 |
WHERE THERE'S SMOKE...
FOR the Australian Barbecue Academy, and for me, the fun continues and the smoke rises. But it's that time of the year — when A•B•A masterclasses go into recess for the chilly months.
THE RETURN OF THE MASTERCLASSES
This year, as always, masterclasses will return in Spring with a very special event, at the magnificent Villa Gusto in the Buckland Valley, on Sunday November 4 — in the heart of Melbourne Cup weekend.
You can mark the occasion, this year, with a visit to one of Australia's finest resorts — Group One all the way — for a unique barbecue masterclass in a glorious Tuscan setting. More details soon. And watch the Villa Gusto website, also.
And then it's business as usual with weekly masterclasses: November 10 is already booked out, but there is room on November 17, 24 and December 1. After which we take a Christmas break, kicking off again on February 2.
So please, book early: the masterclasses will be better than ever with a whole new batch of recipes. And ideas. And maybe even a few new jokes. Anything's possible...
HEAT AND SMOKE
My book – HEAT & SMOKE: mastering the dark art of real barbecue – is on sale in good book shops, barbecue shops, specialist food outlets, on-line at heatandsmoke.com or right here, by clicking the Buy Now button below.
Creating the book was fun. And satisfying. And, frankly, delicious. And the fact that it has become an immediate best-seller is an added bonus. The process used was unorthodox: I prepared the dishes on one or other of the eight barbecues I have in my back yard; food photographer Dean Cambray, a photographic genius who happens to enjoy food almost as much as I do, shot it; and then we ate it. Neither of us is quite as thin as perhaps we once were. But it was all in a good cause.
The book explores my simple barbecue philosophy, and provides easy access to the dishes which make modern barbecue special. I believe that we can all become grillmasters with the right guidance. It is not brain surgery. Or rocket science. Or even brain science or rocket surgery. But it is terrific fun, and adds up to a basic life skill worth mastering.
The book is modestly priced – $24.95 in the shops, a touch more if you are having it sent to you. We are able to keep the price low because we have self-published. And because we wanted to. We have put everything we know about barbecue into this book, and now we want everyone to be able to share it. Simple as that.
As many of you know, classes are limited to six participants, and run from 2pm sharp to around 7pm. There is always plenty of fine food and exquisite wines – the incomparable Strathbogie wines from Ladies Who Shoot Their Lunch continue as A.B.A. sponsors – and everything participants could possibly need is provided. Including, I trust, inspiration...
You can book for that remaining spot by calling or emailing me (see contacts details below), and then confirming your booking with the payment of either a $50 deposit, or the full amount of $400, with the balance payable in the week of the class. But be quick.
Give A•B•A Gift Certificates – with a face value of $400 – to your partner, a relative, a mate or even a neighbour, and YOU could be the ultimate beneficiary! These do not have an expiry date – they expire when I do!
The dishes cooked at classes vary with the seasons. But a typical summer class covers dishes drawn from such offerings as grilled fresh asparagus, roasted corn, marinated and grilled portobello mushrooms, oysters kilpatrick on the grill, cedar-planked fresh salmon, lamb cutlets with mint pesto, the perfect steak, beer butt chicken, butterflied leg of lamb, meltingly tender pork ribs, slow-cooked brisket of beef, Mars Bar stuffed apples, roasted stone fruit and much, much more.
The A•B•A promise: sign up, and your backyards will never taste the same again, and you will learn things about the dark art of barbecue that will change the way you think about heat, smoke and cooking and eating out of doors.
And who knows? Before you reach the end of your Masterclass, you may be thinking seriously about signing up for another.
