Kai Cafe & Restaurant, Galway

The last outpost of civilization before you reach Salthill. When Kai opened, it opened with a bang and very quickly achieved a cult following. It suffered not a jot from teething problems, it was a fully formed concept practically from the word go. Kai was unpretentious and fun with flower and seed strewn salads piled on boards, big Ortiz tuna tins filled with bread and the sun spilling through the skylight even on the dullest of days illuminating the lunchtime altar of cakes. Everyone's favorite Kiwi chef, Jess Murphy, brings her own brand of kitchen voodoo and you know you're a regular when you grow to understand husband and partner-in-crime David Murphy's accent at front of house.

Aside from the best brunch in town every Sunday, it is always well worth the extra trek and the couple of extra euro for their short, seasonal lunch menu. Six or seven options that always showcase the best the west coast has to offer, from potted crab to gurnard fish finger sandwiches on their own foccacia, I have yet to be disappointed. Dinner is an equally short and ever changing menu with about five 'beginnings', 'middles' and 'ends'. 

I was last there for their cookbook club, held about once a month. A book club crossed with a supper club, where Jess and her team cook recipes from one book. Past books have included Ottolenghi’s book, ‘Plenty’ and Denis Cotter's famous vegetarian cookbook 'Cafe Paradiso'. The chosen book last month was 'What Katie Ate' by Katie Quinn Davis. A great book, filled with lovely recipes and amazing photographs, it was one I had been promising myself. Originally a native of Dublin, now based in Australia, Katie is a graphic designer turned food blogger and works as a freelance commercial photographer specialising in food. 

I joined up with charming company, my new BFF, Jennie Browne from Goodness Cakes and reigning social media queen of Galway. We also had the wonderful Seamus Sheridan from Sheridan's Cheesemongers and Peter Boland from Cases Wine Warehouse at our table. Both were there to talk about the importance of local suppliers and supporting cottage industry and also to introduce some wines and cheeses to the assembled diners. The dishes selected from the book came thick and fast from the kitchen, the best value three courses for 35 euro I have ever encountered.

Among the starter dishes were patatas bravas - spicy potatoes with crispy ham and wobbly eggs baked in enamel tins and served family-style to the table along with a red cabbage and fennel slaw, lightly dressed with a creamy, lemony herbed yoghurt and studded with blood orange, goats cheese and toasted pecans. There were jugs of lemon cordial with a hint of mint as well as the excellent wines. A creamy orecchiette pasta dish in a pecorino sauce with scattered peas and pine nuts with pretty roasted vine tomatoes balanced on top and a generous bowl of wings and roasted limes to squeeze over.

For the second course Jess had chosen a lovely Panzanella with a punchy balsamic dressing and a fregola salad (a grain like giant cous cous) with bacon and preserved lemons. A crunchy leek topped fish pie landed on the table along side a 'retro' beef curry topped with caramelized bananas, piles of popadoms and jars of relish, the dishes kept coming until there was barely room to set down your glass.

Dessert was a piquant rhubarb and hazelnut tart paired with an initially strange tasting strawberry, basil and black pepper ice-cream, that grew on you eventually. 

Alas that was the last cookbook club before the summer season kicks off, but the good news is that Kai is now opening 7 days a week for your dining pleasure. Remember, they seat but 45 so make sure you reserve a table - especially at the weekends. The cookbook club will return after the summer, and I for one shall be keeping a beady eye on their Facebook page, so that I don't miss out on what is one of the best evenings out in Galway has to offer. Totally Toto Africa.

Kai Café + Restaurant. Sea Road, Galway. Tel: 091 526 003 Email: kaicaferestaurant@gmail.com

This article was written for and published in The Galway Advertiser 09/05/2013

Miss Havishams Valentines Cookies...

Rich dark chocolate biscuits with sweet fondant icing

Valentine's Day is just around the corner, but not everyone is looking forward to its arrival. I personally am not a huge fan of all the pink, red, glitter and giant stuffed animal clutching fluffy hearts with embroidered messages of undying love.

