WELL RECEIVED

STEVE CUMPER’S BRIOCHE MAKES A THOUGHTFUL GIFT... OR A DELICIOUS BREAKFAST!

Steve Cumper’s Drunken Fruit Brioche makes the perfect festive gift for food lovers.

I DON’T KNOW ABOUT YOU, but I love getting prezzies. When I was a child, my enthusiasm for opening gifts was not limited to those with my name on them, as my parents discovered when I was about six. At a family Christmas celebration, I went for the prezzies under the tree like a greyhound let out of the gate, shredding most of the wrapping paper before my gobsmacked father could intervene. My young self not only had a talent for liberating presents from their wrapping, I also had a formidable ability to find ‘hidden’ gifts. Once upon a time, when Le Coq Sportif was the must-have brand for the male tweeny, I unearthed a tracksuit secreted in the cupboard for my upcoming birthday. I paraded around in the coveted activewear, busting out sporty moves in front of the mirror, until I got bored and stealthily packed it away again. Mum twigged that I’d been up to no good when I opened my present, as I didn’t look suitably surprised. While trying to feign excitement for a gift I’d uncovered was hard, it’s easier than receiving a dud prezzie in the presence of the giver, as you must delve deep into your repertoire of sincere responses to avoid hurting their feelings. I recall one Christmas when my aunt gave me a jumper with a Sesame Street character on the front. It would have been great if I was four, but I was 14 at the time! A gift of homemade food is always appreciated at Christmas, when there are lots of hungry mouths to feed. I’m giving you the recipe for my Drunken Fruit Brioche, which makes a superb present and is sure to elicit a genuinely positive response. You could make one for yourself as well, and enjoy the (drunken) fruits of your labour. Use it to make thick-cut French toast and serve with oranges in syrup, or simply toast it and top with luscious lemon curd. What makes this gift so great is that the recipient gets to eat it and, if you’re lucky, they’ll share it with you, too! Steve Cumper is a chef and funnyman who lives in Tasmania and dreams of one day owning a fleet of holiday vans called Wicked Cumpers.