Granola

Last week Yvonne from Hey Pesto tweeted that she was making up a hamper and wanted to include some healthy options.  In the end she opted for some yummy jars of homemade granola.  I love granola but don't often buy it as I have never found a shop bought version that I really like, so I decided to make some myself.  I am still firmly in the battle to eat healthy foods following the stodge and comfort food of December.  The weather is not helping as it regularly hovers near 0 or in the minuses at the moment.  While all of my meals are prepared from scratch using fresh vegetables I am still being drawn towards carb laden mash potato and similar for dinner so I feel that breakfast and lunch need to take on a lighter twist.  Granola with natural yogurt for me is not only a healthy way to start the day but also a really tasty way too.  I'm not a big fan of porridge so this is an ideal way for me to get some porridge oats into my morning routine.

The following is my recipe but do feel free to add some dried fruit once the granola has cooled and also use nuts of your choice. 

Granola
(makes enough to fill a 1ltr Kilner Jar)

240g/3cups Porridge Oats
100g/1cup Almond Flakes
100g/1cup Blanched Almonds, roughly chopped
100g/1cup Walnuts, roughly chopped
2tbsp Sunflower Oil
10tbsp Honey

1.  Preheat the oven to 165C/329F/Gas Mark 3.  Line a baking sheet with grease proof paper.
2.  Place all of the ingredients into a bowl and mix well to ensure the honey and oil are evenly distributed throughout.

3.  Pour out onto the prepared baking sheet and spread out evenly.
4.  Place into the preheated oven for 45 minutes.  Remove from the oven at regular intervals and stir to ensure that the mixture browns evenly and to avoid large clumps forming.

5.  When golden brown all over remove from the oven and allow to cool on a wire rack. (The mixture may still seem a little soft or damp when removed from the oven but it will crisp up as it cools.)

6.  Transfer to an airtight container and store for up to one month.  (If you wish to add dried fruit do so at this stage.)

Bring Me Sunshine.....

Last Sunday marked the 9th anniversary of my mam's passing.  I wrote a post last week about the date but then deleted it.  I considered writing the post again but ummed and awed.  My loss is such a personal thing and something that I have kept closely guarded for all of this time.  My mam was quite obviously a huge part of my life and now this blog has become a huge part of my life, so I thought that maybe I should write about it here.  If I am truly honest with myself yes, I set up this blog as a means of documenting my baking and to encourage me to bake more, but more than that I set it up in an effort to have some sort of a tangible link to my mam.  That's silly really, isn't it?  How can I expect to have a tangible link to her when I know that death is finite?  I can't, but I so desperately want one that I will do anything, believe anything to keep her spirit alive in my life.  Why?  Because that is all that I have left of her. 

I knew that my mam was going to die.  She was sick, and while she had periods of respite from her illness we were told a few weeks before her death that nothing more could be done.  I don't know what I felt at that time, I don't think I really felt anything.  What are you supposed to feel on hearing that news?  I know that I definitely did not want her to go.  Had I been asked to give up my right arm to save her I would have.  Had I been asked to give up my own life to save her I think I would have done that too.  Anything would have been more favourable than living my life without her.  But these options were not available, and as predicted 11 weeks later I held my mam's hand as she took her last breath. 

In that instant my life changed unimaginably.  My whole life was turned upside down and inside out.  I didn't know how to react to the situation, so I didn't.  I tried to numb myself from the reality of the situation and carry on.  The hardest thing to deal with was obviously the loss of my mam and the fact that I would never again see her or talk to her.  I wouldn't get anymore lipsticky kisses on my cheek or warm cuddles on the sofa.  I would never again hear her laugh or sing from the kitchen.  I hate this fact of life daily.  Hate it, and will never accept it.  The second hardest thing to deal with has been the loss of myself.  I was a different person right up until that moment.  I was happy.  To those around me I still look the same, still act the same and appear no different at all.  But I know otherwise.  I am quite a different person now and I always will be.  I mourned the loss of my mam and myself for a long time.  Last year I laughed one day and realised it was the first time I had heartily laughed for over 8 years.  Imagine that, eight years without laughing properly.  Of course I had laughed and found things amusing but it wasn't the laugh that I had been born with, it was a dead laugh.  I had forgotten how to be happy, or wouldn't allow myself to be.

