Turning into the Doyle family farm in Tullahought in Co Kilkenny, the first sight you see is a luscious green field interspersed with the black and white colouring of Friesian cows. With a convey of cars in tow, the milk produced on this farm was set to come full circle, being used in a variety of recipes prepared by award-winning chef Clodagh McKenna as part of the NDC Quality Milk Awards.

Farm to fork, it might be one of the most frequently used phrases in farming and food but this award really takes the whole journey into consideration.

Clodagh is the newest person to join the NDC Quality Milk Awards team with Dr Jack Kennedy, dairy editor of the Irish Farmers Journal, Professor Pat Wall of UCD and Dr David Gleeson from Teagasc.

Clodagh brings the chef perspective, celebrating the final stage of the dairy journey, the creamy taste characteristics of the finest Irish milk.

“This Cork girl is really passionate about good-quality dairy, especially in Ireland,” she laughs, standing in the Doyle family kitchen preparing the creamy mixture that will take her Irish mussels from seafood to sensational.

“We have a long history of dairy farmers and family farms and I really want to support that. Our quality is exceptional and it comes down to good animal husbandry and quality milk processing. We need to remind consumers that even though they are reading about issues with dairy and milk across the world, the quality of our Irish ingredients is fantastic. It’s important for us to be educated and not take it for granted.”

The awards recognise excellence in dairy farming. For Jack Kennedy, Paddy Wall and David Gleeson, the focus was on hygiene practises, the treatment of the young calves, grazing, grass measurements and, of course, the milking techniques. For Clodagh, it was all about the taste.

The overall winners of the awards will be announced at a special Quality Milk Awards lunch on 4 October 2017 in Dublin and Jack Kennedy says there was quite a bit of debate this year when selecting the winner.

“There are so many dairy farmers in Ireland doing an excellent job and the 14 farms visited all complete the job to an exceptional standard. Given the excellent milk quality standards, selecting out a winner must take into account what we see when we get to the farm, the attitude and understanding of the farmer about the milk quality issues and how clean and sustainable the farm is, mixed with commitment and vision for the future.”

As part of the awards, Clodagh added her creative culinary touch to the product, visiting a select few of the finalist farms to cook with their dairy product in the family kitchen.

“It was such an experience. It was really lovely to cook and share food and to get to know these families in a unique way and really understand their passion for milk. It didn’t influence the decision in any way but it was a nice additional element.”

One such family was Gerard and Cathy Doyle and their family.

“We’re the third generation farming on the farm,” says Gerard. “My father still lends a hand, as does my son my son David (20) when he is home from studying radiography in UCD.”

And his youngest son Evan (12) is a young fella who is stone mad about farming and may just be the farmer in the future.

“He helps out a lot, dips the cows when milking. David is great, he’s very meticulous in the parlour and Evan has the love for it.”

Their daughter Niamh, however, could be giving Clodagh a run for her money, producing a homemade cheese cake and pavlova which received a huge reaction from the team. Her skills certainly seem to be passed down from her mother Cathy who was busy cooking her chicken pie. To celebrate the NDC Quality Milk Awards, Clodagh McKenna has put together a selection of dairy inspired recipes for Irish Country Living readers to enjoy.

Mussels cooked with cream,

chorizo, garlic & flat-leaf parsley

Serves two

1kg mussels

2 tbsp olive or rapeseed oil

2 garlic cloves, crushed

60g chorizo, diced

2 shallots, finely chopped

100ml single cream

100ml white wine

1 tbsp finely chopped fresh

Flat-leaf parsley

1 Start by prepping the mussels. The shells should be tightly shut and, if not, should be promptly closed if you tap them with your finger. If they do not close, they are not alive and should be discarded. Wild mussels will have a ‘beard’, which is a clump of fibres they use to navigate and attach themselves to rocks on the seabed. Before cooking, this beard will have to be removed. To do this, give the beard a sharp tug and pull it towards the hinge of the mussel before discarding. Next, rinse the mussels in cold water to remove any sand, and, using a knife, carefully scrape off any barnacles.

