake mix in two tins and filled with lime flavoured whipped cream, served with my own homegrown strawberries

Sometimes, as I did in this case, I divide the mixture into two tins and bake for about 35 minutes- that way with a whipped cream filling the cake can be served up more as a sponge cake.

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Eggs Errislannan - Connemara style Benedict eggs

2011-05-30T06:33:00.000-07:00

For anyone who keeps chickens and has a run on eggs, this is a great brunch or Sunday Breakfast.
A few years back I was working in Australia, where I was introduced to Eggs Benedict. A variation that is common in Australia is more properly known as Eggs Montreal or Eggs Royale which substitutes smoked salmon for the ham in the classic dish.
After that I toured New Zealand, and ordered Eggs Royale in the So Hotel in Christchurch, near Tuam street and on Cashel street!
I think my favorite hotel in the world, with a great story behind it and fantastic staff.
It has gone into receivership, but has new management and has been renamed the All Seasons hotel.
I really hope they kept the same ethos and staff.
They served their Eggs Royale with a small fillet of smoked salmon cut thickly rather than the usual slices, and I loved it.

While in Malta once I had Sardines that were served with Maltese sauce, a variation on Hollandaise that uses blood orange in place of lemon and duck egg yolk in place of chickens.
Funny thing is, although I had the sauce in Malta - its actually a French Recipe! I guess it's like having french fries instead of fritte in France.

Smoked fish and eggs are a classic combination - salmon and scrambled eggs, kedgeree in Scotland with smoked herring, eggs and rice - there are many examples.
I can't wait until the perennial bed comes up next year so I can use asparagus spears with the mackerel and garnish with samphire - Nevin watch out!!

With that inspiration, I came up with this brunch, with the usual Irish twist - as the mackerel came from Ballyconeeley I'm calling this one Eggs Errislannan

Smoking fish has long been a way of preserving, and here in Connemara we have some of the cleanest water in the world.
We also have a multi award winning smokery in Ballyconeeley, the Connemara Smoke House, producing great salmon, gravlax and mackerel. This is really top end Irish produce, and I cannot recommend it enough.

Mackerel is a great fish which has featured on this blog before and will no doubt again. Its also a sustainable species, and the way Irish fishermen shoot for it commercially is quite specific and environmentally sound. In Connemara, most mackerel is line caught. Smoked mackerel is tasty and filling, packed with Omega oils that are healthy etc etc - but for me the main factor is taste.

My take on Eggs Benedict is simple boxty, smoked mackerel with a poached egg and Maltese sauce.

FOR THE MALTESE SAUCE
The Maltese Sauce is the hardest part of the meal to make, but the great thing about it is that you can make it in advance and re-heat. The Tarragon is not in the classic sauce, but I feel it really does add a lot more to the meal.

80ml freshly squeezed orange juice
1 Tsp orange zest
1 duck egg yolk (you can keep the white or chuck in the boxty mix if you like)
230 grams Cuinneog butter (using Cuinneog really adds to the flavour)
1 Tsp dried Tarragon
Good pinch of Cayenne

Melt the butter at a low temperature and keep warm in a bowl. Keep about 2 tsp in reserve for the boxty.

In a small saucepan, combine the orange juice and orange zest, and place over medium-high heat.
Bring the saucepan to a boil and reduce by 2/3, about 3 minutes.
Remove from the heat and strain into a bain marie bowl.


I would like to point out this was my Grandmothers bowl - been in the family since at least the 1920's

Add the duck egg yolk, Cayenne and Tarragon - whisk.

Set the bowl over a pan of simmering water and continue to whisk until the egg starts to thicken, about 2 to 3 minutes.
Remove the bowl from the heat, and slowly drizzle a little of the butter into the egg mixture.
Whisk constantly to incorporate.

Return the bowl to the heat, whisk again, and when the egg starts to thicken again, continue to add more of the butter to the egg.
Remove from the heat periodically to cool the bowl, and return it once it cools slightly.
Continue in this on-the-heat, off-the-heat fashion until all of the clarified butter is incorporated.
The moment the butter is incorporated remove the bowl from the saucepan, transfer the sauce into a cool sauce boat, and season with the salt and pepper.

As a base for the meal I used buttermilk Boxty, I did try buttermilk whey chapatti, but this gives more depth and richness.

FOR THE BOXTY BASE AND EGGS

250g, peeled, grated, squeezed

250g cold mashed potato

100ml Cuinneog buttermilk- another great product from the Mayo dairy
200g plain flour

1 heaped tsp baking powder

1-2 tbsp melted cuinneog butter

salt and freshly ground black pepper

If prepping from scratch, you can also add the duck egg white.

Wrap the grated potato in a clean tea towel and wring well to get rid of any excess liquid.

Add the grated potato to a mixing bowl with the cold mashed potato and mix until well combined.

Add the flour and baking powder to the potato mixture and mix until well combined.
Stir in the melted butter and season, to taste, with salt and black pepper.

Add the buttermilk, a little at a time, to the potato mixture, beating after each addition until the buttermilk has been fullyworked into the mixture. When all of the buttermilk has been added to the potato mixture it should resemble a thick, heavy batter. If the mixture is too sticky, add more milk as necessary. Set aside.

Heat some oil in a large non-stick frying pan over a medium to high heat.

Around this time its a good time to start poaching the eggs.

Add spoonfuls of the boxty batter to the pan, leaving enough space around each spoonful for the mixture to spread. Fry the boxties on a medium to high heat for 3-4 minutes on each side, or until the boxties are golden-brown and the grated potato is cooked through. Remove the boxties from the pan using a slotted spoon, set aside to drain on kitchen paper and keep warm.

PREPPING THE MACKEREL AND PLATING UP

The fillets from the Connemara Smoke House have a beautiful and natural colour, particularly on the skin - but dont be tempted to leave it on, its best to remove it.

Place the smoked Connemara mackerel fillet, skin side up, on the warm boxty base. Remove skin and any excess bones.
For a brunch serve with some lightly dressed sliced tomatos - I just use salt, pepper and a squeeze of lemon juice - or a micro salad.What works especially well is radishes - but I ate all mine yesterday :-(

Place the poached egg on top of the mackerel carefully. Spoon over the warmed Maltese Sauce and garnish with fresh kitchen garden herbs - serve and bask in the glory.

Thing is, although the meal is quality, filling and delicious, once you've cracked making the Maltese sauce, its very easy to prepare everything in advance for a quick cook and reheat.

As always, I'd advise messing around with the recipe - try smoked salmon from the smoke house - and if you are visiting the region they do tours of the smoke house. The tours run seasonally in June, July and August on Wednesdays at 3PM - thats one day a week so booking is advisable, but a visit is very much worthwhile.
Its great to see traditional, artisan food production.

As always, I hope you enjoyed the recipe - and as always, feedback and comments on variations etc are welcome.

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Fruit n' Nut Pork and Greens - Chuleta de Cerdo y Acelgas con Pasas y Pinones

2011-05-19T09:43:00.000-07:00

This meal is just a way of dolling up simple pork chops with a side of simple sautéed spring greens

The meal itself is a nice variation on the Northern European theme of pork and brassica like our bacon and cabbage or Dutch Rookwurst and borecole.

The greens are the main part of the meal, based on a Catalan dish called Acelgas con Pasas y Pinones.

Normally its made using chard and other greens sweetened with raisins and crunch added from nuts.

It’s a seasonal meal for me as I used the pine nuts left over from the nettle pesto and tidied up the leaves on my Tipperary Turnips and winter cabbage’s. I use a real mix, a medley of greens.

This meal serves 3-4.

The Pork could not be simpler. Its flavours are based on sage and onion stuffing.

You will need:

2 pork chops cut into cubes about 2cm

2 good sized apples, cored and cut into good sized chunks

About half an onion, roughly chopped

Tablespoon Donegal Rapeseed oil

About one and a half teacups course breadcrumbs (about 2 slices of well done toast through the blender)

Teaspoon dried sage

Teaspoon salt

Preheat the oven to 180 deg. C

Retain half a teacup of breadcrumbs

Place all the other ingredients in a bowl and mix well.

Oil a dish with Donegal rapeseed oil

Chuck ingredients into the cooking dish, pour over the remaining breadcrumbs

Put in the middle of oven for 45 minutes/1hour until nice and golden.

I always throw a few spuds in the top of oven to bake or to roast depending on how I feel at the same time as the pork, saves energy and washing up

For the Acelgas con Pasas y Pinones you will need:

12oz-1lb of Garden Greens like chard, cabbage, turnip or beetroot tops. Later in the year I would use kale
These are cut chiffonade (see note)

4 tablespoons raisins

3 tablespoons pine nuts

2 tablespoons Donegal Rapeseed oil

About half an onion (whats left from the pork dish really)

2 garlic cloves, crushed or finely minced
1 teaspoon dried oregano

Preparation

Cut the greens chiffonade.
In a medium pot, bring a pint of water to a boil. Add greens, stir to submerge, and boil gently, uncovered, for 10 minutes, stirring several times to make sure the greens are cooking evenly.

After 10 minutes, drain greens in a colander (press on them once or twice with the back of a spoon to remove extra water) and set aside.
Soak raisins in a small amount of the hot water and set aside.

I generally take a break at this point, let the greens drain until you relax, maybe get a baked dessert ready etc. and wait while the pork cooks off

About 10 minutes from when you expect the pork to be done, continue with the recipe.

Heat a large dry heavy pan and toast pine nuts over medium-low heat, stirring frequently, until light brown. Do not walk away while they are cooking or they might scorch. Remove nuts from pan and set aside.

Heat the Donegal Rapeseed oil in same pan and sauté the onion for 3-5 minutes, or until soft and just beginning to color. During the last minute of this cooking time, add garlic and oregano, so as not to scorch the garlic.

When onion-garlic mixture is done, add drained greens to the pan and stir to combine. Drain raisins and add them, cooking on medium and stirring a minute or two to evaporate any extra water that has accumulated.

Stir in pine nuts and serve with the pork and potato’s, and as the pine nuts came from the nettle pesto, why not use a little of that to garnish the spuds.

Traditionally of course the meal is cooked using olive oil, and Catalan olives are fantastic - but this is local, regular farm food. They use olive oil simply because it is available, so I really feel we should try cooking with our own rapeseed oil to reduce food miles and support our own farmers.

It is for that reason as well that I source most of my shop bought meat from McGeoughs Butchers in Oughterard or Seamus Mannion in Clifden.

As always, please feel free to leave a comment, I love the feedback

*Note - Chiffonade:

This is a technique in which leafy greens are cut into long, thin strips.

This is generally accomplished by stacking leaves, rolling them tightly (a technique I am sure many readers are familiar with) then cutting across the rolled leaves with a sharp knife, producing fine ribbons.

"Chiffon" is French for "rag". To chiffonade simply means to turn into rag-like strips, as seen in the pictures.


Stack


Roll

Slice

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Very clever idea from patchworkveg - TapnGrow Raised Garden Beds

2011-05-17T09:53:00.000-07:00

TapnGrow Raised Garden Beds: Welcome - you have found the new TapnGrow Raised G...: "Introducing our new Patchworkveg/Urban Arks TapnGrow raised garden bed. Finally a proper, strong, sturdy Diy raised bed kit that even a ch..."

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Irish Nettle Pesto with rapeseed oil

2011-05-16T09:42:00.000-07:00

Well, here's another recipe using what are regarded by most as weeds.
Pesto can be made from really anything. We’ve all seen pestos with basil and tomato of course, but they also use other herbs.
The Italians make this nettle pesto in springtime called pesto d’urtica.
They also make a nettle pasta - Strettine - a springtime favorite in Emilia Romagna, but that's for another day.
There are a lot of recipes for it, but mine was certainly inspired by Hank Shaw from honest-food.net

I have not used Irish rapeseed oil before but it is now being produced in Donegal by the Donegal Rapeseed oil company, and it worked great. I think its great that we are now producing a viable alternative for olive oil and really hope they do well. A list of outlets stocking the product can be seen here.
Donegal Rapeseed Oil is also very healthy. It only has 6% saturated fat content where most olive oils have 14% and sunflower oil 10%.

INGREDIENTS
100g fresh nettle leaves, washed in cold water
As with nettle soup avoid picking nettles on the roadside as these may have been sprayed with herbicides.
Dont forget to retain the nettle stems for the garden.
2 garlic cloves, core removed, finely chopped, or wild garlic if you have it.
50g (about 2 tablespoons) pine nuts, lightly toasted.
You can also use cashew, walnut or if you are lucky enough to grow them try hazelnuts.
60g grated hard cheese like Parmesan or even the heel off a good mature cheddar
150ml Donegal rapeseed oil (or substitute good quality extra virgin olive oil)
Salt and fresh ground pepper

Method
Remember to wear kitchen gloves.
Blanch the nettle leaves in well salted boiling water for a minute or two, this removes the sting and the salt helps retain the colour.
Then plunge into iced water, again to retain texture and colour.

Drain and roughly chop, (you can keep the water as stock or for boiling pasta to go with this meal) remove as many stems as possible.
Once they are cool, put them in a colander to strain.

Next get a tea towel, and put the nettles in it. Wrap one end of the towel one way, then the other end of the towel the other and squeeze out as much moisture as you can.

Purists say pesto is best made with a mortar and pestle, after all the name comes from pestle, which means to pound. I just use a food processor.

First crush the pine nuts lightly with a knife
Core and roughly chop the garlic.
Add the salt, pepper, cheese and the nettles and commence blitzing.

Start adding the rapeseed oil.
How much you add depends on how you are using your pesto. If you are making a spread as I do then about 100ml. If you plan on using it for pasta sauce, then you will need more.

