chocoholic frolics

merry christmas

2011-12-14T21:31:00.002Z

the factory is finally open and the wonderful aroma of chocolate is back in the glen! thanks to everyone who supported us, stuck with us and were heroic throughout this challenging year. may next year bring happiness and good health to everyone.

hot sugar

2011-01-10T21:56:00.011Z

my middle daughter, elsie, is a calming influence in the kitchen. she is a natural and makes up for her as yet limited palate by a calm and methodical approach that is completely alien to me! it is due to her presence that my initially enthusiastic attempts to make macaroons resulted in an edible end product instead of mayhem and complete family breakdown.

making macaroons is one of the hardest thing i have done in the kitchen only rivalled by fudge and turkish delights.

it must be hot sugar.

emily and i did finally win the battle against turkish delight and managed to make a consistently sticky, pink rose jelly wrapped in dark chocolate that was really popular at limerick market but taking on the sugar thermometer was always a challenge!

the final macaroons tasted good even though they well not the perfectly smooth, deep coloured beauties shown in the recipe book. i will try making them again but not yet. please send me advice and macaroon success stories.

happy new year fabulous fondant desserts

2011-01-05T21:55:00.006Z

new year 2011 is not a time for diets. with all the austerity, belt tightening and uncertain economic times ahead, small indulgences are a necessity! keep smiling and make these. aidan likes them hot. i like them cold.

the basic recipe is from this wonderful book by paul simon. after some experimenting, i found that you could flavour them with all the cocoa bean truffle favourites. i flavour with zests and spices before pouring it into tiny metal moulds .

basic recipe

2 eggs

50g brown sugar

1 dessertspoon plain flour

1 dessertspoon cornflour

140g dark chocolate

110g btter

3 dessertspoons whipping cream

preheat the oven to 180 C

grease and dust the moulds with flour

beat the eggs and sugar. seive in the flour and cornflour and continue to beat.

melt the chocolate, butter and cream in a bowl over simmering water.

pour the chocolate cream into the sponge mixture and mix well together.

fill the moulds two thirds full and then add a pinch of orange zest, nutmeg, cinnamon or lemon zest. add another spoon of mixture to seal in the flavour and then pop into the oven for a few minutes! If you are making four big ones they will need abot 7 minutes.

turn them out straight away and eat or wait until the morning and eat with coffee for breakfast nigella style before anyone else is up!

amsterdam and our magical mystery tour

2010-12-17T14:12:00.005Z

colm and i had a day in amsterdam on wednesday: it was a business meeting away from it all; a research trip (oh the joy of cinnamon fresh truffles); a time to gather ideas about plans for the new factory and a mystery trip which you may or may not hear more about in the near future! this was the gorgeous view from the office where we had our meeting.

harvey nichol's christmas

2010-12-17T14:02:00.002Z

it was a very festive evening on tuesday and a little bit emotional. i was offering tasting samples from our beautiful christmas range of christmas star anise, christmas tree and winter spice in the stylish little boxes you can see in the picture. i have been working on the flavours and designs since last winter and most of them went up in flames. however, a few shops and hamper companies had already had their first christmas delivery before the fire and these lucky boxes are looking lovely in christmas displays. i love winter spice which is a triumph since i really don't like white chocolate!

Thank you chocolate makers big and small

2010-12-06T21:52:00.004Z

i might have to do a whole series of blog posts saying thank you to the different groups of well wishers! i will start with our colleagues and friends in the irish chocolate industry.

in our early days, john mckenna gave emily and i some great advice: be friends with your competitors. he was so right! especially within the artisan community, we have been able to help and been helped out on lots of occasions. we have made friends for life and we are so grateful for their help and support since the fire.

it is not just the artisan chocolatiers that have offered their help. the big players have also rung us to say how sorry they are to hear about the factory and offer real practical help.

thank you!

like a phoenix rising...

2010-11-20T21:35:00.001Z

we will be back! thanks to everyone for all their good wishes. friends, neighbours, customers, suppliers, journalists, chocoholics and strangers have sent us inspiring messages of encouragement. in the meantime, if you see our christmas stock on shop shelves, grab them quickly! they have unwittingly become extremely limited editions...

fire at factory

2010-11-15T19:40:00.002Z

it is such a sad blog to write that i will just say thanks to everyone who has sent messages of support and thanks to all our employees who prove again and again that they are more like a family. if you are a customer, supplier or friend, i am sorry that we haven't been in touch individually yet but i imagine may people read or heard about the fire that burnt through our factory early on saturday morning. i will update the blog when i know more but for now, thanks to the fire crew and thank goodness noone was hurt.

orange, cardamom & ginger chocolate cheesecake

2010-11-07T20:59:00.005Z

i took the basic chocolate cheesecake recipe from the big book of chocolate by jennifer donovan and just played with it to give it the cocoa bean twist. i had promised a chocolate dessert for a large and lively 30 people dinner party on friday night.

the main course was curry so i chose to go for one of our spicy flavours with the heat of ginger to warm everyone after braving the newly frosty air to leap about with sparklers. . .

base

250g ginger biscuits ( you can also add crystallised ginger to spice up the flavour - chop small)

75g butter

2 tbsp cocoa powder

cheesecake

50g butter

400g cream cheese

2 eggs lightly beaten

5 tbsp caster sugar

150g dark chocolate melted

orange zest from 2 oranges

juice of half an orange

12 cardamoms toasted gently and crushed

method

grease a 23cm loose bottomed cake tin or flan dish

crush the biscuits and melt the butter for the base. mix together with the cocoa powder and crystallised ginger. press firmly into the base.

beat the cream cheese, eggs, sugar, butter, zest, cardamoms, orange juice and melted chocolate together in a large bowl until thick and smooth. it's good to use a electric hand mixer. spoon the mixture over the base and smooth with a palette knife. refrigerate for at least two hours. you can top it with cocoa powder or shavings of chocolate if you like, though i think it's nice plain.

pumpkins and quince

2010-10-13T19:49:00.004+01:00

lettercollum kitchen are having a winter wine and pumpkin tasting this coming friday, 15th october, from 2pm -5pm. it'll be an informal tasting of wines from enrico fantasia from the grape circus and sheridan's wines and some of our pumpkin recipes.
we'll also have tastings of cheese and this years lettercollum chutneys and membrillo.
the membrillo is a spanish accompaniment for manchego cheese made from quince.
we had our first ever harvest of quinces this year!
we hope you have some time to pass by the shop on friday

lettercollum
timoleague
co. cork
www.lettercollum.ie

chocolate week

2010-10-13T18:46:00.003+01:00

h harvey nichols is celebrating chocolate week with colm and me! i will be at knightsbridge, london on friday from about 6pm-8pm with samples and tasters of our new winter and christmas chocolates. colm will be at dundrum on saturday. hope to see some of you....

ponte vecchio

2010-09-16T14:08:00.004+01:00

while the little girls slept every afternoon and esme was off playing wild games with her older cousins, aidan packed me off to sample the delights of killaloe cafes and bars. i spent a couple of hours writing and reading in this great little delicatessen. the shelves of italian delicacies and big blocks of parmesan jostle cosily for space with the chairs and tables tucked into alcoves and corners. it had a secret, indulgent feel and was perfect for an afternoon of escapism. in fact two ... pictured is the freshly made lemon and poppy cake with hot chocolate. the next day, i returned for olives, beer and cheese. great stuff!

www.pontevecchio

killaloe sunday market

2010-09-09T22:06:00.004+01:00

on sunday we wandered into killaloe along the lough and over the bridge to ballina where we swam and watched the market being set up across the water. by 11am, when the market opened, we had worked up a great appetite for the fabulous cakes made by the fellas that are in our old unit at crossagalla. their dark chocolate tart was rich, smooth and intensely chocolatey!

burren beo - september events

2010-09-09T21:07:00.003+01:00

saturday 11th september burrenbeo conservation volunteers monthly outing. led by butterfly expert, jesmond harding. clearing hazel and hawthorn from an important marsh fritillary breeding site. everyone welcome, but must register at trust@burrenbeo.com

thursday 16th september. monthly talk - venue and speaker to be confirmed.
everyone is welcome to participate in these events, more info from trust@burrenbeo.com or 091-638096

fabulous fresh fish

2010-09-09T14:14:00.004+01:00

we have had a great summer! i have been busy with christmas products for cocoa bean, going out with the girls, the garden and a fabulous week in killaloe visiing aidan's family and old friends and colleagues. i have loads to write about and this is the first chance so i'll do it bit by bit. the first treat was the new shop run by mark anderson who was head chef of the cherry tree when i lived in limerick. he has now opened this great shop in killaloe where you can buy local meat, fish and organic vegetables. he is also starting to serve food that can be eaten at a stylish counter in the shop. over the week we bought swordfish, monkfish, scallops and organic corn fed chicken. they were fabulous and i was sorry to leave. mark has always been passionate about food whether it was making a special menu for aidan in his vegan days or demonstrating cookery at limerick midsummer market. this shop is no exception and i hope he is thriving when we go back to killaloe for christmas.

gravitas -purveyors of fine foods & fresh fish. bridge street, killaloe, co. clare

chocolate at mccambridges

2010-07-21T12:28:00.004+01:00

if you get a chance to wander down shop street on friday afternoon in galway, make sure you sample the delights of mccambridges and look out for helen handing out samples of cocoa bean and skelligs chocolates. we have been supplying mccambridges since the very early days, more than eight years ago. look out for all the other artisan delights on offer while you are there and let me know if you have a swim in salthill - some of my greatest swimming memories are of galway!

2010-06-30T22:44:00.002+01:00

my friend made this cordail from hedgerow elderflowers in her garden. it is delicious with soda water, ice and fresh mint. she promised me the recipe and i hope to have a go at my own in the next few days. emily had a great find of wild garlic and used the leaves and flowers in salads and pasta dishes. is anyone else making use of wild food this season? i will be envious of any mushroom experts!

harvey nichols knightsbridge

2010-06-10T13:56:00.006+01:00

i will be handing out generous samples of cocoa bean chocolate bars in the foodhall on friday 11th june, late afternoon,/early evening. come and taste chilli and pink peppercorn, sea salt, irish honey, rose and pistachio, lime and black pepper and gin and tonic. helen had a great time in mortons of galway last saturday where the locals and tourists of salthill were very chatty and enthusiastic! the marshmallow clusters and honeycomb crunch were the first to go!

tea?

2010-05-17T21:06:00.007+01:00

emily just suggested earl grey tea for our new milk chocolate - it was an old favourite in our fresh dark truffles at limerick farmer's market. it also sold brilliantly at sheridan's cheesemonger's in galway in our small bars with star confetti days. it has been done before by other chocolate companies but is still quite rare in a solid bar and so good to eat. another contender?

and while on the subject of tea, i learnt this week that you should make fresh mint tea in a teapot or cover the cup for a few minutes with a saucer or small plate. this keeps the oils from escaping and makes the infusion even better. i love it. i also love mojito's. and loads of mint chopped in a salad of fresh leaves, grated lemon zest and king prawns fried in chilli, butter and garlic. how come my mint never takes over the garden as warned on the packet?

come to the wilds of kerry....

2010-05-17T20:32:00.004+01:00

our factory is open again to visitors after our spring rennovations - fresher and happier than ever before! come and taste samples of cocoa bean and skelligs chocolates and if you visit us during the week, you can see our chocolatiers at work!

