Irish Cream Cupcakes

Woo-hoo! Today is St. Patrick’s Day!!! And as per usual, the last post of my St. Patrick’s Day recipe run features a cupcake. And oh what a cupcake it is! Are ya’ll ready for this? Five Farms Irish Cream Cupcakes! These divine cupcakes are tender and moist and just bursting with Irish Cream flavor which is only intensified by the dreamy Irish Cream Swiss Meringue topping.

As I mentioned, I have always ended my St. Patrick’s Day run of recipes with a cupcake offering. Last year it was these decadent Baileys Tres Leches Cupcakes.

And the year before I tempted you with these zingy Irish Whiskey Ginger and Lime Cupcakes

One year, Baileys made an appearance in these Butterfly Cakes (aka Fairy Cakes) filled with Strawberry Jam & Topped with Baileys Whipped Cream

Guinness took the stage here with these Guinness Chocolate Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Swiss Meringue Buttercream Frosting

One year I even turned Scáiltín, which is an old fashioned Irish milk punch into a cupcake with these Malted Scáiltín Cupcakes

And I was able to squeeze Guinness, Jamesons and Baileys into these boozy Chocolate Whiskey Dipped Irish Cupcakes

Phew! That is a lot of St. Patrick’s Day cupcakes! And there are even a few more to be found in my recipe library. If you can’t find a cupcake that appeals to you there, I think maybe you just don’t like cupcakes! Todays featured cupcake is made with Five Farms Irish Cream liqueur. Five Farms is a new discovery for me from my most recent trip to Ireland. I first mentioned it in my post about Irish Coffee Martini and it made another appearance in my Irish Coffee Truffles post. Here it is again! Clearly I’m obsessed.

Speaking of my most recent trip to Ireland, today I’m going to tell you all about our last few days of our visit, which were spent in Dublin.

Now I probably shouldn’t tell you this, because I don’t want the secret getting too far out. But I just can’t help myself because I am so excited about this boutique townhouse hotel. We absolutely love it and would not consider staying anywhere else when visiting Dublin – the incomparable Number 31! This luxurious hotel is half traditional Georgian townhouse and half modernist mews which are connected by a charming courtyard.

The Georgian townhouse half is where we have always chosen to stay and we love the mildly eccentric jazz age flamboyance.

So much personality!

And the award winning, legendary breakfast never disappoints. They serve an amazing homemade Cranberry-orange Nut Loaf that is to die for. I attempted to get the recipe, but wasn’t able to wheedle it out of them. You’ll just have to go try it for yourselves! Hands down this is one of the best breakfasts I’ve had anywhere – full stop!

The location of this decadent hideaway is also superb. It is steps from St. Stephen’s Green in the heart of the city. We have a lot of friends in Dublin and spent the days shopping, dining and visiting quite a few pubs!

All in all it was a fantastic visit and believe me, we won’t wait 10 years again to go back!

But let me get back to those featured cupcakes of the day – Five Farms Irish Cream Cupcakes!

As I mentioned, if you’ve been following along on my St. Patrick’s Day countdown this year, you are certainly familiar with Five Farms Irish Cream liqueur.

I swear to you I am not getting paid by them, I just really find it superior to the other Irish Creams out there. If you can’t find a bottle, I’m sure you’ll find a substitute, but trust me – you want a bottle of Five Farms!

These mini cupcakes may be small in size but really pack a punch as far as dreamy Irish Cream goodness goes. And since they’re so small, there’s no need to limit yourself to one! They are very easy to make and are sure to be a crowd pleaser. Perfect for any St. Patrick’s Day shindig you might attend. So what are you waiting for? Get baking! I wish everyone a safe, healthy and happy holiday! Lá Fhéile Pádraig Sona Daiobh (Happy St. Patrick’s Day)!

• Servings: 48 mini cupcakes
• Difficulty: easy
• Print

recipe from: Confessions of a Baking Queen

Ingredients:

For the cupcakes:

• 208 grams (1 2/3 Cups) Cake Flour
• 1 1/2 Teaspoons Baking Powder
• 1/2 Teaspoon Salt
• 4oz (1/2 Cup) Unsalted Butter, at room temperature
• 200 grams (1 Cup) Granulated Sugar
• 2 Large Eggs, at room temperature
• 1 Teaspoon Pure Vanilla Bean Paste
• 4oz (1/2 Cup) Sour Cream
• 4oz (1/2 Cup) Five Farms Irish Cream (I suppose you could substitute flavored non-alcoholic creamer if you didn’t want the booze – but seriously – What are you like?!!! Oh and of course if you can’t get Five Farms, poor you… we all know Baileys is a good substitute.)

For the frosting:

• 3 Large Egg Whites, at room temp.
• 112.5 grams (1/2 Cup + 1 Tablespoons) Granulated Sugar
• 7.5 oz (3/4 Cups + 3 Tablespoons) Unsalted Butter cubed, room temperature
• 3-5 Tablespoons Five Farms Irish Cream, adjust to your preference (Need I say that I used all 5…and they were rather generous Tablespoons)
• Espresso powder to dust over the top (optional)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350F/ 180C and line a mini muffin tin with mini cupcake liners.

In a large bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar on medium speed for 3-5 minutes, until the mixture is very light and fluffy.

Add the eggs and vanilla and mix for another 3 minutes. Mix in the sour cream for one minute. Gently fold in half of the flour mixture, mix until just combined. Add the Irish cream and once it is incorporated, mix in remaining flour until just combined. Scoop batter into cupcake liners so they are ⅔ full. A 2 Tablespoon cookie scoop works great here.

Bake for 10- 12 minutes until fully baked- check by pressing the top center lightly. If the cake springs back it’s done. Or you can use a toothpick inserted in the center – when it has no wet batter on it, the cupcakes are done.

Let cupcakes cool in the pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely before frosting. 

While the cupcakes are cooling, prepare the frosting.

Place a small pot containing a little water on a burner over low heat until it reaches a simmer. Then place a larger heatproof bowl on top making sure the bottom of the bowl does not touch the water- the steam from the simmering water will cook the mixture. Add the sugar and egg whites to the bowl and whisk until the mixture reaches about 150F/65C or until the sugar has dissolved and the texture has slightly thickened and its foamy. If you rub the mixture between your fingers you should not feel the sugar granules. This should take approximately 3 – 5 minutes.

Add the mixture to the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. Whisk on medium speed for 5-8 minutes until the mixture has cooled and appears thick and glossy.

Next, add the butter cubes one at a time, mixing until the butter is fully incorporated before adding the next cube. If the mixture starts to look a bit curdled don’t worry, just keep mixing. It will eventually come together and have a lush smooth texture.

Once you have a smooth buttercream add the Irish Cream to taste and mix again until fully incorporated.

Frost the cupcakes once they have cooled; using a pastry bag fitted with either a star or found tip. Garnish cupcakes with espresso powder.

Enjoy!

Links for Helpful Kitchen Tools & Ingredients for Irish Cream Cupcakes:

OXO Good Grips Stainless Steel Food Scale

Kitchen Aid Artisan Stand Mixer

OXO Good Grips Medium Cookie Scoop

Nielsen-Massey Pure Vanilla Bean Paste

King Arthur Espresso Powder

Drizly – Not sure if this will work for you as all states liquor laws are different, but if it does work in your state, Drizly will deliver alcohol right to your door! It is worth checking out. I have purchased the Five Farms Irish Cream as well as the West Cork Whiskey from Drizly.

Five Farms Irish Cream

Travel Planning Guide:

Getting there: Icelandair! We love Icelandair and have always had great experience with them. Icelandair flies to Dublin, Ireland. Take advantage of their Stopover program on your next flight to Europe.

Car Rental: New Way Car Hire – Love the all-inclusive pricing on these cars as well as the Dublin Airport pickup!

Accommodation: Number 31 – This luxurious hotel is half traditional Georgian townhouse and half modernist mews which are connected by a charming courtyard. The Georgian townhouse half is where we have always chosen to stay and we love the mildly eccentric jazz age flamboyance. The location of this decadent hideaway is also superb. It is steps from St. Stephen’s Green in the heart of the city. We would not dream of stying any where else and cannot wait to visit again!

Restaurants/ Cafés/ Bakeries/ Pubs:

Murphy’s Ice Cream – I LOVE Murphy’s Ice Cream! We used to only be able to get it when we visited Dingle, but now they have opened several shops and one is in Dublin, just steps off of Grafton Street! Their ice cream is made with fresh from the farm milk, lots of local cream, free range eggs, and organic sugar. No colourings, flavourings, or powdered milk. My favorite flavor, though it is so hard to choose because they are all so exquisite, is probably Brown Bread.

Cafe en Seine – Stunning restaurant/bar in the heart of Dublin’s City Center featuring gilded, Gatsby-esque decor.

Juanitos – self described as “soul food LA style” this fusion of Asian & Mexican cuisines really hit the spot!

Three Storey – As the name suggests, this stylish cafe, spritzeria and cocktail bar stretches over three floors of a traditional Georgian building which overlooks St. Stephen’s Green in the city center. Modern and very relaxed atmosphere. Fantastic Aperol Spritz!

r.i.o.t. – Definitely divey – this bar is located right on the Quays in the heart of Dublin city centre. Awesome place to people watch. Has full bar and house brand cocktails. Serves up Brooklyn style pizza.

P.Macs – Cozy quirky and retro gastropub with a shabby cool decor. Very relaxing atmosphere.

Shops:

Fallon & Byrne – Four floors of foodie heaven! Located just steps off of Grafton Street, you’ll find a wine bar, a brasserie, a ballroom as well as a food hall. The food hall was our destination and it was chock full of tempting goodies, often from smaller artisan producers throughout Ireland, but also from beyond. This is where I purchased my Dillisk for those Twice Baked Colcannon Potatoes. There are fresh fish, meat and cheese counters as well as a deli counter for tempting take away.

Article – Contemporary, Independent Design and Homeware shop located in the Powercourt Townhouse in Dublin city center. The place to shop if you are looking to buy thoughtful quality gifts for anyone – maybe even yourself!

Attractions:

Dublin Castle – 13 Century castle. Today Irish Govenment and Conference Center.

Grafton Street – One of the principal shopping streets in the city center. Mostly pedestrianised and lined with many cafes, shops and street performers.

Temple Bar- Busy riverside neighborhood with many pubs, restaurants and quirky boutiques.

Guinness Storehouse – Learn about the history of Ireland’s most iconic beer over seven floors. Enjoy 360 degree views of the city from the Gravity Bar!

Irish Jambons!

So if I said “Jambon”, what would you think of? You might be thinking “That’s French for ham right?” You would be correct, but I’m not really talking about ham. Perhaps I should’ve said “Irish Jambon”. Ahhh! Now it might be getting clearer. The Irish Jambon is the much beloved, ubiquitous deli offering found in gas stations and convenience stores throughout the Emerald Isle. But what is it? It is puff pastry filled with béchamel sauce, cheese (usually Emmental) and diced ham. Kind of like a Danish pastry but with savory filling rather than fruit. So that is the technical definition. But what you need to know is they are comfort food at its finest!

I first read all about these little delights in that cookbook “Bake” by Graham Herterich that I told you about in the post from a couple of days ago – Malted Coffee, Chocolate & Pecan Brack. He had a recipe for jambons and claimed that they are “now as Irish as soda bread”. I was mystified. I had never once come across a Jambon anywhere at all while I was studying in Ireland. Seems like just the thing a student would’ve lived on. I felt very cheated and when quizzed about them, my Irish friends assure me that I should indeed feel that way. Not to date myself, but i turns out they didn’t actually become widespread and popular in Ireland until the late ’90’s. It’s fairly meteoric rise in popularity is a testament to how addictively good these little dickens are!

