Irish Potato Pancakes - Pimped up Leftovers for a happy Pancake Tuesday

I have gotten into the habit of deliberately making too much mash potatoes for the dinner, so I can have an excuse to make these delicious potato pancakes. The kids love them, as does my husband.

Today is pancake Tuesday, but rather than making my usual batter (which I make a couple times a week anyway off season) I decided to make these potato pancakes. I make them with the kids in mind, so I always make a plain batch. However if I was thinking about adults I would certainly spruce them up with scallions and herbs, and maybe ever some feta.  There really are loads of possibilities and variations so feel free to experiment for more grown up tastes.

Ingredients

• 325g cold mashed potatoes
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 110g self raising flour
• Salt/pepper
• 180ml milk (today I used soy milk)
• 2 eggs
• Oil for frying

Method

1. In a bowl add all the ingredients except for the oil
2. Whisk until very well combined, I used a hand held whisk
3. Put a pan on a medium heat, add the oil, I used olive
4. Using a ladle, pour in the batter in ladle size batches. 
5. Allow to fry until bubble holes appear on the top. This takes approx 2-3 minutes.
6. Flip the pancakes, and fry for another 2 minutes.
7. I got 15 small-medium size pancakes from this mixture and served with baked beans for the kids lunch. The wolfed them.

Tip: A sophisticated starter/brunch idea, would be to add chopped dill to the batter and serve the pancakes with smoked salmon and creme fraiche.

Extremely Versatile Quinoa Stuffed Beef Tomatoes

Healthy doesn't have to be boring, and these tasty stuffed tomatoes are extremely healthy and super fun. The recipe is here is extremely versatile, you can replace the quinoa with cous cous, bulgar wheat, rice, or even orzo. You can also inter change the vegetables also, customizing your stuffed tomatoes to your own person taste. You may even go so far as to stuff some peppers instead of using tomatoes altogether. So every single element of this dish can be replaced. Even the cheddar cheese can be replaced with either, feta, goats cheese and even haloumi. So there you have it, the most inter-changeable recipe I have ever written!!!!

These tomatoes are the perfect lunch time dish. I chose quinoa over cous cous and all the other grains, because it is a high protein ingredient with a low GI; meaning this should keep you fuller for longer. The tomatoes are not however just for lunch, these would be the perfect accompaniment to a main course fish dish at a dinner party. You could even have them prepped ahead, and just bang them in the oven for 15 minutes before serving the main. They look very impressive, yet secretly easy peasy to make. Here's how:

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup of quinoa 
• 1 1/2 cup of water
• 1 tsp of olive oil
• 3 mushrooms, cubed
• 1/2 courgette, cubed
• 1 small can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 1/4 of a red onion, diced
• 6 mint leaves, shredded
• 1/2 tsp of cumin powder
• Salt & pepper to season
• 2 tbsp of grated cheddar
• 1 tbsp of tomato paste
• 2 beef tomatoes

Method

1. Add the quinoa to pan on a medium heat, add the water and cook for 12 minutes.
2. Drain the quinoa and set aside.
3. Add a wok to a medium heat, add the onion, tomato paste and cumin powder. Cook out for 5 minutes.
4. Then add the mushrooms, courgettes and chickpeas, and cook for another 5 minutes.
5. Add the quinoa and the seasoning and mix really well, heating everything through.
6. Finally add the mint and mix through.
7. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees. 
8. Slice the top off the tomatoes, and cut out a hollow hole in the tomato.
9. Spoon the quinoa mixture into the tomato and sprinkle each tomato with 1 tbsp of cheese.
10. Place the tomatoes in an oven proof dish, replace the lid on the tomato, and add half a cup of water to the dish. (This prevents the tomato from sticking to the dish and keeps the finished product moist)
11. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes. 
12. Serve with a simple green salad.

(Tip: Other ingredients which would work well are chopped almonds, sultanas, corriander, apricots, grated carrot, grated cucumber. The list is endless. Feel free to experiment)

Smoked Salmon Paté & Melba Toasts

I've been totally absent of late with the blog, for a number of reasons to be honest. For one, this is busy season and every year my posts dwindle from June to September; not intentionally, but with running the Bed and Breakfast  and looking after the cutest one year old ever :) , time runs away from me every day.

