Food & Drink

Susan Jane White’s oat, raspberry and chocolate tart recipe is a sumptuous treat with a bonus boost of goodness

Whenever my boys want a trashy treat or sticky slab of cake, I’m secretly delighted. That’s because one of my all-time favourite hobbies, as you know, is sneaking extra nutrition into dishes where usually there is none. And chocolate tart is braying for a makeover.

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Warm up with Rachel Allen’s soup recipes, from carrot and coriander to aubergine harissa and salmon with dill

There’s a distinct chill in the air at this time of the year when the evenings start to close in and thoughts of ‘back to school’ are looming. Enter big bowls of soothing and comforting soup. There’s a soup for any mood and occasion and here are some recipes that I’m making now.

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Spain’s fresh and aromatic Verdejo is a real charmer

Ask most Irish wine drinkers to name a Spanish white wine and they might plump for Albariño, the aromatic varietal wine from Rías Baixas that has taken Ireland by storm. Yet in Spain, it is the whites of Rueda that sit alongside the reds of Rioja and Ribera del Duero in what wine writer Ferran Centelles describes as a trio of ‘reassuringly familiar’ appellations ‘that are cult brands in themselves’. And in Rueda, it is the local Verdejo that is king, though Sauvignon has been introduced, too.

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Donal Skehan's simple summer salads — Chinese chopped chicken, Scandi salmon and cracked potato, and jewelled herb and rice

On these warm, sunny days, I want to spend less time in the kitchen and be outdoors as much as possible. A lot of what I serve throughout the day is the culmination of early morning pottering . Baby potatoes boiled and popped in the fridge for a simple side or a salad later for dinner, chicken roasted on the bone until crispy, dressings mixed in jam jars waiting for the moment of glory — all small jobs that lead to delicious meals later on that only require simple assembly.

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Gregans Castle restaurant review: ‘Chef Robbie McCauley is clearly ambitious and his food serious, his ethos in harmony with his surroundings’

Gregans Castle has always been a class act, but this summer, returning to stay after a few years, it felt as if it had moved quietly into a new league. The views out over The Burren are as spectacular as ever, the gardens to the front beautifully tended yet unfussy, now laid out with smart garden furniture and comfy deckchairs. At dusk, a member of staff comes out with solar-powered lights for each table — by morning, they have been whisked away.

Caviar, cod fish and cow vetch – 'I am in Viking territory on a voyage of culinary discovery'

My journey to food heaven ends in Hell.

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Lucinda O’Sullivan’s restaurant review: Stepaside’s Woodruff has some rough edges to smooth out

A review is but a snapshot in time, they say, and I hope so, for in this case it was a pretty poor image that emerged following our visit to Woodruff. The fact of the matter, food critic or not, is that nobody goes out looking for a bad experience — but when you leave disappointed, having dropped quite a lot of dosh, and reach gratefully for the cheese and brown bread when you get home, there’s something wrong.

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Summertime and the living is easy with Rachel Allen's simply delicious recipes, perfect for lunch or dinner

For easy summer days and midweek suppers, we all need a few fuss-free recipes up our sleeve to whip up at any given moment. I’ve chosen, for this week, a chicken tray-bake, a super-speedy salmon dish, a blink-and-you-miss-it prawn curry and a divine little pasta dish using just a few ingredients.

Let Susan Jane White upgrade your coffee with her anti-ageing cold-brew recipe — it has green tea in it!

I can upgrade your coffee with a freight of antioxidants. Sound good? But what the heck are antioxidants?

Donal Skehan’s simple summer seafood — versatile squid, a hearty risotto with mussels, and barbecued mackerel escabeche

Seafood is ideal for light summer eating. There’s plenty of options when it comes to a visit to the fishmonger, and it is a trip which is well worth the effort of making this time of year.

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Ash @ Pots restaurant review: ‘Dishes come from a place of true understanding of the alchemy that happens when judiciously chosen layers of flavour and texture come together’

We’re in Clare for the weekend. The sun is shining and, while some villages — including Lisdoonvarna — are deathly, weirdly quiet, Ennistymon is buzzing.

Donal Skehan's simple weeknight pasta suppers - seafood linguine, risotto and Italian mash-up

My joy for pasta, in every form, never falters. It’s a long-term love affair that began humbly with my mum’s Irish-style spaghetti bolognese in the 1990s and was cemented at the kitchen tables of Italian nonnas while I filmed a TV series years ago in Italy.

Neven Maguire's 'Family Friendly' Chicken Curry

This delicious recipe is a quick and nutritious alternative to what you might be tempted to order in on a Friday night and is a real family favourite. This recipe is very mild and suitable for the whole family but of course you can add some fresh chili with your garlic and onion for some spice.

Clodagh McKenna's tempting desserts - pistachio and rosewater florentines, raspberry pavlova, sticky fig cake

Some delicious, tempting treats from Clodagh McKenna...

Rachel Allen's savoury summer tarts recipes: French onion tart, tomato and goats cheese tart, smoked salmon tart

One of the things I love about making a savoury tart is that it's almost a meal in one. Add a little green salad, and you have a perfectly delicious lunch or light supper. A tart also makes a wonderful alfresco lunch, and sliced up, most tarts are quite portable and delicious eaten cold as part of a picnic lunch, enjoyed in the sunshine.