Previous to that, quick food on the go wasn’t really a thing in Ireland. However in the 90’s compact bakery ovens became available which allowed petrol stations, small supermarkets and convenience stores to offer “freshly baked” (usually from frozen Cuisine de France) hot items such as croissants, breakfast rolls and jambons from their deli counters.

These jambons were very portable, undeniably tasty and quite economical. I could not wait to taste one, but since I was no longer visiting Ireland by the time I discovered how deprived I’d been, I decided to make my own to tide me over until I could get back there!

My homemade versions are pretty easy to make. Although the authentic ones in Ireland usually use Emmentaler Cheese, I went with a mixture of Kerry Gold Irish Cheddar and Kerry Gold Blarney Cheese, which is a bit like Gouda.

And speaking of Blarney, Blarney Castle is one of the places I visited on my most recent trip to Ireland.

The Husband had never kissed the good old Blarney Stone. For anyone who knows him, I’m sure you’d find that hard to believe. He has already in firm possession of the “gift of gab” as they say. I was worried how even more eloquence for him would play out.

Nevertheless I considered it a must do, so off we went. For those of you who don’t know, the Blarney Stone is a block of limestone built into the battlements of Blarney Castle. Legend has it that if one kisses the stone, which is no easy task, they will be given great eloquence or the skill of flattery or beguiling talk. To get to this magical stone, you have to climb to the top of the castle,

lay down and lean over backwards from the parapets ledge. A bit nerve wracking to say the least!

But let me get back to the Irish Jambons. My homemade Jambons did not disappoint. Crispy crunchy puff pastry filled with a gooey, squidgy cheese sauce that is shot through with salty ham. Chock full of salt and carbs, I can see why they are considered a sure fire hangover cure. Now I’ve just got to get back to Ireland to get the real authentic jambon from a petrol station experience. I’ve been told Centras have the best there are to offer. Until then, these homemade ones will have you addicted and will be just the thing for your pre and post St. Patrick’s Day festivities!

• Servings: 12 jambons
• Difficulty: easy
• Print

recipe source: a combination of 2 from: Bake: Traditional Irish Baking with Modern Twists by Graham Herterich & National Dairy Council

Ingredients:

• 2 sheets puff pastry
• 2 red onions, sliced
• splash extra virgin olive oil
• 1 sprig thyme
• 1 small sprinkling of brown sugar
• 25 grams butter
• 25 grams all purpose flour
• 250 ml milk
• 250 grams cheese, grated – I used a mixture of KerryGold Blarney Cheese which is Gouda like and KerryGold Irish Cheddar. Emmentaler would also be great! But you do you.
• 1 tsp mustard – I used Colemans, but again the choice is yours.
• pinch of freshly ground nutmeg
• freshly ground black pepper and sea salt to taste
• 200 grams ham, cubed
• 1 egg, beaten with a splash of milk

Directions:

For the caramelized onions:

Preheat the oven to 375 F.

Place the sliced onions, leaves from one sprig of thyme in a bowl. Sprinkle with brown sugar and then add a splash of olive oil. Stir to distribute the oil and sugar.

Slide the onion mixture into an ovenproof casserole. Cook for 30 minutes.

After the initial cook time, stir the onion mixture, cover the casserole and cook for an addition 15 – 20 minutes.

Remove from oven and set aside to cool.

For the Cheese Sauce:

Place the butter in a medium sized sauce pan and melt over low heat.

Slowly whisk in the flour, whisking constantly until a dough begins to form.

Slowly add the milk, whisking the entire time so that there are no lumps in the sauce.

Once all of the milk has been incorporated, add the grated cheese (reserving a bit to sprinkle over the tops of the jambons), the nutmeg and the mustard.

Mix well until you get a smooth, thick cheese sauce. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Add the finely cubed ham to the sauce and stir.

Set the mixture aside and allow it to cool.

To assemble:

Lightly flour your work surface and roll out the pastry. Cut each sheet into 6 equal sized squares.

Place a scoop of the ham/cheese mixture into the center of each square. Place a bit of caramelized onion on top of the cheese.

Fold the four corners of the pastry to the center and pinch them together to seal the contents inside.

Brush the egg wash over the pastry. Sprinkle the reserved cheese over the top, as well as a bit of flaky sea salt.

Repeat for the remaining pastry squares.

Place the jambons on a parchment lined baking tray and bake for 20 minutes or until golden-brown.

Serve hot or room temperature.

Enjoy!

Links for Helpful Kitchen Tools & Ingredients for Jambons:

KerryGold Blarney Cheese

KerryGold Aged Cheddar

Coleman’s Mustard

Bake: Traditional Irish Baking with Modern Twists by Graham Herterich – It does not appear that this book is available on Amazon, but you can get it here at the Book Depository. I love this cookbook! Visually it is gorgeous, but it doesn’t rely on looks alone. This book is chock full of fantastic recipes. Graham Herterich, better known in Ireland as the Cupcake Bloke, initially trained as a chef and then went on to open The Bakery in Rialto Dublin. In this, his first cookbook, he offers a traditional recipe followed by a modern twist on that recipe. It also contains a brief history of Irish baking as well as a guide to baking essentials and lesser known ingredients.

Travel Planning Guide:

Getting there: Icelandair! We love Icelandair and have always had great experience with them. Icelandair flies to Dublin, Ireland. Take advantage of their Stopover program on your next flight to Europe.

Car Rental: New Way Car Hire – Love the all-inclusive pricing on these cars as well as the Dublin Airport pickup!

Activities:

Blarney Castle -Official site. You can book tickets here or when you arrive. The actual castle and stone are of course a big attraction, but the gardens are really lovely as well.

Shopping:

Blarney Woolen Mills – You can’t visit the castle without heading right across the street to do a bit of shopping at the flagship store of Blarney Woolen Mills. This store is HUGE and has everything. Not just sweaters, but china, crystal, homewares – you name it! It is housed in one of Ireland’s oldest and most authentic Irish Woolen Mills. This family owned business is not only brimful of the best Irish designers but also offers their wares at a good price.

Malted Coffee, Chocolate & Pecan Brack

Do I have any coffee lovers out there? I’m sure I do, so ya’ll are just gonna love this recipe – Malted Coffee, Chocolate & Pecan Brack! This delicious quick bread has a toasted malted flavor and is brimful with rich, coffee soaked fruit, nuts and with a bit of both dark chocolate thrown in for good measure.

This is my first time baking a coffee brack. I’ve done quite a few tea bracks in my day and I did couple of lovely Barmbracks, both yeasted and quick, a few years ago,

but never a coffee brack. In case you did not know, the word brack comes from the Irish word breac which means speckled or freckled. Bracks, which are kind of like a cross between bread and cake, are always shot through with fruit which gives it that speckled appearance. Most of the sweetness in the loaf comes from the fruit. Tea bracks are made with…well – tea if you didn’t guess. This one is made with…Coffee. I couldn’t wait to try it and was delighted with the results. The coffee flavor really shines through. So if you are a fan of coffee, you really must bake this quick and easy bread.

I found this recipe in a cookbook I got ahold of on my most recent trip to Ireland – Bake:Traditional Irish Baking with Modern Twists by Graham Herterich.

I love this cookbook! Visually it is gorgeous, but it doesn’t rely on looks alone. This book is chock full of fantastic recipes. Graham Herterich, better known in Ireland as the Cupcake Bloke, initially trained as a chef and then went on to open The Bakery in Rialto Dublin. In this, his first cookbook, he offers a traditional recipe followed by a modern twist on that recipe. This Malted Coffee, Chocolate & Pecan Brack is a delightful twist on the very traditional tea brack mentioned above.

I have been telling you all about my most recent trek to Ireland. Yesterday I told you all about our stay in the luxurious Cliff House Hotel and showed you a bit from our stroll along the cliffs. Today I wanted to show you a bit of charming village of Ardmore. Ardmore, from the Irish Aird Mhór meaning great height, is a gorgeous seaside resort and fishing village. It is home to 430 people but the population swells in the summer months. We visited in October, so the beach traffic was gone and the town had settled into its sleepy, off-season laid back vibe. Ardmore is the oldest Christian settlement in Ireland and was founded by St. Declan in the 5th C. Not to steal any glory from St. Paddy, seeings how his day is coming up very soon, but Declan was in Ardmore before St. Patrick arrived on the emerald isle.

Ruins of 12th Century Cathedral and earlier 9th Century Oratory.

12th Century Round Tower.

Ogham Stone.

Relaxing at the fun & funky beach themed Urchin Pub

But let me get back to that scrumptious Malted Coffee, Chocolate & Pecan Brack.

It was so easy to make, the hardest thing about it was remembering to soak that fruit in the coffee overnight. And do actually give it that soak. The fruit plumps up wonderfully and becomes infused with coffee goodness. In making this I ended up only dirtying one bowl. Less clean up is always better than more! The brack is so moist and rich and actually improves with age. So you can get it done well before your St. Patrick’s day festivities kick off. Have a slice (or two) slathered with butter along with your tea or coffee to start the day. That jolt of caffeine will give you all the energy you need to hit the parades!

• Servings: one loaf
• Difficulty: very easy, but allow for overnight soak of fruit
• Print

recipe from: Bake: Traditional Irish Baking with Modern Twists by Graham Herterich.

Ingredients:

• 300 grams sultanas (yellow raisins)
• 50 grams pitted dates, roughly chopped
• 25 grams pecans, chopped, plus extra for sprinkling on top
• 300 grams almost cold coffee
• 125 grams light brown sugar
• 25 grams dark chocolate, chopped
• 1 medium egg, beaten
• 1 Tablespoon barley malt extract (You can ind this in health food shops, but if you can’t get it – substitute in 1 Tablespoon malted milk powder dissolved in 2 teaspoons cold water)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 225 grams self rising flour

Directions:

Place the sultanas, dates, pecans and coffee in a large bowl and leave to soak overnight at room temperature.

Preheat the oven to 180 C (356F). Line a 900 gram (2 lb – I used a 9X5x3″) loaf tin with non stick baking powder, or you can butter and flour the pan. Your choice.

Add the brown sugar, chocolate, egg, barley malt extract and vanilla to the fruit/coffee mixture and mix well. Gently mix in the flour being careful not to crush the fruit. Transfer to the prepared baking tin. Sprinkle with additional pecans. (optional)

Bake in the preheated oven for 60 -65 minutes. It is done when a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean. Allow to cool fully in the tin before cutting into slices.

Serve with butter or a soft creamy cheese like ricotta or mascarpone.

Enjoy!

Links for Helpful Kitchen Tools & Ingredients for Malted Coffee, Chocolate & Pecan Brack:

Malted milk powder

9X5X3″ Loaf Pan

Travel Planning Guide:

Getting there: Icelandair! We love Icelandair and have always had great experience with them. Icelandair flies to Dublin, Ireland. Take advantage of their Stopover program on your next flight to Europe.

Car Rental: New Way Car Hire – Love the all-inclusive pricing on these cars as well as the Dublin Airport pickup!

Ardmore, County Waterford Ireland

Pubs and Restaurants:

The Urchin – Fun and funky beach inspired pub featuring a full bar and signature cocktails. Serving snacks, burgers and pizzas. We loved their Gubbeen pizza! Their chips were also perfectly crisp! In the summer months, Urchin Adventures offers all kinds of sea activities like kayaking and paddleboarding.

The Pantry at Cliff – serving tea, coffee, baked goods, sandwiches and artisan lite bites.

