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May 30, 2007

Oysters at The Shelbourne

Last night, Anne Kennedy of Greatfood.ie and I, in need of a glass of wine and some food, ended up - at her suggestion - at the newly decked out and recently reopened Shelbourne Bar in The Shelbourne on St Stephen's Green. My memories of the old Shelbourne, admittedly after a couple of dynamite martinis in the Horseshoe Bar in the depths of winter, was of a gradually-getting-shabbier, heavy-with-tradition place. A grand old dame of Dublin, it was long overdue a facelift - although perhaps not one that went hand in hand with an American hotel chain. The Shelbourne Bar, where we ended up, is now a comfortable, light, bright L-shaped room on the left as you enter the hotel.

As we entered, Anne, with unerring ability, steered our way to the only empty table in a busy bar. Menus weren't long in arriving but we didn't look too far after seeing the oysters on offer. We ordered two each of the four types on the menu (and I forgot to take note of their names!), at €2.50 a piece, along with a couple of glasses of viognier (€8). Two platters arrived, with the fresh, plump, grey oysters sitting on the half shell, on top of crushed ice and some decorative seaweed. A little dish of shallot-rich Mignotte Sauce was at the centre of each platter, with a few lemon segments on the side.

We had ordered the four different types of oysters in order to compare, contrast and decide on our favourites; unfortunately when they arrived the waitress did not know the difference between the varieties so I'm not sure whether I preferred the Clair or the Belon (at least I think that's what two of the oyster varieties were). Anne's oysters were no sooner on the table than they disappeared. Mine - this was only the third time I had the opportunity to eat oysters - took a little longer to be savoured and swallowed. The Mignotte was too vinegary to do anything but disguise their savoury brininess but we nibbled at it afterwards as the ice melted and we finished our glasses of wine.

For oysters and a glass of wine, the Horseshoe Bar is a wonderful, and not extortionate, treat - especially for me, as Anne picked up the tab - but I'm not sure if my bank balance would survive an entire night in such salubrious surroundings. Another place to get the freshest of oysters in Dublin, along with a glass of white wine and some brown bread (now that would make a nice addition to The Shelbourne's oyster platter), is at the Temple Bar Food Market - watch out for the stall with the stool by the Gallery of Photography on Meeting House Square on Saturdays.

The Horseshoe Bar at The Shelbourne, 27 St Stephen's Green, Dublin 2. Phone: 01 6634500

Posted by Caroline at 7:27 PM | Comments (6)

May 27, 2007

Restaurant Review: Olesya's Wine Bar

Wine, wine and more wine - if that's what you're looking for then the recently opened Olesya's Wine Bar on Dublin's Exchequer Street is the perfect place. With a long wine list, which includes choices from Georgia and the Lebanon alongside a good selection of new and old world wines, there's plenty to choose from, should you wish to imbibe by the glass or bottle.

The Boyfriend and I, in a tapas mood on Thursday night, and on the way to see if there were any seats in Havana, instead ended up in Olesya's. A menu which included blini and foie gras, alongside platters of cheese and more substantial dishes of risotto or sausages and mash, grabbed our attention outside the door and an empty table inside was quickly ours. Although a very comfortable size for food and wine, being larger than many tables for two, it does take some manoeuvring to negotiate the narrow gap between your and your neighbours' table. Intent on avoiding the wine glasses at the next table, I managed to wallop my head on a mirror hung on the facing wall, after which I quickly sat down and hid my blushes in the menu, ahem.

We chose Babich Pinot Noir (€26) - another favourite NZ wine - to accompany our pick and mix meal of Pâté French Style (€9.80) and a Farmhouse Platter (€17.95). The pâté was very good, three sizable scoops that were smooth and well-flavoured, served with a delicious red onion marmalade and salad leaves that included plenty of peppery rocket. It came with a basket of warm, crusty bread and didn't last too long. The Farmhouse Platter, alas, was a different story. Supposedly a selection of charcuterie and cheese, the cheese was represented by three small anonymous segments. The platter was filled up with salad, olives, walnuts, dried fruits, plenty of decent salami and good ham, but it has to be admitted, the cheese component was sadly lacking. Of course, being typically Irish - and starving at that stage - I didn't complain, the Pinot Noir and pâté combination successfully rubbing off any rough edges as we enjoyed the rest of the meal.

