Bake: Traditional Irish Baking with Modern Twists, €25, published by boutique Irish publishing house Nine Bean Rows, is the first book from Graham Herterich, also known as The Cupcake Bloke.
Presenting a snapshot of present-day Ireland, Bake includes traditional recipes that hold a special place in our hearts and on our tables while also making room for contemporary new influences, inspirations and ingredients. A beautiful hardback book, it offers something for every kind of baker, from first-timers looking for answers to all their baking questions to more accomplished bakers in search of inspiration and adventurous new flavours.
Food has always forged a connection to Graham Herterich’s past and recipes in the book pay tribute to the women in his life who inspired his love of baking. Many recipes also pay homage to Middle Eastern flavours, reflecting Graham’s trips to Morocco and Egypt in his twenties and more recently to Palestine and Israel with his father.
Featuring 100 recipes, traditional bakes like soda bread, tarts, porter cake and brack all the way up to modern classics like jambons, cheesecakes and fifteens are given a contemporary twist using the ingredients available in Ireland now, from advieh to zhug.
Readers can choose from Graham’s twists on classic dishes like coffee and walnut cake reinterpreted as coffee and walnut pavlova with coffee poached pears or rhubarb crumble reimagined as chocolate, banana and coconut crumble with banana ice cream. Also included is Graham’s recipe for Guinness brown bread and the updated alternative, rye, ale & honey bread, while Graham’s beloved mammy buns are brought up to date as tahini and black sesame cupcakes.
Other favourites include panch phoron soda bread with lamb keema curry; chocolate stout cake with honeycomb whiskey frosting; gin, lemon and fuchsia tart; and Buckfast baked ham with pomegranate and mint.
Bake: Traditional Irish Baking with Modern Twists also includes a brief history of Irish baking by Ali Dunworth along with Dee Laffan’s take on the modern landscape of Irish food as well as a comprehensive guide to baking essentials and lesser-known ingredients.
Graham Herterich is delighted to launch the book, saying, “Ever since I was a little boy sitting at my Granny Flynn’s table learning to bake, I’ve loved traditional Irish baking. And ever since I first stepped foot in the souks of Morocco over twenty years ago, I have loved discovering new and exciting flavours, spices, foods and cultural influences.
Bake has given me the opportunity to combine these two loves. For every traditional Irish recipe I have created a modern twist on the dish – it may be a twist on a classic soda bread or a complete reinterpretation of a classic flavour combination like coffee and walnut and more besides. I’ve loved creating Bake and I feel it brings traditional Irish baking bang up to date.”
Bake: Traditional Irish Baking with Modern Twists by Graham Herterich, published by Nine Bean Rows, is available from 8th September, €25, at all good bookshops and many independent retailers around the country as well as online at ninebeanrowsbooks.com.
Keep up to date with the latest news from Graham Herterich by following @graham_herterich @thecupcakebloke
Slán go fóill.