Category: Ireland

REPOST Dublin Coddle – For St Patrick’s Day

Isn’t Dublin Coddle the most adorable name for anything ever?

It sounds like a cuddle and that is exactly what you are going to get from this hearty and warming mix of sausages, cabbage, bacon and potatoes.

Dublin Coddle

I don’t seem to have the best of luck with Irish recipes (remember the corned beef potato salad?)

I had planned to make a totally safe homemade Irish Cream because hot damn do I love a little bit of Bailey’s!Β  However what they don’t tell you in most recipes for it is that, because it contains fresh cream, homemade Irish cream has a fairly limited lifespan.Β  As I am trying to moderate my diet and alcohol intake at the moment drinking a whole bottle of whiskey and a shit ton of cream over the space of about 5 five days did not seem like a viable option.

Fun…just not a viable diet option!

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So Dublin Coddle it was.Β  And whilst this was nowhere near as awful as the debacle that was the potato salad,Β  the recipe I used for Dublin Coddle (sorry I cannot remember from whence it came) was not without problems.

It asked that you layer thinly sliced potatoes into the bottom of a baking dish then piled your sauteed cabbage, onion and bacon on top and topped that with sausages.Β  Then you added stockΒ to the dish.Dublin Coddle 2

And therein lay the problem.Β  Even though I cooked this for absolutely AGES, the potatoes at the bottom didn’t cook at that well and were totally soggy.Β  And, as viewers of the British Bake Off know all too well, no one likes a soggy bottom!

 

Dublin Coddle 3

This was good but I wonder how much better it would have been if the potatoes had gone on the top and gone all crispy and delicious?

Dublin Coddle 4

I will actually make it that way next time and update you on how it turns out!Β  The good thing about this recipe is that it was traditionally made from leftovers so you can play around with ingredients and cooking techniques as much as you like!

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Here’s the recipe!

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Dublin Coddle

A delicious hearty meal, perfect for St Patrick’s Day

Ingredients

Scale
  • 8 sausages – the recipe said pork, I used beef
  • 2 onions, sliced
  • 2 rashers of bacon, sliced
  • 2 cups of cabbage, sliced
  • stock or water (I used vegetable stock)
  • Oil
  • salt and pepper
  • parsley
  • Dijon mustard

Instructions

  1. Heat a little oil in a large pan and brown the sausages. You may have to do this in two lots.
  2. Remove the sausages from the pan and set aside.
  3. Add a little more oil if required and brown the bacon and onions.
  4. Toss the cabbage through the bacon and onion mix and cook for a few minutes.
  5. Layer the potatoes in a lightly oiled casserole or baking dish.
  6. Top with the cabbage and bacon mix. Season well and almost cover with the stock.
  7. Top with the sausages.
  8. Bake at 190C until the potatoes are tender.
  9. Sprinkle with parsley and serve with mustard.

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 4

Meantime, enjoy your St Patrick’s Day!!!!

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Whiskey in The Jar – The Emerald Presse

I was so disappointed with my attempt at an Irish Potato Salad Roll that it drove me to drink.

Quite luckily as it happened because that particular cab on the road to rack and ruin drove me right up to the Emerald Presse.Β  And you know, if there’s one other thing the Irish are famous for outside of potatoes, corned beef and cabbage, it’s drinking. And the Emerald Presse will tickle the tastebuds of even the most fastidious of Fassnidges.

Emerald Presse1

Emerald Presse1

I’m not normally a whiskey drinker so I was not sure how this would taste.Β  I liked the idea of the mint, apple and lime even though they seemed a weirdly light combination for what I always think of as being a heavy drink.

Anyhoo….PutΒ  ’em together and have you got? NotΒ bibbidi-bobbidi-boo but…My new favourite drink!!!!

Emerald Presse2
Emerald Presse2

The flavours worked really well together.Β  That little frizzante from the sparkling apple juice also added some lightness to it. In my best Irish accent this was the fooking craic!!!!Β I can’t even begin to tell you how delicious this is.Β  You need to make it immediately and come back to me.

GoΒ  on

I’ll still be here when you get back.

Now, take that first sip and “Ohhhhh…..Yeah, sooooooo good”

Then we’ll have a sneaky second.Β  Just because that sparkling apple juice isn’t going to sparkle forever.

Emerald Presse3
Emerald Presse3

The original recipe for this called for 45 ml of Jameson’s.Β  When I measured this out, it looked like a huge amount of whiskey.Β  I scaled mine back to around 30mls and found it about right for my taste.Β  You can scale up or down according to your preference.

