Welcome to the May 2004 edition of the C&C newsletter. We're certainly getting our share of chilly, wet days in the southern parts of Australia, although friends are reporting 30C + days in the northern states. How are you supposed to enjoy bowls of soup and hearty casseroles in that heat? We'll stick to our four-seasons-in-one-day climate thanks all the same. This month there's news of Philippe Mouchel's new restaurant, food tours both local and overseas plus a couple of interesting foodie books to consider adding to the shelf. Enjoy.

 

Market stalls and local fruit and veg shops are looking particularly autumnal with excellent pumpkins, potatoes, ginger, mushrooms and fennel. Quinces and chestnuts are in full force along with the first mandarins, walnuts and hazelnuts. We've included a few of our recent recipes at the bottom of the newsletter including Michele's Saturday night creation of green chilli and coriander steamed mussels.

 

Beechworth Harvest Celebration is a wonderful way to taste and experience the food and wine of this rapidly developing region in North East Victoria. Over the course of the festival weekend six of Beechworth’s finest eateries will introduce a dish especially for the Harvest celebration, dining rooms such as  Beechworth Pantry, Hibernian Hotel, The Bank Restaurant, The Green Shed, Spirited Chef and The Stanley Pub. On Saturday afternoon you can join the Beechworth Wine Experience visiting Amulet, Pennyweight and Smiths wineries to taste both wine and food at each venue. Sunday will see the main street transformed into the Beechworth Harvest Celebration Harvest Market  as local purveyors of fine wines, fruits, nuts, vegetables, preserves and other produce will gather under the giant marquee to showcase their wares. Local delights include mustard, cheese, relishes, organic vegetables, roasted chestnuts and even buffalo sausages.  Further details are available on www.beechworth.com/harvest and from the Beechworth Visitor Centre 1300 366 321.

 

Philippe Mouchel is a name well known to Australian food lovers. Starting off with the Paul Bocuse Restaurant at Daimaru in Melbourne and then Langtons with it's open kitchen and amazing meats from the rotisserie. After a stopover in Sydney and a few years in Japan he's been lured back to Australia by the team at Crown with the promise of his own brassiere. The Brasserie by Philippe Mouchel, obvious name really, has opened its doors and by all accounts is being well received. It will be interesting to see how the dining public take to what has been described as 'simple but tasty food in a convivial atmosphere, served with generous hospitality'. A two course lunch and pre-theatre menu is available for $34.90. The Brasserie by Philippe Mouchel, Ground Level, Crown Entertainment Complex, Southbank. 03) 9292 7808.

 

Grossi Florentino have put together a food & art lovers menu to coincide with the Caravaggio exhibition at NGV International in Melbourne. For $60.00 per person you can enjoy a two course lunch in the fine dining room at Grossi Florentino, plus a glass of wine then make your way to the exhibition. A bargain for both the lunch and a bit of culture. Bookings on 03) 9662 1811.

For some reason there has been a flurry of new chocolate shops opening in Melbourne over the past few months. Late last year it was KoKo Black and Cacao, now Max Brenner has opened at the almost-finished QV site in the CBD. KoKo Black have established themselves in Royal Arcade just off the Bourke Street mall and offers visitors the opportunity to see the chocolates being made as they watch, with the Willy Wonka like constantly running tempering chocolate and the glass covered display table to choose from a huge assortment of filled chocolates. You can also visit the salon upstairs to enjoy the delicious hot chocolates or anything from the store.

 

Cacao have opted for a Fitzroy Street. St Kilda location and have a large cafe and flash display cabinets for the array of chocolates, cakes and desserts available. Max Brenner has had a Sydney presence for some time and only now is Melbourne getting in on the act. So far everything we've tasted has been of excellent quality at all stores, what we're wondering though is this speciality approach to chocolate retailers happening in other cities too? We'd be very interested to hear about similar stores in your part of Australia. Contact us at Michele@campionandcurtis.com

Loretta Sartori is recognised as one of the country's most accomplished pastry chefs and also one with a real knack of being able to explain in lay mans terms how to make brilliant cakes and pastry, as anyone who has experienced one of her masterclass demonstrations will know. Now she has put her expertise into print with a book titled The Cooks Book - Patisserie. It has been devised as a tertiary education publication but is certainly written with all interested cooks in mind. It includes excellent descriptions of all the basics of baking including pastries, desserts, yeast goods, fillings, garnishes and gateaux as well as fault finding and an easy to understand line drawings for pastry rolling and folding amongst other things. If you ever wanted to know why things are done in a particular way, or why ingredients react in different ways this is the book for you. There's years of great baking within these pages. Order from Tertiary Press on 03) 9726 1505. $59.50.