With my sister getting married also there was the bridesmaid diet to consider and my brief fling with the Paleo Diet. Hard core paleo is just not for me. I love my food way too much!!! I'm more reading from the paleo diet a la carte style. I  do try to follow it Monday to Friday, so dinners have been boring; hence the lack of imaginative dinners on the blog.

I did a dinner party for some French guest recently and as a starter I made this Smoked Salmon Pate. Its super simple and can be made in advance and lasts for a week or so in the fridge. I paired it with homemade melba toasts and a super quick cucumber pickle. I have to say this is one of the easiest starters I have ever made, yet also the tastiest. It's super humid at the moment and one of my guests commented that the starter was very refreshing after being stuck in a bus touring all day. I had some leftover so it served as lunch for us for a day or so after, which is a nice change from soup, salads, sandwiches.

Ingredients

Salmon Paté

• 200g of smoked salmon (Organic Irish if possible)
• 50g of full fat cream cheese
• 50g of creme fraiche
• 2 tbsp of chopped dill
• Pepper
• Zest and juice of a lemon

Quick Cucumber Pickle

• 1 cucumber, sliced as thinly as possible
• 1 tbsp of caster sugar
• 1 tsp of salt
• 1 tbsp of white wine vinegar

Melba Toast

• 2 slices of thick toast bread

Method

1. Pulse the smoked salmon in a food processor, add the creme fraiche and the cream cheese and pulse. Add the pepper, dill, zest and juice of a lemon and pulse again. It's done, its that simple. Store in a Kilner Jar, until ready to use. For a fancy finish for a starter, I served my paté in shot glasses, garnished with a little dill. 
2. To make the pickle, simply mix all the ingredients together and allow to mingle for 30 minutes. Again this keeps really well in a clip top jar and goes well in sandwiches or an accompaniment to salmon darnes for dinner.
3. Use thick sliced bread to make the melba toasts. Toast the bread in a toaster and then with a serrated bread knife cut off the crusts. Then carefully cut the bread through the middle to give you 2 slices. Now cut each slice in half diagonally to give you two triangles per half. Grill soft side up and the bread with toast on this side and curl up. The toasts can be stored in an airtight container for a few hours until required. These are great also for hummus and salsa.

Sticky Sesame Orange Glazed Chicken Wings

Whenever I have a crowd coming over for drinks I throw some chicken wings in the oven. They disappear almost instantly. Chicken wings are so versatile, with hundreds of flavour combinations on offer. Seeing as I am following the Paleo diet currently (you may have heard), I decided to come up with a Paleo friendly chicken wing recipe, omitting all paleo no! no!s.

Ingredients

• Chicken wings
• 1 tbsp Cumin Seeds
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1 cup of freshly squeezed orange juice
• 1/2 cup of honey
• 1 crushed garlic clove
• 1 grated piece of ginger
• 1 tsp of chopped chilli
• 1 tbsp of rice wine vinegar
• 1 tbsp of soy sauce
• 1/2 a tsp of sesame oil
• 2 tbsp of toasted sesame seeds

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees
2. Place the chicken wings on a baking sheet lined with baking paper
3. Scatter the wings with the cumin seeds and grind with black pepper
4. Bake in the oven for 30 minutes
   
5. Meanwhile, add the orange juice, honey, ginger, garlic, chilli, vinegar, oil, and soy sauce to a saucepan, bring to the boil and reduce by half.
6. Pour the 80% of the sauce over the chicken wings and return to the oven for 20 minutes.
7. Remove from the oven, pour over the remain sauce and scatter the sesame seeds over the wings.
8. Serve with lime wedges and garnish with corriander leaves. Serve with a side salad. 

Paleo Friendly Asian Turkey Lettuce Cups - Bread-free Sambos

When taking on this new Paleo way of life, one of the main things I knew I would miss is my beloved bread!! I am addicted to sandwiches! When I used work in Galway I went to McCambridges on Shop Street EVERYDAY for my sambo at lunch. I used be morto when I used to go through the doors as the ladies behind the counter knew my order precisely. I live for sandwiches at lunch.

Even recently I've been having hummus on crackers for my lunch, both of which are a no! no! on the Paleo diet. I thought I would find it tricky but in fact, it's been fun eating outside my comfort zone for lunch. I bulk cooked and some of it lasted 3 days in tubberware in the fridge. I have to say, the body feels good without bread, bloat free. I must to admit I do still crave and miss bread however; but that's where my cheat meals at the weekend will save me.

