Delicious Australia - (11)November 2020

I LOVE...

CANAPE

CULTURE

What’sthefutureofpartyfoodin a post

pandemic world?Matt Prestoninvestigates.

CARAMELISEDHONEYAND ALMOND SLICE

MAKES APPROX. 16 SLICES

90gunsaltedbutter,melted

120gbrownsugar

1 cup(150g)plainflour

(^1) / 2 cup (70g) almond meal
ALMONDTOPPING
125gunsaltedbutter
95grunnyhoney
11 / 2 cups (200g) slivered almonds
Preheatovento170°C.Greasea 19cmx 30cmslicepanandline
thebaseandsideswithbakingpaper.(If youdonothavea traythis
size,usea similar,smallerpanratherthana largeone.Thisis a thin
sliceandthemixturemaynotbeenoughtofilla largepan.)
Combinethebutter,sugar,flourandalmondmealin a large
bowlandmixwelltocombine(if themixseemsfloury,adda little
extrabutter).Spreadevenlyoverthebaseofthepreparedpan.
Bakefor12-15minutesuntillightly golden. Remove from the oven
andstandona wirerack.
Meanwhile,tomakethetopping,placethebutterandhoneyin
a smallheavy-basedsaucepanovermediumheat.Simmer,stirring
occasionally,for3-4minutesuntilmixtureis lightlycaramelised.
Stirin thenuts.Pourevenlyoverthecookedbase.Bakefora
further12-15minutesuntilgolden.Removeandstand on a wire
rack and cool completely. Cut into slices to serve.
ora Thaisalad– andeventhespiced-nutmixpurchasedfromthe
localgourmetstorebeingservedin lotsofindividualramekins.
I doseeonethingthatdefinitelywillnotchange.Partypies and
sausagesrollshavebeenforeverthere,andwillremain.
I rememberbeingquiteforciblytoldbymyexasperatedco-host
thatanAussiedrinkspartywherepartypiesandsausagerolls
didn’tmakeanappearancewaslike“ChristmaswithoutSanta”.
I’mnotsureit evenmatterswhatthefillingis – vegan,vegetarian
orproudlytraditional– everyAustralianknowsboththeseare
sacrosanctandI suggestthatthisensurestheirsurvival.Timewill
tellwhetherweendupstillhandingarounda tractor-tyre-sized
platterofflakymeat-filleddelightswiththatrednectaroftheGods
wecall‘sauce’onthesidefordouble-dipping,orservingthem
individuallyplatedwitha splodgeoffancyhomemadetomato
relish.Eitherway,I suspecttheywillstillgetthebig thumbs-up
whetheryouarethrowinga partyfortwoor20.
Ofcourse,youcouldjustswearoffthepartycircuitaltogether
andjustsettlein forgoodbook,a nicecupofteaanda coupleof
squaresofthisslice.Simpletobake, it’s the sort of treat that makes
staying in a party all of its own.
THISIS NORMALLYthepartyissueofdelicious. but,tobebrutal,
there’snotbeena lottocelebratein 2020.Thenthere’sthewhole
new-era-party-complexityofnavigatingwhatregionallyvarying
advicetofollow:howmanypeoplecanyouhaveround?Dothey
havetowearmasksif theyareeatingcocktailfood?Do they be
seatedanddistanced?AreVictoriansallowedyet?
I’vealwaysbelievedthattwopeoplemakea partyandwiththat
in mind– eventhoughthereis nopartyissuehere– whyshouldn’t
wehavea littlecelebrationabout how far party food has come in
justa coupleofgenerations?
My 1973 NewWorldEncyclopediaof Cookinghaspagesof
adviceaboutcocktails,butonlythistosayaboutthefoodtoserve
at cocktailhour:“Itshouldbebothdeliciousandattractive.Two
kindsareenough– perhapsa piquantdipservedwithcrisp
crackersorpotatochips,anda tinyhotappetiserlikecheeseballs.”
Weshouldprobablytakethephrase“deliciousandattractive”
witha grainofiodisedtablesalt.Backthen,stylishpresentation
meantjabbingskewersofcabanossiandcubedtastycheeseinto
theskinofa halvedgrapefruitandpresentingyourpiquantspinach
dipin a cobloaf.AndwhileSaladasloadedwithtinned smoked
oystersmighttasteokay,theyarenotpretty.
Theonlythingthatseemstohavesurvivedfroma 1970scanape
menuis thedevilledegg.Thisis perhapsthankstotheretro
resurgenceofthepastfewyearsthatalsosawvol-au-vents, mini
quichesand‘devilsonhorseback’ridebackintodrinkspartytown.
I washappywithtwoofthese,andsurelyroastedprunes wrapped
in baconwasanideawayaheadofitstimeanyway.
Butwehavecomeveryfar.It is nowmorelikelythatthose
smoked-oysterSaladashavebeenreplacedwitha gluten-freecurl
ofsmokedsalmonsittingona sliceofcucumbertoppedwitha
littleplushofdill,thatcobloafsupercededbya plateofPeking
duckwrapsora platterofsushirolls,andthatearlyhackrecipefor
‘nuts‘n’bolts’retiredin favourofa bowlofsmokedalmonds(which
musthavebeena saddayforallthatrelishedcereal and peanuts
tossedwithpacketFrenchonionsoupmix).
Thebigquestion,however,is whatis thefutureforfingerfood,
canapesandthosemuch-loved‘horsedoovers’in thenew
Covid-normalworld?Is thepartyoverforpartyfood?
Certainly,I canseea desiretomoveawayfrombuffetspreads
andplattersbeingofferedaroundtobepawedoverbythethrong.
I wouldexpectthegrowthofservingmoresmallindividualdishes

• what the caterers call ‘bowl food’, think a pile of one-bite tortellini PHOTOGRAPHY

BRETT STEVENS

STYLING

KIRSTEN JENKINS

Visitdelicious.com.aufor

more recipes from Matt.

@mattscravat

46 delicious.com.au

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