Hello, dears. I am Molly Burkes, but you can call me Aunt Molly. When I think about me being in charge of this cook book I want to laugh! My family would not consider me one of their nominations for a good cook, much less one that would offer ideas on the subject on a web site for the world to read and maybe even try. The truth is that I am writing this on the strength of my blessed mother's skills on the subject. Actually, my mother was a genius in the "art of culinary expression," and she came from a long line of women who excelled in their kitchen craft.
My only expertise in all of this is that I know good food when I see it, or better, "I know good food when I eat it." And I really appreciate food as a way to taste a culture. In some ways it is impossible to know a country until we have sampled its native dishes. This is especially true about Celtic countries and culture. I hope that you who read these recipes on the Web Site find it challenging enough to try.
I invite you, or maybe even implore you, to add recipes of your own. Preferably foods from the Celtic countries. But I might let the occassional foreign dish slip by if it sounds really scrumptious. Remember: we have a loose definition of what constitutes "Celtic cookery." For example, Irish coffee surely counts but green beer doesn't! And if you have a recipe you just adore but which doesn't qualify, go ahead and submit it anyway. Until the collection gets too large, we might just include it anyway. And another thing: during the fasting seasons (St. Martin's Lent, Great Lent, and August Fast) Christians are often scrambling to find non-meat meals. So we go lenient when it comes to vegetarian dishes.
