“More and more visitors are coming to Northern Ireland, to see the Giant’s Causeway, to go to the Titanic Museum, to learn about their ancestors maybe and to get in on the great food we have,” says Derry-based chef and author Emmett McCourt, a champion of Irish food heritage. “Tourists want to learn about Irish food customs and traditional methods of food preparation. They like the stories behind the food. They want the connection to the food producer to lend meaning to what they’re experiencing.”

Drink in the scenery. On our way up the legendary Coastal Causeway, we are stunned into silence by the pastoral beauty, absorbing picture-postcard views at every turn. Farmland, villages, ocean, forest—the variety is mesmerizing. Between the castles, the cheese, the cliff walks and the gin, this is one of the best road trips in the world.

WHERE TO STAY: NEWFORGE HOUSE
HOW-TO: DRIVE ON THE LEFT

Break bread. When we reach the North Atlantic Ocean at Ballycastle, we wander into Ursa Minor Bakehouse, where baker Dara O hArtghaile and his wife Ciara treat us to a lesson in sourdough. They use methods that can be traced back hundreds of years, long before the birth of commercial yeast. The O hArtghailes dress up their loaves with things like linseed oil, nuts, grains or beer, and feature them prominently in the hearty menu at their busy vegetarian café.

TASTE TO TRY: VEGETABLE STEW RECIPE

Brave the bridge. The 250-year-old Carrick-A-Rede Rope Bridge was once used by fishermen to reach the region’s salmon, but now used merely to thrill the tourists.

Visit the giants. Reaching the Giant’s Causeway, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, we head out with a guide to see the 40,000 basalt columns. This geological anomaly was created by volcanic eruption 60 million years ago, the columns formed by molten lava cooling into hexagonal stone steps. This being Ireland, there’s an alternate version of the story that has little to do with volcanoes, and more to do with Celtic warrior Finn MacCool and his Scottish rival Benandonner.

Relive Game of Thrones. Twenty minutes’ drive inland, we take a spooky stroll through The Dark Hedges—a favourite stop on all the Game of Thrones tours.

Go to the beach. The famous Strand, a two-mile stretch of golden beach in Portstewart, is the ideal spot for picnicking, surfing, birding or just taking in the view. The beach also makes the perfect backdrop for dinner at Harry’s Shack. As the name implies, it is a big, wooden shed tucked at the edge of the dunes, family-run by people with restaurant resumés as long as your arm. Inside, the interior is raw and rustic with a wood stove crackling away. We tuck into perfect fish and chips and fried chicken, washed down with a bottle of wine, watching the sand slowly turn from gold to blue to black.

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“Our process is slow, the bread naturally leavened, with no accelerators or additives,” Dara says. Every Ursa Minor loaf has only four ingredients: stoneground organic flour, water, salt—and time. “A loaf here takes 36 hours from start to finish, whereas plant bakeries take one hour. We ferment everything naturally, the gluten developing properly,” he says. “The slow process makes for better digestion.” If you find yourself in their busy vegetarian café, have the stew.

Vegetable Stew

Ingredients
2 small onions cut into wedges
2 cloves of garlic, crushed
2 fennel bulbs, roughly sliced
500 g of mixed tomatoes, roughly chopped
2 zucchini or other squash, roughly sliced or cubed
handful of torn basil leaves
grated Parmesan cheese
olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 355º F (180º C).
2. Heat olive oil in a large pan, add onions and cook until translucent.
3. Add garlic and fennel, and cook for a few minutes, then add tomatoes and zucchini and cook for another few minutes.
4. Add salt, pepper and basil, and stir well.
5. Pour into a large oven-proof dish and bake for 40 minutes to an hour.
6. Remove from oven, sprinkle with cheese and drizzle with olive oil.
7. Serve with a green salad and thick slices of sourdough to mop up all the delicious juices.

SERVES 4

DISCOVERNORTHERNIRELAND.COM
THINGS TO DO: IN NORTHERN IRELAND
WHERE TO STAY: NEWFORGE HOUSE

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