2010-05-17T13:43:00.004+01:00

helen, one of our original chocolatiers, will be in mortons of galway this saturday (22nd may) giving samples of our chocolates. she would love to see any of you and has many tales to tell of setting out on dark mornings to farmers markets in cork and dingle and the highs and lows of early cocoa bean adventures!

pollenca

2010-05-13T20:33:00.003+01:00

it seems such a long time ago but it was only last week that we were in this lovely town, glad of the sunshine after wild storms and floods.

this cafe sold cakes in its nearby bakery. On the corner of our table is one of their ensaïmada, a delicious spiral shaped pastry, eaten at breakfast.

our camera gave up after this photo so i don't have pictures to record our liver enlightenment, braised so perfectly in tapas sized robust stews.

having spent all yesterday grinding star anise for experiments with our christmas stars, i added star anise to braised steak and it was a great sucess! I also loved the cinnamon stick in with the chorizo and chick pea casserole i made yesterday. i always associate these flavours with chocolate since our early cocoa bean days, so think i am a bit beind in experimenting with spices in savoury dishes beyond curries.

and to mise - i added some yeast to chocolate and it was not unpleasant but it was dried yeast in solid chocolate. i imagine live yeast in a fresh , soft, dark truffle is more what you were dreaming up. it's now on my list of things to try. let me know if you have a go at it!

cinnamon sausage chocolate

2010-05-10T21:32:00.004+01:00

i know. it sounds gross but i can't get it out of my mind! i am in the middle of reviewing our whole range: experimenting, inventing and dreaming. i am looking for something to go with a milk chocolate, maybe on the dark side of milk. i am also just back from a crazy, stormy, lovely spanish holiday where i tasted cinnamon salami amongst other delicious tapas dishes and it somehow shifted my soul. it won't work with chocolate so i should just leave it but it is nagging away there. what if i just use all the other ingredients and leave out the pork? i don't have the recipe so i need to do a lot of testing and tasting. watch this space...

chocolate cafe !

2010-04-29T13:38:00.005+01:00

skelligs & cocoa bean chocolates have now opened our first chocolate cafe at 77, High Street, killarney - opposite Quills...the factory is currently closed to visitors while we under go some renovations on site - so apologies for any inconvenience caused, but our chocolates can be purchased from the skelligs chocolate cafe in killarney. if you visit, we would love to hear your feedback!

lard cake....mmmmmm

2010-04-03T08:00:00.003+01:00

it's actually a gloriously oozy chocolate cake with a well of dulce de leche and topped with intense dark chocolate which i made for my husband's 30th birthday. on seeing it cut into though a friend screeched in horror 'is that lard?!' now i wouldn't say we are an entirely healthy family but a cake filled with lard isn't exactly our style.

i suppose that this was inspired by c's love of millionaire shortcake and my distinctly sweet tooth that is fairly uncontrollable at the moment.

the cake is a basic chocolate sponge, baked in a single layer star shaped mould. when cooled i hollowed out a 1cm deep well in the centre, leaving a border of about 1.5cm round the edge to retain the flow of caramel.

the dulce de leche is simple to make but a bit time consuming; several techniques are available to follow here - i used the 'in the can' method very effectively. carnation do a ready made version, available at most supermarkets, which is apparently good.

pour the caramel into the well, allow it a little time to flow into the nooks and crannies and begin to firm on top a little. mix a 100g of melted dark chocolate (a real bitter one holds up well here to counter the incredible sweetness underneath) with 25g butter and drizzle over the cake until a layer is formed. be delicate and patient with this dribbling it thinly over the dulce de leche; too much in one go will cause caramel displacement! allow the chocolate to set, decorate as you see fit - we went for very flamboyant silver ball designs and mini sparklers- and indulge!

2010-03-25T09:46:00.002Z

despite still being a bit of a dark chocolate purist, i love the crazily sweet and addictive skelligs creation of mini marshmallows & honey comb in creamy milk chocolate. they are hand made and hand wrapped in our kerry workshop. in fact ,emily and i like it so much that it ended up looking very much like a cocoa bean invention wrapped in bright pink and orange. it's ours now colm - hands off!

shamrock cake

2010-03-17T14:23:00.011Z

we are waiting for esme to get home from school so that we can start the party, decorate our tablecloth and eat the cake just before dinner - all worries about spoilt apetites thrown to the wind!

esme and elsie were very excited about going to school and nursery this morning in their flashing shamrock badges from their grandma and granddad. iris is sick and refused to be drawn into the girls' celebrations at first but has just woken up more in the mood for fun!

when elsie got home at lunchtime, we set about inventing a st.patrick's day cake. while i was working out whether to make a flag or a leprachaun, i spotted my four small heart tins that i got for christmas and realised we could make the perfect shamrock.

we creamed 50g butter and 100g caster sugar and then added an egg, a splash of vanilla extract and finally 100g self raising flour and a dash of cocoa powder. we spooned the mixture into the four tins and baked for 10 minutes at 180 degrees c.

the icing is 40g soft butter creamed together with 125g icing sugar and a dash of milk. colour it shamelessly green and eat it with a glass of red lemonade or a pint of guiness!

our girls looking unimpressed with aidan's cloak. . .

happy st.patrick's day! (the eve of...)

2010-03-16T22:07:00.008Z

i made these paddy's parade crunchies tonight and remembered a day five years ago when emily and i made about a hundred bags of these for the saturday market in limerick just before st. patrick's day. we tied them up with orange and green ribbon and homemade labels. we sold loads - probably about sixty. all our regulars bought some, getting into the spirit - practically everyone who came to the market went home with a bag!

that still meant we had forty left.

we were young, eager entrepreneurs with a starry eyed confidence that our product was so fabulous, we could sell it anywhere. our husbands, realists, wondered who would buy st. patrick's day chocolates next saturday.

"we could sell them at the parade!" i shouted.

"i'll make a travelling sales stand!"emily declared.

and she did. our husbands groaned.

the sales stand was like the kind that icecream sellers wear at the interval in theatres. it was decorated with shamrocks and painted orange. it was beautiful. we left the fellas with pints of guiness, only barely hiding their embarassment and set off with great confidence down o'connell street. the crowds thronged. the atmosphere was giddy. it was party time and the parade marched on. we peddled our wares. we handed out samples.

or tried to.

we soon found that beyond the walls of our milk market stomping ground and away from our fans, people were wary of us - why would two girls with strange northern english accents (scunthorpe?) humiliate themselves trying to sell expensive nuggets of dark chocolate from an icecream tray hung around their necks? we began to wonder ourselves.

after an hour we hadn't sold one bag! not one! we were defeated. the chocolates were great quality and we were enthusistic but it was the wrong time and place - we snook into emily's flat in henry street and hid them all under the bed then headed back to our husbands, treacherously triumphant. "we've sold them all," we sang. they were impressed and humbled.

i hope they don't read the blog...

rose and pistachio easter egg

2010-03-04T22:36:00.002Z

our limited edition egg is based on the cocoa bean rose & pistachio bar. try this delicious milk chocolate egg all wrapped up in bright pink tissue paper with a raffia bow. they are available in delicattessen and food halls throughout ireland and on-line at http://www.skelligschocolate.com/ look out for more easter ideas from skelligs and cocoa bean over the next few weeks.

esme's sleepover birthday cake

2010-02-28T13:55:00.003Z

i made the cake in a square cake tin for 25 minutes at 180 degrees using 100g butter, 100g caster sugar, 2 eggs and 100g flour with a sprinkle of cocoa powder. i was chatting to emily and put all the ingredients in the mixing bowl together instead of creaming the butter and sugar first. i decided i couldn't do anything about it so whisked them all together and kept my fingers crossed. the cake rose beautifully so i was either lucky or there is a conspiracy to make baking more complex than it needs to be!

i cut a strip off the cake and used it for the pillows and then decorated it with coloured butter icing and lots of sprinkles.

the sleepover went well - the girls had salami pizza, flambouyant icecreams and giggled until midnight!

bridgestone guide

2010-02-22T20:39:00.004Z

the following snippet is from the online bridgestone guide for the chocolate shop in the english market in cork:

'Niall and Rosemary Daly’s shop sells chocolates, and the very best chocolates at that.
If you search for Cocoa Bean from Kerry, or Willie Harcourt-Cooze’s extraordinary Peruvian Black San Martin 100% Single Origin, then it is here. “Chocolate is an affordable luxury”, says Niall, and their range, from Pralus to Skelligs, reveals just how luxurious chocolate can be. Only brilliant.'

see more at http://www.bestofbridgestone.com/

we invited john and sally to a spring market in limerick when we were still a very new company and they were our food heroes. not only did they come along but they were enthusiastic and supportive. i remember john telling us that the best way to work was to be genuinely happy to help your competitors as well as your customers. we embraced this ethos and it has proven to be a way not only to do great business but to make good friends.

happy valentines day

2010-02-13T22:33:00.002Z

i really wanted to make aidan a valentine poster out of some blurry photos of us at a pixies concert at brixton academy(kim deal and frank black's thrilling outlines in the distance.) the problem was they were stuck on my fairly basic phone and events conspired against me - so the girls and i have spent the day making things instead. we made a love mobile out of an old bike wheel, bright felt and assorted ribbon; sparkly cards; a collage of butterfies up one wall and a plate of pastel cupcakes (from the hummingbird bakery cookbook). aidan will be flying across the atlantic from montreal to heathrow any minute now. the two older girls are still wide awake together in our big bed, too thrilled by his imminent arrival and their valentine offerings to possibly sleep. the almost definite arrival of canadian sweets and chocolate only adds to the anticipation!

i am sorry for the woeful lack of pictures - my camera says it has a lens error.

hope your day is full of chocolate and good things.

chocolate cake with beetroot

2010-02-02T19:43:00.006Z

this is a great cake but maybe you do have to like beetroot because there is a pleasant earthy taste that runs alongside the dark chocolate that would probably taste distinctly beetrooty to someone who is not a fan. i am a fan and i found this cake a pleasure to make and eat.

the cake

125g butter

75g dark chocolate pieces

300g soft light brown sugar

3 eggs

225g self raising flour

1/4 tsp salt50g cocoa powder250g cooked beetroot, grated

grated white chocolate

double cream to serve

preheat the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4

grease a loose bottomed 23cm tin and line the base with greaseproof paper

melt the chocolate in a bowl over a pan of simmering water.

beat the sugar, butter and eggs ina separate bowl. stir in the melted chocolate, fold in the flour, cocoa powder and salt. once combined, add the beetroot and stir.

carefully transfer the mixture into your cake tin and bake for 45 minutes. it is ready when your skewer comes out almost clean. leave the cake to cool in the tin for 10 minutes. turn it onto a wire rack and leave to cool.

the icing

150g dark chocolate pieces

135ml double cream

5 tbsp icing sugar

put all the ingredients in a bowl and melt over a pan of simmering water. stir it altogether then take off the heat. stir quickly until you have a smooth and glossy mixture. leave to cool and thicken.

spread the icing over the cake and top with grated chocolate.

serve with whipped double cream.

thanks to diana henry, mrs. ramsay and daniella's sister who first introduced me to vegetables and chocolate. yum!

i suspect...

2010-01-26T23:12:00.003Z

i suspect that the romantic rose and pistachio bar will run away with the cocoa bean bar valentine sales award this year though i wouldn't be too quick to write off the aphrodisiac qualities of the chilli and pink peppercorn. those living in the glen, who are in the know, will put the smart money on glamorous g and t - the runaway winner every year. come on rose and pistachio - you're my favourite!!!!

lemon curd truffles and experiments with vinegar

2010-01-26T22:13:00.008Z

i made lemon curd on the same night as i was making truffles for a friends 40th birthday party and i joined them in beautiful union! 60% ganache with single cream, a good dollop of lemon curd (easy recipe below) and enrobed in lovely dark, dark chocolate. they were perfect.

i remember eating a divine chococo lemon curd truffle a couple of years ago and now wonder why it has taken so long to try one myself. then i started experimenting with vinegar and made the most beautiful chocolate ganache with rich undertones of thick and sweet seggiano balsamic, almost like a winter walk through the woods but much warmer...

recipe for lemon curd - inspired by tana ramsay's recipe in home-made, this is very easy although my mum's lemon curd is the best in the world (but more complicated.)

