December 21, 2024 • 40 mins
As we draw closer to the big day, everyone is preparing to consume exorbitant amounts of delicious food.
Allyson Gofton joins to discuss Christmas staples and the dishes that should stay off the table this year.
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Speaker 1 (00:05):
You're listening to the Weekend Collective podcast from News Talk
sed B.
Speaker 2 (00:38):
Oh my goodness, Uh, what the hell is this? Anyway?
Welcome back, I'm Tim Beverage. By the way, if you
missed fascinating a great conversation with Helen Clark and Sir
lockwood Smith about the year that was, you can go
and check out the podcast. Look for the Weekend Collective
(00:59):
on iHeartRadio. Were they supposed to be elves or chipmunks?
It's Art's Alvin and the Chipmunks. Okay, Alvin, literally Alvin
and the Chipmunks. Imagine if you put that on as
background music and there was more than one song, just
constant chipmunks. I think I'd go out on a tree. Anyway,
we'll see if we can. We can say, if we
(01:20):
can come up back with something a little more mellifluous. Yes,
look it up. I had to look it up when
somebody used that word with me as well. Anyway, right,
this is the Health Hub. Welcome to that show that
this hour, and we want your calls eight hundred and
eighty ten eighty text nine to nine two because we're
drawing closer to the big day and everyone's prepping to
consume exorbitance amounts of delicious food. On a side note,
(01:43):
I noticed our sting for the Health Hub says it's
like running with your mates. Well today it's like eating
with your mates. So what are the classic Christmas staples
and what is outdated and should be left behind? What's
one of the things. You know, we might have a
bit of nostalgia for them, but let's face it, you
never reloved it that much. And author and cook Allison
Goften is with us right now. Allison, good afternoon.
Speaker 3 (02:04):
Hi, how are you.
Speaker 2 (02:06):
I'm good? How are you doing? Are you all organized?
Speaker 4 (02:10):
Oh?
Speaker 3 (02:10):
Kind of there's a little bit of last minute you know,
fruit and veggie shopping tomorrow, but other than that pretty much.
Speaker 2 (02:16):
So do you feel the pressure because you are You're
not Allison Gofton, You're the Allison Gofton.
Speaker 3 (02:23):
I do feel that if I really wanted to do nothing,
it might be frowned upon. And I have my husband.
My family is in Australia, so my my husband's family
join us on Christmas Day from Auckland. So there's always
the time pressure, you know. They drive down to the
White Cato and drive back again, so everything has to
be done to time. And I suppose even in my
(02:47):
own way of wanting to throw out a lot of
the old things that I might have had as a child,
there's always the pressure to have it right at the
right time and do some things that the nieces and
nephews always want to enjoy. So you're a little bit
of pressure by trying not to make it too bad.
Speaker 2 (03:02):
Yeah, I was actually thinking at that. So much of
it traditional Christmas fair is sort of inherited from Northern
Hemisphere origins, isn't it, Because it's not really the most
summary sort of thing to have roast this and plum
pudding and brandy sauce. But I'm not saying I don't
love it, But is that what you think would feel
(03:23):
about it as well?
Speaker 3 (03:23):
Absolutely? You know, a long time ago I might have
really loved it and promoted it. But this day, and
I'm talking thirty or thirty five years on from beginning
a writing career, we have such beautiful food available to us,
which when I started in the eighties wasn't always there
and we were much more traditionally based around our cooking.
But today we have so much beautiful fair at this
(03:45):
time of the year. I think the best thing you
can do is to add a twist to some of
those favorites. So you might like to have your roasted potatoes,
if that's fine, have your roasted potatoes, maybe throw a
little bit of lemon rind, a few bits of herbs
on top of them before you serve them. But have
that with cold meat or just the hair, or just
(04:06):
something for us. This year, there will be the ham.
That's the traditional piece of meat in our house, always
the hand because it's easy, really easy, you bite. My
mother had to cook it from raw. Today we bite
and all we have to do is glaze it. And
then to that I just go into the supermarket or
into the fresh fruit and veggie shop on Monday, and
(04:26):
I will look to see what's in season, and I
will make salads from it, so that the table is
full of color and salads. And then the only other
bit of tradition in our house is the Christmas pudding. Sadly,
I don't make it the same way my mother did,
which was to boil it in a cloth and boil
the living daylight.
Speaker 2 (04:44):
What is that? There's a Scottish name for that. Is
it cloti or something clouty?
Speaker 3 (04:49):
It's cloudy pudding? Well, once upon a time, if I
take you back and has to, but there was nothing
else to cook it, and you cooked it in a cloth,
You cooked it in the stomach of an animal once,
and then you went on to cooking it into maybe
something that was earthenware. And then time moved on and
we've got linen, and you cooked it in a calico cloth.
But you can get a lot of water in it,
(05:10):
so you're putting usually became quite sodden, and a lot
of the flavor was boiled away into the water if
you didn't seal the cloth properly with flours. So today
I just put it inside a roasting bag, you know,
you buy them in there and the supermarket. One of
those cell Offhane roasting bags works perfectly, and I boil
it in that and that's fabulous. So a little bit
(05:32):
of something extra. And the tradition with that is, of course,
is that every nephew gets to blow it up with
some rum or whiskey or something on top of it,
which is always a bit of fun. Everybody gets to
throw a flame at the Christmas pudding and we have
it with anything that's got rum or brandy in it,
and we're all happy, so long as there's Pavlova to follow.
Speaker 5 (05:51):
Oh oh oh.
Speaker 2 (05:53):
That leads to my hot take. But because correctly, I'm
going to give a shout out, by the way, because
I was actually surprised to hear you say just that
there's just one meat at your Christmas do, because my
I'll be having a We'll be having ours with my
in laws. And I've always joked that, you know the
old saying meat and three veg, Well at the tipping house, old,
(06:13):
who are my in laws? My mother in law does bat.
I think we do about five meat and ten veg
something like.
Speaker 3 (06:20):
You know, they won't be the only people. And so
therein lies the pressure level that we actually create for ourselves.
And so we have nephews that come and nieces that
come from all over the place. If they're not here
on time, well with the meat spoil. And so the
easy answer for us is to do a beautiful, big
ham and then have lots of lovely cheeses and just
(06:43):
make it so that it's I can roast it. If
the ham's not hot, it doesn't really matter. So to
try and take some of the tradition and then make
it easy, I mean, why not have beautiful summer potatoes
at this time of the year, instead of putting on
in your oven and trying to fit everything, because that's
the other thing we do. You know, I got to
put the meat in the oven. Then you got got
(07:04):
the vegetables and the oven they're gonna pear it warm.
It just becomes and then there's the washing up and
the dishes.
Speaker 2 (07:10):
Actually, the summer potatoes are actually a very easy transition,
aren't they. For which does give it the summer hint,
doesn't it? Because there's nothing like the new spuds, which nothing.
Speaker 3 (07:20):
Like new potatoes. And the other thing I call people too,
is at this time of the year, while they seem
to be expensive, it is herbs that can bring to
you a flavor of summer to your table and break
away from the traditional heavy duty roasted vegetables. So you've
got green beans, you've got asparagus, you've got salads, and
(07:42):
then if you throw in handfuls of vasty basil chibes,
whatever you have or can buy. Look, honestly, you just
take it into a new realm for summer. And I
think we really have to think about adding health to
our dart as well. If we want to talk about health.
Putting this summer salads to the table is going to
take a the stress away. But also sometimes they're heavy
(08:05):
duty weight that you get after that Christmas lunch from
having overeaten and maybe eaten too many, too many calories.
Speaker 2 (08:12):
Well, let's talk about I don't know if you heard
me justin slightly towards the end of the previous hour.
But because one of the things we want to talk about,
what are the things that are outdated and should be
left off the table. I've got two things. I didn't get.
The pavlover thing. I just I don't get it because okay,
you shove a bunch of you shove a lot of
cream on it, and the cream's nice, and you put
(08:34):
some nice fruit and everything, and I think there's just
the padlover. I don't know if we should be fighting
with Australia over this, because what's the point of a pavlover.
It's just sugar standing up, isn't it.
Speaker 3 (08:46):
What a lovely expression sugar stand back? A delicious way
to eat this sugar. Well, of course that is the
Kiwi tradition. Yes, it is New Zealand invention. So the
books would tell us, Yes, the Australians named it so
the books would tell us. But it comes from a
very long history of having meringues. And then we made
it into a cake, or we baked it so that
it was large and fluffy, and it is very key
(09:08):
we It is also the perfect foil for the strawberries
and the raspberries and the blueberries and the cream. And
it's easy and the pavlover has always, if nothing else,
been easy for the cook to prepare. It might not
have always come out perfectly, but for most cooks it
wasn't easy. Inexpective answer for putting that everybody loves and
(09:31):
I think we love the cream more than we love
what pa. I'd be with you on that.
Speaker 2 (09:34):
Oh well, I mean, I'm sure in Allison Goften and Pavlova,
i'd take a look at. But what is the secret
to getting it to well, not turn it into a biscuit.
Speaker 3 (09:46):
Not to turn it into a biscuit. Well, therein lies
a lovely lesson on the pav and the meringue. But
a pav should be whipped up and the sugar should
just be folded in, and then you bake it in
the oven and mound it into kind of like a
little small hill in a plate or on a baking tray,
and pop it into the oven and it will expand
(10:06):
into this beautiful mountain. And you have to leave it
in the oven for a considerable amount of time for
it all to set. And so the secret is to
not overbeat it, because when we overbeat it, we turn
it into a meringue crusted like peaks.
Speaker 2 (10:19):
Then what's tell us that give us this? You know
how they say beat it till almost stiff peaks or
what what is it with the egg whites?
Speaker 3 (10:26):
So when you beat egg whites, you beat egg whites
so that they go foamy, And there are several different
stages of that depending on what you want to do
with your egg whites, and what we do with Pablo.
