Taste of Christmas #3. Barnabrow House Christmas Cake

Taste of Christmas #3. 

Barnabrow House Christmas Cake

We regularly get our hands on the Christmas cake made by Barnabrow House and bought the 2024 version at Roughty Foodie in the English Market a few days back. It is as good as ever, thanks to Barnabrow's Geraldine Kidd and her team in East Cork.

It is packed full of fruit and other essentials (including the same beer and whiskey as in their pudding); it is delicious, fruity and nutty, not too heavy, yet take it easy (make it linger!).  And if there's just one or two in the house, then they have a convenient size for you. The cake and the pudding will bring a smile to your face, a nostalgic smile for those of us of a certain age.

And there is a nice nostalgia story, too, on the Barnabrow label. Tales from the kitchens (Irish and Sri Lankan) "when the cakes of our childhood was being prepared and everyone getting a stir of the mix. Will we have almond icing or just sugar icing or glazed fruit finishes?"

No need to worry about all that.. Just pop into Roughty Fruity and bag yourself a handy cake and pudding double (they know all about bookie's lingo in there) before the horse has bolted.

Taste of the Week. Mella's Butter Fudge Irish Cream Liqueur

Taste of the Week

Mella's Butter Fudge Irish Cream Liqueur

Mella's Butter Fudge with Irish Cream Liqueur.

Indulge in the delicious flavours of Mella's Butter Fudge Irish Cream Liqueur, our Taste of the Week.

Mella's passion for making fudge began at a

Music and Food and Good Humour Abound as Culture Night takes over in the city.

 Music and Food and Good Humour abound 

as Culture Night takes over in the City.

L'Atitude Beverley and Simone in the open-air kitchen. Their burger,
from the best of local ingredients, was amazing, out of this world! 

The Goldie Angel, in the evening, (from the walls of Elizabeth Fort)

Spic and span modern buildings, the northside in the distance,
from a viewpoint on the walls of the 17th-century fort.

Shandon, with its Goldie Fish, and the tower of the North Cathedral (left)

Ukranians (part of a large choir) sing Danny Boy (and much more) at City Hall.

Mayfield Men's Shed Choir at Cork City Library, Grand Parade.

Mayfield men in full voice!

Lots going on in the English Market with quite a few traders pulling out all the stops, food and entertainment in all the aisles. Found it hard though to get past the Roughty Foodie stall where a varied menu and singer Amanda Neary proved a major draw. While Margo Ann welcomed the visitors out front, Gerry stayed cool, calm and collected in the background.

Heading home after a superb evening in the city.

CORK BUSINESSES DOMINATE THE SHORTLIST AS THE GOOD FOOD IRELAND® AWARDS RETURN

press release

CORK BUSINESSES DOMINATE THE SHORTLIST 

AS THE GOOD FOOD IRELAND® AWARDS RETURN

Margaret Jeffares, Founder and Managing Director of Good Food Ireland, and Simon Coveney T.D., Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment at launch of highly-coveted Good Food Ireland Awards. 

 

Good Food Ireland® is delighted to announce the shortlisted finalists for its highly-regarded awards. County Cork was revealed to have an impressive 14 finalists shortlisted – the most of any county in Ireland.

The winners are due to be revealed at a high-profile business lunch taking place on Monday 17^th April at The K Club, County Kildare.

The awards are unique in their cross-sector approach and core criteria around commitment to local Irish produce and the organisers are delighted to have them back after the Covid enforced gap. They aim to enhance linkages between agriculture and tourism and present significant opportunities for stimulating local production, retaining tourism earnings in the local area, and improving the distribution of economic benefits of tourism to the four corners of the island.

An independent panel of Irish and International leaders including Founder and Managing Director of Good Food Ireland® Margaret Jeffares, journalists John Wilson and Amii McKeever, IFAC Consultant Stephanie Walsh and Executive Chairman and Owner of Odyssey International Kevin Shannon, shortlisted the nominees from those businesses approved by Good Food Ireland®, subject to meeting strict criteria through onsite inspection. The expert panel will select the overall winner following mystery inspections and assessments.

The winners are due to be revealed at a high-profile business lunch taking place on
Monday 17th April at The K Club (above), County Kildare.

