Bloomsday 2012 at Ariel House

Bloomsday celebrates the day that James Joyce’s novel Ulysses takes place, 16 June 1904, the day on which it is believed that Joyce first went out with his future wife, Nora Barnacle. The day is named after Leopold Bloom, the main character in Ulysses. The novel follows the life and thoughts of Leopold Bloom and a host of other characters – real and fictional – from 8am on 16 June through to the early hours of the following morning. Bloomsday is celebrated by Joyce enthusiasts across the globe with readings, performances, re-enactments, and a host of other events. Here in Dublin, Joyceans dress in Edwardian costume and gather during the day at many of the locations where episodes of Ulysses take place. This year Ariel House will host a small event to mark Bloomsday and to bring a hint of Joyce to the air for our guests. Rose Lawless will perform James Joyce's 'Molly Bloom,' on Saturday 16th June at 11 am in our Drawing Room. We look forward to welcoming Rose to Ariel House on Bloomsday and to her portrayal of Molly Bloom.

Pop Up Evening at Ariel House with The Chop House June 2012

Kevin Arundel, Chef/Owner of one of our local restaurants, the Chop house will cook in the Ariel House kitchen on Friday the 22nd of June from 6pm. This is the second pop up evening to take place at Ariel House. The first night held in April was a great success with our guests and locals so we decided to make the night a regular feature. In addition to being awarded Irelands Gastro Pub of the year at the recent Restaurant Association of Ireland awards, the Chop House is a real favourite with our guests at Ariel House and this unique evening is a nice opportunity for our guests to enjoy local cuisine in the comfort of the Dining Room at Ariel House.

We would love to see you there – Dinner reservations can be made by email to reservations@ariel-house.net , on the Ariel House Facebook page, on Twitter or by telephone 01-6685512 . The menu costs €25 for two courses
€30 for three courses and will be published on our blog and social media in early June.

Glasnevin Museum and Cemetry

Glasnevin Museum and Cemetry - a guest blog by Luke Portess of the Glasnevin Trust


Glasnevin Museum offers a dynamic interpretation of Ireland’s history told through the lives of the people buried in Ireland’s necropolis. The Museum has access to a rich narrative of Ireland told through the stories of Daniel O’Connell, Charles Stewart Parnell, Michael Collins, Eamon DeValera, Countess Marckievicz and Brendan Behan to name but a few. Glasnevin Museum offers daily tours and interactive exhibitions.

For more info

http://bit.ly/asFBK8

Also discover your Irish ancestors or delve further into the lives of Ireland's key figures, Glasnevin Museum's Genealogy records now online.

http://bit.ly/Ah6bi9

An Seamróg - Ours is Home Grown

An Seamróg – Ours is home grown this year!
Shamrocks have been symbolic of many things over the years. According to legend, the shamrock was a sacred plant to the Druids of Ireland because its leaves formed a triad, and three was a mystical number in the Celtic religion, as in many others. St. Patrick used the shamrock in the 5th century to illustrate the doctrine of the Holy Trinity as he introduced Christianity to Ireland.
The shamrock became symbolic in other ways as time went on. In the 19th century it became a symbol of rebellion, and anyone wearing it risked death by hanging. It was this period that spawned the phrase "the wearin' o' the green". Today, the shamrock is the most recognized symbol of the Irish, especially on St. Patrick's Day, when all over the world, everyone is Irish for a day!
The original Irish shamrock (traditionally spelled seamróg, which means "summer plant") is said by many to be none other than white clover (Trifolium repens), a common lawn weed originally native to Ireland. It is a vigorous, rhizomatous, stem-rooting perennial with trifoliate leaves. Occasionally, a fourth leaflet will appear, making a "four-leaf clover," said to bring good luck to the person who discovers it.