On Sunday I went to the annual mass that we offer up in my mam's memory.  Afterwards we all spent some time in my dad's house and then we went our separate ways.  Mr. Boo and I stopped off at the cemetery and I chatted with her for a few minutes and then he brought me for lunch in an effort to make the day more bearable for me.  As we ate lunch talk turned to my birthday which at that stage was exactly three weeks away, it should also be the day that my mam would turn 65.  I always loved how special I felt that we shared the same birthday but now I feel guilty for looking forward to my birthday and enjoying the day.  I know that I shouldn't as we should all make the most of our birthday each year but I feel that I am somehow rubbing my families faces in it by getting excited.  Suddenly I was crying and asking Mr. Boo if it was OK to be excited about my birthday this year.  I will be 30 so a bit of a milestone as I enter into a new decade.  My 21st fell 3 weeks to the day after my mam had died and so passed without much pomp or ceremony as has each birthday that followed.  For the first time I am kind of happy that my birthday is approaching and I really want to celebrate it.  I am also aware that yet again it will be another sad day for me, my dad and my sisters.  Mr. Boo's answer was that of course it is OK for me to be excited about my birthday.  My next question was "is it OK for me to be happy again?", to which he responded with a resounding yes.  He told me that my mam would want me to be happy and to enjoy my birthday and every day.

He is right, she would want all of us to be happy again.  So while my heart is still very much broken, beyond all possible repair, and a little piece of me will forever be lost somewhere in the universe, I can be happy.  It is a different kind of happy than before, some of it's sparkle and lustre has been scratched away but it is enough.  I don't think I will ever feel completely guilt free in my happiness but that's OK, I can live with that.  I am entering into my 3rd decade(or is it my 4th?) with a new understanding and respect for myself.  I know that I am strong enough to handle the nasty changes that are inevitable as I move through my life and I am very comfortable with the person I have become.  Most importantly I have it on good authority that it is OK for me to be happy, and so that is what I will endeavour to be, and I hope that if something has robbed you of your happiness you can believe that it is OK for you to be happy again too.

xxx

Spelt Soda Bread Part Deux

Bless me readers for I have sinned, it has been a while since my last post.  I have been elbow deep in paint for what seems like an eternity.  Mr. Boo thought it would be a great idea to paint the hall, stairs and landing.  Now I only suggested this last summer, you know, a sensible time of year to undertake such a task.  Longer daylight hours make it easier to paint in the evenings and I am just generally in a better frame of mind for tasks such as this when the sun shines and temperatures fall somewhere above zero to accommodate windows being thrown open to allow the toxic paint fumes to escape the house.  He took on board my suggestion and then mulled it over for approximately 6 months before declaring on January 2nd that we should go buy the paint and just get stuck right in.

I have to be honest and say that with my belly still full from the over indulgence of Christmas and while nestled snugly on the sofa with a giant box of chocolates for company the last thing I wanted to do was paint anywhere in the house.  But the hall, stairs and landing!  That is the most awkward space in the house to paint and I still have nightmares from the 1st time we did it.  I had no choice though, if I don't do these things when he suggests well then I can forget about it for at least another 6 months. 

As we stood there in our painting clothes, brush and roller in hand I gave him his warnings, "take your time and don't hit the ceiling".  "OK", says he and off he goes.  I was on cutting in duty and he was on the big in between bits.  We assume these rolls because I'm the neat painter and he is the messy one so I try to keep him away from door frames and the ceiling.  As I diligently and pain stakingly cut in with my little paint brush he declared he was flying and moving on to the next wall.  I turned to look at his progress and there, on the crisp white ceiling was a big thick line of lovely fresh Antique Cream paint.

