Flour power more than just froth and bubble

Small clouds of Petra flour billow over the bench tops at both Pizzaperta at The Star and Da Vinci's Italian Restaurant in Summer Hill.  The product imported from Padova is a wholegrain wheat flour and highly nutritious, which is why chef Stefano Manfredi is so passionate about it.

One year on, this artist's rendition of Pizzaperta is a reality at The Star.

When Manfredi put his name to the hoardings of Pizzaperta at The Star one year ago he says it was with the intention of changing the public’s perception of good pizza. 

Manfredi says Pizzaperta at The Star embraces his obsession for quality produce and his fetish for the "finest quality Petra flours". Molino Quaglia, near Padova, Italy, is the only Italian industrial mill producing stone-milled flours with 100 per cent Italian grains and Manfredi was the first to import the artisan ingredient to Australia.

Mozzarella, cherry tomato, bresaola and rocket salad pizza at Pizzaperta at The Star.   Image: Supplied

“It was six years ago when I first tasted a pizza made using this flour. It was a revelation,” says Manfredi, who is known as ‘Australia’s Godfather of Italian cuisine’.

Manfredi’s says his passion for pizza made following traditional methods in combination with the unrefined, stoneground Molino Quaglia Petra flours began when he visited La Cascina Dei Sapori, in Rezzato, in Lombardy, owned by leading Italian pizzaioli Antonio Pappalardo.

Gianluca Donzelli surfed on the pro circuit in Italy. He is now carving things up at Pizzaperta.  

Manfredi invited Pappalardo to Australia to demonstrate the art of natural leavening to Pizzaperta pizzaiolo chef Gianluca Donzelli (a former pro surfer).  As well as sharing his knowledge about the flour, Pappalardo led the kitchen through the 48-hour fermentation process using the classic ‘biga’ method “resulting in a more easily digested dough”.  

“Our goal is simple: we want to make pizza

with the flavour of the grain, a texture that

is so soft and airy, dough that is easily digested

and a balance of flavours from the quality of the

ingredients,” says Manfredi.

As well as his penchant for using the special stone-milled flours, Manfredi says he and Donzelli like to play around with non-traditional toppings to better reflect the experimentation that is happening in Italy. Manfredi says he has curated a menu of classics and new wave options that he says ‘reflect the renaissance of pizza that is happening in Italy’.

“If you want a traditional pizza in Italy, you go to Napoli. But if you want to see something really exciting, know that there is a new wave happening in Italy and I’m interested in bringing that culture to Australia,” he says. 

“Pizza began in Napoli but it belongs to the world. I love pizza in Naples, but I also love pizza al taglio (by the slice) in Rome. I travel to Italy a lot and although the home of pizza is very conservative there are all sorts of experimental toppings being used around the country.

Pizzaperta is converting even the most ardent pizza purists with its inventive toppings.

Some of the most incredible toppings include crudo, raw scampi with a bit of thyme, or truffles with fontina. First we start with the perfect base. Then we bring these tastes of the Italian kitchen to the pizza,” he says.

Pizzaperta pizza made using the Petra flour feature more contemporary toppings than pizza via Napoli.

The name Pizzaperta translates to ‘we are open for pizza’ referring to the fact the 130-seat piazza-style eatery is al fresco. The sparkling centerpiece of the restaurant is Stefano Ferrara M130 handcrafted wood-burning oven. 

The team at Da Vinci's Italian Restaurant in Summer Hill - one of Manfredi's favourite inner-western Sydney haunts - have also converted to the sweet-scented flour with fantastic results. Future blog post alert: the restaurant rates in my Top 10 places for pizza in Sydney. And its gelato? Certainly rates in my Top 5 list in Sydney. Again, that's another story. Now back to that pizza...

Da Vinci's Italian Restaurant has converted to using Petra flours.     Photo: Carla Grossetti.

Healthy meals in a hurry

While the notion of having fresh produce or pre-prepared nosh delivered to your door is nothing new - it's been happening for decades in Australia - there are now a raft of companies that have taken things up a notch - from sourcing artisanal ingredients to doing your weekly shop for you and telling you what to cook and how to cook it. 

While I will always prefer the experience of mooching around a market and sourcing ingredients for myself, there are times in my life when finding food parcels on my doorstep feels like manna from heaven. Here are four home-delivery services I put to the test to help me get over those hump days.

Marley Spoon spoon-feeds you every step of the way with recipe cards and ingredients ready to go. 

