Competition Winner: Happy 1st Birthday Blog Post

It has been a tough job trying to pick a winner for the competition on my 1st birthday blog post. There has been mucho deliberation on my part. Feelings of guilt for not having a prize for everyone overwhelmed me. The hubs got drafted in at that stage and he declared his favourite memory came courtesy of Orla and her block of HB and a Cadbury's flake. I think we all have fond memories of seeing a block of HB in the freezer when we were young. Sometimes it is the simplest of pleasures that hold the strongest memeories for us. Well done Orla, and thank you all for sharing your lovely memories with me.

Irish Black Pudding - Champions of Europe

If I am feeling a little naughty at the weekend I might cook up a full Irish breakfast on a Sunday morning.  Now I don't know about you, but for me a full Irish is not a full Irish without a couple of slices of black pudding.  I have in many various locations around the world sampled their version of our beloved breakfast but for me they always lack in one department.  The black pudding is just never quite up to the standard of the offerings available on Irish soil.  It would seem I am not alone in thinking this as very recently Irish producers have been honoured and celebrated by the prestigious Brotherhood of the Knights of the Black Pudding (La Confrérie des Chevaliers du Goûte Boudin) - one of the world’s greatest authorities on black pudding.  Over three days from September 20th – 22nd, some 30+ Knights of the fraternity visited McCarthy’s of Kanturk, Caherbeg Free Range Pork Rosscarbery and Mayo’s Seán Kelly to award gold, silver and bronze medals. Street festivities were organised and  three great days of celebration were held in honour of all that is exciting and special about Irish black pudding.

The following is the official press release from the event:

"Arise Sir Jack, Knight of the Black Pudding


Kanturk gave the Brotherhood of the Knights of the Black Pudding a warm welcome last night. The French Food fraternity visited the town in celebration of the Gold Medal Winning Black Pudding by McCarthy's of Kanturk.

The brotherhood paraded up Strand Street accompanied by local ilen pipe players to arrive at the Gourmet food festival outside McCarthy's premises on Main Street.

Representing Good Food Ireland, Peter Ward of Country Choice is no stranger to the finest Irish food. Indeed, he was declared Good Food Ireland Person of the Year in 2009. He said, “I say to people, don't make anything exotic at all, just make something really really good that will bring people to your door. Here Jack McCarthy has, with a bucket of blood in either hand, made something really really really good.” He went on to say that, “It is great that our authorities are coming round to realise that the expertise of the producer is the greatest safe guard we can have in the production of food in Ireland.”

Jean Claude, chair of the fraternity spoke, “The Black pudding fraternity has been in existence for nearly fifty years and in that time we have seen over 30,000 different sorts of black pudding. We are very happy to know, and to see, how much the Irish people enjoy black pudding and how the Irish pork butcher made a really good black pudding.”

The food festival included stalls from local businesses such as IRD Duhallow Community Food Services, Cork City's On the Pigs Back and new local enterprise www.easyentertaining.ie, and also drew gourmet emporiums from further afield, Sheridan's Cheese Mongers, Mannings Emporium, Soul Bakery and Gubbeen Farmhouse to name just some of the stall holders.

There is still excitement to be had with the French Food Festival at On the Pig's Back in Douglas all through the next few days see www.onthepigsback.ie for more information."

Cully & Sully Want To Know, Have You Got The Chef Factor?


If you're someone with a love for food well then you have probably heard the murmurings on the aul interweb of late.  Like a game of chinese whispers a myth has been circling, I couldn't quite make it out until one day a little tweet landed on my screen.  Cully and Sully, the lovely people behind the nutritious ready meal line, are running a competition Chef Factor with a prize of  a 12 week certificate course at Ballymaloe Cookery School, worth a staggering €12,000.  Ah now hang on a sec lads.  Obviously someone along the way wasn't listening and has made a right dogs dinner of the message to be passed along.  What?  They are giving away a 12 week certificate course at Ballymaloe Cookery School!  Now come on, I didn't come down the Liffey on a punnet of strawberries you know, yiz will have to get up a bit earlier in the day to catch me out. 

