The NeighbourFood Podcast

Today’s episode is all about fond food memories and Irish bakes with none other than Graham Herterich, aka the CupCake Bloke. He takes us on a nostalgic journey, exploring the power of food memories and the influence they have had on his life. From growing up in a butcher shop, to joining the priesthood, working with top chefs, to cooking with his grannies, Graham’s journey is filled with fascinating stories that lead him to write his first book Bake, Traditional Irish Baking with modern twists. In this chat we talk about the history of Irish baking including the early forms of bread baking, the impact of soda on the Irish kitchen and traditional folklore stories and fables…. Don’t forget to put a cross in the top of your soda loaf to let the fairies out!Graham has travelled extensively and with so much cultural diversity in Ireland’s kitchen today, Graham brings an expertise into blending flavours and incorcoporating these international influences into his culinary creations. And of course, we get some baking tips and advice from Graham that even the most novice of bakers will appreciate. So without further ado, let’s dive into the world of flavours, food memories and traditional Irish baking with that modern twist with Graham Herterich. Bake is available now through Nine Bean Row Publishers and can be bought through their website or through anywhere that sells good books.https://ninebeanrowsbooks.com/products/bake The Bakery by the Cupcake Bloke, Graham’s flagship spot where you can pop by 6 days a week and sample his creations is on South Circular Road, Dublin. https://thecupcakebloke.com/https://www.instagram.com/thecupcakebloke/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to the NeighbourFood Podcast, today we have a special replay episode for you as we gear up for Street Feast 2023. We're joined by the incredible Sam Bishop, a true force of nature in the realm of community activation. Sam is a remarkable individual—a community activist, an initiator, and a doer. He's the kind of person who not only has brilliant ideas but also brings them to life with unwavering dedication. Sam’s extensive involvement in various endeavors is a testament to his boundless energy but what truly captivates us about Sam is his talent for inspiring others and getting things done in the most ingenious ways. And one of these large scale achievements is the annual nationwide day of community feasting, which is aptly called Street Feast. Without Sam's persistent efforts and commitment, Street Feast wouldn't be where it is today. It's truly impressive to witness the way he has nourished this event year after year.Street Feast is all about celebrating a lovely lunch with your neighbours. Food is not just a matter of sustenance; it’s about connection and conviviality. Sharing a meal and fostering community bonds are just as vital as the nourishment on our plates.Mark your calendars, Street Feast 2023 will be held on Sunday June 25 this year. But remember, this is an annual event, so if you can't make it this time, keep an eye out for next year's edition or as we discuss in our chat, Street Feast has a way of unexpectedly happening and popping up at any time.We hope you enjoy this chat with Sam Bishop, founder of Street Feast, as he takes us on a journey through the heart and soul of this extraordinary community gathering.Find out more on StreetFeast.ie Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome back to another episode of the NeighbourFood Podcast! Today we have a treat in store for all the whiskey aficionados out there. Our guest is Eric Ryan, a true expert in the world of whiskey, a historian with an unrivaled knowledge of Irish whiskey's captivating past. He is going to take us on a deep dive into the treasures of our national spirit.  Today Eric works with as the Powers Distiller, Maturation & Innovation Specialist at Midleton Distillery. He studied an Msc in Brewing and Distiling in Heriot-Watt University and then went head first into Irish whiskey distilling working a distillery operator since 2010 with Midleton and been working in the world famous distillery ever since. He is regular contributor to Irish Whiskey Magazine and was secretary of of Cork Whiskey Society for some time and also curated and ran the Cork Whiskey Walk before taking up his current role as the Powers Distiller.Get ready for a fascinating synopsis of the timeline of Irish whiskey, starting from the 6th century Irish monks who first distilled the "water of life."  