07Mar

Organic Warming Split Pea Soup

In CategoryOrganic Food, Organic Recipes, Organico Cafe, Soups
Bydarehannah

This soup is a favourite with adults and children alike, and is a quick and easy receipe for a winter’s lunch. As with all our receipes we reccommend the use of organic vegetables and pulses for their superior nutritional qualities and taste.

Ingredients

225g yellow split peas

1 vegetable stock cube

1 tsp vegetable bouillion powder

2 tablespoons of olive oil

1 onion peeled and diced

1 sweet potato, peeled and chopped

3 carrots,scrubbed and diced

Place the peas in a sieve and rinse well under running water for a few minutes. Place in a large sauce pan and cover with 1.5l cold water, the stock cube and the bouillion powder. Bring to the boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 25 minutes, Remove any scum that rises up to the surface with a slotted spoon.

While the peas are cooking fry the onions and carrots in olive oil on a medium heat for 10 mins then add the sweet potato and cook for another 5 mins. When the peas have cooked for 25 mins add the cooked veggies to the pan and cook for another 15 mins.

Allow cool a little then blend the soup with a hand blender or food processor until smooth, reheat and serve with the sprigs of mint garnishing the surface

For a fat free and quicker version:

Add the rest of the vegetables to the cooked peas and simmer for a further 15 to 20 mins or until veggies are tender when pierced with a knife then follow the rest of the directions.

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24Jan

Organico Bakery Savoury Spelt Scones

In CategoryBaking, Organic Bakery, Organic Food, Organic Recipes
Bydarehannah

In Organico Bantry more and more people are discovering our spelt breads, cakes and scones. the most recent addition to our range is a variety of savoury scones made with spelt flour. These are delicious with soup or with salad, and can be made in miniture for a party.
We follow a normal scone receipe but leave out the sugar. Instead we use a little salt, and add either chopped black olives and thyme, red onion and cheddar or corriander seeds, or onion and a little green chilli. It’s hard to give amounts because in some cases it depends on the saltiness (with olives say) or the strength of the chilli flavour you want to achieve, but in general you want to err on the side of caution as often these savoury scones are made to be eaten along side another dish and you don’t want their flavour to be too dominant.

Other favourites include fetta and sweet chilli and black pepper and tomato. Watch out for more receipes over the next months!

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23Jan

Organic Sweet Carrot Salad

In CategoryOrganic Food, Organic Recipes, Organico Cafe, Salads
Bydarehannah

We always reccommend organic ingredients, but in this case they are more important than ever for taste reasons. Organic carrots are a superior product by far than conventionally grown carrots – sometimes in our shop we have ‘dirty’ carrots which are covered in sand and which in the winter keep their flavour very well.

Ingredients

6 large Carrots, peeled (the only time I peel organic carrots is for salad as they discolour if just scrubbed)

50g dessicated coconut

Juice and zest of 1 orange

Handfull of sultanas

Good pinch of sea salt

Add the juice and zest to the coconut and sultanas and allow to soak for 30 mins.

Grate the Carrots and put into a large bowl, add the coconut, sultanas and juice and combine. Add the sea salt to taste.

Leave to chill for at least an hour in the refrigerator and serve.

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21Jan

Greek Fetta Salad

In CategoryOrganic Food, Organic Recipes, Organico Cafe, Salads
Bydarehannah

5 Ripe tomatoes

1 Cucumber, diced

250g Feta cheese, crumbled

a handfull of black olives, kalamata if possible

125ml olive oil

4 tbsp lemon juice

freshly black pepper

small bunck of Oregano, finely chopped

Chop up the tomatoes and put into a large salad bowl, and add the cucumber, feta cheese and olives.
Pour over the olive oil and lemon juice. Season with freshly ground black pepper, add a little salt if necessary bearing in mind that the feta is very salty. Toss gently to mix. Serve with some crispy lettuce sprinkling with fresh oregano.

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15Jan

Organic Beetroot Salad

In CategoryOrganic Food, Organic Recipes, Organico Cafe, Salads
Bydarehannah

This recipe was given to me by a great friend and fellow cook, it has been enjoyed by all our customers and remains a firm favoriate in the cafe. At the moment the beetroot that is available is amazingly sweet yet still earthy and the simply ingredients in the following recipe complement it perfectly.

