Category: Blog

There is a school of thought that dates ethnic Chinese as trading ‘partners’ with indigenous Australians, long before the arrival of British colonists. However records show that Chinese migration didn’t really happen until the 1820’s and that only came about because of the Britain’s love of tea and the fact that it was relatively convenient for ships plying the route between Britain and the fledgling Colony of New South Wales to drop in to China for a backload of the ‘mother countries’ favourite drop.

But there were only occasional Chinese visitors who chose to begin a new life ‘down under’. The Gold rushes of the 1850’s in New South Wales spurred unprecedented growth, migration and the formation of the State of Victoria in 1855. By 1861 there were an estimated 40000 ethnic Chinese living and working in the yet to be proclaimed country of Australia. Many of those worked in the goldfields, but others moved into supporting service businesses such as retail, manufacturing and later market gardens.

The Chinese had an uneasy relationship with the populations of the various colonies’ largely Anglo-Saxon population, yet they were not deterred and as the gold subsided many stayed to raise their own families.

It wasn’t until after World War 1 that Australian born people of Chinese background began to outnumber ethnic Chinese. One of my cooking school classmates could trace his family back to his great-grandfathers arrival in Australia, in the 1850’s.

Between the wars and after World War 2 Australian cafes owned by Chinese and their descendents started appearing. While I didn’t realise it at the time by the 1970’s the local Chinese restaurant was a dominate force in the Australian hospitality industry. There was a fair chance that you had a Chinese restaurant in your suburb or in the next suburb.

Chinese restaurants eagerly embraced the ‘take away’ concept to the point that ‘having Chinese tonight’ didn’t need any further explanation. Gradually, shopping centres, the club industry and some pubs began featuring dedicated outlets for Chinese cuisine. Even some of the larger international hotels had a standalone Chinese restaurant as one of their culinary offerings.

But how did Chinese cuisine evolve in Australia? Well in short it had to adapt. Resentment of the Chinese led early Chinese chefs to altering their offerings for locals – steaming and braising was out while deep-frying and sticky sweet sauces were in and there was more of an emphasis on meat and less on vegetables which has left a legacy that has greatly influenced the tastebuds of our Baby Boomer generation.

I can remember Chinese restaurants advertising both Australian and Chinese meals being available. I tended to avoid them.

After 1973, Australia’s ‘White Australia policy’ ended its 70 year reign and a greater acceptance of all peoples from all countries started. This closely followed an increase in visitor numbers year upon year.

Today, Chinese cuisine is still very popular in Australia, but for the most, the industry has a greater focus on regional Chinese cuisine, Chinese food enjoyed by the Chinese Diaspora and speciality restaurants featuring noodles, dumplings and Yum Cha. Large concentration of Chinese restaurants can be found in the Chinatown precincts of many of Australia’s mainland capital cities. The influx of Chinese tourists and the average Australians search for authenticity has generally refined the industry to cater for all tastes and bank accounts.

Chinese staples in 1970’s Australia include sweet and sour pork, beef and black bean and of course deep-fried ice cream.

Today’s recipe was adapted from a Hong Kong chef’s culinary invention in the 1970’s. He devised it to appeal to Americans at a celebratory dinner and it quickly became popular. The combination of deep fried prawns, candied walnuts, mayonnaise and condensed milk was generally even too much for Australian tastes.  We call it honey prawns.

Antipasti is the plural form for a traditional first course or starter in Italy. Similarly, the French have a rough equivalent called hors d’oeuvres. The two cuisines are distinctly different and while both terms offer small, savoury appetisers before the meal, the serving styles are very different.

Antipasti relies on multiple dishes served on either a share plate or from many individual dishes and features cured meats, seafood, cheese, vegetables, breads, dips and nuts. The theme is strongly Mediterranean and can be likened to a Charcuterie Board. Often there is a reliance on cold foods but true antipasti includes many tasty hot recipes.

Hors d’oeuvres on the other hand are a little more complex and dare I say formal. Think of small bite size items such as canapés in both hot and cold form such as mini quiche or smoked salmon on little toasts. They are often served with drinks while the guests are still standing.

In Australia we have embraced both terms but more recently ‘the grazing table’ has become a popular offering from caterers. However, the grazing table should not be confused with the Italian or French terms. True they are similar, but the grazing table often includes dessert and is regarded as a meal replacement.

Back to the topic of today – Antipasti. Even a small supermarket would have enough pre-packaged foods to make a half decent Antipasti plate – salamis, olives, cheese, dips and crackers. Up the ante to the deli counter for more variety or go to a quality Italian Delicatessen for authentic variety. Here is a list of over-the-counter foods, depending on your tastes that you should consider when entertaining.

• Cured meats – salami, prosciutto, mortadella
• Cheese – bocconcini, ricotta, provolone
• Marinated vegetables – olives, artichokes, peppers
• Grilled vegetables (cold) – zucchini, capsicum, eggplant
• Breads – grissini, crostini, bruschetta, crackers
• Tomatoes – cherry, sun-dried, oven-dried
• Fruits – grapes, melon, figs
• Dips
• Seafood – prawns, anchovy, octopus, sardines
• Arancini

Alternatively, you could choose to prepare some or the entire menu. Here are five relatively simple recipes to impress your guests. They can all be served with a variety of Italian breads and crackers.

