Vic Cherikoff, Author at Dining Down Under®

Vic Cherikoff

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Ricotta figs and macadamia nuts

Serves: 4

Difficulty: Ricotta figs and macadamia nuts title=

Ingredients

4 large or 8 small figs
1 tablespoon ricotta cheese per fig
¼ ~ ½ teaspoon Lemon Myrtle
½ cup grape nectar
macadamia nut pieces (toasted) for garnish

Method and styling
Trim the fat end of each fig so that the fruit stands up-right. Cut the thin end with a cross to open up the figs but still keeping them in one piece. Mix the Oz Lemon into the ricotta, preferably at least 2 hours before serving as this allows the flavours to really penetrate the cheese. Place a tablespoonful of the prepared cheese in each cross cut fig. Grill until the figs are warm and
the cheese just bubbles. Plate up the figs, drizzle with the grape nectar and garnish with the toasted macadamia nut pieces. Serve immediately with a strong coffee for that hint of bitterness to add to the complexity of taste.

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Dining Downunder Cookbook

This Australian recipe of Ricotta figs and macadamia nuts are included in the Dining Downunder Cookbook which can be purchased online at the Dining Downunder Online Shop. Also available online is a wide range of native Australian herbs and spices, sauces, syrups, infused oils and bush tucker ingredients such as wattleseed and paperbark rolls.

Episode: Margaret River and restaurant Vat 107

Recipe By: Vic Cherikoff

This is a really simple but delicious dessert which can be substituted any number of ways. Use different fruits such as mango, apricots, peaches or stewed pears. Substitute the various herbs with Australian or varietal mints or peppermint, try basil or chervil, licorice or aniseed and mix them into a range of alternative cheeses such as quark or cottage cheese, cream cheeses such as Philadelphia, Neufchatel, mascarpone or even straight sour cream or yoghurt. Try a range of pure honeys, maple syrup, palm sugar syrup, brandy butter, golden syrup or fruit syrups (rose hip, pomegranate etc). And finally, introduce different nuts such as pecans, pistachio, Brazil nuts, pine nuts etc.

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Rainforest lime and macadamia nut pudding

Serves: 4

Difficulty:

Ingredients

50g chopped macadamia nuts
135g butter
75g soft brown sugar
2 tablespoons Buderim ginger, lemon and lime marmalade
½ teaspoon Lemon Myrtle
150g rainforest limes, sliced whole
120g self-raising flour
½ teaspoon Outback salt
120g castor sugar
2 eggs, beaten

Method

1. Dry roast the chopped nuts until the fines just begin to darken
2. melt 15g butter in a pan, add the brown sugar and marmalade, stir well to dissolve the sugar; remove from heat and sprinkle in the Lemon Myrtle
3. butter a deep ovenproof dish and pour in the mixture; place the slices of limes over this mixture
4. in a bowl, sieve the flour and salt
5. in another bowl, beat the castor sugar with the remaining butter, add the eggs and flour gradually, stirring well
6. pour this mix carefully over the fruit and bake at 180°C for 35 minutes

Styling

When cooked, turn out on a dish so that the limes are on top or serve from the bowl. The mix will be pudding soft in the centre and really good to eat with ice cream or cream.

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Dining Downunder Cookbook

This Australian recipe of Rainforest lime and macadamia nut pudding is included in the Dining Downunder Cookbook which can be purchased online at the Dining Downunder Online Shop. Also available online is a wide range of native Australian herbs and spices, sauces, syrups, infused oils and bush tucker ingredients such as wattleseed and paperbark rolls.

Episode: Lillipilli in t he Rocks

Recipe By: Benjamin Christie

Slightly spicy, sweet and sour is how I describe this Rainforest lime dessert pudding with macadamia nuts. The spicy sweet flavours come from the ginger marmalade and the sourness is from the wild limes. If you can’t get hold of Australian native limes, you can substitute them with regular limes. Make sure to remove the rind and the seeds or it’ll be too bitter to eat. This is not necessary if you are using the fully edible rainforest limes.