Featuring across 10 different categories, the County Cork businesses who made the shortlist are:

Hotel Of The Year – Hayfield Manor and Celtic Ross Hotel

Culinary Haven Of The Year – Ballymaloe House Hotel

Restaurant Of The Year – Fishy Fishy

Pub Of The Year – The Lifeboat Inn

Shop Of The Year – The Roughty Foodie

Food Truck Of The Year – The Garden Cafe Truck at Ballymaloe Cookery School and CRAFT West Cork at The Celtic Ross Hotel

Excellence In Food Tourism Award – Ballymaloe Cookery School Organic Farm & Gardens

Producer Of The Year (Fish & Seafood) – Ummera Smoked Products and "K'O'Connell Fish Merchants”

Producer Of The Year (Bakery & Chocolate) – Koko Kinsale and Praline

Producer Of The Year (Drinks) – Five Farms Irish Cream Liqueur

The public also has the opportunity to cast their votes for their favourite places across the island of Ireland in the Food Lovers Choice Award. The shortlist will be drawn from the finalists in all other categories. Online voting will commence on Tuesday 7^th March and remain open until Monday 20^th March.

Other awards of recognition will include Outstanding Contribution to Food Production, Outstanding Contribution to Irish Food/Drink Internationally and Lifetime Achievement Award.

Returning for the first time since pre-Covid, the awards – proudly sponsored by Kerrygold, Irish Farmers Association, Bord Bia, Tourism Ireland and National Dairy Council – will be opened by guest of honour, Simon Coveney T.D., Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, and attended by some 300 guests including business owners, Irish and international chefs, buyers, food and drink writers, media and industry leaders. Anita Mendiratta, Special Advisor to the Secretary General of the United Nations World Tourism Organisation, will deliver the afternoon’s Key Note speech.

Margaret Jeffares, Founder and Managing Director of Good Food Ireland® says: "There is great excitement around the return of The Good Food Ireland® Awards this year to celebrate the successful collaboration of cross-sector businesses working together for inclusive economic growth.

“All of those wonderful businesses who have made the shortlist are a committed collection of passionate and driven people who genuinely capture the essence of Ireland's food and drink, setting it in a cultural context to inspire travellers, international consumers and locals to seek out real authenticity and Irish provenance. All the judges would like to extend our congratulations to them all and wish everyone the best of luck for the 17^th April."

See the full shortlist of finalists below. For full details on the individual awards, tickets to the event, and general information about Good Food Ireland® visit goodfoodireland.ie

 

 

About the Awards:

The 2023 Good Food Ireland® Awards are proudly sponsored by Kerrygold, Irish Farmers Association, Tourism Ireland, Bord Bia, IFAC and National Dairy Council.

All businesses approved by Good Food Ireland, subject to meeting strict criteria through onsite inspection, are eligible for the awards. An independent panel of industry experts will create a shortlist of finalists in each of the award categories. Following further onsite mystery inspection and assessment the winners will be selected. The public will also have an opportunity to vote from a shortlist of finalists for their Favourite Place to Eat, Favourite Food or Drink Producer or Favourite Place to Shop in each of the tourism regions across the island of Ireland.

 

Norma Kelly of Mitchelstown's Praline displays some of her delicious sweet things!

FULL 2023 GOOD FOOD IRELAND® AWARDS FINALISTS

Hotel Of The Year

Grand Central Hotel Belfast

Hayfield Manor, Cork

Celtic Ross Hotel, Cork

Anantara The Marker Dublin Hotel, Dublin

The Merrion, Dublin

The Europe Hotel & Resort, Kerry

The K Club, Kildare

The Dunraven Adare, Limerick

 

Culinary Haven Of The Year

The Bushmills Inn, Co Antrim

Killeavy Castle Estate, Armagh

Ballymaloe House Hotel, Cork

BrookLodge & Macreddin Village, Wicklow

Killeen House Hotel & Rozzers Restaurant, Kerry

Cashel House Hotel, Galway

Rathmullan House, Donegal

Ghan House, Louth

 

Restaurant Of The Year

Fish City, Antrim

An Port Mor, Mayo

Prime 74, Tipperary

The Lemon Tree Restaurant, Donegal

Potager Restaurant, Dublin

Woodruff Restaurant, Dublin

Aniar, Galway

Fishy Fishy, Cork

Hugo's, Dublin

 

Pub Of The Year

The King's Head, Galway

The Glyde Inn, Louth

The Tavern Bar & Restaurant, Mayo

Harte's of Kildare, Kildare

Mikey Ryan's Bar & Kitchen, Tipperary

The Lifeboat Inn, Cork

The Oarsman, Leitrim

Rusty Mackerel, Donegal

 

Café Of The Year

Sweet n Green, Clare

Kelly's Kitchen Café, Newport

Farmhouse Café & Bakery, Dublin

GROW HQ, Waterford

Fennelly's of Callan, Kilkenny

The Hungry Bear Café, Wexford

Barrons Bakery & Coffee House, Waterford

Kelly's Café, Wexford

 

