About.com Australian / New Zealand Food

Sweet potato Thanksgiving pie

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 05:52:57 +0000

Thanksgiving is not much celebrated in these here parts, but I still manage to find reasons to make this delicious sweet potato pie.

This is a New Zealand take on that all-American favorite: Pumpkin Pie. The sweet potato is steamed and then blended with a mixture of dark brown sugar, eggs, milk and warm spices like cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves.

Baked for about 35 to 40 minutes, the result is a deliciously smooth, sweet and fragrant pie.

This versatile sweet potato pie can be served straight from the oven or straight from the fridge. I love it with a dollop of freshly whipped cream. For something a little sweeter, serve it with vanilla ice-cream.

More Sweet Pie Recipes

Photo: � S. Wongkaew (2009) licensed to About.com, Inc

Sweet potato Thanksgiving pie originally appeared on About.com Australian / New Zealand Food on Monday, November 23rd, 2009 at 05:52:57.

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Poached Eggs with Sauteed Mushrooms on Turkish Toast

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 01:58:53 +0000

Summer in the southern hemisphere has well and truly arrived.

People are firing up their barbecues and breakfast at beach side cafes is a favorite weekend activity. And there's nothing like a hearty breakfast to start the weekend.

While for some the word 'hearty' may conjure up images of bacon and sausages, I'm offering up something less meaty but just as fulfilling -- poached eggs with saut�ed garlic mushrooms on toasted Turkish bread with ricotta cheese. Accompanying this dish are Roma tomatoes slow-roasted with fresh thyme. This is a delightful breakfast I enjoy regularly at one of my favorite beach side haunts.

Photo: � S. Wongkaew (2009) licensed to About.com, Inc

Poached Eggs with Sauteed Mushrooms on Turkish Toast originally appeared on About.com Australian / New Zealand Food on Wednesday, November 18th, 2009 at 01:58:53.

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White asparagus, orange and arugula salad

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 05:25:30 +0000

I have been a willing convert to the gospel of fruit in salads.

I have found exquisite partnerships and unlikely complements with fruits too numerous to list in this short blog post.

This white asparagus, orange and arugula (roquette) salad is one of the most elegant I have discovered.

The contrast in color and flavor is so stark; so inviting; so perfectly balanced that it takes all my restraint not to make loud, appreciative noises while I eat it.

More salads with fruit

Photo: � S. Wongkaew (2009) licensed to About.com, Inc

White asparagus, orange and arugula salad originally appeared on About.com Australian / New Zealand Food on Tuesday, November 17th, 2009 at 05:25:30.

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Chocolate Shortbread Cookies

Mon, 16 Nov 2009 00:30:50 +0000

These versatile shortbread cookies can be coated with melted chocolate, icing sugar, infused with lemon zest or enjoyed unadorned for their buttery goodness.

They are just as shortbread should be - crumbly, buttery and just sweet enough. I often use this shortbread recipe as a base for tarts.

Shortbread is so named because of its crumbly texture -- a result of working with the dough very gently and allowing it to rest. This allows the butter to inhibit the formation of gluten. For the best tasting results it's also important to use good quality, unsalted butter and pure vanilla extract.

More Cookie Recipes

Photo: � S. Wongkaew (2009) licensed to About.com, Inc

Chocolate Shortbread Cookies originally appeared on About.com Australian / New Zealand Food on Monday, November 16th, 2009 at 00:30:50.

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VictorsFood Tour: Hungry for the South Coast

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 05:55:09 +0000

I am a very particular traveler. I love travel and I plan meticulously. I want to explore the local food scene thoroughly and in my own time. So I have never been one for group tours... that is, until very recently.

I left Sydney for a weekend away which I couldn't have planned better myself. And I made ten new friends in the process.

VictorsFood offers a variety of food-centric activities including cooking classes, corporate team-building and regional and international food tours.

I went for the 'Hungry for the South Coast' tour. Just south of Sydney is magical. The beaches are stunning and often deserted, the escarpments are dramatic and the emerald hills undulate under cows and tall palm trees.

For two days I was dazzled by the quality of the produce and the skill of the artisans who manipulated it. We visited bakeries, vegetable farms, confectioners, vineyards, oyster farms and tree-top restaurants.

Even for someone who knows the south coast quite well, it was a journey of discovery.

Many tourists come to Sydney to enjoy its world-class food. Few realize that there are culinary wonders waiting to be discovered on Sydney's doorstep.

Read more about my south coast food adventure.

Photo: � S. Wongkaew (2009) licensed to About.com, Inc

VictorsFood Tour: Hungry for the South Coast originally appeared on About.com Australian / New Zealand Food on Wednesday, November 11th, 2009 at 05:55:09.

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Vanilla Rice Pudding

Sun, 08 Nov 2009 04:17:29 +0000

Rice pudding is a much-loved, old-fashioned dessert. Served warm, it's comforting on a cold night, or served chilled, it's just as soothing in warmer weather.

The world's soft spot for rice pudding is evident in the hundreds of recipes for the timeless dish. In Greece there's the creamy cinnamon infused "rizgalo"; in Lebanon aromatic "meghli", a ground rice pudding, is served on special occasions. In Thailand sweet sticky rice is served with succulent mango and coconut milk. The English love slowly-baked rice puddings while the Spanish love "arroz con leche" cooked on the stove-top with hints of citrus.

