So I'm currently laid up in bed with a rather bad ear and throat infection and feeling just generally crappy. It is on days like this that I long to be at home in my childhood bed being looked after by my mam. My hubby is here and he has stockpiled the fridge with ice pops to cool and soothe my throat and bought some chicken soup to make sure I eat something and keep my energy up. Average treatment from someone who loves you and wants to help you feel better. But, my mammy he is not.
No one can nurse you like your mammy can nurse you. Dosing you with sugary pink Calpol on the dot every four hours, making little cotton balls to keep the cold out of your aching ears, running a strict hot water bottle rotation to ensure the cosiness of your bed is never compromised and cooking delicious batches of chicken broth the mere smell of which harnessed powerful healing properties.
My mam was relentless in her care of her girls whenever we were struck with a virus or infection or tummy bug. She played the role of nurse to perfection preempting our needs so as to always appear at our bedside at just the right time with the perfect remedy. Dry toast just as hunger started to set in following a tummy upset, cough medicine at 2am during mid sleep coughing fits that she never slept through, steaming chicken soup to help break a cold and the remote control on that last day of bed rest when really we were well enough to go to school but she pretended not to notice to allow us one last day of indulgence.
A constant across the spectrum of illnesses are the things that I would love right now. A wibbly wobbly bowl of jelly and ice cream and an ice cold glass of 7UP. I remember sitting on my mams lap in our doctors surgery and when he handed over the prescription for that yucky banana flavoured medicine he would always add "and plenty of 7UP and some jelly and ice cream". On leaving the doctors we would walk across the road to the chemist to pick up the said scustin' medicine and then drop into the shop to pick up a packet of jelly and a block of HB vanilla ice cream.
I dodn't think it matters how old we are, we are never to old to crave the love and care of our mammy when we are ill. I unfortunately do not have the luxury of my favourite nurse anymore so will have to adjust my expectations in line with the level of care offered by my wonderful husband. What I do have and am grateful for are the memories of those days to keep me warm and bring a smile as I shiver here in my sick bed.
Sunday, March 21, 2010
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
1 Mississippi 2 Mississippi
I'm a bit of a bore at heart. I've never been a wan for boozing and clubbing, falling over the cobble stones of Templebar at an ungodly hour of a Saturday evening and requiring strategically placed yellow stars on photographs the next day. Nope, I'm a bit of a bore. I would garner much more pleasure from an evening sat around my kitchen table with family and friends savouring mouthfuls of delicious food I have laboured over all day. I revel in these days, with the menu planned in advance and all of the ingredients bought and safely stowed in the fridge or press I rise early to start the preparations.
We were having my brother in law and his wife over but the hubby had fecked off out to visit his mammy in advance of Mothers day, the cheek, and then to the gym to pump some iron or do whatever it is the men folk do there. As I had been abandoned and the clock was ticking down it was up to me to crack on and give the house a bit of a spruce up so out came the duster and the hoover, followed by the mop. Right so that’s the dessert and the hovel sorted which was in my world good going as I usually have to shove the hoover in a corner somewhere as the doorbell rings.
2 o'clock, I could lounge on the sofa for a few hours and shovel some of those deliciously delish homemade truffles in my gob but alas no, a friend is popping in at 2:30 to show off her new babog and I am looking as my mother would have said like the wreck of the hespiss. Half an hour just wasn't gonna cut it so I had to make a very bold decision, horror of horrors I was gonna have to face my friend with a face untouched by the wonders of modern concealers, hair scraped back into a pony that would ensure no unruly frizzy bits could escape and peel my very comfy tracksuit away from my body in exchange for some jeans.
That brings me right up to 6 o'clock, perfect. Just enough time to beautify myself and prep the rest of the food. 7:30pm and I am back in the kitchen applying a little lip gloss when the hubby starts shouting at me cos he is under pressure to prep the starter and I am obviously not contributing enough to the nights preparations. I smiled politely as the only other option was to knock him to the ground and drag him around the house by the ears and point out all of the things I had spent the day doing. A nice little smack of the lips to ensure even distribution of said gloss and sure I'm only massive. With that I dressed the table and flittered about the house lighting approximately 17 gazillion tea lights to set the ambience for the evening ya see.
Ding Dong and they're here. Plenty of mwah mwahing could be heard for the next few minutes with a light sprinkling of compliments before I find myself back in the kitchen whipping up a little pre dinner cocktail which was quaffed by all and seconds promptly requested. A few hot 'head in oven' minutes later the gong sounds and three hungry souls were seated around the table and I served up the starter which hubby declared to be his creation lest I try to take credit for it, heaven forbid. Compliments all round and hubby decidedly pleased with himself removed himself from the table to cook the mojito chicken he had been so looking forward to trying http://www.thegoodmoodfoodblog.com/2008/07/mohito-lime-and-mint-chicken.html. I joined him at the hob as my perfect hostess status was possibly in jeopardy as I hadn't knocked up a batch of my addictive Rocky Road and had numerous phone calls throughout the day from my bro in law from which I got the distinct impression he would be devastated if a plate of this did not appear at some stage throughout the night. Rocky Road chilling in the fridge and main course served there was silence again for a few minutes bar the sound of metal scraping delph until plates were clean and bellies full.
Having waited a sufficient time to talk and laugh ourselves peckish again we arrived at my favourite part of the evening - dessert. To me starters and main course are merely a means to an end and that end is dessert. The pop of a champagne cork is the most suitable herald of dessert in my book so once glasses had been filled with pretty pink bubbles the Mississippi Mud Pie arrived at the table and four very generous slices were cut and distributed followed mere seconds later by copious ooohing and aaaahing in appreciation of its chocolaty goodness and all round deliciousness. Now at this stage you would imagine we were all fit to burst and couldn't possibly manage another morsel. Well we were, but sure when I arrived at the table with tea and coffee accompanied by chocolate truffles and rocky road we heroically managed to squeeze in a taster of each before wisely vowing to only let cocktails pass our lips for the remainder of the evening and very sensibly toddling off to bed at 4 am. A very successful evening all round and another delicious dessert to add to the arsenal. Result!
Mississippi Mud Pie
I got the recipe for this from Something for the Weekend so am gonna be a bit lazy and just post the link:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/apps/ifl/food/mobile/queryengine?templatestyle=one_recipe&config=db_one_recipe&SuppressCaching=1&attrib_1=filename&oper_1=eq&val_1_1=mississippimudpie_93659
Saturday was one of these blissful days. I started off at about 8:30am by mixing together some chocolate truffles before safely stowing the mix in the fridge to set. Then it was onto the cake which was made in three pretty straight forward stages and left to cool. Sorted.
We were having my brother in law and his wife over but the hubby had fecked off out to visit his mammy in advance of Mothers day, the cheek, and then to the gym to pump some iron or do whatever it is the men folk do there. As I had been abandoned and the clock was ticking down it was up to me to crack on and give the house a bit of a spruce up so out came the duster and the hoover, followed by the mop. Right so that’s the dessert and the hovel sorted which was in my world good going as I usually have to shove the hoover in a corner somewhere as the doorbell rings.