Shop Of The Year

The Roughty Foodie, Cork

Country Choice, Tipperary

Buddy's Farmers Market, Dublin

Brogan's Butchers, Meath

Cavistons Seafood Restaurant & Food Emporium, Dublin

Leaf & Larder Delicatessen & Bakery, Kerry

Firecastle, Kildare

 

Food Truck Of The Year

The Garden Cafe Truck at Ballymaloe Cookery School, Cork

CRAFT West Cork at The Celtic Ross Hotel, Cork

Koha Street Kitchen, Sligo

SEABISCUIT at The Strand Cahore, Wexford

 

Sustainability Award

GROW HQ, Waterford

BrookLodge & Macreddin Village, Wicklow

Connemara Smokehouse, Galway

Oriel Sea Salt, Louth

Fish City, Antrim

Atlantis of Kilmore Quay, Wexford

O' Shea Farms, Kilkenny

 

Excellence In Food Tourism Award

Long Meadow Cider, Armagh

Burren Smokehouse & Visitor Centre, Clare

Ballymaloe Cookery School Organic Farm & Gardens, Cork

Wilde Irish Chocolates, Clare

Vintage Tea Trips, Dublin

The Glyde Inn, Louth

Coppenagh House Farm, Carlow

Producer Of The Year – Fruit & Vegetables

"Garryhinch Wood Exotic Mushrooms", Offaly

The Apple Farm, Tipperary

O'Shea Farms, Waterford

Kearns Fruit Farm, Wexford

 

Producer Of The Year - Meat

Coppenagh House Farm, Carlow

Market House Ennistymon, Clare

Calvey's Achill Mountain Lamb, Mayo

Jane Russell's Original Irish Sausages, Kildare

Kelly's of Newport, Mayo

Donabate Dexter, Dublin

 

Producer Of The Year - Fish & Seafood

Burren Smokehouse, Clare

Ummera Smoked Products, Cork

"K'O'Connell Fish Merchants ", Cork

Realt na Mara Shellfish, Kerry

Atlantis of Kilmore Quay, Wexford

 

Producer Of The Year – Bakery & Chocolate

Koko Kinsale, Cork

Praline, Cork

Jinny's Bakery & Tea Rooms, Leitrim

Walshe's Bakehouse, Waterford

Ditty's Bakery, Derry

 

Producer Of The Year - Drinks

Armagh Cider Company, Armagh

Jackford Irish Gin, Wexford

Western Herd Brewing Company, Clare

Five Farms Irish Cream Liqueur, Cork

Dew Drop Inn & Brewhouse, Kildare

 

Producer Of The Year - Dairy

Glastry Farm Ice Cream, Down

The Village Dairy, Carlow

Freezin Friesian, Waterford

Killowen Farm, Wexford

Boyne Valley Farmhouse Cheese, Meath

 

Producer Of The Year - Jams & Savoury

Wexford Home Preserves, Wexford

Leahy Beekeeping, Galway

Achill Island Sea Salt, Mayo

Wild Irish Foragers & Preservers, Offaly

Harnett's Oils, Down

Keogh's Crisps, Dublin

 

Producer of the Year

Supreme Award

Outstanding Contribution to Food Production

Outstanding Contribution to Irish Food and Drink Internationally

Lifetime Achievement Award

Good Food Ireland®

goodfoodireland.ie

@goodfoodireland

Taste of the Week. It's a Cork thing.

Taste of the Week

It's a Cork thing.

I wanted bagels on a Saturday morning! Not any old bagels but the Jerusalem Bagels (with their pomegranate molasses and sesame topping) by Bread & Roses of Ballincollig. Knew they'd be at their stall in the Coal Quay Farmers Market and headed down. On the way, I picked up a pack of coffee at Roughty Foodie in the English Market. A few more bits and pieces as well of course.

Back home, I unpacked the bagels. Pulled a jar of Paul's Honey from the cupboard and slathered it on to the bagels, nothing else whatsoever. Coffee, called the Morning Growler, by Cork Coffee Roasters, was ready. Put the three together and I had a very satisfactory Taste of the Week indeed.

Not all from Cork of course but that coffee is roasted locally by John Gowan down the Marina. The honey was bought at O'Keeffe's in St Lukes and is produced at sustainable apiaries in Cork city and county and packaged by beekeeper Paul Collins who operates in the northside of the city.

Contacts

Bread and Roses here

Cork Coffee Roasters here

Paul's Honey 085 283 1540

Taste of the Week. Ardsallagh Goat's Cheese - Phantom Pyramid

Taste of the Week.

