by Sharon Murphy
Caprese Salad, otherwise known as Tomato, Mozzarella and Basil
This salad has become a staple on the Irish bbq spread. It’s tasty, attractive and so easy to make. But you can make a complete ham of it by using cheap and nasty ingredients.
So take my word for it, use only the best. more »
You hear it every week in this country, ‘I make the best thigh curry…..’ First and foremost the word is pronounced ‘Tai’. So for all of you who finally learnt to enunciate your TH’s properly on this word, get with the program. Lose the H and stick with what you do best…… dis, dat, dese and dose and of course Tai. Rant over, moving on.
Thai curry has to be one of the easiest dishes in the world to make as long as you can buy a decent paste. And I highly recommend a brand called Maesri. They do the whole spectrum from Red to Panang. I am going to give you the basic recipe for any one of the types and then refine each one with herbs, vegetables, meat etc. The sugar and fish sauce are the salt and pepper of Thai cooking i.e. your seasoning. Add extra sparingly to bring out the flavour.
Everyone loves a fruity berry dessert in summer but what do you do when you crave the fabulous berry in winter. I can hear the resounding laughter from the chocoholics…….
Easy tiger, this one satisfies even the biggest anti-fruit-dessert monster of them all – me.
It’s a simple and delicious version of the sun-filled staple and the beauty is you probably have the ingredients in your freezer, cupboard and bread bin 90% of the time. Read on….. more »
Instant Special Occasion Cake:
So, it’s ‘blank’ thirty and you’ve just read your diary.
Horror of horrors, it’s your turn to have the girls over for coffee/afternoon tea/supper, and it gets worse……. it’s a birthday celebration! more »
As you probably noticed I do a good deal of baking, so my favourite recipes are those which take the least time and the result is delicious.
I came across these ones on a sheet from the National Dairy Council many years ago.
If you have decided that you really want to cook Thai food but are a little nervous, here is one of the easiest recipes to master. Yeah, yeah, I hear you complaining already that there are weird ingredients in it and you’ll only use them once, and what a waste and whinge, whine, moan…… more »
Well so much for yet another New Year’s resolution. Sugar and butter producers worldwide are breathing a sigh of relief as February dawns and all us poor eejits fall off the wagon. The health kick wagon that is. Bring on the cake I say. So in my rush to get you all to join me in my road to perdition, here is a slight repeat, if fact a total cog of the Chocolate Cake in my first blog. But this dear reader is the sticky edged coffee version. I am not going to make you trawl back through the blogs to find said choccy recipe so I’ll re-write the basics and changes here in full. This one calls for two 9” cake tins or two loaf tins as the cake, in my opinion, requires two types of icing. And two smaller cakes are perfect for a yummy layer in the middle.
SERIOUS indulgence on my own behalf over the festive season has led me to admit that ‘something’ has to be done to get fit and healthy.
So as the season of joy and good will to all men ends, I find myself in a bit of a dilemma.
If I mention the word diet I will immediately start over-eating in my bodies bid for survival.
If I just ignore the reality of the situation the same thing happens, funnily enough. This is going to have to be a team effort.
I am a great believer in breaking away from the traditional Christmas desserts if you just don’t like them. So if you are one to shudder at the thought of all that dried fruit, here is a recipe to die for.
At a dinner party lately a friend of mine, who would normally eschew dessert and be Miss Healthy, finished the whole bowl while chatting. Six of us had managed to eat the other half.
Sinful Butterscotch Pudding:
It’s Christmas Time…… Sleigh bells ring, are you listening? …… Rockin’ around the Christmas tree……Walkin’ in a Winter Wonderland…… Driving home for Christmas… Aaaaaaargh!
Yuletide songs have been driving us mad since October, which means by now they do nothing whatsoever to get us in the Christmassey mood. So let’s try something else. Let’s cook for friends.
This year is all about spending time together as opposed to the Celtic Tiger present frenzy. So why not spoil your loved ones with something they actually need.
Give them some time and attention, along with yummy home cooked food.
The following recipe is simple to make and great for sharing. Read it through before you start.
‘Movie Night’ Chicken Chutney Dip and Pita Chips.
A friend of mine gave me this recipe about twenty years ago and I must have made it hundreds of times since then.
My sister even insisted on having it for the drinks reception at her wedding. more »