Marley Spoon
The new kid on the gourmet home cooking service block is Marley Spoon, which has upped the ante by bringing a roster of celebrity cooks and chefs to the table to share their easy-to-prepare dishes. It's like someone has flicked through your favourite cookbooks and plucked out the best fuss-free recipes from chefs such as Michael Rantissi of Kepos Street Kitchen to Luke Nguyen, of Red Lantern. Each guest chef brings their own unique flavour to the menu, with Rantissi sharing his take on roast spatchcock with spiced lamb and pine nut stuffing and Everyday Gourmet's Justine Schofield sharing favourites such as the speck, porcini and pine nut pasta. The ingredients arrive in brown paper bags with 6-step illustrated recipe cards. There is even a cooking hotline for home 'kooks'.
BEST FOR: Cashed-up 20-somethings who want to take the guesswork out of dinner and time-poor cooks who want to be inspired in the kitchen.
HANDY HINT: Most of these dishes can be made in one pan and whipped up on a weeknight in as little as 30 minutes.
For more information, visit www.marleyspoon.com.au

Impress the neighbours with this dish'd dessert: heritage raspberry tart with butter shortcrust pastry.   Image: Supplied

dish'd food store
There are lots of reasons to love receiving your delivery of dish'd. Firstly, if you're going to get food delivered, then you want some of the hard work done for you. As well as offering free delivery on orders over $80, there are more than 200 dishes to choose from on the site. After 18 years of running his own restaurant, French chef Jacques Reymond has curated the dish'd menu, which includes dishes such as prawns en papillote with zucchini, edamame beans and lemon crème, green beans, romanesco, cauliflower and broccoli and potato Dauphinois with cheese. Never thought I'd be a fan of pulling food out of the freezer, but there was a great range to choose from and a few nights where dish'd saved my bacon. Fake it until you make it with one of Reymond's French tarts such as raspberry and pistachio frangipane tart with butter shortcrust pasty. Superb!
BEST FOR: Busy couples with dual incomes or single 20-somethings who enjoy chef-inspired dishes but don't know their way around the kitchen.
HANDY HINT: If, like me, you don't own a microwave, simply adapt recipes and use your stovetop to heat up your dinner instead. Oh and repurpose any single-use containers to hold herbs, nuts or seeds.
For more information, visit www.dishd.com.au

Steak and lentil delight from the HelloFresh range of recipes.            Image: Supplied.

HelloFresh
Despite being a passionate cook, I'm often so busy during my working week that I feel like I'm preparing food from a bunker. HelloFresh took me by surprise in that it told me what to cook and shoehorned me out of my food rut. The delivery service arrives with recipe kits and a box full of fresh ingredients portioned out so I could plan my weekly cook-off. I loved being bossed about so I could just focus on the meditative act of chopping, stirring, searing and serving. I also love that by delivering the exact quantity of ingredients I needed for my weekly meals, there was no food waste whatsoever. Family favourites from the 'healthy' range included the harissa chicken with smashed chickpeas, cherry tomato, olive and goat curd penne and chicken soba noodle soup.
BEST FOR: Working parents who want to expand their cooking repertoire with ease and takeaway addicts who are hungry for inspiration.

HANDY HINT: New customers are invited to take the HelloFresh challenge by claiming back the cost of their takeaway dinner to the value of $40 so they can put HelloFresh to the test.
For more information, visit www.hellofresh.com.au

My Food Bag sources quality ingredients and tells you what to cook and how to cook it.

My Food Bag
Dinner can also be delivered to your doorstep courtesy of My Food Bag, which offers four different food bags to choose from. The first food bag comes with a recipe folder that you can fill with meal ideas from the Classic Food Bag (which feeds two adults and two teenagers or four adults), Family Food Bag (which feeds two adults and 2-3 young children), Gourmet Food Bag (for cashed-up couples) or My Own Feed Bag (for busy singles).   The service has teamed up with celebrity chef Miguel Maestre to help Australian householders find their mojo when it comes to making healthy home-cooked dinners. The recipes were also created in consultation with food nutritionist Nadia Lim so are beautifully balanced and nutritious, too. Hits in our household included teriyaki salmon with brown rice and edamame and radish salad as well as pistachio-crusted lamb with red cabbage, kumara and beetroot relish.
BEST FOR: Those who are too busy to do a weekly shop and want to avoid takeaway.
HANDY HINT: Despite the Family Bag being portioned out to feed two adults and two children, we found that we always had leftovers for lunch the next day.
For more information, visit myfoodbag.com.au

If you are struggling at the end of a working week, My Food Bag will help you through Hump Day. 