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Rainforest lime and macadamia nut pudding

Polenta and Lemon Aspen cake with sugar bag and Wild Rosella Cream

Serves: 4

Difficulty:

Ingredients

250g polenta
800ml of water
150ml Lemon Aspen Syrup
2 fresh figs
20g Wild Rosella Confit
50g castor sugar
30ml sugarbag
100ml fresh cream
40g Riberry Confit

Method

1. In a pot, combine the water, lemon aspen syrup and polenta; bring to the boil, stirring constantly
2. the polenta will take 5 -7 minutes to cook through, once at a boil
3. spoon out the polenta from the pot and place into a flat tray and allow to cool
4. once cool, cut into triangle or hexagon shapes, with three pieces per serve
5. in a bowl, briskly whip the fresh cream to stiff peaks and flavour with the sugarbag; use maple syrup as a substitute; set aside
6. slice the figs into thin slices
7. in another pot, heat castor sugar until dissolved; it may require a little water to soften the mix

Styling

Finally assemble the dish, by placing a piece of the polenta on the plate. Then add a little cream and fig slice and repeat, building up the dish. Garnish with cream, riberries and the sugared rosella.

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Dining Downunder Cookbook

This Australian recipe of Polenta and Lemon Aspen cake with sugar bag and Wild Rosella Cream is included in the Dining Downunder Cookbook which can be purchased online at the Dining Downunder Online Shop. Also available online is a wide range of native Australian herbs and spices, sauces, syrups, infused oils and bush tucker ingredients such as wattleseed and paperbark rolls.

Episode: Crowne Plaza Newcastle

Recipe By: Vic Cherikoff

We seem to forget that polenta or corn was once only food for native American Indians and is now a world food crop. Contrast this to Australia where the only global food species native to this country is the macadamia nut. But times they are a-changing.

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Coconut and Lemon Myrtle brulée

Australia Day on Sydney Harbour

For Australia Day, our chefs visit the Sydney Fish Markets, then board a cruiser for a seafood lunch on Sydney Harbour. Our skipper finds a sheltered cove and we cook on the BBQ off the back of the boat. It’s a great way to enjoy this amazing part of Sydney on an Australia Day long weekend or anytime.

Sydney Harbour, otherwise known as Port Jackson is the natural waterway of our busiest city and is considered one of the most beautiful harbours in the world. On final approach to a landing at Sydney airport the harbour is a sight to behold and you’ll often hear the sighs of pleasure from returning Sydneysiders aboard the aeroplane.

The harbour’s discovery by Europeans is credited to James Cook in 1770, who named the harbour after Sir George Jackson, Judge Advocate of the Fleet at the time. However, the harbour had been home to two Aboriginal tribes, one on each side of the waterway, for at least 26,000 years. Captain Arthur Phillip established the first colony of the invading Europeans in Australia at Sydney Cove inside Port Jackson in 1788. That colony grew to become the township and then the city of Sydney.

Sydney Harbour these days is also a very productive waterway in terms of a fishery, as a recreational resource and a working river system and the great views often enhance the food in the many restaurants around its foreshores.

Web links

www.sydneyfishmarket.com.au

Address

Sydney Fish Market
Bank Street
Pyrmont, NSW, 2009
Australia

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Chocolate mousse tart with gumleaf cream and wild rosella flowers

Serves: 4

Difficulty:

Ingredients

200g plain flour
35g castor sugar
50g butter, softened
2 eggs
2 gelatine leaves
125g chocolate chips
200ml cream
3 drops gumleaf oil
35g castor sugar
10g Rosella Confit

