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It’s Australia Day!
What are you eating? We’ve got three simple dishes that are full of flavour for you to whip up…
Take a butterflied leg of lamb, shoulder or cutlets and marinate in olive oil, a ridiculous amount of garlic, some lemon rind, fresh rosemary and sea salt for as long as you possibly can. It tastes better the longer those flavours can get in.
Resist the urge to add pepper to the marinade at this stage, as it can become bitter when you BBQ it. Crack some on after the meat is cooked.
Woolies, Coles and many independent butchers also do some cracking good versions if you prefer to let them do the work.
I like to serve it with some garlic-infused Greek Yoghurt (just crush a clove and mix it through the yoghurt – leave for a couple of hours if you can, to let the flavour develop.)
For the perfect side dish, my mother-in-law introduced me to this gorgeous, summery Mango and Feta Salad a few years back. It’s really fresh and lifts the usual green salad into something really moreish.
Just toss together some mixed greens, a finely chopped spring onion, an avocado, a lebanese cucumber, some cubes of marinated goats feta (I am addicted to Meredith Dairy’s jar of yumminess), some walnuts or slivered almonds, and the sliced flesh from a ripe mango.
If the feta is marinated in good quality oil, drain some of that off and use it as the basis of your salad dressing. Add a splash of white balsamic (the basic vinaigrette recipe is three parts oil to one part vinegar), some french mustard, a pinch of sugar, and sea salt and cracked black pepper to taste.
Drizzle over the salad and toss gently to dress.
And for dessert? Well, it’s got to be pav, doesn’t it? And we have a great recipe for you to whip up below.
Then just sit back, have a beer or a wine, listen to the Hottest 100, watch the kids play, or head out to the Australia Day Fireworks, and think about how lucky we are to live in such a wonderful country.
Could you get a dish any more Australian that the humble pavlova? I know, I know, there’s some contention over the fact that the Kiwis were actually the first to whip one up, but – much like Russell Crowe – I’m claiming it as our own!
My friend Clare Steve is my Cooking Yoda. An ex-chef and cooking school teacher, what she doesn’t know about food isn’t worth knowing. I asked her to share her fave pav recipe and this is the result. She says this recipe creates a lovely marshmallow meringue which doesn’t tend to crack. She advises you’ll get the best results if you make it the day before you need it, but it’ll still taste good if you whip it up tomorrow!
Ingredients
4 egg whites (at room temperature)
250g caster sugar
1 tsp vinegar (plus extra for cleaning)
1/2 tsp vanilla essence
2 tsp cornflour
Method
Set your oven to 200°c. Line an oven proof tray with baking paper.
Clean your whisk (or whisk attachment for a stand mixer) and your bowl with the extra vinegar and a clean cloth. You need a scrupulously clean bowl to get the most out of the egg white. Whisk the egg whites until very stiff. Gradually beat in the sugar. Once the sugar is basically dissolved, add the vanilla, vinegar and cornflour and continue to beat until the mixture is stiff and satiny.
Spoon the mixture onto the baking paper. Starting from the middle of the meringue, push the mixture towards the edge of the tray in a fluid curving motion. You are looking to create a well in the centre, but still have lovely edges.
Place the tray into the oven. Instantly turn your oven down to 120°c. Cook for 1 1/2 hours. Turn off the oven and prop the door open with a wooden spoon and leave until completely cold (overnight is best).
Once cold, transfer the pavlova to a platter and fill with whipped cream and your favourite fruit combination. I personally like bananas and passionfruit but berries or a mix of tropical fruits are also yummy!
Images from Shutterstock.com: Grilled lamb cutlets with rosemary and garlic; mango and feta salad; pavlova with strawberries.
