eat.sip.feast

Warm summery nights and longer days call for gathering together family or friends to eat, sip a refreshing drink and feast the night away. Invite your guests over and keep it simple with fuss-free easy food that is tasty and totally delicious served with a side of fresh air!

I’ve written these recipes with exactly that in mind and, when made together, they complement each other using similar ingredients. Not only do they taste great but a lot of the preparation can be done ahead of time. A simple stripped down approach making marinades and dressings earlier and even making the dessert in advance makes entertaining more relaxed. Set up a simple shared table outside, add some fresh blooms and a pretty tablecloth to brighten up your dinner table and you will be set for a casual, social and fun night. Serve the dishes on big shared platters ready for your guests to help themselves.

These recipes are super easy and even those of us that aren’t overly confident as cooks can create them without any fuss, all you’ll need to think about is choosing the wines to go with them. Happy feasting!

RECIPES, IMAGES & STYLING Jo O’Keefe

Vegetarian Gado Gado (serves 4)

‘You had me at peanut sauce’ an Indonesian inspired vegetable salad platter that presents perfectly as a lunch for two or as part of our late summer feasting menu on the shared table. This will have you sloshing that peanut sauce on everything; lucky it makes plenty.

To make this a completely vegan dish omit the boiled eggs and substitute with boiled slices of potato.

Ingredients

20 green beans, steamed or stir fried 2 hard boiled eggs, peeled and cut in half 1/2 cup bean shoots 3 radishes, thinly sliced 2 carrots, julienned 1 bunch of broccolini, steamed or stir fried 1 cup cooked corn kernels 250g of tempeh sliced and pan fried Cup of baby spinach leaves or lettuce leaves 1 sml Lebanese cucumber, halved lengthways and then cut in 1cm pieces

Peanut sauce

1/2 cup peanut butter 4 tbsp soy sauce or tamari 1 tbsp maple syrup Juice of one fresh lime 1/4 chopped fresh red chilli 1/2 cup coconut cream

Method To make peanut sauce, add ingredients to a saucepan and cook until it just comes to the boil. It should be slightly runny like a thick gravy (you can add a little water if it is too thick). Pour into a container and allow to cool.

Assemble all ingredients on a large platter. Place the peanut sauce in a small bowl and serve in the middle of the platter with a spoon.

*Optional* scatter with extra roasted peanuts and fresh coriander and slices of fresh red chilli.

*Jo’s Tip* For a non-alcoholic version use sparkling water and add some extra juice if desired.

Mango and Pineapple Prosecco Punch

Ingredients

2 cups mango juice 2 cups fresh pineapple juice 1 cup white rum 1 bottle chilled Prosecco

Method 1. Grab a big jug. 2. Mix together 2 cups of mango juice and 2 cups of pineapple juice. 3. Add 1 cup of white rum or more to taste (optional). Just before serving top up with a bottle of chilled Prosecco. 4. Add some ice, fresh mint sprigs and fresh pineapple to serve.

*ele Top Tip* If you prefer a savoury scone, Asian Style Chicken Marylands (serves 4) swap the lemonade for soda water, add in some dried herbs Ingredients and top with grated cheese 4 chicken Marylands before baking. Serve warm Juice of 1/4 fresh orange with butter. 1 stick lemongrass, cut into 2 inch pieces Marinade

1/3 cup soy sauce 1/4 cup honey 2 inch piece of piece of ginger, grated 1/2 fresh red chilli, thinly sliced 1 clove garlic, crushed 1 tbsp sesame seeds

Method 1. Mix all of the marinade ingredients together until well combined. 2. Add 3/4 of the marinade to a roasting dish, add chicken and marinate in fridge for up to 1 day before cooking. 3. When ready to cook, pour most of the remaining marinade over the chicken. Add the orange juice and lemongrass. 4. Bake in oven at 180C (350F) degrees for an hour and a half, rotating the dish until the chicken is nicely golden and cooked through. 5. Remove from oven and rest for half an hour. Prior to serving, pour over the extra marinade that you reserved. 6. Serve with a flat rice noodle salad (see opposite page) or steamed basmati rice.

Ingredients

3 cups self-raising flour 1 cup thickened cream 1 cup of lemonade

*Jo’s Tip*

If you don’t have time to cook Chicken Marylands, simply shred a shop brought BBQ chicken and toss though rice noodles for a quick chicken noodle salad.

Quick Rice Noodle Salad

Ingredients

500g flat rice stick noodles, cooked in boiling salted water, and drained. 2 cups fresh bean shoots

Dressing

1/2 cup fresh coriander chopped 1/4 fresh chilli chopped 1 cup roasted peanuts roughly chopped 1/4 cup peanut oil or light olive oil 1 tsp castor sugar or palm sugar Juice of 1 lime

Method 1. Mix all dressing ingredients together. 2. Pour dressing over cold noodles. 3. Add 2 cups of fresh bean shoots and extra coriander if desired. 4. Gently toss through.

