Recipes - Italy's Finest

I had this amazing combination of flavours on a pizza years ago and it has always stuck with me.  The salty anchovy, spicy pepperoni, creamy bocconcini and sweet fresh basil create a flavour explosion that will have you thanking Italy for their food genius! 

Ingredients

1 pizza base

1-2 tbs pizza sauce

1/2 cup mozzarella, grated

12-16 thin slices spicy pepperoni

12-16 bambini bocconcini

8-12 anchovy fillets

basil leaves, to serve

Step 1 - Preheat oven to 230°C.

Step 2 - Place pizza base on a lightly greased pizza tray. Spread pizza sauce over base and sprinkle mozzarella. Distribute pepperoni, boccincini and anchovies on top.  

Step 3 - Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until base is crisp. Top with basil leaves and serve with a simple, lightly dressed green salad.

Notes:

Amounts of pizza sauce and cheese can be increased or reduced, depending on how saucy or cheesy you like your pizza.

Recipes - Tomato Tarte Tatin

I recently served these at a dinner party and recieved the most amazing feedback, the best of all being that they were devoured in seconds.  I got the idea after seeing a similar canape from a UK fashion magazines webpage.  Unfortunately I can't remember the magazine but I'm glad I stumbled across it as it enabled me to create this.  


The pan I used is like a mini dutch pancake pan.  It's not a whoopie pie pan or a muffin top pan as they are a bit more square through the base, although these could be used.  I've posted a photo so check it out to see the style of pan I used.

Ingredients

1 sheet frozen puff pastry

50g goats cheese

18 cherry or grape tomatoes, halved

12 small basil leaves

20g soft butter, to grease pan
1 tsp brown sugar

balsamic glaze, to serve (optional)

Step 1 - Preheat oven to 230°C.  Brush pan well with butter and sprinkle with sugar.  Set pastry on bench to thaw.

Step 2 - Place three tomato halves, cut side down, in each hole.  Top each with a piece of goats cheese.

Step 3 - Using a 6cm round cookie cutter, cut 12 rounds from pastry sheet.  Place a round over each lot of tomato and cheese, tucking it around the sides.  Transfer to oven and bake for 10-12 minutes, until golden.

Step 4 - Remove pan from oven and gently press each pastry round down into the cheese and tomato (be careful, it's hot!).  Set aside for 10 minutes to cool and set.

Step 5 - Using finger tips, gently turn each tarte to loosen it, then slide each tarte from the pan, turning it right way up as you slide it out.  If any tomatoes fall out, just pop them back on top.  Place on a serving dish and place a basil leaf on each.  Drizzle with balsamic glaze, if using, and serve immediately.

Recipes - Antipasto Skewers

I love antipasto and almost always serve it at my own events.  I've found, however, that it's not the easiest thing to serve when catering or when going for a picnic.  So my quick fix is to skewer it.

Ingredients

Antipasto, for example:

salami, prociutto, ham

olives, sundried tomatoes

cherry tomtoes, artichoke

fetta, bocconcini, 

roast capsicum, chargrilled eggplant

chargrilled zucchini, stuffed bell peppers

marinted button mushrooms

toothpicks

Step 1 - If required, cube fetta, tear meats into smaller pieces, halve button mushrooms and bell peppers, or cut larger vegetables into small pieces. 

Step 2 - Thread 3 things onto each toothpick, making sure to create as many combinations as possible.

Notes:

Skewers can be prepped in advance and refrigerated for several hours before serving.

Top 5 - King Island Dairy Recipes

You may not be aware of this yet, but I LOVE King Island Dairy! I've made a bunch of recipes using their cheese and I wanted to share my Top 5 recipes using King Island Dairy Cheese.

• Cheeseboard Muffins
• Caramel Brie 
• Netherby Chicken
• King of the Cob
• Cheese Souffle 

Recipes - King of the Cob

Cob breads filled with dip are always super popular when entertaining.  The idea of an edible vessel in which the dip is heated and served is just so appealing, especially when toasted cob breads are crusty on the outside, fluffy on the inside and provide the perfect dipping implement.  Just make sure you have some extra toasted bread as the dip is always too much for just one cob loaf.  

This dip is the result of a lightbulb moment and, while it is not the prettiest dip, it tastes so yummy!  So yummy. 

