An Irish Country Cookbook Read online

  Apple and Bread-Crumb Pudding

  Serves 4

  4 oz/113 g butter, plus extra as needed

  1 lb 2 oz/500 g tart apples, peeled, cored, and thinly sliced

  9 oz/255 g bread crumbs (made from stale bread, crusts removed)

  A pinch of ground cinnamon

  2 eggs

  8 oz/235 ml milk

  2½ oz/70 g sugar

  A pinch of salt

  Preheat the oven to 325°F/170°C. Lightly butter a 1 quart/960 ml gratin dish.

  Melt half of the butter in a large frying pan, add the apples, and cook, stirring and turning over a low heat, until quite tender. Cook the bread crumbs in a separate pan with the rest of the butter, stirring regularly over a low heat, until crisp and golden. Do add more butter if you need to. Spread the crumbs into the buttered gratin dish. Place the apples on the crumbs and sprinkle cinnamon on top. Whisk together the eggs, milk, sugar, and salt and pour gently over the apples. Bake for an hour and serve with cream.

  Kinky’s Note:

  Whilst Bramley apples would have been the cooking apples of choice in Ulster, if they are not available, try using Braeburn or any other slightly tart variety.

  Caramelized Armagh Apple and Cinnamon Brûlée

  This beautiful dish was given to me by Paul McKnight, the executive chef of the Culloden Hotel. Culloden Estate and Spa, 1 Bangor Road, Holywood. Co Down. N Ireland.

  Makes 6

  APPLE COMPOTE

  3½ oz/100 g butter

  3 large Armagh cooking apples, peeled, cored, and diced

  3½ oz/100 g brown sugar

  Ground cinnamon

  BRÛLÉE

  17 oz/505 ml whipping cream

  1 vanilla pod

  4½ oz/127 g egg yolks (about 6 yolks)

  2¼ oz/63 g granulated sugar, plus extra for topping

  Ground cinnamon

  Preheat the oven to 250°F/130°C.

  FOR THE APPLE COMPOTE:

  Melt the butter in a pan over a medium heat, add the apples, sugar, and cinnamon, and cook until caramelized in colour and flavour. Place the caramelized apples in the bottom of six ramekins.

  FOR THE BRÛLÉE:

  Bring the cream and vanilla pod to the boil. Whisk the egg yolks and sugar together in a bowl, pour the boiled cream into the egg mixture, and whisk. Pour through a sieve into a jug. Fill each ramekin with brûlée mix to three-quarters full. Bake for 15 minutes. You are looking for a slight wobble when cooked. Chill until needed. Top each ramekin with a sprinkling of sugar and cinnamon and caramelize using a blowtorch. Serve.

  Kinky’s Note:

  Armagh apples are usually Bramley. If they are not available try using Braeburn or any other slightly tart variety.

  Chocolate Mousse

  Serves 6

  8 oz/227 g good-quality dark chocolate (at least 70% cocoa)

  2½ oz/75 ml water

  1 oz/56 g unsalted butter, at room temperature and softened slightly

  1 Tbsp crème fraîche or sour cream

  5 eggs, separated, at room temperature

  A pinch of salt

  1 Tbsp sugar

  Melt the chocolate with the water in a large bowl over a saucepan of simmering water, stirring until it has melted. Don’t let the chocolate become too hot. Stir in the softened butter and crème fraîche. Remove the bowl from the heat and, using an electric mixer, beat in the egg yolks one at a time. Using clean beaters in a separate bowl, beat the egg whites with the salt until they are just foamy. Increase the mixer speed, add the sugar, and beat until stiff. Now gradually fold the egg white mixture into the chocolate and transfer to individual ramekins or a serving bowl. Cover and chill in the refrigerator for 24 hours before serving.

  VARIATION

  Add peppermint extract or rum to taste.

