Mystery Sweets and Winners of the Olive Oil Contest

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Do you know what that chocolate cookie is above?

How about that crunchy little one below?

Though both have quite storied pasts, they are both new to my taste buds, having been introduced to them on my recent trip to Australia, sponsored by Boundary Bend, Ltd.

The chocolate biscuit (cookie to you, Americans), composed of two layers of crispy chocolate malted cookies spread with light chocolate cream and then covered in yet more chocolate, is supposedly the very favorite of Australians. Any Aussies in the house? Is that true? Is this cookie akin to the Oreo of Australia?

Arnott’s bakery, established just north of Sydney in 1865, started making the cookies in 1964. They were apparently named after the winning horse in the 1958 Kentucky Derby, according to Wikipedia, after the owner of Arnott bakery attended that particular race.

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Garlic Fest & Unique Corkage Fee Program

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Gilroy Garlic Fest:

It will be a most pungent time at the 32nd Gilroy Garlic Festival, July 23-25, in Christmas Park.

Yes, that’s Mr. Garlic front and center above, with the two goofy Foster Imposter Chickens, who also will be putting in appearances as Foster Farms is the official chicken provider for the fest. The portly birds also will be on hand  to get the word out against salt water-plumped chickens, which contain more sodium and end up being more expensive with the added water weight.

At this year’s festival, enjoy live music, children’s entertainment, and a plethora of food booths selling everything from garlic chicken sandwiches to garlic steak tacos to garlic ice cream with cantaloupe.

July 24 at 10 a.m., eight amateur chefs from around the country will vie for the $1,000 cook-off prize. Locals will no doubt be cheering for the two California contestants: Jamie Miller of Napa, who will be making “Deconstructed Beef Wellington with Garlic-Tarragon Aioli” and Michael G. Labrador of Newhall, who will be whipping up “Garlic Paella with Garlic Aiolli.”

July 25 at noon, four chefs will take to the stage for a $5,000 cook-off. “Top Chef” contestant Fabio Viviani will host the cook-off featuring another “Top Chef” alum and the defending champion from last year, Ryan Scott, who will go up against Jerry Regester of C Restaurant in Monterey; Jesse Llapitan of the Palace Hotel in San Francisco; and another “Top Chef” alum, Mattin Noblia of Iluna Basque in San Francisco.

New this year is a commitment from festival organizers to make the event as green as possible in the next three years by featuring local ingredients and products, as well as sourcing re-usable materials.

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Fish Tacos Still Rule

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With all the hub-bub lately about the spicy Korean short rib taco craze, you might think fish tacos have gone passé.

Not so.

In fact, two San Francisco Bay Area spots have rolled out new, inventive versions just in time for summer.

First up, Gott’s Roadside (the restaurant formerly known as Taylor’s Automatic Refresher) is serving up fish tacos — poke-style. Yes, three crispy tacos ($13.99) are filled with Hawaiian-style raw, marinated ahi tuna cubes, avocado, green cabbage, cilantro and spicy mayo.

Gott’s also features a new “B-Side” menu — sly, you-have-to-ask-for-it selections on a special list that you have to specifically request at the counter or follow @gottsroadside on Twitter for updates on that particular menu.

A few of the recent secret menu items have included the “Big Tasty” (buttermilk fried chicken with house-made ranch dressing, aioli, melted Swiss cheese and bacon on a butter-toasted egg bun) and the “Fish Royale Sandwich” (fresh mahi-mahi, tartar sauce, Romaine, and American cheese on a toasted bun).

The “B-Side” items are meant to showcase fresh-picked ingredients from Gott’s new garden in St. Helena, which will be used at all Gott’s locations. Those include heirloom tomatoes, herbs, shallots, squashes, potatoes and peppers.

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A Visit to Two Australian Wineries

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YARRA VALLEY, AUSTRALIA — Just about an hour’s drive from Melbourne, this picturesque region is the country’s leading cool climate wine region.

On my recent trip to Australia, sponsored by Boundary Bend Ltd., I had a chance to visit two outstanding wineries in this valley, the oldest wine region in the state of Victoria in the southern part of the continent.

With its stunning, contemporary main building with sweeping lines that echo the ridge line it overlooks, Yering Station hardly looks like the the oldest winery in the Yarra Valley. But the first grapes were planted here in 1838.

The family-owned winery is known for its Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Shiraz and sparkling wines. In fact, Yerring Station’s Assistant Winemaker Marc Lunt says that many wine critics consider Australia second only to Burgundy, France for its quality of Chardonnay. The 2009 we tried was wonderfully creamy and tasted vaguely of peaches. It also had a lovely mineral note, giving it nice balance.

Yering Station also makes an interesting blend of Shiraz and Viognier, apparently a quite common marriage in the Yarra Valley because Merlot does not grow well here. The Viognier takes its place instead, softening the power of the Shiraz grape.

A small group of food journalists and I had the pleasure of dining at the winery’s fabulous restaurant with Lunt. The large dining room has a back wall of floor-to-ceiling windows that overlook the rolling hills. Even on an overcast day in the fall in the Southern Hemisphere, it was breathtaking.

We shared an assortment of appetizers at lunch. You know a restaurant is good when it can turn out such outstanding dishes when the head chef isn’t even in the house that day.

The prices may seem high by American standards (about $21 each for the appetizers), but you have to take into consideration that the gratuity system is much different Down Under. In Australia, it’s not customary to tip 18 percent or what-have-you as it is in the United States.  Instead, even if you leave a token tip, it’s viewed as more than enough. So the prices reflect that.

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Olive Oil-Sherry Pound Cake and A Chance to Win Aussie Olive Oil Samples

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Like wines, olive oils have a myriad of flavors and aromas.

The more robust tasting the olive oil — with an intense bitterness and astringency on the nose and palate — the more antioxidants it has. It also will keep longer — even five years — than milder tasting olive oils, which should be consumed within a few months of pressing.

Use pungent extra virgin olive oils when you want them to be the focal point, such as in salads or as a finishing touch to dishes or just to dunk chunks of crusty bread in. Use mild olive oils in cooking when you don’t want its flavor to dominate.

Those were among the olive oil lessons I learned on my recent trip to Australia with a small group of food journalists. We were guests of Boundary Bend Ltd., which makes Australia’s premier extra virgin olive oils under its Cobram Estate label.

One of the highlights of the trip was getting to taste a variety of just-pressed oils. After choosing our favorite varietal, we were each given a precious little bottle to take home.

While most of my colleagues opted for the more potent tasting oils, I chose the Manzanillo, a more delicate, fruity, and almost creamy tasting oil with the intriguing scent of strawberry jam.

My hosts said it was ideal for baking. And they were correct, as it tasted lovely in the “Olive Oil and Sherry Pound Cake” that I made when I returned home.

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