Food Connect Sydney delivers seasonal boxes of sustainable produce direct from local farmers. The organic and chemical-free fruit and vegetables, free-range eggs and bread are delivered to City Cousins (coordinators at various pick-up points) each week. Food Connect pays farmers a fair price, builds community and makes real food available to city folk.
Miriam Pepper, who coordinates the Food Connect pick-up each week at South Sydney Uniting Church in Waterloo, says: “It is great to be a part of an initiative that supports local farmers and builds a fairer and more sustainable food system. I also like getting to know other subscribers who come to pick up their boxes each week.”
Food Connect subscribers order online (sydney.foodconnect.com.au). The website is easy to access and loaded with helpful information. One new feature is the collection of mouth-watering recipes by Tom Kime, Food Connect Annandale City Cousin. “To really cook well, you have to start by learning about your ingredients,” Tom says. “The provenance of your produce and how they are grown has a huge effect on the quality of what you cook.”
Spiced Apple and Goat’s Cheese Salad
Ingredients
For the spiced apples
- 4-5 apples, peeled, cored and quartered
- Splash of olive oil
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp coarsely ground coriander seeds
- ½ tsp mixed spice
- Juice of 1 orange
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
For the salad
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- Juice of 1 lemon
- 100g rocket and/or watercress leaves
- 50g parmesan, shaved
- 300g goats cheese, crumbled
- 30 flat parsley leaves, roughly chopped
- 75g pinenuts, oven-roasted until pale golden-brown
Method
Preheat a griddle pan and preheat the oven to 200C/400F/gas mark 6. Mix the apples in a bowl with the oil, salt, pepper and dried spices.
When the griddle is hot, grill the apples for 1½ minutes on each side until they are beginning to caramelise. Remove from the griddle and place in a small roasting tray. Pour over the orange juice and red wine vinegar, and roast in the oven for 8 mins. Transfer the apples to a large bowl and allow to cool.
Mix the extra virgin olive oil and lemon juice into the apple juices in the roasting tray to make a dressing. Season to taste (remember the cheese is salty).
Mix the leaves with the apple quarters. Add the slivers of Parmesan, along with some of the crumbled goat’s cheese and the parsley. Pour over the dressing and turn over gently to combine.
Serve on a large plate and scatter over the roasted pinenuts and remaining goats cheese and parmesan.
