Waji’s

Catering

CONFIT OF ABALONE WITH A WARM ASIAN SALAD

500g fresh abalone
500ml olive oil
500ml quality vegetable oil
2 cloves garlic
2 medium shallots
1/2 inch ginger
1 lebanese cucumber
1/2 lime 4 spring onions
2 bay leaves
1 sprig fresh rosemary
1 granny smith apple
100ml Waji’s Palm Sugar Dressing coriander

CHEESE FONDUE

2 cups (250g) diced Swiss gruyère cheese, dusted well with 2 rounded teaspoons cornflour
Clove garlic
3/4 cup (200ml) white wine

Put fondue pot on a tray — it will save a lot of mess and you can take it off the flame if it gets too hot without danger to the table. Rub the inside of the fondue pot with the cut clove of garlic. Add wine.

Heat until air bubbles start to rise. Over low heat, add the cheese, a handful at a time, stirring until melted before adding more. If the mixture is heated too fast it goes stringy, so take care, and remove from the heat from time to time.

Guests stir with pieces of torn-off French bread, which they then eat.

I have omitted the traditional teaspoonful of Kirsch because good Kirsch is so expensive, and bad so horrible.

CHOCOLATE FONDUE

250g (8oz) dark chocolate, grated
4 tablespoons honey
1/2 cup thick cream

Melt honey in a thick fondue pot, then add the chocolate. Stir, and add cream.

Stir over a gentle heat until smooth and melted, dip cubes of pound cake, or sponge fingers, etc, in this.

Carefree Cooking, Elizabeth Godfrey, 1978

Captain’s Catch

Cafe & Take Away, St Helens

Voted by Graeme Phillips (food writer), as Tasmania’s best fish and chips. Their batter recipe remains a closely guarded secret, originally coaxed from the chef of the QE2. The following recipe is a tried and true Tasmanian favourite.

SCALLOPS IN BATTER

1/2 cup self raising flour
1/2 tsp salt pinch pepper
1/2 cup milk
1 tsp vinegar
500g cleaned scallops with roe removed because this ruptures during deep frying and causes fat or oil to spit dangerously.
Seasoned flour.

Put fat or oil on to heat over low temperature. (170°C).

Dry scallops very well. Sift flour and salt and mix to a thin cream with the milk and vinegar, and pepper. Coat scallops in seasoned flour then coat with batter. Fry in the fuming fat for about 4 minutes.

Lift out and drain on draining paper.

Serve with a garnish of lemon wedges and parsley sprigs. Do not overcrowd the fat when cooking the scallops and allow the fat to reheat before cooking next batch.

Central Cookery Book, 17th edition, 1992

Zeps

Restaurant and Cafe, Campbell Town

MIXED BERRY BREAD AND BUTTER PUDDING

10 fresh farm eggs
1/2 cup cream
1/2 cup sugar
40g butter
1 cup mixed berries (any variety)
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon fruit loaf (or panatone) cut into size of tin

Warm berries with sugar until they soften. Beat eggs, cream and cinnamon together. Layer thickish slices of fruit loaf with berries and egg mixture till baking dish is nearly full (2-3 layers).

Place dollops of butter on top. Bake at 180°C for 25 minutes till slightly brown.

Serve slightly warm with Meander Valley Double Cream and almond bread (optional).