Japanese Miso Soup

Miso is a fermented soybean paste, which serves as a staple ingredient in Japanese cuisine. Miso soup is a deliciously light starter for the summer months.  Miso paste and instant dashi can be easily found in any Asian supermarket.

150 grams of spinach
1 carrot
250 grams of tofu
750 ml instant dashi broth

70 grams of miso paste
1 teaspoon soy sauce
2 spring onions
1 piece of dried wakame seaweed

1 radish

1/2 teaspoon Mirin vinegar (optional)

Soak the wakame seaweed in a bowl for 30 minutes. Clean, wash and drain the spinach and spring onions and place in a bowl. Clean, wash and cut the radish into thin slices. Pat dry tofu with a cloth or kitchen roll and cut into 1 cm (or bitesized) cubes and place on a plate. Pour the dashi broth into a pot and place on high heat for 2 minutes (however, make sure not to boil). Whisk the miso paste into the broth and reduce heat to medium. Add spinach, radishes, green onion, wakame seaweed and tofu in the broth and let stand in 2 minutes over low heat. Pour in soy sauce to taste and serve! Enjoy

Yer Wan in Dublin…An Expat’s view

Fat and slimy raindrops splosh all over my face and over my steamed up glasses, as I weave and duck pedestrians’ umbrella ends from getting stuck in my lioness mane of an afro.

Walking towards Dame Street I smell urine, and decide to light a cigarette to drive out the stink in my nose.

A sad looking fellow in a faded gray tracksuit comes up next to me; apparently he also likes the smell of cigarettes, because he has the nerve to asks me for one. I stop walking and give it to him, only to be asked if I have some extra change, and to inform me that he doesn’t like menthol cigarettes.

I don’t speak, I don’t give him change, and he doesn’t give me the menthol cigarette back. I’m grateful, as it means that the conversation stops just as it had started. Foggy cafe windows, sidewalks full of toothless grannies with ratty Dunnes bags in the crook of their arms, Pakistani youths singing a song from the motherland while gesturing with their hands to each other, and skinny pale fathers (or very young uncles) speed through with a butt in their mouth, head cocked and yelling into their mobile while they push a pram.

I hit the corner of South George’s Street and Dame, and I want to go across, but I’m stuck behind a family of great (giant would be the best word) Danes that are looking confused at their map of Dublin. The map is upside-down. Their sing-song accent reminds me of a Monty Python sketch, but I forget which one. As I am hobbit sized, I figure I should just wait for them to walk forward as my signal to cross (and hope the walk sign works today), as a balding, beet red faced man sways to my left hand side.

As with smoking, can one get drunk second hand? I start to think so as I involuntarily inhaled the fermented drink he had soaked himself in into the wee hours. The wind, of course, suddenly decides to pick up again, which blows my lioness mane into my drunken neighbor’s face. It must have really tickled because he twitches his nose and in a blitz moment sneezes into it….

Lord, there’s got to be an easier way to get around Dublin.
“Ah, ya just want a napkin?”, asks the perplexed weasel faced boy working at Spar. “So, you’re not going to buy anything?” Doesn’t my look of disgust, as well as me holding a tangled mess dripping hair at 90 degrees say enough?

This particular Wednesday is sadly quite the same as most mornings: downright dreary. Oh yes, I try to do what all the self-help books say: if you can’t change the situation, change your outlook. I might wear gray instead of black socks, depending on my mood.

If I feel totally thrilled with life, I have on occasion, hidden my watch and asked someone for the time just to strike up a conversation. Scoff and say that I’m pathetic, but I must admit, I relish being a social recluse in the morning, and the winter windy weather, combined with small congested streets does not help my condition. A bike? Not blessed with any sense of coordination. Taxi? The taxi driver told me about renting a bike. Bus? Claustrophobic. In short, I think I am most reliable with my own two feet.

At the risk of sounding more dispirited, I doubt that I am alone. When I walk around town I see a sea of different faces ebbing and flowing down the streets, and they seem (for the most part) just as down as I am mornings. Regardless of it being the D4 fashionista that is swearing under her breath that her once coiffed hair is now sopping wet, or the guy in the Big Bird yellow jacket handing out soggy newspapers, they all look miserable.

Don’t get me wrong, I really like Dublin in general, I just loathe its harshness in the morning. Dublin in the evening is much more entertaining. The rain would have stopped to a light drizzle, and my hair (thoroughly washed twice after this morning) would be pinned up. Both the cigarette man and the Pakistanis have been replaced by a group of orange coloured laughing teens, teetering arm in arm on pairs of cheap heels. The young dad has probably dropped the kid back off to his mam’s to babysit while he goes out. The windows around are still foggy but the lighting within provides lovely shadows, and our giant tourists are either packing for the flight back home or taking selfies at The Spire. The lack of daylight makes Dublin seem so much more mysterious.

But mornings I don’t have the physical or emotional energy to be cheerful- I can do that later. I’m nursing a hangover from last night, and I’m too busy trying to avoid all the dog feces camouflaged in random crevices in the sidewalk.

Edamame!

Edamame pods may sound new and or fancy to some, but they are quite easy to prepare!

Better known as green soy beans, this yummy side dish from young soybeans originally hails from Japan and China. Edamame contains a high amount of protein and is very low in fat.

This combination makes it a perfect meal for every diet and is a great snack alternative. Just make sure to press the beans out of the pods first and enjoy!

