flavour.ie Bookish Things

While most of my writing is for print and online press, occasionally my words also appear in books and journals…

Have a browse around and if something piques your interest, please do place an order. Thanks!

Books & Journals…

COOK: Traditional Irish Cooking with Modern Twists – Graham Herterich (2024), Nine Bean Rows

COOK: Traditional Irish Cooking with Modern Twists – Graham Herterich (2024), Nine Bean Rows

I was asked by Graham Herterich to pen the central chapter of his second book, Cook, which a celebration of his memories growing up above the family’s pork and bacon butchery, Herterich’s, in Athy, Co Kildare.

The chapter, entitled “Sticky Fingers and Jelly-Smacked Lips”, was written from interviews conducted with Graham’s father, Paul, who ran the butchery after his father passed away. I also talked at length with Graham about his memories of Saturday mornings stealing little bits of freshly cooked crubeen, Christmas time at the butchers shop, and how Herterich’s was at the heart of the community in Athy.

This book is beautifully put together with exquisite photography and styling. Personally, I think Cook is much more autobiographical than his first, Bake, even though both are deeply rooted in memories of home. The modern twist comes from Graham’s love of travel where he brings back flavours and techniques that he uses to add a point of difference in his home cooking. But even the traditional dishes are ones that still resonate with a distinct Irish flavour – Mammy Salad, anyone?

“Graham flips the script on favourites like bacon and cabbage to turn it into cabbage and bacon, while Irish stew gets reimagined as a lamb tagine. Beloved Irish classics such as the ‘mammy salad’, a chicken fillet roll and our classic combo of lasagne, coleslaw and chips all feature alongside modern versions updated with the flavours and ingredients available to us now.”

Priced at €35 + P&P, Cook is available to purchase from Nine Bean Row Books.

Food Rules and Rituals: Proceedings of the Oxford Symposium on Food and Cookery 2023

“Food Rules and Rituals includes selected papers from the 2023 Oxford Food Symposium. Grounded in a number of different disciplines, writers from around the globe consider how rules and rituals structure the experiences and meanings of consuming foods in a wide variety of contexts.”

In 2023, I attended the Oxford Food Symposium to present my paper ‘Perfectly Civilised and Proper’: The Social and Cultural History of Blood as Food in Ireland, and am delighted that it has been selected for inclusion in the book of proceedings due for publication in July 2024. The book is edited by Mark McWilliams, and is published by Prospect Books.

Priced at £30 + P&P, and is available to pre-order here: Food Rules and Rituals

Scoop Food Magazine, edition 1: “What is Irish Food?” 2022

I penned an article called “The Evolution of Corn in Irish Food” for edition one of this fabulous food journal published by Nine Bean Rows and edited by Dee Laffan. From famine relief food to tortillas, corn has been a part of Irish food culture for over two centuries.

“Popular history tends to write out the role of corn during the Famine to the point where is barely exists in living memory. If it considered at all, it is in the academic arena. […] Corn in Ireland has become disconnected from its association as a Famine relief food, but maybe that’s a good thing. The potato is a potent symbol for Ireland and its complicated relationship with food: perhaps that’s more than enough.”

€15 + P&P. Order here: Scoop Issue 01 – Scoop: Irish Food Stories (scoopfoodmag.com)

Gastronomica, Volume 1, Issue 23, Fall 2021

Teresa Politano and I had a fortuitous meeting in Kinsale in 2017 and enjoyed a lovely lunch of oysters and wine at The Bullman. Four year later, Teresa emailed to say one of the strands of our meandering conversation had made it into an article she had written for the incredible Gastronomica – The Journal for Food Studies.

Before the trend of talking about funeral food in 2023 seemed to suddenly take off in Ireland, Teresa and I were already in agreement that crappy shepherd’s pie be gone and bring on the oysters and chocolate fondue for our funeral food.

You can now read the whole of Politano’s fabulous essay for free online here: Don’t Forget the Tomatoes for My Funeral | Gastronomica | University of California Press (ucpress.edu)

The Black and White Cookbook, Clonakilty Blackpudding, 2019

The world-famous Clonakilty Blackpudding created a cookbook of recipes from a number of Irish food writers using their black and white puddings in recipes for Brunch, Lunch, Dinner, Canapes and Party Food. My contribution to the book is a recipe entitled: “Clonakilty Blackpudding Chicory Scoops with Tomato and Rhubarb Chutney”.

You can buy the book, priced €15 + P&P, along with all sorts of pudding-y foodie bits and memorabilia, at the online Clonakilty Blackpudding shop, here: Home – Clonakilty Food Co. Online Shop (clonakiltyblackpudding.ie)

A Taste of West Cork – Artisan Food Guide, 2017

Groundbreaking at the time of first publication, this guide combined a comprehensive listing of every artisan and speciality food and drink producer in West Cork alongside speciality food shops and farmers markets across the region. I divided the region into six distinct areas (Skibbereen, Clonakilty, Bandon, Macroom, Bantry and The Beara Peninsula), and created mini stories for every entry, along with a suggested self-guided itinerary and touring route with maps.

It was commissioned by A Taste of West Cork Food Festival, which was the leading food festival in Ireland for some fourteen years. The book was funded by Cork County Council and Taste Cork.

It was described by Siobhan Burke as: “This sumptuously illustrated guide, written with clarity and passion by Flavour.ie’s Kate Ryan, is the perfect buy for your favourite foodie, and a wonderful appetiser for anyone planning to savour wonderful food when they visit West Cork!”

There are still a few copies to be found in the wild. I have a small number still here, although their content these days can be best described as only loosely useful! Still, as a compendium to the wonderful food scene in West Cork it serves a purpose as a memento.

If interested in one of my few remaining copies, you can still pick up a copy via my online shop: flavour.ie Artisan Food Guide