Gourmet Traveller April 2017

LONG-WEEKEND LUNCHING Celeriac velouté (RECIPE P124) Braised lamb shoulder with cocoa and cardamom (PICTURED; RECIPE P119) Rhubarb and chocolate tart (RECIPE P89) A small glass of fragrant, chilled dry white vermouth would start this party nicely (with or without the added gin), followed by a gutsy, spicy grenache with the lamb. And the tart offers a great opportunity to put some of our chocolate-and-wine matching ideas (see page 64) to the test: try a medium-dry boal Madeira. EASTER FEAST Savoury doughnuts with pine-nut butter (RECIPE P117) Wine harvest pot-au-feu (RECIPE P127) Chocolate cake with fudge icing (PICTURED; RECIPE P101) The savoury richness of the entrée in this menu calls for a sparkling wine with yeasty richness – a late-disgorged vintage fizz, perhaps. The classic French stew calls for a classic…

approach the haul with a take-no-prisoners gusto more akin to a dangerously starved Pac-Man? When I was a nipper, I was firmly in the Pac-Man camp, biting the ears off chocolate rabbits and smashing into chocolate eggs with glee. Come to think of it, not much has changed since then, which might be why I love these chocolate special editions. Speaking of smashing things, my new year’s resolution was to treat every dessert put in front of me like a crème brûlée, hitting it very hard with the back of a spoon. Working my way through the recipes in this issue, I can tell you that a heavy spoon and the caramel crémeux on page 101 make a winning combination, though giving Mimi Thorisson’s grandmother’s crème caramel (page 128) a…

EMIKO DAVIES In 2015, Australian-born food writer and photographer Emiko Davies and her family moved to a fishing village in Monte Argentario on the Tuscan coast. It wasn’t long before she knew she wanted to write a cookbook. “The landscape has long shaped the area’s unique but disappearing food traditions,” she says. “It’s separated from the mainland by a lagoon rich in marine and bird life.” On page 152 she shares her favourite places to eat in the place that inspired her latest cookbook, Acquacotta. RICHARD COOKE Writer and broadcaster Richard Cooke went to Macedonia and was taken by surprise. “To be honest, when I found out that Macedonia’s national dish is baked beans, I didn’t have high hopes,” he admits. “But I ate and drank as well as I…

GRAPES, LABNE AND ZA’ATAR The month of March saw cooks all over the country giving their food a Syrian twist in the name of raising money for UNICEF’s Syrian Crisis Appeal. One standout was Automata chef Clayton Wells’ dish at the Sydney gala launching the campaign: a dazzling play of textures between painstakingly peeled grapes, slivers of preserved lemon and a cool dollop of labne. cookforsyria.org.au PAT NOURSE DUCK, CARROT AND HAZELNUT Dry-aged for three months and served with a light carrot purée, sage and hazelnuts, this duck is a tender and juicy example of the fine work being turned out by the lively new team at this coastal favourite. Caveau, 122-124 Keira St, Wollongong, NSW, (02) 4226 4855 SAMANTHA TEAGUE SORREL AND ICE-CREAM Featuring a wild mix of Australian…

Life of pie? Adelaide says yes, with its oven-hot pizza scene. Pizzerias powered by buzz and good times are ruling the Adelaide food scene and this trend, like the crowds, just keeps rising. Sunny’s Pizza is one of the party starters, inspired by an apparent lack of rowdy fun in the local scene. “Pizza and casual party times go hand in hand,” says Andy Nowell, one of five young guns who turned a CBD warehouse into a much-talked-about site, where the music is loud, tables can be cleared to create a dance floor and curfew doesn’t hit until 2am. You’re also here for puffed-crust Neapolitan pizza built on slow-proved dough. Superior Napoli-style pizza also defines the appeal of Lost in a Forest at Uraidla in the Adelaide Hills (which is…

A Sydney couple brings Brazil’s national sweet to Australia. WHAT Brazil’s traditional brigadeiro is a fudgy ball of condensed milk, butter and chocolate powder covered in chocolate sprinkles or crushed nuts. The ganache-like sweet is a staple at celebrations and is easy to find throughout Brazil, but it’s tough to score a good one made from premium ingredients, and even more so in Australia. WHO Inspired by a crop of dedicated shops selling artisanal versions of the brigadeiro in her native Brazil, Barbara Cardoso decided to invest in only the best ingredients to lift the sweet from basic to brilliant back in her adopted home of Australia. After locking down a supplier of sustainable, Fairtrade-certified Belgian Callebaut and French Cacao Barry couverture, and experimenting with flavours and styles, Cardoso and…