1 Medium eggplant, cut into chunks
50g Walnuts, roasted lightly
3 Cloves garlic, crushed
18 Large fresh basil leaves, coarsely chopped
3 Tbs extra virgin olive oil (plus 2 Tbs)
half cup grated tasty cheese (Parmesan)
Pepper and Salt, to taste

Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F)

Spread the walnuts on a baking sheet and toast until fragrant and lightly browned, about 10 minutes.
Allow to cool and then chop coarsely.
Place the chopped eggplant and garlic in a baking dish.
Drizzle 3 tablespoons of olive oil over the eggplant and place the dish in the oven to bake for 20 minutes.
Remove from the oven and turn them all over and back in for 10 minutes until it’s all golden.

Add the roasted eggplants with the walnuts, basil and cheese into the bowl of your mixer and process until well blended and totally pureed.
When serving the pesto in a bowl, sprinkle a bit of extra olive oil and a couple of walnuts on top.

For a more sophisticated palate try a strong Provolone cheese instead of Parmesan.
Great way to use up leftover eggplant, especially after a barbecue.
Walnuts go well with eggplant, but any other toasted nut will do well.
Instead of using roasted garlic, process it fresh.
If you want a less calorific pesto, then use a light extra virgin olive oil.

Try a generous amount of this pesto on a pasta with fresh basil sprinkled on top.
Use it as a filling for lasagna, canellonis or to stuff pasta shells.
Try it as a dip or as a spread for bruschetta or eat it with fresh bread; it’s heavenly!

Meat Sauce (Bolognese made with pork or lamb)

If you would like to join a group (or have a group of 4-6) to make it, please call  0407 687 971 to lock in a date!

These are just some of the questions I get asked about this amazing tradition:

Is tomato puree the same as Passata?

The tomato sauce, otherwise known as puree, is now more commonly known as passata.  It is tomatoes cut up, boiled briefly, squashed through a machine, put into jars/bottles with fresh basil, capped and boiled for about an hour. The sauce is then stored in a pantry or cellar and used as required.

Who makes Passata?

People who make passata love the flavours and taste of their own home cooking.  Passata has been made at home for generations by Europeans, especially Italians who brought these traditions to Australia during the fifties.

Filling a jar with freshly made tomato sauce

Many people who plant tomatoes for the summer make jars of passata from their own home grown produce.

Why make hundreds of jars of Passata?

It’s good to make lots of jars of passata to store in the pantry for the year ahead.

Old beer bottles full of tomato sauce

We used to recycle empty beer bottles.  They were dark and easy to re-cap with new lids and this is the way my mum worked it out:

Once a week (therefore 52 bottles) we would have pasta with ragú, which is made of young lamb, goat or pieces of osso buco which are quickly browned and then the passata is poured on top to simmer for about 2 hours for a delicious, rich pasta sauce.

Every now and then (Italian for once a week – allow 50 bottles) a bottle of passata was stirred into vegetables or with chick peas or lentils.  This makes a lighter sauce and can be used with small shaped pasta or rice.

Every couple of weeks (allow 30 bottles) we would make something different eg pasta al forno or lasagne and we loved to make our own baked beans.  With pieces of our own home made proscuitto or salami, some soaked canellini or kidney beans and some gently fried garlic, onion, celery and carrot. All this was then transferred to a baking dish with a bottle or two of ‘sarsa’ and slow baked for a couple of hours – much better than tinned.

Occasionally we had special celebrations, birthday, anniversary or guests (from overseas perhaps!) and we would use two or three bottles for a lasagne or other festive dish like eggplant parmigiana.  This meant at least another 30 bottles, because it’s best to have extra and never go short!

Home made baked beans in black pot

To celebrate spring some Italian families go on a picnic and traditionally eat fresh broad beans with fresh Pecorino cheese and local salami. In some Italian regions, a popular soup of broad beans is made with garlic, onions or leeks and beet leaves stir-fried, drizzled with extra virgin olive oil and bits of bacon or prosciutto as an option.

In Portugal and Spain a Christmas cake is baked with a dried broad bean inside. Whoever has the slice containing it, is supposed to buy next year’s cake.

In France the dried broad bean (these day it can be a small trinket) is placed in the Christmas cake and the person who finds it in their slice becomes the king or queen of the meal, and is often expected to serve the other guests a drink.

Good for your health!
Broad beans are full of protein and provide lots of healthy nutrients.
They are a good food source of vitamin B1, iron, copper, phosphorus, potassium and magnesium.

• Cook them together with peas and artichokes to have with fish or meat.
• Make a delicious soup.
• Enjoy them young and fresh in salads or as a dip with fresh young peas.

• oven dried tomatoes*
• olives*
• preserved eggplant
• preserved artichokes
• grilled capsicum/eggplant/zucchini
• herbs (fresh basil or oregano etc)
• garlic *depends on tomatoes/olives etc

Use a beautiful extra virgin olive oil and blend individually for a smooth paste, then gently blend it all together.

Top with extra virgin olive oil and store in the fridge.  Use it:

• in pasta salad
• spread on toast and topped with a mild cheese
• spread on pizza base and topped with your favourite cheese
• dollop with cauliflower 
• dollop on steak
• dollop on chicken Parmigiana

4 artichokes (cleaned/cut into quarters)*
1 onion chopped finely
1 tin tomatoes (or jar of passata)
2 stalks of celery chopped finely
50 g capers in salt
80 g pitted green olive halves
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
salt and pepper

Heat 3 tablespoons oil, add the drained artichokes, cook them briefly, add ½ cup of water, a pinch of salt and pepper and cook for 10 minutes or so.

Remove the artichokes.

Add the onion, stir-fry gently.

Add tomatoes, chopped celery, salt and pepper and simmer for 15 minutes.

Add the olives, capers, vinegar and cook for 5 minutes.

Replace the artichokes to heat thru and simmer for a further 15 minutes.

Best served warm.

*Please see Artichoke Page for cleaning/preparing fresh artichokes.

This can be done in whole cloves or cut through the middle to expose the cloves.

Simply place the garlic in a baking dish and cover with Extra Virgin Olive Oil.

Place it in the hot oven (180C) for about 15-20 minutes.

Remove from the oven, allow to cool before placing all ingredients in a jar.

Add a bay leaf and enjoy the soft garlic in cooking.

The oil can be used to drizzle on salads, brush on to bread for quick easy garlic bread.

This can be kept in the fridge but the oil will solidify – still perfectly ok to use!!

Place the tomatoes cut side up with the garlic, balsamic vinegar and honey in a baking dish.
Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and roast in a preheated 150C fan forced oven.
Once the tomatoes have cooked remove from the oven. Save the juices/stock to use too.

Roast the bacon in an oven tray until the fat has rendered and gets crispy.

Place all the ingredients together: coffee, bacon, cumin, salt, pepper, tomatoes and stock.

In a pot on the stove mix all the ingredients and simmer until reduced to a syrupy consistency.

Alternatively:

1. Roast in an oven dish on low 120-150C for about 2 hours.
2. Slow cook in a cooker overnight.

Process the jam in a food processor to smooth it out to the desired texture.

Wash

Cut and just slip off the stones

Place in a pot

Drizzle or dollop a couple of tablespoons of honey

Sprinkle with a few Whole Spice

Top with the Star Anise

Put on a gentle low heat and allow to simply cook for about half hour or so.

The juices will flow from the nectarines, the honey blends in and the lovely aroma of the Star Anise fills the kitchen.

Enjoy with plain or other yoghurt, cream and/or ice cream.