We say beat until it forms stiff peaks but is
not dry. And so when you left the the whisking
ice out of the egg the west out, whether it's
(10:47):
a beat or whatever, the egg whites should come up
out of the mound that's been whipped, and they should
form a little soft peak, but the peak should not
fall over.
Speaker 2 (10:58):
The peak is the peak hanging off, hang on? Is
the peak poking up from the bowl, or is the peak.
Speaker 3 (11:03):
Peak is hanging off the well it comes from the bowl.
When you take the betas out and it falls. As
you lift the beatas up, it will form a peak.
Now that peak might be just kind of like soften
and just kind of like not very foamy, or it
might be foamy and it still falls over on itself
a little bit like a question mark. And so that
(11:23):
means you've not beaten it sufficiently. You need to give
it another thirty seconds or a minute and beat it
till you take it out and it stands up.
Speaker 2 (11:31):
Oh, so the question mark is a great analogy. So
because that's that is, I think that's probably where people
go wrong, isn't they just keep flogging the thing to
look how stiff my peaks are?
Speaker 3 (11:41):
Yes, And what happens if it's not beaten enough, or
if it's beaten too much, the mixture cannot hold the sugar.
And so what happens is that it will e you
ouse the sugar in the oven when it bakes. And
so you wonder why the sugar has come out of
your paddle over or the ring when you've cooked it
in the oven. It's because of that. The egg whites
have been either underbeaten or overbeaten. Okay, I can't hold
(12:06):
the sugar.
Speaker 2 (12:06):
I might share a little story with you just while,
by the way, if you're listening and you'd like to
share your views on what are the staples that we
should have on every table this Wednesday being Christmas Day
by the way, just in case you're like, what's so
special about Wednesday Christmas Day? Then give us a call on.
But also what is out data and should be left
off the table? And my guest is Alison Gofton, author
and cook. I mean needs no introduction, really, Alison. I
(12:27):
thought i'd share this. My late mum used to do
this thing years when we're growing up, of having American
tourists through some sort of arrangement that they'd come and
have dinner and a Kiwi household and you have to
give them, had to give them a traditional Kiwi meal
which was a roast with gravy and potatoes and pumpkins
and comera with pavlover for dessert or something usually, and
(12:48):
my poor mum used to I always used to know
when we had the tourists coming when I get home,
because Mum would be up at the incinerator burning the
box of theft this Pablo, because she just it's just
too stressful. And the neiest thing was Mum almost Mum
never lied, really, and my brothers and I be at
(13:12):
the table and the American terrorists would be like Mary,
that was just amazing. Tell me, how did you get
the pavlova to such a wonderful consistency? And she'd say,
with this, not looking at any of her family, should say,
the secret is the way you beat the whites. She
used to give them her recipe to take with them,
and I wonder if they were hordes of anyway. But
(13:36):
that's why I've always been curious about to get that
answer from someone about how do you get the whites right?
But there we go.
Speaker 3 (13:43):
They are essential. And it's also as we lose our
skills in the kitchen and we don't cook as much,
we get more nervous every time we have to do
it for a special occasion like Christmas. So I suspect
there's going to be a lot of buying of pavlovas
this year.
Speaker 2 (13:55):
Do you beat your whites by hand or by the weather?
High quality? No advice.
Speaker 3 (14:02):
Yeah, I've got a kitchen aid to do that, But
I do have a friend who uses a hand held
beata and her pavlovers are her party piece that she
makes perfectly, and she only ever does the meringue and
the pavlova, and it's always the same, always beautiful. But
mine and the one that I'm probably most well known for,
(14:23):
which is on the website, which is made with six
egg whites. You literally just beat the egg whites and
then you fold in the sugar and then you put
it into the oven to bake. And it's very easy,
and it's very much like the traditional, very first pavlova
that was ever made with the name Pavlova given to it.
Speaker 2 (14:38):
Now, this is, by the way, your website. If people
want to check out some of the recipes, it's on it.
It's Allison gooften dot co dot nz and it's worth
remembering people that it's Allison with an awl y son.
Speaker 3 (14:50):
Correct, that's me, Yes, indeed excellent.
Speaker 2 (14:53):
Actually, just before we go to the break, the other
one I've got that I reckon. I don't understand it.
I don't think I've had a decent turkey for a while.
Speaker 3 (15:02):
No one can the turkey. I can the turkey. I'm
sorry to all the turkey growers of New Zealand. I'd
encourage turkey eating. I suppose around winter. They are a
huge undertaking today in terms of knowing how to do
it properly. I suppose you've got to buy them. You
buy them frozen. They take three to four days to
(15:22):
defrost in your refrigerator. If you're not boarded by now,
you're in trouble.
Speaker 2 (15:26):
Yeah, and then people.
Speaker 3 (15:28):
Complain about it being dry or not getting it right.
And it is a big bird to cook, and you
need to be able to give it the time and
look after it properly in the oven.
Speaker 2 (15:38):
Oh God, I'm glad to hear your bag the turkey.
I mean, I mean literally. I guess you probably would
rest in some giant bag, wouldn't you. I don't know anyway, Look,
we'll take your calls. I eight hundred eighty ten eighty
would love to hear from you. But Allison and I
can talk about food till the cows come home. But
we'd love to you to join us as well. Eight
hundred eighty ten eighty. What are the staples that you'll
be having on your table this Wednesday? And is this
something that you do that gives your Christmas fair a
(16:00):
uniquely Christmas flavor, because, believe it or not, there be
a lot of people out there who may have planned
at dance, but they're still thinking, oh, what to do?
What to do?
Speaker 3 (16:07):
What to do?
Speaker 2 (16:08):
Well, you could give them the answer. We'd love to
hear from you. Eight hundred eighteen eighty text two. It's
twenty three past four News Talks.
Speaker 6 (16:15):
He'd be Bather Reavers answer, well.
Speaker 2 (16:48):
I'd forgotten about Bonie m of course, but that is
one of the class that sounds of Christmas, isn't it.
We're talking about the food, what you're eating at Christmas,
as they say for the health Auberstine. Usually it says
it's like running with your mates. Well, today it's like
eating with your mates and joining us. Is Allison Gofton,
who needs no further introduction to talk about the staples
that should be on every table this Christmas and what's
outdated and should be left off the table. Allison, just
(17:09):
before we go to our first caller, Die, I'm just
chatting one with my producer Tyra, who lives on a
sort of lifestyle block, and she said that they just
discovered one of their roosters is actually one of their chickens.
Is actually a rooster, so that's what they're going to
have for Christmas. And I was like, I know about rooster,
but she says, that's only five months old. You have
any take on that?
Speaker 3 (17:31):
No, No, I'm just sitting here thinking, oh, what's your
question going to bed?
Speaker 2 (17:34):
Well, rooster sounds like it'd be a bit weird.
Speaker 3 (17:38):
Well, it's a chicken. I suppose it may be a
little stronger in flavor and it may be a little
tougher to eat. So I would suggest that you're cook
it into a roasting bag and try and keep some
moisture in there. He's only five months old, he shouldn't
be too bad. No, okay, yeah, okay, not a little
bit of stuffing would be good to.
Speaker 2 (17:59):
A little bit of stuffing excellent, Right, let's go to
die good afternoon.
Speaker 5 (18:04):
Oh good sternoon.
Speaker 2 (18:06):
Hi.
Speaker 5 (18:06):
I just thought i'd share with you what I'd do
with my egg yolks when I make a pair. Well
not always, but I make a dessert called Mama Mia
and it's made with cream cheese and the egg yolks,
cream nut chocolate with dut and biscuits. And the original
(18:31):
recipe was for strong coffee and ba Bailey mixture, and
I thought, oh, that's a lot of mucking around, so
I just used carloua and my grandkids love it. Anybody
that I've ever made it for has just loved it.
Your layer it it's a bit like a.
Speaker 2 (18:50):
Does it make you feel a bit a little less
guilty about, you know, using all those egg whites and
just turfing the yolks.
Speaker 5 (18:58):
Well, I don't make it all the time, but the
grandkids just love it, so I always make it a
must for them. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (19:07):
Is it particularly boozy with the carlover in there?
Speaker 5 (19:11):
Not really. You just put a bit in the an
addition and then soak the I use the niece biscuits.
Speaker 2 (19:20):
Oh yeah, just.
Speaker 5 (19:22):
Soak them and you layer the cream and cream cheese mixture,
and then you put a layer of biscuits and a
layer of you know, sprinkle with chopped up with that
chop and then just layer it up till you finished them.
Speaker 4 (19:37):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (19:38):
What's it called.
Speaker 5 (19:40):
It's called Mamma Mia.
Speaker 3 (19:43):
And it was.
Speaker 5 (19:44):
I got the recipe quite a few years ago. My
son in law gave me a recipe book that was
published by Elmwood Normal School.
Speaker 2 (19:55):
Oh good stuff. Okay, I'm not sure if you can
get the ord Normal School Cookbook online. But that's a
great suggestion. Actually, that is that's I've always and I
always feel guilty when I do. I make pancakes Allison
with egg whites as a way of giving them a
bit of lightness or whatever. It's a favorite recipe of mine,
but I always feel slightly. I don't like throw oh
(20:18):
I actually and I say, I use the yolks for that,
but other recipes I generally feel guilty throwing the yolks out.
Do you do anything with the yolks yourself?
Speaker 3 (20:24):
Oh? Yes, I never throw them out. Now. Egg yolks
are very They go off very quickly, so you've got
to use them within a day. The best that you
pop them into the fridge and a dish, cub them
with water. They're better under liquid, and then use them
the next day. We scramble a lot of eggs here
for breakfast in our house, so some days you get
very rich scrambled eggs. My son who's home from university,
(20:48):
he's a lover of crembroule at, so they're used broulee. Otherwise,
I make what's called a wattle cake, which is a
recipe that I learned when I was a kid at
school when we were taught how to make them a ringue,
you were taught what to do with the egg yolks,
and we made kind of it's a lovely cake spen.