A couple of peppermint teas later, we had to run out the door and grab a taxi so that I could make it to my polling station in Rathmines - Thursday was voting day in Ireland - before 10.30pm. Fortunately I got there in time to exercise my constitutional right, for all the good it did. My verdict on Olesya's? Wine good, pâté great, charcuterie plentiful but - and it's a big but - the scanty cheese portions, especially for someone who loves cheese (currently reading Paul Gayler's A Passion for Cheese!), were a big stumbling block.

Dinner came to a total of €58.75 for a bottle of wine, pâté, the farmhouse platter and two teas.

Olesya's Wine Bar, 18 Exchequer Street, Dublin 2. Phone: 01 672 4087

Posted by Caroline at 4:30 PM | Comments (0)

May 24, 2007

The Ethnic Paris Cookbook by Charlotte Puckette and Olivia Kiang-Snaije

This is the book for anyone who has ever gone to Paris seeking French food and been completely waylaid from their Coq au Vin by the rich variety of ethnic restaurants in the city. With a far-flung variety of former colonies and protectorates, Paris is a melting pot for people and cuisines from all over North Africa, Asia and the Middle East. When we were there last year we spent a lot of time exploring the food available at places like the café at L'Institut du Monde Arabe, grabbing pastries from a spectacular Algerian bakery called La Bague de Kenza (subsequently written up in the New York Times, with recipes, and there's also some great photos on Lulu Loves London) and trying to find a much-recommended restaurant called l'Afghanistan in the 11th arrondissement.

Part guide for your next trip to Paris and part recipe collection, authors Charlotte Puckette and Olivia Kiang-Snaije mix stories of immigrant experiences in Paris, information about ethnic restaurants and interviews with their proprietors/chefs, with well-chosen recipes and delightful drawings - just take a look at the cheery cover to get an idea. It is illustrated by Paris-based Lebanese artist Dinah Diwan and her vivid images are full of fun and energy.

Separated by nationality - Morocco/Algeria/Tunisia, Vietnam/Cambodia/Laos/China, Japan, Cameroon/Senegal/The West Indies, Lebanon and Syria - each chapter has the makings of an entire meal, from Green Papaya and Moroccan Carrot Salads, Shrimp Rougail and Pork Colombo, to Saharan Almond Cake with Orange Coulis or Coconut and Lime Flan.

It may be a slightly rose-coloured picture of French colonial and immigrant history, but this picture of a vibrant multicultural Paris and its associated food makes for fascinating reading. Information on the more obscure ingredients - my favourite argan oil, for instance - is always useful and the recipes are encouragingly straightforward. I've already dog-eared more that a few of the Moroccan and Lebanese recipes to try. A colourful addition to your cookbook shelves.

The Ethnic Paris Cookbook has also got its own blog here, where you can read about the adventures of the authors on the book promotion trail.

Posted by Caroline at 7:42 AM | Comments (4)

May 18, 2007

Baker's Edge in Ireland

One of the many interesting things about food blogging is tracing the movement of ideas and recipes around the widespread world of bloggers. Since the first time I read about Mark Bittman's No-Knead Bread - currently on my (very long!) list of recipes to try - in the New York Times it has travelled far and wide. You'll also find Peabody's Cranberry Orange Cookies a-wandering around other people's blogs, as is Donna Hay's Self Frosting Cupcake recipe, which first surfaced on Niki's Baking Sheet and then moved out into the wider world.

The Baker's Edge baking pan is one of those things that's been wandering around the blogging world for the last while. My interest was piqued when it popped up on Chocolate and Zucchini last year. Beautifully photographed, as always, by Clotilde (she also has a savoury recipe here), I loved its curvy snake-like shape and was intrigued with the idea of a baking pan - it was originally designed for brownies - that was designed to distribute heat equally so that there wouldn't be such a difference between edge and centre pieces. And then I promptly forgot about the Baker's Edge - until it started cropping up other blogs. A few months later, I've become the proud owner of what may be the only Baker's Edge in Ireland!

