How To Cook uses fresh, local ingredients to create delectable treats which make any party a hit.

Our catering menu includes a variety of cold and hot finger foods, sandwiches, salads by the kilo and meal sized quiches and frittatas.

From mini toast  with roast beef and horseradish cream to dill potato rosti with smoked Salmon, our gourmet finger food creations cost $25 per dozen.

Sandwiches are $7 per round and if you are having a BBQ just add one of our fresh homemade salads for a gourmet meal your guests will love.

Salads can be collected in bowls ready to serve. Choose from, Asian, Vietnamese, Potato with Capers and Dill, Roasted Vegetable and Orzo. Prices start from $25.00 per Kilo.

We are also able to create a complete menu for special events and specialise in themed dinners such as Moroccan, Seafood, Roasts or Asian.

And remember us at Christmas. We can cook your Christmas lunch or Christmas party fare for you and all you need to do is collect and serve. Alternatively, we can even arrange delivery!

Different, original and simply delicious, our catering menu is sure to please the toughest crowd. Phone or email us to book catering for your next function.

Click on links for the finger food menus:

Cold Finger Food

Hot Finger Food

Price $12.99

This versatile dumpling maker comes in five different sizes – the largest can even make a pastie! Great for making ravioli – simply cut up fresh lasagna sheets and pop in a filling of your choice!

Price $9.99

This handy, easy to use mill grater has two compartments that can grate two different foods at once! Great for grating cheese, chocolate, ginger or garlic

The aim is to provide more space for the cake decorating equipment and kitchen utensils by closing the café and screening the kitchen.As a result, we will no longer serve in-store meals but we will still offer coffee and cake and continue to produce and stock our wonderful take-home meals and yogurts along with many new offerings available from our fridges and freezers.

We now carry retail packs of jamon and buffalo mozzarella and will soon introduce small packs of smoked salmon and caviar. We still offer catering for functions of all types.The new format allows us to re-focus on the kitchen shop and improve our retail and catering capacity by separating the kitchen from the shop.

To undertake the renovations we will be shutting the shop from September 6 to September 8, reopening at 9am Thursday September 9.

Thank you for your patience. We apologize for any inconvenience this might cause and look forward to welcoming you to our new, invigorated store late next week.

Quinoa is a grain from South America

Pronounced Kin-Wa

The appearance of quinoa in recipes and magazines has prompted us to feature it this month. It is a fantastic addition to any summer salad menu!

Quinoa is a recently rediscovered ancient grain which is native to South America and readily available here in Australia. It was once called “the gold of the Incas” because of its nutritional value which was thought to increase the stamina of the Inca Warriors. In their attempts to control the South American Indians, the Spanish Conquerors destroyed the quinoa fields and forbid its cultivation, with offenders who grew the grain, sentenced to death for their efforts. With these harsh measures in place, the cultivation of quinoa was almost extinguished.

In the 1980’s, the enormous concentrated nutritional potential of quinoa was discovered. Quinoa is a “complete” protein. Proteins are made up of amino acids of which there are 9 that are termed “essential” and any product containing all 9 essential amino acids is called a complete protein. Very few products are complete proteins and are provided in our diets mostly by meat products

Most commonly considered a grain, quinoa has a fluffy, creamy, slightly crunchy texture with a nutty flavour when cooked which makes it an alternative to rice or couscous. It is actually the seed of a plant that is a relative of leafy greens like spinach, swiss chard and beets. The most popular type of quinoa is a transparent yellow colour. Other varieties feature colours such as orange, pink, red, purple and black. Although difficult to find, the leaves of the quinoa plant are edible and are similar to spinach in taste.

Quinoa has an added advantage of being gluten free and is the least allergenic of the grains.

You can treat quinoa in the same way as you treat rice, and use one cup of seed, to two cups of water. Bring this to the boil in a large saucepan, then reduce heat, cover and simmer. Cook for 10 to 12 mins or until the germ separates from the seed and the grains have become translucent. If you like the quinoa to have a nuttier flavour, dry roast over low heat in a pan to toast the seeds before boiling. Quinoa can be cooked in a rice cooker using the same quantities of grain to water. ie 1 part grain to 2 parts water

Substitute quinoa for Bulgar Wheat to make Tabouli.

Try our Quinoa Curry Salad at your next barbeque or serve with grilled chicken, lamb or pork as a family meal.

Organic quinoa is available in store for $17.99 / 500gm bag

Price $34.99

Turn vegetable slicing and dicing into a breeze with this sturdy, foldable slicer with five interchangeable blades, safety holder and juicer attachment. This is a very handy piece of equipment which does the work of dozens of different utensils.

3 in 1 Turning Slicer

Price  $39.99

This fabulous new slicer is the retail version of a commercial slicer which was recently featured on Master Chef. It can turn a potato into one continuous spiraling chip.

In the MasterChef Master Class 7 this chip was then coated in cornflour and  fried with clarified butter to create a “potato crisp”. Click here to see the amazing results and the full recipe for a Potato Ravioli with Braised Leeks and Potato Crisp.

$4.50 per tub

• Rhubarb & Apple
  Freshly cooked local rhubarb combined with apple slices and Tahitian vanilla
• Passionfruit Curd
  Delicious homemade lemon curd combined with fresh tropical passionfruit
• Strawberry Vanilla
  Strawberries fresh from the fields of the Sunshine Coast with Tahitian vanilla
• Vanilla & Honey
  Delicious local honey and vanilla combination
• Balsamic Strawberries

• 2 onions finely chopped                                        
• 150gms celery                                                       
• 2 zucchini finely diced                                          
• 2 carrots finely diced                                             
• 250gms peeled pumpkin diced                              
• 250gms peeled sweet potato finely diced             
• 2 tablesp oil
• 5gms saffron threads
• 2 level teasp turmeric
• 2 dessertsp tomato puree
• 1 kg diced tomatoes
• 2 teasp salt
• freshly ground pepper
• 1 teasp grated fresh ginger  root
• 2 large handfulls chopped coriander
• 2 large handfuls chopped flat leaf parsley
• 1 x 400gm tin green lentils drained     
• 1 x 400gm tin butter beans drained
• 2 x 400gm tins chick peas drained
• lemon wedges to serve  
• parsley sprigs to garnish
• 2–3 litres chicken or vegetable stock

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Method

1. Heat oil in pan and add onions and cook till soft and caramelized
2. Add saffron and turmeric and continue cooking
3. Add tomato puree and diced tomatoes and bring to the boil
4. Cook 5 mins
5. Add 2 litres of stock
6. Add carrot, zucchini, celery, pumpkin and sweet potato and bring to the boil
7. Reduce heat and simmer for 20 to 25  mins
8. Add drained lentils, chick peas and beans
9. Check to see if more stock is required
10. Stir in parsley, coriander, salt, pepper and ginger
11. Taste and adjust seasonings
12. Serve hot sprinkled with a little lemon juice and garnished with parsley leaves

• 1 crisp lettuce
• 1 carrot peeled and trimmed
• 1 fennel bulb
• 1 small handful radish
• 2 white endives or chicory
• 200gms smoked salmon
• 100gms goat cheese
• 6 tablesp EVOO
• 2 tablesp lemon juice and rind 1 lemon
• 1 clove garlic grated
• 1 bunch fresh dill

Method

1. Use a clean board and a sharp knife
2. Chop all vegetables, harder vegetables first. Combine in a bowl
3. Combine oil, lemon juice, rind and garlic
4.  Top with smoked salmon and goats cheese
5. Dress and sprinkle with dill