Yesterday's dinner had a little touch of summer....

Here's what we had:

250gr king prawns (with the shells but no head)

200gr clean squid tubes, sliced

1 small chrorizo sliced

2 small onions in wedges

1 yellow pepper in chunks

8 cherry tomatoes

2 garlic cloves, chopped

1 red chili, chopped

salt

olive oil

Assemble 4 big skewers with the first 6 ingredients in whatever order you like. Season with the salt, garlic and chili and a generous amount of olive oil.

Cook in a hot BBQ and serve with a green salad and lemon wedges. Yum!

Christenings, Communions, Confirmations or anything else you decide to celebrate!

Let’s celebrate! Here is this year menu! Pick 2 courses or 3 courses. Menus for children are also available.Everything is homemade with that special care! We can also provide a customized designer cake. Price on request.
We can also provide service, crockery, cutlery, etc. just for a small fee. Also, if there’s anything else you would like on the menu or if some of your guests have food allergies, just give us a call! We are here to help!

Something to start with…

Selection of mini quiches and other savory tartlets (Spinach and walnut, bacon and cheese, caramelized onion and goat’s cheese, roast peppers and spicy chorizo, etc….)
Or
Thai fish cakes and mini spring rolls with homemade lovely dips
Or
Fresh and smoked salmon mousse with melba toast and lemon wedges
Or
Antipasti – Selection of cold meats, cheese and olives (additional €1.50 pp)

Main Course

Glazed whole ham with apple sauce and roasted veggies
Or
Whole poached salmon dressed and served with homemade mayo and 3 salads
Or
Lasagna with garlic bread and a green and tomato salad
Or
Beef Bourguignon with rice and red coleslaw

And to finish….

Yummy chocolate cake
Or
Almond and red berries tart
Or
Lemon and orange cake
Or
Apple crumble

For the little ones

Mini burgers and wedges
Or
Mini sausage rolls and wedges
Or
Mini pizzas and garlic bread
Or
Lasagna and garlic bread

Last weekend we experimented with one of my favourite cuisines:Thai. I made it as a main course, and although it was delicious, I think it needed some refinement. I also think it would make a stunning starter for a dinner party, as it can be dressed with an oriental inspired salad. It's one of those that needs just a bit of preparation and you can make the magic happen 5 minutes before serving.

Caramelized pork with Oriental salad (serves 6 as a starter)

For the pork:

5 Asian shallots (or 3 of the European version, if can't find them)

6 cloves of garlic

1 pork fillet

1 tbsp light soy sauce

1 tbsp oyster sauce

1 tbsp rice vinegar + 1 tsp

2 tbsp rapeseed oil

4 tbsp sugar (yes, it sounds like loads, but trust me)

For garnish finely chopped chili (optional)

For the salad

1 handful of radishes

1/2 cucumber

2 or 3 shallots

1/4 Chinese cabbage

1 big bunch of coriander

1 handful oh roasted peanuts for garnish

Prepare the fillet of pork by trimming all the fat and slice very thinly. Add the tsp of vinegar and coat well. Reserve. I always do this with pork as it cuts the fatty taste, making it light.

Heat a wok with a good amount of vegetable oil and fry the shallots, that you have sliced really thinly. When they are crisp and brown dry on kitchen paper and reserve. Discharge the oil, leaving only 2 tbsp. Peel and finely chop the garlic.

Meanwhile, for the salad, slice all the ingredients. The dressing will consist of boiling 6 tbsp of water, 2 tbsp of vinegar and 2 tbsp of sugar. Reduce to half and let it cool.

You can stop at this stage and finish it before serving.

To finish it all:

Heat the wok again until it smokes, add the garlic and stir around. Let it brown but don't let it burn. Add the pork and cook for about 2 minutes. Add the sauces and sugar and cook for 5 minutes or until it reduced to a shiny lovely caramel.

Finish the salad by dressing it and adding the peanuts. Plate a little pile of salad with the caramelized pork on top. Garnish with the fried and crispy shallots and add some chili for colour and heat if you prefer.

I challenge you to try it!

When I went to do my weekly shopping this week, I couldn't stop noticing that the butcher counter had expanded its range, in a very good way.

At 6 euro per Kg, there were big chunks of oxtail smiling at me!

So I brought them home.

Slow cook is the rule for this tasty cut and when I do this I like to use a cast iron pot for extra taste, but you don't have to. And don't be afraid if you never tried it! The flavour is different of course, but the texture is very similar to that " fall of the bone", " melt in the mouth" well known lamb shank.

