considered by Helen James

 Well its been a long time but I have not been idle 

Things have been so hectic......... and are due to continue along that path 

but I did want to pop back here and say hello and let you know,

 in case you hadn't heard,

that my new range launched at Dunnes Stores (Ireland's largest retailer)

"Considered by Helen James" 

is a range of bakeware, textiles and food

that I have designed and developed 

All of the food is made in Ireland and I have also worked with local producers to create bespoke wooden chopping boards and wooden furniture which is made in my local village in Westmeath.

Also made in Ireland are a range of candles that I designed to be burned in your kitchen, with scents like Basil & Fennel leaf and Lemon Balm.

This collection is a culmination of a dream to bring my love of design

and passion for food and baking together
I hope you like it 

HELMSLEY AND HELMSLEY

 A few weeks ago i had the pleasure of meeting the Helmsley and helmsley girls who were in Dublin promoting their new book 

Hemsley

Hemsley

the Art of eating well 

They gave a demonstration in the Cooks academy in Dublin

You could feel their passion for what they do 

and they are certainly the best possible advertisments for what they preach

Bursting with energy and glowing 

They were so warm and relaxed.

I have made quite a few recipes from the book

and every one has been delicious

I have boiled up some good batches of bone broth

something I used to do all the time but somehow fell out of the habit of.

The bliss balls recipe is now a real favourite and in the demonstartion they made it into a fudge 

sprinkled with cacao nibs on top 

This is now my go to snack 

simply 220g bar  creamed coconut warmed through, 

2 tablespoons tahini 

and a tablespoon raw honey mixed together with a pinch of salt 

and poured into a 8" x 8" square tin 

sprinkle with cacao nibs and refrigerate 

simply delicious

I have also tried their raw avocado chocolate mousse

I loved it but little mouths were not so sure 

have to work on that sugar habit 

The sesame chicken salad was a big hit

Ok so I am not eating like this all the time 

and as I write this a batch of cinnamon pulla dough is resting in the kitchen

But i figure if i can add some of this philosophy into my day 

and swap out 40% of my meals with something they recommend i will be striking a good balance 

In other news summer is here 

and the garden is bursting 

the lake is calling for a swim 

 my garden 

Out for a walk

London, Spring

 A few weekends ago I was in London to visit my brother 

The weather was glorious and while this was a family weekend 

I did manage to squeeze in a few shop visits 

Mini bouquets on Dalston High street

I finally got to visit 

FOLKLORE

in Islington 

a beautifully curated shop 

simplicity

honesty

integrity

as I made my way up Islington high street I popped in to 

OTTOLENGHI

I didn't stay........

I love Ottolenghi,

but now that he is a "celebrity"

the place was rammed!

well, it was a saturday afternoon

bought some cookies to go and kept on moving

Next I popped in to 

ATELIER ABIGAIL AHERN

which was mostly full of beautiful faux flowers

Next was a trip to 

AESOP

where it seemed like a really good idea to part with a large chunk of cash for some beautiful products 

Since I have been home Spring has well and truly landed 

Every year it feels like a full body stretch after being curled in a ball for 5 long cold months

Such a feeling of hope and optimism

projects, small and large vying for space in my brain 

and all seems possible

crispy and chewy chocolate chip cookie

 I am constantly searching for a perfect choc chip cookie 

I found an amazing one 

which i posted about here 

and i still think that is a keeper 

but a girl likes to explore and discover 

and my quest means I must constantly test, tweak and eat 

tough eh?

anyway today I lifted these ladies out and i knew i was on to something special 

crispy on the outside with a slight chew in centre 

very light and utterly more'ish

RECIPE

11ozs/320g flour

1 tspn baking soda

8ozs /220g butter melted and still warm

5ozs/140g sugar

5ozs/140g dark brown sugar

1 teaspoon sea salt

2 large eggs

4ozs/100g semi sweet chocolate chopped into chunks

4ozs/100g milk chocolate chopped into chunks 

METHOD

makes 30-40 cookies

melt butter ( I always melt mine in the microwave, so easy, just keep an eye on it)

add sugars and stir to combine

add 2 eggs and stir well

add in dry ingredients flour, bak soda and salt, make sure you have combined them first (i just spoon bak sod and salt onto weighed flour and combine with a fork)

stir in dry ingredients until almost fully incoporated

add chocolate 

stir until combined but do not over mix 

chill for at least 2 hours and up to 24 hrs (or longer)

when you are ready to bake 

preheat oven to 375f/ 190c

place round cookie balls on lined cookie sheet each ball should be walnut size 

space 2-3" apart 

bake for 9-11 minutes 

allow to cool 

adapted from Alice Medrichs chocolate chip cookie recipe

Lemon drizzle cake with a twist

The thing is I have been so busy 

It's not that I am neglecting this blog 

It's just that I am working on a very exciting new project 

which really came about in many ways because of this blog

I can't tell you about it until September 

but it's VERY exciting

wish me luck 

Meanwhile Ireland is in the midst of storms 

windy, rainy, sleety wetness

when your window looks like this 

light the fires

snuggle up with something comforting like

Lemon drizzle cake - a classic 

why mess with it ?

well why not 

I added some Jasmine green tea 

and the resulting combination is quite delicious

The earthiness of the tea cuts through the sharp lemon and grounds it 

perfect with steaming hot tea on a day like today

JASMINE TEA LEMON DRIZZLE CAKE 

RECIPE

2 tablespoon jasmine tea 

5 tablespoon boiling water

125g butter

175g sugar

2 large eggs

zest of 1 lemon

175g self raising flour

pinch of salt

SYRUP

juice of 1 lemon

100g icing sugar

2 tablespoons jasmine tea

METHOD

place tea in a shallow dish and add 5 tablespoons of boiling water

set aside

cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy

add eggs 1 at a time

add lemon zest and s.r. flour and combine

add salt

pour in jasmine tea and tealeaves fold into mixture

spoon into lined loaf tin

bake for 45mins or until cake skewer comes out clean 

while the cake is baking make your syrup 

add juice of 1 lemon to 2 tbspn jasmine tea and icing sugar in a small pan

heat slowly

leave to infuse

when cake is done remove from oven and skewer with holes 

pour syrup onto hot cake 

(you can strain the syrup or leave tea leaves to sit on top of cake I chose to strain it)

leave to cool slightly

eat

yum

x

CHOCOLATE DIGESTIVES

 Homemade Chocolate Digestive biscuits

............no argument from me 

Who doesn't love a chocolate digestive

RECIPE

100g medium size oats*

50g wholewheat flour

50g plain flour

100g cold butter 

50g light muscovado sugar

pre heat oven to 190c 

If you have medium oats place in food processor along with flours

*if you only have jumbo oats (as I did) place them in the food processor

and blitz for a few minutes to reduce their size

add butter and blitz

add sugar

blitz until it comes together in a dough

turn out onto lightly floured surface

roll to 5mm thick and cut with 7cm cookie cutter

(makes 14-16 biscuits)

bake for 16-20 mins 

cover in chocolate if desired 

they are honestly nice either way 

 

recipe adapted from country homes and interiors

unwind christmas time

Since we last spoke I have been in New York, Hong Kong, Bang Kok, Shanghai........

needless to say I am looking forward to some quiet family time over the holidays 

I predict I will be spending a lot of time here  

 

 

(image from pinterest source unknown)

 wearing something like this

image and pyjamas from Sleepy Jones

and well, if i must arise then maybe i will throw this on

 

lounge robe Zara 

I may even wander here 

and do a little of this 

no knead bread

whatever you are up to this Holiday season

I hope it is wonderful 

see you on the new year 

x Helen