Main St. in Dingle

The town of Dingle itself is quite small but very charming! You can see how cute the buildings are. There are pubs within different businesses which is how it frequently was in the past. So, for example, there is a men’s hat store that has a pub along one side of the store and a hardware store with a pub in the back. I’d never seen that before. As you may have heard before, pubs have great food that is a little cheaper than restaurants.

Roadside Flowers

The flowers were gorgeous! The ones pictured above grew all along the road like daylilies do in some parts of the US. The hydrangeas were just fabulous hues of blues, purples, and pink.

Intensely Colored Hydrangea

As we were driving along the road outside of Dingle, we decided to follow a side road with a sign indicating there was a leather shop that was holding a sale. Well, we drove and drove and drove but every now and then there would be a sign – “You’re heading in the right direction!” “Just a bit further!” “You’re almost there!” We finally made it and the store had gorgeous handmade purses, briefcases, wallet, etc. Even on sale they were more than my budget could handle. I did buy a cool hot pink key ring, though.

One the way to the leather goods shop, we passed a small country cemetery. I made Ken stop so we could look around. It was very dilapidated but I got some nice pictures of some old Celtic crosses. I hope you enjoy them. Notice the differences in subtle details and the moss and lichen growing on several of them.

Watch for my last installment on our trip to Ireland soon. It will cover Kilkenny and Powerscourt Garden.

Country Cemetery Crypt

Crypt Decor

Mossy Celtic Cross

Angel Cross

Celtic Cross

Celtic Cross

Conor Pass Waterfall

After spending a couple of days in Dublin, we headed across Ireland to the Dingle Peninsula. Only about a third of the drive was on multi-lane highways so it was a leisurely trip through several smalls towns. We stopped in the town of Adare for lunch and shopped for a bit and decided to take the more scenic route to the town of Dingle by driving through the Conor Pass. The roads are so narrow in places that only one car could get through, which makes for some interesting maneuvering at times! Much of the road has stacked stone walls along the edge and at one point we watched a car that had to back up to let another car through put a big scrape along the side of their car . . . hope it wasn’t a rental! The scenery was great, though, and there were no tour buses because of the narrow roads.

Mountainside-Conor Pass

When we did our drive around the perimeter of the peninsula, Barbara, our host at Milestone B & B, suggested that we stop to see these beehive huts. They are on the property of a woman named Mary. We went up to her door where she greeted us warmly and explained that Barbara had told us about her place. Barbara had clued us in to offer her two euro a piece, which we did. We had a wonderful conversation with her about living on a bluff overlooking the ocean and were then free to walk her property. We found ourselves walking on peat which is very spongy and cool to walk on.

Stone Beehive Hut

The beehive huts, as you can see, are made entirely out of stone, with no mortar, or supports of any kind. They were built by 7th century monks and obviously were built to last. I can’t imagine how drafty and cold they must have been in the dead of winter or damp when it rains!!

Ocean View from Hillside

The view of the ocean was fabulous from Mary’s property!! You can see her house in the background and get a sense of the majesty of her view out the front door!!

View from B & B - Howth, Ireland

Howth is where we stayed our first two nights in Ireland. It is just outside of Dublin and we simply took the high speed train into City Centre where we bought tickets for the hop-on, hop-off bus that goes to all the interesting sites. The view out the window of our room at Anne’s of Howth was of the waterfront and one of the two piers.

Don't Drive Off The Pier!

We noticed when we were walking around the waterfront that there were no fences along the edge. Just in case you might not notice, there were caution signs to warn you not to drive off the pier!

Trinity College

Trinity College is in the heart of Dublin and houses the Book of Kells which is an illuminated book of the four gospels. It was hand-written and colored by monks ca. 800 or a little earlier. You can see from the picture that it was absolutely beautiful and amazing!

Christ Enthroned - Book of Kells

A Modern Prison?

Kilmainhaim Gaol was built in 1796 and is considered one of the first “modern” prisons in the world. It housed and was the place of execution for many Irish rebels who fought for Ireland’s independence from England. Let’s just say that it was considered modern because it wasn’t a dungeon!!

