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Over the coming weeks, we’ll take a look at the food of some of these cultures and what we should be focusing on. All the good things that these cultures bring to Oz.

This week we take a look at the maltese cuisine.

Malta is a relatively small country but loaded with many people.

It is well known for its pastry of all kinds which is used to encase vegetables, cheese, fish, meat, rice and pasta, producing tasty and filling dishes.

These include delicate combinations of young cauliflower florets, sheep or goat cheeses and egg contained in a crisp pastry, similar in taste to quiche.

There also rice dishes that are mixed with meats and so forth.

Some other typical Maltese dishes include:

Rabbit – Rabbits are reared and farmed in Malta and are very tasty. There are some restaurants that specialise on just rabbit.

Widow Soup – This is a vegetable soup made with whatever vegetables are in season, cooked in a thick tomato stock. Some people add little pasta to it but this is not necessary.

Arjoli – This is a julienne of vegetables, spiced up and oiled.

Maltese sausage – The Maltese sausage is a confection of spicy minced pork, coriander seeds and parsley, wrapped in stomach lining.

Snails – Cooked with garlic and served with a green sauce made with garlic and fresh herbs and accompanied with fresh crusty Maltese bread.

Lampuki Pie – Filleted dorado mixed with spinach, chestnuts and sultanas and encased in a short-crust pastry.

Pastizzi – Hot pastries filled with either ricotta cheese or peas. The pastry is formed of multiple sheets of transparently thin and crunchy layers.

Stuffed Aubergines – Oven baked aubergines filled with minced meats, breadcrumbs, onions, garlic and parsley.

Bigilla – This is a puree made from beans and herbs.

Timpana – Baked macaroni in a meat tomato sauce wrapped in pastry.

Bragoli – Thin layers of beef form a parcel filled with a hard-boiled egg, pork mince, parsley and breadcrumbs which is then simmered very gently in gravy.

Try some of these today at a range of maltese restaurants around Australia.

The ingredients include three scoops of vanilla ice cream, four scoops of plain low fat yoghurt, three bananas, a handful of strawberries, one egg, one tablespoon of honey and malt.

Mix it up in a blender and you have yourself a beautiful summer banana and strawberry smoothie.

Smoothies are perfect summertime drinks. They quench the thirst but also because it’s full of so many dairy products, they act as a great snack during the day.

If you are weight conscious, you may want to use low fat ice cream with this recipe rather than full cream ice cream.

Other than that, this is a very nutritious drink to make for you, your family or your friends.

THIS is an exceptional dish for summer with some sizzling spanish flavour amongst these olives. It’s perfect for the party where there are multiple cultures involved.

Olives with Spanish Flavours recipe

Ingredients (serves

• 500g mixed olives
• 2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
• 2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
• 2 bay leaves, torn
• 1 teaspoon cumin seeds, toasted
• Large pinch of smoked sweet Spanish paprika
• 100ml extra virgin olive oil
• 250g piece Manchego or parmesan, roughly chopped

1. Combine all of the ingredients in an airtight container. Cover, then place in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours to allow the flavours to develop. Serve. Source: Vogue Entertaining + Travel – December/January 2009, Page 129
   Recipe by Sophia Young

THIS is a great recipe to serve for your multicultural family. Chicken and Rice with a flavour; a spanish flavour. This recipe serves four so make a bit extra for those with larger families.

