It may not be what first comes to mind when you think of Irish cooking, but this recipe, inspired by Dublin’s newest fine dining spot, The Greenhouse, showcases the diversity of modern Irish cooking.
By Jess Lacey
Crozier Blue is an Irish farmhouse blue sheep’s milk cheese. It takes its name from the staff carried by St Patrick when he converted the Irish to Christianity in Cashel, Co Tipperary, where the cheese is made today.
Modern Irish Cooking: Beetroot Meringues with Cashel Blue Cream
- Total Time: 2 hours 30 minutes
- Yield: 5 1x
Description
A modern Irish canape showcasing a wonderful Irish farmhouse cheese.
Ingredients
Scale
- 2 egg whites
- 125g icing sugar
- 4 raw beetroot
- 100g Crozier blue cheese
- 25–40ml cream
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh chives
Instructions
- Scrub and peel the beetroot.
- Boil for 30-60 minutes until cooked through (a fork should easily pierce the beetroot).
- Remove from liquid and cook the liquid down for another 45-60 minutes until it is reduced, thick and dark purpley-red.
- To make the meringues, put the sugar and egg whites in a mixing bowl together and whisk with an electric mixer until stiff peaks form (about 5-8 minutes).
- Add as much of the beetroot syrup as required to get a dark rich purpley-red colour in the meringue.
- Use a teaspoon to spoon onto a baking tray lined with greaseproof paper.
- Each meringue should be a couple of centimetres in diametre (you don’t need to pipe, the mixture will be stiff enough to shape with a spoon).
- Bake for 30-40 minutes at 160C until crisp on the outside but not golden and cooked on the inside (insert a skewer into one to check).
- Leave to cool on a wire rack.
- To make the blue cheese cream, mash the cheese and cream in a bowl untilit is soft with the consistency of cream cheese.
- The amount of cream will depend on the cheese, which should be kept out of the fridge for an hour before to soften.
- Add the chopped chives.
- Sandwich two meringues between the blue cheese cream and repeat until all the meringues are made.
- Prep Time: 2 hours
- Cook Time: 30 mins
