Cheddar Cheese & Thyme Scones

As the weather has turned a little autumnal this week I have been craving warm and comforting snacks to keep me going between meals.  Yesterday I baked up a batch of yummy cheese and thyme scones.  They are only gorgeous.  I had one straight from the oven with a little butter and oh my, it was only beeuriful!  Jesus, ok ok I had TWO straight from the oven with a little butter.  Who died and made you lot the diet police, wah?!  The rest are individually wrapped and in the freezer just waiting for a little hunger pang to strike.  Enjoy these cold, toasted or quickly warmed through in the microwave.  The only thing missing I think is a big bowl of stew to go with them.  Honest to God, it's freezing here right now.  I'm off to pop the kettle on, you lot go and get your aprons on.  Enjoy!

Apologies for the picture quality here but I didn't have my camera to hand so had to rely on my phones camera

Cheddar Cheese and Thyme Scones
(I yielded 11 scones from this recipe)

225g/8oz Plain Flour
1tbsp Baking Powder
Pinch of Sea Salt
50g/2oz Butter
125g/4.5oz Mature Cheddar Cheese, grated
3-4 sprigs chopped Fresh Thyme
125-150ml/4.5-5floz Milk

1.   Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas Mark 6.  Oil a baking sheet (I used a silicone sheet on my baking sheet instead).
2.   Sieve the flour, baking powder and salt into a bowl.
3.   With clean hands, rub the butter into the flour until it resembles fine breadcrumbs.

4.   Stir in 2/3's of the grated cheese.

5.   Stir in the chopped fresh thyme.

6.   Gradually pour in the milk until you have a soft dough.

7.   Roll the dough out on a floured work surface to a thickness of approximately 1cm/0.5". 

8.   Using a floured pastry cutter, cut out circles and space out evenly on the baking sheet.

9.   Sprinkle the remaining grated cheese on top of the scones.

10. Place in the preheated oven and bake for 15-18 minutes or until golden around the edges.

11. Remove from the oven and transfer to a wire cooling rack for 5 minutes.  Enjoy whilst still hot with some butter. 

12. Store any leftover scones in an airtight container for up to 3 days or wrap individually in cling film and freeze.

Wedding Anniversary: 4 Years

Today is my wedding anniversary.  I have been married to the most wonderful man in the world for four whole years.  To be honest I don't know how he puts up with me, but he does.  He must be mad, or desperate, or both maybe. 

Then again, I sometimes wonder how I put up with him.  He drives me mad.  He spends at least 97.5% of his waking hours on a mission to wind me up.  Wind me up to the point of insanity sometimes. It makes him laugh.  Sometimes it makes me cry. 

But I love him.  My heart aches with the weight of it if I stop to think about just how much, so I try not to do that too often.  Then when I wake up to start a new day I realise I love him just a little bit more.  I don't know how it is possible, but it is.  He loves me too you know.  And every day when he wakes up he continues to love me.  I am eternally grateful for that.  Even in the moments when I forget that I am.

He is my sun, my breath, my life. 

I love you Mr Boo. I always will.

xxx

Natasha's Living Food: Raw Dark Chocolates with Sweet Chillis

On Saturday Mr Boo and I decided to head into the Temple Bar Market in Meeting House Square.  It had been a while since we were last there and a few changes had occured.  The main one being the large marquee or canopy that now shelters the majority of the area from the elements.  There were also some new stall holders present and the one that caught my eye was Natasha's Living Food.

The very nice lady in attendance explained the concept behind the food and offered us some samples to try.  I decided to buy a box of chilli choRaw Dark Chocolates with Sweet Chilli to try out at home later on.  As I may have mentioned once or twice I am a huge chocolate fan but I am more drawn to milk varieties for eating, saving plain varieties for baking, so I was very interested to taste the little box in my hand.  The chocolates are made from Organic Raw Cacao Beans, a rich source of antioxidants.  All of the ingredients used are organic.  They are gluten and dairy free so suitable for vegans and those with a gluten intolerance.

The box contained 4 chocolates and cost €5.  Mr Boo treated me.  At €1.25 a piece you might be thinking they are a bit on the pricey side but I think once you read the list of ingredients inside you can justify that.  The packaging is very nice, clean and simple.  The information card contained within the box is very comprehensive and gives a great overview of the ingredients contained within the product.  The chocolate themselves look very tempting with a nice hint of the chilli within visible on the top of each sweet.

