COOKIE CHALLENGE!

MARKET CHALLENGE from ANGELFOODS!


Picked up some tasty cookie bits and a challenge at Blarney Farmers Market recently. After the tasting the samples, I bought a bag by Angelfoods which contained most of the ingredients and all the instructions needed to make 18 Spiced Date and Sultana Cookies.


Had the gear.  The opportunity came this dreary Bank Holiday Monday. The alternative was watching St Mirren and Hamilton Accies on the telly - I did break away from the baking to see the only goal!

Added 4 ozs of butter and one medium egg to the mix and it was easy after that. Fifteen minutes in the oven and soon afterwards was doing the taste test. Not bad at all. Cookies can be stored for up to one week. Don't reckon they’ll last that long! By the way, Spiced Oat and Sultana is just one of a selection of cookie flavours available in this handy kit form. Watch out for them!

BLARNEY FARMERS MARKET

BLARNEY FARMERS MARKET

Enjoyed a pleasant stroll around the Blarney farmers market in the Grounds of the Blarney Woollen Mills Hotel yesterday.

This market is not all about food and has a few craft stalls. One that catches the ear as much as the eye is Windwalker. You will hear the music of the flute as you approach.

Windwalker (021 4874851 and 086 8168652) makes North American Indian style flutes and crafts, including handmade elk and deer hide moccasins and boots, even feather earrings.

Angel Foods are a stall new to me and here I was challenged to try out one of their baking mixes. Having tasted a few samples, I picked Spiced Oat and Sultana Cookies, enough to make 18. The 560 gram pack costs €4.99. I’ll let you know how I get on!

Also met an “old" friend in Manning Emporium’s stand and left with some Jack McCarthy’s Black Pudding and also some Dunmanus cheese, made by one of West Cork’s leading artisans exclusively for Manning’s.

The Dunmanus was quickly pressed into service as part of an impromptu lunch in the back garden. The other ingredients were Janet’s Country Fayre Wine and Cheese Chutney (bought in Midleton’s Pantry) and the Arbutus Bread Company’s Brown loaf (bought early that morning in O’Keeffe’s Grocery Store in St Luke’s). Buy Irish, but local!

By the way, wasn't Declan Ryan of the Arbutus lucky not to be directly involved in that fatal boat accident in South America?

Back to Manning’s who have announced that they will hold the West Cork Food and Drink Fair on the 18^th and 19^th of June. If you are in the West Cork, even if you aren’t, that should be worth a visit. More details here 

Clodagh McKenna opens BLARNEY FARMERS MARKET

BLARNEY FARMERS MARKET 

Clodagh McKenna did the honours this morning as the Blarney Farmers Market, in the grounds of the Blarney Woollen Mills Hotel, was officially opened.

It was a pleasant, if low key affair, the attendance down because of the icy state of the side roads in the area. That didn't stop the stall holders though and there was a fine turn-out, including regulars such as Tom’s Bakery, Manning’s Emporium, Kiwi Hot Coffees, Mealagulla Orchard (selling a welcome mulled apple juice with secret ingredients!) and the fishy pair Mary and Sheila, two of the nicest fishmongers you’ll ever meet.

Clodagh joined in with the carol singers and no doubt there’ll be a demand for the photographs and she also toured the various stalls, shaking hands and having a chat.

Meanwhile, I was doing a bit of shopping and went off home happy with, among other things,  some lovely Durrus cheese from Manning’s, apples from Mealagulla (cookers and eating), a Country Baguette from Tom’s (one of my all time favourites) and, last but not least, a gurnard, courtesy of Sheila and Mary.

Hopefully the weather will be better next Sunday when a special edition of the market will be held (10.00am to 6.00pm). A fun filled day is promised with Kid’s Crafts and demonstrations and a live crib.

CLODAGH MCKENNA TO OPEN BLARNEY MARKET

Clodagh McKenna is set to officially launch the Blarney Farmers Market on Thursday 9^th December from 11am to 12.30pm – she will also be signing copies of her new book.  

Thanks to Deirdre Mangan of Blarney Woolen Mills for the info.

BLARNEY FARMERS MARKET

BLARNEY FARMERS MARKET

Twenty or so stalls set up in the grounds of Blarney Woollen Mills this morning as the regular Thursday Farmer’s Market eased (was going to say swung) into action.

Surprised to find an outpost of Manning’s Food Emporium there but not surprised at all at the quality of their offerings. Got interested in the cheese and after a couple of tastings and a bit of banter decided on the Coolea.

Bread was next on the agenda and a call nearby to the stall of Tom’s Bakery (from Kinsale), a regular market attendee, solved that as €3.60 bought a rye loaf. Mealagulla Orchard was displaying cooking apples at just €2.00 for five. Great value, as were the eating apples at €2.00 for ten. Left with two bags full!

Plenty of other stalls offering food, including cup cakes and relishes and honey (Is it a bit expensive at €7.00 a jar?) and then one or two “craft” stalls and also one selling Native American flutes! Nice mix all round for both local and tourist and very central as well.

 Mealagulla Orchard apples

 Setting Up

Outpost of Manning's Food Emporium