Method

1. In a food processor using a pulse action, combine the plain flour, 35g of castor sugar and the softened butter
2. to this mix, add one egg being careful not to over beat; if the pastry is overworked it becomes tough
3. once mixed, wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour; this recipe can be doubled easily and the excess well wrapped in plastic wrap and frozen for other recipes
4. on a well floured bench, quickly roll out the pastry to about 5mm thickness and shape the pastry to fit the desired flat tray, in this case, 4×5cm flan tins
5. press the pastry up the sides of the tin; rest the tins in the fridge for a further 20 minutes
6. place a piece of greaseproof paper into the tin and fill with rice; this is known as blind baking and ensures the pastry does not slide down or form bubbles on the base; bake at 160°C for 15 minutes
7. when the cases are cool, place 125ml of cream into a small pot and bring to the boil, then remove from the heat
8. soak the gelatine leaves in cold water
9. place chocolate chips and the remaining egg into a blender and process for 30 seconds
10. while the machine is running, slowly pour the heated cream into the chocolate mixture blend until well mixed and the chocolate chips are melted, then add the squeezed gelatine
11. pour the mix into cool tart cases and refrigerate until set
12. with the remaining 75ml cream, briskly whisk together with 15g sugar and gum leaf oil; taste the cream after 2 drops of gumleaf oil adding more if necessary

Serve garnished with a dollop of sweetened gumleaf cream and Rosella Confit and syrup.

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Dining Downunder Cookbook

This Australian recipe of Chocolate mousse tart with gumleaf cream and wild rosella flowers is included in the Dining Downunder Cookbook which can be purchased online at the Dining Downunder Online Shop. Also available online is a wide range of native Australian herbs and spices, sauces, syrups, infused oils and bush tucker ingredients such as wattleseed and paperbark rolls.

Episode: Alberts Lakeside Restaurant Norwest Sydney

Recipe By: Vic Cherikoff

Chocolate really suits some specific Australian flavours. If we think of semi-sweet, dark, rich chocolate, then Australian peppermint, gumleaf oil and aniseed myrtle complement well. Quandong, Kakadu plum, Illawarra plum, wild rosella but particularly Wattleseed really go well with white chocolate. Then for the middle of the road; milk chocolate, I’d suggest glace riberries, Oz Lemon, some of the spicy flavours and paperbark smoke flavours. Try some of these in this mousse recipe and see what your tastebuds tell you.

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Boomerang trifle with lemon ironwood syrup, wild fruit jelly and Fruit Spice

Serves: 4

Difficulty:

Ingredients

Madeira or butter cake
100ml lemon ironwood syrup or use maple syrup and Lemon Myrtle
red wine jelly crystals
a selection of red wild fruits eg Riberry Confit or Wild Rosella
sugar as required
fresh blueberries, raspberries or whatever you can find easily
100ml thickened cream, whipped to firm peaks
¼ teaspoon Fruit Spice
lemon verbena leaves or mint for garnish

Method

1. Cut the boomerang shape from an appropriately sized piece of the cake you are using. Soak it in the syrup.
2. If you can’t find lemon ironwood syrup, make this substitute: Warm 100ml of maple syrup to around 44°C (that’s about as hot as you can stand if you dip your finger in but be careful not
to cook it – your finger that is). Add ¼ teaspoon of Lemon Myrtle and leave to cool before soaking the cake.
3. Prepare the jelly according to the instructions on the pack, pour into an ice cube tray and leave to set;
4. Once ready to use, carefully remove the jelly from the tray by running a knife around the edges and cut the cubes into 4 smaller cubes.
5. In a small saucepan, add the fruits and just cover with water. Add about the same amount of sugar as for the weight of fruits and heat to dissolve the sugar and cook the fruits which
should stay quite firm because of the sugar.

Styling

Place the syrup soaked boomerang on a plate. Pile on the jelly cubes and spoon on the fruit compote and the fresh berries. Drizzle the cake with any left-over lemon ironwood syrup and
place your dollop of Fruit Spice cream. Finally garnish with the leaves and serve immediately.

Notes

This takes some forward planning with the jelly and fruit compote having to be made the day before. In fact, the cake is better if it’s not just baked but a few days old and the cream will get
stronger in taste overnight in the frig as well.

Boomerang trifle with lemon ironwood syrup, wild fruit jelly and Fruit Spice Email this recipe to a friend

Dining Downunder Cookbook

This Australian recipe of Boomerang trifle with lemon ironwood syrup, wild fruit jelly and Fruit Spice are included in the Dining Downunder Cookbook which can be purchased online at the Dining Downunder Online Shop. Also available online is a wide range of native Australian herbs and spices, sauces, syrups, infused oils and bush tucker ingredients such as wattleseedand paperbark rolls.