*Picks up phone and dials Cully & Sully headquarters*

Me:  "Hello, is that Cully and Sully HQ"
C&S HQ:  "It is"
Me:  "Like Mam Used to Bake here.  Are yiz aware of the ludicrous notion circulating the interweb that yiz are giving away a 12 week certificate course in Ballymaloe Cookery School?"
C&S HQ:  "We are indeed and there is nothing ludicrous about it, it's true!"
Me:  "Wah?!  What do we have to do?"
C&S H&Q:  "Simply take a picture of yourself, with a dish you have cooked, including the words Cully & Sully and head over to http://www.cheffactor.ie/ to enter."

So if you want to be in with a chance to win a 12 week certificate course at the highly esteemed Ballymaloe Cookery School, get cooking and get snapping.  Also include a brief explanation about the dish you have chosen and the reason why you should win.  Cully and Sully would like to stress that you do not have to be able to cook to a professional standard to enter Chef Factor, if that was the case you would have nothing to learn from the course.  So even the most amateur of chefs can enter. 

Do you love to cook but feel that you would like to improve your skills?  Do you dream of a career as a chef or in the food industry?  Or would you love to whip up a meal for family and friends but don't have the skills to do more than boil an egg?  If you answered yes to any of these questions then Chef Factor is the competition for you.  To show you that you do not need to produce a photo of a michelin star meal I took a little pic of my lunch today, a simple quesidilla but a worthy entry none the less.

Now my mush wasn't quite ready to greet the public at

lunchtime so I'm not in the picture

but do remember to include yourself in the photo you intend to

enter & for heavens sake don't forget the words Cully & Sully!

I have posted the official press release below which includes full details about the competition and the prize so please read in full:

"Award Winning Irish Good food producers Cully & Sully are delighted with the early response to their all Island Competition, Chef factor. Members of the public are invited to enter the contest on Cheffactor.ie to be in with a chance of winning a place on January’s coveted Ballymaloe cookery course with accommodation, together worth over €12,000 euro. The top prize can be redeemed in either 2011 or 2012 and will include two weeks with Colum O’ Sullivan (Sully) and Cullen Allen (Cully) to learn the ways of the food business. Colum O’ Sullivan insists “Chef factor is open to everyone; whether you’re a whizz in the kitchen or not. The prize is to teach you how to cook on a world-renowned cookery course, after all. You can enter anything you like-from your favorite sandwich to a risotto, from steak to a cake! We are simply looking for someone who really wants to win this once in a lifetime opportunity”

To enter Chef factor, participants must upload a simple photo of their dish with the words “Cully & Sully” somewhere in the image and submit this to cheffactor.ie along with a brief explanation of the dish and the reason why they deserve to win. The photos of early competition entries are viewable now on cheffactor.ie. Cullen Allen says, “ The early entrants are absolutely super. We will choose one person to go through to final so the moment someone enters, we rush to see his or her entry! It will be up to the public to decide who the other two finalists are when voting opens on the 25th of October.” The final trio will then be expected to present their entry at the live final in Ballymaloe Cookery School.

The contest is set to cause quite a stir on the Irish food scene, as the Ballymaloe 12 week cookery course is a proven pathway to a successful culinary career. The winner of Cully & Sully’s Cheffactor could follow in the footsteps of Rachel Allen and many other great chefs who trained at the school in Shanagarry, Co. Cork.