Now for the taste test.  The chocolate is slightly bitter, with a sweetness that comes through as it melts on your tongue.  The bitter and sweet together combine to give a great depth of flavour.  The chilli comes through as an after taste almost, and is not at all over powering.  The texture fell somewhere between a truffle and a solid chocolate.  Not quite soft enough to be classed as a truffle but yet, a little too crumbly to be a solid chocolate.

I think fans of bitter plain chocolate (70% or more) would really enjoy these chocolates.  I am a big fan of the chilli/chocolate combo so these get a thumbs up from me.  If you are a chocolate lover who is trying to cut down on consumption I think these would make a great treat option.  I have found 1 of these a day has been enough to satisfy my insatiable chocolate cravings.  I bought them on Saturday and still have on left (has never happened EVER in this house).  An added bonus is that they are choc full of healthy ingredients with health benefits so a win win situation if ever there was one.  I will definitely treat myself to a box the next time I visit the market.  If you try them out I hope you enjoy them too. 

Picking Blackberries

I'm on a bit of a healthy living kick at the moment.  Well, since Wednesday.  It is all Italian Foodie's fault.  She mentioned on Twitter that she wanted to lose a little weight and get fit and then it snow balled.  Before I knew it I was signed up to fatbet and rooting out my runners.  It has come at a pretty good time to be honest.  I've got a nice holiday to Barcelona coming up soon and every time I even contemplate trying on my bikini I swear I can hear that thing sniggering, "not a feckin' hope love", from inside the wardrobe, and the scales has taken to walking back and forth in the bathroom with a placard. Really, there was no need for him to scrawl 'no more heifers' on it.  Anyhoo, as part of my efforts to get in shape a daily walk has been added to my routine.  As I was out walking this morning I spotted some big, juicy blackberries weighing down the bushes that lined the pathway and I was instantly transported back in time.

When we were younger we would spend our summer days in Clontarf Baths.  In the evenings when it was time to go home we would gather up our bits and bobs and throw our bags on our backs.  Mam would give us a choice once outside, "we can get the bus, or, we can walk and you can spend your bus fare in the shop".  It was the same every night, and the answer was the same every night too.  "We'll walk and spend our bus fare".  So off we would trot, our 30p bus fare safely nestled in our pockets, the orange sun, low in the sky and radiating just enough heat to dry our still drenched hair.

We would reach the shop just before we had to turn off the sea front for the last half of our walk and our 30p was just enough to purchase a Loop the Loop.  A few minutes of blissful silence followed as we happily munched and slurped our way right down to the lime layer and then made our lips sting from repeatedly pulling the stick through them to ensure we had extracted every last drop of refreshment.

As the days drew closer to the end of summer a change would occur in the bushes and brambles that lined our way.  One night, out of the blue and as if by magic the familiar green would be gone, hidden behind a myriad of delicious, enticing blackberries.  Once this change had occurred we would leave the path, manouevre our bodies through the hole in the fence to walk through the grass and harvest a feast.  Bags would be pulled from backs and rooted through ferociously to find anything suitable to transport our precious cargo home.

Mam would comment that we could bring them home to dad and she would bake something nice for him.  A genuine intention but by the time we reached our hall door there would barely be enough left to prove their existence.  With berry stained lips and fingertips we would proffer forward a tiny handful for dad to enjoy.  They would sit on the little table beside his arm chair in whatever beaker, or flask or other make shift container we had to hand until we were safely nestled in bed, exhausted and with the smell of the sea still clinging to our hair and sun kissed skin, dreaming of doing it all again the next day.

