For all the excellent speakers and interesting talks at Podcamp in Kilkenny, I think few would disagree that among the biggest hits of the day were Deborah’s Chocolate Brownies, a huge pile of which disappeared with indecent haste!

Though they definitely are not low carb, I ate one (oh ok, two!) and all I can say is yum, yum, yum.

It sent me back to a recipe that resulted from a task that absorbed me off and on for months: to make a successful low-carb brownie. Not a pale imitation of what a brownie should be, but the real deal -succulent, rich, deep and luxurious.

It took a little experimentation, and a couple of almost inedible results, but these ones totally hit the spot. And they contain absolutely no flour or sugar.

This is what you need:

• 100g ground almonds
• 100g Linwoods milled Flaxseed, Sunflower and Pumpkin seeds *
• 10g Splenda
• 20g unsweetened cocoa powder (Green & Black is best, Bournville will do)
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon bread soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 80 mls cream
• 40g dark chocolate (ie. 4 squares Lidl Ecuador or Fair Trade dark chocolate)
• 1/4 lb butter, cut into dice
• 3 eggs

* The milled seeds are essential - I tried several versions using just ground almonds as the ‘flour’ and they were not good. The seeds are available in most supermarkets but are usually cheaper if you buy them in a health food store.

Mix all the dry ingredients (down to the salt) together.

Put the cream into a bowl with the chcolate and warm in a microwave for about 20-30 seconds. The chocolate should then dissolve into the cream with a little stirring. Add the butter to this and stir until the butter is soft, it doesn’t need to be completely melted.

Beat the chocolate mix into the dry ingredients. Beat in the eggs one at a time. You’ll end up with a slightly granular mixture.

I use this octagonal silicon tray which is 9″ in diameter for these, but any baking tray of about that size will do - the bigger the tray the thinner the brownie. I like ‘em deep as the picture shows!

Bake at 180° for about 30 mins - the centre will set but yeilding to the touch when they’re done.

The icing is sort of optional, but to my mind if you are going to be self-indulgent, don’t half do it! For it you will need:

• 40g dark chocolate (as above)
• 2 tablespoons cream
• About half an ounce of butter
• 125g Mascarpone cheese
• 1 dessertspoon Splenda
• 1 teaspoon vanilla essence (or real vanilla)

Melt the chocolate into the cream in the microwave to the point where there are still a few lumps in it. Stir to melt these. Add the butter and stir to melt. Beat the chocolate mixture and the splenda and vanilla into the mascarpone. Spread over the brownies in the tray when they have reached the point of being just warm.

The icing will take an hour or two to set, so leave the brownies uncut in their tray for this time.

This makes about 16 large or about 20 smaller brownies, depending on how you cut them.

For those interested in such things, they come out at just a little more than 2g net carbs per brownie - not bad for such a luxury and well under 10%, perhaps as little as 5%, of what’s in a ‘normal’ brownie of the same size. You can get them down to 1.5g if you use Lindt or Green & Black 85% chocolate. There is a tremendous amount of fat in them as you can see, so if low fat is your concern, these are a big no-no.

They are however horrendously expensive to make, no getting away from it. Compared to using flour, almond and milled seeds cost a LOT. Getting the chocolate, mascarpone and cream in Lidl helps, but doesn’t make them a bargain by a long shot.

Still, life isn’t ALL about bargains!

Tags: Brownies, Chocolate, Treats
Posted in Chocolate, Low carb, Recipes | 2 Comments »

Summer arrived briefly last week and stuck around for a day or two, and apparently is to return for another short stay next week. With it came a longing for Ice Cream, which is one of the few things I admit to missing since I started eating low carb. My tongue practically hangs out when I pass the ice cream fridges at Lidl. I particularly miss their premium vanilla which has real vanilla in it and is a total gem - you should try if you have not already done so.

But there are alternatives, and while this dessert is not really ice cream at all, it ticks all the same boxes and is very delicious in it’s own right. Plus it has the enormous advantage of being ready to eat about 2 minutes after you decide to make it - hard to beat that kind of instant gratification!

Simple as it is to make I’ve served this to people who were incredibly impressed and assumed it had taken ages. I love those kind of recipes.

This amount will serve 4 people, generously.

• 1 tub Lidl Mascarpone
• 2 dessert spoons Splenda (or sugar)
• Seeds from about 2 inches of fresh vanilla pod (or a teaspoon of vanilla essence)
• Squeeze of lemon juice
• 1/2 lb frozen berries (I used a mix of raspberry, strawberry and blackcurrant)

Put everything except the berries in the blender and mix until smooth. Add the berries and blend thoroughy.

That’s it. Serve and enjoy!

