Sarah Patterson on her late father Ken Reid's pride when she set up her company, The Little Pink Kitchen

Growing up in Ballymena with her late father, Ken Reid, the much loved and respected former UTV political editor, mum Liz, siblings, Gareth and Sophie, Sarah felt comfortable and confident in the kitchen from a young age.

“My mum says she trusted me to use a knife and a grill from way earlier than any of my siblings. As a result, food is a huge part of my childhood memories,” said Sarah, whose catering and breakfast club company, Little Pink Kitchen, is well-known for its mouth-watering, home-cooked food.

The family moved to Cork when Ken got a job at the Cork Examiner, working there from 1987 to 1994, and the young Sarah was immersed in the flavours of that region.

“We spent most of my primary school years in Kinsale, often heralded as the foodie capital of Ireland, so it obviously had an impact!

“Beyond that, I remember standing beside my mum as we made ‘porridge biscuits’, our riff on a flapjack recipe by Delia Smith. The taste of melted butter, brown sugar and butter melting together will never fail to bring me back to those happy, simple days.

"I also distinctly remember my mum being away for the weekend, and working out the alchemy between crispy bacon bits and warm tomatoes in a salad. My dad liked it so much he insisted I made it for dinner too!”

Sarah, 40, has fond memories of family meals round the table, but with her father’s hectic work schedule, often interviewing political top brass or reporting on Northern Ireland’s biggest moments, like the 1998 Belfast Agreement, dining times couldn’t always be scheduled.

“Dad was often working at dinner time, so it didn’t ever really look like a Bisto ad, and was often eaten quite late, but it was something that I have carried through to my own family now,” said Sarah who is mum to two-year-old Hugo.”

A part-time job in a cafe when she was at school, taught her much about the inner workings of the catering industry.

“I worked in a wee cafe in the Fairhill Centre in Ballymena and I learnt so much about the logistics of catering and washing dishes in that kitchen. I genuinely don't think I'd be doing what I do without it.”

But although her passion was always for cooking, she had a circuitous route into the industry.

“I finished university in a recession, and my first job was in a call centre. From there, I moved into training, initially in the charitable sector and eventually in IT. While working, I had one of the original Northern Irish food blogs in 2010, and from that, the Little Pink Kitchen was born.”

Explaining the catchy name, and the origins of the business, Sarah said: “I invited some friends and family round for Sunday brunch in my tiny Sydenham (pink) kitchen and was told to start selling tickets, pronto. I did, and the Little Pink Kitchen breakfast club was born, where people buy tickets for a pop-up restaurant experience in my east Belfast home.

"It still continues today, along with outside catering for small events and, most recently, the launch of Little Pink Kitchen cooking sauces, which include a butter masala sauce, an easy way to have Little Pink Kitchen butter chicken at home, a mild and fruity curry sauce, because I have a lot of love for a retro curry; and finally (for now), a spicy BBQ sauce, which is amazing in wraps with halloumi.”

Having moved to a new house, Sarah operates in a bigger Little Pink Kitchen, where the colour abounds, including her swoon-worthy Smeg fridge.

"I’ve as much pink as I can get away with, basically, including my KitchenAid mixer (I sold my wedding dress to pay for that), the walls, as many cups and bowls as I can cram in!”

Sarah said her father was very proud of her culinary endeavours.

“When I first started the business, we did an interview together, and I’ll never forget him writing about how proud he was of my tenacity. I carry that with me every day; things aren’t always easy but there is much to be gained from just cracking on. So I do. I really hope he is still proud of that.”

Sarah has a bubbly personality and her blog is full of humour and warmth.

“You definitely have to have a sense of humour. I really, really try to make people feel as comfortable as they can, and a laugh is part of that.”

A seasoned globetrotter, the flavours of other places are often reflected in the recipes she devises.

“Travel is my absolute favourite thing, mostly so I can eat. I spent a year teaching English in China when I left school and have spent almost seven months in South India practicing yoga over the years. This means the foundation of my cooking is those flavours of fragrance and spice.

"I pick up things on shorter trips too: a train journey through Siberia introduced pickles and dill to my cooking, a recent trip to Bordeaux saw me add toasted walnuts to my everyday side salad.”

As well as delicious discoveries, there have been some more questionable offerings.

“When I lived in China, I was often the guest of honour at important banquets. Once, I was presented with a glass containing rice wine and the gall bladder of a live snake, and was expected to drink it. Quite the experience for an 18-year-old from Ballymena!”

Sarah believes food should be about the people you enjoy it with and the joy it brings.

“Eating is so much about the company and the mood. Sure, if I want to show off I could talk about my Michelin-starred experiences, but they really can’t compare to bringing my little sister fish and chips and a bottle of champagne a few days after she gave birth, or my aunt’s trifle as her kids entertain mine or pizza and a catch-up with a good friend.”

Sarah's signature dish, is ‘definitely’ her butter chicken.

"It is full of flavour without having intimidating spice levels, and is the perfect weekend treat. I sell tubs of it at the Inns Cross Market on the first Saturday of every month in South Belfast, and it sells out every time.”

Her philosophy and approach to cooking is straightforward.

“I pride myself in taking these flavours and ideas and turning them into something that works for the Northern Irish palate, with our incredible ingredients and most importantly, can be cooked quickly.”

So, does she have a favourite dish to cook?

“The answer to this question changes all the time, but there has been some variation of a lentil dahl on the menu for dinner at least once a week for as long as I can remember. It is nutritious, tasty and requires absolutely no thought whatsoever. Perfect week night food after a busy day at work! In terms of comfort, you cannot beat a big bowl of noodles in broth, although I am partial to a good old fashioned chicken stack.”

Outside of the Little Pink Kitchen, Sarah loves ashtanga yoga practice, “reading books with interesting covers” and chasing her two-year-old around the park, and her ambition?

“To write a cookbook, that will always, always be the dream. I love to cook, I love to write, I really hope I can figure out a way to bring those two together in future.”