Vegan Peanut Butter Cookies

A couple of weeks ago I received an invitation from the lovely Clare Kleinedler (An American in Ireland) to join her and some other Irish foodies for an evening of vegan food.  I had dinner arrangements made for the night in question but a quick chat with Mr. Boo and he said he would cancel our reservation and treat me another night, he's good like that you know.  Also in attendance at the soiree were Kristin (Dinner du Jour), Aoife (Adventures in Veg) and Aoife (I Can Has Cook?).  Clare made some really delicious canapes to start, followed by pizza topped with pistachio cheese, roasted cherry tomatoes and caramelised onions, served with roasted butternut squash salad. Aoife (Adventures in Veg) made some delicious vegan chocolate cupcakes that were happily devoured by all.  Everything was completely NOM.  We spent a lovely evening munching, chatting and laughing.  It was really great to get to know some of the ladies behind the blogs I spend my evenings reading (I seriously need to be more productive with my time).  A big thank you to Clare for hosting such a lovely evening and also to Kristin, Aoife and Aoife for the wonderful company.

Clare insisted we were to bring nowt but ourselves but I thought I would bring a little sweet treat with me.  I was also anxious and curious to try my hand at a vegan recipe as I have never consciously cooked or baked anything vegan.  For some reason I got myself into a bit of a fluster thinking it would be a very complicated affair but after a little research I was pleasantly surprised to find with a couple of simple substitutions it would be a piece of cake (ahem, apologies for that awful pun but you see, I just couldn't help myself).

Anyhoo, I decided to rustle up a batch of my blue ribbon (more to come on this) peanut butter button cookies, minus the button naturally as milk chocolate would negate the vegan qualities.  Here is the original recipe in case you missed it, and below is the adapted version. Enjoy!

Vegan Peanut Butter Cookies
(makes approximately 24)

165g/6oz Creamy Peanut Butter
55g/2oz Vegan Margarine
210g/7.5oz Firmly Packed Brown Sugar
3tbsp Water
1tbsp Vanilla Extract
210g/7.5oz Plain Flour
¾ tsp Baking Soda
¾ tsp Salt

1. Preheat the oven to 190C/375F/Gas Mark 5.

2. Combine the peanut butter, margarine, brown sugar, water and vanilla in a large bowl. Beat at medium speed with an electric mixer until well blended.

3. Combine the flour, baking soda and salt(this recipe had a sweet but salty flavour, if you feel you will not like the combination of sugar and salt I would omit the salt at this stage) in a separate bowl. Add to the creamed mixture at low speed with an electric mixer and mix just until blended.

4.  If you feel the dough is a little dry at this stage add some water a tablespoon at a time until you have a consistency you are happy to work with.

5. Drop dough by rounded measuring tablespoonfuls 2-inches apart onto the prepared baking sheet. Flatten slightly in a crisscross pattern with the tines of a fork.

6. Bake one baking sheet at a time for 12 minutes, or until set and just beginning to brown (or divide dough into 2 and freeze 1 batch and bake 1).

7. Cool for 2 minutes on the baking sheet.

8. Remove cookies to cooling racks or wax paper to cool completely.

When baked, these cookies had a slightly different texture from the original recipe.  They were slightly denser and didn't spread as much but they tasted just as delicious.

Irish Foodies August Cookalong: Seafood

Last Friday was the night of the third Irish foodies cookalong.  This is now a regular fixture with the 1st Friday of every month set aside as we move forward.  The theme this month was seafood so I was in heaven.  I love seafood and so I decided to make my two favourite dishes, the two items I will always order if they are on a menu regrdless of other options, Seafood Chowder and Moules Frites.

Seafood Chowder
(Serves 2 as a main but can  be doubled easily)

25g/1oz Butter
1 small Onion, diced
1 small Leek, diced
1 small Potato, diced
4 baby Carrots, chopped
60ml/2floz White Wine
225ml/7.5floz Fish Stock
200g/7oz of fish pieces or a chowder mix(this is usually available from fish mongers and saves you the job of dicing up the fish).  I used a chowder mix containing King Prawns, Mussels, Squid & Clams
1tbsp fresh Flat Leaf Parsley
87.5ml/3floz Cream
Salt and freshly ground Black Pepper to season

1.  Set a large pan over a medium heat. 
2.  Add the butter and when it is foaming add the vegetables.  Saute for 2-3 minutes until softened.
3.  Add the wine to the pan and allow to reduce by half.
4.  Add the fish stock and allow to simmer, then add the fish.
5.  Allow the pan to return to a simmer and then add the parlsey, cream and season to taste.
6.  Cover with a lid and simmer for 2-3 minutes until the fish is tender and the mussels have opened (discard any that remain closed).
7.  Serve with some nice crusty bread. 

