My Style in Image Magazine

(c) Cliona O'Flaherty

Eeekkk! Check me out in the 'My Style' feature of the current issue of Image Magazine....basically all boils down to me coming clean and face to face with my addiction to shopping, hoarding and colour after all these years. Thank you so much to Suzie Cohen at Image mag for making me sound amazing and fab photographer Cliona for making me look..well, like the Holy Mary! Caption suggestion from my dad for under the 'Shrine to Wine' photo... "If they only knew".

All that aside, I was delighted to be able to promote Cup Cake Camp at this years upcoming Bloom in the Park. I will be hosting 40 (!) kids demos over the five days all in aid of Crumlin Children's Hospital. Avoca are our sponsors so you can be sure everything is going to look (and taste!) amazing. Please bring the kids along and support the great cause. See you there!

Feisty Salads

(c) Carol Dunne

Some feisty salads I styled for Catherine Fulvio in this months issue of Irish Country Magazine. This days challenge brought a location with no cooking facilities and so everything had to be cooked early in the morning before leaving home (with a lot of praying along the way that it would all stay looking good for the day). That's where lashing of oil and a small paintbrush comes in as a food stylist's 'tool of mass creation' in making everything look lush last minute. Helped along by gorgeous props from Pearl and Godiva.

My inner Masterchef

(c) Cliona O'Flaherty

Bringing out my inner Masterchef...thank goodness for many hours spent working with great chefs like Gary Rhodes and Neven Maguire - I'm hoping they would be proud of my dots, quenelles, soil and swipes!

As seen in a Masterchef Ireland supplement magazine in the RTE guide recently.

Back to School Lunch-boxes

(c) Joanne Murphy

My back to school lunch box ideas are packed with ideas for interesting packaging and fun flavor combinations for nutritionally balanced kiddie feasts! Check them out in this months issue of AIB bank magazine. Thanks to cutie model Oscar for holding the pasty-saurus rex so perfectly!

Irish Country Magazine, July Issue

(c) Carol Dunne

If you haven't already picked up the current issue of Irish Country Mag, then grab one quick as it is flying off the shelves. The magazine is a great new publication packed with all things home, garden, fashion, family and of course food. My kinda magazine!

Of course I had my finger in the pie and prop and food styled a couple of features. Catherine Fulvio's BBQ recipes were delicious and if I could cook and style them in the rain then you can too! The God's were against us that day but it didn't dampen our Summer spirit as you can see from the summery shot above.

The second feature was with fabulous Irish Cheese producers which was a very tasty job indeed. We won't mention the calories piled on from excessive cheese eating on the day. I couldn't name a favourite between Wicklow blue, Triskel, Knockdrinna and Durrus and the people behind them were equally as charming. Actually, it was lovely to read a bit more about their interesting stories recently when i nabbed a rare five minutes peace.

Try the mag yourself, a very enjoyable and relaxing read altogether!

A Peasant Chic Picnic

Images show some behind the scenes action on an Irish Country Magazine feature on Irish Food Bloggers, featuring Imen McDonnell, Lorna Sixsmith, Pat Whelan and Ella McSweeney.

The theme was a 'peasant chic' picnic. Luckily we shot on location at the lovely Village at Lyons which housed us in a cosy conservatory to shield us from the elements.

Check out the contributors food and interviews in the first fabulous issue of the mag out on March 29th 2012.

Delicious!

Pearl and I have been our usual socialite selves, this time rubbing shoulders with fab foodies at L'ecrivan. The lovely people behind Sacla Sauces & Delicious Magazine were over from the UK and very kindly invited us to lunch as part of a group of food bloggers. What a really nice, feel good afternoon filled with fabulous food and friendly chitter chatter.

Seamus from Delicious told us all about his new magazine Healthy Food Guide and also about his Irish roots. He is indeed 'one of us'! Clare from Sacla filled us in on the amazing Italian family who have been producing the well known Italian sauces for 70 years now. Clare is our 'pesto pioneer' having first introduced it to the UK in 1991. Great claim to fame!

The party then moved onto the Taste of Dublin launch which was sadly rained on by our typical Irish weather. Just when our UK friends were over to visit too! Didn't dampen our spirits though. Here's the only snap I got on the day (having my hands slightly full with baba!)...

Some fab food blogger friends...Aoife, Clare, Moi, Imen & Sheila

Click these links to follow our new BFF over on Twitter! Sacla, Delicious Mag & Healthy Food Guide

A picnic with House & Home Mag

I am thrilled to announce I am now the new food feature writer & stylist for House & Home Magazine. My three page feature gives me a chance to combine my love of food, props & homely top tips. My first feature is all about picnics and is currently out in the May / June issue. Watch out for BBQ's up next in July.