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Festival an oyster lover's delight

In the Merry Wives of Windsor, Shakespeare wrote 'the world is your oyster'. The expression means you are now in a position to enjoy all the opportunities that life has to offer. This year's annual Oyster Festival at The Morrison Bar & Oyster Room certainly provides the perfect opportunity to enjoy one of life's greatest pleasures: slurping on aquatic invertebrates in all their briny glory.

As much as the festival is about enjoying oysters, it is also about educating punters on what to look for, how to shuck oysters and the differences between varieties. Newbies should know that Pacific oysters taste of salt and sea. Personally, they remind me of being dumped by a wave and rolling around in the surf. In contrast, the Sydney Rock is creamier and richer and recommended for those who are getting their first taste of the contents of those silvery sea-green shells.

Aw shucks ... oysters sourced from around NSW and SA are shucked to order at The Morrison Oyster Festival.

What better place to celebrate the oyster than near to that mound of ice at The Morrison, wielding two-pronged forks and waiting for the bivalve molluscs with rough irregular shells to be opened so you can slide them down your gullet in one go. Enjoying a dozen or so of these delicate little morsels, which may be farmed for food or pearls, is the oyster lover's equivalent of ecstasy. Throughout August this year festival-goers will be able to sip on The Morrison's finest whisky paired with plump oysters served during a Whisky and Oyster Masterclass.

Oyster aficionados can also step up to the shucking station as chef Sean Connolly's team shucks your oysters to order and provides top tips on how to remove the hard shell without losing a finger. If you're a huge sucker for oysters, pencil in the ever-popular Oyster Hour, when oysters are just $1 each between 6pm and 7pm.

The ever-smiling and affable awardwinning chef Sean Connolly, executive chef at The Morrison Bar & Oyster Room.

For those who believe oysters are best eaten in solitude, grab a seat at the back of the bar and work your way through the in-house Oyster Library, which features the most prolifically grown oyster in Australia, the Pacific Oyster as well as the Sydney or Rock Oyster, one of the greatest eating oysters in the world.

De Costi Seafood's sales manager Frank Theodore has curated a list of more than 20 types of oysters from around the country for this year's festival - including the Pacific, the Sydney Rock and the giant Jurassic oyster. Although this is not peak season for oysters, Theodore says the oysters he sources are first-class from their region of origin for this time of year.

Theodore, who has been working with seafood all of his life, says he eats at least two dozen oysters each day in order to select the very best product for his customers.

De Costi Seafoods' sales manager Frank Theodore, a.k.a 'the oyster whisperer' at The Morrison.

"I have a special connection with oysters. Years ago when the Sydney Rock Oyster was the only oyster that was sought-after I was enjoying oysters for my own benefit because I could appreciate the differences in taste," says Theodore.

"My personal preference is for a nice sweet Sydney rock oyster. I like the layers of flavour, I appreciate the creaminess and sweetness and can determine, from its taste, the nutrients it is getting and the environment it is from. I love how a good Sydney rock oyster sits on the back of the palate and it stretches out. It makes the corners of my lips start twitching just to talk about it," he says.

Right this way ... for oysters in all their briny glory.

Theodore says what he loves about The Morrison's oyster festival is that he has the opportunity to educate and inform Australians about what constitutes a good oyster. With sales of oysters in Australia increasing by about 20-30 per cent each year, Theodore says Australians are become smart eaters, interested in their food and where it comes from.

"I love how a good Sydney rock oyster sits on the back of the palate and stretches out. It makes the corners of my lips start twitching to talk about it" - Frank Theodore, De Costi Seafoods.

"I taste oysters every single morning. I judge them by their condition, by their taste, by how they look and I can taste the difference between oysters grown 100m apart - it's all about their environment," he says.

"If you know what to look for in wine, you should want to learn about what to look for in your oysters. People ask me 'Should I bite them?' I say, 'Why wouldn't you?' That's where your tastebuds are, so of course you bite them," he says.

A good oyster 'has a bit of presence' says De Costi Seafoods' Frank Theodore.

As for choosing a good oyster, Theodore - the oyster whisperer - advocates looking at the body part of the oyster, ensuring there is a clean, consistent colour throughout and checking for consistency through the meaty part of the oyster. "A good oyster has a bit of presence. It should fill a good eighty per cent of the shell," he says.

