Duvel

Yeap, that’s what I’d do (and have done - successfully - in the past).

That would be my thoughts as well. Just scale the recipe down (thrifty me usually goes along the “whole eggs”) to the size you manage to handle, and bake in the appropriate form …

Wow 😱 Not sure where I should begin … those glorious eggs … that smoked chicken … or asparagus from the garden !!! In case your moving in with me doesn’t happen all too soon, please consider making space over there for me 🤗

Damn … not to be missed indeed 🤗

For the last day in Killarney I had just one item left on my bucket list: the Gap of Dunloe. It is very popular with individual tourists and tour busses alike, so I used my secret weapon: a family that is 70% German. And thus has no issues getting up at 7.00h in the morning during holidays. Little ones German heritage wins over his Catalan genes when it comes to bed times, so I used him strategically to get my wife out of bed. We arrived at the Gap at 9.00h, well before any larger crowds. My mom really wanted to do the Gap by horse cart, so I went off to discuss a tour with the only cart owner there at 9.00h. His horse Dolly enjoyed running, especially as it was a coldish and damp morning, and Patrick - the cart owner - ran next to the horse while it was pulling us the little slopes up into the Gap. He was a great narrator and we enjoyed his company and storytelling … Afterwards, we spend some shopping time (plus coffee) in Killarney and drove back via a popular sightseeing spot to enjoy the view on the lakes for the last time … Back at home, little one sorted his souvenirs while my wife started her holiday book (that she likes to purchase with a local theme and usually finishes before the holiday ends) … The others made a round for a comparative study of the neighboring cottages, while I „prepared dinner“ (and had a Guinness) … We had leftovers to clean out the fridge - luckily very tasty leftovers 😉 As I said I borrowed the idea of a puff pastry lid for my Guinness & beef stew - as very every stew it improved in the fridge … I alway try to encourage little one to become a home cook, but at this point he might take a turn and become a food blogger … Everyone enjoyed - especially my father 🤗 Happy days !

The next day it rained - a lot. My mom was feeling a bit done from the day before and decided to stay at home. My wife and me decided to seize the opportunity and drive the whole Ring of Kerry in one go and my father decided to join. Little one announced he had to stay with Oma for support (and a lot of board game playtime with her and probably iPad usage 😉) … In case I didn’t mention it - it rained a lot. We drove the ring clockwise, while the tourist busses are required by law to go counterclockwise, which resulted in pretty empty sights on the way … Abandoned stone circles … Bored (and possibly suicidel) sheep on a wall of a mountain pass (with a 50 m drop behind) … And a loooot of lonely coastline … We reached some obscure cemetery on an island, that is reachable by foot only at low tide. Luckily we had low tide. Unfortunately though we had a significant amount of vertical humidity, so the effect of visiting the cemetery and church ruins for about 15 min was the same as if we would have swim there … My father was smart enough to stay in the car, but we got soaked pretty well. It was time for a strategic lunch break, featuring … The local brew (an IPA) … My favorite (can’t go wrong with that - ever) … My fathers fish soup … My wifes fish & chips (with monkfish !) … And a seafood stew for me. I will borrow the idea of a puff pastry „lid“ for tomorrow’s dinner … After being more or less dry, we continued our journey to see more lonely beaches … … and long abandoned farm houses. Finally, we reached the Cliffs of Kerry - the unknown cousin of the Cliffs of Moher. Simply spectacular ! We returned about 1.5h later to our cottage, picked up our two indoorsy family members and drove back to Killarney town for an early dinner … My father - still being a bit envious of my wifes (monk)fish & chips decided for fish & chips, albeit in its haddock incarnation … I opted for another braised lamb shank, which you can’t go wrong with (especially if accompanied with a Guinness) … The other three had a Cheeseburger with fries each, which I refused to photograph. I got half of my moms, though. It was tasty, with a funky curry-based mayo. We drove back, had a small Dingle Single Malt for dessert and some more episodes of Shawn the Sheep … Bäääääh 🐑

Aaaaaand that the link in the second post. Glad we are on the same team 🤗

Really ..?! Mine clearly references the Panasonic KY-MK3500 …

It’s been commercialized …

I was a bit sceptical about the blue cheese as well, especially as he had a Roquefort-lookalike just next to it. But this one was raw milk and despite the lacking visual aspects was very funky and „blue“-tasting - bit more in the Gorgonzola direction - creamy, yet sharp and funky.

I think it’s nice to go to a good cheese shop - with a knowledgeable proprietor you can discuss with and who helps you to put together a nice cheese board. My „theme“ was raw milk & good with Guinness. Worked out like a charm 😎

Disclaimer: the following narrative features a completely sunny and pleasantly warm day. Do not expect any of this during your upcoming Ireland trip. Indeed it was a sunny day. Thanks to the 1h time shift between Germany and Ireland I got up pretty early to do what I like best (think of a full Irish breakfast picture here)… after yesterdays „rest day“ we packed up and headed to the Dingle peninsula, a bit northwest of the Killarney national park. Dingle peninsula features pristine beaches, that were full of tiny little crabs trying not to get eaten by the flogs of seagulls patrolling around. Well … A rare picture of the full Irish food chain … All closely supervised by the head of the herd … Some 1200 years ago, stone forts were all the rage and Dingle seemed to be prime real estate. The structures are just piled up, no concrete whatsoever … and still stand to this day. With a view of the Skelligs (of 7th century monk or 21st century Star Wars fame) … „Stone on stone“ construction principles applied also to this roadside cafe, where my parents needed to consume a caffeinated beverage … Luckily, just next to the cafe this little road stall sold freshly picked crab meat in brioche rolls. They use lille brown crabs for that, and only the claw meat is used. It was very delicate and sweet … Worthwhile ! After stopping at the peak … … we visited the Gallarus Oratory. Again - just piled up stones, no concrete. 1200 years old. No surprise with that wall thickness … Finally arriving at Dingle, there was one shop I needed to see. So while all the others went for another coffee, I headed to the Little Cheese Shop, that has a great selection of Irish cheeses: I also got two pounds of fresh mussels in the port and a little souvenir … We arrived pretty tired, so I put together some dinner: Cheeses, salmon paté and a Galway dry cured sausage … Followed by beer-steamed Dingle mussels … I love how my father always discovers his enthusiasm for foods I make 😎 Fruity beer to go with … And then there was a serving of the beef & Guinness stew - gratinated with some garlicky mash (yes, I am thrifty with leftovers). Unfortunately, not such a good picture. Despite what you think, we were still hungry … And finally a dessert - from my Dingle souvenir bottle !