30g cornflour

50g caster sugar

300ml water

zest and juice of two lemons (i always use unwaxed when zesting)

2 large egg yolks

put cornflour and sugar into a medium saucepan and gradually stir in the water, mixing all the time. firstly it will go into a smoothe paste and then into a cloudy liquid. add the lemon zest. bring to the boil, stirring all the time. when it starts to boil, the liquid will become thick and lose its cloudiness. simmer for a few more minutes and then remove from the heat. add the lemon juice and stir well.

irish blog awards

2010-01-22T14:38:00.003Z

the nominations for the irish blog awards are open until february 5th. if you fancy nominating us, just click on the link! http://awards.ie/blogawards/

lola's late lollies

2010-01-21T12:30:00.012Z

this recipe came from the december issue of 'favourites' a magazine someone bought lola to keep her occupied in the run up to christmas. we'd been planning to make the biscuit lollipops on christmas eve morning but as it turned out i was otherwise engaged as i was in the throes of labour! so lola ended up making them with chris, lucy and mum in the gap between christmas and new year and we enjoyed eating them at elsie's birthday party.

ours were christmas trees as per the recipe but we have since made them as hearts, snowflakes and clouds (we are eating a fair few biscuits to ward off the cold weather!). We have stopped sandwiching them together to make lollipops because, to tell the truth, it makes them disturbingly large! they are lovely as a single layer but if you do want to lollipop them use a bit more melted chocolate to stick 2 biscuits back to back with a lollipop stick (or a wooden coffee stirrer from a coffee shop) inbetween.

ingredients

225g self raising flour

100g caster sugar

3 tbsp cocoa powder

100g butter or margarine

5 tbsp milk

3 drops of vanilla extract

100-200g milk chocolate (depending on if you're making lollipops)

100g white chocolate

2 tubes of smarties or similar

method

1. preheat the oven to 190c and grease 2 baking trays

2. mix the flour, sugar, cocoa and rub in the butter.

3. add the vanilla and milk and mix well, combine the mixture with your hands and then knead on a lightly floured surface to form a dough.

4. roll the dough so its 0.5cm thick and use the cutters to make the biscuit shapes.

5.bake on the preprepared trays for 8-10 minutes. cool on a wire rack.

6. gently melt the milk chocolate, coat each biscuit- pair them up with the sticks if you are making lollipops, and let them set.

7. decorate with melted white chocolate and smarties.

cherry custard tart

2010-01-17T20:56:00.007Z

i got a really good quality tart/flan tin from my mum for christmas and was looking for a chance to try it out. i wanted to use up the cherries in the freezer that we had picked from the trees in our local park. this recipe worked superbly except that the cherries were far too sour. last summer we had eaten them straight from the tree and i seem to remember them being sweet enough. anyway, i thought their tartness might be the perfect accompaniment to the sweetness of the custard but i was wrong! so, i recommend you wait for cherry season and make this with eaters rather than cooking cherries (unless of course you get to pick up some ludicrously out of season reduced bargain in the local supermarket.)

remember to leave at least an hour to chill the pastry and an hour for the tart to set.

pastry crust:
250g plain flour

125g softened butter
1 egg yolk
1 tbsp granulated sugar
a pinch of salt

filling:
500g pitted cherries (not cooking cherries!)
2 eggs, beaten
125g whipping cream
60g plain flour
75g granulated sugar
1 tbsp grated lemon rind
1 tbsp vanilla extract
a pinch of salt

grease a 23 cm tart tin with removable bottom.

place flour in bowl and make a well in the centre. add butter, egg yolk, sugar and salt and mix with a fork until the mixture is smooth. gradually stir in the flour to a make dough that holds together. press into a disc and wrap it in clingfilm in the fridge for about 1 hour.

roll out the pastry into 28 cm circle. fit it into the tart tin. trim it to leave about 2.5cm overhang which you need to fold over inside the tin and press gently.

spread the cherries over the pastry. whisk together the eggs, cream, flour, sugar, lemon rind, vanilla and salt. pour the mixture over the cherries. bake on a baking tray in the bottom of the oven at 190ºC for about 40/45 minutes until golden and the tip of a knife inserted into the custard comes out clean. Let cool on rack.

leave the tart at room temperature for up to 1 hour.

it looked so beautiful. i will try it again in the summer with fruit from my mum's eating cherry tree. i might try it sooner with frozen raspberries. watch this space...

snow baby

2010-01-13T12:51:00.005Z

it's snowing again - we only managed to move our car off the hill yesterday and now there's a fresh covering. last week everyone was sent home early, full of excitement and eager to be out on the sledge! today schools are open as usual and the snow seems like old news. even iris wasn't going to let it interrupt her nap. but despite all the negatives, i am thrilled when I look out of the window and see it's still snowing. the venom i feel for the person who announces that it will turn to sleet is probably out of all proportion...

suntanned snowmen

2010-01-04T16:56:00.000Z

me and lola have a thing for this meringue recipe - i can't remember where it came from so sadly i can't credit the genius who first gave me it. in the summer we make huge pillows of it slathered with cream, strawberries, raspberries and blueberries but wanting to find a more seasonally appropriate reason for eating it we invented these little snowmen. lola's initial plans involved hundreds-and-thousands adorned chocolate biscuit hats but i was too hasty in trying to prise them off the foil cases i'd shaped them round while baking and was left with just a delicious pile of cookie crumble. the meringue loses it's glorious snowy whiteness in the oven hence their suntannedness but they are a fairly easy and impressive little winter project. i'd love to hear your ideas for decorating them too. can you manage hats and scarves?

makes approx 5 snowmen

for the bodies and heads

4 egg whites

8 oz caster sugar

1 tsp white wine vinegar

1 tsp cornflour

few drops of vanilla extract

1. in a very clean glass bowl whisk the egg whites on a slow speed until very bubbly and then increase the speed until the whites form stiff peaks. (lola loved the test where you have to hold the bowl upside down your head to make sure they are whisked enough).

2. continuing to whisk add the sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, until combined with the egg whites.

3. mix the cornflour, vinegar and vanilla together in a small bowl and then add to the sugar and egg white mixture and whisk until the mixture turns glossy.

4. spoon out 5 big heaps and 5 smaller heaps onto a couple of lined or well oiled baking trays and bake in a preheated oven (140c), you'll probably need to remove the heads (very gently) after about 20 mins and the bodies 10 mins later.

5. leave to cool.

for the adornments

30g white chocolate buttons

few drops orange food colouring (or a mix of red and yellow)

dark chocolate buttons

tube of black icing

icing sugar

1. melt the white chocolate, very gently, either in the microwave or in a bain marie. add the food colouring to turn it orange. this will make it form a sort of malleable orange coloured chocolate putty. mould into carrot or tangerine shapes and cool briefly in the fridge.

2. draw little smiles on the cooled heads using the tube of black icing.

3. add water to the icing sugar to form a very thick paste and use it to stick the heads to the bodies, the noses to the faces and the dark chocolate buttons for the buttons and eyes.

a happy and sparkling new year!

2010-01-03T21:12:00.007Z

i hope everyone had a great time over christmas and new year. we are just coming back down to earth after the whirlwind of births and birthdays that required a lot of gin and tonic, hot ports, champagne, chocolate and cheese in order to celebrate properly!

and after all that, there is call for something invigorating and alcohol free so here is my recipe for a really refreshing drink that still has an element of sparkle (and would happily take a splash of gin or vodka if you haven't yet finished celebrating...)

chop up a few lemons and limes into wedges and divide between tall glasses. add a teaspoon of caster sugar and gently crush with a pestle to release some of the juice and the flavour from the zest

crush ice. i use a strong food bag filled with ice cubes and tied, rest it on a folded tea towel and bash with a rolling pin. add a generous amount to each glass

top up with your choice of mixer (soda water, tonic, lemonade, sparkling water)

mix the drink with a long spoon or use the cocktail shaker from your unopened cocktail kit

add a fresh mint leaf, a straw, a miniature umbrella, a sparkler.....

a cocoa bean boy!

2009-12-27T14:07:00.007Z

welcome to barnaby william denham sandford, born on christmas eve!

and congratulations to emily, chris and lola.... and santa who found his way to the hehir's house to fill lola's stocking on christmas morning!

barnaby was a whopping 10lb 6oz and was born one day early, sneaking in just five hours before his due date!

quality presents, the irish examiner and near perfect vision

2009-12-19T22:44:00.004Z

if you don't have the super human vision required to read the bit under the ladybird in the article above, it says that cocoa bean's chocolate tree decorations (€4.95) are in the top three chocolate treats for christmas as recommended by roz crowley. thank you - we are delighted! our christmas tree was originally decorated with all three designs (stars, trees and baubles) but we have already eaten them, being unable to keep chocolate in the house for two minutes. luckily the girls are prolific in the manufacture of replacement decorations and eggs decorated with sequins and feathers are the chosen medium this weekend. classy!

golden tickets and party fun

2009-12-17T13:19:00.002Z

here is butterslip's christmas picture showing the lovely ladies of kilkenny having a super dooper christmas party in the shop. there was supposed to be more pictures of tempting pressies and party fun but there was so much cake eating, chatting and laughing that the photos were forgotten. the cake was a worthy distraction; both extremely pretty and harbouring willy wonka style golden tickets worth €200 in butterslip vouchers. wish i had won....

institutes, women and back to chocolate class

2009-12-16T22:47:00.003Z

WI was great - a kind of hectic whirl of activity! the air was heavy with the aroma of toasted cardamoms and the giggles of women away from their children, dipping their fingers into bowls of dark, melted chocolate laced with port and lemon zest.

christmas food and wine

2009-12-16T22:03:00.004Z

over 500 people came to see the delicious artisan food on offer at mccambridges this christmas. the wine was flowing and everyone at the fair got the chance to sample lots of goodies. you can see grainne rooney from mccambridges pictured, happy to be surrounded by the festive chocolates!

eoin mccambridge toasts j-me, originally from new zealand, now in spiddal co galway, who makes great dressing and chutney. If you haven't been already, seek out mccambridges. if you live in galway, you already know how lucky you are!

christmas in cork

2009-12-08T21:11:00.004Z

cork is such a lovely place to capture the thrill of preparing for christmas. it's great mix of high street shops and quirky backstreets remind me of exciting childhood trips to york. finish the day at the english market and pick up some culinary christmas treats. i believe in getting started on the festive food as soon as december starts. winter continues for a long and stark time after the new year begins so take advantage of the natural exuberance of december and eat well!

make the last stop the chocolate shop where you can get inventive presents, christmas chocolates to share and a few for the journey home. tell nial or rose that you read about them on our blog and you may get an extra stunning smile

stilton and chocolate

2009-12-03T12:23:00.004Z

we had a fabulous night at knightsbridge harvey nichols on tuesday where champagne was flowing freely and artisans were handing out the best of their festive food. the mood was cheery and christmassy! i love meeting the customers who already eat our bars and delighting the ones who haven't yet tasted them. everyone has their favourite and seem willing to passionately fight their corner across the tasting table with strangers: sea salt against chilli; lime and black pepper against gin and tonic!

i bought the harvey nichols jasmine leaf tea, some balsamic vinegar, a small bunch of red grapes and a wedge of highly recommended coltson basset stilton. when aidan and i were eating the stilton for lunch yesterday, surrounded by my preparations for the WI demonstration - aidan discovered dark chocolate drops and stilton are a heavenly combination. i have had a delicious stilton and white chocolate truffle before but this 60% was moreish. try it...

are you near kilkenny???

2009-11-26T14:18:00.003Z

if you are in or near kilkenny, this will be a brilliant event! if not, then have a look at their lovely new website and plan a trip...

Christmas Party InvitationThursday 3rd December 6pm – 8pm
Yipee we're having a party! Recently we decided it was high time we had a little party at Butterslip and would love you to come along. We'll be cracking open some bubbly, catching up with friends and hopefully spotting some good ideas for christmas pressies… To help us along there'll be €200 worth of Butterslip gift vouchers to be won as well as some tempting offers…
So dress up, or down, but do pop down we’d love to see you! xxx
click here to View Invite
Butterslip Website – Finally!
After much procrastination, deliberation, sticking of head in the sand…la la la.. we have arrived in computer land! Check out our lovely new website where we'll be busy writing about goings on at Butterslip, our favourite new pretty things in the shop and other notions and vagueries… We'd love to hear what you think so click in and have a look. The online shopping bit is not ready yet so for that you'll have to do the old fashioned thing and come and visit us in real life. Its much prettier anyway!
Click to view website

christmas at harvey nichs

2009-11-22T20:26:00.006Z

rachael will be handing out samples of our winter range at harvey nichols in manchester. find her in the food hall on the evening of 25th november, along with lots of other artisans eager for you to taste their christmas delights! the events in manchester are always warm and bubbly, infused with that first sparkle of christmas.

look out for our five bar packs in the lucky dips at all the festive fetes across the stores. if you're not lucky enough to be a winner, the shelves should be well stocked!

turkish delight cocoa bean style!