Either way, you add it in to the blender at a slow steady pour to incorporate it.
I used 100ml in the blender and retained 50ml to cover it in the jar at the end.
I tend to go for a dryer pesto - I figure if I use it in pasta, minestrone or gnocchi, I can just add a little oil in a bowl and thin it out a bit more.

Nettle Pesto is very easy to make, can be stored by freezing or waterbathing.
Pesto will keep for up to a month in well sealed jar in the fridge.

It really is great simply put on soda bread, with a little cheese and some spicy radishes for a little extra kick.

The colour is vivid and fresh looking, with a mild and subtle flavour. Compared to even good quality basil pesto the flavour and colour of home made is far superior.

Well, thats another mostly free food - and soooo easy to make.
As always, please do take the time to comment, I love the feedback

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Alcohol and the garden

2011-05-08T03:15:00.000-07:00

Two of my favorite subjects, the garden and beer. Alcohol can be of real use in pest control.
If you have a problem with killing bugs with booze, remember, at least they die happy.

Well, first and foremost - beer traps for slugs. I have dealt with this in a past posting but a new simpler design is what I call the dolmen.
Simply sink an old jar or can into the bed until the rim is just clear of the soil.
Then place some stones around it to give some clearance and cover with a small slab of slate or stone.

Alcohol sprays are good as organic garden pest control, especially against aphids, whiteflies, and mealybugs. If you are using meths alcohol spray, use the 70%. Mix one litre of water with 300ml of alcohol.
Never spray your plants with undiluted alcohol.
Do a test, spray a few leaves first and check for damage.
Any injury to your plant should be apparent within a few days.

Then Fruit Flies - they have been known to like a tipple - real rot gut.
Fill up a saucer of some cheap white wine and add a little detergent to it.
Leave it around for the flies to sip and die
Finally, although debatable I find this method effective at times. Do you have a problem with cats and dogs? Plan this for when you expect them. Get a skinfull - I find cheap whisky best - then after it takes effect run around half naked, ranting, screaming abuse and chucking random items at the offending animals, works for a short period anyway and at least it gives the neighbours something to talk about- may attract men with white coats.

While reading this post, why not check out one of the best bands ever to come out of Canada, kinda a theme song for me at times.

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Super Simple Stinger Soup - Nettle, Wild Garlic and Sea Coriander Soup

2011-05-07T00:17:00.000-07:00

Well, it's really getting seasonal now, as the dandelions die off, that's the pesto and syrup done.

The next plant to show itself is the common nettle, and it makes for a great soup, light enough for early summer but rich enough to create a really nice lunch or starter.

The nettle is generally regarded as a weed or a nuisance, but before you go in with poison or strimmers its a simple soup well worth trying.

Like the dandelion recipes, nettles are ideal for foraging, they are not poisonous and cannot be mistaken for other plants.
The only thing to watch out for is I would not recommend picking from busy road sides as nettles may have been sprayed with chemicals by the council and general contamination by vehicle exhausts.

Cooking nettle soup is not unlike collard greens in a way, which is another great dish this time of year.

Sea coriander is a plant I forage locally, I don't know what it is called properly. The stalk and little green berry heads taste of lime and coriander.

To replace this ingredient, simply use a tablespoon of chopped coriander leaf, just as good.

The other wild plant I like to use, when I can find it, is wild garlic or ramsons.

It is worth noting that Ramsons when the plants are very young are very similar to Lilly of the valley, which is poisonous. If in doubt crush a leaf between your fingers and there should be a Chive / Garlicy aroma. The Ramsons are easy to spot when in bloom because of their distinctive star like white flowers.

There is also grated horseradish in the soup. You can of course use horseradish sauce, and if you feel like having a little fun with the soup, add more horseradish to give the soup extra heat and kick, it can quite worry people trying nettle soup for the first time, and there is no need to tell them that spicy kick is the radish, they will assume its the nettle.

For stock in this recipe I would recommend Connemara Lamb, although you can use veg or chicken if you wish.
Its a simple stock to make, details can be seen on the Lebanese Lamb posting.

Connemara lamb is in season since Easter, it is delicious, widely available and this is a great meal to stretch a few Euro, by using bones in the stock from leg and cutlets that normally might be discarded.
I source most of my meat from McGeough's in Oughterard, west of Galway. At this stage it's automatic that the Easter leg and Christmas turkey, duck or goose are boxed up and ready even before I walk into the shop.
Our family no longer even places an order, its just done. In actual fact, I think the only reason I would call in relation to an order would be to cancel in case no one's home!

Connemara lamb one of only four recognised, protected, designated Irish foods in the EU.

This very important designation is an assurance of quality, traceability and origin.
It allows artisan producers to compete with corporate producers, the system is wide spread on the continent.
The UK for example has dozens of recognised food and beverages.

Here it is an utter disgrace that it is left up to private individuals and small companies to gain recognition for some of our unique foods despite our very well paid civil servants in the department of agriculture and semi-states like bord bia.
Essentially, because of the failure of the civil service to do more work in this area, foods like Clonakilty Black Pudding and Irish Cream can be made and marketed by anyone, anywhere.

Connemara Lamb is a native breed, the Connemara Blackfaced Horned. It matures at a slower rate, the result is a lamb of specialised taste, quality and flavour from a diet of natural herbs, heathers and grasses unique to Connemara.
This gives a lean carcass, rose red in colour, solid deep texture with a light cover of fat and that produces a natural succulent flavour with a very pronounced aroma.
For more details see connemarahilllamb.ie

Anyway - on with the food.

So obviously, the first thing you need to do is collect younger nettles, but they don't need to be that small.

Do this re-using an old plastic shopping bag and a pair of good rubber gloves.

Then strip the nettle stalks of their leaves. The used stalks can be set aside and used as a fertilizer for the kitchen garden plot.

I had about 300 gms of nettle leaves for this soup, but the more you get in the better really.

After that, its a very straight forward and simple soup.

INGREDIENTS

1 Litre Connemara Hill lamb stock (or substitute vegetable or chicken stock)

300 gm or more nettle leaves

Knob of Cuinneog Butter

Salt and pepper to season.

2 tablespoon's of wild garlic leaf green is you can find it
- or substitute 1 clove garlic, crushed or garlic chives - .

1 Onion, finely diced

1 Tblsn Sea Coriander berries
or substitute with finely chopped coriander with a pinch of lime zest

1 Tspn Horseradish, finely grated (more if you want extra sting in your nettle soup)

METHOD

Put the butter into a heavy based pan and heat up.

Add onion, garlic, horseradish, and if desired bacon, to the pan.

Cook until onion softened and translucent.

Next add the nettle leaves and sea coriander berries to the pan.

Keep stirring the nettles and reduce them as you would with spinach.

Try and give them all a coating with the oils from the bottom of the pot.

Next add your stock and bring to the boil, reduce and allow to simmer for 5-10 minutes.

Then blitz with a food processor, return to pan and allow to simmer for another 10 minutes

I would normally serve with some creme fraiche, but did not have any so I just used a small round of goats cheese on top and some soda bread on the side.

It really does not get simpler than that for a very handy little recipe.
The recipe re-heats well so can be made well in advance, it's also good for freezing.

As always if you find the recipe of use or have any comments, please do leave some feedback - I really appreciate the time and effort you take to do so

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First preserve of 2011 - Dandelime Jam

2011-05-05T18:10:00.000-07:00

A lot of people spend a lot of time killing dandelions on their lawn, fair enough - thats their business, but I would suggest you let them flower first, then collect before they can run to seed and make use of them, you can always spray with poison afterwards.
This is free and unusual food, all you buy is sugar and lime - maybe some pectin.

This recipe is based on a traditional French jam made with lemon, I use lime as I prefer the zing they have.
There are two varients I make, a jam and a syrup.

200 gm (2 teacups) Dandelion petal heads - the green leaf and stem bits removed as they are bitter

200 ml (2 teacups) boiling water

zest of 1 lime

juice of 1 lime

300ml (3 teacups) sugar
1 tsp Pectin (this is already added in jam making sugar)

Place two cups of dandelion heads into a mixing bowl and add the zest of the lime.
Pour two cups of boiling water over.
Leave overnight to infuse.
You can add a few apple peels to help the setting process

After soaking pour the mixture through a sieve to separate all the leaves.

Add the lime juice and bring the mixture to the boil.
Add the sugar and pectin and boil rapidly for 10 minutes, then start checking while it reduces for set point.
After that, pour the mixture into warm sterile jars and waterbath.
These processes are explained in an earlier posting that you can read here.

Always date and label.
Once opened, consume within one month.

There is another option, by not adding pectin, you can simply reduce the liquid by about 30% and create a lovely syrup for puddings, toast etc. It is delicious.

Again, as always thanks for reading and please feel free to make any comments or suggestions.

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Permacrop 3 - the Sea Captains box

2011-05-03T19:51:00.000-07:00

Well today was a bit of work in planning more than anything else. Rather than shore foraging, it is easier to grow and have coastal edible veg close at hand. For that reason I decided to develop a salty box in the perennial bed.

Drainage foundation, free from the garden

I also see, watching programs like masterchief and in top restaurants like NOMA a trend to these delicious but forgotten culinary gems. I guess because they have a short shelf life, supermarkets don't like them, so they have gone out of fashion. They are now presented as exotic, but were once common from fishmongers, packed in casks of seawater for transportation.

There are three veg I want to grow in the box. They are all edible coastal plants, and are halophyte - that is they like, need and /or tolerate salt. In addition to that they all like sandy, well drained soil so that was the requirement.

Scurvygrass (Cochlearia officinalis) is a native Irish perennial and grows to about 20cm in height.

Kind of tastes like a cross between horseradish and cress. For use in salads or stir fries.

It is also of historical interest to me and that's mainly why I'm cultivating it.

In the old days, scurvy occurred on ships spending months at sea without fresh fruits or greens, leading to a deficiency of vitamin C.

But if a captain stowed a supply of scurvy grass and other sources of vitamin C like lime juice or saurkraut / zuurkool (hence the nicknames limey and kraut) as the 18th-century English explorer Capt. James Cook did, the sailors were safe. He also collected another type in New Zealand called Nau which I hope to get someday.

If you like bacon, that juicy, salty, crispy texture and taste, you will love these next two.

Samphire (Cachrys maritima) - perennial - grows to about 30cm-ish and can be found in Irish coastal regions, I've also had it in the southern Netherlands, very short shelf life so it's best to grow your own rather than face the expense of it because they have to rush it from the Zeeuws estuaries to the point of sale, but great as a garnish for oysters.
Its succulent, crispy, salty. Great raw or snipped into salads or soups - almost like vegetable bacon.

Salsola (Salsola Soda) is native to the Med, it grows to about 70cm and is very popular in Italy. Barba Di Frate (or Friar's Beard) is what the Neapolitan's called it while I was there, again, collected fresh from salt marsh's. It is actually irrigated using sea water.

It was fantastic served with cavolo nero and pine nuts, but a word of warning, it is notoriously hard to germinate.

Seaweed, free fertilizer

All of these plants, as I said, live in a saline coastal environment. That means they like brackish water, something between the sea and fresh.

Sea water has a specific gravity of 1.025 - i.e. it contains 25 grams of salt per litre, fresh water has none.

For that reason, and erring on the side of caution I will irrigate twice a week and go with a specific gravity of 1.010 - and you don't need a hydrometer to work this out.

Simply add 10 grams of sea salt or kosher salt per litre. The reason for sea salt is it contains no iodine or anti caking agents. The average watering can holds about 8 litres - that's 80 grams of salt per can.

Obviously I don't want the salt leaching into other beds, so the bed had to be prepared differently to the normal set up, especially as I included it in the perennial bed.

This took a bit of thought as it had to be lined and drain in a way that would keep the salt away from other plants, and it had to be quite sandy.

Initial outline

I came up with this scheme, a plastic sleeve made up of old feed bags that would drain freely into the bedrock / glacial sand base that is in the garden and was a 2 ft transverse box in the perennial bed

The other consideration was orientation, this was done on the basis of height. The bed lies facing NE, so the transverse runs SE. Salsola grows to about 70cm, Salsify to 30cm and scurvygrass to 20cm max, so that settled the issue.

Apart from that its step by step.

1 ) Cut a transverse trench across the bed, getting down far enough that salty water wont affect other plants, beds or bed sections. By the time I was happy, I had gone down about 24 inches / 60cm below the base of the side retaining boards in the raised beds.

2 ) Put in and secure transverse retainer boards either side of the trench

3 ) Clear the trench to the drainage zone and put in rocks to improve water flow

4 ) Tack in the plastic sheeting (I used old feed bags) around the edge of the box, to separate the salt box from neighbouring sections. Turn the bottom of the sheets inward and line the rocks carefully to hold it down.

The trench width was 2 feet / 60 cm, the width of the drainage sink at the bottom was about 18 inches / 45cm.

5 ) Next step was a layer of sand roughly raked in to fill in between the rocks and provide a free draining base

6 ) After that, a layer of dried seaweed that I ran through the new garden shredder - made a nice tidy job of it.

7 ) Then the backfill of soil well mixed with beach sand, always aiming to have very well drained soil to replicate the littoral maritime environment. The side that the Salsola and Samphire were going into got a bit more earth as they are succulents and are more fond of water/mud than scurvygrass

8 ) After that it was planting the seeds, marking them up and giving a top dressing of seaweed for extra nutrients. I also started to put in a cap around the box to secure the plastic on tom and give a better look to the bed.

I hope, and think, the scheme will work - and it does fit in well with the overall bed.

