Crab Claws with Samphire and Cherry Tomatoes

No other food signals the start of summer for me than Samphire. You may never have heard of Samphire but it grows abundantly on our coastline and can be foraged or most good fish shops will have it at this time of year. It marries perfectly with all seafood, but I saw plump fresh crab claws at Limerick Market, and knew this dish was on my dinner menu.

What you need:

1 dozen crab claws

1 hand full of samphire (about 200g)

1 dozen cherry tomato’s halved

1 clove of garlic finely diced

1/4 bulb of fennel finely sliced (if don’t have fennel use shallots in their place)

1 knob of butter

Olive oil

What to do:

Bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil and blanch the Samphire for two to three minutes.

Drain and cool under a running tap.

In a large frying pan, heat some olive oil on a low heat. Add the garlic and fennel/onion and allow to soften for 2 minutes.

Add the cherry tomato and cook for a further two minutes.

Add the knob of butter and turn up the heat, add the crab claws and cook for a further five minutes.

Throw the samphire into the tomato and crab claw claws to reheat.

Season with pepper and salt and serve.

Cooking could not be simpler !

Top Tips on Buying Better Wine

We thought we would give you a little help this Easter with our top tips on how to buy better wine.
1. Know your store
Every wine shop, supermarket, and off-licence is different. Different layout, pricing structure and focus; ‘New World’ or ‘Old World’. If you are a novice and all the wines are over €50 you are probably in the wrong place.

2 Have a plan
Have an idea of the wine you want before you go in. Whether its something you have tasted before, read about in a magazine or got a recommendation from a friend. When you go in you may get bogged down by prices, grape varieties, and regions.
3 Develop a relationship with the
owner/salesperson
Never be afraid to ask. Usually people in a wine shop are just hoping you will ask so they can impress you with the vast or little knowledge they have. If you visit the shop at the same time every week, there will usually be the same staff on, they will know whats new, good or bad.

4 Price does not equal value
Well known regions can be priced high because of supply and demand. Other lesser know regions may be keenly priced to gain market share. Newspaper articles or media outlets will aid you in where the better/cheaper regions are.
7 Be willing to experiment
If you always go for the same region or country try something different. Try a New Zealand Pinot Noir for example. Ask the staff for the hottest new region in the store or the in-fashion grape variety in the wine world.
6 Try to Avoid Supermarkets
Try to avoid buying wine in Supermarkets and large chain retailers. Usually supermarkets and large chain retailers buy on price rather than taste, also with their buying power there is little spaces on their shelves for small interesting wine markers

We hope this helps you a little when out buying wine in the coming weeks.

Salmon Poached in Mussel Broth

A great simple dish and super healthy for those still on the New Year health kick !

Needed

500g mussels

2 Salmon fillets

2 carrots finely sliced

3 celery stick finely sliced

1 garlic clove finely chopped

2 shallot finely chopped

1 glass white wine

 

Six simple steps

Gently wash the mussels in cold water and discard any opened mussels .

In a large sauce pan add a little olive oil, on a high heat add the mussels and cover with a lid. After 30 seconds stir add the white wine and allow to steam for another 3 minutes. Take off the heat and allow to cool.

In another large, flat bottomed pan sweat the garlic and shallots, then add the celery and carrots, cook until the vegetables start to soften.

Strain the liquid from the mussel through a fine sieve and pour into the vegetables, add the salmon fillets ensuring the salmon is covered. Simmer on a low heat until the salmon is cooked, this should only take 8-10 minutes; the salmon should feel firm when cooked.

While the Salmon is poaching, pick the mussels from their shells discard any mussels that are unopened.

When the salmon is cooked through add the mussels back to the broth to warm through. Check the seasoning and serve. Simple !

Roast Pepper and Tomato Soup

This is one of my favorite soups it’s really simple to make and only has seven easy steps

What you need – serves 4

4 large red peppers

1 can of whole tomatoes

2 cloves of garlic skin on

1 onion finely sliced

What to do

Pre heat an oven to 180C

Cut the peppers in half and deseed, place in an oven proof dish add the two cloves of garlic, skin on. Drizzle with olive oil and put into the pre heated oven.

In a large sauce pan sweat the onions in a teaspoon on olive oil, on a low heat until they are soft, take off the heat until the peppers are ready.

When the peppers are sufficiently roasted(15 minutes approx.) removed from the heat and allow to cool slightly and slice.