2009-11-12T14:48:00.013Z

emily mentioned our nightmares working with hot sugar in her last blog. but these are so worth the effort!

this limerick market recipe was the only one we could find at the time that was made with no animal products (important in aidan's vegan days!). the lack of gelatin means it is a bit softer and stickier than shop bought turkish delight and so works best dipped generously in dark chocolate. shame! it is very delicious - don't be put off by our stress warnings!

you will need a sugar thermometer unless you are a genius. use the chunk tempering method emily described in 'temper, temper'

4 cups caster sugar

4 cups water

1 tsp lemon juice

1 cup cornflour

1 tsp cream of tartar

1 1/2 tbsp rosewater

red food colouring (if you want it pink)

1. combine caster sugar, 1 1/2 cups of water and the lemon juice in a medium pot. stir over a low heat, without boiling, until the sugar dissolves brush the sugar crystals off the side of the pot with a brush dipped in water. simmer, uncovered, until the temperature reaches 116 C on a sugar thermometer ( a teaspoon of the mixture will form a soft ball when dropped into a glass of cold water.) remove from the heat.

2. meanwhile, in a separate pot blend the cornflour and cream of tartar with enough of the remaining water to form a smooth paste. stir in the remaining water and stir constantly over heat until the mixture boils and thickens.

3. gradually pour the hot syrup, in a thin stream, into the cornflour mixture, whisking constantly. simmer gently, uncovered, for about 1 hour or until it is translucent and pale straw coloured; stir occassionally.

4. stir in rosewater and tint with food colouring if you want pink turkish delight.

5. line a square cake tin with greased clingfilm. pour and spread in the tin. stand, uncovered for at least 3 hours.

6. cut jelly into squares with an oiled knife. dust with icing sugar and coat in 2 layers of tempered dark chocolate and store in an airtight container.

serve with strong black coffee or take to the woods and eat after a long, wintry walk.

christmas decorations

2009-11-10T14:21:00.002Z

look out for our christmas decorations in harvey nichols, shops throughout ireland and online. harvey nichols have uk exclusivity of the bauble in milk, dark and white chocolate tied with a rich, red ribbon. in ireland you can also find the christmas tree and star tied with christmas colours.

these look fabulous on a tree with white lights. they are also perfect for giving to teachersor a thank you to a friend. They each come with a gift tag which means you can have a few in for a last minute present which you don't need to wrap!

beautiful butterscotch

2009-11-09T15:54:00.005Z

this is a lovely, simple sauce for icecream, poached fruit ,baked apples or sarah's pancake recipe from last month. i served it with a very spiced apple tart for our bonfire party at the weekend and it was wickedly finished up for breakfast the next morning. delicious warm or delightfully gloopy and thick cooled down.

i'm not one for boiled sugar products, the turkish delight we made for limerick market wore my spirits for such things thin - however delicious it turned out my friday evenings became a battle between me and a sugar thermometer and my friday nights disturbed by feverish panics as to whether it would set overnight.

the great thing about this recipe is it is seemingly foolproof. originally from the waitrose website i have added golden syrup because, well because why wouldn't you? I will be trying this with the addition of chocolate as soon as the guilt of finishing the first batch has worn off.

ingredients

175g soft brown sugar

125g butter

150ml double cream

2 tbsp golden syrup

method

1.place everything in a saucepan and heat until the butter has melted and the sugar dissolved (you shouldn't be able to see any gritty bits on the back of a wooden spoon).

2. remove from the heat and stir well.

3. leave to cool

be careful the sugar gets incredibly hot so take care.

beautiful butterslip

2009-11-03T12:38:00.011Z

it's worth going to kilkenny to visit anne's fabulous shop alone. this designer boutique shop has truly original gifts from unusual tea (and cocoa bean chocolate bars of course!) to pieces from designers like Johnny Loves Rosie and Nica Zedzz. just being in the shop is inspiring and reinvigorates the good side of shopping - the excitement of getting a gift for someone that truly thrills them!

dark chocolate sauce

2009-10-26T09:48:00.007Z

i meant to include this in the last entry so here it is! this is my favourite chocolate sauce but you can experiment with the strength of chocolate or add flavours. a drop of brandy or liquer works well for a grown up taste or a pinch of chilli or drop of rosewater for a real cocoa bean experience!

ingredients

175g of dark chocolate broken into small pieces (skelligs dark bar 54% or bitter bar both 71% work well)

115ml water

30g unsalted butter cut into small chunks

6 tablespoons of single cream

3 tablespoons of caster sugar

vanilla seeds from pod or 1/2 teaspoon good vanilla extract

method

in a medium sized pot, heat the water and sugar and stir until the sugar is dissolved

add the dissolved syrup to the butter and chocolate in a glass bowl over a pot of gently simmering water

keep stirring until they are all melted together

mix in the cream and vanilla

serve while still warm over waffles, icecream, strawberries, banana split, chocolate cake ....

waffles with chocolate sauce

2009-10-19T12:56:00.010+01:00

i'm writing this blog on what is now a freezing, grey and drizzly day and can't believe that so recently we were lounging about in sleeveless tops and sunglasses!

we went out for waffles without children which was splendidly indulgent. mary chose vanilla icecream and chocolate sauce and i went for greek yoghurt and strawberries to prove i am capable of choosing something without chocolate, if ony very occasionally!

on saturday, i fancied a try at recreating the waffle experience but don't own a waffle iron so i made drop scones instead. they were very easy to make and though they weren't as crispy as waffles, they did a pretty good job at satisfying the craving!

drop scones or scotch pancakes

125g self raising flour

2 level tbsp sugar

1 egg

150ml milk

i used a heavy frying pan but you can use a solid hot-plate if you are lucky enough to have one. rub the cooking surface with salt to season it. wipe clean and grease the surface lightly.

in a bowl, put the flour and sugar. add an egg and half the milk and beat until smooth. add the rest of the milk and beat the mixture until little bubbles rise up to the surface.

heat the frying pan or hot-plate until the fat is hazing. wipe with kitchen paper and spoon the batter onto the surface. coook on one side.

when bubbles appear on the surace of the scone, turn it over with a palette knife and cook on the other side for 30 seconds to a minute until golden brown.

remove and place on a wire rack. cover with a clean teacloth until the rest are ready or hand straight to eager family and friends but be sure to save some for yourself!

i put all the topping options out on the table so that the girls could have fun experimenting with their own creations: chocolate sauce, icecream, whipped cream, strawberries, hedgerow blackberries, honey and bananas.

the blackberries were a very popular topping with the girls but left them looking like extras from some low budget halloween horror film! esme embraced the role with disturbing enthusiasm...

how can you resist?

2009-10-13T17:05:00.002+01:00

fancy a trip to kerry, the deep blue sea, colm healy proffering the best of our chocoholic offerings? ryanair flies from dublin and stansted to kerry international airport. there are so many fabulous things to do and see near our chocolate factory including a trip to valencia, the lighthouse cafe, a boat trip to the skelligs, dinner at qc's in caherciveen, killarney national park, murphy's icecream or just smelling the turf and salty fresh sea air and then warming up with a pint of guiness or hot port in the moorings at portmagee.

mastering muffins

2009-10-06T11:38:00.002+01:00

sarah is the family expert on muffins, able to whip them up in seconds using anything she has about and they always taste delicious. i, on the otherhand, seem to be able to mess them up even if i'm following a recipe to the letter. i think this is quite an achievement...

i finally managed to produce a batch with the right texture, good distribution of exciting bits and they managed to rise and look good too so i feel i am on the right track towards mastering muffins. the recipe is sort of based on one from the times newspaper but with a few alterations.

blueberry, raspberry and white chocolate muffins.

makes 12

ingredients

100g raspberries

60g blueberries

40g white chocolate drops

200g plain flour

2 tsp baking powder

125g caster sugar

175ml milk

2 free range eggs

125ml vegetable oil

method

1. heat the oven to 180c. fill a muffin tin with muffin cases.

2.in a bowl sift the flour and baking powder into the sugar. in a jug mix the eggs, milk and oil unil smooth.

3. make a well in the centre of the dry mix and lightly stir in the wet ingredients. don't overmix it, it is meant to remain a bit lumpy. stir through the fruit and chocolate. divide the mixture between the muffin cases.

4. bake for 25 minutes until risen and golden. cool on a wire rack and ideally eat the same day.

you can use fresh or frozen fruit. I was using up leftover frozen bits and pieces from our summer pick your own sessions, as far as i can tell you can sort of make up the 200g of extra ingredients from any combo of other delicious ingredients that you have around or take your fancy.

the other big advantage of muffin mix is that until it is cooked it tastes oily and rank unlike cake mixture. as a pregnant woman with a weakness for cake mix despite the uncooked eggs muffins may well be the way forward.

100g of dark chocolate

2009-10-05T10:10:00.003+01:00

we are all aware that dark chocolate has many virtues but even we were surprised to find out that the protein in 100g of dark chocolate (approx 8g) is MORE than in 100g of baked beans (approx 5g).

i'll be the first to admit that the other nutritional aspects don't lean as favourably towards chocolate. saturated fat, for example, not so good. however compared to a cheddar cheese chocolate suddenly doesn't seem so very unholy.

for all the bad press that tinned beans get for their sugar content chocolate beats them hands down. though if you can stomach a jacket potato with 100g of virtually sugar free 99% cocoa solids chocolate next time good on you! i think cheese and beans may stay a more popular topping for now though....

mango and coconut mint truffles

2009-09-30T20:34:00.001+01:00

these truffles topped with fresh mint were a great success with coffee at the end of our african inspired dinner party last friday night. although the fuul that aidan cooked was authentic, other dishes were more inspired by flavours rather than from recipes. this is maybe why my coconut jelly served with mango and passionfriut was a complete failure! i haven't used gelatine since school cookery classes and it always led to disaster then. if anyone has any advice, i would be delighted to hear it! i ended up serving it like an ice cold, exotic, sweet soup - with a frogspawn dollop of passionfruit. hmmmm.....

bad girls' breakfast

2009-09-28T12:09:00.004+01:00

sunday morning chocolate blowout!

very, very bad but very, very good! wicklow fine food and wildes chocolate do a good irish made chocolate spread or nutella is wonderful if you can't get hold of the others. we used white and dark chocolate chips to contrast with the flavour of the milk chocolate spread and to look pretty too! to make the chocolate pancakes we added cocoa powder to the the flour and then made up the batter as usual.

chocolate pancakes with chocolate spread and double choc chips

makes approx 8 6" pancakes

ingredients

4 large tbsp plain flour

4 tsp good cocoa powder

1 large free range egg

milk to create correct consistency (similar to pouring cream)

chocolate spread

white chocolate drops

dark chocolate drops

vegetable oil

method

1. sift together the cocoa and flour

2.add the egg and beat well (preferably with an electric whisk) until a smooth paste is formed

3. add the milk, a little at a time until the right consistency is achieved

4. wipe a non stick frying pan with a little oil on a piece of kitchen paper and heat

5. add enough batter to the hot pan to thinly coat the bottom of the pan

6. when the first side is cooked it should unstick itself when you give the pan and gentle shake

7. flip it!

8. catch it hopefully and cook on the other side for approx 1 minute.

9. place the cooked pancake on a plate and spread with chocolate spread. scatter the choc chips down the centre and fold or roll as you prefer.

