Luscious Links May 8, 2008

BIFFO Image via Wikipedia

No recipes today, but wanted to share some yummy and fun stuff from around the internet and welcome BIFFO!

• Do you love scrapbooks, but don't have the time or inclination to make them yourself? Check out my friend Sandie's Etsy store - Scrap Attik Paper Crafts - with completed mini books. All you have to do is add the pictures. I've seen these books in real life and they are absolutely stunning and a steal at those prices!

• My blog buddy Ali has a fabulous recipe for Strawberry Freezer Jam over at Divine Domesticity. With strawberries coming into season why not try this easy and delicious recipe?

• I've just discovered Cheap Healthy Good, a fabulous frugal food blog that features recipes, wonderful commentary and great advice. Her take on the food crisis is an excellent read indeed. Definitely one to add to your feed reader - I just wish I'd found it sooner!
  

• Remember I mentioned Cristi Roman, the Romanian food journalist who has recently relocated to Dublin? Well, he now has a wonderfully titled English-language food blog, I Just Love Food. There's some great recipes, ideas and restuarant reviews. Check it out!

• The wonderful Blissfully Domestic is having a virtual baby shower this week. There's lots of fun giveaways if you're in the US, but there's a blog makover up for grabs too open to anyone! Yay!

• The lovely Maz is featuring some lovely summer dresses and styles over at Style Treaty. I heart Monsoon. I hate being broke! :(

• For all you Nigel Slater fans out there, have you seen his favourite summer recipes? There's a great feature in The Guardian. I'm drooling already!

• And finally, for those of you outside Ireland, you might not know we got a new Taoiseach (Prime Minister) yesterday, Brian Cowen. He's actually from my district so there's a lot of celebration around Tullamore this week. His not very nice nickname is BIFFO which means Big Ignorant *BEEP* from Offaly. Here are some drawings to celebrate his arrival in office! :) H/T Le Craic.
  

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Related articles

• Brian Cowen succeeds Bertie Ahern as Taoiseach [via Zemanta]
• Irish Parliament Elects New PM [via Zemanta]

No Excuses Peanut Butter Cookies

This has to be the worlds easierst cookie recipe - you have no excuse not to make them! Okay, well just the one of the life-threatening nut allergy kind, I'll let you off in that case! :) Ella, who will be four tomorrow, made these all by herself. All I did was crack the egg. A great recipe for the kids and deliciously light and tasty.

A word of warning. These do not work with Irish peanut butter, you HAVE to use American peanut butter! But don't fear, if you go down to Aldi you can buy some peanut butter made in the state of Georgia for half the price and ten times the taste of the so-called "American-style" stuff you get elsewhere. I've tried these with that stuff and they don't bake up. I'm not quite sure how this recipe works, but it does. I use crunchy, if you prefer, use smooth!



Ingredients:

• 1 cup peanut butter
• 1 cup sugar or granulated sugar substitute
  
• 1 large egg

Pre-heat oven to 180C/350F

Mix all ingredients together and drop one inch spoonfuls onto a cookie tray. I usually get 15-18 cookies. Dip a fork in sugar and press down on a cookie to flatten, repeat on the other side so you have intersecting fork marks. Repeat for each cookie.

Bake for 10-20 minutes. I don't know why, but the timing seems to vary every time I make these! They should be crisp around the edges, but slightly chewy in the middle. Enjoy!

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More Outdoor Fun: Homemade Bubbles

Somebody stop me please! This weather is just too glorious NOT to have the kids outside all day! Ella mused how she wished she had bubbles. Not having any commercial versions in the house I doctored up my own. They've been playing with the bubbles for ages now and aren't tired of them yet! This is such a simple recipe that anyone can make! Feel free to cut down on quantity but maintain ratio. 6:2:0.75

Ingredients:

• 6 cups warm water
• 2 cups dish soap
  
• 3/4 cup corn syrup / golden syrup
• Food colouring (optional)

Mix everything together and let them at it! Make blowers with pipecleaners or cut up plastic lids or cookie cutters... anything fun that has a hole in it! Enjoy! :)

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Gambas Al Ajillo & Sidewalk Paint

George, the Kitchen Goddess posted a fabulous prawn pil-pil tapas recipe the other day and it got me thinking about a lower fat version. I've been trying to cut down on carbs lately and this is a perfect low carb treat. I came up with this variation of Gambas Al Ajillo, the traditional Spanish tapas. This makes one portion, so multiply as necessary. It reminds me of sitting in rustic town squares in Spain last summer, sipping Sangria and munching on tapas. Heaven. To cut down on fat you could always use the ingredients as a marinade instead and grill them. A quick, healthy and easy summery recipe!

