Sebastian Nedziak was beaming when he told me that his Gum Tree Pies had won eleven medals at the 2011 Great Aussie Meat Pie Competition just recently: four gold medals and seven silver medals! He and wife, Melinda, hand make their gourmet pies at Yackandandah using locally sourced, best quality vegetables, rump steak, chicken breasts and Brown Brothers wine. The award-winning pies are really, really good and the range includes steak and red wine; lamb and mint jelly; creamy cauliflower; curry pumpkin; and chicken and vegetables, among many others. Pick up your pies hot and ready to eat, or take home freshly made pies ready to either bake or freeze. You will find Gum Tree Pies at the Capital Region Farmer’s Market and Southside Farmer’s Market in Canberra; Yackandandah Lions Club Market; and various other markets. Marco Marinelli is quite a character... a good Italian-Australian boy, born in Adelaide to a family with long connections to Adelaide's Central Market. As such, he was taught to appreciate the best of gourmet and fresh foods from an early age. Funnily enough, Adelaide's authority on mushrooms says he didn't like mushrooms as a child. Things have certainly changed over time! With an increasing range of reasonably priced standard and specialty mushrooms at his stall, The Mushroom Man has redefined the mushroom experience for the people of Adelaide. There are fresh porcini grown in the Adelaide Hills, chanterelles, truffles, white and brown Swiss, buttons, flats, Asian gourmet (including black fungus, enoki, king brown, oyster, shimeji, shiitake, mousseron and pines. Gourmet lines include truffle oils, vinaigrettes, and salt fusions (such as the wild mushroom and black garlic salt pictured below). One of the most interesting is the black garlic, an almost candied product with a sweet, smokey flavour. Visit the Mushroom Man at Stall 68 at Adelaide Central Market. Every Saturday, Sam Pincott travels some two and a half hours from Holbrook, NSW to the Capital Region Farmer's Market in Canberra to sell his farm fresh eggs. On 800 acres, Sam and his wife, Prue, run a herd of grass fed beef cattle and free roaming Isa Brown hens. 'Using holistic principles, we've incorporated both into a portable system,' Sam explains. 'The chooks follow the cows around the farm. They roost and lay eggs in portable sheds which we move onto fresh pasture twice a week. As the cows move out, the chooks move in. We also allow long recovery periods between grazing on each paddock, to ensure that there's always plenty of grass for the stock.' The eggs are produced in a chemical free environment, no hormones or antibiotics are used.And the hens are guarded by two Maremma dogs, who live with them and protect them from predators. Holbrook Paddock Eggs are great tasting, cracking fresh, with firm white, bright yolks and strong shells. Join the queue if you're hoping to buy some freshly baked bagels or sourdough from That Bagel Place at the Capital Region Farmer's Market! Shane Peart and family offer a selection of beautiful baked goods for discerning customers. His sourdough loaves come in plain, wholemeal, fruit, kalamata olive as well as soy and linseed. There are also nine New York style bagel varieties including poppy seed, cheese, garlic, blueberry and cinnamon and raisin. Yum! You'll find That Bagel Place at Farr Place in Isaacs and their goodies at the Old Bus Depot Markets, Capital Region Farmer's Markets, Choku Bai Jo (Curtin and North Lyneham). One of my loves is good coffee and I was delighted to find Zedz Cafe at Adelaide Central Market. Barista, Dorcen Walters, from Kommon Grounds coffee, roasts the beans locally. Meanwhile, former fine dining and Hyatt chef, Franjo Novosel, puts his heart and soul into preparing market fresh, wholesome breakfasts, lunches, and baked goods for Zedz patrons. Specialities include juice of the day, muffins, tarts and other baked goods. There's gluten free, vegetarian and vegan food, sprouted lentils, activated nuts, and more. Zedz also do a secret sorbetto, currently they have Christmas Cake and Persian delight flavours. Look out for the fluorescent sign at the Eastern Grote Street entrance to the Market. Michael McNamara was busy stirring a huge pot of caramelised macadamia nuts when I stopped in to say hello at the farmer's market this morning. The Bateman's Bay Nut Roasting Company is owned and operated by Michael and his brother, Mark, who (Michael says) inherited the company eleven years ago from a former girlfriend. A nutty tale, perhaps, but true and one with a happy outcome. As you can see from Michael's wide smile, he loves what he does. "We started out with caramel peanuts and branched into caramel macadamias a few years ago," Michael tells me. "Now we roast one ton of macadamias every month!". Michael's favourite is wasabi and seaweed macadamias. Among the savouries are Kashmir chilli macadamias, garlic macadamias, roasted salted macadamias, and also salt and vinegar macadamias. The sweet range includes honey macadamias, maple toasted pecans (yum!), honey cashews, and Vienna almonds (double yum!), You'll find the Bateman's Bay Nut Roasting Company's cafe in the arcade at Batemans Bay (closed weekends). Market stalls are at the Capital Region Farmer's Market and also at Moruya Country Market every Saturday; Old Bus Depot Markets in Canberra every Sunday; and at Berry, Kiama and Mollymook markets. |
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