The Weekend got off to a bad start

I normally don't mince words when telling it how it is, and I reckon this posting will be no different. I think that panic has set in over the lack of 'time' that I have left before we all go back to school. If it is not self-induced panic, then I have no relevant reasons to explain my bitchiness.  The weekend actually got off to a lovely start. We went over to a friends house to celebrate a birthday and had a very relaxing, fun-filled evening. Enjoying the late summer sun whilst sipping Sam Adams on the patio. Rumour has it we may have sipped a little too much Sam. I flopped into bed later that night thrilled that  I had NO PLANS made for the early morning and could take a well deserved lie-in. (NOTE: I am a morning person, but like to linger a little longer in la-la land if the opportunity presents itself).

Saturday morning arrived just a little too soon (at 5:38am) with the Chef leaping like a lord out of bed and racing to the window saying 'I hear voices'. Kill me now God, because I am about to commit a murder. Those were the thoughts that went through my mind. Needless to say I could not go back to sleep because there was a party going on in the nearby countryside and by the time they all went to their beds it was well past breakfast time in the Wise Household.

I made a conscious effort to steer clear of the Chef for the best part of the day, until we dropped of the kids to another birthday party and we had three hours to ourselves. I made it clear that Sunday morning would be different. Let there be no mistake. Sunday morning rolled in a little later and although he still WOKE ME rather early, he did slink of sulkily downstairs with Jack to make coffee and feed the fowl. I took the chance to get caught up fucking around on facebook checking my overflowing inbox of mostly spam very important emails and just as I decided to organise some summer photos for an upcoming blog I was working on, the children came racing up the stairs announcing that we were headed to the beach for the day. Him BEING A MAN would never have had the forethought to perhaps DISCUSS this with me in advance because he probably thinks that all bathing suits and towels are left loftily in the right place just waiting for the perfect 'SwimDay' to pop up. I take that back - HE DID NOT THINK AT ALL!

Ripped from my 'nice lazy Sunday' I had to dress and pack all four crumbcatchers and orchestrate the tending to the fowls dietary needs (and water because it was a hot one!) AND organise a packed lunch IN A HURRY BECAUSE WE HAD TO GET ON THE ROAD IN ORDER TO BEAT THE TRAFFIC.

We had a great day at the beach. We drove out to Ballyconeely in Conamara. Lovely private white sandy beaches. No traffic, no trash. Just bliss. As we drove home and I had decided to speak to my husband again (the man that is constantly wanting to do stuff to enrich ALL of our lives but mostly the experiences he can give the children building a plethora of amazing childhood memories for them) the talk turned to dinner. He had brought home a hefty piece of beautiful Pork Chop on the bone. Although it would take a while to cook, he had plans to make a tasty treat for the table - yet again.

We have not had to buy any vegetables since April so a quick spin around the garden gave us our veggies for the evening. In the back of my mind I starting to bitch worry about how it would all turn out, because the Chef is not a huge fan of the way Irish meat is butchered. In his opinion it is all done incorrectly. He feels that the meat is cut waaaaaay to thinly and by the time you are done cooking it is looks like it has been stomped on and all the lovely juices have been squeezed right out of it leaving you with a dried up piece of old shoe leather.

Case-in-point

Because of this, he is very fussy about 'where' he gets his meat from and 'who' has touched it. Obviously the lads at Morton's of Galway (where he works) have come to terms with his fussiness and now know how to win him over when flogging a piece of weekend roast. 

I spent a few minutes unloading all the sand and seaside baggage from our family day of fun and had just enough time to crack open a lovely bottle of Mesta Rosado before he presented this lovely hunk of meat for our dining pleasure.

It was a lovely weekend. All sins are forgiven and we are all bracing ourselves for the back-to-school mayhem that lies ahead.

Those are all the WiseWords I have for this rainy August evening,

WiseMóna

Blogging be-damned!

I think I have writers block. The reason that I say 'think' is because I am not sure if I have ever had writers block, so am not sure what the symptoms are. I went to the first Irish Food Bloggers meeting last week in Dublin. Hosted by Bord Bia and organised by the adorable Donal Skehan (The Good Mood Food Blog).

