Master seasonal fruit
ADD A HEALTHY TOUCH TO SWEET OR SAVOURY
Hunkering down with good food through the cooler months just got a little sweeter for MasterChef winner Callum Hann, who recently welcomed a new baby to the family with wife Crystal Jagger.
“It’s a wonderful excuse to enjoy some days at home with the four of us,” says the co-owner of new Adelaide restaurant Eleven, Sprout cooking school and Barossa cellar door noshery Lou’s Place.
“Our kitchen is very much the centre of our home and Elle already helps me cook,” adds Hann, referring to the couple’s daughter, aged two.
It may be a while before baby Henry gets to enjoy any of his dad’s culinary creations, but if Hann’s passion for seasonal fare is anything to go by, his first taste of solids is bound to be something fresh and flavour-packed. As ambassador for the Pick a Local, Pick SA campaign, Hann sources much of his produce from the Adelaide Hills, and believes humble apples and pears warrant just as much excitement as their summer stone fruit counterparts.
“Whether you are throwing an apple in your lunch box, or cooking up dessert for the family, we are spoiled with choice,” he says. “Beurre Bosce and Red Sensation Pears are perfect for poaching, Lenswood Missile apples are perfectly sized mini apples for kids and the sour Red Love apple is a great addition to cheese platters.”
Cool season fruits needn’t be restricted to the dessert menu, adds Hann, who loves to smash persimmon on toast for breakfast with feta, and adds apples to the tray when roasting pork or chicken. A hit of fruit is a secret weapon for winning over fussy eaters at dinnertime. “Kids tend to have a preference for sweeter and familiar flavours, so if fruit in your savoury dish makes them more likely to try it, it’s well worthwhile,” he says. “I include a fruit in almost every salad I make.”
Recipes by Callum Hann, ambassador for Pick A Local, Pick SA