Fab photographer Elisha Clarke took the gorgeous food snaps, Paul Sherwood took my mug shot & Hilary O'Hagan was a great help with the food (particularly as I was a week off my due date & could only waddle about out of breath!). Typically we were challenged by the elements and were actually sliding around in mud & with brollies but that's what picnics are mostly like anyhow don't you think?!

Cover Girl

So I've finally made it. It's every girls dream to be a cover girl and my dream came through this week. Now, admittedly it's not Vogue Magazine as expected but much thanks to Country Living Magazine for featuring me in their current issue and popping me on the cover too. It's a fab mag, read and loved by thousands around the country so I'm more than happy with that!

The lovely Imen McDonnell from I Married an Irish Farmer did a great interview and feature with me. It's mainly about what I do with work and my love of all things food. In fact, the husband kept winding me up about my "everything about food makes me happy" quote. I simply asked him to think what his life would be like if my quote was "everything about food makes me unhappy". Hum. Shut him up.

Also, I have to thank fab photographer Jack Caffrey who took amazing shots as always. I work with Jack on Neven Maguire's food feature shots for the same mag so it made a bit of a change for Jack to get my mush in instead of the food I cook. Anyhow guys, thanks for making a great feature of me...it can't have been easy!

Oh, and it's not a case of who ate all the pies...I'm proudly showing my baby pie off here at about the six month mark.

Check out the recipe for those spiced banana muffins over on my Friendly Cottage blog.

National Fish & Chip Day

Chish & Fips in Country Living Magazine (c) Jack Caffrey

Happy National Fish & Chip Day! It's officially our first here in Ireland and what perfect timing with such fantastically sunny summery weather. Chish & Fips (as they are called in our house) are half price today from the 190 members of the Irish Traditional Italian Chipper Association. Phew, thats a bit of a mouthful! I know what I'll be tucking into later...what about you?

Homemade Jammy Dodgers

Uuummmmm...This is Neven Maguires recipe for Homemade Jammy Dodgers. I tested them for his latest book and got to make them again recently for a Country Living magazine shoot.

JAMMY DODGERS

Makes about 16-18

FOR THE SHORTCAKE

73g (3oz) plain flour plus extra for dusting

25g (1oz) icing sugar, plus extra for dusting

Finely grated zest of 1 lime 50g (2oz) butter, softened

FOR THE FILLING

100g (4oz) raspberry or strawberry jam

Quarter tsp vanilla extract

1 tbsp crème de cassis

To make the shortcake, sift the flour and icing sugar into a bowl. Stir in the lime zest. Then beat in the butter with a wooden spoon to give rough crumbs. Bring the mixture together with your hands to form a soft, smooth dough. Wrap in Cling flm and chill for at least 30 minutes.

To make the jam flling, place the jam, vanilla extract and crème de cassis in a small saucepan and simmer over a low heat for eight to 10 minutes, until melted and slightly thickened. Allow to cool completely.

Preheat the oven to 190°C/375°F/Gas mark 5. Roll out the dough on a lightly floured work surface to a thickness of 3mm (one eighth inch). Stamp out about 32- 36 circles using a 4cm (1.5 in) fluted cutter and arrange on baking sheets lined with non-stick baking paper. Using a 1cm (half in) plain nozzle (metal is best) stamp out holes in the centre of half of the circles. This will allow the jam to show through later. Bake the biscuits for eight to 10 minutes, until crisp and lightly golden.

To assemble, spoon a teaspoon of the jam mixture onto the centre of each unstamped shortcake. Dust the remaining shortcakes with icing sugar and then place on the jam-topped biscuits, pressing down lightly so that the jam squeezes out just a little bit through the hole. Arrange on plates to serve.

me making shortbreads.

photographer jack caffrey shooting the boxed up jammy dodgers.

Death by Easter Feasting

If you are not already keeling over from all the Easter Feasting then these chocolate squares are sure to tip you over the edge. This recipe is a great way to use up all that Easter chocolate (if there is even any left at this stage!). Mind you, definitely a heart attack warning on this one with 6 small Mars Bars melted in all that butter AND another 250g of chocolate on top. Sooooo naughty but soooo nice.

MARS BAR SQUARES

6 x 65g Mars Bars

200g butter

200g Rice Krispies

250g milk chocolate

Cut the Mars Bars and butter into small chunks and place in a saucepan. Put over a low heat, and stir with a balloon whisk until melted. Add the Mars Bar mixture to the Rice Krispies in a large bowl. Stir well, until all the ingredients are combined. Put into a lined tin and press down with the palm of your hand, until firm. Melt the chocolate. Pour over the rice Krispies, spread evenly and leave to set. When set, turn out onto a board and cut into squares.

Photo: Jack Caffrey

Recipe: Neven Maguire for Country Living Magazine

Styling & Eating: Sharon Hearne-Smith

More Easter Feasting

Photography: Cliona O'Flaherty

Styling: Sharon Hearne-Smith

Assistant: Aoife Herrity

Recipe: Hugo Arnold for Food & Wine Magazine

I hope you're having a fun and food filled Easter Weekend. Here is a really delicious recipe for melt in the mouth lamb....