Episode: Banjo Patterson’s Restaurant on the Parramatta River

Recipe By: Vic Cherikoff

This dessert takes some forward planning with the jelly and fruit compote having to be made the day before. In fact, the cake is better if it’s not just baked but a few days old and the cream will get stronger in taste overnight in the fridge as well. This dish also lends itself to a whole lot of improvisation; from sherry, brandy or ice wine for soaking the cake to wattleseed cream, gumleaf custard or Lemon Myrtle ice cream.

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Baked Illawarra plum cheesecake

Serves: 6

Difficulty:

185g sweet biscuits
100g butter
100g Illawarra Plums Sauce
1 tablespoon lemon juice
500g cream cheese
125g castor sugar
3 eggs
100g flour
125ml low fat cream

Method

1. In a food processor pulse the sweet biscuits to crumbs; add melted butter to form the crumb crust
2. in individual ceramic dishes, form the base and edges and set in the fridge for an hour
3. Combine Illawarra plums and lemon juice; and set aside
4. combine the cream cheese and sugar together in the blender, until light and fluffy
5. add the eggs to the mixture, one at a time then add in the flour and cream
6. spoon in Illawarra plum sauce and transfer to the prepared crumb cases
7. bake in at 160°C for 60-70 minutes
8. remove and allow to cool; refrigerate when cool

Styling

Serve with rich double cream and fresh fruit garnish (for visuals more than taste).

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Dining Downunder Cookbook

This Australian recipe of Baked Illawarra plum cheesecake is included in the Dining Downunder Cookbook which can be purchased online at the Dining Downunder Online Shop. Also available online is a wide range of native Australian herbs and spices, sauces, syrups, infused oils and bush tucker ingredients such as wattleseed and paperbark rolls.

Episode: Buderim Ginger and Bistro C in Noosa on the Sunshine Coast

Recipe By: Vic Cherikoff

Another of my breakfast special although I use yoghurt or a light sour cream instead of cream or ice cream as for a dessert and might include a serve of pancakes made up to the same size as the pineapple rings.

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Alpine peppered pineapple with wild fruit yoghurt

Serves: 4

Difficulty:

Ingredients

8 pineapple slices
butter for frying
1 teaspoon Alpine Pepper
¼ jar Buderim ginger, lemon and lime marmalade
2 cups Greek style yoghurt
3 teaspoons Wild Rosella Confit
¼ teaspoon Fruit Spice
tuile, ginger snap, crostolli or other biscuit or wafer for a crispy garnish
sprig of mint, native or otherwise

Method

In a pan, melt the butter and begin to sauté the pineapple slices
season generously with Alpine pepper melt in the marmalade to finish meanwhile; mix the rosella extract and Fruit spice into the yoghurt; sweeten it if you wish with some honey or maple syrup

Styling

Use the picture as a guide or exercise your own creativity giving the dish some height and focus. You could also add toasted nuts or some of Dick Smith Foods’ Bushfood breakfast – just for that all important textural crunch.

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Dining Downunder Cookbook

This Australian recipe of Alpine peppered pineapple with wild fruit yoghurt is included in the Dining Downunder Cookbook which can be purchased online at the Dining Downunder Online Shop. Also available online is a wide range of native Australian herbs and spices, sauces, syrups, infused oils and bush tucker ingredients such as wattleseed and paperbark rolls.

Episode: The Three Sisters and the Post Office Restaurant in Leura

Recipe By: Mark McCluskey

This is an easy dish with very complex flavour from the herb pasta, the seasoned meat, the wild earthy mushrooms and the aromatic scented jus which you really only taste half way through the dish if it’s done right.

