How might you dress up for a James Bond-themed ball? The 007 charity event in aid of Our Lady's Hospice on Saturday, March 3rd, should bring out the suave in you. The venue is Number 6 Kildare Street, Dublin 2 and there were still some tickets at €100 per person available. Call Goldfinger (Tara) on 087- 2276896
FIVE-STAR FARM COTTAGE
The last time I stayed in an Irish self-catering cottage in winter, the only way to keep warm was to wear two dressing gowns and huddle in front of a smoky turf fire. It was a different story, however, at Plum-Tree Cottage on Lurganconary organic farm, at the foot of the Mourne Mountains near Kilkeel, Co Down. Under-floor heating and a wood-burning stove mean the five-star cottage is a cosy haven after a bracing walk over the fields.
Plum-Tree Cottage and the nearby Sand Cottage are tastefully decked out with elegant lamps, rugs and moody canvases. The overall effect, however, is restful rather than pretentious. The beds are laden with so many carefully coordinated cushions and throws that they even provide you with a bin to store them in overnight. Both cottages have been equipped with the luxury market in mind: flat-screen TVs in the bedrooms, power showers and an indecently deep bath that will keep you feeling thoroughly pampered.
Fancy retreats are not often keen on your bringing along your messy, possibly ornament-breaking children, but Lurganconary proved an exception. Both my children discovered a colouring book with their name on it when we arrived (much to the bemusement of my 12-year-old son). There are swings and climbing frames in the garden, and bikes and helmets in the shed. The Mournes are within easy distance, as is the blue-flag beach at Cranfield, but we spent most of our time pottering around the nature trails on the farm itself.
Luxury never comes cheap: prices start at £245 (€368) for two nights' midweek self-catering, but there is a 15 per cent discount until the end of March. For more details, see www.lurganconaryfarms.com. Fionola Meredith
GREAT DANES
Contemporary Danish design comes to Dublin at the end of this month with an exhibition by designers Bang & Olufsen, Borks, Ege, Republic of Fritz Hansen, Kvadrat, Louis Poulsen, and Randers; an exhibition of a number of iconic Danish objets, such as the Egg chair; and a number of talks by experts, including John Small of Foster Partners - the people who gave the "Gherkin" building to London - and the respected Scandinavian designer Fanny Aronsen. Pictured is Poulsen's Artichoke light, designed by Poul Henningsen in 1958. The exhibition, which is a collaboration between the Danish embassy and Detail Design, runs at the OPW on St Stephen's Green, Dublin 2, until Friday. See www.danishdetail.ie. Eoin Lyons
BACK TO THE SOUP KITCHEN
There is a great line-up of very cool cookery and gardening courses coming up at Hunting Brook Gardens, in Co Wicklow. First off, we're tempted by a lesson in soup-making from Ben Gorman, the genius behind Gruel, on Dame Street in Dublin 2, as well as the Mermaid Cafe beside it. That's on Saturday, March 3rd (€110) and starts at 10.15am. We also like the sound of stirring up some French country cooking in May with Troy Maguire, formerly of L'Gueuleton, or taking a lesson or two from Denis Cotter of the Cork restaurant Cafe Paradiso. Courses galore, too, in growing vegetables. For more information, ring Jimi Blake at 087-2856601 or see www.huntingbrook.com. It is located between Brittas and Blessington, in a wooden chalet. Patsey Murphy
LIFTING THE LID ON TUPPERWARE
Believe it or not, Tupperware is enjoying a certain retro-chic. There's a Hollywood film being made about Tupperware parties, and on Broadway there's a musical about the company called Sealed with Freshness. Who would have thought it?
It's a far cry from 2003, when the company announced 1,700 job losses by closing its UK party sales business. At the time, the company said parties in people's homes were no longer viable, and it wanted to concentrate on selling directly to shops.
