Oxford University Press is proud to launch the latest component of The Food Book suite, The Food Book iPad app. The app is the first Australian education food app on the market and its revolutionary features have us abuzz here in the office… and now we are excited to finally share the app with you!
Poaching is a great way to preserve fruits that are in season, and nothing beats a mouth-watering poached pear. Pears have a more buttery and grittier texture than cooked appl
es — you will find a variety in season during winter such as the Packam, Williams and the Bosc pear. This recipe serves four.
- Simply combine in a medium saucepan:
- ¼ cup sugar
- 1 cup water
- 1 cinnamon stick.
Bring to the boil over a medium-high heat and boil for three minutes.
- Reduce the heat and add two peeled, halved and cored pears and simmer for 20–30 minutes or until tender.
- Remove pears from the syrup and chill them in a refrigerator.
Serve with cream and/or ice-cream for a lip-smacking dessert. Very ripe pears will break down quickly when cooked so it is best to use just-ripe pears for this recipe as they will keep their shape.
If you are looking for a more decadent dessert, try the Free-form Pear and Chocolate Tart on p. 423 of The Food Book. Free-form tarts are more rustic than traditional tarts as you make it without a tin. This recipe uses a sweet shortcrust pastry and showcases skills such as kneading, whisking, rubbing in, slicing, rolling out and baking. The end product is always a winner with children and adults alike!
What ideas do you have for pears? We would love to hear about your recipes whether it be a simple salad or something more complex.
Mother’s Day is celebrated on every second Sunday in May in Australia. It is a special day for families to get together to show their love and appreciation for their mums. There are many ways to show this, a crowd pleaser is the luxurious breakfast in bed option — a treat we all know is a sure-fire winner.
The Food Book has lots of ideas for breakfast, from the Simple Fruit Salad (p. 126) — using fruits that are in season — to hearty and nutritious Baked Beans (p.141) and scrumptious, No-fail Pancakes (p. 130 with ideas for variations on p.131).
Eggs are a healthy and savoury option, boil them, fry them, scramble them and poach them (p. 134 -136). Or for those with plenty of time, OR (hint) helpers, try The Big Breakfast (p. 142-143) which includes Poached Eggs plus the following recipes: Hash Browns, Grilled Sausages, Grilled Bacon, Garlic Mushrooms, Grilled Tomatoes and Wilted Spinach that will keep your Mum going until well into the afternoon!
The Food Book app has step-by-step photos for these breakfast recipes – download a copy on your iPad for a sure-fire way to your mum’s heart on Mother’s Day – through her stomach! 
What ways are you going to show your love and appreciation for mum this Mother’s Day? Do you have a special treat you are going to make?
Easter, a festival in the Christian calendar, is almost here and there are lots of great treats to make. Hot Cross Buns are a favourite of many. These buns are traditionally eaten hot or toasted on Good Friday, with the cross standing as a symbol of the crucifixion. There is a great recipe for Hot Cross Buns on p. 408 of The Food Book.
While cooking with yeast can be quite daunting for some, it is not too difficult, and the feasting on home-made Hot Cross Buns makes it all worthwhile! You can easily substitute the currants for dried cranberries – a delicious, tangy alternative. For the non-traditionalists, replace the dried fruits with chopped up chocolate for an extra decadent treat.
Chocolate is also synonymous with Easter. There are lots of chocolate treats that you can make at Easter. What are your favourites? Many people make homemade Easter eggs or you could select any of the scrumptious chocolate recipes from The Food Book. Try the Rum Balls (p. 376), Chocolate Truffles (p. 377) or the Brownies (p. 388) as an easy-to-make and very impressive treat. If you want a super-quick chocolate treat, make the Hot Chocolate drink on p. 457.
For those looking for a delicious seafood option for Good Friday, there are lots of great fish dishes. Scallops cooked on the barbie served with a green salad is a delicious and quick option:
Mix together the following and brush over 12 scallops:
- 30 ml soy sauce
- juice and zest of one lime
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons of finely chopped coriander
- 50 ml olive oil
- one finely chopped red chilli
Cook scallops on barbecue for 1-2 minutes until golden and turn over and cook for another minute. Serve immediately with salad for a mouth-watering treat.
What other seafood ideas do you have for Good Friday? Or do you have other much-loved recipes for Easter?
World Home Economics Day (WHED) is celebrated annually around the world on March 21. It is a day to celebrate the home economics profession and its contribution to individuals, families and communities around the world. This year the theme for WHED was Home economics empowerment: Education for a sustainable lifestyle. The aim of sustainable development “… is to help people to develop the attitudes, skills and knowledge to make informed decisions for the benefit of themselves and others, now and in the future, and to act upon these decisions” (UNESCO – Education for Sustainable Development).
In Ghana last year, WHED was commemorated by a cooking competition among selected senior high schools as well as a four kilometre health walk followed by a health talk on HIV/AIDS.
In Australia, many WHED celebrations were held in conjunction with King and Amy O’Malley Trust presentations to recognise leadership abilities in undergraduate and postgraduate home economics students. At a school level, many teachers had displays acknowledging WHED and promoting home economics education.
How did you and your students celebrate WHED this year? What activities did you organise to mark this special day?
Home Economics Victoria is a partner in the new government initiative involving Jamie Oliver’s Ministry of Food Victoria. Have a look at the announcement from Carol Warren today. Here’s to looking forward to new and exciting initiatives for Home Economics teachers around Victoria!
We are very pleased to tell you about our new project announced yesterday by the Minister for Health, David Davis as part of the Victorian Healthy Eating Enterprise. As you no doubt would have seen in the media yesterday, this new initiative includes Jamie Oliver’s Ministry of Food Victoria.