Colum O’ Sullivan says the ethos behind Cheffactor is to offer would-be cooks the chance to pursue their culinary dreams and emphasizes that this competition is for everybody. “We are not looking for Michelin star chefs,” Cullen Allen adds “We believe that good food is for everybody and so this competition is for everyone. “

The duo have a family pedigree in quality food. Allen is a grandson of Myrtle Allen, founder of the famous cookery school and Ballymaloe House, where he trained. Colum O’ Sullivan graduated with a BSC in food business from UCC in 1999 and grew up in Midleton in Cork where his mother owns the Granary food store. Colum O’ Sullivan established the company with co-founder Cullen Allen six years ago. All of their products are produced in Ireland. The duo recently beat off competition from 240 global food producers to win the Sial d’Or award-the first Irish Producers to do so. Cully and Sully have also won numerous great taste awards.

For all the details on how to enter Cully & Sully’s Cheffactor and more, visit http://www.cheffactor.ie/"

Vegetable Crumble - Irish Foodies Vegetarian Cookalong

Apologies for the worse than normal picture quality in

this post but crumbles are quite tricky to photograph.

The last Irish foodies cookalong theme was vegetarian.  While I love vegetables and would eat them until they come out of my ears this made me very aware that I never conciously cook an entirely vegetarian meal.  I set my little brain to thinking and settled on a vegetable crumble.  If I remember correctly the night in question was a little chilly and so I fancied something comforting.  My first attempt while nice didn't really float my boat.  It seemed quite flour heavy and lacked the lovely crunch of the traditional sweet crumbles so I decided to give it another bash this week and was very impressed with the end result. 

I found the original recipe online, I can't even remember which site now, but I knew when flour and butter and some seasoning were the only ingredients that it maybe wouldn't be up to much.  As usual I should have trusted my instincts.  So I set my brain to thinking and decided that if I reduced the flour content and added a savoury 'granola' type thingy ma bob that I could be onto a winner.  This is what I came up with.

For the 'granola'
(I just measured everything very roughly but the below worked well for me)

3 handfuls of Porridge Oats
2 Handful of chopped Mixed Nuts
1tbsp Olive Oil
Salt, Pepper and a little Brown Sugar to season

1.  Place the porridge oats and mixed nuts into a bowl and give them a little mix.
2.  Add the oil and mix again.  If you feel the mix is too dry add a little more oil.  You really just want to lightly coat the mix in the oil.
3.  Season with the salt, pepper and sugar and place on a baking sheet and spread them out evenly.

Vegetable Crumble
Serves 4-6 as a side dish

1 Sweet Potato, peeled and diced
1 small Butternut Squash, peeled, deseeded and diced
1 large Onion, peeled and diced
2 cloves of Garlic, thinly sliced
2-3tbsp of Olive Oil
1tsp ground Cumin
1tsp ground Coriander
1tsp ground Tumeric
1tsp Brown Sugar
A pinch of Sea Salt
A pinch of freshly ground Black Pepper
229ml/7.5floz Single Cream
100g/3.5oz Plain Flour
75g/2.5oz Butter, diced
Savoury 'Granola' (see above)
2 handfuls of Grated Cheese (optional)

1.  Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas Mark 4
2.  Place the diced vegetables and garlic in an oven proof dish.
3.  In a bowl mix the olive oil, ground cumin, ground coriander, ground tumeric and brown sugar.  Pour over the vegetables and mix to ensure they are evenly coated.
4.  Place into the preheated oven and roast for 45 mins, mixing occasionally to stop the tops caramelising too much.

5.  Place the butter and flour into a seperate bowl and rub together to form a coarse, bread crumb like consistency.

6.  Add the granola and mix well with your hands to distribute evenly.
7.  Remove the vegetables from the oven and add in the cream.  Give it a little stir to coat them all.

8.  Pour over the crumble mixture and spread evenly over the vegetables.  Scatter with the grated cheese if you are using.  Return to the oven for 30 - 40 minutes until the top is golden brown and the cream is bubbling around the edges.