You use the egg yolks for it. It is on
the website it's called a wattlecake and so that's really
(21:09):
lovely and buttery. But don't waste them.
Speaker 2 (21:12):
Actually, what cream brewlay is a crem blew ma. I
can't even say it. Crem brewlay is that made with
you don't use the white soil as just an egg
yolk and it's just the egg cream.
Speaker 3 (21:23):
Isn't it, and milk and vanilla and sugar and then
you bake it until it is just perfection and then
sprinkle on your sugar and then attack it with a
blow torch basically, and it's delicious.
Speaker 2 (21:36):
Is there a way of doing Is there a way
of doing any other method other than the blow torch
for the cream brewlay? You know the sweetness on top?
Speaker 3 (21:46):
Well, if you want to be like me, because I
often have one that I can't be bother getting the
blow torch out. But what I do is I make
a toffee, make toffee and you pour it onto a
baking tray or onto a baking paper line tray, and
you let the toffee harden, and then you break it up.
And you can either do that by breaking it up
and chopping it up in a food process I saw,
or you can put it into a SnapLock bag and
(22:07):
attack it with a rolling pin and make it into crumbs.
And then I just put the crumbs, the toffee crumbs
on top of the crem brewlet. And that's as good
as it's going to get if I'm busy.
Speaker 2 (22:18):
Fair right, let's take some more calls, Helen.
Speaker 4 (22:20):
Hello, oh hello, I've got you on now to speaker.
Can you hear me all with that vibrating? That's all right, yeah,
I'll take it off. No, I'm just getting dinner ready
as well. But I just was listening to that lady
about what to do with the egg yolks, and so
allis and I just make my pavel over be making
it for years. It's what they call foolproof. It was
(22:41):
out of an old recipe book from livin days. But
the left of the yolks is often four, So just
while you got your pave in the oven, you just
put that four egg yolks a little bit of better
rind of a lemon, a little bit of sugar, lemon juice,
and about a half a cup of pineapple juice or
(23:02):
whatever you got, and that just thickens in the pot.
You have to keep stirring it. It sort of goes
like a custard. And then when it's thick I said
it cool. When the pabblover is done and called and
a few hours are gone by, you just put that
on top of the path. Then your cream cream and.
Speaker 2 (23:19):
Whatever fruit you've got, Allison, where you go.
Speaker 3 (23:24):
A long time ago, well many years ago, we used
to always encourage people to make a lemon curd type
of things. It was very popular to go on top
of a pave or to actually roll up inside a
pavlover roll to make sure. And it's a really good
way of using it. And you can cook it now
in your microwave if you use it, if you use
a fifty percent power in your microwave rather than one
(23:48):
hundred percent, because you'll scramble it on the outside before
the center's pot and use that and just do it
in one minute. Lots you can do that without having
to always be watching the eggs scramble in the bottom
of the pot.
Speaker 4 (24:00):
Yeah, well, it's just saves wasting them because you're always
going to going to do it with the least over
and it never happens. And the other thing I do
with an egg is I just beat an egg up
in a not a very big bowl, but a little
bit deep with salt and pepper, maybe some chopped parsley
and a little bit of milk, and I shoved that
in the microwave on high for about a minute. If
you sort of think, good, am I going to have
(24:20):
some a lunch And that just comes out like a little,
perfect little omelet. You can either eat it with a
tea spoon out of the bowl and some toast, or
eat can flip it onto a bit of toast.
Speaker 3 (24:31):
I never waste the egg yolks excellently.
Speaker 2 (24:33):
Hey, thanks Helen, Okay, have a merry Sorry miss I
chopped off in the middle of the same. Merry Christmas.
Thank you, thank you. I appreciate that. Allison. Actually just
on trends that we've seen come and go over Christmas.
Remember there was this, I don't know if it's still happening,
the turd duck in you know, the chicken stuck in
a duck at what's one inside the other inside of turkey?
Speaker 3 (24:56):
I think that, Yeah, they were very popular for a while.
That was way back and might have been the nineties.
Speaker 2 (25:02):
Oh my goodness. Okay, I didn't realize it was that long.
Speaker 3 (25:05):
Well, it doesn't seem that long ago, but so maybe
I've got my decades mixed up, not just my years.
But yes, you stuffed a opened out a turkey, and
then you put either a duck, then a chicken, then
a quail, and then you rolled it up and roasted it.
I couldn't think of anything more difficult or laborious for
the amount of pleasure that you'd get out of it.
(25:25):
But somebody would tell me that that's not the case.
But that was a fashion, as was we used to
bone out. I can remember doing this for magazines. We
would encourage people to bone out the turkey and stuff
it and then roll it up into like a lovely
roll and roast it so that you would be able
to carve it a bit like a You know, you
could buy those turkey rolls, But why we would ever
(25:49):
encourage you to want to bone out a turkey these days,
with the amount of effort that would go into that.
I don't know the best thing you could do. I
would think there's a couple of things about cooking a
turkey that are important. One that it's best to stuff it. Now.
The reason we stuffed something is to ensure or that
it has a good shape. That you provide moisture on
(26:09):
the inside of the turkey when it's cooking, to keep
the breast meat lovely and moist, and also to give
it good shape. They are the three reasons you stuck
any bird for roasting. When you tie the legs together,
don't tie them so tightly, as the heat cannot get
between the breast meat and the legs when it's cooking
in the oven. Otherwise, when you cove into it, it
can still be pink. When you cook your turkey, it's
(26:32):
best to put it into one of those roasting bags
because it will help keep it moist. Some people swear
by cooking it breast side down first and then turning
it over, you need to baste it in order to
keep the breast meat nice and moist.
Speaker 2 (26:45):
How often do you baste it?
Speaker 3 (26:46):
Oh, once every thirty odd minutes. You know.
Speaker 2 (26:49):
Some people can't step away from the oven. They're like
a bit to baste it every five minutes. But of
course you're just letting the heat out, aren't you.
Speaker 3 (26:54):
Yeah, well, if you just put in a roasting bag,
you'll save yourself in an awful lot of effort and
you can undo the roasting bag in the last thirty
minutes of cooking and it will brown up beautifully. The juices,
if you need them to be, can be made into
a gravy. I would just serve them as a zoo
forget about making them into a gravy. That's another step
you don't need to doe, and then you can. You
must also leave the turkey to sit I would say,
(27:17):
covered for about twenty to thirty minutes once roasted, so
that the meat holes. And this is the same for
any meat that you roast in order for it to
reabsorb all the moisture that's kind of like gone, all
the little molecules that are racing around trying to cook them.
Need to get those back into the meat fiber so
that when you carve it, the juices don't fall away
onto the chopping board. So out the turkey to rest,
(27:40):
carve the legs off. Carve that got cut straight down
either side, and take the leg and thigh joint off,
and then you will find it so much easier to
carve the turkey that don't forget take all the stuffing out. Also,
just on the stuffing. Don't put stuffing into the turkey
before it is defrosted. That's bound to make you unwell.
(28:02):
Make sure the turkey is well defrosted before you put
your stuff, and think of something different like coursscuss with
dates and oranges. Donuts would be lovely. You could do rice,
You could do a whole lot of things instead of
a heavy bread stuffing.
Speaker 2 (28:18):
Just doing a ham, isn't it.
Speaker 3 (28:20):
I've got it easy. And I had a girl that
worked for me once and she said, you can't have
ham without alcohol. Was the best piece of advice you
ever gave me.
Speaker 2 (28:27):
And alcohol win while you're cooking.
Speaker 3 (28:29):
It on the glaze. And so why do a chili sauce.
You buy your chili sauce if you want to rum
and orange glaze and on your turkey. Put oranges on
your ham and then put the rum with the other things.
Boil it down until it gets quite sick again, because
it will go with the rum going into the chili sauce.
(28:51):
It becomes sensor boil it down to it's nice and
therapy and then gradually based that on your ham. And
if you can do it the day before, oh my goodness,
the rum flavor going through the cama into the meat
is divine.
Speaker 2 (29:05):
Oh my godness, that's doing my head and right now
I'm just about drooling.
Speaker 3 (29:09):
Yeah, it was a piece of advice by Tracy to me,
that was a long time, the best one we've ever done.
Speaker 2 (29:14):
I did think you were just telling a joke about
alcohol worth such and such, and it's because that's for
the chef. But anyway, hey, just before we just before
we headed the break, so apparently I was wondering with
just on the tur duck and but to wrap it up,
because it's not only just a D bone turkey. It
says here it's a D bone chicken stuffed inside a
D boned duck and a D bone turkey. But I
(29:36):
think that probably what it was was a trend for
some of those luxury food goods places who did a
great roaring trade and basically preparing them all and selling
the people to stick in their ovens.
Speaker 3 (29:44):
So they did. That was hugely popular at Farrohs, and yes,
exactly way back when they first opened up and we
had Cuisine magazine, and we tried out to each other
every year with the most amazing idea for your Christmas table.
Speaker 2 (29:59):
Apparently in the in the Southern States is such a
thing as a crockertur duck in, which is a a
chicken and a duck in a turkey inside a bit
of crocodile as well. But that's just rumor.
Speaker 3 (30:10):
Anyway, getting carried away there.
Speaker 2 (30:13):
Okay, we'll be back in just a moment. It's News
Talk ZB. My guest is Alison Gofton. What tell us
about what you're having for Christmas and how do you
what do you have that might make your Christmas meal
look a little bit more key with than others. Eight
hundred and eighty ten and eighty back in the mike.
Speaker 6 (30:27):
Lugging over Christmas tree at the Christmas part. This is
a hug Well, you can't see every couples stuff.
Speaker 3 (30:40):
Lugging.
Speaker 2 (30:42):
Welcome back to the Health Tim Beverage with your news
talks would be. My guest is Allison Gofton. You can
check out Allison's website Allison that's a L L Y
S O. N. Gofton dot co dot nz for ideas
for Christmas if you're running about lat with your planning, Allison.
