Series 2 Overview
Grow, Cook, Eat returns to RTÉ One for a second run of this very practical series aimed at helping people with little or no knowledge of growing their own food, but who like the idea of being able to grow something themselves.
The series is anchored at the home of GIY (Grow it Yourself), at Grow HQ in Waterford City, and each week Grow, Cook, Eat sees presenters Michael Kelly and Karen O’Donohoe visit expert food producers, chefs and community food growing projects all across the country.
In this second series, Michael and Karen share their knowledge on how to successfully plant and grow onions, pumpkins, sweetcorn, courgettes, kale, beans and chillis for all shapes and sizes of gardens and containers.
Every week chef Katie Sanderson uses the freshly grown produce to create seasonal dishes which are easy to make and delicious to eat.
Grow, Cook, Eat highlights serious issues including plastic packaging and food waste, and the series also sees Michael and Karen visiting a large scale water harvesting project in a Dublin fire station, and a Social Eating Programme in Educate Together National School in Tramore.
Programme One:
In this first episode Michael and Karen focus on a household staple – the onion. Easy to grow and very low maintenance, both red and white varieties are sown in the raised bed with Karen holding back some of the sets for container growing.
Michael is upstaged by his young son Nicky who gives a masterclass in keeping hens, and Karen heads home to Cork to visit one of her favourite places, Mahon Farmers’ Market to meet the people committed to growing and cooking fresh and seasonal food.
Chef Katie Sanderson creates Berber Eggs – a really simple but delicious meal that uses both onions and eggs, and is a perfect Brunch dish.
Grow, Cook, Eat is produced by David Hare of InproductionTV for RTÉ and is sponsored by BORD BIA and StopFoodWaste.ie
Presenters:
Michael Kelly
Michael Kelly is a writer, founder of GIY and grower. He has written three books on food and self-sufficiency – his latest book Grow Cook Eat (2014) was a winner in the Gourmand World Cookbook Awards. Michael is an Ashoka Fellow, a Social Entrepreneurs Ireland awardee and a recipient of the inaugural 2010 Arthur Guinness Fund. He is a member of the TASTE Council of Ireland. He has written columns on food and health for The Irish Times, The Irish Independent and Food & Wine Magazine. Michael is a passionate speaker on food issues, self-sufficiency, sustainability and growing your own food. He worked for ten years in the IT industry in Dublin but now lives the good life in Dunmore East, Co. Waterford with his wife and two little GIYers.
Karen O’Donohoe
Karen returned to rural Ireland after pursuing a successful career in the UK and completing her MSc in Nutrition, Physical Activity and Public Health. A native of East Cork, her passion for social enterprise, health and sustainability saw her start a GIY Group in her home village of Ladysbridge and then join GIY as a fundraiser for GROW HQ, GIY’s €1.4million national food education centre. Now, as Head of Community Development and member of the Leadership Team, Karen works with a number of GIY’s stakeholders to develop long-term partnerships for maximum impact. Her skills as a presenter and entertaining educator were honed during a successful career in health promotion and community development with the University of Bristol where she represented the University on a number of high profile programmes including Inspire 2012 and Healthy Universities. Founder of The Cottage Market, a community-led market initiative that has been rolled out on a national scale, Karen is passionate about rural regeneration, empowering micro enterprises and working with communities to create social, environmental and economic success stories.
Media Queries:
TVPR
Ann Coughlan 00 353 87 6778045
Pauline Cronin 00 353 87 2629967