Now on with this fabulous healthy, zingy and fresh lunch. I couldn't believe how full I felt after it, and I managed to stretch it for 3 lunches.

Ingredients

• 250g of minced turkey meat
• 1 garlic clove, chopped finely
• 1 stick of lemongrass, bruised and chopped finely
• 1 thumb size piece of ginger, peeled and chopped finely
• 1 red deseeded red chili, chopped
• 1 tbsp of mint/corriander, freshly chopped
• 2 tbsp of oil
• 1 tsp of fish sauce
• Juice of a lime
• 2 tbsp of coconut flakes
• 1 tbsp of toasted sesame seeds
• 1 large handful of spinach leaves
• 1/4 of a peeled mango, diced
• 4-5 leaves of baby gem lettuce

Method

1. Place the garlic, ginger, chilli, lemongrass, herbs and oil in and mini blender and pulse until liquidised to a paste.
2. Cook the paste for a few minutes on a high heat in a wok/skillet.
3. Put the turkey mince in the wok/skillet and stir fry until browned and loosened.
4. Add the fish sauce, coconut and sesame seeds and continue to stir fry.
5. Finally, turn off the heat and wilt in the spinach and finish with the lime juice.
6. Arrange the lettuce leaves cup-side up.
7. Distribute the mango pieces amongst the lettuce cups
8. Spoon the turkey mince over the mango and finish with some more lime juice perhaps.

Note: Large pieces of iceberg lettuce leaves work well here too, use them as roll ups as you might use a flour tortilla wrap perhaps.

Spicy Monkfish Ceviche

Ceviche is a method of cooking fish in lime juice, no heating element required. This would make this a super dish for 'cooking' on a camping holiday or even on a picnic. However, you must ensure to use the freshest possible fish from your fishmonger.

Some people would have an automatic aversion to the thought of eating monkfish after just been soaked in lime juice. But once you taste the fish and experience the utter tenderness of the monkfish (when overcooked on heat can be chewy and tough), you'll never want to cook monkfish the conventional method again. 

This is a superb dish to cook as a starter for a dinner party, or simply for a drinks party using tortilla chips as you spoons.

Serves 2 as a starter

Ingredients

• Monkfish, 2 portions (get fishmonger to take the membrane off and to fillet it)
• 4 limes, juiced.
• 1 jalapeno pepper, sliced thinly (or red chilli)
• 4 spring onions, diced.
• 2 tbsp of oil
• Salt & pepper

To Serve

Chopped Fresh Coriander, extra limes and tortilla Chips

Method

1. Cut the monkfish into very small pieces and place in a wide shallow bowl.
2. Add the lime juice, half the jalapeno pepper and half the spring onions. Also add the oil and pepper.
3. Allow to marinate for 15 minutes and then drain to prevent further cooking.
4. Place in a clean bowl, season well and freshen it up with the remaining spring onions and jalapeno pepper.
5. Serve with fresh coriander, lime wedges and tortilla chips.

Seriously addictive!!

Chicken, Mango & Mint Fresh Spring Rolls

I don't know if I mentioned before that Vietnam is my favorite country in the world I've visited, partially because of the food and partially because of the people! Well I was introduced to so many new flavors/foods on my trip to Vietnam, but one thing that stands out from memory has to be fresh spring rolls!

I remember even exactly where I came upon them for the very first time. It was in a cute little restaurant in the little tailoring town of Hoi An. It was along the river and the restaurant came recommended to us by travelers we had met in our hotel. We had been in Vietnam 2-3 weeks at this stage and at every meal we always ordered spring rolls, the gorgeous small deep fried morsels of heaven!!! Here they asked did we want fresh spring rolls and to me that meant freshly made, not frozen. I remember being embarrassed when the fresh spring rolls and I ask why they weren't cooked!!!

