The Pastry Fork

Message from a customer:

"Please tell me you're doing brownie boxes for Christmas?"

How could I have forgotten, thanks for reminding me!

The perfect gift for teachers, neighbours or secret Santas - who wouldn't love a box of chocolatey deliciousness?

Box of 10 brownies: €17.50
Free delivery to Crosshaven and Carrigaline.

0879661812 to order...

It's time...

The sweetest Christmas list around is now open for orders!

1) Our famous mince pies:
Our homemade mincemeat is full of vine fruits, spices and citrus zest (with dried blueberries and cranberries this year), and matured with dark brown sugar and a drop of the good stuff.
Made with sweet, buttery shortcrust pastry, the mince pies can be ordered either baked and boxed or frozen and ready to bake.

€15 per dozen, free delivery to Crosshaven/Carrigaline.

2) Christmas cake:
This updated version of a very old traditional recipe was a huge success last year: it's got loads of dried fruit, spices and citrus flavours, and the cakes get a generous dose of Irish whiskey while maturing.
Fully iced with homemade almond paste and fondant icing, the cakes weigh in at over 1.5 kilos (nearly 3 1/2 lbs).

€30 each, free delivery as above.

Thanks in advance for supporting a small, local business!

0879661812 for orders/enquiries

Two more celebrations, two more Pastry Fork afternoon teas - a special birthday for a special mum, and a pre-wedding family gathering.

Birthdays, baby showers, hen parties, retirement parties and family get-togethers are all made better with a Pastry Fork afternoon tea brought to your home or venue - and you don't have to do any washing up!

0879661812 for enquiries/bookings

Christmas Baking alert!

Pastry Fork customers are so organised - I've been getting enquiries already about mince pies, Christmas cakes etc.

Nothing much to show yet, except the first 5kg of mincemeat, maturing nicely.
I make it in small batches and tweak the recipe a little bit every year; the 2023 edition has dried cranberries, blueberries and apricots added.

I'll post more details in the next week or two and then start taking orders: watch this space!

A classy party for a special birthday in the beautiful Crosshaven House ; it's one of my favourite venues, and the perfect setting for afternoon tea.

Weekend dates are filling up fast: we still have some availability for early December, and, as always, plenty of weekdays.

0879661812 for enquiries/bookings

A long weekend, a family visit, a day to stay indoors: all good reasons to enjoy a Pastry Fork afternoon tea!

The sandwiches and savouries took centre stage here; we're always happy to tailor the menu, just ask!

Still some availability for late November and early December.
0879661812 for enquiries/bookings.

The Fab Four

Belgian chocolate
Lemon drizzle
Coffee
Carrot

If you could only choose one, which one would it be?

A quiet weekend here, so I have time for a bit of admin, getting the diary organised for the next few months.

And it appears that some of my lovely customers are doing the same; loads of enquiries, some November bookings, and one December weekend is fully booked!

So, if you have a special occasion to celebrate, why not consider a Pastry Fork afternoon tea?
We set your table with vintage china, flowers, and three-tiered cakestands piled high with freshly made sandwiches and savouries, and our delicious home-baked scones and pastries.
All you have to do is to make the tea; we provide that too!

We can cater for any number, from 8 to 100 people; vegetarian, gluten free and children's menus are also available.

For enquiries/bookings: 0879661812

Someone mentioned that they hadn't seen any Facebook posts from me in ages; they were right!
I've got a bit lazy about social media lately; I know people like to see what's happening at Pastry Fork HQ though, so back to more frequent updates...

Some pics of a couple of recent afternoon teas; last week we were back in a gorgeous house for a little girls 5th birthday- we provided afternoon tea there just over 5 years ago for her mum's baby shower!

And cupcakes...I enjoyed making these for a special party: vanilla, chocolate-orange, and coffee with candied walnuts.

A busy weekend - a family afternoon tea, a party food order for a regular customer; and canapés...

Definitely not my area of expertise, but I enjoyed making canapés for a gathering of friends: mozzarella & sundried tomatoes with pesto; paprika prawns with lemon & chive mayo; smoked salmon with cream cheese & cucumber pickle; and little tomato & parmesan tarts.

A change is as good as a rest...

Today is a day for washing and sorting vintage china for some upcoming afternoon teas, and for a rental booking: if you're catering for an event, our beautiful china is the perfect finishing touch.
Our rates are very reasonable too...
0879661812 for details

A spread of cakes and sandwiches for a local event this week: give us a call if you have a "do" coming up...

0879661812 for enquiries.

Delivery day today: a batch of lemon drizzle cakes on their way to JJ O' Driscoll Superstore Ballinlough, great supporters of small and local.

Lemon drizzle is one of my favourites - cake as it should be, made with a handful of ingredients: flour, butter, free range eggs, sugar and lemons.

