It doesn’t happen very often that I get an invite for a book launch (not sure why cause I am a little gem) but when I got invited to Lilly Higgin’s Dream Deli book launch (ok, I kinda begged), I was delighted to attend.
It was a grand affair with all foodies in attendance – we are talking people like Billy Lyons, Deidre from Arbutus, Mags Curtin, Caroline from 8Degree Brewery to name just a few. It is always great to meet these lovely people and catch up on all things foodie in Cork.
But back to Lilly – When you have Darina Allen saying ‘Just the sort of food I like to eat, simple and delicious but always with an extra special bit of Lillyzest’ and Rory O’Connell launching the book – you know you are in for a treat. Browsing through the pages of Dream Deli, you can feel the love this book was written with and you just want to start cooking the delicious sounding dishes. Lilly and Colm have 2 small boys and they are lucky to grow up eating this wonderful food.
The dishes featured are easy, simple but so totally delicious that it will make it a breeze to cook them and feel super foodie about yourself. You have old favourites like Granola but Lilly takes this wonderful breakfast dish a step further – not only because Michael D Higgins gave permission to use his poem ‘The Age of Granola’ – by adding quinoa and chia seeds. Ever tried Fruit Tabbouleh?? No?? Then it is time to do it now as it is absolutely delicious – and it shouldn’t be.
The book is divided into Breakfast & Lunch, Lunch & Supper, Tea Break & Desserts and Sides & Extras. Each section will give you ideas to make each meal a bit more interesting – nothing big and nothing fancy just very good ideas to put a smile on your face.
I wanted to use a recipe for this review but was very busy to plan much ahead – but no worries, Lilly’s recipes don’t need much planning as I found out when I read the recipe for Coconut Cookies. I had everything in the pantry and they were done in minutes – I kid you not, minutes.
A wonderful, personal book – Lilly shot a lot of the photographs herself (there doesn’t seem to be any limit to her talents) and the love that Lilly has for feeding her family shines through from the first to the last page.
Make sure to get your hands on the book – it is meant to be used and not left on the coffee table