Calories: 169 Fat: 10g Carbs: 6g Protein: 14g

Ingredients:

• 8 medium raw prawns, shelled
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1/4 - 1/2 tsp chili flakes
• 2 tsp olive oil
• Splash of sherry or sherry vinegar
• 2-3 sprigs flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
• salt and black pepper to season

Heat up the olive oil in a pan and add the garlic to sizzle. Add the shrimp and saute for a minute each side. Add the chili and sherry and turn heat down allowing to gently saute until shrimp are cooked through, but not tough. About another minute should do it.

Remove shrimp to a serving plate and drizzle with sauce. Season with salt and pepper and sprinkle with parsley. Serve immediately with wedges of lemon and if you're not watching carbs, some nice crusty bread to mop up the sauce! :)

*****

I usually have quite a supply of sidewalk chalk as the kids love it and stay outside for hours. We finally ran out last summer and I haven't found any to replace it yet. I thought about making some, but since I didn't have any plaster of paris lying around, that was not an option, so I made sidewalk paint instead! This is too easy and has been keeping the kids happy all morning!

You need:

• 1 1/2 cups cornstarch (cornflour)
• 1 cup water
• food colouring
• small containers, 1 per colour
• paint brushes or sponges

Mix the cornstarch and water until it's slightly thickened. Add a few drops of food colouring to each container and top up with the cornstarch mixture. Stir to mix, add more food colouring if necessary.

Let the kids go to town with it! :) It washes off just like chalk!

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Irish Shepherd's Pie

I've called this Mam's traditional Shepherd's Pie, but that refers to me, not my Mam, who uses Bisto or a mix to make hers. No disrespect to Mam of course, as they are very good, but I prefer the made from scratch version myself! :) I think most Irish Mammies have their own version of this common dish and this is mine.

I get lots of requests for more Irish foods and as this was something I was born eating and seems to be just as popular today as when I left Ireland in '89, it seems like a perfect Irish dish!

Kids love this one and it's really quite nutritionally balanced with protein, carbs and bite-sized veggies galore! You can make up individual pies which the kids love and you can also freeze them in advance. I often make up lots of little pies and freeze them so if I am out Daddy has a home cooked meal at his disposal!

This version easily feeds 4 with a good bit leftover, but feel free to double up the recipe for bigger crowds. Traditionally this is made with lamb, but I hate lamb and was brought up on it being made with beef - do whatever works for you. Heck, use turkey if you're watching the fat content or even soya mince for a vegetarian option! The rich sauce will work with any ground meat. Let me know if you try this wholesome, traditional and frugal meal!

Ingredients:

• Olive Oil
• Black Pepper
  
• 1 lb ground beef or lamb
• 1 large onion, finely diced
• 3-4 large carrots, finely diced
• 1 large cup frozen peas
• 3-4 sprigs fresh thyme, finely chopped
• 2 tbsp flour
• 1 tbsp butter
  
• 1 large glass red wine
• 2 tbsp tomato paste or 3 tbsp ketchup*
• 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 cup stock
• Large quantity mashed potatoes (estimating 1L / 6 cups, fresh or leftover)
• 1 egg, beaten
• Grated Parmesan Cheese (optional)
  

Pre-heat oven to 200C/400F.

Saute carrots in the olive oil until starting to get tender. Add in the onions and saute for a minute or two then add the meat. Season with black pepper and thyme. Cook until browned then drain fat. Add the butter and peas. Sprinkle with flour and stir through. Add tomato paste, wine and Worcestershire sauce. Let this reduce slightly then add the chicken stock. Allow to reduce down until you have a thick meaty gravy. Season to your taste.

