Bloom in the Park is kicking off this Thursday, June 2nd, in The Phoenix Park, Dublin, and will run until Monday, June 6th. For the past few years I and the children have been amongst the thousands of visitors to this marvellous event, so I'm thrilled to say this year I will be taking part in the festivities. On Saturday morning at 10.30am I'm doing a cookery demonstration on The Quality Kitchen Stage. I'm ever so excited to be taking part, but I'd love to see a few friendly faces in the audience, so if you're planning on visiting Bloom on the Saturday, do pop by and say hello!

I'll be cooking up some delicious, family-friendly, dishes using Bord Bia Quality Assured ingredients. Each morning of Bloom, at the Quality Kitchen Stage, during the 10.30am demonstration (which happens to be my time slot for Saturday) a hamper of cookery books will be up for grabs. So, come early to be in with the chance of winning this lovely prize. 

  

Bloom is a marvellous day out for all the family, and not too pricey as children go free. It seems to get bigger and better each year, so I can't wait to see what's in store for Bloom 2016.

Since I ventured into the world of blogging, many years back, Imen's blog, Farmette, and formerly I Married an Irish Farmer, has always been one of my favourites. It's certainly one of the most visually pleasing blogs I've followed through the years. Lucky for me, I've had the pleasure to meet, eat and chat with Imen on many an occasion, so I can truly call her a friend. I do, however, also consider her to be marvellous mentor, who is ever generous with the sharing of her knowledge of writing, styling and photography. Imen's recently published cookbook, The Farmette Cookbook, has all the appeal of her blog with delicious dishes and beautifully styled and photographed shots, but Imen also shares with us many snippets of her journey from an American city to the Irish countryside. Intertwined between these farmyard tales and the most delectable recipes is a very beautiful love story. One about a girl who loved a dashing farmer from the moment she set eyes on him. Not to spoil the ending for you, but many years and adventures later their love is still strong. It's the delivery of these stories with such heart and emotion, and a lot of wit in between, that makes this book so special.       

I'm always amazed by Imen's stunning shots of farm and food, and each one shared in The Farmette Cookbook are frame-worthy. The accompanying recipes are just as magnificent, so I gave the children the option of choosing the first recipe we would attempt from the book. As flapjack-fans, it was no surprise that Imen's Oat-Millet-Chia-Banana Flapjacks was the chosen one. These flapjacks were so scrumptious, they've now become a regular bake in our house. I have read this beautiful book from cover to cover and with so many splendid sounding recipes I'm eager to try them all.

Jack, Tiarnan and I were privileged to get the opportunity to attend Imen's book launch in Dublin, which is where we bought this wonderful book, so this post is much more of a heartily recommendation, then a review. I can guarantee there are recipes for all to enjoy and stories shared you'll become completely immersed in. You can buy The Farmette Cookbook here and in any good bookstore.