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JANUARY Crunchy Raw Salad BULK MUST HAVE Chopped cabbage (red, white and green) Grated carrots ADD ANY OF THE FOLLWING…. Blanched green beans or beetroot Grated Beetroot Kale, chard or spinach Decent salad leaves Finely chopped red or yellow peppers Beansprouts Grated apple TOP WITH… Chopped mint and coriander Finely sliced chillis Pomegranates Toasted salad seeds or nuts DRESSING 100ml sunflower or peanut oil 20ml soy sauce 10ml rice vinegar juice of 1 lime knob of fresh ginger and clove garlic grated
OCTOBER Simon's Beetroot Soup with Ardsallagh Goat's Cheese 2.5kg peeled fresh beet 500g chopped onion 2 minced cloves garlic 1 tspn minced fresh ginger 1 heaped tspn cumin powder 2 litres good veg or chicken stock Oil and butter, seasoning Splash red wine vinegar Sweat the onions in the butter on low heat for at least 10 minutes until soft and sweet and just about turning brown. Add in your chopped beetroot, garlic and spices and sweta for a further 10 minutes. Add the hot stock and season well. Finally, add a splash vinegar to preserve colour and blitz The soup will keep refrigerated for 3 days if made with chicken stock and 1 week if you use vegetable stock. It can also be frozen. The yield approximately 4 litres.
SEPTEMBER Cuinneog Buttermilk Pancakes with Blackberries Makes about 10 pancakes or 3 portions and one left to fight over 3 eggs 115 g plain flour 140 ml Cuinneog buttermilk A pinch of salt *Teaspoon of bread soda You'll need two bowls. In one , sift your flour and bread soda and salt. Separate your egg whites and yolks, and add the yolks and buttermilk to the flour mix, whisking until you have a smooth batter. In the other bowl, whisk your egg whites until you have soft peaks (about a minute with electric whisk), and fold these whites gently into your batter. Heat a pan and add a small knob of butter and spoon of oil. Spoon the pancake mix on, you'll get at least 3 in a regular 24 cm pan, and drop a few blackberries into each one. Cook on moderate heat, turning each pancake after a minute or so. Serve with more blackberries, and maple syrup. As well as a breakfast special, we also serve these at Café Rua with vanilla ice cream as a dessert.
AUGUST Gubbeen Bacon, Cheese & Scallion Tart Pastry 250 g plain white flour 100g butter 1 egg / 1 yolk Pinch of salt and sugar Cold water to bind Rub the cold butter in with your fingertips Until it resembles fine breadcrumbs, and then add Your eggs and water. Bring together, cling and keep in the fridge for at least an hour before using. Roll out the pastry fairly thin to line a lightly oiled 23 cm fluted Pastry tin. You'll have some leftover, but re-cling it and use at a later date(mini quiches using muffin tins would be one suggestion). Put the tart case in the freezer for an hour. After that, blind bake it in oven at 180 weighing the pastry down with dried beans or baking weights, if you have them. 4 good sized scallions 100g grated Gubbeen cheese 200g Gubbeen bacon lardoons 4 organic eggs and 1 yolk 250 ml cream Teaspoon Dijon mustard. *Salt and black pepper Fry the bacon until crispy. In the same pan, sweat the scallions in a little butter until just softened. Brush the base of the blind baked tart case with the mustard, and scatter half the scallions over it. In a bowl, mix together the eggs and cream, and add the grated cheese, bacon and remaining scallions. Season well, add bowl of contents to tart casel and bake at 170 C for approx 30 minutes until filling has just set...ideally, you're looking for light golden top and a tart with a slighty wobbly but not runny inside. Serve when warm with some well dressed salad leaves and Rua tomato and apple chutney.
JULY Nicoise salad with Burren 'Hot Smoked' Salmon * 1 pack of Burren 'Hot Smoked' Salmon * Washed butterhead lettuce or rocket * 4 cherry tomatoes * 2 medium hard boiled free range eggs * Plenty of Blanched green beans * 2 boiled new season 'waxy' potatoes * A few capers * Some chopped parsley * A dozen or so pitted black kalamatta olives * Rua salad dressing and soda bread * Black pepper Place everything except the eggs and Salmon in bowl and Dress well. Crumble the salmon over the salad and quarter the eggs. Also placing in bowl/plate. Add a little more dressing to taste and grind fresh black pepper over the top. Serve with some soda bread or a crusty baguette.
