Sep 19, 20183 min read

EAT:ITH at The Fumbally Starts Next Week

EAT:ITH is back, and this year's line-up looks like the best one yet (but we probably say that every year). Started in 2015, EAT:ITH is a forum to share ideas and thoughts around Irish food culture, “ith” being the Irish verb to eat. Created by the team at The Fumbally, the events will be held in the Fumbally Stables and run over a number of weeks. This year’s events are predominantly female led, something the Fumbally team feel strongly about.

Many of the events are free, including the talks and markets, and EAT:ITH is funded solely by the Fumbally and ticket sales. Everything on the programme, including talks, workshops and performances are open to all, whether you work in the food industry or just have an interest in Irish food and the people who produce it.

Workshops will be held in the Fumbally Stables Kitchen on Saturdays, and include “Make your own mozzarella with Toonsbridge Dairy”, and "Vegetables with Katie Sanderson", where she'll share some of her favourite recipes, including fermentation and Asian inspired dishes. Sanderson used to work as a chef in the Fumbally, before going on to run The Dillisk Project in Connemara with her partner, Jasper O’Conner, and developing her pop-up rice bowl stall, White Mausu, and the addictive Peanut Rayu (casually known amongst its fans as 'crack sauce').

Something else we'd be making a beeline for is Louise Bannon's workshop on “Sourdough baking and heritage grains” on October 13th. Bannon is a graduate of Culinary Arts in DIT and a former pastry chef at René Redzepi's Noma in Copenhagen - named the "World's Best Restaurant" four times since opening in 2003. Louise has more recently been working directly with farmers in France and Copenhagen who are reviving some of Europe's heritage grains, and testing these flours in her bread and pastry making.

There are also some brilliant talks which are all free (although if you can afford it a small donation on the night would be appreciated), you just need to register for a ticket. First up next week is “Will dairy be the death of us”, chaired by Alison O’Connor, freelance journalist and opinion writer. The discussion will centre on the sustainability of the dairy industry, its impact on the environment and the livelihood of Irish farmers. Catherine Cleary, Irish Times journalist will be for the motion, while Mike Magan, chairman of Animal Health Ireland, will be against the motion. This is less an argument for veganism, and more about the morals of the Irish dairy industry and what’s happening behind the big campaigns.

The following week on October 4th, Ali Wynn, owner of Proper Order Coffee Co. and Irish Brewers Cup Champion 2018, will present “Pay no attention to the (wo)man behind the curtain”. Coffee roasting in Ireland has grow massively in recent years and the sustainability of this, and whether there's room in the market for everyone, will be discussed with a panel of influential coffee roasters from

Ireland and Europe.

Another talk on October 11th centres around “Food and Cancer” and will be hosted by walking inspiration Fiona Cribben, an artist and designer in Dublin who has been living with cancer for over ten years. Since receiving a terminal diagnosis of liver and bone cancer she has refused chemotherapy, instead choosing to treat her body with nutrition, and doctors are shocked that she's still alive. The final talk on October 18th, “Food today: fetish, commodity or basic right?”, will be hosted by journalist and farmer Fergal Anderson, and will address some of the issues with modern food systems.

The EAT:ITH Markets will run every Sunday from September 30th to October 21st on Fumbally Lane, and each market is themed around vegetables, bread, cheese and fermented foods, with some of the country's best producers popping up, including McNally’s, Sceal Bakery, St Tola, Young Buck, Gubbeen and My Goodness. Dublin 8 has been market-less ever since Newmarket Square was taken over by developers, so this should fill the void temporarily.

Probably the most highly anticipated event on the programme is the dinner, where Jess Murphy of Kai, Carmel Somers of Good Things Cafe and Rose Greene of De Wulf and Coombeshead will cook a six course meal on the final evening of the series. Wines will be supplied by natural wine champions Le Caveau, and will consist of wines from female winemakers.