Maggie Beer to sing for her supper on Perth visit
Trends in the fickle world of food fashion come and go faster than you can say "forest forager''. And Maggie Beer, who has been an Australian kitchen name for more than 35 years, has swanned through them all - from fondues to dude food and green juice.
"Yes, I've been a big fan of the antioxidants in greens for a long time,'' she says. "Peter Cundall, who did the ABC TV program Gardening Australia, told me all about the benefits of kale so I have been growing it in my garden for years.''
As for food foraging, she was doing that well before most of today's celebrity chefs were born.
"We would forage for wild mushrooms and yabbies on the farm,'' Beer says. "That's what you do when you live in the country.
"Hmm ... insects? I know Kylie (Kwong) is a big fan, but I'm not so sure about that. I would eat witchetty grubs, though, they're full of protein.''
Beer doesn't need to eat grasshoppers or beetles to earn the respect of her legion of followers around the nation. As a recipient of the Order of Australia medal and the Senior Australian of the Year in 2010, the 68-year-old has already got bucketloads of that.
And her Perth fans will be able to get their fill next month when she's in town to launch her new cookbook, Maggie's Christmas, at a Dymocks literary dinner at Government House.
Maggie Beer will do two speaking engagements in Perth, and will even sing at one.
The self-taught cook first rose to national fame as a restaurateur and cookbook author who delivered produce-driven unpretentious dishes. It was all real food. Fresh food. Seasonal food. Food cooked with love. Stuff that never goes out of fashion. The popularity of her Pheasant Farm restaurant in South Australia, which served up just such food in the form of pheasant pates and terrines, quince paste and her beloved verjuice, saw her turn to food manufacturing.
Next came hosting hit ABC TV series The Cook and the Chef with Hilton chef Simon Bryant.
And now her Farm Shop, at Nuriootpa in the Barossa Valley, is a mecca for foodie tourists - hordes turn up hoping to see Beer in her wellies tending to her grapevines or olive trees.
But they'd have to be lucky to catch her there. When she's not rushing around the nation attending meetings or speaking engagements, she's juggling writing cookbooks and testing her range of food products. Then, she's exercising her vocal cords with her local chorale group or setting up meetings to improve the quality of food in aged-care facilities around the nation.
That latter, far from fashionable, cause came about through a chance meeting, back in 2010, with former Western Australian of the Year, Professor Ralph Martins, when they were chatting at an Australia Day honours function.
"We started talking about his research into Alzheimer's and what causes it,'' she says. "It's a cause very close to my heart. I am very supportive of the research he is doing and am very keen to spread the message.''
The two became friends and have kept in touch since that first meeting and Beer has spoken out about the need to focus on trying to improve the meals for those in long-term care.
"It's not just about good quality food,'' she says. "It's about healthy food, fresh food. It's about a whole group of people who are being denied the positive social experience that goes with sharing a meal in conducive surroundings.''
To that end, she is establishing a national network of like-minded people to campaign for better food. It's not surprising then that Beer leapt at the chance to include a fundraising dinner for the McCusker Alzheimer's Research Foundation, of which Prof Martins is the director of research, while she's in Perth.
She only had two requests for the dinner. Firstly, that the five chefs involved - Alain Fabrègues, Neal Jackson, Giuseppe Pagliaricci, Chris Taylor and Richard Taylor - would use well-known "brain foods", such as turmeric, leafy greens and fish in their menu. And, secondly, that she would be able to sing a song. As a result, Tuxedo Junction, the chorale group who will entertain on the night, will have Beer join them in a song for the $175-a-head guests.
She'll also talk about her new cookbook: "It's about food for picnics, food for the beach. It's all about providing a feast for loved ones.''
* Maggie Beer's literary dinner, Dec 5, Government House, $160, includes a three-course meal with matched wines. Go to www.trybooking.com/DVMR or phone 0401 671 849 to book.
* McCusker Alzheimer's Research Foundation fundraising dinner, Dec 6, PCEC, $175, includes a menu prepared by five Perth chefs with matched wines. Call 9347 4200 to book.
Source: The Herald Sun, 24 November 2013