Shopping:

Criostal Na Rinne – Criostal Na Rinne is is a hand cut crystal studio workshop situated in Ireland’s Ancient East in the picturesque Irish-speaking area of An Rinn, the Waterford Gaeltacht. Eamonn Terry, a master craftsman glass cutter, established the business in1987, producing Irish crystal of breathtaking quality and beauty. We purchased a couple of pieces on our trip and are now totally obsessed with it, which is strange because we never really cared for crystal before. It was always a bit much for us, a bit old-fashioned with all of its thousands of cuts. But this crystal is different. Gorgeous in its simplicity, it is sleek and modern. Each collection named with an Irish word reflecting nature and the environment. You can tour the workshop, which we did and were lucky enough to have met Eamonn. He was absolutely charming and spent a lot of time chatting with us. We have ordered several more pieces since we arrived back in the States and shipping has been quick and easy. You may have noticed it (champagne glass and whiskey tumbler from the Tonn – Irish for “wave” Collection) in the pictures of the Irish Coffee Truffles that I posted yesterday. Highly recommended!

Irish Coffee Truffles

It’s day 3 of my St. Patrick’s Day run up of recipes and have I got a winner for you today – Irish Coffee Truffles! These little dickens are rich, creamy and boozy with a zing of espresso. Perfect not only to get that St. Patrick’s Day party started, but also to keep it going or even as a perfect compliment to your nightcap!

Now there’s only a few ingredients needed to create these lovely little indulgences, so you want to make sure you use those of the best quality. And for the booze, I have some recommendations. I told you all about them in my first post of this year’s St. Patrick’s Day countdown – The Irish Coffee Martini. These tipples are new discoveries for me from our most recent trip to Ireland in October 2022 and I am absolutely wild about both of them! I strongly recommend that you get ahold of some West Cork Irish Whiskey as well as some Five Farms Irish Cream.

On our most recent trip to Ireland I was thrilled to be able to stay in the luxurious 5 Star Cliff House Hotel which is located in the charming fishing village of Ardmore in County Waterford. We have been dying to stay here for years so this was quite a treat! This small boutique hotel seems to defy gravity as it clings to the cliffs above the sea. Full advantage is taken of this birds eye location with nearly the entire sea facing side of the hotel consisting of floor to ceiling (sometimes spanning multiple floors) windows looking out over Ardmore Bay.

View from our Bedroom balcony towards the village

View from our living room balcony looking out over Ardmore Bay

Indeed every room boasts a seaview and either a balcony or terrace. The decor is sleek, modern and bright featuring stacked stone walls and gorgeous tweed throws on the beds.

The bathrooms are huge! The semi transparent wall between the bathroom and bedroom allows the natural light to stream in.

There are cozy fireplaces in both the bedroom and living room of the suites.

You can enjoy their abundant, cooked to order breakfast in their lovely restaurant while gazing out over the sea or enjoy a lazy relaxing start to the day as we did and have it delivered to your room.

The infinity pool at the spa seems to flow out into the sea. There is also an outside jacuzzi. We indulged in massages, facials and a very relaxing peat soak in outside bathtubs while gazing over the sea and wild cliffs.

The Cliff Walk is located steps away from the entrance to the hotel. This 4 km walk features beautiful seascapes and breathtaking views from Ardmore Head and Rams Head. It starts with Temple Dysert, the 10th C ruins of a monastery originally founded by St. Declan as well as his curative well.

We passed the wreck of the Samson which hit the cliffs in 1987.

And stopped to drink the curative waters from Fr. O’Donnell’s curative spring. With Covid still lurking about, we figured we should have all the help we could get!

But let me get back to today’s tasty treat – Irish CoffeeTruffles!

Made with rich dark chocolate, Irish Cream, Irish Whiskey and espresso, how could they be otherwise than divine! These truffles are easy to make, albeit the rolling of them can get a bit messy. But it is definitely worth it. I made the ganache one day and left in the fridge overnight and then on the following day, I rolled and coated the truffles. I used chopped pistachios, a combo of confectioners sugar, espresso powder and cocoa and then just plain pistachio flour, for those who maybe didn’t like the toothy vibe that the pistachio pieces provided.

I’m not sure which was my favorite. But that is the fun thing with these truffles, you can do you! Love coconut – do that! I have also dipped these truffles in chocolate coating before which is also a lot of fun. Folks at your St. Patrick’s Day festivities will be undoubtedly smitten with these indulgent boozy bites!

• Servings: 30
• Difficulty: easy
• Print

recipe slightly adapted from: Once Upon a Chef

Ingredients:

• ½ cup heavy cream
• 1 1/2 Tablespoons Five Farms Irish Cream Liqueur
• 1 1/2 Tablespoons West Cork Irish Whiskey
• 1 teaspoon espresso powder
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• Pinch salt
• 8 oz semi-sweet chocolate, best quality such as Ghiradelli, chopped
• Cocoa powder (natural or Dutch-processed), confectioners’ sugar, espresso powder, finely chopped pistachios, pistachio flour or unsweetened shredded coconut, for coating*

Directions:

In a medium microwave-safe bowl, combine the heavy cream, Five Farms Irish Cream, West Cork Irish Whiskey, espresso powder, butter and salt. Microwave on high power until the mixture comes to a boil, 70 to 80 seconds. Watch that it doesn’t boil over. Add the chocolate and let sit for about 30 seconds to melt. Using a whisk, stir until the chocolate is completely melted and the mixture is glossy and smooth. Refrigerate until completely firm, about 3 hours or overnight (to speed this chilling process up, pour the mixture into a wide, shallow bowl or pie plate).

Place your coating(s) on a plate. Remove the chilled truffle mixture from the refrigerator. If you’ve had the mixture in the fridge for longer than 3 hours, you may need to let it sit out at room temperature for 10 to 15 minutes so it’s malleable enough to work with.

Using a small spoon, scoop out about 2 teaspoons of the chocolate mixture. Dust your fingertips with the cocoa powder or the confectioners’ sugar/cocoa mixture. Use your fingertips to shape into a rough ball. Quickly and gently roll in your palms to form into a smooth ball, then roll in your topping of choice. (If the chocolate starts to melt from the warmth of your palms, drop the truffle into the cocoa or confectioners’ sugar/cocoa mixture and lightly coat, then continue rolling. You may need to wash your hands in cold water from time to time.) Place the truffles in a single layer on a plate or in a storage container, cover, and refrigerate. Remove from the refrigerator about 10 minutes before serving (keep in mind that they’ll get too soft if left out at room temperature for too long). The truffles will keep for a couple of weeks in the refrigerator. They can also be frozen for up to two months.

*For my toppings I used rough chopped pistachios, pistachio flour and a mixture of 2 Tablespoons powdered sugar, 1 teaspoon espresso powder and 1 Tablespoon Dutch Process Cocoa.

Enjoy!

Links for Helpful Kitchen Tools & Ingredients for Irish Cream Truffles:

Pistachio Flour

Espresso Powder

Small Cookie Scoop (2 3/4 – 2 tsp. /#100) or King Arthur Flour has this one.

Travel Planning Guide:

Getting there: Icelandair! We love Icelandair and have always had great experience with them. Icelandair flies to Dublin, Ireland. Take advantage of their Stopover program on your next flight to Europe.

Car Rental: New Way Car Hire – Love the all-inclusive pricing on these cars as well as the Dublin Airport pickup!

Accommodation:

The Cliff House Hotel – Luxurious 5 star boutique hotel in the picturesque fishing village of Ardmore. Boasts Michelin starred fine dining and amazing spa!

Orange-Cranberry Soda Bread with White Chocolate

Oh ya’ll! I have a confession to make…I love bread. No – I mean I LOOOVE bread. I love to bake it and I especially love to eat it! (South Beach be damned!!!) And I really love traditional Irish Brown Bread and Soda Bread. Can.not.get.enough! But this Orange-Cranberry Soda Bread with White Chocolate has quite possibly risen above any soda bread I’ve had the pleasure of scarfing down.

Now I visited Ireland back in October of last year and I assure you I was eating all of the bread that came my way. Yesterday I told you about the lovely town of Trim. Today, I’ve got to tell you all about our visit to Brú na Bóinne, translated Valley of the Boyne, a short drive away from Trim. This World Heritage Site, located in a bend of the River Boyne, is over 5,000 years old. Older than the pyramids! It is most famous for the spectacular Megalithic Passage Graves of Knowth, Newgrange and Dowth. These ceremonial structures are among the most important neolithic sites in the world and contain the largest selection of Neolithic art in Western Europe.

I had visited when I was in college, but now there is a fantastic interpretive center in which you can learn about Neolithic culture and the monuments before boarding a shuttle bus for a tour. Knowth has an unrivaled collection of megalithic art.

You can actually go inside Newgrange! You walk down a narrow passage way (good thing I went down this passage way on the second day of our visit. By the end of the holiday, after all the bread and pints, I may not have been able to squeeze down it!) and into the burial chamber, which has the original waterproof corbelled roof. Each year on December 21st (Winter Solstice) a single shaft of light from the rising sun enters the roof box above the door and travels down the passage way to light up the chamber. Truly extraordinary! Make sure you book tickets when you visit.

But let me get back to today’s featured recipe: Orange-Cranberry Soda Bread with White Chocolate.

Now, I know this is not traditional Irish Soda Bread, but whoo howdy, this bread would likely stop St. Patrick in his tracks!

It is sweet, shot through with white chocolate chips, orange zest and tangy cranberries, yet it’s not too sweet. It is hearty, with a little tooth from that Irish style flour, but still has a tender crumb.

And toasted with a smear of butter? Get out!!!

• Servings: One 7-inch round loaf
• Difficulty: easy
• Print

recipe very slightly adapted from: Christopher Kimball’s 177 Milk Street

Ingredients:

• 210 grams (1 1/2 cups) Dried Cranberries, roughly chopped
• 1 Tablespoon grated Orange zest, plus 2 Tablespoons Orange juice
• 1 3/4 Cups Buttermilk
• 325 grams (2 1/2 cups) all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
• 105 grams (3/4 cup) King Arthur Baking Irish style Flour
• (can sub in whole wheat flour if you prefer)
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon table salt
• 113 grams (4 ounces) white chocolate chips
• 2 Tablespoons melted butter to brush over the top of loaf before baking
• White sparkling sugar (optional)

Directions:

Place the rack in the middle position in your oven and preheat to 400F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment.

In a medium microwave-safe bowl, stir together the cranberries and orange juice. Microwave, uncovered, on high for 1 minute, stirring once halfway through. Stir again, then set aside until cooled to room temperature. In a liquid measuring cup, stir together the orange zest and buttermilk.

In a large bowl, whisk together both flours, the baking soda and salt. Add the cooled cranberries and the white chocolate; toss until the ingredients are evenly distributed. Make a well in the middle of the mixture and pour in the buttermilk. Using a silicone spatula, fold the buttermilk into the flour mixture until a rough, shaggy dough forms; it’s fine if the dough still shows some dry, floury patches.

Lightly flour the counter and turn the dough out onto it, then flour the top of the dough as well. This is a sticky dough!Using your hands and a metal bench scraper, gently and lightly fold the dough a few times just until cohesive; do not knead it. Flour your hands and using a light touch, shape the dough into a ball as best you can. With a bench scraper, loosen it from the counter, transfer it to the prepared baking sheet.

Cut a cross, about 3/4″ deep into the top of the bread. Paint the entire top of the loaf with melted butter. Sprinkle with sparkling sugar if desired.

Bake until the bread is a deep golden brown, about 35 -40 minutes. It should sound hollow when tapped on the bottom. Cool for 10 minutes on the baking sheet set upon a wire rack. Afterwards transfer bread to the rack to cool completely. Try your best to wait 1 whole hour before slicing!

Enjoy!

Useful links for Kitchen Tools & Ingredients for Orange Cranberry Soda Bread with White Chocolate:

King Arthur Baking Irish Style Flour – ideal for baking Ireland’s brown and soda breads.

Prepworks Progressive Pocket Zester

Stainless Steel Flour Shaker

NordicWare Bench Scraper

Travel Planning Guide:

Getting there: Icelandair! We love Icelandair and have always had great experience with them. Icelandair flies to Dublin, Ireland. Take advantage of their Stopover program on your next flight to Europe.

