Currabinny Cooks: How to make restaurant-style pizza in a frying pan 

And two other recipes using one of our favourite ingredients: cheese

Crispy pizza made in a frying pan.  Picture: Bríd O'Donovan

There is something incredible about this time of year. I think this is my favourite time, a change that brings clarity, golden light, pink cheeks, and cosy socks.

This is also the time of year where I hear my stomach rumble for rich and wonderfully filling foods again. I like to use this transitional time to phase some of my favourite comfort foods in. There is still a bit of sunshine and gorgeous end-of-summer and early autumn produce in shops. A balance of the fresh and light with the rich and filling is needed.

This week I have been craving cheese. Of course, we eat cheese all year long — it is as appropriate in high summer as it is in the depths of winter, so I suppose what I’m really craving is hot, melted cheese. 

It has got me thinking about how there are some cheeses in particular like mozzarella which really are so versatile. You can enjoy a ball of mozzarella with fresh ripe tomatoes in the middle of summer and then have it melted and bubbling in a casserole in the colder months. 

Luckily our cheese revolution has allowed for some pretty spectacular local versions of mozzarella, some of which even use Italian water buffalo milk.

Farmer Johnny Lynch in Macroom and his beautiful herd of buffalo are responsible for award-winning mozzarella. The lush green grasses our cattle, sheep, goats, (and buffalo) graze on in Ireland is the best in the world for making beautiful milk.

Alongside amazing cheeses produced in this farm-house cheese revolution there has also been a great effort to make well-known cheese from the continent using our own exceptional milk. Ballyhubbock farm in Wicklow makes mouth-watering halloumi in small batches using East Friesian dairy sheep. The ewes’ milk is naturally creamier and sweeter than cows’ milk, perfect for a balanced halloumi.

The Greek cheese feta has a particular DOP [Denominazione di Origine Protetta (literally ‘Protected Designation of Origin’)] which means it cannot be called feta unless it is produced in Greece using certain methods. There are however great examples of Irish cheesemakers making similar cheeses to feta which are just as delicious.

Feta with hot spices

This spiced oil is perfect for pouring over feta, balancing out the saltiness of the cheese. I usually eat this with torn up bits of toasted wholemeal pitta

Course

 Starter

Ingredients

• 200g feta or Irish made Greek-style cheese

• 1 tsp cumin seeds

• 1 tsp caraway seeds

• 1 tsp coriander seeds

• 3 tbsp good olive oil

• Small handful of mint leaves, roughly chopped

• Small handful of parsley leaves, roughly chopped

• Wholemeal pitta breads, toasted and cut into triangles to serve

Method

1. Toast the cumin, caraway and coriander seeds in a dry pan over a medium-high heat for a minute or two until they start to turn fragrant. Pour the oil into the pan and bring to a sort of boil whereby everything is starting to fizzle and pop in the pan. Remove from the heat before anything burns and set aside.

2. Place the feta in a serving dish and pour the hot oil and toasted seeds over it. Garnish with the chopped herbs and serve with the toasted pitta triangles.

Halloumi, Fennel and Grapes

recipe by:Currabinny Cooks

The salty flavours of the halloumi with the sweetness of the grapes and fresh, bright aniseed crunch of fennel, perfect and simple. It is a sort of Waldorf salad with halloumi.

Servings

2

Preparation Time

 5 mins

Cooking Time

 8 mins

Total Time

 13 mins

Course

 Starter

Ingredients

• 1 large fennel bulb, trimmed of stalks; fronds reserved

• Small pinch of sea salt

• 150g red grapes

• Juice of ½ lemon

• 2 tablespoons olive oil

• Small handful of parsley, chopped

• Black pepper, freshly cracked

• 150g halloumi, sliced

• Handful of walnuts, roughly chopped

Method

1. Cut the fennel bulb into very thin slices. Place the slices in a small mixing bowl and season with a little sea salt and black pepper. Squeeze the juice of a half lemon and 2 tablespoons of olive oil over it and mix it all together with your hands so that all the fennel slices are nicely dressed.

2. Cut the grapes in half.

3. Fry the halloumi on a grill pan, 2-4 minutes each side over medium-high heat with a little oil.

4. You are looking for nicely golden brown slices of halloumi on both sides.

5. Place the dressed fennel onto a serving dish with the grapes and put the fried halloumi on top. Garnish with chopped walnuts and parsley and serve.

Cast iron pizza

recipe by:Currabinny Cooks

This is a simple enough recipe for a homemade pizza which you make in a good cast iron pan or ovenproof frying pan

Servings

2

Preparation Time

 15 mins

Cooking Time

 20 mins

Total Time

 35 mins

Course

 Main

Ingredients

• For the dough:

• 250g cream flour

• 250g ‘00’ flour

• 2 tsp fast-acting dried yeast

• 1 tsp caster sugar

• 1 tsp fine salt

• 1 ½ tbsp olive oil

• 250ml warm water

• For the topping:

• 180ml good quality passata

• 2 cloves of garlic, crushed

• Olive oil 

• Good pinch of sea salt 

• Good pinch of dried oregano

• 2 balls of buffalo mozzarella

• Handful of fresh basil leaves

• 80g grated Parmesan

• Additional toppings:

• Pepperoni, salami, chorizo or other cured meats

• Chilli flakes

• Honey

• Good pesto

• Sundried tomatoes

• No pineapple — ever!

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 220°C. Make the dough by mixing together all the ingredients in a large mixing bowl and bring it together with your hands to make a dough. Sprinkle a little extra flour over a board and knead for 5-6 minutes until you have a smooth elastic dough. Clean out the mixing bowl and wipe a little olive oil on the inside. Place the dough back into the mixing bowl and cover with a clean tea towel. Leave to rise for just 10 minutes.

2. To make the sauce, mix together the passata, crushed garlic, olive oil, sea salt and oregano in a medium-sized bowl.

3. Divide the dough into two equal-sized balls. Make one at a time. Stretch the dough ball out using your fingers, from the centre outwards until you have a pizza base which will fit neatly in your pan. Place the base in the pan, over a medium-high heat on the stovetop. Spread the sauce on top using a soup spoon. Don’t put too much sauce or too much of any of the toppings: less is more. Next, tear the mozzarella over and then sprinkle the parmesan on top.

4. Dress with fresh basil leaves and any other toppings you like. After 10 minutes, check the underside of the pizza using a spatula. It should be browning nicely and the mozzarella should even be starting to melt at this stage.

5. Quickly transfer the pan to the very hot oven and leave for around 5-10 minutes. You are looking for a nicely browned surface.

6. Remove from the oven and allow to cool a little before serving.