Exploring Ireland: Monea Castle, County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland

We did the drive from Derry to Dublin back in July and passed through a few places in Northern Ireland we had yet to visit. We stopped off halfway at Enniskillen for some lunch. After a quick search on Tripadviser to see what was nearby, we stumbled across Monea Castle and decided to give it a whirl. As with so many attractions in Northern Ireland, the castle was deserted and we luckily had it all to ourselves.

Dated back to 1618,  it became the residence of the governor of Enniskillen in 1688. The castle was gutted by a fire in the 1700 and abandoned, that is the ruin you see today. It is free to enter and to be honest there isn't too much to do. But on a dry day, its a little gem to walk around and explore. There really is something special about having a ruin all to yourself. It feels as if you are on a secret that no one else knows about. I wouldn't go out of way to visit it but it's well worth a stop over on a road trip. I imagine it would be lovely in the summer sunshine with a picnic! It's not too far from the Fermanagh Lakes so would be good to combine the two.

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#52recipes: recipes 37 - 41

 

Kimchi and gochujang noodles from Bon Appetit
I saw this about three times on Instagram and took it as a sign to make it! I had randomly picked up some kimchi from our local Asian supermarket so had this languishing in my larder. I overcooked the noodles but this was so incredibly simple to throw together - making it perfect for a weeknight. It had just the right amount of heat and was so addictive, Definitely one I'm going to add to my bank of recipes..

Ottolenghi halva and walnut loaf
Halva is one of those ingredients I had no idea even existed until mid 2019. But I've discovered it's a great ingredient for baking to help bring something extra to the cake. This Middle Eastern sesame and honey sweet treat is very sweet by itself. But it really comes into its own when you bake with it. It helps to add a great nutty flavour. I'd say it's kinda like tahini. I can't wait to use it in more bakes. I'd highly recommend this recipe if you haven't popped your halva cherry. It'll make you fall in love with it!

Roasted red pepper hummus from BBC Good food
I love Hummus and swear by this recipe on Jamie Oliver's website made by blogger Leyla. But for a girls night I wanted to try something different. I came across this red pepper hummus recipe on BBC Good Food and decided to give it a shot. It was a bit of a labour of love as I decided to roast the peppers myself rather than buy them ready-roasted but it worth it. It's still not as nice as my normal hummus but was still delicious with lots of crisps dipped in it!

Meera Sodha's cucumber and mint raita from Fresh India
I genuinely think this book was my most used of 2019 and I'm still excited by it to try even more recipes. I want to make more of her snacking recipes and this raita was a start! It was unbelievably simple to do, hardly took any time at all. It tasted really refreshing and is delicious on warm summer evenings.

Diana Henry's Mumbai toastie from Simple
I couldn't find a photo of this which is a shame as it was stunning. I absolutely loved it and still can't quite believe I have yet to make it again! Over the last year I have really started to enjoy making more of an effort for breakfast at the weekend. It feels so indulgent when I only have wheetabix during the week at my desk. This was like a pimped up version of a cheese toast - the added chilli was a revelation.

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Restaurant review: My Neighbours the Dumplings, Clapton, east London

Connor first heard of this restaurant from the Off Menu podcast with Ed Gamble and James Acastor. We've been trying to build up a list of restaurants in London to try with the view to having a day out, just us two, once a month. First on our list was My Neighbours The Dumplings. We chose it because it's based in Clapton and we wanted to scout some wedding locations. It's all getting real now!

My Neighbours The Dumplings is a Chinese dumpling house and sake bar based in east London. They have a separate menu for lunch and for dinner, we opted to visit for lunch this time. We arrived about 12.30 and it was pretty empty but within 30 minutes it really started to fill up and created a buzzing atmosphere. Keen to try as much as we could, we decided to order every dumpling on the menu. Our best decision of the day!

Keep in mind the food doesn't arrive all at once so expect it to be staggered. So what did we order? Juicy lamb and coriander dumplings, fragrant wonton soup with pork and prawn, tasty veggie dumplings and steamed squid and cod dumplings. The lamb and coriander dumplings won the taste test hands down. I could have ordered three more portions! Although we could have eaten more, we left lunch feeling satisfied but not over stuffed which made a nice change! I would recommend ordering a couple more dishes if you're particularly hungry as four portions won't be enough.

My Neighbours The Dumplings was delicious and I'm so glad we finally got to tick it off the list. I thought the prices were a little high but this is hipster land! Service was pretty attentive and we didn't feel like we were being rushed. I don't think I would rush back especially to visit but if I found myself in Clapton again then I would definitely hit it up. I want to try the dinner menu as the crispy pork belly sounds absolutely delicious.

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