I spent the day hanging with some cool foodies and got to learn a lot about:

1.     Irish Pork

2.     How to take better photos for all the blogging I do (food styling etc.), 

3.     When to blog (daily, weekly etc.FYI - it is best to post once a week on Tuesdays!) 

4.     How to go from ' Blog to Book ' . This was probably the most interesting segment of the day for me. 

There are a few things I learned that will help me 'tailor' my blog in case I ever want to attempt that unimaginable task! 

So to start with Bord Bia (aka Irish Food Board) spent a lot of time ' pushing pork ' on all us bloggers. Why you say? Well, back in 2008 the Irish Department of Agriculture issued a press statement saying restrictions have been placed on a number of pig farms following the discovery of contaminated animal feed. It says it discovered polychlorinated biphenyls (PCPs). These are organic pollutants normally occurring as a result of industrial processes, in pork fat during routine monitoring.

Since then the Pork industry has struggled to stay afloat and now the folks at Bord Bia are trying to spread the word that the ' Pig is back in town'  and safe to eat. They wanted us bloggers to eat a lot of Pork then go back home and encourage all our readers to ' eat more Irish Pork'.  

I was kind of bored for the first half of the day truth be told. I know all the important cuts of meat on a pig (I learned that at The Preble County Pork Festival years ago. I also learned how to scald and skin a pig too should the need ever arise). A lot of very cool people showed up teaching us how to utilise Irish Pork in several different styles. We covered fajhitas, a stirfry and a curry. I was a little sad that no one shared any Irish recipes and even though Bord Bia put on a really delicious lunch spread for all the hungry bloggers, we did not get to taste anything the demonstrators had just cooked?

Just as we were tucking into our desserts and getting ready to move back into the boardroom, a really cool guy named Eoin Purcell stepped up to the plate to talk to us about our big fat ego's.......... huh?

Apparently we would not be throwing ourselves out there into the internet abyss if we did not have a huge ego that needed stroking from all our peeps. I always thought I married the one with the huge ego. Actually,  I am certain that I did marry the one with the huge ego. Does this now mean that I have to face 'facts' and admit I write because my ego needs it? 

Hence the arrival of writers block this week. Not even as much as a ' Mary had a little lamb'  quote on Facebook out of me. Here I sit wondering if anything I have to say is actually relevant at all and even if I think it is relevant why do I have the insane urge to share it with everyone?

Seeing as I have bored you all this far I might as well carry on with a little bit more blogging and blathering. You see I am just settling in nicely to my four month hiatus from University life. We have a couple of extra (foster) kids hanging around the house which makes life a little more hectic than normal, so maybe my writers block does not necessarily stem from all that above ego/reality check stats. Maybe I am just busy?

Maybe I am distracted by the fact that I have to create a different kind of home environment to heavily nurture the new kids making sure they feel like they have a safe place to lay their heads, a hearty meal to nourish their bodies and ample (if not extra) access to hugs when needed. 

With Rory's seventh birthday looming, a lot of time has been spent looking back over the hectic life we have been leading. I am constantly in awe of who she is becoming. She is a take charge kind of girl, and amazingly  is the epitome of what WiseHospitality is all about here in Ireland.

So, with all that said and having unloaded all my insecurities of my chest for this fine summers evening, I have come to one conclusion: 

I write because I have to. 

It is in me, and it has to come out. 

For the most part, my words get whirled around the internet 300 + times a week. Hats off to my loyal blog followers, all my Facebook friends and my family. For you (all) I am eternally thankful. 

Those are all the (very long winded) WiseWords I have for tonight,

WiseMóna 

Munchin at Munchies!

South William St, City Centre South

(01) 679-7296

Click the logo above for the Munchies website!

When travelling with Children (or hungry husbands), be it for a day trip or several weeks, one of the most important things to have on hand at all times is a few snacks. At one point or another someone is gonna get the munchies!

My five year old son Jack wakes up hungry/thirsty and pretty much continues that tune throughout the day in typical toddler fashion. My six-going-on-sixteen daughter Rory has very refined taste buds and eats like a bird in the morning, fills up at lunch and likes to dine lite for dinner.

My husband, the Chef, has life-long-never-ending hunger pangs. To be honest when we set of on our adventures I pack our snack stash with him in mind. Nothing quite as annoying as a hungry husband that needs sustenance immediately! 

