Cooking with Maggie Beer in the Barossa Valley

A HOMELY welcome awaits at the television cook's Farm Shop in the Barossa Valley, writes Briar Jensen.

maggie beer's farm shop

I'M at the daily cooking demonstration at Maggie Beer's Farm Shop and the room is awash in the rich, home cooking aromas reminiscent of my mother's farmhouse kitchen (where butter, duck fat and lard reigned supreme).

"Fat is flavour," Hannah says, as she splashes olive oil into frothing butter. Portobello mushrooms are added to the perfect nut-brown butter before being seasoned with lemon thyme, cracked pepper and "a good large dollop of verjuice", something not around in my mother's day.

Maggie is busy next door bustling between the shop, restaurant kitchen and deck. She bestows her broad beaming smile and warm welcome. It feels like she's welcoming you to her home, and in some ways she is.

That's the thing about television shows such as The Cook and the Chef, in which she starred alongside chef Simon, you feel like you are right there with them in the kitchen.

This "kitchen" where Hannah is now cooking is a replica of Maggie's home kitchen built for the show.

Bottles of preserves sit atop a blue-washed antique shelving unit from an old shop, which is filled with heirloom plates, cut glass bowls and blue willow china. A candelabra in need of a polish stands on the bench above crazed mixing bowls and bunches of parsley. Everything is pre-loved and well-used.

With the television series no longer in production, the set is now used for research and development along with cooking demonstrations at the farm shop in the unusually named town of Nuriootpa in South Australia's Barossa region.

I learn to glaze with vino cotto and deglaze with verjuice - but it's all in Maggie's latest book, should I forget.

In the shop, old wooden buffets and distressed timber tables are laden with Maggie's produce. Olives, pickles, sauces and pastes nestle between cookbooks and branches of banksia flowers.

Blushing red apples, fresh from the orchard, fill baskets and old-fashioned scales. Staff sporting black and white striped aprons offer tastings of Pheasant Farm wines, developed by Maggie's husband Colin.

The rustic, mismatched furniture and enamel tableware imbue a homely, country kitchen feel, perfect for Maggie's "gusty, flavoursome, simple food", as she puts it.

I choose the signature homemade game terrine from the all-day picnic-style menu. Wrapped in a sour cream pastry, it's served with vino cotto-dressed greens and cabernet sauce.

Dining on the deck overlooking the dam is relaxing.

A nature walk around the dam passes vines, olive and quince trees. Iridescent blue peacocks strut across the path, geese honk by the water and tiny birds chatter in the aviary.

Pens house turkeys, quails and pheasants - a reminder of Maggie and Colin's humble beginnings as pheasant farmers.

The Barossa is full of friendly producers such as the Beers, and you can find most of them at the Barossa Farmers Market every Saturday morning in the Yalumba Vintners Sheds in nearby Angaston.

A boy busks on his guitar outside the market where locals catch up on village gossip. Inside it's an olfactory overload, from ground coffee and freshly-baked bread to fragrant basil and sizzling pork.

Cane baskets overflow with certified organic vegies picked that morning. There are freshly-made pastas and homemade jams, pickles and curry pastes.

Farmers and producers spruik their free-range pork, traditional Barossa mettwurst and freshly-pressed olive oil. Saskia Beer, Maggie's daughter, chats with a customer over sizzling samples of her free-range chicken.

Innovative flavour partnerships tempt the tastebuds, such as pistachio and cardamom biscuits and fig and fennel bread. I sample some handmade chocolate and leave with a punnet of sweet-smelling strawberries.

Under the black and white striped awning in Angaston's main street is the Barossa Valley Cheese Company. Run by Victoria McClurg, the company's artisan cheeses are made using locally-sourced cow and goat milk.

Here you can pick up a special cooler bag of cheeses with knife, board, condiments and map to take on the Barossa Cheese and Wine trail.

If you've got room left for dinner, then try Harry's Restaurant at the Novotel Barossa Valley Resort, with rural valley views.

Executive chef Francis Luzinier supports the Eat Local program, a South Australian initiative promoting the enjoyment of regional produce. His seasonal menus include Maggie's pheasant, Saskia's chicken and Victoria's cheese.

I follow a creamy, moreish garlic soup with a delicious cheese fondue (Francis is obviously fond of fondues, with cheese, tomato and chocolate versions on the menu), but sadly don't have room for dessert - such as lemon and Lyndoch lavender tart.

There's certainly plenty to satisfy in the Barossa - best served with family, friends and lashings of fun.

The writer was a guest of South Australia Tourism.

Go2 - THE BAROSSA VALLEY

Getting there: The Barossa Valley is just over an hour's drive north-east of Adelaide.

Staying there: The Novotel Barossa Valley Resort offers apartment-style rooms. Facilities include golf course, swimming pool and Endota Spa. 42 Pioneer Ave, via Golf Links Rd, Rowland Flat.

Eating there: Maggie Beer's Farm Shop is open every day from 10.30am to 5pm except New Year's Day, Good Friday, Christmas Day and Boxing Day. No bookings required. Daily cooking demonstrations at 2pm. 50 Pheasant Farm Rd, Nuriootpa. See

The Barossa Farmers Market is held every Saturday from 7.30am to 11.30am at Vintners Sheds, corner of Nuriootpa and Stockwell roads, Angaston.

Saskia Beer's produce can be bought at the Barossa Farmers Markets most Saturdays. See saskiabeer.com

More info: See southaustralia.com, barossa.com and eatlocalsa.com.au

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