2 o'clock, I could lounge on the sofa for a few hours and shovel some of those deliciously delish homemade truffles in my gob but alas no, a friend is popping in at 2:30 to show off her new babog and I am looking as my mother would have said like the wreck of the hespiss. Half an hour just wasn't gonna cut it so I had to make a very bold decision, horror of horrors I was gonna have to face my friend with a face untouched by the wonders of modern concealers, hair scraped back into a pony that would ensure no unruly frizzy bits could escape and peel my very comfy tracksuit away from my body in exchange for some jeans.
That brings me right up to 6 o'clock, perfect. Just enough time to beautify myself and prep the rest of the food. 7:30pm and I am back in the kitchen applying a little lip gloss when the hubby starts shouting at me cos he is under pressure to prep the starter and I am obviously not contributing enough to the nights preparations. I smiled politely as the only other option was to knock him to the ground and drag him around the house by the ears and point out all of the things I had spent the day doing. A nice little smack of the lips to ensure even distribution of said gloss and sure I'm only massive. With that I dressed the table and flittered about the house lighting approximately 17 gazillion tea lights to set the ambience for the evening ya see.
Ding Dong and they're here. Plenty of mwah mwahing could be heard for the next few minutes with a light sprinkling of compliments before I find myself back in the kitchen whipping up a little pre dinner cocktail which was quaffed by all and seconds promptly requested. A few hot 'head in oven' minutes later the gong sounds and three hungry souls were seated around the table and I served up the starter which hubby declared to be his creation lest I try to take credit for it, heaven forbid. Compliments all round and hubby decidedly pleased with himself removed himself from the table to cook the mojito chicken he had been so looking forward to trying http://www.thegoodmoodfoodblog.com/2008/07/mohito-lime-and-mint-chicken.html. I joined him at the hob as my perfect hostess status was possibly in jeopardy as I hadn't knocked up a batch of my addictive Rocky Road and had numerous phone calls throughout the day from my bro in law from which I got the distinct impression he would be devastated if a plate of this did not appear at some stage throughout the night. Rocky Road chilling in the fridge and main course served there was silence again for a few minutes bar the sound of metal scraping delph until plates were clean and bellies full.
Having waited a sufficient time to talk and laugh ourselves peckish again we arrived at my favourite part of the evening - dessert. To me starters and main course are merely a means to an end and that end is dessert. The pop of a champagne cork is the most suitable herald of dessert in my book so once glasses had been filled with pretty pink bubbles the Mississippi Mud Pie arrived at the table and four very generous slices were cut and distributed followed mere seconds later by copious ooohing and aaaahing in appreciation of its chocolaty goodness and all round deliciousness. Now at this stage you would imagine we were all fit to burst and couldn't possibly manage another morsel. Well we were, but sure when I arrived at the table with tea and coffee accompanied by chocolate truffles and rocky road we heroically managed to squeeze in a taster of each before wisely vowing to only let cocktails pass our lips for the remainder of the evening and very sensibly toddling off to bed at 4 am. A very successful evening all round and another delicious dessert to add to the arsenal. Result!
Mississippi Mud Pie
I got the recipe for this from Something for the Weekend so am gonna be a bit lazy and just post the link:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/apps/ifl/food/mobile/queryengine?templatestyle=one_recipe&config=db_one_recipe&SuppressCaching=1&attrib_1=filename&oper_1=eq&val_1_1=mississippimudpie_93659
Plain Dark Chocolate Truffles
(Makes, well, a lot!)
225g/8oz Good Quality Dark Chocolate (broken into small pieces)
300ml/1/2pint Double Cream
Place the chocolate pieces into a bowl.
Bring the cream to a rolling boil in a saucepan and immediately pour over the chocolate.
Blend until all of the chocolate has melted. Allow to cool at room temerature (approx 1-1&1/2 hours).
When the mixture has set spoon out some of the mixture and roll into balls between the palms of your hands (dust hands with some icing sugar or cocoa powder to stop the mixture from stcking to them).
Roll the truffles in cocoa powder, icing sugar, chopped nuts, flaked cocolate or anything that takes your fancy.
Alternatively:
Line a square baking tin with grease proof paper.
Once the chocolate and cream have combined pour the mixture into the prepared baking tin and chill in the fridge.
When the mixture has set lift out of the baking tin with the grease proof paper and place on a flat surface.
Dust lightly with cocoa powder, lay a sheet of grease proof paper on top and turn upside down, remove the original grease proof paper from the bottom and dust lightly with cocoa powder.
Dust a sharp knife with a little cocoa powder and cut into strips of approx 2cm. Dust knife regularly to prevent sticking.
Once the square has been cut into strips turn the grease proof paper once and cut at 2cm intervals again to give perfect square truffles.
Use any remaining cocoa powder to dust the freshly cut sides.
Monday, March 15, 2010
By jove, I think she's got it!
Morning peeps,
So I have mentioned a couple of times that I wanted to try to recreate a cake I had in one of my favourite cafes, actually, I did recreate it but felt it still wasn't up to scratch. Well I think I may have it. The cake in question was made using a digestive biscuit base, perfectly acceptable for a lot of cakes but for this particular creation I felt it left it wanting something. As I was making the base for Saturdays dessert it suddenly occurred to me that maybe it would work with said cake, so next time I will try it with my new favourite biscuit base and it that fails I shall have to pray for inspiration. Think I have eaten twice my own body weight in delicious food this weekend so will wait a few days before I bake anything but will post a recipe as soon as I succeed. Recipes from this weekends dinner party will appear this week so keep your peepers on alert for Mississippi Mud Pie and chocolate truffles, delicious!
So I have mentioned a couple of times that I wanted to try to recreate a cake I had in one of my favourite cafes, actually, I did recreate it but felt it still wasn't up to scratch. Well I think I may have it. The cake in question was made using a digestive biscuit base, perfectly acceptable for a lot of cakes but for this particular creation I felt it left it wanting something. As I was making the base for Saturdays dessert it suddenly occurred to me that maybe it would work with said cake, so next time I will try it with my new favourite biscuit base and it that fails I shall have to pray for inspiration. Think I have eaten twice my own body weight in delicious food this weekend so will wait a few days before I bake anything but will post a recipe as soon as I succeed. Recipes from this weekends dinner party will appear this week so keep your peepers on alert for Mississippi Mud Pie and chocolate truffles, delicious!
Friday, March 12, 2010
Busy Weekend
Afternoon all,
Well I have a busy weekend ahead with two lots of visitors scheduled in for tomorrow and then dinner in someone elses house on Sunday (thank God, 'cos I imagine I will need a bit of a break). I have some baking scheduled in for a dinner party on Saturday night and hopefully if I find the time some home made chocs. Will also try to whip up a little sweet confection for tomorrow afternoons visitors. Probably won't get time to post results and recipes until next week so keep an eye out. Enjoy your weekend and to all of the yummy mummys out there Happy Mothers Day. Mwah.
xxx
Well I have a busy weekend ahead with two lots of visitors scheduled in for tomorrow and then dinner in someone elses house on Sunday (thank God, 'cos I imagine I will need a bit of a break). I have some baking scheduled in for a dinner party on Saturday night and hopefully if I find the time some home made chocs. Will also try to whip up a little sweet confection for tomorrow afternoons visitors. Probably won't get time to post results and recipes until next week so keep an eye out. Enjoy your weekend and to all of the yummy mummys out there Happy Mothers Day. Mwah.
xxx
Friday, February 26, 2010
The Cookie Monster
Ok, quick post today as I am a little short on time and have a lot to do so for a change I am gonna cut to the chase and just post the recipe for some yummy, scrummy cookies. I am still on my Hummingbird Bakery book addiction so here is the recipe. Also have a little look after the recipe for a suggestion on how to adapt these to suit all tastes. Enjoy.