Squeeze the skin of the garlic and pop out the roasted clove and add to the onions, also add the sliced peppers

Empty the tin of tomatoes into the sauce pan and fill the tin with water and add this water into the pan

Bring to the boil, turn down the heat and allow to simmer for fifteen minutes.

Puree with a hand blend, season with salt and pepper and serve.

Simples.

Chardonnay Is Back – Wine of the Month

Macon Village Blanc 2009, Chardonnay by Tesco €7.99

January is over and we can drink again, not that we stopped in the first place and there are great bargains to be had this time of year. In addition the Australian wine industry is going through its own recessionary implosion, they too have ghost estates but of a different nature, which is helping to bring down all wine prices.

But to support Europe (since there are supporting us !!) I found a French gem on special offer for only €7.99, this price won’t last forever.White wines from the Macon represent some of the best value in Burgundy, with the warmer climate giving the wines a softness and richness of lacking in wines from further north i.e. Chablis.

This Chardonnay is fresh on the nose with citrus, yellow melon and ripe apple. A great balance of juicy fruit, gently acidity and good supporting alcohol. The palate is rich with ripe fruit similar to the nose of melon and citrus and apple. All combining to a great value wines. Tasting this wine, its easy to see why Chardonnay is making a come back.

With food, this wine can match more than most and can be paired with roast chicken, pork and most fish dishes. Or is just perfect on its own. If this wine was music it would  be Adele very easy on the ears. (a new feature of the review we hope you like it, let us know what you think)

All you need to know about Wine, in one Day

Our One Day  Wine tasting Course

Usually I don’t self promote on this blog, but I am running a really great course and would love to get a few more people to attend.

What happen on the day

The day is from 10.30am – 4.30pm
We learn how to taste wine with your eyes, nose and mouth!
What to look for in wine and how to recognise and assess the key components – tannins, acidity, sugar, alcohol.
Food and Wine tasting class

Saturday 19th of February in the Absolute Hotel, Limerick

What will we be tasting

Main Grape Varieties

We taste 18 great quality wines from around the world including whites, reds, fizz and dessert wines.
We will be tasting main grape varieties, learning how to identify and the quality points you should look for in a quality wine.
We will also be tasting three sparking wines, Cava, Prosecco, and Champagne and will be learning what make these wine great

We finish the end of the day with a food and wine master class.

 

Cost

The cost of the full day’s class is €85.00 including all wines.

Book Online

The course can be books through our Facebook shop
Give us a call

Or just give a call to reserve a place **087-6557596**

 

Nutty banana bread with dark chocolate

This simple recipe, is a super healthy snack packed with banana and nutty goodness. A great  pre-training or post training snack for those gearing for the Great Limerick Run.

Equipment   : 1 knife, 2 loaf tins, 1 large bowl, 1 wooden spoon

What you need:

• 125g butter
• 120ml semi-skimmed milk
• 1 tsp lemon juice and zest
• 75g walnuts 75g hazelnuts
• 250g plain flour
• 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 200g dark brown soft sugar
• 2 eggs
• 250g mashed ripe bananas (2 medium)
• 1 vanilla pod – seeds only or vanilla essence
• 100g 70% dark chocolate, roughly chopped
• 50g  milk chocolate

What to do:

Preheat the oven to 180°C.

Butter the loaf tins to ensure the bread does not stick to the sides.

Put the walnuts and hazelnuts on a baking tray and warm through in the oven until they are lightly toasted, about 5-8 minutes. To peel the nuts wrap in a tea towel and rub between your hands. Open the towel and pick out the peeled nuts, chop into large chunks and set aside for later.

In the large bowl mix the butter with half the sugar, beating vigorously until the mixture is pale, light and creamy

Gradually add the eggs with a tablespoon of the flour, until you have a consistent mixture.

Then add the rest of the dry ingredients: flour, bicarbonate of soda, ensuring it’s mixed thoroughly.

Add the sugar, mashed banana and vanilla- seeds only. Then add the milk gradually a little at a time, and lastly the lemon juice and zest.

Fill both loaf tins three quarters full.

Bake in a preheated oven for 45 minutes or until a knife comes out clean. Leave to cool in the tins for 10 minutes then turn out to finish cooling.

Enjoy

Let us know what recipes you would like to see here ?