Semi Oven Dried Roma Tomatoes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Course: Antipasto, Vegetarian

Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

  

• 8 Roma tomatoes firm, ripe, washed and split
• 4-5 tbsp olive oil
• ½ tsp coarse salt
• ½ tsp cracked black pepper
• ¼ tsp oregano leaf chopped
• 6 sprigs continental parsley washed and chopped
• 5 fresh basil leaves rinsed chopped
• baking paper

Method

 

1. Assemble your ingredients
   
2. Set your oven at 150c
3. Line your selected flat tray or baking sheet with baking paper
4. Place your split tomatoes, cut side up on the lined tray
5. Lightly sprinkle with the salt, pepper and herbs
6. Finish with a sprinkle of the olive oil
   
7. Place in the middle of the oven
8. After 25 minutes reduce the temperature to 120c
9. Continue ‘drying’ for 1 -1½ hours
10. Take out, cool to room temperature and serve or refrigerate in a sealed container

Notes

You can substitute dried herbs instead of fresh, just use a little less
• Avoid setting the oven too high as it will effectively ‘boil’ the tomatoes
• The longer the process, the dryer the tomato
• If the tomatoes vary greatly in size consider quartering the larger ones to even them up

Baked Ricotta

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Course: Antipasto, Vegetarian

Ingredients Method

Ingredients

  

• 500 g ricotta cheese – tub or fresh
• 1 egg lightly beaten
• ⅓ cup finely grated parmesan cheese
• 1 tsp fresh thyme leaves
• 1 -2 tsp minced chilli
• salt
• cracked pepper
• cooking spray – canola or olive oil

Method

 

1. Assemble your ingredients
   
2. Preheat your oven to 180c
3. In a bowl mix the ricotta, egg, parmesan, thyme, a little seasoning and half the chilli
   
4. Lightly spray an oven proof dish, around 15 cm diameter or a small muffin pan – say twelve
5. Spoon the mix into the bowl or divide the mix evenly in the muffin pan
6. Sprinkle with the remaining minced chilli
7. Bake for 20 – 30 minutes until golden brown
   
8. Serve at room temperature or store in the refrigerator in a sealed container for up to 5 days

Marinated Mushrooms

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Course: Antipasto, Vegetarian

Ingredients Method

Ingredients

  

• 500 g button mushrooms washed and pat dried
• extra Virgin olive oil
• juice from ½ lemon
• salt
• cracked pepper
• 1 tsp fresh thyme or ½ tsp dried
• 2 cloves garlic peeled and finely chopped
• 50 ml balsamic vinegar
• 20 g brown sugar

Method

 

1. Assemble your ingredients
   
2. Pre heat your oven to 180c
3. In a bowl mix the mushrooms with the lemon juice, garlic, thyme and seasoning
4. Add the olive oil and repeat the mixing
   
5. Bake for 30 – 40 minutes until the mushrooms brown a little
6. Add the balsamic vinegar and brown sugar
7. Continue baking for 10 minutes
8. When ready remove the mushrooms from the oven and cool to room temperature
9. Serve immediately or store sealed in your fridge for up to 5 days

White Bean and Tuna Salad

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Course: Antipasto

Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

  

• 400 g can of cannellini beans drained, rinsed and pat dried
• 185 g can tuna in spring water drained
• juice from ½ lemon
• 10 ml white wine vinegar
• 60 ml extra virgin olive oil
• ½ brown onion peeled and finely chopped
• 6 fresh parsley sprigs washed and medium chopped
• sea salt
• cracked pepper

Method

 

1. Assemble ingredients
   
2. Make a dressing form the lemon juice, vinegar, oil and seasoning. Mix well
   
3. Add the onion and parsley. Mix well
   
4. In a suitably sized bowl place the beans and top with chunks of tuna
5. Gently mix the beans and tuna
6. Cover with dressing
7. Serve immediately or store sealed in the fridge for up to 4 days

Notes

If you are not serving the tuna that day, delete the parsley and add it just before you serve

Roasted Butternut Pumpkin and Cashew Dip

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Course: Antipasto, Vegetarian

Ingredients Method

Ingredients

  

• 375 g butternut pumpkin peeled and cut into a 2cm dice,
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp cajun spice
• 50 ml olive oil
• 100 g cashew nuts unsalted and dry toasted
• 1 spring onion washed and medium chopped
• 100 ml Greek yoghurt
• 15 ml red wine vinegar
• 20 ml honey
• salt
• pepper

Method

 

1. Assemble your ingredients
   
2. Pre heat your oven to 180c
3. If the cashews are not toasted, place them on a dry oven able tray and cook in the oven for approximately 10 minutes – until slightly brown. Do not burn
4. When the nuts are ready, cool to room temperature
   
5. Bend to a coarse chop
   
6. Mix the pumpkin with the spices, seasoning and oil
7. In the oven, roast the pumpkin for 30 minutes, until soft. Do not burn
8. Cool the cooked pumpkin to room temperature
9. When ready place the cooked pumpkin in a bowl and mash it with a fork
10. Add the chopped nuts, spring onion, yoghurt, vinegar and honey to the pumpkin
11. Mix well and then chill the mix
    
12. Serve chilled or store in a sealed container in the fridge for up to 4 days.

We owe the Europeans a big thank you for the number of delicious recipes from their pastry kitchens that they have endowed on the rest of the world. Danish pastries, French Croissants, Dobos Torte, Strudel, Baklava, Portuguese tarts – the list is almost inexhaustible, much to the regret of our waistlines.

