The owners of Ballyvolane House choose their favourite gins, some exceptional Irish cookbooks and a very special vegetable in their garden
INGREDIENTS
Fever-Tree tonic »
“We recommend a slightly unsweetened tonic to go with our gin and this is a good one. With more commercial tonics, the carbonation’s all wrong, there’s too much sugar in them.” – Justin
Sipsmith gin »
In the course of their research, Justin and his Bertha’s Revenge business partner Antony Jackson sampled many gins. We ask them if anything in particular impressed them and this is the first brand they mention. They also recommend Shortcross, Portobello (“very grapefruity”) and Plymouth, among others.
Sea kale
“This is the most exotic, delicious vegetable in the whole garden. You only find them growing wild on the coast, or in these old country-house gardens. It’s the most unproductive veg – you eat it one day a year, around the end of April, but it’s the most important culinary date in our calendar. It looks like celery, tastes like asparagus, we just have it on toast with hollandaise – absolute heaven.” – Justin
Foraged herbs
Justin tells us he forages in the grounds every day. He comes back with herbs and edible flowers such as sorrel and lesser celandine. On our walk, he also gets us to try wall pennywort (“Tastes like peas, fleshy, delicious in salads”), violets and hairy bittercress (“There’s a bit of heat in it, looks great sitting on two fried eggs”).
OBJECTS
Bunbury chopping boards »
“I love wooden boards and this is really beautiful, it’s one of the Bunbury boards made by a friend of mine in Lisnavagh. He makes timber from their own woodland. They’re all numbered, so he can go on his computer and find out which tree on his estate it came from. This is oak. Beautifully made, lovely texture, look at the marbling of the wood.” – Justin
Cocktail shaker »
“One of my favourite tools, the cocktail shaker. Life would be very boring without a drink.” – Justin
AccuSharp knife sharpener »
“Sharp knives are absolutely essential for prepping. I used to use a sharpening stick but was never very good at it. This is really good and simple to use. It’s a bit scary, you think you’re going to take your knuckles off, but it’s safe.” – Justin
Mouli »
“My mouli for mashing potatoes is essential – even if I’m just making mash for the kids. It’s not very pretty, but it’s fool-proof, you’re not going to have any lumps at all.” – Jenny
BOOKS
Home: Recipes from Ireland, Trish Deseine »
“This is a really nice book on Irish cooking and I love the comment: ‘No pomegranates or pistachios were harmed in the making of this book’.” – Justin
30 Years at Ballymaloe, Darina Allen »
“You can’t go wrong with Darina’s cookbooks and if you want a recipe for good hollandaise or béchamel or other essentials, this is the go-to book.” – Justin
The Country Cooking of Ireland, Colman Andrews »
“This is a lovely book to read, one of the Irish classics. You know Colman Andrews? He’s a very good food journalist, used to edit Saveur and wrote for Gourmet.” – Justin
How to be a Domestic Goddess, Nigella Lawson »
Justin: “Jenny loves Nigella. Her recipes work, they’re really good, she uses them quite a lot.”
Jenny: “I love the Domestic Goddess book because I love baking. The recipes are just really good.”
The River Cottage Family Cookbook, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall »
“I love Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall and I use his Family Cookbook so much. It’s really good.” – Jenny
Hix Oyster & Chop House, Mark Hix »
“I love Mark Hix’s books, when we had the chophouse in Lismore we used them a lot.” – Justin