“First made popular during America’s colonial era, the shrub cocktail is showing something of a regrowth, thanks to the craft-cocktail movement. Originally invented as a way to enjoy fruit long past its sell-by date, the sweet-and-sour concoction uses ‘shrub syrup’ (made with the base ingredients of sugar, fruit and apple cider- or red wine vinegar) mixed with alcohol of your choice (optional) or water. Says Michael Dietsch in his online article ‘Cocktail 101: How to Make Shrub Syrups’, “hardcore shrubbers make their own vinegar, using fruit juice, sugar, and wild yeasts from the air.’
Nothing beats a soft-poached egg with old-fashioned, homemade hash browns and plenty of crispy bacon. Enjoy as a hearty breakfast or yummy brunch topped with fresh rocket
Print Recipe Sweet chilli crayfish and fresh nectarine salads Serves: 4 Cooking Time: 20 mins Ingredients 4 West Coast crayfish tails, cooked and peeled, shells kept aside for garnish 80ml sweet chilli sauce 2 fresh nectarines 250ml fresh salad leaves 15ml black sesame seeds, toasted Instructions 1 Roughly chop the peeled crayfish tails and combine
TO DRINK: Olives tame tannins in red wine, so Van Loveren Merlot becomes even softer and more succulent when paired with this pie.
The word gravadlax comes from “grav” meaning grave and “lax”, which is salmon. The fish was originally salted, fermented and buried in sand. Today, of course, it tastes…
Ask the butcher for smaller shanks – they tend to be less stringy and require less cooking time. TO DRINK: Boschendal Reserve Shiraz, made to the French style with an emphasis on elegance and spice, would be my desert island wine – if there was meat on the island…
Print Recipe Porcini rice pudding Serves: 4 Cooking Time: 40 mins Ingredients 1,25 litres (5 cups) milk 1 bay leaf sprigs of fresh thyme 125ml (½ cup) dried porcini mushrooms 200g (1 cup) arborio or risotto rice freshly grated nutmeg, to taste freshly ground black pepper, to taste 250ml (1 cup) Parmesan or pecorino, grated
Red onions contain quercetin, which fights infections, and allicin, which helps boost cardiovascular health.
Print Recipe Olive and chevin tartlets Serves: 6 Cooking Time: 30 mins Ingredients 400g puff pastry 2 x 100g logs chevin goat's cheese 80ml (cup) mascarpone 15ml (1 tbsp) fresh thyme leaves 24 kalamata olives, pitted 24 green olives, pitted olive/avocado oil, to drizzle salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste Instructions 1 Preheat
Print Recipe Honeyed macadamia, lemon, spinach and ricotta spaghettini Serves: 4 – 6 Cooking Time: 40 mins Ingredients HONEYED MACADAMIA NUTS 250g macadamia nuts 60ml (¼ cup) runny honey 45ml (3 tbsp) olive or avocado oil + extra, for brushing 400g spaghettini 1 red chilli, finely chopped juice and zest of 1 lemon and 1
TO DRINK: Jordan Chardonnay has enough structure and sophistication to stand up to the lamb and strong flavours.