Pasta with Kale and Potato

I have recently been going through my vast selection of cookery books picking out recipes in order to increase my knowledge and expand my palate. I have found myself strangely attracted to vegetarian recipes which, for a die hard carnivore like myself, has been rather disconcerting. One such recipe was contained in Two Greedy Italians Eat Italy (review: here), Pizzoccheri with Swiss Chard and Potato. Pizzoccheri is a buckwheat pasta that is very difficult to find on this beautiful island and I noticed that a local supermarket had a special on curly kale so I decided to adapt the recipe to suit. I made a few other adjustments to ensure that all of the ingredients are easy to find in any supermarket. It worked out a treat!


Serves 4

300g Tagliatelle Pasta
200g Curly Kale (stalks removed and chopped)
200g Rooster Potatoes (peeled and cubed)
100g Unsalted Butter
3 cloves of Garlic (finely sliced)
100g Grated Mozzarella Cheese
80g Parmesan Cheese (grated)
Sea Salt and Freshly Ground Pepper

1. Bring a large pot of water to the boil and salt well. Add the pasta, kale and potatoes and allow to boil for 8 minutes. Drain and put into a baking dish.

2. Meanwhile, heat the butter over a medium heat and add the garlic. Fry gently for 4-5 minutes until soft but not coloured.

3. Mix the pasta, potatoes and kale well and add the mozzarella cheese. Stir well before pouring over the butter and garlic mix. Stir well and check for seasoning, adding salt and pepper to taste.

4. Sprinkle the parmesan over the top and bake in a pre-heated 170 degree oven for 20 minutes. Serve immediately.

Portuguese Fish Stew

World Cup, Day 5 - Portugal

Fish Stew

Day 4 was an entertaining day on the pitch and in the kitchen. France had a 3-0 win against a physical Ecuador side, while Argentina overcame an impressive Bosnia and Herzegovina. Food wise, the omelette was a nightmare! I failed miserably at something so basic, which was made worse by Ali ordering burger and chips. I was determined to make up for it today!

Today we celebrate Portugal - few will be after their hammering at the hands of Germany! I don't know much about Portuguese food but I was excited after doing some research. Lots of pork and fish sound like a diet I could get on board with! I settled on a Portuguese fish stew. It was great, I recommend trying it out. Again this isn't the most authentic of recipes but it works well. I would have liked to use mussels as well but Monday isn't a great day to buy shell fish (who wants mussels that have been sitting in the fridge since Friday?!). Try using other fish if you like, I used what was cheap and available.

Serves 4

5 tbsp Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
20g Hard Chorizo (finely chopped)
1 Chilli (finely chopped)
3 cloves of Garlic (finely chopped)
1 medium Onion (finely chopped)
1 Red Pepper (diced)
1 tin of Chopped Tomatoes
100ml White Wine
150ml Fish Stock
1 Bay Leaf
300g Smoked Coley (in small chunks)
500g Pollock (in small chunks)
handful of Fresh Flat Leaf Parsley (finely chopped)
Sea Salt and Freshly Ground Pepper
Mashed Potatoes to serve

1. Heat 3 tbsp of the oil over a medium heat and add the chorizo. Cook for 5 minutes until the chorizo releases its juices. Add the chilli, garlic, onion and red pepper and continue to cook for 5-7 minutes until softened. Season and add the tin of tomatoes, wine, stock and bay leaf and bring to the boil.

2. Add the fish and season. Stir well and cover for 5-7 minutes until the fish is cooked through. Add the parsley, remove the bay leaf and check for seasoning. Serve on a bed of mashed potato.

BBQ Season!!

BBQ Season

My favourite time of year is finally here! Although I relish the coziness of dark evenings in front of the fire, I particularly love the al fresco nature of summer and barbecue season. Nothing beats the whole family sitting outside in the (hopefully) sun enjoying good food and a few beers. For my birthday this week we took a chance, we decided to have a small family barbecue and hoped that the weather held up (it is the middle of May after all!). Thankfully the sun shone, the rain stayed away and we had a great evening together. 

Even though it was my birthday, I decided I'd take care of the cooking and with €50 to feed 12 people (including 2 fussy kids) I knew I had my work cut out! First thing to sort were the salads:

Egg Salad - Hard boil 10 eggs, peel and roughly chop. Mix with plenty of mayonnaise, finely chopped chives and season well. Sprinkle a little paprika on top.

Potato Salad - Boil 1kg of baby potatoes until tender, drain and put into a large bowl. Add plenty of extra-virgin olive oil and season well. Add some dried oregano and some finely chopped chives. Mix well.

Pasta Salad - Boil 500g fusilli pasta in salted water until cooked, drain and put into a large bowl. Add lots of extra-virgin olive oil, plenty of halved cherry tomatoes, chopped basil and season well. Mix thoroughly and squeeze in the juice of 1/2 lemon just before serving.

Spicy Rice Salad - Saute some garlic, chilli, onion and chopped red pepper over a medium heat for 5 minutes. Add some turmeric and stir well. Continue to cook for another 5 minutes before adding 250g of rice. Add 500ml of vegetable stock and allow to simmer. Add more stock as necessary until cooked.