Just while we're on the egg yolks thing, somebody sent
me a text recommending that egg yolks for eggnog exclamation mark,
(31:07):
which seems like a very obvious Christmasy sort of thing.
Have you got an eggnog recipe or.
Speaker 3 (31:12):
Well, eggs? Eggnog's kind of like one of those traditions
from the northern European end of the world because it
was made with hot milk. Delicious though I could have
brandy sugar and the eggs are egg yolks in it,
and you pulled the hot milk over the egg so
it was slightly warm, warm, and slightly thick. Of course,
the alcohol was wonderful with a bit of nutmeg on top.
(31:35):
It's kind of like, you know, an ordinary version of
maybe a brandy Alexandria. Do you remember those days way
back when? And yeah, they're actually quite delicious eggnogs deslicious,
but maybe winter, I think, not summer.
Speaker 2 (31:49):
I had an ignog. In fact, somebody told me how
many calories was in an eggnog, and that did freak
me out a little bit. Eggnog's a little bit like
a cremon blaze when you have to really be careful
about how hot the milk is when you added, and
so you don't sort of cook the you know, have
lumpy bits of yolk because they think they're being cooked.
Speaker 3 (32:03):
Well, just keeps whisking quickly, thanky.
Speaker 2 (32:06):
Okay, I've got another. I've got another one for those.
And look, this is probably asking for myself in a way,
because I don't often make gravy, and every time I do,
I sort of think, oh, I forgotten done. I add
a little bit of marmite or this or And so
I think for all those those cooks out there who
maybe don't do a roast that regularly and it's Christmas
time and they've got the chicken or the turkey or
(32:26):
whatever or the lamb in the oven, can you give
us some simple guides to making just a really delicious
gravy to go with that meat.
Speaker 3 (32:36):
Okay, So for an Allison gravy, we'd be having a
zow which is just the juices, and to the pan,
I would add some stock, maybe a little bit of
her No I often add into a lot of my gravy.
Is quite like it? Okay, ye goes great with checken
fabulous with lamb. If you want to make a gravy,
(32:58):
you need to remove your meat from the pan and
drain off all but about two tablespoons of the fat,
and then into the pan, which you're going to place
over a moderate heat, you're going to put in the flour,
probably two tablespoons of flour for the two tablespoons of fat,
and you cook that until it goes bubbly. And you've
got to cook the flour well in order to get
(33:18):
rid of the floury taste from your gravy. Too much
flour to be lumpiecee. So you're going to cook that
just in the pan with all the drippings from the pan.
Then use stock the flavor to match the meat that
you've roasted, a chicken stock or lamb stock, and you
can buy the stock cubes and your supermarket. Don't worry
about making the stock that's just a step too far,
and gradually add that into the gravy. Now, use a
(33:41):
wooden spoon or a spatula and lift all the sediment,
all the burnt bits from the juices of the meat
off the bottom to get those into the gravy, because
that's where the flavor really is and then you need
to season with salt and pepper. If you start adding
in things like your marmite and your veggiemite, you start
getting a really botherlly tasting gravy. And at this time
(34:03):
of the year, I'd be more in maybe just to
add you could add a little bit of tomato paste
or a dash of something that's alcoholic that you might
quite like to have, So sherry is good, port is good,
something like that to give it a little bit of
a boost. And that's all you need to do. You
need about two cups of stock for that amount of flour.
Speaker 2 (34:22):
And I guess actually, when you mentioned a zoo, I
think the way you describe that, that's actually sort of
what I was thinking of. What's your recipite, what's your
what we do?
Speaker 3 (34:31):
What I do as I lift the roasted meat out
of the pan, I might add in a chopped piece
of garlic with and if there's not enough bat in
there to lift any sediment off, maybe I add a
tablespoon of oil. And then literally you just pop in
some stock and you just stir it to lift off
all the sediment from the pan, because that's the flavor
(34:51):
the caramelized meat juices. Then I would strain that taste
it and into that. That's when I begin to play
a little bit. And one of my favorites is quince
paste or quince jelly to add into that, to add
a little bit of flavor. But it is literally just
the juice of the of the roasting dish, of the
roast that you use to have that with. It's thin,
(35:13):
it's not thick like a gravy. It's much lighter in
texture and in taste. And I think it's better for
summer than having the heavy kind of casserole like.
Speaker 2 (35:24):
Gravyes, fantastic. Look, let's take some more calls. Have we
got here? Antonia? Hello? O, Hi? How are you?
Speaker 5 (35:31):
Good?
Speaker 2 (35:31):
Things good?
Speaker 4 (35:33):
And Allison?
Speaker 2 (35:34):
Hi, I just want to ask you.
Speaker 4 (35:36):
We're cooking at turkey. We haven't done one for quite
a few years. Can you do it without the stuff?
Is it going to cook? Okay?
Speaker 3 (35:43):
Yes, it can cook? Okay. What will happen though? It
does contend to dry out on the inside. What you
need to do is have a couple of oranges or
an apple or something like that, a pear on the
inside of it, or a pear and peeled onions would
be nice. Just to give it some flavor coming through
the meat and some herbs as well. That's all you
(36:06):
need to do. Cooking time will be less without his
stuff doesn't have to cook all the way through because
the heat will be able to go through the center
much easier.
Speaker 4 (36:16):
Yeah, I was sort of thinking it might do. I
don't know how, because you obviously still don't quite know
how long it's.
Speaker 5 (36:20):
Going to go, but you need to get it to
about as an eighty eighty two degrees or something.
Speaker 3 (36:24):
Gosh, I'd have to go check. It's about twenty minutes
twenty five minutes for five hundred grams, and next twenty
minutes at the end of the day, so it's about
three and a half hours to rast up your turkey.
Speaker 4 (36:34):
Yes, yeah, it's kind.
Speaker 1 (36:35):
Of it on pretty early.
Speaker 3 (36:37):
Now yourself time and roasting from the bottom of the oven,
not in the center because it's much okay, So lower
the rack down so that not dry the meat out,
and by all means roast it upside down to begin with,
and then turn it over.
Speaker 5 (36:56):
Oh okay, Yeah, that sounds good because thank you, Bry
the breast meat out.
Speaker 2 (37:01):
So much, thanks Antonia. Extra turkey over. That sounds like
it's probably technically a bit of a degree of difficulty
that is there.
Speaker 3 (37:08):
Or not really have a couple of onions either side
of the legs, you know, bake a bit of a wedge.
Speaker 2 (37:13):
Oh fun, Oh okay, right right, okay, Well look we'll
be back in just a minute. That's ten to five
on news Talk z B. Yes, welcome back. My guest
is Alison Goofton Allisongofton dot co dot n Z. I
thought I might share this text with you, Allison. It
says Tim, my wife of coming out fifty five years
as a gun pav maker. I have no idea what
(37:35):
she does exactly, but it usually involves swearing and a
lot of anxious looking in through the oven window. But
disasters a few and far between that resonate with a
few people, wouldn't it.
Speaker 3 (37:46):
Yeah, it's gorgeous.
Speaker 2 (37:48):
Just just quickly, not quickly whatever we've got a actually
we do have any of it. Two and a half,
three minutes left just for people who are The salad
is always one where I think people focus on the
meat and the potatoes, but to have a couple of
interesting salads. And you were talking about different herb that
you can throw, and I'm guessing your recommendation would be
whatever herbs you can buy fresh. But what are a
(38:10):
couple of really simple salad ideas that will wow people.
Speaker 3 (38:14):
Well, we have a mix in our family of vagans, vegetarians,
you know, allergy sufferers. You know, we've got the lot
like everybody else, and so I have to have quite
a collection of salads. One of my favorites though, is
to kind of satisfy everybody. We have the roasted vegetable salad,
and so I roast up lots of small pieces of
vegetables and I usually throw them through couscous and into
(38:34):
that I would put in I like ducker. You can
buy ducker, and so I tend to toss the vegetables
with the ducker and then I put them with olives. Currants,
Dried currants are important and in a honey dressing that's
really simple. Lots of parsity for that salad.
Speaker 2 (38:50):
Yeah, And it's like a couple of handfuls of currants
through it sort of so it doesn't look like overwhelming.
Speaker 3 (38:54):
It, yep, just a little bit of sweet and it's
a little bit of a touch of that Moroccan flavor
that goes down and for then the other side of
it is that asparagus season is still out there. So
what I tend to do is I do an asparagus
salad and for that, literally it's just loads of asparagus
tossed with rocket and I put through that a lovely
(39:15):
Tarigan dressing, so tarigan with which is on the website,
but you cook tarigan with an egg and you make
it into like a cooked little custard and then you
fold it through with vinegar and whipped cream, and that's delicious.
So that one can be served with tossed through the
dressing or without the dressing, so that's really good. Mushrooms
are simply wonderful, and I toss those with a soy
(39:38):
sauce dressing, just sliced mushrooms, chives, finally sliced shalot, and
then you put it through with a soy sauce dressing
and a large bowl of that is just delicious on
the side. And then my other favorite is roasted red peppers,
which I cook and green peppers, yellow peppers. I roast peel,
cook them with onions in a dressing of mustard and
(40:02):
olive oil and a little bit of sugar and loads
of basil and I called that salad in a jar
and I put that out on the table, and so
everybody has got something that they can have.
Speaker 2 (40:12):
Sounds delicious. Allison, thank you so much for your time.
And if people are looking for some more gardens, they
can go to your website. Allison Gofton. That's a l
O Y s O F A so o n gofton
dot co dot inz. Thank you so much for your time.
It's been a blasting Christmas. Yes, Merry Christmas. That's the one.
I might still do the egg nog though, even though
you think it's a bit wintery. But I quite like that.
Speaker 3 (40:33):
Don't forget the brandy to go in.
Speaker 2 (40:35):
I don't think I will, okay, so yeah, thanks very much.
Bye bye. That's Allisongofton dot co dot in zed. We'll
be back. Martin Hares joins us for smart Money in
just a moment, news Talk said B. It's coming up
to three minutes to five.
