EARLY WINTER: Seasonal Update

SEASONAL MENUS

See the best of what is in season right now !

Seasonality isn’t a limitation, but the starting point of our creativity

Set menu formats give the kitchen more freedom to respond honestly and creatively to seasonal rhythms and embrace change (mostly every 6-8 weeks).

MORE ABOUT EARLY WINTER & KEY INGREDIENTS

As ExTract from the Pipit Recipe Book (2020), words by Ben Devlin

There is a really specific feeling to the beaches around here at the start of winter. The wind is often crisp and blowing offshore in the morning in a way that cuts a light corduroy pattern across the surface of the ocean. The colour of the water is a darker blue than the glassy conditions in the warmer months, and the crowds are kept away by work and the cooler weather. 

Less heat during the day is also good for beach plants along the rocky shoreline; they are often tender and juicier, with a gentler flavour at this time of year. The heat of summer can scorch them, making them dry and a little too intense. Warrigal greens will be a little plumper, which helps lower the percentage of mildly toxic oxates (not harmful in small quantities, but can cause throat irritation). Wild beach mustard also benefits from being a bit juicier, making its bite a little less intense. You can also find some beach fig fruit, which has a texture similar to small kiwi fruit and tastes like a salty strawberry.

Winter is also a good time for wild tree flowers: wattle, banksia and myrtle. The highway leading up to Pottsville is flanked by coastal wattle trees, which look like rows of giant golden clouds, welcoming you to the town. We pick flowers for making vinegars, infusing oil, flavouring mead and making spirits. We’ve also used the wattle pollen to make a really tasty ice cream. 

There is usually a good volume of brassicas – cime de rapa, cavolo nero, mustard greens – available from a variety of farms, and the heartier varieties will come later in winter. Local persimmons are ready to preserve, and there are usually a few varieties available.

But the real hero fruit of early winter is citrus. Buck’s Farm in Chillingham produces some wonderfully unique varieties, from yuzu, chinotto, pomelo, red-centre limes and many more. My personal favourite is yuzu; it has an aroma that can stop you in your tracks. It hits you and makes you feel happy all over. We usually preserve some in salt and some as a spirit to keep a bit of the happiness stored away for rainy days later in the year.