44 delicious.com.auPHOTOGRAPHYCHRIS COURTSTYLINGCELERY,FENNEL,CANDIED KIRSTEN JENKINS
MACADAMIAANDBLUECHEESE
SERVES 4 AS A LIGHT MEAL OR SIDE(^1) / 2 cup(75g)toastedmacadamias,
coarselychopped
(^1) / 4 cup(60ml)extravirginolive oil,
plusextratodrizzle
1 tbsrunnyhoney
4 innercelerystalks,thinlyslicedonthe
diagonal, leaves reserved to garnish
1 largefennelbulb, trimmed, shaved on
a mandoline
1 largesweet red apple, sliced thinly into
rounds
2 tbslemonjuice
200g blue cheese, crumbled
Placethemacadamiasin a largebowland
drizzleoveroliveoil.Season to taste and
tosstocombine.
Heata mediumnon-stickfrypanover
medium-lowheat.Addthemacadamias
andcook,tossing,for5-6minutesuntil
roastedandlightlygolden.Drizzleover
thehoneyandcook,tossingfrequently,for
1-2minutesuntilcombined.Setasideto
coolcompletelyat roomtemperature.
Combinethecelerystalk,fennel,apple
andlemonjuicein a largebowlandcoat
witholiveoil.Seasontotasteandtoss
gentlytocombine.Placeona large
servingplatterandtopwithcandied
macadamias,crumbledbluecheese,and
celeryleavestogarnish.Drizzlewithextra
oliveoilandscatterwithfreshly ground
black pepper to serve.
BLUEIS HOWWE’VEALLFELTat times
thisyear,butweareheretoshowyouthat
bluedoesn’thavetobesad,especially
whenit comestoAustraliancheese!
Australiaproducessomeworld-class
farmsteadbluecheeses.Ourfavouritesare
fromGippsland,Victoria.Itsrollinggreen
hillsaredottedwithmorethan1,400dairy
farms,with400,000cowsthatproduce
overtwobillionlitresofmilkevery year.
Theseareourtoppicks:
TARAGORIVERGIPPSLANDBLUE(COW)
Australia’sfirstfarmhousebluecheeseis
a spinonthefamousItalianGorgonzola
dolce.Housedin a naturalrind,this
Gippslandbluehasa puddingconsistency
witha hintofsweetness. We call this one
‘blueheaven’.
BERRY’SCREEKRIVERINEBLUE(BUFFALO)
Berry’sCreekin Woodside,Gippsland
makesoneofAustralia’sbestbuffaloblue
cheesefromitssmallherdofwaterbuffalo.
Withivorytones,it offersa sweetfinish.
PROMCOUNTRYVENUSBLUE(SHEEP)
Thishasa naturalcrustedrind,andan
ivory paste marbled with greenish-blue
@thestuddsiblings
Roquefort,GorgonzolaandStilton,
is breaking the mould, with its unique
TRUE
BLUE
veins.It’sspicyanda littlesmokytocut
through the ewe’s milk sweetness.
SERVE& STORE
Despiteitsreputation,notallbluecheese
willknockyoursocksoffwithstrong
flavour.Therearemoresubtleblues,and
somecanbesweet,savouryorspicy.
Balancethesaltinesswithhoney,figs,
compoteandevenchocolate!Bluealso
pairsbeautifullywithstickywineorstout.
It’sbesttostorebluecheeseseparately,
asitsmouldcantransfertoother cheeses.
Wrap in wax paper, then foil.
CHEESE COUNTER.