Moules Frites

I mentioned on Twitter a few weeks ago that I was thinking of serving mussels as a starter for a dinner party and the lovely Maeve from Bord Bia posted a link to a recipe for Moules Mariniere on their website.  It was a great success on the night and so I decided to recreate it for the cookalong.

I served the mussels with some garlic oven fries

Frites

(serves 2)

2 large Potatoes
4tbsp Olive Oil
2 cloves Garlic, crushed
Salt and freshly ground Black Pepper to season

1.  In a medium sized saucepan bring some water to a boil.  Preheat the oven to 220C/425F/Gas Mark 7.
2.  Slice the potatoes into 0.5cm cubed batons.
3.  Place into the water, allow to return to the boil and boil for 3 minutes.
4.  Drain the potatoes and return to the saucepan.
5.  Add the oil and garlic and season with salt and pepper and stir to ensure evenly coated.
6.  Place on a baking sheet and arrange in an even layer.  Cook in the preheated oven for 30 minutes or until golden and crisp. 

Double Chocolate Flower Pots

We had some people over for dinner last Sunday.  I have already posted about the tears & tantrums and the disasters but thankfully something went right on the day.  Despite the aul fellas at the table complaining that they don't eat dessert and me telling them in no uncertain terms that I didn't care just to take the thing and let it sit in front of them, this provided a very pleasant end to the meal.  These are another little gem that I found on Tasty Kitchen, the food blog on the Pioneer Woman.  When I saw a picture of them I knew instantly that my life would not be complete until I made them.

As it was a dessert for adults I decided to adapt the recipe.  The original recipe basically calls for an assembly of shop bought items.  I chose to make the various components, replacing pound cake with chocolate brownie and ice cream with white chocolate mousse.  I was slightly lazy and stuck with shop bought biscuits and given the success of Oreo Chocolate Creme's in my Mint Crisp Pie base I gave them another outing.

Feel free to stick with the original recipe and offer your guests a wow factor dessert for practically no work, or if you fancy something a little more decadent you can whip up the brownie and mousse with very little effort.

***Before you read the recipe be warned that it looks like a lot of work but the brownie and white choclate mousse recipes only take about 10 mins each to make and assembly of the finished pots take about another 10 mins, after that it is just a matter of popping them in the fridge to allow them to set.***

In addition to the recipes below you will also need:
75g/2.5oz Oreo Chocolate Creme's (crushed)
8 Drinking Straws
8 cut flowers (ensure the stems will fit into the drinking straws)
8 small terracota pots

Chocolate Brownie

(this recipe will make a tray of brownies, approx 15 depending on the size you cut.  You will have some brownies left over to enjoy later with a cup of tea)

250g/9oz Good Quality Dark Chocolate (I use 70% Cocoa Solids)
200g/7oz Unsalted Butter
200g/7oz Caster Sugar
3 Large Eggs
125g/4.5oz Plain Flour
50g/1.75oz Cocoa Powder

1.  Line a baking sheet with foil.  Preheat the oven to 160C/325F/Gas Mark 3.
2.  Put some water into a small saucepan and bring it to a gentle simmer over a medium heat.
3.  Break up the chocolate and dice the butter and place them in a heatproof bowl and place over the pan of simmering water.  Turn off the heat and stir occasionally until melted and smooth.
4.  In a seperate bowl mix the sugar and the eggs using an electric mixer until smooth and creamy.
5.  Add the chocolate mixture to the egg and sugar mixture and stir to combine.
6.  Sift in the flour and the cocoa powder and again stir to combine.

7.  Pour into the lined baking sheet and smooth the top with a spatula.
8.  Place into the preheated oven and bake for 20-25 minutes.  A clean skewer inserted into the centre should come out with a little of the mixture smeared on it.  The brownie is best if still a little squishy and moist rather than completely firm.
9.  Allow to cool for approximately 5 minutes before removing from the tin and leaving to cool on a wire rack.