 

Barbara Santich has co-edited two new books with A. Lynn Martin for East Street Publications. Culinary History is a selection of papers presented at the Second International Conference held by the University of Adelaide’s Research Centre for the History of Food and Drink. The topics range from the annual consumption of olive oil in Australia (and why it's taken so long to catch on) to a look at the life of Epicurus by Michael Symons and Do Cookery books tell the Truth? A real favourite was a look at the daily diet of a 4th century Roman official on his travels through the Middle East, especially his purchase of 'snow-water' in Lebanon. Now who said bottled water was a new trend? Gastronomic Encounters on the other hand is from a collection of papers presented at the Symposium on French and Australian Encounters. The symposium was held as part of the celebrations for the 200th anniversary of the encounter between French and Australian explorers, Nicolas Baudin and Matthew Flinders, at Encounter Bay, South Australia, on 8 April 1802. Both titles are available directly from East Street at www.eaststreet.com.au/publication.html

 

 

Howqua Dale Gourmet Retreat are off on another culinary adventure later this month, this time to Turkey. Join Sarah and Marieke as they travel through the mosques and markets of Istanbul, visit the amazing landscapes of Anatolia and Cappadocia, sail on the Mediterranean and tour through the ancient city of Ephesus. The full 20 day tour kicks off on 28th May with an opportunity for late comers to join on June 2nd or 4th. Enquiries on 03 5777 3503. www.gtoa.com.au

 

Gourmet Safaris have a number of Sydney food safaris on offer later this month including The World in a Day - Middle West on Friday 21st May. This multicultural bus tour starts in the most incredible Lebanese sweets emporium to see how filo pastry is made, followed by coffee and then a visit to an Indian emporium to buy the best Basmati, pickles, spices. There's also lunch at an Iraqi restaurant, beautiful gelato to enjoy and even South American sausages. Sunday 30th May kicks off with a Portuguese Walking Tour of Petersham. Bookings on www.gourmetsafaris.com.au

 

Convivial Times are off to Italy with Armando Percuoco of Ristorante Buon Ricardo on May 18th. the tour will travel through the regions of Umbria, Lazio, Campania, Ischia and Sicily. For those staying at home there's a Hands-on Sourdough Breadmaking Class at Brasserie  Bread Co on May 15th. Full details and bookings on www.convivialtimes.com.au.

 

Queen Victoria Market Cooking School The pastas of Italy will be the first class this month at the QVM Cooking School. Join Tony Bizzarri as he explains the fundamentals of tortellini, ravioli and many other pastas, plus the sauces required to add the finishing touch. On Saturday 8th May the focus turns to the food of South America with Brazilian chef Maria Christina Rodrigues.The Flavours of Thailand will be demonstrated and tasted with Angus Dihn on May 16th as he serves up fish curry, soups and noodles from his homeland. Saturday 22nd will see the return of pastry chef Loretta Sartori where she'll explain everything you ever needed to know about tarts, both sweet and savoury. Bookings on 03) 9320 5835.

 

Cooking Co-ordinates have a free class this Saturday at 11am titled Cooking Under Pressure, where that old-favourite, the pressure cooker will be put to good use by Sharon Solomos. Kurma Dasa will be in Canberra on Saturday 15th to present a Light & Healthy Vegetarian Dishes Masterclass with dishes such as steamed shiitake mushroom dumplings, grilled tofu steaks on crusty bread with mesclun, and caramelised fresh coconut-stuffed rice flour pancakes.On Saturday 2nd May it's time for Mama's Cucina by Valentina Tosolini. Expect classic Italian dishes including minestrone, osso bucco and zabaglione. Bookings via the website www.belconnenmarkets.com.au or telephone 02) 6253 5132.  

