Chestnut, cabbage and pancetta soup

A LOT OF PEOPLE AREN’T SURE WHAT TO DO WITH CHESTNUTS, AND THEY ARE SOMETHING OFTEN ASSOCIATED WITH DESSERT. BUT THEIR NATURAL SWEETNESS WORKS IN SAVOURY DISHES TOO, SUCH AS THIS ITALIAN SOUP TO MAKE IN AUTUMN OR WINTER. THE CHESTNUTS WORK VERY WELL WITH THE SALTY PANCETTA.

TO COOK CHESTNUTS, SLIT THE SKINS AND BOIL THEM FOR 10–15 MINUTES UNTIL TENDER, THEN PEEL THEM WHILE HOT.

Pour the water into a saucepan and season with salt. Bring to the boil and add the cabbage and garlic. Cover with a lid and cook for 10 minutes until the cabbage is soft. Strain the cabbage and reserve the cooking water. Discard the garlic and finely chop the cabbage when it is cool enough to handle.

Heat the oil in a large heavy-based saucepan. Add the onion and pancetta and fry for 2 minutes, until lightly browned. Add the rosemary sprig and fry for another 2 minutes. Add the chestnuts and cabbage and season with salt and pepper. Increase the heat to high, pour in the wine and bring to the boil. Add the reserved cooking water and return to the boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for another 15 minutes. Remove the rosemary and serve.

Serves 4

1 litre water

sea salt

200 g cabbage, cut into large chunks

2 garlic cloves, peeled

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 onion, finely chopped

75 g pancetta, finely chopped

1 long rosemary sprig

500 g chestnuts, cooked and peeled (to yield 250 g)

freshly ground black pepper

185 ml white wine

Pork chops with pear and lilly pilly compote

LILLY PILLIES ARE THE PURPLE BERRIES THAT GROW ON NATIVE AUSTRALIAN LILLY PILLY TREES. THEY’VE BEEN EATEN FOR THOUSANDS OF YEARS BY ABORIGINAL PEOPLE. I FIRST TRIED LILLY PILLIES WHEN A FRIEND INTRODUCED THEM TO ME ON A TOUR OF THE BOTANICAL GARDENS IN SYDNEY. AFTER SAMPLING THE SMALL FRUIT, I IMMEDIATELY WANTED TO INCLUDE THEM IN A RECIPE. THEY GIVE THIS DISH SOMETHING EXTRA – A SLIGHTLY PEPPERY TASTE THAT PARTNERS WELL WITH THE SWEETNESS OF PEAR. A SALAD IS THE PERFECT ACCOMPANIMENT.

IF YOU CAN’T GET HOLD OF LILLY PILLIES, YOU CAN MAKE THE SAUCE WITHOUT THEM, AND GARNISH THE DISH WITH WARMED RED CURRANTS INSTEAD (I USE FROZEN IF FRESH ARE UNAVAILABLE).

Combine the soy sauce, oil and ground fennel in a shallow dish. Add the pork and coat well, then leave to marinate for 30 minutes.

Pour the wine into a medium saucepan and bring to the boil. Boil for 3 minutes, then add the pear, peppercorns, ginger, bay leaves and cinnamon stick. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes. Add the lilly pillies and cook for another 20 minutes until thick. Remove from the heat and scoop out the peppercorns, bay leaves and cinnamon stick (if the peppercorns aren’t visible on the surface, you might have to search for them with the spoon).

Heat a barbecue grill to medium–high. Wipe the excess marinade from the pork chops and cook for 4 minutes on each side.

Serve the chops with the warm compote.

Serves 4

2 tablespoons soy sauce

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 teaspoon fennel seeds, ground

4 x 180 g butterflied pork chops

500 ml white wine

2 pears, peeled and roughly chopped

12 black peppercorns

2 cm piece of ginger, peeled and finely sliced

2 bay leaves

1 cinnamon stick

16 (120 g) lilly pillies

Bacon and pea soup

SOME OLD-FASHIONED COMBINATIONS LIKE BACON OR HAM WITH SPLIT PEAS REALLY GET IT RIGHT – THESE TWO SIMPLE FLAVOURS TASTE AMAZING TOGETHER. I LIKE TO ADD FRESH PEAS, LEEK AND CELERIAC TO MY VERSION OF THE SOUP.

Place the stock, split peas, bacon bones, pancetta, parmesan rind (if using), celeriac and bouquet garni in a pot and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer, cover with a lid and cook for 11.2–2 hours. Remove the lid to skim the surface of any foam or impurities every so often.