I hope you enjoyed the post, and if you found it of help or have any comments please do take the time to leave a message here at the blog, I love the feedback

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Super Simple Shellfish Soups - Bisque and/or Moule Mariner.

2011-04-26T04:04:00.000-07:00

There are a few very simple dishes that always work well.
Bisque and Moule mariner are two, and by making and freezing shellfish stock, you always have this at hand - it's simple, tasty and straight forward.

Making the shellfish stock is easy, and also gives you more value for money - and another helpful addition to the garden.

Whenever I have finished with the shells, I put them in the ash grate of a fire.
This way they toast or bake dry. I then break them up coarsely and spread them on the garden pathways. I hope that like egg shells the sharp, broken shell helps in the struggle against slugs and snails, besides, it's a form of recycling and can't do any harm.

The shellfish stock serves as a basis for two fish soups I like to do. The first is the simplest, and a classic Belgian staple - also very popular in the Zeeuws region of the Netherlands, served on the street every year outside De Mug - one of my favorite pubs in one of my favorite towns in the world.

There are several variations on Moule Mariner, but this one works for me and is pretty true to its Belgian origins but might be better described as a Mussel Bisque with more depth, using shellfish stock.
Quite often the soup in Belgium has additional kick added to it by adding a dash of Pernod, but I just add fennel bulb for that same aniseed flavour.

Perfect served with freshly made soda bread

FOR MOULE MARINER

Ingredients:
1 Kilo Mussels
750 ml Shellfish stock*. (See footnote)
3 sticks celery, finely sliced
1 bulb fennel, finely sliced
1 leek, finely sliced.
1 Onion, finely diced.
2 Cloves Garlic finely sliced.
250 ml dry white wine
Parsley to garnish
Cream

Method:
In a heavy based pot, add a knob of butter and heat until foaming.
Add the sliced veg until softened.
Add the wine and mussels, steaming the mussels for 5 minutes - or until open.
Remove the mussels and set aside, add the shellfish stock and bring to the boil.
Return the mussels to the pot and heat up.
Serve in large bowls with a dash of cream and garnish with parsley - serve with soda bread, warm and delicious.

FOR BISQUE

Bisque is just a richer version without the aniseed flavours and contains more meat in the soup.
The mushrooms add richness. Rather than the aniseed flavour of fennel, this gets a kick from cayenne pepper.
Its more a winter/autumn soup than the Moule Mariner.
You can vary it to your own taste of course, one version pictured here was served with lobster shell for decoration and sliced, raw Oca to decorate and to add a citrus style zing to it.

The Oca really works for this recipe, its tart, sharp apple/citrus flavour cuts the richness giving a very nice tang to the meal.
The other photo has cream and lardon croutons.

FOR BISQUE
Knob butter
Handful button mushrooms.
One onion, finely chopped
One leek, finely sliced
Two good stems chopped celery sticks
One chopped carrot
1 litre shellfish stock*. (See footnote)
teaspoon salt
1/2 (half) teaspoon cayenne pepper
120 ml dry white wine
225 g cooked lobster, prawn, crab or other crustacean meat
Cream

1.Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium-low heat.
Add the mushrooms, onion, celery, and carrot. Cook and stir until tender, about 10 minutes.
Stir in the shellfish stock, and season with salt and cayenne pepper.
Bring to a boil, then simmer for 10 minutes.

2.Pour the vegetable and broth mixture into the container of a blender,
and add half the crustacean meat.
Cover, and process until smooth.

3. Return to the saucepan, and stir in the cream, white wine, and remaining crustacean meat.
Cook over low heat, stirring frequently until thickened, about 30 minutes.

SHELLFISH STOCK

Very simple and straight forward. Take any shellfish remains, crab claws, lobster, prawn etc and break up.
Cover with cold water, add some salt, pepper, bay leaves, a small onion, small carrot and some celery.
Bring to the boil, simmer for an hour and a half. Allow to cool and strain off liquid.
Shells can be put in the ash drawer of a fire, dried out, broken up and spread on garden paths or veg beds to deter snails and slugs as eggshells are.

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Super Simple Soda bread

2011-04-25T04:11:00.000-07:00

Soda bread, about as Irish as it gets. No messing around with yeast or waiting to rise etc.
This is a very simple, easy to follow recipe.

With blackberry jam or curd and a mug of tea, it is the flavour of Connemara.

Ingredients

450g (1lb) plain white flour, or wholemeal if you want a brown loaf.
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baxitartar
1 teaspoon bread soda or bicarbonate of soda (2 if you dont have baxitartar)
400ml (14fl oz) buttermilk

Preheat the oven to 230ºc / Gas Mark 9.

Sift all the dry ingredients into a large, wide bowl, and make a well in the centre.
Pour in the milk and mix using the fingers of one hand, stiff and oustretched like a claw, stir from the centre to the edge of the bowl in circles.
If you dont like using your hands, try a wooden spoon

The dough should be softish, but not too wet and sticky.
When it all comes together, turn out on to a well-floured work surface.

Wash and dry your hands. Pat the dough into a tidy shape and flip over gently, then pat it into a round about 4cm (1 and 1/2 inches) thick.
Gently transfer to a lightly greased and lightly floured baking tray or tin.

You can cut a deep cross into the loaf and prick the centre of each quarter to let the fairies out, or do a deeply pierced cross pattern with a fork as I do, because thats how I saw it done.
The reason that you make a cross in the top of the loaf before you bake it is to allow the heat to get through to the centre of the bread and cook the middle.

Bake for 15 minutes, then reduce the heat to 200ºc/Gas Mark 6 and bake for a further 30 minutes or until cooked. If you are in doubt tap the bottom of the bread: it should sound hollow.
Rub the surface with a knob of butter or a few tablespoons of buttermilk while warm - this softens the crust.
Cool on a wire rack.

Soda bread is best eaten on the day it is made.

For a very nice traditional fruity version add to the above recipe:
Reduce the buttermilk to 350ml (12fl oz)
1 tablespoon sugar
100g (4oz) sultanas or raisins
A couple of tablespoons of either molasis, treacle, maple syrup, honey or golden syrup
1 egg

As always, thanks for visiting, and please feel free to leave a comment

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Luscious Lobster Ravioli

2011-04-23T07:46:00.000-07:00

The recipe I developed to stretch lobster also works well with crab as a much cheaper alternative, or prawn tails, and is just as delicious.
Also, save any shells left over as the basis of a bisque, further stretching your Euro.

As a poster Lá an Lúbáin at politicalworld.org called it, Gliomach Sínte, stretched lobster

There is an illustrated guide on how to humanely kill a lobster at the end of the post so reader discretion is advised.

Quite simply, the whole concept of a kitchen garden is to deal with what you have at hand, and what is available.

Lobster, an utterly delicious food, but ridiculously expensive. Lobster, for me, is a very welcome gift from local fishermen, and it normally comes around Easter or Christmas.
So, with a little imagination, two small lobsters can go a long way - and produce a rich, warm meal rather than a salad.

The thing is, we have been conditioned to serve the food on the shell with a salad and a light sauce, and that is perfect if you can afford it - but if your feeding more than 4 a half lobster each, then it gets very pricey very quick.

This recipe is loosely based on Lobster Newburg - which is quite apt in my case. Lobster Newburg was invented by Ben Wenberg, a Ships Officer.
He demonstrated the dish to New York restaurant manager Charles Delmonico in about 1876.
After refinements by the famous chief Charles Ranhofer - author of the Epicurean - the creation was sold in the restaurant as Lobster à la Wenberg and became very popular.

An argument between Wenberg and Charles Delmonico caused the dish to be removed from the menu.
To satisfy patrons’ continued requests for it, the name was changed into an anagram - Lobster Newburg.
Lobster Newburg is related to the better known Lobster Thermidor, but Thermidor only appeared in the 1890's.

FOR THE PASTA

It could not be simpler, you do not need a pasta machine you might use 6 times a year, all you need is a rolling pin.
2 cups flour
2 large eggs, whole
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/2 tsp. sea salt
3 tablespoons water

Put all the ingredients in a food processor and process for 30 seconds.
Check consistency and add a small amount of flour is pasta is too wet, or a small amount of water if pasta is too dry. Whizz for another 30 seconds to incorporate any additions.

Turn dough out onto a pastry board, large chopping board or work surface sprinkled lightly with flour and knead by hand for a minute or two, until smooth.

Place the dough under a bowl to rest for 20 minutes before rolling, or refrigerate, tightly wrapped in plastic and stored in a plastic bag if not using right away.

Use within a few hours for best results.

Roll pasta out. Fold dough over and roll through again, gradually making the pasta thinner as it becomes smoother; dust lightly with flour as needed, but not too much.

It helps to brush off excess flour with a pastry brush.

When pasta is thin enough it is ready for use in making ravioli.

Use the pasta sheets as soon as they are rolled; dry pasta sheets don't seal as well at the edges as fresh sheets, causing the ravioli to separate when cooking.

If your pasta sheets have dried out, brush the edges with an egg wash or water (where the pasta is crimped together).

For this recipe you will need at least two sheets of pasta. The first one made can be draped over the back of a chair on a clean dishcloth, the second - base layer, can be left on the board - but make sure the board is well floured. You do not want this sticking when you lift.

This pasta dough is also great for fresh lasagne sheets.

FOR THE FILLING AND SAUCE

2 lobsters (1 1/2 to 2 pounds each)
3 tablespoons olive oil
250 ml (1 teacup) white wine
125 ml (1/2 teacup) sherry or Madeira
500 ml (2 teacups) heavy cream
salt
cracked pepper
pinch of cayenne
pinch of nutmeg
Beurre Manie (uncooked roux - See footnote 1)

For Ravioli parcel
Cooked Lobster tail meat
Freshly chopped chives
Pinch of paprika

RECOMMENDED EXTRAS

I love to add a good tablespoon of chopped tarragon to the sauce, it really adds to the flavour.
Recently I also added mussels and cooked them in the sauce, they look fantastic, their dark shells surrounding the ravioli parcels.

PROCESS

1- kill the lobster** (See footnote 2)

2- Turn the lobster around and cut the tail and body in half long ways.
Cut the tail into sections.
3- Remove the claws and reserve.
4- Along the center of the lobster are three kinds of viscera, the dark green are the stomach and intestine that can be scraped out and discarded.
The yellow green and red coral are the tomalley and the roe which are delicious and may be left in.

COOKING THE LOBSTER TAIL

Heat the olive oil in a heavy based pan.
Sear all the lobster tail meat pieces until bright red.
Remove lobster tail meat from pan - at this point you can start to de-glaze the pan (see further on) and cook any extra shellfish.

FOR THE RAVIOLI

Mix the cooked lobster tail with the chopped chives and paprika, and place on the ravioli sheet, about a tablespoon per parcel.

If you want extra zing, a little chili or a squeeze of lemon juice can be added.
Again, be sure that the surface under the base pasta sheet is well dusted with flour and will not stick to the work surface.

Then apply a light eggwash beween the food clusters and drape over the second sheet.

Press down between the food parcels, then using a glass or a cookie cutter cut carefully around them.
Crimp the edges with a fork to seal.
5 minutes before the sauce is ready, drop the ravioli parcels in boiling water. They will float to the surface when cooked.

If you are in any way nervous about the parcels splitting, you can also use a steamer or fish kettle, although this will make the pasta a little dry, but it's still nice

FOR THE SAUCE

While preparing the lobster ravioli packages, put the white wine on the pan to deglaze.
Reduce by half

If you have mussels, cockles or other shell fish, you can also add these to the wine during the reduction process to cook.
I now always use mussels as it adds to the presentation

When the wine is reduced remove and put aside any extra cooked shellfish.

Add cream, Madeira/Sherry and seasonings, add the lobster claw meat to the pot and cook until the meat is cooked through, about 8 minutes.

Whisk in beurre manie a little at a time until sauce begins to thicken.
Simmer over medium heat for 15 minutes.
Return any extra shellfish 5 minutes from the end of cooking, the same time as you start to cook the ravioli parcels.
Adjust seasonings and serve sauce over cooked ravioli, surrounded by the extra cooked shellfish.

This meal is very rich, and very adaptable. If you don't like the idea of making ravioli parcels, use the fresh pasta to make tagliatelle instead, and serve all the lobster meat over the pasta as a sauce, this will stretch the lobster meat even further.

Note 1* BEURRE MANIE
Best advice from Spectabilis of politicalworld.org
Beurre manié sounds fancy but its easy to have in store. Put a couple of ounces of butter in a bowl and melt it in the microwave or in a pot.
Then add the same volume of flour, stir well and cook again until it bubbles.
If you let it cool and store it in the fridge. It keeps for ages.
It will make a lump-free sauce in a minute - just flake into any boiling liquid- milk, stock wine or whatever - and whisk.

Note 2 ** KILLING A LOBSTER

This is the most humane way to kill a lobster.

This is a living creature, and deserves to be dispatched as quickly as possible to reduce stress.

The main thing is to be quick, clean and confident - don't mess about.

This job is one that is best left to a 10 inch chefs' knife, and one with a good deal of heft.

Make sure the rubber bands around the claws stay on during this process, as you don't want to be dodging the claws while cutting up the lobster.
Also, I would advise that you place a dishcloth under the animal for extra grip if at all nervous abour slipping.

To kill the animal as quickly as possible, you are going to cleave the brain in half.

You must first cut it in half down the center of the head part of the body.

You will find a crease in the shell that will give you guide and purchase.

In one movement pierce the shell to the cutting board and cleave forward between the eyes to finish the cut.
This kills the lobster as quickly and painlessly as possible.

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Soil testing, ideal vegetable pH levels and veg patch pH adjustment

2011-04-16T08:02:00.000-07:00

As I may have mentioned before, the kitchen garden I set up is in a challenging environment, and soil acidity - particularly near pine trees in waterlogged soil, is a worry.

