NEW TRADITIONS
INSPIRED BY CHRISTMASES SPENT AROUND THE WORLD, FOOD WRITER JULIA BUSUTTIL NISHIMURA CREATES NEW MEMORIES FOR HER YOUNG FAMILY.
Writer Julia Busuttil Nishimura’s festive menu.
RECIPES JULIA BUSUTTIL NISHIMURA PHOTOGRAPHY LISA COHEN STYLING LEE BLAYLOCK
A FOUR-YEAR-OLD’S CHRISTMAS
is always full of excitement and wonder but Haruki Busuttil Nishimura has more than just gifts to look forward to this year. He is also eagerly awaiting the arrival of a sibling, who will hopefully make an appearance on time, not in the middle of Christmas dinner! “Baby number two is due December 30,” Haruki’s mother, food writer and cookbook author Julia, says. “But if baby comes early, it will be a beautiful Christmas gift.”
In fact, even though Nori, her Japanese husband, is a talented chef, it seems only contractions will stop Julia from preparing this year’s Christmas feast. “Nori is an amazing cook but I generally like to be the one in charge at Christmas,” she says. “Since Nori never really grew up celebrating Christmas, it doesn’t hold strong memories or have the same connotations as it does for me. He is definitely there by my side taking instructions though. This year may be a little different so we will just have to see how the days unfold I think!”
The family will share their Christmas with Julia’s mother and it will include her family’s traditional fish dinner on Christmas Eve. Julia, Nori and Haruki have also introduced their own festive traditions, including nibbling warm cinnamon buns and sipping hot chocolate on Christmas morning. It’s a European-style twist reminiscent of Christmases Julia has spent in Italy, Malta and France, where the temperature gauge plummets rather than rises.
“One of my favourite Christmas memories was while I was working as a nanny in Italy,” she says. “I lived in the Tuscan countryside and it was pure magic. We spent the days beforehand travelling to different farms to collect produce and the whole morning preparing fresh pasta, roast meats and dessert, which was my job. I made the biggest pavlova topped with kiwi, lychees and passionfruit. It felt so celebratory and special.”
A new baby won’t be the only reason for Julia to celebrate next year. Her other labour of love — a second cookbook — will also be released in early 2020, which will mean juggling a book tour with a newborn. “I also have plans for us to spend a few weeks in Italy later in the year, just to stay put in a small town and cook, swim and eat.” Visit julia-ostro.com >
PRAWN, AVOCADO AND WATERCRESS SALAD
Serves 6–8
A refreshing salad — incredibly simple to make and rather impressive. I love to serve this salad in individual bowls, but together on a large platter is lovely too.
1 bunch watercress
2 avocados, halved, stone and skin
removed, quartered
2 pink grapefruit, peeled, segmented,
centre reserved for dressing 24 cooked prawns, peeled, tails intact GRAPEFRUIT DRESSING
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
¼ cup grapefruit juice (squeezed from
reserved grapefruit centre) sea salt
“I love the feeling of togetherness that Christmas brings — everything always feels so complete and joyful.”
In individual bowls or plates, arrange equal amounts of watercress, avocado, grapefruit segments and prawns.
To make grapefruit dressing, whisk together oil, mustard and juice in a small bowl. Season with sea salt and adjust dressing as needed.
Pour dressing over salad and serve immediately. >
CHERRY TOMATO AND MARJORAM GALETTE
Serves 6–8
A perfect open tart to celebrate the bounty of tomatoes at Christmas time. The pastry can be made up to three days in advance, making for a no-fuss addition to the table. Buy an assortment of cherry tomatoes in different shapes and colours for variety and interest.
500g cherry tomatoes, halved sea salt
2 teaspoons marjoram leaves, plus
extra to serve
1 garlic clove, thinly sliced 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil 1 egg, lightly beaten, for glazing grated ricotta salata*, to serve
FLAKY PASTRY
250g plain flour, plus extra for dusting pinch sea salt
125g cold unsalted butter, cubed 1 tablespoon white vinegar
¼–½ cup iced water
To make flaky pastry, tip flour onto a clean work surface and sprinkle with salt. Add butter and toss until all pieces are coated in flour mixture. Using your fingers, rub butter into flour until mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs (try to leave some larger pieces, as this will create a flaky crust during baking). Sprinkle mixture with vinegar, then pour over a little iced water at a time (you may not need it all and it is easier to add more as you go than have too much).
Work mixture with your hands until it comes together into a dough and there are no dry crumbs left. Shape into a flat disc. Cover with plastic wrap and place in refrigerator for 30 minutes to chill.
Meanwhile, combine tomatoes in a bowl with a generous pinch of sea salt and gently toss to combine. Set aside for 20 minutes to draw out some moisture. Drain away any liquid that has seeped out of tomatoes. Transfer tomatoes to a clean bowl and add marjoram, garlic and oil. Gently toss to combine.
Preheat oven to 200°C. Line a 20cm round baking tray with baking paper. Remove dough from fridge 5 minutes before you are ready to use it (this will make it easier to roll). On a lightly floured work surface, roll out dough into a 24cm circle about 2.5mm thick. Place on prepared tray, allowing it to hang 4–5cm over edge. Arrange tomato mixture in centre of dough, leaving a 5cm border. Season with another pinch of sea salt. Fold over edges of pastry, pinching creases as you go. Brush edge with egg and bake for 45–50 minutes or until pastry is golden and tomatoes are blistered and bubbling. Cool for 10 minutes. Top with ricotta salata and extra marjoram to serve.