Car Rental: New Way Car Hire – Love the all-inclusive pricing on these cars as well as the Dublin Airport pickup!

Activities:

Brú na Bóinne Visitor Center – All access to Newgrange and Knowth is by guided tour only, with tours beginning at the visitor center. Make sure to book in advance as tickets do often sell out! I highly recommend visiting. It was truly extraordinary!

 

Irish Coffee Martini

All right folks…let’s get this party started! Let the countdown to St. Patrick’s Day 2023 begin! And what better way to kick things off than with this caffeinated, boozy delight of a cocktail – the Irish Coffee Martini!

This boozy libation with an added kick of caffeine is easy to make. Just throw some cold brew coffee, quality Irish Whiskey and Irish Cream Liqueur with a bit of simple syrup and ice into a shaker and well…give it a good shaking! Voila! You’ve turned your favorite hot beverage into a irresistible adult coffee cooler!

Now while we are at it – I do have some suggestions for which quality Irish Whiskey and Irish Cream you use. These are new discoveries for me from our most recent trip to Ireland in October 2022 and I am absolutely wild about both of them!

Before this most recent trip in October, we had not visited Ireland since 2012. So we were long overdue! Our first stop after flying into Dublin and renting a car was the gorgeous town of Trim in County Meath. This charming town, situated on the River Boyne, is one of the best preserved medieval towns and is only a 40 minute drive from Dublin airport. Great place to shake off your jet lag after an overnight flight from the States. The town dates back to the 5th Century. In fact, St. Patrick is said to have founded a monastery there. It was taken over by the English in the 12th Century. That is when Hugh de Lacy began work on Trim Castle, which is the largest Norman Castle in Ireland. We were delighted to have stayed at the lovely Trim Castle Hotel in one of their plush Heritage Rooms. Our room boasted a balcony which looked out on the Castle.

Although Trim may be smaller in population, it certainly does not lack in things to do, like touring the above mentioned castle and strolling along their river walk. A great base for touring Meath it is very close to all the Bru na Boinne valley has to offer (more on that in a later post) and has plenty of restaurants and bars to ease your transatlantic recovery.

1st Pint, but not to be the last by any means, of the trip!

But let me get back to those Irish Whiskey and Irish Cream recommendations. The Husband and I have a handful of godchildren in Ireland and I have them to thank for introducing us to these delightful tipples. I strongly recommend that you get ahold of some West Cork Irish Whiskey as well as some Five Farms Irish Cream. They were my go to’s for this Martini and you will see them again in other recipes to come this year. Both of these products hail from County Cork which is the largest and southernmost county in Ireland. This county has it all from lush fields of green, to mountains to rugged coastlines. And the fiercely independent folk there have a reputation for challenging authority. Cork is often called the “Rebel County” or “The People’s Republic of Cork”

West Cork Distillers, who craft smooth triple distilled, non-chill filtered whiskey, have the largest wholly Irish owned distillery in the country. Situated in Skibbereen they source the best local ingredients to craft their products. I am using their Bourbon Cask matured whiskey here, but they also offer whiskey matured in various other casks. Five Farms single batch Irish Cream liqueur is also produced in beautiful County Cork in the southern portion where the land meet the sea. The fresh cream used in this rich smooth liqueur is sourced entirely from 5 family owned farms. It is combined with premium triple distilled whiskey. In fact, there is a greater amount of Irish Whiskey in this product than most other brands of Irish Cream. This results in a warm sweet creamy taste in which the complexity of the whiskey shines through. I know all you hear this time of year is Jamesons and Baileys, and they are very good. But maybe you should branch out a bit this year and try something new.

This Irish Coffee Martini is gonna give you just the right combination of caffeine jolt and boozy smooth and mellow. Guaranteed to be a hit at any St. Patrick’s Day festivity. What are ya waiting for? Get shaking!

• Servings: 1 martini
• Difficulty: easy
• Print

recipe slightly adapted from: Burrata and Bubbles

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon espresso powder
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 4 ounces cold-brew coffee
• 1 1/2 ounces West Cork Irish Whiskey
• 1 ounce Five Farms Irish Cream
• 1/2 ounce simple syrup*
• Ice
• Coffee bean or even better, chocolate covered coffee bean to garnish (optional, but very nice!)

Directions:

Chill your martini glasses by filling with ice and a small amount of water. Leave this in the glass while you are preparing the cocktail. Once you are ready to serve, pour the ice water mixture out and dry the glass.

Mix together the espresso powder and sugar on a small plate.

Run some simple syrup around the rim of your martini glass. Then, swirl in the espresso powder-sugar mixture. Set aside.

In a cocktail shaker, add the cold-brew coffee, West Cork Irish Whiskey, Five Farms Irish Cream, simple syrup and ice. Pop on the top and shake vigorously for about 15 to 30 seconds.

Strain into prepared martini glasses.

Enjoy!

*Feel free to use store bought or home made simple syrup. To make at home you simply (ha ha ha…) bring 1 cup water and 1 cup sugar to a high simmer on the stove in a small saucepan, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Once the mixture simmers and the sugar dissolves, remove from heat. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator. This can be done well in advance and will keep for several weeks. Easy peasy!

Links for Helpful Kitchen Tools & Ingredients for Irish Coffee Martini:

Espresso Powder

Chocolate Covered Espresso Beans

Drizly – Not sure if this will work for you as all states liquor laws are different, but if it does work in your state, Drizly will deliver alcohol right to your door! It is worth checking out.

Travel Planning Guide:

Getting there: Icelandair! We love Icelandair and have always had great experience with them. Icelandair flies to Dublin, Ireland. Take advantage of their Stopover program on your next flight to Europe.

Car Rental: New Way Car Hire – Love the all-inclusive pricing on these cars as well as the Dublin Airport pickup!

Trim, Ireland

Accommodation: Trim Castle Hotel – Contemporary Luxury Accommodation in the heart of Ancient Ireland! This fantastic, family owned hotel boast 68 relaxing modern rooms. We stayed in their Heritage Room which offered a spectacular view of Trim Castle. This hotel has a very comfortable atmosphere and has a cafe, bar and restaurant on site. It offers parking as well, but if you’d rather not rent a car but wish to get out of Dublin, the hotel offers transfer to and from Dublin Airport. We can’t wait to visit again!

Pubs & Restaurants:

Sally Roger’s Pub: Friendly folks and great atmosphere! Besides the cozy interior, this pub also has a large outside balcony over the River Boyne with a great view of the old bridge. This bridge was built in 1393 and is one of the country’s oldest complete and unaltered working bridges.

Wau Asian Cuisine: I know you might be thinking, why are you eating Chinese in Ireland? Well we knew there would be plenty of amazing Irish dishes to come in this trip and sometimes you are just craving Chinese, no matter where you might be! So this is where we landed and we are so glad we did! Located right above Sally Roger Pub, we got take-away from Wau Asian which was really delicious! Their tasty tofu is homemade. I highly recommend a tofu dish. And if you want to add a bit of “Irishness’ to your dinner, get chips to go with your main dish instead of the usual rice! Yup…it’s a thing.

St. Patrick’s Day Round-up 2023

Oh my goodness ya’ll…St. Patrick’s Day is only 7 days away. Tomorrow I will be starting my annual St. Patrick’s Day blog-a-thon. Yup, I’ll be sharing one lovely Irish-y recipe everyday with you, right up to the big day Thursday March 17th! And this year it’s going to be just a wee bit extra. I was fortunate enough to visit Ireland between last St. Patrick’s and this. Hadn’t been there in ten years, so a visit was well past due! So not only will I be sharing a bunch of delicious recipes, but I will also share a travel pic or two as well as some travel recommendations just to inspire you all the more. So make sure you tune in daily!

My First View of Ireland in 10 years!

Now I think managing to publish one recipe daily for six days straight is a pretty impressive feat. But, a few years ago I was completely mad and used to start on March 1st and do a new recipe each day until March 17th. That is why you can find over 100 delicious St. Patrick’s Day recipes on my blog. If you’d like to take a peek at my past St. Patrick’s Day posts, you can click Runcible Eat/Recipes up at the top navigation bar and scroll down to the St. Patrick’s Day category. That’s where you’ll find them! And stay tuned here for my latest additions this year. Today I thought I might inspire you with some of my favorite St. Patrick’s Day dishes from years past. I’d like to first remind you of the dishes on deck last year in case you missed them:

Vegetarian Cottage Pie and Brown Bread

Irish Whiskey Cake

Guinness Punch

Whiskey Butter Tarts

Baileys Tres Leches Cupcakes

And I’ll follow up with some bread:

Classic Irish Soda Bread

Theresa’s Prize-Winning Scones w/Strawberry Jam & Clotted Cream

Struan

Classic Irish Soda Bread, Theresa’s Scones & Struan

And here are some drool worthy mains:

Chicken Skink

Guinness Braised Beef Sandwiches on Waterford Blaa

Irish Ale Potato Cheddar Soup w/Beer Battered Leeks

Crock Pot Corned Beef & Cabbage Soup

Dublin Coddle

Guinness Beef Stew

Irish Stew

Smithwick’s Beef & Cheddar Pies

Chicken Skink, Guinness Beef Sandwiches, Potato Cheddar Soup, Corned Beef & Cabbage Soup, Dublin Coddle, Guinness Beef Stew, Irish Stew, Smithwicks Beef & Cheddar Pies

I wouldn’t want to forget the sides:

Corned Beef & Irish Cheddar Potato Nests

Champ

Corned Beef Potato Nests & Champ

And now for the decadent desserts:

Baileys Bite sized Cheesecakes

Chocolate dipped Baileys Pistachio Shortbread

Guinness Pretzel Truffles

Guinness Chocolate Chip Cookies

Baileys Salted Caramel Pots de Crème w/Baileys Whipped Cream

Baileys Cheesecakes, Baileys Shortbread, Guinness Truffles, Guinness Chocolate Chips, Baileys Pots de Crème

And last but not least….something to wash it all down with:

Irish Whiskey Marmalade Cocktail

Guinness Hot Chocolate topped w/ Homemade Guinness Marshmallows

Whiskey & Orange Oat Cream Toddy

Whiskey Marmalade Cocktail, Guinness Hot Chocolate, Whiskey Toddy

Is your mouth watering yet? Quite the galleries of goodies if I do say so myself. And there are many more recipes to be found on my blog as well as seven new ones starting tomorrow! Along with some lovely pictures of the Emerald Isle and my travel recommendations. Don’t miss out!

Vínarterta – Icelandic Vienna Cake

So wow! Just look at this amazing layered treat! What we’ve got here is Vínarterta, which translates from Icelandic to “Vienna Cake”. This cake boasts multiple thin layers of cardamom flavored shortbread alternating with spiced dried plum jam and is topped with a dusting of confectioner’s sugar.

I’m going to not only share this wonderful recipe with you today, but also continue to tell you all about that trip to the South Coast of Iceland that the Husband and I took with our parents back in September 2018. I told you all about visiting the Golden Circle, Seljalandfoss, Skogafoss, Dyrholaey & Vik as well as our stay at the luxurious Hótel Rangá in my previous post. Today I’ll tell you all about the big adventure we had on day four of our holiday. And I’m also delighted to tell you all about one of our absolute favorite places to stay while exploring the South Coast – The Garage Studio Apartments.

Gorgeous spot huh? But let me tell you about our adventure first. So what was our big adventure? We went on a private Super Jeep day tour of Þórsmörk with Midgard Adventures. Þórsmörk  which translates to Thor’s Valley is a stunning nature reserve located in the Southern Highlands of Iceland between the mountain glaciers of Tindfjallajökull, the world famous Eyjafjallajökull, and Mýrdalsjökull. This lush valley has so much to offer – dramatic volcanic landscapes,

 

breathtaking mountain views,

lush valley scenery

and amazing hiking opportunities.

