Articles

We have some seriously spooky stuff that the kids can help with – perfect for the mid-term break. Not only will carrots help you see in the dark, but they can be made into great ‘Halloween x-ray vision’ party fare. So why not get the kids to “give you a hand” creating Frankenstein Fingers from baby carrots, using flaked almonds as finger nails and assembling them into a pot of slimy green guacamole...
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Hallowe’en is coming up and the evenings are closing in nicely for the bonfire and sparklers – this month’s recipes are ideal for feeding family and friends the casual, hearty fare that you need when everyone is coming and going through the evening. Tasty dishes – and a yummy way to use up the pumpkin flesh once you’ve hollowed it out. And we have some seriously spooky stuff that the kids can help with too – perfect for the mid-term break.
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Lucy Madden muses on our affluence, or lack of it, and thinks she may have got hold of the germ of an idea which could open up a whole new tourist market in Ireland - and give back to children and teenagers some of the freedom and sense of wonder that’s been lost in recent years.
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Mention lamb to most people and it is likely to summon up images of spring - green fields and daffodils, with fluffy lambs gambolling around – but, tasty as tender young lowland lamb may be in spring and summer, there’s a completely different and more characterful variety that comes into season later in the year: mountain lamb.
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No other food epitomises the plenty of autumn like the glorious orange pumpkin - although we may be inclined to underrate its many less flamboyant but very delicious cousins in the extended squash family. The pumpkin is synonymous with Hallowe’en, and the bigger the better - but, once they’ve been hollowed out, shaped into the traditional spooky face and filled with candles, thousands of families are left with a lot of lovely pumpkin flesh that’s looking for a use.
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The “Just Ask!” Restaurant of the Month winner for September is Coopershill House at Riverstown Co Sligo. One of the most delightful and superbly comfortable Georgian houses in Ireland, this sturdy granite mansion was built to withstand the rigours of a Sligo winter but it’s a warm and friendly place.
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The other day found me eating a large meringue before going to lie on my bed, as you do when overwhelmed by a large work-load. Yes, business is very slow: this country has so many bedrooms now. For premises with a large staff to maintain, it must be tough. For those like us who rely on, and now can’t afford, ancillary staff, the work still has to be done.
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So, it’s the end of the long summer holidays and back to school – which may sound a little sad, but the start of the new academic year is always an exciting time. It’s also a magical time for gardeners, who have the reward of harvesting (and eating) many of the crops grown this year - and the pleasure of plotting and planning for next season, as the endless cycle begins again.
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It’s not hard to see why Clandeboye Estate Yoghurt stands out from the crowd: not only is it made with milk from Clandeboye’s prized herd of Holstein and Jersey cows, but the eye-catching packaging is based on an oil painting of those very cows and the estate by their owner, Lady Dufferin, who is a talented artist.
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Of the many good things September brings, one of the most exciting is the new native oyster season. Very much associated with the west of Ireland, especially Galway, its arrival is celebrated every year by the Galway International Oyster Festival –the 55th festival takes place over 24-27th September 2009. The most eagerly anticipated (and hotly contested) competition is always the Guinness World Oyster Opening Championship, in which contestants race to open 30 oysters and present them correctly.
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