Trip is done, let me check what I have on pictures … Yes, I brought one medium Global knife (plus spices, bay leaf & yeast) 🤗

Both - there was about one pint of Guinness in the stew, and I drank 2 x a half pint and added the rest in portions to the stew …

The transfer day (with flight and drive) and yesterdays sightseeing took a bit of a toll on my parents, so we decided for an easy day in town … One might argue that no hearty breakfast was needed, but … Killarney town is nice, but somewhat unremarkable. There is a castle … … and some other „sights“. Souvenir shops are aplenty as well … We found a seafood place for late lumch and enjoyed the fresh produce: Haddock and chips … excellent ! My fathers chowder … Little ones fresh squid … And the suggestion of the day: fresh brill. They put slices of chorizo, which weren’t necessary, but the fish itself was great. You could watch the cook filet the fish (as well as the squid before) … Local IPA … In the afternoon we stayed at home, playing games. I baked a brown soda bread for next day’s breakfast and/or dinner … And started some beef & Guinness stew … Without much calorie expenditure we had a light dinner … And reclined early after may be one or two episodes of Shawn the Sheep and an equal number of Redbreast 🤗

Fair enough - I was under the impression that those cubes are ubiquitous.

Yes, there is a 1.5 day Dublin epilogue 🤗 Ulysses is a tough read (at least for a non-native speaker). I read it while studying in Dublin - and I managed to participate im Bloomsday in 1999 (which we missed by two weeks this time …).

Or you simply get this 😉 …

Only in China 😎

It‘s mild tasting, even the fat. We do have good lamb here in Germany (especially at the Turkish butchers), but the Irish seems to be smaller (younger) and thus the fat is not yet infused with too much of the „goaty“ acid esters …

The next day started with rain, so a proper breakfast to maintain the insulation layer of my body was in order … We headed out to the lovely Muckross abbey, just on the banks of the lower lake of Killarney … Impressive combinations of architecture & flora … With the odd Leprechaun sprinkled in for good measure. A short one mile walk led past the lake itself … … with almost Japanese sights … … to Muckross house. Where we enjoyed a second breakfast … Driving on further south we passed by the famous „ladies view“ (of course when it rained the most). From here you can see all lakes of Killarney … The weather was very Irish. Some 10 min later we had „sunshine“ again … And then again … We drove on to Kildare, made a round and headed home again … My parents were a bit done and didn’t wanted to go out again, so I drove to town, picked up some local lamb chops and ribeyes and made garlicky mash and a salad … Lazy dinner … No complaints. Especially not after another Redbreast 🤗

The first day was rather unexciting. We had a smooth flight to Dublin and picked up the rental car … The guys at the rental were very „concerned“ whether I would be able to drive with a manual transmission or could manage to drive on the left side with a slighly larger SUV. After ensuring them that a) in Germany 90% of the cars have manual transmission (although mine doesn‘t 😎) and b) that I own driving licenses from Japan and Hong Kong, with both driving on left, they stopped trying to sell me any extras … A leisurely 3h drive later we arrived at our cottage in Killarney. Little one found his spot while we were unloading … Unfortunately the nearby pub didn‘t had the kitchen open, so we headed into town. My parents asked for live music, and that’s what we got … First: that’s what I came for ! Food was nice, too - Pulled lamb burger … Cottage pie - very good. Definitely have to put sage into mine at home, too … Fish & chips (for both my father & little one - two portions, of course …) And a braised lamb shank for yours truly … We enjoyed the live music - a very lovely evening ensued 🤗 Finally, at home I had another „local“ specialty (and a good nights sleep afterwards) …

Prologue With little one having almost two weeks of „Pentecost“ (Pfingsten) school holidays and last years hiatus from major holidays due to a new job, we decided to start up our holiday season already in May. My idea was to go to Ireland, because of the lovely nature, the food (of course) and also because I studied at UCD Dublin some 25 years ago … As my parents are not up to holidays on their own anymore, but my mom really wanted to see Ireland again, we took then along as well. So, here we go …

Fully with you. In fact, the Wagamama recipe does start by making a roux in situ. While it’s not difficult to do, usually this is where the lack of flavor is stemming from, as using curry powder (that usually doesn’t keep its potency for long) can be a hit and miss affair. The vacuum sealed kare cubes will eliminate that source of error. But if you are versed cook, making your own cubes it’s a great way to introduce variety …

I assume you are looking for a decent kare („curry“) sauce recipe, to serve with a breaded meat item … in which case I‘d wholeheartedly recommend a Japanese Kare cube (start with the medium spicy S&B or House brand one, both are readily available), dissolved in a weak dashi stock.