The Forager: Christmas drinks and festive tips
In this week’s column, Christmas-themed cocktails, new places to eat out, tips for summer entertaining and what to do with Christmas leftovers.
Food happenings
Le Souk is one of the few Algerian food experiences on offer in Adelaide. Having recently opened at Stall 10 in the Central Market, owners Azou Bouilouta and Julia Melvin offer eat-in and take-away Algerian dishes including salads, soups and Arabesque sweets for breakfast and lunch, as well as hand-blended spices and pastes.
Burger Foundry has expanded further into the suburbs, opening another store on Henley Beach Road at Torrensville, serving its trademark selection of burgers, ribs and onion rings. Rumour has it that the burger giant is about to launch Coffee Foundry.
With Vietnamese street food gaining momentum around Adelaide, Maid Mice restaurant and bar on Unley Road has added a modern twist to its offerings with Vietnamese-style burgers and salads, Vietnamese beer and interesting cocktails.
The Nonya and Tamil flavours of Jimmy Shu’s Hanuman restaurant will take to the street on Boxing Day for a spicy pop-up serving “grab-n-go” meals in Rundle Mall.
One of South Australia’s oldest pubs has been given a new name and a $2 million makeover. Formerly known as the Tea Tree Gully Hotel, the 160-year-old pub is now called The Gully Public House & Garden, and includes one of the biggest beer gardens in the state. Extending across three levels and including two bars, six cabanas and a mezzanine area, the beer garden has been constructed around 100-year-old trees for both indoor and outdoor entertainment.
Christmas cheer in a glass
The Chandelier Bar at the Adelaide Casino is giving Christmas a shake-up with its festive season cocktail menu.
As well as an excellent list of French champagnes, the Chandelier Bar cocktail menu this Christmas features a pavlova-inspired cocktail, an adult egg nogg and a candy-cane martini (pictured top).
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Boxing Day is National Leftovers Day
Now in its sixth year, National Leftovers Day encourages South Australians to use up all their Christmas leftovers, helping to save some of the estimated 4 million tonnes of food wasted every year in Australia.
Organised by the DoSomething charity with support from Zero Waste SA, the FoodWise.com.au website offers resources that will help people to save food and money over the Christmas period, such as top Australian chefs’ favourite leftovers recipes; FoodWise’s online planner for Christmas meals; and a recipe selector that allows you to nominate the main ingredient to be used.
Cheaper by the dozen
Beer Pal is a locally made app which scans beer prices in more than 5500 stores nationally so you can find the closest beer specials.
It is the brainchild of Adelaide-based Paul Cameron who, after leaving his marketing job at Carlton and United Breweries and saying goodbye to the beer allocation, suddenly found he had to buy his own beer.
Cameron partnered with local app developers Digital Noir to create an app to help beer lovers find a great deal on their favourite brew.
Greek Life
Growing up in Adelaide, Eugenia Pantahos has been immersed in a family that celebrated the Greek way of life, inspiring a deep passion to pass on the teachings of her parents.
Her recipe book Greek Life can be described as a trousseau of time-honoured Greek traditions, culture and recipes assembled for future generations to be preserved, enjoyed and celebrated with the special spirit of life that the Greeks call ‘kefi”.
InDaily’s preview of Pantahos’s Christmas treat recipe, Kourambiedes, can be found here.
A hardback edition of Greek Life ($49.99) will be available online from mid-January at www.greeklifestyle.com.au.
Summer entertaining
If your plan is to eat and drink at home this festive season, local foodie Vicki Matchett has some entertaining tips to help.
Having studied agriculture and cookery and worked in various establishments around Adelaide before eventually running her own restaurant, Matchett took a step back from the restaurant scene and is now a food producer, organically growing her own beef, lamb, yabbies, fruit and vegetables on her property near Middleton on the Fleurieu Peninsula.
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Matchett also produces her own award-winning range of value-added products, including chilli-based condiments, Fleurieu Peninsula olive-oil-based salad dressings, hand-made water crackers in five flavours, and organic quince paste from her purpose-built industrial kitchen overlooking the Scott Creek Conservation Park.
Here are her tips for stress-free entertaining…
Pre-make your cocktail mix:
2 cups of orange juice
3 cups chopped fresh pineapple or mango (or both)
½ cup Bacardi and ½ cup Malibu, blended until smooth.
When the guests arrive you simply put ice in your blender, add the mix and blend until smooth. Serve in a tall glass with a straw and a pineapple/cherry garnish.
Prepare barbecue food by marinating the meat the day before:
Mix 400g Greek yoghurt with 4 tablespoons of Matchett’s Chilli Sting and ½ teaspoon of black pepper. Coat pork spare ribs or chicken skewers and refrigerate overnight. Remove from fridge ½ an hour before barbecuing.
Prepare salad ingredients the day before:
Wash and slice them and then simply assemble the salad on the day. It is even easier if you have a bottle of prepared salad dressing to splash over just prior to serving.
Make desserts ahead of time:
Choose desserts that can be made up to a week before you intend using them. For example, creme caramels, bavarois, fresh fruit jellies and ice-cream/sorbets are all fantastic to make ahead of time. Serve with a bowl of strawberries which have been steeped overnight in a mix of Cointreau and caster sugar.
Organise your accessories:
Work out which serving dishes, plates, cutlery and glassware you want to use the day before. Ensure you have a refill barbecue gas bottle (just in case), fresh flowers in a vase, music ready to hit play, napkins and water jugs at the ready, and plenty of ice in the freezer.
Book now for…
Bottega Rotolo cooking classes: Fine food providore Bottega Rotolo offers both hands-on and demonstration classes for individuals and small groups to learn about traditional cooking methods and new food trends. We recommend booking early for these first classes from the 2015 calendar.
Paella Masterclass with Luke Southwood – Wednesday, February, 11, 6.30 to 9.30pm: This is your opportunity to learn the tips and techniques needed to create an authentic “Paella Valenciana” ($100 per person).
Filled Pasta with Rosalie and Connie – Wednesday, February 18, 6.30 to 9.30pm: Rosalie and Connie are finally going to share their secrets on how to make perfect Agnolotti and Cannelloni from scratch. These dishes have been Italian family favourites for generations ($100 per person).