Today we will have a look at the Bienenstich or the Bee Sting cake. As usual its actual origin is a little murky, but everyone agrees that it was first documented in Germany in the early 20^th Century. Again, early versions were unfilled because you required refrigeration for the cream, but the cake still retained the topping which helped the cake stay fresh. I call it a cake, but it does have a lot of ‘bread like’ qualities because of the yeast. Other versions can be prepared with self-raising flour.

The most popular version in Australia is made a custard filling, but you could also use whipped cream or butter cream. Personally, I prefer the custard filling based on Crème Patisserie. If you have been attempting previous recipes you will notice the similarities to this base used in sweet soufflés (newsletter # 1) and also ice cream (newsletter #32).

The cake part of the recipe is made from slightly sweetened yeast dough, and the overall sweetness is helped along by the caramelised almond topping.

If you haven’t used yeast before, there are two types – Instant yeast (which I have used) or Active Dry Yeast. The Instant type can be used straight into the recipe. It is sold in a resealable container and can be stored in your pantry up until you open it – then refrigerate the yeast.

The Bee Sting Cake

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Course: Cakes

Ingredients Equipment Method

Ingredients

  

For the custard filling:

• 1⅓ cups sugar
• 3 Tbsp cornflour
• ¼ tspn salt
• Yolks from 3 large eggs
• 1 ½ cups whole milk
• 1 tspn vanilla extract
• ½ cup heavy whipping cream for later

For the almond-honey topping:

• ¼ cup (60g) unsalted butter
• 2 Tbsp (40g) honey
• 2 Tbsp white sugar
• 1 cup (110g) flaked almonds

For the cake:

• ⅓ cup (80ml) of full cream milk
• 75 g unsalted butter
• 2 Tbsp (40g) honey or sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 2 ⅓ cups all purpose plain flour
• 1 ¾ tspn yeast
• ¼ tspn salt

Putting it together:

• ½ cup thickened cream very cold and whipped

Equipment

• You’ll need your planetary mixer, a 23cm cake tin or spring form tin, and a small saucepan for this recipe.

Method

 

Method for the custard filling:

1. Assemble ingredients
   
2. In a bowl combine the sugar, cornflour, salt, vanilla and egg yolks
   
3. Whisk until creamy
   
4. – about 1-2 minutes
   
5. In a small saucepan warm the milk to 70c – 80c – which is below simmering point. Do not boil. The milk should be hot enough to cook any egg white that may have lingered in the egg mix
6. Add half of the warmed milk to the egg mix and stir in well
   
7. Add the other half of the milk and stir well
8. Pass this mixture through a fine strainer back into the saucepan. The strainer will catch any unnecessary egg white
   
9. Return the saucepan to the stove and over medium heat. Stir constantly. The mixture will quickly thicken. When the first bubbles (from boiling) appear, take the mixture off the heat and whisk vigorously to remove any lumps
   
10. Return the saucepan to a lower heat to make sure it was evenly heated. Continue stirring
11. Using a spatula transfer the custard to a medium sized bowl and cover the surface with plastic film
    
12. Chill until ready to use

Method for the almond-honey topping:

1. Assemble your ingredients
   
2. In a small saucepan, over low heat, combine the butter, honey and sugar
   
3. Stir until the butter has melted and the mixture is bubbling and creamy
   
4. Take off the heat and stir in the almonds until they are well coated
   
5. Allow to cool to room temperature
6. Leave on the side until ready to use

Method for the cake:

1. Assemble ingredients
   
2. In a small saucepan warm the milk, butter and honey
3. Meanwhile combine the flour, yeast and salt
4. In your mixer (with the dough hook attachment) add the warmed milk mixture
   
5. Add the eggs and flour mixture
   
6. On a low speed mix for one minute until a rough dough forms
7. Turn the mixer up to a medium speed for 5 minutes
8. The mix will now be ‘bread dough like’ – not sticking to the sides of the mixing bowl and elastic
   
9. Form the dough into a ball and place the dough in a clean mixing bowl lightly greased with butter
10. Cover the bowl and place it in a warm place for at least one hour to allow the yeast to do its work
11. The dough will double in size
12. When you are happy with the degree of raising, ‘knock’ the dough back by working the dough with your hands
13. Lightly grease your spring form tin with butter and press the dough evenly into the base of the tin
    
14. Spread the almond mixture evenly on top of the dough
    
15. Cover and return to the warm place for at least 30 minutes
16. While your dough is enjoying a second raising pre-heat your oven to 170c
17. In the centre of the oven bake the Bee sting for 25 minutes
18. When the topping is a golden brown remove the Bee sting from the oven
    
19. Wait 5 minutes
20. Run a knife around the edge of the tin and remove the Bee sting
21. Allow to cool to room temperature and then it’s ready for final assembly
    

Method for putting it together:

1. Gently fold in half of the whipped cream to the chilled custard
   
2. When combined fold in the other half of whipped cream. The custard should be light and airy without any obvious bits of unmixed custard. Keep chilled while you split the cake
   
3. Split the cake horizontally and on the inside of the base spread the custard mix evenly. Leave a little gap – say 1cm around the edge
   
4. Place the top on the cake and gently press down until the custard expands to the edge of the cake.
5. Best refrigerated for 2 hours, but you can serve it immediately
   

End result

The finished product for this recipe will not suit everybody. Modern consumers are more accustomed to softer flours, and this recipe required strong (high protein) flour. So, I have adjusted the above recipe to include all-purpose flour. Additionally modern tastebuds are used to a sweeter product. In a future newsletter we will attempt a recipe that has more broad-based appeal.

