Yellow Door / Irish News

Over the past three weeks I have had the privilege of photographing some fantastic food for Yellow Door to be published in the Irish News Weekend section as part of a series of recipes they ran for Simon Dougan.

Spiced Sloe Whiskey with Honey [recipe]

Smoked Sweet Cure Moyallon Bacon Chop with Wild Mushroom Barley ‘Risotto’ [recipe]

Beetroot and Horseradish Relish [recipe]

Simon also asked me to style and shoot a picture of a cheeseboard showcasing Irish cheeses.  This is what I came up with [drooling as I type]!

All pictures styled and photographed by Geoff Telford Photography.

Recipes courtesy of Simon Dougan (Yellow Door Deli) as published by Irish News.

If you are a restaurant or any kind of “food establishment”, I would love to help you showcase your food.  Please contact me for more information.

A day at home with Simon

You’ve probably gathered by now that apart from photography, another passion of mine is food! I love it! I love cooking food. Eating food and photographing food.

Back in November last year, Caroline and I went to a Gourmet Evening at The Yellow Door Deli in Portadown with good friends Ryan & Laura. This was the third such evening we had been too. It was an evening of fantastic food, superb wine and lots of craic. Since then I have had the privilege of taking pictures at a Gourmet Evening. At the end of the evening I spotted Caroline speaking to Simon Dougan (Executive Chef). A month or so later i.e. Christmas Day, Caroline presented me with this:

On arrival I was greeted by Simon and his wife Jilly in their beautiful home just outside Gilford. I was immediately taken back by the fantastic open plan kitchen they had designed on the ground floor (including indoor BBQ & smoking chamber). I know it isn’t right to be jealous, but I was! Just a little bit!

Coffee was served as myself and the other 9 like minded foodies had a chat.

Simon then took us outside to show us some of the many herbs he and Jilly grow in their fantastic garden. There was everything that a food lover would need, and more. Chives, rocket, rosemary, chervil, sage, coriander, vietnemese coriander, thyme, tarragon to name but a few. However, it wasn’t long before the rain got the better of us and we took shelter inside where we watched Simon cook probably one of my favourite breakfasts.

Proper Smoked Kilkel Haddock with Chive & Fennel Potato Bread, Crispy Moyallan Bacon, Wild Poppy and Land Cress Hollandaise

After breakfast, thankfully the rain had disappeared and we went back outside again. This time we where “hedgerow bound” for a lesson in foraging. Thanks to Simon I can now look at “weeds” in a completely different light. It was amazing to see just how many “weeds” are edible. Simon gathered a number of tasty treats to add his amazing lunch time salad.

Spiced Irish Beef and Soba Noodle Salad with Wild Herbs & Thai Red Curry Dressing

After our foraging lesson we enjoyed a glass of Simon’s favourite Prosecco with his homemade Sloe or Damson Gin.

Following lunch (which was served with a wonderful selection of Yellow Door breads) we went outside again to have a look at some of the micro herbs which Simon & Jilly grow. These intensely flavoured seedlings are delicious on salads.

Back inside again, we gathered round and watched Simon make dessert using the rhubarb he cut from his garden earlier that morning.

Deconstructed Rhubarb Crumble with Sweet Mascarpone, Marjoram and Pink Ginger Cream

This was delicious and brought to an end what was a fantastic day of food and craic. Simon and Jilly were excellent hosts and I think I can speak on behalf of everyone in thanking them for a truly memorable experience.

Hopefully these pictures will give you an a little bit of an insight to the day.

Yellow Door Gourmet

Good food is one of life’s pleasures.  In Northern Ireland we are blessed with fantastic local food.

The Yellow Door Deli is one of my favourite places to eat lunch on a Saturday (or any day for that matter) with Caroline and Poppy.  The passion that Simon Dougan has for his food is obvious in the depth of flavours that accompany each dish.

Over the past couple of years I have attended a number of cookery demonstrations hosted by Simon in the Deli.  I have picked up some great tips.  However, the pièce de résistance has to be the “Gourmet Evenings” that the Yellow Door host a couple of times a year.  This is where Simon and the other chefs really “go to town” on their creativity and culinary skills.

I had the privilege of spending an evening in the kitchen at the most recent Gourmet Evening to capture some of these culinary treasures.

Anyway, bibs at the ready!  Here goes!