Response from RTÉ re IMF press conf.

Our online news service on rte.ie ran the full Government press conference which continued for just three minutes after we finished coverage on TV.There has been a suggestion that we in some way censored Vincent Browne’s questioning of the Taoiseach for reasons of commercial rivalry with TV3. This is far from being the case. Our news special ran for half an hour and contained a number of questions from various journalists including our own, some international broadcasters and from TV3 both Ursula Halligan and Vincent Browne whose first four questions were broadcast before we returned briefly to studio for analysis and then went to the extended Nine O’Clock News. The News Special attracted an average audience of 364,000 compared to 35,000 for Sky News’ coverage of the same event.RTÉ One, being a mixed channel and not a specialist News channel, has to serve audience needs other than News. That said, on a night of intense national drama, it was imperative that the Nine O’Clock news went to air on time for the huge audience (average 769,000) who switched to us to find out the latest developments. To mark the seriousness of the day’s events, The Week in Politics was brought forward to 10.30 pm, broadcast live and extended, and received an average audience figure of 359,000. RTÉ News is satisfied that it covered Sunday's events fully and appropriately.Kind Regards,RTÉ Information Team

What's been happening?

hj9 Hey there stranger. Here's a synopsis of what I've been up to over the last while. Recipes are from Maggie Lynch, unless otherwise stated: JO - Jamie Oliver; DK - Domini Kemp.

Soup

• Butternut squash and spinach
  
• Moroccan sweet potato and carrot
  
• Marrakesh minestrone
  
• Cauliflower and blue cheese, with pear and bacon garnish (DK)
  

Main

• Indonesian tempe
  
• Quinoa tebbouleh
  
• Mushroom risotto
• Roast cod, pesto and lemon mayonaise (DK)
  
• Fish pie (JO)
  

Dessert

• Blueberry polenta cake
  

Baking

• Gluten-free bread (with tritamyl recipe, Odlum's)
  
• Ginger bread (DK)
  

Spuds and snips bake

This is exceedingly simple - just layer up spuds, snips and apples, along with carmelised onions, a stong mature hard cheese grated, and seasonings, and then pour a jugfull of double cream, only slightly diluted with full cream milk.

The second time I did this, it turned out much better. I preboiled the spuds for about four minutes. I sliced the spuds more thinly with the edge that comes with the grater, and more thinly diced the snips. I used two onions, where the recipe only calls for one. I remember to season as I layered up. I baked at 200 for 50 minutes in the centre of the oven.

Hmmm!

Chicken, spinach and creme fraiche filo

Start with 2 to 1 to nearly 2 of chicken, spinach and creme fraiche, and that all starts with about 4 chicken breasts. Add to that about a dozen spring onions, some tarragon and pine nuts. Then really cheat and get a packet of filo pastry - it says so, right there. Seasoning is salt, pepper and a pinch of nutmeg.

You prepare everything in their normal way, then blend everything, keeping aside the pine nuts and seasoning. There's a whole geometry involved with wrapping the filo layers (don't forget to brush with butter), and how much filling to use per pastry, but once you see it (with a little help), you'll be grand.

Chicken and broccoli gratin

Back to Avoca! Although now you can find 'Avoca' in Mount Usher, Kilmacanogue, the Naas Road, Powerscourt, Suffolk street... three other place around Ireland... and Annapolis, Maryland.

First catch your chicken and broccoli (obviously), but the main thing is the sauce. This is based on the broth you get while cooking the chicken - full of carrots, onions, celery, peppercorns, a bayleaf - which you reduce and then add double cream and roux to thicken. Add seasoning to taste - which I've come to understand means actually tasting as you go, rather than just shaking and guessing.

Imagine if you just cooked the chicken in water and maybe a bit of salt, and then just made a straight white sauce with the roux and cream. Would that make such a huge difference?

The gratin is made with a strong white cheddar. Sprinkle it gently, almost sparsely, and yet you'll have subtle flavours coming through.

How do you remember how many 'c's and 'l's are in brocolli... broccolli... broccoli?

Thai broth

This is another outing with the Naked Chef, and the first time I found and used kaffir lime leaves.

The recipe breaks down nicely into a few parts...

1. take ginger, lemon grass and lime leaves, pound them for a bit with pestle and mortar, then simmer for about 10 mins in a stock.

2. the result should be slightly bland to taste. Now add suger and (carefully!) fish sauce, tasting as you go.

3. cook with a few prawns for about a minute.

4. after retrieving the prawns, serve the resulting broth with garnish of chillies, spring onion and coriander.

Hmmm! Especially if you put the chillies in early, while still simmering the prawns.

Salmon, prosciutto, lentils

This is a Naked Chef returns recipe. Is there an etiquette or protocol when referring to published things like this?

The preparation and cooking of the salmon and ham couldn't be easier. Wrap the one with the other, add a little pepper and olive oil, and bung in the oven for 10 mins. But put the tray in the middle of the oven and/or make sure the grill isn't on, otherwise the oil will start burning, and you'll get an embarassing blast of smoke when you open the oven door.

The lentil-based accompaniment is bit more taste-and-see. Things that come to mind: draining off the brothy stuff as the lentils simmer, cooking them al dente, how much water to leave behind after simmering, getting the balance of herbs, lemon juice and natural yoghurt. The crucial thing is to stir in the spinach at the last minute on a high heat.

Simple and effective (for good impressions!).