2 Heat the oil in a large saucepan over a medium heat. Stir in the garlic, chorizo and shallots. Cover and leave to sweat for three minutes. Turn the heat up to high and stir in the cream and white wine, followed by the mussels. Stir well, cover and cook for approximately six to eight minutes. After this time, the shells should have opened, which means they are cooked. Discard any mussels whose shells have not opened.

3 Finish by sprinkling the chopped parsley over the mussels and stirring once more to bring all the flavours together. Divide the mussels between two warmed bowls and pour over the remaining sauce

Cathy’s Chicken and Mushroom Pie

2 tbsp olive oil

5 chicken breasts, skin and bone removed

150g button mushrooms, quartered

1 small onion, chopped

1 garlic clove, finely chopped

50g butter

2 tbsp plain flour, plus extra for dusting

300ml milk

200ml chicken stock

Freshly grated nutmeg, to taste

Freshly ground white pepper

Pinch of salt

Small handful of fresh parsley, chopped

500g ready-made puff pastry

1 free-range egg, beaten

1 Preheat the oven to 200°C/400F/gas mark six.

2 Heat the oil in a frying pan, add the chicken and fry until the chicken begins to turn white.

3 Add the mushrooms and continue to fry until the chicken is golden-brown.

4 Remove the chicken and mushrooms from the pan and set aside.

5 Add the onion and garlic to the same pan and fry for two to three minutes or until softened. Remove from the heat and set aside with the chicken and mushrooms.

6 Melt the butter in a saucepan, sive in the flour and cook for about three minutes, stirring constantly until it has formed a thick, smooth paste.

7 Mix the milk and stock together in a jug, then add the nutmeg, white pepper and salt to taste. Poor the liquid slowly into the flour mixture, whisking all the time until smooth. Simmer over a gentle heat, stirring constantly for about five minutes or until the sauce has thickened.

8 Stir in the chopped parsley and pour the sauce over the chicken and mushroom mixture. Mix well and then spoon into a pie dish and leave until completely cool.

9 Roll out the pastry on a lightly floured surface until it is the thickness of a euro coin. Brush the edges of the pie dish with beaten egg, lay the pastry on top, press down the edges and trim. Brush the top of the pie with beaten egg and cut some leaf shapes out of the leftover pastry to decorate the top of the pie.

10 Make two or three slits in the top of the pie to allow steam to escape and then bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes.

Chocolate Pecan Brownie Trifle

with Orange Blossom Cream

Makes one trifle

For the chocolate brownies:

300g dark chocolate, broken into chunks

100g butter

4 free-range eggs

200g muscovado sugar

200g plain flour

100g pecans, roughly chopped

For the chocolate mousse:

250g good quality chocolate

2 tbsps cocoa powder

6 eggs egg whites

100ml cream

120g caster sugar

2 tbsps orange blossom water

For the rest of the trifle:

500ml cream

1 tbsp orange blossom water

1 orange

50g dark chocolate curls or flakes

50g pecans, chopped

1 Start by making the brownies. Preheat the oven to 180°C/gas mark four and grease a 30x20cm/12x8in tin.

2 Melt the chocolate and butter in a bowl over a pan of simmering water. Stir gently until smooth, then set aside to cool slightly.

3 In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs and sugar until pale and fluffy. Whisk the chocolate and butter mix into the eggs and then gently fold in the flour and chopped pecans until fully incorporated.

4 Pour into the prepared tin, smooth the surface then bake in the oven for 25 minutes or until the sheet of brownies is firm at the rim but a bit soft in the middle. Leave to cool in the tin for 10 minutes and then place on a wire rack until cooled completely.

5 While the brownies are cooling, make the chocolate mousse. Melt the chocolate in a bowl over a pan of simmering water. Once melted, stir in the cocoa powder and then remove from the heat and stir in the cream and orange blossom water.

6 Whisk the egg whites in a clean bowl and half way through whisk in the sugar bit by bit. Continue to whisk until stiff. Then gently fold them into the cooled chocolate mixture.

7 Pour the orange blossom water into the cream and whisk together, until softly whipped.

8 Assemble the trifle. Break pieces of the cooled chocolate pecan brownie and add half of them to your trifle bowl to create the first layer. Then spoon half of the chocolate mousse on top, followed by the orange blossom cream. Repeat with another layer and sprinkle the chopped pecans and chocolate curls on top. Decorate with orange wedges CL