At this time of the year there is an abundance of mangoes, and later in the season when they generally drop in price, it may be time to think about mango chutney, the perfect accompaniment for those winter curries later in the year.

Chutneys entered British cuisine during the days of the British Raj from the mid 1800’s. There is a theory that a form of chutney could be traced back to when humans were hunter- gatherers. In the Indian sub- continent authentic chutneys are many and varied but basically can be divided into two types – the fresh ones which should be eaten immediately and the ones that we are more familiar with, the cooked ones which are preserved for future use. Both are used as side dishes for soups, curries, fried foods, rice – basically most foods.

Fresh chutneys include ‘Green’, ‘Tomato’, ‘Coconut’ and ‘Garlic’.

Preserved chutneys include ‘Branston pickle’, ‘peanut’, ‘tomato’, ‘mango ’and ‘green mango’. Green mango chutney is prepared with unripened mangoes and hence ends up with a different flavour profile. Mango chutney, on the other hand is made with sweeter fruit so care should be taken with how much sugar you add.

Indeed, many fruits, vegetables and nuts can be turned into chutney with leading chefs prepared to experiment under the banner of ‘fusion cuisine’.  For the rest of us, familiar names of companies that produce quality chutney include Crosse and Blackwell, Patak’s and  Sharwood’s.

Today’s recipe is flexible enough to take advantage of ingredients you may already have on hand and can be achieved using only one thick bottomed saucepan.

Mango Chutney

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Course: Accompliment

Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

  

• 400 ml apple cider vinegar
• 100 ml red wine vinegar
• 1 onion peeled and finely chopped
• 150 g white sugar 3/4 cup
• 1 kg mangoes flesh only and coarsely chopped
• 3-4 cm piece of ginger peeled and finely chopped
• ½ tsp crushed chilli
• 4 whole cloves
• 1 tsp coriander seed
• 1 tsp ground cumin seed
• 1/2 tsp crushed garlic
• 1/4 tsp salt

Method

 

1. Assemble ingredients
   
2. In your saucepan heat your vinegars and sugar to boiling point
3. Add all the spices, mango and salt
   
4. Return the saucepan to boiling before turning the heat down for a slow simmer
   
5. Check flavour profile
6. Simmer for 1 hour, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking
7. When you are happy with the thickness remove the cloves
8. Seal in your refrigerator for the short term or bottle for long term storage (see separate method)
   

Preparing bottles for chutney and finishing

1. This recipe required two 450 -500g jam jars. The jars need to be in good condition, clean, label free and have a screw cap. Jars that have been previously used for jam or pickles are fine. While you can use your oven to sterilise the bottles and caps, an alternate way is the boiling water/hot seal method, which I used.
2. In a suitably sized saucepan, immerse the empty jars and lids in cold water and bring the water to the boil.
3. Simmer for 15 -20 minutes
4. Leave in the water on low heat until you are ready to use the bottles
5. When the chutney is ready to bottle carefully drain and remove the first jar from the hot water. It should dry quickly
6. Using a ladle fill the jar to about 2-3ml from the top, carefully clean the rim
7. Take the lid from the hot water (again it will dry quickly) and cap the bottle

Notes

If you prefer a darker chutney use brown sugar instead of white

Change vinegars to suit your tastes

I used ground spices, which is what I had

I used less sugar than the 150g because I had made a ginger syrup and strained out the ginger

Another option that will use up mangoes is mango sorbet. It’s easy to prepare. Message me if you would like a simple recipe for Mango sorbet.

You may remember Newsletter # 31 when I wrote about Australia’s Coffee Culture, and I briefly mentioned The Windsor Hotel in Melbourne. That hotel was to be the subject of today’s newsletter, but during my research I noticed a restaurant behind the Windsor Hotel and remembered that Chris and I had enjoyed a memorable meal here, some years ago. It’s called the Waiters Restaurant and while it does not have the same pedigree as its five-star neighbour, it does have an interesting history and great food.

When it opened in 1947 the restaurant was called The Italian Waiters Club. It was an after-work venue for hospitality workers of either Italian or Spanish origin. There they could get a meal or a glass of wine, play cards and relax. In its early days you required a password to get in which probably gave them time to tidy up the various licensing laws they were in breach of.

It eventually became popular with reporters, police and politicians because of the notoriety of an incident in 1978 when it made the newspaper headlines. The patrons of the restaurant were taken hostage by a shotgun wielding sympathiser of a high profile criminal, serving time in Pentridge Prison. The stand-off was diffused, but the days of The Waiters Restaurant flying under the radar were over.

Fortunately for everyone, the restaurant not only survived, but it has thrived.

I’m not sure how we ended up in Meyer’s Place that evening, but we may have been on the way to another venue recommended to us. We had probably realised that we were in the wrong lane (one of many Melbourne lanes) and had stopped to regroup.  A man brushed past us and disappeared into a darkened doorway and Chris and I watched him disappear up some gloomy, steep stairs. After a few seconds I thought I heard conversations from the top of the stairs, but then the voices stopped. I looked up and noticed a sign that suggested a restaurant was at the top of the stairs. We took a chance and followed the man, carefully negotiating the stairs.