9.  Serve and enjoy.

Barcelona

Two weeks ago Mr Boo and myself headed to Barcelona for a week of relaxation.  We had been there 6 years ago and little did I know Mr Boo had a little surprise for me back then.  One evening as I was about to get stuck into a chocolate mousse in Les Quinze Nit a little box was proffered across the table towards me and the sparkly treasure within has been in proud residence on my finger ever since.  It even has a little buddy now!  This was our first trip back to Barcelona since then and I had forgotten quite what a wonderful city it is.

The very table in Les Quince Nit on Placa Reail where we got engaged in September 2004

We stayed in Chic and Basic hotel on Carrer Princessa in the El Born district.  The hotel is very centrally located.  A five minute walk from Las Ramblas but far enough away to avoid the hustle and bustle of the tourist traps.  It is surrounded by residential apartment buildings so you get a better feeling of being immersed into the local culture.  The balcony from our room overlooked a courtyard and faced onto the balconies of private residences.  As we pottered about our room in the evenings getting ready to go out for dinner the sounds of locals settling in for the evening or getting ready to go out to party wafted through the open doors. 

The hotels name describes it perfectly, it is indeed chic with beaded lights that change colour adorning rooms and hallways and minimalist decor throughout.  This modern decor is offset against the many original features preserved throughout the hotel.  Our room had a beautiful decorative door, intricate coving, fabulous high ceilings and an arched door way leading to the balcony.  A perfect marriage of old and new has been achieved by the designer and I think it would suit many tastes. 

The main feature of each room is a large curved glass shower that dominates the middle of the room at the foot of the bed.  This is draped with beaded lighting to conceal your modesty and beyond that is a separate bathroom.  Each room has a remote control to set the lighting to a colour suitable to your mood at any given time & an electric blackout blind from ceiling to floor did it's job each night.  At the end of the corridor that our room was on is a common area complete with fridge stocked with complimentary bottled water, a Nespresso machine, tea making facilities and a PC with free Internet access and free wi fi.  It was a light and airy space, ideal if you fancied a coffee while catching up on emails and the complimentary water was most welcome after a few tasty beverages of an evening.  The staff in the hotel were all very friendly and helpful and it was spotless at all times.  I would most definitely stay there again if I return to Barcelona.

Chic and Basic Hotel, El Borne District, Barcelona

Once we had checked into the hotel, and smothered ourselves with SPF 50, we set out into the heat and sun.  Yes my fellow Irish nationals, the sun actually shines in other countries in September, and would you believe me if I told you temperatures reach over 30C.  Honest to God.  Mr Boo was starving, naturally, so we popped into a little bakery not far from the hotel for a bite to eat.  With his belly full we set off on a little stroll around the city, walking the length of the beach, and back again.  Needless to say once we showered and beautified ourselves that evening we were starving!  We decided to check out a recommendation from Mr Boos brother and so wandered off Placa Reail to Los Caracoles (snails) for their house special rotisserie chicken.  It did not disappoint.  I don't think I have ever tasted a nicer roast chicken. EVER. My mouth is watering right now just thinking about it.  The Sachertorte was pretty good too. Wah?!  I was on me holliers, desserts are mandatory.

Los Caracoles (or the chicken place as my brother in law calls it),

off Placa Reail, Barcelona

The next day we decided to stroll up to Las Ramblas and visit Mercat de La Boqueria to buy a picnic to enjoy in Parc de la Ciutadel, situated a stones throw from our hotel.  We had great fun watching some of the street performers that lined Las Ramblas and the reactions of startled passers by who fell foul of their mischief.  Then we headed across the street and into food heaven.  We had great memories from our previous visit to Barcelona of buying fresh bread rolls filled with parma ham, and juicy melon to take with us to the beach and were both keen to get back.  I would have given my right arm as I strolled around to have been staying in an apartment with a fully functional kitchen so that I could have tried some of the fresh veg and seafood on offer.  The market was a hive of activity each time we visited and it is such an amazing resource, something we are badly lacking in many parts of Ireland in my opinion.  I took a few little pictures to show you the delights within.

