Each week Her.ie will look at a new cook book, giving you the inside scoop whether the recipes cut the mustard. From health kicks, to wholesome foods, we find out what books offer the best insights for budding cooks! This week: Grow, Cook, Eat – A GIY guide to growing your own food by GIY Founder Michael Kelly The Grow It Yourself food phenomenon has really began to establish itself in the Irish food market, and despite apartment dwellers being restricted to balconies, or learning how to combat the elements of the Irish weather that may leave your crop out in the cold, there’s a real market for people looking to source organically grown food. With this initiative comes journalist and founder of GIY Michael Kelly. Having spent years writing about food and health for The Irish Times, The Irish Independent and Food & Wine Magazine, the food enthusiast pulled together his own cooking skills, passion and learning curve experiences to pull together the rather impressive Grow, Cook, Eat. A self-published piece, this cook book serves up all the tips and training advice someone looking to master the art of GIY might need. Each month is categorised with a personalised approach to the what Kelly will be getting up to with his own gardening, as well as prep work, seeds to sow for that month, a ‘To Do’ list and a detailed briefing on the ‘Veg of the Month’. Having reached out to 40 of Ireland’s well known chefs for recipe contributions to promote the Grow It Yourself culture, Kelly received 36 replies – a testament to the positive effect of eating good foods, locally sourced (or even from your own back door.) Treat your taste buds to a cream of onion soup with apple juice and thyme courtesy of Paul Flynn, dabble in making a pot of wild garlic pesto under the guidelines of Darina Allen, or let your sweet tooth sample some of Dorcas Barry’s baked apples with dark chocolate and cardamom. With soups, sauces and bread recipes at hand to venture into the world of GIY, this new style of cooking gives the option to experiment with food groups in season. The book is beautifully laid out with rich imagery and food styling. As well as clear recipes and personalised tips, each section offers an insight into rich foods that are compatible with growing in the Irish climate. This book is a testament to the growth in the Irish food industry, and makes cooking using GIY accessible to both the families living in the city to the apartment owner with a few square feet to test their own green fingers. As well as encouraging a healthy outlook and understanding on the cost and value of real food, all proceeds from the book will be invested back into the Irish GIY market, to help keep the sustainable food market active and growing. In the words of the author, it’s definitely worth “giving peas a chance!”