White Chocolate Mousse
(makes enough to serve 4 as a dessert on it's own or 8 when added to this dessert)

175g/6.2oz White Chocolate
90ml/3floz Milk
2 Egg Whites
1/4tsp Lemon Juice
225ml/7.5floz Double Cream

1.  Put some water into a small saucepan and bring to a gentle simmer over a medium heat.
2.  Break up the chocolate and place in a heat proof bowl.  Put the bowl over the pot of simmering water and turn off the heat.
3.  Once the chocolate has melted, stir in the milk and set aside.
4.  Whip the egg whites with the lemon juice until they form stiff peaks and then gently fold into the chocolate mixture.
5.  Transfer to a pouring jug.

To assemble the pots:

1.  Once the brownie has cooled cut out rounds that will fit into the bottom of the flower pots.  You can use a round cookie cutter if you have a suitable size, cut around the bottom of the flower pot or I used a 1floz measuring glass turned upside down.  Press the brownie into the bottom of the pots.  If they break or crumble slightly don't worry, just press it all down for a nice snug fit.

2.  Take a drinking straw and push it into the centre of the brownie base.  Once in place snip the straw below the rim of the flower pot.
3.  Carefully pour the white chocolate mousse mixture in, dividing evenly between the 8 pots.

4.  Place the pots into the fridge and leave for at least 2 hours to set.
5.  When you are ready to serve place the Oreo biscuits in a resealable bag, expel all of the air and seal.  Crush the biscuits with a rolling pin.  Sprinkle over the mousse layer.
6.  Finally place the stem of a cut flower into the straw.

A Complete & Utter Disaster

Last weekend was a bank holiday one here in Dublin and so we decided to invite some people over for dinner on the Sunday.  With invitations extended and accepted we set about preparing the food.  Having decided on 2 desserts for the menu I made the first and placed it in the fridge to set.  With plenty of time to spare and the pair of us feeling rather pleased with ourselves I calmly set about making the second sweet offering. 

The recipe was for a custard tart from Delia Online and I planned to top it with some lovely cherries.  I set about the recipe with some confidence as I have made both custard and pastry many times before and didn't envisage any major problems.  I made the pastry and lined the tin as directed.  Then Delia suggests cutting some leaves from the scraps of pastry to trim the edge with.  I decided as it was summer I would use my mini butterfly cookie cutter as it is of a similar size to the leaves trimming Delia's pastry.  I lovingly cut each one out and placed them around the edge.  I was very proud of the pretty little creation lying in front of me.

The next phase of the recipe called for the pastry to be baked for 20 minutes.  When I read this at first I questioned it as there was no blind baking required.  I shrugged off my doubts thinking, "sure Delia would know more than me about these things", and popped it into the oven.  Four minutes later the timer beeped for me to check the pastry was not bubbling and rising and to my dismay when I opened the oven it had indeed shrunk and all of my lovely butterflies were nothing but a gooey mess.  *Sob* I threw it in the bin and started again whilst cursing myself for not trusting my instinct.

This time instead of just pricking the base with a fork I pricked it all over, the sides and each butterfly was forked, just to be sure to be sure.  Again when checking it after 4 minutes for bubbling the case had shrunk, but not quite as much so I salvaged the case and continued to bake it.  After 20 minutes I had a beautiful golden pastry case although sadly without my lovely butterfly trim as this had once again slipped into the case.  Not to worry, I could live without that at this stage in the game.

I set about making the custard filling.  The instructions for this were easy peasy so I had it done in a jiffy.  I carefully poured it into the pastry case, dotted it with butter and toddled off while the cooker worked it's magic.  Luckily I had a little of the custard filling left over so I popped it in a ramekin to bake for Mr. Boo as he is a bit of a custard lover.  After 30 minutes I checked it and it looked pretty similar to Delia's, lightly browned on top and a little puffy, so I took it out of the oven and set aside to cool.

A few minutes later Mr. Boo came into the kitchen and enquired was the ramekin 'his' custard.  I confirmed that it was and he set about making a dent in it.  Two spoonfuls later and I knew we had a problem.  His face read more yuck than yum so I asked was the custard nice.  He said a meek yes and placed the dish down so I decided to investigate for myself.  It wasn't good, there was no sweetness, and in hindsight only 50g of sugar would explain that.  And the texture wasn't quite the smooth, thick custard I had imagined, more a blancmange.  The bin got it's second feed of the day.  I followed the recipe so I am not sure where I went wrong on this one.  I am going to write this one off and continue the search for a custard tart recipe.  When I have a bit of time I may even play around a little and try to come up with my own from the ideas I have in my head.

