Summer strawberries: Two desserts that celebrate the defining fruit of the season
This week the focus is on strawberries. Those beautiful, red bundles of sweetness that define the
Irish
summer. There are thousands of varieties of strawberries, which have been cultivated since the 1700s. Today, global production exceeds 10 million tonnes of fruit per year.
In the restaurant
where I worked
, strawberries were used from June through to August, with the gariguette variety proving popular. On rare occasions, we were able to source wild (or Alpine) strawberries. These tiny specimens command a high price for their floral and complex flavour profile, which reminds you why strawberries are descended from the rose family. Being wild produce, they are hard to find and should used sparingly. Anything we couldn't serve fresh was blended into a purée or ice cream; it would be a brave chef that would waste a single piece.
[
The story behind roadside strawberry stands – one of the heralds of Irish summer
Opens in new window
]
The more common strawberries are still a force to be reckoned with. This week, I'm serving them fresh and cooked to showcase their versatility. While fresh strawberries are best served at room temperature for the next few weeks, they can be preserved to enjoy all year round. This is where jams, syrups, sorbets, juices and vinegars come into play.
Mark Moriarty's strawberry pavlova with honey cream. Photograph: Harry Weir
One thing that always gets me is why people insist on using strawberries all year round. We have an abundance of great Irish producers of berries, with a different variety for each season. With that in mind, these recipes are designed for strawberries now, but can be adapted to showcase raspberries later in the summer and blackberries in the autumn.
READ MORE
First up is a simple pavlova with honey cream and fresh strawberries. The meringue should be crisp on the outside and slightly chewy in the middle. The honey cream is a versatile recipe that adds a layer of complexity to this simple dish. The bees that produce the honey have likely pollinated the strawberry plants as well, so it's a homage to their hard work and effort.
Eve's pudding with strawberries. Photograph: Harry Weir
The second recipe is a comforting classic that I first discovered on my home-economics book many years ago. Eve's pudding involves baking a light sponge mix on top of a fruit compote. This is then served with whipped cream, ice cream or custard. The oldest recipes call for cooking apples as the filling, but I've added strawberries coated in some jam. This is a very simple dessert that can be thrown together last minute and will put a smile on even the hardiest of faces.
Recipe:
Strawberry pavlova with honey cream
Recipe:
Eve's pudding with strawberries
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Post
8 hours ago
- Irish Post
Leeds Irish Centre celebrates its 55th birthday
I OFTEN wonder how many people have driven past the Irish Centre on the very busy York Road in Leeds and wondered what's inside. The Irish Centre is one of Leeds' worst kept secrets because behind its 1970s façade they will find a vibrant community who are an integral part of the city. Over the 55 years the Centre has been at the forefront of the Irish Diaspora in Leeds, an emerald on the hill looking to the city and standing proud to be part of this thriving city. In the past, the Irish came here to build our roads and homes and work in our hospitals. Now they come as lawyers, accountants and educators. They still come to work on our roads and houses but now they manage the constructions. The Diaspora are proud of their roots and the Irish Centre is our home from home. This is achieved by a dedicated hard working team who between them have over 150 years of service to the Centre. It is not just a job, it's a way of life for them. Over the past 15 years, we have spent £1.5million refurbishing inside and out, replacing the roof and installing air conditioning and high-tech audio visuals to move with the times. We are a bit like the NHS, caring for people from cradle to grave - so we hold christening parties, wedding receptions and wakes. Generations of families have memories made within these walls. Tuesdays, for example, may be a quiet day for many venues but to us it is `Mad Tuesday'. On an afternoon, we hold the Tuesday Club, set up on 2000 by our famed manager, Tommy McLoughlin MBE, to combat loneliness among the older generation. Up to 300 older people spend an afternoon enjoying a cooked lunch, bingo, music, dancing and meeting and making friends. It is a lifeline for many. On an early evening, we have music lessons for the children to learn and develop their music skills. Between September and December last year we hosted 43 gigs, welcoming bands of the future. Many use us as a warm up to Glastonbury