MEAT PIES are as 'Aussie' as kangaroos, koalas and wombats. Pies with peas are popular, as are the different varieties, like steak and kidney.  We buy them hot ready to eat, or frozen from the super-market. They are about the size of a saucer.  If you'd like to try the traditional Australian meat pie, just follow the recipe below.  You will need suitable pie containers to bake them in, maybe your supermarket has alfoil ones like ours here.

 INGREDIENTS:    750 grams minced steak
                              2 beef stock cubes
                               salt and pepper
                              2tablespoons plain flour
                              1teaspoon soy sauce
PIE BASE:            2 cups plain flour
                             1/2 teaspoon salt
                             2/3 cup water
                             60 grams dripping ( or other fat substitute )
PIE TOP:              375 grams packaged puff pastry
                             1 egg yolk
                             1 teaspoon water

METHOD
1. FILLING: Place mince in a pan, stir over low heat until brown.  Add crumbled stock cubes mixed with 1 1/2 cups water.  Add salt and pepper.  Stir until boiling and then reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes.  Thicken with the flour mixed with 1/4 cup water.  Add soy sauce, and allow to cool.
2. PIE BASE:  Sift flour and salt into a basin. Place water and dripping  into a saucepan, stir until dripping melts, remove from heat.
Make a well in the centre of dry ingredients, add liquid, stir until combined.
Turn out on to  a lightly floured surface, knead and roll out pastry to line 8 greased pie tins.  Cut excess pastry from sides using a sharp knife.
Fill centres with cold meat filling.
Roll out the puff pastry on a lightly floured surface, cut rounds for top of pies; use a saucer as a guide.  Wet edges of base pastry, and gently press on the tops.  Trim edges with a sharp knife.  Pierce centre with the point of a knife.  Brush tops with the combined egg yolk and water.  Bake at 230 degrees celcius(hot oven) for around 5 minutes of until golden brown, reduce heat to 180 degrees celcius( moderate oven) and cook for another 10 minutes.


THE PAVLOVA was created in 1935 to honour a special guest, the Russian ballerina Anna Pavlova.  Try the recipe, it will keep in an airtight container for a week, but is unsuitable to freeze or microwave.

INGREDIENTS:    4 egg whites
                              1 cup castor sugar
                              1 tablespoon cornflour
                              1teaspoon lemon juice
                              300 ml of thickened cream
                              1 tablespoon icing sugar
                              1 orange, segmented
                              1 banana, sliced
                              6 strawberries
                              2 passionfruit
METHOD:
Cover oven tray with foil, grease foil, dust with flour, mark a 23 cm(9 inch) diameter circle on foil.
Beat egg whites in a small bowl with electric mixer until soft peaks form, gradually add sugar, beat until sugar is dissolved between additions.  Fold in cornflour and juice.  Spread quarter of mixture over circle leaving a 3cm(1 1/4 inch) border.  Spoon remaining mixture into a large piping bag fitted with a  fluted tube.  Pipe a thick border around meringue cirle to form a shell.  
Bake in a very slow oven for about 1 1/2 hours or until meringue is dry and firm to touch.  Cool in oven with door ajar.
Before serving, beat cream and icing sugar in a small bowl, until firm peaks form, fill meringue shell with cream and decorate with fruit. 
Note( other varieties of fruit maybe used).


 PEACH MELBA named in honour of Dame Nellie Melba, Australia's first World renowned soprano.

INGREDIENTS: 6 halves canned peaches
3 tablespoons peach syrup
sponge cake cut into 6 rounds
6 scoops of ice cream
2 cup whipped cream
tablespoon chopped nuts

METHOD: Put one piece of cake into each serving dish and cover with a little peach syrup. Put a peach half on top of the cake, follow side up. Put a scoop of ice cream on top of the peach. Pour raspberry syrup over ice cream. Decorate with cream and nuts.



Tune being played is "The Pub with no Beer," made famous by Slim Dusty.