We were delighted (as always) to have the pride of Blacklion, and chef extraordinaire, Neven Maguire in with us on Sunday Breakfast.
With the recent release of his FIFTEENTH cookbook (his first Christmas edition), we simply had to get the MacNean man in to tell us all about his own present to the nation.
As soon as I opened the door to let him in, Neven was full of beans, and I could see divilment in his eyes. I knew we were in for a laugh when Alison stated "You smell nice by the way" as they started to chat, and his reply had us in knots.
Alison gets baffled by the way Neven has his fingers in so many pies (figuratively, and literally I suppose) - with his cookbooks, cookery school, restaurant and guesthouse to manage. His answer is simple, "you know it's all about a good team".
Now, as I've already mentioned, this is his first Christmas cookbook, as he just felt 2017 was the year to do one. He loves the festive season and says, "Christmas for me is all about family and food". A quality combination for sure.
The goal of having Neven in (apart from getting loads of treats) was to use his knowledge, and help our listeners with any guidance they may need. The textline lit up like a Christmas tree, and the chef dished out lots of important information.
He covered things like: a nut-free main course for vegetarians, a couple of his 'Wow' desserts, a braised red cabbage recipe (that I will definitely be having a go at), how to cook your poultry to perfection, and a honey & clove sauce to go with a them. He also revealed his recipe for the ultimate roast potatoes, where you bake them in beef dripping. It sounds unbelievable!. He said of the roasties, "if you want something a bit different - fantastic".
Neven is just so passionate about what he does, and you can really see it in his face, and hear it in his voice, as he meandered through his masterpieces. That genuine excitement at the idea of cooking, and creating, is the reason he's at the pinnacle.
It's not from the grass he licked it though, as his parents owned a restaurant, so he was used to "growing up with great food". Alison asked about his own family's attitude towards cooking, and if his twins Connor and Lucia got involved in the kitchen, to which he answered with tongue in cheek, "I have to be careful how I answer this. They don't work in the restaurant - they're only six".
We're blown away by the quality of photography, variety of recipes, and at how easy it is to follow them. Even if you're the type of person who could burn water, the instructions are so simple to navigate through.
My personal picks are Neven's Buttermilk Brined Turkey (which is his most popular recipe ever), Amelda's Perfect Sausage Rolls, his Mint Chocolate Truffles, the Festive Sticky Gingerbread with Butterscotch Sauce, and the Snowman cake (a show-stopper). There's also the Santa's Little Helper cocktail made with Irish cream liquer, to help you get through it all.
The book also features a step-by-step timeline to help you plan the day itself, amazing ideas for your St.Stephan's Day leftovers, right through to a festive New Year's Eve dinner. You'll also find lots of fun ideas for edible gifts, party food, and all the little extras that help make Christmas as special as possible.
Neven Maguire's Perfect Irish Christmas is available in all good bookstores now, and will make the perfect stocking-filler for the lucky person in your life.
Listen to the fun in full here:
Catch Alison Curtis every Saturday and Sunday on Today FM with Weekend Breakfast...