STEAMED LAMB WITH WHITE WINE AND ROSEMARY

1.5kg leg and shouler of lamb (Ask the butcher to bone out the shoulder part)

olive oil

12 garlic cloves

3 sprigs rosemary

200ml white wine

salt and pepper

Heat 4 tablespoons of olive oil in a large casserole dish and brown the meat evenly. Add the garlic cloves and rosemary to the hot oil. Cook for 2 minutes and then add the white wine.

Season the meat with salt and pepper.

Turn the heat to very low and cover. Cook slowly for 1 1/2 - 2 hours or until the meat is tender and falls off the bone. You will need to turn the meat occasionally. If the liquid looks like drying out, add a glass of water. When the meat is cooked allow to rest, and pour any juices in the pan over the meat.

Easter Feasting

Photography: Cliona O'Flaherty

Food & Prop Styling: Moi

Model & Assistant: Aoife Herrity

Recipe: Hugo Arnold for Food & Wine Magazine

I hope you have a super Easter weekend. So, being Good Friday we shouldn't be indulging in meat or booze. I can't commit to either I'm afraid. If you're being more saintly than me then this fresh and healthy vegetarian recipe is a good start....

GRILLED COURGETTE SALAD WITH FETA, MINT AND BROAD BEANS

1 kg broad beans

6 courgettes, thinly sliced lengthways

1/2 tsp picked thyme leaves

zest and juice of 1 lemon

olive oil

150g feta

bunch mint

Peel the broad beans and plunge into well-salted boiling water for two minutes. Drain, allow to cool and peel. Set aside.

Chargrill the courgettes until just marked, transfer to a bowl and season with salt and pepper and toss with the thyme, lemon juice and zest and 3 tablespoons of olive oil.

Fold the courgettes on to plates. Scatter over the broad beans, feta and mint and serve.

Spring Greens

Lets just ignore the snow on the daffoldils today shall we? Here's a recipe by Hugo Arnold for Food & Wine Magazine. Shot by Cliona O'Flaherty and styled by yours truely x

WILTED SPINACH WITH LEMON ZEST & CRISPY CAPERS

2 tbsp olive oil

1 kg spinach

2 lemons

2 tbsp salted capers, well soaked

salt and freshly ground black pepper

Heat the oil in a large saute pan or wok.

Add the spinach, season with salt and pepper and toss in the hot oil until just wilted.

Scoop out of the pan onto a serving plate and sprinkle the lemon zest over.

Gently squeeze the capers and saute briefly in the remaining oil until just coloured and crispy. Sprinkle over the spinach and serve.

Happy Paddys!

Don't be caught dead without your issue of Country Living this week!!

Totally Dublin

Ooh, how exciting...look what has made it to the front cover of this months Totally Dublin...

location location location

Our house extension has just started (horrah!) and as things are 'getting worse before they get better' I have to look at pictures of nice houses so I can at least dream I'm not living in hell. Here are some snaps I've dug out from features I've worked on for Food & Wine magazine (with photographer Cliona O'Flaherty and table settings by her assistant Aoife Herrity). I often get to work in lovely locations that inspire me and of course make me dream of the 'one day'. As well as the acres of props I drag along to shoots, working in locations like these unearths some other real beauties.

Happy Father's Day!

(c) Jack Caffrey

Go on, make him Bangers & Mash!

The Big Noodle

Oh I'm coming over all asian recently so here's a noodle recipe written by Hugo Arnold for Food & Wine mag, shot by Cliona O'Flaherty and styled by your's truely...

Chicken fried noodles

400g boned chicken thighs, roughly chopped
1 dessertspoon dry sherry
1 tablespoon light soy sauce
1 teaspoon cornflour
450g noodles
sesame oil
vegetable oil
2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
3cm piece of ginger, peeled and finely chopped
8 button mushrooms, thinly sliced
250g beansprouts
1 cucumber, deseeded and thinly sliced
bunch coriander, roughly chopped
4 scallions, thinly sliced
2 fresh red chillies, thinly sliced

Combine the meat with the sherry, soy and cornflour. Mix well and set aside for 30 minutes. Cook the noodles according to the instructions on the packet, drain , plunge into cold water and drain. Toss in a tablespoon of sesame oil and set aside.

Heat two tablespoons of vegetable oil in a frying pan or wok and add the garlic, ginger and mushrooms, stir-fry for 30 seconds and then add the meat mixture. Stir fry for two minutes and then add the noodles and a tablespoon or two of chicken stock or water. Stir-fry for a further two minutes, or until the chicken is cooked. Add the beansprouts and cucumber, heat through and serve on four plates with a sprinkling of coriander, scallions and chilli.