With not long to go we did a mercy dash to the supermarket and bought some ready made pastry which I baked and filled with custard but naturally that didn't set enough in the short time frame.  I topped it with cherries, raspberries and strawberries and no one complained when the custard oozed out as each slice was cut.  All I can say is thank God I always make more than one dessert as that saved the day.  So there you have it, kitchen disasters happen everywhere and all of the time, I have had more than my fair share but thankfully I usually manage to salvage things to an edible standard.   What was your worst kitchen disaster, if you are brave enough to share leave me a little comment.

Also on the menu on Sunday was:

Starter:
Smoked Salmon Salad

Mini Organic Spelt Soda Bread Loaves (I used this recipe and baked in a mini loaf pan)
Ciabatta

Main:
Roast Butterflied Leg of Lamb with Garlic, Rosemary & Maldon Sea Salt cooked over gratin of Potato
Leeks & Baby Carrots with Pancetta
Blanched Sugar Snap Peas and Green Beans tossed in Herb Butter
Hasselhoff (formerly known as Hasselback) Potatoes

Dessert:
Triple Chocolate Flower Pots
Delia's Custard Tart (the bin loved it)

Chocolate dipped strawberries
Top Secret Chocolate Treat (brother in law harrasses me before he comes to make sure this is made, everytime)

Roma Pizza & Pasta Flour (Farina Tipo "00")

The other day whilst I was very busy beavering away at some important task or other I decided to allow myself 30 seconds to check Twitter for updates.  A little tweet from Damien Mulley informed any Irish Foodies who might be interested in receiving some Pizza & Pasta Flour from Roma that they need only send an email for their wish to be granted.  Being a lover of all things pizza and pasta related I thought to myself sure why not, and hit send.

A couple of days later the lovely Adam from Roma sent a little parcel my way.  When I openend the door to the postman it was like Christmas, there he was brandishing 2 lovely parcels for me, 1 from Roma and the other, my Amazon order.  When I opened the parcel it contained the flour as promised and also some Roma pasta, a lovely little storage tin and a recipe card containing recipes for calzone and ravioli.  I had great intentions to make the calzones last Friday but then 'stuff' cropped up and there was no time for that, a very busy bank holiday followed chock full of eating out and entertaining at home so that was the weekend gone. 

When I woke on Tuesday I was more than a little tired and possibly a little grumpy, but with only myself and my shadow in the house I can neither confirm or deny that.  Things started to look a little brighter when I opened the fridge, there staring back at me was a pack of parma ham.  We had a little chat and the general consensus was that the ham was prepared to sacrifice itself for the good of mankind and the love of pizza.  Now, I know what yiz are all thinking.  Pizza. For dinner. Of a Tuesday.  I know, I know but I was tired, I'm weak and I love pizza so I gave in to temptation.

As I hadn't planned on having pizza I hadn't removed my sourdough starter from the freezer and so needed a quick fix recipe for a thin and crispy base.  A little googling yielded the recipe I used.  It is quite similar to the original pizza recipe I posted a few weeks back, in it's texture.  The main difference between the 2 is obviously the inclusion of yeast in this one.  It did however have the advantage of a thin crispy outer crust.  Mr Boo ate the lot, my ahem little tummy could only manage 3/4's of mine, but it was yum and great if you need a quick fix recipe that doesn't require forward planning as is the case with the sourdough recipe. 

Roma's Pizza and Pasta flour feels slightly different to regulair plain or cream flour.  When I looked at it in the bowl it looked a little 'fluffier' (sorry, that's the only word I can think of to describe it) to me so naturally I wanted to stick my hands in to investigate further.  As I lifted the flour in each hand and allowed it to fall back into the bowl it felt much softer than regular flour.  The flour mixed to form a nice elastic dough and the base when cooked was crisp around the edges and light and airy under the toppings.  I will definitely use this flour again when making pizza and will see how it compares when used to make my favourite sourdough base.  I am also looking forward to making some ravioli with it.

*Roma Pasta & Pizza Flour (Farina Tipo "00") is available from Dunnes Stores and Superquinn.

