900g mixed mushrooms
10g porcini mushrooms
275ml dry white wine or maderia (Morris Tokay fortified wine is a good alternative to maderia)
2 large onions, thinly sliced in half moon shapes
50g butter
200ml crème fraiche
¼ tsp ground nutmeg

Heat the wine (or maderia or tokay) in a small saucepan until it begins to bubble around the edges. Then remove from the heat, add porcini mushrooms and set aside to soak.

Melt the butter in a large frying pan on a medium heat, add onion slices and cook for 10 minutes until they have turned golden brown. Then, with a draining spoon remove them to a bowl and set aside. Turn the heat up and add mushrooms, only add enough to cover the base of the pan do not pile them up (this means you may need to cook them in 2-3 batches). Brown them all adding a little extra butter if required.

When all the mushrooms are brown return them all to the pan along with the onions. Meanwhile drain the porcini mushrooms reserving the liquid and chop them. Next add the porcini mushrooms and the reserved wine to the pan with the mushrooms, season and bring to a simmer. Turn the heat to low and cover, cook for 30 minutes.

Taste and adjust seasoning if required then remove from heat and stir in the crème fraiche with the nutmeg. Re heat without allowing it to boil, serve immediately.

Serves 4

Apples • Bananas • Custard Apples • Kiwifruit • Limes  •  Nashi Passionfruit •  Pears  Pomegranates • Persimmons • Quinces Ramutan •  Rockmeldon  Tamarillo

Vegetables

Beetroot • Broccoli • Brussel Sprouts Cabbages • Capsicums  Fennel • Leeks • Mushrooms • Okra•  Peas • Potatoes • Pumpkin • Silverbeet • Spinach

1kg roma tomatoes
1 garlic bulb
½ onion, finely chopped
Handful basil, roughly chopped
Olive oil

Place the whole garlic in the oven at 180° and bake for 5-10 minutes until garlic is soft. Score across the top of the tomatoes and place in a large bowl, cover with boiling water for 1-2 minutes, drain and rinse in cold water. Peel the skin off the tomatoes. Dice the tomatoes removing the seeds and then add to a warm pan, cover and cook on med heat for 5 minutes to soften.

Once soft blend the tomatoes until smooth.

In a pan heat 1 tbsp olive oil and gently fry the onion for a few minutes. Squeeze the garlic out of its skin and in to the pan then add tomatoes and cook on med-high heat to reduce and thicken the sauce. Add basil and a dash of olive oil, season and pour on to your favorite pasta or bottle for later.

1 carrot, chopped
1 potato, peeled and chopped
½ cauliflower, cut in to small florets
8 baby corn, cut in half
10 button mushrooms

* you can add any selections of your favorite veggies if you want to mix it up.

Curry Sauce:

1½ tbsp curry powder – madras style
½ tsp chilli powder (use more if a mild powder)
1 stalk lemongrass, chopped
3 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped
Finger size piece of ginger, finely chopped
½ onion, roughly chopped
2 eshallots, finely chopped
2 bay leaves
4 basil leaves
300ml coconut milk
Pinch salt and pepper
2-3 tbsp Coconut oil or vegetable oil

Boil the vegetable ingredients (except the mushrooms) until half cooked, time will vary depending on vegetables used and how big you have chopped them.

Saute garlic, onion and ginger in oil over a medium heat for a few minutes until fragrant. Add curry powder, salt and pepper, bay leaves, basil and lemongrass, stir well and cook for a few minutes. Pour in coconut milk stir and bring to a simmer.

Add vegetables and chilli powder and cook on a low heat for 10-15 minutes or until vegetables are cooked. Serve with boiled rice and a sprinkle of fried shallots and garlic slices.

Pitaya, more commonly known as the Dragon fruit, is a stunningly beautiful fruit with an intense colour and shape, magnificent flowers and a delicious taste. Native to Central and South America the Dragon fruit is a colourful, edible cactus, pink to red with prominent, green-edged scales. The thin skin encloses dense white or red flesh with tiny, edible black seeds. A squeeze of lemon or lime juice enhances its delicate, sweet flavour. The flesh can be eaten with a spoon or pureed for use in drinks.

Is it good for me?

Dragon fruits are high in antioxidants, which help to fight carcinogenic free-radicals from forming in the body. In addition, they are a good source of Vitamin C, and are rich in minerals, especially calcium and phosphorus. They are also low in calories and high in fiber, while the seeds have high polyunsaturated fatty acids. Aside from its nutritional content, the fruit is also said to help excrete heavy metal toxins from the body and lower cholesterol and high blood pressure.

