Local is the only way to go
We’ve got acres of fertile soil, plenty of water, a long growing season, a thriving artisan and specialist food production industry, plus a green clean image.
The Harvard Business School report commissioned by Bord Bia on Pathways to Growth said: “Ireland has an enviable agricultural situation that almost every other country would kill for. At present we export 90% of our beef and dairy products much of which is produced on grass which is known to produce the correct balance of Omega 3 and 6.”
In the corridors of power, politicians are “tri ná ceile” about what should be done to ease us out of the quagmire we find ourselves in but on the ground people are just getting on with it, milking their cows, cooking the dinner, going to work where they are fortunate enough to still have job.
A study by the New Economics Foundation in London found that every £10 spent at a local food business is worth £25 for the local area, compared with just £14 when the same amount is spent in a supermarket.
Over the Halloween weekend I visited two Farmers Markets in Co Clare, one in Ennistymon and the other in Ballyvaughan. There was a terrific buzz and lively banter.
Even though there were less than 15 stalls at this time of the year, one couldn’t but be impressed by the variety. There was lots of local produce and home baking. I also bought a fine bag of turf and some Kerrs Pink potatoes that were grown in Ennistymon by Tom Kennedy.
Eva Hegarty Stephan had some traditional bacon, dry cured in the time honoured way and some home made sausages. Close by, Kate Conway was doing a roaring trade with a fine array of her gluten free baking. Mary Gray’s stall beside pumpkin carving also caught my eye. Mary’s attention to detail was evident in her delicious jams and baking and prettily wrapped hampers.
She told me her cider cake is the best seller but I couldn’t resist a pot of lemon ginger marmalade and some sweet chilli jelly. Inside the hall adjoining the outdoor market Gillian O’Leary, from Caherbannagh, sold her chocolate confections, pretty mendiants, hot-chocolate powder, truffles and chocolate lollipops.
Ballyvaughan Market is also held from 10am to 2pm on a Saturday, again there were fewer stalls than in the summer time but still lots to choose from. We bought local Burren Gold cheese, some French garlic and local apple juice. Stall holders told me how vital the market is to the community, both in economic and social terms.
Members of the Ballyvaughan market and community have even come together to write a cookbook. It is available from Quinn Crafts in Ballyvaughan, Fitzpatricks Supervalu in Ennistymon and Burren Smoke House in Lisdoonvarna. The proceeds will benefit the local community.
Farmers markets provide a badly needed income for many food producers and increasingly fishermen as well. They are unquestionably the best place to trial a product and do simple but effective market research.
We stayed at Gregans Castle near Ballyvaughan, Co Clare, a second generation country house hotel on the edge of the Burren. They have recently been awarded three rosettes from the AA and their Finnish chef Mickael Viljanen also won the Hotel & Catering Review Gold Medal Award for Fine Dining and at The Food & Wine Magazine Awards in August 2009.
So this week, try some delicious recipes with seasonal produce that would be good to make for the family – or to sell at a farmers market.
Making jellies is immensely rewarding. This is a brilliant master recipe that can be used for many combinations. A jelly bag is an advantage, but by no means essential. Years ago we strained the juice and pulp through an old cotton pillow and hung it on an upturned stool. A couple of thicknesses of muslin will also do the job. Place a stainless-steel or deep pottery bowl underneath to catch the juice. Tie with cotton string and hang from a sturdy cup-hook. If you can’t get enough crab apples, use a mixture of crab apples and windfall cooking apples, like Bramley’s Seedling, Grenadier or any other tart cooking apple.
Makes 2.7–3.2kg (6–7lb)
2.7kg (6lb) crab apples or windfall cooking apples 2.7 litres (5¾ pints) water 2 organic lemons 450g (1lb) granulated sugar to every 600ml (1 pint) of juice
Wash the apples, cut into quarters, but do not remove either the peel or core. Windfalls may be used, but be sure to cut out the bruised parts. Put the apples into a large stainless-steel saucepan with the water and the thinly pared zest of the lemons and cook for about 30 minutes until reduced to a pulp.
Pour the pulp into a jelly bag and allow to drip until all the juice has been extracted, usually overnight. (The pulp can later go to the hens or compost. The jelly bag or muslin may be washed and reused over and over again.) Measure the juice into a preserving pan and allow 450g (1lb) sugar to each 600ml (1 pint/2 1/2 cups) of juice.
Warm the sugar in a low oven. Squeeze the lemons, strain the juice and add to the pan. Bring to the boil and add the warm sugar. Stir over a gentle heat until the sugar is dissolved. Increase the heat and boil rapidly without stirring for about 8–10 minutes. Skim, test and pot immediately. Flavour with rose geranium, mint, sage or cloves as required (see below).
Add 8–10 leaves to the apples initially and 5 more when boiling to a set.
Serves 10
3 free-range organic eggs
150ml (5 fl oz) sunflower oil
50g (2oz) soft brown sugar
150g (5oz) white or spelt flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
Pinch of salt
100g (4oz) beetroot, grated
60g (2¼ oz) sultanas
60g (2¼ oz) walnuts, coarsely chopped
Icing:
175g (6oz) icing sugar
3-4 tablespoons water to bind
To decorate:
Deep-fried beetroot (see below)
Pumpkin seeds
1 loaf tin 13 x 20cm (5 x 8inch)
Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas Mark 4.