Gluten-free baking: Kasha Connolly's camomile cake, white chocolate, coconut and lemon squares and honey buttercream lemon loaf

Social distancing has seen more people return to home baking; but what if you or a loved one has an allergy or an intolerance to gluten?

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The best ice-cream makers to create your own 99 cones and desserts

There’s nothing better than a bowl of ice cream on a hot day and homemade ice cream is even nicer than anything you can buy in the shop.

Adrian Martin's perfect three course dinner party recipes - with alternatives to suit all tastes

Adrian Martin showcases some of his favourite dishes to wow your dinner guests.

Explainer: Is it ever safe to eat food after its ‘use by’ date?

A ‘best before’ date represents the quality of the food, so while the manufacturer may decide the item will taste best before this date, it doesn’t mean it is unsafe to eat.

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Lucinda O’Sullivan’s restaurant review: From Kelly’s in Rosslare to La Côte in Wexford, the Sunny South East is simply superb

Whether it was walking the glorious beach at Rosslare Strand, tucking into an enormous seafood platter in Kilmore Quay, or revisiting a longstanding restaurant under new management, I couldn’t help feeling slightly smug that I’d chosen a break in the Sunny South East rather than having to endure the nightmare queues I was seeing reported at Dublin Airport — with the added ‘fun’ of lost luggage, not to mention all of the cancelled return flights. Indeed, over the same few days, this sort of disaster happened to a good friend of mine, whom I was supposed to meet in Waterford for dinner at Stephen McArdle and Morgan Vanderkamer’s new Union Wine Bar & Kitchen on The Mall.

Supermarket to scrap best before dates on hundreds of products

British supermarket Waitrose will remove “best before” dates on nearly 500 fresh food products in efforts to reduce food waste.

Boost your mood and your immune system with Susan Jane White’s marvellous miso greens ‘n’ beans recipe

Beans, beans, they’re good for your heart, the more you eat, the more you wonder what goes on inside our pipes, yah? Galacto-oligosaccharides, my friends. Or Gos for short. This type of carb travels to the helpful bacteria inside our large intestine; these bacteria then feast on them and, erm, toot with happiness. So now we know!

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Rachel Allen’s recipes for sweet summer desserts are a cakewalk to make and a treat to enjoy

If you’re looking for an alfresco tea treat this bank holiday weekend, I have a few summery ideas for you here.

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The 40 best summer wines to sip in the sun

Every summer deserves a new favourite white wine discovery, and whatever your budget, there are crisp, clean and refreshing whites worth getting to know. Today’s selection includes classic varietal wines that can be relied upon to deliver freshness — grapes like Picpoul de Pinet, Pecorino and Verdicchio – but also some aromatic surprises with a crisp bite in their tail.

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‘These cookies are a symbol for the changing face of Ireland’

Jess Murphy of Kai in Galway, originally from New Zealand and now a proud Irish citizen, has been a formal high-profile supporter of UNHCR, The UN Refugee Agency, since 2017, cooking with and collecting recipes from refugees — many of them from Syria — and asylum seekers in Ireland.

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A taste of home: cookie recipes from across the globe

In Japan, there are many savoury sweets — think chocolate-covered potato chips. My two boys, Seán and Stephen, don’t eat wasabi, as it is too spicy for kids. But if you use it to make sweets like a cookie, then the spiciness is gone but the savoury flavour is still in the cookies. For example, you can buy seaweed, wasabi and Cheddar sandwich cookies, or even a wasabi and Camembert version to have as a small bite with a beer in Japan. My boys love these. – Takashi Miyazaki, the owner of Miyazaki and Michelin-starred Ichigo Ichie in Cork

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MasterChef judge John Torode: ‘Why would you want everything to be the same, to be identical, the way Michelin does?’

‘I am a very fortunate person,” says chef and MasterChef judge John Torode. “I get to meet amazing people and eat amazing food all the time. And one of the great joys of loving food is that it never ceases to surprise me culturally.

Donal Skehan’s reliable Italian comfort food — foccacia-style pizza, Tagliata T-bone steak and baked cheesecake

There’s always a particular point during the summer when I reach peak laziness when it comes to what I cook. I find myself turning to three-ingredient pastas, something grilled on the bbq, or tomatoes on griddled sourdough. When I do make an effort, or we end up entertaining, I prefer recipes I can prepare in advance, and it is worth coming back to the classics.

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House review: ‘Despite some very good dishes, the experience at this Michelin-starred restaurant doesn’t justify that level of expenditure’

House has held a Michelin star since 2010, firstly under Dutch chef Martijn Kajuiter and more recently under Ian Doyle, who departed after two years. Since the spring, the head chef has been Roisin O’Connor, who previously worked at Restaurant Gordon Ramsay in London, MacNean House in Cavan, and Aimsir in Kildare.

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Donal Skehan’s iconic summer sandwiches — the perfect BLT, a pan bagnat, or prosciutto and cheese

This week, I am writing to you from the west coast of Sweden. We have visited almost every summer for the past 16 years. For my wife, Sofie, it’s a way to reconnect with her motherland, and, for me, well, I still find novelty in the food, customs and oddities that make Sweden so unique .