We are going to learn how this spirit has evolved over the centuries, from its humble beginnings to the thriving distilling scene we know and love today.We'll also tackle the question of whether whiskey was indeed invented in Ireland or if its origins lie elsewhere. ….and learn about key events and figures that shaped the industry, with captivating anecdotes and stories from the past.But it doesn't stop there! Because Eric also guides us through the evolution of Irish whiskey production techniques, highlighting the innovations and changes that have occurred over time. We'll also explore the impact of prohibition and other historical events on the Irish whiskey industry, understanding how these challenges shaped its trajectory and what it took to overcome them. And of course, this whole time we have some delightful and intriguing fun facts guaranteed to capture your attention and leave you thirsty for more knowledge about this beloved spirit.Lastly, we unravel what truly sets Irish whiskey apart from other renowned whiskies around the world. Is it a matter of historic roots, provenance, and ingredients? Or is it the result of techniques, methods, and good marketing? Eric will provide us with his expert insights on this.So stay tuned, as we embark on this incredible journey into the heart and soul of Irish whiskey, guided by the expertise of Eric Ryan.Find out more about Eric onInstagram @ericwilliamryanTwitter @ericwilliamryanPowers WhiskeyInstagram @Powers_Whiskeywww.powerswhiskey.comIrish Whiskey Magazinewww.irishwhiskeymagazine.comCork Whiskey Societyhttps://corkwhiskeysociety.wildapricot.org/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Today we have a shining star joining us to chat on the NeighbourFood podcast. Dr. Tara Shine is an Irish environmental scientist, policy advisor and science communicator. She spent 20 years as an international climate change negotiator and adviser to governments and world leaders on environmental policy. She was Special Adviser to the Mary Robinson Foundation-Climate Justice and The Elders before setting up “Change by Degrees” with co-founder Madeline Murray who partner with businesses and organisations to empower and educate people to deliver sustainable solutions.She is also the author of How to Save Your Planet One Object at a Time, a book written to help everyone how to change their daily habits and live more environmentally friendly in home and at work. Her book is all about starting small, making incremental changes in behavior to build momentum and foster discussions around sustainable actions. Tara emphasises the crucial role of personal action in combating climate change and reducing food waste. While systemic changes are necessary, she believes in the power of grassroots change to drive transformative shifts and throughout our chat offers practical guidance for us all to decrease our environmental footprints without overwhelm.We hope you enjoy these valuable insights from Tara , who has dedicated her career to catalyzing change at both the global and individual levels, and discover how we can all contribute to a more sustainable living and future. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Our guest today on the NeighbourFood podcast is Mary Reynolds, one of Ireland's leading advocates for nature. She describes herself as a reformed landscape gardener who won the Chelsea Flower Show in 2002. Mary is also an author and public environmental activist, and in this conversation today, we focus on her present campaign of healing the earth and the natural world.Mary explains the importance of connecting with nature and learning from it, allowing it to teach us valuable life lessons. She talks about building an "ARK" (Act of Restorative Kindness) by donating part of your land or garden, creating sanctuary corridors, and restoring natural ecosystems and habitats.Throughout the conversation, Mary emphasises the crucial role of biodiversity and the need to take personal responsibility for our impact on the environment, encouraging us to listen and work with our natural world, making conscious choices in our daily lives to become true guardians of the earth and all life it carries.To learn more about Mary's work, visit her website at marymary.ie or find her on Instagram @wildmarymary. You can also visit wearetheark.org to learn more about building ARKs and the movement that Mary has started. And don't forget to pick up one of Mary's beautiful books, "The Garden Awakening" (2016), or "We are the Ark" (2022). Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Artist Kari Cahill joins us in this edition of the NeighbourFood podcast. Kari is a site-responsive visual artist, natural paint smith, and an all-around great person. During our chat, she shares her unique methods of creating site-specific artwork using nature and how food can be used to make paint. Kari talks about her relationship with art and food and provides insights into her toolbox and current projects. Don’t miss Jack’s challenge to create an artwork inspired by his favourite meal! Not a mean feat. Kari's expertise, experiences and passion are a beautiful insight into her world, methods of working and the intersection of art, nature, and food. We hope you enjoy listening. Links:https://www.karicahill.com/https://www.instagram.com/karicahill.studio/https://www.layoftheland.ie/https://www.instagram.com/layofthelandproject/#NeighbourFoodPodcast #KariCahill #SiteSpecificArtwork #NaturalPaintSmith #ArtAndFood #FoodArt #NatureInspired #PodcastRecommendation #NewEpisodeAlert #ArtistInterview #CreativeProcess #ArtInspiration #ArtChallenge #FoodInspired #PaintMaking #ArtMaterials #ArtInNature #CreativeCommunity Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As spring arrives, the blooming flowers bring joy and colour to our surroundings, evoking emotions that words cannot express. Beyond their beauty, flowers have healing properties used in medicine and play a crucial role in maintaining a healthy ecosystem. In this episode of the NeighbourFood Podcast, we have a conversation with Anna Hogan, a flower farmer from Seekings Flower Farm in Ballymacoda, East Cork.  Anna cultivates Irish cut flowers from bulbs or seeds, creating nature-inspired bouquets that include fragrant herbs like fennel, dill, and mint. Anna is also a member of the Flower Farmers of Ireland, a network of sustainable flower growers who redefine the global cut-flower industry by producing locally-grown, seasonal, and scented blooms. During our conversation, we explore the significance of flowers, the state of the Irish flower industry, and the growing sector's impact on education, public awareness, social farming, pollination, and green matters. Additionally, Anna shares tips for hobby gardeners looking to grow their garden of paradise.https://www.fromseekingsflowerfarm.com/https://www.instagram.com/fromseekings/https://flowerfarmersofireland.ie/https://www.instagram.com/flowerfarmersireland/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

“You could eat your dinner out of the ditch” that’s what Fiona Falconer of Wild About tells us in thisweek’s podcast which is all about Wild Food.It’s abundant, free, full of adventure, resourceful and sustainable and celebrates the beauty and bounty of our landscape. So we discuss why it’s important to eat from our natural surroundings and what are the benefits of eating wild foods for our health. Fiona also tells us about the value of running a small business, as she and her husband Malcolm upped sticks from London, moved to a 5-acre farm in Co. Wexford and now run an environmentally sustainable food business, appropriate called Wild About, which along with countless awards has presented them with many creative opportunities.  In December 2021, we first chatted to her, and this here podcast is a re-play of that conversation. So we touched based with Fiona this wee to get an update on things on the farm. And as it turns it out they are getting on great! They are still living their mantra of “small is beautiful”, they are developing a food tourism side to the business and along with VisitWexford are hosting farm tours for visitors. Dreams and plans are afoot for a custard apple farm in Maderia with a tourism offering. Sounds exciting. And if you want to meet this vivacious woman in person, you will be able to catch them at Bloom in the Park this coming June 2023.Further more, we decided to re-play this episode as Spring is a particularly great time to get out and about in search of wild goodies and Fiona gives us a delicious and tempting recipe and now is the perfect time to give it a shot. And what’s more, that song you hear at the start of the podcast, well that’s an original piece of music - made specifically for the NeighbourFood podcast. From blackberries to mushrooms, wild food is also a huge passion for musician Peter Broderick. Peter, a Maine man, now living in Galway loves to forage for wild, edible plants. Though we may be so bold as to suggest writing the theme music for our NeighbourFood podcast was one of his greatest musical feats, what may interest you more is his song “Wild Food” from his album Blackberry, which is all about gathering, foraging, hunting, and munching! It's catchy (see what we did there?). So later you will hear from Peter and what he finds inspiring about “Wild Food”. *******Wild About’s Nettle Beer RecipeIdeal for brewing around St Patrick's Day (17 March) when the nettles are young2 carrier bags of nettles (approx 500grams)12 liters of water1.5 kg sugar60 grams cream of tartarYeastOptional - 2 oranges, 2 lemons, GingerBoil the water. Once it comes to the boil, take off the heat. Add the nettles. Cover and leave it to infuse for a minimum one hour, but preferably overnight. Strain the mixture through a muslin cloth. Heat this mixture only enough to dissolve the sugar and the cream of tartar.Add the juice of the orange, lemon, and ginger spice (these are optional)Leave cool at room temperature and then add yeast. Cover with a tea towel and leave in a dark, warm place for four to five days.After this time, remove the scum from the brew bucket and siphon it into plastic bottles. Leave to settle in a cool place such as a fridge.Ready to drink after seven days and we are told it tastes like a Breton cider!. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week we are chatting to three different microbakers from different parts of Ireland, who bake real bread using only flour, water and salt, for local customers within their local communities.  Our guests are Angela Nöthlings, Ryes & Shine, Cork; Laura O’Donovan So-Doh, Renvyle, Connemara and Gráinne McGough of Grá Arán, Wicklow These are three stories of three different solopreneurs who join us to talk about their experiences with starting and growing their individual business from their kitchen counter tops to repurposed studios and garden sheds. We also talk about about the network of microbakers both in Ireland and around the world who support, encourage, mentor and inspire each other, and of course we hear about the importance of real bread from a health perspective, with the simplicity of the most basic of ingredients ingredients in making a wholesome and nutritious loaf. We found it inspiring listening to their can-do attitudes, an insight into their microbaking world and perhaps even motivation for anyone who is thinking of going down the microbakery route themselves.*****List of links mentioned in the show:Real Bread IrelandRiot Rye Bake House and Bread SchoolOur previous NeighbourFood podcast with Joe Fitzmaurice of RiotRye on “The Parable of the Local Bakery”The Sourdough Podcast - https://www.thesourdoughpodcast.com/Plötzlich Bäcker, Lutz Geissler - https://www.ploetzblog.de/podcast/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Pádraic Fogarty  is an ecologist and environmental scientist, chairman of the Irish Wildlife Trust from 2009-2013, editor of 'Irish Wildlife' magazine from 2009 to 2017 and currently acts as their campaign officer. He is author of 'Whittled Away - Ireland's Vanishing Nature', published in 2017. In this episode of the NeighbourFood podcast, we chat with him about the ecological state of Ireland today; the EU’s new “Nature Restoration Law”; marine protected zones; what’s exciting about some new policies and movements and take a look at COP15, the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). And while Ireland and the world may be in a catastrophic state biodiversity wise, we talk about the vision for bringing nature in all it’s glory back into our lives, by changing mindsets and actions. Padraic’s knowledge and passion for nature is a pleasure to listen to. A massive thanks to him for his time in joining us to chat and if you are motivated by any of these topics today and would like to find out more, check out the Irish Wildlife Trust website iwt.ie or for some nice listening after you finish this, why not check out Irish their podcast series “Shaping New Mountains”. https://twitter.com/whittledawayhttps://twitter.com/Irishwildlifehttps://www.facebook.com/IrishWildlifeTrust/https://www.youtube.com/user/irishwildlifetrust Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Revolution Farm and Kitchen are rethinking our food systems. This is science, flavour, community and environmental care all wrapped into one.Using spent coffee grounds collected from the University College Dublin campus, the team grows fresh oyster mushrooms in a customised, retrofitted shipping container on site. The mushrooms are then used to create ragu and chilli sauces, which are sold around Dublin. We speak to co-founder Paddy Arnold about how the project came about and where it is going. We learn how UCD have given them not just a place to work, but a stream of eager volunteers and research students, providing a science-based, data-driven approach, aiming to discover if this is a sustainable way of growing food here in Ireland. We learn how they have changed their approach several times and stayed flexible and how putting the environment first can have social and circular economic benefits for us all. Find out more on https://revolutionfarmkitchen.com/Video Explaining Process - https://youtu.be/_XuJi5j615g Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The vivacious Tracie Daly is our guest today. This lady is a whirlwind of enthusiasm. Her wealth of knowledge and extensive experience in the food and hospitality industry is sure to captivate you. Since a dot, food has always been a way of life for Tracie. In every area food were the connection, the glue, and the backbone. Today she is a Food-Business-Coach and this progression, as we learn, was always meant to be!We hear about Tracie’s journey to get to this point, which included growing up in a B&B, running an award-winning Kilkenny Cafe, teaching students from around the globe in the world-famous Ballymaloe Cookery School, to recipe testing and mentoring fellow food business owners. ​This award-winning entrepreneur now consults, mentors, guides, teaches, writes recipes, designs menus, creates social media content, and looks at operational systems and waste among other things. This January 2023, she is has come together with other leaders of industry and academic expertise, to devise and launch a pair of low-cost online events called AtThePass.ie which is targeted towards the current needs of hospitality-related business owners, who, let’s face it are having a tough time right now. We speak about the current climate and the challenges of working in the food and hospitality industry and Tracie gives some really practical survival tips for those struggling. We speak about the strength in numbers and the importance of support for small business owners. And though hospitality can be a great and rewarding place to work, how do we keep our momentum in tune and our focus on the positives? This is a really good chat for anyone who is already running a food business or looking to start one. But to be honest, Tracie is just so positive and uplifting, it’s just a good chat in general, so listen up! Find Tracie online at www.traciedaly.cominstagram.com/tracie_daly_business_growth/tiktok.com/@tracie_dalyfacebook.com/FoodBusinessCoachtwitter.com/TracieDalyFBC Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Daniel Lyons and Laura Jane Foley have been growing hemp in County Clare since 2018 under the name Wild Atlantic Hemp. The husband and wife team have trialed different varieties of hemp on their farm to see what suited the growing conditions on the aptly-named Wild Atlantic Way. They process the flower of the plant to make cannabidiol (CBD) oil from their own hemp and that of other Irish farmers. This is an exciting listen about a group of farmers who are blazing the trail for a crop that could massively contribute to a greener planet. We spoke about the many uses of hemp in our lives, the science, the processes, the challenges, and of course, the regulatory complications as this market and potential super crop explodes worldwide. We also chat about the Hemp4Soil project, a Regenerative Farming Experiment in Loop Head in conjunction with ten local farmers, who were encouraged to grow an acre of hemp to see how hemp not only improves the overall quality of the soil and benefits local biodiversity, but could also provide sustainable income streams to the farmers in the future.And in a very exciting turn for our podcast, we have a special offer! A Free 5ml bottle of CBD Oil shipped out to your door. No catch…. but you’ll have to listen to find out how. Find out more on wildatlantichemp.com  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Imagine the job of copying, editing, proofreading, developing and testing recipes…. and collaborating with Ireland’s best-known, award-winning food writers and chefs, including, Neven Maguire, Darina Allen, Rory O’Connell, The Happy Pear and many more.Imagine beavering away for many years as a freelancer, unknown behind the scenes, quietly testing, tasting, proofing, writing, editing hundreds of books and thousands of recipes and and then BOOM, at a notion, deciding to starting your own food publishing company?The Irish Examiner has called our guest today ‘Ireland’s top cookbook editor’ and that she is along with being a freelance editor, food writer, and project manager. We are talking about Kristen Jensen. Founder of Nine Bean Rows, Blasta Books, and Scoop magazine. These are all Irish food writing publications that are the voice of modern Irish cuisine. An emigrant herself, Kristen came from the States and has shaped her career in food writing. She talks to us about her publishing projects, and the international voices of Irish cuisine, and we ask, what is Irish food today? And get some tips for people who dream big and want to publish their own cookbooks. This is a fascinating chat for anyone who wants an insight into the writing world or just who has a passion for good cookbooks and great food stories. Just as a little note, we have to apologise, my internet speed wasn’t quite up to scratch the day we were recording this online, as the audio does go a bit crackly in places. But, stick with it, this is an amazing conversation and the next hour is going to fly by. We promise!You can find out more about Blasta Books on blastabooks.com , Scoop Magazine on scoopfoodmag.com and Nine Bean Rows at ninebeanrowsbooks.