Ardsallagh Goat's Cheese - Phantom Pyramid

The Ardsallagh Goats Cheese Phantom Pyramid, inspired by the French 'Pyramide de Pouligny', is made with Pasteurised Milk in East Cork.  It is a most delicious semi-soft cheese with an irresistible creamy texture inside and lightly ash-ed on the outside which develops a white bloomy rind. It is our Taste of the Week, bought from On The Pigs Back via Neighbourfood.

It is very versatile indeed, so you won't have to confine yourself to the usual beetroot combinations but don't neglect them either as the two are a classic combination and available in many restaurants. You could, for a change, try an Oven Roasted Beetroot Salad with Candied Walnuts, and Rocket leaves with this cheese.

It can be the main piece of many a salad and you'll see it served with thinly sliced pears. We tried it with those very pleasing Medjool dates (chopped) and it worked a treat, especially with Marques De Poley Oloroso Montilla-Moriles (O'Briens Wine).

Here's another simple one: the cheese, tomatoes thinly sliced, drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper to taste. Drizzle this, or indeed similar salads, with the Big Red Kitchen's Spiced Plum & Port Jam (I got mine from Roughty Fruity in English Market but it is widely available).

And another: the cheese, chopped Medjools, some sliced grapes, and add as much as you like of the Ballymaloe Cranberry and Mór Wild Berry Gin Sauce. Delicious, especially so with a glass of Whitehaven Sauvignon Blanc Marlborough 2021 (at O'Briens Wine).

Spice 'n Sweet and Sixties Beats. The Glass Curtain Rocks The Kitchen

Spice 'n Sweet and Sixties Beats

The Glass Curtain Rocks the Kitchen 

Three hotties: Corn Salsa(left), Pico de Gallo (bottom right), and Chipotle Aioli 

We had a little Latino-Irish Fiesta on the table at the weekend, thanks to the talented crew in The Glass Curtain. While the popular MacCurtain Street restaurant itself is out of action for a few weeks (you know the culprit), they are offering an At Home with different meals available on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. (Keep an eye on their social media for updates as things keep changing. Just heard, they'll be doing at home for the next two weeks. Updated menus will appear here).

Viva Mexico. (via Pixabay)

Our pick this time was the Friday offering of Panko breaded cod, pico de gallo, sweetcorn salsa, shredded cabbage, flour tortillas, bravas potatoes with lime chipotle aioli. And a dessert of Chocolate custard, blood orange jelly, spiced churro pieces.

Instructions come with the box which you collect at a specified time. There is a little work but there is also The Glass Curtain playlist. Check it out on Spotify and your cooking will be lifted even higher with Jackie Wilson. The likes of me though may have to Knock on Wood (more than once).

Patatas Bravas

The music went down well, though I got a nasty look when I played You Keep Me Hanging On. And the dog’s begging routine was interrupted briefly when Rufus Thomas started belting out Walking the Dog. As you may have gathered, the songs and singers are mainly from the 60s though, remarkably, Bing Crosby had a hit with Try a Little Tenderness in 1933!

Getting messy!

Anyhow, music or no music, the At Home work takes about 15 minutes, the time it takes the Patatas Bravas to heat and crisp up in the oven. In the meantime, the Tortilla dough has been rolled out and cooked in a dry pan. And the cod goujons (or Sweet Potato and Halloumi if you’re on on the veggie option) take 4-5 minutes.

Dessert

The Official Blog Chef’s coordination is as impressive as ever and it all came good and soon we were south of the border, spooning the shredded cabbage (white), pico de gallo, and chipotle aioli to assemble the Taco. The spicy stuff wakes you up, something different on the table to enliven a dreary wet and cold evening. Also took the opportunity to try out a few of those Chilli & Lime White Corn Tortilla Chips from Clonmel’s Blanco Niño.

Chilli & Lime White Corn Tortilla Chips

Portions are generous here and a “gap” was organised before dessert was tackled. The churros has to be heated (a couple of minutes) and coated in the chilli sugar before they met the delicious chocolate custard and the even more delicious Blood Orange Jelly. The remarkable sweetness added to the already feel good factor and I just got more and more comfortable in the soft chair. Time to switch up the recliner.

