June 24, 2013

Potato Rösti Tomato Tart with Ricotta {Gluten Free}


It's my 100th blog post. Whoa, that happened fast. Is there a way for me celebrate? Do I buy myself 100 penny sweets? Give myself 100 €1 coins? Bake myself 100 cupcakes? Set aside 100 minutes during the day to do what I want?....(that would be bliss).

Nope, I think for my 100th post that it is appropriate for me to do something for you. Yeah, you, the you that is reading this. 

I get so much love from you all here on my blog as well as my Instagram, Twitter and Facebook. So, I'm giving back, paying it forward? 


I was asked to create some gluten free treats on my Facebook page, so....I have! My sister doesn't eat gluten...well, she shouldn't but she sometimes does! She is holding the tart in the first picture above. She approved of this tart...and that's a big thing, she's a fussy eater!

June 17, 2013

Classic Chocolate Chip Cookies


It's socially acceptable to order and eat (in one sitting) a towering, golden, fluffy stack of pancakes. This is a great thing. I wish it was socially acceptable to order a towering stack of chunky, chewy chocolate chip cookies. There are some instances where one cookie just doesn't cut it. You need multiple cookies. Stacks on stacks on stacks to be exact.

I love how a chocolate chip cookie innately has the ability to hug you. The combination of flour, eggs, sugar, butter, vanilla and chocolate chips leaves you with a lasting impression of satisfaction. 

What if you need a long lasting impression of satisfaction. Do you eat all of the cookies? Possibly! 


I want my chocolate chip cookies packed with chocolate chips. There is nothing worse than ordering a cookie that only has a sparse scattering of chocolate chips. 

Mean. You're just being really mean if you serve me that. I feel like you don't appreciate me if I order a chocolate chip cookie that costs €3 and there's only 4 chocolate chips in it. It's called a chocolate chip cookie not a cookie with a chocolate chip. 

You can show me your love with the amount of chocolate chips I find on my cookie!

June 15, 2013

Strawberry Guacamole + Simple Salsa


I adore avocados. Like, loooove them. For some bizarre reason I used to hate them. What a weirdo! It took me a long time to appreciate them. Now? Cannot get enough of them. I would eat avocado at every meal. Breakfast, sure, with any type of egg and/or toast. Lunch? For sure, on a sandwich or diced into a salad. Dinner? Absolutely, as part of a Mexican feast in the form of guacamole or in a rainbow salad with corn, diced tomato and all other lovely types of vegetables. Dessert? For sure!! Have you made these avocado brownies? Life changing- get into them!


Can I make a quick segue to Father's Day which falls this Sunday June 16th?! Sure I can, I'm writing this. I'm a lover of all nibbles: chips and dip, crisps, peanuts, Bombay mix. Anything salty. I think I got this from my Pop. Is there anything greater than an ice cold beer with a little selection of nibbles to keep you company?  

Are you making dinner for your Father this weekend? Why not start the dinner off with salsa, guacamole and tortilla chips? 

Strawberry guacamole to be exact. Can we talk about this? 

June 12, 2013

Fresh Green Vegetable Risotto


I've seen good risotto and I've seen bad risotto. Hopefully, you'll see a good risotto today! This risotto is packed full of bright green vegetables, crispy pancetta, fresh basil and grated parmesan. Real tasty summer eating. 

You'll find risotto rice in every supermarket and you'll find two varieties: arborio or carnaroli. Risotto rice is an oval shaped grain and requires gentle, easy cooking over a low heat. You add individual ladles of hot stock to the rice which gets absorbed as it cooks. This creates a creamy texture. 


Sometimes risotto can get a bad name for being stodgy and heavy. A well cooked risotto is one of my favourite things to eat. It shouldn't sit on your plate in one big clump, it should slightly relax and ooze on the plate. 

June 06, 2013

Homemade Cloudy Lemonade


When life gives you lemons...make lemonade. Tell me how to get lemons from my life and I will gladly make lemonade. All day, every day. I hope the person who got lemons from their life got a substantial amount of lemons. You need A LOT of them to make a decent amount of lemonade...I'm talking 18 lemons here. So...I'm gonna say that the person who got lemons was a very lucky individual. They should be glad life is giving them lemons as they do not come cheap! 


When life gives you lemons...yada, yada, yada. I'm quite fond of this phrase......and I know that life does not actually give you lemons. I am aware that it is just a figure of speech to encourage you to always look on the brighter side of life. 

Easier said then done, dude.

June 03, 2013

Toffee Popcorn Ice Cream



It doesn't take me long to become obsessed or infatuated with something - a song I listen to everyday until I've overplayed it; watching every movie starring my favourite actor....going back to their very first movie and chronologically working my way forward to their most recent; getting obsessed with my new ice cream machine. 

I picked up and ice cream machine last week in Lidl for €25 and it is the best investment I've made in a while. In the space of 2 days I made 4 different flavours of ice cream...two of which were made specially for family coming for BBQ. That made the excessive ice cream making totally acceptable. Not that you actually need a reason to want to eat ice cream-homemade or shop bought. 


One of the flavours I made was toffee popcorn. Flicking through an ice cream book my brother bought me for my birthday last year, this toffee popcorn ice cream caught my eye. 

I cannot remember the last time I ate toffee popcorn. The idea of it as an ice cream flavour sounded too dreamy.