What's up with Wheat?

My brother got a big scare recently when he had some tests done and they discovered he was very anaemic. Usually in a male this is considered serious and may be an indication of internal bleeding.  He now suspects that he may be gluten intolerant the same as our mother.  When I was studying nutrition we were given a statistic that in the general population, 1:2000 can expect to be coeliac but people from the west of Ireland have a much higher incidence; up to 1:200.  But this does not explain the explosion of people now saying they have an intolerance to wheat or to gluten.  Gluten is the protein portion in wheat and is what allows the bread to rise, being elastic and therefore able to trap the bubbles of carbon dioxide produced by yeast metabolism. 

I read an article by Dr. William Davis in Rodale News about the modern wheat plant.  He claims that by selective cross-breeding the plant we grow now does not have anything in common with the original wheat plant.  It is almost half as tall with a huge seed head and is bred for high yield.  As it is a hybrid it would be unable to grow in the wild and so has to be doused with a combination of toxic chemical fertilisers and pesticides.  Now before you say "oh, that only occurs in America", which to be honest was my first thought, my mother was told in a farmer's market by one of the women working there that this happens here in Ireland.  She said wheat is soaked in Roundup before sowing!!  Not a very nice thought because I certainly do not want to eat anything soaked in Roundup or Agent Orange.

The same doc says that modern wheat is so nutritionally deficient it may be responsible for obesity, diabetes and other inflammatory conditions,  This is due to the changes that have occurred in the gluten protein gliadin which has become a "potent appetite stimulent". He goes into a lot of other theories about why this has occurred but by this stage I had had enough, however if you want to read his article here is the link http://www.rodale.com/wheat-free-diet-0?page=0,0&cm_mmc=Twitter-_-Rodale-_-Content-RecentNews-_-mutantwheattakingoverbreadaisle

Now you may think that by only buying certified organic flour that you will be on the pig's back however, if the actual wheat genus has been mucked about with that much, you are still getting a nutritionally deficient product, albeit free from the toxic chemicals; so what is the point?

I decided to eliminate wheat from my diet and then started looking into alternatives.  I now use spelt flour for almost everything and today I experimented with making bread using rye flour, buckwheat and a "new" product called Kamut which is an ancient type of wheat grown by the pharaohs in Egypt (Triticum turgidum).  Because it is a wheat variety it contains gluten so would not be suitable for diagnosed coeliacs.  The recipe I used is as follows:

1 mug each of rye, buckwheat and Kamut flours.
1 mug of oat bran,
2 tablespoons of mixed seeds (sesame, pumpkin and sunflower)
1.5 teaspoon of bread soda sieved
1 tablespoon of olive oil
Buttermilk to give the consistency of gloopy porridge
Some more seeds sprinkled on top

If you wanted you could add a tablespoon of blackstrap molasses to give a nice dark, sweet flavour which makes the bread really good to eat with cheese.

I baked it at gas mark 6 (200degC) for about an hour and then turned it out and cooked it upside down for another 10 minutes until the base sounded hollow when tapped.

The resulting loaf was delicious, liberally smothered with butter and some of my brother in law's honey!
My next plan is to try making yeast bread and pizza dough with the Kamut flour and I will let you know how I get on.

Wheat  Wheat Intolerance Coeliac

Liebster Blog Awards

I was away on my "foodie weekend" in Cork when I got a notification that I had been included in this award by Colette from cakesbakesandotherbits.blogspot.com.  I was needless to say delighted, but a bit "under the weather" as they say from a night dining out in Cork's finest and partaking of some lovely wine!  

It's a nice surprise to be included and a really good idea to promote other blogs.

So how does it work?

• You thank the person who gave you the award
• Then link back to that person's blog
• Copy and paste the Liebster award to your own profile
• Pick 5 blogs who you feel deserve to be noticed (they have to have under 200 followers)
• Then finally blog it and leave a comment to let your 5 choices know they have been chosen.