This vanilla rice pudding recipe is a simple one that takes under 15 minutes to prepare. It's infused with lemon zest and cinnamon and makes a gorgeous, quick and creamy dessert.

More Rice Pudding Recipes

Photo: � S. Wongkaew (2009) licensed to About.com, Inc

Vanilla Rice Pudding originally appeared on About.com Australian / New Zealand Food on Sunday, November 8th, 2009 at 04:17:29.

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Mushroom & Arugula Quiches

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 06:20:54 +0000

Last week I introduced you to individual smoked salmon quiches. I had been inspired by the fabulous quiches I'd seen while wandering around the Sydney Harbour Bridge which had been laid with green grass and turned into a picnicker's paradise.

I have not yet finished with my quiche phase and this week I made delicious little mushroom and arugula quiches. Arugula, in New Zealand and Australia, is known as "roquette" - which is the French equivalent.

Roquette has a lovely pepperiness which contrasts nicely with the soft mushroom flavors.

Like last week's quiches, they're easy to make, quick to bake and can be eaten for breakfast, lunch, snacks, appetizers or taken on picnics.

Photo: � S. Wongkaew (2009) licensed to About.com, Inc

Mushroom & Arugula Quiches originally appeared on About.com Australian / New Zealand Food on Tuesday, November 3rd, 2009 at 06:20:54.

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Toasted Brioche with Poached Berries & Ricotta

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 04:52:37 +0000

At my recent McIntosh & Bowman cheese-making class, one of the cheeses we made was ricotta.

The soft, white cheese is actually made from reheating whey - the liquid that is separated from the curds when cheese is made, thus the name "ricotta", which translates to "twice-cooked".

There are many wonderful things you can do with ricotta -- stuff ravioli, make a cheesecake, bake some cupcakes, or serve it with some poached fruit like I have in this breakfast brioche recipe. I call this dish my "cheat's" French toast. It's simply toasted brioche or challa bread topped with poached strawberries and blueberries and a large dollop of fresh ricotta.

It's divine, easy to prepare and will satisfy that French toast craving.

More Breakfast Recipes

Photo: � S. Wongkaew (2009) licensed to About.com, Inc

Toasted Brioche with Poached Berries & Ricotta originally appeared on About.com Australian / New Zealand Food on Wednesday, October 28th, 2009 at 04:52:37.

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Smoked Salmon Quiches

Mon, 26 Oct 2009 05:39:37 +0000

As you know, I attended the inaugural Breakfast on the Bridge last weekend. The Sydney Harbour Bridge is an icon. You can see it from many parts of the city, but up close, the bridge is most commonly viewed from the seat of a car or train.

On Sunday, 6000 Sydney-siders turned up at 6.30am to see their beloved bridge in a completely different light. As part of the Crave Sydney festival, the bridge had been turned into a park - covered with green grass.

I had the privilege of being there. As I moved amongst the crowd of happy picnickers, I was especially interested in what people had brought to eat. Quiche was one of the crowd favorites.

I love smoked salmon quiches. They are great any time of the day or night, so can be eaten for breakfast, snacked on at picnics or devoured as party food. These individual-sized quiches are elegant as well as being delicious.

Best of all, they're easy to prepare and quick to bake - it took me only 10 minutes of prep and less than 20 minutes of baking.

If I'm lucky enough to be invited to next years' Breakfast on the Bridge, these individual smoked salmon quiches are definitely going to be in my picnic hamper.

More baking recipes

Photo: � S. Wongkaew (2009) licensed to About.com, Inc

Smoked Salmon Quiches originally appeared on About.com Australian / New Zealand Food on Monday, October 26th, 2009 at 05:39:37.

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Breakfast on the Bridge

Sun, 25 Oct 2009 07:01:28 +0000

Despite the forecast of rain thousands turned up with blankets and baskets in hand for Sydney's inaugural Breakfast on the Bridge event.

The gates opened at 6.30AM and air was electric with a mixture of curiosity and excitement as attendees took their first steps on Sydney's most famous landmark. The bridge deck, usually covered with bumper-to-bumper traffic, was carpeted with over 10,500 square meters of lush, green grass - a surreal sight to behold.

Picnickers enjoyed breakfasts of every kind. There were bagels, bacon & eggs, croissants, champagne, smoothies, granola, fruit salad, curries and quiches. Freshly baked breads, jams, apples and yogurt were also handed out.

At a cost of $1 million, the Breakfast on the Bridge event is part of the month-long Crave Sydney festival showcasing the city's entertainment, food and art scene.
Premier Nathan Rees said it was likely to become an annual event, following the success of Sunday's turnout, which he predicted was worth $10 million in tourism dollars.

"Among the picnickers were a four-week-old baby, a man who proposed to his girlfriend, and a young man celebrating his 19th birthday...people are having a ball" Rees said.

People did have a ball. Crave Sydney has been a real triumph -- especially for lovers of food. The Breakfast on the Bridge was a great event in a month of great events. The Sydney Harbour Bridge is an international icon. Using it in this unusual way was a great opportunity for the people of New South Wales, 6000 of whom were awarded tickets by lottery.

Breakfast on the Bridge Image Gallery

Photo: � S. Wongkaew (2009) licensed to About.com, Inc

Breakfast on the Bridge originally appeared on About.com Australian / New Zealand Food on Sunday, October 25th, 2009 at 07:01:28.

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