and it's great to see the rooms packed with young people enjoying live music. Through the decades, we have raised more than £5million for charities across the region. Last Christmas alone, we handed out £18,000 in food vouchers to families in need. Easter time we deliver dozens of Easter eggs to children. Liam Thompson is chair of the Leeds Irish Centre committee (Pic: Sheron Boyle) Our legendary fund raising has seen us fund everything from kidney machines to scanners at the city's St James Hospital Oncology Suite, heart scanning software to Arthritis Research. From children's hospice Martin House to St Gemma's Hospice for adults, food banks to supporting one of our own, ex-Leeds Rhinos rugby league player Rob Burrow's MND charity - the generosity of the community reaches far beyond the walls that surround it. We are the Irish Centre and are proud of our heritage, paying respect to those who have gone before us and paved the way - in all senses - for us today. But we have an open door policy and welcome everyone - we always have - irrespective of ethnicity, religion or nationality. Looking forward we intend to continue being the heart of our community - 55 years is just the start. I started here as a glass washer and I am proud now to be the centre's chairman. But we only hold this place in trust for the next generation. It is a treasure, much loved not just by Leeds but beyond the city's boundaries. We are ensuring it is in a healthy position for the next generation to look after it. Our thanks go to those who had the vision to put us here, the fortitude of those who have kept us here and the knowledge that our future is to remain as the beacon on the hill for our community and our city. A message from the manager Tommy McLoughlin, manager of Leeds Irish Centre (Pic: Sheron Boyle Media) Tommy McLoughlin MBE manager of the Leeds Irish Centre was at the 1970 opening night of the centre acting as Master of Ceremonies to a then 23-year-old singer, Brendan Shine. He tells The Irish Post his story... "This year marks my 50th as manager. What has the centre meant to me? Quite simply, after my wife and children, it is my life. This also applies to my assistant manager and great friend, Christy Power, who has notched up a mere 49 years here. We, as a centre, have always appreciated Leeds and the county welcoming us with open arms and we hope we have paid back that kindness many times over. It gives me great pleasure to see the third and fourth generations of families walking through our doors. We have worked hard and I was so proud on our 25th anniversary for the centre to be debt-free - paying off our mortgage and loans for land. The centre remains the beating heart of the community, in robust health, for our future generations. I remain proud to have helped, along with our amazing staff, to continue to play a part in that." See More: Leeds Irish Centre, Tommy McLoughlin
Agriland
9 hours ago
- Agriland
Co. Galway farmer fronts campaign to retain second teacher
A Co. Galway farmer is working to attract new pupils to his children's national school so that a second teacher can be retained. Paddy Curran, a dry cattle and sheep farmer, lives across from the school, Scoil Naomh Pádraig, An Chloch Bhreac, and is also part of the parents' committee. The school is set to lose three of its seven pupils next September, which would result in the loss of its second teacher. The parents' committee is offering a €2,000 bursary to be paid in two instalments over two school years to the families of seven new pupils who enrol in the school from outside the area, in an attempt to prevent that loss. Five families have already committed to having their children educated through Irish at the school, which is located between loughs Corrib and Masc in north Connemara, approximately six miles from the village of Cong. Two more pupils are required. The school now provides after-school services and plans to introduce a breakfast club from September. Curran – a past pupil of the school – said that not that many children were born in the area in the last four to five years. He said: 'Once you go below 11 pupils, the second teacher is taken.' The irony, he remarked, is that there are about 14 babies and toddlers in the locality who will start in the school in the next few years. 'One of the best things about the school is its low numbers. Historically the school has had between 30 and 40 pupils.' Overall, the reaction to the bursary, which came about through fundraising by the parents' committee and money from the school, was very encouraging, Curran said. 'The response has been very good. We will probably run the bursary for a few years,' he added. The Co. Galway farmer said that there is plenty of work in the area, with a lot of people living locally commuting to work in Galway, Castlebar, and Westport.
