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Newsletter: ☘️ Cook with the luck of the Irish for St Patrick's Day + Korean Food Made Simple🥘

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Cook with the luck of the Irish this St Patrick's Day 

With Saint Patrick's Day approaching on Tuesday 17 March, there’s every excuse to lean into the generous, comforting cooking of Ireland. It’s a cuisine that knows how to turn humble ingredients into something worth celebrating: potatoes, cabbage, butter, good bread and perhaps a splash of something warming in the glass. Just the sort of food that feels right while the weather still has a bite to it—and the kind that invites everyone to gather round the table and stay a while.

Few dishes capture that spirit better than Colcannon, the mighty mash of buttery potatoes with cabbage or kale. The name comes from the Gaelic cál ceannann, meaning “white-headed cabbage”. The real magic lies in the way such simple ingredients come together. Like crisp-edged Potato Cakes (a clever second life for leftover mash), proof that Irish cooking wastes nothing and satisfies everyone.

Then there’s the bread. Irish Soda Bread, made with bicarbonate of soda rather than yeast, is wonderfully quick to bring together—a loaf you can have on the table faster than you can say “pass the butter.” Tradition calls for a cross cut into the top before baking to let the fairies escape (and for an even cook).

And to round things off? Either an Irish Cream Liqueur or a glass of Irish Coffee will do the trick—the perfect way to raise a toast and say Sláinte. After all, on St Patrick’s Day it’s only right to sham-rock the menu a little.

Try our "Luck of the Irish" collection
Pictured above: Beef braised in Guinness from British Cooking by Caroline Conran

Korean Food Made Simple - newly added to ckbk

We love a cookbook that makes a cuisine feel exciting, approachable and downright fun—and that’s exactly what Judy Joo does in Korean Food Made Simple.

Here the Korean-American, French-trained chef brings more than 100 easy and delicious recipes to the table.

From the fiery tang of Cabbage Kimchi to the sweet-and-spicy crunch of Spicy Pickled Radish Salad, Joo shows the versitility of so many dishes. Add radish salad to a Roasted Pork Belly Lettuce Wrap or a Doenjang-glazed Lamb Lettuce Wrap, tuck kimchi into pancakes, or let both shine on a banchan spread (made up of small Korean side dishes).

Whether you’re craving luscious Kimchi Pancakes, Candied Sweet Potato Wedges, or a simple bowl of noodles elevated with pickled radish, Joo’s recipes make Korean cooking accessible and entirely your own.

Find 138 recipes in Korean Food Made Simple

Mother's Day - UK and Ireland - edible gifts are in store

This Sunday it's Mothering Sunday in the UK and Ireland and what better way to spoil the mother figure in your life than with an indulgent, handmade treat? First up is Saffron Black Cardamom Fudge, inspired by Sumayya Usmani’s mother’s recipe. This creamy fudge carries the gentle warmth of black cardamom and the luxurious floral notes of saffron threads, a truly special gift.

For a playful surprise, try Heart Inside Cupcakes, where every bite reveals a hidden heart. Love it. Spice loving mamas will adore Jamaican Ginger Cakes with Buttered Rum, rich with four types of ginger and a glistening rum glaze. And for timeless comfort, Marbled Chocolate Chip Cookies offer an intense chocolatey flavor with the perfect chew.

Ingredient focus: wild garlic

A sure sign that spring has arrived, wild garlic is a forager’s delight, with its bright green leaves, delicate white flowers and unmistakable garlicky aroma.

Available from mid-March to late April at farmers’ markets or greengrocers, it’s a fleeting ingredient that deserves to shine in your cooking.

From the fragrant lift of Wild Garlic and Lamb Salad to the elegant sophistication of Tagliata di Manzo with Cauliflower Purée and Wild Garlic Pesto, wild garlic brings so much seasonal joy. An unmistakably English tart like Wild Garlic and English Blue Cheese Tart and a sophisticated supper such as Wild Garlic, Ricotta and Lemon Risotto (pictured below) showcase its versatility—from bold mains to light lunches.

Whether picked fresh from the woodland or sourced locally, these pungent leaves can be blended into pesto, butter, or folded into pastry, breads and salads. Explore our full 12 Ways with Wild Garlic collection for recipes that celebrate this fleeting taste of spring and aromatic charm.

6 of the best recipes using Guinness

My Goodness, my Guinness. Whether it's to add richness to chocolate cake, splashed over fresh mussels, or to flavor a beef stew, we can never get enough of the black stuff in these recipes. Sláinte.

Guinness baked ham with fig and ricotta salad

from A Simple Table by Michele Cranston

Guinness Brownies

from 100 Desserts to Die For by Trish Deseine

Spicy Beef and Guinness Pie

from Cooking for Christmas by Josceline Dimbleby

Roast Guinness Lamb

from New British Classics by Gary Rhodes

Intense Guinness Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Icing and Fine Sea Salt

from 100 Desserts to Die For by Trish Deseine

Mussels in Guinness

from Around the World in 80 Dishes by David Loftus