The first thing to do is a Ph test of the soil.
As most readers know, 95% of the time I will always advise to buy in local Irish outlets, but I got a great deal on ebay for the kit I got.
Preston Bisset Nursaries in England do a great deal on a kit I got via their ebay shop, but you can also order them direct - tell Jacqueline and Peter I sent you.
A Westminster test kit will give you approx. 30 tests - more than enough for 2-3 years for me.
It only cost £5.95 + £2.25 postage.
That is a real bargain, its very easy and simple to use, giving accurate results.
I looked at electronic soil testers, but for the affordable ones the reviews were poor, so it is this kit I would recommend.

VEG PATCH pH ADJUSTMENT
Alteration of soil pH should ideally be done about a month prior to planting.

To lower your soil pH, then you will need to add agricultural sulphur.
To increase your soil pH, then you will need to add agricultural lime.

Lime and sulphur are available at garden centres and packs will have directions for use.

Another idea I will be testing this year is ashes. I tested some old ash from a turf and wood stove, and found it to be very alkeli, so that will be used as a soil adjuster as well as providing bulk to try and raise a few beds.

IDEAL VEG pH AND PLANNING
It's important to get this right when you set up. I should have done this last year when I started, but in western Conemara it is a fairly safe assumption to say the soil is acidic.

The veg patch I have laid out is roughly in the "People Love Bunches Of Roses" format for crop rotation and planning - and that is the way I laid out this ideal pH guide, group by group.
As the garden develops, and new crops are introduced, I will update the list in future.

POTATO
Ideal pH of 4.5 - 6.0. Soils with a pH lower than 6.5 are best-suited for raising potatoes; the ideal soil pH for potatoes is 5 to 6. In fact, potatoes are one of the few vegetable crops that can tolerate and thrive in more acidic soils — soils in the 4.8 to 6.0 pH range.
Potatoes may not do well in soils with a pH higher than 7, because if the pH level is high, many of the nutrients that potatoes require to grow will not be available.

LEGUME'S
Beans 6.0 - 7.5
Pea 6.0 - 7.5

BRASSICA'S AND GREENS
Water Cress 5.0 - 8.0
Cauliflower 5.5 - 7.5
Turnip 5.5 - 7.0
Broccoli 6.0 - 7.0
Brussel Sprouts 6.0 - 7.5
Cabbage 6.0 - 7.5
Chinese Cabbage 6.0 - 7.5
Kale 6.0 - 7.5
Kohlrabi 6.0 - 7.5
Spinach 6.0 - 7.5
Mustard 6.0 - 7.5

ONION FAMILY
Shallot 5.5 - 7.0
Garlic 5.5 - 7.5
Onion 6.0 - 7.0
Leek 6.0 - 8.0

ROOTS AND TUBERS
Jeruselem Artichoke 4.5 - 7.0
Chicory 5.0 - 6.5
Carrot 5.5 - 7.0
Beetroot 6.0 - 7.5
Parsnip 5.5 - 7.5
Oca 5.5 to 7.5
Radish 6.0 - 7.0

SALADS AND HERBS
Tomato 5.5 - 7.5
Cucumber/Gherkin 5.5 - 7.5
Lettuce 6.0 - 7.0
Celery 6.0 - 7.0
Cress 6.0 - 7.0
Horseradish 6.0 - 7.0

FRUITS
Rhubarb 5.5 - 7.0
Gooseberry 5.5-7.0

Acid Soil: Apples, Macadamia, Nectarine,Blackberry, Blueberry,Strawberry,Watermelon

Slightly Acid to Neutral Soil: Grapes, Peach, Pears, Apricot

Neutral to Alkaline Soil: Cherry, Plum, Almond

GRAINS
Quinoa, 6.0 - 8.5
Acid Soil: Oats

Slightly Acid to Neutral Soil: Barley

OTHER'S
Pumpkin, squash 5.5 - 7.5
Asparagus 6.0 - 8.0
Mushroom 6.5 - 7.5

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Seakale, germination and care - as well as something a little historical

2011-04-14T19:50:00.000-07:00

Grandad's 1941 Dept of Ag leaflet's - cost 2s 6d !
Solid advice to kitchen gardners, still valid and helping the family 70 years later.
Thats value.

Sea Kale is a perennial green, hardy and reliable once established, and that's the trick.
My initial batch had a very poor germination rate,this is because the seed is contained in a cork like husk that allows the plant to propagate with the tides in nature.

After some research I found that removing the outer seed casing help's and speed's up germination.
Put the seeds in a bowl of water for a few days,then using a very sharp knife, like a craft knife or scalpel, very carefully and gently take off the outer husk. It's a little like a tiny avocado

Seakale seed, de-husked and ready for pots

Apparently germination usually takes place in 3 to 5 weeks at 15°c but -as I found -can be slow and irregular.
I have already planted out 4, 3 failed but the fourth is doing well under a cloche for now.
As the plant is perennial, and lasts many years, the main aim I have in the first year is to establish at least four plants to make a start.

Paper pots ready to take seed

A new tool I got myself this year came in handy. From Seedaholic in Mayo I got a Nether Wallop paper potter.
Now, I have made my own in the past, but that was all flour glue and lacked uniformity.
The paper potter saves time and bother, recycles newspapers and gives good, uniform starter pots.
It's a very simple, clever and cute addiion to the seed box.

The pots will not disintegrate until planted, even if soaking because their walls are several layers thick so will only bio-degrade after they are put into the ground.
Using the system means there is no root disturbance or damage because the paper pot goes straight in the ground will rot down and the roots will grow through it.

It also looks and feels good and could not be simpler to use. It's a once off investment and well worth it.

As for the seakale, I really look forward to getting it established and growing well, with a bit of luck.

The Fresh, creamy-white stalks of sea kale are a seasonal delicacy at the deadest time of year.
They were harvested from sandy beaches in Victorian times when it was a popular vegetable.
Collectors covered the stalks with sand to keep out the light and develop a delicate flavour.
But over time, wild supplies became so over picked and endangered that it was made illegal to harvest from the beach.

Seakale can be forced like chicory or endive to maintain delicacy to a similar height to rhubarb.
Unlike rhubarb, the frill of leaves at the top can also be eaten.
It can be eaten raw or cooked with melted butter. The Victorians cooked it with a white sauce and served kind of like asparagus. So here's hoping this batch will do better!

fly leaf advert from 1941 manual

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Potato planting, Lazy Beds and 100 posts!

2011-04-11T06:19:00.000-07:00

According to my blog control panel thingy,
this is post 100!!

This is a blog after all about an Irish Kitchen Garden, so I think there is one particular vegetable that is associated with us as a nation - the potato.

Before writing about growing them, I want to touch on the potato in Irish history.

On April 2nd 2011 with many other descendants I attended a commemoration for the 100th anniversary of the 1911 census. The commemoration took place in Shannadonnell.

It was at the house of my Great Great Grandfather, Tom Joyce, who lived through the famine.
The homestead consists of a few ruins, and in the surrounding gardens you can see the old traces of lazybeds.
At the commemoration a poem. Peace by Patrick Kavanagh, was read out, and bought to mind a couplet in another poem.
The Wayfarer by Padraig Pierce, his last poem, written on the eve of his execution in Easter 1916.
Some quiet hill where mountainy man hath sown,
And soon would reap; near to the gates of heaven;
This refers to the potato ridges, the remains of which can still be seen, that reach up into the hills of Connemara. My father always felt it was a specific reference to Shannadonnel which is by mountain track close to Rosmuc, where Pierce had a cottage.

It makes one think - has a nation ever been so blighted or shaped by a single crop?
And that one hundred years, one week and two days later, I am sitting in Connemara filling out a new census form for a new Government, and planting potato's in the same way as Tom would have done.

As a nation, when Tom was a young man, we faced our darkest days from the summer of 1845. The Irish potato famine was not simply a natural disaster. It was a product of social causes that still had resonance in 1916, as it does today.
Like the current financial crisis, when the right conditions arose, despite clear warnings, a weak and distant government failed to deal with the problem in a realistic way, believing their own hubris.
Between 1801 and 1845 there had been 114 commissions and 61 special committees dealing with Ireland who - without exception - prophesied disaster.

Like today the root cause of the disaster was the failure by the political caste and the reluctance to admit and fix the problems of Laissaiz-Faire, the prototype of modern market economics, which at the time was regarded as the only viable economic system.
The inadequacy of relief efforts by the government worsened the horrors of the potato famine.

Initially, the Government believed (as they do today) that the free market would end the problem.
In 1846, in a victory for advocates of free trade, Britain repealed the Corn Laws, which protected domestic grain producers from foreign competition. The repeal of the Corn Laws failed to end the crisis as the Irish lacked sufficient money to purchase foreign grain.

About half of Ireland's population depended on potatoes for subsistence. The result of this was The Great famine, the most severe in the history of European agriculture, from 1845-1848.

Irish peasants subsisted on a diet consisting largely of potatoes.
A "blight of unusual character" devastated Ireland's potato crop, the basic staple in the Irish diet. After potatoes were dug from the ground, they began to turn into a slimy, decaying, blackish "mass of rottenness."
"Famine fever"--cholera, dysentery, scurvy, typhus, and infestations of lice soon spread through the Irish countryside. Observers reported seeing children crying with pain and looking "like skeletons, their features sharpened with hunger and their limbs wasted, so that there was little left but bones." Masses of bodies were buried without coffins, a few inches below the soil.

Over the next ten years, about a million died from disease and starvation, another 2 million left for Britain, Canada, and the United States. Within five years, the Irish population was reduced by 25%.
The 45/48 famine was known as the great famine, or An Gort Mhor. The failure of one commodity, the primary food crop, led to starvation and disease.
Other commodity crops such as grain were exported in large quantities to service debts due to absent politician's - a tiny percentage of the population.
We see the same thing today where our tax's are spent to bail out the bank's and speculators.

A hundred years before, in 1740/1741, there was another famine – the Year of the Slaughter.
10% of the Irish population are estimated to have died.
However – the government at the time took pragmatic action, docks were closed and food exports reduced and curtailed to alleviate the famine and a greater disaster than might have been was averted.
The 1740/41 famine, for example, did not result in the mass death and emigration of the 1848 famine.
So we have already seen when the accepted economic model collapses due to reluctance to change from ill-advised economic concepts and political distance, then people on this Island suffer shortage's and emigration - Tout ca change tout c'est la meme chose - Despite the last election, the current Government still pursues the failed policies of the last lot - Ave! Duci novo, similis duci seneci

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HOW TO GROW POTATO IN A LAZY BED

Anyway, on with the guide on how to grow potato's the traditional way - using lazybeds.

These are the traditional way of growing potato's, giving the advantage of providing more heat and drainage to the crop, First thing is seed potato's, and best advice is always to buy certified seed.

You can get these in any decent garden centre.

If you are developing a garden or keeping unusual varieties as I am, you can also save your own seed.

You can also take a chance and use potato's that have run to seed, but these may be more susceptible or even carry blight spores.

Now, if you are starting out, you can put the seed into the ground, it will grow, but there are two simple way's to improve yield - Chitting and Splitting (say that fast after a few pints)

CHITTING

To ensure a good crop you should ‘chit’ your potatoes before planting them. This simply means getting them to produce nice little sprouts – just like they do when you’ve kept them in the cupboard for too long.

Chitting potatoes is rally good for producing good crops of early varieties and can also make a difference to maincrop harvests.

Set your seed potatoes out in egg boxes or trays with the ‘rose end’ facing up. (The rose end is the end with the most ‘eyes’ in it.) Place them in a light, frost-free room – the greenhouse or spare room is fine – and leave them be for a few weeks. It takes about four to six weeks for potatoes to sprout shoots, by which time you’ll be ready to plant them out.

SPLITTING

You can increase your seed stock by cutting them carefully. If the seed potatoes are small to medium sized, plant the whole potato.

If they are large sized, you can cut them in half, or quarter them. Each section should have two or three 'growth eyes'.

Top left, Axona - certified seed.

Bottom left, Mr. Littles Yetholm Gypsy - home saved seed.

Bottom right, Orla - certified seed.

Top right, Mona Lisa - shop rejects.

Cutting seed should be done in a warm room. After cutting, leave the cut sets for at least one night to let the cut surface dries and forms a callus before planting them out.

GROUNDWORK

I hope all readers do not have the same problems as I do. The ground which I am planting has not been cultivated for 30 years, and that needs a lot of reclaiming.

Even if you have only grass on a plot it is well worth giving it a close cut or strim before starting on the lazybed.

The first thing I had to do was clear the ground of rushes and briar's. Then it was draining. Gardening in Connemara can be very tough, especially when opening up new ground.

The soil is poor and waterlogged. This was partially caused when Galway coco 'improved' the road and managed to block loads of old gluts along the road.

This was quite a bit of work, but with the chillington hoe, a spade and a drag, I got through it and ended up feeling positively Dutch! Once the drain was in, I went over the ground again, clearing briar and rush.

Connemara canal!!

The drain was further extended to provide better water flow.

Once you have the ground cleared/strimmed/mowed it is time to set up the beds.

LAZYBED SETUP

The beds I grow are 3 feet wide as is traditional. Normally the gap between ridges is 1 foot, but I go for 18 inches. So, using lines you lay out the bed.

Next is the base, this suppresses weeds beneath the spuds and provides nutrients.

I use a mix of seaweed and farmyard manure, but compost or pelleted chicken manure can also be used.

Lay out the fertilizer as evenly as possible along the planned lazy beds.