Most recipes of oxtail call for a good amount of wine, which, I agree, would make it richer, but in a country with a prohibitive tax on alcohol, I think it defeats the purpose, in some ways, of a cheap cut.

I still used some boozy liquid, but in small quantities and the result, was a warm, rich and very tasty cold night diner.

Here's what you need:

1 Kg of oxtail (go for the bigger bits, as the small ones are more bone than meat)

2 big onions

3 garlic cloves

1 celery stick

4 or 5 carrots

1 bunch of spring onions

60 grams of pancetta (or 3 or 4 rashers chopped)

1 bay leaf

a few sprigs of thyme

salt and pepper

a pinch of hot paprika

a little flour

about 750 ml of good chicken stock

a good measure of brandy

Start by trimming the extra fat from the meat. However, don't worry too much if you can't do this proper because you will scoop it from the final result before serving.

Patch dry the oxtail, season with salt, pepper and dust with flour, just to cover it.

Heat a heavy based pan with about 2 tbsp of olive oil. Brown the meat and set aside.

In the same pot brown the bacon. Add all the veggies roughly chopped. Don't go too small because you want some texture in the end. Brown every thing and add the brandy. Return the meat to the pot. Add the herbs and the chicken stock and correct seasoning if needed. Once it's boiling, transfer the pot, lid on, to the oven at 180 degrees. Let it cook for 3 to 4 hours, stirring half way and checking the amount of liquid. You can always add a bit more stock if you need. Before serving, if you think it's to fatty, scoop it from the top, carefully, with a spoon.

Serve with a smooth mash potato, the juices and the veggies.

Last night we had Sea Bass for diner.

They were just arriving at our local fishmonger and I couldn't resist. And for me, when fish is this good, there's no messing around! Keep it simple and let it speak for itself. Salt, pepper, a drizzle of olive oil and grill. Wedge of lemon on your plate to taste. Done.

But it was the side last night that I thought worked really well. It turned out to be the perfect combination for my swimming little friends.

On a small roasting pan I put baby potatoes with their skin, peeled shallots and garlic cloves. The usual salt, pepper and a good bit of olive oil (about 4 to 5 tbsp). Don't forget the Sea Bass was grilled and the juices from this side are going to be your sauce.

Roast in the oven @ 180 for 40 minutes. At this point the potatoes were nearly done, so I added about 500grams of cherry tomatoes and 2 tbsp of balsamic vinegar. Roasted for another 10 minutes. Taste and check if it needs a tiny bit of sugar. Sprinkled a generous amount of roughly chopped fresh basil and served with the fish.

The balsamic vinegar made it sweet but it also kept a little bit of the acidity, along with the tomatoes. Drizzling this juice over the Sea Bass just made it perfect.

For a rainy February evening.

My Chili con Carne

1 big red onion

3 cloves of garlic

1 green pepper chopped in chunks

1 full red chili chopped, seeds and all

1 bay leaf

1 teaspoon of cumin

1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon

450g of good beef mince

1 tin red kidney beans

1 tin of plum tomatoes

1 small tin of sweetcorn

1 bunch of chopped coriander

salt and pepper

Drizzle a casserole dish with a little bit of olive oil. Slowly fry the onion, garlic, pepper, chili, bay leaf and spices. When it starts to get some colour add the beef and stir, making sure there are no big lumps and it's all coated evenly. Add the 3 tins with their liquids as well as the coriander. Season to taste. Reduce to a very slow heat and cover. Cook for about an hour stirring occasionally. Serve with some boiled rice, natural yogurt and fresh coriander. For added texture crumble a few tortilla chips on top.

Warm feeling from inside out - guaranteed!

Yesterday I wanted to have something special for diner. After all, I was inspired by the holiday!

Anyway, determined not to leave the nest to go to the supermarket, I had to work with what was in the fridge.

I had two beautiful chicken breast, but without the skin. So here's what I did:

On the food processor I quickly chopped 2 shallots, 3 garlic cloves and about 180 grs of button mushrooms, along with salt, pepper, fresh thyme and lemon juice. Sauteed the mixture fast in a little bit of olive oil and set aside. Opened the chicken breast, spooned in the mushroom mixture and involved it like a parcel in three very thin slices of parma ham. Placed these little beauties in an oven proof frying pan and drizzled with olive oil. Cooked for about 35 minutes in a high oven, basting once or twice until the ham was crispy and the chicken cooked through. Served with a melt in the mouth dauphinoise and french green beans.