Double Chocolate Cookies
(Makes 12)
50g Unsalted Butter
450g Dark Chocolate (roughly chopped)
2 Eggs
170g Soft Light Brown Sugar or Light Muscovado Sugar
1/4 tsp Vanilla Extract
85g Plain Flour
1/2 tsp Salt
1/2 tsp Baking Powder
Optional - 1 tube of Smarties
Preheat the oven to 170°C/325°F/Gas 3.
Line two baking sheets with greaseproof paper.
Put the butter, and half the chocolate in a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water(be careful not to let the bottom of the bowl touch the water). Allow to melt until smooth in consistency.
In a separate bowl use an electric whisk to beat the eggs, sugar and vanilla extract until well combined. Pour in the chocolate mixture and beat on a slow speed until well combined.
Sift the flour, salt and baking powder in a separate bowl. Stir into the chocolate mixture in 3 batches, mixing well after each.
Stir in the remaining chocolate until evenly dispersed throughout. *
Place 6 equal quantities of cookie dough on each prepared baking sheet and be sure to leave space between each one to allow for spreading when cooking.
If using Smarties place a few on the top of each cookie before baking.
Bake in the preheated oven for 10-15 minutes, check regularly after 10 minutes. The cookies are ready when the top starts to crack and look glossy.
Allow to cool slightly on baking sheets before transferring to wire cooling rack.
* If baking these for children I would recommend replacing 225g of plain chocolate to be used here in the recipe with 225g of milk chocolate.
Double Chocolate Cookies
(Makes 12)
50g Unsalted Butter
450g Dark Chocolate (roughly chopped)
2 Eggs
170g Soft Light Brown Sugar or Light Muscovado Sugar
1/4 tsp Vanilla Extract
85g Plain Flour
1/2 tsp Salt
1/2 tsp Baking Powder
Optional - 1 tube of Smarties
Preheat the oven to 170°C/325°F/Gas 3.
Line two baking sheets with greaseproof paper.
Put the butter, and half the chocolate in a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water(be careful not to let the bottom of the bowl touch the water). Allow to melt until smooth in consistency.
In a separate bowl use an electric whisk to beat the eggs, sugar and vanilla extract until well combined. Pour in the chocolate mixture and beat on a slow speed until well combined.
Sift the flour, salt and baking powder in a separate bowl. Stir into the chocolate mixture in 3 batches, mixing well after each.
Stir in the remaining chocolate until evenly dispersed throughout. *
Place 6 equal quantities of cookie dough on each prepared baking sheet and be sure to leave space between each one to allow for spreading when cooking.
If using Smarties place a few on the top of each cookie before baking.
Bake in the preheated oven for 10-15 minutes, check regularly after 10 minutes. The cookies are ready when the top starts to crack and look glossy.
Allow to cool slightly on baking sheets before transferring to wire cooling rack.
* If baking these for children I would recommend replacing 225g of plain chocolate to be used here in the recipe with 225g of milk chocolate.
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Muffin Tops, Muffin Tops Everywhere
Having a love of baking and limiting muffin tops to the oven can be pretty tough work, do yiz know what I mean? It's February, which is kinda still the start of the year, meaning I am still in the 'I should be eating healthily and trying to lose a bit of weight' frame of mind. I am trying very hard to stick to this so I have to decide to either fore go baking until at least October when I can wrap up in winter clothes again (although at the rate the weather is going this year spring/summer clothing may not see the light of day), or I can try to incorporate some more waist friendly baking into my life.
When it comes to indulgent food I tend to not do low fat versions. If I am going to bake a chocolate cake I do a chocolate cake, not your half arsed version, sure what's the point in that. When I go out to eat in a restaurant I don't order salad to start, steamed fish and veg for my entree and sorbet for dessert. Again, what's the frickin' point? I can count calories when I eat at home so I'm damned if I am going to do it when dining out. But for the greater good of my health and the seam of my waistband I think I can substitute some of my double cream, full fat butter for a some slightly healthier options.
Tonight I baked some delicious savoury muffins. I adapted the recipe marginally from one featured in the Hummingbird Bakery book. I am hoping they will be a nice healthy lunch option to accompany some homemade soup or just a quick snack to stop me reaching for some chocolate. Next time I may adapt the recipe further by making them with wholewheat flour as opposed to plain flour and then I think I could be on to a low fat, low calorie, high fibre gem. And sure since I am being so healthy and wholesome munching on these little babies I have probably earned a nice slice of chocolate cake as a little treat.
Ham & Cheese Muffins(makes 12)
50g Butter
1/2 Small Onion Finely Chopped
360g Plain Flour
2 & 1/2 tsp Baking Powder
200g Grated Cheddar Cheese
220ml Whole Milk
1 Egg
80g Smoked Ham (finely chopped)
Sea Salt & Freshly Ground Black Pepper
Preheat the oven to 170°C/325°F/Gas 3.
Line a 12 hole muffin tray with paper cases.
Melt the butter in a saucepan over a medium heat and fry the onion until softened. Season with salt and pepper.
Mix the flour, baking power and cheese in a large bowl.
In a separate bowl mix the egg and milk together. Slowly pour this into the flour mixture and beat with a handheld electric whisk until well combined.
Stir in the onion and ham and mix until evenly distributed.
Spoon the mixture into the paper cases until two thirds full.
Bake in the pre heated oven for 30 to 35 minutes, until golden in colour. A skewer inserted into the centre should come out clean.
Allow to cool slightly before transferring to a wire rack to cool fully.
When it comes to indulgent food I tend to not do low fat versions. If I am going to bake a chocolate cake I do a chocolate cake, not your half arsed version, sure what's the point in that. When I go out to eat in a restaurant I don't order salad to start, steamed fish and veg for my entree and sorbet for dessert. Again, what's the frickin' point? I can count calories when I eat at home so I'm damned if I am going to do it when dining out. But for the greater good of my health and the seam of my waistband I think I can substitute some of my double cream, full fat butter for a some slightly healthier options.
Tonight I baked some delicious savoury muffins. I adapted the recipe marginally from one featured in the Hummingbird Bakery book. I am hoping they will be a nice healthy lunch option to accompany some homemade soup or just a quick snack to stop me reaching for some chocolate. Next time I may adapt the recipe further by making them with wholewheat flour as opposed to plain flour and then I think I could be on to a low fat, low calorie, high fibre gem. And sure since I am being so healthy and wholesome munching on these little babies I have probably earned a nice slice of chocolate cake as a little treat.
