Cooking with the Australian Womens Weekly Issue 81

It’s hard to believe Easter is upon us, the year is hurtling by! I would like to acknowledge the hardship that some of our communities are living through – in times of sadness and adversity it’s more important than ever to gather family and friends around a table over a simple meal and create precious memories. There’s something about food that brings joy and comfort to us all, and has a special way of connecting us to moments and experiences like nothing else can. This month we have loads of inspiration to help you create some beautiful food moments of your own. For the avid foodies take a look at our seafood grazing board (page 20) or our Middle Eastern banquet (page 38). If you’re new to entertaining or at the…

IN SEASON April Vegetables Bok choy Beans Broccoli Brussels sprouts Cabbage Capsicums Cauliflower Chestnuts Eggplant Fennel Kale Leeks Mushrooms Okra Potatoes Pumpkin Spinach Fruit Apples Avocados Bananas Custard apples Dates Dragon Fruit Finger limes Grapes Guava Kiwifruit Limes Pears Passionfruit Persimmons Pomegranates Quinces Tamarillo FOODIE TOUR Curated culinary travel Lyndey Milan OAM is a much-loved culinary expert and former Food Director of The Weekly, so you know you’ll be in good hands on a culinary tour of Morocco with her leading the way. On this exclusive 12-day tour, Lyndey will be take guests to ancient palaces and medinas, through the bustling capital Ra bat to the red city of Marrakech, up to the Atlas Mountains and to the relaxing coastline of Essaouira. With only 10-12 spots, it will be the culinary experience of a foodie’s dreams. The tour runs late September 2022. Visit bypriorarrangement.com DREAM APPLIANCE All in one The Remoska Tria Multicooker is European ingenuity at its finest. It has three different lids: the first turns your Remoska into an oven…

Raw mushroom salad with capers and goat cheese PREP + COOK TIME 20 MINUTES SERVES 2 200g brown button mushrooms1 garlic clovesalt and black pepper, to season2 tbsp capers, roughly chopped¼ cup finely shredded curly parsley½ cup (125 ml) good extra virgin olive oil¼ cup (60 ml) good quality white winevinegarpinch of sugar60g soft goat cheese, sliced2 thick slices sourdough, to serve 1 Very thinly slice the raw mushrooms and place in a large bowl. Crush the garlic together with a little salt and combine with the capers, parsley, olive oil, vinegar and sugar. Stir well and mix with the mushrooms. Set aside for 10 minutes to marinate. 2 Place the mushrooms on a serving plate with the dressing and top with the goat cheese. Serve with sourdough. The Cook Up is on SBS…

Salted cultured butter PREP TIME 20 MINUTES MAKES 450G You will need to start this recipe 1 day ahead 1 litre (4 cups) pouring cream(35% butterfat)⅓ cup (95g) Greek-style or plain yoghurt½ teaspoon sea salt flakes 1 Combine cream and yoghurt in a large bowl of an electric mixer. Cover; set aside in a warm place to culture for 24 hours or until thickened slightly with a lactic smell similar to yoghurt. Refrigerate for 1 hour or until chilled. 2 Whisk cream mixture in an electric mixer until it separates into thick butter particles and a cloudy liquid, the buttermilk. (This will take about 2½ minutes; at first the mixture will look like over-whipped cream, but, as you continue to whisk, the butterfat will form small clumps.) 3 Place a sieve over a large bowl; strain…

Pears are equally at home with savoury companions or with sweet ones, as good poached in a red-wine syrup and served with ice-cream as they are with red wine and some bread and freshly cut parmesan, or with blue cheese, walnuts and a sweet dessert wine. Pears are good in salads, especially those with bitter leaves such as witlof or peppery ones such as watercress, and quartered firm pears are excellent roasted beside rich meats such as duck or pork, or grilled with pork chops Different varieties of pear have textures ranging, when ripe, from luscious and almost melting to firm and slightly grainy to crisp and crunchy for the nashi. All pears are unusual in that they ripen from the inside out and should not be allowed to ripen on the…

Anzac biscuits PREP + COOK TIME 45 MINUTES (+ COOLING) MAKES 26 125g butter, chopped2 tablespoons golden syrup or treacle½ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda2 tablespoons boiling water1 cup (90g) rolled oats1 cup (150g) plain flour1 cup (220g) firmly packed brown sugar¾ cup (60g) desiccated coconut 1 Preheat oven to 180°C/160°C fan. Grease two large oven trays; line with baking paper. 2 Stir the butter and syrup in a medium saucepan over low heat until smooth. Stir in the combined soda and the water, then remaining ingredients. 3 Roll level tablespoons of the mixture into balls; place 5cm apart on lined trays, then flatten slightly. 4 Bake for 12 minutes or until golden. Cool biscuits on trays. Test Kitchen notes Make sure you use rolled oats rather than quick-cooking oats as they will produce a different result. Spray your…