Tanya O Keeffe’s
Stuffed peppers with new potatoes, feta and pesto.
Ingredients:
4 red peppers
200g small new potatoes
1 tablespoon olive oil
200g feta cheese
4 tablespoons pesto
sea salt and black pepper
some basil leaves
Method:
Preheat oven to 200 degree C. Bring a pan of salted water to the boil, add new potatoes and
boil for 8-12 minutes, until just tender.
Drain and cool slightly.
Halve the peppers lengthways and remove the seeds and pith.
Brush the outsides with olive oil, then place on a baking tray lined
with parchment.
Halve or quarter the new potatoes and place in a bowl. Cut the feta
into 1cm cubes and add to the potatoes. Toss both with the pesto
until well combined.
Spoon the filling into the halved peppers and bake for 40-45 mins
until browned on the top. Scatter shredded basil over the top before
serving.
Stuffed peppers with new potatoes, feta and pesto.
Ingredients:
4 red peppers
200g small new potatoes
1 tablespoon olive oil
200g feta cheese
4 tablespoons pesto
sea salt and black pepper
some basil leaves
Method:
Preheat oven to 200 degree C. Bring a pan of salted water to the boil, add new potatoes and
boil for 8-12 minutes, until just tender.
Drain and cool slightly.
Halve the peppers lengthways and remove the seeds and pith.
Brush the outsides with olive oil, then place on a baking tray lined
with parchment.
Halve or quarter the new potatoes and place in a bowl. Cut the feta
into 1cm cubes and add to the potatoes. Toss both with the pesto
until well combined.
Spoon the filling into the halved peppers and bake for 40-45 mins
until browned on the top. Scatter shredded basil over the top before
serving.
Hannah Fitz’s
Roast Spuds & Carrots with Aubergine Bake
Ingredients and Method:
Split a quantity of potatoes and carrots in half, slow roast in the
oven with oil.
Make a tomato sauce in a rush!
Aubergine’s are my favourite veg - they are so meaty!
They have a poisonous juice, so you have to salt them and press them with a weight (a plate with a heavy pot on
top) for 20 minutes.
Cook them really well, in oil fried on a pan.
Add to the tomato sauce and bake in the oven at a medium temperature
for 30 – 40 minutes.
Roast Spuds & Carrots with Aubergine Bake
Ingredients and Method:
Split a quantity of potatoes and carrots in half, slow roast in the
oven with oil.
Make a tomato sauce in a rush!
Aubergine’s are my favourite veg - they are so meaty!
They have a poisonous juice, so you have to salt them and press them with a weight (a plate with a heavy pot on
top) for 20 minutes.
Cook them really well, in oil fried on a pan.
Add to the tomato sauce and bake in the oven at a medium temperature
for 30 – 40 minutes.
Pauline Cummins’
Salad
I love the taste of this salad.
I didn’t realize you could eat courgette raw.
It is refreshing and easy to make.
Ingredients:
Courgettes and Carrots in equal quantities
Mayonnaise, olive oil, lemon
Green baby leaves
Method:
Grate the carrots and courgettes and add mayonnaise, oil and
lemon, salt and pepper to taste. Arrange on top of baby leaves.
Salad
I love the taste of this salad.
I didn’t realize you could eat courgette raw.
It is refreshing and easy to make.
Ingredients:
Courgettes and Carrots in equal quantities
Mayonnaise, olive oil, lemon
Green baby leaves
Method:
Grate the carrots and courgettes and add mayonnaise, oil and
lemon, salt and pepper to taste. Arrange on top of baby leaves.
Ciara Mckeon’s
Flowers & Wine
I was going to make Clafoutis – a French dessert – I used to make
it with my first big love. We had a really nice house and this recipe
has warm welcoming associations.
But instead I brought along the classic romantic combination of flowers and wine!
Flowers & Wine
I was going to make Clafoutis – a French dessert – I used to make
it with my first big love. We had a really nice house and this recipe
has warm welcoming associations.
But instead I brought along the classic romantic combination of flowers and wine!
Frances Mezzetti’s
Chocolate Strawberries
My mother was renowned as a baker with apple tarts, sponges,
brown bread and scones and she could make a meal out of any left
overs.
My sister became a confectioner and my brother a chef, so something was passed on of her gifts.
Her Witches brew or Gur cake was made with a mixture of stale bread, raisins and sultanas
steeped overnight in cold tea with added spices like cinnamon and nutmeg.
Sometimes a cooking apple was included for extra moistness.
The mixture was baked between two layers of pastry and cut in squares.
It was a wholesome food that served her family of six children well.
Add a bit of custard and we had a delicious plate licking treat.
That was the cake that didn't get made due to time constraints!
The suggestion of chocolate strawberries came from our fourteen year old grand-daughter
Leah who has taken up her great grandmothers baking trait.
The recipe:
Two punnits of fresh strawberries and two bars of dairy chocolate.
Simply melt the chocolate in a bowl in a pot of simmering water.
Care not to boil as the chocolate might crystallize.
Dip washed strawberries individually into warm chocolate and allow to cool on a tray.
I wrapped them singly in tinfoil but you could arrange them together anyway -on an oasis tree - or whatever
creative impulse takes your fancy.
The strawberries are best of course when in season and dark chocolate is a delicious love potion.
I discovered that the chocolate would set quicker if dipped in icy cold water straight after covering the
strawberries and then placed on the tray. It keeps them from sliding about and attaching themselves to each other though that does not take from the scrumptious taste.