Speaker 1 (40:51):
For more from the weekend collective, listen live to news
Talk Said B weekends from three pm, or follow the
podcast on iHeartRadio.
You're listening to the Weekend Collective podcast from News Talk
sed B.
Speaker 2 (00:38):
Oh my goodness, Uh, what the hell is this? Anyway?
Welcome back, I'm Tim Beverage. By the way, if you
missed fascinating a great conversation with Helen Clark and Sir
lockwood Smith about the year that was, you can go
and check out the podcast. Look for the Weekend Collective
(00:59):
on iHeartRadio. Were they supposed to be elves or chipmunks?
It's Art's Alvin and the Chipmunks. Okay, Alvin, literally Alvin
and the Chipmunks. Imagine if you put that on as
background music and there was more than one song, just
constant chipmunks. I think I'd go out on a tree. Anyway,
we'll see if we can. We can say, if we
(01:20):
can come up back with something a little more mellifluous. Yes,
look it up. I had to look it up when
somebody used that word with me as well. Anyway, right,
this is the Health Hub. Welcome to that show that
this hour, and we want your calls eight hundred and
eighty ten eighty text nine to nine two because we're
drawing closer to the big day and everyone's prepping to
consume exorbitance amounts of delicious food. On a side note,
(01:43):
I noticed our sting for the Health Hub says it's
like running with your mates. Well today it's like eating
with your mates. So what are the classic Christmas staples
and what is outdated and should be left behind? What's
one of the things. You know, we might have a
bit of nostalgia for them, but let's face it, you
never reloved it that much. And author and cook Allison
Goften is with us right now. Allison, good afternoon.
Speaker 3 (02:04):
Hi, how are you.
Speaker 2 (02:06):
I'm good? How are you doing? Are you all organized?
Speaker 4 (02:10):
Oh?
Speaker 3 (02:10):
Kind of there's a little bit of last minute you know,
fruit and veggie shopping tomorrow, but other than that pretty much.
Speaker 2 (02:16):
So do you feel the pressure because you are You're
not Allison Gofton, You're the Allison Gofton.
Speaker 3 (02:23):
I do feel that if I really wanted to do nothing,
it might be frowned upon. And I have my husband.
My family is in Australia, so my my husband's family
join us on Christmas Day from Auckland. So there's always
the time pressure, you know. They drive down to the
White Cato and drive back again, so everything has to
be done to time. And I suppose even in my
(02:47):
own way of wanting to throw out a lot of
the old things that I might have had as a child,
there's always the pressure to have it right at the
right time and do some things that the nieces and
nephews always want to enjoy. So you're a little bit
of pressure by trying not to make it too bad.
Speaker 2 (03:02):
Yeah, I was actually thinking at that. So much of
it traditional Christmas fair is sort of inherited from Northern
Hemisphere origins, isn't it, Because it's not really the most
summary sort of thing to have roast this and plum
pudding and brandy sauce. But I'm not saying I don't
love it, But is that what you think would feel
(03:23):
about it as well?
Speaker 3 (03:23):
Absolutely? You know, a long time ago I might have
really loved it and promoted it. But this day, and
I'm talking thirty or thirty five years on from beginning
a writing career, we have such beautiful food available to us,
which when I started in the eighties wasn't always there
and we were much more traditionally based around our cooking.
But today we have so much beautiful fair at this
(03:45):
time of the year. I think the best thing you
can do is to add a twist to some of
those favorites. So you might like to have your roasted potatoes,
if that's fine, have your roasted potatoes, maybe throw a
little bit of lemon rind, a few bits of herbs
on top of them before you serve them. But have
that with cold meat or just the hair, or just
(04:06):
something for us. This year, there will be the ham.
That's the traditional piece of meat in our house, always
the hand because it's easy, really easy, you bite. My
mother had to cook it from raw. Today we bite
and all we have to do is glaze it. And
then to that I just go into the supermarket or
into the fresh fruit and veggie shop on Monday, and
(04:26):
I will look to see what's in season, and I
will make salads from it, so that the table is
full of color and salads. And then the only other
bit of tradition in our house is the Christmas pudding. Sadly,
I don't make it the same way my mother did,
which was to boil it in a cloth and boil
the living daylight.
Speaker 2 (04:44):
What is that? There's a Scottish name for that. Is
it cloti or something clouty?
Speaker 3 (04:49):
It's cloudy pudding? Well, once upon a time, if I
take you back and has to, but there was nothing
else to cook it, and you cooked it in a cloth,
You cooked it in the stomach of an animal once,
and then you went on to cooking it into maybe
something that was earthenware. And then time moved on and
we've got linen, and you cooked it in a calico cloth.
But you can get a lot of water in it,
(05:10):
so you're putting usually became quite sodden, and a lot
of the flavor was boiled away into the water if
you didn't seal the cloth properly with flours. So today
I just put it inside a roasting bag, you know,
you buy them in there and the supermarket. One of
those cell Offhane roasting bags works perfectly, and I boil
it in that and that's fabulous. So a little bit
(05:32):
of something extra. And the tradition with that is, of course,
is that every nephew gets to blow it up with
some rum or whiskey or something on top of it,
which is always a bit of fun. Everybody gets to
throw a flame at the Christmas pudding and we have
it with anything that's got rum or brandy in it,
and we're all happy, so long as there's Pavlova to follow.
Speaker 5 (05:51):
Oh oh oh.
Speaker 2 (05:53):
That leads to my hot take. But because correctly, I'm
going to give a shout out, by the way, because
I was actually surprised to hear you say just that
there's just one meat at your Christmas do, because my
I'll be having a We'll be having ours with my
in laws. And I've always joked that, you know the
old saying meat and three veg, Well at the tipping house, old,
(06:13):
who are my in laws? My mother in law does bat.
I think we do about five meat and ten veg
something like.
Speaker 3 (06:20):
You know, they won't be the only people. And so
therein lies the pressure level that we actually create for ourselves.
And so we have nephews that come and nieces that
come from all over the place. If they're not here
on time, well with the meat spoil. And so the
easy answer for us is to do a beautiful, big
ham and then have lots of lovely cheeses and just
(06:43):
make it so that it's I can roast it. If
the ham's not hot, it doesn't really matter. So to
try and take some of the tradition and then make
it easy, I mean, why not have beautiful summer potatoes
at this time of the year, instead of putting on
in your oven and trying to fit everything, because that's
the other thing we do. You know, I got to
put the meat in the oven. Then you got got
(07:04):
the vegetables and the oven they're gonna pear it warm.
It just becomes and then there's the washing up and
the dishes.
Speaker 2 (07:10):
Actually, the summer potatoes are actually a very easy transition,
aren't they. For which does give it the summer hint,
doesn't it? Because there's nothing like the new spuds, which nothing.
Speaker 3 (07:20):
Like new potatoes. And the other thing I call people too,
is at this time of the year, while they seem
to be expensive, it is herbs that can bring to
you a flavor of summer to your table and break
away from the traditional heavy duty roasted vegetables. So you've
got green beans, you've got asparagus, you've got salads, and
(07:42):
then if you throw in handfuls of vasty basil chibes,
whatever you have or can buy. Look, honestly, you just
take it into a new realm for summer. And I
think we really have to think about adding health to
our dart as well. If we want to talk about health.
Putting this summer salads to the table is going to
take a the stress away. But also sometimes they're heavy
(08:05):
duty weight that you get after that Christmas lunch from
having overeaten and maybe eaten too many, too many calories.
Speaker 2 (08:12):
Well, let's talk about I don't know if you heard
me justin slightly towards the end of the previous hour.
But because one of the things we want to talk about,
what are the things that are outdated and should be
left off the table. I've got two things. I didn't get.
The pavlover thing. I just I don't get it because okay,
you shove a bunch of you shove a lot of
cream on it, and the cream's nice, and you put
(08:34):
some nice fruit and everything, and I think there's just
the padlover. I don't know if we should be fighting
with Australia over this, because what's the point of a pavlover.
It's just sugar standing up, isn't it.
Speaker 3 (08:46):
What a lovely expression sugar stand back? A delicious way
to eat this sugar. Well, of course that is the
Kiwi tradition. Yes, it is New Zealand invention. So the
books would tell us, Yes, the Australians named it so
the books would tell us. But it comes from a
very long history of having meringues. And then we made
it into a cake, or we baked it so that
it was large and fluffy, and it is very key
(09:08):
we It is also the perfect foil for the strawberries
and the raspberries and the blueberries and the cream. And
it's easy and the pavlover has always, if nothing else,
been easy for the cook to prepare. It might not
have always come out perfectly, but for most cooks it
wasn't easy. Inexpective answer for putting that everybody loves and
(09:31):
I think we love the cream more than we love
what pa. I'd be with you on that.
Speaker 2 (09:34):
Oh well, I mean, I'm sure in Allison Goften and Pavlova,
i'd take a look at. But what is the secret
to getting it to well, not turn it into a biscuit.
Speaker 3 (09:46):
Not to turn it into a biscuit. Well, therein lies
a lovely lesson on the pav and the meringue. But
a pav should be whipped up and the sugar should
just be folded in, and then you bake it in
the oven and mound it into kind of like a
little small hill in a plate or on a baking tray,
and pop it into the oven and it will expand
(10:06):
into this beautiful mountain. And you have to leave it
in the oven for a considerable amount of time for
it all to set. And so the secret is to
not overbeat it, because when we overbeat it, we turn
it into a meringue crusted like peaks.
Speaker 2 (10:19):
Then what's tell us that give us this? You know
how they say beat it till almost stiff peaks or
what what is it with the egg whites?
Speaker 3 (10:26):
So when you beat egg whites, you beat egg whites
so that they go foamy, And there are several different
stages of that depending on what you want to do
with your egg whites, and what we do with Pablo.
We say beat until it forms stiff peaks but is
not dry. And so when you left the the whisking
ice out of the egg the west out, whether it's
(10:47):
a beat or whatever, the egg whites should come up
out of the mound that's been whipped, and they should
form a little soft peak, but the peak should not
fall over.