Styling Tip

If you really wanted your whiskey in a jar, this would look really cute served in mason jars – in which case you probably could use the fullΒ  45ml of Jameson’s.

 

[yumprint-recipe id=’27’]Β Happy St Patrick’s Day, may the road rise to meet you!

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When Irish Eyes Aren’t Smiling

I wanted to make something really amazing for St Patrick’s Day and when I say something really amazing what I mean is an Irish Potato Salad Roll. And you all thought I was joking when I said I was going to make the PSR into a thing!!!

So, I found this recipe for an Irish Potato Salad – this baby has potatoes, cabbage and corned beef.Β  Faith and Begorrah, could you get more stereotypically Irish?

I was so excited I played some Mumford and Sons and did a little impromptu Riverdance around the dining room.

Irish Potato Salad Roll here I come!!!!

Irish Potato Salad Roll
Irish Potato Salad Roll

Β The Luck of The Irish Part 1

The first problem arrived when I could not find celery seed in either of my two local supermarkets.Β  Minor Detail.Β  I have celery salt.Β  And celery.Β  How much flavour is the seed going to add anyway?

Β The Luck of The Irish Part 2

I”m just going to come out and say it.Β  Corned beef is disgusting.Β  Maybe I bought the wrong sort of stuff but it said Corned Beef on the tin:

Corned Beef 1The recipe said to cube it, so I assumed it was going to be kind of like Spam i.e. able to be cubed. What I did not expect was this disgusting gelatinous fatty mush which almost made me gag.Β  There were also big chunks of fat left in the bottom of the can.

DSC02545And it smelt really bad.

My original plan was to cook the corned beef, onion and cabbage together, then make a kind of chunky mash with the potatoes, mayo and pickle and swiss roll them together and serve it cold.

Having seen the corned beef cold put me right off though so that plan went out the window. Mine was going to be a warm salad.

The Luck of The Irish Part 3

So, I started cooking my corned beef and onion and….oh, god, this bit did actually make me gag.Β  There was something weird in the meat.Β  Initially I thought it was one of those lumps of fat.Β  Except it didn’t melt.

It looked like a piece of skin.Β  This picture does not even convey the disgustingness of this lump of….whatever the fuck it was…

So, whilst I was dry heaving, the corned beef started to stick to the pan.Β  So I thought it might be a good idea to throw a glass of wine in there to deglaze the plan. Because wine makes anything better right?

Wrong.Β  This is how doomed this dish was,Β  Adding the wine just made a very fatty, milky, winey, even more stinky liquid rise to the top.Β  This was so incredibly gross it’s kind of making me throw up a little in my mouth just thinking about it.

The Luck of The Irish Part 4

In the end I plated it up by making some chips with the potatoes and making a stack.Β  Potato, corned beef, potato, mayo and chives, potato, corned beef, mayo and pickles.

Irish Potato Salad Roll2
Irish Potato Salad Roll2

Β The Luck of The Irish Part 5

If this was a Hollywood version or even a reality tv show, right about now, I’d saying something along the lines of “You know, when I plated this up, despite all the set backs, despite all the trials and tribulations, this tasted fantastic….best thing I’ve ever eaten”.

Irish Potato Salad Roll 4
Irish Potato Salad Roll 4

It was nothing like that.

It definitely wasn’t the worst thing I’ve ever eaten.Β  Then again, I ate bugs in Cambodia.Β  It was the definitely worst thing I’ve eaten this year.Β  And this is the gift that keeps on giving, not only did it leave a layer of grease in my mouth that survived at least two tooth brushingsΒ  but even though I had the extractor fan on for the longest time, the day after I made this, there was still a fug of corned beef and cabbage through my entire house.

Hmm…maybe this really did need the celery seed.

Epic fail.

Sorry people of Ireland. I tried.

And my head told my heart
“Let love grow”
But my heart told my head
“This time no, This time no

But never fear…just like a benevolent Colin Fassnidge on My Kitchen Rules, I’m giving myself a redemption round.

And this time, it’s something not even I can fuck up.Β Β  Roll out the barrel of Jameson’s…next up…we’re having an Irish inspired cocktail.Β  Please let it be fabulous…or you know…just better than this.Β  Otherwise, I might have to strategically vote myself out….

How do you plan to celebrate St Patrick’s Day? If at all?

What’s the worst thing you’ve eaten this year? Ever?

What are your thoughts on strategic voting – MKR or anywhere

Have a great week!

Signature 1 Vintage Valentine Quick as Wink2