Las Ramblas and it's street performers,

some pretty little flowers for sale from one of many floral stands

and Casa del Paraiques(House of the Umberella)

Some of the wonderful fresh produce available from

Mercat de La Boqueria,

Las Ramblas, Barcelona

That evening we ate in one of the restaurants in the marina.  For some reason I don't have any photos (obviously tucked straight in before I remembered) but the food was amazing.  Afterwards we headed to Tapas Royale, a very nice cocktail bar.  One mojito later and I was well and truly fooked.  We had shared a bottle of Cava over dinner so I hadn't really consumed enough alcohol to be in the sorry state that I was but we were to discover the reason for this on Saturday night.  As we were leaving Mr. Boo declared that he was "starviiiin" and by happy coincidence we passed a pizza place about 5 seconds later.  €2 bought him a huge slice and it was absolutely delicious and just enough to tide him over until sleepy time.  I crawled into bed and prayed for sleep or death, I wasn't fussy at that point, just whichever came first would do.

The following day we purchased our little picnic for lunch again and took the Bus Turistic to Parc Guell to admire some of Gaudi's handiwork.  We had missed it on our last trip and so I was excited to see it this time.  We passed La Pedrera(Casa Milá) and Sagrada Familia on the way but didn't stop to tour them as we had done so on our previous visit.  La Pedrera is stunning and well worth a visit.  Sagrada Familia again is stunning and an amazing feat of architecture but I am not so sure I would waste a couple or hours climbing the towers again.  You climb up behind a gang of arthritic aul wans going at a snails pace, walk out onto the foot bridge and back down behind the same gang of arthritic aul wans who by this stage are knackered following the climb up the stairs.  Take some pictures from the outside and then go find a nice placa somewhere and enjoy a nice glass of cava.  Alternatively adopt a friends attitude and say, "Is that it?  Bring me back when it's finished.  I'll be in that bar over there."  We got off the bus and climbed the (extremely) steep hill to the park where we spent a lovely few hours wandering around and feasting on our picnic. 

Parc Guell, La Pedrera and Sagrada Familia

Mr. Boo was determined to take in a match whilst we were there and what with me being such a kind hearted soul I sacrificed one evening of MY holiday to grant his wish.  Barcelona F.C. were due to play a la Liga match against Hercules on the Saturday evening so we bought a couple of tickets to shut him up.  That plan didn't quite work as he then decided to tell me at every opportunity that they are probably the best club team in the world and that Messi is a genius and that zzzzzzzzzzzzz.  Oops sorry I must have nodded off for a second there.  As I was so selflessly giving up one whole night of MY holiday he was warned that he had better bring me somewhere nice for a slap up lunch.  He didn't disappoint.  We strolled back down to the marina to la Gavina.  This was another recommendation from his brother and it didn't disappoint.  He advised that we go the the "third place in the marina for the prawn tempura", he trailed off then as he started to drool.  I understand fully now.  Mr. Boo ordered the prawn tempura and I ordered mussels to start, well you could have fed a family for a week on the portions they were so generous.  The mussels were delicious but the prawn tempura was just perfection.  Large tender prawns encased in a delicate tempura batter accompanied by a simple soy sauce for dipping.  There was plenty of lip smacking to be heard so apologies to our fellow diners.  Both mains were delicious also and when we were leaving we made a reservation to return on our last evening for another helping of the tempura.