If, like me this year, you are laying out beds on virgin grassland, I would urge you to apply supernemo's to the area. This is because you will have a lot of wireworms, cutworm's and other pests in the ground that will devastate a crop.

I know from experience that last year, on virgin grassland, the potato beds treated with supernemo did very well. The Kerr Pinks sown in a different bed and not treated were destroyed and I did not find nemasys at all as effective as supernemo.

If you are in a wet area, it is also well worth treating the area with nemaslug. Snails will burrow into potato's and destroy them as well.

It is best to leave the manure or seaweed on the ground for a few days before setting the seeds.

The next step is laying out the seed. With the three foot lazy bed system, it is basically a 1 foot/30cm elongated grid. The seed potato's are layed out 1 foot/30cm apart.

Starting from the edge inwards it is 6 - 8 inches in to the first set, then 1 foot to the second, one foot to the third and 6 - 8 inches to the other side of the lazy bed.

Along the length of the lazy bed, the next row is 1 foot along.

lazybed potato spacing

The next step is, using a spade or chillington hoe, cut into the soil along the edge of the lazybed. Then move your line out to the other side of the drainage channel. I use a gap of 18 inches/45cm, but traditionally it was 12 inches/30cm.

Cut along this line as well, and turn in the sod, breaking it up gently and covering the tubers. Trim and whack in the sides as best you can to give the lazybed shape and form.

Cut out and lift in sod, break up.

Repeat on other side of ridge


cover up and tidy the sides

Repeat the process

You will have spare space at the end of the bed to grow something else. My Dad would stick cabbages at the end of each lazy bed.

From my research, it seems that horseradish is a good companion plant for potato, so I will propagate my plant in the ridges this year. So, here are 3 of 5 planned ridges.

And this was what it was like before.

So, even without rotavators and powertools, you can create even from the roughest ground a space for food.

Some might ask why go to the bother when good spuds are cheap and available, especially if space is limited - and it is a valid question.

My answer is threefold.

Firstly, I like to grow my own, and new spuds straight from the ground are delicious.

Secondly, I feel it is important to keep heritage varieties going, so I have taken on board Mr Littles Yetholm Gypsy's. Mine are possibly the only seedbank of the type in Ireland.

It's not just the name that I liked, it's a bit of history. The type comes from the Border Village of Yetholm in Scotland. It was the Gypsy capital of the borders. Local farmers - the Little Brothers - developed it.

It is unusual because it is the only potato to show red, white and blue skin. A boiling potato, the flavour is a mealy and quite delicious.

Thirdly, for me, it gives me a rewarding way of opening up new ground. Rather than just drain and turn the soil for its resulting field of mud, this way I open up the ground, clear it, drain it and have a reward at the end.

Part of my local rights is being able to collect beach sand to mold the potato's later in the year.

This will also improve the condition of the soil after the crop is harvested, and with relatively little more work, the space will be developed into bed's next year as part of a crop rotation program.

Anyway, if you found the blog of use I welcome any comments you might have - please feel free to do so.

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Expansion and coppice plans

2011-04-05T18:35:00.000-07:00

Just watched that new RTE program on Monday - How to Create a garden. Not a patch (pardon the pun) on Garrai Glas that I finally caught up on with their website.
I have to say at least it is a gardening the How to Create a Garden is a gardening show - and fair play to the people who make it, but I found it of little use.
At first I felt was it just me, but the program got pretty badly slated on by others as well on boards.ie as you can read here.
I think it is well meant, but in fairness it is a re-development of a patch of well cultivated land at Fota house that has been cared for over centuries, hardly typical.

I'm fairly sure the average back garden or small holding has not recieved one tenth the attention before being set over for crop's or a kitchen garden.
The use of roundup was disturbing. Why not show people how to make their own weedkiller or support a small Irish company making organic weedkiller like OWK? I feel that RTE should when possible try to promote Irish companies.
Also, there is one piece of advice I always give people when developing a new garden for veg from grass is use supernemo's - again - an Irish company but vital against cutworms and wireworms - in particular when starting a veg garden on virgin grass land like a lawn. If you don't listen to anything else I say, that's the one thing you should heed - I speak from bitter experience.

Garrai Glas seem's a lot more practical and is certainly better made, presented and interesting.

Today I spent most of my time opening up a new area of the garden. Rather than well tilled and maintained land this is what I faced into.

Thats briar, rush, heavy udergrowth, waterlogged and pine boughs. It is this area that will either be used to grow oats or spuds, depending on how things go with seaweed collection, weather ain't great at the moment.

Today it was back to basics, and it was time to get communist in the garden. With all the rock, water and pine trees a strimmer - even if I could afford one - is not really an option, very much back to basics - the heavy curran or sickle.

Not the easiest job in the world - but effective. The long briars that I pulled from the undergrowth were big, and impressive. They are also a very hardy plant that produce fruit. Because of the boggy ground, the root stock was reasonably easy to lift. This gave me the idea of using them to my benefit - a coppiced hedge over a drain.

Tomorrow I will need to put in a drain to make this new patch productive.
The drain will serve three purposes.
Firstly, obviously, to provide irrigation.
Secondly, it will be a place to grow watercress.
Thirdly, with the drain and overhang of bush I hope it will attract frogs and toads to eat slugs.
The flowers should also attract bee's and make use of otherwise lost space - that integrates into the overall plan for the garden long term.

Finally, it will provide a boundry to the veg patch, backed by the idea of a fruit producing but prickly hedge.
My plan is to put in a coppiced hedge, made up of fuscia and rosa rugosa cuttings with pine branch off-cuts and laced in the briar's I pulled from the undergrowth.

I am lucky that I live in a place with abundant roadside fruit - but as this recession bites that resource may well come under pressure and there is an increase in interest in home produced and wild food.

I am going to try my hand at coppicing them into a hedge to protect the veg patch and provide blackberries closer at hand. Using the hedge as an extra space to produce food or fruit is - in a way - another form of complimentary or companion cropping

I have the base materiels from what I pulled today to make a start. I have a lot of stripped pine branches, those pulled from the undergrowth or trimmed off have been laid on the raised bed paths, and the needles and small twigs stripped off as part of the anti-slug program.
I also intend to try and incorporate other cane type fruits like rasberries or thorny ones like gooseberry in future.

One thing for sure, before any root crops go down on a virgin grassland patch, the site will need to be dosed with supernemo's - which I anxiously await in the post.

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Rock's n' Roller's, Oca inna Tuber Tube

2011-04-04T10:51:00.000-07:00

Now, before anyone takes my advice on growing Oca, there is one other blog I would strongly recommend.
That's Ian's Oca test bed blog, this is only my second season growing Oca whereas Ian has been at it for a while. The basis of my knowledge of Oca is based very much on his blog and advice, just an attempted adaptation to the colder, wetter west of Ireland climate.

Last years tubers, this years seed

Well, to be stuck between a rock and a hard place in a Connemara kitchen garden is not an unusual predicament, it sort of goes with the territory.

The back yard

Last year I grew Oca, sourced from Christoph at Macalla farm on Clare Island.

It was a good day to start on the tuber tube, I felt it was appropriate having heard the first cuckoo of the spring. Macalla is the Gaelic for the cuckoo.

I was delighted that the Oca grew last year, but a bit disappointed at the yield in terms of tuber size and amount - so having heard of people doing something similar with potato's I have decided to do a tuber tube.

This has the advantages of saving space for starters. It is designed to fit in a nook in the garden that would not otherwise have been utilised on very shallow ground.

Rock should provide extra warmth

In addition, with a little thought this method will also increase the heat and soil depth available to the crop throughout its growing season, at least that's the theory.
So, where to start? Well, my seed tubers were saved from last year with the intention of growing them again.
Over the winter they were kept in a basket on news paper in a cool dark place.
As Ian advised me, when they are ready to be planted they let you know, they start sprouting fresh green shoots.

Tubers sprouting, ready to rock

So it was off to a local garage in Cill Ciaran where 6 tyres that would probably have ended up as landfill were very kindly given to me free of charge, and more if I wanted.
It should be possible for any one who knows a garage / tyre centre to be able to source these.

Seaweed base, rocks in cavity

Now, rocks retain and radiate heat, so the first tuber tube was placed in a very rocky corner dug out of a crag to give an even base using a chillington hoe, straight forward.
The cavity of the tyre was filled with the fist sized rocks that came out during digging, soil set aside.

The base of the tube was heavily lined with seaweed to provide nutrients, deter slugs and retain moisture.

Old turf dust

From the base of last years turf stack I pulled a few buckets of small, powdered turf and roughly sieved in what is best described as peat moss, again the idea being moisture retention and slug deterrent.

Sieve setup

There is no need to shell out €25EUR on a garden riddle, chicken wire between two tyres will do the trick, just dump on turf dust / stoney soil and give it a bit of going over with a hoe, it's another job for my now favorite tool, the chillington.

Sieve in use

Onto that went a thin layer of roughly sieved soil, throwing away weeds and roots, adding the small stones into the tyre cavity.

Onto this went the oca tubers, I am doing three in one tube, four in the other to explore growing capacity and yield.

Tubers in place

Over this went a layer of soil mixed with a little more seaweed and manure.

First cover

As usual, prevention is better than cure. As a slug and snail deterent, I surrounded the base with ash, and will dump some pine needles there as always.

Basic anti-slug measure - turf ash boundry

Because I am using a lot of virgin soil for this, the tube will be dosed with supernemos next week.

As the season goes on, as the Oca grows, more tyres and soil will be added to force the plant up by earthing in a what that would not be achievable on a normal bed.

I hope that the additional heat and depth will produce bigger tubers, and a bigger yield later in the year.

One important thing to remember is that one can buy stacked tubes for potato's, this is not a new idea, but by going to a garage and getting a few tyres, your saving money and taking stuff out of landfill.

Potato growpots do the same thing, but cost about €25EUR for a three tier version, and just use up more hydrocarbon's. In addition, I think the rubber will provide extra insulation.

The tyres on standby to be added later in the growing season are also being used by me as nursery beds for slow growing plants like leeks that will replace fast growing plants or harvested crop's later in the season.

As always, thanks for reading - if you have anything to add to this post, or any comments or even if you found it of use - please do take the time to comment, I really appreciate the feedback.

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Herring Roe Pate

2011-04-03T04:19:00.000-07:00

OK - I have been cooking a lot of herring recently, but one thing I overlooked was the roe.
Most people throw it away, but doing so is a waste as you buy fish by weight and it is delicious.
When you clean the fish, the females have two large roes, or egg sac's, in the abdominal cavity. They are a dark red - like the colour of liver. They are worth keeping, as this makes a great breakfast treat or starter.

Males have white, fatty looking sacs for Milt (thanks to Mellor from boards.ie for that one) in the same area.
These are not to be used for this recipe.

Had it yesterday as a starter, but forgot to take photo's so I will update the blog in the future.

INGREDIENTS

500g herring roe
2 tbsp plain flour
sea salt and freshly-ground black pepper, to taste
50g Cuinneog butter
1 tsp lemon juice
A few drops of Tabasco sauce
A good pinch of paparika
2 slices wholewheat toast, liberally buttered with even more Cuinneog

Method:
Place the roes in a colander or sieve and pour boiling water over the top.
Dry with kitchen paper.
Season the flour with salt and freshly-ground black pepper - Use a fair bit.
Toss the roes in the flour before and set aside .
Melt the butter in a pan and when foaming add the roes along with the lemon juice and Tabasco sauce and fry for between three and five minutes, or until dry, almost crispy.

In the meantime prepare the toast. Butter it generously.

Cut into triangles, then spoon the cooked roes onto the toast.

I like to sprinkle over some mild, finely sliced sliced shallots.

Garnish with a pinch of paprika and serve with a little dressed salad.

For something that normally ends up in the bin - or in my case the cat's - it's a great snacky meal that takes about 10 minutes to prep, cook and serve up.
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Permacrop 2 - Asparagus and Parsley

2011-04-01T07:40:00.000-07:00

Asparagus, quite an expensive food in shops is easily available from your garden once it is established. Asparagus is a native to coastal regions, so with a bit of care it should do well here.
It's a perennial crop, so will keep producing year after year.
I decided to grow from crowns as opposed to seeds in order to be more sure of establishing the crop.

Bed preparation was straight forward, but I put a fair bit of work into it.

As with the Jerusalem Artichoke I dug down to base rock in the bed.
I pulled the stones from the dig and dumped them at the bottom of the trench to create drainage and a base.
After that I heaped in about two whellbarrows of seaweed and another of well rotted manure - this is a permanent bed, so I went to town on it.
As asparagus is a coastal plant, I feel the seaweed will give it the best nutrition and environment as well as deter slugs underground.

Over that I used chicken wire nailed to the sides of the bed to create a sieve (I think it is referred to as a soil riddle normally) for the soil, breaking it up and removing stones, weeds and lumps of last years turned in grass that had not broken down.
Removing this materiel also let me find cutworms, leather jackets and other nasties that were quickly dispatched to the big weed patch in the sky.

The asparagus patch was separated from the rest of the bed by an old limestone kerb.

The plot itself is lower than the rest of the bed, this is important as the asparagus patch needs to be built up year after year to continue cropping.
It also creates a barrier, obviously the idea is the asparagus spreads its roots around in the plot, expanding and growing within its own soft earth 'box'.

Also, having the different, stepped level I have the option of covering the space with a sheet of transparent corrugated plastic, this will improve the temperature in the plot.

I am growing two types, both purchased from Mr Middletons in Dublin, the idea being variety and different cropping times to extend the production period.

This blog is independent, no sponsors so no vested opinions. In all fairness having previously recommended Mr Middletons postal service I'm afraid I can no longer do so, but more about that later.