Ham & Cheese Muffins(makes 12)
50g Butter
1/2 Small Onion Finely Chopped
360g Plain Flour
2 & 1/2 tsp Baking Powder
200g Grated Cheddar Cheese
220ml Whole Milk
1 Egg
80g Smoked Ham (finely chopped)
Sea Salt & Freshly Ground Black Pepper
Preheat the oven to 170°C/325°F/Gas 3.
Line a 12 hole muffin tray with paper cases.
Melt the butter in a saucepan over a medium heat and fry the onion until softened. Season with salt and pepper.
Mix the flour, baking power and cheese in a large bowl.
In a separate bowl mix the egg and milk together. Slowly pour this into the flour mixture and beat with a handheld electric whisk until well combined.
Stir in the onion and ham and mix until evenly distributed.
Spoon the mixture into the paper cases until two thirds full.
Bake in the pre heated oven for 30 to 35 minutes, until golden in colour. A skewer inserted into the centre should come out clean.
Allow to cool slightly before transferring to a wire rack to cool fully.
Friday, February 12, 2010
Where have all the Fairy Cakes gone???
The weeks leading up to my birthday are always filled with much anticipation and excitement, just like those weeks in December leading up to Christmas Eve are for a small child. When it comes to my birthday I suppose I revert back to being a small child inside. I have always loved birthdays - mine, yours, the dog or cats - it doesn't really matter because they are all birthdays and as such should be treated with the reverence the day deserves.
Strip back all the wrapping, presents and candles and think about what that day symbolises. It is the anniversary of the day that a person entered the world, such a wonderful occurrence that should always be celebrated and never forgotten or overlooked. I know that there are certain belief systems that do not celebrate birthdays, and some people see them only as a reminder of the fact that they are getting older. I even have an aunt who would forget it was her birthday until she opened post on the day and pulled out a birthday card. This to me is unthinkable, if you want a reminder that you are getting older just have a look in the mirror and your laughter lines should serve that purpose. Embrace your birthday and celebrate a day that is all about you and has the added bonus of presents and cake!
I have always been made to feel special on my birthday as have all of my family. From as far back as I can remember I would wake up on my birthday and come to the living room to find it decorated with 'Happy Birthday' banners and balloons, my mam would be waiting there with a pile of presents for me on the sofa. The presents would always be wrapped in beautiful paper that was chosen with the same amount of thought as the gifts within, and when all of the family had gathered around they would be handed to me one by one for me to open and declare my love for each one equally. My mam was an expert present buyer and knew each of her girls inside out meaning she never missed the mark, not once, and so every present be it a beautiful dress, those boots you secretly wanted or a teeny tiny lip balm was always exactly what you would buy yourself had you just been tasked with buying your own presents. There was also always the exact right amount of presents to convey the special mood of the day, never too little to make you feel you hadn't been spoiled adequately for your annual day of treats and never too many that the quality of any of them were compromised in favour of quantity.
The thing that made my birthday extra special though was that I shared my birthday with my mam. Imagine that, my poor mam was enjoying her birthday one year and then party hats and cake had to be abandoned in favour of a trip to the maternity ward. I am sure once all of the hoopla and fuss had died down and she was sat with a cup of tea in one hand and me in the other(obviously I have not yet had a child of my own painting this rosy picture of the hours after agonising child birth) she forgave me and for the next twenty years we revelled in this special connection, always blowing out our birthday candles side by side.
So, once paper had been viciously ripped from presents and some of the excitement had been tamed just long enough to get me ready I would be dispatched to the school gates for a day of fun and laughter and not too much learning(there was the little matter of cake to be dreamed about to keep me from absorbing anything hedumacational, you see). Once home from school the preparations would begin for a tea party and I of course would be the guest of honour. They were simpler times back then (again, I am not ancient) but really, 80's birthday parties were quite tame. There were no bouncy castles, clowns, play centres, limousines or other such extravagances back then, no sirree Bob. We had some jellies, a couple of bowls of Tayto cheese and onion, if you were lucky a box of Tea Cakes or Snow Balls, popcorn, rice krispie cakes, maybe some fun size smarties and in later years you were very fancy altogether if you had an ice cream cake decorated with a flake!
The treat I remember most and probably my favourite of all was the humble homemade fairy cake, do you remember them? I can still taste my mam's ones now if I close my eyes and transport myself back to my 5 year old self. Deliciously sweet and fluffy with a slightly crisp outer shell, nothing fancy, just a simple Madeira mix spooned into tiny hand size cases. And so I come to the point of this blog post, where have all of the fairy cakes gone? It's all American cupcakes these days with there multi coloured frosting and edible glitter. Now, I'm not complaining, I LOVE cupcakes and would happily live on them if it weren't for the risks of obesity and heart disease but sometimes it would be nice to see the humble fairy cake championed in bakeries instead of them being confined to the bottom shelf of the supermarket, vacuum packed and drizzled with a bit of pink and lemon icing.
This past birthday I was gifted with a copy of The Hummingbird Bakery cookbook which is just jam packed with delicious American inspired baked delights. Pies, cookies and naturally, cupcakes. So while I sat drooling over the pictures I decided the first treat I would bake from it would just have to be the chocolate cupcakes. I think there is my answer, when faced with the choice of what to bake - fairy cakes or chocolate cupcakes - I am afraid I would always choose the frosted gorgeousness of a cupcake over the humble fairy cake. So that is where all of the fairy cakes have gone, to the back of the line. The competition form their fancy schmanzy American cousins has proven to stiff to beat and the cake of choice for every 80's Irish tea party is sadly out of vogue.
Chocolate Cupcakes
(Makes 12)
Put the flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking powder, salt and butter in a bowl and beat with an electric whisk until you get a sandy consistency and everything is combined.
Whisk the milk, egg and vanilla extract together in a jug. Pour half into the flour mixture and beat to combine. Turn the mixer up to a high speed to get rid of any lumps.
Turn the mixer down to a slower speed and slowly pour in the remaining milk mixture. Continue mixing for a couple more minutes until the mixture is smooth but do not over mix.
Line a twelve hole muffin tin with paper cases and spoon the mixture into the cases until two thirds full.
Place in the preheated oven and bake for 20-25 minutes. They are done when a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean and the sponge has a slight bounce when touched.
Place on a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
Chocolate Frosting
Turn the whisk down to a slow speed and add the milk a couple of tablespoons at a time.
When all of the milk has been added turn the whisk up to a high speed and continue beating until the frosting is light and fluffy (approx 5 mins, the longer you whisk for the lighter the frosting will be)
Spoon the frosting onto the cupcakes and decorate with sprinkles of your choice.
Strip back all the wrapping, presents and candles and think about what that day symbolises. It is the anniversary of the day that a person entered the world, such a wonderful occurrence that should always be celebrated and never forgotten or overlooked. I know that there are certain belief systems that do not celebrate birthdays, and some people see them only as a reminder of the fact that they are getting older. I even have an aunt who would forget it was her birthday until she opened post on the day and pulled out a birthday card. This to me is unthinkable, if you want a reminder that you are getting older just have a look in the mirror and your laughter lines should serve that purpose. Embrace your birthday and celebrate a day that is all about you and has the added bonus of presents and cake!