The illumination at the top of the stairs was only marginally improved by a smoky glass window beside the single door. I opened the door and before me was a restaurant full of diners seemingly having a good time. Someone who appeared to work there pointed us to what could have been the last two seats available. It was definitely a no frills restaurant.

Our seats were on a long share table, and our dining companions didn’t seem to mind. The menu is Italian cuisine with a few Melbourne staples also available – yes, the dreaded schnitzel. We chose pasta, garlic bread and a glass of wine. The portions were generous, the flavours authentic and it was surprisingly inexpensive. The atmosphere is rustic, not too rowdy and thoroughly deserving of consistently good ratings.

While my choice of pasta that evening was a good one, I had eyed the gnocchi which was on the ‘specials’ side of their blackboard menu, so for this newsletter I thought I would prepare gnocchi.

Gnocchi

The history of this variation of pasta can be traced back to Roman times when it was prepared with semolina porridge and eggs. As the Roman Empire expanded, it became popular in other regions and alternative ingredients such as wheat flour and breadcrumbs were used, dependent on the region.

In the 16^th century, potatoes arrived from the Americas and by the 19^th century Potatoes were a common ingredient in Gnocchi, particularly in the northern regions of Italy. Other common ingredients used in gnocchi are cheese, corn meal, pumpkin and Durum wheat.

While Gnocchi could be served simply tossed in butter and sprinkled with parmesan, gnocchi loves nothing better than to be served in a classic Italian sauce. I’m teaming my gnocchi with a pesto sauce.

Most recipes call for the potatoes to be boiled, but for this recipe I am going to bake the potatoes on coarse salt. This should ensure a ‘dryer’ cooked potato and a firmer mix.

Gnocchi

Ingredient for 500g uncooked gnocchi (about 4 entree portions):

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Servings: 4 entree serves

Course: Main Course, Vegetarian

Ingredients Method

Ingredients

  

• 500 g even sized potatoes Sebago or Desiree preferred
• 1 cup plain flour 125g
• ½ tsp salt
• 1 egg at room temperature
• 1 cup coarse salt
• A little extra plain flour

Method

 

1. Assemble your ingredients
   
2. Wash and dry the unpeeled potatoes
3. Set your oven (or air-fryer) to 200c
4. Place pinenuts on baking tray and bake in the oven for 5 minutes until slightly brown and place in container to cool
   
5. Using the baking tray place the potatoes on a bed of coarse salt and prick the potatoes with a fork a few times
   
6. Place the tray potatoes in the oven
7. Cook the potatoes until soft – about 50 minutes
   
8. When cooked take the potatoes out of the oven and cool them a little
9. Using a gloved hand split the potatoes and rub the potato flesh through a fine sieve, without the skin, cool slightly
   
10. In a bowl mix, the flour and salt, followed by the potato and egg
    
11. Mix to form soft dough. It should not stick to your fingers
    
12. Turn the mix out onto a lightly floured board
13. On this lightly floured surface divide the mix into three and gently roll them into even thickness ‘sausage’ shapes
    
14. Cut small amounts of the dough in 2cm chunks
    
15. Roll them gently with the back of a fort and sprinkle them with a little flour.
16. Rest the Gnocchi for 30 minutes before cooking
17. It would be a good time to prepare the sauce (see separate pesto sauce recipe)
    
18. In a large saucepan bring to a rolling boil a generous amount of salted water and about 20ml of olive oil
19. Add the gnocchi. It should take around 2-3 minutes, but they will float to the surface when ready
    
20. Drain them well in a colander and add them directly to the sauce
    

Pesto cream sauce

This is a versatile recipe that will convert you from ever purchasing the bottled variety again. Unused pesto has reasonably good keeping qualities and can also be turned into a dip.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Servings: 4 entree serves

Course: Sauces

Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients

  

• 2 cups fresh basil leaves rinsed and dried
• 3 cloves garlic peeled
• ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
• ½ cup grated parmesan cheese
• 65 g toasted pine nuts cooled
• salt and cracked black pepper to taste
• a few drops of lemon juice
• 300 ml cream
• splash of dry white wine
• extra shaved parmesan for sprinkling
• a few nice basil leaves for garnish

Equipment

• I used my Braun blender attachment for pesto part of the recipe.

Method

 

1. Assemble your ingredients
   
2. Using your already pre-heated oven ‘toast’ the pine nuts – it should take about 5 minutes
   
3. In your blender place the basil, garlic, parmesan, pine nuts, lemon juice and a little seasoning
   
4. On medium speed blend these ingredients to form a paste
   
5. Add the olive oil and continue blending to make a thick paste
   
6. Check seasoning
7. Store in the refrigerator in a sealed container, or continue with the pasta sauce
   
8. Heat the cream until almost boiling before stirring in the pesto
9. Add the cooked Gnocchi and gently coat with sauce
10. Serve topped with shaved parmesan and garnished with fresh basil leaf

Notes

If you feel your sauce is too thick add a little of the gnocchi boiling water or white wine.
Avoid over-cooking the sauce once the basil has been added for it will dull the vibrant green colour.
Experiment with other nuts. I have used both cashews and macadamias in similar recipes
Likewise try rocket leaves instead of basil
If you feel the pesto cream sauce is a little too rich try the tomato sauce recipe from Newsletter # 20

I have often wondered how the mammoth amount of food we collectively purchase close to Christmas can possibly be consumed – I mean supermarkets are only closed for one day. Over purchasing at Christmas time is common and this will naturally lead to the question of what to do with leftovers.