Ingredients:

Beetroot (approximately I large root or 2 small roots per person).
Yoghurt

Garlic

Mint

Salt and pepper

Instructions:


1. Wash the beetroot, place in a pan with enough water to cover the beetroot and bring to the boil. Simmer until the beetroot is soft when pierced with a skewer. Discard the water and leave the beetroot to cool, then peel under running water. (Use washing up gloves if you don’t like pink hands!). Dice the beetroot and put in a bowl large enough to mix it all.

2. Mince the garlic and add to olive oil into a small saucepan and fry until it starts to turn golden in color, then allow cool slightly. If you have a food processor add garlic, mint, yoghurt and seasoning into the smallest bowl and blend for a minute. When it’s combined pour onto the beetroot scraping it all out and mix with the beetroot until it turns an amazing deep pink.

3. Allow sit for half an hour for the flavours to combine, longer if you have time. Check for seasoning before you serve. This recipe lasts well in the fridge for 2 days.

This dish is delicious as a summer or winter salad and goes very well with a Puy Lentil Salad, with a Savoury Tart or with any creamy Winter Bake.

Beetroot is in season from July to January in the UK and Ireland. In terms of nutrition beetroot is rich in vitamin C, fibre, potassium, magnesium, manganese, and folic acid. The leafy tops can also be cooked like chard and are an excellent source of beta-carotene, iron and calcium.

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03Oct

Organic Un-Polluted Food

In CategoryOrganic Bakery, Organic Food, Organic Recipes, Organico Cafe
Bydarehannah

In Organico Cafe yesterday a customer commented on her roasted aubergine and chickpea curry saying that it smelt and tasted amazing. ‘I know why’ she said ‘it’s because it is un-polluted food’.

As I carried on serving lunch I reflected on her comment. I think it is an excellent way to describe our food. We are not trying to serve Cordon Bleu. What we are trying to do is serve tasty, nutritious, clean ‘un-polluted’ food.

Today, our menu contains the following:

Organic Lentil and Pumpkin Stew served with Spelt Bread

Roasted Organic Aubergine and Chickpea Curry served with Organic Brown Rice

Spelt Pizza with sundried tomatoes and Fetta served with 2 Salads

Lentil and Seed Loaf served with Fresh Tomato Sauce, Rice and 1 Salad

Shepherd’s Pie (topped with Organic local potatoes and a red lentil and vegetable base) Served with 2 Salads

Fetta Cheese Salad with either Organic Bulgar Wheat or Quinoa, Organic Tomatoes, Cucumber and Lettuce

Cheese sandwich: Local Gubbeen Cheese or Dubliner

Salad Selections: Wild rice, Quinoa, Bulgar, red Cabbage and Pumpkin Seeds, Beetroot and yoghurt, Potato, Thai Noodles (all made with organic vegetables, sprouts and seeds).

A selection of cakes and cookies from our Bakery, all made with Organic Spelt Flour and served with organic cream.

A selection of Fair Trade Organic Coffees and Teas.

Come over for Lunch sometime – and be sure to let us know what you think!

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26Aug

Spelt Baking West Cork

In CategoryBaking, Organic Bakery, Organic Food, Organic Recipes, Organico Cafe
Bydarehannah

Organico Bakery produces one of the biggest ranges of Spelt breads, cakes and scones in West Cork, possibly in Ireland. We have been baking with spelt for nearly 5 years, and we now make 4 different kinds of bread (white & brown yeast; white & brown sourdough; white & brown soda & french sticks, which are a mix of regular yeasted spelt dough with some sourdough mix thrown in for added texture & taste). We also make spelt scones, spelt chocolate chip cookies, spelt oat & raisin cookies, spelt chocolate fudge cake, spelt ginger cake, spelt lemon drizzle cake, spelt Christmas fruit cake, spelt banana cake, spelt Tarte Tartin, spelt chocolate tart & spelt pasties.

We have a regular bread stall in Bantry Market from April through to December, and from the stall we sell our breads and cakes as well as Spelt Pizza, Spelt Focaccias with all kinds of yummy toppings.
The flour we have found to be the best for the cakes and breads is Hildegard Health Organic Spelt Flour, which we also sell for home baking in our healthfood shop. We also sell Hildegard pastas, as well as the excellent Biona Spelt Pastas and Finestra de la Cielo cookies and crackers.

Drop in and enjoy! More receipes and tips for cooking and baking with spelt to follow.