Indulge your own bitter heart with these gothic valentines cookies to mark the day, Miss Havisham style. Put on your old wedding dress and eat these in your decaying mansion. They will be a lot tastier than your dusty old wedding cake, all the time being careful to stay away from naked flames.

Ingredients
50g unsalted butter (3 1/2 tbsp)
50g soft light brown sugar (4 tbsp packed)
1 TBS golden syrup
110g plain flour (1 cup plus 1 3/4 tbsp)
20g cocoa powder (not the drink mix, scant 3 tbsp)
(I used Cadbury's Bournville cocoa powder)
pinch salt
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 to 2 tsp milk
Rollable fondant icing to decorate.
A little icing sugar and water mixed together to make a paste.

Preheat the oven to 150*C/300*F/ gas mark 3. Line a baking sheet with baking parchment paper. Set aside.

Cream together the butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the golden syrup until smooth. Whisk the flour, cocoa powder, salt and soda together in a beaker. Sift this into the creamed mixture. Add the milk a bit at a time, until you get a soft even dough. It should be a bit crumbly, but be just coming together. Tip out onto a lightly floured surface or onto a large piece of cling film and press until it comes completely together.

Roll out with a lightly floured rolling pin about 1/4 inch thick. (I rolled mine out between two sheets of cling film so that I did not have to use a lot of flour.) Cut out into shapes, heart or others. Carefully lift onto the prepared baking sheet with a metal spatula, leaving some space in between the biscuits.

Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, then remove from the oven. Carefully lift onto a wire rack to cool completely. Roll out the fondant icing very thinly and cut into similar, slightly smaller piece of fondant icing. Stick the fondant to the biscuit with the icing sugar paste and leave to dry. Paint, stencil or stamp cold, black hearts onto each cookie or decorate as desired. Fester in your own unhappiness or plot your revenge, while enjoying the biscuits with a nice cup of tea.

savory crispy pancakes...

Shrove Tuesday takes place 47 days before Easter Sunday. Because the date of Easter Sunday is dictated by the cycles of the moon, Pancake Day can occur anytime between February 3 and March 9. In 2013 it takes place on February 12 and I shall be making these crispy pancakes, an homage to the industrial foods that filled many an Irish childhood.

I was burdened for most of my young life by a mother who insisted on making every thing from scratch. As much as we kids wanted the shop-bought cakes, pizzas and convenience foods, we were forced to endure home made birthday cakes, bread and even yoghurt. Nowadays, my children are faced with the same problem, a cruel mother who denies them all the delicacies of the freezer section of the supermarket or the Disney-endorsed Petit Filous. As it turns out, the only thing that myself and the children missed out on was vast amounts of suspicious meats - horse, donkey, possum, bat or whatever they have been passing off as beef all this time.

So this Mardi Gras will be marked by a homemade version of the positively revolting Findus classic - the savory crispy pancake. These I remember used to come in a minced beef and onion or chicken and sweetcorn flavor. I think there is a cheese variety and there was a curry one also, now defunct. There was some talk a few years ago of a lobster thermidor flavor which, if it ever happened, would be a terrible waste of lobster. We made it with a chicken and sweetcorn filling and it was a big hit. I won't lie to you, although it's incredibly easy to make, it's not particularly time consuming and you will probably dirty every plate and pan in the kitchen. But as special treat, it's hard to beat. A spoon of leftover bolognaise sauce would also be delicious but I think I will try a ham and cheese version tomorrow. (Ham from a pig!)