My 5 choices in no particular order are;

1.  haapsandbarley-jhaap.blogspot.com Jill is a student and a passionate foodie blogging about everything to do with food from Ann Arbour, Michigan and also about her travels in Germany.  

2. pigletinfrance.wordpress.com Piglet is an Englishwoman married to a Frenchman and living in France in a rural area. The blog is a lovely record and journey of her life's trials and tribulations dealing with the French and living in the country.  This blog is a real find and I love her posts.

3. irishherault.wordpress.com This is a couple blogging about living in France for part of the year and also in Dublin.  The blog is not only about food but also very interesting observations on the difference between the French and the Irish.  They are based in my favourite part of France and an area I have come to know very well of late.  I envy their lifestyle and love their blog.

4. ihaveafriendincheeses.blogspot.com  Rory is a passionate foodie who works in the food industry and has a passion for cheese as well as all things Italian food and wine wise.  The reason I love this blog is I have an Italianophile brother (if that is how you say it) and Rory reminds me of him.

5. ayearinredwood.com Margaret blogs about her life in rural Tipperary and raising free-range pigs as a business.  Lots of lovely recipes feature many of which I have tried recently, the apple beer being the most successful which really says a lot more about me than her recipes ;-)

So there you go - pass it on and share the "Blove" especially as it's Valentine's Day tomorrow!

The English Market Cork

I am just back from a weekend in Cork and a visit to the English Market.  I had wanted to visit the market for ages and a couple of years ago I booked myself in for a charcuterie course with a friend in Ballmaloe.  Unfortunately she injured her leg and was unable to make the trip and our plan to visit the market had to be put on hold also.

The English Market is the oldest market of it's kind, trading since 1788 on the same site and surviving famine, fire and economic decline.  It predates the Boqueria in Barcelona by 80 years.  There are many differing theories why it is called the English Market, varying from only English was spoken there to only
"English" were allowed trade there.  According to an article by Donal Ó Drisceoil in his historical overview, the Market was created in 1788 by the Protestant or “English” corporation that controlled the city at that time. It was a new flagship municipal market located at the heart of the new commercial city centre.  The other market in the city, St. Peters was often referred to as the Irish Market to differentiate them.

                      View of the market from Farmgate Cafe



The stalls are varying and include fabulous cheese selections, baked goods including a stall dedicated to amazing macaroons, butcher counters, fish mongers, dried goods and olives.  The fish selection is one of the best I have seen in Ireland and the butchers sell local delicacies such as drisheen, crubeens, and spiced beef. It is a "foodie" paradise buzzing with people doing their weekly shopping and gawkers like me.  Although, I bought some beef cheeks, sausages and spiced beef, hoping the car boot would be cold enough to preserve them until I got home. 


Above in the gallery is the Farmgate cafe and restaurant, serving really good coffee and cakes as well as a sit down section for lunch - sourcing local delicacies.  Booking is advisable at weekends.  The staff are lovely, friendly and knowledgeable.  We had big, steaming bowls of seafood chowder, more than adequade as we intended dining out that evening.  But you can have tripe and drisheen or local big, meaty sausages and mash as well as salads with local black pudding.


The English Market is truly a fine place to visit and browse.  I can't wait to go back and really wish there was something similar in this neck of the woods. 

                                        A stunning Monkfish

                                                       The fabulous O'Connell's fishmongers

Killing the Ducks

I see duck occasionally in the local supermarkets around here and sometimes I am tempted, but they are invariably just fatty with little real flavour.  I have a friend who rears poultry and she has given me some of her ducks in the past.  They really are a different beast.  Much smaller and not as meaty and somehow the fat seems different - not so lardy.  My passion at the moment is cassoulet so rather than buy a "lardy" duck I decided to get some from my friend.  However, she said although she had some ready to go she did not want to kill them.

