Last week as I was enjoying my pants being a size smaller i found myself indulging on some of Ireland’s most delicious and sometimes not-so-healthy foods.
Here is a quick look at some of that deliciousness!
This rich and delicious handful of chocolate brownie from WildFlower Bakery was the perfect thing to raise my blood sugar a proper 100 points on a cold & early Saturday morning at the Honest2Goodness Farmers Market in Glasnevin Ireland.A quiet evening by the fire and a plate of delicious Garlic & Leek sausages from The Whole Hogg Farm, with a bit of amazing sourdough from Arun Bakery (blog post coming soon on them) and a bit of Beet Root Chutney from Carlitos . OH and a wee nip of homemade Potchin to sip on.I’ve never been a fan of Mussels (unless on a healthy handsome man) but this dish changed me! It may not look like much in this photo but with a bit of fresh baguette, I was more than satisfied! Stuart (my host) performed magic by steaming his mussels till JUST opening, removing the meat and storing over night in broth. The next evening he combined the broth, with white wine, garlic, onion, fresh herbs, and just a bit of Pernod (anise flavored liquor). The fresh but provincial flavors that covered my palette, followed by the moist delicate texture of the perfectly cooked mussel was a new heaven!Community lunch between the stall holders at the farmers market proved delicious as I flat grilled us up some fresh pheasant with only a bit of cracked pepper, then served atop Irish cream buttered Arun Bakery sourdough slices, crowned with that ever so addicting Beet Root Chutney from Carlitos. You can also see there on the little plate a wee bit of chocolate courgette (zucchini) loaf, which was so moist and scrumptious. Having grown up in a household full of hunters I’ve eaten a lot of game, and must admit that the Irish game I’ve been enjoying since in Ireland has been much more wonderful. The game here is much milder in taste and its all been fresh, no frozen (it doesn’t last long enough to have to worry about freezing it.) One local hunters theory on the mild clean tasting game here is possibly because they’re basically all grain fed from the many 1000s of acres of barley fields in this county alone. I’ve had the pleasure of eating pheasant, rabbit, turkey, 2 varieties of deer, and pigeon so far.This deep fried monster battered cod lasted me 3 meals. The best damn fish ever from the Indian Take-Away (Togo place) PLUS cheddar and garlic sauced chips (fries) with brown sauce….. Ug, so good!!Shooting sports in Ireland is a way of life that is very special (blog post on that soon!) I had the unbelievable luck of getting an invite to one of the local Shooting Clubs annual Game Night out in the middle of nowhere near Kells Ireland. A Game Night is a potluck feast held by the members of the club with property owners and game managers as the special guests. On this night there were over 150 folks crammed into the idealic Gormalough Pub. The buffet table was loaded with creative dishes of duck, pheasant, venison, rabbit, goose, turkey, trout, pigeon, woodcock, snipe (yes I said snipe!!!) and squirrel which in Ireland they consider squirrel as more of a tree rat than game meat like we Americans do) what an amazing night for the senses!!That’s me helping out on the serving line at a local shooting club’s recent Game Night at Gormalough Pub somewhere out in the country near Kells Ireland.
….well obviously I’m not going hungry yet!!
And last but not least, I must introduce you to RosaLee a true “Dub” – a born and raised citizen of Dublin. She’s brutally honest, quick witted, moving a mile a minute, and good “Craigc” (hilarious fun)! This is her preparing a traditional and well loved Irish take-away treat, The Chip Roll. If you listen closely I think you can hear her arteries clogging. [wpvideo NFGwOOce]