  Chocolate Pots

  Serves 8

  8 oz/227 g sugar

  17 oz/505 ml whole milk

  8 oz/227 g good-quality chocolate, at least 70% cocoa, broken into pieces

  8 egg yolks plus 1 egg

  4 oz/120 ml whipping cream

  A few mint leaves for decoration

  Preheat the oven 350°F/180°C. Dissolve the sugar in the milk in a large saucepan and bring to the boil. Now stir in the pieces of chocolate and bring back to the boil, stirring all the time. Whisk the egg yolks and then the whole egg together and gradually whisk this into the chocolate mixture. Pour into eight 4-ounce/120-ml pots or ramekins. Set the pots in a baking dish and fill the dish with enough hot water to come halfway up the outside of the pots. Bake for about 30 minutes, by which time the chocolate will have set. Allow the pots to cool and then refrigerate until cold. When ready to serve, whip the cream and then spoon some on top of each pot and decorate with a mint leaf.

  Kinky’s Note:

  This method of cooking by setting the pots inside another container of boiling water is often referred to as a bain-marie.

  Coffee Ice Cream

  Serves 6

  17 oz/505 ml heavy cream

  10 oz/284 g sweetened condensed milk

  1½ Tbsp espresso coffee powder or strong brewed coffee

  2 Tbsp Tia Maria or Kahlua

  Dark chocolate, grated

  Using a food processor or an electric mixer beat the cream until thick. Add the condensed milk, coffee, and liqueur and continue to beat until thick. Transfer to a lidded plastic container and freeze. Serve in individual glass bowls decorated with grated chocolate.

  Crème Brûlée

  Serves 4

  16 oz/475 ml heavy cream

  2 oz/60 ml whole milk

  1 tsp vanilla extract or the seeds from 2 vanilla pods

  5 egg yolks

  4 oz/113 g brown sugar

  Preheat the oven to 300°F/150°C. Pour the cream and milk into a heavy-bottomed saucepan and bring to almost a simmer, ever so gently. Add the vanilla to the mixture and give it a good stir round. Whisk in the egg yolks and 2½ ounces/70 g of the sugar and pour the mixture into four 6-oz individual ramekins. (If you don’t have time to finish them now you can pop them into the fridge and finish them later.)

  Set the ramekins in a baking dish and fill the dish with enough hot water to come halfway up the outside of the ramekins. (This is called a bain-marie. Himself explained that this was used in an early form of chemical science to heat things very slowly and gently. But I digress…) Now cook the custard for 30 to 35 minutes, until set, then allow to cool. You can leave them in the fridge if you do not need to serve them immediately.

  Now for the topping. Sprinkle the remaining 1½ ounces/43 g sugar on top of each dish and caramelize it using a blowtorch or under a hot broiler. I just love to use my blowtorch that Emer Cullen brought me from London. You remember Emer used to work at the Café de Paris there, before she came here to work for the Marquis’s father. However if you don’t have one you can brown them under a hot grill or broiler.

  Kinky’s Note:

  The leftover egg whites can be frozen or refrigerated for later use. You could make a simple Pavlova (here) or try the Eton Mess (here), which I think is more unusual and simply delicious.

  Eton Mess

  Dear Doctor O’Reilly with his sweet tooth just loves this dessert. He tells me that it may have been invented by a dog knocking over a picnic basket at a cricket match in the grounds of Eton, one of England’s most prestigious schools, but that’s another story. This looks very pretty layered in a glass bowl and works equally well with rhubarb or plums.

  The secret for successful meringue is to make sure that not a single drop of egg yolk gets into the mixture and to ensure that your bowl and beaters are perfectly clean and grease-free. I rub a splash of vinegar on a paper towel round the bowl and beaters.

  Serves 8

  MERINGUE

  5 egg whites

  10 oz/284 g superfine sugar

  1 tsp cornstarch

  1 tsp vinegar

  MESS

  8 oz/227 g strawberries, hulled

 
8 oz/227 g raspberries

  2 tsp sugar

  2 tsp balsamic vinegar

  16 oz/475 ml whipping cream or heavy cream (or use a mixture of cream and crème fraîche)

  2 tsp vanilla extract

  FOR THE MERINGUE:

  Preheat the oven to 325°F/160°C. Grease an 18- by 12-inch baking sheet and dust it with flour. (This stops the meringue from spreading.) Using an electric mixer, whisk the egg whites just long enough to see them turn a greenish colour, then, still beating, add one-third of the sugar and continue beating for another couple of minutes before adding the next third. Beat again and add the rest of the sugar. Now you should beat until it’s as stiff and glossy as can be and then add the cornstarch and vinegar. Spread the mixture evenly on the baking sheet and bake it for 45 minutes, then turn the oven off and leave the meringue in for 30 minutes.

