Customer Reviews

West of Ireland Summers, a Cook Book: Recipes and Memories from an Irish Childhood

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When I was first in Ireland more than a decade ago, the country was by and large a culinary wasteland. That has changed dramatically in recent years, as young chefs across the country have started first-rate restaurants. Along with that welcome development have come a group of Irish cookbooks that are also world class. The two-volume set called Gourmet Ireland by the couple that run the Belfast restaurant called Roskoff were, until now, the best of those books. Tamasin Day-Lewis'West of Ireland Summers is, I think, even better than the "Gourmet" pair. I had the good fortune to have been given the book just before I left for three weeks in the West of Ireland (Co. Clare) and prepared meal after meal according to Day-Lewis' instruction. I was impressed, to say the least. I'm thinking especially of the mussel chowder that I made twice during our stay, and the braised lamb shanks. Fabulous! I had the advantage of testing her book while sitting in the very part of the country about which she writes, and had the added advantage of being able to buy the wonderfully fresh mussels, and scallops (with their roe), and oysters and crab and prawns and, of course, the lamb every day. But don't wait to get to the West of Ireland to buy and use this book. I left my copy in the house in Clare, but am just now ordering a copy to keep here in the U.S. Tamasin Day-Lewis is, I believe, a sister to the actor? That's not important at all. What is important is, for example, the seafood risotto recipe in her book. The best I've ever had.