*An aged semi-hard cheese available at delicatessens and Italian grocers. Substitute parmesan or pecorino. >
“Haruki loves helping in the kitchen and since he was little we have decorated the tree with gingerbread biscuits.”
FENNEL AND SAGE ROAST PORK WITH PARSLEY SAUCE
Serves 6–8
Roast pork with crackling never goes off my Christmas menu. It’s a real crowd pleaser and makes for great Boxing Day sandwiches, too. The parsley sauce is punchy and vinegary, and cuts through the richness of the pork perfectly. Have your butcher score and truss the rack.
2–2.5kg pork rack, skin scored,
trussed small handful fresh sage leaves,
finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 tablespoon fennel seeds, roughly ground 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil sea salt
PARSLEY SAUCE
1 bunch fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 garlic clove, roughly chopped
1 lemon, zested
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil pinch of sea salt
Wipe skin and flesh of pork with paper towel. Place pork, skin-side down, on a rack placed over a large roasting pan. Mix sage, garlic, fennel seed, olive oil and a generous pinch of sea salt in a small bowl. Pour mixture over pork flesh and rub all over (avoiding skin). Place, uncovered, in refrigerator overnight to dry out.
Preheat oven to 180°C. Turn pork over so skin side is facing up. Rub a generous pinch of sea salt into rind and set pork aside at room temperature for 30 minutes.
Fill roasting pan with enough water to cover base. Roast pork for 2–2½ hours or until pork is tender and skin has crackled. If skin has not crackled in last 30 minutes of cooking, increase oven to 220°C and cook until skin is crunchy and blistered. Set aside to rest for 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, to make parsley sauce, pulse parsley, garlic and lemon zest in a food processor until finely chopped. Pour in vinegar and olive oil with a generous pinch of sea salt and process until sauce is well combined (it should be a nice spoonable consistency, add more olive oil and vinegar if needed). Season to taste.
Remove string to slice pork. Serve with parsley sauce.
PEACH AND MINT SALAD
Serves 6 (See photograph, page 86)
Peaches are a wonderful companion to roast pork and this salad is bursting with the vibrancy and flavours of summer. Buy peaches that are fragrant and ripe but not too soft. This salad is great with nectarines, too.
4 yellow peaches (approximately 700g),
halved, stones removed
½ red onion, finely sliced
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar DRESSING
1 teaspoon brown sugar
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil small handful fresh mint, finely chopped,
plus extra leaves to garnish pinch of sea salt
“Even though our lunch is super casual I still put a lot of effort and consideration into the day.”
Cut each peach half into quarters and arrange on a serving plate.
Place onion in a small bowl and cover with vinegar. Using your fingers, rub vinegar into onion, then set aside for 5 minutes. Squeeze excess vinegar from onion back into bowl and reserve for dressing. Scatter onion over peaches.
To make dressing, whisk together brown sugar, olive oil and chopped mint in a small bowl. Add reserved leftover vinegar from soaking onions and whisk to combine. Season with sea salt to taste.
Pour dressing over peaches and onion and top with extra mint leaves to serve. >
PANDORO, RASPBERRY AND RICOTTA TRIFLE
Serves 6–8
Pandoro is a wonderful Italian sweet bread, similar to brioche, that is available only at Christmas time. Here it becomes the base for a Sicilian-inspired trifle spiked with Marsala, chocolate and orange.
400g pandoro or sponge cake, roughly torn 60g unsalted butter, melted
60g raw sugar
1⁄3 cup Marsala
60g 70% cocoa chocolate, finely grated 40g flaked almonds, toasted,
plus extra to serve
150g cherries, halved, pitted, to serve
RASPBERRY JAM
350g fresh or frozen raspberries 100g caster sugar
½ orange, juiced
RICOTTA CREAM
450g firm ricotta
100g caster sugar
2 tablespoons Marsala
1 orange, zested
1 vanilla pod, split lengthways, seeds
scraped or 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste 2 cups pure cream
Preheat oven to 180°C. Line a baking tray with baking paper.
Place pandoro in a large bowl. Pour over melted butter and scatter with sugar. Using your hands, toss until all pieces are coated. Bake for 10 minutes or until lightly toasted. Set aside to cool. Drizzle with Marsala and set aside.
To make jam, combine berries, sugar and juice in a small saucepan. Cook, stirring, over a medium heat for 8–10 minutes or until thickened. Transfer to a small bowl and allow to cool completely.
To make ricotta cream, combine ricotta, sugar, Marsala, orange zest and vanilla seeds or paste in a large bowl. Mix with a wooden spoon until well combined and smooth. In a separate bowl, whip cream to soft peaks, then gently fold into ricotta mixture.
Place enough ricotta cream into a trifle dish to just cover base. Top with one-third of pandoro mixture, followed by one-quarter of remaining ricotta cream, then one-third each of grated chocolate, jam and almonds. Repeat in two more layers, finishing with remaining ricotta cream. Top with cherries and extra toasted almonds. Place in refrigerator for at least 1 hour to allow flavours to meld. Serve.
Pandoro, ricotta and a generous splash of Marsala add an Italian twist to an ever-popular Christmas dessert.