Me: "Erm, I thought I said to be careful not to hit the ceiling?".
Him: "I know, I didn't",
Me:  "Well then, what's all the paint on the ceiling there?".
Him: "It must be from the last time".
Me: "Well considering the walls were pale green and that is cream paint I'm guessing you did it just now".
Him: "Oh right, sorry, I'll be more careful".

In fairness he was more careful.  Careful to ensure that he consistently splodged paint all over the ceiling so that it had a lovely cream border.  We had to pay someone to come in and paint the ceiling, well I say we, I mean he.  He offered to paint the woodwork for me.  I thought it would be quicker and cheaper to do it myself.  He returned home on Saturday with the paint required and I got stuck in.  In a moment of madness I decided it would be a great idea to paint the spindles of the banisters and the sides of the stairs not covered by the carpet runner.  By the end of day one I decided that wasn't my best idea to date.  By the end of day two I felt it would have been quicker and easier to just move house.  By the end of day 3 I wanted to cry and to bake, I didn't have the time or the energy to do either.  By the end of day 4 while I was still standing with brush in hand at midnight I wanted to kill my husband who felt it was necessary to pop his head into the hall every now and then to say, "God that looks great now, I'm glad we did it".  WE?!  WE?!  At 7am on day 5 as I crawled out of bed to finally finish it I was also rather glad that we did it, it is now a bright and airy space.  Perfect to brighten the January blues and clear the fuzziness from my brain.  Now I feel ready to get back to baking and blogging. 

I have a little revised recipe today to ease back into things.  When the snow trapped me indoors recently and travelling to and from shops other than my local store was knocked on the head I felt I had to adapt certain recipes as I couldn't always get the ingredients needed.  One of the things I bake pretty much constantly is the Organic Spelt Soda Bread recipe that I acquired from Lorraine Fitzmaurice at an event in Bord Bia last year.  Unfortunately my local store didn't have any natural yoghurt in stock but did have buttermilk so I decided to give it a bash with this instead.  You can find the original recipe here.  I simply substituted 700ml of buttermilk for the milk and yoghurt required in the original recipe.  I found that it produced a more moist and doughy bread.  The crust on the sides and base of the loaf also didn't crisp up quite as much as in the original recipe.  Apart from that I was very pleased with the texture and flavour of the bread.  Next time I am forced to substitute buttermilk for the yoghurt I may bake the bread for at least 45 mins, or maybe even a little longer to see if this will yield a more crispy crust but for now I am happy that when the next cold snap hits I will still be able to whip up my favourite bread to accompany the hearty stews and soups needed to keep the freezing temperatures at bay.

I recently tried the bread with this delicious Beef, Bacon and Bean Soup, from Irish Beef.co.uk.  It was really quick and easy to throw together, perfect for a cold day when I would much rather be wrapped up on the sofa than slaving away in the kitchen.  Once I had chopped up the ingredients and popped them into the pot I just left it on the hob to bubble away and do it's thing.  It was a really hearty and warming dinner and the flavours were so delicious, almost like a Mediterranean style Irish stew.  Topped off with a thick slice of bread smothered in melted cheese it was unbelievable moreish and I was very happy to have enough leftovers for lunch the next day.  As the weather turns frosty again this would be the perfect dinner to warm you right to your toes and also a nice way to enjoy comfort food while still trying to stick to those healthy new year resolutions.  Enjoy!

Irish Foodies January 2011 Cookalong

I'm back!  I know I have been missing in action since the Christmas period so apologies.  I hope you all enjoyed the festive season.  I had a lovely(and tiring) time with family and friends and more food than one person should consume in such a condensed time frame.  I am still feeling the effects of it now but am going to make a big effort to get back into my blogging mojo over the next few days.

As it is the 1st Friday of the month it is time for the Irish Foodies cookalong.  The theme this month is budget or leftover cooking following the excesses of Christmas.  I stocked up on dried fruit before Christmas, I think I was expecting armageddon or something the amount of it I bought so I decided to put it to good use.  As I have a penchant for baking I also have oodles of flour knocking about the presses so I settled for a nice fruit soda bread.  I thought this fitted the bill perfectly for January as it is easy to mix up, is not too naughty but has a hint of sweetness to make the transition from Christmas treats back to healthy eating a little more bearable.