Speaker 2 (10:58):
The peak is the peak hanging off, hang on? Is
the peak poking up from the bowl, or is the peak.
Speaker 3 (11:03):
Peak is hanging off the well it comes from the bowl.
When you take the betas out and it falls. As
you lift the beatas up, it will form a peak.
Now that peak might be just kind of like soften
and just kind of like not very foamy, or it
might be foamy and it still falls over on itself
a little bit like a question mark. And so that
(11:23):
means you've not beaten it sufficiently. You need to give
it another thirty seconds or a minute and beat it
till you take it out and it stands up.
Speaker 2 (11:31):
Oh, so the question mark is a great analogy. So
because that's that is, I think that's probably where people
go wrong, isn't they just keep flogging the thing to
look how stiff my peaks are?
Speaker 3 (11:41):
Yes, And what happens if it's not beaten enough, or
if it's beaten too much, the mixture cannot hold the sugar.
And so what happens is that it will e you
ouse the sugar in the oven when it bakes. And
so you wonder why the sugar has come out of
your paddle over or the ring when you've cooked it
in the oven. It's because of that. The egg whites
have been either underbeaten or overbeaten. Okay, I can't hold
(12:06):
the sugar.
Speaker 2 (12:06):
I might share a little story with you just while,
by the way, if you're listening and you'd like to
share your views on what are the staples that we
should have on every table this Wednesday being Christmas Day
by the way, just in case you're like, what's so
special about Wednesday Christmas Day? Then give us a call on.
But also what is out data and should be left
off the table? And my guest is Alison Gofton, author
and cook. I mean needs no introduction, really, Alison. I
(12:27):
thought i'd share this. My late mum used to do
this thing years when we're growing up, of having American
tourists through some sort of arrangement that they'd come and
have dinner and a Kiwi household and you have to
give them, had to give them a traditional Kiwi meal
which was a roast with gravy and potatoes and pumpkins
and comera with pavlover for dessert or something usually, and
(12:48):
my poor mum used to I always used to know
when we had the tourists coming when I get home,
because Mum would be up at the incinerator burning the
box of theft this Pablo, because she just it's just
too stressful. And the neiest thing was Mum almost Mum
never lied, really, and my brothers and I be at
(13:12):
the table and the American terrorists would be like Mary,
that was just amazing. Tell me, how did you get
the pavlova to such a wonderful consistency? And she'd say,
with this, not looking at any of her family, should say,
the secret is the way you beat the whites. She
used to give them her recipe to take with them,
and I wonder if they were hordes of anyway. But
(13:36):
that's why I've always been curious about to get that
answer from someone about how do you get the whites right?
But there we go.
Speaker 3 (13:43):
They are essential. And it's also as we lose our
skills in the kitchen and we don't cook as much,
we get more nervous every time we have to do
it for a special occasion like Christmas. So I suspect
there's going to be a lot of buying of pavlovas
this year.
Speaker 2 (13:55):
Do you beat your whites by hand or by the weather?
High quality? No advice.
Speaker 3 (14:02):
Yeah, I've got a kitchen aid to do that, But
I do have a friend who uses a hand held
beata and her pavlovers are her party piece that she
makes perfectly, and she only ever does the meringue and
the pavlova, and it's always the same, always beautiful. But
mine and the one that I'm probably most well known for,
(14:23):
which is on the website, which is made with six
egg whites. You literally just beat the egg whites and
then you fold in the sugar and then you put
it into the oven to bake. And it's very easy,
and it's very much like the traditional, very first pavlova
that was ever made with the name Pavlova given to it.
Speaker 2 (14:38):
Now, this is, by the way, your website. If people
want to check out some of the recipes, it's on it.
It's Allison gooften dot co dot nz and it's worth
remembering people that it's Allison with an awl y son.
Speaker 3 (14:50):
Correct, that's me, Yes, indeed excellent.
Speaker 2 (14:53):
Actually, just before we go to the break, the other
one I've got that I reckon. I don't understand it.
I don't think I've had a decent turkey for a while.
Speaker 3 (15:02):
No one can the turkey. I can the turkey. I'm
sorry to all the turkey growers of New Zealand. I'd
encourage turkey eating. I suppose around winter. They are a
huge undertaking today in terms of knowing how to do
it properly. I suppose you've got to buy them. You
buy them frozen. They take three to four days to
(15:22):
defrost in your refrigerator. If you're not boarded by now,
you're in trouble.
Speaker 2 (15:26):
Yeah, and then people.
Speaker 3 (15:28):
Complain about it being dry or not getting it right.
And it is a big bird to cook, and you
need to be able to give it the time and
look after it properly in the oven.
Speaker 2 (15:38):
Oh God, I'm glad to hear your bag the turkey.
I mean, I mean literally. I guess you probably would
rest in some giant bag, wouldn't you. I don't know anyway, Look,
we'll take your calls. I eight hundred eighty ten eighty
would love to hear from you. But Allison and I
can talk about food till the cows come home. But
we'd love to you to join us as well. Eight
hundred eighty ten eighty. What are the staples that you'll
be having on your table this Wednesday? And is this
something that you do that gives your Christmas fair a
(16:00):
uniquely Christmas flavor, because, believe it or not, there be
a lot of people out there who may have planned
at dance, but they're still thinking, oh, what to do?
What to do?
Speaker 3 (16:07):
What to do?
Speaker 2 (16:08):
Well, you could give them the answer. We'd love to
hear from you. Eight hundred eighteen eighty text two. It's
twenty three past four News Talks.
Speaker 6 (16:15):
He'd be Bather Reavers answer, well.
Speaker 2 (16:48):
I'd forgotten about Bonie m of course, but that is
one of the class that sounds of Christmas, isn't it.
We're talking about the food, what you're eating at Christmas,
as they say for the health Auberstine. Usually it says
it's like running with your mates. Well, today it's like
eating with your mates and joining us. Is Allison Gofton,
who needs no further introduction to talk about the staples
that should be on every table this Christmas and what's
outdated and should be left off the table. Allison, just
(17:09):
before we go to our first caller, Die, I'm just
chatting one with my producer Tyra, who lives on a
sort of lifestyle block, and she said that they just
discovered one of their roosters is actually one of their chickens.
Is actually a rooster, so that's what they're going to
have for Christmas. And I was like, I know about rooster,
but she says, that's only five months old. You have
any take on that?
Speaker 3 (17:31):
No, No, I'm just sitting here thinking, oh, what's your
question going to bed?
Speaker 2 (17:34):
Well, rooster sounds like it'd be a bit weird.
Speaker 3 (17:38):
Well, it's a chicken. I suppose it may be a
little stronger in flavor and it may be a little
tougher to eat. So I would suggest that you're cook
it into a roasting bag and try and keep some
moisture in there. He's only five months old, he shouldn't
be too bad. No, okay, yeah, okay, not a little
bit of stuffing would be good to.
Speaker 2 (17:59):
A little bit of stuffing excellent, Right, let's go to
die good afternoon.
Speaker 5 (18:04):
Oh good sternoon.
Speaker 2 (18:06):
Hi.
Speaker 5 (18:06):
I just thought i'd share with you what I'd do
with my egg yolks when I make a pair. Well
not always, but I make a dessert called Mama Mia
and it's made with cream cheese and the egg yolks,
cream nut chocolate with dut and biscuits. And the original
(18:31):
recipe was for strong coffee and ba Bailey mixture, and
I thought, oh, that's a lot of mucking around, so
I just used carloua and my grandkids love it. Anybody
that I've ever made it for has just loved it.
Your layer it it's a bit like a.
Speaker 2 (18:50):
Does it make you feel a bit a little less
guilty about, you know, using all those egg whites and
just turfing the yolks.
Speaker 5 (18:58):
Well, I don't make it all the time, but the
grandkids just love it, so I always make it a
must for them. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (19:07):
Is it particularly boozy with the carlover in there?
Speaker 5 (19:11):
Not really. You just put a bit in the an
addition and then soak the I use the niece biscuits.
Speaker 2 (19:20):
Oh yeah, just.
Speaker 5 (19:22):
Soak them and you layer the cream and cream cheese mixture,
and then you put a layer of biscuits and a
layer of you know, sprinkle with chopped up with that
chop and then just layer it up till you finished them.
Speaker 4 (19:37):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (19:38):
What's it called.
Speaker 5 (19:40):
It's called Mamma Mia.
Speaker 3 (19:43):
And it was.
Speaker 5 (19:44):
I got the recipe quite a few years ago. My
son in law gave me a recipe book that was
published by Elmwood Normal School.
Speaker 2 (19:55):
Oh good stuff. Okay, I'm not sure if you can
get the ord Normal School Cookbook online. But that's a
great suggestion. Actually, that is that's I've always and I
always feel guilty when I do. I make pancakes Allison
with egg whites as a way of giving them a
bit of lightness or whatever. It's a favorite recipe of mine,
but I always feel slightly. I don't like throw oh
(20:18):
I actually and I say, I use the yolks for that,
but other recipes I generally feel guilty throwing the yolks out.
Do you do anything with the yolks yourself?
Speaker 3 (20:24):
Oh? Yes, I never throw them out. Now. Egg yolks
are very They go off very quickly, so you've got
to use them within a day. The best that you
pop them into the fridge and a dish, cub them
with water. They're better under liquid, and then use them
the next day. We scramble a lot of eggs here
for breakfast in our house, so some days you get
very rich scrambled eggs. My son who's home from university,
(20:48):
he's a lover of crembroule at, so they're used broulee. Otherwise,
I make what's called a wattle cake, which is a
recipe that I learned when I was a kid at
school when we were taught how to make them a ringue,
you were taught what to do with the egg yolks,
and we made kind of it's a lovely cake spen.
You use the egg yolks for it. It is on
the website it's called a wattlecake and so that's really
(21:09):
lovely and buttery. But don't waste them.