Thin and Crispy Pizza Base
(yields 3 x 11" bases)

•500g Roma Pizza & Pasta Flour (Farina Tipo "00")
•4 tbsp Olive Oil
•1 tsp Salt
•300 ml lukewarm Water
•2 tsp (1 x 7g sachet) Dried Yeast
•1/2 tsp Sugar 

 
1.  Place the flour in a large bowl.
2.  Mix the yeast with the sugar and 50ml of the lukewarm water and stir, allow to sit for 10 minutes until it develops a nice foam on top.

3.  Add the olive oil and salt to the flour.

4.  Now add the yeast mix to the flour, oil and salt and add the rest of the lukewarm water (250 ml). Mix with your hands and knead until you have a smooth dough.

5.  Cover the dough with a clean, dry tea towel and let it sit for an hour.

6.  Once the dough has risen preheat your oven to 250C/481F/Gas Mark 9.
7.  Break off 1/3 of the dough and roll it with a rolling pin until you are happy with the depth of the dough (mine was approximately 5mm).

8.  Place onto a floured baking sheet and dress with sauce and toppings of your choice.

9.  Place into the preheated oven and bake for between 10 and 20 minutes (depending on how thick you roll your base you will need to adjust cooking times, my 5mm base was ready after 10 minutes so check at regular intervals after 10 minutes).
10. Enjoy!

Macarons: A Comparative Mission (honest)

A few weeks ago I posted a recipe for macarons.  They were really yummy and were inhaled within a couple of hours by Mr. Boo and myself but I unfortunately had nothing to compare them to.  *Whispers* you see I had never eaten a macaron before!  I know, unthinkable, especially for a bona fide cakeaholic such as myself.  I felt it was only right that I rectify this situation STAT.  I couldn't have a recipe up on the blog with nothing for my very refined palette to draw on for comparison and with a tempting Laduree counter calling to me from Brown Thomas every time I enter the door well sure it would be positively irresponsible of me not to try a few.

Now, I must firstly admit that I have walked (very, very slowly) past the pastel temptresses many times without stopping to press my nose up against the counter in the manner of a hungry orphan.  There were two reasons for this unprecedented restraint on my part.  Firstly, I didn't want to stand there like a big piggy saying, "I'll have one of those, two of those, one of that one, three of them there and sure just shovel ALL of the chocolate ones into the box too".  Nope, not the impression I wanted to create at a counter I will no doubt return to on many occasions.  Secondly, I am of the impression that such a beautiful and delicious treat should be bought for you by someone else, especially for the popping of ones macaron cherry.

For this reason I instructed Mr Boo he was to buy a little box for me at his earliest convenience.  After a few months of no macarons I instructed him the day of the Flora Women's Mini Marathon that he was to wait for me at the finish line with the little green bag.  I arrived at the finish line soaked to my bones, weary and sore only to be greeted by a smile, no little green bag.  On enquiring as to it's whereabouts I was informed it was raining (eh, I know that, I am soaked to the bones in case you haven't noticed) and so he made it as far as BT2 where he settled himself in the warmth, sheltered from the rain and with a newspaper and caramel latte in hand for the duration of my gruelling trek (ok, ok it was only a 10K run but he needed to have the guilt's put on him).  I was far from impressed.

The next occasion to present itself after that day was a Saturday afternoon in June.  Mr Boo headed out in the morning and instructed me to be suitably dressed for lunch in The Mermaid Cafe on his return.  I followed his instructions and was ready and waiting like the good obedient wife that I am.  On our way into town I instructed him that instead of dessert in the restaurant we could walk to Brown Thomas afterwards and he could treat me to a box of macarons.  He agreed and all seemed right with the world.  That was until we emerged from the Port Tunnel and discovered that the world had ground to an abrupt halt.  Dublin Pride was in full swing; a fact that it would seem had eluded our knowledge until this precise moment.  A very agitated 45 minutes sitting in bumper to bumper traffic, more diversions than I care to remember from some very misinformed members of An Garda Siochana and a last minute decision to abandon the car on the quays and run like the clappers to the restaurant in a vain attempt to make our reservation and we made it (just about) before the kitchen closed for lunch, phew.  We enjoyed a beautiful lunch, viewed the revelry of Pride from our window seats and then decided to head to BT's for my treat.  In my panic earlier I hadn't quite put enough cash in the parking meter so we were now on a very tight schedule.  No fear though, there was macarons to be had so we could do this.  We could do it right up until the moment we walked past Size and Mr Boo decided he needed a new pair of runners.  "Relax", he says, " we'll go straight there next".  STRAIGHT THERE NEXT. Well maybe if he hadn't had to try on every pair of Jaysus runners in the place we might have gotten there but oh no, it took him a feckin' age before he finally decided on a pair of dark blue suede Addidas with orange soles and lime green stripes (he likes a funky runner does Mr Boo).  So that day we left town with a new pair of 'holiday' runners (which he has worn sevorial times already and we are no where near going on our hols yet) and no macarons.  For this reason I call them his 'no macaron' runners and spit on them when he wears them (I don't really spit on them 'cos that would be a bit 'scustin). 