Ingredients

250g cream cheese, softened

150g sour cream

2 cups grated King Island Netherby Blue Cheddar

1 cup grated tasty cheddar

1 punnet cherry tomatoes, quartered

1/3 cup basil, finely chopped

1 cob loaf

4-6 bread rolls, roughly torn

salt and pepper, to season 

Step 1 - Preheat oven to 200°C. Line a flat tray with baking paper and spray lightly with olive oil.

Step 2 - Scatter tomatoes over tray and season with a little salt.  Place in oven for 20-25 minutes, until tomatoes blacken around the edges.

Step 3 - Using a serrated knife, cut a circle in the top of the loaf.  Pull circle off loaf and set aside.  Remove a majority of the bread from inside the loaf, tearing into large chunks.  Set all bread aside.

Step 4 - Place cream cheese, sour cream, Netherby Blue, tasty cheddar and basil in a bowl.  Season well with pepper and mix until combined.  

Step 5 - Remove tomatoes from oven and set aside to cool.  When cool, gently fold through cheese mixture.  Pour dip into cob loaf and place lid back on top.  Discard baking paper, place cob on tray and bake for 20-25 minutes, until cob is golden and crispy.  In the last five minutes of oven time, scatter torn bread rolls and bread chunks around cob and place back in oven to toast.  Serve immediately.

Recipe - Cheese Souffle

When I decided to make a souffle, I was super super nervous!!  I read about eighteen recipes at least a dozen times.  Then I realised, there isn't a great deal to it. Make roux, beat eggs, oven bake.  Well, there's a little more to it than that but you get the idea.  I guess the reason souffles are made out to be really scary and easy to get wrong is that there are a lot of little things that can effect the final result.  The best thing to do it follow the recipe to the letter because there is a reason for every instruction.  If you wanna know why you have to do something just ask below.  I hope you have as much success with this recipe as I did. 

Ingredients

50g butter, softened

1/4 cup plain flour

300mL milk

150g King Island Dairy Netherby Blue Cheddar, grated

2 tsp dijon mustard

1/2 tsp smoked paprika

4 eggs, separated

Step 1 - Preheat oven to 200°C.  Place a flat tray in the oven.

Step 2 - Using 20g of the butter, grease 4 x 1 1/4 cup capacity ramekins. Set aside. 

Step 3 - Place remaining butter in a medium-sized saucepan over medium heat and melt until butter is frothing.  Add flour and cook, stirring constatly, until roux darkens slightly and easily comes away from the sides on the pan.

Step 4 - Remove pan from heat and pour in milk.  Whisk with a balloon whisk until smooth, then return to heat and stir until sauce thickens.  Remove from heat and stir through cheese, mustard and paprika until well incorporated. When mixture has cooled slightly, add egg yolks and stir until well combined.

Step 5 - Whisk egg whites in a clean bowl until soft peaks form.  Use a spatula to gently fold 1/4 of the eggs into the cheese mixture.  When just incorporated, add remaining egg whites and fold until just mixed through.

Step 6 - Pour mixture into ramekins and run a finger around the top, between the ramekin and the souffle mixture, about 0.5cm deep.  Bake for 25-30 minutes until souffle has risen and is golden.
Step 7 - Serve immediately with a simply green leafy salad.

Notes:

Ensure all ingredients have been prepped prior to commencing this dish.

King Island Dairy

You may not know this, but cheese runs in my veins!  It is my greatest weakness and the most difficult food to avoid day to day, as I do try to eat a healthy balanced diet.  Hard cheese, soft cheese, cream cheese, any cheese!  I even plan to have, should I ever get married, a Cheese Tower Wedding Cake decorated with fresh figs, dates and grapes.  And when that happens, I'll be calling on King Island dairy to send my a selection of their finest!

Anyone who knows me knows that I am very fussy and a bit of a perfectionist and for these reason, I am very careful when it comes to the products I purchase and even more careful regarding which products I endorse.  King Island Dairy is, hands down, some of the best cheese I have ever eaten.


King Island Dairy has been a favourite of mine for years and when you learn a little about the island and manufacturing process, you begin to understand why the taste is so superior.


"According to legend, straw mattresses containing dried grass seeds were swept ashore from French and English shipwrecks and germinated in the rich soils, creating lush pastures.


Discovered in 1791 to be the most isolates islands in the Bass Straight, King Island to this day retains its pristine environment.  The 110,000 windswept hectares are extremely fertile, enjoying moderate temperatures and year round rainfall, making it an ideal location to support the island's dairy industry.  More than 9,000 cows graze on some of the cleanest grass in the world, producing the sweet milk from which the cheese is made." - http://kidairy.com.au/History.aspx

Master cheesemaker Ueli Berger is the grandson of a cheesemaker and son of a dairy farmer  and has been at King Island Dairy since 1998.  During this time, he has created five King Island Dairy Black Label cheeses as well as overseeing the manufacturing all of cheese produced on the island.  


