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  • Decorated Heart
    Solid Chocolate Heart for Valentine’s Day Solid Chocolate Heart for Valentine’s Day

    Solid Chocolate Heart for Valentine’s Day

Solid Chocolate Heart for Valentine’s Day

Do we really need a whole day dedicated to saying ‘I Love You’ to the person you love? Well, if it gives us an excuse to make-and-do cards, eat chocolate and treats then bring it on!

Again, HoneyB is showing that she is more than just a cake mixer and decorater. Today she helped temper some chocolate with so much patience that it filled me with pride.

Her passion lies in decorating though, carefully sampling the colourful gems to see if they will fit into her taste and colour scheme. This 7″ wide chocolate heart is destined for her Dad and she knows she will get a decent chunk.

By |February 14th, 2012|Child Friendly, Events, Family, Featured|4 Comments
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Chocolate Course at Sarah Baker Cookery School

Here are are some recipes from my Chocolate Course at Sarah Baker’s Cookery School in Cloughjordan, Co. Tipperary. I was very busy talking and making sure I did not leave out a single fact that I did not take one single photo of the event! For shame :-0

Aztec Inspired Hot Chocolate
~ serves 2

20g sugar
20g cocoa powder
50g dark chocolate
½ tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp nutmeg
Pinch of chilli (to taste)

1. Heat 400ml water, sugar and cocoa powder. Whisk until cocoa powder has dissolved.
2. Add the chocolate and whisk until emulsified.
3. Add the spices and whisk for a few minutes at simmering point.

Cappuccino Truffles
- approx 80 truffles

250ml single cream
20g ground coffee
450 milk chocolate, finely chopped
4 tbsp cocoa powder
2 tsp ground cinnamon

1. Add the cream into a small saucepan, stir in the coffee and bring to a simmer. Take off the heat and leave to sit for 10 minutes.
2. Put the saucepan back on the heat and bring back to simmering.
3. Strain the cream through a sieve over the chocolate and gently stir until the chocolate has melted.
4. Allow the mixture to cool and stand at room temp overnight or 4 hours in the fridge before shaping the truffles. If using the fridge, remove 15 minutes before rolling the truffles.
5. Mix the cocoa powder and cinnamon in a shallow bowl. Scoop a teaspoon of the truffle mixture, shape and roll in cocoa.
6. Store the truffles in an air tight container in the fridge for up to 7 days.

And here is the recipe for Baileys Truffles I mentioned.

Thank you to Sarah and Olivia for helping with the course logistics. It is daunting to go into someone else’s kitchen but they made the transition from Ennis to Cloughjordan seamless.

And a big thank you to all those who travelled from near and far. It was lovely to meet you all and please feel free to contact me with any questions … particularly if you have questions about making those all important Christmas gifts.

Margaret from Oldfarm took lots of photos so I will update this post when she gets a chance to upload them. Now given that Margaret is up t her eyes in orders for their gorgeous Christmas hams, it will not be this side of Christmas.

By |December 11th, 2011|Chocolate Course, Events, Recipe, Truffles|8 Comments
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Temple Bar Chocolate Festival – Events Cancelled

I am so sorry to tell you that my classes at the Temple Bar Chocolate Festival have been cancelled due to atrocious weather conditions. More updates are available on their website.

I have been looking forward to this weekend for months now. I had even planned a mini shopping spree for myself. But the freezing temperatures and snow have meant that travel is next to impossible.

I am so disappointed but it cannot be helped. I will post the recipes for the workshops soon so no excuses for those snowbound not to be getting creative in the kitchen … as long as you can slip slide ski to the local grocery shop.

By |December 2nd, 2010|Events|2 Comments
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Tix for Temple Bar Chocolate Festival

Ticket lines open 9am this Monday 15th Nov.

Time is slipping by so quickly these days! Soon I will be back in Dublin talking about chocolate ganache and gettings lots of hands messy. A good messy though. But apparently the new Persil is great at getting out even the most stubborn ‘chocolate’ stains. I’ve never had an issue with that! My apron comes out sparkling each time.

By |November 13th, 2010|Events|1 Comment
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Temple Bar Chocolate Festival 2010

It’s back and this year it is going to be a Christmassy Chocolatey Weekend. The Temple Bar Chocolate Festival is on Fri 3rd – Sun 5th Dec with a host of workshops, demos, talks, films and of course Chocolate Sundae (artisan chocolate market).

I hope hope hope to get to Sara Jayne Stanes ‘From Pod to Palette’ but the schedule is not going to allow me attend Co Couture’s Chocolate Connoisseurs Club :-(

Anyhow, I will be running two workshops, both free. Booking lines open Nov 15th.

