The restaurant is closed for Easter Sunday and some time over the weekend we will be enjoying this simply perfect leg of lamb. And with a bit of luck, I will be able to find some of McCloskey’s fabulous hot cross buns on Good Friday. I spent a day to remember with Patrick McCloskey in Drogheda a while ago and he showed me around their bakery and gave me a few tips along the way so it’s great to see them this week in Irish Country Living.
It has been a busy week, and Monday was a very interesting day spent in the Unilever Development Kitchen in Rathcoole. I was there for a very special reason. Lots of readers will remember Joe Shannon from the Radisson Blu Hotel in Rosses Point in Sligo for his infectious laugh and sense of fun on his regular appearances on Ireland AM. Joe was a great friend and an inspiration to a lot of people before his untimely death two years ago.
Competition time
This is the second year of the Joe Shannon Culinary Competition, and I was delighted to be a judge. My two fellow judges were Seamus Preston, who was general manager in Sligo when Joe was executive chef and who is now director of operations in Cliste Hospitality, and Keith Christie, who was head chef under Joe in the Radisson Blu Hotel and is now their executive chef. You can think of us as the Masterchef team for a day.
It was absolutely fascinating to watch how chefs of different experience go about creating a dish of modern sustainable cuisine focusing on Irish food produce and reducing food waste.
Professional chefs of any grade could apply as a single competitor or in a team of two, with one member aged 23 years or younger. And the task was to produce a two-course meal for four people, one main course and one dessert in three hours. That is pressure and it was fascinating for all of us judges.
Well done to the winners Pavel Kikeska and Anastasia Kutu from Thyme restaurant in Athlone, Co Westmeath who cooked a beautiful chicken dish with a rhubarb dessert that was outstanding. We really enjoyed watching them cook and create the dishes and wish them continued success. Thyme has retained its prestigious Bib Gourmand listing in the 2026 Michelin Guide for the eighth consecutive year.
Pistachio buns
Now to today’s recipes. This pistachio and raspberry hot cross bun pudding is a gloriously rich dessert. I like it served warm, not hot. And it can be made ahead of time, which is very handy as Easter is really only second to Christmas as one of those big celebration meals of the year. This raspberry preserve is nice and tangy. For the pistachio and raspberry shards, look no further than Bon Chocolatiers in Tullamore, where chefs Georgia Quealy and Daniel Linehan make a wonderful range of handmade chocolate. You can order from them at bonchocolatiers.ie.
I like to add some pistachio spread to this dessert. It is one of those tastes that has become very popular recently. And you cannot beat a big ball of ice cream to serve.
A lot of people tell me they are having turkey this Easter, and beef is also popular. But I am a lover of the traditional leg of quality assured lamb. It is great that you can get lamb all year around now, and Connemara Hill lamb is always good.
This is a traditional recipe without any added complications. The stock and wine will keep the lamb nice and moist.
Serve with potato gratin if you can as it adds a wonderful creaminess to the meal and really compliments the flavours of the lamb. You could also serve roast potatoes or sweet potatoes or even a combination of both.
Happy Easter
Pistachio and
raspberry hot cross bun pudding
Ingredients: Serves 6-8
40g salted butter, softened
2 packs Simply Better Irish-made triple berry all butter hot cross buns
8 tbsp raspberry preserve
3 corn-fed free range eggs
1 carton cream
200ml milk
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp caster sugar
1 packet pistachio and raspberry shards
Irish-made Madagascan vanilla bean ice cream to serve
4 tbsp pistachio spread (optional)
Method
1 Butter a square ovenproof dish. Cut the hot cross buns in half and spread with the rest of the butter, add 1 tbsp of the raspberry preserve to each one and sandwich the hot cross buns back together. Arrange in the buttered dish.
2 Break the eggs into a bowl and whisk in the cream and milk with the vanilla and sugar. Pour the custard over the hot cross buns, then leave to soak for at least one hour or overnight in the fridge.
3 Preheat the oven to 180C (350F/Gas Mark 4). Break up the pistachio and raspberry shards and scatter on top of the pudding with the raspberries. Place in a large roasting tin half filled with water and carefully put in the oven for 30 minutes until the custard is set. Leave to sit for another 10 minutes, then spoon a hot cross bun on to each plate and top with a scoop of the ice cream. Drizzle over the pistachio spread, if liked to serve.
Pistachio and raspberry hot cross bun pudding.
Ingredients: Serves 4-6
1 fresh Irish leg of lamb, at room temperature
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
4 large onions, sliced
1 garlic bulb, cloves peeled
300ml sauvignon blanc wine
300ml chicken stock
2 packs Irish rainbow baby carrots, trimmed
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Creamy potato gratin, to serve
Method
1 Preheat the oven to 130C (250F/Gas Mark ½). Place a large casserole dish with a lid on the hob over a high heat. Dry the lamb with kitchen paper and season generously. Add the oil to the casserole and brown the lamb for about 10 minutes on all sides. Do this very thoroughly until it is a good dark brown colour as it will not brown during the cooking.
2 Add the onions and garlic to the casserole and then pour in the wine and allow to bubble down. Return the lamb and scatter the carrots around it. Pour in the stock, then season and put on the lid. Transfer to the oven and roast for 7 hours, turning it twice.
3 There is no need to rest the lamb when it is cooked in this way, but to finish the sauce, transfer the lamb and vegetables to a large, warmed serving platter.
Strain the remaining liquid into a jug and skim off any excess fat. Pour back into a pan and then fast boil to reduce by a
quarter until you have a nice rich sauce.
4 Pour into a gravy jug and serve alongside the lamb. Put the potato gratin into another dish so everyone can help themselves. Season to your liking.