  FOR THE MESS:

  Reserve a few whole berries for decoration. Slice half the strawberries, place in a bowl, and add half the raspberries and the sugar. Mash the fruit, add the vinegar, and let marinate. Whip the cream with the vanilla until stiff. Fill a 2-quart/2-L glass serving dish with alternating layers of cream, pieces of meringue, and mashed and whole fruit. Decorate the top with the reserved whole berries and serve.

  PLUM OR RHUBARB ETON MESS

  Make the meringue as above in Eton Mess.

  MESS

  1 lb/455 g plums, pitted and sliced, or rhubarb, chopped

  2 Tbsp water

  2 Tbsp sugar

  16 oz/475 ml heavy cream or a mixture of cream and crème fraîche

  Cook the fruit in a stainless-steel or enamel saucepan with the water until soft. Add the sugar and stir until dissolved. Whip the cream until stiff. Proceed as before, layering the meringue with the whipped cream and the rhubarb in a large serving bowl.

  Lemon Pots

  Serves 6 to 8

  15 oz/445 ml heavy cream

  4½ oz/127 g sugar

  Grated zest and juice of 2 lemons

  Raspberries (optional)

  Combine all the ingredients in a saucepan and bring to the boil, stirring. Allow to bubble for exactly 5 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and leave to infuse for 30 minutes. Strain the mixture into a jug and pour it into six-to-eight 2-oz ramekins or espresso coffee cups. Refrigerate for at least 12 hours, decorate with a few raspberries (if desired), and serve.

  Marmalade Pudding

  Serves 6 to 8

  8 oz/227 g all-purpose flour

  1 tsp baking powder

  ½ tsp baking soda

  9 oz/255g butter

  2½ oz/70 g superfine sugar

  2½ oz/70 g brown sugar

  5 oz/142 g orange marmalade

  4 eggs

  Grated zest and juice of 1 orange, mixed together

  Preheat the oven to 350°F/180°C. Butter a 10-inch/25-cm square baking dish.

  Sift the flour, baking powder, and baking soda together. Cream the butter and sugars and beat in the marmalade. Add the eggs one at a time. After each addition beat in a little of the sifted flour and finally add half the orange juice mixture. Put the batter in the baking dish and smooth the top. Bake for about 40 minutes, until the pudding has risen and the top is light brown. (Keep a careful eye on it.) Brush the top with the remaining juice mixture and serve with custard or cream.

  Kinky’s Note:

  To prevent a creamed butter and sugar mixture from curdling when adding eggs, just add a little flour and beat it in after each egg.

  Orange and Chocolate Soufflé

  Serves 4 to 6

  2½ tsp unflavored gelatin

  Grated zest and juice of 1 large orange, plus orange segments for garnish

  5 eggs

  3 oz/85 g sugar

  7 oz/200 g plain dark chocolate, at least 70% cocoa, chopped, plus grated chocolate for garnish

  2 oz/60 ml water

  3 oz/90 ml heavy cream

  Sprinkle the gelatin over the orange juice and set aside to soften. Separate two of the eggs and place their whites in a bowl to use later. Put the yolks, the remaining eggs, and the sugar in a large bowl and set it over a saucepan of simmering water. Whisk the mixture for about 10 minutes, until it becomes thick and creamy, then set aside. Place the chocolate into a third bowl, add the water, and set it over the pan of simmering water. Stir until the chocolate has melted and become smooth and runny and add the orange zest. Allow to cool.

  While the chocolate cools, beat the two egg whites until quite stiff. In a separate bowl, whip the cream until stiff. By now the chocolate mixture should have cooled down. If it has not, place the bowl in a larger bowl of cold water and stir the chocolate around. When it is cold, stir and fold the chocolate and the orange juice mixture into the egg and sugar mixture. Now fold the egg whites and whipped cream carefully through the chocolate and egg mixture. Pour into a 2 qt/2 L glass serving dish and refrigerate for 2 to 3 hours. Decorate with orange segments and grated chocolate and serve.

