New Idea Food 2312

What’s not to love about the festive holiday season? It is a time to slow down and celebrate with family and friends, and indulge together with great tasting food. When I first start thinking about Christmas approaching – my thoughts go straight to what will be on the menu this year. My team and I have put together this Christmas issue to inspire you, our readers, with some recipes having a traditional feel and others with an up-to-date twist. We’ve created achievable, delicious, easy-to-follow recipes for a stress-free day. Not only starters, mains and sweet treats for the festive season, but also ideas for the summer holidays that are friendly to the hip pocket with plenty of handy tips. Why not consider an air fryer feast or a delightfully slow…

PORK THIS WAY! Feel better about what goes on your fork with the new Coles Finest Carbon Neutral pork range. Working closely with a Western Australian supplier, the range includes eight family-friendly cuts including porchetta, schnitzel and roast, and aims to improve animal welfare and has a carbon neutral footprint from farm to shelf. Available in Coles supermarkets now. GLAM DECORATIONS Bring garden beauty to your cakes with edible dried flowers from Bloomish. These amazing blooms use a 100 per cent natural freeze-drying technique, to look like they’ve been freshly picked - and stay looking that way! With their ultimate freshness, they will keep in the pantry for up to two years when stored correctly. Delivered direct to your door from the family farm in Victoria. Available from bloomish.co. SWEET…

Koala Santas MAKES 15PREP & COOK 30 MINS 200g White Choc MeltsBlack food colouring gel½ x 250g packet Marie biscuits DECORATIONS 15 Jelly Gems30 white marshmallows30 mini white marshmallows4 strawberry sour straps30 candy eyesDesiccated coconut 1 To prepare decorations, trim one side of each Jelly Gem to sit flat. Cut large marshmallows in half. Cut mini marshmallows in half. Cut sour straps into triangles to create hats. 2 Place melts in a small microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on Medium (50%) in 30 second bursts, stirring until melted and smooth. Tint grey with colouring. 3 To assemble, spread one biscuit with chocolate. Transfer to a large tray. Place Jelly Gem, candy eyes, marshmallows and sour strap on biscuit as pictured. Dip mini marshmallow pieces into chocolate and stick onto sour strap to…

Hummus SERVES 4PREP 15 MINS 400g can chickpeas, rinsed and drained¼ cup natural yoghurt2 tblsps tahini2 tblsps lemon juice2 tblsps extra virgin olive oil, plus extra to serve1 small clove garlic, crushed1 tsp ground cuminToasted Turkish bread, to serve 1 Place all ingredients in a food processor with 1 tblsp water. Season with salt and pepper. Process until smooth. 2 Spoon into a serving bowl. Drizzle with extra oil. Garnish with cracked black pepper. Serve with bread. VARIATON 1 BEETROOT HUMMUS Add chopped, packaged fresh beetroot to a quantity of hummus. Process until smooth. Serve topped with crumbled feta and micro herbs. VARIATON 2 PUMPKIN HUMMUS Add roasted pumpkin chunks, tossed in Harissa spice mix to a quantity of hummus. Process until smooth. Serve drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled…

Steaks with Char-grilled Asparagus and Capsicum Salad SERVES 4PREP & COOK 30 MINS 2 red capsicums, quartered, deseeded2 bunches asparagus (160g each), trimmed, cut into 5cm lengths1 tblsp garlic pepper seasoning4 x 220g beef sirloin steaks1 bunch rocket (120g), trimmed, washed, chopped100g soft feta, crumbled½ cup chopped walnutsBottled Greek salad dressing, to serve 1 Heat a lightly oiled, barbecue grill plate over a high heat. Add capsicums. Cook for about 4 minutes on each side, or until tender. Transfer to a serving bowl. 2 Add asparagus to same, hot grill plate. Cook for about 3 minutes, turning regularly, or until tender. Add to serving bowl with capsicum. Cover to keep warm. 3 Meanwhile, sprinkle seasoning over both sides of beef. 4 Add beef to same grill plate. Cook, over a…

Raspberry Frosé SERVES 4PREP 15 MINS 2 cups rosé wine1 cup frozen raspberries (150g)2 tblsps caster sugarFresh raspberries and edible flowers, to decorate 1 Divide rosé between two small snap-lock bags. Freeze overnight. 2 Just before serving, place frozen rosé in a blender with raspberries and sugar. Blend until smooth. 3 Immediately pour into glasses. Decorate with fresh raspberries and edible flowers. Sangria Frosé SERVES 4PREP 10 MINS 2 cups rosé wine1 cup fresh orange juice1 tblsp caster sugar¼ tsp ground cinnamonShaved red and green apple slices and thinly sliced orange, to serve 1 Divide rosé between two small snap-lock bags. Pour orange juice into another snap-lock bag. Freeze overnight. 2 Just before serving, place frozen rosé and juice, sugar and cinnamon in a blender. Blend until smooth. 3 Divide…