Irish Times
14 hours ago
- Irish Times
Ireland's Greenest Places: From Dún Laoghaire's active travel to Kiltimagh's biodiversity park - some of the entries so far
The search for genuine sustainability is challenging when there is so much rampant greenwashing, especially in a country where environmental commitments too often fall short of what is required. The competition to find Ireland's greenest places is an attempt to identify locations where true sustainability is being pursued successfully. There are some reassuring aspects in entries to the competition so far: strong commitments to farming in regenerative ways; an easing of increasing environmental pressures on urban places; adoption of renewables at scale; sustained commitment found in volunteerism – a powerful mode of collective action; and indications that impact can be hyperlocal. Such an impact can be evident within the confines of a single street. It is evidence of what writer Rebecca Solnit has called 'hope in the dark', in the face of accelerating climate disruption and unrelenting nature loss. READ MORE People in every corner of Ireland are looking to their immediate locality and taking grassroots action. While despair can lead to inaction, it's a luxury we cannot afford. No human can justifiably do nothing in the face of accelerating global warming, species wipeout and pollution (most obvious in poor water quality). [ What are Ireland's Greenest Places in 2025? Share the places you feel are contributing to a better environment Opens in new window ] A flavour of entries outlined in this piece may prompt other communities (in the broadest sense) to consider entering. By any measure the scale of local environmental betterment with the help of many hands is impressive. It ranges across groups engaging in bog restoration – enabling vast tracts of land to become carbon stores, slowing water to mitigate flooding and enhancing biodiversity – to towns transforming cityscapes into more liveable locations. So this is a call-out to them; an opportunity to get recognition for their endeavours. There is also the option of individuals nominating their home place, where they work or where they visit. Highlighting projects here is not indication of likely winners, who will emerge from a separate judging process. The categories are Ireland's greenest suburb; greenest village, greenest town and Ireland's greenest community – from which an overall winner will be selected. The ability of an area as small as a suburb to pursue transformative actions is typified in the work of Connecting Cabra , which is involved in a multiplicity of activities, including staging biodiversity festivals and helping to convert gardens and open spaces into mini-nature reserves. This extends into adopting renewable energy, helping people pursue retrofitting in some of the poorest areas of Dublin and facilitating authentic 'circular living'. At the Starling Pond off Faussagh Avenue, Cabra are Connecting Cabra's Stephen Shanahan (right) showing a froglet to St Finbarr's BNS students Caden Ledwidge and Carter Ledwidge with Louisa Moss, Dublin Northwest Partnership, and Michelle Nolan of Connecting Cabra. Photograph: Dara Mac Dónaill 'I could list dozens more activities that Connecting Cabra and other groups run ... but that would miss the main point; that Cabra is addressing climate action and sustainability together as a community in a way that involves and actively empowers everybody and is focused on climate justice,' says Connecting Cabra chair Brian Gormley. With two of the top 10 electoral districts most affected by climate change being in its locality, Connecting Cabra is determined nobody should be left behind, Gormley, a brother of former Green Party leader John Gormley, adds. Through Cabra Warmer Homes Project, group members go door-to-door to help residents to apply for retrofitting grants. Residents of Seafield Road in Booterstown , Co Dublin, illustrate how a single action can be impactful – in their case the planting of 60,000 flowering bulbs (seven different varieties) and 60 trees, along a 300m stretch of a residential street. The initiative adds to the visual appeal of a neighbourhood but also plays a crucial role in supporting local biodiversity. Flowering bulbs bloom in succession, providing a continuous source of nectar and pollen throughout the growing season, giving pollinators and other beneficial insects a reliable food source. Adding to ecological benefits is an innovative rain garden, designed to efficiently harvest stormwater. This not only mitigates flooding but also promotes 'groundwater recharge' ensuring a greener landscape. Dublin Landscaping was entrusted with the project, which showcases how, with community engagement, a residential street can become an environmentally friendly haven, benefiting both people and the wider ecosystem. The coastal village of Castlegregory , Co Kerry, illustrates the benefits of building on a TidyTowns platform of consistently ensuring that thriving green areas are well used by local people and visitors, and with minimal littering. In tandem with this, pollinator-friendly planting, use of native trees and a 'no spray policy' promoting sustainable, chemical-free practices, allow biodiversity to thrive. 