Trevor Knight’s
Lovely Guacamole
Ingredients:
4 avocados
2 vine tomatoes
2 small shallots
2 cloves of garlic
Juice of 1 lime or half lemon
2 fresh red chillies deseeded
handful of fresh coriander
4 tablespoons olive oil
cup of grated Dutch 'old' cheese (oude kaas)
salt to taste
(all ingredients as organic and fair trade as possible)
Method:
whizz to sensual creamy consistency taste by dipping little finger
Lovely Guacamole
Ingredients:
4 avocados
2 vine tomatoes
2 small shallots
2 cloves of garlic
Juice of 1 lime or half lemon
2 fresh red chillies deseeded
handful of fresh coriander
4 tablespoons olive oil
cup of grated Dutch 'old' cheese (oude kaas)
salt to taste
(all ingredients as organic and fair trade as possible)
Method:
whizz to sensual creamy consistency taste by dipping little finger
Alan Magee’s
Chocolate Fudge Cake
This is a recipe from the first cook book I started cooking with and I LOVE chocolate cake!
Ingredients:
200g good-quality dark chocolate (70% cocoa solids)
175g butter, plus extra for greasing
120g soft brown sugar
100g blanched almonds
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
a pinch of salt
4 large eggs, preferably free-range or organic
150g self-raising flour
100g fudge
To make the cake:
Preheat the oven to 160°C/320°F/gas 2
Break up the chocolate, put it into a food processor with the butter, sugar, almonds, 1 tablespoon of the cocoa powder and the salt, and whiz until smooth
Crack your eggs, one at a time, into the food processor and add the flour & Whiz again until smooth.
To bake the cake:
Get a deep baking dish roughly 25 x 25cm in size
Butter the dish really well and sprinkle the remaining tablespoon of cocoa powder over it
Shake it around a bit so it lightly coats the whole surface of the dish
Pour the cake mixture into the dish, using a spatula to scrape it all out of the processor
Break the fudge into pieces and sprinkle these over the top of the
cake mix, pushing any larger pieces down into the mixture
Pop the baking dish into the preheated oven and cook for 18 to 20
minutes
Take the cake out of the oven and stick a fork into the middle of it
If there’s a little bit of cake mixture on the fork when you pull it out,
that’s okay – you want the cake to still be a little moist inside so
that it’s nice and squidgy
However, if it seems a bit wobbly, pop it back into the oven for
another 3 to 5 minutes to firm up a bit
Chocolate Fudge Cake
This is a recipe from the first cook book I started cooking with and I LOVE chocolate cake!
Ingredients:
200g good-quality dark chocolate (70% cocoa solids)
175g butter, plus extra for greasing
120g soft brown sugar
100g blanched almonds
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
a pinch of salt
4 large eggs, preferably free-range or organic
150g self-raising flour
100g fudge
To make the cake:
Preheat the oven to 160°C/320°F/gas 2
Break up the chocolate, put it into a food processor with the butter, sugar, almonds, 1 tablespoon of the cocoa powder and the salt, and whiz until smooth
Crack your eggs, one at a time, into the food processor and add the flour & Whiz again until smooth.
To bake the cake:
Get a deep baking dish roughly 25 x 25cm in size
Butter the dish really well and sprinkle the remaining tablespoon of cocoa powder over it
Shake it around a bit so it lightly coats the whole surface of the dish
Pour the cake mixture into the dish, using a spatula to scrape it all out of the processor
Break the fudge into pieces and sprinkle these over the top of the
cake mix, pushing any larger pieces down into the mixture
Pop the baking dish into the preheated oven and cook for 18 to 20
minutes
Take the cake out of the oven and stick a fork into the middle of it
If there’s a little bit of cake mixture on the fork when you pull it out,
that’s okay – you want the cake to still be a little moist inside so
that it’s nice and squidgy
However, if it seems a bit wobbly, pop it back into the oven for
another 3 to 5 minutes to firm up a bit
Debbie Guinnane’s
White scones.
Ingredients:
600 grms of SELF RAISING white flour.
150 grms of caster or regular sugar.
Pinch of salt.
150 grms of butter, again not spread.
1 egg beaten and approx 1/4 regular milk, low fat will do, you
might
need a little more milk than this.
1/2 teaspoon of BAKING powder.
Method:
Add all dry ingredients. Rub in butter. Add beaten egg and milk to a well in the middle. Use a fork or your hands to bring it into a big lump.
Place on floured worktop. Flatten top and smooth out sides with your hands. Cut into scones. You will need something to cut them... if you haven’t a scone cutter, you could use a glass or a cup.
Place on tray and brush with milk and a little of the beaten egg... so keep a tiny piece back... this gives the
scones a rich shiny colour.
Bake immediately again in hot oven. The oven needs to be hot, 200 degrees. Takes about 20 minutes to cook. Use a flat tray to bake them on. When they are finished put them on wire tray to cool.
White scones.
Ingredients:
600 grms of SELF RAISING white flour.
150 grms of caster or regular sugar.
Pinch of salt.
150 grms of butter, again not spread.
1 egg beaten and approx 1/4 regular milk, low fat will do, you
might
need a little more milk than this.
1/2 teaspoon of BAKING powder.
Method:
Add all dry ingredients. Rub in butter. Add beaten egg and milk to a well in the middle. Use a fork or your hands to bring it into a big lump.
Place on floured worktop. Flatten top and smooth out sides with your hands. Cut into scones. You will need something to cut them... if you haven’t a scone cutter, you could use a glass or a cup.
Place on tray and brush with milk and a little of the beaten egg... so keep a tiny piece back... this gives the
scones a rich shiny colour.
Bake immediately again in hot oven. The oven needs to be hot, 200 degrees. Takes about 20 minutes to cook. Use a flat tray to bake them on. When they are finished put them on wire tray to cool.