Fruit Soda Bread
This recipe yields 2 x 1lb loaves

450g/1lb Wholemeal Flour
450g/1lb Plain Flour
1.5tsp Bicarbonate of Soda
1tsp Salt
50g/2oz Candied Peel
50g/2oz Crystallised Ginger
50g/2oz Currants
50g/2oz Golden Raisins
50g/2oz Sultanas
600ml/1pint Buttermilk

1.  Grease to 1lb loaf tins and preheat the oven to 220C/425F/Gas Mark 7.
2.  Sieve the flours, bicarbonate of soda and salt into a large bowl.  Add the dried fruits and toss in the flour mix until evenly distributed.
3.  Make a well in the centre and gradually pour in the buttermilk and mix to form a dough.
4.  Divide the dough between the two loaf tins, flour a large knife and cut a line down the centre.  Place into the preheated oven for 25 minutes.
5.  Turn upside down and return to the oven for a further 5 minutes.  To test if it is cooked tap the base, if it sounds hollow it is ready.
6.  Allow to cool on a wire rack.

Note:
The Irish tradition is to form the dough into a round loaf, cut a cross in the top and then stab each quarter with a knife to kill the fairies within.  I would like to assure you all that no fairies were harmed in the making of these loaves.  Sure why would you want to kill some lovely little fairies, wah?!

Happy New Year

So yet another year has been put to bed.  I cannot believe just how quickly it whizzed past.  I remember as a kid how time would drag, days felt like weeks, weeks months and so on.  God how I would love to have a kid year now, think how productive I could be with so much time on my hands.  I used to wish time away, now I wish that I could slow it down and savour it just a little more.  I guess this is not such a bad complaint, if time dragged on into infinity it would most likely mean I am standing still wishing my life into action.  It's haste and speed tell me that I am living it and I hope loving it and so do not notice it tick tocking away.

I will not be making any new year resolutions this year, I gave up on that a few years ago when I realised I am incapable of seeing them through.  Instead I will do as I did last year and vow to strive to be the best me that I can be in 2011.  It worked out pretty well for me last year so I have high hopes for the 12 months stretched out ahead of me.  I am still far off reaching perfection(hard to believe I know) but I made some positive changes last year that mean I am entering the new year much happier and more comfortable in my own skin and even a smidgen more confident.

The most positive thing to come out of 2010 has been my growing love for this little blog.  Some days it is all consuming, it occupies every moment of consciousness, other days I only think about it every second minute.  I have come into contact with some wonderful people through blogging and I hope that can continue.  Following my Christmas break I feel refreshed and anxious to bake again.  If I succeed in being my best me I will hopefully be more organised and therefore will blog more, just don't go holding your breath though, I'd hate to see you turn blue.

Thank you all again for your support and encouragement in 2010 and I hope you will dust of your aprons to join me this year.  I wish you all health and happiness in 2011 and any other bonuses life sees fit to throw your way. 

Le grá
R x

Happy Christmas

So the day finally arrived.  We waited all year, patiently, and then all of a sudden it had been and almost gone.  I had grand plans for Christmas blog posts and beautiful crafts to adorn my home, not to mention delusions of daily baking like the domestic goddess I aspire to be.  Yet again time slipped away from me and the mundane tasks of every day life took precedence. 

I relish the build up to Christmas, the anticipation, the twinkle of fairy lights and the happy greetings freely exchanged between friends and strangers alike.  I revert to an excitable 3 year old as the season draws near.  Some people frown upon this behaviour from a grown woman, to others it is infectious and helps to inject some excitement and joy for what may lie in store. 

For each of us, bar a few lucky ones, Christmas is a bittersweet time.  Sadness at a an empty place setting at the table, standing alone beneath the mistletoe or any myriad of worries or stress casting a shadow over the day.  These things can be all consuming and appear magnified at such a joyous time.  It is for this reason that I decide each year to throw myself into the festivities with added gusto.  Every inch of the house is adorned in fairy lights of red and white, garlands and baubles hang from every available surface and as a special treat Frank and the gang serenade me daily.  To some this may appear excessive, but this is the one time of year that excess is accepted, encouraged even, so it would be rude to allow the season to pass by unmarked.