I have always been made to feel special on my birthday as have all of my family. From as far back as I can remember I would wake up on my birthday and come to the living room to find it decorated with 'Happy Birthday' banners and balloons, my mam would be waiting there with a pile of presents for me on the sofa. The presents would always be wrapped in beautiful paper that was chosen with the same amount of thought as the gifts within, and when all of the family had gathered around they would be handed to me one by one for me to open and declare my love for each one equally. My mam was an expert present buyer and knew each of her girls inside out meaning she never missed the mark, not once, and so every present be it a beautiful dress, those boots you secretly wanted or a teeny tiny lip balm was always exactly what you would buy yourself had you just been tasked with buying your own presents. There was also always the exact right amount of presents to convey the special mood of the day, never too little to make you feel you hadn't been spoiled adequately for your annual day of treats and never too many that the quality of any of them were compromised in favour of quantity.
The thing that made my birthday extra special though was that I shared my birthday with my mam. Imagine that, my poor mam was enjoying her birthday one year and then party hats and cake had to be abandoned in favour of a trip to the maternity ward. I am sure once all of the hoopla and fuss had died down and she was sat with a cup of tea in one hand and me in the other(obviously I have not yet had a child of my own painting this rosy picture of the hours after agonising child birth) she forgave me and for the next twenty years we revelled in this special connection, always blowing out our birthday candles side by side.
So, once paper had been viciously ripped from presents and some of the excitement had been tamed just long enough to get me ready I would be dispatched to the school gates for a day of fun and laughter and not too much learning(there was the little matter of cake to be dreamed about to keep me from absorbing anything hedumacational, you see). Once home from school the preparations would begin for a tea party and I of course would be the guest of honour. They were simpler times back then (again, I am not ancient) but really, 80's birthday parties were quite tame. There were no bouncy castles, clowns, play centres, limousines or other such extravagances back then, no sirree Bob. We had some jellies, a couple of bowls of Tayto cheese and onion, if you were lucky a box of Tea Cakes or Snow Balls, popcorn, rice krispie cakes, maybe some fun size smarties and in later years you were very fancy altogether if you had an ice cream cake decorated with a flake!
The treat I remember most and probably my favourite of all was the humble homemade fairy cake, do you remember them? I can still taste my mam's ones now if I close my eyes and transport myself back to my 5 year old self. Deliciously sweet and fluffy with a slightly crisp outer shell, nothing fancy, just a simple Madeira mix spooned into tiny hand size cases. And so I come to the point of this blog post, where have all of the fairy cakes gone? It's all American cupcakes these days with there multi coloured frosting and edible glitter. Now, I'm not complaining, I LOVE cupcakes and would happily live on them if it weren't for the risks of obesity and heart disease but sometimes it would be nice to see the humble fairy cake championed in bakeries instead of them being confined to the bottom shelf of the supermarket, vacuum packed and drizzled with a bit of pink and lemon icing.
This past birthday I was gifted with a copy of The Hummingbird Bakery cookbook which is just jam packed with delicious American inspired baked delights. Pies, cookies and naturally, cupcakes. So while I sat drooling over the pictures I decided the first treat I would bake from it would just have to be the chocolate cupcakes. I think there is my answer, when faced with the choice of what to bake - fairy cakes or chocolate cupcakes - I am afraid I would always choose the frosted gorgeousness of a cupcake over the humble fairy cake. So that is where all of the fairy cakes have gone, to the back of the line. The competition form their fancy schmanzy American cousins has proven to stiff to beat and the cake of choice for every 80's Irish tea party is sadly out of vogue.
Chocolate Cupcakes
(Makes 12)
- 100g Plain Flour
- 20g Cocoa Powder
- 140g Caster Sugar
- 1&1/2 tsp Baking Powder
- Pinch of Salt
- 40g Unsalted Butter (room temp)
- 120ml Whole Milk
- 1 Egg
- 1/4tsp Vanilla Extract
Put the flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking powder, salt and butter in a bowl and beat with an electric whisk until you get a sandy consistency and everything is combined.
Whisk the milk, egg and vanilla extract together in a jug. Pour half into the flour mixture and beat to combine. Turn the mixer up to a high speed to get rid of any lumps.
Turn the mixer down to a slower speed and slowly pour in the remaining milk mixture. Continue mixing for a couple more minutes until the mixture is smooth but do not over mix.
Line a twelve hole muffin tin with paper cases and spoon the mixture into the cases until two thirds full.
Place in the preheated oven and bake for 20-25 minutes. They are done when a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean and the sponge has a slight bounce when touched.
Place on a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
Chocolate Frosting
- 300g Icing Sugar (sieved)
- 100g Unsalted Butter (room temp)
- 40g Cocoa Powder
- 40ml Whole Milk
Turn the whisk down to a slow speed and add the milk a couple of tablespoons at a time.
When all of the milk has been added turn the whisk up to a high speed and continue beating until the frosting is light and fluffy (approx 5 mins, the longer you whisk for the lighter the frosting will be)
Spoon the frosting onto the cupcakes and decorate with sprinkles of your choice.
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Fantastico Rinnucini's!
There was no time for baking last weekend as my gorgeous hubby whisked me down* the country for a couple of days r&r. We were due to go a couple of weeks back but the Big Freeze of 2010 hit and sure don't you know it the whole place ground to a halt. So, we pushed it out by a week and sure wouldn't you know it the feckin' snow decided to hang around and with the salt and grit scarcer than a tan on an Irish farmers belly we had to once again postpone. We had plans for the two weekends that followed meaning last weekend was the earliest we could slip away for some time together. I swear to God, you'd mobilise a military invasion quicker than you'd get the pair of us down the road to Kilkenny! Saturday morning arrived and I jumped (crawled) out of the bed, pulled open the blinds and what did I see outside only a nice thick layer of frickin' frost on the road. Now at this stage someone up above is having a bit of a giraffe with us.
Off we set on our precarious way happily singing along to my hubby's new 'weekend away' play list thinking that we were no longer going to let the weather stand in our way, I mean this time it was just a little bit of frost and the occasional random ice patch, right. Wrong!!! When we hit the M50 it would appear the heavens were falling down around our ears as the thickest fog I can remember engulfed the car, and so we drove from Dublin to Kilkenny in a thick white cloud not able to see 6ft in front of us at any given time. We made it to the hotel in one piece despite the non existent visibility and deposited our bags pronto before heading back out (into the thick fog, fun) to do a spot of shopping and perhaps have a little bite to eat.
Kilkenny is a very lovely place, and with the construction of some new by pass roads is no distance from Dublin making it a good weekend destination. We have been at least a couple of times a year for the past few years and at this stage must have seen everything it has to offer, so you are probably wondering why bother going back now, why not try somewhere new? The answer to this is simple, Rinnucini's restaurant, that's why.