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Wine drenched lamb with Alpine Pepper mash

Serves: 4

Difficulty:

Ingredients

180g lamb loin
1 cup red wine
80g potatoes
80ml lamb stock
50g green beans
50g asparagus
10g Rainforest Rub
2g Outback Salt
5g Alpine Pepper
20g butter
50ml cream
5ml vegetable oil

Method

1. Marinate the lamb in a small bowl with the wine for about 5-6 hours or overnight in the fridge
2. peel and roughly chop the potatoes and place in a pot; cover generously with cold water and bring to the boil; simmer for 35 minutes or until soft
3. remove the lamb from the red wine and on a hot BBQ or grill, seal and brown the meat allover; finish in the oven at 180°C for 12 minutes; rest the meat for 10 minutes
4. combine the remaining red wine marinade with the lamb jus and reduce to a thick sauce; be sure to strain the jus before serving
5. strain the potatoes and mash together with butter and cream, season with salt and Alpine Pepper
6. slice the asparagus and green beans
7. heat a large frying pan or wok with a little vegetable oil, sauté the green beans and asparagus and finish with Rainforest Rub

Styling

Slice the lamb and serve on the potato mash with the greens to the side and the plate drizzled with the lamb jus.

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Dining Downunder Cookbook
This Australian recipe of Ricotta figs and macadamia nuts is included in the Dining Downunder Cookbook which can be purchased online at the Dining Downunder Online Shop. Also available online is a wide range of native Australian herbs and spices, sauces, syrups, infused oils and bush tucker ingredients such as wattleseed and paperbark rolls.

Episode: Feast Restaurant on Avoca Beach

Recipe By: Benjamin Christie

I love tender lamb with a good drop of red, so here I would recommend using a light red wine, as marinating it in a strong full bodied merlot or cabernet sauvignon will make it difficult to pair with a table wine to go with the meal. The strong peppery notes of the Alpine Pepper creates a unique flavour with plenty of punch

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Tasmanian salmon with soy Alpine Pepper dressing

Serves: 4

Difficulty: Tasmanian salmon with soy Alpine Pepper dressing title=

Ingredients

For the Tasmanian Salmon

4 whole baby Tasmanian salmon, cleaned
1 tablespoon Buderim minced ginger
1 bunch of shallots
4 serves (1 punnet) shiitake mushrooms
4 serves snow peas
2 cups bean sprouts
1 teaspoon rainforest rub
4 tablespoons Buderim pickled ginger
lemon myrtle oil

Soy pepper dressing

100ml low salt soy sauce
80ml mirin
5ml fish sauce
1 tablespoon Buderim minced ginger
2 teaspoons Alpine Pepper
pinch Fruit Spice

Method

For the Tasmanian Salmon

1. stuff each salmon with the shallots and ginger, preheat oven to 160°C
2. warm a fish pan and rub the salmon with a little oil
3. when the pan is hot seal the salmon on both sides
4. place in the oven for eight minutes
5. remove the fish; test for doneness and brush the top with lemon myrtle oil
6. slice the shiitake mushrooms and de-string the snow peas
7. warm a wok or large pan and stir-fry the three vegetables
8. season with the rainforest rub

For the Soy Alpine Pepper dressing

Warm the mirin in a small saucepan and squeeze in the juice from the ginger. You need about 5ml of juice all up for flavour. Add the Alpine pepper and Fruit spice and bring to a gentle simmer. Remove from heat; add fish sauce and soy and it’s done.

Styling

Place the vegetables in the centre of a large plate and lay the Tasmanian Salmon on top. Drizzle plenty of dressing around the plate and serve extra in side dishes.

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Dining Downunder Cookbook
This Australian recipe of Tasmanian salmon with soy Alpine Pepper dressing is included in the Dining Downunder Cookbook which can be purchased online at the Dining Downunder Online Shop. Also available online is a wide range of native Australian herbs and spices, sauces, syrups, infused oils and bush tucker ingredients such as wattleseed and paperbark rolls.

Episode: Buderim Ginger and Bistro C in Noosa on the Sunshine Coast

Recipe By: Mark McCluskey

You can use fillets with the skin on for this if you don’t like staring your meal in the eye. You could experiment with the dressing, as there are plenty of possibilities using Australian herbs or seasonings e.g. Oz Lemon, which will add citrus notes to go with the ginger.

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