Speaker 2 (21:12):
Actually, what cream brewlay is a crem blew ma. I
can't even say it. Crem brewlay is that made with
you don't use the white soil as just an egg
yolk and it's just the egg cream.
Speaker 3 (21:23):
Isn't it, and milk and vanilla and sugar and then
you bake it until it is just perfection and then
sprinkle on your sugar and then attack it with a
blow torch basically, and it's delicious.
Speaker 2 (21:36):
Is there a way of doing Is there a way
of doing any other method other than the blow torch
for the cream brewlay? You know the sweetness on top?
Speaker 3 (21:46):
Well, if you want to be like me, because I
often have one that I can't be bother getting the
blow torch out. But what I do is I make
a toffee, make toffee and you pour it onto a
baking tray or onto a baking paper line tray, and
you let the toffee harden, and then you break it up.
And you can either do that by breaking it up
and chopping it up in a food process I saw,
or you can put it into a SnapLock bag and
(22:07):
attack it with a rolling pin and make it into crumbs.
And then I just put the crumbs, the toffee crumbs
on top of the crem brewlet. And that's as good
as it's going to get if I'm busy.
Speaker 2 (22:18):
Fair right, let's take some more calls, Helen.
Speaker 4 (22:20):
Hello, oh hello, I've got you on now to speaker.
Can you hear me all with that vibrating? That's all right, yeah,
I'll take it off. No, I'm just getting dinner ready
as well. But I just was listening to that lady
about what to do with the egg yolks, and so
allis and I just make my pavel over be making
it for years. It's what they call foolproof. It was
(22:41):
out of an old recipe book from livin days. But
the left of the yolks is often four, So just
while you got your pave in the oven, you just
put that four egg yolks a little bit of better
rind of a lemon, a little bit of sugar, lemon juice,
and about a half a cup of pineapple juice or
(23:02):
whatever you got, and that just thickens in the pot.
You have to keep stirring it. It sort of goes
like a custard. And then when it's thick I said
it cool. When the pabblover is done and called and
a few hours are gone by, you just put that
on top of the path. Then your cream cream and.
Speaker 2 (23:19):
Whatever fruit you've got, Allison, where you go.
Speaker 3 (23:24):
A long time ago, well many years ago, we used
to always encourage people to make a lemon curd type
of things. It was very popular to go on top
of a pave or to actually roll up inside a
pavlover roll to make sure. And it's a really good
way of using it. And you can cook it now
in your microwave if you use it, if you use
a fifty percent power in your microwave rather than one
(23:48):
hundred percent, because you'll scramble it on the outside before
the center's pot and use that and just do it
in one minute. Lots you can do that without having
to always be watching the eggs scramble in the bottom
of the pot.
Speaker 4 (24:00):
Yeah, well, it's just saves wasting them because you're always
going to going to do it with the least over
and it never happens. And the other thing I do
with an egg is I just beat an egg up
in a not a very big bowl, but a little
bit deep with salt and pepper, maybe some chopped parsley
and a little bit of milk, and I shoved that
in the microwave on high for about a minute. If
you sort of think, good, am I going to have
(24:20):
some a lunch And that just comes out like a little,
perfect little omelet. You can either eat it with a
tea spoon out of the bowl and some toast, or
eat can flip it onto a bit of toast.
Speaker 3 (24:31):
I never waste the egg yolks excellently.
Speaker 2 (24:33):
Hey, thanks Helen, Okay, have a merry Sorry miss I
chopped off in the middle of the same. Merry Christmas.
Thank you, thank you. I appreciate that. Allison. Actually just
on trends that we've seen come and go over Christmas.
Remember there was this, I don't know if it's still happening,
the turd duck in you know, the chicken stuck in
a duck at what's one inside the other inside of turkey?
Speaker 3 (24:56):
I think that, Yeah, they were very popular for a while.
That was way back and might have been the nineties.
Speaker 2 (25:02):
Oh my goodness. Okay, I didn't realize it was that long.
Speaker 3 (25:05):
Well, it doesn't seem that long ago, but so maybe
I've got my decades mixed up, not just my years.
But yes, you stuffed a opened out a turkey, and
then you put either a duck, then a chicken, then
a quail, and then you rolled it up and roasted it.
I couldn't think of anything more difficult or laborious for
the amount of pleasure that you'd get out of it.
(25:25):
But somebody would tell me that that's not the case.
But that was a fashion, as was we used to
bone out. I can remember doing this for magazines. We
would encourage people to bone out the turkey and stuff
it and then roll it up into like a lovely
roll and roast it so that you would be able
to carve it a bit like a You know, you
could buy those turkey rolls, But why we would ever
(25:49):
encourage you to want to bone out a turkey these days,
with the amount of effort that would go into that.
I don't know the best thing you could do. I
would think there's a couple of things about cooking a
turkey that are important. One that it's best to stuff it. Now.
The reason we stuffed something is to ensure or that
it has a good shape. That you provide moisture on
(26:09):
the inside of the turkey when it's cooking, to keep
the breast meat lovely and moist, and also to give
it good shape. They are the three reasons you stuck
any bird for roasting. When you tie the legs together,
don't tie them so tightly, as the heat cannot get
between the breast meat and the legs when it's cooking
in the oven. Otherwise, when you cove into it, it
can still be pink. When you cook your turkey, it's
(26:32):
best to put it into one of those roasting bags
because it will help keep it moist. Some people swear
by cooking it breast side down first and then turning
it over, you need to baste it in order to
keep the breast meat nice and moist.
Speaker 2 (26:45):
How often do you baste it?
Speaker 3 (26:46):
Oh, once every thirty odd minutes. You know.
Speaker 2 (26:49):
Some people can't step away from the oven. They're like
a bit to baste it every five minutes. But of
course you're just letting the heat out, aren't you.
Speaker 3 (26:54):
Yeah, well, if you just put in a roasting bag,
you'll save yourself in an awful lot of effort and
you can undo the roasting bag in the last thirty
minutes of cooking and it will brown up beautifully. The juices,
if you need them to be, can be made into
a gravy. I would just serve them as a zoo
forget about making them into a gravy. That's another step
you don't need to doe, and then you can. You
must also leave the turkey to sit I would say,
(27:17):
covered for about twenty to thirty minutes once roasted, so
that the meat holes. And this is the same for
any meat that you roast in order for it to
reabsorb all the moisture that's kind of like gone, all
the little molecules that are racing around trying to cook them.
Need to get those back into the meat fiber so
that when you carve it, the juices don't fall away
onto the chopping board. So out the turkey to rest,
(27:40):
carve the legs off. Carve that got cut straight down
either side, and take the leg and thigh joint off,
and then you will find it so much easier to
carve the turkey that don't forget take all the stuffing out. Also,
just on the stuffing. Don't put stuffing into the turkey
before it is defrosted. That's bound to make you unwell.
(28:02):
Make sure the turkey is well defrosted before you put
your stuff, and think of something different like coursscuss with
dates and oranges. Donuts would be lovely. You could do rice,
You could do a whole lot of things instead of
a heavy bread stuffing.
Speaker 2 (28:18):
Just doing a ham, isn't it.
Speaker 3 (28:20):
I've got it easy. And I had a girl that
worked for me once and she said, you can't have
ham without alcohol. Was the best piece of advice you
ever gave me.
Speaker 2 (28:27):
And alcohol win while you're cooking.
Speaker 3 (28:29):
It on the glaze. And so why do a chili sauce.
You buy your chili sauce if you want to rum
and orange glaze and on your turkey. Put oranges on
your ham and then put the rum with the other things.
Boil it down until it gets quite sick again, because
it will go with the rum going into the chili sauce.
(28:51):
It becomes sensor boil it down to it's nice and
therapy and then gradually based that on your ham. And
if you can do it the day before, oh my goodness,
the rum flavor going through the cama into the meat
is divine.
Speaker 2 (29:05):
Oh my godness, that's doing my head and right now
I'm just about drooling.
Speaker 3 (29:09):
Yeah, it was a piece of advice by Tracy to me,
that was a long time, the best one we've ever done.
Speaker 2 (29:14):
I did think you were just telling a joke about
alcohol worth such and such, and it's because that's for
the chef. But anyway, hey, just before we just before
we headed the break, so apparently I was wondering with
just on the tur duck and but to wrap it up,
because it's not only just a D bone turkey. It
says here it's a D bone chicken stuffed inside a
D boned duck and a D bone turkey. But I
(29:36):
think that probably what it was was a trend for
some of those luxury food goods places who did a
great roaring trade and basically preparing them all and selling
the people to stick in their ovens.
Speaker 3 (29:44):
So they did. That was hugely popular at Farrohs, and yes,
exactly way back when they first opened up and we
had Cuisine magazine, and we tried out to each other
every year with the most amazing idea for your Christmas table.
Speaker 2 (29:59):
Apparently in the in the Southern States is such a
thing as a crockertur duck in, which is a a
chicken and a duck in a turkey inside a bit
of crocodile as well. But that's just rumor.
Speaker 3 (30:10):
Anyway, getting carried away there.
Speaker 2 (30:13):
Okay, we'll be back in just a moment. It's News
Talk ZB. My guest is Alison Gofton. What tell us
about what you're having for Christmas and how do you
what do you have that might make your Christmas meal
look a little bit more key with than others. Eight
hundred and eighty ten and eighty back in the mike.
Speaker 6 (30:27):
Lugging over Christmas tree at the Christmas part. This is
a hug Well, you can't see every couples stuff.
Speaker 3 (30:40):
Lugging.
Speaker 2 (30:42):
Welcome back to the Health Tim Beverage with your news
talks would be. My guest is Allison Gofton. You can
check out Allison's website Allison that's a L L Y
S O. N. Gofton dot co dot nz for ideas
for Christmas if you're running about lat with your planning, Allison.
Just while we're on the egg yolks thing, somebody sent
me a text recommending that egg yolks for eggnog exclamation mark,
(31:07):
which seems like a very obvious Christmasy sort of thing.
Have you got an eggnog recipe or.
