Weekend bites

This week I’ll be eating… the first of our own strawberries, grown in the polytunnel. This is always a huge treat and I have found, having pretty well given up sugar a while back, that their natural sweetness is – how shall I put it? – just sweet enough. Later in the season I might add a squeeze of lemon juice or even a few twists of black pepper (see Tastebud Tip) but at this stage, I’ll eat them just as they are, perhaps with a little crème fraiche!

Multinational bakers, Le Pain Quotidien, have opened a second outlet in Ireland having already set up in Kildare Village. According to the press release the café will be ‘bursting with provincial charm with furniture handmade from recycled timber and communal dining tables that has become synonymous with the brand’s aesthetic.’ It’s also going to be veganfriendly. You never know: LPQ might be better in Ireland than their lacklustre places elsewhere. I’ll give it a go.

The Meatopia festival, founded in the US, is coming to Dublin via London and is being hosted by Guinness at St James’s Gate on the weekend of 6 to 8 July. It’s a celebration of properly reared meats, cooked and/or smoked using sustainable wood and charcoal by some the world’s leading fiery chefs. Plus there will be a whole range of beers from Guinness’ Open Gate Brewery. Tickets will be available from guinnessopengate.com/ meatopia from next May 24.

The search is on for Ireland’s top junior baker. The youth organisation Foróige in association with Aldi are holding qualifiers at the moment and the finalists will bake off against each other in the Aldi marquee during the National Ploughing Championships 2018 in September. The winner will get a bursary of €1000 and their local Foróige group will receive a €1500 Aldi voucher. For more, see aldi.ie