One thing I have learnt from personal experience and also heard second hand from people who have visited the island is that everyone involved with King Island Dairy are incredibly friendly, down to earth and passionate about cheese!  They are the sort of company who like their customers and will go above and beyond to provide the best product and amazing customer service.

When cooking, you need the most superior ingredients to produce the best results, which is why King Island Dairy is always my first choice when creating recipes.  Many of their cheeses are available at supermarkets, however, their finest selection are only available from select delicatessens.


For more information, recipes, product range and stockists, visit their website or facebook page.  Also, keep and eye out for me Top 5 - Recipes using King Island Dairy, coming soon. 

Recipes - Asparagus Tart

Asparagus and cheese are best friends and are always happy to be around each other.  When King Island Dairy sent me some of their Netherby Blue Cheddar, I knew I had to team it with asparagus in some way.  

Ingredients

1 quantity shortcrust pastry

3/4 cup cream

3 eggs

150g grated King Island Dairy Netherby Blue Cheddar

3 bunches asparagus

salt and pepper, to season

Step 1 - Prepare shortcrust pastry as per recipe.

Step 2 - Preheat oven to 200°C.  Grease a 20cm x 26cm fluted, loose bottom tart pan.

Step 3 - Roll out pastry between two sheets of baking paper until about 3mm thick.  Line tart pan, trim off excess and place in freezer for 15 minutes.

Step 4 - Place a piece of baking paper over the pastry, fill with rice, dried beans or baking weights and bake for 10 minutes.  Remove baking paper and weights then return pan to oven for a further 10 minutes.  Set aside and reduce oven temperature to 180°C.

Step 5 - While pastry is cooking, bring a large pot of salted water to boil.  Cook asparagus for 1-2 minutes, until just tender then transfer asparagus to a bowl of iced water.  Remove from water after a minute and set aside.

Step 6 - Place cream, eggs and 100g Netherby Blue Cheddar in a bowl, season well with salt and pepper, and whisk until combined.

Step 7 - Lay half the asparagus over the base of the pastry case.  Pour cream mixture over then arrange remaining asparagus over the top.  Sprinkle with remaining 50g of grated cheese and place in the oven.  Cook for 40 minutes, until just set.  Serve with a simple green salad on the side.

Recipes - Netherby Chicken

I love creating a recipe around an ingredient and when King Island Dairy offered me a sample of their Netherby Blue Cheddar, my brain went into overdrive.  This was the very first recipe my brain threw at me and it is pretty spectacular, if I do say so myself!  

Ingredients

2  chicken breats (about 200g each)

4 thin slices prosciutto

2 slices King Island Dairy Netherby Blue Cheddar, about 20g each

1/2 cup grated King Island Dairy Netherby Blue Cheddar

1 cup polenta

2 cups water

2 cups chicken stock

3/4 cup cream

30g butter, cubed

1 bunch broccolini 

1 tsp thyme

salt and pepper to season

Step 1 - Preheat oven to 180°C.  

Step 2 - Remove tenderloin from chicken breasts and slice each through the middle, ensuring you do not cut all the way through, then open out the breast.  Place a slice of cheese and two slices prosciutto on one side of each, then pull the other side over the fillings to encase them in the breast. Season lightly with salt and pepper.

Step 3 - Heat a little olive oil and a knob of butter in a frying pan over high heat.  Place both breasts in the pan and cook chicken for about 30 seconds on each side.  Place something heavy, like a cake tin filled with rice, on the chicken breasts and transfer the pan to the oven.  Cook for 10-15 minutes, until the chicken is just cooked through.

Step 4 - While chicken is cooking, bring stock and water to boil in a large heavy bottom saucepan.  Pour the polenta into the liquid in a slow and steady stream, whisking constantly with a balloon whisk.  Turn heat to low and stir, constantly, until polenta is thick and soft, about 8-10 minutes.  Remove from heat, season well with salt, add butter, 1/2 cup cream and grated cheddar and stir until combined. Set aside until required.

Step 5 - Bring a small pot of water to the boil, add broccolini and cook for 1-2 minutes until broccolini is tender, remove from water.

Step 6 - To serve, place a mound of polenta on a serving dish and place a chicken breast on top with some broccolini on the side.  Return the pan that was used to cook the chicken to the stove top over high heat. When hot, add cream and thyme, toss together and spoon over chicken.  