The Morrison Bar & Oyster Room, 225 George St, Sydney, 02 9247 6744, www.themorrison.com.au

Mum's the word: books for cooks

Does your mum like to cook? Or does she simply enjoy the pleasure of flicking through glossy cookbooks? Here are a few of my favourite cookbooks that will make great gift ideas for Mother's Day. Earn a few extra brownie points and present mum with a book and a dish you've created from it. Aim high with Organum, by Peter Gilmore or keep it simple with Neil Perry's Easy Weekends and whatever you do, don't forget to wash up. She'll be even more smitten with the gift if she is not the one wearing the oven mittens.

For the joy of cooking …  Having Margaret Fulton in her test kitchen made Kate Gibbs the envy of cookbook authors around the country. This is the sort of cookbook that will be passed down through the generations, just like the recipes it contains. Margaret and Me brings the Fulton family's recipes to life by sharing some of the history behind them. With retro baking on the rise, Fulton - who has been nominated by the National Trust as a National Living Treasure - has clearly passed down her love of cooking to her grand-daughter who presents her modern take on comforting classics. Part cookbook, part memoir, the book is a personal account of growing up attached to the apron strings of one of the matriachs of Australian cooking. Nothing says 'I love you' like slow-roasted lamb shoulder or custard-filled profiteroles.
Margaret and Me is published by Murdoch Books ($39.99).


For mums who aim to outdo the neighbours …  
Peter Gilmore is executive chef of the three-hatted Quay restaurant in Sydney, included in S. Pelligrino World’s 50 Best Restaurants list five years in a row. In Organum, Gilmore explores the idea of modern Australian cuisine with style and substance in a book that will make lovers of books for cooks purr with pleasure. With its sexy pseudo-suede cover, the book is literally bound to impress and, while many of the dishes sound simple, they are, in fact, complex creations that rely on flavour, texture, technique, aroma and innovation. Test your mettle in the kitchen with pork belly, milk curd, roasted koji, sesame, kombu and smoked pork rib broth. Alternatively, offer your mum a corner to curl up in while she strokes the pages filled with stunning food photography.
Organum by Peter Gilmore is published by Murdoch Books ($100).

For mothers who are partial to a food safari ... 
Enjoy a magic carpet ride around the world, exploring the diverse ingredients of 44 cuisines with more than 400 recipes.  Fans of Maeve O'Meara's TV shows should treat this re-released book like their culinary bible as the TV host and cookbook author takes readers around the globe to visit some of the most vibrant food cultures. In Complete Food Safari, O'Meara will take readers on glorious culinary adventures with dishes such as Peruvian humitas, pork knuckle with potato dumplings, and Hyderabadi chicken, which are just a few of the standouts. If you want to make your mum feel really special, book one of Maeve's magical safaris to Vietnam, the Greek Islands, Sardinia and Corsica.

Complete Food Safari, published by Hardie Grant. ($59.95)

For well-travelled matriachs …  

Same Same But Different presents a range of signature recipes and family classics that all tell a story about Poh Ling Yeow’s life growing up in Australia with Chinese-Malay heritage. The book, which has been shot entirely on location in Poh’s own kitchen, is also a personal account of Poh and the real food influences in her life. Featuring recipes such as mussels with tomato and white wine and spaghetti puttanesca, Same Same But Different is a true reflection of how Australians eat and the way we might whip up a Greek dish one night, Italian another, Japanese the next night. This is for mums who love a table laden with offerings from many nationalities. Menikmati makanan anda! 
Same Same But Different is published by ABC Books ($39.99).

For women who enjoy wielding a pair of tongs ... 

King of the Grill is not just for those new to the art of no-nonsense barbecuing. This bumper collection by Ross Dobson, which draws on culinary influences from around the globe, celebrates that classic Aussie attitude to the barbecue that goes beyond the hiss of fat on the grill and cements this backyard ritual as a social occasion. As well as advice on temperatures and cooking times, techniques and utensils, the book contains recipes that are a step up from snags. If you thrill on the grill, step up to the hotplate and impress your mum with prawn and chorizo skewers, seared tuna with bay leaf and lemon or brined roasted chicken. Mums will approve that vegetables also share the spotlight.
King of the Grill  is published by Murdoch Books ($39.99).

