Jp McMahon – författare

An Irish Food Calendar explores the traditions, stories and seasonal rhythms that have shaped Ireland's culinary identity. Travelling through the Irish year, it uncovers forgotten customs alongside enduring practices, from New Year's bread rituals and St Brigid's Day traditions to the gathering of wild plants, sea herbs and seasonal harvests. Drawing on folklore from the Dúchas Schools’ Collection, historical sources and 15 years of the author’s own research into Ireland’s contemporary wild foods, Jp McMahon reveals how landscape, climate, belief and community have always influenced what we eat while reflecting on the future of Irish food in an increasingly multicultural society.Ultimately, An Irish Food Calendar is a celebration of Irish food as a living, ever-evolving culture and invites you to experience the rhythms of the year one season, one tradition and one meal at a time.

An Irish Food Story looks at history, culture and identity in Ireland through 100 foods. From farmhouse cheese to Findus Crispy Pancakes and everything in between, Jp McMahon shows that we truly are what we eat.It’s a story about what we had and what we wanted, about what we got and what we ate, from the first settlers who arrived on the island 10,000 years ago to the people who call Ireland home today.The Irish food story is also about what we didn’t eat. It’s about how we sometimes ignored the very foods that are right in front of us. It’s about how we still struggle to assert our native food culture and food identity due to a history of colonialism, famine and self-doubt. The high and the low, the good and the bad, feast and famine all have a place in the Irish food story. Jp McMahon invites us to explore it and celebrate it together.