The restaurant is closed for Easter Sunday and some time over the weekend we will be enjoying this simply perfect leg of lamb. And with a bit of luck, I will be able to find some of McCloskey’s fabulous hot cross buns on Good Friday. I spent a day to remember with Patrick McCloskey in Drogheda a while ago and he showed me around their bakery and gave me a few tips along the way so it’s great to see them this week in Irish Country Living.
It has been a busy week, and Monday was a very interesting day spent in the Unilever Development Kitchen in Rathcoole. I was there for a very special reason. Lots of readers will remember Joe Shannon from the Radisson Blu Hotel in Rosses Point in Sligo for his infectious laugh and sense of fun on his regular appearances on Ireland AM. Joe was a great friend and an inspiration to a lot of people before his untimely death two years ago.
Competition time
This is the second year of the Joe Shannon Culinary Competition, and I was delighted to be a judge. My two fellow judges were Seamus Preston, who was general manager in Sligo when Joe was executive chef and who is now director of operations in Cliste Hospitality, and Keith Christie, who was head chef under Joe in the Radisson Blu Hotel and is now their executive chef. You can think of us as the Masterchef team for a day.
It was absolutely fascinating to watch how chefs of different experience go about creating a dish of modern sustainable cuisine focusing on Irish food produce and reducing food waste.
Professional chefs of any grade could apply as a single competitor or in a team of two, with one member aged 23 years or younger. And the task was to produce a two-course meal for four people, one main course and one dessert in three hours. That is pressure and it was fascinating for all of us judges.
Well done to the winners Pavel Kikeska and Anastasia Kutu from Thyme restaurant in Athlone, Co Westmeath who cooked a beautiful chicken dish with a rhubarb dessert that was outstanding. We really enjoyed watching them cook and create the dishes and wish them continued success. Thyme has retained its prestigious Bib Gourmand listing in the 2026 Michelin Guide for the eighth consecutive year.
Pistachio buns
Now to today’s recipes. This pistachio and raspberry hot cross bun pudding is a gloriously rich dessert. I like it served warm, not hot. And it can be made ahead of time, which is very handy as Easter is really only second to Christmas as one of those big celebration meals of the year. This raspberry preserve is nice and tangy. For the pistachio and raspberry shards, look no further than Bon Chocolatiers in Tullamore, where chefs Georgia Quealy and Daniel Linehan make a wonderful range of handmade chocolate. You can order from them at bonchocolatiers.ie.
I like to add some pistachio spread to this dessert. It is one of those tastes that has become very popular recently. And you cannot beat a big ball of ice cream to serve.
A lot of people tell me they are having turkey this Easter, and beef is also popular. But I am a lover of the traditional leg of quality assured lamb. It is great that you can get lamb all year around now, and Connemara Hill lamb is always good.
This is a traditional recipe without any added complications. The stock and wine will keep the lamb nice and moist.
Serve with potato gratin if you can as it adds a wonderful creaminess to the meal and really compliments the flavours of the lamb. You could also serve roast potatoes or sweet potatoes or even a combination of both.
Happy Easter
Pistachio and
raspberry hot cross bun pudding
Ingredients: Serves 6-8
40g salted butter, softened
2 packs Simply Better Irish-made triple berry all butter hot cross buns
8 tbsp raspberry preserve
3 corn-fed free range eggs
1 carton cream
200ml milk
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp caster sugar
1 packet pistachio and raspberry shards
Irish-made Madagascan vanilla bean ice cream to serve
4 tbsp pistachio spread (optional)
Method
1 Butter a square ovenproof dish. Cut the hot cross buns in half and spread with the rest of the butter, add 1 tbsp of the raspberry preserve to each one and sandwich the hot cross buns back together. Arrange in the buttered dish.
2 Break the eggs into a bowl and whisk in the cream and milk with the vanilla and sugar. Pour the custard over the hot cross buns, then leave to soak for at least one hour or overnight in the fridge.
3 Preheat the oven to 180C (350F/Gas Mark 4). Break up the pistachio and raspberry shards and scatter on top of the pudding with the raspberries. Place in a large roasting tin half filled with water and carefully put in the oven for 30 minutes until the custard is set. Leave to sit for another 10 minutes, then spoon a hot cross bun on to each plate and top with a scoop of the ice cream. Drizzle over the pistachio spread, if liked to serve.
Pistachio and raspberry hot cross bun pudding.
Ingredients: Serves 4-6
1 fresh Irish leg of lamb, at room temperature
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
4 large onions, sliced
1 garlic bulb, cloves peeled
300ml sauvignon blanc wine
300ml chicken stock
2 packs Irish rainbow baby carrots, trimmed
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Creamy potato gratin, to serve
Method
1 Preheat the oven to 130C (250F/Gas Mark ½). Place a large casserole dish with a lid on the hob over a high heat. Dry the lamb with kitchen paper and season generously. Add the oil to the casserole and brown the lamb for about 10 minutes on all sides. Do this very thoroughly until it is a good dark brown colour as it will not brown during the cooking.
2 Add the onions and garlic to the casserole and then pour in the wine and allow to bubble down. Return the lamb and scatter the carrots around it. Pour in the stock, then season and put on the lid. Transfer to the oven and roast for 7 hours, turning it twice.
3 There is no need to rest the lamb when it is cooked in this way, but to finish the sauce, transfer the lamb and vegetables to a large, warmed serving platter.
Strain the remaining liquid into a jug and skim off any excess fat. Pour back into a pan and then fast boil to reduce by a
quarter until you have a nice rich sauce.
4 Pour into a gravy jug and serve alongside the lamb. Put the potato gratin into another dish so everyone can help themselves. Season to your liking.
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