  Pavlova

  The secret for successful meringue is to make sure that not a single drop of egg yolk gets into the mixture. To ensure that my bowl and beaters are perfectly clean and grease-free I rub a splash of vinegar on a paper towel round the bowl and beaters.

  Serves 4 to 6

  3 egg whites

  6 oz/170 g white sugar

  1 tsp cornstarch

  1 tsp vinegar

  8 oz/227 g strawberries, hulled and sliced, or raspberries

  8 oz/235 ml heavy cream

  Preheat the oven to 325°F/160°C. Grease a baking sheet and dust lightly with flour. (This stops the meringue from spreading.)

  Using an electric mixer, whisk the egg whites just long enough to see them turn a greenish colour then, still beating, add one-third of the sugar and continue beating for another minute before adding the next third. Beat again and add the rest of the sugar. Now you should beat until it’s as stiff and glossy as can be and then add the cornstarch and vinegar. Place the meringue, shaped to fit your serving plate, on the baking sheet. Bake it for 45 minutes, then turn the oven off and leave the meringue in for 30 minutes. Turn upside down onto a serving plate and allow to cool. This will create an indented shape in which to put the filling.

  Whip the cream until stiff and cover the top of the pavlova. Decorate with raspberries or strawberries and whipped cream.

  VARIATION

  Spread the meringue with Lemon Curd (here) before covering it with whipped cream. Decorate with raspberries.

  Queen of Puddings

  (Bread and Butter Pudding)

  Apparently, Queen of Puddings dates back to the seventeenth century; this may have been the original recipe from the Closet of Sir Kenelm Digby.

  AN EXCELLENT BAKED PUDDING

  Slice thin two peny-roles, or one, of French-bread, the tender part. Lay it in a dish or pan. Pour upon it a quart of Cream, that hath been well boiled. Let it stand almost half an hour, till it be almost cold. Then stir the bread and Cream very well together, till the bread be well broken and Incorporated. (If you have no French bread, take stale Kingston bread, grated) add to this two spoonfuls of fine Wheat-flower, the yolks of four Eggs, and the whites of two; a Nutmeg—grated small; Sugar to your taste; a little Salt, and the Marrow of two bones a little shreded. Stir all these together; then pour it into a dish greased over with Butter, and set it uncovered in the Oven to bake. About half an hour will serve, and give the top a yellow crispiness. Before you put in the Marrow, put in a quarter of a pound and a half of Raisins of the Sun, and as much of Currants; Ordering them so, that they may not fall to the bottom, but be all about the pudding.

  Sure I don’t think that Doctor O’Reilly would like me to put marrow in his Queen of puddings but I never got round to asking him.

  Serves 6

  4 oz/113 g butter, softened

  8–10 slices white bread

  3½ oz/100 g raisins

  Grated zest of 1 lemon

  9 oz/265 ml milk

  4½ oz/135 ml heavy c
ream, plus extra for serving

  3½ oz/100 g sugar

  3 eggs, separated

  Preheat the oven to 350°F/180°C. Butter a 9 by 7 by 2-inch/23 by 18- by 5-cm baking dish.

  Butter the bread and arrange in layers in the baking dish, sprinkling each layer with the raisins and lemon zest. Then whisk the egg yolks and one of the egg whites in a bowl with the milk, cream, and half of the sugar and pour this over the layers of bread. Bake for 30 minutes or until set and remove from the oven.

  Now beat the two remaining egg whites until stiff and whisk in the rest of the sugar. Cover the top of the pudding with this meringue mixture and return to the oven for a further 10 to 15 minutes or until the top is golden. Serve warm with cream or crème fraîche.

  VARIATIONS

  You could use Barmbrack (here) and omit the raisins, or spread the buttered bread with marmalade and omit the lemon zest and raisins.

  For a savoury pudding you can omit the meringue topping, raisins, and lemon zest and add about 6 oz/170 g grated cheese between the layers and on top.

  Rhubarb Fool

  Miss Nolan, who is just back from a teacher exchange visit to France, tells me that she thinks the word “fool” might come from a French word meaning to crush or puree.

  Serves 4 to 6

  RHUBARB

  1 lb/455 g rhubarb, cut into 1-in/2.5-cm pieces