The Husband and I had visited it twice before and knew Þórsmörk is not to be missed. We really wanted the parents to be able to experience it. The thing is though, in order to enter Þórsmörk, you really must have a 4X4 vehicle as you will need to go onto the “F” roads and make several river crossings. And those “F roads” (not sure what the “F” stands for in F roads, but after having been on them, I can think of a possibility…) in the reserve are pretty rough. To be honest, even if you have rented a 4X4 vehicle, you really need to be experienced with this type of driving. And I should also mention that most rental car insurance will not cover you driving through rivers. River crossings can be quite tricky, so if you make a mistake and end up in too deep of a section the river, thus damaging your vehicle in the process, you could potentially be liable to your rental company for thousands of dollars.

This poor bus required the aid of a tractor once it became stuck trying to cross the river.

Besides the financial burden, folks have actually died trying to cross these potentially dangerous rivers. The solution here is to hire a knowledgeable, experienced local guide. We whole heartedly recommend Midgard Adventures.

The Husband and I have been out on adventures with Midgard previously. In 2012 we went out with them in December to experience the winter wonderland of Þórsmörk.

We were back with them in December 2013 on a private tour of Jökulsárlón.

And in September 2017 we were with Midgard Adventures to hike the magnificent Fimmvörðuháls trail .

Each time our adventure with them has been one of  the highlights of our trip! And they didn’t let us down this time. The itinerary that they came up with for the Parent’s Day Tour was perfect. Not only did our charming and knowledgeable Midgard guide expertly navigate Þórsmörk, but he also took us to visit a nearby black sand beach

as well as a couple of stunning, lesser known waterfalls.

The parents were thrilled with the experience of crossing rivers, rough volcanic terrain and black sand beaches in the Super Jeep. And our guide knew how much the Husband and I enjoyed hiking, so he had planned ahead and dropped us off for a small hike over a mountain while he drove our parents around for some sightseeing and then met up with us on the other side. A win for everyone!

What an absolutely superb day. Everyone enjoyed themselves immensely! Take a look at this video for all of the river crossings, gorgeous scenery, hiking, blueberry picking and other live action!

After such an exciting day, we were so happy to come back to one of our absolute favorite places to stay on the South Coast – The Garage Studio Apartments. The Husband and I had stayed there previously in 2017 and we were so glad to be back! These lovely modern rustic apartments have been crafted from a former old garage that is located on a family farm belonging to Anna & Siggi. This picturesque homestead is nestled right up to the foot of the mountain topped by the Eyjafjallajökull glacier, under which the famous air traffic interrupting volcano resides.

Siggi’s family has been living on this land for over 200 years. Now Anna & Siggi are operating a “gentleman’s farm” on the site as well as managing several apartments. Located exactly between the two famous waterfalls Skógafoss and Seljalandfoss, these exceptional apartments are the perfect central location for taking in all the South Coast of Iceland has to offer. The setting is nothing less than magical.

You are surrounded by the most idyllic scenery – green hills, a private waterfall, a view overlooking the ocean, fields full of Icelandic horses and sheep,

chickens, a dog (Felix) who never tires of playing fetch

and a cat, who wouldn’t reveal their name, but was friendly nevertheless,Anna was also such an amazing host, so friendly, warm and welcoming. Her spacious apartments are stylishly decorated, sparklingly clean and filled with thoughtful little touches. And as if all of that was not enough, she served us scrumptious freshly home-baked desserts every day! Hospitality like this is hard to find!

And the Northern Lights even decided to put on a bit of a show for us to make our stay at the Garage even more delightful.

Want to see more of the Garage as well as those Northern Lights? Take a peek at this video:

But let me get back to telling you about this Vínarterta – today’s featured recipe.

Although the name translates to Vienna Cake, it likely did not arrive in Iceland straight from Vienna, but rather came by way of Denmark. This grand looking cake was often served on special occasions, such as Christmas. One of the wonderful things about this cake is not only is it delicious, but it also gets better with age. So you can make this up days and days before you actually plan to serve it. You just keep it wrapped in foil stored in a cool place.

This cake reached the height of its popularity in the late 19th to early 20th century. Back in the day, the thin layers of this cake could be easily baked in the more primitive ovens of the time or even on the stove top. And when some Icelanders emigrated to parts of Canada and the Northern United States, they brought this recipe with them. Though now a days, it is slightly different in some ways from the original, such as in North America you will often find versions with more layers and with a frosting on top. They have for the most part stayed true to the filling, whereas in present day Iceland, you are likely to find other types of filling such as rhubarb or strawberry jams.

I baked this Vínartera using Hartshorn or Baker’s Ammonia (Ammonium Carbonate) for the leavener. You will encounter this ingredient in many older, traditional Scandinavian cookie recipes. You can substitute baking powder for it, though the cookie will not have the same crispy texture that it will get from using Hartshorn. I gotta tell you though, man is that ammonia smell strong! It is thankfully completely gone once the cookies/cake is baked, but let me just say, you will not be tempted to nibble the batter before it goes in the oven!

The original recipe did not call for any Vodka whatsoever, but I liked the idea of a celebration cake being just a bit boozy. And I do know that good Vodka doesn’t really have much of a taste. But somehow it just makes me feel better knowing that it is there. I splurged and added a few glugs of Reyka Vodka to thin my jam just a bit as well as soak the prunes. You can virtuously soak the prunes in plain water if you are a teetotaler.

Oh, and I guess that brings me to the dreaded “P” word. You might have noticed that I don’t call it “spiced prune filling”. No. No prunes are in this treat. Just some dried plums. I don’t know why folks freak out when they hear prune, but they do. So yeah. Spiced dried plums are what is in this scrumptious Vínarterta – and believe me you are going to love it!

Vínarterta

• Servings: 8 -10
• Difficulty: easy
• Print

recipe slightly from: Icelandic Food & Cookery by Nanna Rögnvaldardóttir

Ingredients:

For the Spiced Dried Plum Filling:

• 1 1/2 Cups Pitted Prunes
• 1/2 Cup Sugar
• 1 Tablespoon Cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon Ground Cloves
• vodka (for soaking the prunes as well as thinning the jam – optional)

For the Cake Layers

• 1 Cup Butter, softened
• 1 Cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 4 Cups all-purpose Flour, or as needed
• 1 1/2 teaspoon Baker’s Ammonia (you can substitute 1 tsp. baking powder)
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground Cardamom
• 1/2 Cup milk
• 1 1/2 Cup Spiced Dried Plum Filling
• confectioner’s sugar (for sprinkling over the top – optional)

Directions:

Prepare the filling:

The night before you plan to make the filling, place the pitted prunes in a bowl and cover with vodka or warm water. Leave them to plump up overnight. (optional)

Place the prunes, sugar and spices in a saucepan and add 1 cup of water. Cook over medium heat, stirring often, until it comes to a boil. Continue to cook until the prunes are soft and the syrup has thickened, about 20 minutes. Let the mixture cool slightly. Place it into the bowl of a food processor and process until smooth. Set aside.

If you would like to thin the jam a bit as well as add a bit of “cheer” to it, add a glug or two of vodka and stir to combine. (optional)

Prepare the shortbread:

In a bowl, whisk together the flour, baker’s ammonia and cardamom.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream the butter and sugar together until pale and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition.

Add the flour mixture and the milk and continue to mix until a smooth dough forms. The dough should be soft and just shy of sticky. Shape the dough into a ball and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least one hour.

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Divide the dough into five equal parts. On a floured work surface, roll each part out into a thin disc about 9″ in diameter. Arrange the circles on baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Bake on the center rack of the oven for 12 minutes, or until they are just beginning to brown at the edges.

Assembly:

While the layers are still warm, sandwich them with the spiced dried plum filling, leaving the top of the top layer of the cake bare.

Allow cake to cool completely and then wrap in foil. The cake will keep for weeks in a cool place and will improve with age.

Sprinkle top of cake with confectioner’s sugar just prior to serving.

Enjoy!

Links for Helpful Kitchen Tools & Ingredients for Vínarterta:

Cuisinart Pro-Classic Food Processor

Kitchen Aid Artisan Stand Mixer

Baker’s Ammonia (ammonium carbonate)

Icelandic Food & Cookery by Nanna Rögnvaldardóttir

Travel Planning Guide:

Covid-19 Information: Please make sure you familiarize yourself with all of the Icelandic Government’s travel requirements BEFORE you head out. All of the official information can be found here.

I Heart Reykjavik– An invaluable resource for all things Iceland! I Heart Reykjavik is a small, family run company that offers you personalized service. Planning a holiday can certainly be stressful which has become even more so with rapidly changing safety requirements due to Covid 19. I Heart Reykjavik is keeping up to date with all of the government guidelines and can provide guidance here. Additionally, they can help you plan a fantastic vacation to Iceland in a couple of ways. You can browse and book tours directly on their website. The advantage here is that I Heart Reykjavik has vetted all of the companies on their carefully curated list. Often they have even gone out on the tours and you can read a review of their experience on their blog. Their recommendations can save you a ton of time pouring over tours and reviews online and let you know which company you can best trust with your money . Another advantage is that if you book all of your tours through them and then a unforeseen change due to the weather or some sort of thing, I Heart Reykjavik can suggest changes to your itinerary and assist you with rebooking. And speaking of itineraries, if you are the type of person who likes to plan out everything yourself, I Heart Reykjavik can still be of assistance. They offer an Itinerary Review service, where they can take a look at your upcoming plans and make sure everything makes sense – such as if you have allowed enough travel time. They can give you feedback concerning accommodation and alert you if there is a must see in the area you are visiting which has not found it’s way into your plans. They are truly an invaluable resource!

Getting There: Icelandair! We love Icelandair and have always had great experience with them. Take advantage of their Stopover program on your next flight to Europe.

Car Rental:  Blue Car Rental: We ALWAYS rent our car from Blue Car Rental. Friendly Icelandic company, well maintained, newer, quality vehicles – they’ve never let us down and at this point we have rented from them on six different visits and have had excellent experiences every time. The price they quote on their website has all of the insurance included so there are no surprizes when you show up at their rental desk. Highly recommend!

Accommodation: The Garage – Studio Apartments – One of our favorite places to stay in Iceland! Located on the South Coast of Iceland, between Seljalandfoss & Skógafoss waterfalls. This picturesque homestead is nestled right up to the foot of the mountain topped by the Eyjafjallajökull glacier, under which the famous air traffic interrupting volcano resides. These lovely modern rustic apartments were originally built from a former old garage that is located on a family farm belonging to Anna & Siggi. Since they built the original apartments, they have expanded and built a few more in a previous cow shed and most recently have remodeled a Haytower. These cozy apartments are studios, some of which are standard and some slightly bigger with a pull out sofa bed to accommodate extra guests. The Haytower is the biggest unit and is a full one bedroom apartment. You can book with The Garage here.(booking.com)

Tour Companies:

Midgard Adventure: I highly recommend you book a tour with Midgard. Midgard is a local family run business located in Hvolsvöllur. They offer single day and multiday tours which can be either private and shared. The shared tours are always with a small group. No massive bus tours here, just thoughtful personal service.They are skilled at helping you plan your whole itinerary as well should you desire and being locals they have first hand knowledge of the area as well as the hidden gems off the beaten path. As I have mentioned we have enjoyed four different tours with them, and on each occasion it has ended up being one of the highlights of our trip. Consistent excellence is hard to find! They are a pleasure to deal with from the first email until your action packed day has come to an end. Everyone I have ever met there is friendly, helpful and professional.  And I should mention that Midgard now has a Basecamp. They can offer both hotel as well as hostel style accommodation in their beautiful facility which also boasts a restaurant, bar, and roof top hot tub and sauna. The Husband and I haven’t had the pleasure of staying with them yet, but we did grab a delicious breakfast in their restaurant before heading out for our adventure. We are planning a Highlands Adventure, which we will of course be booking with Midgard, so we will let you know!