A key date for me when planning for Christmas, is Melbourne Cup Tuesday. By this day hopefully we can get some clarification of where family celebrations will happen and who will be there. For the lucky few, you may actually snare your preferred location and have all your family in attendance. For most of us, as we get older there is probably some degree of compromise and Boxing Day or Christmas Eve becomes the focus.

With where and who sorted, it’s time to look at what you may be serving. Are you going traditional or perhaps you have been inspired to tackle a list of recipes you have hoarded for this very occasion.  Regardless, for many people, the festive season can mean a few days or more of what seems an endless round of eating or preparing food to be eaten.

Since it is now after Christmas, you hopefully have successfully dealt with the problem, or your purchasing was spot-on, and it never was. In case you’re like the rest of us, here are few ideas on how to use up leftovers, with minimum work.

Priority

Firstly, identify fresh ingredients that will suffer if you attempt to freeze them for later use. Cooked meats, fresh seafood, prepared salads, roast vegetables, fresh vegetables, fresh fruit and previously frozen (and thawed) foods fall into this category. These will need to be consumed quickly or reworked where possible and even cooked meats and seafood can be successfully adapted into simple recipes that can be frozen.

Most roast meats can be turned into ‘pulled’ meats in your slow cooker and if you check your pantry, you may even have a good range of suitable ingredients on hand. Brown sugar, vinegar, barbeque sauce, garlic, chilli, mustard and Worcestershire sauce are handy, while you could include leftover gravy and even suitable leftover condiments such as apple sauce or cranberry sauce. You will however need a little liquid stock to replace natural juices. The finished dish is then suitable for freezing.

In the unlikely event that you have leftover seafood, consider pasta sauce – either creamy or tomato based, but try and avoid cooking the seafood a second time. Simply make and chill the sauce before folding the chilled cooked seafood into the sauce. For best outcomes discard shells from seafood and avoid skin and bones from cooked fish. Freeze or heat and serve.

Cold roast vegetables such as potato, sweet potato, pumpkin, onion and squash are very suitable for a ‘Spanish style’ omelette. Other vegetables you should consider include capsicum and tomatoes but greens you should avoid include Brussels sprouts, cabbage and lettuce. Allow three eggs for one omelette and perhaps a little cheese such as tasty cheddar or Jarlsberg. I have found that leftover mascarpone worked well in the egg mix.

Leftover prepared salads really should be eaten quickly and if you have too much, give some for your guests to take home, unless you have a barbeque on within a couple of days.  If possible, avoid dressing any of your salads which contain salad leaves. Next day Caesar Salad is considered a disaster; best thrown away.

Ham

The main cured meat at Christmas is ham and when purchased ‘on the bone’ it will often give you a surplus amount of meat, for even a half leg may be 6kg in weight, which is a lot of ham. If the thought of yet another ham sandwich is a little daunting, consider dicing the ham and using it in a quiche which then could be chilled and frozen for use down the track. Don’t forget to retain the bone, ham skin and bits and pieces for use in soup in the cooler months.

Chef’s Salad – a variation on a compound salad

Salads which contain multiple ingredients, bound together with a dressing of some sorts are called compound salads. Examples include potato salad and pasta salad. While lettuce is not considered an ingredient, a compound salad can be served on salad greens.

Having worked for both the Hilton and Hyatt hotel chains, I have naturally come into contact with American influenced menus. One of the earliest salad recipes I can remember preparing, apart from a tossed salad, was the Chef’s Salad, a salad which was popularised by Louis Diat, of Vichyssoise Soup fame, during his 41-year stint at New York’s Ritz-Carlton Hotel. However, this simple compound salad recipe is not attributed to Chef Diat but rather to one of two chefs who worked at two different hotels also in New York in the 1920’s.

It was unusual at the time because of the inclusion of chilled cooked meat, including ox tongue. Even in the 1970’s when I was apprenticed, most compound salads served did not include meat; and offal in a salad was not very enticing. In Australia cold meats were served with basically a side salad.

So, the Chef’s Salad was adapted for Australian tastes, and the ox tongue was eventually consigned to history, leaving us with a recipe that makes perfect use of Christmas leftovers. A modern trend emphasises appearance by making the individual ingredients stand out, with the dressing – in this case ‘thousand Island dressing’ served separately or at the last minute.

Chef’s salad

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Servings: 2 serves

Course: Salad

Ingredients Method

Ingredients

  

• cos lettuce leaves or mixed leaves washed and chilled
• 120 g lean leg ham cut in strips
• 120 g cooked turkey breast cut in strips
• 120 g cheese a mix of Swiss and cheddar, cut in strips
• 5 cherry tomatoes washed and halved
• 1 small Lebanese cucumber cut in strips
• 3 hardboiled egg cut in half
• 100 ml thousand island dressing
• 1 spring onion cut in fine strips
• chopped parsley
• cracked pepper

Method

 

1. Chilled plates, lay the lettuce
   
2. Arrange the meat, cheese and cucumber strips in a pattern of your choice
3. Garnish with the cherry tomatoes, half eggs, spring onions and parsley
   
4. Serve thousand island dressing separately

Thousand Island dressing

If you have had cooked prawns at Christmas time, there is a possibility that you may have leftover Cocktail Sauce which can form the basis of Thousand Island dressing. Additions to the dressing are finely chopped and folded in, and your choice of these additions can be varied, dependent on what you have available but aim for compatibility and colour variation to give a speckled appearance.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Course: Sauces

