Long gap

So obviously this has been dormant for months, no real reason, yes work was busy, but just lazy and unfocused I guess.  So had many good meals out, cooked stuff, quick précis then reassessment.

Went to Nerja and Malaga in January, nothing special food-wise, San was not well, so stuck to simple stuff, Madrid for a weekend, similar.  Ate out in Sangamartha Kitchen and Fratelli - both decent.

Bit of a break, San better now and I wasn't cooking much for a few weeks, as I had a sling on!

In Mozambique currently, was in South Africa last week, Maputo bloody expensive, SA not.  Best food in Chez Vincent in Nelspruit, SA, Dhow in Maputo good, mostly decent pub / restaurant / Indian apart from that, staying with San's daughter, who does not really do food, so not a focus here.  Back to Mordor on Monday, loving the heat.

So what next?
I've kind of decided to stop reviewing restaurants, will mention anything good or interesting, but really, I have no skills in reviewing and many are much better than me, I am crap at photos and should probably use TripAdvisor for reviewing, as that is what I use to find places...

I need to make health changes, lots less beer and wine, reduce starch (pasta and potatoes especially) much more vegetables, do not need as much meat and stop with the chocolate.  Although all these will be hard, especially beer and beef, bot could lose a stone or three and with not being on bike or gym due to arm injury, feeling fat and old.  With retirement on the horizon need to get fitter and healthier.

When back from holiday going to try for something like:
No alcohol Monday - Thursday
Vegetarian 2 days a week
Fish at least one day a week
Fruit  / dried fruit only as snacks at work
Proper breakfast - cereal, porridge, fruit etc not fried
Back on bike and gym at least 4 days a week, coming into summer with daylight coming and going from work, so no Winter excuses

This will be tough, it is part of a long list of betterments (Spanish and a different job other priorities I am not hitting), but have about two years left or should give up and die - cheery sod!


One night out in Dun Laoghaire next month, then Malaga in June planned, so they should be markers for how I am (or not) getting on with changes, I might do some more updates if I start cooking a bit more veggie, as it will be new for me  - I don't want to just make the usual without meat or "substitute" I want something I like or it won't be worth it

Bon appetit and holiday wrap up

Ciara's 30th, large family  (about 30) do in Bon Appetit in Malahide, menu was:

Sweet Potato Soup
Carpaccio

Rib Eye
Chicken
Mushroom tagliatelli

Strawberry panna cota
Cheese board

All was great, rib eye especially, I had carpaccio, tagliatelli and cheese, really enjoyed it all, staff were great, good wine apparently - I was driving

All kids home now, had a few standards over the fortnight, ragu - normal beef and turkey (obv), risottos pizzas - roasted red pepper done with new blow torch and a couple of pub meals out.

Nothing planned for the next few days, but Nerja / Malaga next Wednesday, so looking forward to it

Vintage Kitchen

Back in Dublin's finest - The Vintage Kitchen

Crab and chili risotto starter for Aoife and me, San had the smoked fish chowder, mains of beef (fillet and pie), lamb shank and hake on mussels with white beans and caviar.
Desserts of cheese board, Limoncello cheesecake and chocolate pot, good long rests between (huge) courses, Aoife and I have espressos, we took 2 bottles of Ramon Bilboa, a couple of pints in Mulligan's beforehand.  As always staff were fantastic, attentive and helpful.  Need to book again soon!!!

Lack of updates, busy and then Christmas

So,
Wrote nothing for a couple of weeks, since Chicago, done very little in kitchen, other than standards, had a couple of pub meals out, nothing interesting, good or bad to mention and been very busty at work.

Christmas was very busy, 3 of our kids (1 pescatarian) over for several days plus one boyf for a night and my Mam for a week. Either driving to or from airport or making endless meals and / or drinks for the week.  

Fifteen in total for Christmas dinner, only 2 now children, so getting harder to get them around the tables but all went well

Starters:
Smoked salmon and pate on soda bread

Mains:
Roast turkey
Boiled Ham
Roast potatoes
Mashed potatoes
Sausage mash
Marrowfat peas (dried from a packet and steeped in bicarb and water overnight, then boiled)
Carrots
Sprouts (quartered, boiled then tossed into frying smoked bacon before serving)
Gravy (using a Jamie recipe, that worked well before)

Cooked ham and gravy and prepped veg on Christmas Eve, put turkey in at 7:00am - all spot on for 3:30 dinner

Desserts from Paul, 2 great cheesecakes and an apple sponge from nieces.  Few bottles of good Oz wine from our last trip and Ciara

Spent Stephen's Day putting all the furniture back, driving the dish washer, hoovering and mopping the floors


Just booked Nerja and Malaga for mid-Jan, looks like Mozambique end of March and tonight back to the Vintage Kitchen, looking forward to all three and will try and update more....

Home

Very quiet week, trying to get a bit of space in fridge and freezer for Christmas - about 15 for dinner, 1 maybe 2 veggies, lots of spuds etc.

Had Christmas lunch in Fallon & Byrne on Thursday, excellent Pate, good beef and mushroom pie and even a creme brulee, plenty of Tempranillo, went for a few in the Exchequer afterwards, Cute Hoor and more red, I did not hit the cocktails, but the smokey Old Fashioned was going down great guns.

Made a decent roast chicken for Saturday, parents-in-law here Sunday, made a beef cheek, carrot and pea stew and a chicken thigh, mushroom, cream, garlic and mustard stew.  Served with mash, went down well.  Made a couple of simple pancakes for them as dessert, served with butter, sugar and lemon juice - when you forget to buy any pudding, improvise, improvise, improvise.