Restaurants:

Gamla Fjósið (The Old Cow House) – Located just off of Route 1, about 2 km away from the Garage Apartments. Cozy family run restaurant featuring delicious comfort food prepared with locally sourced (often from their own farm) fresh ingredients. Delicious homemade bread, jams and ice cream.

Midgard Basecamp – The Restaurant at Midgard Basecamp has it all! Serving food based on their Icelandic heritage, they offer everything from pasture raised lamb, to fresh caught fish, to juicy burgers. And if you are a vegetarian or vegan there are plenty of delicious offerings to choose from as well.   Check out their wonderful Breakfast Buffet and come back in the evening for a great dinner. They also carry a good selection of the locally crafted brews.

Misc:

The Reykjavik Grapevine: A witty English language Icelandic magazine. Great read whether or not you’re planning a visit! And if you are planning a visit make sure to check out their annual “Best of” edition where they give you a curated list of the best of everything to be found in the country!

Icelandic Meteorologic Office – Great for checking the weather before you go and essential while you are visiting – especially if you are visiting in the Winter! They also have an app you can have on your phone which I definitely recommend. The weather in Iceland can change suddenly. Be prepared!

Kjötsúpa – Icelandic Lamb Soup

Today I’m going to share with you a delicious recipe for Kjötsúpa – Icelandic Lamb Soup. Kjötsúpa actually means “meat soup”, but in Iceland the meat will almost always be lamb.

The Husband absolutely loves to get a bowl of this when we visit Iceland. So I really wanted to try to find an authentic recipe that would taste a close as possible as I could get it to the soup we enjoy there. And the happy news is that this recipe, along with a secret ingredient I will tell you about a bit later, has done the trick!

Annnnd…I also want to tell you all about a trip to Iceland that the Husband and I took with our parents in tow back in September 2018. You see? I am making progress writing up travel posts on the backlog of trips we have taken. What with the quarantine grounding us, I will soon be caught up and maybe then can actually post about eagerly awaited upcoming trips in a more timely fashion. (Hope springs eternal…) Anyhoo…Iceland has opened its borders to tourists from the Schengen area, EU/EEA, EFTA and UK Nationals, on June 15th, and plans at this point, to open to most countries from outside of the Schengen area on July 1st. Originally this was to include folks from the U.S. Much to my dismay, it looks like the US will now be excluded since Covid-19 cases are still on the increase here. Now be aware, Iceland has not just thrown their borders open willy-nilly. They have done a magnificent job managing Covid-19 for their citizens and are not just throwing caution to the wind at this point. So be aware that until further notice, anyone arriving in Iceland, with a few exceptions, will need to fill out a pre-registration form BEFORE they jump on a plane. You can find this form, along with official Icelandic government information on Covid 19, here. Basically folks arriving at Keflavik airport will either need to go immediately into 2 week quarantine, or will be required to have a PCR test done. The results of the test will be available 3 -5 hours later. And you will be encouraged to download the contract tracing app Rakning C-19 to your phone as well. After you have successfully navigated the safety measures which the Icelandic government has put in place to protect its citizens and visitors alike, this blog might be of some help to you with your planning for the rest of your adventures in the country. Make sure you take a look at all of the travel links I have listed at the end of this post and if you are still looking for further inspiration, you can also take a look at previous travel posts I have done on Iceland.

By September 2018, the Husband and I had visited Iceland eight times (as of this writing, we have visited the country eleven times and are eagerly monitoring the Icelandic governments Covid-19 travel guidelines, so that we can get back for or twelfth trip). Our parents had heard all about it from us and were eager to experience it themselves. Seeing the Northern Lights was on the Father-in-law’s bucket list. So we decided to play tour guides and show them around. You read a lot about planning kid friendly holidays/vacations, but not so much about parent friendly ones. The Husband and I usually incorporate a lot of hiking and outdoor activities in our travels. But we knew that would not really be appropriate or quite frankly of interest to the Parents, whose ages range from mid 70’s to early 80’s. They would want a more sightseeing type of itinerary. We only had one week to work with, so we did not feel that a rushed driving around the entire ring road would be a good experience for them. We know that the South Coast of Iceland is gorgeous, has lots to offer and is easily accessible from the airport. This seemed like an ideal spot to take the parents. And although we have been there many times ourselves, we can never get enough of any part of Iceland, so off we went. We chose to go early in the month of September because the weather is still (hopefully – you never know with Iceland) good, it is dark enough for Northern Lights at night and there was not likely to be any snow or ice where we were visiting (a couple of the parents do have some mobility issues).

We flew with Icelandair, rented a big SUV from Blue Car Rental and set out for the South Coast. The Lava Centre in Hvolsvöllur was our first stop. The Lava Centre sits squarely between five of Iceland’s greatest volcanos. This new award winning attraction provides a multimedia interactive experience on Iceland’s formation, earthquakes and its many volcanos. Great introduction to the country!

Then we headed off to our hotel. We had booked with Hótel Rangá for our first two nights. Back in December 2012 as well as December 2013, the Husband and I had stayed with them for four wonderful nights in their Antarctica Suite.

Antarctica Suite at Hotel Rangá

We had told the Parents all about it. And the Mom had seen it on one of those Housewives shows, so she was very intrigued.

Hótel Rangá is the only 4 star resort in South Iceland. This lovely boutique hotel is situated rather remotely next to the East Rangá river, somewhat near the small town of Hella. This remote location, far from city lights make it an ideal place to view the Northern Lights should they make an appearance. Being well aware that many of their guests are keenly interested in viewing this natural wonder, the hotel offers a service where you can sign up to be notified if the lights do show up.

Amazing Northern Lights we saw at Hotel Rangá on our first visit in December 2012.

The quirky decor is reminiscent of a hunting lodge

and there are several geothermal hot tubs available if you need a good soak.

This was the perfect place to stay at the beginning of our journey. Everyone was very tired after the overnight flight and the folks at Rangá, friendly and charming as always, had us relax in their plush upstairs lounge, while our rooms were readied. They were even able to get us in a bit early.

Another great reason to stay at Rangá is their amazing restaurant which serves modern Nordic cuisine with and emphasis on locally sourced ingredients.

The next day, after partaking in their extensive Champagne buffet breakfast, we piled into the car to check out the Golden Circle. First stop: Geysir! As if you hadn’t guessed, Geysir is a geyser. In fact it is from Geysir that we get the word geyser. Geysa is an old Norse verb meaning “to gush”. Geysir doesn’t actually erupt very regularly at this point. However, Strokkur, another geyser nearby, is very predictable, erupting every 5 -7 minutes.

Then onto to Gullfoss or the Golden Waterfall. One of Iceland’s most iconic waterfalls, the water cascades down over several levels.

The Husband wasn’t about to pass up the chance for a bowl of Kjötsúpa at the Gullfoss Kaffi, which is located inside the visitor center. Now I usually wouldn’t recommend dining in a touristy shop, but I gotta admit – you should get a bowl of Kjötsúpa here. We had enjoyed it on a previous visit and knew it was really tasty. Trust me!

Then on to Þingvellir National Park . This World UNESCO site is gorgeous!

And lucky us, we did have a small glimpse of those elusive Northern Lights that evening.

The third day we headed east towards the lovely village of Vík, taking in Seljalandfoss waterfall along the way.

The weather was not too bad that day, and the Husband and I have all of the waterproof kit at this point, so we did walk behind it. The Parents decided to sit that one out.

Magestic Skógafoss was next on the itinerary.

Continuing eastwards, our next stop was at Sólheimajökull, a glacial tongue of Mýrdalsjökull. We didn’t go for a glacial hike while there, but just took in views.

Then onto Dyrhólaey

and Vík í Mýdral’s (often just known as Vík) black sand beach.

According to legend, those large basalt columns, or sea stacks that you see right off the coast are trolls which didn’t make it back inside before sunrise and were subsequently turned into stone.

We had definitely seen a lot on our first three days in Iceland. To see all the live action take a peek at the video below. And stay tuned to see what we get up to on day four!

But wait – don’t go! I have yet to tell you about today’s featured recipe. Kjötsúpa is a vey traditional soup and each Icelandic family likely has their own version of it. Some folks have been known to thicken the soup with rice or oatmeal, but this version remains very soup-like in consistency. Homey and very comforting, it is just the thing to warm you on any chilly day.

As I mentioned, I am quite pleased with this recipe because it tastes very similar to the Kjötsúpa we have enjoyed in Iceland. I think this is due in no small part to a secret ingredient, which gives it such an authentic flavor.

I will keep it a secret no longer – Icelandic Soup Herbs. This is a mixture of arctic thyme, birch leaves, bilberry and juniper. You can find this in pretty much any grocery store in Iceland and I’ve included a link at the bottom where you can purchase it online. It will truly make a big difference. So, what are you waiting for? Make up a big pot of this Kjötsúpa to fortify you while you plan your Icelandic adventure!

Kjötsúpa - Islandic Lamb Soup

• Servings: 4
• Difficulty: easy
• Print

recipe from: Icelandic Food & Cookery by Nanna Rögnvaldardóttir

Ingredients:

• 2 pounds lamb on the bone
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 onion or leek, chopped
• 1 -2 Tablespoons soup herbs (see note that follows)
• 1 pound rutabaga (or turnips), peeled and chopped
• 1/2 pound carrots, peeled and sliced
• 1/2 pound potatoes, peeled and chopped
• 1 cup green cabbage, roughly chopped

Directions:

Trim excess fat from the meat. Place it in a large dutch oven. Add 6 cups water and salt. Slowly bring to a boil. Add pepper, soup herbsand onions. Continue to simmer for 45 minutes.

Add all of the vegetables, except for the cabbage, to the pot and continue to simmer for 15 more minutes.

Add the cabbage and simmer until all of the vegetable are fork tender.

Remove the meat from the soup. Separate out the bones and chop the meat into bite sized pieces. Add back to the soup.

Taste and adjust seasoning as necessary.

You can serve this soup immediately, however we usually let soup sit overnight to develop the flavors. If you so choose to rest the soup,  let it cool and then put in refrigerator overnight. Another great thing about letting the soup rest in the fridge overnight is that it is easy to skim off any excess fat, as it solidifies on top. Reheat soup and garnish with fresh parsley, chives or chopped celery leaves.

*Icelandic soup herbs are a mixture of thyme, birch leaves, bilberry and juniper. I have included a link where you can purchase it online. That is if you don’t remember to pick so up while you are visiting Iceland. Good substitutions are thyme, parsley, bay leaves.

Enjoy!

Links for Helpful Kitchen Tools & Ingredients for Kjotsupa:

Icelandic Food & Cookery by Nanna Rögnvaldardóttir – great cookbook!

Urta Villikrydd (wild herbs) – Soup herbs I mentioned above. This link is for a site called Nammi which sells all sorts of Icelandic products. Nammi also sells another brand of soup herbs (Sûpujurtir), but I have not tried it.

Links for Planning a Parent Friendly vacation in Iceland:

Covid-19 Information: Please make sure you familiarize yourself with all of the Icelandic Government’s travel requirements BEFORE you head out. All of the official information can be found here.

Travel Planning Guide:

I Heart Reykjavik– An invaluable resource for all things Iceland! I Heart Reykjavik is a small, family run company that offers you personalized service. Planning a holiday can certainly be stressful which has become even more so with rapidly changing safety requirements due to Covid 19. I Heart Reykjavik is keeping up to date with all of the government guidelines and can provide guidance here. Additionally, they can help you plan a fantastic vacation to Iceland in a couple of ways. You can browse and book tours directly on their website. The advantage here is that I Heart Reykjavik has vetted all of the companies on their carefully curated list. Often they have even gone out on the tours and you can read a review of their experience on their blog. Their recommendations can save you a ton of time pouring over tours and reviews online and let you know which company you can best trust with your money . Another advantage is that if you book all of your tours through them and then a unforeseen change due to the weather or some sort of thing, I Heart Reykjavik can suggest changes to your itinerary and assist you with rebooking. And speaking of itineraries, if you are the type of person who likes to plan out everything yourself, I Heart Reykjavik can still be of assistance. They offer an Itinerary Review service, where they can take a look at your upcoming plans and make sure everything makes sense – such as if you have allowed enough travel time. They can give you feedback concerning accommodation and alert you if there is a must see in the area you are visiting which has not found it’s way into your plans. They are truly an invaluable resource!