10. serve.

it helps to get someone to decorate the pancake while you cook the next. if the chocolate filling is all to much the chocolate pancakes are also delicious with freshly squeezed orange juice and a little sugar.

congratulations....

2009-09-23T13:26:00.001+01:00

hearty autumn stew time - with a chocolatey twist

2009-09-22T14:44:00.008+01:00

the cooler weather is the perfect excuse to start cooking up big batches of rich, warming stews and one of our favourites is alistair hendy's hungarian goulash from his indispensible book 'home cook'. the author himself doubts its hungarian authenticity, and i would think a goulash was more soupy than this intense stew, but noone can doubt the delicious comfort of this recipe. an easy and reliable one pot recipe to which i have got into the habit of adding about 25g of intense dark chocolate to at the end of cooking to rev the richness up a notch.

fantastic served with any of the following-

crusty bread and a simply dressed green salad

mashed potato

new potatoes

jacket potato

hungarian goulash (with the cocoa bean style)

serves 6

ingredients

1 kg stewing steak, cubed

3 tbsp seasoned plain flour

60g lard or 3 tbsp olive oil

2 red peppers, deseeded and cut into chunks*

2 onions, finely sliced

2 fat cloves of garlic, finely chopped

2 big tbsp paprika

2 x 400g tins chopped tomatoes

a small string tied bunch of fresh bay, thyme and parsley

750ml beef stock

25g dark chocolate*

1 x 250ml pot soured cream

handful of flat leaf parsley

method

1. toss the meat in the saesoned flour, brown all over in hot fat in a casserole until quite dark then lift out. Cook the meat in batches so as not to sweat the meat. Reserve the remaining flour.

2. next lightly blister the peppers by frying them in the remaining fat, remove and keep to one side. * I roast my peppers in the oven during the casseroles first half of cooking in the oven. I find there is never enough fat left at this stage and the lovely meaty/floury residues begin to catch at the temperature you need to cook the peppers at.

3. add the onion and garlic to the remaining fat in the pan, add a little more fat if required, and gently fry until well softened and touched with brown, then sprinkle over with paprika.

4. add the saved flour to the pan and stir through, cook for a few minutes more, stirring regularly to stop the floured onion catching.

5. add the tomatoes, stir through and bubble up. Add the meat and any collected juices along with the herbs and and enough stock to ensure the meat is completely covered. Bring to a bubble again.

6. put in a 150c oven and gently braise for 2 hours, stirring in the peppers and chocolate half way through the meat's cooking time.

7. serve with a dollop of soured cream and strewn with parsley.

also lovely if cooked the day before and reheated for 45 mins at 180c. garnish with the soured cream and parsley just before serving.

* cocoa bean twists

lola's 'moth buns'

2009-09-18T10:22:00.005+01:00

sorry for the absence of recipes of late. i'm currently 6 months pregnant and as i did when i was pregnant with lola i completely went off chocolate until recently! dreadful state of affairs!
i did attempt a banana and chocolate tart recipe from delicious. food magazine but i think the bananas i used were overripe and although the result looked great (the hazelnut pastry was fab but a faff!)it turned my stomach completely and i'm not sure it was because i was pregnant - no-one else raced to eat it either! I would have been much better off using the bananas to make aine's wonderful banana bread she often treats the factory to at tea break!
anyway yesterday was lola's first day at nursery (effectively a lovely holding pen til she starts school properly in january)and she proudly marched off in her uniform giving me strict instructions to make sprinkly moth buns for her return.

moth buns are what she calls chocolate butterfly . fairly accurate really. so anyway it is the basic cupcake recipe that we have posted previously but with a little message for my super duper growing up girl.

diary of the chocolate shop - willie's cacao

2009-09-15T13:04:00.008+01:00

rose, at the chocolate shop in the english market, reflects on willie and how he's creating a real buzz around great chocolate. . .
we were delighted to add willie's world class cacao to our range of premium bars last spring. willie harcourt-couze's chocolate was made famous through a channel 4 series which followed him as he created delectable chocolate from 'bean to bar'. during the show he converted a group who had, until then eaten only mass market chocolate, to his high cocoa content bars. remarkably we saw the same ting happen at our shop. initially it was only the curiosity factor but then people were truly transformed and began to experiment wih the whole world of real chocolate. what fun for less than a fiver; discovering the subtle single estates to the funky flavours of cocoa bean!
willie's venezualan back and peruvian black 100% cocoa blocks are also a hit with customers, and are marvellous as an ingredient for sweet and savoury dishes alike - his cloud forest cake is easy to make and everyone loves it. it also makes an authentic dark chocolate drink. however, demand is already strong for his rambunctious get up and gocoa which is due out shortly and has been scientifcally proven to accelerate the fat burning process! i have a feeling that will be most popular of all ...

christmas is coming...

2009-09-10T12:46:00.003+01:00

we have already started making and wrapping chocolate for christmas. this will carry on into the last mad weeks of december, reaching a crescendo of frantic festive spirit. emily's baby is due on christmas day which makes the build up even more exciting!

even stranger than wrapping christmas bars in september is thinking about eggs, chicks and bunnies. harvey nichols and avoca's seasonal buyers will be looking for easter ideas long before carol singing begins.

when i'm not at work, i have to remind myself to enjoy the season we're in. it's autumn and the sun has finally come out in the glen! seasons of mist and mellow fruitfulness - rosehips nearly ready in the hedgerows and homemade blackberry jam.

so bring me some figgy pudding . . .

2009-09-09T22:47:00.005+01:00

clara and elsie are pictured with the tasting tray. a brown turkey fig grown in clara's garden (slightly soft, slightly rough looking) pitted against a black bursa fig from a leading quality food hall advertised as 'perfectly ripe from the orchard...this is simply one of the best figs we have ever come across. grown in the bursa region in the north of turkey, the black bursa is a plump, black fig bursting with a super sweet jammy texture and delicious rich flavour.'

there was no contest.... the home grown fig was so vastly superior that the supermarket import was left outside to dry slowly in the last of the sun. it's bland flavour reminded me of chewing on a piece of grass. the flowery description above is so perfect for the freshly plucked home grown fig. it was juicy. it made us happy. i'm going to grow figs next year.

look out for a fresh fig chocolate truffle recipe soon. i just have to somehow convince clara and family that my need for the last of their seasons fruit is the greatest!

burrenbeo walk

2009-09-03T09:38:00.002+01:00

the burrenbeo monthly walk is this sunday (6th september). it's suitable for all ages and is led by a local farmer and a burren specialist. this months walk is led by botanist dr. stephen ward with michael keane. see trust@burrenbeo.com for more information.

call into burrenbeo's lovely cafe and shop in kinvara. you can even get cocoa bean chocolate to restore your energy...

i love this!

2009-09-02T16:52:00.006+01:00

after nearly five years of talking about sourcing a counter display for our cocoa bean bars, i finally have one sat beside me on my desk.

i am so happy with it that i'm jealously guarding it and haven't even eaten one of the rose and pistachio bars yet - i don't want to ruin the beautiful symmetry.

you should start seeing them on the counters of our stockists soon.

also seen in the photo is the view from our factory; the atlantic ocean, the skelligs rocks, sheep and mountains - but just look at those bars - magnificent!

cocoa bean raspberry truffles

2009-08-29T20:21:00.005+01:00

as promised in the last blog. . . these are so delicious, very fresh and should be eaten on the day they are made.

they taste even better if the truffle is not too firm though you have to be swift and expert at enrobing to deal with a very soft ganache.

ingredients

1 packet of rapberries (fresh or frozen if not in season)
250g dark chocolate about 50 - 60% cocoa solids
3 fl oz single cream or soya cream
1 spoon corn syrup
2 spoons sugar
1 spoon raspberry liquor
dark chocolate for enrobing (70% cocoa solids)

method

mulch the raspberries through a plastic seive until you have approx 75g seed free juicy stuff. in a small pan, boil this gently along with the sugar for about 5 minutes and reduced by about half the volume.

break the chocolate into small pieces and melt slowly in a bowl over a gently simmering pot of water.

when the chocolate has almost melted, add the liquor, corn syrup and cream to the raspberries and heat again until it reaches a gentle boil.
mix the hot cream/raspberries into the melted chocolate until thoroughly blended.

transfer to a bowl to cool.

when cold, spoon equal quantities onto a plate of cocoa and shape into balls, using the cocoa to stop them getting too sticky.

coat with two layers of tempered chocolate (see 'temper, temper' november 2008) and top with edible pink sparkly dust or a swirled squiggle of tempered chocolate.

to ensure a crisp temper, you can pop them in the fridge or freezer for a few minutes. this is particularly helpful in warm summer kitchens.

enjoy these with a glass of rose or a cup of earl grey tea.

chocolates from new york

2009-08-24T10:36:00.014+01:00

aidan has been in new york for a week interviewing experts in prevention of genocide. on his last day, as some much needed light relief, he went in search of exciting chocolates to bring back to me.
the first was a very beautiful, white square box of chocolates by the bald man! max brenner's chocolates remind me of artisan du chocolat - stylishly stark presentation and fresh, real flavours in high quality squares of dark ganache.

aidan hand picked the flavours from a large, square glass counter in the centre of the shop. he says he struggled to fill the box without choosing any pralines (i just can't get excited by them!) the dark chocolate cream with wild flower honey was fragrant and smooth and the dark chocolate with spices was excellent. the raspberry was a bit too sweet for my tastes, not as good as cocoa bean's raspberry truffle (recipe to follow soon)

if you're in new york you'll find max brenner's shop on 92nd street y and 1395 lexington avenue. aidan described a chocoholic heaven of churning vats of hot chocolate and floor to ceiling delights. i can't wait to go there one day...

his other find was a bar of scharffen berger 70% bittersweet dark chocolate made with whole vanilla beans. it was fabulous - exactly my style of chocolate - fruity at first, developing to a lasting strength of cocao character.

even opening the bar was a real pleasure. i was also impressed by the weight of the paper it was wrapped in - a slightly sad obsession with packaging i have.

i shared the bar with aidan under a starry sky accompanied by a rose wine by anthony road wine company, made from grapes grown in the finger lake region. a taste of new york that makes me hungry for more!

stocking up at avoca!

2009-08-21T14:08:00.004+01:00

this is a picture of my friend, mary clarke, making sure she gets her supply of cocoa bean. apart from a chocolate obsession, she also is fairly hooked on lunch at avoca and managed to also fit in a visit to avoca, suffolk street - all in one weekend! if you've never been to avoca, it's a fabulous and funky department store with unusual clothes, kitchen accessories, books and food. Try their quiche, fresh salads, cakes and coffee. you may sigh a lot as you go round the shop, wishing you could have everything...

apricot truffles

2009-08-14T09:47:00.007+01:00

this is an original cocoa bean recipe that was very popular at summer markets. they make a great dinner party accompaniment to coffee or a lovely august birthday present. they are fresh truffles so they only have about a weeks shelf life. they will last longer in the fridge but fridges can make chocolate damp if not stored properly and you should always allow them to come to room temperature before eating to appreciate the full flavour.