This week at work will be uber-shite, bit of roast chicken and beef stew left, so that will do next two days.  Ciara back Wednesday, Excellent, Jack maybe Friday, Aoife Saturday, Mam Monday.  Gonna be busy!

Chicago

Quick weekend in Chicago, flew Thursday morning, food on plane not great, lack of seasoning or flavour, cheeseboard plastic crap.

Mediocre chicken wings (beer OK) in faux Irish pub connected to hotel, but too cold and tired to put any effort in.  Manager's canapés average and no drink!!!  Breakfast OK, but very sweet and stodgy, nothing savoury except Philadelphia - hmm

Day got better from there, tacos and quesadilla in the lovely Rocky Bottom with great beer as well.  PF Changs for dinner Lettuce wraps and ribs for starters, pepper beef to share for main.

Saturday, wings and fries in another old favourite Elephant and Castle, with good beer, evening San didn't feel like food, so went to Burger Bar for a burger and couple of pints, she just had a glass of pop and a few chips, I had a rare Big Shoulder Blues, really very good.  Food much better on flight home Sunday, couple of hours sleep, then into work, bit tired now, ragu from freezer, chicken curry from freezer tomorrow.  May be up to cooking by Wednesday, eating out Thursday, should be back on track by Friday.

Last holiday of the year over, really enjoyed it - sleep when you're dead!

Napalese and others

Meeting in Heathrow yesterday, remarkably good office food, chicken on sticks, nice cheese and hams, good sandwiches, crackers, pop, olives - Think it is the Spanish influence in the group.

Out for a meal last night - Sagarmatha Kitchen for the second time.
  Lovely food, Started with prawn fry for her an their take on a seek kebab for me, We both had lamb curries, San had Anapurna, I had Himalayan, my really hot, as I asked for, but not artificial or chemically, tasted long and slow.  Service was great. I  hope it survives, as there are now 4 (2 long standing) Indians in Swords now, so it will be tough.

Made a chorizo tortilla for breakfast, weather is grim and didn't fancy running over to JCs for sausages

scotch(ed) eggs, Dobbins and cooking

Chilli I made last week was very good, was listening to Radio 4's food program, all about scotch eggs, that I love and know the history, not Scottish, but scotched (i.e. changed) invented in the second poshest food shop in the world - Fortnum & Masons in London.  So had a graw to make some.

I made 2 one day and 3 more today.  Soft boiled egg, 6 minutes in boiling water, then straight into iced water, once cold, tapped the egg, the air gap is at the top, so tap there, use a teaspoon to ease shell off.  Mixed pork mince, blitzed chorizo, fresh thyme (no seasoning, because of chorizo) moulded around egg, drenched in flour, beaten egg then breadcrumbs, twice.  Rested in fridge, turned a couple of times to prevent flatspots. Deep fried in veg oil, very wasteful, as I don't have a deep fat fryer, but  reusing any fat except lard is really bad, which is wacky, but true!!

Made a good roast dinner yesterday, unfortunately beef was tasty but horribly chewy...

Saw a recipe for mini quiches, using Serrano (I used jamon) instead of pastry, mine look messy, will taste them tomorrow, spinach, cherry tomato and cheddar filling.  Cooked a few chicken thighs for lunches.  Lamb stew, garlic potatoes for in-laws and found a no churn strawberry ice cream in the freezer, that I'd made when I picked them at the allotment early summer.

On Thursday went to Dobbins in Dublin, guests of Threatscape and TrapX couple of pints first in the School House on the cana with friendsl.
At Dobbins, great wine, I had ham hock terrine, brioche (preferred the bread from basket), fantastic pork belly, with sublime crackling,  sticky toffee pudding and good espresso, great company and learned plenty of techie stuff

Good weekend

Last weekend, quite busy, leg of lamb, 2 chickens, kilo carrots, a cauliflower, a broccoli and a couple of kilos of potatoes.  Roast meat, roast and mashed potatoes, broccoli and cauli in white sauce with cheese, lamb and chicken gravy - fed 13, only scraps of chicken left and made stock from both lots of bones.


This weekend, stayed at Royal Marine in Dun Laoghaire on Friday night, ate at Rasam in Glasthule , definately the best Indian in Ireland.  Early bird, she had Aloo Tikka and Rustic Chicken I had calamari and mixed veg curry, as always came with rice, naan and spiced potatoes.  She loves the padadoms and sauces, me less so, but I like lots of heat and these are much more crowd pleasers.   House red (a Chilean Cab Sav) really lovely, food perfect quantity as well as quality.

Couple of glasses of wine in Forty Foot Wetherspoons on way back.  Swim and lovely full Irish breakfast Saturday morning.  Standard roast chicken Saturday night.  Made stock Sunday morning.

Out Sunday morning to RDS for Charity Bazaar, go every year, had a Slovakian sausage with great horseradish and mustard with rye bread, almost chorizo-like.  Won a bottle of very plain label German apple brandy, could be interesting.

Round to the main hall of RDS for Art Source, again, an annual event, bought another picture, our art walls are getting full!

Chilli tonight, just about to start, last one was crap and flavourless, need to concentrate more, left over chicken tomorrow and a meal out on Thursday

Baba ganoush

 

Had the quiche I made on Saturday, with some baba ganoush - I had a couple of aubergines that were nearly gone, simple recipe, garlic, lemon juice, olive oil, tahini, parsley and salt.  Aubergines had been roasted on high for about 40 minutes, scooped out when cool and mashed in - probably next time would roast the garlic as it was a bit strong.

Made a side salad of wild rocket, feta, cherry tomatoes, dry roasted a handful of pine nuts, dressed with EV olive oil and  lemon juice