Cooking Across 4 Generations

There is a little problem I have when shopping for measuring cups and spoons. In Australia we have standard sizes for our measuring utensils, elsewhere in the world they vary from ours. I have often been looking through the kitchen shops and stumbled upon some really nice measuring cups or measuring spoons only to find that they are not Australian standard sizes. I must say there have been many nice sets out there that I have had to sadly leave in the shop.

So on the subject of Australian standard measures here they are:

1/4 teaspoon = 1.25ml

1/2 teaspoon = 2.5ml

1 teaspoon = 5ml

1 dessertspoon = 10ml

1 tablespoon = 20ml

1/4 cup = 60ml

1/3 cup = 80ml

1/2 cup = 125ml

1 cup = 250ml

But wait there is more confusion ahead. The above weights are for liquid measures, what if you need a cup of flour, sugar or other dry ingredient? Recipes in modern cookbooks now use weight rather than a volume measurement for things like flour, sugar, breadcrumbs.

Here are a few samples:

1 cup of:

Flour (plain or SR) = 125g

Sugar (white or caster) = 220g

Brown sugar (lightly packed) = 155g

Honey = 350g

So even though the volume is the same the weight differs by ingredient. Perhaps the easy way out is to have a set of measuring spoons and cups that are Australian standard and then a second set for measuring recipes from books that weren’t written for the Australian market. Also a good set of scales is a worthwhile investment. Some chefs and cooks now even go so far as to weigh their liquids.

There are many websites that will do conversions for you and some helpful cooking ones that have charts with the different measurements as well. Below are a couple of favourites:

http://allrecipes.com.au/how-to/17/standard-australian-cooking-measurements.aspx

http://www.taste.com.au/how+to/articles/369/weights+measurement+charts

 http://allrecipes.com/Info/Reference/Measurements-Cooking-Times–Conversions/ViewAll.aspx

Good luck with your baking and may all your cakes rise!

In May we had our second wine dinner for the year featuring 6 wines from Jim Barry Wines. Jim Barry wines were established by Jim Barry and his wife Nancy in 1959, in the Clare Valley in South Australia. They feature a range of wines sourced from fruit in the Clare Valley and their Cabernet Sauvignon fruit is sourced from the well regarded Coonawarra district.

When I was planning the menu I realised we would be nearing the end of Autumn so planned the menu around what would be available at the time. Wtih the help of Dearne fro Samuel Smith and Sons we chose wines that matched with our menu. The one surprise being that the Lavender Hill Riesling that we had chosen to go with the dessert actually clashed with the dish and upon trying the drier Watervale Riesling we found our match.

The diners of course enjoyed canapes with a glass of Dunes sparkling before being shown to their seats. Our dishes for the evening consisted of:

Cream of cauliflower soup, chive oil with a blue cheese sphere, paired with Jim Barry The Lodge Hill Riesling.

Sashimi of Kingfish with pickled ginger and wasabi ‘caviars’, paired with Jim Barry Silly Mid On Sauvignon Blanc/Semillon.

Sausage of duck and pistachios, braised savoy cabbage with speck, paired with Jm Barry Three Little Pigs Shiraz Cabenet Merlot.

Braised beef cheek Parmentier with a baby herb salad, paired with Jim Barry The Cover Drive Cabernet Sauvignon.

Honey roasted corella pears, warm citrus madeleines almond ice cream, paired with Jim Barry Watervale Riesling.

Of course we always have a mystery wine and this time around it was Jim Barry The McRae Wood SHiraz 2007.

Favourites for the night were the dessert and the sausage. Our executive chef bought us a sausage stuffer 24 months prior to this and this was the first time we had actually used it. Worked a treat and will be making more sausages in the future. The almond icecream was SO delicious, made with a base that included almond paste and essence it was a hit.

In two weeks time we have our next dinner featuring the wines from Croser, Petaluma and Bridgewater Mill. We are especially excited for this dinner as we have the head winemaker from the group, Andrew Hardy, coming to talk about his wines.

à bientôt!!