Crème caramel is one of my favorite desserts and using native ingredients there are many varieties which can be made like Rosella Crème caramel or Wattleseed Crème caramel.

Ingredients:

50 ml. lemon aspen syrup
200 grams of white sugar
100 ml. of water
30 ml. extra water for dipping pastry brush
1 litre of milk
100 grams castor sugar
6 large eggs
4-5 drops of gumleaf oil

Procedure:

Preheat the oven to 160°C, while you are preparing the caramel. Grease eight ovenproof dariole moulds or ramekins which hold around half a cup of liquid. Then in a medium sized saucepan combine the lemon aspen, 100g sugar and 100ml of water over a low heat and bring to the boil; it is important not to stir the caramel to prevent it forming crystals. Boil for around 5 to 10 minutes brushing any sugar that lands on the side of the saucepan and crystallizes back down into the mixture with a pastry brush dipped in water. Remove the mixture from the heat when it has changed to a golden caramel or light amber colour; a dark amber colour indicates the caramel is over-cooked and will taste burnt and bitter. Pour a little of the hot caramel into each of the prepared moulds and swirl the mixture around to cover the bottom of each mould. Once the caramel is done, in a medium saucepan warm the milk and briefly remove it from the heat. Then in a large bowl, whisk the eggs and 100g castor sugar together until the sugar has nearly dissolved; add the gumleaf oil and warm milk. Sieve the custard mixture into a jug or pitcher, then skim off any bubbles or froth from the custard; pour evenly into the 8 moulds and place in a baking dish. Pour hot water (not boiling) into the baking dish until the water reaches half way up the sides of the moulds. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes until the custard is set; cool and refrigerate for at least 3 to 4 hours before serving. Makes 8 servings.

This dish is called a fish garden because it contains masses of green fresh vegetables coupled to slices of deep fried fish. This is an excellent healthy dish with fish, fish oils and plenty of crisp vegetables all on a single plate.

Ingredients:

500 grams white fish (hake, cod, haddock etc.)
3 tablespoons fish sauce
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons dried flaked chillies
2 garlic cloves
1 tablespoon chopped red onion
1 teaspoon toasted rice
1 tablespoon chopped spring onion
1 tablespoon chopped coriander leaves
10 grams mint leaves
oil for deep frying

Procedure:

Clean the fish and deep frying until the fish is golden brown. Place into the serving plate.
Mix the flaked chilli with the lemon juice, fish sauce, toasted rice, and chopped spring onions. Spoon this thick ’sauce’ over the fish. Chop the garlic, red onion and mint and pile onto the plate to form the ‘garden’. Serve with chillies, hot fragrant Thai rice, lettuce, cabbage, cucumber, green beans.

This Italian recipe is a traditional dish of the autumnal period in Lombardy; it is made with veal meat in an only piece and red wine. The better piece of veal to use for this recipe is called “Cappello del Prete”, this piece is obtain from the shoulder of the veal, it has a long shape and it is a lean meat ideal for roast, boiled and brasato; therefore the better Italian wine is a red wine of good acidity like the Barbera d’Oltrepò or Dolcetto d’Ovada. It is an easy recipe to prepare but it needs two day of preparation in particular one night during which the veal meat is soaked in the red wine and the following morning for the cooking. The cooking should be slow and on a low flame so the meat absorb slowly the red wine and its taste. This dish can be served alone or better if it is accompanied with Polena and the better one is the Polenta of Bergamo.

Ingredients:

1 kg. of veal meat (a only piece) the better piece is called “ Cappello del prete”
1 carrot chopped
1 celery chopped
1 / 2 onion chopped
oregano
4 – 5 leafs of sage
3 – 4 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
300 – 350 m.l of Red Wine
salt

Procedure:

Place the meat “Cappello del prete” in a large pan with the chopped carrot, celery, onion, oregano and sage, pour on them the red wine and let them soak over night. The following morning remove all the ingredients from the pan and place them in a bowl, in the same pan preheat the extra virgin olive oil place in it the veal meat and let it brown. Then add the wine with the chopped vegetables, sprinkle with salt and let cook for about 2 hours slowly and on a low flame. During the cooking control that the wine doesn’t reduce too much and if necessary add some water in order to obtain at the end of the cooking a sauce. When the meat is ready cut it in slices, then place the sauce with the vegetables in a mixer and mix them in order to obtain a sort of cream. Now prepare the dish, place on it two or three slices of meat and pour on them the cream and some leafs of sage. The brasato can be served alone. or with some polenta, with it the dish becomes complete and delicious. Makes 6 to 8 servings.