Last week we spent the morning at the Dublin Zoo and decided to head into the city center for a nice lunch and some retail therapy. Just doing our bit to help the local economy!

Unless you know where you are going you could spend hours and hours wandering around Grafton Street or the Temple Bar district looking for that perfect little spot to have eats and treats at. People (especially little hungry people) can get a little cranky if you do not make haste in your dining decisions and choose where to eat, in a hurry!

After taking the bus into town from Phoenix Park and wandering around for five-hundred hours we finally stumbled upon a corner café called Munchies that had an inviting look from the exterior!

The inside had a great vibe spilling out the front door onto the busy spring-shoppers-filled streets. We were greeted by a long line of customers all studying the chalkboard menu and an equally fluid line of suits exiting clutching their lunch baggies to go. WiseTip: When traveling (and hungry) never ever-ever eat in a restaurant that does not have a line of people waiting outside to get in.

Munchies has the "French Café meets Dean and Deluca" feel about it. Perched prominently near the cash register was ice cold bottles of bubbly, carafes of chilled lunchtime libations and, for those that had to drive home, some freshly squeezed orange juice.

The Chef needed no convincing to try this spot for lunch because he was greeted (half way down the street) by the smell of freshly baked bread. The only difficult task for him was which loaf to munch on. Sandwich board menu items are a little deceiving in that you think you are having a sandwich for lunch but in reality you are having a lovely lunch experience that happens to be enclosed in some kick-ass breads.

With the most expensive item (Cheese board) teeter-tottering at 7 euros, it could take forever to wade knee-deep in the menu options at Munchies. Clever name-calling of their sandwiches bring smiles and hunger-pangs simultaneously. Should you decide to choose the 'Hummus The Tank Engine' or the 'Bjorn Again', the 'Bacon Whoopie' the 'Salmon Rushdie' or the 'Italian Scallion' you will not go wrong. I am certain everything on their menu will delight the taste-buds, kill the hunger-pangs and have you planning your next lunch in Dublin before you know it!

Of course you could not leave without getting 'one-a dem chocolate tingys' they had on display behind the glass case (at perfect five-year-old eye level) so a little lunch bag to go was procured as we exited, making room for the long line of late-luncher's still flowing through the doors of Munchies.

Yummy Yum yum!

Those are all the WiseWords I have for today,

WiseMóna

P.S. It should go without saying (at this point) that this business is big on sourcing organic and locally-grown produce and serves fair-trade coffee. Cheap and Cheerful!

How do you like your Oysters?

Naked - is the preferred way around Galway. A little drop of lemon juice for some, but mostly just naked right out of the sea. We are the luckiest people on the planet because we live beside a guy who is part of an 'Oyster Farming Co-Op' and every week he drops us of a few dozen oysters and a few pounds of mussels. On any given day, my favourite way to slurp these savoury beasts (and they are quite plump) is with a little red wine & shallot vinaigrette. The Chef prefers a dash or two of Tabasco and a splash of lemon juice.

However, our kids have their very own favourite way to eat the oysters and I think you all should take a minute to try this, because it is really delicious! Even the neighbours are hooked!

First - go out and buy some 'Franks - RedHot' original hotsauce. Get the big one - because it is such a versatile ingredient, you will become slightly addicted to this and find yourself using it in ways you would never imagine!

Next - open about a dozen oysters (more if you are entertaining) and put them in a large mixing bowl. Strain off the Oyster juices, then pour in a cup or 2 of the hot sauce. Leave them sit for about a half an hour. Turn on your fryer. Next, get a ziplock baggie (large size) and pour in a decent amount of cornmeal & flour (equal parts).

Pick up the oysters one by one (and be gentle with these tasty treats) and smother them in this breadcrumb mix. Lay on a plate (slightly dusted with flour). After you have them all breaded
drop them slowly into the fryer for less than one and a half minutes. They cook very fast.

Dump them out onto a bed of lovely rocket or watercress and garnish with a little bit of sliced lemon. Ron likes to make a horseradish mayonnaise ketchup sauce to dunk them in.

The absolute best way to finish of this yummy snack is to down it all with a lovely cold pint. The kids would love to get their paws on this too - but we draw the line, we have shared the oysters!!!

Happy dining,

That is all the WiseWords I have for today,

WiseMóna