Just to get one thing clear, Cliff House Hotel – the Cookbook features exquisite recipes from the Co Waterford hotel's much lauded kitchen but they are not beyond the capabilities of an ordinary cook. "I didn't want it to be a 'cheffy' book and it's not about showing off how fantastic the food is at the Cliff House, or how fantastically styled it is," chef Martijn Kajuiter (pictured above right) explains. "I wanted to keep it quite simple." Kajuiter, who is Dutch, says that Ireland and Holland share many similarities in terms of cuisine ("Dutch people like their spuds as well; Vincent Van Gogh has a famous painting called 'The Potato Eaters'," he laughs) but he would like to see people being more adventurous with their vegetable choices and trying out alternative cuts of meat, like beef cheeks and marrowbone. So where does Kajuiter suggest a timid cook should start? "Many of the dishes are very straightforward but a nice comforting soup is always a good starting point and it's always something that people use as a measure as to whether people can cook or not, so I would start with the soups. And the great thing about cooking at home is that you have a great advantage because unlike a restaurant kitchen, you know exactly how many people you're cooking for and you're not going to offer people a choice!"

Pork Loin with rosemary

While rare-breed pork is becoming very popular in Britain and in the rest of Europe, it's not always easy to source here in Ireland. Things are changing, of course, but for the time being we are happy to use the excellent local pork that is supplied by our butcher, Sean Twomey.

Pork is never off the menu and we enjoy its versatility, working with virtually every bit of the pig, from the fillet to the trotters, or "crubeens" as we call them here.

Pork has a natural affinity for the barbecue because it has a good layer of fat to retain moisture and if it's cooked slowly and carefully you can have the most wonderful crisp crackling.

I like to slow-roast pork on the barbecue with lots of rosemary, but it's almost as good roasted in the oven – and it's a lot easier to control. But I am a bit of a romantic and that's why I prefer the barbecue. It's a very pure form of cooking and it keeps us in touch with our roots. After all, people were cooking meat this way long before ovens were invented.

For four people you will need to ask your butcher for a loin of pork weighing about 1kg.

1 big bunch of rosemary

2 cloves of garlic

75ml rapeseed oil

Honey

Sea salt

* Mash the garlic with a garlic press and add to the oil.

* Season the pork loin with sea salt and rub it with the garlic oil.

* Then slide the rosemary under the string at intervals so as to season the whole piece of meat, leaving 3-4cm between the sprigs.

* Place it on the barbecue and keep the fire low. Alternatively, just pan-fry it briefly on all sides and put in the oven at 160ºC and cook for 10 minutes per 100g, ie, 1 hour 40 minutes for a loin weighing 1kg.

* On the barbecue the pork must be turned regularly over a low heat for at least two hours until cooked through. You will need to use a meat thermometer to check that the core has reached at least 68ºC.

* Before serving remove the rosemary, sprinkle with honey and season with black pepper.

Handy hint: Ask your butcher to tie the joint up to keep it nice and tight for cooking

Bread and butter pudding with wildmushrooms

As a twist we make a savoury bread and butter pudding with wild mushrooms.

The combination is just right; the bread absorbs the mushroom juices and holds the flavour well, the soft interior and the crisp out-side of the bread and butter is just to die for.

This is very simple to make at home. Just try it.

For four persons, you'll need a 12 x 20cm baking tray lined with greaseproof paper.

20 slices of white or brown bread without crust

500g wild mushrooms

500ml milk

200ml cream

1 crushed garlic clove

1 tsp chopped rosemary

½ tsp chopped thyme

7 x egg yolks

1tbsp truffle oil

Butter

Seasoning

* Butter the bread slices.

* Mix the egg yolks, truffle oil, cream, milk, garlic, rosemary, thyme and season bread.

* Put a layer of bread in the baking tray.

* Cover the layer with mushrooms.

* Then put another layer of bread on top.

* Pour the mix on top of the bread and press down.

* Bake in an oven of 170°C for 40 minutes.

* Leave it to cool and slice in portions.

* Bake off for 10 minutes in a 180-degree oven and serve with baked mushrooms and herbs.

Handy hint: This is super on its own as a vegetarian dish but usually it is part of a garnish

Ardmore Carrot Cake

The area around Ardmore is famous for its carrots and we like to celebrate this in various ways. The carrot is a vegetable, of course, but because of its natural sweetness it is sometimes used in desserts.

When I was a kid, they tried to get me to eat carrots by telling me that they improved your eyesight but I was having none of it. I still don't know if it's true but I hated carrots until I discovered carrot cake. Maybe that's because it's a lovely sweet cake and it doesn't taste like any carrot that I've ever eaten.

At the Cliff House we make mini versions of carrot cake and serve it with tea and coffee. As a twist we let the guest "inject" it with a carrot syrup at the table so the cake is lovely and soaky and full of extra carrot flavour.

You can also make a big version in a suitable cake tin.

250g grated carrot

125g flour

125g butter

175g sugar

75g ground almonds

2 eggs

3 oranges (juice and zest)

1 tbsp bicarbonate of soda

½ tbsp salt

* Pre-heat the oven to 170ºC.

* In a suitable mixing bowl beat the butter and sugar to a smooth white paste.

* One by one, add the eggs. The mixture will split but don't worry, it will work out fine.

* Then add the carrots, orange zest and ground almonds.

* Mix well.

* Then mix in the orange juice.

* Add all other ingredients: flour, bicarbonate of soda, salt. Mix.

* Put in a cake tin and bake for 35-40 minutes.

* You will know it is cooked when you stick a skewer into the cake and it comes out clean.

* Cool and slice and serve with clotted cream.

Handy hint: You could always glaze the cake with melted milk chocolate – always nice!

'Cliff House Hotel – The Cookbook', by Martijn Kajuiter, is published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, priced €24.95