What do blueberries, salmon and cheese have in common? They all featured in an awards lunch at L’Ecrivain restaurant in Dublin on Monday to honour recipients of the 2009 Irish Food Writers’ Guild awards. Members of the guild nominate products for consideration for these awards, and they are then blind tasted before a decision is reached. This year’s winners are Derryvilla Blueberry Farm, Clare Island Organic Salmon, and St Killian from Carrigbyrne Farmhouse Cheese, which also claimed the inaugural Environmental Award.
Once the winners were selected, L’Ecrivain chef/proprietor Derry Clarke had the task of devising a five-course menu featuring the successful products. A Clare Island salmon plate (above left) was followed by a granita made with Derryvilla Farm’s Blueberry Tonic. The main course was suckling pig, and the award winners came back into the limelight with a Carrigbyrne cheese pithivier, followed by baked blueberry cheese cake made with those oh-so-good-for-us purple berries. The award winning products are readily available nationwide.