Remove the bacon bones, pancetta, parmesan and bouquet garni from the soup, and add the leek. Simmer for a further 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and lightly blend with a stick blender. Bring back to a simmer, add the fresh or frozen peas and cook for a further 5 minutes. Season with pepper and serve.

Serves 6

3 litres Chicken Stock

2 cups split peas, rinsed

400 g bacon bones

75 g piece of pancetta

1 parmesan rind (optional)

1 medium celeriac, peeled and finely chopped

1 bouquet garni made of 1 bay leaf, 4 parsley stalks and 2 thyme sprigs tied with string

4 leeks, finely sliced

200 g fresh or frozen peas

freshly ground black pepper

I find it much more convenient to water my home-grown herbs once a day than run up to the shops when I’ve forgotten something in the middle of making dinner. You don’t need to have a big backyard to have a garden. It’s amazing what you can grow in large tubs if you live in a unit or somewhere else lacking outdoor space.

Japanese pork with onion dressing

I’M NOT ALWAYS A FAN OF JAPANESE SALAD DRESSINGS, BUT THIS ONION ONE I ABSOLUTELY LOVE. WHAT’S GREAT ABOUT IT IS THAT YOU BLEND THE ONION IN A FOOD PROCESSOR AND STRAIN IT, USING THE JUICE TO MARINATE THE PORK, AND THE SOLIDS AS THE BASE FOR THE SALAD DRESSING. IT’S REALLY THICK AND TASTES FANTASTIC.

Put the onion in a food processor and blend until smooth. Press through a fine strainer into a bowl, giving onion juice. Reserve the solids in a separate bowl.

Season the pork with salt and pepper and place in a shallow dish. Pour over the onion juice and coat well. Put the dish of pork and the bowl of onion solids in the refrigerator overnight.

Mix the soy sauce, vinegar, 2 tablespoons of the grapeseed oil, the sesame oil, mustard, sugar and 1 teaspoon of salt into the onion solids. This will be the dressing for the salad.

Heat the remaining grapeseed oil in a large frying pan over medium heat and cook the marinated pork fillet for 7 minutes on each side. Leave to rest for 10 minutes.

Combine the salad leaves, fennel and salad dressing in a bowl and toss well.

Slice the pork thickly and serve with the salad.

Serves 2

4 medium onions, roughly chopped

500 g pork fillet

sea salt

freshly ground black pepper

2 tablespoons soy sauce

2 tablespoons rice-wine vinegar

3 tablespoons grapeseed oil

2 teaspoons sesame oil

pinch of ground mustard

pinch of sugar

200 g mixed salad leaves

1 fennel bulb, finely sliced

Pork and bean soup with turnip puree

PORK COMBINES WITH CELERIAC, CARROT, PARSNIP AND CANNELLINI BEANS IN THIS WINTER SOUP, WHICH IS TOPPED WITH DOLLOPS OF TURNIP PUREE. YOU GET A GREAT SOURCE OF PROTEIN FROM THE PORK AND THE BEANS IN THE SOUP; ADDING BEANS IS A GREAT WAY TO LIMIT YOUR MEAT CONSUMPTION.

Drain and rinse the cannellini beans, then boil them in plenty of water with a splash of olive oil until soft. Drain.

Meanwhile, place the pork in a large bowl and toss with 1 tablespoon of olive oil, the cumin and some salt and black pepper. Heat a large heavy-based saucepan over medium–high heat and cook the pork in batches for 2–3 minutes until the meat is browned all over. Remove to a plate.

Add the chicken stock and wine to the pan and bring to the boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer. Return the pork to the pan along with the celeriac, carrot, parsnip, garlic and orange rind and simmer for 25–30 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender.

Add the beans and orange juice to the pan and cook for another 10 minutes.

While the soup is cooking, make the turnip puree. Pour the vegetable stock into a small saucepan and bring to the boil. Add the turnip and cook for 6–8 minutes, or until tender. Transfer to a food processor (or use a stick blender) and blend until smooth. Season with salt and white pepper.

Serve the soup with dollops of the turnip puree and parsley.