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20Jul

Organic Summer Salad

In CategoryOrganic Food, Organic Recipes, Salads
Bydarehannah

Organic food has traditionally had a reputation for being “good for you” but a bit boring! Organico Café (Bantry, West Cork, Ireland) turns this on its head offering food that is both exciting and delicious. Rachel Dare, who trained with Darina Allen at Ballymaloe, supplies the inspiration behind the menu in Organico Café. Rachel has a distinctive style, fusing a combination of ingredients that are primarily organic and locally grown to create menus that are both lifestyle conscious and tasty. To take full advantage of what’s fresh and in season, the menu changes daily – but it’s always creative and interesting.

The café is surprisingly large, light and spacious, and is located next door to the shop but upstairs. It has a lively buzz at lunchtime, when you can enjoy a salad plate from the extensive salad bar, a summer courgette and rice noodle soup or one of the specials such as Gubbeen and leek frittata. So if you’re looking for an alternative place to have lunch that’s new and exciting or simply want a quite cup of Bantry’s best coffee (or green tea!) just pop up to Organico Café and treat yourself. Go on! You’re worth it!

Rachel’s Summer Salad
Throughout the summer we are all looking for lunch ideas that are light, fresh and tasty. We are lucky in our shop to have people from all walks of life bringing us their own lovingly grown fruit and vegetables, so we have the best of local produce to choose from. I am using Quinoa (pronounced kee-no-wah) as the base for this salad, because it can be used as a substitute for couscous as it is wheat-free. Quinoa is often called a ’supergrain’ as it is also a very good source of vitamins, minerals and protein, and has a light delicate flavour which appeals to all.

Two cups of quinoa grain, cooked as shown below.
1/3 cucumber (can be replaced with baby courguettes, diced)
10 cherry tomatoes, diced
A handful of finely chopped fresh mint, fresh basil, and fresh parsley
100 g fetta cheese, crumbled
One small red onion or a bunch of scallions, chopped finely
1 ripe avocado, peeled and diced (a little lemon juice stops it discolouring)

Dressing
3 tablespoons of olive oil
1 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon salt and fresh ground pepper
1 teaspoon of honey or concentrated apple juice

Rinse the Quinoa grain well under cold water in a sieve, To cook, place two cups cold water to one cup quinoa in a sauce pan and bring to the boil, reduce to a simmer, cover, and cook until the grains are translucent and the sprout has spireled out of the grain (about 15 minutes). While this is cooking, prepare the rest of the ingredients. When the Quinoa is ready allow to cool slightly, add to the other ingredients and dress to taste. Serve on its own as a light lunch or with chicken or fish as a more substantial meal.
If you want to buy Quinoa grain or the other fresh salad ingredients, we stock them in Organico!

Organico Cafe, Glengarriff Road, Bantry, Co. Cork Ireland. Tel 00 353 (27) 55905.

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08Jul

Organic Quinoa Salad

In CategoryOrganic Recipes, Salads
Bydarehannah

1 cup quinoa grain
2 cups water

100 g parsley and mint
100g cherry tomatoes

dressing

100 mls olive oil
300 mls water
50 mls balsamic vinegar
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1 dessertspoon apple concentrate

Rinse the Quinoa grain well under running water (this is beacuse there is a bitter coating on the grains) Bring to the boil then simmer checking after twenty minutes quarter tomatoes, chop mint and parsley add the dressing ingredients and let stand for 30 minutes.
This is a lovely simple salad that works really well with a combination of different herbs so have fun with it, adding sundried tomatoes, olives, fetta cheese, toasted seeds, the list is endless…

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08Jul

Organic Marinated Chickpea salad

In CategoryOrganic Recipes, Salads
Bydarehannah

1kg dried chickpeas
400 mls olive oil
2 lemons
5 cloves of garlic minced
1 inch piece of ginger minced
200 mls red wine vinegar
2 lrg red onions
3 teaspoon salt
2 tsp pepper

Soak dried chickpeas over night then cook for about 1 to 2 hours(you know when its done as you will be able to crush one easily). Take out about a quarter and mash then zest both lemons and juice, add the cloves of garlic, minced ginger and finely diced red onions combine all the dressin ingredients then mix well with chickpres and allow rest for at least an hour. This is really necessary to develop the flavor and it can last for anything up 3-4 days if refridgerated. When serving garnish with a handful of chopped parsley. This is large quantity as it was being made up for the cafe however it works just as well done in half quantities.

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