Now I'm on the lookout on every Asian menu for fresh spring rolls!!! They are divine and not to mention so healthy. It's such a shame down here in southern Ireland there are no Vietnamese restaurants. But luckily my local supermarket just started to stock the rice paper wrappers, so now I can make them myself any time I want them

Ingredients

Makes 10 spring rolls

• 2 chicken breasts, cut into thin strips and poached. (or leftover roast chicken is great)
• 1 mango, cut into thin strips
• 100g of thin rice noodles (soaked in boiled water for 10 minutes)
• 10-20 mint leaves
• 10 rice paper discs

Peanut Dipping Sauce

• 2 tbsp of peanut butter
• 1 tbsp of hoisin sauce
• 1 tbsp of soy sauce
• 1 tsp of chilli paste
• 1 crushed garlic clove
• 1 tsp of tomato paste
• water to thin the sauce to desired consistency

Method

1. First make the sauce. Add all the sauce ingredients to a pan and bring to the boil, add water to give you the consistency you require.
2. To assemble the spring rolls, have all your ingredients lined up assembly-line style.
3. Drain the noodles well, and ensure the chicken is seasoned.
4. Take a wide shallow bowl and fill it with water.
5. Take 1 rice paper disc at a time, soak it in the water for 10 seconds or until it become pliable.
6. Lay it on a flat surface in front of you.
7. Add a strip of chicken, mango and some noodles to the bottom quarter of the rice paper. Top it with mint leaves and roll it away from you tucking the end under the ingredients wrapped. 
8. Take in both sides of the roll to the centre and then continue to roll up till the end.
9. Place on a plate and cover with wet chicken paper, whilst you repeat the process with the remaining 9 spring rolls.
10. Serve immediately with the dipping sauce.

Tip: You can use any fillings you wish, i.e prawns or pork and carrots or red pepper strips. Mix and matching is great!

Low Fat Seafood Chowder

Chowder for me is more than just a soup, its a meal in a bowl. Chowder is something I'll always order when dining close to the coast as I always find that pubs and restaurants close to the coast always make the very best chowder. Sometimes chowder can have alot of cream in it, making it a not so low fat option. I've devised this low fat version to satisfy my craving for my beloved chowder without going OTT on the calorie count.

Ingredients

• 1 fillet of smoked haddock, cubed
• 1 fillet of cod, cubed
• 1 fillet of salmon, cubed
• 1 cup of mussel meat
• 1 cup of king prawns
• 1 leek, chopped
• 2 carrots, diced
• 1 garlic clove, diced
• 1 onion, diced
• 4-5 baby potatoes, sliced
• 2 tbsp flat leaf parsley
• 200ml of fish stock, mixed with a tsp of saffron strands
• 300ml of low fat milk
• Salt & Pepper
• 1 tbsp of olive oil
• Low Fat Creme fraiche to serve

Method

1. In a saucepan, add the oil, and sweat the onions, leeks, garlic, carrots, and baby potatoes. Saute for 5-8 minutes.
2. Add the stock and milk, and bring to the boil.
3. Allow to simmer for 10 minutes.
4. Using a hand held blender, whizz the soup mixture to a smooth consistency.
5. Add the seafood mix and continue the simmer until the fish is cooked. (Normally 5 minutes)
6. Season well and add some creme fraiche and flat leaf parsley.

Spicy Thai Crab Cakes

Crab cakes are one of the easiest things in the world to make, and because crab is considered a luxury decadent ingredient; an ingredient one wouldn't use daily; these cake cakes are seen as a little treat, reserved for a special occasion. Perhaps it's the fact that in this part of the world, crab doesn't come too cheap, unfortunately.

To add flavour and spice to these little cakes, I'm adding all the typical Thai ingredients that makes just about any dish sing.

These cakes, on this occasion are cooked for a main course, so I made really big balls and flattened them into cakes. For a dinner party starter, you can make smaller versions, and perhaps shallow fry them for a wonderful crunch.

Makes 5 large cakes

Ingredients

• 200g of fresh white crab meat
• 200g of potatoes
• Lime zest and lime juice of a half lime.
• 1 inch size piece of ginger
• 1 inch size piece of red chilli
• 1/2 a garlic clove
• 4 spring onions, sliced finely
• 1 egg
• 4 tbsp of fine bread crumbs
• 4 tbsp of fresh coriander
• Salt/pepper
• 1 lemongrass, chopped.
• 1 tsp of fish sauce
• 1 tbsp of soy sauce
• Oil for frying
• Sweet chilli mayo for dipping.