Ingredients:

600 grams fresh or frozen edamame pods

1 ½ tablespoon salt

½ teaspoon garlic powder and chili powder (optional)

Remove stems off all the pods. Wash and clean pods thoroughly and place pods in a bowl. Pour

3-4 cups of water in a pot and add salt. When water boils, place all pods in the pot and boil for

4-5 minutes (or until the pods have become soft). Remove the pods from heat, and place them in

a colander and rinse in lukewarm water for 30 seconds. Sprinkle a pinch of salt, and or garlic and

chili powder over, mix until all the pods are coated and serve.

Irish Income Maintenance- According to an Expat…

Income Maintenance is one tool of social policy that helps assist each individual countries’ needs of its citizens. Income Maintenance has been around in one form or another for hundreds of years. Even going back to the Roman times, Emperor Trajan implemented different rules to help the needy. His concept of helping the poor was one that was easily spread throughout the empire. Different religions also held the concept of social welfare in a high regard. Jewish tradition thought it was important to take care of mothers and children, and it is even written in the Torah, to respect foreigners and treat and protect all people living within the community. Christianity has also taught the importance of not only turning the other cheek, but providing assistance to people in need. In Islam, it is written in one of the five pillars of Islam, to give charity to those who hunger, which is one of the reasons that the religious in this faith practice Ramadan. Faith based charity has been a popular tool within European history, in order to provide for people when the government didn’t (for whatever reason) step in. In 1601, the Poor Laws were introduced in England, which ensured the assistance from the state, through parishes, to help deserving individuals. This law paved the way for work houses which made people work in order to survive, or starve and live without shelter.
In present day society there are three main points to Income Maintenance. Firstly, social insurance, which was created in 1952 (from the Social Welfare Act), which provides a way for people to get financial assistance based on contributions and the amount of need that exists. It also may be considered a short term way to get people off their feet. The second tier is social assistance, which is a means tested scheme that monitors on a regular basis at home, how badly a person (or family lives on the whole). By checking regularly, the monitors can better determine how much a person “deserves”.

Another aspect of social assistance is that depending on certain events that are (for example, untimely death, christening, conformation or Christmas allowances for clothes), exceptions can be made to help certain family members out. The third tier is the universal scheme, which helps certain (or general) groups of people over 18, as well as children.
As with income maintenance as a whole, it is paid usually on a weekly, flat rate basis. One practical example of a form of income maintenance at work in Ireland is the Back to Work Enterprise Allowance (BTWEA). Created to support men and women that are specialized workers, but presently unemployed, this scheme offers a chance to help put people back in an employed state. The individual looking for help must first come to the office with an specific idea of how they would like to create or find a new job (in order to become self employed). The office will then review the proposal and find a sponsor that will help support the individual to get back to work. This BTWEA program however, helps those who have any of the following: Lone Parent Allowance, Blindness, Widow or Widower’s Pension, Farm Assist, or Disability Allowance.

TD Richard Bruton, from Fine Gael says that these types of programs will help the people who need help and want to work, and also helps weed out the needy from the greedy. As a former economist, he has the opportunity now to use his theories and put them into practice for the benefit of Irish citizens.

John Curry who helped create the Report on the Commission of Social Welfare in 1986 wrote on how the concept of income maintenance had to be changed, and amended that people could get the help that they need. In conclusion, it is important to constantly keep these laws, and practices and schemes under review, to best help the changing and volatile economic situation in Ireland. As Wordsworth wrote in his poem in 1797, The Old Cumberland Beggar, he writes as if pleading to the reader: “But deem not this man useless!” Each person, regardless of station and position has worth- hopefully income maintenance brings help to those who need it, and gives a shining example of Wordsworth’s words.

Ireland, The Multi-Culti Rainbow

I arrived in Ireland only in September, but I have already noticed how wonderfully diverse Ireland is. It has interested me how Ireland, a country renowned for its own personal and complex story of immigration and emigration, has changed and evolved over the decades.

Many people have immigrated to different parts of Ireland, starting families, careers, and new communities, and have gradually changed certain ethnic and social demographics.

My goal, as a journalist in training, is to tell a narrative of what and who I see on a daily basis. I have the need to show the richness and depth of Ireland’s diversity, through photograhphy, each person’s individual style and uniqueness.

I hope that my new book, Aghaidh (which means ‘faces’ in Gaelic), will be a one way to capture the diversity in Ireland!

Easy Raw Salsa!

Ingredients

500 gram tomatoes (6 ripe tomatoes)

1 spring/green onion

1 half red onion

1 lime

Handful of fresh coriander leaves

Salt and pepper to taste

This simple oil-free salsa is a fresh and tasty alternative to heavy sauces. Salsa,
which is Spanish for sauce, is a fast and healthy recipe to impress your friends and
family!

Rinse and dice tomatoes and place them in a serving bowl. Finely chop both red
and green onions. Rinse and then shake excess water off coriander. Bunch the
coriander leaves together and chop roughly (it’s ok to leave a bit of stem on).
Afterwards combine both onion and coriander into the bowl. Squeeze the lime
juice into the bowl and mix lightly. Add salt and pepper to taste. Let the salsa chill
in the refrigerator for one hour and serve!

Tip: For an extra spicy kick, add in jalapenos peppers (fresh or from a jar) or chili
powder!

This salsa recipe is a raw (uncooked and unprocessed) dish, which means none of
the ingredients will lose its nutritional value. This is a great dip to go with chips
and crisps, as side dish to a main course, or a refreshing salad!

Betchya can’t say that one backwards…

I saw this one day and thought this must be by far one of the coolest names for a store! Two thumbs up for Irish creativity!