I can't remember when we first dined here but it was a few years ago now. We stumbled across it on one visit coming out of the castle and ever since it is our sole reason for visiting Kilkenny and never overlook it when down there. I think it is probably my favourite restaurant in Ireland for its combination of fantastic service, perfect bustling atmosphere and always faultless food. I have been to many restaurants with stunning decor, Michelin star food, celebrity chefs and waiting lists as long as your arm, none of which tick all of the boxes in the manner that Rinnucini's does. I have never once walked away form the restaurant with a complaint or a but which is more than I can say for any other Irish restaurant I have visited.
Saturday was no different. Instantly on entering the din of animated conversation hit us smack on the face, the glow of the table lamps melted away the cold from the fog outside and the aroma of delicious creations immediately reminded my tummy that I was STARVING. As we left the hotel too late to have a drink we arrived about 5 minutes early and were shown to our table which I wasn't very happy with. Now I know, I know that I just said I have never had a complaint with this place so bare with me. We addressed our problem with our waiter who explained that as we were slightly early our allocated table was not yet ready but if we were happy to wait he would move us asap. He did move us, and to a very nice table in one of the main areas just perfect for soaking up the lovely atmosphere.
The hubby ordered a bottle of bubbles which was only fabilis, lovely and fruity, I think moreish would be the word for this one. Then we munched away on the lovely bread brought to us while we waited for our food. I ordered Antipasto Rinnucini to start and Tortelloni al Gorgonzola for my main, both were gorgeous. Hubby ordered Capesante de Giacomo (scallops) to start and Pasta del Giorno Frutti de Mare (seafood pasta to you and me) as his main, and it pains me to say it but the bugger made better choices. Whilst all of the dishes were delicious his just had the X factor, gorgeous.
Now he may well have won rounds 1 and 2 but round 3 will always be taken by me. Rinnucini's is the place to go if you want expertly made fresh pasta but for me my visits are motivated by one thing and one thing only, dessert. Always on the dessert menu (thankfully) is the most delicious chocolate mousse. It is smooth, rich, dense, chocolatey heaven on a plate, topped off with a scrumptious dollop of homemade vanilla ice cream cradled in a brandy snap basket. I have sampled many a chocolate mousse in my time (my absolute favourite is that served up in Town Bar & Grill in Dublin) but this one is right up there and this alone makes the 3 hour round trip, the cost of a new guna and shoes and the added expense of a hotel for the night sooooooo worth it.
For that reason I think it shall remain that myself and my hubby make an excuse a couple of times a year for that trip to Kilkenny and the obligatory visit to Rinnucini's to stuff ourselves full of the truly delicious offerings of the wonderful chef and kitchen staff. (I would post some nice pics of all of the lovely things we ate but alas we were so busy scoffing and quaffing that I forgot to take some, soz!)
Off we set on our precarious way happily singing along to my hubby's new 'weekend away' play list thinking that we were no longer going to let the weather stand in our way, I mean this time it was just a little bit of frost and the occasional random ice patch, right. Wrong!!! When we hit the M50 it would appear the heavens were falling down around our ears as the thickest fog I can remember engulfed the car, and so we drove from Dublin to Kilkenny in a thick white cloud not able to see 6ft in front of us at any given time. We made it to the hotel in one piece despite the non existent visibility and deposited our bags pronto before heading back out (into the thick fog, fun) to do a spot of shopping and perhaps have a little bite to eat.
Kilkenny is a very lovely place, and with the construction of some new by pass roads is no distance from Dublin making it a good weekend destination. We have been at least a couple of times a year for the past few years and at this stage must have seen everything it has to offer, so you are probably wondering why bother going back now, why not try somewhere new? The answer to this is simple, Rinnucini's restaurant, that's why.
I can't remember when we first dined here but it was a few years ago now. We stumbled across it on one visit coming out of the castle and ever since it is our sole reason for visiting Kilkenny and never overlook it when down there. I think it is probably my favourite restaurant in Ireland for its combination of fantastic service, perfect bustling atmosphere and always faultless food. I have been to many restaurants with stunning decor, Michelin star food, celebrity chefs and waiting lists as long as your arm, none of which tick all of the boxes in the manner that Rinnucini's does. I have never once walked away form the restaurant with a complaint or a but which is more than I can say for any other Irish restaurant I have visited.
Saturday was no different. Instantly on entering the din of animated conversation hit us smack on the face, the glow of the table lamps melted away the cold from the fog outside and the aroma of delicious creations immediately reminded my tummy that I was STARVING. As we left the hotel too late to have a drink we arrived about 5 minutes early and were shown to our table which I wasn't very happy with. Now I know, I know that I just said I have never had a complaint with this place so bare with me. We addressed our problem with our waiter who explained that as we were slightly early our allocated table was not yet ready but if we were happy to wait he would move us asap. He did move us, and to a very nice table in one of the main areas just perfect for soaking up the lovely atmosphere.
The hubby ordered a bottle of bubbles which was only fabilis, lovely and fruity, I think moreish would be the word for this one. Then we munched away on the lovely bread brought to us while we waited for our food. I ordered Antipasto Rinnucini to start and Tortelloni al Gorgonzola for my main, both were gorgeous. Hubby ordered Capesante de Giacomo (scallops) to start and Pasta del Giorno Frutti de Mare (seafood pasta to you and me) as his main, and it pains me to say it but the bugger made better choices. Whilst all of the dishes were delicious his just had the X factor, gorgeous.
Now he may well have won rounds 1 and 2 but round 3 will always be taken by me. Rinnucini's is the place to go if you want expertly made fresh pasta but for me my visits are motivated by one thing and one thing only, dessert. Always on the dessert menu (thankfully) is the most delicious chocolate mousse. It is smooth, rich, dense, chocolatey heaven on a plate, topped off with a scrumptious dollop of homemade vanilla ice cream cradled in a brandy snap basket. I have sampled many a chocolate mousse in my time (my absolute favourite is that served up in Town Bar & Grill in Dublin) but this one is right up there and this alone makes the 3 hour round trip, the cost of a new guna and shoes and the added expense of a hotel for the night sooooooo worth it.
For that reason I think it shall remain that myself and my hubby make an excuse a couple of times a year for that trip to Kilkenny and the obligatory visit to Rinnucini's to stuff ourselves full of the truly delicious offerings of the wonderful chef and kitchen staff. (I would post some nice pics of all of the lovely things we ate but alas we were so busy scoffing and quaffing that I forgot to take some, soz!)
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
So Many Cakes, So Little Time!
OK, so I kinda predicted this at the start, that any grand aspirations to bake deliciously sweet delights every week, photograph and blog about them would possibly become derailed quite easily. Funnily enough I was right. Life can be a bit of a bugger though can't it, and just get in the way of all those things that we love to do. I generally have grand plans to bake some mouth watering delight on a Friday to be enjoyed over the course of the weekend. Then, the phone rings. Yep, the phone, such a wonderful invention, but by Jaysus is it incessant in our home and usually involves plans being made that put paid to my determination to don the apron.