We are thrilled to be announced as a partner in this exciting new enterprise. Our project is the Healthy eating and food literacy in secondary schools initiative to increase knowledge and skills of young people in the production, growing, buying and preparation of fresh, nutritious and affordable healthy food http://www.health.vic.gov.au/news/jamie-oliver-fights-obesity.htm
Home Economics Victoria will be able to have a number of staff devoted to this project over the next few years to work directly with you in secondary schools.
We know that you are doing a great job in schools and this project acknowledges your commitment to healthy eating and practical cooking skills. Stay tuned for more news over the coming months.
Best wishes.
Carol
CEO of Home Economics Victoria
It’s back to school for many children – one of the challenges is to provide healthy, tasty, easy-to-prepare lunches that are suitable for the warmer weather.
Sandwiches are often a typical choice for school lunches, but this doesn’t mean it has to be a boring choice. There are lots of different types of breads to select from – consider using baguettes, lavash and tortillas (there are a range of different bread options on p. 71 of The Food Book). Fillings for sandwiches are up to your imagination.
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January 26 is Australia Day – a public holiday that commemorates the establishment of the first settlement at Port Jackson in 1788. The settlement was later named Sydney after British Home Secretary, Lord Sydney, who was responsible for the colony. There are no hard and fast rules about how to celebrate Australia Day, but generally it is seen as an opportunity for Australians to come together to celebrate their country and culture, and we typically include food in our celebrations.
Lamb is synonymous with Australia Day –the anticipated spruiking by Sam Kekovich about how we should consume lamb on Australia Day took an unexpected twist this year when he reminded us through song the song I’m A Barbie Girl. Check out the range of lamb recipes mentioned in the September post for meal ideas.
Bananas are definitely back on the shopping list as their prices have finally come down. The high prices were due to the devastation that Cyclone Yasi caused to banana crops in Queensland last year. It has been quite a while since bananas prices were this low, so it’s the perfect time to include them on your menu, not only because bananas are inexpensive at the moment but because they are a versatile ingredient in a range of sweet and savoury dishes, adding richness and texture.
Add some sliced banana to a fresh fruit salad – they offer a distinctive texture when compared to other fruits. Try the Simple Fruit Salad on p. 126 The Food Book or make up your own recipe with your favourite fruits – you can’t go wrong.
Cooking is one of life’s great skills, and now the holidays are here there is no better time to encourage kids to start. Not only will cooking entertain children for ages, you will also get some great foods to taste. Why not try making some of these recipes from The Food Book. With a little bit of encouragement and supervision, your children can make a delightful range of goodies.
Celebrate Victoria’s rich food heritage with 20 days of food and wine at the Melbourne food and wine festival. The program has only recently been released and there are 82 days to go! As most of you would know, it’s well worth booking tickets in advance, as event spots fill up very quickly. This year’s festival sees the launch of ‘Put Victoria On Your Table’—a showcase of the vast variety of Victorian produce available all year round— and an effort to get us eating local , seasonal produce. What goes around, comes around! View the program and further details on the MFW website: www.melbournefoodandwine.com.au
It’s only November and the festive season seems to be happening already. It’s that time of the year when we seem to be out and about socialising. The warmer, longer days tend to get many people eating out at this time of the year or just entertaining friends in their backyards. There are lots of simple to prepare, healthy recipes in The Food Book that you can prepare for these spring festivities. Not only are the following recipes nutrient-dense and low in fat, they are all great for people who are gluten-intolerant. All recipes can be made ahead of time and require minimal assembly time so you can enjoy the party and the food yourself as well.
Try the Minted watermelon with goats cheese and rosewater on p. 160 of the Food Book. Definitely a winning appetiser and one that will certainly impress.
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Have you heard about quinoa (pronounced keen-wa)? It is a small, gluten-free, low-GI grain that can easily replace most cereals, especially rice, making it a perfect grain for coeliacs and diabetics. Quinoa has a fluffy, creamy texture with a slight crunch, and delicate nutty flavour. Quinoa is simple to cook, just like rice: cook one cup of quinoa in two cups of water for ten to twelve minutes. Cooked quinoa looks a bit like couscous in appearance, and it’s great for both savoury and sweet dishes.
This vegetable quinoa salad is a refreshing dish for a warm, balmy night that can be served alone, or with grilled fish or lamb.
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Spring is a great time to start growing veggies – there is nothing more rewarding or tasty than growing something you can eat. As the weather is getting warmer, it means the soil is getting warmer too, making it conducive to growing your own vegies. It is best to plant vegies in a sunny but sheltered section of your garden. If you do not have a spot to use, think about using pots to grow your vegies. Some easy-to-grow vegies include beans and peas. They grow easily from seed and, if picked often, will produce for many weeks. Tomatoes are a bit more challenging to grow so try starting with cherry tomatoes if you are a beginner.
Spring is also the perfect time to grow herbs in your garden. Chives, basil, thyme and mint are ideal to plant in most Australian gardens. Nothing beats freshly picked herbs in your cooking. Some more hints about growing vegies and herbs can be found on pages 42-43 of The Food Book.
Have you seen the 2011 Spring Lamb campaign that encourages us to consume lamb this spring? Lamb definitely tastes great at this time of the year, and so it’s time to fire up the barbie and enjoy some succulent lamb with family and friends as the days begin to get warmer and longer. Lamb on a barbie, whether it is as chops, burgers or kebabs, is the perfect meat this Spring for alfresco dining.
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