With the salads complete and in the fridge, I moved onto meats. For me, the most important piece of equipment for a BBQ is an instant digital thermometer. It allows you to get everything cooked perfectly without having to overcook for safety's sake I prefer to cook chicken in the oven first and then finish off on the BBQ. This method ensures they are cooked through without burning:

For the dry rub mix together; 1tsp cayenne pepper, 1/2tsp white pepper, 1tsp thyme, 1/2tsp smoked paprika, 1/2tsp dried oregano and 1/2tsp salt.

Lightly oil a large baking tray and lay out 15-20 chicken drumsticks. Sprinkle over 3/4 of the dry rub and massage it all over the drumsticks. Put into a 150 degree oven for 30-40 minutes until just cooked through. Char on the BBQ for a couple of minutes to add a bit of life. You can also brush some of your favourite BBQ sauce onto the drumsticks before they go on the BBQ for an extra hit of flavour.

Next I made burgers: spicy lamb for those of us keen on a bit of heat and plain beef for the more conservative!

Saute 1 onion, 1 red chilli and 2 cloves garlic (all finely chopped) in plenty of extra-virgin olive oil with some salt and pepper for 10 minutes until soft but not coloured. Allow to cool. Put 500g of lamb mince into a mixing bowl and add the onion mix, including the oil. Season well and add in half a beaten egg. Mix well. Lightly oil a large plate and with wet hands, shape the lamb mix into five patties. Lay on the plate, cover with cling film and leave to rest in the fridge for an hour or two. Season each side and cook on the BBQ, brushing with BBQ sauce if you like.

You can make the beef burgers the same way but I just mixed 500g of mince with salt, pepper and half a beaten egg and continued as above.

The last bit of cooking was some Nolan's of Kilcullen sizzler and plain pork sausages which were brushed with BBQ sauce and placed on the BBQ until cooked through.

The small amount of cash left over was spent on 12 cans of San Pellegrino orange and lemon and Ali baked a beautiful orange and almond cake for dessert (and to hold the birthday candles).

 I'll have plenty of BBQ posts up over the summer, it's good to take advantage of whatever little sun we get!

Slow Cooked Beef Ribs

Slow Cooked Beef Ribs

To me, there is nothing more flavourful than a slow cooked "cheap" cut of Beef or Pork. Ox Tail, Tongue, Heart, Cheek and Ribs all seem to be making a big comeback along with the usual favourites like Brisket. The only problem with these cuts is that they take alot of cooking to become tender but once you achieve that, to me, the flavour far surpasses even the tenderest Fillet Steak. Don't be put off by long cooking times though, generally they can be cooked with very little intervention.


Beef Ribs are the pinnacle of the "cheap cuts" in my opinion. They have the perfect ratio of bone, fat and meat which creates the most unbelievable flavour and will satisfy anybody. Best of all, Beef Ribs are very cheap and should cost no more than €1.50 per person. The Sauce in this dish really adds to the big flavour of the meat. The mixture of the Red Wine, Garlic and Tomato is a winner with any red meat and works brilliantly with Shanks of Lamb too.


Serves 4


4tbsp Rapeseed Oil
4 Beef Ribs (Rubbed with Salt and Pepper)
2 Carrots (roughly chopped)
2 Celery Sticks (roughly chopped)
2 Onions (roughly chopped)
1 Full Head of Garlic (cut in half horizontally)
1/2 Bottle of Red Wine (I used a Chianti)
500g Tomato Passata
1tsp Dried Oregano
1 Bay Leaf
Beef Stock
Sea Salt and Freshly Ground Pepper

To Serve:
Mashed Potatoes
Roasted Carrot and Sweet Potatoes

Preheat Oven to 140 degress celcius and ensure that your chosen cooking vessel has a tightly fitting lid!

1. Heat the Oil in a Saucepan or Casserole until very hot. Add the seasoned Ribs and brown all over for 5-10 minutes. Add the Carrot, Celery, Onion and Garlic. Season and continue to cook on high heat for 5-7 mins, stirring all the time. 

2. Add the Wine and scrape the bottom of your pan with a wooden spoon to loosen any bits that are stuck on. Add the Passata, Oregano and Bay Leaf, stir well and bring back to the boil. Put on the lid and put into the oven. Cook for approx 5 hours, checking on it every couple of hours and adding a little boiling water if necessary (it shouldn't be!)

3. Remove the Meat, cover in tinfoil and set aside to rest while you finish the sauce. Add some Beef Stock to the Pot (if necessary) and reduce down for about 5 minutes. Put through a sieve and squash through as much of the carrot and garlic as you can. Reduce the strained sauce until you have the desired consistency (i like it a little thick) Check for seasoning and add a little Salt/Pepper if necessary.

4. Serve the Meat on a bed of Mashed Potato with some Roasted Vegetables (Roughly chopped Carrot and Sweet Potato, roasted in some Extra-Virgin Olive Oil, Salt, Pepper and Oregano) and pour over the sauce.

Gigi somehow snuck into the pic!