5 November 2010
GARDEN TO TABLE
Last weekend I hosted Stephanie Alexander for a quiet weekend at our beach house. Stephanie runs the Kitchen Garden Foundation in Australia and has a programme with children growing and cooking vegetables in about 1400 school gardens across Australia. She was in Auckland to support the Garden to Table Trust which has been working on a similar pilot scheme here over the past three years. Three schools East Tamaki, Meadowbank and Peninsular primaries are piloting the programme with much success.
On Thursday evening Stephanie was guest of honour at a delicious fundraiser for the Trust in Auckland , held in St Matthews in the City. The venue with its soaring cathedral like roof looked totally amazing. An incredible edible garden had been created inside the entrance and table decorations were all edible plants, fruits and vegetables.
It was an event founded on generosity. Everything was donated and I cannot even begin to imagine how much of the volunteer time went into the organisation. Sue Fleischl of the Great Catering Company and the Great Hiring Company went far beyond the call of duty in arranging the layout, logistics, staff, equipment, pre-dinner hors d’oeuvres and even provided her kitchen for the out of town chefs to prep. The Langham provided accommodation, and countless generous souls around the city gave auction prizes and the ingredients and wines for the dinner.
For everybody who attended the food and wine were the real stars of the evening. (Sorry Stephanie!) A rock-star line up of chefs cooked at six stations and their dishes were accompanied by matching wines. It was a great showcase for fresh New Zealand produce and our delicious wines.
Kate Fay of Cibo cooked a very smart lamb dish with accompanying Villa Maria CS Syrah Viognier 2006 , Phillip Johnson of Ecco in Brisbane cooked his fabulous beetroot risotto with blood orange, matched to Craggy Range C3 Chardonnay Kidnappers Vineyard 2008, Jonny Schwass from Christchurch dished up a lovely smoked Regal salmon with a cauliflower pannacotta served with the lovely Saint Clair Block 9 Big John Riesling and the Sugar and Spice girls (aged between 8 and 12 yrs) prepared a prawn dish with avocado, paired with the spicy wonderful Matawhero Gewurztraminer 2009.
My personal favourites of the evening were the Mudbrick Viognier that their chef from their Waiheke Vineyard restaurant, Andreas Lindberg matched to his ethereal dish of pork belly with dainty vegies from their own garden, and the hearty venison pie made by Martin Bosley from Wellington matched with Brick Bay’s Martello Rock 2006, a Bordeaux blend form their Matakana vineyard. And I loved the choice on arrival; Selak’s Methode Traditionelle 2006 or a minty grapefruit, cranberry and vodka cocktail made with Ocean Spray juices and Purple Monkey Finger Vodka (an innovative new vodka made with Ruawai kumara.)
What a feast and $90,000 approx raised. Well done and thanks to all the wineries and chefs I worked with for their part in this munificent event.