Some of these plans are made with oodles of advance notice. But, more often than not they involve a moments notice and taking into account my inability to say no to anybody there are quite a lot of things left to balance precariously on my long finger. Now don't get me wrong, I love nothing more than spending time with family and friends and if someone is in need I will bend over backwards (not literally, I'm not that nimble) to lend a hand, so that's the chocolate brownies out the feckin' window for another week, and so the cycle begins. At this time of year I also find myself faced with the guilt of New Years resolutions and my determination to be healthy and that little voice in my head telling me I do not NEED that slice of caca milis. I knnooow I don't need it, but I feckin' well want it, right!!!
What I can try to do though, is commit to jotting down a few lines more often, even if they are not baking related. I sometimes amaze myself with the amount of random rubbish that floats into my head, most of which would be of absolutely no interest to anybody. But every now and then I am invaded by lovely thoughts that bring a smile to my face, make me chuckle out loud(these usually occur in public, when I am alone and therefore deemed crazy lady by passers by) or fill me with that lovely warm fuzzy feeling we are blessed with every now and then. So for now I shall endeavour to fill in the long lonely gaps between baking experiments with a bit of random blathering about anything and everything that happens to grab my attention.
I do hope to make some yummy cupcakes next week and am determined to follow through on this as these are my absolute favourite scrummy delight. I also wish to follow up on a cake I enjoyed in one of my favourite cafes but am struggling to perfect the base. I felt what could be a rather moreish delight was somewhat marred by a rather lacklustre Digestive base and so am on a one woman crusade to perfect this offering before I share it with others.
Some of these plans are made with oodles of advance notice. But, more often than not they involve a moments notice and taking into account my inability to say no to anybody there are quite a lot of things left to balance precariously on my long finger. Now don't get me wrong, I love nothing more than spending time with family and friends and if someone is in need I will bend over backwards (not literally, I'm not that nimble) to lend a hand, so that's the chocolate brownies out the feckin' window for another week, and so the cycle begins. At this time of year I also find myself faced with the guilt of New Years resolutions and my determination to be healthy and that little voice in my head telling me I do not NEED that slice of caca milis. I knnooow I don't need it, but I feckin' well want it, right!!!
What I can try to do though, is commit to jotting down a few lines more often, even if they are not baking related. I sometimes amaze myself with the amount of random rubbish that floats into my head, most of which would be of absolutely no interest to anybody. But every now and then I am invaded by lovely thoughts that bring a smile to my face, make me chuckle out loud(these usually occur in public, when I am alone and therefore deemed crazy lady by passers by) or fill me with that lovely warm fuzzy feeling we are blessed with every now and then. So for now I shall endeavour to fill in the long lonely gaps between baking experiments with a bit of random blathering about anything and everything that happens to grab my attention.
I do hope to make some yummy cupcakes next week and am determined to follow through on this as these are my absolute favourite scrummy delight. I also wish to follow up on a cake I enjoyed in one of my favourite cafes but am struggling to perfect the base. I felt what could be a rather moreish delight was somewhat marred by a rather lacklustre Digestive base and so am on a one woman crusade to perfect this offering before I share it with others.
Saturday, January 9, 2010
Let it snow, let it snow.....alright enough already!
My childhood memories of snow are few and far between an quite frankly a little hazy. I could most probably count on both hands the amount of truly snowy days that I have experienced in my whole lifetime, that is up until now. We would very occasionally be blessed with a day off school because the pipes had frozen and when I did build a snowman it was generally of the anorexic variety because if you had an inch of snow be God there must have been an all out blizzard.
Having lived only in Ireland I have only once before experienced weather similar to that of the last two weeks. My very first trip to New York was in January of 2003 and the temperatures there were a crisp -15C. Now this was my first trip stateside and New York is very obviously used to these Baltic temperatures, life functions unhindered with safe roads and pavements, the weather was seen through very romantic eyes.
Their were nine of us in total on that trip, seven of us travelled together and two more joined us a day later. We all came prepared with warm coats, hats, scarves and gloves, and sensible shoes. All apart from my sister in law who walked the snowy streets of Manhattan in 6 inch stilettos. We all grinned like Cheshire cats as we huddled in a group to have our photo taken in front of the Empire State Building, walked around the city in sub zero temperatures without complaint, marvelled at the sight of Central Park with its thick blanket of snow, giggled at the the amateur skaters on the ice in Rockefeller Centre and braved the temperatures at night in order to dress in our finery for dinner and cocktails.
On our first night we phoned home to our late arrivals to advise them of the extreme temperatures and advise them to pack for the North Pole. They took our warnings as nothing more than the Irish abroad exaggerating as we have a tendency to do and each packed a heavy 'Irish winter' coat and no accessories. They snickered when we met for pre dinner drinks the evening of their arrival and layered ourselves up before departure to the restaurant. I would say approximately 2 minutes later when we hit the streets in hunt of taxis it was the rest of us snickering as they could barely speak with the cold and looked up and down the block frantically for a street vendor from whom to purchase hats, scarves and gloves. Very stylish 'I Love NY' hats et al were soon secure on their person and remained so for the rest of the holiday without any remarks of our exaggerating prior to their arrival.
And so it was that for the remainder of the holiday we layered ourselves up like the Michelin man, tramped around the streets of New York and stopped when necessary for an alcoholic beverage to warm our cockles without a second thought and more importantly without a grumble. Fast forward 7 years and to Ireland and non holiday mindsets and it would seem that our bodies have somehow forgotten how to cope with this weather phenomenon we are faced with. I personally have not left the house except when necessary for the past two weeks, engagements have been cancelled, daily walks have been abandoned and the cupboards are almost bare.
I think some of it is rooted in our biological make up. We live in what is probably best described as a tepid climate, never too hot, never too cold just somewhere nicely balanced in the middle. For this reason our natural thermostat is thrown into a tizzy on the rare occasions that we experience a heatwave or a cold snap. Our natural response to this cold weather is therefore to slow down, eat plenty of hearty, warming comfort food and to cocoon ourselves in layers of clothing and blankets and basically hibernate. In a heatwave our bodies slow down (any excuse it would seem) we strip back the layers (hence our poor eyes are assaulted by the sight of lily white beer bellies wobbling unabashedly in public), graze on our food in an attempt to shed some unnecessary insulation and wait for the rain to return.
The common denominator of these two extremes in weather is the love that Irish people have for a good old moan. By God if moaning was an Olympic sport we'd take home gold, silver and bronze every time. At the moment everybody is moaning about being trapped inside for fear of breaking a limb stepping foot outside the door onto the icy surfaces that the government haven't bothered to grit. In hot conditions we complain that there isn't a breath to be had and that we can't function properly in the heat. And when there are no extremes but just bog standard Irish rain we complain that were sick of the cold and the wet and would love to live in a Mediterranean climate.
So there you have it, there is absolutely no pleasing us and while we may be thwarted by the weather at present it suits us just grand cos we can have a good old moan and a right go at the government for their ineptness in dealing with the situation at hand and plunging us into a state of natural emergency.