250g dark chocolate (about 50% cocoa solids works well)

6 fl oz single or soya cream

3 spoons apricot mulch (dried apricots soaked in water and then drained and blended smooth)

8 dried apricots, chopped

8 blanched almonds, chopped

1 spoon rum

1 spoon brandy

break the chocolate into small pieces and melt slowly in a bowl over a gently simmering pot of water.

heat the cream with the brandy and rum in a small saucepan until it reaches a gentle boil. keep stirring the cream.

mix the hot cream into the melted chocolate. stir in the apricot mulch, chopped fruit and nuts and stir until thoroughly blended.

set the bowl aside to cool. this now contains the chocolate ganache.

when the ganache is cool, shape into balls using cocoa powder.

temper chocolate using the chunk method that emily describes in blog 'temper, temper' november 2008. i much prefer a really good dark chocolate (at least 70%) for this. coat with two layers of tempered chocolate and while the chocolate coating is still wet, top with a thin strip of dried apricot.

if your kitchen is warm, pop them in the fridge or freezer very briefly ( 2 minutes ), to help the chocolate set quickly.

eat them!

kinvara (chinn mhara) head of the sea

2009-08-01T22:38:00.014+01:00

if you've never been to kinvara in county galway, it is well worth a visit. it's the home of the cuckoo and crinniu festivals, a major gateway to the spectacular burren and home of burrenbeo, an interpretative centre with a fabulous cafe and a shop that sells our chocolate!

for those who don't know the magical burren, it's ireland's flagship heritage landscape: a land of fertile rock with diverse flora and fauna, unique panaramas and a rich and vibrant culture.

tonight was the official launch of the burrenbeo trust's new colour magazine and their monthly walk takes place tomorrow (sunday) at 2pm. just to let you know that everybody is welcome on the walk. look at http://www.burrenbeo.com/ for more details.

fine food and swimming in the sun

2009-07-31T12:12:00.009+01:00

we have returned sun kissed and relaxed from celebrating a friend's birthday in the south of france. it was 4 days of fabulous company, faultless hospitality and unforgettable food.

since there was always at least 12 people to cater for we had simple breakfasts of croissants and fig jam, lunches were a sprawling mass of cheeses, meats, pates, breads and salads - delicious and then took it in turns to cook the evening meal.

definite highlights for me were sophie and stewart's anchovy crostini, jo and dave's barbecued garlic bread and nick and isabelle's lancashire hotpot! i will try to get them to post their secret recipes on here...

our menu -

gazpacho

trout en pappiotte (chris's recent speciality)

medley of roast damsons and plums with toasted almond and honey mascapone

sea salt truffles

the recipe for the dessert is below - the damsons were picked freshly from the trees in the garden (thank you to the birthday boy -chris a. x); nothing was a greater pleasure than coming out of the tent in the morning sunshine and helping ourselves to a handful of plump, just ripe fruit. i've scaled this back to serve 4 but it is an easy one to do for large numbers.

medley of roast damsons and plums with toasted almond and honey mascapone

serves 4

ingredients

8 ripe plums, halved and destoned

40 damsons, halved and destoned

1 tbsp caster sugar

1/2 tsp ground cardamom

tub of mascapone

1 tbsp ground almonds, toasted

1tbsp runny honey

1tbsp marsala wine

seeds of 1 vanilla pod or 1/2tsp vanilla essence

method

1.beat the almonds, honey, marsala, and the vanilla into the marscapone til thoroughly combined. set aside til later.

2. layer the plums and damsons in a large oven proof dish and sprinkle with the cardamom and sugar.

3. roast in the oven at 220c for 20-30 mins til beginning to caramelise and bubble in their own juices.

4. serve (careful - it is hot as hellfire when you bring it out) with the almond mascapone and almond tuiles if available.

5. a nice alternative is to use figs instead of plums. follow the instructions above but dip the cut side of the fig in the cardamom and sugar mix and grill or barbecue the cut side for 3-4 mins til brown and caramelised.

nothing better when sat by candlelight with frineds, in the warmth of a summer evening. thank you to all the adlingtons and the rest of the gang for a truly unforgettable holiday.

singing in the rain...

2009-07-30T15:04:00.003+01:00

we tried to be cheerful but in the end it was just thoroughly wet and we ended up racing to the coach for shelter. hard to believe we were swimming only 20 minutes before this photo!

we got home and lit the first fire of the summer and made unfailingly comforting eggs, beans and chips. i know everyone knows how to make this but will just share my chip secret.

leave the skin on good waxy potatoes and cut into chunky chip shapes. pour olive oil into a bowl along with a good scrunch of sea salt and twist of black pepper. throw in the raw chips and toss in the oil to coat thoroughly. bake in the oven at 200 C for 20 - 30 minutes until crispy. you can do them under the grill but i always forget them and they burn too easily.

we are at liscannor, county clare for 3 days next week - we got married there 6 years ago. fingers crossed it's better weather or that i remember to take wellies and bags of dry clothes.

happy all round

2009-07-27T14:37:00.003+01:00

an inspired idea from my friend kyra - having spent all friday night making a superbly light and fluffy chocolate birthday cake for clara, she realised with only moments to go until the party started, that she had forgotten to ice it! she whipped out her homemade raspberry jam and used it to stick white and pink mini marshmallows all over the top of the cake. done in seconds! the children loved it.

chocolate chilli cake

2009-07-18T18:33:00.011+01:00

it has rained everyday since my birthday. my birthday happens to fall on st swithin's day. if it rains on st swithin's day it is supposed to rain for 40 days and 40 nights. it is having a damn good shot at it by the looks of things.

we are keeping our fingers crossed for a nice afternoon tomorrow. tomorrow we are joining in the neighbourhood street party and are contributing this cake to the cake stall, our spare chilli plants to the plant stall and spicy chicken kebabs to the barbeque...mmmm...anybody would think we have a thing for chilli in our house!

chris came across this recipe in his mum's enviably organised folder of cut out recipes and decided it was worth a go. i'm not sure what magazine it is from but james tanner is responsible. we've adapted a bit by thickening up the ginger chocolate sauce he suggested and making it into a ganache style icing for the top. the recipe below includes our adaptations.

ingredients

100g soft butter

100g caster sugar

100g self raising flour

3 eggs

2 red chillies, deseeded and very finely chopped

50g dark chocolate drops or grated cocoa bean chilli and pink peppercorn chocolate bar

for the icing

100g dark chocolate

75ml double cream

25g butter

1 piece of stem ginger, finely chopped ( you could use a couple of peices of cocoa bean chocolate coated crystallised ginger)

method

1. preheat the oven to 180c and lightly grease a 20cm cake tin.

2. cream the butter and suagr until light and fluffy. add the flour, eggs and chillies and whisk to make a thick smooth batter.

3. pour into the prepared tin, sprinkle with the cake chocolate and bake for 15 mins until risen.

4. to make the icing heat the cream gently in a small saucepan, when it is just beginning to bubble gently at the edge remove from the heat and whisk in the chocolate, ginger and butter until the chocolate melts.

5. when the cake is cool spread the icing over the top.

6. we then went wild with tubes of coloured icing.

update

the street party was a great success!

the rain held off at the right time - terrifyingly windy though!

the cake was very delicious and even went down well enough with the 80 year old cake judge (the lady who has lived in the street the longest!). we didn't win this week but the chilli cake was certainly a talking point and that was the point of the day - to get everyone talking to each other. the chilli lends a sweetness and gentle heat but nothing too spicy and combines delightfully with the gingery flavour of the icing. definitely one to make again.

i did face painting!!!!

happy birthday emily

2009-07-15T16:38:00.014+01:00

we had a lovely birthday tea with emily, lola and chris - bump just starting to make an appearance!

i remember one birthday of emily's (25th??) when we were both desperately tempering chocolate at limerick food kitchens late into the hot, pre-air conditioned, july night. We were making truffles ready to set off at dawn the next day to a busy farmers market in dingle.

i often forget the sheer exhaustion of those crazy, early days of starting your own business. i have distilled the dingle days into a few perfect moments: racing down to the sea for a bracing swim before setting off home; having hot port with paulina in a cosy bar after enduring hours of rain; chatting as we all set up stalls in the early morning sun; eating smoked fish and still warm bread for breakfast and swapping star anise truffles for local goats cheese. 4am starts? i'm almost tempted...

back to emily's far more relaxed birthday 2009 and the all important cake! i wanted to try the celebrity masterchef penultimate episode chocolate cake: the one wendy made for the french chefs but i failed to find the recipe on the internet. i then realised i had no self raising flour and it was way too late to go out for some (with aidan out, it would mean waking up all three girls and loading them into the car)

thankfully, i remembered a green and black's recipe that uses plain flour and lots of eggs. perfect. i adapted it slightly, replacing double cream with greek yoghurt and fresh raspberries with frozen raspberries - purely through necessity as i was lacking the original ingredients. it worked fine and i managed to get double cream and fresh raspberries in the morning, for the icing and as decoration.

chocolate raspberry torte recipe

25g plain flour

5 teaspoons cocoa powder

75g dark chocolate

25g unsalted butter

5 teaspoons greek yoghurt or double cream

4 egg whites

3 egg yolks

3 tablespoons caster sugar

250g fresh or frozen raspberries

125ml whipping or double cream to serve

icing

100g dark chocolate

50g unsalted butter

3 tablespoons double cream

1 teaspoon icing sugar

method

butter and line with greaseproof an 18-20cm, 6cm deep cake tin. pre-heat oven to 140c/275f/gas mark 1

sift the flour and cocoa. set aside.

melt the chocolate slowly in a bowl above warm water. removefrom heat, add butter and yoghurt/cream and stir well.

whisk egg whites until stiff peaks, add sugar and whisk again until thick and glossy. in another bowl, beat egg yolks and gently fold the cocoa and flour into the yolks. add the melted chocolate and stir well. spon a few dollops of egg white into this mixture and stir. gently fold in the remainder of the egg whites.

pour half the mixture into the cake tin, sprinkle over the raspberries and then cover with other half of mixture.

bake for 35-40 mins until a skewer comes out clean. cool in the tin for 5 minutes and then take out onto a wire rack.

for the icing, melt the chocolate as before. remove from heat and stir in the butter, cream and icing sugar. pour it all over the cake, top with fresh raspberries and leave for an hour to harden. (don't put it in the fridge at this stage or the icing wil lose it's shine!)

serve with whipped cream.

enjoy the rest of your birthday emily!

a trip to the 1930's

2009-07-12T20:09:00.006+01:00

we have just returned from a fantastic weekend. not only did we go and see the amazing elbow and halle orchestra concert in manchester (mind blowingly good!) we went to our friends' wedding and had a jolly spiffing time!

the theme of the wedding was a 1930's summer fete, everyone got dressed up and, following a beautiful, moving and jubilant ceremony, played games such as skittle and coconut shy. as at any village fete one irritating person swept the prize giving taking first prize for both the cake making competition and the soap carving competition. usually this would bug me but this time i was delighted as it was....ME!!!! woohooo!!!

i won't give you instructions for carving a bar of soap but below is the winning cake recipe. originally served on the menu of woodsmoke cottage tearooms (the tearoom me and sarah ran with our elder sister and mum when we were growing up) and so admittedly i am very experienced at making it! but it is extremely good - rich but tartly lemony - the perfect afternoon tea cake.

woodsmoke cottage tearoom lemon cake

serves 8

lemon curd

(plenty for the cake and a nice bit left over for on fresh white bread with thick butter...)

ingredients

3oz butter

6oz caster sugar

juice and finely grated zest of 2 large unwaxed lemons

3 free range eggs, well whisked

sterilised jam jars

method

1. melt the butter, sugar, lemon juice and lemon zest in a bain marie over a pan of boiling water (don't let the water touch the bain marie) until the butter is melted and the sugar is dissolved.

2. add the eggs and combine - stir continuously to ensure the eggs don't scramble. keep the mix on the heat and continue to stir until the mix is smooth and thickened enough to coat the back of a spoon. this will take about 20 mins, or if you have an electric whisk about 7-8 mins (just make sure to keep it all moving and scrape down the sides of the bain marie now and again).

3. pour the hot mixture into the sterilised jars. allow to cool and store in the refrigerator.

lemon sponge

ingredients

6oz caster sugar

6oz butter

finely grated zest of 2 unwaxed lemons

6oz self raising flour, sifted

3 free range eggs

2 tbsp milk, if necessary

2 x 8" sandwich pans, buttered and floured

method

1. preheat the oven to 190c.

2. whisk the butter, sugar and lemon zest together until light and fluffy. add the egg and mix in well. fold in the flour and add the milk if the mixture is a little thick.

3. divide the mixture between the 2 prepared sandwich pans and bake for 20-25 mins or until risen, golden brown and springy to the gentle touch.

lemon buttercream

ingredients

8oz icing sugar

4oz butter, softened

juice of 1 lemon

a little water if required

method

1. blend all the ingredients together until smooth and fluffy.

assembly

when the sponges are cool spread the bottom layer with a generous layer of buttercream followed by a generous layer of lemon curd. gently place the top sponge on top and dust with icing sugar.

busy days...