'Castlegregory is a small village with a big environmental commitment, where community, climate action and biodiversity go hand in hand,' says Bettina Pickering, who nominated the village. The breadth of activities keeps volunteers 'connected and involved', she adds. 'Our green efforts go beyond TidyTowns. The community council hosts annual circular economy events ... A tree planting group runs meitheals for native planting in private gardens and the nature park behind the secondary school also uses this space for biodiversity and geopark learning.' Emigrant Park: The pond has been planted with native aquatic species, such as water lilies, and the surrounding marsh area has been seeded with wildflowers like ragged robin and kidney vetch, alongside native oak and larch. Photograph: Michael McLaughlin Emigrant Park: Kiltimagh's community-driven biodiversity and amenity park. Photograph: Michael McLaughlin Kiltimagh in Co Mayo has a green heart; a 6.5-acre biodiversity park at its centre, which opened last year. It is called Emigrant Park, in tribute to Bill Durkan, a native of the area who emigrated to Britain and donated €100,000 for its creation. Gary Smyth of Kiltimagh Amenity Park, a voluntary group that developed the park, says some initial reaction was negative; people said paths were not maintained, some even said 'it's too wild'. But when members explained thatno pesticides or herbicides were used in the best interests of biodiversity, attitudes quickly changed. 'Now they say, 'we love it' ... It's a place to go for a coffee to de-stress.' The park has features such as a nesting wall for sand martins, designed to be educational on the importance of nature. 'In many ways, it's replicating a bog road,' says Smyth. He describes the village as an island surrounded by rivers. This includes the Pollagh, 'a bluedot river' indicating that it is one of the highest-quality rivers in the country. 'Our community are deeply invested in protecting and enhancing our natural heritage,' says Smyth. Dún Laoghaire blends smart urban planning, environmental care and inclusive values, making it a model suburb for green and resilient living in Ireland — Rob McCullagh Dún Laoghaire , Co Dublin, is tilting private car usage towards public transport and active travel – walking and cycling. This has been facilitated by residents backing a 'living streets' project, says Claire Macken. 'It will be implemented through 2025-2026. It involves sustainable mobility and public realm improvements. It aims to make our local streets safer and greener, our communities more connected and to keep our economy vibrant,' she explains. It is complemented by Dún Laoghaire Harbour Master initiatives, that 'reimagine urban spaces to prioritise pedestrians and cyclists and access to the marina, reduce car dominance, and enhance biodiversity with more trees, seating and shared public spaces'. 'Dún Laoghaire blends smart urban planning, environmental care and inclusive values, making it a model suburb for green and resilient living in Ireland,' says Rob McCullagh, who nominated it in the suburb category. Rathcroghan Mound, Co Roscommon, where the Farming Rathcrogan project has 60 participating farming families, with others waiting to join. Photograph: Joe Fenwick/NUI Galway The Farming Rathcroghan project in Co Roscommon is addressing the critical challenges of rural depopulation, sustainable land use and climate change. That alone is challenging in modern Ireland, but the project is operating in an important archaeological landscape. 'The farmland comprising the ancient 'royal' landscape of Rathcroghan is a little greener than most, due to the initiative of the local landowners, farmers and the surrounding community,' says Joe Fenwick. It was the prehistoric capital of Connacht. Rathcroghan Mound was where the kings and queens of the province were inaugurated in a ritual 'mating' with the local Earth goddess. Established in 2018, the project is supported by the EU Just Transition Fund, and has 60 participating farming families, with others waiting to join. Its 'success can be measured in the positive impact, ambition and cohesion that it has brought to the wider community. It is based on a simple model of collaborative, community-led governance', says Fenwick. It promotes solutions and innovations devised by local people with a view to sustaining fulfilling farming livelihoods, while promoting the stewardship, conservation and protection of the archaeological, ecological and cultural heritage of the area. It also addresses wider environmental concerns; maintaining groundwater quality, carbon sequestration and other actions in support of achieving climate neutrality. Those involved have demonstrated the benefits of embracing farming traditions that are as old as the locality's archaeological monuments, Fenwick believes, but also apply modern, imaginative, green innovations. The Millbrook initiative shows how the GAA community can contribute to lowering carbon emissions, teaching people about biodiversity and the benefits of green spaces — Ealma Purcell The greening of Millbrook, surrounding Oldcastle Gaelic Football Club 's pitches in Co Meath, is a perfect example of starting small and reaping benefits over time. '[It] shows how the GAA community can contribute to lowering carbon emissions, teaching people about biodiversity and the benefits of green spaces,' says Ealma Purcell. Pitches are surrounded by a walking track beside the river Inny. Extensive recent planting is delivering rich biodiversity. 