Murray River Salt is my favourite salt, and I use it as both a finishing salt and in my cooking. We use it in the cooking classes at Cooking on the Bay and so all students have a chance to savour and enjoy it’s taste and flavour. I also especially love the fact that the [...]
Skordalia is the Greek version of the French ‘aïoli’ and the Spanish, ‘allïoli, and is a luscious garlic mayonnaise, sauce, or dip. It is usually based on potato and flavoured with garlic, olive oil, lemon juice and parsley. Elizabeth David in her ‘Book of Mediterranean Food’ gives her recipe with egg yolks, ground almonds [...]
This cake makes a lovely Christmas gift, full of Brazil nuts, walnuts and various glace fruits. It may be made in a large loaf tin 20cm x 12cm, or smaller cake tins – 8.5 x 14cm and smaller still at 10 x 5.5cm. This quantity also makes 8 tiny puddings, in mini pudding tins; [...]
Makes a square 20 x 20cm, 2.5kg cake This cake has been made by my family for a couple of generations; it is simple to make if just a little time-consuming cutting up the fruit and nuts to approximately equal sizes. It stores and keeps very well for months if it lasts that long! [...]
Affogato is Italian for drowned; the ice cream is drowned in espresso with the liqueur served on the side. It is the easiest of all desserts, once you have mastered the ice-cream making. Make your Crème Anglaise vanilla bean ice cream as per my recipe. When ready to serve, make your espresso shot, place one [...]
My butchers, Barry and Mario from Kirkpatrick's Butchers at the South Melbourne market, sell the most delicious and tender racks of lamb which I frequently buy for a simple and quick mid-week dinner. The butchers sell them, 2 ways, ‘frenched’ or ‘unfrenched’. ‘Frenched’ is the term used to describe the process of cutting the fat [...]
Prunes and apples always team well with pork, so if you prefer, substitute apples for the prunes. For the pork, you can select various cuts, female pork neck, pork scotch, a boned, rolled pork shoulder, or even a pork leg. These cuts are delicious as they are fatty and succulent; the fat runs through the [...]
Hollandaise sauce is a classic emulsion* sauce, made with egg yolks and butter, seasoned with lemon juice, salt and a little white pepper to become a thick, yellow, creamy sauce. It is the traditional partner to asparagus, artichokes, and eggs Benedict. It is perfectly matched with poached fish and vegetables. I love it drizzled over [...]
In France, on our Betty B barge, I frequently cooked a simple coq au vin as it was easy to manage in my small barge galley kitchen, the ingredients readily available and it can be made ahead the day before and reheated. I always tried to cook it in one pot! In France they have [...]
This is a classic, regional, warming, hearty braise originating in Normandy, France, the region famous for its dairy produce, the creams, butters and cheeses, such as Camembert, and apples and Calvados. Chicken and apple is a delicious, yet uncommon match. The chicken is braised with the onions, leeks and mushrooms, the apples give a light [...]
