November 28, 2013

Fabulous Foodie Gifts - Christmas Wishlist 2013

Christmas is now less than four weeks away and if like me, you would rather eat mince pies and drink hot poitín (check out the Beerhouse!) than shopping, this list of foodie gifts will hopefully make your life a little easier. Also if anyone personally knows my boyfriend maybe you can point him in the direction of this post!  

Cooking Classes

I love attending cookery classes especially if I can get a friend to come along. They are usually a lot of fun to attend and you come away with a lot of useful tips. It's also a wonderful experience to watch a professional show you how they do things. It is usually a lot easier than you think it might be! Check out these classes for more ideas.

Aniar Cooking Class: They do a lot of nose to tail classes where students learn how to use the whole animal in the preparation of a meal. Classes start from €175

Firehouse Bakery: They have two schools one on the beautiful Heir Island and another more manageable location in Delgany, Wicklow if you are on the other side of the country. Full day classes on Heir Island are from €110.

Neven Maguire Cookery School: One of my ultimate wishes is to eat in MacNean House so imagine my excitement when I heard Neven Maguire was opening a cookery school. Half day courses start from €130. Based in Blacklion, Co. Cavan.

Cloughjordan Cookery School: Set in the heart of Tipperary this is one of the prettiest schools I have seen pictures of. They offer a wide range of classes and half day classes start from €85.

Ballymaloe Cookery School: A dream short break would be to stay on site and take part in any number of cookery classes here! Classes range from €50 right on up to €10,695 for their 12 week certificate course. That the ultimate foodie pressie right there!

Fiona's Japanese Cooking: Fiona is an Irish food blogger who recently won the Home Cook Hero Awards. I recently attended one of Fiona's sushi making classes and it was so much fun. Apart from sushi rolling disasters I learned a lot about Japanese culture and discovered that making it at home is not half as complicated as I thought it would be. She is now doing classes in the Miele Gallery so keep a lookout on her Facebook page for updates.

Food Tours

Discovering a city through it's food has to be one of the most enjoyable ways to learn about a place. 

Fab Food Trails: They offer tasting trails in both Dublin and Cork. Prices start at €55. I attended a special one they had organised in Howth a while back. Check out the blog post here. 

French Food Tours: Ketty Elisabeth is the author of the award winning French Foodie in Dublin. She has recently set up French Food and Wine Tours of Dublin which will introduce you to French food culture and customs while you sample some delicious French food and wine. The tours are €35 each and she does delightful looking gift vouchers. If you can't wait until Christmas check out her 12 Treats of Christmas Food Tour. 

Cookbooks

2013 was a wonderful year for cookbooks from both professional chefs and food bloggers. There are loads to choose from and something out there to suit everyone.

The Nation's Favourite Food by Neven Maguire: RRP €22.99
Homecooked by Donal Skeha: RRP €25.00
The Irish Beef Book by Pat Whelan and Kathy McGuinness: RRP €22.99
30 Years of Ballymaloe by Darina Allen & Alice Waters: RRP €42.99
Chapter One: An Irish Food Story by Ross Lewis: RRP €39.99
Weekend Chef | Easy Food For Lazy Days by Catherine Fulvio: RRP €22.99
Apron Strings by Nessa Robins: RRP €22.99
Dream Deli by Lilly Higgins: RRP €22.99
Like Mam Used To Bake by Rosanne Hewitt-Cromwell: RRP €19.99
Breakfast and Brunches by Two Rooms in Dublin: RRP €22.50
Food from an Irish Garden by Fiona Dillon: RRP: €17.95

They are all beautiful cookbooks with stunning imagery and diverse recipes but if I had to pick out one that would make it to my stocking it would have to be Food from an Irish Garden because Fiona Dillon is who I want to be when I grow up and get a house of my own! I love her lifestyle and even attended one of her classes a while back. Check out the blog post here. 

The prices above are all off the publisher's websites so feel free to check around.

 

Quirky Christmas Gifts

On the lookout for a condiment gun, a wine handbag, marmite chocolate or a giant gummy bear? Well check out Firebox.com, a great website for stocking fillers, quirky gifts and funny Kris Kindles. Best of all they deliver to Ireland.

Smorgasboard is a fun foodie filled game where players take on the guise of aspiring chefs as they work their way around the board in search of gastronomic success. The object of the game is to be the first team of chefs to graduate from Rick's Culinary Academy! We have this at home and it's always a great laugh to play. It retails for €28.99.

For a food hamper with a difference check out Wild About. They make delicious chutneys, syrups, and preserves from Ireland's native, seasonal and wild ingredients. They are my foodie find of the year and we are particularly partial to the fennel cider butter in my house! Hampers start from €22. 

Happy shopping and enjoy the festivities in the run up to Christmas. 