 

Sydney Seafood School There's a host of big names and great classes here through May including the Australian Gourmet Traveller team on the 6th with a hands-on dinner class, learn the secrets of the traditional Chinese salt and pepper prawns and the contemporary chilli salt squid on May 7th or join Simon Goh from Chinta Ria on May 10th as he demonstrates dishes from his Cockle Bay restaurant.  On Saturday 22 Cheong Liew from The Grange in Adelaide will be presenting a very special hands-on lunch workshop. One not to be missed. Bookings on 02) 9004 1111 or visit www.sydneyfishmarket.com.au

 

Talk + Eat + Drink. Big chefs names appear at SJs demonstration kitchen throughout May including Peter Gilmour from Quay restaurant with a class on May 15th of simple, yet stylish desserts using Valrhona chocolate. Peter Kuruvita will be taking a night away from the stoves at Flying Fish to present Stupendous Seafood on May 22nd. On May 25th Perry Hill will be demonstrating some of his signature dishes from Moorish in Bondi including baby clams roasted with manzanilla sherry. Bookings on 02) 9552 2522.

 

Cheers, Allan and Michele

 

To unsubscribe to this newsletter contact us at Michele@campionandcurtis.com

 

We cook mussels frequently when we have friends over for dinner. They are foolproof and impressive. Use either chicken, fish or vegetable stock for extra flavour, or water is fine. You can use any mild flavoured oil in this dish, either vegetable or a simple olive oil are ideal.

 

2 kg fresh mussels

2 tbsp fresh grated ginger

4 garlic cloves, crushed

1 tsp turmeric

2 tsp ground coriander

½ tsp salt

2–3 tbsp oil

Fresh coconut, optional

Oil for cooking

2–3 large green chillies, thinly sliced

1 onion, sliced thinly

125 ml (1/2 cup) stock or water

Large handful of coriander leaves

 

Rinse mussels well, pulling at ‘beards’ to remove them. Line a large bowl with a wet towel, place mussels in bowl, cover and refrigerate until needed.

 

Make spice paste by blending grated ginger, crushed garlic, turmeric, coriander and salt together. Add enough oil to bring paste together and set aside until needed.

 

If you are using the fresh coconut, remove flesh from the shell. Peel brown skin away and slice into thin slices. Take those slices and slice again to produce long thin pieces of coconut flesh. Set aside.

 

When you are ready to serve heat a large wok over a high heat. Add a generous splash of oil to coat the base, add onions and chillies and cook for 3–4 minutes, stirring often until they start to soften.

 

Add paste, cook for a further 3–4 until fragrant, but take care not to burn. Add stock (or water) and allow to come to the boil. Add mussels, cover and cook for 4–5 minutes.

 

Remove lid and any opened mussels. Place cooked mussels into a serving bowl. Continue cooking, stirring often and removing mussels as they open. Once all the mussels are opened, this will take 4–5 minutes, pour cooking liquid over the top of them.

 

Sprinkle coriander leaves and coconut (if using) over the mussels and serve immediately.

Serves 6

 

Chestnuts can be tiresome to prepare, but this recipe is definitely your reward. For a more casual style of eating try roasting chestnuts on a toasting fork in front of an open fire, but don’t forget the bear-skin rug.

 

250g chestnuts

2 tbsp olive oil

1 onion, finely diced

2 garlic cloves, crushed

4 bacon rashers, chopped

2 tbsp chopped parsley

75g (1 cup) dry breadcrumbs

1 egg

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

With a sharp knife make two slits from top to bottom in chestnuts.

Place chestnuts into a saucepan, cover with water and bring to the boil.

Reduce to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes. Allow to cool, then peel removing both outside shell and inside skin. Chop roughly.

Heat a small saucepan over medium heat; add olive oil, onion and garlic cook until soft. Add bacon and cook lightly.

Remove and add to peeled chestnuts, along with the parsley, breadcrumbs, egg, salt, and pepper.

Mix well. Stuff into the bird of your choice and roast.