'Signs carry information for people, and local schools visit for nature walks. We start with a bed of nepeta, adored by pollinators, a hive of buzzing activity. The riverbank is fenced off for safety, allowing it to become a wildlife haven, with otters and a resident heron,' says Purcell. 'We never cut the grass here, making it a totally safe environment for any creature that calls it home, and you can often hear the squeaks of little mammals. We let nettles and all sorts of other native plants [grow], providing food and nesting places for insects and butterflies. We have bird boxes and recently added in 12 fruit trees, the start of our own community orchard.' [ Restoring the Wicklow hills: 'It's like the Sahara at times up there with peat moving around like sand dunes in the desert' Opens in new window ] Jacksmill: An innovative regeneration project by farmer Huw O'Toole, who converted his farm into allotments and created a remote hub for hybrid working in a renovated sawmill. Photograph: Alan Betson Jacksmill: A remote hub for hybrid working in the renovated sawmill. Photograph: Alan Betson Jacksmill is a small farm diversification project in north Wicklow owned by Huw O'Toole and his family. Located between Wicklow town and Bray, it is made up of a large forest garden and 'Hub13', a rural remote working hub repurposed from a disused sawmill into studios with co-working and office spaces. The garden is 2.8 hectares (seven acres) of regenerated pastoral farmland transformed from heavily sheep-grazed ryegrass. Within the project are various small and family-sized allotments maintained through no pesticide use and deploying 'no dig' organic methods. Taking over the family farm in 2014, 'Huw saw the pronounced decline in insects he remembered seeing in the meadow when he was child. He was asked to sell sites for one-off housing but made a decision instead to enhance the environment and restore lost biodiversity,' says Caroline Costigan, who works there part-time. The allotments provide families with space and awareness to care for nature and the opportunity to make sustainable choices to grow their own food, limit food waste and avoid chemicals and excessive plastic packaging. Hub13 provides a rural biodiversity-focused workplace to people including creative artists and those who were feeling isolated working at home or were previously commuters on the N11, she adds. It has become, 'a thriving blueprint of the resilience of small farms and of how they can be diversified to lead climate and biodiversity action'. The Dingle peninsula: 'It's about local people having a real say in shaping their community's future' The Dingle Peninsula-Corca Dhuibhne is a standout example of how sustainability can be multilayered and adopted across a large area embracing every aspect of the local economy. It is about joining forces to find solutions that work, says Gráinne Kelleher. 'Diverse local groups work diligently to help the peninsula move towards being more resilient, having cleaner energy, protecting our natural and beautiful landscape while keeping the local economy strong to ensure a vibrant, liveable place for future generations ... it's about local people having a real say in shaping their community's future.' Footprint for good The concept of a 'carbon footprint' has come to be understood as an indicator of our ecological impact on Earth, but it ignoble origins. The idea gained popularity in 2003 when fossil-fuel company BP launched an advertising campaign asking people on the street what their carbon footprint was. It emerged that marketing agency Ogilvy & Mather's brief was to promote the slant that climate change is not the fault of an oil giant, but of individuals. The company unveiled its ' carbon footprint calculator ' so people could assess how their normal daily life – going to work, buying food and travelling – is largely responsible for heating the globe. Initially, it was a guilt trigger. In spite of the sinister motivation of Big Oil, individuals can address their carbon footprint meaningfully; their actions add up to significant impact. However, it is only by collective action – in decarbonising, restoring nature and using water sustainably – that the necessary multiplier effect is deployed. Ireland's Greenest Places shows this type of combined effort is taking root in rural and urban heartlands across the island. The Irish Times Ireland's Greenest Places competition is in association with Electric Ireland
