The General Chat Thread

Johnny_Fontane

Merkin wrote: »

Does anyone like Rolys in Ballsbridge? If so they have a Facebook offer for two people this coming Sunday for full A La Carte meal for two for €69 which is pretty good value, normally at least that per head.

I like Rolys. Their bread is excellent! Good quality cooking, if a little bit too big a restaurant for my liking.

Johnny_Fontane

so a bit of fish tonight I reckon. will bread a bit for the little ones, but any ideas for a nice fish dish tonight for the two of us? Hitting Wrights later.

maybe something baked with a crust?

Loire

Johnny_Fontane wrote: »

so a bit of fish tonight I reckon. will bread a bit for the little ones, but any ideas for a nice fish dish tonight for the two of us? Hitting Wrights later.

maybe something baked with a crust?

Here's my goto fish dish:

I x leek, sliced
I packet of spinach
Fish
Baby potatoes
butter
lemon juice
parsley
Slice of lemon
clove of garlic, crushed


Sautee the leeks in butter over a low heat, when soft add the spinach and wilt (remove excess juice)
Fry the fish for a minute on both sides with butter and then roast in the oven with the garlic to finish
Par-boil the potatoes. Cut in half and fry in butter turning over few minutes to "roast" - keep adding butter
over a low heat, melt some butter in a pot and add the lemon juice

To Serve:

put the leek & spinach in the middle of the plate.
Put the fish on top
Spoon the butter/lemon juice around the fish
Sprinkle the chopped parsley over the butter/lemon juice
Add a slice of lemon
Server the potatoes in a warm bowl

Loire

The above steps are not in order though, sorry!

the beer revolu

Personal history of food?
Well.... I was a terribly fussy eater as until my late teens. Meat, potatoes, carrots, green beans and sweetcorn - that was about it - no sauce, gravy, I complained about tomatoes and onions in shepherd's pie. I liked fish fingers too but I still to this day can't bring myself to eat baked beans, although I love beans generally. The bad thing is that today I have so little tolerance for fussy eaters, or rather people who taste with their minds and preconceived ideas rather than their senses.
At home we always had good homemade food. My mother did the majority of the cooking and made very well cooked, if not exciting food. My dad liked to be more adventurous at weekends (but I wouldn't eat that funny food!) and there was always some cooking going on. My mother is a world class baker too. We always had a sit down family meal with only occasional permissions to take the dinner in to see Mork and Mindy on a Friday.
I think that despite my fussiness, I absorbed love of proper homemade food made from good ingredients and the importance of family meals. It was really only when I left home and wanted the same type of food that I started to learn to cook properly (although we we all well able to feed ourselves from a relatively early age). I just needed to be able to cook a roast chicken with proper roast spuds and gravy, Irish stew, to be able to make decent mash. These things were necessities.
Then while drunk, I discovered that I liked Chinese food (Irish Chinese food). This opened up the world of food to me and I started to experiment with curries and chillies and stirfrys. I discovered food.
I dabbled with the idea of becoming a chef and did a 13 week CERT course in my early twenties. A few months working in Lovett's kitchen taught me an awful lot about cooking but also that I really didn't want to be a chef if I wanted to continue to love food. I still love food and still don't want to be a chef.
Nowadays, food is a huge part of my life. I still insist that Mrs Beer and I sit down to a family dinner nearly every day (although we have no kids). I love sourcing food, thinking about how I'm going to cook it, preping it, cooking it. I love being thrifty with food but will spend for quality. I love cooking for people and I love eating. Due to this forum, I've come to love even photographing my food!
So, yes, I too, am a bit obsessed with food (and drink, but that's another story) and this forum has become very valued to me - it's my face book and twitter.

Michellenman

Have mini baguettes proving and croissant dough chilling. Mary berry ain't got nothing on me.

Johnny_Fontane

Loire wrote: »

Here's my goto fish dish:

I x leek, sliced
I packet of spinach
Fish
Baby potatoes
butter
lemon juice
parsley
Slice of lemon
clove of garlic, crushed


Sautee the leeks in butter over a low heat, when soft add the spinach and wilt (remove excess juice)
Fry the fish for a minute on both sides with butter and then roast in the oven with the garlic to finish
Par-boil the potatoes. Cut in half and fry in butter turning over few minutes to "roast" - keep adding butter
over a low heat, melt some butter in a pot and add the lemon juice

To Serve:

put the leek & spinach in the middle of the plate.
Put the fish on top
Spoon the butter/lemon juice around the fish
Sprinkle the chopped parsley over the butter/lemon juice
Add a slice of lemon
Server the potatoes in a warm bowl

Great recipe, I left out the sauteing of potatoes in butter, I felt my heart needed that. But I got two beautiful pieces of hake and the spinach/leek combo is delicious. Threw in some deep fried onion strings aswell.