For the pancakes
165g plain flour
Pinch of salt
1 small egg
About 300ml whole milk
Sunflower oil for frying

For the chicken and sweetcorn filling
25g butter
25g plain flour
250ml hot chicken stock
Kernels sliced from 1 cob of corn
2 chicken breasts, thinly sliced
6 rashers streaky bacon, diced
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
1 tsp chopped rosemary
1 tsp chopped thyme
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the final assembly
6 tbsp plain flour
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
200g fine white breadcrumbs
A little paprika (optional)
A little turmeric (optional)
Sunflower oil, for frying

For the pancakes, put the flour and salt in a bowl. Break the egg into the centre, then start whisking it into the flour, gradually incorporating the milk. Keep adding milk and whisking until you have a smooth batter the consistency of single cream. Rest the batter in the fridge for 30 minutes.

For the chicken and sweetcorn filling, first melt the butter in a small pan over a medium heat. Stir in the flour to make a roux, then cook this gently for two minutes. Remove from the heat, add a good splash of the hot stock and beat until you have a smooth paste. Repeat with a little more stock, then a little more. Add the remaining stock in two or three lots, beating well with each addition to get rid of any lumps. Return the pan to the heat. Bring slowly to a simmer, and cook gently for a couple of minutes, stirring often, until thickened. Add the chicken, bacon, corn kernels, garlic and herbs and simmer for another five minutes or so, until the chicken is completely cooked. Season with salt and pepper. Leave to cool.

To cook the pancakes, heat a little sunflower oil in a small frying pan (about 15cm in diameter) over a high heat. Pour in a small ladleful of the pancake batter, immediately swirling the batter around to form a pancake (don't make it too thin - these need to be a little more robust than your standard crepe). Cook for a minute or two, until the pancake is golden-brown underneath. Flip it and cook the other side for another 30 seconds or so. Transfer to a plate. Repeat with the remaining batter. (The first pancake will be a disaster - this is the law.)

To assemble, take one pancake and spoon some of your chosen filling on to one half of it. You only need a tablespoonful or so - don't overfill the pancakes. Brush some beaten egg around the edge of the pancake and sprinkle on a little flour to form a natural glue. Fold the pancake over to make a half-moon shape, and press the edges to seal.

For final assembly and frying, put the flour in a deep dish and season well with salt and pepper. Put the beaten eggs in a second dish, then the breadcrumbs in a third. Season the breadcrumbs, if you like, with paprika and turmeric - not essential but it gives the pancakes their fake tan orange colour, which is large part of their charm.

Heat a 1mm layer of sunflower oil in a large frying pan over a medium heat. Fry the breadcrumbed pancakes a few at a time, for about 3 minutes on each side, or until golden brown and piping hot in the middle. Drain briefly on kitchen paper. Serve straight away.

Recipe from Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall from River Cottage 2009

say it with flowers...

Creamy Butterscotch Flowerpots

Valentine's is a day for lovehearts and flowers... and sweet treats to eat. My days of exchanging cards are well behind me, but the two small budding romantics in the house like to mark the occasion. I made these sweet little pudding pots for one of the girls birthday party last year and have been requested to provide them again for a flowery Valentines dessert. They are delicious and easy enough for even small children to do much of the work. A layer of chocolatey cake covered in creamy butterscotch mousse and topped off in more crumbled chocolate cake, my kind of gardening.

I prefer to use Avonmore  Double Cream. This is the equivalent of what you lovely American visitors call 'heavy' cream. In general when you are whipping the cream, it will whip better if you add a pinch of salt and when sweetening whipped cream, adding the sugar when the cream is mostly whipped will trap more air in and get you a higher volume. Adding the sugar at the beginning results in lower volume.

This is the chocolate cake recipe I used but any chocolate cake will do - even shop bought. You can also use crushed Oreos, just throw them in a food processor and pulse until they look like sand.

