Posts Tagged ‘James Whelan Butchers’

The bone marrow gives a rich beefiness to this pizza — you might not manage a whole one on your own, so is perhaps best shared between two as a starter, or cut into small pieces as part of an antipasti offering. The Irish-made pizza bases sold under the Pizza da Piero brand are excellent […]

You can’t pick up a food magazine or go to a food website these days without seeing the words ‘budget’, ‘eat well, spend less’, ‘feed your family for a fiver’ or any other of the myriad ways we are constantly being encouraged to save money. Here’s the thing, and I don’t wish to be controversial, […]

I had an absolutely filthy thought recently. It was mid afternoon and I was working on some very boring paperwork in the office when suddenly, out of nowhere, a soft, slightly warm and moist fat scone slathered with real butter, juicy raspberry jam with a generous dollop of cream sauntered nonchalantly into my thoughts. I […]

I’m very fond of Easter as a holiday.  It involves none of the frenetic nature of Christmas, the gifts are easy; a chocolate egg or a chocolate egg and (usually) the weather is milder and of course days longer.   As a child I always dreaded the boredom of Good Friday when absolutely everything shut down […]

While much of what I learned in school is buried deep in the mind’s recesses, probably never to see the light of day again, I still frequently go back to a saying by one of my teachers; “Proper planning prevents poor performance”.  He would refer to it as the 5 Ps.  Leaving aside the clever […]

Driving to Dublin yesterday, I couldn’t help but notice the snow-capped mountains and their resemblance to having been heavily dusted with icing sugar, by some gargantuan sieve. The days are getting longer, there is a stretch in the evenings –  the children are collected from schools and dropped off at their various extra-curricular activities, for […]

What a week, Valentines Day and Pancake Day just three days apart!  Such celebratory alignments indicate that between March and early April we’ll be very busy with all the spring celebrations; St Patrick’s Day, Mothers Day and Easter will come quickly on the heels of each other.  The retailer in me has to look ahead […]

This is a real showstopper, almost medieval in appearance. We’ve given a recipe for a rich bone marrow pastry, which is truly delicious, but you can use ready-made puff or savoury shortcrust, as long as it is an ‘all butter’ version. We won’t tell. The Irish brand “Roll It” is excellent. Steak, Kidney and Mushroom […]

I don’t think there is anything more disappointing in life than eyeing a fabulous looking piece of pie, sweet or savoury it doesn’t matter, only for the taste to be less than exciting. Indeed many shop bought pies, particularly the meat variety, have a way of over delivering on the picture on the outside and […]

This is another unusual and delicious pizza that makes a wonderfully stylish starter for a kitchen supper with friends. It’s a great way of using up those little jars of truffle paste and bottles of truffle oil that you buy on holiday in France or Italy and then leave to languish at the back of […]

This recipe is a labour of love that takes time but is well worth it. Do make it with a fine big piece of brisket so that you get the most out of your efforts. Brining the meat makes it very moist and juicy. Brined Beef Brisket on the Bone with Barbecue Sauce – Printer […]

April Bloomfield is the British chef behind the Spotted Pig in New York. We took inspiration from a recipe in her book, A Girl and Her Pig, to create this luxurious pie that celebrates not only quality beef, but also one of our wonderful Tipperary cheeses, which is produced by the Grubb family, who also […]