Ingredients:

4tbsp vegetable oil
100ml maple syrup
4tbsp honey
300g rolled oats
200g rye or spelt flakes or just more oats
3tbsp sunflower seeds
4 tbsp sesame seeds
3tbsp pumpkin seeds
100g dried fruit, sultanas, raisins, blueberries… anything you fancy
50g almonds

Heat oven to 150C/fan 130C/gas 2. Mix the oil, maple syrup, honey in a small sauce pan and heat gently, stiring to combine.
Weigh out all the remaining ingredients, except the dried fruit into a big bowl,then add the oil mixture and mix well.
Tip the granola onto two baking sheets and spread evenly. Bake for 15 mins, then mix in the dried fruit and almonds, and bake for 10-15 mins more. Remove and scrape onto a flat tray to cool.

Serve with a mixed green salad and a combination of grated fresh courgette and carrots dressed with light lemon juice and olive oil dressing.

Pancakes:
120g fine maize meal
80g spelt flour
Pinch smoked paprika
Black pepper
Large pinch salt
3 eggs
450mls milk
Olive oil

Method:
Sift flours, spices and salt together into a bowl. Whisk the eggs in a jug, add the milk, then whisk them into the flour to get a smooth pouring batter. Heat a frying pan, preferable a crepe pan but if not then a good non stick one will do (I just treated myself to a great ‘healthy’ non-stick pan from the CookShop in Bantry – it’s a great addition to the kitchen). Brush with olive oil and pour a ladle of the mix into the pan, swirl around to evenly coat the pan and cook for a minute or two before flipping over for the same time on the other side. This batter will make approx 12 pancakes (you won’t need that many but it leaves room for a few trial runs!!) The quantities for the filling are rough as you can use more of any of the ingredients that you like or you simply have more of!

Filling:
1 medium butternut squash, peeled, deseeded and diced
1 big onion, sliced
Olive oil, for roasting
200g to 250g feta cheese
small bunch fresh sage, chopped finely
70g butter
Salt & Pepper

Toss the squash and onion in oil and roast on 200 degrees until soft approx 25 minutes (you can leave the oven on as you will be using it again to reheat the filled pancakes). Melt the butter and add the chopped sage, heat through for a few minutes. Crumble the feta into the squash, adding the sage but keeping back a little of the butter to brush over the pancakes. Season after tasting the filling as the feta can be very salty.

Assemble:
Divide the filling roughly into 6 in the bowl. Spoon 1/6 of the mix into the pancakes, spread it out across in a sausage shape and roll up. Brush the tops with the rest of the Sage Butter and place in the oven (medium heat) on a baking tray on a sheet of parchment paper for 10 minutes. Serve when piping hot!

Use a pasta of your choice, I use Biona Spelt spaghetti or tagliatelle but penne will work too. This recipe is delicious with really fresh local courgettes!

1 small onion, chopped
2 tblsp olive oil
salt and pepper
1 clove garlic, more if you like more….
4 or 5 small courgettes, sliced on the diagonal
Bunch fresh thyme, taking leaves off the stalks
Bunch of parsley, chopped
1/2 Small tub of creme fraiche, 100mls approx
Zest and juice of 1 small lemon… an organic or at least unwaxed one
Some freshly grated Parmesan or Manchego
and if you want to make it richer 75g soft goats cheese

Method
Heat olive oil and cook onion for 5 mins until soft with a pinch of salt and some pepper.
Put the pasta on to cook with lots of hot water and a pinch of salt.
Then add the garlic to the onions and cook for a few more minutes, before adding courgettes and thyme. Cook for a few minutes until courgettes are soft then take off the heat and add the lemon juice, zest, creme fraishe and parsley.
Drain the pasta when its cooked and add to the sauce, stir, adding the grated cheese (and the goats cheese if your using it) and enjoy!