Remove from heat. Grease an oven proof dish** (9x13 works for me, as does an oval baker) with butter and add the sauce. Spoon or pipe the mashed potatoes over top. Brush with egg and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese if using.

Bake for about 20 minutes or until the potato is nice and browned on top.

Serve as is or with some bread to mop up that yummy sauce!

* Yes, I know, ketchup. Personally I like to use ketchup in this as it adds just a hint of sweetness, but tomato paste would be the more "gourmet" option! :)

** Same instructions if using individual dishes. I use pyrex ramekins for the kids. They will probably cook a little quicker though.

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Poussins, Sweet Potatoes and Links of Note

Well I'm back in Ireland after a wonderful weekend. I was very reluctant to go, but am so glad I did. Everyone has grown up but still looks the same! In another ten years we'll all be grey and sagging, but at least we can remember the good times! :) A lot of my former classmates read the blog apparently, so hi guys, don't be afraid to comment!

I've been promising this simple recipe for ages. Poussins are basically young chickens, the same as Cornish Hens. They are reared to be eaten at four to five weeks of age and as such are extremely tender and moist. They take a mere thirty minutes to roast and make quite an elegant supper. I found these little guys on sale at Dunnes Stores for less than a breast of chicken! Good times!

I opted to serve these with a very simple roast sweet potato. The sweet potatoes were sitting in my pantry for awhile and I wanted to use them up, despite himself not being a fan. Tough, he could deal for one night. We were both absolutely amazed at the flavour, not too sweet, just a hint, but still delightfully flavoursome. How this simple seasoning could bring out the subtle earthiness of the potato was just incredible. We were more enamoured with the potatoes than the birds! We actually fought over the last few bites! I have since tried these and the kids enjoy them too, chilli flakes and all. I highly highly recommend you try these, especially if you are looking for a lower carb or GI alternative to potatoes.

Disclaimer: The photo stinks. It was late and dark, I had to use flash. It was really a lot more appetising than it looks! :)

Honey Mustard Glazed Poussins with Roasted Sweet Potatoes

For the sweet potatoes:

• 5-6 sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1inch rounds
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp fresh chopped thyme
• 3 cloves garlic, finely diced
• 1 tsp chilli flakes
• 1/2 tsp sea salt

Pre-heat oven to 220C/450F

Toss all the ingredients together in a large bowl, making sure the potatoes are completely coated in the oil. Place on a large baking sheet in a single layer. Bake for 30 minutes.

Lower the heat to 200C/400F and turn over the potatoes. Place poussins in oven.

Poussins will take 25-30 minutes. The potatoes may need a further 5-10 during which the birds can rest. They should be slightly caramelised around the edges and cooked through.

Serve immediately and enjoy!

For the Poussins:

• 2 poussins, cleaned and trussed
• 1/2 cup honey
• 2 tbsp dijon or wholegrain mustard
• 1 tsp cider vinegar
  
• fresh ground pepper
• salt

Pre-heat over to 200C/400F.

Season the birds with salt and pepper. Mix honey, mustard and vinegar. Taste for seasoning, adjust accordingly. Using a pastry brush or your fingers, rub the glaze all over the birds. Drizzle remaining glaze over top.

Bake for 25-30 minutes or until fully cooked. Allow to rest for 5-10 minutes or until potatoes are done.

*****

Now for some links of note.

• Many of you arrive here looking for Irish things. What's more Irish than a beautiful painting by a talented Irish artist? Check out Eolai's painting sale here. The prices are incredible and there are some beautiful pieces up for grabs!
• The Ice Cream Ireland book has been released! I know I can't wait to get my hands on a copy!
• A must try recipe: Crab Nachos - oh baby!
• Home-Ec 101 is going through some Spring Cleaning tips. Start here with your kitchen! I know I need all the help I can get! :)
• Ree, the Pioneer Woman has done it again. I am so making these flower pot desserts for Ella's 4th birthday party next week!
• I may have mentioned this before, but if not, FitDay is a great online resource to track your food consumption and calories. I use it sporadically when I decide it's time to watch the old waist again, which would be now! It's also great for us cooks as it's easy to calculate nutritional values of your meals from the ingredients. I actually use the downloadable version, but the online one is free and works just as well! :)
  

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