Sir, – Having taken only a passing interest in the correspondence regarding the use of garlic in Domini’s Kemp’s recipes, it struck me that as an avid fan of her recipes I should write in support of the great work she does for The Irish Times. Her recipes form the backbone of my culinary repertoire (such as it is), and despite owning too many cookbooks, I always find myself rooting out old newspaper clippings of her recipes – even on Christmas Day (Beef Wellington, Magazine, December 3rd).
I hope the correspondence about garlic did not upset her too much over Christmas; I would very much like her to know that she made mine. – Yours, etc,
Sir, – I’ve been mystified by the uproar about the amount of garlic being suggested in Domini Kemp’s recipes. I had believed that Ireland had moved on from the days of my youth when olive oil had to be bought from a pharmacy and garlic was regarded as some kind of outrageous foreign affectation.
There is, of course, a simple solution to the problem for garlic haters who want to use these recipes. Why not reduce the amount suggested in the recipes, or indeed leave it out altogether? There would then be less reason for silly letters – like this one – to clutter up the Irish TimesLetters page. – Yours, etc,