About

Having moved back to Connemara and growing more concerned with food miles, as well as a wide interest in foods I started this blog as kind of a record but also to help and encourage others.
It has been very rewarding, and the feedback has been the main reward.

It's not about selling books, products or a particular way of life, but the advice is tried, tested and as simple as I can make it. Seriously - if I can grow food with the amount of neglect my crops face, anyone can realistically do it.

The blog has no agenda per se but is unapologetic in the promotion of Irish produced foods as a perfectly good alternative to imported foodstuff's - rapeseed oil in place of olive oil is a good example.

The blog I suppose has a few main themes
Planning, growing and caring for crops in a pragmatic and sustainable way.
Promote heritage variety crops.
Organic and low impact pest and weed control.
Harvesting, foraging and preservation of a variety of foods in a pragmatic and sustainable way.
Developing easy to cook but different styles of cuisine from as local as possible food stock.

With work I am exposed to a wide range of foods, cuisines and cultures - from Goa to Galway, Oslo to Osaka, Dublin to Durban - these can all be enjoyed, and/or adapted to suit local produce.

The foods most available to me locally means there will normally be an emphasis on seasonal vegetables and fruits and seafood.

We have of course in Ireland our own traditional staples and flavours, buttermilk, black pudding, soda and oats.
We really do have some of the finest dairy products in the world and some of the best and most natural meat and fish - it is something to celebrate. 

The strongest influences are however North West Europe.  Normandy in particular stands out with what I would call its food stock - dairy, cider and its vinegar in place of wine, its vinegars and oils that we find further south.
From Eastern European through to the North Sea coast - food - with its preserved pork and cured cabbage, be it Polish Kapusta to Dutch Zuurkool, has its own themes that have grown from its food stock.
Aspects of Indian and Catalan cuisine are also important to me.

I have done a lot of research on perma-crops, foraged foods and traditional sources of food that have been neglected.
Seaweeds and shellfish, for example, were a historical staple food here on the west coast, and I have been influenced by Japanese cuisine. One almost feels as if you are re-discovering a part of our cuisine culture.

Anyway, I hope readers will find the blog enjoyable, return on occasion and take the time to comment