One was Connovors Colossal, holder of the RHS award of merit for an outstanding variety and Mr Middleton Gold Medal Winners Bloom 2009/2010. 6 crowns cost €8.99 EUR

The other was Pacific Purple. Advertised as more tender and sweet than many green varieties.
The spears are basically stringless and can be eaten raw, with dips, or sliced in salads.
Colour is lost if cooked so is best steamed. Produces supersweet white spears if earthed up.
4 crowns cost €8.99 EUR

This year I am trying to do as much companion or complimentary planting as possible, every bit helps in the fight against pests and plagues.

Parsley is a companion to asparagus and tomato because it deters asparagus beetles as well as carrot flies and rose beetles. It is also said to improve growth.
The Parsley plants were last years plants starting to grow again, so I simply transplanted them into the asparagus plot up against the limestone to give it a bit more heat, this I hope will help it establish and flourish .
I may also plant a few Atika - root parsley seeds there when the weather gets a little better.

Because of the parsley as a companion crop and the transparent plastic cover option I think I will also try growing tomatillo in the plot. The seeds are en-route from realseeds.co.uk.

A relative of the tomato these small vegetables in a papery husk are related to the tomato, are very productive and easy to grow, used to make salsas, chutneys and in pasta sauces etc, as well as traditional ingredients for Mexican and South American dishes. Tomatillos, referred to as green tomato (tomate verde) are a staple in Mexican cuisine.
The bed itself is in quite a warm, sheltered spot so as a catch crop I also threw in a few strawberry plants picked up as a compulsive buy at Aldi in Clifden.

Mr Middleton problems.
Having recommended Mr Middletons postal service in the past I'm afraid I can no longer do so.
This year, the delays by Mr.Middletons were a problem, as was the very poor communication. I was very dissappointed by the very, very poor customer service.

I cancelled my postal order and the crowns were purchased by a mate in Dublin for me at Mr Middleton's direct.

The attempt to buy them online dragged out, a lot of hassle with no apologies and little explaination.
On the 11th of January I ordered Jerusalem Artichoke and Asparagus crowns from them, as advertised in the Irish times. It was the first time I had spare cash in some time so it was a real treat.

After ordering, and getting confirmation, I got an email saying that there might be a small delay in deliveries.
Over a week later I emailed asking for an update, again, the reply was that they were awaiting delivery with the Artichoke and I should have them within a week - that was about the 19th of Jan.
Roll on Feb 15th - and a phone call asking for card details. I had assumed that payment had been taken in January - but no, and in the meantime I had changed my card.

So I'm a little fed up being messed about, particularly after having been a loyal customer.
If I could have sourced the asparagus crowns elsewhere I would have, as I did with the Jerusalem Artichoke.
The least they could have done was send on the crowns, and send on the tubers at a later date rather than leave me incommunicado for nearly a month.
Anyway, as the old saying goes - buyer beware, and I am sure there are crowns in local garden centres.
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Companion Planting and pest control

2011-03-30T16:16:00.000-07:00

This list summarises some commonly held beliefs about the uses of companion plants, and basic anti-pest precautions I have coveed here before.

Firstly, slugs. Beer traps, copper bands and a good defense in building of slug hostile paths are primary.

Encourage Toads, Frogs and Hedgehogs by providing safe havens, dried cat food t attract them (this will also attract slugs so spread it away from veg beds) and shelter.
Their menu include cutworms, crickets, grubs, chafers, caterpillars, ants, moths, flies, slugs.
They are your friends, welcome and love them,be gretful if you have them.

Slugs are most active at night and are most efficient in damp conditions.
Go slug lamping at night, its fun. At dusk, go out in the garden with torch and a knife and kill them on sight, every slug you kill stops hundreds more being born

Far and away the best course of action against slugs in your garden is a simple adjustment in the watering schedule. Avoid watering your garden in the evening if you have a slug problem. Water in the morning - the surface soil will be dry by evening.
Studies show this can reduce slug damage by 80%.

Secondly, the more insidious underground pests, cutworms, leather jackets et al, especially when opening up new grass land for veggies - use supernemo - a great Irish product that I found to be outstandingly effective.

In my own - non scientific - tests, supernemo outperformed nemasys, another pest control pack, and also I could clearly see that beds treated with suprnemo had little or no crop damage,whereas the few extra beds I threw in the garden that were not treated with supernemo but nemasys suffered very badly - in particular root crops.

SuperNemos are an Irish made bio-control product that contains a wider range beneficial nematode species.

SuperNemos is environmentally friendly, harmless to wildlife, earthworms,bees, bumblebees, pets and kids.

It attacks only target insect pests. There is no need for masks or specialized safety equipment.
This product will control Vine Weevil, Wire worms, Strawberry Root Weevils,Carrot Fly, Weevils, Chafer Grubs, Caterpillars, Cutworms, Leatherjackets, Beetle larvae, Cabbage caterpillar's, Flea beetle, Cabbage root fly, Fungus Gnats Larvae and many more!

SuperNemos will attack its target insect species; the nematodes enter the host through body openings or by penetration of the body wall. Once inside they kill the host within 48 hours.

Now the plants and their companions:

Allium--flowering onions, chives, garlic, leek, onion and shallot
Companion to: Roses, carrots, tomato, fruit trees and other vegetables
Repel aphids, weevils, carrot flies, moles, fruit tree borers; controls rust flies; protects tomatoes against red spiders. Protects roses from black spot, mildew and aphids.
BUT is believed to inhibit growth of peas and beans.

Basil
Companion to: Tomato, asparagus
Repels aphids, flies and mites; helps control insect pests such as tomato horn worms, asparagus beetles, and disease.

Beans (Butter, green, snap, string,wax)
Companion to: Beets, carrots,cucumber, corn, aubergine, potato,strawberry
Encourage growth of companion plants. Adds nitrogen to the soil.

Borage
Companion to: Tomato, strawberry, fruit orchards
Repels tomato worms. Adds potassium, calcium and other minerals to soil. Attracts honeybees.

Chamomile
Companion to: Cabbage, onions
Improves growth and flavor--but plant only one plant every 150 feet or so.

Catnip
Companion to: Aubergine. Fresh catnip steeped in water and sprinkled on plants will drive away flea beetles.

Celery
Companion to: Cabbage, leeks, tomato, cauliflower
Improves growth of companion plants. Repels white cabbage butterflies.

Chervil
Companion to: Radish. Improves growth and flavor.

Chive
Companion to: Carrots. Improves growth and flavor.

Coriander
Companion to: Vegetables. Repels aphids. Attracts bees.

Cucumber
Companion to: Sweetcorn, beans, peas, radish, sunflowers
Improves growth. Vines growing with corn help anchor sweetcorn.

Dill
Companion to: Cabbage. Improves growth. Blossoms attract honeybees.

Fennel
Most plants dislike fennel--so plant it away from the vegetable garden.
Its foliage and flowers may attract beneficial insects.

Geranium
Companion to: Cabbage, corn, roses. Repels cabbage worms.

Horseradish
Companion to: Potato. Encourages growth.

Hyssop
Companion to: Cabbage. Improves growth, deters cabbage moth.

Leek
Companion to: Carrots, celery, onions. Improves growth, repels carrot flies.

Marigold
Companion to: Tomato, potato, strawberry, beans, roses
Encourages growth, deters some pests.
Discourages harmful nematodes if they are grown for several seasons in the ground in areas that have nematode infestations.

Mint
Companion to: Tomato, cabbage. Improves flavor and growth

Mustard
Companion to:Cabbage, cauliflower, radish, Brussels sprouts, turnips, collards, kohlrabi
Plant mustard as a trap crop. It attracts numerous insect pests. Remove and destroy it before your main crops can be harmed.

Nasturtiums
Companion to: Cucumber, other vegetables, fruit trees.
Repels aphids,cucumber beetles and white flies.
Acts as trap crop for aphids. Repels borers near fruit trees.

Onion
Companion to: Cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli,beets, tomato, lettuce, strawberry, chamomile, summer savory
Repels aphids, weevils, carrot flies, moles, fruit tree borers; controls rust flies and some nematodes;
Protects tomatoes against red spiders. BUT is believed to inhibit growth of peas and beans.

Oregano
Companion to: Broccoli, brassica's .Repels cabbage butterfly.

Parsley
Companion to: Asparagus tomato, roses.
Deters asparagus beetles.Improves growth. Deters rose beetles.
Nigel from chillington hoes also informed me that parsley is related to carrots and parsnips and will not deter carrot fly and will actually be attacked by them.

Peas
Companion to: Sweetcorn
Adds nitrogen to soil for use by hungry corn plants. Grows well with carrots, turnip, radish, cucumber, beans and potatoes.

Pennyroyal Broccoli,
Companion to: Brussels sprouts, cabbage, other plants. Discourages ants, plant lice, cabbage maggots.

Radish
Companion to: Cucumber. Deters cucumber beetles.

Rosemary
Companion to: Carrots, cabbage, beans Repels carrot flies, bean beetles, cabbage moths.

Sage
Companion to: Carrots, Brassica's. Repels carrot flies, cabbage moths.

Summer savory
Companion to: Green beans. Improves growth, deters bean beetles.

Tansy
Companion to: Cucumber, squash, roses, raspberry, blackberry.
Deters flying insects, striped cucumber beetles, ants, flies, squash.
BUT, attracts cabbage worms.

Thyme
Companion to: Cabbage
Controls flea beetles, cabbage maggots, cabbage worms and white cabbage butterflies.

Wormwood
Companion to: Various plants Deters black flea beetles, cabbage worm butterflies. Highly Poisonous

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New permabed, new tools

2011-03-28T05:41:00.000-07:00

Well, just made a start on growing, its that time of the year. It's always great to be able to expand in term of crop types and bed's, but it also takes planning and work.
This is particularly true when working on poor, marginal land like we have in Connemara, its pretty unforgiving.
But I have found some fantastic tool's available in Mayo and elsewhere in the country.
Chillington Hoes- I really don't know how these are not more widely used in Ireland, but they are available now - a list of stockists can be seen at this link.

Ridging hoe on left, heavy duty hoe on right.

Recently I invested in two tool's from the Chillington range available in Ireland, and the amount of time and effort they save is remarkable, far easier than the usual pick axe, spade and shovel combo.
The tools I bought were a ridging hoe and a heavy duty hoe, or azada.

I decided to convert last years auxiliary potato ridge into a bed for two permacrops - Jerusalem Artichoke and Sea Kale.
This was tricky as I would have to terrace in a bed. I really felt this could even require the hire of a mini digger, but at gardenplansireland.com I saw an advert for the Chillington's, so I made contact with Nigel and picked them up.
After a brief try with it, I knew the tool would save me time, effort and money - that easy.

The whole process to clear tangled ground, clear rocks, open new ground, fertilise, plant, cover and bank up took me about 3 hours, and with a shovel, spade and pick I think it would have taken at least a days work.
I got to say, for a kitchen garden, particularly here in the west, this has become an invaluable tool.

So, the setup was at the edge of the garden to terrace in a new permacrop - Jerusalem Artichoke being the main one.
Firstly I had to open up the trench, which was under heavy, tangled grass and weeds.
The heavy duty ho took care of this with little effort, despite the stones and rocks. In the picture below it gives you an idea of how much stone comes out of a small trench.

Note the amount of stone on left.

The next step was to lay a bed of permanent nutrients beneath the new crop.
This was made up using seaweed and well rotted manure

After that I laid in the chitted tubers onto the bed seaweed and manure in a herring bone or zig zag pattern.

Next step was obviously to get the soil cove on, again done very quickly with the heavy duty hoe.
I used the larger rocks to shoe up the sides of the bed, and it also will allow me to terrace out the next level should I wish.

Pushing the bed out, again using the heavy duty hoe I edged the bed and put down some Sea Kale plants I had germinated.

Then it was simply to revert to what I know, laying down a pathway of ash and pine needles over the smaller stones taken from the rocky soil.
As I said last year, the building of the pathway using stone clears the soil and provides a great base.
As the pine needles and ash dry out, it becomes an unpleasant environment for slugs and suppresses weeds.

The concept behind the bed itself is straight forward, but the execution - e.g. digging into a rocky incline was always a bit offputting. However, must say that I found the Chillington heavy duty hoe to make the job remarkably quick.
It also allowed me to start to make a start on opening up two new beds that are on ground with lot of large roots, this has also been remarkably quick compared to the usual spade work.

As a review, all I can say is that the heavy duty hoe from Chillington is highly recommended

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Herring in Mustard and Buttermilk sauce

2011-03-11T02:40:00.000-08:00

Again, being in Holland visiting, I go back to the old North Sea / Baltic staple.

This is basically a Scandinavian dish adapted for more Irish style ingredients.
In Sweden, this dish would most likely use dill for example.

I remember one conversation when I was told that had history been a little different Irish cuisine would be more like that found in Scandinavia, Iceland and Holland.
I suppose this has some basis in that our growing conditions are closer to them than to the Mediterranean regions, with things like oats, spelt and pulses.
There has been a move towards this type of cuisine, particularly with NOMA in Copenhagen.

I feel also the type of food cooked in Normandy has particular reference to Ireland, with a lot of dairy, fruit and shellfish.
It is renowned for its rich butter and cream sauces - and for its apples, cider, and Calvados, an apple brandy much used in local cooking. Normandy, with its climate and history is not so different.

One thing we love with our fish is the sharp tang of citrus like lemon, so the buttermilk and mustard sauce gives that flavour. Quite common in Poland, Russia and Northern Germany - where a lot of Ashkenazi Jews lived the same combo of oily fish and a sharp taste was achieved using soured cream and chives, a dish I'll cover in the future.