You need a good strong blender for this - frozen berries will be too big a challenge for a flimsy one.

It’s good value too. Mind you that’s because I have such a wonderful source of frozen berries, Purcell’s Farm in Dunmore, just outside Kilkenny, whose home grown raspberries and strawberries are available year round for €2.00 per lb, with blackcurrants just €1.50 per lb.

Tags: Berries, Farm Shop, Ice Cream, Mascarpone
Posted in Low carb, Recipes | 9 Comments »

Before I had a child I imagined (naively) that any I did have in the future would eat everything, none of this fussy nonsense in my kids thank you very much. Especially they would eat veg, because I’d just give it to them when they were too small to care and never stop so they wouldn’t think not to eat it.

I’ve had to revise my thinking a bit in the light of actual experience.

It turns out that children very quickly make their own minds up about what they’ll eat and try as you might it won’t always be what you think they should. And I ended up with one who, though cooperative and easy going in almost every other respect, thinks vegetables are akin to rat poison and to be avoided at all costs.

So of necessity I have become something of a whizz at sneaking in veg or dressing it up in a way that means at least a little goes down. My favourite ploy is tomato sauce, in which, if you simmer it for long enough, you can dissolve pretty much any grated vegetables.

These turnip chips pass muster too and are at least nibbled at whereas ordinary turnip would be spurned completely. They are also an excellent replacement for potato chips for anyone watching their carbs. Lidl often have HUGE turnips for anything from 69c to 89c, so they are very good value too.

They are very simply made, but a little care and attention is required or they can just be soggy and greasy. The secret is browning them fast in very hot oil. This amount is enough for three or four people, depending on their age and how hungry they are.

• 1/2 a large turnip
• Dessert spoon of soy flour
• generous shake of black pepper
• Pinch of salt
• Grated nutmeg (I use about half a nutmeg)
• Olive oil

Cut the raw turnip into chip shaped pieces and boil in lightly salted water for about 30 minutes. The actual time varies a bit from turnip to turnip, so it can take as little as 20 mins or as long as 40. You want them cooked, but not too soft.

Drain well and return to the saucepan over the heat for a minute or do to steam off any excess water, then leave aside to cool for about 5 minutes.

Meanwhile put the olive oil in a large metal baking tray. If you happen to have chicken, goose or turkey fat using this mixed with the oil gives a great flavour. You need enough oil to cover the base of the tray to a couple of millimeter depth. Put this into a hot oven - about 200°C.

Mix the soy flour, salt, pepper and nutmeg. Sprinkle over the turnip. Put a lid on the saucepan and shake it gently, turning it upside down and sideways as you do. This will slightly roughen the outside of the turnip and make sure it’s fairly evenly coated with the flour mix.

Tip into the baking tray and toss around to coat in the hot oil (it needs to be really hot at this point). They take about 10-15 minutes to cook - toss again half way though to turn the chips over.

Drain on a little kitchen paper and serve immediately - they get a bit soggy if left hanging around.

The soy flour browns very well and gives a slight extra crispness, you can of course vary the flavouring to suit yourself.

I don’t have a deep fat fryer, but I imagine these would cook very well in one and would probably be even crisper.

Tags: Recipes, Turnip, Vegetables
Posted in Low carb, Recipes | 5 Comments »

In spite of the best laid plans we never made it to Waterford and the Terra Madre events yesterday - sometimes life just happens. Oh well. But I am going to make it to Cork tonight for the Geek Girl Dinner, come hell or high water. Yeah!

My son thinks this is hilarious - that his Mum is actually happy to be called a ‘geek’. I haven’t explained to him that it’s really the ‘girl’ bit that is making me smile.

But I had planned to be away yesterday and so also planned to put something in the oven before we left that would be ready and waiting on our return. This chili can be happily left cooking slowly on a low heat for hours, in fact it’s almost a case of the longer the better.

It’s a hearty and warming dinner I’d normally consider most suitable for the depths of Winter, so that basically covers the months of September-August in Ireland.

1 lb round steak or stewing steak, cut into cubes
1/2 a Lidl Chorizo
2 onions
4 cloves garlic
2 chili peppers, as hot as you like ‘em!
1 tin chopped tomatoes
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons chili powder
2 teaspoons dark unsweetened cocoa powder
A few basil leaves
1 parsnip
Piece of turnip about the size of an apple
Olive oil
1/2 pint Beef stock *

* If you don’t have homemade beef stock and cannot find either very low salt or, preferably, no salt stock cubes, leave this out and just use water instead. Otherwise, because of the chorizo, the chili will end up way too salty.

Put some olive oil into a large pan over a hot ring. Brown the beef in two batches, removing them to a deep ovenproof dish with a lid once they are done.