You will need some very small flowerpots (ceramic or plastic) straws, and fresh cut flowers. Also some jelly worms to aerate the soil, very important. Snip the straws so that they are about 1/2 to 1 inch shorter than the top of the pots

Ingredients for the pudding
75 gram(s) butter
100 gram(s) brown sugar
300 ml Avonmore Double Cream
2 egg white(s)
2 teaspoon(s) caster sugar

Method
Combine butter, brown sugar and 100ml of the cream in a small saucepan over medium heat and stir until sugar dissolves; set aside to cool. Whisk remaining cream to soft peaks and fold into cooled butterscotch mixture. Whisk egg whites and caster sugar to soft peaks. Fold meringue into cream and butterscotch mixture, then divide between 6 flower pots (or serving glasses, dishes). Refrigerate until needed.

Then simply fill the ends of your pots with chocolate cake put a layer of pudding next with a straw in the centre to hold the flower, I made mine when I had lots of sweet peas so those are I used, but anything from the garden is fine. I do recommend a quick google search to make sure your choice of flower is not highly toxic and remember to tell the children not to eat the flowers. Put plenty of worms, boys especially like them, mine were from the Natural Jelly Company. Top off the pots with your crumbled chocolate cake. Refrigerate until needed, popping the flowers into their straw holders just before serving. Happy Valentines day :)

pecan pie muffins...

Pecan pie is one of our favorite desserts. But it uses a heck of a lot of maple syrup and pecans and is a bit of a faff to make unless it's for a special occasion. So here is the next best thing, Pecan Pie muffins. 18 - 20 mini muffins or 10 - 12 regular sized. I prefer them warm from the oven with a little scoop of vanilla ice-cream and without the frosting, but the kids like them with the frosting. Grease and flour the muffin tins well if you are not using lining paper as these can stick quite badly. 

Ingredients for the Pecan Muffins

110g/1 cup chopped pecans

120g/1/2 cup all-purpose flour

240g brown sugar or 1 cup packed brown sugar

160g/2/3 cup butter, melted

2 eggs

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Butter a muffin or mini-muffin tin or use paper muffin liners. In a medium bowl, stir together brown sugar, flour and pecans. In a separate bowl beat the butter and eggs together until smooth, stir into the dry ingredients until just combined. Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin cups. Fill each 3/4 full and bake in the preheated oven for approx 15 - 20 minutes depending on size. Cool on wire racks when done.

Ingredients for the Maple Buttercream

250g of butter, 

500g icing sugar

2 tsp maple syrup

Make sure your butter is soft, pop into a bowl. Add your icing sugar & start to mix on a low speed. Once your icing starts to come together increase the speed to medium. Leave for about 10 mins on med-high speed or until it looks like whipped cream, then fold in the maple syrup.

When the muffins are cold, spoon or pipe the frosting on, drizzle with a little maple syrup and scatter a few toasted pecans on top for prettiness.

Rua, Castlebar

It's a family affair at Rua

New research from Bord Bia has revealed that supporting local businesses is a key consideration for members of the public when eating out. Which may go part of the way to explaining why there is nearly always something of a queue up the stairs for a coveted seat in this small, but perfectly formed cafe on Spencer Street in Castlebar, Co Mayo. With the same research showing that over two thirds of the population rated ‘the use of Irish and local produce’ as important when eating out for a meal, if you venture over the border to Mayo, Rua's impeccable pedigree of the origin of all elements on their plates delivers. And then some.

Cafe Rua was started by Anne McMahon, a lovely and remarkable woman who, if her circumstances had but been different would have undoubtedly given Myrtle Allen a run for her money. With a life long love of food, she realized her dream and opened Cafe Rua on Antrim Street when her two children had flown the nest. I can taste her beautiful chicken liver pate and the 'proper' apple tart as if it was yesterday. It is a testament to her that both those items are still on the menu to this day.

When Anne, not so much retired, (she is still active in the bakery) stepped back from the business, Cafe Rua passed to the next generation, Aran and Coleen McMahon. A gift not just for them but for all of us. Colleen now runs the show at Café Rua and they expanded to Rua on Spencer Street, a split level deli and cafe, in 2008. Two restaurants with pride, character and a strong philosophy.

