Rosemary Flower Buds
Also new are Rosemary Flower Buds, a product of our own Australian herb growing industry. We all love the flavour of rosemary, but sometimes we just wish it would soften in cooking! The joy of these flower buds is that they can be chopped or crushed and added to food like other softer herb leaves such as oregano and parsley, for a full rosemary flavour.
People often ask us whether we’ve found any new herbs and spices. Naturally, as they are some of the oldest foods in the world, the answer is generally no. Although we can create new and original blends, or find new ways of processing (as in the case of vine-ripened peppercorns), the actual plants which produce the sticks, seeds, pods and leaves for us to use in cooking have been known for centuries. Our own Australian indigenous plants are probably the source of the newest herbs and spices in the world, and the newest of all is known as Forest Berry Herb, from Eucalyptus Olida. The ground leaf is redolent with a lively passionfruit-and-cinnamon flavour which marries perfectly with sweet fruits, especially berries. We love it in cheesecakes, pancakes, berry pies and sugar syrup for fruits of all kinds.
While we’re on the subject of Australian native flavours, we are suffering from an acute shortage of bush tomatoes, known as akudjura when ground. The drought is the main factor in the shortage, and hopefully there will be more available next year. In the meanwhile, our very popular Native Barbecue Spice, which contains akudjura, is on very short rations. So if it’s one of your favourites, may we suggest Aussie Fish Seasoning as an alternative? Even though we designed it with a slant towards lemon flavours, it’s still delicious on chicken and red meats.