Peel the casing off the chorizo - which is a fiddly job, but nessessary. Cut into slices about 1/2-3/4 inches thick. Add some more oil to the pan and toss the chorizo and the chopped onion in this until the onion is soft. Towards the end add the chopped garlic and chopped chilis. Add to the beef.

Add the tomatoes, chili powder, coriander, cumin, chili powder and cocoa to the beef/chorizo and stir well. Chop the basil (I used about 10 leaves) and stir it in. Finely grate the parsnip and turnip and mix through. These may look strange, but they completely dissolve into the sauce with slow cooking and make it thick and unctuous and add a really nice mild sweetness.

Add the half pint of stock or water. Cover and put into an oven pre-heated to 180° C. Immediately reduce the oven temperature to 120° C. Leave it there for 4-5 hours. You can stir it now and then if you are around, but it’s not strictly necessary.

The result will be a dark chili, with meltingly tender meat and a rich sauce that has lots of heat and flavour. Perfect to come home to after a day away.

We had this with cheesy spinach and spicy roast turnip, with some grated cheese and sour cream on top of the chili.

Tags: Beef, Chorizo, Recipes
Posted in Low carb, Recipes | 4 Comments »

I’m a bit of a food festival junkie. There is something wonderful about discovering new tastes and foods with the enthusiastic people who produce them there to guide you and other food lovers around you to share the excitement. I’ve never been to one without coming away with something new to try and a mad desire to get into the kitchen and cook.

I’m heading off the Waterford today to catch the “Slice of Waterford” event at Terre Madre, the Slow Food conference and festival that has been on there all week. It’a pity though that the Farmer’s Market, which with practically every small food producer in Ireland in town for the week should be a particularly good one,  is scheduled for Sunday - when most of Waterford will either be in Dublin or stuck to the TV watching their team lose to play Kilkenny at Croke Park.

I missed the Festival of World Cultures in Dun Laoghaire this year, to my great regret, because last year it was a  terrific day out, easily one of the most enjoyable festivals I’ve ever attended. The food market was wonderful, colourful, lively and with such a perfusion of smells hanging in the air that it would have almost been possible to come away without eating and still feel well fed.

The big new taste for me there was Muhammara, a Syrian dish made with red pepper and walnuts, which is a bit like a sweet and spicy hummus. This sauce is a slight variation on that, mainly leaving out breadcrumbs and adding in some onion but also changing the proportions of things a bit. It takes no time to make and is a really good partner for pork.

The pork I used is cured pork loin, which is reduced in Lidl at the moment to €4.59 for about a pound weight.

I’d looked at this several times before I first bought it, not really sure what to do with it. The first time I followed the package instructions and roast it, but it was a bit dry and uninteresting.

Since then I’ve taken to slicing it while raw and grilling the slices in a George Foreman grill and it comes out very nicely.

I get about 9 fairly thin slices from the cut, which is enough for generous portions for three people.

The sauce is made using Lidl’s jars of roast red peppers, which come in a sweet and sour vinegar. These are really good and cost 1.79 for a large jar.

Red Pepper & Walnut Sauce

• 2 peppers from the jar (they are quite large)
• 1 tablespoon of the liquid from the pepper jar
• 1 small onion
• 4 cloves garlic
• I red chili
• 60-70g Walnuts (about 1/3 bag of Lidl Walnuts)
• Juice of quarter a lemon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• Olive Oil

Heat some olive oil in a pan. Add the roughly chopped onion and fry on a high heat until they are browned and soft - I like to get them a little charred. Reduce the heat and add the chopped garlic and chili, seeds included. Continue to fry for about 2-3 mins, making sure not to burn the garlic.

Remove the onion mix from the pan, turn the heat up again and add the walnuts to the pan, without any extra oil. Toss them in the pan until they are beginning to brown.

Put everything into a blender and whizz until well mixed. It’s a fairly thick sauce and you don’t need it to be perfectly smooth. Put in a saucepan and heat, or in a bowl to heat in the microwave.

Serve hot with the grilled pork, garnished with a few slices of pepper.

That amount of ingredients will give you more sauce than you need, which is a very good thing.

Put the left overs into a container with a good tight lid and it will keep in the fridge for several days, getting more delicious by the day and tasting just as good cold as it does hot. It makes a very tasty dip, a lovely addition to a salad and is yummy simply spread on bread.

It is also a great dressing for cold meat - chicken, pork or even beef. A good portion of that would be perfect for a hearty ‘picnic’ in the car on the way to a big match.

Tags: Pepper, Pork, Recipes, Walnuts
Posted in Low carb, Recipes | 4 Comments »