Barbara Lynch is Cooking!

2009 has turned out to be quite a year for South Boston’s famed chef, Barbara Lynch.

In March, Lynch joined Boston chefs Rachel Klein, Colm Lynch, and Richard Rayment in welcoming Irish chef Gerard Reidy to the annual Gaelic Gourmet Gala at the Seaport Hotel.  The four chefs made a delicious, four-course meal to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day, while raising funds for Fisher House Boston, a group that assists families of veterans in Boston for medical treatment.

In April, Lynch was on hand at the Volvo Ocean Race showcase at Fan Pier on Boston’s waterfront, where she was a featured chef at the Tourism Ireland pavilion. There she put on daily demonstrations with Good Food Ireland for visitors from around the world. 

In May, the Crittenton Women’s Union honored Lynch with the Amelia Earhart award, which is presented annually to a person “who has significantly contributed to the expansion of pportunities to women.”

In  November, Houghton Mifflin published Chef Lynch’s first cookbook, entitled Stir: Mixing it up in the Italian Tradition. The 352 page book, with photos by Deborah Jones, contains 150 recipes from Lynch’s expansive repertoire of culinary masterpieces.

And Stir is also the name of Chef Lynch’s demonstration kitchen and cookbook library, where workshops, classes and cooking demonstrations take place through the summer.  Stir is located at 102 Waltham Street in Boston’s South End.

Chef Lynch began her cooking career at the local church rectory kitchen in South Boston before progressing to the St. Botolph Club, Olives and Michaela's.  Barbara traveled to Italy to learn about Italian cuisine first-hand from local women, where she perfected the delicate pastas for which she is now famous.  In 1998 she opened her first restaurant, No. 9 Park, named one of the "Top 25 Restaurants in America" by Bon Appetit Magazine, one of the "Top 50 Restaurants in America" by Food & Wine and Gourmet.

Barbaralynch.com | Stirboston.com

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by Michael P. Quinlin