Ariel House Granola Recipe

A new Spring addition to our breakfast buffet at Ariel House has been our home made Granola. Jennie brought the recipe home from her cookery course in Ballymaloe. The dish has proved to be a great favourite with our guests and Staff :). The recipe has been requested many times in the last few weeks so we thought it might be nice to share it on our blog. We tend to add our own twist for versatility, like dried cranberries or goji berries. Any questions on the method or ingredients just drop us a mail reservations@ariel-house.net

Ariel House Granola Recipe
Ingredients:
12ozs (350g 1 cup) Honey
8 fl ozs (225g/1 cup) oil eg. Sunflower

1 lb1oz (370g/ 5 cups) oat flakes
7ozs (220g/2 cups) barley flakes
7ozs (200g/ 2 cups) wheat flakes
3 ½ozs (100g/1 cup) rye flakes

5ozs (150g/1 cup seedless raisins or sultanas
5ozs (150g/ 1 cup) peanuts/hazelnuts, or cashew nuts split and roasted
2 ¾ozs(70g/1 cup) wheat germ and / or millet flakes
2ozs (50g / ½ cup) chopped apricots, ½ cup chopped dates etc. are nice too
Toasted sunflower or pumpkin seeds are also delicious

Mix all of the flakes together in a large bowl. Mix the oil and honey together in a saucepan. Heat just enough to melt the honey. Mix well into the mixed flakes. Spread thinly on two large baking trays.
Bake in a moderate oven 180 C/ 350 F/ gas mark 4 for 20-30 minutes, turning frequently, making sure the edges don’t burn ( You really need to keep an eye on it! ) It should be just golden and toasted, not roasted!
Allow to get cold. Mix in the raisins or sultanas, roasted nuts, toasted seeds, chopped dates, apricots and wheat germ. Store in a screw top jar or air tight container. The Granola keeps for 1-2 weeks.
We serve our Granola with natural yoghurt and berries however it is so versatile it can be enjoyed with milk, rice or soy milk, with chopped banana or other fruits.

The National Gallery of Ireland - A Guest Blog by colleague & artist Ewa Krupa

My name is Ewa Krupa and I am one of the staff at Ariel Guest House where I have been working full-time in the Food and Beverage department since April 2009. Besides working in the hotel I have a huge passion for art, since childhood I have been drawing and painting. My artwork was included in various group exhibitions in Ireland, Bulgaria and Italy. In 2010 I graduated from University College Dublin with a Diploma in History of European Painting. At the moment I am continuing education at the Open University where I am studying towards a BA in Humanities with specialism in Art History. In my free time I am an Information Desk Volunteer at the National Gallery of Ireland. Due to the refurbishment of the gallery the historic building is closed at the moment and the main entrance is through the Millennium Wing, on Clare Street. Even though the gallery space is reduced because of the refurbishment it is still great place to visit. Current exhibitions are Masterpieces from the Collection and ‘The Gift of Knowledge’. The highlights of the exhibition Masterpieces from the Collection among other paintings are ‘The Taking of Christ’ by Caravaggio, Claude Monet’s ‘Argenteuil Basin with a single Sailboat’ or a beautiful painting by Irish artist William Leech ‘A Convent Garden, Brittany’. ‘The Gift of Knowledge’ is a temporary exhibition from the Library and Archives Collection of the National Gallery of Ireland, on a view in the Print Gallery. Items are on display until 15th of December 2011. Admission to the gallery and exhibitions are free.

Recipe for Halloween Tea Brack

Halloween Tea Brack

Ingredients
• 300 ml cold tea
• 4 tsp. Irish whiskey
• 110 g sultanas
• 220 g currants or raisins
• 55 g chopped glacé cherries
• 55 g chopped mixed peel
• 200 g brown sugar
• 225 g self-raising flour
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1 tsp. ground Nutmeg

Method
1. Place the cold tea and whiskey in a bowl. Add in the sultanas, currants, glace cherries and mixed peel. Cover and set aside to soak overnight.

2. Preheat the oven to 180°C/gas 4/ 350 F.

3. In a mixing bowl, mix together the sugar, self-raising flour, beaten egg, nutmeg and soaked fruit, with its soaking liquid until well-mixed.

4. Transfer the mixture to a loaf tin lined with baking paper.

5. Bake for 1 hour, 30 minutes until risen and set.

6. Remove from the oven and cool for 10 minutes in its tin, then turn out and cool on a wire rack.

7. Serve in slices with butter