I first met Antonio over 15 years ago when he joined the Crosshaven Farmers Market, selling his wonderful Italian food: he went from market stall to opening his own little café in Monkstown, and after 13 years, he's moving on again.

He's always been a great supporter of my little business - I delivered a last order of scones to Napoli today, and the café was full of customers wanting to say goodbye and thank you, lots of love in the room...

Wishing you the best of luck in whatever you decide to do next, Antonio!

Hello everyone,
As some of you already know, Napoli is due to change ownership. This will be my last weekend. I want to express my gratitude to all the costumers who have been so supportive since we opened our door 13 years ago. We have became friends and together with my wonderful staff it has always felt like a big family. I will miss you all, but I’m looking forward to starting a new adventure and I will no doubt see you again.
I wish the new owners the very best of luck and I am sure they will be as happy and welcomed as I have been.
We would love if you could join us for complimentary glass of wine on Sunday at 3pm to say goodbye.
Grazie mille! ❤️

Well, that last post was a success, August dates are filling up!

In fact, two August weekends are neeeearly fully booked, so if you're planning a summer party or get-together and like the idea of having afternoon tea brought to you, you know what to do...

0879661812 for enquiries.

This gorgeous photo popped up in my "memories", taken five years ago, blue skies and sunshine...

While this lovely customer was lucky with the weather for her special birthday celebration, this is Ireland and we can't guarantee sunshine!

What we can promise however is a unique way to celebrate a birthday, baby shower, hen party, or family get-together.

We set your table (whether indoors or outdoors!) with vintage china and flowers, and three-tiered cakestands filled with freshly made sandwiches, savouries, scones and pastries.
You only need to make the tea; we provide teapots, tea, milk and sugar too!

Bookings now open for August and beyond;
0879661812 for enquiries.

A little announcement:
Pastry Fork HQ is closing for two weeks.

I'm off to the West, looking forward to some great baking from Teach Nan Phaidi on Inismor, one of my favourite cafés.

I'll be back in the bakery from mid-July, still some availability for summer afternoon teas...

Two months ago, we brought afternoon tea to a pre-wedding family gathering: the Alice in Wonderland theme was a lovely surprise, so pretty!

This week, we were delighted to return for Day 2 of a fab wedding weekend: congratulations Daire and Aoife!

A surprise afternoon tea for a special birthday this week..

Surprise teas can be a bit stressful:
Will the guest of honour believe the cover story she's been told to get her there?
Will she turn up on time?
Or will she turn up too early, before everything is ready and the other guests are in place behind the sofa?

Glad to say this one was a success- Happy Birthday, Geraldine!

The last of three June weekends in Cork for Vintage Tea Trips, and it was a busy one!

Delighted to be supplying the team with afternoon tea - sandwiches, scones, and of course our fab pastries.

Safe home Anna and Nicole (and Kitty!), see you in October...

We had a busy few days providing afternoon tea for the lucky passengers on the first of three Vintage Tea Trips Cork weekends this month.
Two more weekends coming up, fingers crossed for more sunshine!

For availability, see the Vintage Tea Trips website.

Well, that was fun...

Eight weeks of hard work and great craic, working with the wonderful First Bite Catering on the Young Offenders set!

Many sandwiches were made and many pots were scrubbed, and lots of Pastry Fork favourites were baked for the lovely cast and crew.

Can't wait for The Young Offenders Season 4 to air - gonna be epic!

Happy Easter everyone!

A few pics from a birthday afternoon tea last week: I've been quiet on Facebook recently as I've been working on The Young Offenders set with the fantastic First Bite Catering!
Great fun, but hard work, so I'll only be taking afternoon tea bookings for Sundays for the next two months- all bookings already in the diary are fine of course.

Last call for Mother's Day orders!

Get the good china out and treat someone special to our fab afternoon tea box; all homebaked and freshly prepared.

Enquiries/orders at 0879661812.

New week, new plans!

We supply a handful of independent shops and cafés with a range of homebaked cakes, and we'd love to add a few more outlets to the list.

The tarts and loaf cakes pictured have been best-sellers forever, while the cookies, tray-bakes etc. are perfect for coffee shops and vans.

So if you are or know of a small business interested in stocking local home baking...
0879661812

Thanks for reading!

People power in action:
Thanks to many requests, the Pastry Fork afternoon tea boxes are making a special appearance for Mother's Day, Sunday March 19th.

Treat your mum, granny, best friend, or yourself to a special box, filled with delicious sandwiches, savouries, scones and pastries,all freshly baked and prepared and delivered to the door.

Free delivery to Carrigaline and Crosshaven; a small charge applies to other areas.

0879661812 for enquiries/ orders

A busy month ahead for Vintage Tea Trips , delighted to be working with the gang again for their trip to the Real Capital - don't forget the Barry's teabags!

A gathering for a special birthday this week- the guests were treated to the surprise of a beautifully set up afternoon tea!

