Ballymaloe Day 27: “Like a badass filleting”

I sipped the orange juice slowly and marvelled at what a genius idea I had come up with.

Last night before I headed out for a few scoops, I squeezed five oranges, a lemon and lime, all in preparation for a potentially sore head in the morning.

Let me tell you, if this cure is all I’m remembered for, I feel I’ve done my work!

Refreshed and restored, myself and my housemates hopped into the car and headed to Midleton Farmers Market.

Completely by surprise and while I stopped to admire the Arbutus Bread stall, Deirdre who was working the crowd, greeted me. She said that she had been reading this very blog, and introduced me to the man behind Arbutus, Declan Ryan.

Feeling very, very humbled by them both, she kindly gave me a gorgeous loaf of sourdough, free-of-charge!

There’s something to be said about the kindness of strangers and one thing that I’ve found  that the Midleton Market really succeeds in, is making you feel welcome. Plus, the sun really does put everyone in a good mood.

With my loaf in hand as well as newly acquired plaice, hake and Ballyhoura mushrooms, we made our way back to Buttermaloe laden with treats (as a quick lunch solution, I filleted my plaice and grilled it with a bit of butter, lemon and seasoned flour).

Then like proper students, we headed to the gardens to see the herbs and salad leaves that could turn up in our exams. By the way, never eat nasturtium seeds if you’re not a fan of spice or pepper – sneaky Sophie pulled a fast one on me!!

(Maddie and the cow that we christened, “Mibuna”)

In an effort to use up our extra ingredients, this evening in the Coach House we cooked up a communal vegetarian feast!

Using a selection of things from the market and our store cupboard, it was such a joy to cook together and get things on the table without the pressure of being marked.

After dinner, I grabbed my hake (who was half the size of me!), and began to fillet him. An absolute beast of a fish, after I filed away a fillet, I was astounded to note how beautifully fleshy he was.

“Úna, you look like a badass filleting”, my housemate Julia’s sister, Emily, exclaimed and being honest, I really enjoyed seeing him slip off the bone.

I can’t wait to eat him!

Other people on the course who are blogging away:

• Karen Kennedy: http://kkinireland.blogspot.ie/p/blog-page.html
• Joanna Burke: http://www.somelikeithot.me/
• Julia Clancy: http://www.lagrassablog.blogspot.ie/
• Maddie Wehking: http://mwehking14.wix.com/forkincork14