People I have interviewed over the years have often influenced my cooking.
My take on the original recipe is always adapted to suit whatever is in the garden or pantry, but cooking the dishes brings back happy memories of these foodies, many of whom have become friends.
Some of the recipes I've served repeatedly, or at least until my dinner guest list completes a full cycle.
One such recipe was from a book by wine aficionado John Buck. Take a Little Wine was launched more years ago than either of us cares to remember but his rendition of Boeuf En Daube - with a few innovations from me - was to become my dinner party piece for several years.
The secret to its success is the long low-heat cooking in a heavy, cast iron casserole dish.
Cooking schools are often a focal point for my trips overseas.
One of my all-time favourites is Spirit House near Noosa, Queensland. It does not, however, showcase Australian fare but an eclectic mix of Asian dishes prepared by Annette Fear and Helen Brierty, both of whom have embraced Eastern cuisine with vigour. A must-visit restaurant is attached to the school.
Having twice interviewed Jamie Oliver (once serving him pavlova for breakfast) I am a fan of this man who has influenced so many young people worldwide. His flavour and food combinations are innovative and his recipes workable. My risottos have never been better than after watching Jamie prepare a selection.
The late Maggie Waldron was creative director of the Ketchum Public Relations Food Centre in San Francisco and one of America's most revered and personable foodies. Even in her later years she lived on a houseboat in Sausalito and drove a vintage, cream sports car. I was lucky enough to work with her while promoting New Zealand kiwifruit to the American media.
Recipes
SEAFOOD RISOTTO
Keep a few of the mussels and clams in their shells.
1/4 cup olive oil
1 tsp butter
1 large onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, diced
1-2 courgettes, diced
1 tsp fennel seeds
Pinch each: dried chilli, saffron
1 & 1/4 cups risotto rice
3/4 cup dry white wine
4 cups fish stock, boiling
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
600g-700g mixed seafood, eg, raw prawns, mussels, clams, skinned and boned white fish, cubed
Garnish: juice 1 lemon
Flat-leaf parsley
Heat the butter and two tablespoons of the oil and the butter in a heavy frying pan. Add the onion, garlic, courgettes, fennel seeds, chilli and saffron.
Cook - stirring - on low heat for 15 minutes. Do not brown.
Stir in the rice and increase the heat. Stir the rice until translucent. Add the wine and stir until it evaporates.
Add a ladle of boiling stock and a pinch of salt. Reduce the heat to a simmer.
Stir until the rice absorbs the stock. Repeat until the rice is soft but still has a slight bite. Season.
Add the seafood and cook gently for 3-4 minutes until the prawns are pink and the mussels and clam shells have opened.
Serve in 4-6 wide bowls. Pour the remaining stock and oil over the top, add a squeeze of lemon and garnish with flat-leaf parsley. Serves 4-6.
TAMARIND PRAWNS
I've added a red pepper and podded broad beans to this recipe but you could also add or substitute other seasonal veges.
2 tbsp canola oil
1 onion, finely sliced
1 each: red pepper (capsicum), red chilli, seeded and diced
1 kaffir lime leaf, finely julienned
1/2 cup peas or podded broad beans (optional)
16 raw king prawns, peeled and deveined
3 cloves garlic, crushed
3 tbsp tamarind puree
1 tbsp each: water, palm sugar, fish sauce
Coriander leaves to garnish
Heat the oil in a wok. Stir-fry the onion, red pepper, chill, kaffir lime leaf - and peas or beans, if using - for 30 seconds. Add the prawns and garlic and stir-fry until the prawns are starting to go pink.
Combine the tamarind puree, water, sugar and fish sauce and stir into the prawn mixture.
Stir-fry for about two minutes. Garnish with coriander.
Delicious served with jasmine rice. Serves 2.
BOEUF EN DAUBE
2kg blade steak
1 each: large onion, carrot, diced
1 bouquet garni (thyme, rosemary, parsley and a bay leaf tied together)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 & 1/4 cups red wine
1/4 cup each: brandy, olive oil
2 rashers bacon, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 strip orange peel
1 cup good beef stock
8 pitted black olives
Cut the meat into 3cm cubes. Place in a bowl with the onion, carrot, bouquet garni, salt, pepper, wine and brandy. Cover and marinate in the refrigerator for 5-6 hours.
Set the oven to 150C.
Heat the oil in a heavy frying pan. Pan-fry the bacon until crisp. Place in a heavy casserole.
Drain the meat, reserving the marinade. Pat the meat and vegetables dry. Pan-fry in the oil in batches, until browned.
Add to the casserole with the garlic and orange peel.
Pour the marinade into the pan and boil until reduced by half. Add to the casserole with the stock. Cover tightly.
Cook for 3 hours. Skim off any surface fat, add the olives and continue cooking for another 15 minutes.
Great served with baked or sauteed potatoes. Serves 8.
MAGGIE'S CHICKEN WITH CURRIED FRUIT
Great for the family or friends. The fruit can be changed to suit the season.
2 tbsp rice bran oil
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
4 skinned and boned chicken breasts, halved lengthwise, if large
1 tbsp curry powder
3 tbsp dry white wine
2 cups mixed fruit eg, seedless grapes, chunks of peaches, pears, plums, kiwifruit
2 tbsp each: brown sugar, slivered almonds, toasted
Heat the oil in a large, heavy frying pan. Season the chicken and pan-fry until lightly browned on both sides. As the chicken is browning, stir in the curry powder.
Add the wine, cover and simmer on a low heat for 5-7 minutes. To test that the meat is cooked through, press your finger into the thickest part of the chicken - the meat should spring back.
Transfer to a plate and keep warm.
Add the fruit and brown sugar to the pan. Bring to the boil and simmer until syrupy.
Serve the chicken topped with the sauce and toasted almonds. Serves 4.