Thanks, Loire!

homemadecider

Heading out to my favourite tapas restaurant in 10 mins - their food is incredible and the prices are so reasonable. They do wonderful things with black pudding and broad beans and squid and so on, I love the food there. Tis my birthday tomorrow so I insisted we make a weekend of it

PS Picking up my engagement ring tomorrow!!

MurdyWurdy

Congrats homemadecider!

I have to bake tonight. I love baking and I'll take any excuse but tonight I'm shattered. It's our church Christmas same tomorrow and I said I'd bake.

Such a strange feeling not to want to bake. Someone tell me how I'll enjoy it when I get into the kitchen and to get off the couch. I've no motivation!

MissFlitworth

Have a lovely birthday/engagement weekend Homemadecider! Was going to ask which Tapas restaurant it is but considering you're on your way there now that would be just incredibly stalky.

A very nice thing happened to me this evening, was in Sheridans buying my Pay Day Goats Cheese and they gave me free pizza bases because the best before is tomorrow. I was going to make pizza dough tonight, they're psychic as well as wonderful as well as having many, many goats cheeses.

MurdyWurdy wrote: »

Someone tell me how I'll enjoy it when I get into the kitchen and to get off the couch. I've no motivation!

Off the couch!! Off!! It'll be lovely when your kitchen smells like warm cake.

emeraldstar

MissFlitworth wrote: »

MurdyWurdy wrote:

I have to bake tonight. I love baking and I'll take any excuse but tonight I'm shattered. It's our church Christmas same tomorrow and I said I'd bake.

Such a strange feeling not to want to bake. Someone tell me how I'll enjoy it when I get into the kitchen and to get off the couch. I've no motivation!

Off the couch!! Off!! It'll be lovely when your kitchen smells like warm cake.

And when you're back on your couch with the obligatory sample of your warm cake.

Faith

I'd bake if I had ingredients!

I've been meaning to make a pumpkin pie for AGES now, and I can't seem to bring myself to do it. I've never had it before, and I'm secretly convinced I won't like it .

Animord

Faith wrote: »

I'd bake if I had ingredients!

I've been meaning to make a pumpkin pie for AGES now, and I can't seem to bring myself to do it. I've never had it before, and I'm secretly convinced I won't like it .

I made it last year and was exactly the same. And then I tasted it.

And I REALLY didn't like it. lol nasty thing!:pac:

Dizzyblonde

I don't think I'd like pumpkin pie at all. I don't like the taste or texture of pumpkin.

homemadecider, happy birthday for tomorrow and what a great day to pick up your engagement ring

MurdyWurdy

I got up, my kitchen is destroyed and I've discovered I don't have enough eggs!!

I'm making this (I have the book)

http://www.dollybakes.co.uk/2012/03/great-british-bake-off-by-linda.html?m=1

And doubling the recipe. I have enough eggs for the first part of the recipe but only 2 eggs instead of 4 to whisk into stuff peaks. I can't go out because the baby is asleep and husband is in the pub. Do you reckon if I make it with 2 eggs it will be ok but just not as light?

Faith

Animord wrote: »

I made it last year and was exactly the same. And then I tasted it.

And I REALLY didn't like it. lol nasty thing!:pac:

Dizzyblonde wrote: »

I don't think I'd like pumpkin pie at all. I don't like the taste or texture of pumpkin.

Feckit. I'm using Libby's canned pumpkin. Did you guys use fresh pumpkin?

Dr.MickKiller

I had pumpkin pie once before and I thought it was fantastic, one of my favourite desserts. I don't think canned or fresh makes too much of a difference. Also, you couldn't really tell there was pumpkin in it, taste or texture.

Hermione*

Dizzyblonde wrote: »

I haven't been but my daughter has and reckons it's overrated. That's just her opinion though. If it's Sunday lunch you're having, Dobbins do a fabulous one for €26 a head.

I agree with her. Dobbins, on the other hand, is very underrated. I've been dozens of times and never had a bad meal.

I've eaten out three nights this week. It's nice to be home by the fire for a change!

