What a great success Bloom was once again. This was my 13th year and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I did six demos and enjoyed meeting a lot of people and had a chance to visit so many great producers. A big thank you to Bord Bia, to Tara McCarthy and Hilda Adams in particular, and to my own team who put in long hours to make it all happen. Roll on 2020.
I hope by the time you read this the weather will have improved and there will be the occasional barbecue. You will find koftas of all sorts from India to Asia to Greece made with beef, chicken, lamb and pork mixed with spices and usually onions. You even see vegetarian koftas made with potatoes. These kebabs are a little firmer than meatballs and I hope you enjoy them. Butter beans are ideal. I always keep a few cans in the kitchen. They are great to add into soups.
It is the season for mackerel and myself and my son Connor have been trying our best to catch a few in Mullaghmore. It is hard to beat the taste of a fresh mackerel and we live in hope!
Happy cooking,
Neven
Kofta kebabs
Serves four
For the koftas:
450g (1lb) lean minced lamb
125g (4 1/2oz) trimmed lamb neck fillet, finely chopped
1 onion, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, grated
1 tsp ground cumin
a good pinch chilli flakes (optional)
1 small bunch fresh flat-leaf parsley
For the salad:
a handful pickled green chillies
1 large carrot, grated
400g (14oz) can white beans, drained and rinsed (such as haricot)
1 little gem lettuce head, trimmed and shredded
good squeeze of lemon juice
sea salt and fresh ground black pepper
lemon wedges, to garnish
Barbecued mackerel baguette
Serves four
4 large fresh mackerel fillets, trimmed and pin bones removed
3 tbsp rapeseed oil
1 large baguette
good handful soft lettuce leaves, shredded
1 large vine-riped tomato, chopped
For the dressing:
6 gherkins, drained and finely chopped
1 small bunch chopped fresh mint
4 tbsp plain yoghurt
good pinch ground cumin
good squeeze of lemon juice
1 green chilli, thinly sliced
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper