Helena Healy of B&B Ireland and Sinead Murray of Tourism Ireland
John O'Driscoll of Strokestown Park, The National Irish Famine Museum
Baileys bread and butter pudding, black pudding and scones
Kippers and Potato Cakes
Chef demonstrates the making of brown bread
What a treat to enjoy a traditional Irish breakfast on St. Patrick’s Day. It would have been lucky to get a taste of the fine fare on Irish soil, but the Great Cooks on Eight culinary center, located in the heart of Toronto’s financial and commercial districts, proved to be the ideal setting for this delicious experience.
It was here that Tourism Ireland and its travel partners hosted a morning of good eats, drink and a special cooking demonstration to a room of receptive and hungry travel types.
After a self-serve buffet of Baileys bread and butter pudding, fruit, scones and black pudding, guests took their seats to dig in and listen to Sinead Murray, manager for Tourism Ireland in Canada, speak about the Irish love affair with food and Ireland as a destination for food lovers.
Whether you’ve got a penchant for sweet or savoury (or beer!), Ireland has it all. With its famous green pastures, mild climate, fertile ground and water all around it’s no wonder that the emerald isle produces a vast variety of meats, produce and seafood which is available year round. "Irish food, Irish cheese, Irish milk is the best in Europe,” said Murray.
There is a strong emphasis on farmers’ markets that provide fresh, local and organic foods. Food producers throughout the country take great pride and care in what they do. Murray mentioned an ice cream shop that gets its milk from a farm where the cows sleep in padded beds and have their own mechanical back scratchers. The cows in this country must be the envy of cattle everywhere.
Our next taste of tradition was a plate of grilled kippers (herring that has been split and smoked) and potato cakes with an apple cinnamon compote. Also served were slices of Blue cheese, Whiskey cheddar and Guinness cheddar. This was my first experience with beer and spirit infused cheese, and it was excellent. Black pudding, by the way, is a blood sausage made from pig’s blood, herbs, oatmeal or barley, spices and onion. Sounds unusual, but it is in fact quite tasty!
“Food is an important part of Irish life and for visitors an important part of the experience,” Murray went on to say. “The Irish love to party,” and what better way to combine food and fun than to partake in any of the many food festivals going on across the country? Annual events include the Burren Slow Food festival, Hillsborough Oyster Festival, Savour Kilkenny, and the Kinsale Gourmet Festival to name a few.
Those who are interested in history can visit Stroketown Park, Irish National Famine Museum. The Museum strives to create a greater awareness of modern day famine by demonstrating the link between the causes of the Great Irish Famine of the 1840′s and the ongoing famine in the developing world today. Curator and general manager John O’Driscoll was on hand to tell us about the museum’s two-acre vegetable and fruit garden that grows old varieties of fruit and vegetables (dating back to 1900-1906) using traditional methods. All garden produce is used in the preparation of home cooked food that is available to try in the Strokestown Park Restaurant.
A “passion for food has been handed down through generations,” said Murray. With several cookery schools throughout the county there is no doubt that the passion will be handed down for generations to come.
As the saying goes, “Everyone is Irish on St.Patrick’s Day.” After a full belly of good Irish food, my Irish eyes were smiling.