• Baked Feta Muffin with Pecans served with fennel and orange salad €9.95
• Roasted Onion, mushroom and feta Filo Pastry €9.95
Both served with a garden salad and rosemary roast potatoes

• Light Mezze Plate €8.00

• Lemon Tart and cream €4.75
• Summer Fruit Trifle €4.75

Glass of organic wine €4.25
San Pelegrino €2.75
Tea or coffee €2.00

Tel 027 55905 or email info@organico.ie

Ingredients
200 mls Lemon Juice, 50g Ginger, 1 big bunch fresh Rosemary
5 Tbsp Local Honey (use Manuka Honey if you are feeling a cold coming on)
(this makes a syrup you can keep in your fridge for a week or more)

Heat the juice, ginger and rosemary, stirring in the honey after 20 minutes and turn off the heat. Let cool completely, then poor into a sterilised bottle (you can leave all the bits in there – it gets yummier every day!).

To make a mug of Cold Buster use 4 tablespoons of the syrup and top up with boiling water and extra honey if desired.

Times are tough in West Cork at the moment and Organico Cafe is trying something new! We’re busy Monday to Friday but have been quiet on Saturdays, so we have come up with a great idea – grab a copy of The Grapevine* this week, bring a friend and we’ll offer you an amazing “Buy one Get one Free” offer on any food!

This is a great chance to take a friend for a Free Lunch! Introduce someone to the delights of Organico’s Hot Lunches which include daily specials such as:

• Chicken Curry made with Free Range Chicken
• Vegetarian Three Bean Chili
• Thai Fish Cakes
• Shepard’s Pie with Organic Beef
• Cauliflower & Chickpea Madras
• Grilled Goat’s Cheese Bruschetta with caramelised onions and pesto

Or choose from a delicious selection of sandwiches, coffee and cake or bowl of delicious warming organic soup.

This offer is running every Saturday from now until Christmas!

So that’s our idea – what do you think? Just grab a copy of The Grapevine and bring it in with you – and let us make your Saturdays happier as well as healthier!

*Bring a friend with you and for every meal (or sandwich or coffee & cake) bought you will get a similar or cheaper meal free of charge to eat on the premises there and then! We’re happy because more people get to taste our delicious food. So it’s Win Win for everyone!

*December Issue

150g Quinoa

4 Beef Tomatoes

1 Onion, thinly sliced

1 garlic, clove

1/2 Jar Roasted Red Peppers (100g) we have a great brand that is organic, called

Handful of mint, parsley and coriander, chopped roughly

1 lemon juice

Seasoning

100g Feta Cheese, crumbled

Heat Oven to 200 degrees/gas 6

Wash quinoa in a sieve to get rid of the slightly bitter taste then put into a small pan cover in cold water and cook for 12 to 15 minutes, drain if necessary and leave to cool slightly.

Saute the onions on a low heat for 10 minutes, then add the clove of garlic and cook for a further couple of minutes. Cut each tomato a third of the way down and scoop out the inside with a teaspoon take care to keep the tomato intact. Do the same to the lid, chop up the inside discarding any of the hard in side bits. Add the tomato bits to the cooking onions and garlic stir for a minute and than take off the heat.

Put chopped herbs into a bowl adding lemon juice, olive oil, feta, roasted peppers and some fresh black pepper, mix well then add the cooked onions mixture and the quinoa stir until everything is combined, then taste adding a little salt if necessary.

Using a spoon, fill each tomato case with the quinoa mixture, top with the lids, place in an oven proof dish and drizzle with a little olive oil, then bake for 20 minutes or until soft.

At 12.30 we might ask you to move tables or come back later…but that’s the only catch!

If this works we will continue…

In terms of eating out, El Gitano’s has changed hands and has opened as Currivan’s, offering both day and night time menus at very reasonable prices. Bantry House is no longer doing evening meals (though they still offer a day-time cafe and a wonderful walk around the gardens – unmissable).

Of course Organico Cafe is still open until about 5pm Monday – Saturday for the Festival Week offering wonderful, mostly vegetarian food, broadband and rgeat coffee and cakes (all possible to take out also). Call 027 55905 to arrange take away.

If you have a free afternoon a visit to Val Manning’s Emporium is really worth it – Val is an expert on Irish cheeses and serves fantastic wines and cheese boards in front of his premesis (to find him just head out the road to Glengarriff for about 5k – he’s on the right in the Ballylickey area so you are going slow anyway, you can’t miss him)

If you feel like a bit of papmering during your visit Anam Chara offer facials, massages and many other treatments from their new premesis on the way up to the Library.

Despite the recesion Bantry is very busy and we hope you will have a fantastic week’s stay here with us.