New Happenings in the Wholefood Scene in Sydney & Beyond…

Thought all you clean-living folk out there might be interested to know that…

• The Canadian Way is now stocking their 100% wild salmon, tuna and other products at Kingsley Meats in Rose Bay and at All Good Things Organic Market in Wollongong. Did you know that this salmon is the only 100% guaranteed wild (not farmed) salmon in Australia? It has an omega 3 to 6 ratio of 10:1 so highly anti-inflammatory. The salmon comes in frozen fillets, tails, smoked and salmon roe. Also try his tuna (even higher in omega 3 – I made a lovely tuna ceviche today – pictured below), halibut and black cod. Check out his list of stockists for a location closest to you. Still not sure about the wild versus farmed thing? Contact me.

• A gorgeous organic store has opened up in Maroubra called Coco’s Wealth of Health selling premium quality products including Cleos dairy, pastured meats and my activated nuts.

• Nelson Road Tuckshop on Bronte Road, Bondi Junction (near Westfield)  is an organic cafe which opened up earlier this year. I haven’t eaten there but the menu looks good, the staff were friendly and happily answered my pesky questions. They only use olive oil in their salads, have a couple of different sourdough breads including gluten-free one (wild rice and quinoa) and eggs for brekky are soft-boiled. Another good eating out lunch option when you’re in the junction near the Westfield end.

• Sprout Wholefood Grocer opened up in April this year  stocking a wide range of wholefood products including certified organic produce, Cleos dairy, Green Cow Organic meat and poultry, and my activated nuts and some of my other products. It comes complete with a movement studio upstairs, a herb garden, and a cafe (7am-4pm).

• Thr1ve have recently opened a new store in the Brisbane CBD. This is in addition to their stores in Sydney CBD (x2), ACT and Melbourne. Well done Josh! You can buy my activated almonds and macadamia nuts there.

• Woollahra Artisan Market has opened up on the corner of Moncur and Queen Street every Sunday (8:30am – 2:30pm) in the car park next to Zigolinis. Who’se been there? I’m keen to check it out this Sunday.

If something wholefoodie has opened up near you I’d love to hear about it. Please share.

To market, to market, to buy .....

...some raw cheese!

On Wednesdays I have this little ritual of going to Formaggi Ocello at the growers markets at the Sydney Entertainment Quarter (formerly known as Fox Studios). I relish in sampling some of the finest cheeses from Europe and Australia, my taste buds abuzz from enzymatic activity….like a glass of bold aged red.  Among my favorites are the Truffle infused cheese from Italy, over-ripe creamy Brie from France and the fresh ricotta from Italy - one of the few full fat ricottas still available in Australia.

This week I enquired about raw milk cheeses (which are richer in enzymes, micro-nutrients and more digestible) and the following varieties are available:

1. "C2" from Bruny Island, Tasmania. This only recently hit the markets (about 2 weeks ago). This is an aged hard cheese that is incredibly spicy and flavoursome. At $140/kg the price tag reflects the taste and care that has obviously gone into making it. Very much a special occasion cheese.
2. "Bra Duro" from North Italy. This is an very salty aged hard cheese. It was served to me with Truffle-infused honey which offset the saltiness of the cheese and sent me into seventh heaven. At $55/kg it is much more affordable.
3. a number of the Swiss cheeses are made from raw milk including Gruyere ($59/kg) and Appenzeller.
4. the well-renowned Italian Parmigiano Reggiano ($55/kg).

As an aside, I sell Gruyere and Reggio to my clients and regular customers from home at $40/kg (much less than retail prices).

Ocello also has a store in Surry Hills. Occasionally I buy cheese from David Jones for convenience (it's quite pricey but has a great selection and I often buy what's on sale/special. Check out the Lincet de Bourgogne from France- it's exquisite). And of course home made cream cheese is dead easy and super cheap to make (enrol in one of my lacto-fermentation courses to find out how).

In addition to its inclusion in a cheese platter, Gruyere is famous as a melting cheese e.g. in omelettes and soufflés. Here’s how I use it to make a super simple omellete:

Beat eggs (allow 1-2 per person) with 1-2 tablespoons of cream or milk with hand held blender. Melt 1-2 tablespoons of  butter in a frying pan on low heat then pour in egg mixture and a handful or two of grated or shaved Gruyere. Cook the underside of the omellete on the stove top for 5 mins then transfer to the oven under a heated grill element to cook the top side until golden brown. For variation, add shaved ham and/or vegetables (eg thinly sliced zucchini and asparagus spears) after pouring in the egg mixture and before adding the cheese. A great weekend breakfast.

Entertainment Quarter growers markets are open every Wednesday 10am-3:30pm. Check out the French man (whose name escapes me) who makes and sells pastured fed salamis. There's 1 or 2 certified organic produce stands every week and the florist stall sells what I think are probably the cheapest flowers in the Eastern suburbs.

Smile and Say Cheeeeeese!