The Ins & Outs of Winter
By Jackie McMillan
Torn between two conflicting impulses ‘ to nest in this cold weather, and to get out amongst it ‘ this month I give you some sweet options for indoor and outdoor consumption in our fair city. Whatever you choose to do, take the time to think about whether you want to be eating genetically modified food. Many of Australia’s big name chefs have chosen to support a Greenpeace initiated GM-Free Charter. This should give us all a reason to ponder whether or not these ingredients are welcome in our diets.
If there are two things that remind me of winter, it’s hot beverages and warm puddings. On the beverages front, for those keen to brave the cold, I suggest you get up to the newly opened Redberry ‘ a tiny but elegant hole-in-the-wall below the iconic Coca Cola sign in Kings Cross. Stakeholder Nick Palumbo (who also owns nearby Gelato Messina) told me that: ‘Redberry coffee is about quality coffee supported with a small offering of quality pastries and Panini. The coffee has been developed by Paul for over a year and we are quite proud of what he has been able to achieve.‘
Palumbo is speaking about Paul Wilmot, who also makes one of my favourite coffees, Karmee Coffee. The new Redberry blend starts with quality red berries (the beginning of any great coffee), carefully selected from estates in Columbia, Papua New Guinea, Indonesia and Ethiopia. They’re then roasted to perfection, resulting in a full bodied yet subtle coffee blend with hints of chocolate, fruit and hazelnuts.
If you need a snack with your coffee, look no further than the Redberry range of pastries and Panini, most of which are baked fresh daily on the premises. According to Palumbo, they ‘only offer food items if we believe they are of a uniquely high standard. Our Muffin range changes weekly and our Brownies are made exclusively for us using Valrhona chocolate. Our ham and cheese Brioche is to die for!‘ It’s enough to make you hungry!
The Balmain-Rozelle peninsula has also been blessed with a new option for sweet treats, with Zest Patisserie opening on Darling Street last December. A recent visit had me swimming in delectable mini desserts, including Coconut Passionfruit, Lemon Meringue Pie, Apple Crumble and Pecan Pies. They’re only tiny, so you can you can indulge in more than one winter dessert pleasure!
If making warm winter puddings in the confines of your own well-heated home is more your thing, check out Rose Dunnington’s newly released book Sweet Eats: Mmmore Than Just Desserts (R.R.P. $14.99) available from all good bookstores. Dunnington provides beautiful photographs and simple, well-laid out recipes that you could happily entrust to a teenager. For cold weather there are options like a Blackberry Cobbler, an Extra-Nutty Pecan Tart and a Peach Pie cooked in a skillet. What’s even better, when the weather warms up, she’s got some great summery options in there too!
For me, winter is also a time for pondering, and one thing that’s been on my mind lately is genetically modified food. I was very pleased to hear that chef Jared Ingersoll recently hosted an event at his Danks Street Depot Cafe in Waterloo where Australia’s top chefs launched and signed a GM-Free Chefs Charter.
For those not familiar with him, Ingersoll has spent time in London at the restaurant Mezzo; been the head chef at Bayswater Brasserie; and most recently opened up Dank Street Depot. His latest book, The Danks Street Depot cookbook, was released in March 2006. His restaurant has a reputation for using locally grown, seasonal produce; and signing this charter will see that reputation continues ‘ without modification. According to Ingersoll: ‘The decision to invest in the production of GM food crops worries me greatly as a chef and as a parent. I understand the need for the use of technology in agriculture as our farmers are faced with many challenges. However, I have grave concerns for the damage that could be caused if untested and poorly regulated GM food crops enter our food chain. All I ask is that there is a more transparent and independent way of looking into these technologies which takes into consideration people’s health together with the environmental and economic impacts.‘
The charter, a Greenpeace initiative, calls for the thorough labelling of all food products containing GM ingredients and opposes the recent introduction of GM canola in New South Wales and Victoria. Ingersoll was joined by a host of big-name chefs including Aria’s Matt Moran, Rockpool’s Neil Perry and Justin North from Bécasse Restaurant.
If genetically modified food worries you too, go check out the charter online, and reward restaurants who have signed with your custom: http://www.greenpeace.org/australia/issues/GE/solutions/corporate/ge-free/chefs-charter In coming months, restaurants will be displaying GM-Free stickers in their windows, to make it easier to know where to eat to avoid genetically modified ingredients. It’s certainly something I will be asking, alongside my current list of questions, including those about sustainable seafood sources. Trying to be an ethical eater sure is getting complicated, but the benefits will be felt for generations to come!