Getting There: Icelandair! We love Icelandair and have always had great experience with them. Take advantage of their Stopover program on your next flight to Europe.

Car Rental:  Blue Car Rental: We ALWAYS rent our car from Blue Car Rental. Friendly Icelandic company, well maintained, newer, quality vehicles – they’ve never let us down and at this point we have rented from them on six different visits and have had excellent experiences every time. The price they quote on their website has all of the insurance included so there are no surprizes when you show up at their rental desk. Highly recommend!

Accommodation:

Hótel Rangá – Gorgeous 4 star boutique hotel, decorated in a rustic hunting lodge or ski resort style. It is located out in the country (hence no light pollution), about two hours from Reykjavik. Hotel Rangá caters to folks hoping to get a glimpse of the Northern Lights and will give you a wake up call should you desire if the elusive lights do make an appearance. The rooms range from cozy standards to quirky spacious suites. Expansive breakfast buffet. Comfortable laid back lounges. Relaxing geothermal hot tubs, private observatory with telescopes for sky gazing and an on site restaurant serving up delicious modern Nordic cuisine. All of that with a friendly, helpful & welcoming staff. Highly recommended.

Destinations:

The Lava Centre: Located in Hvolsvöllur, The Lava Centre sits squarely between five of Iceland’s greatest volcanos. This new award winning attraction provides a multimedia interactive experience on Iceland’s formation, earthquakes and its many volcanos. Great introduction to the country!

The Golden Circle: This popular tour route usually begins Reykjavik, loops around for 140 miles to include three stunning locations: Þingvellir National Park, Geysir Geothermal Area & Gullfoss Waterfall and then ends up back in Reykjavik. It generally takes 3 1/2 hours to complete the drive and that is without stopping at all, which I don’t know why anyone would want to do that. So, it is definitely an all day activity when you factor in stops along the way. Many tour companies offer Golden Circle tours. If you are interested in driving it yourself, take a look at I Heart Reykjavik’s Guide. Here you will find answers to many of the questions you might have as well as a google driving map which not only includes the three main areas of interests, but also restaurants along the way, and other attractions which you might want to add to your itinerary.

Geysir Geothermal Area – See the original Geysir as well as Strokkur and other geothermal attractions.

Þingvellir National Park– Unesco World Heritage Site. First Icelandic Parliament, or Alþingi, was held here in the year 930 AD. It is also the place where you can see the rift between the Eurasian and the North American tectonic plates. You can literally walk between the continents.

Gullfoss – Stunning multi level waterfall located on Hvítá river in south Iceland. Gull means “Gold” in Icelandic and Foss means “waterfall” – hence Golden Falls. One of Iceland’s most iconic waterfalls.

Seljalandfoss – A beautiful waterfall located just off of Route 1 on the South Coast. If the weather is good and you don’t mind getting a bit wet, you can walk behind this waterfall.

Skógafoss – Another beautiful waterfall located just off of Route1 on the South Coast. Due to the amount of spray from the falls, if the sun is out you will likely see a rainbow in front of it.

Sólheimajökull– A glacial tongue of Mýrdalsjökull located just off Route 1 on the South Coast of Iceland.

Reynisfjara Black Sand Beach– Famous picturesque black sand beach located near the village of Vík. Please be careful at this beach. The waves and rip currents are quite powerful. There are sneaker waves which can seemingly come out of nowhere and travel much further up the beach than expected, knocking you off your feet and potentially pulling you out to the freezing sea. Never turn your back to the waves. Unfortunately there have been several fatalities at this beach.

Dyrhólaey Peninsula – Stunning views of Iceland’s south coast and over to Reynisfjara Beach.

Kanilterta (Icelandic Cinnamon Cake)

Today I would like to share this Icelandic recipe for Kanilterta with you. This delicious treat boasts four layers of cinnamon spiced buttery cake separated by sweet vanilla whipped cream & topped with silky decadent chocolate. I even bet you have all the ingredients necessary to make it in your pantry right now.

Oh, and I also want to tell you all about our visit to Iceland for an amazing Ice Cave adventure back in February 2018.

Now I know when folks are planning a get away in February they might be dreaming of a sunny Caribbean island or something. Iceland might not be the country that comes to mind. However, anyone who knows me, or has read my blog at all knows the Husband and I are not beach people at all. We much prefer the colder climes and absolutely love Iceland at anytime of the year. We had taken a trip to Scotland to go to Up Helly Aa– Europe’s largest Viking fire festival, which takes place at the end of January. So we decided to take advantage of Icelandair’s Stopover offer. You see, if you fly to any of their destinations you can add an up to a 7 day stopover in Iceland at no charge! So it was a no brainer for us. We actually ended up spending one night in Iceland on the way to Scotland and then spent an additional 6 nights on the way back to Virginia.

And in addition to Icelander’s fantastic Stopover offer, on certain flights they also offer the option to “Class Up” from economy seats to Saga Premium. So, how it works is 10 days prior to an eligible flight, you will receive an email asking if you would like to place a bid. You are then able to decide the amount you are willing to pay, in addition to the cost of your original ticket, to have a Saga class seat.

You should keep in mind that it is per seat. So if you bid $200 and there are two of you on the ticket, then you have actually bid $400. And this is per segment of the flight. So if you have a roundtrip flight, you would be bidding on the flight over as well as the flight back. If your bid is not accepted, nothing changes with your original ticket. You still have the same seats. However if your bid is accepted, you will find yourself in Saga Class. We made a bid and it was accepted!

Our flight arrived in Iceland around 6:30 am and we were not headed on to Scotland until 7 am the next morning. So we chose to stay close to the airport rather than to travel into Reykjavik. Tired after our overnight flight, we checked into the Silica Hotel at the famous Blue Lagoon.

The Blue Lagoon is located near the town of Grindavik and is only about a 15 – 20 minute drive from the airport. The Silica Hotel is only about a 3 minute drive, or a short stroll through the beautiful green moss covered lava fields, from the Blue Lagoon. Needless to say, we arrived well before our check-in time, but were able to take advantage of their abundant breakfast buffet while we waited for our room. Since the hotel was not very busy, being February and all, they were able to get us into our room a bit early.

View from our room at The Silica Hotel

After some shut eye, we took a stroll over to the Blue Lagoon

Strolling through the lava fields

to enjoy a delicious dinner at the Lava Restaurant.

We did not spend any time in the actual lagoon at the Blue Lagoon on this trip. We have several times in the past and truly enjoy it and do recommend it, even if it is a bit touristy. There is a reason why folks love it! And I should mention that when you book a room at the Silica Hotel, premium entrance to the Blue Lagoon is included. That is really quite a perk, especially in the summer time. The Blue Lagoon has become so popular at this point, it is unlikely that you could gain entrance without booking in advance. But there is also even another perk to staying at the Silica Hotel – they have their own private lagoon for folks staying with them! How awesome is that!!!

Now there isn’t a swim up bar, like there is in the main Blue Lagoon, however you can place a drink order with one of the Silica employees and they will deliver it to you while you soak in the Silica Lagoon. The Husband and I loved this little private oasis. Not crowded at all, very quiet. We spent quite a while relaxing and unwinding here on the first night of our trip!

After all of our adventures in Scotland, we arrived back in Iceland and taxied into Reykjavik. We had been dreaming of visiting an Ice Cave for sometime and February was the perfect time to go on an Ice Cave adventure. You see, it needs to be cold to safely visit an Ice Cave, so most of these tours take place from October – March. February was just perfect! So I booked a two day tour, which would take us and a small number of other guests (no more than 8) out along the South Coast, stopping to visit Seljalandfoss & Skógafoss Waterfalls, the Reynisfjara Black Sand beach, and Fjaðrárgljúfur Canyon. Then we would spend the night at the tour group’s cottage, have a traditional Icelandic dinner and enjoy the Northern Lights if possible. The second day we would visit the Diamond Beach, Jökulsárlón, walk on a glacier, go to an Ice Cave and then be back in Reykjavik by around 21:00 – 22:00. Two full days without a doubt! Even though we had seen a lot of the South Coast, we were happy to see it again. And even happier to sit back and let some other folks do the driving. On the day our tour began it was raining. And I don’t mean just a little drizzly, just spitting a bit…I mean all out, cats and dogs, RAINING! Sure, it will let up soon I thought…HA! If anything it intensified throughout the day! But we didn’t let it stop us! We had all our waterproof gear at the ready.

Drenched at Seljalandfoss.

Soggy at Skógafoss

Soaked before the Basalt columns at Reynisfjara Beach

Drowned at Fjaðrárgljúfur Canyon

 

We arrived in a big water-logged heap at the cottage, which was quite charming and thankfully warm.

The tour company had prepared a lovely Icelandic lamb dinner for us. But first they wanted us to try an Icelandic national delicacy – Hákarl, which translates to rotten or putrefied shark. Yup, you read that right. You see Greenlands shark meat is actually poisonous when fresh due to its high levels of urea and trimethylamine oxide. However after it is buried in sand and pressed down by stones, hung to dry for weeks and then cured for a month or so more, it is just fine! Usually eating a bit is followed quickly by taking a shot of Brennivín – an Icelandic liquor also known as Black Death. The Husband is allergic to seafood, so he got a pass on the putrefied shark and merely concentrate on the shots of Death. Lucky me, I got to sample both. Hmmmm… Rotten Shark & Black Death…what could go wrong?

So how did it taste? Well, the smell was worse than the taste. The taste wasn’t great, but probably not the worst thing ever, though I certainly have not found myself craving either. Needless to say, the Northern Lights did not make an appearance that night. Or if they did , the heavy cloud cover and pouring rain obscured them. But, good news, when we woke in the morning the rain had decided to move on. It was cold and windy, but all things considered and knowing what it was like just the day before, not too bad for February in Iceland. We ate breakfast and then set out for the day. First stop, Diamond Beach & Jökulsárlón.

And finally, the time had arrived! We met up with some local ice cave guides, boarded their modified 4X4 and set off on a very bumpy ride towards Vatnajokull to explore an ice cave!

Ice caves in Iceland are formed from beneath by the canals of water which run under the glaciers. In the summer these caves are often filled with water and impassible, but with the coming of cold water they freeze and voila – ICE CAVE! Incredibly otherworldly and stunningly beautiful – I’ll just let my pictures do the talking:

 

We not only got to see a traditional ice cave, but after a short walk across the glacier, we got to see a convertible type of ice cave – you know…one with the roof off. Really, it was more like a fissure in the glacier. Also, incredibly beautiful.

And the great news is that new caves form every year, so you could likely go again and again and it would always be different!

Alas, it was time to head back to Reykjavik. We stopped for a short look see at Svínafellsjökull (the glacier where the scenes from North of the Wall in Game of Thrones were filmed), but then got right on the road.

I had been monitoring the weather on my phone throughout the day and was worried about a storm that was moving in. Sure enough, the weather soon turned bad. We thought rain was a problem, but not so much. What we ended up with on the way back to the city was much worse – very windy and driving snow. There was little visibility, multiple cars had gone off the road and driving was treacherous!

When we finally arrived in Hveragerði at the foot of the Hellisheidi Mountain Pass, the one that we needed to take to get back into Reykjavik…yeah, that one…we found that it was impassable and closed.