JUNE Chorizo Spiced Eggs * 2 Leon Cooking Chorizo sausages - cut into thickish discs * 4 Free range eggs * A tin of good quality tomatoes * Handful of spinach leaves - 150g or so. * Tablespoon of Rua Chilli & Coriander Relish * Grated cheddar and crème fraiche - optional * Good crusty bread to mop up - not optional Method Start with a deepish sauté or frying pan, one that can take a lid, or even a plate over it. Fry the chorizo discs on a medium high heat until appetizingly coloured and the oil is released. Throw into your tin of tomatoes, a spoon full of relish and stir. Simmer gently for 5 minutes. Toss in the washed spinach, and when wilted, crack in your 4 eggs over the top of the delicious goo. Put on slow simmer, and place lid on top. The steam created will cook your eggs nicely over the next 3 or 4 minutes...don't get distracted - stay with them, turning the heat off immediately when egg nirvana is reached. Scoop into bowls, and add some cheddar or crème fraiche for premier league decadence. Eat and then lie down.
APRIL Cider Balsamic Dressing Makes about 300ml /full jam jar * 1 dessertspoon Dijon mustard * 1 tablespoon chopped flat leaf parsley * 1/2 clove of garlic crushed * 1 tablespoon of Llewellyn's balsamic cider vinegar * 300 ml Donegal rapeseed oil * Salt and pepper to taste Method Put all ingredients in bowl except oil. Slowly pour oil in , whisking to combine ingredients as you pour. Keeps in the fridge for several weeks.
MARCH Butternut Squash, Spinach and St. Tola Goat's Cheese Tart This delicious and patriotically coloured tart is a regular guest star on our Café menus. It’s a reworking of a recipe that originally appeared in ‘Food and travel’ magazine, which had a different oatmeal style pastry….. Ingredients * 200g prepared butternut squash * 1 tablesp. olive oil * Salt and freshly ground black pepper * 225g spinach, washed and large stalks removed * 150g St Tola goats’s cheese * 2 large eggs * 200ml double cream * 40g Parmesan cheese, finely grated For the pastry: * 175g plain flour * 1 egg yolk * Pinch salt * Pinch sugar * 75g butter * 1 tablesp. chilled water, cut into pieces To Cook Method For the pastry, put the flour and salt into a food processor or mixing bowl, add the butter and work together until the mixture looks like fine breadcrumbs. Stir in the water with a kitchen knife, or process briefly, until the mixture comes together into a ball. Knead briefly on a lightly floured surface until smooth. Cling and refrigerate for at leats 30 mins before using. Take a 10 “ tart case, brush lightly with oil. Roll out pastry, and carefully fill the case. Chill for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to Gas Mark 6, 200ºC (400ºF). Cut the prepared butternut squash into 2.5cm sized pieces. Place in a roasting tin with the olive oil and some salt and pepper and toss together. Spread out in a layer and roast for 20 minutes or until just tender. Line the tartlet case with squares of crumpled greaseproof paper and a thin layer of baking beans and bake blind for 15 minutes. Remove the paper and beans and return to the oven for a further 5-6 minutes until crisp and biscuit-coloured. Meanwhile, heat a large pan over a medium-high heat, add the spinach and cook for 2-3 minutes until it has wilted down into the base of the pan. Tip into a colander and gently press out the excess liquid. Season. Break the goats’ cheese into small pieces. Remove the tart case from the oven and lower the oven temperature to Gas Mark 5, 190ºC (375ºF). Arrange the pieces of roasted butternut squash, spinach and about 2/3 rd’s of the crumbled St Tola in the tart case. Beat the eggs and cream together in a jug with 25g of the grated parmesan and the remainder of the goat’s cheese and some seasoning. Pour into each tartlet case and sprinkle with the remaining grated cheese. Place on a baking sheet and bake for 20 - 25 minutes until set and lightly golden. There should be a very slight wobble, but no visible liquid. Serve warm with a simple and sharply dressed green salad.
