When I was home last September I took a drive to visit the place where my culinary adventure began. Ballymaloe Cookery School, situated in the middle of its very own 100-acre organic farm in the picturesque, lush countryside of County Cork, Ireland, taught me not only the basics of cooking but also the importance of an organic lifestyle & sustainability. Surprised? Darina & Tim Allen have been doing this for years, running classes there since 1983. Along with their daughter-in-law, Rachel Allen, they’re as famous in Ireland as U2. Well, in the cooking world, that is. I hope you enjoy this trip down memory lane with me as you’ll get to see how I became who I am, The Healthy Irishman.

Himself with Rachel Allen