Other benefits:

• Regular consumption of the dragon fruit works great for asthma and cough.
• Carotene helps maintain and equally improve the health of the eyes.
• The proteins from the fruit enhance metabolism of the body.
• The fruit serves as a food substitute for rice, for diabetics.
• They help to improve overall digestive health. The fiber enhances digestion and helps to avoid constipation by acting as natural laxative.

How to select and store?
When buying dragon fruit, examine the surface of the dragon fruit and discard any with bruises or discoloration. The pink color should be even throughout the exterior of the fruit. Smell the fruit for a light, tropical odor. Avoid choosing rock solid dragon fruit, but if that is all that is available, you can ripen it at home. To ripen, leave your dragon fruit on the counter at room temperature until the exterior turns completely yellow and gives when gently pressed. This means that the fruit is fully ripe and ready to eat. If your dragon fruit is already ripe, store it in the fridge for up to 5 days.

Filling
250g mascarpone
4 tbsp icing sugar
1 tsp vanilla paste
mixture of fresh berries
2 tbsp apricot jam

Place flour, salt & icing sugar in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse a couple of times then add the butter and process until butter is fully incorporated and looks like crumbs. While processing add the water and continue to process until the mixture forms a ball. Wrap pastry in cling wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. Alternatively this can be done by hand by rubbing the butter in to the flour with your fingertips until it resembles fine breadcrumbs, then add the wet ingredients and bring to a ball.

Pre heat the oven to 180°. Roll pastry out to 2-3mm thickness and line 6 greased shallow tart shells. Refrigerate for a further 15 minutes then blind bake for 10 minutes, remove baking beans and cook for a further 5 minutes or until the cases are cooked and staring to brown. Cool.

For the filling mix the mascarpone, icing sugar and vanilla paste together. Fill each tart case with the mixture, top with fresh berries. Heat the apricot jam brush a little on top of each tart to glaze. Refrigerate tarts until set then serve.

I’ll be starting in Paris, spending some time travelling in France, seeing and tasting as much as possible. It’s then on to the UK where I’ll be spending a few days brushing up on some new bread making skills with a wonderful artisan baker.

I’m hoping to come back full of inspiration and ideas for next year’s classes.

If anyone knows of any great foodie places I should visit in Paris or the UK do let me know, ideas are always welcome.

Happy Cooking!
Georgina.

Vegetables
Beetroot, Broccoli, Brussels sprouts, Cabbage, Carrots, Cauliflower, Celeriac, Celery, Fennel, Jerusalem Artichokes, Kohlrabi, Leeks, Okra, Onions, Parsnips, Potatoes, Pumpkin, Silverbeet, Spinach, Swede, Sweet Potato, Turnips, Witlof.

250g polenta
2/3 cup extra polenta for dusting
4 cups (1 ltr) vegetable stock
100g parmesan cheese

Pre heat oven to 200º and grease a 6cup (48fl oz) dish. Place stock in a medium saucepan and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat to medium and add the polenta. Stir for 5-10 minutes until the polenta has thickened. Remove from the heat and stir in parmesan then pour mixture in to the greased dish. Smooth over the top and allow to cool completely. Once cool turn out on to a flat surface lightly dusted with extra polenta, dust the top side with polenta and cut in to fingers. Place fingers on to a lightly greased baking tray and cook for about 25 minutes until crispy. Sprinkle with sea salt and serve.

Artichoke & Caper Sauce

2 red capsicum, sliced
6 tomatoes, quartered
1 red onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped
1 tin artichoke hearts, drained and quartered
100g olives, pitted and halved
50g capers
100ml red wine + 100ml red grape juice (you can also use just 200ml grape juice)
1 tbsp apple juice concentrate or raw sugar
Salt and pepper
Parsley and basil to serve

Place the capsicum on a baking tray with the tomatoes and drizzle with oil, bake in 220° oven for 15-20minutes until soft and cooked through.
In a saucepan heat 1tbsp olive oil and gently fry the onion for 5 minutes or until soft, ad the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the roasted capsicum and tomatoes and cook on medium heat for 10 minutes.
Stir in artichoke, capers, olives, wine, apple juice concentrate, grape juice and simmer for 30 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and stir through parsley and basil.

Serve on top of crispy polenta wedges while warm.