2009-07-09T21:04:00.009+01:00

if you are in county. kerry, remember to call in and see us. during the week, you can watch chocolates being created in front of your eyes and taste delicious samples fresh from the skelligs and cocoa bean range. we are now also open at weekends.

if you want to avoid the stampede for chocolate, head to the glen early in the morning and watch our chocolatiers use traditional methods of dipping hand rolled truffles in tempered chocolate.

the aroma of cocoa and spices will get you in the mood for tasting, whatever time of the day. popular in the shop this week are the award winning baby fig and rum chocolates and the cocoa bean chilli and pink peppercorn bar.

don't forget to enter the great chocoholics competition while you are there . . .

early morning cookies or the perfect thing for unexpected guests

2009-07-07T21:52:00.004+01:00

me and lola felt particularly productive this morning and whipped up a batch of chocolate chip shortbread. these are really, really delicious, quick and easy. it makes them perfect if you have unexpected guests as within about 15 minutes you can be serving freshly bakes cookies and they don't even generate a lot of washing up!

basic shortbread recipe

makes about 20 small cookies

115g plain flour

115g butter

60g caster sugar + a little extra for sprinkling

75g 70% chocolate drops

preheat oven to 220c

1. rub all the ingredients, except the chocolate, together to form breadcrumbs

2. knead together to form a dough, add the chocolate and mix to distribute evenly throught the dough.

3. roll to form a sausage about 2" thick and cut into 1cm slices, or pick small clumps of dough and roll into a ball.

4. flatten the slices or balls slightly and place, nicely spaced out, on an ungreased baking tray.

5. bake for approx 7 mins (or until golden brown at the edge)

6. leave to cool on the tray.

mccambridges artisan treats & coffee al fresco

2009-07-03T10:55:00.006+01:00

aidan was a student in galway so when we met, he took me to all his old haunts; mccambridges was the first stop on a tour which included swimming at salthill, guiness at naughton's and mcdonagh's fish and chips.

now the much loved mccambridges on shop street, has undergone a transformation! call in and enjoy a coffee at the new barista style coffee bar or watch the world go by from a table at their pavement cafe.

though the changes will delight you, here to stay is the passion for selecting in-season food from local farms, butchers, bakeries and artisan food producers:

‘the aim of this project is to expand the variety of locally sourced quality foods, as well as the best of irish and international gourmet foods for our customers,’ said eoin mccambridge, managing director.

we're also glad to see that you can now buy murphy's icecream by the scoop (sean murphy pictured with natalie mccambridge outside the shop) and that cocoa bean and skelligs are still old favourites!

'we love your bars of choc and skelligs truffles are selling well' said norma mccambridge who then confided 'i love the gin and tonic'. There is something about that bar in it's purple wrapper bursting with bubbles that makes you feel like you're having the first zesty drink on a hot summer night by the sea...

become a chocolatier!

2009-07-01T21:13:00.007+01:00

if you can't make it to our factory shop, everyone who orders cocoa bean or skelligs chocolates online from http://www.skelligschocolate.com/ will be automatically entered into the competition. so those of you stuck in jobs over the summer or unable to leap on the next flight, train or boat will still get a chance to win this brilliant prize!

if you are planing to come to kerry over the summer this is when we are open:

july-august 2009

monday –friday
from 10.00 until 17.00.

saturday & sunday
from 12.00 until 17.00

bring a picnic and your swimming togs and enjoy chocolate on the beach.

open this weekend

2009-07-01T18:21:00.001+01:00

remember this weekend is our first of the summer where our factory counter is open for tasters and chocolate retail therapy!

glad you enjoyed it...

2009-06-27T07:52:00.004+01:00

it was lovely to see that those chocoholic frolic readers that voted on our recent poll either had very much enjoyed their trip to our st finian's bay chocolate factory or would love to go in the future.

we look forward to seeing you all at some point in the future (the middle of next week is forecast to be nice and sunny!) and have a look at my blog from september 12th last year for some other ideas of lovely things to do in the area.

harvey nichols

2009-06-22T22:48:00.013+01:00

if you are in london, make sure you zoom up the express lift to the 5th floor of harvey nichols flagship shop and browse the food hall. http://www.harveynichols.com/

of course i'd advise you to head straight for the chocolate bars and the cocoa bean collection! however, once you've satisfied your cocoa cravings, look around at all the other delights on offer. my favourite picnic food includes thin slivers of salami from the delicatessen, in season salad leaves, english tomatoes, crusty bread and seggiano raw artichoke pate. follow this with a summery cocoa bean gin and tonic chocolate bar and take home the harvey nichols own brand jasmine tea leaves.

if you're not keen on picnics, treat yourself to lunch on the roof terrace! if you can't make it to london, you'll find fabulous food halls in dublin, manchester, leeds, birmingham and edinburgh.

fuse festival

2009-06-21T21:55:00.004+01:00

last night, i took esme to a night time extravaganza of fire, dancing and music. the fact that it was after her little sisters were already in bed made it even more thrilling. here we are eating a cone of hot chips, watching the circle of fire and waiting for it to begin. in the picture below you can see two extremely tall skeletons doing the salsa -complete with lifts! We got home close to midnight and drank cocoa bean hot chocolate with cinnamon - sipping it out in the back garden with the summer smell of honeysuckle still floating through the chilly night air.

better than bucket chemistry or leaving nigella

2009-06-21T21:03:00.009+01:00

muffins are my new favourite discovery! i have eaten them for many years but only rarely made them and never before realised that they free you from the baking tyranny of sieves and scales.

i love them! they take me back to the heady days of bucket chemistry before the rigorous precision of a-level or restrictive safety policies: we had great fun throwing a load of chemicals together and seeing what would happen (sometimes with disastrous, though thankfully never fatal, results.) muffin making feels that liberating-this is what happened...

i nearly followed nigellas recipe for banana butterscotch muffins in nigella express except i only had one egg and no butterscotch. i substituted raspberries instead of the butterscotch and halved the recipe. they were lovely but esme doesn't like bananas and this was not disguise enough so my adventure continues after the recipe:

1 and a half ripe bananas

125ml vegetable oil

an egg

125g flour

50g caster sugar

1/4 teaspoon bicarbonate

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

few handfuls of raspberries

preheat the oven to 200 C/ gas mark 6 and set out 6 muffin papers in a muffin tin

mash the bananas

pour the oil into a jug and beat in the egg

put flour, sugar, bicarbonate of soda and baking powder into a bowl and then mix in the oil/egg and the bananas

add the raspberries

spoon into cases and cook for 20 minutes

they worked beautifully and were made mostly by esme and elsie who were thrilled by the lack of instructions limited only to the mantra that 'lumpy is good'

so, to muffins with no bananas. my thinking was that the banana might need to be replaced with something to help keep the muffins moist. i used the recipe above with no bananas and a good dollop of greek yogurt and threw in some white and dark chocolate callets. they worked! succulent, tasty and risen to perfection. i had taken my first small muffin step away from nigella and into my own kitchen of creativity...

last night i invented the lemon zest and honey muffins. i discarded the recipe and roughly estimated the same ingredients as my original banana and raspberry muffin minus the bananas and raspberries. i added a dollop of creme fraiche (because it's what was in the fridge), a large spoon of honey, zest of one un-waxed lemon and the juice of half a lemon squeezed. I then sprinkled lemon zest and brown sugar on the top.

i held my breath as the lumpy mixture entered the oven...and about 20 minutes later -perfection! is this now my own recipe? have i let go of nigella's comfortingly warm and reassuring hand and started on a journey of my own?

daddy's day chocolate brownies

2009-06-20T11:41:00.008+01:00

chris is away on a stag weekend (camping in the countryside - meant to be fairly civilised...) and is only due back tomorrow evening, so all our father's day celebrations will need to be crammed into the short space of time between his return and lola's bedtime.

so me and lola are preparing by making chocolate brownies

i have taken the recipe from a beautiful little book i have called edible gifts by kay fairfax, which i am alarmed to see costs £34.95 on amazon - mine cost £8.99!!! it is full of inspirational homemade gift ideas for foodies and beautiful photography to complement it.

desribed in the introduction as 'a chocoholic's dream come true' and knowing what a sucker chris is for a proper rich, gooey brownie, how could i resist?! i didn't have the size tin specified so went for the closest i had, a bit shorter and deeper, and added 5 mins to the recommended cooking time.

ingredients

brownies

170g butter

3 free range eggs

325g golden caster sugar

75g cocoa powder, sifted

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

75g plain flour, sifted

250g dark chocolate drops, or finely chopped if using a bar

150g nuts, such as walnuts, almonds, pecans, coarsely chopped (optional)

( i only had 50g of walnuts so they has to suffice)

chocolate cream

100ml double cream

125g dark chocolate drops, or finely chopped if using a bar

cake tin, 28 x 18 x 1 cm, lined with baking parchment extending 5cm beyond the long ends.

method

1. melt the butter gently in a small saucepan

2. put the eggs in a bowl, whisk lightly, then whisk in the sugar. stir in the melted butter, cocoa and vanilla. using a wooden spoon or spatula, stir in the flour, stir through the chocolate and the nuts if you are using them.

3. pour into the prepared cake tin and bake in a preheated oven (160c) for 25-30 mins until just firm in the centre and still moist at the bottom.

do not overcook the brownies, they are not meant to have the consistency of a cake and should be moist and gooey in the middle. they will dry out as they cool.

4. remove from the oven and let stand, still in the tin, on a wire rack, until completely cool.

5. using the overhanging paper, carefully lift the brownies out of the tin onto a flat board and peel off the paper. dust with cocoa powder or cover with chocolate cream. cut into squares.

chocolate cream

1. put the cream in a saucepan and heat until; just simmering. add the chocolate and stir til smooth and glossy*. cool in the fridge for about an hour til firm enough to spread over the brownies.

* we managed to overheat the cream a bit and as a result the sauce went a bit grainy - we added about 25g of butter and 25ml cold double cream and gave it a good beat and it came back to a lovely shiny gloss.

we are trying to resist eating them until tomorrow - so i'll let you know the verdict then - but they certainly look good - and with that amount of butter, sugar and dark chocolate i don't see how they can fail to taste pretty spectacular!

we didn't manage to resist - we had to check it after all...

the flavour is glorious, and the texture, certainly at the edges, is perfect. the middle is currently a bit too gooey ( maybe another 5 minutes more would have helped in my deeper tin) but it is a lovely, fondanty experience, the flour is cooked - it just requires a spoon to eat it. i think it will probably have dried out enough by tomorrow to serve in the traditional brownie style!

shopping for chocolate by the sea

2009-06-17T21:52:00.012+01:00

if you happen to be around south west ireland this summer, or indeed looking for a spectacular place to go, do make your way to st finian's bay and visit our little chocolate factory by the sea.

travel the picturesque ring of kerry and turn off the main road between caherciveen and kenmare onto the far less frequented and incredibly scenic skelligs ring you will happen accross the skelligs chocolate factory (there are signs if you are lucky enough to spot them or click here for directions). set directly across from the fascinating, everchanging, sheltered stunner of a sandy beach that is st finian's bay. a visit to skelligs chocolate factory chocolate counter is a great way to sample a few of our best sellers, catch a glimpse of the chocolates being made in the open plan workspace (during the week) and of course buy a bountiful supply of chocolates for you, your friends and your family. there are special offers and a range special products only available from our factory counter.

during the summer the counter is open:

june

monday to friday - 10am - 5pm

july and august

monday to friday - 10am - 5pm

saturday and sunday - 12pm- 5pm

youthful entrepreneurs, adventurous connoisseurs

2009-06-14T21:54:00.016+01:00

how do you get your class of thirty 10 year olds, inspired about enterprise day? the answer is to find a friend who has a chocolate factory and invite her, under strict instructions to come armed with 'samples galore' and ask her to tell chocolate based business stories that will inspire a zest for marketing, making money and life in general!

the friend was me and this week i found myself back in a classroom again, not as a drama teacher but an entrepreneur. i was nervous and slightly worried about how i would keep their attention but minutes into the lesson, i realised it was going to be fun!

they were full of questions and enthusiasm. their own product ideas were great and they were eager to learn sales and marketing techniques in order to make the most of enterprise day.

best of all, despite a sample of strawberry flavoured white chocolate, the consensus in the class was that sea salt was our ultimate chocolate, closely followed by lime and black pepper.... hooray for the next adventurous generation of chocolate consumers!!!

grandma susie's chocolate milkshakes

2009-06-14T10:16:00.010+01:00

grandma susie says that the advantage of being a grandma is that when all your granddaughters come to visit you can produce fabulous chocolate milkshakes topped with excessive amounts of squirty cream and extra chocolate. we spent a glorious sunny week at grandma susie's indulging in such treats!

the advantage of writing a blog about chocolate is that when we get home we have an excuse to recreate them and earn big brownie points with our girls!

cocoa bean's hot chocolate mixes are great for this recipe and this is a great alternative way to use them in this fabulous hot weather; the cinnamon and chilli ones make a cool variation.

cool chocolate milk shakes

(serves 4 if parents are making them

or 2 if grandma is...)