Speaker 3 (31:12):
Well, eggs? Eggnog's kind of like one of those traditions
from the northern European end of the world because it
was made with hot milk. Delicious though I could have
brandy sugar and the eggs are egg yolks in it,
and you pulled the hot milk over the egg so
it was slightly warm, warm, and slightly thick. Of course,
the alcohol was wonderful with a bit of nutmeg on top.
(31:35):
It's kind of like, you know, an ordinary version of
maybe a brandy Alexandria. Do you remember those days way
back when? And yeah, they're actually quite delicious eggnogs deslicious,
but maybe winter, I think, not summer.
Speaker 2 (31:49):
I had an ignog. In fact, somebody told me how
many calories was in an eggnog, and that did freak
me out a little bit. Eggnog's a little bit like
a cremon blaze when you have to really be careful
about how hot the milk is when you added, and
so you don't sort of cook the you know, have
lumpy bits of yolk because they think they're being cooked.
Speaker 3 (32:03):
Well, just keeps whisking quickly, thanky.
Speaker 2 (32:06):
Okay, I've got another. I've got another one for those.
And look, this is probably asking for myself in a way,
because I don't often make gravy, and every time I do,
I sort of think, oh, I forgotten done. I add
a little bit of marmite or this or And so
I think for all those those cooks out there who
maybe don't do a roast that regularly and it's Christmas
time and they've got the chicken or the turkey or
(32:26):
whatever or the lamb in the oven, can you give
us some simple guides to making just a really delicious
gravy to go with that meat.
Speaker 3 (32:36):
Okay, So for an Allison gravy, we'd be having a
zow which is just the juices, and to the pan,
I would add some stock, maybe a little bit of
her No I often add into a lot of my gravy.
Is quite like it? Okay, ye goes great with checken
fabulous with lamb. If you want to make a gravy,
(32:58):
you need to remove your meat from the pan and
drain off all but about two tablespoons of the fat,
and then into the pan, which you're going to place
over a moderate heat, you're going to put in the flour,
probably two tablespoons of flour for the two tablespoons of fat,
and you cook that until it goes bubbly. And you've
got to cook the flour well in order to get
(33:18):
rid of the floury taste from your gravy. Too much
flour to be lumpiecee. So you're going to cook that
just in the pan with all the drippings from the pan.
Then use stock the flavor to match the meat that
you've roasted, a chicken stock or lamb stock, and you
can buy the stock cubes and your supermarket. Don't worry
about making the stock that's just a step too far,
and gradually add that into the gravy. Now, use a
(33:41):
wooden spoon or a spatula and lift all the sediment,
all the burnt bits from the juices of the meat
off the bottom to get those into the gravy, because
that's where the flavor really is and then you need
to season with salt and pepper. If you start adding
in things like your marmite and your veggiemite, you start
getting a really botherlly tasting gravy. And at this time
(34:03):
of the year, I'd be more in maybe just to
add you could add a little bit of tomato paste
or a dash of something that's alcoholic that you might
quite like to have, So sherry is good, port is good,
something like that to give it a little bit of
a boost. And that's all you need to do. You
need about two cups of stock for that amount of flour.
Speaker 2 (34:22):
And I guess actually, when you mentioned a zoo, I
think the way you describe that, that's actually sort of
what I was thinking of. What's your recipite, what's your
what we do?
Speaker 3 (34:31):
What I do as I lift the roasted meat out
of the pan, I might add in a chopped piece
of garlic with and if there's not enough bat in
there to lift any sediment off, maybe I add a
tablespoon of oil. And then literally you just pop in
some stock and you just stir it to lift off
all the sediment from the pan, because that's the flavor
(34:51):
the caramelized meat juices. Then I would strain that taste
it and into that. That's when I begin to play
a little bit. And one of my favorites is quince
paste or quince jelly to add into that, to add
a little bit of flavor. But it is literally just
the juice of the of the roasting dish, of the
roast that you use to have that with. It's thin,
(35:13):
it's not thick like a gravy. It's much lighter in
texture and in taste. And I think it's better for
summer than having the heavy kind of casserole like.
Speaker 2 (35:24):
Gravyes, fantastic. Look, let's take some more calls. Have we
got here? Antonia? Hello? O, Hi? How are you?
Speaker 5 (35:31):
Good?
Speaker 2 (35:31):
Things good?
Speaker 4 (35:33):
And Allison?
Speaker 2 (35:34):
Hi, I just want to ask you.
Speaker 4 (35:36):
We're cooking at turkey. We haven't done one for quite
a few years. Can you do it without the stuff?
Is it going to cook? Okay?
Speaker 3 (35:43):
Yes, it can cook? Okay. What will happen though? It
does contend to dry out on the inside. What you
need to do is have a couple of oranges or
an apple or something like that, a pear on the
inside of it, or a pear and peeled onions would
be nice. Just to give it some flavor coming through
the meat and some herbs as well. That's all you
(36:06):
need to do. Cooking time will be less without his
stuff doesn't have to cook all the way through because
the heat will be able to go through the center
much easier.
Speaker 4 (36:16):
Yeah, I was sort of thinking it might do. I
don't know how, because you obviously still don't quite know
how long it's.
Speaker 5 (36:20):
Going to go, but you need to get it to
about as an eighty eighty two degrees or something.
Speaker 3 (36:24):
Gosh, I'd have to go check. It's about twenty minutes
twenty five minutes for five hundred grams, and next twenty
minutes at the end of the day, so it's about
three and a half hours to rast up your turkey.
Speaker 4 (36:34):
Yes, yeah, it's kind.
Speaker 1 (36:35):
Of it on pretty early.
Speaker 3 (36:37):
Now yourself time and roasting from the bottom of the oven,
not in the center because it's much okay, So lower
the rack down so that not dry the meat out,
and by all means roast it upside down to begin with,
and then turn it over.
Speaker 5 (36:56):
Oh okay, Yeah, that sounds good because thank you, Bry
the breast meat out.
Speaker 2 (37:01):
So much, thanks Antonia. Extra turkey over. That sounds like
it's probably technically a bit of a degree of difficulty
that is there.
Speaker 3 (37:08):
Or not really have a couple of onions either side
of the legs, you know, bake a bit of a wedge.
Speaker 2 (37:13):
Oh fun, Oh okay, right right, okay, Well look we'll
be back in just a minute. That's ten to five
on news Talk z B. Yes, welcome back. My guest
is Alison Goofton Allisongofton dot co dot n Z. I
thought I might share this text with you, Allison. It
says Tim, my wife of coming out fifty five years
as a gun pav maker. I have no idea what
(37:35):
she does exactly, but it usually involves swearing and a
lot of anxious looking in through the oven window. But
disasters a few and far between that resonate with a
few people, wouldn't it.
Speaker 3 (37:46):
Yeah, it's gorgeous.
Speaker 2 (37:48):
Just just quickly, not quickly whatever we've got a actually
we do have any of it. Two and a half,
three minutes left just for people who are The salad
is always one where I think people focus on the
meat and the potatoes, but to have a couple of
interesting salads. And you were talking about different herb that
you can throw, and I'm guessing your recommendation would be
whatever herbs you can buy fresh. But what are a
(38:10):
couple of really simple salad ideas that will wow people.
Speaker 3 (38:14):
Well, we have a mix in our family of vagans, vegetarians,
you know, allergy sufferers. You know, we've got the lot
like everybody else, and so I have to have quite
a collection of salads. One of my favorites though, is
to kind of satisfy everybody. We have the roasted vegetable salad,
and so I roast up lots of small pieces of
vegetables and I usually throw them through couscous and into
(38:34):
that I would put in I like ducker. You can
buy ducker, and so I tend to toss the vegetables
with the ducker and then I put them with olives. Currants,
Dried currants are important and in a honey dressing that's
really simple. Lots of parsity for that salad.
Speaker 2 (38:50):
Yeah, And it's like a couple of handfuls of currants
through it sort of so it doesn't look like overwhelming.
Speaker 3 (38:54):
It, yep, just a little bit of sweet and it's
a little bit of a touch of that Moroccan flavor
that goes down and for then the other side of
it is that asparagus season is still out there. So
what I tend to do is I do an asparagus
salad and for that, literally it's just loads of asparagus
tossed with rocket and I put through that a lovely
(39:15):
Tarigan dressing, so tarigan with which is on the website,
but you cook tarigan with an egg and you make
it into like a cooked little custard and then you
fold it through with vinegar and whipped cream, and that's delicious.
So that one can be served with tossed through the
dressing or without the dressing, so that's really good. Mushrooms
are simply wonderful, and I toss those with a soy
(39:38):
sauce dressing, just sliced mushrooms, chives, finally sliced shalot, and
then you put it through with a soy sauce dressing
and a large bowl of that is just delicious on
the side. And then my other favorite is roasted red peppers,
which I cook and green peppers, yellow peppers. I roast peel,
cook them with onions in a dressing of mustard and
(40:02):
olive oil and a little bit of sugar and loads
of basil and I called that salad in a jar
and I put that out on the table, and so
everybody has got something that they can have.
Speaker 2 (40:12):
Sounds delicious. Allison, thank you so much for your time.
And if people are looking for some more gardens, they
can go to your website. Allison Gofton. That's a l
O Y s O F A so o n gofton
dot co dot inz. Thank you so much for your time.
It's been a blasting Christmas. Yes, Merry Christmas. That's the one.
I might still do the egg nog though, even though
you think it's a bit wintery. But I quite like that.
Speaker 3 (40:33):
Don't forget the brandy to go in.
Speaker 2 (40:35):
I don't think I will, okay, so yeah, thanks very much.
Bye bye. That's Allisongofton dot co dot in zed. We'll
be back. Martin Hares joins us for smart Money in
just a moment, news Talk said B. It's coming up
to three minutes to five.
Speaker 1 (40:51):
For more from the weekend collective, listen live to news
Talk Said B weekends from three pm, or follow the
podcast on iHeartRadio.
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