Saturday, June 21, 2008

What is the Taste of Dublin?

I'll try to describe Dublin using the food analogies. It's both metropolitan and provincial at the same time, like... new Irish potatoes with fresh dill, roasted salmon (from morning delivery in the harbour), mushrooms, some herby aromatic salad with vinaigrette sauce and a glass of wine? All served in a sophisticated way in a small apartment in Howth (thank you Gosia for the inspiration in April 2007, my first time in Dublin).





On the 12th of June, holding proudly the VIP tickets (thanks to my husband's Boss) , we went to the opening evening of Taste Festival. Soon after entering the Iveagh Gardens we abandoned our initial plan of interviewing the exhibitors about the gluten free food - any delay in serving those tiny portions would have caused riots among hungry people waiting in lines.
We expected a lot of Irish artisan food, local produce (slow food, not to mention the organic stuff), but the reality was disappointing. Max was able to count them all on his (one hand) fingers.



The choice of what to spend on our florins (festival currency) was very tough - there was over 100 stalls with food and drinks (a lot of chocolate and alcohol) but only a few things worth buying. Do you know this feeling when you take part in some event by chance and you discover that you don't fit to the place, people ? It's my experience.

I liked Clodagh McKenna's demonstration which reminded me the Italian holidays (aubergine and goat's cheese rolls, baked gubeen cheese with thyme and rosemary, summer roast asparagus salad).
In the end, I was given a small punnet of local raspberries (Tesco stall) for Max. I couldn't believe they are in season (!) but their producer was there and he swore they were 100% Irish :-) Next day Max ate this dessert:



Raspberries with almond "cream":
  • a small punnet of raspberries;
  • handful of almonds;
  • cinnamon;
  • fresh ground golden linseed;
Almond "cream":
soak the almonds overnight (not so much water, just to cover them!), peel the skin and blend well everything (water from soaking and almonds), you can add some honey if you like more sweetness.

Put a little bit of fresh ground golden linseed on the bottom of a plate, then raspberries and the almond cream and cinnamon on top.

Max ate all the raspberries, we didn't even try one...

Tuesday, June 17, 2008

Comeback

Back to Dublin - where is the summer? Myself and Max spent the last three weeks in Poland - we are Polish (yes, a lot of us in Ireland now). We come from very beautiful city of Wrocław. Everybody has probably heard about Warsaw or Cracow, but believe me, Wrocław is the most friendly. And inhabited by dwarves.



The abundance of fresh seasonal fruits and vegetables at the Polish markets now: asparagus, strawberries, cherries (just beginning)... Temperatures about 30 degrees C, Sun, I miss you! A lot of meetings, talks and this deep feeling of being in between... Two homes, two countries.



Let's start from asparagus. A little luxury in life :-) Great for your kidneys and generally good for a body detox, still in season. Unfortunately they are very expensive here and seem not very popular. But, if you can, buy them now remembering that the best are the freshest ones growing locally.



I prepare soups or simply roast (this method intensifies the flavour) them in a little olive/sesame oil or ghee. They have a unique taste and may be boiled or steamed too and served with a nice sauce (e.g. tamari soy sauce, a little grated fresh ginger, roasted sesame seeds). I always add some fresh herbs like rocket, dill or parsley, some spices (freshly ground green pepper!), roasted almond flakes and what else my imagination wants at given moment.

Max's favourite dish in Wrocław was an asparagus soup with polenta:
  • 1,5 l stock (chicken or vegetable)
  • 1 bunch of asparagus
  • 2 small parsnips
  • 1 onion
  • ghee (olive oil)
  • handful of almonds without a skin
  • 1 bay leaf, 1 allspice, salt
  • miso or tamari soy sauce
Sauté the finely diced onion in a little ghee (or olive) until soft (it gives sweeteness), add diced parsnip and stir for a while, then add cut asparagus (remember to remove tough ends and pare the skin when you have the white variety), almonds, stock, bay leaf and allspice. Bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer for about 20 minutes. Then you can blend it (Max prefers not blended).
Season with salt and pepper, add a lot of finely chopped fresh dill before serving. Optionally add miso (I prefer shiro miso) or tamari.
We love it with chickpeas (boil them separetly earlier) and polenta. Our favorite way or cooking polenta:
  • 1 cup of polenta
  • 3 cups water
  • sauted (in olive oil or ghee) finely diced leeks (or onions)
  • a piece of pumpkin cutting to squares
  • salt and thyme (or rosemary)
Mix polenta with hot water (slowly), then add leeks and pumpkin, season with salt and thyme. Pour into a flat cake tin and put into a pre-heated oven (180 degrees C) for 30 mins.

Smacznego! Enjoy!

Mom

P.S. My dear friend, Ania S., do you remember this meal?

Tuesday, June 10, 2008

Who gives a damn?

Last week I've sent an e-mail to the organizers of "Taste of Dublin" festival, asking whether any of the exhibitors would offer gluten free food/dishes. I haven't received any answer yet.
I just wonder, are they too busy? They don't know? They don't give a damn? Nobody else has asked (and they consider Irish gluten-free food market not profitable enough)?

(Dad)

P.S. I'm going there anyway and I'll let you know.

Wednesday, June 4, 2008

Latest news

Don't worry Guys, we didn't give up blogging. It's just the hardware problem - our Macbook died from a coffee spill. But don't despair, we will reanimate the venerable Slowshiba Toshiba next week.

(Dad)