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Kwanghi Chan has many fingers in many pies. He is a Hong Kong born, Donegal man, arriving in Ireland at the young age of 8 and his first experience was cooking in his uncle's Chinese takeaway. From head chef at Michelin Star “House”, three bricks and mortar premises called “Bites by Kwanghi” to two food trucks of the same name, a spice and other Asian ingredients wholesale business called Chan Chan, recipe and tv appearances, Kwanghi is a busy man. Not just that Kwanghi was the first person to write the spice blend recipe for the infamous “Spice Bag” which has since been copied by McDonalds - An odd accolade. Kwanghi is a passionate voice for Irish food though and he represents Irish food in Asia on behalf of Bord Bia, with many visits to Hong Kong, promoting quality Irish Artisans to that massive market. Most recently Kwanghi penned his first cookbook, WOK - Book number 4 in the new exciting Blasta Books series that sees 4 Irish chefs release bitesize books throughout the year. We took the opportunity to grab Kwanghi for a quick chat about his life growing up in Donegal, his fusion of influences from China and Ireland, along with his fusion of experience from fine-dining to street food. Kwanghi is a fascinating man but most of all, he’s just a pleasure to chat to. Enjoy our chat with Kwanghi Chan.https://twitter.com/kwanghi_https://www.instagram.com/kwanghic/https://www.facebook.com/chefkwanghichan/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Our guest today is Micheal Kelly: founder of GIY “Grow It Yourself”. He is a social entrepreneur, author, TV presenter and grower and GIY is now a leading social enterprise, with its home, GROW HQ, in Waterford. Mick also co-presented and produced three series of Grow Cook Eat for RTÉ and will present the upcoming series Food Matters in 2023. In this episode, we speak about his new book The GIY Diaries, which invites you to join the food revolution with a beautifully illustrated diary of a year in the vegetable patch. Month by month readers learn how to create a space that gives you fresh, wholesome fruit and veg that tastes far better than anything you can find in the shops.We also discussed growing, soil health, seasonality, the importance of scale when sending your message, the state of commercial growing in Ireland, how growing affects your home kitchen, flavours and much, much more. Mick is at this a while and his calm, passionate, interested, informed take on sharing information has touched MILLIONS of people with the work Mick and the GIY team have done!! Find out more at www.GIY.ie Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Our guests today are Anna and Orla Snook O’Carroll who are the wife-and-wife team proudly making Ireland’s very first vermouth from 20 different botanicals on Valentia Island off the Kerry Coast!Inspired by the island, epic landscape, botanicals they could forage locally and a love of Vermouth, they set off on their own dream of creating a brand new product for the Irish shelves. And this was something that was born in their home kitchen and now they have even more bigger dreams and plans of building a distillery and visitors centre right there on Valentia Island. And Valentia Island is a special place, the birthplace of world wide day communications, as this was the location of the first transltanic communications cable connecting the Europe and America together, so we also speak to national tour guide Mary Murphy O’Donoghue who told us about this significant place in modern history. . In this chat, we learn how Anna and Orla are deeply committed to sustainable and cradle-to-cradle design principles in their foraging, packaging and environmental sustainability within their community. We hear about the early days of their business, the processes involved, the experience of drinking vermouth… i can tell you it’s good! And what we can expect down the line from them down the line. Get your hands (responsibly) on a bottle of “Or” - Valentia Island Vermouth’s -  Ireland’s first commercial vermouth in your local off licence or find out more on valentiaislandvermouth.ie Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Based on the far western reaches of the Island of Ireland, Ballinskelligs Co. Kerry, Fermoyle Pottery Studio bring an approach to pottery close to the process of modern chefs. Sourcing materials from around them, Stephen and Alexis create bespoke pieces for the best eateries across Ireland, Singapore, London, Paris, Greece and Holland. A truely out-of-this-world eating experience at a restaurant is only achieved by an attention to detail that goes beyond the food on your fork: It’s the lighting and sounds in the room; the colours on the walls; the smells as you enter; the tone and pace of the servers. Chef’s and restauranteurs explore deep details of your entire experience with them to create a harmonious moment that will resonate with you long after you have swallowed your final bite. This is theatre, and top class theatre at that. Why wouldn’t the hands behind the plates, bowls and cups not