Wine Deal Of The Week

Protocolo Tinto 2007 : O’ Briens.
We talked about this wine last year and felt in was good value then, but its even better value now at €7.99. Leave some room in your cellar for Just Grapes Great Christmas Offers, which will be mailed out to you next week.

Great Value

Marcos Eguren, is ranked in Spain’s top 5 premium wine makers making some of the world’s most famous wines. With Protocolo, Marcos turns his hand to making a really delightful reds and at good value too.The wine had aromas of tinned and fresh strawberries, which you would expect for this 100pc Tempranillo wine. On the palate it had an abundance of red summer fruits, with a complexity you would not expect at this price. This wine had good balancing acidity and ripe tannins that helped make it to wine of the month. This wine initially had a lot of black and white pepper spice, but if you opened it well in advance of drinking or decanted this mellowed to a mild pepper and vanilla spice. You could be forgiven for thinking you were drinking a €25wine. It well worth a detour. If you don’t believe us, read what another expert had to say below.

Wine Spectator

“2007: This polished, medium-bodied red offers smooth cherry, licorice and chocolate flavors, with just enough acidity to keep it lively. Floral and smoky notes linger. Tempranillo. Drink now through 2011.”

Simple Chocolate Chip Cookies

This is a great simple recipe not only will it put smiles on your friends and families faces but this recipe is a ‘one-pot wonder’ recipe that won’t leave you with a sink full of washing-up.

Ingredients

• 75g of dark chocolate
• 75g of milk chocolate
• 85g of butter
• 100g of soft dark brown sugar
• 50g caster sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 egg yolk
• 125g plain flour
• 1/4 tsp of bicarbonate soda
• Pinch of salt

Recipe

1. Preheat your oven to 160 degrees or gas mark five.
2. Chop your chocolate, into large chunks – I have used Green and Blacks which you can get in every supermarkets.
   

   Green and Blacks

3. Melt the butter in a small saucepan on a low heat.
   

   On a low heat

4. Then add the caster sugar and brown sugar.
5. Take the pot off the heat and add the egg and egg yolks and mix well.
6. Then fold in the flour, bicarb., and salt ensuring that there are no flour pockets.
   

   Mix in the dry ingredients

7. The add the the chocolate chunks.
8. Using your hands or if your perfect a spoon that has been dipped in hot water, place large mounds of the mixture on a pre-greased baking tray.
9. The mounds should be about 30cm in diameter, and leave about 50cm between each cookie.
   

   Ready for the oven

10. Cook in preheated over of about 7-10 minutes, until the start to turn golden brown.
11. Take out and allow to cool slightly, then place on a wire rack (I used a wire rack from my grill) to fully cool.

on a wire rack to cool

Ready to Eat

The mixture can be stored in the fridge for two weeks. For the second batch add orange zest and hazelnuts. Tasty.

Tired of Sauvignon – get into Riesling

Tingleup – Riesling 2009 Tesco own brand – Australia – Screw cap

€10.99

Riesling has long been arguably the worlds most undervalued grape variety; as mentioned in our G.V. post in June, and had been touted as the next big thing in the wine world. This variety never seems to grab the wine publics imagination or wallets, although most wine enthusiasts will say its their favorite white variety. This variety could claim to be the one of finest whites in the world and has ability to transmit the characteristics of the vineyard without loosing Rieslings own inimitable style.

Tingleup - Riesling 2009 Tesco

The populist belief is that Riesling is over sweet and over perfumed with heavily floral smells and tastes. This may be true of some cheap bad examples made in the 1980 but today this variety can stand up against the best Chardonnay and outshine any New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc’s.The best examples can be found in the Alsace in France and in Germany but these wines while usually of high quality can be over the €20 price pint.

While in Tesco counting bottles of wine I found an Australian Riesling which grab my attention and wallet. On the nose this wine was fresh, citrus cool floral notes even pear flower, not complex, but refreshing. The palate was vibrant- again citrus, lemon floral some spice white peppergood acidity, at room temperature this wine had a viscosity or richness which impressed me for the prices this was not as evident when the wine was chilled and some of the spice was masked – again another case for drinking white wine at room temp and not super chilled to mask all the subtleties.

Simple wine but the richness impressed me, a great match to Asian food, or roast pork or chicken and I would rate this wine 88/100 (our next post will be on wine rating and rating systems!!)

Again I suggest try this wine at room temp to fully enjoy all its flavours.