Customer Reviews

Myrtle Allen's Cooking at Ballymaloe House: Featuring 100 Recipes from Ireland's Most Famous Guest House

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`Myrtle Allen's Cooking at Ballymaloe House' by Myrtle Allen is a really great collection of typically Irish recipes from a very personal point of view. In a sense, this book has as much or more in common with the great Savannah family restaurant book ` Mrs. Wilkes' Boardinghouse Cookbook' than it does with the average collection of Irish recipes. Not only are both books about local restaurant / hotels with a national reputation, they are also both books of incredibly simple recipes.

On the matter of the personal material, Myrtle Allen's book is far superior than the volume done in Mrs. Wilkes' name, since we are certain that all the anecdotes are first person memories, written by Ms. Allen herself.

The appearance of this book may give one the impression that it is not much more than a book length advertisment for the restaurant and Inn created by Ms. Allen and her husband and enhanced with the cooking school started by her daughter-in-law, Darina Allen and son, Tim Allen. Having seen a few such books, I can assure you it is not such a book. The extent to which it invites you to want to visit Ballymaloe House in County Cork is based entirely on a genuine feeling of dedication to hospitality, culinary arts, and natural attraction of the Irish landscape.

Not that Ballymaloe House needs much promotion. It is easily the best known rural hospitality hot spot in Ireland. I have seen Darina Allen on at least two different Food Network shows plus prominent mentions in `Martha Stewart Living'. So, it is the book which benefits from the preexisting reputation of the Inn, restaurant, and cooking school rather than the other way around.

Reading this book gives me the same kind of epithanies I experienced when I visited Germany and discovered that in the land which bred the dachshund dog, it was the long haired variety which was much more common on the streets in the Rhineland than the far more practical short haired variety which would have been more suitable for its original use as a badger hunter. My epithany with this book is the fact that contrary to conventional wisdom in the United States, it is not white flour soda bread which is the traditional Irish bread, but a brown (whole wheat) soda bread which is actually commonly served in Ireland, at least in Cork and at Ballymaloe restaurant(s).

For a book retailing for $27.50 with an advertised 100 recipes, this is an exceptionally well designed and photographed book. Of course, photogenetic Ireland has a lot to do with this, but the book takes full advantage of the Emerald Isle's photo opps.

Returning to the comparison with Mrs. Wilkes' book on her Savannah establishment, the recipes in this book and that are all remarkably simple, but touch some very interesting territory in their simplicity. The first little delight is the recipe for a `tomato ring', moulded from a variation on a tomato juice recipe, by adding gelatin and leaving out water and olive oil. There may be some recipes which do involve some unfamiliar procedures such as that very French technique of making a garnish of hard boiled egg yolks by pushing them through a strainer. This may strike one as tedious, until you so it once or twice and appreciate the great effect it has on the dish and your diners' appreciation of the dish. So, while everything here is simple, there may be a few things which do not strike you as easy or familiar.

Sometimes, the titles for some recipes may be misleading to our American eyes, as with the recipe for `billy's french dressing' which is much more like a true French vinaigrette than it is like that mysteriously salmon colored preparation we knew so well in the supermarket. And yet, it has its own distinctly Irish touches, including watercress, which is actually the original shamrock, displaced later by clover.

I am impressed with page after page of really simple recipes, most with relatively few ingredients and simple preparation steps. The average American amateur cook may find a few ingredients which are hard to find at the local megamart, such as lovage or nettles. There are also a few vaguely inexact expressions of ingredient types, such as `mild wine vinegar'. This is ambiguous on two counts. First, does it mean a mild taste? Second, does it mean low acidity? If the latter, then the very best may be rice wine vinegar. White wine vinegar would be a clear mistake, as its acidity is higher than red wine vinegar, although it may be misconstrued, by being light in color, as being milder than red wine vinegar.

But, I am happy to say all measurements have been made in U.S. friendly terms. Everything is just as exact as it has to be, but no more.

In my search for the very best Irish cookbook, this one ranks high among those I have seen already. You will not be disappointed if you pick this book to represent Ireland in a working collection of international cookbooks.

I received this book as a Christmas gift and use it regulary. Not only are the recipes wonderful, but so are the photos. You get a lot of history about the dishes, where they originated, etc. I have made a lot of the recipes in the book and have not had one disappointment. It's Irish cooking at it's best. I would recommend this cook book to anyone who loves to cook and enjoy's a good Irish meal. Two of my favorites are the Dingle Pie (spiced lamb pie) and Beef and Stout. Hearty meals, easy, delicious. Enjoy!

After staying with a friend who used this cookbook exclusively over the weekend, I just had to have it. The one item that definitely decided me was the Tomato Chutney--but it isn't in this revised edition "for American kitchens." I had to email my friend for the recipe out of the 1990 edition. Of course, now I am wondering what else I am missing. The new edition's "100 Recipes" is rather top-heavy on desserts--not something I make or eat very often.

Aside from that, it's a lovely cookbook with great photos and appealing recipes. Most of Myrtle Allen's side chat remains as it was in the original. If the Tomato chutney recipe had been included, I would definitely have given it five stars.

Have known and purchased cookery books by Ballymaloe Cookery School.So,went back to genus of the "Irish Clan".Now, a veritable Institute of All Genres of Cookery in Ireland. Plainly states Mrs. Allen's Only Cookery Book Ever to Be.This was unknown until received from Great Resource from Amazon Partners.{The flour Is Different to make a very wet, sticky and hearty bread.For this, recommend King Arthur Flour Co. for an Irish {Bread} Flour.}This gives truest insight into a much maligned Group of People in This Country when Immigrating through Ellis Island. Why? No Marriages for Ladies,Just One Reason.Also, Am Glad Mrs.M.Allen "stuck her heels in" and stayed in Her Beloved Homeland. Pure Guts, Will, Determination.We have All Greatly Been Bestowed with a Wealth of Knowledge and Love.

This cook book has so many dishes that remind me of my childhood. This is my chance to learn and pass these traditional dishes on to the next generation. I love it!