Rua has a style all its own. On the ground floor is the indecently pretty deli. With interior design by Colleen, a lady with more style than should be allowed, she certainly knows how to make a space both beautiful and inviting. Here they specialize in all things Irish, featuring in particular Mayo, Galway and the West. They also do takeaway coffees, breakfasts, soups and lunch dishes. Out front there's an antique table groaning with fantastic breads, bakes and tarts. Siofra heads up the delicatessen and any of the staff can advise regarding matters of cheese board, hamper or gift basket from their extensive range. A very deserving winner of the McKennas 'Retailer of the year' award for 2012. There’s so much to Rua that you could eat there all day every day, for breakfast, lunch, and even buy the elements of your dinner to throw together quickly at home. Maybe a Sheridan's duck leg confit on a bed of Rua's own red cabbage, with a bottle of Cotes du Rhone? Yes please! I myself am never without some of their Rua tomato and apple chutney in my fridge.

Upstairs is a casual cafe with a short, seasonally influenced menu board and a happy atmosphere. The last few times I was in it also had 'An Taoiseach' adorning one of the tables. I am not sure if he's a permanent feature there, but I suppose he must enjoy a Rua tray bake as much as the next Mayo Man.

We were seated in the middle of the room, and quickly decided on our order. The girls had Rua's delicious homemade lemonade, an order of thick Nadurtha (formerly Noodle House) papardelle with a rich ragu sauce and garlic toasts; and sausages (Kelly's of Newport) with creamy mash, while myself and my current husband shared a 'Rua Mezze platter'.

If by Mezze you are thinking humous, olives and flat bread, you would be wrong! Aran has something of a lighthearted attitude to food, his humor and a little touch of wackiness shines through, making the Rua Mezze platter as Irish as Hector Ó hEochagáin. The platter featured a taster of one of the soups of the day, a thick and earthy beetroot broth with nuggets of St Tolas goat cheese crumbled on top and scattered with shards of cucumber for extra crunch. Some local cheese, notably a lovely rustic nettle type I hadn't met before, an ironically retro hard boiled egg dressed with homemade mayo which had a distinctive citrus tang. Slices of the house pate served with a beetroot relish, pickles and the freshest salad leaves, the pitta bread replaced by thick slices of their own brown bread.

We followed the sharing platter with an open steak sandwich for him, sweet sautéed onions piled high on a soft toasted 'Blaa', with fried potatoes, an appely coleslaw and a pleasantly hot horseradish mayo for 10.95. I had a beetroot and feta tart, well seasoned, light and with pastry that was flaky and buttery. It came with potato and dill salad and a hailstorm of pomegranate seeds hiding among the mixed leaves. Indeed the assorted salad leaves and sides are always a particular joy. The crunchy apple slaw with the steak sandwich the perfect foil for the tender beef, and Steven Gould's salad leaves a million miles removed from the supermarket packet ones.

The desserts seem to look at you with a 'come hither' gaze. Resistance is futile, so we didn't. We usually all pick out a dessert before our mains have even reached the table. Picking with some difficulty from the display of chocolate brownies, bakewell tart and a magnificent looking blood orange upside down cake, the girls both had the seasonal fruit pie. I recognized it as Mammy McMahon's 'proper apple tart', the fruit sliced, and baked in a golden pastry crust crumbling under the slightest pressure and crowned with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and not a crumb was left behind. A pear and chocolate roulade and a choux pastry with hazelnut praline filling completed our meal.

Rua really is a great spot to eat, the food is thoughtful and considered, and great value when you consider the quality of ingredients, skill and service. Take away or enjoy in. There is always something happening, and it's well worth signing up to their email list or following them on Facebook to keep up to date. 'Cooking the Books' is running until February 2nd where they feature a different special and dessert everyday from some of their current favourite titles like 'Jerusalem' by Yottam Ottolenghi or 'The Ard Bia Cookbook' as well as 10 % off the selected cook books for the entire week at the deli. Pancake Tuesday sees crepes for sale to take home as well as 500 ml tubs of their own pancake batter. There's also their very popular monthly evening meals and bespoke Valentine's Day hampers.