view it in the same way? Stephen and Alexis have brought to their work this same attention to detail, philosophy and personalised approach to each of their commissions which is why you will eat off their works at most of Ireland’s top restaurants such as Aimsir, Anair, Allta, Ichigo Ichie, Ox and many more. Today we chat to Alexis and Stephen of Fermoyle Pottery Studio about what inspires them the most, from the landscape to the people they work with, to the chefs tables where their plates are served. We heard about their background as fledgling potters and artists to where they are today and dig into what makes them and their ceramics business stand apart.Find out more on fermoylepottery.ie Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Ballymaloe Dessert trolley is probably one of the most famous dessert stations around. It even got global recognition at the world restaurant awards in Paris in 2019.For decades, visitors to Ballymaloe House have looked forward to finishing a delcious meal with something sweet from their tempting dessert trolley. JR Ryall, Head Pastry Chef and the man behind these sensational desserts, is our guest today.JR has been working on a cook book, simply titled “Ballymaloe Desserts” sharing the recipes used in the sweets kitchen over the years. He has been working in the kitchen there since his school days, and the idea came about almost 10 years ago when Hazel Allen asked if he’d be interested in writing a little book to sell from the hall table in Ballymaloe House. Fast forward a decade later and when the pandemic came, the time was right time for him to put pen to paper and the project took off. This little book has flourished intro an impressively large hardback book, published by Phaidon and features these iconic recipes and stories alongside stunning photography by Irish photographer Cliodhna Prendergast. It is being launched this month, September 2022 in Ireland and around the world. During our chat JR told us about his life in Ballymaloe and the great inspiration Mrs Allen was to him in his culinary career. We hear some of those great food and personal stories, along with his best loved recipes and kitchen tips. And of course, we get into the nitty gritty of book publishing; how he first met with his publisher, signing a book deal and the importance of a great mentor. We went into the whole process of writing and editing, recipe selecting and then the detail, time and craft involved in photographing each recipe. Now that the first book is off the press, JR told us about upcoming book tour and pop up dessert trolleys he is planning in London, Chicago, Toronto and New York. What a whirlwind.This is fascinating, fun conversation, full of wow! We hope you enjoy.https://www.instagram.com/jrryall/https://www.phaidon.com/store/food-cook/ballymaloe-desserts-iconic-recipes-and-stories-from-ireland-9781838665272/https://www.phaidon.com/store/food-cook/ballymaloe-desserts-iconic-recipes-and-stories-from-ireland-9781838665272/  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Google defines Artisan as “made in a traditional or non-mechanized way using high-quality ingredients.” but we believe it’s much more than just being a food maker. When you buy from an artisan, you also buy from a small business owner, who makes their own artisanal products. One great advantage of a strong culture of support for artisans is the opportunity it lends people to try out something new. Often they start out with very little investment and along the way gain a crash course in everything they need to know about running a business. The pandemic of 2020 provided the perfect motivations for such businesses to emerge and today’s guest is one such business. Founded in June 2020, Foxglove Cocktails was formed by Tara Copplestone and her brother Rory. The goal was to create non-alcoholic cocktails to buy in retail environments and take home to finish with your alcohol of choice.We spoke to Tara about how “non-alcoholic” has always been a key part of their approach to their business, not just to circumvent the licensing laws, but also to consider the non-drinker in a group and allow them a delicious drink too while out with friends. We talk about her career so far and how her path in PR and working with Jameson in the US took her up the corporate ladder and inspired her to realise she was actually happiest behind a bar and in front of customers.Tara’s knowledge of drinks, recipes, flavours, and the mechanics of how we have a drink is endless and we got lots of tips for great sips throughout this chat. Enjoy. https://foxglovecocktails.ie/https://www.instagram.com/foxglovecocktailco/https://www.facebook.com/foxglovecoccktails/https://twitter.com/FoxgloveCorkhttps://www.neighbourfood.ie/producers/foxglove-cocktails/84857 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.