This salad can be made ahead. I often cook the noodles earlier and pop into the fridge. I add in the dressing and sprouts when I’m about to serve.

Grilled Prawns with Zesty Asian Dressing

Ingredients

1 kg raw prawns, shells on

Zesty Asian Dressing

1 grated or finely chopped thumb size piece of ginger 1/2 red chilli thinly sliced 1 clove garlic, crushed Juice of 1 fresh lime 1/4 cup of peanut oil or light olive oil Handful of fresh coriander, chopped 1 tsp sesame oil 1 tbsp fish sauce 1 tsp castor sugar or palm sugar 3 thin sliced kaffir lime leaves

Method Mix together dressing ingredients. Pour half over the prawns and reserve the remainder to serve in a bowl with the cooked prawns.

Grill the prawns until they change colour on a hot BBQ, turning once or twice until cooked through.

Serve on a big platter piled high with lime wedges and dressing on the side. Don’t forget a finger bowl for hands if you're serving the prawns whole.

A Note About Prawns

‘I’ll slip an extra shrimp on the barbie for ya” became a catch phrase in Australia when the saying was featured in a commercial for Australian tourism targeted at American tourists. They are a crowd favourite in Australia and perfect for a summer feast with this zesty dressing to pour over or dunk into.

We always recommend asking your fishmonger where your prawns are sourced from, sustainable and ethically sourced prawns are always best. *Jo’s Tip*

You can use peeled green prawns in this dish, note they will cook a little quicker than the whole ones.

This is an 'easy peasy' delicious ice cream that requires no special ice cream churns, just a mixer to whip your cream to soft peaks. Make use of the fresh summer seasonal strawberries or use frozen berries.

Only a few ingredients but wow, it is super good and can keep in a sealed container for a week.

Ingredients

500g of strawberries, fresh or frozen 2 tbsp sugar 1 can of condensed milk (395g) 2 1/2 cups thickened cream 1 tbsp water (only required if using fresh strawberries)

Summer Berry Tart

Method 1. Cook the strawberries and the sugar in a saucepan on low heat until a jam like consistency is achieved (it will take approx. 15 -20 minutes). If using fresh strawberries you might need to add the water now. Once cooked allow to cool. 2. In a large bowl whip thickened cream until you have stiff peaks. 3. Add in strawberry mix and keep whipping until it is thick again. 4. Fold through the can of condensed milk using a spatula and then transfer to a freezer proff container. 5. Allow to fully freeze. 6. Once frozen, the ice can be scooped into cones or used for an ice cream sandwiches or to serve alongside our summer berry tart.

What’s better than showcasing fresh seasonal berries for dessert? Here a creme patissiere filling sits on top of a shortbread crust and you can pile with fresh berries on top. The crust is easy and can be pre-baked the day before and kept in an airtight container. The creme pâtissiere can be made up to three days ahead - just give it a quick whip before spreading over the tart base and topping with your berry selection.

Tart base

1 cup plain flour 113 grams salted butter 1/4 cup icing sugar 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla essence

To make, melt the salted butter and pour over the flour and sugar and mix well. This is a no rest, no refrigerate and no blind bake tart base. Press it in to a 20cm tart tin with a removable base, pressing evenly and up the sides and bake immediately at 175C degrees for approx. 20 minutes until golden brown.

Creme Patissiere

3 egg yolks 30g cornflour 1/3 cup caster sugar 1 tsp vanilla essence (or fresh vanilla bean pod) 2 cups full cream milk

In a bowl mix egg yolks, cornflour, caster sugar and vanilla. In a saucepan heat the milk to almost boiling and then pour it in to the egg mix whisking quickly. Pour all ingredients back in to the saucepan and whisk over heat until it starts to boil and thickens up. Remove from heat and place in a bowl covering with cling wrap pressed to touch the mix so no skin can form as it cools. Refrigerate until needed Whip up just prior to filling tart and top with berries as desired. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

5 WAYS WITH STONE FRUIT

Sweet peaches, golden mangoes and juicy nectarines, summer stone fruits are one of life’s little joys!

*Did you know?* Mangoes were first grown in India over 5,000 years ago. A basket of mangoes given as a gift in India is a symbol of friendship.

BLEND POACH

Poach peaches or nectarines and serve with fresh vanilla bean ice-cream or creamy vanilla custard.

Stone fruits make a great base for summer smoothies, try mango, coconut milk, mint and fresh pineapple juice for a refreshing morning pick-me-up.

RAW

Fresh stone fruits add a sweet addition to many dishes, try adding sliced mango or peach into salads, serve on top of cereal or yoghurt for a healthy morning start, or simply eat straight form the fruit bowl for that juicy, summery goodness.

FREEZE

When stone fruit are in season, remove skins, cut in to chunks and freeze so you have fruit availabe to use and cook with all year around.

BAKE

Drizzle halved peaches, plums, apricots and nectarines with honey, add 50 grams of butter and bake in oven (200C) for 20 minutes until golden. Serve with porridge or bircher muesli for breakfast, or with ice-cream or cream for dessert.

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