Ingredients Method

Ingredients

  

• 100 ml Kewpie mayonnaise
• 50 ml tomato sauce or ketchup
• 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
• 1 tbsp horseradish cream
• 50 ml cream
• 5 ml lemon juice
• A few drops Worcestershire sauce
• A few drops of Tabasco

Additions for Thousand Island dressing:

• 1 tbsp pickle or gherkin finely chopped
• 1 tbsp yellow capsicum finely chopped
• 1 tbsp parsley finely chopped
• 1 tbsp hardboiled egg (white and yolk) finely chopped or sieved
• 1 tbsp chives finely chopped
• 1 tbsp black olives pitted and finely chopped
• ½ tbsp white onion finely chopped

Method

 

Method for sauce:

1. Mix all ingredients together
   
2. Cover and refrigerate

Method for additions:

1. Stir into cocktail sauce
2. Cover and refrigerate
   

Comments:

• If you look at the image of the ingredients, I have not followed my own recipe, but I substituted ingredients with what I had in the fridge with only gherkin and parsley used from my recipe. For colour and compatibility I have used chopped tomato and just cooked pumpkin. Spring onion replaced chives while I used a little French dressing to thin the cocktail sauce and a little crushed chilli for a little punch. I also held back the eggs and didn’t have any cream, for the cocktail sauce could have been a little paler.
• In short, I used what I had.

Well once again Christmas is almost upon us and our Christmas cookery orders are ready for our residents to pick up. Christmas pudding and Christmas cake as well as Sticky Date Pudding, Butterscotch sauce, Vanilla Anglaise and Almond Shortbread all featured in this year’s menu.

Like many extended families, the Christmas period can be difficult to navigate – often it is a case of multiple Christmas ‘dinners’ spread over three days to keep everyone happy. So, it can come down to pacing oneself to avoid overdoing it.

At home I prepared a batch of vanilla bean ice cream, mango sorbet and Pavlova for our own celebration. We’ll team that with freshly baked Baguettes piled with cold meats, salad and condiments for our Christmas luncheon which we will have on Boxing Day. We’ll have a smaller breakfast on Christmas Day.

What is on your menu for Christmas? Leave a comment on the website.

We look forward to the New Year when we can continue to explore different recipes, stories and thoughts.

Merry Christmas and a happy and safe 2026.

Ken and Chris

This recipe is a versatile gluten free dish that can not only be featured as “finger food” but also as a breakfast or lunch offering as well as a snack food or a lunch-box addition. I have previously served the fritter in the form of a vegetarian burger – once the quality of gluten free breads had improved.  It is easy to make, and the ratio of ingredients is not that important. Additionally substitute ingredients such as sweet potato and spinach come to mind.

On the downside their keeping qualities are not that good – they don’t like being frozen. But they are yummy, so they won’t last long.

Zucchini and Feta fritters

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Servings: 12 Fritters

Course: Breakfast, Main Course, Vegetarian

Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients

  

• 120 g onion peeled, finely chopped
• 50 ml olive oil
• 650 g zucchini washed, gently trimmed and grated
• salt
• 600 g potatoes just cooked, chilled peeled and grated
• cracked black pepper
• 350 g Greek Feta roughly chopped or crumbled
• 15 g cornflour
• 1 large egg beaten

Equipment

• A couple of mixing bowls and a non stick frypan is required for this recipe.

Method

 

1. Assemble ingredients
   
2. Sweat the onion in the olive oil over low heat for 5 -10 minutes until the onions are transparent. A little colour is OK. Chill when cooked
   
3. Add about ½ teaspoon of salt and a little water to the grated zucchini and mix well
   
4. Let stand for 15 minutes
   
5. Squeeze the excess liquid from the zucchini
   
6. In a clean bowl combine the ‘dried’ zucchini, onion and potato. Mix well
   
7. Season with a little cracked black pepper
8. Add crumbled Feta. A light mix to distribute evenly
   
9. Mix in cornflour
   
10. Fold in egg
    
11. Gently mix
    

Cooking:

1. At a medium temperature heat a little oil in the frypan
2. Form the mix into suitable sized patties and add to the frypan, evenly spaced
   
3. Fry for 2 minutes and turn to cook the other side. One turn should do it. Even light brown colour is good
4. Serve immediately with salad and chilli jam or chill
5. Reheat in a frypan or carefully in a microwave

Notes

Use firm Greek Feta not the softer Danish variety
• Make sure the salted zucchini is squeezed well
• Use salt sparingly after this because the feta is salty

Within our community at our recent pre-Christmas lunch and dinner (where our volunteers served more than 190 persons), naturally we had bits and pieces leftover.  For my philosophy, when catering, is you don’t run out of food for your guests. If you have ever had an event catered for, you may agree that not all caterers follow that rule, with slim pickings for the last couple of tables, leaving guests unhappy. Having said that, you need to show a degree of restraint when both planning a menu and purchasing ingredients.

Christmas time brings the inevitable leftovers where food is concerned, even with careful planning. When we had extra fresh passionfruit donated by a resident – too many for Pavlova – I decided to turn them into a cheesecake. I already had cream, caster sugar, butter, gelatine and vanilla but I still needed to purchase some sweet biscuits and cream cheese.

Christmas pudding was featured in Newsletter # 30 – a traditional dessert for the festive season. Today we’ll have a look at a dessert that is not traditional but may fit the bill if you are looking for something a little different. It’s called Crepe san Rival.

