Valerie O’Connor traces the moment she switched careers, started a blog and began to love her work

The next few weeks sees the launch of my third book Val’s Kitchen, so-called after my blog of the same name which turns 10 this year. 

I started blogging in October 2006 as a young mother of two boys, recently separated and working in a job that I thought I’d like a lot more than I did.

Being a press photographer for a busy red-top held plenty of excitement but running around from one event to the next with heavy gear and being under constant pressure, didn’t really fit in with the rigid hours imposed by creches and babies.

Being sent on ‘stake-out’ jobs, which meant sitting in my car all day staring at someone’s house in the hope of getting a photo of them, was a particular low point for me and I found it hard to make sense of dropping my kids off at an expensive créche every day while I sat in a car, on my own, hoping the person I was meant to photograph wouldn’t appear so that I wouldn’t have to assault them from afar by taking their photo.

My life was a round of early mornings, so I turned to baking as a way to keep me awake and get me through some tough times.

The blogging phenomenon was just beginning so I decided to get on board and being handy with a camera also meant I could marry my love of food, writing and photography.

When people read my first ever post on Val’s Kitchen, one about apple cake, it sparked a real thrill in me and a feeling of connectivity.

Blogging gave me an outlet, it became something that I looked forward to doing and soon I was approached by the famous McKenna’s to be a restaurant critic for their guidebooks.

As babysitters were expensive, I took my boys as my ‘plus two halves’ to dinner, and we got to enjoy a lot of delicious meals in restaurants we could not have otherwise afforded.

When I moved back to my home town of Limerick about eight years ago I had a dream of ‘making it’ as a food writer.

While it may seem crazy to move to small city with a big dream, it was a practical move fuelled by the costs and stresses of living in Dublin.

However the recession hit us hard and the wheels stopped turning, money was tight and though living here was cheaper, there was less work.

During this time the ability to cook really saved our bacon, and knowing where to buy what and how to get the most out of our money meant we always had good, nutritious and tasty meals.

I owe my cooking skills to my Mum and my love of all types of food to my Dad.

My parents are keen cooks and meal times were always important growing up, eating in front of the telly wasn’t allowed and I stuck to this routine with my boys, and now we value sitting down together to share banter about the day and what’s going on in our worlds.

Val’s Kitchen is a book of my recipes, inspired by many other cooks, and mostly by my Mum’s great food.

Even thoughI have two bread books already published, this is the one that feels closest to my heart.

There isn’t a chia seed or an almond butter in sight, as mostly I’ve been cooking for my children and myself so it’s practical and healthy too, with the occasional treat.

There’s an extensive section on fermented foods as it’s an area I’ve become passionate about and have been teaching classes on, for the past year, the health benefits are many and the stuff tastes great.

I’ve also written about food for funerals, something that maybe we don’t talk about, but egg sandwiches and sausage rolls can help you through the hardest of times.

As I returned to college for two years to study organics, I enjoyed writing the grow-your-own-section straight from my head.

Soups and stocks, making yogurt and cheese are a nod to my travels and also features the brownies my son now makes and sells.

Here I’m sharing with you my very first recipe from my blog.

I hope you like my book and that you actually cook from it instead of just looking at the pictures

Autumn Apple Cake

This was the very first recipe I wrote for my blog ‘Val’s Kitchen’ which I started writing way back in 2006. Only 10 years ago.

It was great to put my love of food, writing and taking photos together, and I make this cake regularly as it’s so easy and gets tastier over a few days.

Over time I’ve changed some ingredients, but the basic cake is the same, moist and warming and a really comforting treat.

Ingredients

225g/10oz Butter

450g/1lb Bramley apples

Zest and juice of one lemon

225g/10oz caster sugar

3 large eggs

225g/10oz plain flour or white spelt

2 tsp baking powder

25g ground almonds

1 tblsp brown sugar

Method

Heat oven to 180°C/ Gas 4 Method

1. Grease a 24cm springform tin with butter and cut out a circle of greaseproof paper to line the bottom.

2. Peel and chop the apples into small pieces, this can be very random as the apples get very soft in the cake.

Squeeze the lemon juice over the apples and leave them aside.

3. Cream the butter in a mixer by whisking it alone for about a minute, and add the sugar and grated lemon zest, beat until it is light in colour and fluffy.

4. Add the eggs, one by one, sifting in some of the flour after each one. Add the baking powder and ground almonds, then loosely fold in the apples.

Stir the mixture to combine and spoon into the prepared tin. Sprinkle the brown sugar over the top and place in the pre-heated oven.

5. Check the colour after 30 mins.

If it is getting too brown cover the cake loosely with tinfoil and continue cooking it for a further 20-30 mins.

Everybody knows the temperament of their own oven so follow your instincts.

Leave the cake to cool in the tin until it’s just warm.

Be sure to have a slice before it gets cold and smother it with thick, whipped cream.

It will keep for a few days in a tin if you can keep your hands off it!

Val’s Kitchen is published by O’Brien Press and is in bookshops nationwide from March 21

Val is teaching her next class in food fermenting on March 10 in Hook and Ladder, Limerick.

www.hookandladder.ie