Children’s Truffle Making

(4th Dec 11am)

Pick and choose your own toppings and flavours to create your very own chocolate truffles! Find out how exactly chocolate is made as we introduce you to the cocoa pod!  9 – 12yr olds

A Beginners Guide to Truffle Making (4th Dec 1.30pm)

Learn how to infuse flavours and make ganache in this step by step adult workshop with lots of tips for making your very own chocolates at home!
By |November 3rd, 2010|Events, Family|4 Comments
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Food Camp at Savour Kilkenny

Friday sees the first Food Camp in Ireland as part of Savour Kilkenny.

Savour Kilkenny describe Food Camp as “A day where food professionals (chefs, producers) mix with foodies (journalists, bloggers, consumers) and agency heads (Bord Bia, Bord Iascaigh Mhara) and through 20 speaking sessions learn and share with each other.”

I am so excited to be attending although it does mean missing the Ennis Farmer’s Market which I am not happy about. But Food Camp does not happen often – this is the first in Ireland.

There are some great talks planned and then there is ‘lunch’. Not a normal lunch but a bring your own lunch and one to share. I’ve already got a special pass from @Savourkilkenny to bring chocolate-lunch ;-)

So I’m making mendiant selection. As always, I have a favourite and it’s the dark ginger one: single origin cacao from Madagascar, sweet candied ginger. Yum.

By |October 21st, 2010|Days Out, Events|8 Comments
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Clare Harvest Banquet 2010

Unfortunately cacao only grows in lands 20 degrees North and South of the Equator, otherwise I am sure my name would be listed as a supplier for the Clare Harvest Banquet ;-)

The idea is to hold a banquet where every single ingredient, down to the salt and butter, is sourced in Co. Clare. A wonderfully challenging idea with all proceeds going to Asral, a charity to help families in Outer Mongolia.

Clare Harvest Banquet 2010

By |August 31st, 2010|Events|4 Comments
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Food Bloggers Country Outing – Pigs pigs pigs

What a relaxing day with people I’d never met, except online. Putting real names to blogs, putting faces to names, those blogs have come even more alive to me now. The location for the Country Outing was Oldfarm near Portumna where Margaret and Alfie breed saddleback pigs.

So after sipping elderflower cordial in the sunshine and talking pigs, pork, free range vs organic, it was time to see them for real. There were gentle giant boars, protective sows and giddy piglets. Margaret and Alfie made pig farming look easy. I am reminded of what my Dad said when I commented how Eddie Macken made horse riding look so easy. ’That’s the sign of an expert’ he said. Dads are always right, aren’t they :-)  

 

While we saw the pigs a visitor arrived by the name of Ralf Haslam from Mossfield. He brought us a pressie of cheese. Could the day get better? Yes, how about some Hey Pesto pesto.

After an information filled trip around the farm we sat in the shade. It was paradise, comparing Mossfield immature and mature cheeses, sprinkling salt on bread fried in pig lard, gorging on cookies and cakes, tasting chocolate raspberry jam and keeping it healthy with homegrown strawberries and cherries. 

Thank’s to all involved for a wonderful day including Margaret and Alfie our gracious hosts, Caroline of Bibliocook who brought the yummy NYT Chocolate Chip Cookies, Kirstin of Dinner du Jour (check out her Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies), Theresa of The Green Apron (watch out for her Chocolate Raspberry Jam), Wendy of My Chef At Home (a site gathering chefs, producers from around the country) and another Margaret, a local and total food enthusiast.

I arrived home and tipped out my goodie bag which included: Oldfarm sausages and rhubarb, basil pesto from Hey Pesto and Mossfield Organic Farmhouse cheese with cumin seeds. In short, cookies for coffee break, cheese for lunch, pesto for afternoon snack and sausages for dinner. The outing might be over but the eating continues :-0 

Note the empty cake tin. I will show you later what it looks like filled with Alice Medrich’s Mocha Tart.

By |June 17th, 2010|Events, Shops and Suppliers|11 Comments
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Pretty Chocolate Fudge Cake

How easy it is to pop a few sugar flowers atop a chocolate fudge cake and make it ever so pretty. Pretty enough for a church cake sale??

Well, it sold, so the answer would be yes :-)

But can anyone spot the fingerprint of a certain HoneyB? I think she likes transforming my photos from dull white background pics into ‘Where’s Wally’ puzzles.  

Now if only I could make those tiny pesky flowers I would be beaming.

By |June 13th, 2010|Events|13 Comments
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Food Bloggers Country Outing

I am rather excited.

Thanks to Caroline at Bibliocook, I am off for an afternoon of foodie chat in the rather wonderful looking Oldfarm, Redwood, Co. Tipperary. I was rather disappointed about missing the Irish Food Bloggers event in Dublin … yes, the place I do not live anymore. 

All the details are posted on A Year in Redwood. Roll on Wednesday :-)

By |June 10th, 2010|Events|3 Comments
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