Menus Available Last Weekend

• Friday 45 for 2 sharing

Panko breaded cod, pico de gallo, sweetcorn salsa, shredded cabbage, flour tortillas, bravas potatoes with lime chipotle aioli,

Chocolate custard, blood orange jelly, spiced churro pieces

• Saturday 40 for 2 sharing

BBQ brisket, house slaw, jalapeño cornbread, mac n’cheese

Chocolate chip cookies salted caramel sauce

• Sunday 50 for 2 sharing

18oz dry aged Angus striploin, home fries, whiskey pepper sauce, chargrilled baby leeks, roasted cauliflower

Classic tiramisu

• Veggie all weekend 35 for 2 sharing

Panko breaded halloumi and sweet potatoes, pico de gallo, sweetcorn salsa, shredded cabbage, flour tortillas, bravas potatoes with lime chipotle aioli

Served with desert of the evening

Festival Food & Drink Favourites 2021. Eight Degrees and Bakestone in Happy Holiday Pairing

Festival Food & Drink Favourites 2021

Eight Degrees and Bakestone in Happy Holiday Pairing

What were your food and drink favourites over the Christmas and New Year?

I’d say one of mine came at the end of the Christmas Day Dinner when we matched the Bakestone Pudding with a shared can of Eight Degrees Irish Oak-aged Barleywine. At 12.2% abv, this is a heavy hitter and needs respect. Pour a little into a wine glass and sip and enjoy. It went perfectly with the pudding from East Cork (you’ll find Bakestone at Cobh Cross - they’ve been there for years and, as well as a popular café, have a magnificent pantry of top notch Irish produce).

And so it was appropriate that it was two locally made products that topped our Christmas bill!

The Eight Degrees’ aromatic and multi-flavoured seasonal special was aged in especially rare Irish whiskey barrels that have been made from native Irish oak. Not alone did it pair with the rich and dark pudding but it also went well with the light and delicious Christmas cake from Barnabrow House (bought at Roughty Foodie) and also with the cheese course, notably with the Crozier Blue (via On The Pig’s Back).

Bubbles are usually associated with the festivities at this time of year and I was lucky to have a couple of delicious bottles of Prosecco on hand, each by Bottega. The Gold Prosecco Brut impressed for sure but it was the Bottega Rose Gold that really caught my attention. It is a terrific Spumante Brut rose, made from Pinot Noir grapes grown throughout the Veneto.

The hand painted bottles are not only eye-catching but "reflect the quality and care put into producing this wine”. Bottega do not use chemical-based products for their metallised bottles; this means the solvent for the varnish is water-based, instead of being oil or alcohol-based like more traditional varnishes.

It wasn’t just Prosecco of course. There was wine. We won’t go into too much detail just to say that we had an impressive pair via Liberty Wine for dinner on the big day. From South Africa came the Western Cape Momento, the country’s only Grenache Gris. And we made it a lovely Grenache double with the red, a Willunga 100 from the McLaren Vale in Australia.

You always need something extra to bring the best out of all the good stuff on the table at Christmas and two jars in particular were in regular use here. One was the Big Red Kitchen’s Spiced Plum and Port Jam and the other was the seasonal Ballymaloe Foods Cranberry and Mór Wild Berry Gin Sauce.

The Spiced Plum and Port Jam is very versatile, a match with paté, cheese and duck and we find it  outstanding with Skeaghanore smoked duck breast and gives the Skeaghanore Confit Leg sweet hint of Asia. This year it also impressed with the Bakestone pudding. Nicola of the Red Kitchen combines ripe plums with a hint of warming cinnamon and port in this excellent seasonal preserve which is also wonderful with scones and bread. It won’t go to waste around here.

And neither did the Ballymaloe Foods Cranberry and Mór Wild Berry Gin Sauce. It certainly did what it says on the jar and enhanced the turkey (and the other meats) no end and also impressed when used with the cheese board. This blend of cranberries and the Irish gin proved indispensable over the week.

Of course, it wouldn’t be a Cork Christmas without a helping of spiced beef on the table. No shortage here thankfully and, supplied (like the turkey and ham) by local craft butcher Chris Davidson, it was once again a highlight. Turkey and ham was pretty good too!

Another highlight was our order from Ummera Smokehouse in Timoleague, a box packed with chicken, duck, salmon (two ways), even rashers, all smoked and all delicious as always. Good use was made of this package over the holidays. Nothing like a bit of variety over the hols.

We did indeed use the Ummera smoked chicken on New Year’s Eve and later there were more holiday bubbles. It was now the turn of a super Beaumont des Crayères Vintage 2013 Fleur Blanche Blanc de Blancs Brut (via O’Briens Wines) to shine. Intense and exciting from the engaging first sip, with fountains of micro-bubbles powering upwards, with biscuity aromas and flavours and floral notes too, this is one of the better ones for sure. It is made from 100% Chardonnay and obviously 2013 was a very good year.

Let us hope that 2022 will also be a good one. Happy New Year to you all and fingers crossed that it will be better for all of us.