FEBRUARY Roast Cauliflower Salad Sounds dull, but this wonderfully zingy salad is far greater than it’s sum of parts and properly celebrates this delicious seasonal vegetable. Delicious served warm as part of a Mezze plate…or bulk it up by adding chickpeas, or leftover rice. 2 heads cauliflower – cut into florets Glug of olive oil teaspoon dried chilli flakes Tablespoon of cumin seeds and mustard seeds - crushed Mix of seeds – pumpkin, sunflower, sesame Juice of 2 limes 4 scallions, sliced Bunch of coriander - chopped Plenty of salt and pepper to taste Method. Preheat oven to 200 degrees C. Put tray into oven with olive oil. Blanch the cauliflower in boiling water for 1 minute, Drain and let dry. Toss the Cauliflower in the hot oil, add the dried chilli, Seeds and crushed spices and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Remove from oven after about 20 minutes. Cauliflower should be turning gold and crisping at edges. Add the lime juice, scallions and coriander and season generously. Best served immediately…..but also great from the fridge.
JANUARY Spiced Butternut Squash Soup Knob of butter Medium onion, chopped 1 clove of garlic, minced Grated piece of fresh ginger 1 red chilli 1 teaspoon of cumin seeds, lightly toasted 350 g Butternut squash 1 medium potato 2 carrots all peeled and chopped 1.2 litres of stock Salt and pepper Crème fraiche and chopped coriander to serve Method Slowly sweat the onion in the butter. Add garlic, ginger, chilli and cumin. After a couple of minutes, add in your chopped vegetables and stock. Bring to the boil, and reduce to simmer for 20 minutes. Liquidize until smooth, and check seasoning add some extra stock until the right consistency is achieved.
DECEMBER Rua Cranberry Stilton Salad Jar of Rua Cranberry Sauce Rua Salad Dressing Bag of good quality salad leaves 200 g Stilton (Cashel blue, Roquefort and Bleu d'auvergne also work well) Packet of Gubeen Bacon 'Lardons' This is a wonderful, warm and easy to prepare seasonal salad. It's make a great starter for Christmas dinner or a family gathering... but also would be a welcome light lunch in the days that follow the main event. Method Fry the lardons until crispy, set aside in a warm place. Lightly dress leaves and add in a few of the cranberries, lardons and some crumbled cheese. Toss the salad and plate it up, but add a few more cranberries, lardoons and crumbled stilton on top. Eat immediately.
NOVEMBER Ultimate fruit cake This proper old fashioned moist cake is a year round cake, but also works really well as Plain flour - 350 g Baking powder - ½ teaspoon Soft Butter - 350 g Soft dark brown sugar - 350 g 5 large free range eggs Dried Fruits 1 Kg in total (Mix of Citron peel, prunes, cherries, apricots, cranberries, dried figs- cut up into small pieces) Vine fruits 500g in total (raisins, sultanas, currants) Zest and juice of a lemon and orange Ground almonds - 100 g Shelled hazelnuts - 150 g 50- 100 mls of Brandy depending on how boozy you like it. 24 cm removable base tin - set oven to 160 C Method Cream butter and sugar until fluffy Add the eggs one at a time Slowly add your ground almonds, hazelnuts and all dried fruit. After that, brandy, zest and juice. Sift in flour and powder, and scrape the lot into prepared tin. Bake at 160 C for 1 hour, and then turn down to 150 C and balke for a further 2 hours. Test it with a skewer, and leave to cool in tin before removing.
OCTOBER Chorizo, potato and chickpea stew Serves 6 1 medium onion finely chopped 2 cloves of garlic crushed 2 sticks celery chopped Dessert spoon full of fresh thyme leaves 6 quality chorizo sausages 1.5 litre chicken stock (or vegetable stock) 250 grammes dried chickpeas soaked overnight OR tin of chickpeas 6 medium potatoes peeled Method. Slowly sweat the onions, celery, garlic and thyme. When onions are translucent, but not brown (10 mins or so), slice up the chorizo sausages and add to onion mix, and sauté for 5 minutes or so. Add your stock, and at this point, add your soaked chickpeas and potatoes. Simmer gently until the potatoes are tender - 25-35 minutes.(note - tinned chickpeas won't need as long as they have been boiled already - add 15 minutes after potatoes.
SEPTEMBER Herb crumbed flatfield mushrooms with Durrus cheese We served these at our last dinner night and they proved extremely popular. Very easy to make, they can be shallow fried in a pan, baked in the oven, but we think that they're most delicious deep fried at hight temperature for about 25 seconds. They would be paticuarly deliciouss accompanied by some of Stephen Gould's mixed leaves or rocket, and either Rua chilli relish or beetroot chutney, all available from the delicatessen. 8 decent mid size flat field mushrooms About 200gms of Durrus cheese Bread crumbs Some sage, parsley and thyme Spoon of olive oil oil Egg wash and flour Blitz your herbs in a food processor, And add the crumbs with some seasoning. Add the oil, as it will help the crumb and herbs Marry together and yield a nice green colour. Take out the entire stalk of the mushroom without putting a hole in it and stuff a thumb sized piece of Durrus or other good melting cheese such as Talegio into the crevice. Flour, egg wash and crumb the mushrooms. Refrigerate for an hour or so, and fry as described above.