This dessert has four components – the crepe, crème patissiere, summer berries and meringue.

The crepe recipe was featured in newsletter # 23, but I have included the recipe again. You may have already attempted the recipe and found that the cooked crepes freeze well, so you could use them for this recipe.

The Crème patissiere is a variation on the base custard used in the vanilla ice cream recipe from Newsletter # 32.

The strawberries can be marinated in the liqueur and 10g of the sugar a few hours before final preparation.

The meringue is a basic meringue mix, which you will have to do at the last minute, while the rest of the dessert can be pre-prepared.

Crepe san Rival

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Servings: 4 serves

Course: Dessert

Ingredients Equipment Method

Ingredients

  

Crepes:

• 2 eggs
• 1 cup milk
• ½ cup water
• ¼ tsp salt
• 1 cup plain flour
• 20 g melted butter cooled
• vegetable oil for cooking

Crème patissiere:

• 500 ml full cream milk
• 2 Tbs cornflour
• 4 egg yolks from large eggs. (retain egg whites)
• 1 tsp vanilla essence
• 75 g caster sugar

Meringue – 4-6 portions:

• 4 egg whites at room temperature
• ¼ tsp salt
• 1 cup caster sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla paste

Assembly for Crepe san Rival (4 portions):

• 350 - 400 g strawberries firm and ripe, hulled, even size pieces
• 50 ml Grand Marnier or Cointreau
• 30 g caster sugar
• 10 g unsalted butter
• 4 crepes
• 300 ml Crème patissiere
• meringue
• fresh raspberries
• icing sugar

Equipment

• I used oval shaped, oven able ramekins for this dessert.

Method

 

Method: crepes

1. Assemble your ingredients
2. Combine the flour and salt
3. In a separate bowl combine by whisking the eggs, milk and water
4. Whisk the flour mix in to the egg mix thoroughly to make a smooth batter
5. Finally mix in the melted butter
6. Ready

Cooking the Crepes:

1. A suitable sized crepe is around 15 cm diameter and should plate up nicely if you were rolling or folding the crepe. A flat non-stick pan with a minimum base diameter of 18cm should allow you to attain reasonable shape. A measured amount of batter is also important – around 50ml to 60ml. A one quarter cup measure would be suitable. Initially, after heating a little oil in your pan, tip off the excess oil. I use kitchen paper soaked in oil and rubbed over the hot pan for subsequent crepes. The pan should be hot enough to set the batter but also allow the batter to run as you tilt the pan.
2. Heat the oil in the pan
3. Tip off excess
4. Holding the pan by the handle pour in the batter a little off- centre
5. Tilt the pan around the full 360 degrees to attain a circular shape
6. Return to heat
7. Cook for 1 -2 minutes. Light golden colour is good
8. Turn with spatula and cook for a little less than a minute
9. The side now facing you is the presentation side
10. Turn the crepe out onto a plate
11. Ready

Method: cream patissiere

1. Assemble ingredients
   
2. In a small saucepan heat the milk until it is a ‘drinkable heat’. Do not boil.
   
3. Meanwhile, in a bowl, combine the egg yolks and cornflour
   
4. Whisk together
   
5. Add the hot milk to egg yolk mix and combine well. The mix should be hot enough to just cook any egg white
   
6. Into the milk saucepan or a clean one strain the milk mixture through a fine sieve and return to the heat. Discard any solids from the sieve
7. Add the sugar and vanilla to the milk mixture while stirring continuously. At this point I prefer using a silicon spatula
   
8. The mix will gradually thicken. Continue stirring
   
9. When the mix appears to just start boiling take the mix off the heat
10. Continue stirring the mix off the heat for one minute
11. Strain again if you wish or pour the mix into a clean bowl
12. Cover with plastic film and store in the refrigerator
    

Method: meringue

1. Assemble your ingredients
2. Firstly make sure your stand mixer and whisk attachment are both very clean and dry
3. On a low speed whisk the egg white for 1 minute before adding salt and increasing the speed of the mixer to medium speed for 1 more minute until ‘soft peaks’ start to form
4. Continue mixing and start adding the sugar, slowly, one tablespoon of sugar at a time, to ensure that the sugar dissolves
5. Increase the speed of the mixer to medium high and continue adding sugar
6. The meringue should adopt a glossy appearance with a smooth texture. The ‘soft peaks’ are now firmer
7. Check the texture by rubbing a little of the mix between your fingers – it should not be gritty

Method: assembly

1. Pre-heat your oven to 180c
2. Prepare your ramekins by lining them with a thin coating of butter and a dusting of caster sugar
   
3. Drain the strawberries (retaining the liquid)
   
4. Combine the marinated strawberries with the chilled Crème patissiere
   
5. Divide this mix between the four crepes
   
6. Roll the crepes and place in the ramekins
   
7. Place the ramekins in the oven for 5 minutes to heat
   
8. Meanwhile prepare the meringue, which takes around 5 minutes
9. When the crepes are warm remove the ramekins from the oven
10. Pour the reserved liquid over the crepes
    
11. Apply the meringue to the crepes with a pallet knife to cover the crepe
    
12. Finish with more meringue in a random way or by ‘piping’ it on
    
13. Return the crepes to the oven for 5 minutes until the meringue has browned
14. Serve on an under plate decorated with raspberries and dusted with icing sugar