For those with allergies ...
One in 20 children and two in 100 adults in Australia suffer with food allergies. Let Them Eat Good Cake is for Mums who must avoid gluten, dairy, egg and nuts or have someone close to them who fits into that category. The Good Cake Co's Corry Altclass and Nicole Amdur both have family members and close friends who suffer from allergies and struggled to find food that tasted good. Together, the pair have created a recipes that range from baked doughnuts to chocolate and beetroot cake. 'Cause if you're going to eat gluten-free, dairy-free, egg-free, nut-free cake, you want it to taste good, right? An excellent addition to the bookshelves for those that must follow strict diets but don't want to miss out on the occasional guilt-free treat.  Let Them Eat Good Cake is available from www.thegoodcakeco.com.au. 

A book for the hostess with the mostess...  
Have you ever wanted to know what it's like to cook under the command of one of the country's best chefs without the pressure-cooker heat of working in a restaurant kitchen? Sepia is for those who want to take their culinary feats to the next level. Benn is justifiably famous for his restaurant, which won Restaurant of the Year 2015 and was awarded three chef's hats in The Good Food Guide. This book includes 66 of the chef's defining dishes which are based around four degustation menus. As well as testing your technical mastery, the book is an insight into Benn's background and includes stories from the culinary frontline. Experiment with magic elements such as beetroot glass, rhubarb gel and goat's milk foam. Sepia by Martin Benn is published by Murdoch Books ($75). 


Mum's the word for easy entertaining...
Necessity is the mother of invention. Acclaimed chef Neil Perry clearly saw a need for an essential entertaining cookbook with Easy Weekends. If you want to be in the good books, buy this cookbook for mum on Mother's day, which aims to inspire you not just to create meals but shared moments. The book progresses from Friday to Sunday and includes everything from a family stir-fry on a Friday night to lazy Sunday breakfast ideas. It is also the sort of tome that can be used as a blueprint book for those who want to expand the repertoire of dishes they cook for family and friends. It's a guidebook for all occasions.
Easy Weekends is published by Murdoch Books ($39.99).



For mums who plan dinner while enjoying breakfast...
This is a book for well-travelled mums who want to relive the days when they were backpacking through Turkey. Arranged in the form of a typical Turkish eating day, the book by Somer Sivrioglu and David Dale takes readers to the heart of a cuisine that is still evolving to this day. This is a cookbook that has a lot to teach us - from the tradition and diversity of Turkish cuisine to the rituals, myths and folklore that lies behind 3000 years of Anatolian cooking. With more than 140 traditional and modern recipes, the book is for armchair travellers, too, as it was shot on location in Istanbul around Turkey.
Anatolia is published by Murdoch Books ($79.99).

For mums who like to plan ahead... 
Best-selling children's cookery writer Annabel Karmel is the queen of fuss-free tasty recipes for the whole family. In her latest cookbook, Karmel makes mealtimes a cinch with everyday ideas for light meals, snacks and lunch box treats. Those of us in a rut with their repertoire will appreciate the foolproof 'prep ahead' recipes that can be frozen, as well as ideas for leisurely weekend lunches. Favourites include chicken Karmel, nasi goreng and her best-ever banana cake. If you want to totally spoil your mum, take her out to the nearest InterContinental near you and have all the work done for you. Karmel consulted on the InterContinental's Planet Trekkers menu, which is exclusively for children. Annabel's Family Cookbook is published by Random House Australia ($45).

Something your nonna will treasure... 
Luca Lorusso and Vivienne Polak have been very generous in sharing Puglia. You see, the locals have been very protective about sharing cooking secrets from the region nestled in the heel of Ital. But as this beautiful book shows, it's no wonder the Pugliese have been protective about their sharing the food of Puglia. The book is divided into chapters marked antipasti, pasta, pesce e fruitti di mare (fish and seafood), carne, insalate, pane (bread), verdure (vegetables) and dolci e bevande (desserts and drinks). For food-focused travellers, this is the sort of book that will inspire a trip to Italy. It will also open your eyes to a whole new world of Italian cooking. Sharing Puglia is published by Hardie Grant ($49.95).


WIN A PRIZE 
If you’d like to win a copy of Poh Ling Yeow’s book Same Same But Different, simply subscribe to www.carlagrossetti.com and, in 100 words or less, tell me what your signature ‘same same but different’ take on a family classic is. Email entries to carlagrossetti@optusnet.com.au with Same Same But Different in the subject line. Winners will be notified by email.