I decided if I was prepared to eat them, then I should be prepared to kill them right?  Now, I have never killed anything in the past but how difficult can it be?  Two ducks arrived yesterday evening in a box.  I was also getting a new Khaki Campbell for egg laying and she was duly transferred into the duck house.  The time came to kill the other two and cautiously I opened the box.  Inside were two male Aylesbury ducks, white fluffy with yellow legs.  The "puddle-ducks" of my childhood.  I picked one up gently and could feel his little heart pumping with fear.  My son and a friend were here to do the job.  My one request was that I did not want to see the actual act but that they must make it fast.  My son looked scared and apprehensive and I was thankful that I had brought up a human with a love and respect for animals.  He had looked up on the internet how to do it and settled on the River Cottage method.  Hugh said they are the most difficult animals to kill as they look so cute!  Not an easy comment to read when you are about to do the job.

They two of them gently took the duck from my arms and carried him out.  Two hits and he was dispatched but they had to hold him for a good few minutes while he continued to twitch.  The second one was the same and then we had to start plucking.  My son informed me he had been dreading it but it was easier than he had thought and at least he was happy it was fast and humane.

Plucking is a nightmare and not only do they have the familiar duck feathers they have a deep layer of "eiderdown", beautifully soft and white.  I was tempted to try to save some.  We spent over an hour trying to remove all the quills and gave up and decided to gut them.  I wanted to save the livers and the heart so we removed these carefully.

Today we have to finish trying to remove all the quills, which may be easier now they are cold.  I am hoping to confit the legs today and remove the breasts from one and to roast the other.

How do I feel now?  Well last night I had nightmares about finding my new hens running around headless.  So it certainly has had an effect on me and I did not even watch the act.  But at least I know that these ducks were reared free to roam and had a natural, happy life.  I think it would get much easier to do subsequently but the first time is always going to be difficult.  One comment that stuck with me was from my son.  He said "it's just as well we are not trying to conceal a murder scene, because if we were, we would not have done a very good job"!

Killing Ducks   Khaki Campbell  Aylesbury  River Cottage  Duck Recipes

My Cassoulet

I love big hearty dishes at this time of year and simple one-pot ones are the business. I have had cassoulet a few times in Carcassonne and I love it, I call it "proper food".  My version is my attempt to re-create the original.

I have made duck legs confit a few times but it you don't have any, use chicken thighs.  To confit duck legs, sprinkle sea salt over them and some fresh thyme and leave overnight somewhere cool.  Next day rinse off the excess salt and place in a casserole.  Cover with duck or pork fat and place in oven for about 4 hours at a low heat.

To use chicken thighs, season and rub with some rape seed oil, roast them in the oven for about 20 mins.
Cut the pork belly into good sized chunks and seal and roast in the oven for an hour.
Brown the sausages and when cool cut into chunks.

While the meat above is cooking prepare the rest of the dish.

Ingredients
1 onion finely chopped
1 stick celery finely sliced
1 carrot chopped
2 cloves garlic crushed
About quarter of a butternut squash cut into chunks
4-5 good quality thick sausages (browned and cooked)
Strip of pork belly sealed off in a pan and roasted
4 chicken thighs or confit duck legs
2 tins of cannellini or haricot beans or a bean mix
Fresh thyme and sage
Good quality chicken or beef stock
A good glug of white wine
A squeeze of tomato puree

Saute the vegetables in some rape seed oil. Transfer to a casserole dish.  Add in the meats and the beans, the stock, puree, wine, herbs and season.  Simmer the cassoulet for about an hour in a low oven or on the hob until the vegetables are soft and it has become almost creamy looking. About 20 minutes before you want to serve it add in the chunks of butternut squash.

Serve with crusty bread and a good hearty red wine and enjoy!


Tip - I cook beans in a pressure cooker and freeze for use later.  I also cook double the meat and freeze half for use in another cassoulet and then when you are in a hurry you can prepare the dish in the time it takes to chop and saute the vegetables.

Cassoulet   Duck Confit  Carcassonne  Food  Hearty Stew Recipes