Wild Mushroom and Parmesan Tart With Feta Cheese Salad

I absolutley love mushrooms, especially wild mushrooms. I was always familiar that there was such a thing but it was only a few years ago that I got the oppertunity to use wild mushrooms. My first encounter was on work placement in the kitchen of a local restaurant. On one particular evening wild mushroom risotto was on the menu and I was asked to prepare the wild mushrooms for the dish. As I had never worked with wild mushrooms before I was unsure of how to prepare them and also weary of the fact that they could be poisonous. 

Far from those days, I have now used wild mushrooms many times, as I feel they have various flavours and appearances that add a lot of variety to a dish. Wild mushrooms are readily available and are easily prepared. The wild mushrooms used to make this dish were bought at the Naas Farmers Market. I find it is the perfect place to pick up those ingredients that you might not necessarily get from your local supermarket. 

A friend of mine recently asked me for the recipe for a good quiche and I told her I could provide her with the recipe for something better than a quiche. I am not suggesting by any means that there is anything wrong with a quiche, god knows we all love a good quiche now and again but I felt if she really wanted to impress she should try something a little bit different. So i gave her this recipe.

Ingredients

For The Pastry                                      
225g plain flour
1 teaspoon salt
110g butter (cubed)
1 egg or egg yolk (beaten)
A little water

For The Filling
2 eggs
1 egg yolk
200 ml double cream
150g parmesan
400g wild mushrooms (cleaned and stems trimmed)
25g butter
70g shallots
1 clove garlic
40g basil
Salt and pepper

Method

1.Begin with the pastry by sieving the flour and salt together into a large bowl.
2. Add the butter and using your hands rub it into the flour until it resembles breadcrumbs.
3. Whisk in the egg or egg yolk and add a little water.
4. Using your hands bring the pastry together.
5. If the pastry does not come together it may need more water, so add more.
6. Shape the pastry into a ball and wrap in clingfilm.
7. Place the pastry into the fridge to rest for a period of between 15-45 minutes.
8. Resting allows the gluten in the pastry to relax and therefore will prevent it from shrinking.
9. Preheat the oven to 180 C.
10.Roll out the pastry on a lightly floured surface.
11. When the pastry is rolled place it into a greased flan tin, making sure to press it right into the tin.
12. Place greaseproof paper into the tin on top of the pastry and fill it with dried beans.
13. The dried beans act as a weight preventing the pastry from rising however if you do not have any you can use rice.
14. Bake the pastry in the oven for 15-20 minutes.
15. In the meantime while the pastry is cooking, saute the shallots in butter.
16. Add in the garlic, wild mushrooms and basil.
17. Once golden brown remove from the heat.
18. Whisk the eggs and cream together and add the parmesan.
19. Once the mushroom mix has cooled add to the egg mix and season.
20. Add the mixture to the flan tin.
21. Place the tin back into the oven for a further 20-30 minutes at the same temperature.
22. Once cooked remove from tin and allow to cool.

Feta Cheese and Sundried Tomato Salad

90g mixed greens
40g feta cheese (cubed)
40g sundried tomatoes

In a large salad bowl toss the mixed greens. Add the sundried tomatoes and feta cheese. Drizzle with balsamic dressing and serve.


Balsamic Dressing

6 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 clove garlic (crushed)
Pinch salt and pepper

Place all the ingredients in a bowl and mix thoroughly.
Drizzle over your salad and enjoy.

Best Wishes,

Sarah xx

Wild Garlic Pesto

Pesto is a favourite of mine, I first got the taste for it a few years ago when I was dining with friends in a well known restaurant in Dublin. At first glance I was quite surprised at the texture and also the dark green colour but after one mouthful, I was hooked. Every since I have been making pesto and using it as not only a sauce but also as a dip, as well as a garnish for many foods.

Originating from Italy pesto is an Italian sauce traditionally made using basil, pine nuts, garlic, olive oil and Parmesan cheese. It is often made using a pestle and mortar but it can also be made using a food processor. Pesto is often used in salads, soups, pasta and is quite commonly used on bruschetta. Authentic pesto is made using basil leaves although there is now a wide range of different pesto's available including wild garlic, rocket and kale.

It's the season for garlic and fortunate enough to live beside woodlands and with the unexpected glorious sunshine, I took a wander into the woods to get my hands on some garlic. The outcome of my stroll resulted in delicious wild garlic pesto.


How to Identify Wild Garlic

The most obvious way of identifying wild garlic is by smelling it, as it has very strong garlic scent. Rub the leaves between your fingers and if it gives off a garlic scent then you can be sure it's wild garlic. Garlic starts as a small bulb and grows into large green leaves accompanied by white flowers. The bulb, leaves and flowers are all edible.

Ingredients

100g wild garlic leaves (washed and dried)
50g  pine nuts
1 clove of garlic (peeled and crushed)
80g Parmesan cheese
250-300ml extra virgin olive oil
Sea salt and black pepper
Method

1. Blitz the wild garlic, pine nuts, garlic clove, Parmesan and olive oil in a food processor or crush in a pestle and mortar.
2. Add a little more oil if you prefer thinner consistency.
3. Taste the mixture and season with salt and pepper.
4. Place the pesto into a jar and add a little olive oil to create a seal.
5. Store the pesto in the fridge in a sterilised jar. (Will keep for up to 7 days)
6. Pesto can be easily frozen conveniently using small jars.