Line a loaf tin with a butter paper or baking parchment.
In a bowl, whisk together the eggs, oil and sugar until smooth. Sift in the flour and baking powder, add a pinch of salt and gently mix into the egg mixture. Stir in the grated beetroot, sultanas and walnuts. Pour into the prepared tin. Bake for 45-50 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack.
Next make the icing.
Sieve the icing sugar, beat in the water gradually to a stiff consistency. Spread evenly over the cake, allow to drizzle down the sides, leave for 5 minutes and scatter with deep-fried beetroot (see below) and pumpkin seeds.
To deep-fry beetroot:
Peel the outer skin off the beetroot. Using a peeler, slice thin rings of the beetroot. Allow to dry on kitchen paper for 20 minutes. Deep-fry until crispy.
I found this recipe in a BBC Good Food magazine and it has since become a favourite of ours.
Serves 8
175g (6oz) butter, plus extra for greasing
250g (9oz) Demerara sugar
100ml (3½ fl oz) maple syrup
3 large organic eggs
250g (9oz) self-raising flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons mixed spice
250g (9oz) parsnips, peeled and grated
1 medium eating apple, peeled, cored and grated
50g (2oz) pecans, roughly chopped
Zest and juice of 1 small orange
icing sugar, to serve
Filling:
250g (9oz) mascarpone
3-4 tablespoons maple syrup
2 x 20cm (8 inches) deep sandwich tins
Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas Mark 4.
Grease the cake tins with a little butter and line the bases with baking parchment.
Melt the butter, sugar and maple syrup in a pan over a gentle heat, then cool slightly. Whisk the eggs into the mixture, then stir into the flour, baking powder and mixed spice, followed by the grated parsnip, apple, chopped pecans, orange zest and juice. Divide between the two tins and bake in the preheated oven for 35-40 minutes until the tops spring back when pressed lightly.
Cool the cakes slightly in the tins before turning out onto wire racks to cool completely. Just before serving, mix together the mascarpone and maple syrup. Spread over one cake and sandwich with the other. Dust with icing sugar just before serving.
When you grow your own tomatoes, you can’t bear to waste a single one. This recipe will use up the end of the precious crop and add extra oomph to winter meals.
Makes 12 x 200ml (7fl oz) jars
1kg (2¼ lb) cooking apples (Bramley Seedling or Grenadier), peeled and diced
450g (1lb) onions, chopped
1kg (2¼ lb) green tomatoes, chopped (no need to peel)
350g (12oz) white sugar
350g (12oz) Demerara sugar
450g (1lb) sultanas
2 tsp ground ginger
2 tsp allspice
2 tsp freshly cracked black pepper
2 garlic cloves, coarsely crushed
1 tbsp salt
900ml (1½ pints) white wine vinegar
Put the apples and onions into a wide, stainless-steel saucepan and add the remaining ingredients. Stir well, bring to the boil and simmer gently, uncovered, for about 45 minutes or until reduced by more than half. Stir regularly, particularly toward the end of cooking.
Pot into sterilised jars and cover immediately with non-reactive lids.
Store in a dark, airy place and leave to mellow for at least two weeks before using.
1lb (450g) cooking apples, (Bramley Seedling)
1-2 dstsp water
2oz (50g) sugar approx, depending on tartness of the apples
2-4 sweet geranium leaves
Peel, quarter and core the apples, cut pieces in two and put in a small stainless steel or cast iron saucepan, with the sugar, water and sweet geranium, cover and put over a low heat. As soon as the apple has broken down, stir and taste for sweetness.
- Time to think about ordering your Christmas turkey or goose: Philip Monks, Ballyvaughan, Co Clare, 086 8735565; Tom Clancy, Ballycotton, Co Cork, 086 1585709; Dan Ahearn, Midleton, Co Cork, 021 4631058 or 086 8726358; Robbie Fitzsimmons, East Ferry, Co Cork, 086 2056020 or 021 4651916; Ben and Charlotte Colchester, Urlingford, Co Kilkenny, 056 8831411.
For jams, jellies, hampers, contact Mary Gray, Ennistymon, Co Clare, 087 76400629.
- Richard Graham-Leigh bakes his melt-in-the-mouth range of handmade Patisserie Régale Cookies from a small premises near Dunmanway in west Cork using local unsalted butter and free range eggs. His roasted hazelnut and white chocolate cookies, lavender shortbread, chocolate chip and oat and raisin cookies and apricot frangipane bars are available at Urru in Bandon, Scallys in Clonakilty, Fields in Skibbereen and Fallon and Byrne in Dublin. Contact 023 8855344, www.regale.ie
- Game lovers shouldn’t miss George Gossip’s Game Cookery Weekend at Ballinderry Park, Kilconnell, Ballinasloe, Co Galway, Friday, November 19, to Sunday, November 21. George is the best game cook I know.
To book your place contact george@ballinderrypark.com, contact 090 96 96796 or www.ballinderrypark.com
- I hear good things about Dublin City Markets’ new lunch time market on Harcourt Street Monday to Friday.
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