Food and Drink Spotting Digest

My Food and Drink Spotting Digest

Getting great use here from Gimme the Recipe, the newly published book by Cork food blogger Sheila Kiely. The latest success was her Chicken Provencal (right) and that proved a treat at a dinner over the weekend. The book, a very practical one, especially for the busy mum (Sheila has six kids), is available at Eason’s and Waterstone’s.

Two great coffees going in the house at the moment. Badger and Dodo have come up trumps with their Tanzania Ngorongoro Blue. I got my pack at Bradley’s in North Main Street but I understand supplies are running out so you’ll have to hurry to get this well balanced coffee from the small farms under Mount Kilimanjaro.

Don’t believe I ever tasted a coffee from Thailand until the Thai Doit Chaang came in the post via the Connoisseur Coffee club of Robert Roberts. Another cracking cupful, smooth with excellent flavour.

While I was in Bradley’s for the coffee, I noticed another breakfast cereal: Superior Spelt Muesli from Tipperary’s Ballybrado Farm. I’m hooked, a terrific balance of tastes and flavours and organic to boot. Now to try their other products.

Many of us foodies are often inclined to run down supermarkets but not all of us, Gimme the Recipe author Sheila Kiely had praise galore for her local Supervalu (Ballincollig) at last week’s book launch.

And I have seen, at first hand, some very good local inputs at various Supervalu’s, the latest at Scally’s in Blackrock. Been sampling some of their in-house products recently and was delighted with the excellence. Two that really impressed were their sea-food chowder and the Shepherd’s Pie, really tasty and at a very good price.

Called in to see Paul Kieran at Bubble Brothers, just back from his packed Australia trip. Of course he sold me, a willing accomplice, a bottle of wine from Oz, a smashing Chardonnay from the Irish founded Xanadu winery in the Margaret River.


But I also ended up with a Japanese plum liqueur in a 5ml jar. It was 15% but I didn’t really become aware of the alcohol until I bit into the whole plum that had been in the jar for years. Like brandy! Phew. Think he’s still got some of them if you’d like to experiment!



Shorts:

Pot Roast with a difference: http://www.fastcompany.com/1685223/cannabis-catering-offers-marijuana-infused-haute-cuisine

Recipe for Provencal Tomato Sauce: http://www.blogsuculento.co.uk/?p=2333

On a light note, thanks to Eoin Lettice ‏ @blogscience http://www.communicatescience.eu/2012/03/on-lighter-note.html