This is a simple dish, get the potatoes down when you turn on the oven to pre-heat, add the beans over the spuds in a steamer about 5 minutes from plating up.

Takes about 25 - 30 minutes to cook if the fish are prepped in advance.

Baking the fish is important in this dish, as it gives a dry texture to the flesh, it suits the sauce better.

ingredients (serves 2)

4 large herrings, cooking oil

for the sauce

3 tbsp (1 1/2 oz) 40 g Cuinneog butter
30 g (about a 1/4 teacup (1 oz)) plain flour
300 ml (1/2 pint) Cuinneog buttermilk
1 tablespoon Dijon wholegrain mustard
salt and freshly ground black pepper

* Some sugar or honey on standby (see note)

parsley and lemon wedges, for garnish

method

1. Heat the oven to 200°C (400 F) gas mark 6 and butter a deep ovenproof dish. Remove the heads from the fish, clean, gut, scale and bone them. Rinse and pat dry.

2. Slash the skins diagonally with a sharp knife two or three times on each side. Brush with a little oil. Put the herrings in the dish, cover and bake in the oven for about 20 minutes, until the flesh is no longer pinky.

3. Meanwhile, make the sauce. Melt the butter in a saucepan, stir in the flour and cook for a minute. Gradually blend in the milk, stirring. Add the mustard and bring to the boil slowly, stirring until thickened.

Season to taste.

* While tasting, if you find the sauce too sharp add sugar or honey to sweeten slightly

4. Serve the herrings with the sauce poured over, I plated up with some baked new potatoes and buttered green beans.

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New season cooking plans and Irish escargot

2011-03-06T10:23:00.000-08:00

Well folks, its that time of the year again - time to get planting. From what the media says, food prices are going up anyway.

One thing I am looking forward to is more cooking. Just got off a ship with a lot of Catalan food, and was introduced to a great cook book on that subject by my mate Lance's girlfriend - Regina, a formidable, very influencing and creative cook who generally does much larger meals than I do, i.e. with more people to serve, amazing to watch - and the mix of north African /Portuguese/Catalan and more northern European foods is the direction in which I am trending

Its a lucky coincidence I put cardoon and Jerusalem artichoke down this year in the new perennial bed.

Its a lot of what could be called local peasant type food, so should be easy enough to adapt to what we can grow in Ireland, in particular those of you with polytunnels.

What I think attracts me most is the amount of varied fish meals.
I'm already planning to salt my own Pollock to create a home made, locally caught version of Bacalao with a bit of research.
I can already do salted mackerel - a real old Connemara staple.

Another Catalan staple was pickled oily fish like sardines and tuna - for which I hope to substitute herring and mackerel.

The other thing I liked was the way they do snails Escargot - or Cargols as they are called in Catalan - should be an interesting year. The way I see it is why they can get away with eating my salad plants when I could be eating them with salad plants.

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Scottish Style Herring

2011-02-24T15:32:00.001-08:00

Combining two items which formed a staple of the Scottish crofters diet over many centuries, herring coated in oatmeal is a traditional, tasty, nourishing dish rich in Omega Oils. These two ingredients would have also been staples in Connemara, although I don't think they were used together in this part of the world.
Herring is an under-rated fish, sustainable, healthy commonly available and economical.
Catching them on a small scale can be hard, as net caught is a lot easier than line caught which is very tricky as they feed mostly on plankton throught their lives.

Herring are a wonderful fish, and are a major part of North West European heritage.
Sill is what herring are called in Scandanavian countries. In Russia, pickled herring is called Silodka.
In Holland in particular, herring has always been very important, in some ways Herring built Holland.

They love small herring served raw with diced fresh onions - and I love it in a white bread roll.

In the seventeenth century, the Dutch herring fisheries in the North Sea were considered the most sophisticated and demanding fishing operations in the world. From the income generated in exporting herring accross Europe the Dutch generated income that went into sailing technology that created their golden age.
In historical terms, herring can perhaps be considered the most important commercial fishery in the world.

The Dutch began to build ships which resulted in Holland becoming a seafaring power.
The trade of herring eventually led to the Dutch empire through exploitation and later colonialization.

Without the money and technological development built on the Herring fisheries, there would have been no Dutch East Indies company, no Java coffee - The Dutch were the first to import coffee on a large scale, and they were among the first to defy the Arab prohibition on the exportation of plants or unroasted seeds when Pieter van den Broecke smuggled seedlings from Mocha, Yemen, into Europe in 1616. The Dutch later grew the crop in Java and Ceylon.

Without this trade there would have been no golden era to generate the money to allow the Duch Masters like Claesz, Vermeer, Rembrant et al to create paintings that we all know and love today, and without that artistic foundation it is doubtful if we would still be enthralled by Van Gough.

Still-Life with Herring, 1636, Oil on Panel, 36 x 46 cm, Museum Bijmans Van Beuningen, Rotterdam.

Painted in 1636 by Dutch artist Pieter Claesz (1597-1660), 36 x 46 cm, Oil on Panel, Museum Bijmans Van Beuningen, Rotterdam.

Herring are also one of the more environmentally responsible fish

This quick and easy meal is without doubt one of the simplest and tastiest meals to cook, great with salad and soda bread or new potatos later in the year. If you are lucky enough to have them, mashed jeruselem artichokes are great with this dish

Ingredients:
Allow 2 herrings per person
Rolled Oats - unsweetend like Flahavans porrage oatlets.
Salt and pepper
Knob of butter

Method:
Cut along the underside of the herring, lay it on a table, cut side down and hit across the backbone in a few places with a rolling pin or your hand.
Remove the backbone and as many of the smaller bones as possible.
Scrape the scales from the fish with a knife, remove heads and tails.

Sprinkle with salt and pepper and either toss them in a plastic bag with plenty of rolled oats or put the fish on a plate and coat them with oatmeal - you may have to press the oats into the fish to ensure it is fully covered.
Put a knob of butter in the pan - cooking oil or dripping also work - put them in with the skin side upwards first.
Fry until lightly brown, turn and cook the other side. It should take 5/7 minutes.
Drain the fish on kitchen paper (paper towels).

I'd suggest serving with lemon and parsley - old Scots would not have known such refinements!
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Delaney delivers

2011-01-21T18:01:00.000-08:00

The perennial bed needs a fair bit of prep, and thats where Delaney helps out by providing a fair bit of manure.

I ordered some asparagus crowns from Mr.Middletons, which should be here next week along with some jeruselem artichoke.
What I am using for fertilizer is a mixture of seaweed, donkey manure and compost from kitchen waste.

I realise I am lucky when it comes to sorting organic fertilizer, but at the same time it has taken a lot of effort in tems of providing carrots and apples all year.

As for Delilah, Delaneys friend, we are expecting another delivery - and that I will post as soon as I know

One thing I do want to find is old kreels, or Donkey panniers, I think if Mr D benefits from the garden he should provide a bit of labour in that direction - all offers or ideas welcome to make Delaney work for living rather - as Mamo Corcaigh would say - sit around smoking fags and playing cards all day.

He has taken recently to braying at any stranger on the road to provide apples and carrots - that kind of behaviour needs to end

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Sustainable Local Fish - Mackerel

2011-01-19T04:45:00.000-08:00

Please feel free to copy, paste and adapt this page to support FISHFIGHT.NET
==========
LOGO/NAME OF YOUR LOCAL SHOP/GROUP
SUSTAINABLE LOCAL FISH
MACKEREL

Ronnach

(Scomber scombrus)

(F) Maquereau (D) Makrelen (NL) Makreel (E) Caballa

Mackerel is a local, sustainable fish. It is extremely common in huge shoals migrating towards the coast to feed on small fish and prawns during the summer.
Traditionally in Connemara this fish was salted to preserve it, and served with new potato's.
Abundant in cold and temperate shelf areas, it forms large schools near the surface. They over winter in deeper waters but move closer to shore in spring when water temperatures range between 11° and 14°C.
Environmental Information
Mackerel is seen as one of the most sustainable fisheries. Favoured fishing methods should always be our main priority when sourcing our fish.
The trawl used by the Irish fleet is designed and rigged to fish in mid-water ensuring that there is no impact on bottom habitats or structures. No part of the trawl is designed to come in contact with the sea bed
Nutritional Information
Atlantic mackerel is extremely high in vitamin B 12. Mackerel is also very high in omega 3 containing nearly twice as much per unit weight as does salmon.
Mackerel is an excellent source of Phosphatidylserine, an important brain food that can have positive effects on ADHD and Alzheimer patients.

50% of fish caught in the North Sea are thrown back dead - this wasteful practice is called discard.

To end this practice You can be a part of a campaign called Fish Fight.
I would urge You to visit the site - WWW.FISHFIGHT.NET- and get informed and involved.
By supporting this campaign, your name will be added to a letter to be sent to Commissioner Maria Damanaki, members of the Common Fisheries Policy Reform Group, and all MEPs

Your support WILL make a difference

===========

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Sustainable local fish - Pollock

2011-01-19T04:34:00.000-08:00

Please feel free to copy, paste and adapt this page to support FISHFIGHT.NET

==========

LOGO/NAME OF YOUR LOCAL SHOP/GROUP

SUSTAINABLE LOCAL FISH

POLLOCK

SAITHE

(Pollachius pollachius)

(F) Lieu / Colin (D) Seelach (NL) Koolvis (E) Carbonero / Fogonero

Traditionally a popular source of food in some countries like Norway where Pollock is often prepared as fried fish balls or if smaller sized maybe breaded with oatmeal and fried as in Shetland. Year old fish are traditionally split, salted and dried over a peat hearth in Orkney.
The fish can also be salted and smoked and achieve a salmon-like orange color (although it is not closely related to the salmon), as is the case in Germany where the fish is commonly sold as Seelachs or sea salmon.
The Atlantic pollock is related to the cod and haddock, it is also called colin, saithe, lythe and coalfish (particularly in the United Kingdom).
Atlantic pollock is a lean fish with somewhat darker flesh than cod.
Environmental Information
In recent years Pollock has become more popular due to over-fishing of other species.
Atlantic Pollock is a local whitefish. Harvested from locally, pollock is caught by mid-water trawls and hand lines.
Nutritional Information
Pollock is very low in saturated fat and a very good source of protein, Vitamin B12, phosphorus, and selenium.

50% of fish caught in the North Sea are thrown back dead - this wasteful practice is called discard.

To end this practice You can be a part of a campaign called Fish Fight.
I would urge You to visit the site - WWW.FISHFIGHT.NET- and get informed and involved.
By supporting this campaign, your name will be added to a letter to be sent to Commissioner Maria Damanaki, members of the Common Fisheries Policy Reform Group, and all MEPs.

Your support WILL make a difference
==================

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Sustainable Local Fish,Herring

2011-01-19T04:11:00.000-08:00

Please feel free to copy, paste and adapt this page to support FISHFIGHT.NET

==========

LOGO/NAME OF YOUR LOCAL SHOP/GROUP

SUSTAINABLE LOCAL FISH

HERRING

Scadán

(Clupea harengus)

(F) Hareng (D) Hering (NL) Haring (E) Arenque

The trade in herring is an important sector of many national economies. In Europe the fish has been called the "silver of the sea", and its trade has been so significant to many countries that it has been regarded as the most commercially important fishery in history.
In Devon and Cornwall they are called Silver Darlings. Herring are highly prized for flavour and nutrition.

In the past Herring would have been a healthy and popular staple. They are particularly popular in the Netherlands. Herring is also a staple food in Germany, Belgium and Scandinavia.
Preserved and pickled they are found throughout Eastern Europe. Kippers are smoked Herring.
Environmental Information
Atlantic Herring (Clupea harengus) are one of the most environmentally responsible fish. It is one of the most abundant fish species on earth.
They can grow up to 45 centimeters (17.7 in) in length and weigh more than 0.5 kilograms (1 lb). They feed on copepods, krill and small fish, while their natural predators are seals, whales, cod and other larger fish.
North Atlantic herring schools have been measured up to 4 cubic kilometres (0.96 cu mi) in size, containing an estimated 4 billion fish.
Nutritional Information
Herring are very high in the long-chain Omega-3 fatty acids EPA and DHA.
They are a good source of vitamin D.

50% of fish caught in the North Sea are thrown back dead - this wasteful practice is called discard.

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Hughs Fish Fight

2011-01-18T03:29:00.000-08:00

I am not a great fan of the current cult of celeb's that seem to dominate our airwaves and newspapers.

However, there are those who do some great work in raising issues that civil servants and politicians like to brush under the carpet. Most notable perhaps was Bob Geldof when he arranged LiveAid all those years ago.

Recently Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, a celeb cook and broadcaster in the UK started a very admirable campaign to reform fisheries policy in the EU.

The campaign is called Fish Fight, and I support it. I would urge readers of this blog to visit the site - fishfight.net- and get informed and involved.

I admire the campaign he has started

There is also a facebook page you can join to support the campaign -

http://www.facebook.com/hughsfishfight

Due to EU policy, determined by unelected and unaccountable EU bureaucrats we have the obscene situation where half the fish caught at sea are dumped.

There should be a greater moral outrage that perfectly good food is being wasted, and the bizarre practice means animals are needlessly and pointlessly killed, this when there are hungry and undernourished people in our own societies

For my part I have produced information sheets for some local butchers, with fish info on one side and a range of recipes on the other, to encourage people to use a wider range of fish.

Herring, Mackerel and Pollack are locally caught Connemara fish and are as good as cod or haddock and onthis blog I have posted info on al three types.