City Centre - Dublin

City Centre is the main shopping area in the middle of the historic sites in Dublin. It is a pedestrian area so it was just great strolling from store to store and not worrying about getting hit by a bus or car.

There was a lovely park on the edge of City Centre. It was a beautiful Sunday afternoon when we were there and there were families and people of all ages strolling the different pathways through the park and sitting on benches chatting or quietly reading a book or newspaper.

I have to tell you all about my trip to Ireland . . . it was fabulous!! I’m going to focus on the food in this post and will do another one on the Irish countryside and possibly a third on the towns we visited. But first the food!

I had not really thought about the fact that Ireland is basically a big island and therefore most of the major cities seaports. This in itself was a pleasure since I live in land-locked Kansas City. I love being by the ocean, listening to the surf, and always being able to catch a nice breeze. The weather was just the right temperature for sightseeing and was perfect for sampling all the different seafood chowders made with really fresh seafood. The first chowder we tried, pictured above, was enjoyed in the little seaside town of Howth at the end of the high speed train line out of Dublin. This is where our bed & breakfast was located, Anne’s of Howth. This chowder was absolutely loaded with seafood caught that day and had just a touch of fresh dill which brightened the flavor of the very creamy broth. Eaten with fresh whole grain Irish soda bread and a pint of Guinness it made a meal in itself. We tried two other seafood chowders over the course of our trip each with its own particular and unique twist. One had fresh mussels in the shell which added an additional light layer of ocean delight to the flavor. The third one we tried was flavored with star anise. The star anise was quite unexpected but added a delightful flavor. If good fresh seafood was available in Kansas City, I would sure be experimenting with recipes to duplicate what we had in Ireland!

After spending a couple of days in the Dublin metro area, we headed across Ireland to the Dingle Peninsula. There we stayed at the Milestone Bed & Breakfast in Dingle. The proprietors, Barbara and Michael, were fabulous hosts and treated everyone like honored guests going out of there way to share tips for sightseeing and eating on the peninsula. Their traditional Irish breakfast was fantastic, especially Michael’s Irish soda bread. Babara shared the recipes for white and whole grain soda bread as well as Guinness brisket so watch for those recipes in future posts. Included in the breakfast along with the soda bread, were eggs cooked to order, bacon, sausage, broiled tomato, an assortment of fruit juices and cereals, fresh fruit salad, stewed rhubarb, and coffee and tea. We always left for sightseeing well fortified to meet the day. I highly recommend staying at the Milestone if you’re making a trip to Dingle!!

While in Dingle we ate a several pubs where I had the best fish & chips and crab cakes that I’ve ever had! One of the special restaurants we enjoyed was “Out of the Blue” which was a small place right on the main street that runs along the harbor front. I had the grilled monk fish and Ken enjoyed the seafood chowder with star anise. The monk fish was cooked through just right so it was still very moist and flavorful. The little side dish of freshly grated carrots with poppy seeds and toasted sesame oil was really delightful and one that I hope to duplicate at home. It is a great example of a very simple combination of fresh flavors that creates a winning and fresh little side dish!

Last of all, one of the things I like to do is check out restaurant chains the countries I’m visiting even though we have those chains at home. They always offer menu items that aren’t found on the menus here in the US. We also simply need a diet coke with ice every now and then as well! At any rate, we tried the cheese crisps with sweet chili dipping sauce which we have not seen on the menu at Kansas City area McDonald’s. They were actually quite good and a nice little snack with our diet coke!

Stay tuned for the next installment of our trip to Ireland!

Apple - Blue Cheese Salad w/Toasted Pecans

This is simply a great tasting salad that is good in both the summer and winter. I had a bought a big tub of blue cheese at Costco for another recipe and came up with this combination. The salad dressing really adds to the flavor of the salad but if you want to use a bottled dressing I think a sweet poppyseed dressing would be good.