Spanish Chicken and Rice

Ingredients (serves 4)

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 8 chicken drumsticks
• 1 brown onion, chopped
• 1 green capsicum, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 2 teaspoons mild paprika
• 2 cinnamon sticks
• 1/4 teaspoon chilli powder
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 400g can diced tomatoes
• 1 1/2 cups chicken stock
• 1 cup arborio rice
• chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves and pitted black Spanish olives, to serve

1. Preheat oven to 180°C/160°C fan-forced.
2. Meanwhile, heat half the oil in a heavybased, flameproof casserole dish over medium-high heat. Add chicken. Cook, turning occasionally, for 5 to 7 minutes or until browned. Transfer to a plate.
3. Add remaining oil, onion, capsicum and garlic to pan. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes or until softened. Add turmeric, cumin, paprika, cinnamon sticks and chilli. Cook for 1 minute or until fragrant. Add wine, tomato, stock, rice and chicken. Stir to combine. Cover with lid. Transfer to oven. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes or until rice is tender and liquid nearly all absorbed.
4. Remove from oven. Stir through parsley and olives. Serve.

Super Food Ideas – May 2008, Page 29

Cold meats from the deli at supermarkets are poised to be the number one most popular summer treat considering they make easy meals or snacks.

They can be put in sandwiches or rolls or simply used for snacks during the day.

Whether it’s ham or chicken or beef – it’s a beautiful way to fill yourself up and eat healthy this summer, without slaving away over a hot stove.

Cheeses such as Jahlsberg and Cheddar are also perfect for the occasion.

You may also want a salad to go alongside these meats and greek salads or chicken salads are fantastic for your family this summer.

Jahlsberg cheese is a bit more expensive than most other cheeses, but it is absolutely worth it.

Then of course there’s olives, kebana and a whole lot of other cold snacks that can be placed in the fridge and ready for you to eat at any time.

Cold meat and cheese platters can be purchased from your local Woolworths or Coles stores.

“Obviously there’s a little bit of similarity in that they are amateur cooks but the difference is we don’t give them challenges,” Feildel told AAP on Tuesday.

“They cook what they know and they cook with their heart.

“I’m sure everyone thinks it’s going to be a similar show but it’s really very different.”

The hit show got off to a great start when aired in February but still didn’t attract enough ratings to topple US shows Two and a Half Men and The Big Bang Theory.

Feildel said he was excited about the contestants on the show and believed they would make the ratings.

“I just wanted to be wowed by some cooking. Not necessarily fine dining, but good techniques, just a good meal,” he said.

“Some stood out more than others, but they worked very hard, they’re passionate about food.”

“We can’t be sure for sure, but I’m sure it’s going to work very well, because it’s just about normal people at home and everybody’s going to be able to relate to that,” Feildel said.

It is state against state, kitchen against kitchen – who will win?

It’s a follow on from the series that began three years ago, called My Restaurant Rules. That was hosted by none other than Curtis Stone, a local Aussie chef who made his name that year.

But cooking has always been a legitmate television contender.

There has been Huey’s Cooking, Jamie Oliver’s fantastic cooking adventures and Curtis Stone had his own cooking show on ABC TV.

But My Kitchen Rules is seen as the latest phenomenon – state against state – kitchen against kitchen.

So why are we so into our cooking and why does it rate so well?

Well cooking is something that all of us must do at some stage. We may cook only the basics but cooking is cooking.

Our interest in this is fuelled because we know how hard it is to cook and we see it as a test to others to see if they can cook up a storm.

It also gives us some helpful hints in the kitchen.

But Channel Seven’s concept is a winner – maybe even a ratings winner.

Cooking Time

15 minutes

• 80ml (1/3 cup) vegetable oil
• 1 x 200g pkt Japanese tofu (Soyco brand), drained, cut into 2cm cubes
• 1 x 100g pkt baby Asian greens
• 85g (1 1/4 cups) bean sprouts
• 1 1/2 kecap manis

1. Heat 1 tbs of the oil in a medium non-stick frying pan over high heat. Add the tofu and cook for 2 minutes each side or until golden. Transfer to a plate lined with paper towel.
2. Divide baby Asian greens among serving plates. Top with the bean sprouts and tofu. Place the remaining oil and kecap manis in a small screw-top jar and shake until well combined. Drizzle salad and tofu with dressing and serve immediately.

• Leftovers: Use the bean sprouts in stir-fries.

From taste.com.au