5 tbsp chocolate drops

2 tbsp vanilla sugar

1 tbsp cocoa powder

2 tbsp chocolate icecream

1 pint of cold milk

squirty cream

place the chocolate, sugar, cocoa and a little milk in a saucepan and gently heat until the chocolate melts and the sugar dissolves.

remove from the heat and whisk in the icecream and remaining milk.

pour into glasses top with the cream and adorn in the most fanciful ways with straws, umbrellas and chocolate shavings.

homegrown strawberries

2009-06-08T19:30:00.002+01:00

our garden is beginning to yeild a small crop. radishes and rocket are now plentiful and the strawberries, though less than prolific, are beginning to show their tasty selves.

pasta disaster

2009-06-01T20:22:00.003+01:00

the dinner party was on the whole a success, however in an attempt to be sociable and organised hosts we made the ravioli too far in advance and the goats cheese ones disintergrated into a sloppy, sticky mess. the mushroom ones were luckily rescuable and delicious and more filling than we had anticipated. 2-3 of the size i gave below were plentiful with accompaniments. the walnut sauce was a bit odd as the pasta was too delicate to mix into it therefore it didn't get warmed. the shortbread stacks were a resounding success except we had to wait a while before tucking into them as we were as stuffed as the pasta...

summer dinner party

2009-05-29T15:53:00.008+01:00

the sun is shining and we have friends coming over for dinner tonight so we are preparing, at a leisurely pace, a simple meal that we can enjoy out in the sunshine.

chris is presently rolling out fresh pasta for handmade ravioli; we have opted for two fillings to create a contrast; half are destined to be rich wild mushroom and half a lighter goats cheese and spinach and topped off with nigella's walnut pasta sauce which we are hoping will tie to the two flavours together. all a bit of an experiment it has to be said.

if the main course turns out to be an absolute disaster then at least i am fairly confident that the dessert will be delicious - a stack of handmade shortbread with vanilla creme fraiche and fresh local raspberries. the secret to this is a very thin layer of white chocolate on the bottom layers of shortbread to make sure the biscuits don't go soggy from the creme fraiche.

ice cold white wine i think is in order...

i'll give you our guests verdict tomorrow but for now these are our recipes to serve 4 for a light dinner, you can bulk it out with garlic bread and salad (we are having a tiny salad from the garden; the slugs spared very little...)-

basic pasta recipe
ingredients
300g '00' flour, sifted
pinch of salt
1 tbsp olive oil
3 free range eggs
extra flour for dusting
extra beaten egg for sealing ravioli

method
combine the flour and salt and pile on a clean work surface, make a well in the centre
break the eggs into the well
gradually bring the flour in from the edges and combine with the eggs- patience is really key to this process (which is why chris is making ours instead of me)
add the olive oil and continue to mix til it forms a soft dough

on a lightly floured surface knead the dough until it is smooth and silky

wrap in cling film and chill in the fridge for 15 mins

if you have a pasta maker then roll throught the palin roller until the dough passes through the tinnest setting. alternatively roll using a rolling pin til the dough is almost transparent. the thinner the dough the more delicate the ravioli. make sure you keep your surface well floured so the dough doesn't stick and tear but don't allow the dough to become too dry either!

as soon as the desired thickness is achieved lay a strip of dough on a clear surface and blob your fillings on at various intervals- we tend to make a few quite big ones per person rather than lots of little ones so we do about a tbsp of filling in the middle of a 3" square - paint the egg mixture around the filling (to ensure a good seal) then lay a piece of pasta of a corresponding size over the top.

using a sharp knife slice between the ravioli and trim to neaten. gently squeeze any air out of the little parcel. repeat!

just before serving bring a large pan of salted water to the boil. cook the ravioli in batches for 2 minutes and serve immediately.

wild mushroom filling
ingredients
1oog portabello mushrooms
50g shiitake mushrooms
20g dried porcini mushrooms, soaked
1 clove garlic, sliced
20g butter
1 tbsp olive oil
glug of white wine
125g ricotta
30g finely grated parmasen
lots of freshly ground pepper
a pinch of salt
50g portabello mushrooms and 25g shiitake mushrooms, finely diced

method
finely chop the first 170g of mushrooms
fry in the butter and oil
add the garlic
add the white wine and allow liquid to reduce
remove from the heat
when cool blitz til smooth in a food processor
blend with the cheeses, reserved mushrooms and seasoning

goats cheese and spinach filling
ingredients
100g baby spinach, wilted and chopped
75g soft goats cheese, crumbled
salt and pepper
a spinkling of freshly grated nutmeg

method
mix it all together!

nigella's walnut sauce
ingredients
90g walnuts, shelled
1/2 clove garlic, minced
1/2 slice granary bread, crusts removed
75ml whole fat milk
15g parmasen, grated
2 tbsp good olive oil
salt and pepper
handful of parsely, chopped

method
toast the walnuts til they give off a nutty aroma
soak the bread in the milk til soft
put 75g of the walnuts, the garlic, soaked bread and parmasen in a blender and blend til smooth and creamy
add oil and seasoning and blend again
place in a large bowl

cook the ravioli

reserve a cup of the cooking water and then drain

add the pasta to the sauce (add a little of the cooking water if it seems too thick)

serve sprinkled with remaining walnuts and parsely.

shortbread stack
ingredients
115g plain flour
115g butter
60g caster sugar
30g white chocolate, melted
300ml creme fraiche
seeds from one vanilla pod
as many raspberries as you can lay your hands on, or strawberries, or blueberries, or....
icing sugar to dust

method
preheat the oven to 220c
combine the flour, butter and caster sugar and rub together until they have the texture of breadcrumbs
knead into a dough
on a floured surface roll to approx 1/2cm and cut into squares or shapes using biscuit cutters
arrange, spaced out generously on an ungreased baking tray and bake for 5-6 mins until golden at the edge
leave to cool on the tray

when cool paint the biscuits with a thin layer of the melted chocolate
allow to set

combine the creme fraiche and vanilla seeds

just before serving, stack up the dessert starting with a biscuit, then creme fraiche and rasberries, biscuit, creme fraiche, raspberries, biscuit and dust with icing sugar
serve

speedy chocolate truffles

2009-05-23T23:51:00.006+01:00

it is very late and i'm going to see the family tomorrow who have given us their daughter's cot for iris. i have been intending to make chocolates for them for the last week as a thank you but have not got around to it. so, here's how to make cocoa bean truffles quickly!

prepare little pots of ingredients - i save these from indian takeaways. I used nuts, dried fruit, fresh herbs, rosewater, citrus zest, balsamic vinegar, sea salt, spices ... be creative!

make a ganache of 500g chocolate and a 500ml single or soya cream. you will also need about 250g dark chocolate to enrobe.

for more details on how to make the ganache, temper and enrobe the chocolates see my blog on Dec 3rd 2008.

spoon the plain chocolate ganache into each bowl and mix well. pop in the freezer, have a cup of tea and prepare your toppings and before you know it, they are ready to spoon out onto a plate of cocoa, roll and place on greaseproof paper. remember to label your flavours - a small pencil reminder on your greaseproof works well.

temper your chocoate, dip and top. If you have failed to buy a nice gift box, wrap a small box in nice paper, line with greaseproof paper, fill with truffles and tie with ribbon or string and a handwritten label.

these truffles will be best eaten in a week, especially if using lots of soft fruits and no alcohol - most people see this as an advantage!

biscuits from corfu

2009-05-23T22:51:00.011+01:00

we have just got back from an idyllic week in corfu. feeling a bit sad and missing the sun, the sea, the feta cheese, sardines, olives, sausages, aubergines, courgettes, tomatoes and chicken kebabs, elsie and i decided to cheer ourselves up by trying a recipe for biscuits that the woman from our favourite bakery had given us on our last day. so thanks to rosie near the town of gastouri. efharisto!

35g butter

30g caster sugar - i used sugar that has a vanilla pod stored in it or you could add a drop of vanilla extract

1 egg, beaten

85g sifted self raising flour

a few handfuls of dark chocolate chips or broken pieces

25g chopped brazil nuts

pinch of salt

preheat the oven at 180 c/ 350 f gas mark 4

grease a large baking tray

cream the butter and sugar in a bowl and then beat in the egg. fold the sifted flour into the mixture and beat well. use a teaspoon to spoon small heaps onto the tray, spaced well apart. bake for 10-15 minutes and enjoy hot while the chocolate is still melted or leave to cool and eat at the end of a long greek breakfast with a really strong coffee.

lola's chocolate bunny

2009-05-10T16:55:00.011+01:00

this is a great project for kids to do, with the mid term break coming up at the end of the month i fully recommend getting in the few things you need to do this as it is a rewarding little project with endless possibilities for variation. they make lovely handmade gifts too, especially if you gift wrap them (try keylink for off the shelf chocolate packaging, or improvise with greaseproof paper and ribbons for a truly artisanal look).

so meet lola, 3 (very nearly 4 as she is at pains to point out). she decided to make a bunny. at this age a little supervision is useful but older children would be fine on their own.

you will need melted chocolate to form the base of your shape, this will make up the majority of the finished shape so choose your favourite. i find it is rarely worth melting less than about 100g of chocolate at a go, too smaller quantity is at risk of burning during melting or is likely to set too quickly once you stop heating it.

these are the types of things you can have handy for decoration-

contrasting chocolate, either melted for sqiggling, or buttons or shavings...sprinkles...dried fruit...edible glitter...jelly tots...marshmallows...basically anything that sticks to melted chocolate and the intended receipient would appreciate...

1. draw out your basic shape on some greaseproof paper. i find that sticking the paper down to a plate or baking tray is useful to stop it curling while you're working. a couple of blobs of butter on each corner works well.

2. test the chocolate

3. spoon on the melted chocolate to fill the shape. smooth it out with the back of the spoon so it is nice and even and thick enough to press your decorations in to.

3. decorate

4. test the decorations

5. pop the whole lot in the fridge til it sets then peel off the paper and gift wrap if you'd like.

6. or eat.

fantastic flapjacks

2009-04-27T12:18:00.003+01:00

these chocolate chip and raisin flapjacks make a great snack with coffee and are a perfect balance between oaty goodness and buttery, syrupy wickedness to make them very popular in lunchboxes.

ingredients

125g butter + a little extra for greasing
125g golden caster sugar
90g golden syrup
210g porridge oats
25g toated sliced almonds
50g dark chocolate chips
25g raisins

method

1. heat oven to 180c and butter the lower half of a 8" square cake tin
2. in a pan melt the butter, sugar and golden syrup over a medium heat, stirring continuously. take off the heat and add the oats, almonds, chocolate and raisins.
3. spoon the mixture into the tin and level off. bake for about 25 minutes until the edges are golden brown. remove from the oven, and while still warm, mark into 16 pieces.
4. leave to cool and break along premarked lines. can be stored for several days in an airtight container