Any person who runs a business that sells fish - like a butchers - or who knows a local shop that sells fish is free to copy, download, adapt and reproduce any of the info posted on the 19th on this blog.
If you have a local store who you know, copy and print these off for them to display, its easy to do and who knows - you might get some free fish for your efforts!

I would suggest these fact sheets go on one side of an A4 sheet, and a recipe is put on the reverse side.

I will be posting some fish recipes in the near future.

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The Perennial kitchen garden plot, permanent crop choices

2011-01-14T08:00:00.000-08:00

Well, the more I learn about gardening and plants, the more ideas I get. For people with limited space, or with just a flower garden a few of these plants may be of interest.
They provide food, and also garden colour - so well worth a look.
I will update this posting with my own pictures etc. as and when I get them, the pics shown are generic from searches.
This year I transplanted my horseradish and put rhubarb crowns in their permanent positions. With some great advice from gardenplansireland.com I decided to dedicate one bed to perennial crops.
It means I will need to create a new one for rotation, but I have the space.

From the Irish seedsavers association in Clare I got a few seeds, including Sea Kale and a Salsify.

The sea kale is called Lily White. It has distinctive grey/blue green fleshy leaves that give a display of pure white flowers in late spring. It is a protected plant now in many places.

As a food crop it is the early shoots (like asparagus) that are eaten raw or cooked.
They are best when blanched so put a thick layer of straw over them in autumn/winter.
Don’t start cropping until the second year.

Salsify is a root vegetable that goes back to the middle ages. I do know it is not the easiest veg to prep, I believe the Dutch call it screaming housemaid!! It is very old, having been mentioned by Plinny the Elder.

Pulled in winter it has long tapering roots with a distinct flavour – some say oyster-like
As with the sea kale the flower is also good for ornamental gardener’s as all summer long they bloom with large brilliant purple daisy-like flowers

I am delighted to say they also have, again, tipperary turnip in stock. This was a massive success in last years garden as it was very hardy, gave a high return and some great meals.

The other main source of perennial food crops has been seedaholic's in Mayo.

The perennials I ordered from them were mainly herbs, but I also got three perennial veg.

One close relative of the globe artichoke is Cardoon which is popular in France, Spain and Italy.

I got Good King Henry from them. Also known as Lincolnshire Spinach. It promises to be a very versitile plant.

The young leaves and flowering stems can be either eaten in salads or cooked like spinach.
The seed can be ground and mixed with flour then used in making bread.
Known as 'poor man's asparagus', the growing shoots can be tie together in bundles, cooked and eaten like asparagus. Young flower buds can be sautéed in butter

I also got a Sorrel from them - “De Belleville” French or Garden Sorrel
Its meant to be very easy to grow, producing clumps of pale green leaves with a good lemon flavour.
I am told that once you've got a clump going it needs no attention other than when you want to eat it

Sorrel is a ‘herb-vegetable’ or ‘pot-herb’ as it can be cooked like a vegetable.
It can be harvested at baby leaf stage and is great in salads and sandwiches as it doesn't go limp but is most delicious when cooked

From Mr Middletons in Dublin I ordered two other perennials.

Jeruselem Artichoke tubers, they seem a lot less hassle than the globe version.

They also had Aparagus crowns in stock. I got Connovars Colossal as it had 6 crowns - easier to grow than from seed.

So, the plan is that this bed will be very low maintainence, and with any luck - permanently productive.

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Connemara Buttermilk Clafoutis or Simple Clafoutis with plums

2011-01-08T11:06:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year to all readers, particularly the followers of the blog - and to start the year a simple but perfect French classic.

I have developed two varients for this posting, the classic French and an Irish version given further down the page that gives a richer, more savoury texture to the dessert.

Classic Clafoutis with plums

Clafoutis is a simple French dessert - very easy to make, super simple, but it looks really impressive.
You can use apples, pears, prunes, blackberries etc.

There are tons of recipes and variations for Clafoutis, including some that want pre-heating and cooling of the milk and cream etc, but this is the simplest, most foolproof way I have found.
Traditionally in France it is made with cherries.In Limousin where the dish comes from if cherries are not used its more properly called Flaugnarde.

You can use most garden fruits for this, I used shop bought plums, sliced and stoned, and my neighbour Judah's eggs which I get in return for kitchen waste that's fed to her chickens.

It is very economical, made with seasonal fruit, eggs, milk, cream and flour.
It's also a real money saver - a great way to use up fruit that is just a little over-ripe so keep an eye on the reduced fruits at the supermarket.

It's a shame to see good food go to waste. We have developed a such a disposable culture, with little regard to seasonal food. I think it is kind of sad and detrimental to cuisine that seasons are no longer really taken into account.

When you grow your own, you do learn to appreciate the seasons and the work it takes to produce more.
Even in street markets, I noticed on a visit to Dublin after the Moore street market closed the Roma Gypsy's were collecting fruit that was just a little over ripe or past its sell by date-so if you want to be totaly surfer feral in saving money supermarket bins are always worth a look.

It is good cold, but best served warm - ideal as a dessert when you are doing other things in the oven like baked potato's - as you will be prepping and serving this after the same meal, using the same temperature.

INGREDIENTS
Varient 1 - Classic French
(The more savory Irish buttermilk version is further down in this post)

100 gm - ½ teacup - sugar (reserve 1 Tbsp. to dust baking dish)
100 gm - 2/3 teacup all- purpose flour
200 ml - ¾ teacup milk
50 ml - ¼ tea cup heavy cream
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
pinch of salt

Knob of Cuinneog butter - about an ounce - to grease baking dish
Fruit of choice to fill

METHOD
Preheat the oven to 180 deg. C

In a blender, combine all the the ingredients except the fruit and butter, and blend on high for 1 minute.

Take a good sized baking dish, add butter and put it in the oven until the butter is melted and lightly foaming.

Remove the baking dish and then spread the butter around the base and sides.

Dust a teaspoon of sugar around the base of the dish..

Pour in half the batter.

Now layer in the fruit in the partly filled pan, floating on the lower level of batter

Pour on the remaining batter and bake until the top puffs and starts to turn golden-brown, about 45-60 minutes.

Serve warm with a little flavoured whipped cream, I added lime zest and sherry to mine.

It is a great winter warmer and looks great. If you can make a pancake you can make this.
I actually wish I had a few small oven dishes to do this in individual portions, and may do so in future, but bringing the big warm dish to the table looks great with all the bright colours at this time of year.

Varient 2 - Irish Alternative: Connemara Buttermilk Clafoutis

Apple and Pear Buttermilk Clafoutis

As most regular readers know, I try my best to produce my own ingredients or source them from closer to home. I also love to take recipes and give them an Irish twist. This variation on the classic Clafoutis gives a richer, more savory pastry.

I like to use Cuinneog dairy products as they are from the next county, but more importantly they really give a great flavour.

INGREDIENTS
100 gm - ½ teacup sugar (reserve 1 Tbsp. to dust baking dish)
100 gm - 2/3 teacup all-purpose flour
200 ml - ¾ teacup Cuinneog buttermilk
50 ml - ¼ teacup natural Yogurt OR heavy cream
3 eggs
Level teaspoon baking soda or baking powder
1 teaspoon Honey
pinch of salt

Knob of Cuinneog butter - about an ounce - to grease baking dish
Fruit of choice to fill

The method is identical to the classic version, and takes just a little longer to cook. The above measures take about 50 minutes at 180 deg C in a preheated fan assisted oven.

Apple and Pear Clafoutis served up with sherry flavoured whipped cream

As always, feel free to comment or share using facebook - I really appreciate the feedback

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Quick and Easy Whitefish in Parsley and Wine

2010-12-29T06:20:00.000-08:00

A very easy to cook meal, and a great way to do fish.

The advantage of this is that you also create a really nice, delicate sauce at the same time.
I hate doing dishes, so this is a way to cut back on washing up.

I used shop bought fresh haddock for this - but whiting and pollack are good as well.
This will easily feed 4 people.

INGREDIENTS:
4 haddock or other white fish fillet, about 200 gm each
2 tbl Lemon juice
2 tbl Olive oil
4 tbl water
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
1 large carrot - peeled and sliced into thin strips (use a peeler for this)
3 sticks celery - finely sliced
1 leek - finely sliced
Salt and Pepper
Parsley.

Optional - about half a glass of white wine to deglaze

METHOD:
Place the lemon juice, oil, water, celery, leek and carrot in a large, heavy based pan.
Season to taste and bring to a boil.
Lower the heat to a simmer and place the fish skin side down in a layer on top of the veg in the pan.

Cover the pan with foil or baking parchment - then use a lid to cover it and keep as much steam in as possible.
It only takes about 10 minutes for the fish to be cooked, its done when the flesh is flaking.

Using a fish slice, very gently transfer the fish to a warm plate.
Now add the parsley to the veg mix and cooking liquid.
A drop of wine can be added to deglaze the pan at this point.
Then spoon over the fish and serve.

I just had some quickly wilted spinach and lemony courgette as extra veg and some oven fries - what would fish be without chips after all.

The lemon courgette is very easy, in a heavy bottomed pot add a little butter and bring to a foaming point.
Throw in a julienned courgette, add a tbls of lemon juice and sweat off.
Then, just to add a little extra, try adding and reducing some spinach, it gives a lovely accompaniment to this dish.

It is a very handy light meal, which is what a lot of us like this time of year after the Xmas's excess.
Anyway - hope you find the recipe of use, and please take the time to comment - I appreciate the feedback.

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Snowbound in Connemara

2010-12-23T06:33:00.000-08:00

Just a few photos of the recent snow, worst I've ever seen in Ireland - in particular this far west with the gulf stream.
The Donkeys have moved back to Delilahs place until the cold snap passes, but the cattle seem happy enough where they are given enough fodder.
The Carna/Cill Ciaran region are among the worst affected in the country - no gritting etc. The nearest drivable road is the Clifden/Galway main road, as usual this far west and Galway CoCo dont give a fiddlers.

Nosey Donkey

Its all fairly hard core at the minute - and the most ironic thing is that the freezer just broke down

Moo-hawk

Garden on ice

Snowed in tomb

Delaney and Delilah on the move

Snowbound croft

Talking about the weather

Moonlight Donkeys

Here endeth the road

Pretty Cold!

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Buttermilk fried rabbit

2010-12-22T05:51:00.000-08:00

This is another dish from the southern states in the US - great with collard greens and a little home made blackberry chutney.

It also compliments home-made soda bread very well, and you normally use buttermilk for that - so its a great way to use up buttermilk.
Food is only as good as the ingredients used, and I would not hesitate to recommend Cuinneog buttermilk.

It works well with chicken, but is particularly good with rabbit as it stops the game drying out.
Perfectly tender, well flavored, crunchy - just what one wants in fried rabbit or chicken.

With the crunchy, fun texture it is an easy way to introduce more squeamish kids to rabbit.

Its also so much healthier than chicken nuggets, which are packed with preservatives, salt and re-constituted meat which is pretty gross - Mechanically separated meat, a chemically treated slurry - may not be described simply as "meat" on food labels, but must be labeled as "mechanically separated". Most chicken nuggets are made from this.

I had some belly and shoulder off-cuts left over from the Dublin Bay Paella so this is a very handy way to use them up - as I find the fore quarters of a rabbit too finicky to cook in any other way - like chicken wings.
Its also a great way to prevent waste and save some money.
For chicken wings this makes a great, and I believe healthier choice than the usual preservative sugar salt packed off the shelf mix that people normally use.

You need a lot of oil for this, as with Spanish omelette's - but you can reuse it a few times.
When you’re done, let the oil cool and then pour it through a fine-mesh strainer with a piece of paper towel set inside it that has been set over a bowl.
The paper towel will filter the brown bits and you can just pour the strained oil back into the container

INGREDIENTS

SOAKING
350 ml - about 2 cups - of cuinneog buttermilk
1 large onion, sliced
1/4 cup chopped mixed fresh herbs (parsley, tarragon, thyme) or a teaspoon each of the dried herbs.
Clove garlic, minced or grated
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

I really like to add a 1/4 cup coriander or cilantro in this recipe as well - but only if fresh.
Recently in the centre of Galway I found an absolutely brilliant fruit and veg shop in the Eyre Square shopping centre called Mister Beans
It's run by a very helpful, nice guy called Paul Bradly. Great range of products, especially the harder to find herbs and veg - with a far better range than the nearby supermarkets.
Its well worth a visit - probably the closest thing Galway has to what you can find in Corks English Market, and I always try to support the smaller outlets against the retail giants.

COATING
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Salt and pepper

As a highly recommended optional extra 1/2 cup rolled porridge oatlets - I just use Flahavans.
The idea is actually Scottish, they fry herring in rolled oats and it gives real extra crunch in this recipe
METHOD
1 Soak rabbit or chicken overnight (at least 8 hours and up to two days) in buttermilk with onions, herbs, paprika, and cayenne pepper.

2 Drain in colander, leaving some herbs on chicken. In a plastic bag, mix flour and oats with seasonings.
Meanwhile, heat 2 cups of oil in a large, heavy-bottomed skillet on medium high heat until a pinch of flour starts to sizzle when dropped in the hot oil (but not so hot that the pan is smoking)

3 Place rabbit or chicken pieces in bag with the oat and flour mix - shake until thoroughly coated.
Add the meat to hot pan and fry on 1 side for 12-15 minutes, until golden brown, and then turn the pieces over and fry for another 10-12 minutes, again until golden brown.

Be careful to keep the oil hot enough to fry the meat, but not so high as to burn, and a lid on the side just in case.

As always, I hope you find this post of use - please take time to comment or make other suggestions, and feel free to let others know about the blog.

UPDATE

Same marinade and batter recipe shown here using chicken - served with creamed potatos and collard greens

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