AUGUST Buttermilk Panna Cotta We've chosen Panna Cotta this month because it's the perfect companion to the abundance of wonderful Irish berries in season. Simply scatter the plate with some strawberries, cherries, blueberries, blackberries, loganberries... whatever you have or a mix of the lot. The desert works well with a myriad of other ingredients such as lightly cooked rhubarb, plain chocolate sauce, or figs and honey. The quantity below serves 4 . Traditionally, we put these into little metal ramekins called Daria moulds, and plonk them on to a plate for individual serving. Alternatively, you could simply set the mix in glasses or, if you doubled the recipe, put the whole lot into a cling film lined 1 lb bread tin, turn out on to a plate and put a heap of berries on top. Simply cut slices for your lucky guests. Serves 4 70 ml Buttermilk 2 Vanilla pods deseeded rind of a lemon 1.5 leaves of Gelatine - soaked in cold water for a few minutes 375ml cream 70 g icing sugar Put the milk, ½ the cream, the vanilla seeds and pods, and lemon rind into a small pan and simmer slowly for about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the gelatine until dissolved. Fish out the rind and pods and set this liquid aside. When it has cooled down, place it in fridge for approx ½ an hour until chilled . Meanwhile whip the remaining cream and add the icing sugar. Fold this in gradually and gently to your chilled liquid, and place into your moulds or glasses. Refrigerate overnight, and it's a good idea to cling film the ramekins or glasses so they don't pick up other fridge smells.	Literaly meaning 'cooked cream' , we've given this Italian classic a slight lift by the addition of some lovely Mayo Cuinneog Buttermilk, which lends a slight acidity to this creamy yet surprisingly light dessert.
JULY Horseradish and herb butter Cut a slice of this and put on your steak, or piece of grilled mackerel. ½ lb. Cuinneog, Kerrygold or similar good quality salted butter 1 tbsp of finely grated fresh horseradish or Same amount of Stoke's Horseradish sauce 1 tbsp of chopped flatleaf parsley Good grinding of black pepper Wait until butter is at least room temperature or softer and mix all ingredients together. Put the lot of a piece of parchement/greasproof paper, and roll into cylinder shape. Tie at ends and refrigerate. Also freezes really well.
JUNE Rhubarb Fool (makes 4 generous ones) 6 sticks of Irish Rhubarb 250 gm caster sugar vanilla pod juice of an orange 500 ml of cream Cut the rhubarb into inch pieces and lightly poach with juice, sugar and seeded pod until soft. Reserve half of the rhubarb pieces and puree the other half. Allow to cool. Whip the cream and add the remaining sugar , fold in the cooled puree and pieces and serve in glasses with the biscuits below. Try the same recipe with Gooseberries, blackcurrants, raspberries and blackberries. Orange Biscuits - This mix makes lots...way to many for the fools above, but dough will keep in fridge for a week or freezes really well. 185g butter 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1 egg 1 egg yolk 225g caster sugar 330 g plain flour grated rind of an orange Cream the butter and sugar in food processor until smooth. Add everything else, knead lightly, roll into cling fill and refrigerate for 30 mins. Roll dough into shape of rolling pin, and slice off thins for your biscuits. Place on non stick baking tray an into oven at 180 degrees celcius for 10-12 minutes until very lightly golden. Cool on a wire rack
MAY Cauliflower and Wild Garlic Fritters Serves 4 (2 fritters each) 1/3 head of cauliflower - cut into tiny florets (keep raw) handful of chopped wild garlic, or spoon wild garlic pesto 2 eggs 150 grammes flour 2 tablespoons cream grated parmesan and other cheese of choice (Goats or decent blue cheese would work) seasoning. - Mix the eggs, flour and cream to smooth paste - add all other ingredients and combine well. - Shallow fry the fritters in a pan on medium high heat turning after approx 3-4 minutes. Should be golden brown. -Pat them dry in kitchen paper. Serve with some decent and nicely dressed salad leaves. These particular fritters would also welcome a punchy tomato sauce like arrabiata or perhaps some Rua Beetroot relish. Click here for more Wild Garlic recipes...