Salad Ingredients
6 C. Romaine Lettuce, torn in bite-size pieces
1 Granny Smith apple, cored and diced
1/2 C. crumbled blue cheese
1/2 C. toasted pecans, coarsely chopped

1. To toast pecans, place pecan halves on a plate and microwave on high for a minute, stir, and continue to microwave in 15 second increments until toasted. Cool and then chop
2. Place the lettuce in a bowl, top with the apples, blue cheese, and pecans. Drizzle with the cooled dressing to taste.

Dressing
3/4 C. canola oil
1/2 C. sugar
1/4 C. vinegar
2 T. soy sauce

1. Combine the dressing ingredients in a small sauce pan and bring to a boil. Simmer for one minute. Remove from heat and cool.
Serves 4

Fried Green Tomatoes

My dad grew up in the south and loved fried green tomatoes . . . actually he pretty much loved all things fried . . . chicken, potatoes, and okra among other things. Growing up my mom fried everything in bacon grease which I love to this day but don’t do for obvious health reasons! At any rate, I still like to make fried green tomatoes every year, or so, when green tomatoes are plentiful. I use vegetable oil for the frying these days but the crunchy, tangy taste is still great sans the bacon grease!

Ingredients
4 large green tomatoes
2 eggs
1/2 C. milk
1 C. flour
1/2 C. cornmeal
1/2 C. bread crumbs or panko
2 t. salt
1/4 t. pepper
vegetable oil for frying

1. Slice tomatoes 1/2 inch thick.
2. Whisk the eggs and milk together in a medium bowl.
3. Place the flour on a plate.
4. Mix together the cornmeal, bread crumbs, salt, and pepper together on another plate.
5. Dredge the tomatoes in the flour, then dip in the egg mixture, then in the cornmeal mixture.

Dipping Ingredients Lined Up

6. Pour oil in a large skillet to a depth of 1/4 inch. Heat over medium heat until a drop of water sizzles when dropped in the oil.

Frying

7. Place the tomatoes into the hot oil so that they do not touch. Fry on each side until golden brown.
8. Drain on paper towels and serve warm.

Well, I did it again! I forgot to take a picture of this dish before it was all eaten. So many people have requested this, though, that I decided to post without a picture. You’ll just have to settle for a pic of blueberries instead! This is another great breakfast dish that can be made the night before and simply baked after getting up in the morning. The blueberry sauce is great drizzled over this rich casserole but if you’re short on berries, maple syrup is just fine as well. I used fresh blueberries when I made this.

Casserole Ingredients
12 slices white bread, crust removed and cubed
16 oz. cream cheese
1 1/2 C. fresh or frozen blueberries, thawed & drained
12 eggs
2 C. milk
1/2 C. maple syrup

Blueberry Sauce
1/2 C. sugar
1 T. cornstarch
1/2 C. water
2 C. fresh or frozen blueberries
1 T. butter

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place half of the cubed bread in a greased 9 X 13 inch pan. Top with chunks of cream cheese, blueberries, and remaining bread.
2. In a large bowl, beat the eggs. Add the milk and maple syrup and whisk together until blended.
3. Pour the egg mixture over the bread mixture. Cover and chill overnight.
4. Remove from the refrigerator 30 minutes before baking. Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Uncover; bake 25-30 minutes more or until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

To Make the Sauce
1. In a sauce pan, combine sugar and cornstarch; add water. Bring to boil over medium heat; boil 3 minutes, stirring constantly.
2. Stir in blueberries; reduce heat.
3. Simmer for 8-10 minutes or until berries have burst.
4. Stir in butter until melted. Serve with the French toast.
Serves 6-8

Cheese Ravioli Pesto Pasta Salad

I love the bags of mini ravioli and mini tortellini you can get at Trader Joe’s! This recipe was inspired by the bag of mini cheese ravioli I had in my cupboard and the fact that I needed to make something for the cookout I was hosting for the Doctor of Ministry students that were in town for classes. This is what I came up with.