Sometimes staying at home, pushes your imagination. Dinner, looked beautiful, smelt homely and tasted delicious. The glass of red Rioja made it!. Happy Valentines day.

Happy Christmas to you all!

We are delighted to say that our Hampers this year went down a treat! We had over 100 going out the door!!!!!! Delicious jams, chutneys, relishes and sweets! All homemade and personalised to your requests! Thanks a million everybody!

We were soooo busy with didn't have time to take a photo!:( Sorry!

Have a great one everybody and we'll see you in the new year with loads of delicious stuff!

Joana and the gang.

Halloween is gone now...
And since then we had fabulous events. The high light was really being part of the Celebration of Portuguese Cinema at the Cork Film Festival! It was great venue with great people and most of all great Portuguese food.

We also got a call from a Dublin Radio station to inquire about our services and our Ranelagh market stall. Check it out here :
http://www.facebook.com/ladybirdcatering

More events, loads of Christmas treats and hampers are on the way. Keep checking!

We are soooooooo loving Thai, right now!

We were asked to do 7 weeks of Thai Cooking Demos, and we are delighted. Not only is a type of cuisine we love, it is also easy and healthy. The added dificulty is that the course should be oriented with feeding children in mind. Challenge? Yes! And a great one!
Every week I will be demonstrating a few recipes, and I promisse to post at least one here. Last Saturday was the first one. It was an introduction to Thai cuisine, ingredients, regions and traditions.
Here's a recipe that we did. It's very, very simple. A light salad, used as a palate cleaner, that should be on your table when serving something spicy.

Cucumber Salad
Ingredients

• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup rice wine vinegar
• 1/4 cup water
• 1Tablespoon chopped chilly

• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cucumber, unpeeled and sliced thin
• 1/4 cup sliced red onion
• garnish: 3 Tablespoons chopped mint, 3 Tablespoons chopped peanuts

How to make it
• In a small saucepan, combine the sugar, vinegar, water, chili pepper sauce and salt. Stir, cook over a medium heat until sugar is dissolved
• Add cucumbers and onion to appropriately sized dish that will allow all the cucumber mixture to be covered with marinade.
• Pour vinegar mixture over the vegetables and let marinate for 30 minutes.
• Just before serving, sprinkle with mint and peanuts.

Hurray!

Ranelagh is back in action! Ladybird Catering will be back every Saturday and Sunday from 2nd October.

The old favorites will be there as well as new and tasty treats. Come on over and take a look.

Great food, smiling faces and fantastic atmosphere.

See you there!

Dear Friends

As you might know, the management of the Ranelagh Market is currently being addressed and therefore doors are closed for the time being. However, we can assure our dear clients that everything is being done for a quick come back. We are looking forward to it, as we are full of ideas for the new season.

We will keep you posted with news and dates. Meanwhile, please feel free to email us with any orders or queries, as we are still busy bees, making people happy.

See you all soon.

Ps. A big thank you to all our customers and Ranelagh locals that sent us their support.

I can't believe the summer is coming to an end already! Time does fly when you are having a good one! But don't be disappointed.... Look at all the good things to come. We are getting to a season I have always loved while growing up. September was the month we spent in the farm harvesting. Not only grapes for the wine but all different kinds of fruit and vegetables. Jams, jellies, compotes and preserves were prepared. The smell of sugary fruit was delicious. Quince paste was put in small bowls and left in the sun to dry. Grease proof paper on top after dried and there we go! Romeo and Juliet all year round. Wondering, ah? Romeo and Juliet is a chunk of cheese with a slice of quince paste. The Portuguese think is the perfect combination, just like the Shakespeare's characters. So, go on! We don't have a lot of quince here, but we have berries of all kinds, apples for a delicious apple sauce you can keep for that pork in winter and much more. Use your imagination. And if you're not sure it's gonna work, just ask! We're here.

Hello all

It's been busy, busy , busy in Ladybird land so we apologise for our absence.

We have been preparing the most delicious new menus for after summer and will be up here very soon. Thinking already in what it's coming in season, colder nights and comfort food.

Meanwhile, you know where we are..... See you all in Ranelagh, where we now have an even more fabulous display!

We celebrated the 4th of July in the market last Sunday. Here's what was on our table! And we gave it away as a gift to all present! Yum! Lucky ones! It was delicious. Make sure you don't miss our suprises! More changes, products and surprises are on the way. Keep tuned.

See you there...