This year was no different.  Despite the economic doom and gloom and the inches of snow that attempted to thwart festive shopping I embraced the season in all of it's twinkly glory.  I had the most wonderful day spent with my husband and family.  My 3 year old niece put me under a teensey bit of pressure wandering into the kitchen at intervals of approximately 2 minutes to enquire as to whether her Christmas dinner was ready.  We sat down to a table laden with food, laughed, talked but mostly stuffed our faces.  What else is there to do on Christmas day?

Wherever you were and whoever you are with I hope that you had an equally wonderful day.  I would like to take this opportunity to wish you all a (belated) happy Christmas.  Thank you for reading, following, commenting and baking with me in 2010.  I look forward to blogging my way through 2011 and I sincerely hope that you will join me.

Nollaig Shona Duit,
Le Grá
R x

Snowflake Cookies

My third offering for the Irish Foodies December Christmas themed cookalong(Jaysus, that's a bit of a mouth full) are these yummy Snowflake Cookies.  These cookies are deliciously buttery and sweet with a beautiful texture.  Don't just save them for Christmas time though, cut them into different shapes and enjoy them year round.

Snowflake Cookies
(makes 12+ depending on the shapes you cut)

225g/8oz Unsalted butter, softened
225g/8oz Caster Sugar
1 Large Egg, lightly beaten
1tsp Vanilla Extract
Pinch of Salt
450g/1lb Plain Flour

1.  Place the butter and sugar in a large bowl and beat with an electric whisk until pale and fluffy.
2.  Add the egg, vanilla and a pinch of salt and mix again.
3.  Gradually sift in the flour and continue to mix until incorporated and the mixture is smooth.
4.  Form the dough into a round, wrap in cling film and refrigerate for a couple of hours until firm.
5.  Line 2 baking sheets with greaseproof paper and preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas Mark 4.
6.  Roll the dough out onto a floured work surface to a thickness of 5mm.  Dip cookie cutters into some flour and cut shapes out of the dough and place onto the lined baking sheets.
7.  Place into the preheated oven and bake for 10-12 minutes until golden and firm to the touch.
8.  Remove from the oven and allow to cool on the baking sheets for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool.
9.  Decorate with some white icing(175g/6oz icing sugar sifted into a bowl, add 1.5teaspoons of warm water and mix to a smooth paste.  Adjust the consistency with additional icing sugar or water if needed by adding a little at a time.  Spoon into an icing bag with a fine nozzle attached.) or leave plain if you wish.  

Gingerbread Place Settings

As I stood in my kitchen last Friday, whistling a merry tune and going to town on my gingerbread with a gazillion cookie cutters calling out to be used, an idea struck.  OK, so I don't have a gazillion cookie cutters, but I do have rather a lot.  My miniature alphabet ones were shouting the loudest, practically begging to be used so they were.  Edible place settings would be perfect for my Christmas table, I thought, and what would be better than a personalised gingerbread cookie for our guests to take home to enjoy.  Lilly Higgins made some beautiful Christmas card cookies for the Christmas edition of Easy Food magazine and so I took my inspiration from her. 

The recipe for the dough is the same one that used for my gingerbread cookies and you can find it here.  Follow the instructions as far as step 5 and I will give the rest of the details below.  Enjoy!

Depending on the size of your cookies the recipe should yield at least 12 place settings.

Once the dough has chilled remove it from the fridge and roll to a thickness of 5mm.

Cut rectangles using a sharp knife.  I cut mine 100mm x 60mm but you can cut them to size according to the length of names. 

Place on the lined baking sheets and bake in the preheated oven for 12-15 minutes.

Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes before moving to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.