Notes:

This meal is labeled as a quick meal and can be made in under 30 minutes, if you are able to multitask.  It may take a few attempts to get the timing perfect, but the benefit is that you get to eat this delicious meal each time! 

For this meal to qualify as gluten free, ensure you use a gluten free chicken stock.

Recipes - Ricotta

Make you own ricotta cheese at home with two ingredients.  Ricotta is a mild, smooth creamy and versatile cheese that can be used in sweet and savoury dishes.  It is also great on a cheese plate and can be peppered, herbed or dried.  It's super simple to make, but may take a few attempts to perfect as you need to get used to how the cheese reacts to different temperatures during cooking and how it should look at feel at each stage.

Ingredients - yield 400g
1L sea water
2L milk


Basically....

 

  

plus

equals

Step 2

Step 1 - Place sea water in a large saucepan ans bring to the boil. Boil for 2-3 minutes.

Step 2 - Reduce heat to medium and pour in milk. Slowly warm milk and when bubbles start to reach the surface, reduce heat again to medium-low.  

Step 3 - Simmer for about 30-40 minutes, until curds and whey have separated.   


This is not the best photo, but basically, grab your spoon and pull the curds away from the edge of the pot.  If all you can see is a thin pale liquid, the curds have separated and you are ready to move to the next step.

Step 4 - Remove from heat and carefully skim curds off the whey and place in a colander lined with muslin. Slowly pour whey out of pot and scoop out any curds that settled on the bottom and did not brown. 

Step 5 - Evenly distribute curds between cheese hurdles and place over a rack at room temperature for about one hour.
Step 6 - Turn out cheese and refrigerate until required.

Samples

The delightful team from King Island Dairy recently sent me a sample of their new cheese, the Netherby Blue.  It is back by popular demand after two years out of production and after one taste, I began to wonder why they ever stopped making it! 

The cheese itself is a cheddar, bright orange in colour, with a subtle blue vein running through it.  It is moddelled after the traditional English Blue Cheshire and the orange colour is derived from the South American annatto bean. 

The flavour of the Netherby Blue is creamy and rich without being overpowering, with a definite nuttiness and a hint of blue vein that is mellow in flavour and no where near as pungent as a tradition blue vein cheese.  

So, if a 1.4kg wedge of cheese was not enough, the amazing people at King Island Dairy also send a cheese knife, some quince paste, a few crackers and a beautifully bound book about the Island and their Black Label Cheeses all in a gorgeous hessian cooler bag.  

I already have a few recipes rolling around in my head. I'd love to be able to be able to create five stand out recipes with this amazing cheddar!  I am thinking Netherby Blue and Asparagus Tart, Netherby Blue Souffle, Netherby Blue and Prosciutto Stuffed Chicken on Netherby Blue Polenta with a side of.....

Recipes - Vanilla Cream Tart w Candied Blood Orange

This recipe stemmed from me buying blood oranges then trying to decide what to do with them.  Blood oranges lend themselves to well to both sweet and savoury dishes, so really, the options were endless!  I had a lightbulb moment of brilliance and decided to do a simple, sophisticated dessert - Vanilla Cream Tart w Candied Blood Oranges.  

I had some tartlette cases in my pantry that needed to be used.  While I recommend making your own pastry (as much as it is not one of my favourite things to do) these premade cases are good when you have a lot on or need to whip something up quickly.

Ingredients

2 blood oranges, sliced thinly

1 1/2 cups caster sugar

3 cups water

200g mascarpone

100g cream cheese

50g double cream

1/4 cup icing sugar

1 tsp vanilla bean paste

12 tartlette cases

Step 1 - Place sugar and water in a medium, heavy bottomed saucepan and place over a medium-high heat.  Stir until sugar dissolves, then carefully lower orange slices into the liquid.  Simmer rapidly for 20 minutes, turning oranges once. 

Step 2 - Reduce heat to low and slowly simmer for another 20-30 minutes, until oranges are transparent and syrup has reduced.  Remove oranges from syrup and place on a tray lined with baking paper.  Allow to cool.  Reserve syrup.

Step 3 - While oranges are cooking, place mascarpone, cream cheese, double cream, icing sugar and vanilla bean paste into a bowl and mix until combined.  Spoon vanilla cream into tart cases and refrigerate until required.

Step 4 - When oranges are cool enough to handle, drizzle tarts with orange syrup and place a slice of orange on each.