La Gavina, Marina del Mar, Barcelona

With our tummy's suitably stuffed we did a little dash back to the hotel to change into more suitable match attire.  Once changed we headed out to catch the subway to Camp Nou to see Barcelona trounce Hercules (they have only just been promoted from a lower division).  The atmosphere in the Nou Camp was fantastic, lots of families out enjoying a match in the evening sunshine.  Mr. Boo was like a little kid, sitting there on his wonky seat taking in everything.  He was positively beside himself when the 'genius' Messi finally trotted onto the pitch.  We joined in as best we could with the Catalunyan chants and as the match heated up a little I got swept up in the spirit of things and shouted such encouragement as, "Go on my son", and, "That's a good lad, now bring the ball forward and put it in the net".  It would seem there was another Irish lady in the vicinity who was shouting out shocking profanity's at the lagging Barcelona side.  I am just thankful that the majority of the locals couldn't understand the language she was screaming.  I couldn't repeat it here as I wouldn't want to offend anyone.  An appalling 5-0 defeat from Hercules and the entire stadium stood and applauded the crushed home team and left the stadium in the same high spirits they arrived in.  A thoroughly enjoyable evening, just don't tell Mr. Boo I said that, I'm still putting the guilts on him!

 

Barcelona -v- Hercules, Camp Nou, Barcelona

When we got back to the city Mr. Boo again declared he was, "starviiiiiin", so we headed for a tapas and oyster bar we had passed each day that looked pretty scrummy.  They have both tapas and an a la carte menu.  We ordered from the a la carte menu and were very impressed and returned a couple of days later for a little afternoon snack of tapas, this did not disappoint either.

Orios Tapas and Oyster Bar, Barcelona

From here we headed back to Tapas Royal for some more cocktails.  I ordered a non alcoholic mojito as I didn't fancy another evening of lying in bed praying for death.  As we sat at the bar and watched the mixologist make up Mr. Boos mojito all became clear.  She mixed a white rum with a gold rum and easily poured 5 or 6 measures into the glass.  I was drunk just looking at her!  One mojito later and he was finished.  Yet again he had the munchies so as we passed a sweet shop that was still open he dragged me in to stock up on biscuits for a midnight feast.  In his drunken state I decided to take advantage and so piled his arms high with yummy florentines and a pretty biscuit tin, €45 later we headed back to the hotel and enjoyed Nespresso's and scummy biscuits. 

La Cure Gourmande, Barcelona

The rest of the holiday was spent strolling through the streets of the city, browsing the stands of antique and craft markets, sitting in placas sipping cava, eating, lazing on the beach, eating, sipping cava, eating, sipping cava, eating.  I really enjoyed our week in Barcelona and am raging it took us so long to get back there.  It is right up at the top of my to do list, well just after a trip back to New York, and maybe a little break in Paris, and I really do want to go see a show in London.  Hmmm, I will definitely get back there at some stage and I hope it is sooner rather than later. 

Art i Sa, Placa Reail, Barcelona

Marina del Mar, Barcelona

The Food Coast Harvest Feast

This fell into my inbox last week and I thought some of you might be interested in it.  On Sunday, September 26th 2010, four of Donegal's best restaurants will be joining forces to serve up a harvest feast using Donegal's finest ingredients.  The feast will take place in the beautiful historic setting of the Battery, Rathmullan.  For more information you can check out http://www.thefoodcoastharvestfeast.com/ or read the press release that I have included below. 

"On 26 September 2010, four Bridgestone recommended restaurants – Rathmullan House, Harry's Restaurant, An Bonnán Buí, and The Beach House – will be joining forces to serve 300 guests a sociable harvest feast against the backdrop of Lough Swilly and Rathmullan's historic Battery. What¹s on the menu? Donegal's best local ingredients turned into a four-course, communal lunch by Donegal's best chefs. 

We're planning it around the best and freshest ingredients we can get here in Donegal at this time of year, says Mark Wheeler of Rathmullan House, one of the drivers behind the event, and are actively recruiting any and all local producers we can to supply us with seafood, meats, dairy, baked goods, fresh fruits and vegetables. The diversity of products out there once you start looking is tremendous. We already know we have some of the world's best quality seafood, lamb, and potatoes, but there are some nice little surprises out there too like local honey and rapeseed oil, cheeses and organic dairy, and heritage breed pork.


