WE COULD ALL DO WITH AN AUNT WITH THE WISDOM, GENEROSITY AND COOKING SKILLS OF AUNTY BERYL. TRUE TO CHARACTER, HER COOKBOOK SHARES THESE REMARKABLE TALENTS
Aunty Beryl Van-Oploo OAM is a respected Gamilaroi elder, educator, mentor and businesswoman from Walgett, New South Wales. She moved to Sydney at 16 and, at 31, completed a TAFE diploma in hospitality. She later taught at Petersham TAFE and founded a Home and Work Opportunities for Aboriginal Women course at Eora TAFE in Redfern. Aunty Beryl established the Job Ready program at the National Centre for Indigenous Excellence.
She has run several cafe kitchens and owns a catering business, called Yaama Barrgay, which means “hello, family and friends” in Yuwaalaraay, which employs First Nations staff. She also advises top chefs including Kylie Kwong, René Redzepi and Neil Perry on bush foods.
Pumpkin and potato were the main vegetables my family and I ate when I was growing up. We boiled them, mashed them and made pumpkin soup, but on Sundays, we had a baked dinner with baked pumpkin and potato. That was our special treat.
This is a nice summer salad, with some crunch from the macadamia nuts, while the finger lime yoghurt dressing gives it some zest.
SERVES 4–6
• ¼ cup (60ml) olive oil
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 cup (135g) macadamia nuts,roughly chopped
• 20g butter
• 600g Jap pumpkin, peeled, deseeded and cut into wedges or chunks
• 200g mixed salad leaves
• 1 cup (160g) tinned chickpeas, drained and rinsed
FINGER LIME YOGHURT DRESSING
• ½ cup (130g) natural yoghurt
• ¼ cup (60ml) white-wine vinegar
• ¼ cup (60ml) lime juice
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 3 finger limes (fresh or frozen and thawed)
METHOD:
Preheat the oven to 180°C. Pour half the oil onto a baking tray and place in the oven to heat up. Place the honey and macadamias in a bowl and toss until coated. Carefully transfer to the tray of hot oil and roast for 2–3 minutes, or until golden. Remove from the oven and allow to cool on the tray.
Increase the oven temperature to 200°C. Place the butter and remaining oil on a clean baking tray and place in the oven to heat up and melt.
Pat dry the pumpkin with paper towel and carefully transfer to the tray in the oven. Roast for 3–5 minutes, then turn over. Reduce the oven temperature to 180°C and roast the pumpkin until crisp and browned. Allow to cool.
Meanwhile, make the finger lime yoghurt dressing. Place all the ingredients, except the finger limes, in a bowl. Whisk together until combined. Halve the finger limes lengthways and scoop out the pearls. Stir the pearls through the yoghurt mixture.
Arrange the salad leaves on a serving platter. Top with the pumpkin, chickpeas and macadamia. Drizzle over the dressing to serve.
