Delicious Australia - (05)May 2020

S E A S O N A L

U PDATE

DAYSARECOOLERanda

tadshorter.Ourbodiescrave

thenourishmenttheshifting

seasondemandsand,luckily,

thesemonthsgiveupsome

oftheyear’sbest,most

variedbounty:mandarins,persimmons,

pears,avocadosandrootvegetables.

Whentherearetonnesofmandarins

aroundtheyareperfecttojuice.I makea

tonicbyslowjuicingthem,addingoregano,

andhalfa chilli,whichgetsyourblood

rushing.Theoreganohasantibacterialand

antiviralqualitiestohelpkeepthegood

bugsin yourtummy.Grabsomemandarins

fromWatkinsOrchardatCarriageworks.

Persimmonsarein goodshaperight

now.Theyhavea tonneofvitaminC to

helpboostimmunesystems.Slicethinly

andusein a saladwitholiveoil,preserved

lemons,capersandmarjoram.Edenfrom

FanelliOrganicsofferspersimmons from

agrowerwithinhisco-op.

Pearsaresuperversatileandcomein

manyvarieties.I usethemupin chutneys

andjams,howevermyfavouriteis tobottle

themin sugarsyrupandputthemawayto

usethroughouttheyear.Lesleyand

QuentinatKurrawongOrganicshasa good

stockofbeurreboscandothervarieties.

WehaveproducersatCarriageworks

thatgrowonlyavocados. Lookoutfor

Bob’sFarmandBurbnarFruit.Highin

monounsaturatedfattyacidsaswellas

omega6, avoscanhelplowercholesterol.

Besidessmashedavoontoast,I liketoeat

themforbreakfastwitha dollop of miso

anda drizzleofoliveoil.

Myfavouriterootvegetablerightnowis

theceleriac. It’sgreatroastedormashed

toservewithdifferenttypesofmeat,ortry

itgratedrawintosalads.Lookoutfor

good-quality celeriac at Block 11.

delicious.com.au/food-files

Formoretipsonmaking the

most of ingredients.

TopproducepicksbyMike

McEnearney, headchefofKitchen

byMikeandcreativedirectorof

Carriageworks Farmers’ Market.

COCONUT& TURMERIC
KEFIRWITHGINGER &
C AYENNE
SERVES 4
Beginthisrecipeatleast
1 day ahead. You will need
a 1L glass jar.

3 youngcoconuts (substitute coconut
water)
1-2probioticcapsulesor2 tbswaterkefir
grains(bothfromhealthfoodshops)
11 / 2 tbsfinelygratedfreshturmeric or
11 / 2 tspgroundturmeric
11 / 2 tbsfinelygratedginger
Pinch of cayenne pepper (more if desired)

Preheatovento150°C.Washa 1Lglassjar
anda non-metalspoonin hotsoapywater,
thenrunthemthroughthedishwasherona
hot-rinsecycletosterilise.Alternatively,
placethejarandspoonin a largesaucepan
filledwithwaterandboilfor 10 minutes.
Placeona bakingtrayin theovenuntildry.
Cool completely at room temperature.

KEFIR

If you’refeelinga littlesluggish,PeteEvans’ supercharged

water kefir might just be the lift you need.

Meanwhile,openthecoconutsby

cuttingoffthetops.Strainthecoconut

waterintosterilisedjar.If usinga probiotic

capsule,opencapsuleandaddprobiotic

powderorkefirgrainstothecoconut

water,thenaddturmeric,gingerand

cayenne.Stirwellusingsterilisedspoon.

Coverwitha pieceofmuslinandsecure

witha rubberband.Placein thepantryfor

24-48hourstoferment.Thekefiris ready

whenthewaterturns from relatively clear

tocloudywhite.

Tastetestthekefirafter24-30hours.It

shouldtastesour,withnosweetnessleft,

likecoconutbeer.Somebatchesarefizzier

thanothersbutallarebeneficial.

If it stilltastessweet,placeit backin the

pantryforremainingfermentationtime.

Whenyou’rehappywiththeflavour,pour

througha sievetoremovekefirgrains(if

using)andreturnkefirtothejar.Storein

thefridgeforupto2 months.Kefirgrains

canbeleftin coconutwaterin thefridge

untilyoumakeyournextbatchofkefir

(refresh coconut water every 5 days or so).

FO

OD

FORTHOU

GH

T

KEFIR

@chefpeteevans @mikemcenearney

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