Method

1. Cook the potatoes, until tender, Peel the potatoes and mash them. Allow the mash to cool.
2. In a food blender, add the lime zest & juice, ginger, chilli, garlic, egg, breadcrumbs, crab, lemongrass, fish sauce, and soy sauce and coriander.
3. Blend until a smooth paste is formed.
4. Season and add the spring onions and the mash potato.
5. Mix to combine.
6. Get a baking sheet with parchment paper.
7. Divide the mixture into even balls, using an ice cream scoop is handy.
8. Flatten each ball and roll in plain flour.
9. Place in the fridge for 30 minutes to firm up.
10. Heat the oil in a frying pan.
11. Fry the crab cakes, 4 minutes a side and then drain on kitchen paper.
12. Serve with lime wedges and quick sweet chilli mayo (to make 3 parts mayo with one part sweet chilli sauce and a squeeze of lime juice.)

Harissa & Marmalade Sticky Chicken Wings

When I was recently organizing a casual dinner party for some people I hadn't cooked for before I was faced with the prospect of cooking something that everyone would like. I knew anything to do with seafood, salads, and cheese was out!!!! I was cooking a lamb for main and I didn't want the dinner party to be a total meat feast either. I thought to myself, 'whats more of a crowd pleaser than chicken wings?!!'

EVERYONE loves chicken wings!! Dilemma averted. There was a moroccan theme to the dinner party, so I came up with  Harissa chicken wings! The harissa paste has just the right amount of smoke and heat to give the wings a real kick. But I felt the wings lack that sticky, messy consistency. So last night I made the wings for dinner for myself and my husband, and added some orange marmalade to the marinade. I must say it worked a treat! Napkins and bowl of water of the ready. For me a sign of good chicken wings is sticky fingers that are licked clean.!!!! You could say Finger Licking Good!!!


This recipe of completely simply to make, nothing fussy about it at all; with the end result looking so impressive your diners will think you've been slow cooking and basting for hours.

I teamed the wings with cous cous and a yogurt dressings to be a winning main course, but of course you can leave these out and serve the wings solo, though they are screaming for a cooling sauce accompaniement.

So here it is:

Harissa & Marmalade Wings with Apricot Cous Cous and a Herby Yogurt Dressing

Ingredients

The Wings

• Chicken wings (4-5 per person)
• 2 tbsp of cumin seeds
• 3 tbsp of coarse sea salt
• Juice of half a lemon
• 2 tsp of harissa paste
• 3 tbsp of honey
• 2 tbsp of orange marmalade
• 2 crushed cloves of garlic
• Salt/pepper

The Cous Cous

• 200g of cous cous
• 300 ml of boiled water, with saffron strands (saffron optional)
• 5 tbsp of chopped dried apricots
• 5 tbsp of toasted flaked almonds
• Handful of fresh mint, flat leave parsley, & coriander
• 2 tbp of olive oil
• Salt/pepper
• Juice of half a lemon

The Herby Yogurt Dressing

• 125ml low fat natural yogurt
• Handful of fresh mint, flat leave parsley, & coriander
• Juice of half a lemon
• Salt/pepper

Method

The Wings

1. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees
2. Line a baking tray with kitchen paper
3. Lay the chicken wings out in a single layer
4. Coat the wings with the cumin seeds and sea salt
5. Bake in the oven for 40 minutes
6. To make the marinade, combine the remaining wing ingredients and stir the mixture well.
7. Pour over the chicken after the 40 minutes has lapsed.
8. Ensure all the wings are covered and bake for a further 30 minutes.
9. Return to the oven once or twice to turn the wings and baste them with the escaped marinade.

The Cous Cous

1. Put the cous cous in a bowl and pour in the oil and salt/pepper
2. Mix with a fork
3. Pour over the boiled water infused with saffron
4. Cover the bowl with cling film or a plate
5. Leave for ten minutes until all the water's absorbed.
6. Fluff up the cous cous with a fork (not a spoon)
7. Add the chopped apricots, herbs, lemon juice and almonds.
8. Stir to mix together well.
9. To serve spoon the cous cous on a wooden board and leave a whole in the centre for the wings. (very Jamie Oliver of me!)

Herby Yogurt Dressing

1. Add all the ingredients into a bowl and stir well to combine.

To Plate Up

1. Place the cous cous on the wooden board
2. Place the chicken wings in a pile in the middle of the board
3. Drizzle with the yogurt dressing liberally and have a small bowl of the remaining dressing for individual use.
4. Scatter lemon wedges and leftover chopped herbs
5. Lots of napkins, and a bowl of warm bowl are necessary to keep the fingers clean.