In 2014 Neven realised a
lifelong ambition and opened his own Cookery School; a place where he could
share his enthusiasm for and knowledge of food and cookery with the aim of
getting more of us into our kitchens cooking! Located beside the restaurant in
Blacklion, there are a number of courses on offer at the school and definitely
something to suit everyone irrespective of age or cooking ability.
Courses on offer include
the half day Parent & Child cookery course with full day courses on Summer
Entertaining, Cooking for Friends & Family and Christmas Made
Easy, amongst others. A two day Home Chef course is also available
and was the one that I decided to attend, using the two days away as an excuse
to stay overnight in the MacNean House accommodation!!!
Some people idolise
actors or pop stars but I go weak-at-the-knees for famous chefs and as such, I
will admit that I was a little star-struck meeting Neven for the first time!
Managing (probably not that successfully) to retain some level of composure, I
joined the rest of the class, who had arrived before me.
Classes are kept
deliberately small with no more than ten or twelve participants. As a result,
not only is there great camaraderie within the group but the small numbers mean
that you really have the chance to get stuck in and cook everything yourself
without feeling cramped. The kitchen is beautifully decorated in grey and muted
green tones and has every mod-con that you could possibly want during the
course. Induction hobs are fitted in the kitchen and even after only two days
using them, I am converted and WANT one!
Neven demonstrates each
dish first, giving you plenty of tips along the way including useful
suggestions on alternative ingredients that can be used. Booklets of all the
recipes covered over the two days are distributed but Neven is on hand at all
times to answer questions and offer guidance.
Ably assisted by the
wonderful Claire and Olivia, all the ingredients are weighed out and ready, so
that you can get straight down to cooking but you still prepare your meats,
vegetables and practice your knife skills and other cooking techniques along
the way.
We cooked in pairs, each
having a work station, hob and oven to ourselves with each duo making the
decision on how to divide the various tasks involved in making each dish.
During the two days, we baked breads and pastries, made soups and sauces and
cooked an astonishing array of starters, main courses and desserts. Lunch on
both days consisted of dishes that we had cooked ourselves, washed down with a
glass or two of wine.
The first dish that Neven
demonstrated to us was his Kaitafi Prawn Salad but this was only the beginning.
During the two days we also made Vietnamese Chicken Salad, Braised Pork Belly,
Gratin of Hake, Duck with Creamed Cabbage & Sweet Potato Fondants as well
as Pear Frangipane Tart, Lemon & Passion Fruit Posset with Macerated
Berries, Chocolate Truffles and many other sauces, breads etc. We all found
making the sugar cases for our possets great fun, if more difficult than we
initially thought and couldn’t understand how Neven made it look so easy!
To say that the Home
Chef course is only about cooking would be inaccurate. In the afternoon on
the first day, we were treated to a Wine & Cheese Tasting delivered by
Blaithín, the restaurant’s highly experienced Sommelier. Sitting on the veranda
behind the Cookery School on a heavenly summer’s day, it really felt as if life
couldn’t get any better! I found the tasting session very informative and
learnt some very interesting things.
On the second day, we
were given a tour of the gardens by Kevin, who grows and tends to the plants,
herbs and vegetables many of which are used to supplement ingredients used in
the restaurant.
We also visited the
restaurant kitchen; where under Head Chef Glenn Wheeler a brigade of chefs was
busy at work preparing the food prior to that night’s service. I was mesmerised
by the amount of work and attention to detail that goes into preparing dishes
for a fine-dining menu, so to get a glimpse of life behind-the-scenes was
fascinating.
The course is relaxed,
informal and tremendous fun. Neven speaks fondly about his family and in
particular his wife Amelda and their twins Connor and Lucia. Perhaps
unsurprisingly, as he comes from a large family, you really get the feeling
that, for him, food and cooking are very much about a sense of community and
showing your love for those closest to you. This may sound rather hackneyed in
this cynical old world of ours, but all things considered, it’s not a bad
philosophy; food certainly has the ability to bring people together!
Neven wants to give
participants a culinary experience to remember and I can truly say that this is
one of the best cookery courses that I have ever been on. Given the amount of
dishes you cook, the Home Chef course is intensive but you never feel
stressed or harried. Although I would be an enthusiastic and fairly experienced
home cook I still learnt so much and, over the two days, made dishes that I
know will become mainstays in the cooking I do for my family.
The Home Chef
course was one of the most enjoyable things that I have ever done and I would
strongly recommend it to anyone. At €495 for two days, it may initially seem
like a whack of money to pay but all the ingredients are provided, you learn so
much and most importantly you have great fun. I felt that it was worth every
cent and I genuinely believe that there are few people who would come away disappointed
after the two days.
Everything that you make
and don’t consume on the course is packaged up for you to bring home when
leaving. It’s not an exaggeration to say that my car was packed full of tasty
treats which my family and I feasted on over the next few days! Amongst other things,
each of us was also given a bag containing an apron, some Donegal Rapeseed Oil
and a choice of any one of Neven’s cookbooks which he signed and personalised
for us.
This was such a memorable
experience and who would have thought that two days cooking in County Cavan
could be such great fun?
Neven Maguire Cookery
School
Main Street
Blacklion
County Cavan
Telephone: 0719853022
For information on courses: www.nevenmaguire.com
This review first appeared in TheTaste.ie
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