Earlier this year, food blogger Nicola Halloran decided to put her time in lockdown to good use and created her first book, The Wonky Spatula: Cook Healthy, Live Happy.
Whether you're a seasoned cook or have never boiled an egg, this book promises to arm you with healthy recipes that will leave you feeling energised and ready to take on anything that life throws at you - something we could all use a bit of right now.
We caught up with Nicola to find out how the book came about, her favourite recipes, and the basic cooking skills she believes every person needs.
1. You've been busy this year. How did the pandemic affect your work?
Really busy indeed. Work-wise, I'm really fortunate to have had little change outside of moving into my home office, which I’m actually really enjoying. I’m also probably one of the only people who found themselves busier than ever over lockdown as I spent every spare moment getting my book ready for print.
2. What was the inspiration behind this book?
Publishing my recipes in print has been a goal of mine for the last number of years, and the main inspiration behind it was that I wanted to get my recipes into as many kitchens as possible. I also found that when I first started cooking there was no one-stop shop when it came to everything I wanted to know so including info on cooking techniques and a glossary of key terms was something that I was determined to include.
3. Who is the book aimed at?
This cookbook really is for everyone, whether you’ve never cooked before and are looking to start or you’ve tried and failed with cooking before. Those who are busy, stressed, short on time, and need a no BS approach to good food.
4. You cover the basics - from boiling an egg to storing food safely - what other basics do you think people need a refresher on?
For me, some of the main questions I get asked are about food storage and how to properly season your food – a lot of people will be surprised to learn that there’s a lot more to it than just salt!
Alongside that, I’m really passionate about eating locally sourced, seasonal produce so it was super important that I included a section on this.
5. What kind of dishes did you choose and why?
I wanted to show a range of different recipes that would come in handy for all possible occasions – from quick and easy grab and go breakfasts right up to show stopper desserts. The main thing, for me, was that they were all created in a way that was accessible no matter your level of cooking.
6. What was the process of making the book at home?
Putting the book together was so much fun. I had been building up a bank of recipes for a while before I approached anyone to kick-start the process, so I had a really clear idea of where I wanted to take it.
Once I went through the proposal stages and teamed up with Orpen Press we progressed really quickly into prepping it to go to print. From mid-March, it was all systems go. I did all of the food photography and styling myself so every spare minute I had was spent snapping away.
The only real bump in the road was of course having to delay the cover shoot until restrictions eased. Thankfully though, the hairdressers were able to reopen that bit earlier than planned and with a fresh head of highlights I was ready to go!
Shooting the cover images with Evan Doherty was so much fun, I’m so used to being the one behind the camera so it was great to experience it the other way around and it really made the whole process suddenly feel real. I was going to have a book with my name on it in bookshops nationwide.
7. What are your top 3 recipes?
Oh wow, that is a tough question. In no particular order: The Clean Boneless Bites, Light and Dark Chocolate Mousse and the Chicken and Bacon Skewers... but really I could list off recipes for days!