Traditional Basil Pesto

As basil is the traditional ingredient used in making pesto, I could not write about pesto without explaining how to make basil pesto. To make basil pesto, follow the above steps substituting the wild garlic with basil.  Basil pesto will keep for up to seven days in the fridge and is also quite easy to freeze.

Best Wishes,

Sarah xx

Chocolate, Crisps or Both?

It appears that 'Tayto' which is one of Ireland's leading crisp manufacturers have set tongues wagging over the past few days, with their latest product. The creation is a chocolate bar containing cheese and onion crisps. (Picture above taken from Google Images/beaut.ie)

For years there has been an age old dilemma of chocolate or crisps. Well now thanks to 'Tayto's' latest creation you can have both. Although many individuals think the idea of having crisps in a chocolate bar is ludicrous, it appears the bar was created due to popular demand from the public via social networking sites such as facebook and twitter.

To make the bar, the company have teamed up with Butlers, one of Ireland's most famous chocolatiers. The bar will be available in Tayto park and throughout supermarkets nationwide. As the bar is a limited edition with the company only producing one hundred thousand bars, it has sparked a rather crazy response similar to that of the 'golden ticket' in the film Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, with individuals itching to get their hands on a bar.

As of yet I have not had the opportunity to try one of these popular bars so I decided to put the chocolate and crisp combination to the test myself. Using original cheese and onion 'Tayto' crisps and Cadbury Bournville chocolate, I created chocolate covered crisps. They were very unusual but at the same time aesthetically appealing and delicious, although I enjoyed them I think they were more of a novelty than a necessity.

Now that I have tasted the chocolate and crisp combination I will remain opened minded on the 'Tayto' chocolate bar until I have tasted it and like everyone else I am itching to taste it. Whether the bar will be a success is impossible to tell at such an early stage however the bar could prove to be so popular that it may become a permanent fixture on our supermarket shelves, only time will tell.

So for now the big question remains chocolate, crisps or both?

Best Wishes,

Sarah xx

Mediterranean Take on Soda Bread

I have always been a great lover of all things Irish especially Irish produce and traditional Irish food. For this reason soda bread or as its referred to in Irish "Arán Sóide" is one of my all time favourite Irish foods. Although the Irish did not originally invent soda bread it is a product that has traditionally been associated with Ireland and is commonly referred to as 'Irish Soda Bread'.  

For years I have watched my mother bake many different types of soda bread ranging from both cake to farl  so it may come as no surprise to hear that soda bread was one of the first homemade products I learned to bake. Growing up my mother was quite old fashioned and this was evident in the home baked goods she produced. While baking soda bread she followed traditional recipes passed down to her from my grandmother, keeping the bread as simple as possible with minimal ingredients. Although I believe soda bread is at its best with basic ingredients I also feel that it is one of those foods that can be greatly enhanced  by adding extra ingredients.

Now I have decided to do a Mediterranean take on soda bread including the use of  ingredients such as tomato and basil. Enjoy!

Ingredients

450g plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
375ml buttermilk
100 g sun dried tomato
2 tbsp fresh basil leaves (chopped finely)

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 220 C.
2. Prepare a baking tray by dusting lightly with flour.
3. Sieve the flour, baking powder and salt together in a large bowl.
4. Add the sun dried tomatoes and basil, proceed to make a well in the center.
5. Add the buttermilk and using your hands bring the dough together. The dough should be soft and not too wet or sticky.
6. Remove any excess dough from your hands by washing making sure to dry them thoroughly.
7. Place the dough on a floured surface and shape into a round patting gently as you turn.
8. Transfer the loaf to the prepared baking tray.
9. Using either a knife or your hands make a cross shape in the loaf.
10. Bake the bread for 20 minutes at 220 C and then reduce the heat to 200 C and bake for a further 20 minutes.
11. The bread should sound hollow when tapped once cooked. Allow to cool on a wire tray.

Best Wishes,

Sarah xx

Cadbury Creme Egg Easter Brownies

Chocolate brownies are always something I have had a great love of,  so when I was flicking through the pictures on my cake decorating facebook's page, (/www.facebook.com/MyCakeDecorating?fref=ts) for Easter inspiration I came across a picture of brownies with Cadbury creme eggs on top. It looked so appetising that I decided to try it myself. I used Cadbury creme eggs in this recipe but you could substitute them for Cadbury caramel eggs if you would prefer. So here is my recipe, any suggestions and feedback welcome, please let me know how you get on. Enjoy!

Ingredients

Fresh from the oven

200g unsalted butter
200g 70% cocoa chocolate
3 large eggs
250g caster sugar
1 tbsp vanilla essence
80g plain flour
40g cocoa powder
100g hazelnuts (optional)
6 creme eggs

Method
1. Grease a 20cm/8inch square baking tin and preheat the oven to 160 C.
2. Melt the butter and dark chocolate together using either a double boiler or a water bath.
3. Leave to the side to cool.
3. Gradually beat the eggs and caster sugar together until thick and creamy (this may take up to 6-8 minutes).
4. Fold the melted chocolate mixture over the creamy mousse.
5. Add vanilla essence.
6. Sift the flour and cocoa into the mixture and again gently fold.
7. Add hazelnuts at this stage (if using).
8. Pour the mixture into the greased tin and cook for 15 minutes.
9. Remove the tin from the oven and press the Cadbury eggs into the half cooked brownies.
10. Put the tin back into the oven for a further 5-10 minutes.
11. Allow the brownies to cool before removing them from the tin and cutting.

Best Wishes,

Sarah xx