This is just a list of products that I either own, would like to or have discovered this year! I have not been asked to promote any of these products on my blog and opinions are my own.
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November 19, 2013

Six Great Places for Breakfast in Dublin City Centre

Where do you think is good for breakfast in Dublin? Now I'm not talking about a lazy weekend one but more a 'I have been up since 6am, I'm only just in town, I have a whole day of training ahead, must eat, where is the coffee' kinda breakfast!! Recently I had the opportunity to do some great training in Dublin City Centre. It meant early starts, a long commute and a very hungry woman by the time I got into town.  On the plus side though, it meant I got to try out a few places I had always wanted to have breakfast in!

Voilá

Feel like something french for breakfast? Well alongside a whole counter of croissants and cakes Voilá offer a slightly different take on the usual bacon and eggs by serving it up with slices of toasted baguette. A breakfast of bacon, 2 poached eggs and toast will set you back €7.50.

 

KC Peaches

KC Peaches has a few locations but I visited the Nassau street one which has a fairly large and diverse breakfast menu. They have sweet and savoury options including breakfast paninis. I got the Provencal Panini which was filled with basil pesto, gubbeen chorizo, roasted tomatoes, roasted red peppers, scrambled free range eggs, and emmental cheese. The panini was full of flavour and great value at €5.20. I couldn't even finish it all!! That and a flat white cost me €8.10.

Cup Cafe

The Cup Cafe is a few steps down from KC Peaches and is home to some great coffee and their famous sausage bap. They work closely with three time Irish Barista champion Colin Harmon and use Has Bean coffee which means they serve a great cup of coffee. Their breakfast bap uses Bretzel Bakery baps which are filled with sausage and caramelised onions and it costs €5.50.

 

Pichet

If you are looking for somewhere fancy for breakfast you can't go wrong with Pichet. It is plush, has lovely deep comfortable seats and is perfect for people watching if you get a place by the window. I ordered the Egg Benedict with ham and it arrived with perfectly poached and utterly oozy eggs. Breakfast here cost €13.40 which included a flat white.


Oxmantown

If by now you haven't heard of Oxmantown you need to visit it asap. It is a little cafe near the Smithfield fruit and vegetable market. There are only a few small stools available but at that time of the morning most people seemed to be getting takeaway. I got the breakfast sandwich with sausage, relish and rocket. It was immense and great value at €5.50.

Brother Hubbard

Brother Hubbard is very nearby to Oxmantown on Capel Street and is a friendly little cafe. I must have looked tired because even before I sat down the waitress asked what coffee I would like and said she would bring it straight over! Their menu is small but it is full of lovely sounding breakfast treats. If you can avoid ordering one of the delicious looking cakes and buns you can choose from items such as porridge, granola, or a chorizo and feta omelette. I went for the homemade baked beans topped with feta, parsley & sumac and served with toast. This was one of the more unusual breakfasts with fantastic middle - eastern flavours running through it. Breakfast here cost €11.90 including a flat white.

Just loved the way they presented their cutlery and salt & pepper
What is your favourite place in town for some breakfast before work?

Voila on UrbanspoonPichet on UrbanspoonKc Peaches on Urbanspoon

Find Oxmantown on Facebook and Twitter.
Find Cup Cafe on Facebook, Twitter and website.
Find Brother Hubbard on Facebook, Twitter and website.
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November 16, 2013

National ‘Chef Star’ Competition for Secondary School Students

Glenisk, Ireland’s award winning organic dairy, has teamed up with Cloughjordan House & Cookery School to launch the ‘Chef Star’ competition in a bid to find Ireland’s best student chef!

The nationwide search for Ireland’s next Donal Skehan/Rachel Allen is designed to get the proverbial creative juices flowing, and encourage students to become more confident in the kitchen...before they leave the nest!

Students interested in submitting their own recipe have until 31st March 2014, and can simply visit the Glenisk Facebook Page www.facebook.com/GleniskOrganic where they will be prompted to upload their recipe using a Glenisk product, along with an image of the culinary creation and a few lines on why they should win ‘Chef Star’.

The successful candidate will win an Apple IPad, enabling them to create and document many more delicious recipes to come, as well as winning a €500 voucher for their respective school to spend on equipment for the Home Economics room.

Cloughjordan is home to Sarah Baker’s award winning cookery school, and offers a range of exciting and inspiring courses for Transition Year and HE students. These dynamic courses offer students the chance to learn valuable cooking skills and develop a deeper understanding of where our food comes from. For further information follow Glenisk on Facebook or on Twitter @Glenisk
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November 05, 2013

November Food Festivals & Food Events

So far 2013 has seen hundreds of events happen throughout the country. November is no different and there are loads of events planned including the start of the Christmas markets. Whoop!! Hopefully you will find something of interest in there for you to attend. If I am missing an event and you would like to add it just email Kat at thepurplepageireland@gmail.com. Enjoy.

Week 1: November 1 – 10
 
Week 2: November 11 – 17

Week 3: November 18 – 24

Week 4: November 25 – 1 December
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