The food is generous with something comforting about it, served up by passionate staff who know and love what they do, by family for family. Through these two generations, the McMahons and their team have made food that feels like a gift and I'm sure that this is not the end of their story. I'm keeping my eye on young Paddy McMahon - he is a grafter who likes his grub, two of the main requirements for the business. Since he's only eight we shall have to wait a while to see how this one turns out. No pressure then, Paddy! And if you do go and see Enda there - let him eat cake.

All Taoiseachs are sources and produced locally at Rua

Rua are now taking bookings on 094 9286072 for dinner at Spencer Street for both Thursday 14th and Friday 15th February. This is a 3 course menu for €29. www.caferua.com

Written for and published in the Galway Advertiser January 31, 2013.

Il Vicolo...

Good Things Come in Small Packages... Il Vicolo, Galway.

In the olden days, my favorite lunch in Galway was a bowl of minestrone soup in Bar Cuba. It was 'proper' minestrone made by a charming and talented Italian native, Tony. And it was the best soup in all the land. But Tony left, Cuba closed and no other minestrone ever lived up to his. Luckily for me the soup is back and better than ever in Il Vicolo where Tony now works, and he is as charming as ever.

Il Vicolo on the corner of Buttermilk Walk beside the 'Auggie' is open for over a year now and has been a firm Galway favourite almost from day one. They serve a good breakfast with their oven-baked eggs in ciabatta being particularly popular and a hearty 'full Italian' worth eating at least once before you die.

The wine list, exclusively Italian, is very well chosen and deserves exploring some evening with a selection of cured meat and cheese plates to keep the wine company. There are more than fifty wines and prosecco, with more than twenty available by the glass. Cocktails and some favourite digestifs are listed on the menu also.

But back to the food. The Minestrone alla Genovese is a true, rustic minestrone. Delicately seasoned, with borlotti beans, vegetables and pasta, a slick of flavour-packed pesto and topped with a generous fist full of parmigiano melting into it. Paired with some fennel seed studded brown bread, it was even better than I remembered it. The spiced pear salad featured my favorite Italian cheese, taleggio, with toasted walnuts was also very good, with a sweet and delicious dressing. Priced at €12 the 'local mixed greens' that it sat on were indeed local in so far as I saw Chef bringing in the bags of salad from the local shop. Cheeky!

My current husband had one of the specials, spaghetti with spicy Italian sausage in a rich tomato sauce. This was one of those 'lick the plate clean' dishes that you don't ever want to end.

For a little something sweet it came down to a choice of two cakes - frangipane with glacé cherries and white chocolate or a flourless chocolate. We ordered the almond cake, mostly because it looked like a giant 'Mr Kipling Cherry Bakewell', but in a good way, and a double espresso which was excellent and arrived promptly. Then we waited for the cake. And waited. And then waited a bit more. When it did come with apologies for its tardiness from the waiter it was one of the nicer almond sponges I have tasted, with just ground almonds and no artificial essence to spoil it.

There is a daily deal of soup, any bruschetta or pannini plus a coffee for €10. Midweek dinner deals are great value with a starter and main course on Tuesday or any pasta and a glass of their lovely vino on Wednesday, both offers set at €15. With specials like 'pan-seared fillet of cod with scallop and chive cream on seakale and garlic polenta' on their evening menu it comes as no surprise that this is the venue of choice for other restaurants' staff parties. The downside is that the restaurant is 'dinky' sized and only seats 26, so getting a seat when it's busy is the equivalent of finding a golden ticket in a Wonka Bar!

Il Vicolo Cafe, Restaurant, Wine Bar. 5 Buttermilk Walk, Galway. Tel: (091) 535 922. Email:ilvicolocafe@gmail.com

Written for and published in the Galway Advertiser January 24, 2013.