We sat and waited to see if a plow might make it across the mountain somehow, but after about an hour and some consulting with other stuck tour drivers as well as the police, we realized that we were going to have to go around. Yeah….go around a mountain! Thus turning what should have been about a 40 minute drive over the pass into a 2 hour + blizzard driving odyssey! But I gotta give it to our driver. He was awesome. Calm and confident. We finally showed up back in the city around 2 am! Let me tell you, that was the point where we were really glad we weren’t the ones doing the driving, but rather were in the expert hands of a driver who was experienced driving in Iceland’s tricky, ever-changing winter weather. Although this two day Ice Cave trip turned out a little different than we might have imagined, we ended up having a fantastic time and quite an adventure!

The rest of our time in Iceland we spent relaxing in Reykjavik. We stayed in an AirBnB which was in a great location and had a lovely view.

We went shopping and wandered about town

took in the street art

stopped for coffee at Reykjavik Roasters,

visited our favorite restaurants like Íslenski Barinn and Snaps,

enjoyed a kanilsnúðar or two from Brauð & Co.

and stopped by our favorite bars

and of course, ate a hot dog or two or so…

 We were lucky that the Winter Lights Festival was taking place while we were there. This festival is an annual February event in Reykjavik which celebrates both the Winter world and the growing sunlight after a long period of darkness. Every night during the festival various buildings throughout the city have light installations. You can get a map and stroll through the city to see them all.

And we got even more snow, which made me a very, very happy camper. So yeah, February is a great time to visit Iceland! To see all the action as it happened, take a look at this video:

But oh yeah, I was supposed to tell you about his Kanilterta. This traditional Icelandic cake was often baked around the Christmas holidays and served with hot chocolate on Christmas Day. However, in recent years it has lost some of its popularity, being seen as rather old fashioned. Old fashioned it may be, and perhaps not very polished or fancy looking, but it is truly delicious!

I know I’ve told you before that the Husband doesn’t really like sweet desserts. Well, he absolutely LOVED this cake. Has asked for multiple slices!

The layers are more like a cookie or soft shortbread than a traditional layer cake. They are incredibly buttery and decadent. The vanilla whipped cream between the layers serves to light each bite.The top layer of silky dark chocolate is absolutely amazing. Where has this cake been all of my life?!!

 

Wonderfully rich and buttery with warm cinnamon and chocolate notes, this Kanilterta is absolutely irresistible! It is welcome all year round in our house. Once you give it a whirl, I’ll bet you’ll be hooked too!

 

• Servings: 12- 14 slices
• Difficulty: easy
• Print

recipe slightly modified from: Þjóðlegt með kaffinu

Ingredients:

• 260 grams salted butter
• 350 grams sugar
• 2 eggs
• 300 grams all purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 4 dl  (400 ml or 13.5 oz) cream
• 3 Tablespoons confectioner’s sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste (or vanilla extract)
• 75 grams dark chocolate
• 1 Tablespoon butter

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350° F (175° C).

In the bowl of a stand mixer, mix butter and sugar until pale and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, mixing until incorporated.

In a separate bowl, sift the flour and cinnamon together. Add flour mixture to the butter mixture. Mix until just combined.

Butter four to six 8″ round cake pans and line with parchment. Divide the dough equally between the pans and spread it out into an even layer. Or, if you do not have the round pans, you can draw 4 – 6 circles measuring 8″ in diameter on parchment paper and bake on a cookie sheet.

Bake each layer for 12 -15 minutes or until set. I baked four layers. If you are making six layers, the baking time will likely be closer to 8 – 10 minutes. Allow to cool completely on wire rack.

Whip cream until it starts to thicken. Add confectioners sugar, cream of tartar and vanilla bean paste and continue to whip until stiff peaks form. Spread whipped cream mixture evenly between each layer of the cake, leaving the top layer bare.

Place layered cake in refrigerator or freezer briefly while you prepare chocolate for the top layer. Melt chocolate and butter over low heat.

Once chocolate has cooled to room temperature, spread chocolate over the top layer of the cake.

Enjoy!

Kanilterta brought to you today by: Runcible Eats (www.leaandjay.com)

Links for Helpful Kitchen Tools & Ingredients for Kanilterta:

OXO Good Grips Stainless Steel Food Scale

8″ Round non-stick cake pan

Nielsen-Massey Pure Vanilla Bean Paste

Valhrona French Chocolate Pearls – This is what I used to decorate the top of the cake. It is a crispy bit of cereal coated in dark chocolate. This link if for a much, much bigger bag than you would need for just this dessert, but I wanted to let you know what I had used.

Links for Planning your vacation in February in Iceland:

Getting There: Icelandair! We love Icelandair and have always had great experience with them. Take advantage of their Stopover program on your next flight to Europe.

Accommodation: 

Silica Hotel at Blue Lagoon: Lovely hotel with its own private lagoon for guests. Extensive breakfast buffet and very close to Keflavik Airport as well as (of course) the Blue Lagoon.

Once in Reykjavik, we stayed in an AirBnB on this visit. Planet Apartments were the folks who managed the unit we stayed in. They have several lovely apartments with great views of the sea. Very friendly & helpful folks to work with.

Car Rental – We did not actually rent a car this time, but relied on taxis. When we do rent a car, here is the company we love:

Blue Car Rental: We ALWAYS rent our car from Blue Car Rental. Friendly Icelandic company, well maintained, newer, quality vehicles – they’ve never let us down and at this point we have rented from them on six different visits and have had excellent experiences every time. The price they quote on their website has all of the insurance included so there are no surprizes when you show up at their rental desk. Highly recommend!

Tours: So visiting an Ice Cave was a lot of fun. We definitely recommend it. I did want to take this time though to impart some advice. Visiting an ice cave is weather dependent in a couple of ways. First of all you need to visit between the months of November – March, when the weather is cold enough that the caves are more stable. Second of all, weather in Iceland is unpredictable. Tours are often cancelled in the winter, so you need to try to remain flexible and go into it knowing your tour might be cancelled due to the weather. That being said, you have to consider how you will be getting to the ice cave. Some of the best caves are located in Vatnjökull, which is about a 5+ hour drive from Reykjavik. You could drive yourself out that way to meet up with a tour – a lot leave from Jökulsárlón. However, keep in mind you will be driving in Iceland during the Winter, so you might end up having to deal with less than favorable to downright dangerous winter driving conditions.  Rather than driving yourself, you could book a tour which leaves from Reykjavik and let a local do the driving, like we did. A word of caution here – although they do offer day tours out to Jökulsárlón, I do not recommend them. You will spend at least 10 hours driving – so that is a long day in a car. And keep in mind, the days have less daylight hours at this time of year, so most of it will be in the dark. I think a two or three day tour is a better option. I bet you think that the two day Ice Cave & South Shore tour that we took looked like a lot of fun. It really was and I would have recommended the tour company that we used with out hesitation. The problem is that they sadly ended up going bankrupt in 2019. However, I know a lot of other tour groups out there do similar tours to this one. Which brings me to my actual recommendation here: I Heart Reykjavik! If you are familiar with my past recommendations for Iceland, you will be familiar with this company. We have gone on a couple of walking tours of Reykjavik with them which were fantastic! It was as if you had a local friend there who was able to give you the inside tip on the best restaurants, pubs and shops while telling you all about the city. And I also follow their blog, which offers just a ton of useful advice and tips for your visit.

I Heart Reykjavik– An invaluable resource for all things Iceland! I Heart Reykjavik is a small, family run company that offers you personalized service. They can help you plan a fantastic vacation to Iceland in a couple of ways. You can browse and book tours directly on their website. The advantage here is that I Heart Reykjavik has vetted all of the companies on their carefully curated list. Often they have even gone out on the tours and you can read a review of their experience on their blog. Their recommendations can save you a ton of time pouring over tours and reviews online and let you know which company you can best trust with your money . Another advantage is that if you book all of your tours through them and then a unforeseen change due to the weather or some sort of thing, I Heart Reykjavik can suggest changes to your itinerary and assist you with rebooking. And speaking of itineraries, if you are the type of person who likes to plan out everything yourself, I Heart Reykjavik can still be of assistance. They offer an Itinerary Review service, where they can take a look at your upcoming plans and make sure everything makes sense – such as if you have allowed enough travel time. They can give you feedback concerning accommodation and alert you if there is a must see in the area you are visiting which has not found it’s way into your plans. They are truly an invaluable resource!

Here is a link to an excellent, informative blog post I Heart Reykjavik wrote about visiting Ice Caves just last year. They can help you find the best tried & tested company to take you on an Ice Cave Adventure, according to your individual needs.

Destinations:

Seljalandfoss – A beautiful waterfall located just off of Route 1 on the South Coast. If the weather is good and you don’t mind getting a bit wet, you can walk behind this waterfall.

Skógafoss – Another beautiful waterfall located just off of Route1 on the South Coast. Due to the amount of spray from the falls, if the sun is out you will likely see a rainbow in front of it.

Reynisfjara Black Sand Beach– Famous picturesque black sand beach located near the village of Vík. Please be careful at this beach. The waves and rip currents are quite powerful. There are sneaker waves which can seemingly come out of nowhere and travel much further up the beach than expected, knocking you off your feet and potentially pulling you out to the freezing sea. Never turn your back to the waves. Unfortunately there have been several fatalities at this beach.

Fjaðrárgljúfur Canyon – Stunning canyon located near the village of Kirkjubæjarklaustur in South Iceland. In Season 8 of Game of Thrones you can see the Dragons fly through this snow covered canyon. The vegetation in the canyon suffered from the amount of tourists and it was closed until June 2019, to allow it to recover.

Svínafellsjökull– An outlet glacier of Vatnajökull located in Skaftafell Nature Reserve. Game of Thrones filmed many of season 7’s North of the Wall scenes here.

Jökulsárlón – is a large lake which was formed by a glacier (glacial lagoon). It is located in southeast Iceland, on the edge of Vatnajökull National Park. Bits of the Vatnajökull glacier break off (calve) into the lake, forming icebergs. These icebergs float around until they melt enough to fit through the narrow opening of the lake and drift out into the ocean.

Diamond Beach– A black sand beach near Jökulsárlón often peppered with icebergs which have calved from the glacier, traveled out to the ocean and then washed back up on the beach.

Restaurant/Bars:

Íslenski Barinn– Love, love, love! Delicious food & local brews in a comfortable, cozy setting.

Kaldi Bar Fun & hip Bar featuring beers from the Kaldi Brewery

Ölstofa Kormáks og Skjaldar (Kormakur’s and Skjöldur’s alehouse) – Or just plain Ölstofan –house brew Brío is not to be missed!

Baejarins Beztu Pylsur – Legendary Icelandic Hot Dog stand in Reykjavik. A one a day must for the Husband while we are visiting the city!

Reykjavik Roasters– Best coffee & vibe. Love the cinnamon scones!

Brauð & Company– Bakes my most favorite in the world kanilsnúðar!

Snaps Bistro– Laid back, French style bistro, serving up delicious cocktails and amazing breakfast, brunch, lunch and dinners. A favorite with locals and tourists a like.

Misc:

Þjóðlegt með kaffinu – Besides being a Facebook page, there is also a cookbook penned by Jón Símonía Bjarnadóttir & Gudfinna Hreidarsdóttir. It is available in English, Danish & German. You can purchase it when you visit Iceland or contact them at icelandiccakes@google.com

The Reykjavik Grapevine: A witty English language Icelandic magazine. Great read whether or not you’re planning a visit! And if you are planning a visit make sure to check out their annual “Best of” edition where they give you a curated list of the best of everything to be found in the country!

Icelandic Meteorologic Office – Great for checking the weather before you go and essential while you are visiting – especially if you are visiting in the Winter! They also have an app you can have on your phone which I definitely recommend. The weather in Iceland can change suddenly. Be prepared!