Something many Land of Marvels readers might not realize is that I love to cook. It’s always been a big passion of mine and baking, cooking, and hosting dinner parties is something that I love to do and try to do as much as my schedule permits. Food is also such a huge part of travel and as Nick and I have ventured around the world, we’ve fallen in love with so many cultures through their food. So in this new Land of Marvels series, as I learn to cook different cultural food from around the world, I’ll share the process and recipes here so you can have an exotic culinary adventure yourself as well! Welcome to Global Food: A Night in Ireland!
Before I get into my Mexico posts (which are starting tomorrow!), I wanted to go back a few weeks to recap another Global Food dinner party I recently hosted. My grandparents recently celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary and in celebration of that, I hosted them and other family members at our apartment for a Night in Ireland! My grandmother’s family is from Ireland and the country has always had a great impact on our family over the years. So I thought, what better way to celebrate than with a country-themed dinner!
I drew inspiration for the menu from our trip to Ireland a couple years ago as well as some classic UK favorites from various trips. I wanted the flavors of that part of the world to really come through, as well as for the dinner to be full of classic, comforting foods with little touches of Ireland throughout.
My table-scape was gray and white with touches of deep greens throughout. Green candles, olive-green succulents for the centerpiece and green and white napkins helped set that theme. As to cooking, I started early in the day with the prep work for the vegetables, then moved onto the Soda Bread, preparing the cheeses for appetizer and roasting the vegetables for my soup course. I also prepared my leg of lamb in a marinade and then roasted it for a couple hours while everything else was finished up. Finally, it was time to pull everything together and here’s what we enjoyed for a Night in Ireland and how to replicate some of the recipes yourself!
Christine Everyday says
Oh man, I LOVE potato and leek soup. Yum!
Casey says
Me too… so good! Especially when the weather is cool outside!
Kaelene @ Unlocking Kiki says
What a fun idea for the dinner! Love this, I can’t wait from more from this series!
Casey says
It is so much fun doing theme dinners! I’m already thinking of what the next one could be 🙂
Kelley @ Move By Yourself says
This is so great! I loved to cook too and my fiance is from Paraguay and he hasn’t tried that many different types of food and we recently decided once a month were going to basically throw a dart at our world map (or something along those lines) and where ever it lands we’ll research the typical foods from that country and cook ourselves a huge meal!
So, i’m super excited for more in this series, to get some great ideas 🙂
Casey says
Love that idea!!! It’s so fun trying new types of food!
Sara Rose says
Potato and leek soup is one of my favorite winter soups!! While I’m no master in the kitchen I may have to try this!
Casey says
This recipe is super easy… you should totally try it!!!
Brittany says
I LOVE when you do your food night posts, so beautiful and inspiring
Casey says
So glad you like them!!! 🙂
Mere Salazar says
How creative! And what a wonderful thing to celebrate. These photos are great! The only food night we have here is Mexican… but I would love to actually plan and decorate for a real dinner party with unique foods! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Casey says
It’s fun to plan something different sometimes! Especially for get togethers with family or friends.
Kristin | Eat. Fly. Love. says
I am absolutely loving your global food series, and what a wonderful way to host your family on a little family getaway, right from home! And I totally need that soda bread in my life.
Casey says
Thank you! Totally, it’s so fun to feel like you’ve traveled but in reality, you’re still at home 🙂