Our Gift to you this Christmas

 

Our award-winning Executive Chef David Pugh has provided a three-course menu to help you make the right choices and take the worry out of organising your special Christmas day celebration.

 

David’s Christmas recipes

  • Juice of 1 lemon
  • 1 clove garlic, crushed
  • 4 tsp crème fraiche
  • 1 tsp Dijon mustard
  • 75 ml extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 baby gem lettuce, picked and washed
  • 1/2 cup elk lettuce, picked and washed
  • 1/2 cup watercress, picked and washed
  • 1/3 continental cucumber, peeled and thinly sliced
  • 1 1/2 avocados, cut into 1cm dice
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 36 spears baby asparagus, trimmed and blanched
  • 18 large ocean prawns, cooked and peeled

Place lemon juice, garlic, crème fraiche and mustard in a bowl and whisk. Slowly add oil while whisking. Set aside. In a large bowl, lightly toss the baby gem, elk, watercress, cucumber and avocado with two thirds of the crème fraiche dressing. Season lightly and divide evenly among six plates. Finish with asparagus and prawns. Drizzle with the rest of the dressing and serve. Serves 6.

  • 115g fresh ricotta
  • 115g unsalted butter, softened
  • 1 tbs chopped flat leaf parsley
  • 1 tsp chopped tarragon
  • 1 tsp fresh thyme leaves
  • Grated zest 1 lemon
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 – 2.5kg turkey breast, skin on
  • 375ml chicken or vegie stock
  • 6 baby fennel bulbs, quartered and halved
  • 6 garlic cloves, peeled
  • 1/2 tsp fennel seed, toasted and ground
  • Zest and juice 1/2 a lemon
  • 125ml extra virgin olive oil
  • 125 ml dry white wine
  • 3 sprigs thyme
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 2/3 cup pitted kalamata olives
  • 24 baby potatoes, skin on
  • 2 sprigs mint

Warm barbecue or preheat oven to 180C. Combine ricotta, butter, herbs and zest, and season. Ease mixture under the skin of the turkey breast and spread evenly, taking care not to tear the skin. Place turkey in a baking dish, add 250ml of the stock and cover with a sheet of lightly buttered and seasoned foil. Place on the barbecue with hood down, or in oven, and cook for 30 mins. Remove foil and continue cooking until nicely coloured (another 30 mins). Remove and let rest.

Meanwhile, place fennel pieces, onion and garlic in a baking dish. In a bowl, whisk fennel seed, lemon zest and juice, olive oil, wine and remaining stock. Pour over veggies, add thyme and bay leaf, and season. Cover with foil, place in covered barbecue and cook for 35-45 mins, or at 180C in the oven for 1 hr. Remove and scatter with olives. Scrub potatoes and cook in boiling salted water with mint. Divide vegetables evenly between plates. Add sliced turkey breast and pour over pan juices. Serves 6.

  • 100g pure icing sugar
  • 1 tsp cornflour
  • 1 vanilla bean pod
  • 4 egg whites, from 60g eggs at room temperature
  • Pinch salt
  • 100g caster sugar
  • 1 tsp white vinegar
  • 3 finger limes, pulp scooped out
  • 1 cup whipped cream
  • 2 cup fresh berries
  • 1/2 cup fresh cherries
  • 3 passionfruit, pulp scooped out
  • Edible flowers and leaves, optional

Preheat oven to 100C. Line a baking tray with baking paper. Sift icing sugar with cornflour. Split vanilla bean pod and scrape seeds out into icing sugar. Whisk egg whites with salt, slowly adding caster sugar and beating until stiff peaks form. Fold in icing sugar mixture and vinegar. Using a large spoon, dollop on to baking paper in a fairly round shape or make individual ones. Bake for 35 mins, turn off heat and leave pavlova to cool in the oven.

To assemble, mix the finger lime pulp with whipped cream and spread on top of the cold pavlova. Place the berries, cherries and spoon on the passionfruit and sprinkle with edible flowers or leaves, if using. Serve with your favourite ice cream or sorbet. Serves 6.