Solidly constructed from non-stick cast-aluminium, it came with a leaflet of recipes (cup measurements only) as well as a dinky little red spatula which helps to smooth cookie dough around the turns in the pan as well as being invaluable when it comes to dividing up brownies and getting them out of the dish. Unfortunately my Baker's Edge has become a victim of our current peripatetic lifestyle. Living in Dublin during the week and the country cottage at weekends means that it, much like my digital camera, always seems to be in the wrong residence when I want to bake! I still don't feel like I've given it a proper try-out but I have been experimenting with David Lebovitz's Friendship Bars, trying to convert the ingredients for Chef Emily's Signature Cookie Bars into metric and playing with a great recipe for Coconut Blondies (which is how I discovered the thermostat for my Dublin oven is screwy) that I got from the Connoisseur.

I'll just warn any potential purchasers that if they, like me, have a fan oven - nothing else seems to exist in Ireland any more, come back NZ cooker, all is forgiven - to be extra careful when cooking in this pan as it is all too easy to overcook things. I'm fiddling around with a few different recipes at the moment and hope to post them soon. In the mean time, you can read about why the Baker's Edge came about and creator Matt Griffin's efforts to bring it into the market, and browse through some recipes here.

Posted by Caroline at 7:30 PM | Comments (4)

May 15, 2007

A Taste of Yellow: Round-Up

If you're in the mood for yellow food, Barbara over at NZ food blog Winos and Foodies has managed to wade her ever-gracious way through a total of 143 - that's no typo, I did say 143! - entries for her A Taste Of Yellow foodie event.

When I first started blogging, while living in New Zealand in 2005, it wasn't long before I discovered Winos and Foodies, one of - as far as I know - the first NZ food blogs and I've been a fan ever since, admiring Barbara's ever-inspiring zest for life, food, Donna Hay, baking and blogging, despite her ongoing battle against cancer.

Barbara's A Taste of Yellow, in support of Lance Armstrong's LIVESTRONG Day, is about raising cancer awareness and it has also become about people sharing their own cancer stories. You'll find her very comprehensive round-up here.

Posted by Caroline at 4:16 PM | Comments (3)

May 8, 2007

A Taste of Yellow: Turmeric

Barbara at Winos and Foodies is currently holding a once-off food bloggers event called A Taste of Yellow in support of LIVESTRONG Day 2007.

LIVESTRONG Day is the Lance Armstrong Foundation's (LAF) grassroots advocacy initiative to unify people affected by cancer and to raise awareness about cancer survivorship issues on a national level and in local communities across the country. LIVESTRONG Day 2007 will occur on Wednesday 16 May.

As Barbara says, everyone has been touched by cancer - I know my family and friends have - and she herself is currently undergoing treatment. For A Taste of Yellow she asked that we make a dish using a yellow food. I immediately thought of turmeric, a spice that I find myself using more and more for its warm, earthy flavour and vivid colour. The fact that it has recently come to attention for its reputed anti-cancer properties makes it all the more perfect for this event.

To showcase the colour and flavour of the turmeric, I decided make a one-pot dish of pilau rice. While this would make a good accompaniment to an Indian curry, particularly a tomato-based one, it is also good eaten by itself and makes a good lunchbox filler for a portable lunch.

Spiced Mushroom Pilau
Sunflower oil - 1-2 tablespoons
Onion - 1, sliced thinly
Mushrooms - 2 cups, quartered
Turmeric - 3 teaspoons
Cardamom pods - 5, gently crushed
Cinnamon stick - 1, broken in half
Yellow mustard seeds - 2 teaspoons
Fenugreek - ½ teaspoon
Bay leaves - 2
Basmati rice - 2 cups
Boiling water - 4 cups
Lemon - 1, juiced
Sea salt, freshly ground black pepper

Heat the sunflower oil in a deep heavy-based saucepan. Fry the onions and mushrooms over a moderate heat for 3-4 minutes until the onions are soft. Add the turmeric, cardamom pods, cinnamon stick, mustard seeds, fenugreek and bay leaves and fry for another 2 minutes until the spices release their scent.

Stir in the rice and turn everything over in the pan until the grains are all nicely coated with the spicy mixture. Pour in the 4 cups of boiling water and season well with salt and pepper. Stir once, bring to the boil then put the lid on and turn the heat to its lowest setting and allow to cook for 15-20 minutes until all the water is absorbed and the rice is tender.

Squeeze over the lemon, fluff with a fork, taste for seasoning and serve. Serves 4.

Posted by Caroline at 7:13 AM | Comments (5)