Rhubarb custard tart

It's right in the middle of the rhubarb season here in Ireland. But rather suspiciously, the rhubarbs I see in supermarkets have more green bits than pink/red along the stalks. Still, I picked up a bunch to make this custard tart.

Rhubarb custard tart

Honey sriracha chicken

Watched how sriracha sauce was made on 'Food Factory USA', and it inspired me to make honey sriracha chicken legs for dinner.

Honey sriracha chicken

Torta di mele (Apple cake)

One of the complaints Husband has of my wheat-free, grain-free cakes is that they often have a grainy texture. Though he tries to soften the blow by stating that it's only a minor criticism and in all fairness, I don't think any wheat substitute can ever achieve the wheat result, I still want to find a way to improve upon the texture.

With that in mind, coupled with the feeling that my relationship with my new kitchen has evolved from casual acquaintance to devoted friend, I decided to try out a new apple cake recipe last week.

Torta di mele

Wild pigeon with honey roast beets & onions

I had pigeon first on holidays last summer at Marcus Wareing's restaurant 'Marcus' at The Berkeley, and it was perfect. But pigeon isn't something one finds at the local butchers or supermarkets that easily. Imagine my surprise and delight when I happened upon wild pigeon fillets at my local supermarket.

As it was my first time cooking pigeon, I decided to keep it simple and pan fry the fillets and dress with a beurre noisette. Honey-roast beetroots and red onions and paprika Rooster wedges accompanied the game.

Wild pigeon, honey-roast beets & red onions, paprika Rooster wedges

Fluffy brownies (2)

The first batch of fluffy brownies turned out well. As per usual, I tweaked the recipe slightly just to see what it would be like. 

Fluffy brownie

Fluffy brownies (1)

I had some ripened avocados in the fridge and decided to use them before they turned. The last few batches of brownies I made were more fudgy and dense. This time, I thought I'd try a lighter, fluffier variety. 

Fluffy brownie

Orange turkey 陳皮火雞

Inspired by a conversation with a couple of friends about cooking turkey, I made orange turkey, a twist from orange chicken, for dinner tonight. It was so good that the Husband asked for seconds!

Orange turkey

Chocolate peanut butter cups

One of my favourite chocolate treats is Reese's peanut butter cups. When I got a big tub of peanut butter made with 100% peanuts, I could finally make my own peanut butter chocolate cups. 

Chocolate peanut butter cups

Chia coconut pudding

Every now and then I get a craving for rice pudding. But every time, I'd only have a few bites before getting tired of it. Something about the combination of cream and soft rice that makes it hard for me to eat beyond a few spoonfuls. Last week I came down with acute tonsillitis and had a pretty rough few days with fever, chills, muscle aches, and a sore throat. I couldn't eat any solid foods for a few days and that was when I thought about rice pudding. Except I didn't want rice pudding really. I wanted a coconut milk pudding with chia seeds soaked through.

Chia coconut pudding topped with pistachios

Earl Grey tea biscuits

Earl Grey is my favourite black tea, and I've had much success using it in chocolate desserts (see my pots de créme au chocolat and chocolate truffle cake). This time I decided to try using it without chocolate and to make biscuits instead. 

Earl Grey tea biscuits

Cranberry lime loaf cake with honey butter glaze

I froze a small box of fresh cranberries leftover from making the orange cranberry cake over Christmas last year. Since that cake went down a treat, I decided to use the rest of the cranberries to make a cranberry and lime loaf. 

Cranberry lime loaf with honey butter glaze

Banana walnut mini muffins

I had two very ripe bananas, one in the freezer and one in the fruit bowl. I decided to make my trusty banana & walnut loaf, except this time, I'm making it into mini muffins. This recipe is adapted from my banana & walnut bread. 

Banana walnut mini muffins

Sticky honey citrus chicken

The success of my sticky honey lemon chicken prompted an encore, with a couple of tweaks of course.

Sticky honey citrus chicken with kaffir lime basmati and French beans

Sticky honey lemon chicken

My local butcher has these huge chicken breasts on the bone available nearly every time I go in. I've occasionally taken advantage of the fantastic offers (5 for €8.99) and made a few tasty dishes (like smokey chicken & rice (1) and (2), and oven roast chicken with vegetables). This time I made a delectable honey lemon chicken.

Sticky honey lemon chicken with broccoli

Nutty peanut butter cookies

I had a craving for peanut butter the other day and it didn't go away. Then I remembered I bought a jar of Meridian natural peanut butter a while ago and it was still sitting in the cupboard. The recipe I'm using here is straightforward and easier than a piece of cake (wink wink). Because Meridian has stopped using palm oil in their products, the natural oils from the nuts will separate in the jar. Storing the jar lid-side down allows the oils to distribute evenly throughout the jar.

Nutty peanut butter cookies

Ginger braised chicken wings 薑燒雞翅

Seared tuna steak with honey mustard dressing

Seared tuna steak with honey mustard dressing, soft boiled egg, blanched green beans, baby potato chips

Nutty fudgey brownies

I was invited to a ladies luncheon at a girlfriend's last week. I knew she was a fan of brownies, so I decided to make a some to bring over even though I'd never made any before. 

Banana & walnut bread

After a few loaves, I'm fairly confident with my banana bread. I made a loaf to bring down to my in-laws over Christmas so I could have something to eat for breakfast while I was there for the holiday.

Banana & walnut bread

And here's the recipe that guarantees to satisfy. 

Madeira cake with coconut & lime frosting

One of the cakes I discovered after moving to Ireland was Madeira cake. I was told it was a sponge but I thought it felt slightly denser than the sponge I was used to back in the East (like the 'traditional' birthday cakes in Taiwan). Still, Madeira cake became my favourite tea cake.