A Pastry Fork afternoon tea makes every occasion special; 0879661812 for enquiries/bookings

A first for us this week and a lovely idea; afternoon tea for a "chick party", a pre wedding get-together for the bride's younger family members.

We've had enquiries about Communion and Confirmation season, and a few provisional bookings already, just sayin'...

0879661812 for enquiries/bookings

Catering for a party or event?
Why not hire our beautiful china to add the perfect finishing touch...

0879661812 for enquiries

New year, new diary!

We've made a few changes at The Pastry Fork for 2023:

1) While our afternoon tea boxes were a huge success in those lockdown days, there's not much demand for them now, so we're phasing them out; all Pastry Fork afternoon teas will now include the full table set-up, with vintage china, tiered cakestands, flowers etc.
Any vouchers for boxes will of course be honoured.

2) The change I didn't want to make:
From Feb 1st, the cost of the full Pastry Fork afternoon tea experience will be €25 per head.
I've held off a price increase for as long as possible, but rising costs leave me no choice.
Bookings already in the diary, and those made before Feb 1st will be charged at the current price of €22.50 per head.

What won't change is the quality of our homebaked pastries and scones, and of our freshly prepared sandwiches and savouries; new menu coming soon!

0879661812 for enquiries/bookings

Nollaig na mBan alert!

The last leftovers have been used up, the Roses box is empty, and it's January, the longest month of the year...

But there's still Nollaig na mBan to look forward to - we'll be delivering joy, aka Pastry Fork afternoon tea boxes on Friday 6th.

Order for the wonderful women that make Christmas special every year; that's you, your mum, sister, friend or neighbour.

Limited availability
0879661812 for enquiries/to order

*Dancing on tables is at your own risk...

I found this sweet photo of my granddaughter Lee, taken in Sydney a few years ago; never too young for afternoon tea...

Wishing the best year ever to all my wonderful customers: to everyone who ordered our afternoon tea boxes or the full Pastry Fork afternoon tea experience in 2022; to the cafes and shops I supply, especially Napoli Italian delicatessen & cafe, JJ O' Driscoll Superstore Ballinlough and Ballintemple Food Store; and of course to the lovely people at Vintage Tea Trips .

Thank you all so much for supporting a small, local business; I appreciate each and every booking and order.

A special thank you to my family and friends for the constant support, and the coffee and chats too!

Mags
x

A belated Happy Christmas from me and my little friends!

Thanks to everyone for all the Christmas orders - I was swamped this year, but in a good way!

I'm taking some time out to watch old films and eat Leonidas; back soon...

Order book for mince pies now closed, thanks everyone!

Still a few of our fab Christmas cakes available, but when they're gone, they're gone...

0879661812 to order

Christmas order deadline approaching...

This is your gentle reminder that Friday Dec 16th is the last day to order your Christmas treats.

Mince pies:
€12.50 per dozen; available freshly baked or frozen unbaked.

Christmas cake:
€25.

Free delivery to Crosshaven and Carrigaline.

0879661812 to order.

Thanks for supporting small and local!

Some rooms are just made for afternoon tea - a family celebration this week, including our yummy mince pies.

The December diary is more or less full, but don't forget Nollaig na mBan on January 6th; a limited number of bookings available.

0879661812 for enquiries/bookings

It's time for a festive afternoon tea menu!

New additions include the perfect turkey sandwich, an orange and cranberry loaf, and of course our yummy mince pies.

We come to your home or venue and set the table with vintage china, cutlery, tablecloths etc, filling tiered cakestands with freshly baked and prepared treats.
Tea, milk and sugar, and flowers for the table are included - all you need to do is boil the kettle!

€22.50 per head, with a minimum of 8 people per booking.
A small mileage fee may apply outside the Crosshaven/Carrigaline area.

December weekends are filling up, plenty of weekday dates available.

0879661812 for enquiries and bookings.

Next up on the Christmas baking list- our famous mince pies.

Pastry Fork mincemeat is made from vine fruit and spices, with added apricots and apples, and matured with brandy and dark muscavado sugar, it smells incredible!

The mince pies are sold frozen and unbaked, so you can keep a stash in your freezer ready for baking.

€12.50 per dozen.

PM or call 0879661812 to order.

And so it begins..

I've been spending some time revisiting and tweaking my festive recipes; first up is The Pastry Fork Christmas Cake.

It's packed with fruit, citrus and spices, matured with a drop or two of the good stuff, and topped with fondant icing and homemade marzipan.

All tied up with pretty ribbon, it would be the perfect gift for a special teacher, neighbour or friend, or you could of course treat yourself; it is Christmas after all!

Details:
Weight: 1.5 kilos (over 3lbs)
Diameter 18cm (7")
Price: €25.

PM here or call 0879661812 to order..

A limited number of large 25cm (10") cakes also available.