While the cookies are baking roll out some fondant icing to a thickness of 2-3mm.  Using miniature alphabet cookie cutters cut out the letters required for the names of your guests.  Place the letters on greaseproof paper(don't make too far in advance as they will dry out and may crack as you position them on the cookies).  You can also cut out a miniature Christmas shape if you wish.  If you would like to use coloured fondant make a thumb print in the fondant and add a couple of drops of food colouring, knead until the icing is evenly coloured.  Refrigerate for a few minutes if you need to, it may warm up from being handled.  Don't worry if you don't have alphabet cookie cutters I will give another option below.

Mix up some icing (175g/6oz icing sugar sifted into a bowl, add 1.5teaspoons of warm water and mix to a smooth paste.  Adjust the consistency with additional icing sugar or water if needed by adding a little at a time).  Add a couple of drops of a food colouring of your choice or leave white if you wish.

Using a teaspoon, place some icing onto the cookies a teaspoon full at a time, and spread evenly until the top of the cookie is evenly covered.

Position the letters on each cookie to make up the names of all of your guests and add a Christmas shape at the end if you wish.

Alternatively allow the icing to dry and use icing writing pens(these can be purchased in packs in most supermarkets) and write your guests name freehand on each cookie. 

Allow the icing to dry completely to avoid smudging.  Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

Gingerbread Cookies

When the Irish Foodies Christmas Cookalong was announced I knew instantly that I wanted to make gingerbread cookies.  There is something about the sight of a cute little gingerbread person that always brings a smile to my face.  I have a stash of cookie cutters cluttering up the kitchen so couldn't wait to get stuck in.  I was really pleased with the results, a deliciously moist cookie with just the right balance of Christmas spice.   Although you will have to excuse my icing skills, they are not quite what they should be.  Enjoy!

Gingerbread Cookies

(The amount of cookies you yield will depend on the size and shape of your cookie cutters, depending on size you should yield between 12 and 36.)

350g/12oz Plain Flour
1.5tsp Ground Ginger
0.5tsp Ground Cinnamon
1tsp Bicarbonate of Soda
100g/4oz Unsalted Butter, chilled
175g/6oz Dark Muscovado Sugar
1 Large Egg
2tbsp Black Treacle
30ml/1floz Milk

Icing and sweets of your choice to decorate.

1.  Sieve the flour, spices and bicarbonate of soda into a large bowl.
2.  Grate the butter into the dry ingredients and rub in until the mixture has a breadcrumb consistency.  Add the sugar and stir in. (you may notice some dark spots in my cookies, my sugar had some lumps that I didn't take the time to break down as I was a bit up to my eyeballs in flour so take the time to break them down to avoid this happening.)
3.  Break the egg into a separate bowl and mix with the black treacle.  Add to the flour mixture and stir to form a smooth dough.
4.  Add the milk to help to bind the dough together, form into a ball, wrap in clingfilm and pop into the fridge for half an hour to chill.
5.  Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas Mark 4.  Line 2 baking sheets with grease proof paper.
6.  After half an hour remove the dough from the fridge.  Place on a floured work surface and roll out to a depth of 5mm.  Flour cookie cutters, cut out shapes and place onto the lined baking sheets.  If you are left with off cuts form them into a dough ball, roll out to 5mm and repeat the cutting process.
7.  Place the cookies into the middle of the preheated oven and bake for 12-15 minutes.  Remove from the oven and allow to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

8.  Decorate as you wish with icing and sweets of your choice or leave plain if you prefer.  The cookies will keep for up to 5 days in an airtight container.

*** If you do not have cookie cutters you can simply cut into squares or use an upturned glass or cup to make rounds.  To make the houses in the picture above simply cut the dough into rectangles and then cut two small triangles from the top to form the point of the roof. ***

Irish Foodies December Cookalong - Christmas

The theme for the Irish Foodies December cookalong was Christmas.  Well, what else could it be this festive month?  As the snow fell and covered the ground in a thick blanket last Friday I busied myself in the kitchen.  I will do separate posts over the next few days with recipes but for now here are pictures of my offerings.

Mince Pies using my homemade mince meat

Gingerbread Cookies

Gingerbread Place Settings

Snowflake Cookies