Award-winning South Longford cookery school sprung up 'by accident' says renowned chef

An award-winning South Longford cookery school sprung up 'by accident' when a talented chef and farmer received a request to host a birthday party on her picturesque grounds 13 years ago.

Prize-winning chef and educator Fiona Egan co runs Cloughan Farm and Cookery School with her husband Michael Farrell in Abbeyshrule - and it is now one of the leading hands-on cooking experiences in Ireland.

The couple grow much of their own fruit and vegetables and most of their own meat and Fiona has provided hands-on demo classes for people of all abilities, caters for tour groups, school tours and special occasions.

The Kenagh native is motivated by a strong desire to give people the opportunity to reconnect with food and she described the start of their business back in 2012 as a 'true story and a funny story'.

"Believe it or not there was never a plan to set up the cookery school, it was that a lady came to us because we were on a farm and I was doing cooking and baking and she said her daughter wanted to have her birthday party here."

Fiona recalled the party consisted of pizza and cupcakes and planning the event with the mother of the child sowed the seed for her cookery school.

"I actually didn't even know how to make posters or work printers or computers or anything. She did up a little leaflet for the little girl's birthday party with the recipes on it.

"It all happened by accident and then when people came in here to the cookery classes, they started looking around."

Fiona and Michael run a sheep and cattle farm together and she stated she used to bring children down to collect eggs and he would bring them out on the tractor and trailer.

"There would be sheep and lambs here. And he would be showing them the clover in the ground and he would be turning the ewes up on their backside to show them their teeth and tell them how you would know the age of a ewe or a ram.

"The children absolutely loved it and even the adults loved it."

Fiona combined running the cookery school and predominantly children's classes between 2012 and 2018 before she decided after to 'make a break for it' and concentrate solely on the cookery school.

The farm boasts hens, fresh eggs, pet lambs, pigs and food that is coming to the table either directly from the soil or from the many animals and foul there.

Fiona said some adults approached her early last year and said they would love to be able to sow some lettuce and they ran a popular gardening class on the second Wednesday of every month from February until November.

Fiona, who said more classes will commence next February, has described her husband Michael, who was reared on the farm, as being the backbone of the enterprise.

"While I'm doing a lot of talking about myself, Michael is brilliant at making those connections and the connection between the farm and people is desperately important," she said.

"I mean, there's huge fulfillment out of it and I would say I benefitted from great leaders or training with Hidden Heartlands Falls, Ireland."

Cloughan Farm and Cookery School has won several awards including the Local Food Champion Award and the Best Cookery School Award and Innovator of the Year in Leinster in the Irish Restaurant Awards.

Fiona said when they welcome tour groups they get to learn about the different traditions that we would have in Ireland such as learning how to bake brown bread, a pot of homemade jam, rhubarb tarts and a beef and Guinness stew.

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