I can't remember a time when I was obsessed with food (:o), although I've definitely become more so since my twenties. Even when I was in college, I'd often prefer to go out for a nice meal and wines than to go out. My parents were very into nice food, albeit plain, Irish foods. Meat and two veg, but tasty. My Dad's roast spuds are one of the yummiest things ever. My first culinary adventure was being taught to bake scones and soda bread by my father, using the recipes his mother taught him.

Animord

Faith wrote: »

Feckit. I'm using Libby's canned pumpkin. Did you guys use fresh pumpkin?

I used fresh, but as DrMick said I think the recipe said it didn't make any difference. Mine ended up looking like, say, a lemon tart, but I found it just sweet and pretty tasteless. I think mine had evaporated milk in it as far as I remember. Anyway, I had a slice and my then boyfriend dropped it on the floor - I acted cross but I was secretly grateful!:p

Michellenman

Michellenman wrote: »

Have mini baguettes proving and croissant dough chilling. Mary berry ain't got nothing on me.

Croissant dough resting over night. Mini baguettes cooling from the oven now. Holy smokes I could live on them. Paul Hollywood recipe, never made yeasted bread before but this hasn't let me down

Tried a recipe for marshmellows while I was waiting for things to prove so they're cooling inside too. They look fantastic! Much simpler to make than I anticipated too. I envisioned hours hovering over my little hand whisker but from weighing out ingredients to putting them in the tray to cool it was less than half an hour. Have topped them with cola sherbet and silver pearl balls I had lying about

Dizzyblonde

Faith wrote: »

Feckit. I'm using Libby's canned pumpkin. Did you guys use fresh pumpkin?

I've never made it - I'm just assuming I wouldn't like it. I'd hate to make it and then throw it out.

homemadecider

The tapas place is La Bodega in Ranelagh. We had tons of food, nice bottle of wine, dessert plus champagne cocktails and the bill was only 80 euro between us. The food is excellent and the staff are top notch, I definitely recommend it.

dee_mc

Faith wrote: »

Feckit. I'm using Libby's canned pumpkin. Did you guys use fresh pumpkin?

Highly recommend Pumpkin Cake, I've never tried pumpkin pie either, just don't like the idea of it! And like others mentioned, I hate the idea of throwing it out if it's not right! But I made pumpkin cake around Halloween (twice!) and it was amazing, it doesn't taste of pumpkin in the same way that carrot cake doesn't taste of carrots - it just adds a subtle sweetness and a lovely light but moist texture.
http://southernfood.about.com/od/pumpkins/r/bl30212s.htm I upped the pumpkin content to 3 cups based on a comment below the recipe... we make light work of it

Loire

On my way home I swung by the Good Fish shop in Bishopstown Cork and they had a great special. 3 decent sized salmon fillets for 5e. Picked up 25e worth - we had 2 each for dinner and I made 21 salmon cakes for the kids! That's one dinner per week sorted for the kids for the next 10 weeks

Loire

homemadecider wrote: »

PS Picking up my engagement ring tomorrow!!

Great stuff! Hope it all goes well. Brings back fantastic memories of excitement & fear

Faith

I'm making a birthday dinner for my dad on Tuesday. He's in his late 60's and is a fan of pretty plain food. He adores fish, but my mum hates fish generally so I might as well leave that out. I was thinking of doing a roast chicken with all the trimmings, but is that too boring for a birthday meal?

Michellenman

Not at all. You could do a garlic butter under the skin and glazed veg to spice things up?

Croissants and pain au chocolat! worth the effort!

Mrs Fox

Faith wrote: »

I'm making a birthday dinner for my dad on Tuesday. He's in his late 60's and is a fan of pretty plain food. He adores fish, but my mum hates fish generally so I might as well leave that out. I was thinking of doing a roast chicken with all the trimmings, but is that too boring for a birthday meal?

Roast rib of beef on the bone maybe? With all the trimmings and the mandatory Yorkshire pud. Or are they all too exotic for him?

Faith

Mrs Fox wrote: »

Roast rib of beef on the bone maybe? With all the trimmings and the mandatory Yorkshire pud. Or are they all too exotic for him?

Not too exotic, but he likes his beef well done and I'm not sure I could cook it that way in all good conscience .

Well done, MM! Was it a lot of work?

Malari

Gravity-defying croissants MM! Look gorgeous.

A roast is one of my favourite dinners Faith, mainly because I never do them myself. I think if he likes plain food it's a great idea, with all the fab sides.