There might be more than 100 pancakes on the menu, but Margaret Kerssens of The Strawberry Field can probably guess what you’re likely to order before you’ve even decided yourself.
Locals, for example, are partial to bacon, cheese and tomato. UK visitors keep things traditional with lemon and sugar. The French flip for Irish smoked salmon, leek and sour cream. South Africans smack their lips for cinnamon and sugar. And Americans just love Wexford strawberries.
“Though they always want bacon on the side,” laughs Margaret, who opened The Strawberry Field pancake cottage just off the Ring of Kerry, near Moll’s Gap, in 1997 after moving from the Netherlands in a 1965 Volvo Amazon with her husband Peter and children Yosta and Mayra, then two and 10 months old.
“We came here on holiday and we fell in love with the area – in Holland, there is so much stress,” says Margaret. “We came back in the winter and saw this very old farmhouse for sale in a window in Kenmare for £35,000. We had thought we might get a small holiday home, but it turned out to be quite a large restaurant.”
Named after the native arbutus strawberry tree that grows in Muckross and on the road to Moll’s Gap – and with a little inspiration from The Beatles – Margaret and Peter opened The Strawberry Field that summer as a tearoom and restaurant, with quirky interiors like lampshades made from salad bowls and colanders, berry and cream-coloured chairs and a raftered ceiling.
Sweet and sinful
In 2006, however, they decided to specialise in pancakes after seeing the popularity of similar restaurants in Holland (where the traditional pancake is served with maple syrup), and now offer up to 120 sweet, savoury, sinful and even coeliac-friendly combinations all year round.
With a clatter of Bridgestone awards, local suppliers are to the fore: Margaret uses eggs from farmer Tadhg Crowley, luxury chocolate sauce, dark and milk chocolate chips and hazelnut praline from Lorge Chocolatier in Bonane, ice cream from Mac’s Killarney and Derreenaclaurig garlic cheese from Sneem.
During low season, The Strawberry Field hosts fondue nights at weekends as their wood-burning stove blazes in the background, while there is also a small craft shop selling strawberry-themed gifts, as well as cast-iron home accessories made by Peter.
But on her busiest days, Margaret can make up to 100 pancakes, and she can now cook five at a time. Her secret tip is to use Flora Cuisine oil (“it doesn’t spatter or burn”) in a good, hot pan and she recommends resting the batter for at least half an hour first. And to flip or not to flip?
“I use a spatula,” Margaret laughs.
This article was first published in February 2013
Ard Bia buttermilk and poppy-seed pancakes
Galway restaurant Ard Bia shares its legendary buttermilk and poppy seed pancake recipe, perfect for breakfast – or any time of day.
These taste great with your syrup of choice (we love Highbank Orchard syrup), seasonal fruit compote or honey-nut yoghurt and the recipe below makes enough for four to six people.
Ingredients
Two eggs80ml/2.7fl oz milk350ml/12fl oz buttermilk350g/14oz plain flour35g/1.2oz caster sugar2 tbsp poppy seeds1 heaped tsp baking soda120g/5oz melted butter (plus extra knobs of butter to cook, depending on the pan)Method
Beat the eggs, milk and buttermilk together. Combine the flour, sugar, poppy seeds and baking soda, and mix thoroughly into the egg mix.
To do this you can beat in a blender or food processor until incorporated. If you’d rather do it by hand, make a well in the dry ingredients and pour in half the liquid, stirring with a wooden spoon to draw in the flour until it is well combined, before adding the remaining liquid.
Finally, stir the melted butter through the batter. Chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes or until ready to use.
Heat a decent-sized griddle or non-stick pan over a high heat. If you have a pancake pan, all the better. Depending on the quality of your pan, you may or may not need to add a knob of butter – try it without first to test it out.
Spoon a ladle of pancake batter into the middle of the pan and allow it to form a drop-scone shape. Cook on the first side for three to four minutes or until the base of the pancake turns golden brown.