Why is it that the entire country has ground to a very frosty halt? It is fair to say that we rarely have weather so cold for longer than 2 or 3 days and snow rarely sticks to the ground for long and for this reason national and local contingency plans while effective initially have well and truly been stretched to there limits and beyond. Our belief that we had had our 3 days worth until next Christmas I'm sure delayed the ordering of fresh supplies until eventually someone in a council office somewhere probably said, 'actually lads I don't think this is actually gonna blow over in a couple of days so maybe (just maybe) we should order in a bit more salt'. Said supplies are supposedly en route and it's a good thing they are as we are said to have another 10 days of snow and frost stretched out ahead of us, this is the third consecutive day that I have heard news reports state 10 days as the duration!
To ride this out I have opted for hibernation. Apart form necessary tasks and travel I have taken to lounging on my sofa with a warm blanket, plenty of chocolate and the remote control. I am quite enjoying the excuse to divulge myself in so much guilt free inactivity. When I settle down each evening basking in the soft glow of lamplight, the flickering of deliciously fragrant candles and look out at the moon illuminating the snowy blanket, I wrap my hands around a steaming mug of hot chocolate and I must admit that I am completely and utterly intoxicated by the beauty of this fluffy, marshmallow like weather phenomenon. It has rendered my brain all but useless and for this reason I have not ventured into the kitchen to indulge in my favourite pass time of baking, but if you would like something delicious to warm you on these wintry nights I suggest one of my favourite indulgences - a Bailey's hot chocolate. The creamy liqueur transforms a humble hot chocolate into a silky, internal hot water bottle that will melt away any post Christmas blues. So enjoy (obviously in moderation, you don't want to wake up face down in the snow now do you?) and stay safe when out and about on the ice.
Bailey's Hot Chocolate
Having lived only in Ireland I have only once before experienced weather similar to that of the last two weeks. My very first trip to New York was in January of 2003 and the temperatures there were a crisp -15C. Now this was my first trip stateside and New York is very obviously used to these Baltic temperatures, life functions unhindered with safe roads and pavements, the weather was seen through very romantic eyes.
Their were nine of us in total on that trip, seven of us travelled together and two more joined us a day later. We all came prepared with warm coats, hats, scarves and gloves, and sensible shoes. All apart from my sister in law who walked the snowy streets of Manhattan in 6 inch stilettos. We all grinned like Cheshire cats as we huddled in a group to have our photo taken in front of the Empire State Building, walked around the city in sub zero temperatures without complaint, marvelled at the sight of Central Park with its thick blanket of snow, giggled at the the amateur skaters on the ice in Rockefeller Centre and braved the temperatures at night in order to dress in our finery for dinner and cocktails.
On our first night we phoned home to our late arrivals to advise them of the extreme temperatures and advise them to pack for the North Pole. They took our warnings as nothing more than the Irish abroad exaggerating as we have a tendency to do and each packed a heavy 'Irish winter' coat and no accessories. They snickered when we met for pre dinner drinks the evening of their arrival and layered ourselves up before departure to the restaurant. I would say approximately 2 minutes later when we hit the streets in hunt of taxis it was the rest of us snickering as they could barely speak with the cold and looked up and down the block frantically for a street vendor from whom to purchase hats, scarves and gloves. Very stylish 'I Love NY' hats et al were soon secure on their person and remained so for the rest of the holiday without any remarks of our exaggerating prior to their arrival.
And so it was that for the remainder of the holiday we layered ourselves up like the Michelin man, tramped around the streets of New York and stopped when necessary for an alcoholic beverage to warm our cockles without a second thought and more importantly without a grumble. Fast forward 7 years and to Ireland and non holiday mindsets and it would seem that our bodies have somehow forgotten how to cope with this weather phenomenon we are faced with. I personally have not left the house except when necessary for the past two weeks, engagements have been cancelled, daily walks have been abandoned and the cupboards are almost bare.
I think some of it is rooted in our biological make up. We live in what is probably best described as a tepid climate, never too hot, never too cold just somewhere nicely balanced in the middle. For this reason our natural thermostat is thrown into a tizzy on the rare occasions that we experience a heatwave or a cold snap. Our natural response to this cold weather is therefore to slow down, eat plenty of hearty, warming comfort food and to cocoon ourselves in layers of clothing and blankets and basically hibernate. In a heatwave our bodies slow down (any excuse it would seem) we strip back the layers (hence our poor eyes are assaulted by the sight of lily white beer bellies wobbling unabashedly in public), graze on our food in an attempt to shed some unnecessary insulation and wait for the rain to return.
The common denominator of these two extremes in weather is the love that Irish people have for a good old moan. By God if moaning was an Olympic sport we'd take home gold, silver and bronze every time. At the moment everybody is moaning about being trapped inside for fear of breaking a limb stepping foot outside the door onto the icy surfaces that the government haven't bothered to grit. In hot conditions we complain that there isn't a breath to be had and that we can't function properly in the heat. And when there are no extremes but just bog standard Irish rain we complain that were sick of the cold and the wet and would love to live in a Mediterranean climate.
So there you have it, there is absolutely no pleasing us and while we may be thwarted by the weather at present it suits us just grand cos we can have a good old moan and a right go at the government for their ineptness in dealing with the situation at hand and plunging us into a state of natural emergency.
Why is it that the entire country has ground to a very frosty halt? It is fair to say that we rarely have weather so cold for longer than 2 or 3 days and snow rarely sticks to the ground for long and for this reason national and local contingency plans while effective initially have well and truly been stretched to there limits and beyond. Our belief that we had had our 3 days worth until next Christmas I'm sure delayed the ordering of fresh supplies until eventually someone in a council office somewhere probably said, 'actually lads I don't think this is actually gonna blow over in a couple of days so maybe (just maybe) we should order in a bit more salt'. Said supplies are supposedly en route and it's a good thing they are as we are said to have another 10 days of snow and frost stretched out ahead of us, this is the third consecutive day that I have heard news reports state 10 days as the duration!
To ride this out I have opted for hibernation. Apart form necessary tasks and travel I have taken to lounging on my sofa with a warm blanket, plenty of chocolate and the remote control. I am quite enjoying the excuse to divulge myself in so much guilt free inactivity. When I settle down each evening basking in the soft glow of lamplight, the flickering of deliciously fragrant candles and look out at the moon illuminating the snowy blanket, I wrap my hands around a steaming mug of hot chocolate and I must admit that I am completely and utterly intoxicated by the beauty of this fluffy, marshmallow like weather phenomenon. It has rendered my brain all but useless and for this reason I have not ventured into the kitchen to indulge in my favourite pass time of baking, but if you would like something delicious to warm you on these wintry nights I suggest one of my favourite indulgences - a Bailey's hot chocolate. The creamy liqueur transforms a humble hot chocolate into a silky, internal hot water bottle that will melt away any post Christmas blues. So enjoy (obviously in moderation, you don't want to wake up face down in the snow now do you?) and stay safe when out and about on the ice.
Bailey's Hot Chocolate
- 1 Mug of steaming hot chocolate
- 1oz Bailey's or similar cream liqueur
- Whipped Cream (optional)
- Flaked Chocolate (optional)
- Simply make a mug of your chosen hot chocolate according to instructions.
- Add 1 oz of Bailey's and stir to combine.
- Add 2 tablespoons of whipped cream to the top if desired and crumble some flaked chocolate over the cream.
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