La Domestique Blog

Grilled Broccoli with Black Olive Tapenade

Grilled Broccoli with Black Olive Tapenade

I love grilling. Maybe it’s because I grew up in the Southern United States where people take their BBQ seriously. Maybe it’s because I get to create perfectly caramelized grill marks on my food. Or maybe it’s because the sizzle and the smoky aromas always take me back to carefree Arkansas summers...

read more
Easy Everyday Vegetable Stir-Fry

Easy Everyday Vegetable Stir-Fry

We had a couple days of unbelievable sunshine and warmth here in Dublin this week (though today it has turned cloudy and cool). In true la belle vie style my husband made the last minute decision to take a vacation day and we skedaddled off to Portmarnock beach. It felt so good to put my feet in...

read more
My Favourite Picnic Recipes

My Favourite Picnic Recipes

During summer I prefer to savour my meals outside, don’t you? On a recent sunny Irish weekend the husband and I enjoyed breakfast, lunch and dinner al fresco on the patio with little Minnie (our dachshund) sunbathing at our feet. Today I’ve gathered up a few of my favourite summer recipes perfect...

read more
Delicious Detox Beetroot, Avocado and Wild Rice Salad

Delicious Detox Beetroot, Avocado and Wild Rice Salad

I don’t believe I ever saw a single beetroot growing up. Never even thought much about that strange dirt cloaked root until I grew up and planted a garden. I fell in love with beets after tasting my very first homegrown beet baby, pulled from the soil just minutes before cooking. I love beetroot...

read more
Celebrate the Season: Spring Pea, Spinach and Fennel Soup

Celebrate the Season: Spring Pea, Spinach and Fennel Soup

June is the height of spring, when the garden really starts producing. You can see pink radish shoulders poking out of the soil, voluptuous bunches of salad greens and perfect pea pods dangling from delicate trellised vines. It's an exciting time for a gardener, harvesting the first bounty of the...

read more
Foolproof Fish: Salmon Cooked in a Parchment Paper Bag

Foolproof Fish: Salmon Cooked in a Parchment Paper Bag

  Let’s talk about fish...   First of all, fish is SO good for you   Especially oily fish, like salmon, herring, mackerel, sardines, lake trout and tuna. These fishes are rich in omega-3 fatty acids—essential for your brain, your mental/emotional function and reducing your risk of...

read more
5 Facts Everyone Should Know About Coeliac Disease

5 Facts Everyone Should Know About Coeliac Disease

I have a confession to make: for a long time I didn’t take coeliac disease seriously. Back in 2007, when I worked in a fine dining French restaurant, gluten-free was just becoming a thing. To chefs and waiters it was an annoyance, right up there with being allergic to garlic (which is in...

read more
Chickpea Power! Two Healthy Salads to Fuel You All Day

Chickpea Power! Two Healthy Salads to Fuel You All Day

Bonjour! How is your week going? The husband and I survived our big move to Dublin last weekend. We are still living out of boxes and getting settled into the new routine. Our little dachshund, Minnie, likes her new home and all the kids running around the park next door to our apartment. Now that...

read more
Green Spring Salad with Quinoa and Lemon

Green Spring Salad with Quinoa and Lemon

  Happy May Day! Spring is in full bloom here in the Irish countryside—little lambs are bouncing across the fields, sedge warblers are singing their hearts out, and tiny yellow primroses are blooming at the edges of winding roads. The warm sunshine and longer days cast a positive glow on...

read more
Chicken Soup Noodle For What Ails You

Chicken Soup Noodle For What Ails You

It's that time of year. As winter draws to an end and spring threatens to break through, everyone seems to be suffering from a cough or a sniffle. I made it all winter without getting sick, and then BAM! It hit me like a freight train: a full blown head cold. Miserable. You know how it goes-- the...

read more