The event is taking place under the umbrella of The Food Coast, a new programme designed by the Donegal County Enterprise Board to make Donegal a food county, a place with a vibrant food culture and food economy. We see great potential for job creation in the food sector in the Donegal, says Danny McEleney, the programme's manager. For it to thrive, we need to put Donegal on the good food map as a place for quality products and a destination for a quality experience – The Food Coast.


While one side of the initiative provides local producers with the supports they need to develop and improve, the other side focuses on building consumer awareness for local food products. The Food Coast Harvest Feast brings both sides together in one. What better way to support local food producers than to create outlets for their produce, says Donal Doherty of Harry's Restaurant and a co-organiser of the event.  And what better way to raise consumer awareness than by serving them great food in a great location.


Rathmullan's Battery, a napoleanic-era defensive fortress, sits on the shore of Lough Swilly, one of Donegal's most beautiful stretches of sheltered coastal waters.  The Battery¹s courtyard makes the perfect backdrop to the ultimate social dining experience, Claire McGowan of the Beach House Bar & Restaurant says.  Hopefully the sun will be shining, and we'll have Donegal's incomparable autumn light and colours to complement the meal and the historic setting. This being Ireland, though, we're leaving nothing to chance. The entire courtyard will be covered and weatherproof if necessary.

The organisers want The Food Coast Harvest Feast to become a staple event on Donegal's annual food calendar.  We see it as a full-day, family event, where food and community meet, says Martin Kelly of An Bonnán Buí.  We want people to come out for a leisurely walk on the beach, or to partake in some of the activities planned for the day, before joining their friends and neighbours – or even complete strangers – at communal tables for what will hopefully be an unforgettable Sunday afternoon feast.


Some of the activities on the agenda include boating excursions on Lough Swilly, mushroom foraging in Rathmullan Wood, live jazz and traditional music in the village's pubs, as well as guided cycle and walking tours. A final menu and list of activities will be announced on 15 September 2010.

The Food Coast Harvest Feast
26 September 2010
2pm – 4pm
The Battery in Rathmullan
Adults 25 Euros / Children 15 Euros
Contact any of the participating restaurants to book:


Rathmullan House 074 915 8188
An Bonnán Buí 074 915 8453
Harry¹s Restaurant 074 936 8544
The Beach House 074 936 1050"

Happy 1st Birthday Like Mam Used To Bake

It was exactly 1 year ago today that I sat down and tapped away on my laptop and published my first blog post.  I really didn't know what I was doing.  I wanted to try out a new hobby to pass the long winters nights to come and decided, "maybe I will try blogging".  I had no idea of where it might lead and if I'm truthful with myself I honestly didn't hold out much hope for lasting more than a month.  I bore easily and move onto something new and then something else and usually something new after that.  But here I am, 1 year later, wishing myself a happy birthday and blowing out a solitary candle on a chocolate cake made with love, joy and pride.

I am proud of what I have achieved in the past year.  I tried something new.  I made mistakes.  I sat for hours at a time trying to figure out something technical that baffled me.  I figured it out.  I taught myself lots of new things, small things, but new.  I learned from others.  I learned from myself.  I persevered.  I did it.  Alone.  For no one else but me.  I introduced myself to new people, online and in the flesh.  Me, the chronically shy woman met new people and spoke to them.  So many lovely people. 

Psssst, you are the lovely people, and I would like to thank you all.  Thank you for reading my blog.  Thank you for commenting.  Thank you for complimenting.  Thank you for encouraging.  Thank you for trying my recipes.  Thank you all so very much.  I would especially like to thank all of the wonderful ladies of beaut.ie, the Irish Foodies and the lovely people of Bord Bia.  Your support, help, advice and encouragement is truly appreciated.  Blogging has become such an enjoyable hobby for me but each and every one of you has made it even more so and so as a little thank you I have a present for one of you.

