Today I made : Roast Chinese Belly of Pork with Five Spice Powder Crackling and Chinese Greens. This recipe was one of my top three favourites of the whole course. Usually I’m not a fan of rich, fatty meats which can leave me feeling nauseous but the spice rub cuts the richness and makes it very moreish. This was a big food moment for me. I picked some Tunisian marigolds for garnish.

Love the confetti effect of the peppercorns

The pork belly still had nipples! Felt really weird eating them

I felt very inferior about my chocolate torsades yesterday, so I tried again. Better.

And a week at Ballymaloe wouldn’t be complete without a loaf of soda bread.

I learned : Scotch Eggs are not Scottish.

Feta is a protected name, just like Champagne. Macroom make one but have to call it ‘Feta Style.’

Good pine nuts are prohibitively expensive – usually about €95/kg. Spanish ones are over €100/kg. China also export them but Ballymaloe doesn’t rate these.

Food of the day : I can’t pick. Today’s lunch was the best of the course. Spiced aubergines, all kinds of pork, steamed new potatoes with mint, and tomato mozzarella and basil salad.  I am going to miss lunches here!

Line of the day : ‘If you’re somebody who doesn’t eat fish skin you have to try it.’ Darina, pushing boundaries.

Órfhlaith