Serves 8

400 g dried cannellini beans, soaked overnight

olive oil

750 g pork neck, cut into 2 cm cubes

1 tablespoon ground cumin

sea salt

freshly ground black pepper

1.5 litres Chicken Stock

250 ml dry white wine

1 medium celeriac, peeled and chopped

4 carrots, peeled and chopped

2 parsnips, peeled and chopped

8 garlic cloves, crushed

1–2 large strips of orange rind

250 ml freshly squeezed orange juice

TURNIP PUREE

500 ml Vegetable Stock

1 turnip, peeled and roughly chopped

sea salt

freshly ground white pepper

chopped flat-leaf parsley

AVOIDING TAKEAWAY

TRY NOT TO ALLOW YOURSELF EXCUSES LIKE ‘IT’S JUST EASY’ OR ‘I’M TIRED’ TO INDULGE IN PIZZA OR TAKEAWAY. IF YOU REALLY FEEL LIKE PIZZA, THEN GET IT, BUT MAKE SURE IT’S AN OCCASIONAL TREAT THAT YOU’RE ACTUALLY GOING TO ENJOY. I THINK IT’S HELPFUL TO REMEMBER THAT BY THE TIME YOU’VE ORDERED PIZZA AND WAITED FOR IT TO COME, YOU COULD HAVE EASILY MADE SOMETHING SIMPLE FOR YOURSELF.

Pork neck two ways

HERE ARE TWO QUICK WAYS FOR GRILLED PORK NECK – EACH WITH A DIFFERENT FLAVOURSOME MARINADE. YOU CAN CHOOSE ONE RECIPE OR THE OTHER. THEY ARE BOTH GREAT DINNER-PARTY DISHES, PERHAPS SERVED WITH VEGETABLE STIR-FRY WITH MISO OR BROOME VIETNAMESE SALAD.

Put the fennel seeds and salt in a mortar and grind until fine. Rub the mixture into the pork and refrigerate for 2 hours.

Preheat a barbecue grill (or oiled frying pan) to medium–high. Combine the hoisin and soy sauces in a small bowl and brush over the pork. Fry the pork for 3–4 minutes on each side. Remove to a plate and rest for 5 minutes before slicing thickly and serving with the cucumber.

PORK WITH FENNEL SEEDS

2 teaspoons fennel seeds

1 teaspoon sea salt

2 x 150 g pieces of pork neck

3 tablespoons hoisin sauce

3 tablespoons soy sauce

2 long cucumbers, sliced thinly

Put the coriander root, peppercorns and sugar in a mortar and grind until fine. Stir in the soy sauce and oil. Transfer to a shallow dish and add the ginger and pork. Toss to coat the pork well, then marinate in the refrigerator for 2 hours.

Preheat a barbecue grill (or oiled frying pan) to medium–high. Wipe the ginger and excess marinade from the pork and fry for 3–4 minutes on each side. Remove the pork to a plate and rest for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, add the marinade to a saucepan with 3 tablespoons of water and cook for 2–3 minutes, or until reduced by half. Remove the ginger. Slice the pork and serve with the sauce and coriander leaves.

Serves 4

PORK WITH CORIANDER ROOT

6 coriander roots, cleaned and roughly chopped

2 tablespoons black peppercorns

1 tablespoon sugar

3 tablespoons soy sauce

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

2 cm piece of ginger, peeled and cut into chunks

2 x 150 g pieces of pork neck

¼ cup coriander leaves

I used to have a big sweet tooth, and still have my favourite desserts, like vanilla pannacotta! However, these days I’ve trained myself out of the habit of having dessert regularly and usually have it just once a week, such as when I’m entertaining or am out at a restaurant and inspired by something truly delicious on the menu.

Dessert is where a lot of people come undone. You can literally do everything right in your diet, but a plate of dessert can be your downfall – it feels great at the time, but the sugar and fat can undo a whole day’s healthy eating. So I try to recognise that wanting dessert is generally a craving rather than hunger, and that once you’re in the habit of not looking for something sweet to cap things off, it’s quite easy to forget about it.

With dessert being a special treat, I try to make it worthwhile when I do have it! Not in the size of the serving, but in the quality of the dessert. I would rather take the time to prepare and enjoy my Vanilla Pannacotta with Berry Coulis or my Chocolate Soufflé – or eat someone else’s delectable and well-made dessert – than binge on copious amounts of something sugary that I ultimately won’t find satisfying or will feel bad about later.

A small serve eaten slowly and thoughtfully, so you enjoy every mouthful, is the ideal way of eating dessert. The trick is knowing when enough is enough, even if dessert is on the healthy side. I think it’s good to remember that a tub of low-fat ice-cream is still a whole tub of ice-cream!