Up for grabs is a copy of Baking Magic by Kate Shirazi.  I think it is a beautiful book and would be equally loved by an accomplished baker or a baking virgin.  If you would like to win a copy this book please leave me a comment telling me about your favourite food memory and email likemamusedtobake@hotmail.com with the username that appears with your comment, marking the email 'Competition'.  The competition will close at midnight on September 24th 2010.  Entrants must be resident in Ireland.  No cash alternative is possible.  I will not share any details with third parties. 

COMPETITION NOW CLOSED. 
PLEASE FEEL FREE TO CONTINUE TO LEAVE COMMENTS THOUGH!

CPM: Chocolate, Peanuts & Marshmallow (GF)

*Before we get started, apologies for the atrocious pictures in this post, I was feeling a bit lazy. Soz!*

I was watching Food Network the other day, not like me I know, when this popped up.  It was one of those snippets of a Food Network chef talking about 'The best thing I ever tasted...'.  You know the ones I mean.  The theme for this particular one was sugar and Chef Duff from Charm City Cakes was in the hot seat. 

I wasn't paying too much attention to him as I was also scribbling something or other onto a piece of paper at the same time.  I very rarely just do one thing at a time, I always have one eye here and t'other there.  It's just the way I like to roll.  Even when I look like I am only concentrating on the task at hand my brain is generally 2 hours ahead thinking of the next thing I intend to do.  Anyhoo, I digress.  My attention turned solely to the tv when the chef who had created Duff's favourite dessert started to describe it.

First you pop 3 scoops of vanilla ice cream into the bottom of a glass, then you scatter on some sweetened peanuts, follow that up with a layer of chocolate ganache and then top the lot with some warm marshmallow fluff.  Naturally at that stage I found myself on my knees licking the tv screen. (Note to self, dust the tv.) 

I was giddy with excitement at the prospect of recreating this sweet confection and kept dreaming about it for the 24 hours that followed, so last night I gave in and made it before dinner.  I know, I shouldn't have but I was alone in the house and it was a good hour and a half before dinner so I did it.  This is one of my favourite things about being an adult, you can decide what to eat and when and if you want to eat dessert before dinner, you can go right ahead and do it!

As this was not part of an actual cookery show there was no recipe to accompany it.  The following is a rough guide:

CPM: Chocolate, Peanuts & Marshmallow
(the following quantities are for one serving but can very easily be multiplied)

*** NB Check that the brand of marshmallows you use are gluten free if making for someone with coeliac disease***

2tbsp Salted Peanuts
A squeeze of Honey
A handful of white Mini Marshmallows
4tbsp of Milk
3 scoops of Vanilla Ice Cream
3-4tbsp of Chocolate Sauce

1.  An hour in advance of assembly place the peanuts into a small bowl.  Squeeze over just enough honey to coat them all evenly.  Cover and set aside until required.
2.  Place the mini marshmallows and milk into a small saucepan and set over a low heat to melt.

3.  While you are waiting for the marshmallows to melt remove the ice cream from the freezer and allow to soften slightly.
4.  Once the marshmallows have melted remove them from the heat. 

5.  Place the 3 scoops of ice cream into the glass.  Flatten down with the back of a spoon.  Spoon the peanuts on top of the ice cream.  Cover the peanuts with the chocolate sauce.  Finally, cover the chocolate sauce with the melted marshmallow. 

6.  Grab a BIG spoon.  Lock yourself in a room on your own and dig in.  It is very important to get a bit of each layer in every spoonful.  Trust me, you will be glad you did.  Enjoy!

Notes:

• I had no vanilla ice cream in the house so used a homemade honeycomb one I had been meaning to taste.  It worked perfectly and I will post the recipe for that soon.
• Marshmallow fluff is not something that is readily available here.  I know Avoca sell a jar of pink marshmallow fluff but I think the melted marshmallow I used worked perfectly well.  Actually, I know it worked perfectly well because it was feckin delicious.
• I used a shop bought chocolate sauce but feel free to make your own ganache if you wish.  If I was serving it as a dessert I would most probably opt for a homemade version.