Take three.  On Sunday we were expecting 6 guests for dinner.  A few minutes before they were due to arrive we were setting the table.  As I busied myself with napkins Mr Boo popped the cutlery out.  I made a simple request to him that he make sure to place matching cutlery at each setting (we have a 'good wear' set of 6 which meant the 2 of us would have different to the others but he was mixing them).  Well it would seem this was a completely unreasonable request right at the moment and he decided to tell me so in no uncertain terms.  I quietly rearranged his work and then heard a familiar 'beep, beep'.  It was only his parents who like to indicate their arrival whilst still in the car rather than just get out and ring the doorbell like regular folk.  So with me clearly not speaking to him he knew he was in trouble and decided to test the water with a cheerful, "mam and dad are here, come and we'll let them in".  A Tumbleweed drifted past at that precise moment so he tried again in the hopes that my ears had momentarily failed me.  He got a response this time along the vein of, "I'm busy, they're your parents so you go deal with them".  That pretty much confirmed I was still a little peed off with him.  Not being a rude host I followed him and greeted his parents with the smiles and hugs expected and then politely excused myself to the kitchen to finish the last minute prep work.  He popped in and out, each time testing me with a small pleasantry.  Each time the response, if he was lucky enough to receive one, was sub zero.  When our final guests arrived, his brother and his wife and her mam and dad, and relations hadn't improved he knew he was gonna have to pull out the big guns.  Once every body had been suitably greeted and I again retreated to the kitchen he gave me a little squeeze and promised to bring me out somewhere nice the following day.  I told him it was the least he could do and so the stand off was over.

True to his word he treated me to a lunch in brasserie sixty6.  Before we reached the restaurant I again instructed him that instead of dessert he could treat me to a box of macarons and he agreed.  This time he kept his promise and with our bellies suitably full we wandered our way through shops finally landing in Brown Thomas where I found myself with my nose pressed against the sparkling glass of the Laduree counter.  I asked the girl for a box of 8 and she instructed me to pick the colour box I would like.  I chose the 'Rose' box (part of a SATC inspired collection).  I then chose a selection of flavours (rose water, chestnut, caramel, chocolate and bitter chocolate) before she wrapped them up and handed me my beautiful green bag.  Like a 5 year old with a bag of pic 'n' mix I walked away from the counter grinning from ear to ear.  A little wander around the men's department and a peruse of the sunglasses and he very generously treated me to these bad boys, before we headed home.

I made it all of the way home without sticking my face into the box of macarons, all so I could photograph them for you lovely people.  The sacrifices I make in the name of blogging!  Once I had snapped a few pics I sat down to have a little nibble, and they were yum.  Really, really yum.  They had a perfect crisp shell and a moreishly chewy inside and each had a different filling.  My favourites were the chocolate (no surprise there), followed by the chestnut, then the caramel with the rosewater coming up the rear.  And to conclude my comparative study, I have to say my own creations were pretty good.  My shell may not have been quite as crisp as the Laduree offerings and mine did lack feet, but in a blind taste test I think my own humble macarons could most definitely hold their own against the Parisian big boys.  One change I will make next time will be not to be such a lazy cow and actually make some chocolate ganache to sandwich between them and forego the lazier Nutella option, which in itself is perfectly acceptable but the ganache in the Laduree ones just ever so slightly gave them the edge.