That decision may now need to be reversed, however, with company reps in Ireland claiming there aren't enough demonstrators to cope with demand for parties. Fancy selling some plastic boxes from the comfort of your livingroom? See www.tupperware.co.uk. Brian O'Connell
STACK 'EM HIGH
It's Shrove Tuesday next week, so don't forget to stock up on larder supplies this weekend if you want to wow the family with your flipping technique. Food writer and Itsabagel/Itsa4 restaurateur Domini Kemp tells us how she makes and serves her pancakes:
"My favourite recipe comes from the cookery school I went to - Leith's in London. It's foolproof as long as your remember four things. One: The first pancake you cook is always a dodgy one, so throw it out or eat it on the sly. It's the practice pancake. Two: Use a non-stick frying pan. Three: Wipe the pan out regularly with paper towel dabbed in a little sunflower oil or melted butter. Four: Use a palette knife to turn the pancake over if your wrist-flip action isn't up to scratch.
"So, get started: Sieve 110 grams of plain flour into a bowl with a pinch of salt. Make a well in the flour. Beat together one egg, one egg yolk and 100ml milk and pour the mixture into the well. Using a wooden spoon or whisk, gradually draw in the flour from the sides of the bowl, incorporating all the flour. Add a tablespoon of sunflower oil and another 200ml of milk, then mix well. You're aiming for the consistency of single cream. Cover the bowl with cling film and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
"Heat your non-stick pan, then wipe it with oil dabbed on to paper towel. Ladle or pour in a generous tablespoon of batter and immediately swirl it around, so that an even layer coats the pan. Cook for a minute and then flip or turn the pancake. When the pancake is light brown on both sides, turn it out on to a plate, wipe the pan and continue with rest of the batter.
"My favourite way to serve them is to fry some sliced bananas in butter, add a spoonful of demerara sugar, fry until golden brown and pour over the pancakes. For sheer badness, top with melted chocolate, whipped cream and toasted hazelnuts."
CLIMB EVERY MOUNTAIN
"You can't bring that," I say to Mrs Kelly, eyeing the big picnic flask she is packing in the rucksack. "We'll be a laughing stock."
We are getting ready for our first outing with Comeragh Mountaineering Club, and I am eager to impress.
The club was founded in 1975 with the aim of encouraging safe enjoyment of mountaineering. It now has 90 members. We sign up for an introductory climb, despite being met with this message on their website: "Mountaineering is a strenuous activity with the risk of personal injury or even death." Gulp.
There is a walk every Sunday, lasting about six hours and covering distances of about 15 kilometres.
There is an affable bunch of people gathered, and we split into two groups. The cars are left at the foot of Comeragh mountain, and our route takes us gently towards the Coumtay valley for an hour or so. We have our first break at Ned Curran's cottage, a beautiful derelict stone dwelling by a stream. We opt for water, so the flask stays in the bag, thankfully.
When we reach the top we stop for lunch, and the flask comes out. "God, you lugged that thing up here?" Tommy Corcoran, our route leader, asks. There is biting wind and driving rain at the top, so at this stage I couldn't care less what the tea was brought up in.
A lot of mountaineering is about the "gear" - it's a cheap pastime (annual membership of this club costs €35) - but you could spend a fortune accumulating the equipment. Some of it, the essentials, we had already: waterproof jacket, boots and leggings. But pros are marked out by their gadgets: trekking poles (take the strain off the legs, apparently), water pouch, compass and little gizmos for measuring wind, temperature, altitude.
The Mountaineering Council of Ireland website, www.mountaineering.ie, has a list of more than 100 affiliated clubs around the country. Michael Kelly
AND HQ MAKES THREE...
The rapidly expanding Ely wine-bar chain opened its third ultra-stylish venue, Ely HQ at Hanover Quay in Dublin 2, on Wednesday. Therre's a youthful, stylish feel to the latest addition, which reflects the mood of the South Docklands area in which it is located. Cocktails will be on the menu, as well as Ely's extensive wine list, and 240 diners can be accommodated. Ely HQ is beside the new Martha Schwartz-designed Grand Canal Square, and overlooks a garden designed by Diarmuid Gavin.
The Kemp sisters, Peaches and Domini, are also expanding with the recent opening of Table, their in-store restaurant at Brown Thomas, Cork. The design is stunning, and the menu is strong on local organic produce. Marie-Clare Digby