Ingredients
1 – 16 oz. bag of mini cheese ravioli or tortellini
1 1/2 C. kalamata olives, pitted and halved
1 – 12 oz. jar marinated artichoke hearts, drained and quartered
1 large roasted red bell pepper, peeled and diced
1 large tomato, diced
1/4 C. olive oil
1/4 C. parmesan or grana padano cheese, grated
1 – 6 oz. jar of pesto
1/2 t. salt
2 t. minced garlic
12 oz. mozzarella cheese, cubed

1. Cook the pasta according to package instructions. Drain and allow to cool.
2. In a large bowl, mix together the pasta, olives, artichoke hearts, red pepper, cubed cheese, and tomato.
3. In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, grated cheese, pesto, salt, and garlic. Pour over the pasta mixture and toss until all ingredients are coated with the pesto mixture. Adjust seasonings to taste and serve immediately or refrigerate and serve later at room temperature. Toss before serving and if it seems a little dry, add a little more olive oil.

Serves 8-10

In keeping with the abundance of blueberries this time of year and the fact that I had apples I needed to use up, I came up with this pie. It turned out to be a fabulous combination! One of the guests to whom it was served exclaimed, “Wow, this is the best pie I’ve ever had!” Now, I don’t know if you’ll feel that strongly about it, but I’m sure sure you’ll like it!

Ingredients

1 Pillsbury refrigerated pie crust
4 C. sliced, peeled Granny Smith apples (3 large)
2 C. fresh blueberries
3/4 C. granulated sugar
1/4 C. flour
1/2 t. cinnamon
1 T. lemon juice

Topping
1/2 C. flour
1/2 C. oatmeal
1/2 C. brown sugar
1/4 t. ground nutmeg
1/3 C. butter, softened
1/3 C. sliced almonds

1. Place foil on the bottom oven rack to catch drips. Heat oven to 425 degrees.
2. Place one pie crust in a 9-inch pie pan as directed on box for a one-crust pie.
3. In a large bowl, mix the apples, blueberries, granulated sugar, 1/4 C. flour, cinnamon and lemon juice.; set aside.
4. In a medium bowl, mix together the oatmeal, 1/2 C. flour, nutmeg, butter, and sliced almonds with a fork until crumbly.
5. Spoon the fruit filling into the pie crust.

Unbaked Pie Before Adding Topping

6. Sprinkle the oatmeal mixture over the top of the fruit mixture.

Ready to go in the oven

7. Place pie on middle oven rack over the foil; Bake 50-70 minutes or until apples are tender and edge of pie is bubbling. After 20 minutes of baking, loosely cover the entire pie with a piece of foil to prevent excessive browning. Cool 2 hours. Serve warm or cold.

Serves 8

Fresh out of the oven

Couscous with Peas & Onions

I used to have a large sage plant in my garden which is what attracted me to this recipe. The sage plant has long since died and we, in fact, don’t even live in the same house anymore but I still make this dish. Even though I have to pay the horrendous price for one of those little packets of fresh sage that you can buy in the produce section!! This recipe is found in the Moosewood Restaurant Low-Fat Favorites cookbook by the Moosewood Collective. I frequently make this when we want a tasty vegetarian meal and serve it with steamed broccoli or another green vegetable. There is something about the savory sage with the sweetness of peas that makes this dish a winner!

Ingredients
1 1/2 C. finely chopped onions
1 T. olive oil
1 C. frozen green peas, thawed
1 1/2 t. finely minced fresh sage
1/2 t. salt
1 1/3 C. water
1 C. whole wheat couscous
balsamic vinegar for serving

1. In a large nonstick skillet, combine the onions and olive oil. Saute for a few minutes, cover and continue cooking, stirring occasionally for 10 – 15 minutes, until lightly browned.
2. Add the peas, sage, salt, water, and couscous, cover and cook on low heat for about 5 minutes, until the peas are tender and the water is absorbed.
3. Fluff the couscous with a fork. Add salt to taste. Pass a cruet of balsamic vinegar at the table to sprinkle on the couscous.
Serves 4