There might be more than 100 pancakes on the menu, but Margaret Kerssens of The Strawberry Field can probably guess what you’re likely to order before you’ve even decided yourself.
Locals, for example, are partial to bacon, cheese and tomato. UK visitors keep things traditional with lemon and sugar. The French flip for Irish smoked salmon, leek and sour cream. South Africans smack their lips for cinnamon and sugar. And Americans just love Wexford strawberries.
“Though they always want bacon on the side,” laughs Margaret, who opened The Strawberry Field pancake cottage just off the Ring of Kerry, near Moll’s Gap, in 1997 after moving from the Netherlands in a 1965 Volvo Amazon with her husband Peter and children Yosta and Mayra, then two and 10 months old.
“We came here on holiday and we fell in love with the area – in Holland, there is so much stress,” says Margaret. “We came back in the winter and saw this very old farmhouse for sale in a window in Kenmare for £35,000. We had thought we might get a small holiday home, but it turned out to be quite a large restaurant.”
Named after the native arbutus strawberry tree that grows in Muckross and on the road to Moll’s Gap – and with a little inspiration from The Beatles – Margaret and Peter opened The Strawberry Field that summer as a tearoom and restaurant, with quirky interiors like lampshades made from salad bowls and colanders, berry and cream-coloured chairs and a raftered ceiling.
Sweet and sinful
In 2006, however, they decided to specialise in pancakes after seeing the popularity of similar restaurants in Holland (where the traditional pancake is served with maple syrup), and now offer up to 120 sweet, savoury, sinful and even coeliac-friendly combinations all year round.
With a clatter of Bridgestone awards, local suppliers are to the fore: Margaret uses eggs from farmer Tadhg Crowley, luxury chocolate sauce, dark and milk chocolate chips and hazelnut praline from Lorge Chocolatier in Bonane, ice cream from Mac’s Killarney and Derreenaclaurig garlic cheese from Sneem.
During low season, The Strawberry Field hosts fondue nights at weekends as their wood-burning stove blazes in the background, while there is also a small craft shop selling strawberry-themed gifts, as well as cast-iron home accessories made by Peter.
But on her busiest days, Margaret can make up to 100 pancakes, and she can now cook five at a time. Her secret tip is to use Flora Cuisine oil (“it doesn’t spatter or burn”) in a good, hot pan and she recommends resting the batter for at least half an hour first. And to flip or not to flip?
“I use a spatula,” Margaret laughs.
This article was first published in February 2013
Ard Bia buttermilk and poppy-seed pancakes
Galway restaurant Ard Bia shares its legendary buttermilk and poppy seed pancake recipe, perfect for breakfast – or any time of day.
These taste great with your syrup of choice (we love Highbank Orchard syrup), seasonal fruit compote or honey-nut yoghurt and the recipe below makes enough for four to six people.
Ingredients
Two eggs80ml/2.7fl oz milk350ml/12fl oz buttermilk350g/14oz plain flour35g/1.2oz caster sugar2 tbsp poppy seeds1 heaped tsp baking soda120g/5oz melted butter (plus extra knobs of butter to cook, depending on the pan)Method
Beat the eggs, milk and buttermilk together. Combine the flour, sugar, poppy seeds and baking soda, and mix thoroughly into the egg mix.
To do this you can beat in a blender or food processor until incorporated. If you’d rather do it by hand, make a well in the dry ingredients and pour in half the liquid, stirring with a wooden spoon to draw in the flour until it is well combined, before adding the remaining liquid.
Finally, stir the melted butter through the batter. Chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes or until ready to use.
Heat a decent-sized griddle or non-stick pan over a high heat. If you have a pancake pan, all the better. Depending on the quality of your pan, you may or may not need to add a knob of butter – try it without first to test it out.
Spoon a ladle of pancake batter into the middle of the pan and allow it to form a drop-scone shape. Cook on the first side for three to four minutes or until the base of the pancake turns golden brown.
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