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Every year Julia Busuttil Nishimura makes this Ligurian Easter pie without fail. Nourishing, delicious and fun to make, we are grateful Julia has shared her secret family recipe with us! The dough is rolled out until transparent and then layered to create a unique flaky pastry which is so crunchy and golden and the perfect envelope for the greens and eggs.

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C fan-forced. Grease a 23 cm loose-bottomed or springform round tin with olive oil.

2. Combine the flour and Maldon Sea Salt in a large bowl. Pour in the olive oil and water and mix with your hands until the mixture forms a shaggy ball. Tip onto a lightly floured work bench and knead for 5 minutes or until smooth. Divide into four balls and cover with a clean tea towel.

3. For the filling, blanch the silverbeet and spinach, refresh in cold water then squeeze out the excess moisture. Blitz to a puree in a food processor and place in a bowl with the ricotta, eggs, marjoram and Parmigiano Reggiano. Mix to combine and season to taste.

4. On a lightly floured work surface, roll out one of the balls of dough to a very thin circle, as thin as you can roll it, stretching with your hands to help it along. Drape the pastry into the prepared tin and brush with olive oil. Roll out another ball of dough, repeating the draping and brushing. There should be about 4 cm of dough overhanging the tin.

5. Spoon the filling into the tin and spread to level the mixture. Using the back of a spoon, make four deep indentations in the mixture and crack an egg into each of them. Repeat the rolling, draping and brushing with the two remaining balls of dough to make a top for your pie. Trim the overhanging pastry to just 2cm, then fold in the dough edge, crimping as you go, to seal the pie.

6. Whisk 1 teaspoon of water into the remaining egg to make a wash and brush the top of the pie and the crimped edge. Using a fork, poke a few steam holes in the middle of the pie and sprinkle with extra Maldon Sea Salt.

7. Bake for 45-50 minutes until the pastry is golden and the pie is piping hot in the middle. Check by inserting a metal skewer into the pie; it should come out very hot to the touch. Allow to cool briefly, then remove the pie from the tin and transfer to a serving plate or board.

Entertaining made easy with Julia Busuttil Nishimura’s Banoffee Pie. A nutty buttery base, rich caramel, fresh banana and pinch of Maldon Sea Salt — it’s the no-bake crowd-pleaser that will have your guests coming back for more…

  1. In a food processor, blitz the biscuits, peanuts and Maldon Sea Salt to a fine crumb. Tip the crushed biscuits and peanuts into a large bowl and pour in the melted butter sitting to combine. Tip into a 23 cm loose-bottomed fluted tin and press firmly all around to create a base. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
  2. In a medium bowl, mix together the dulce di leche with the Maldon Sea Salt. Spread the dulce di leche onto the biscuit base. Top with sliced bananas.
  3. Whip the cream and crème fraîche to firm but billowy peaks and pile it onto the bananas, spreading towards the edges in a swirled motion. Top with shaved chocolate and a sprinkling of Maldon Sea Salt. Chill until ready to serve.

The ultimate seafood feast. Try Helena Moursella’s Mediterranean-inspired Lobster with Caper, Red Pepper & Lemon Butter. Served with warm mini pita so your guest can mop up every last drop of the Maldon-seasoned lobster sauce. Heaven.

  1. To make the caper butter, whiz all ingredients except the butter in a food processor until finely chopped. Add butter and whiz to combine. Season with Maldon Sea Salt flakes and cracked pepper.
  2. Preheat oven to oven 200°C, grill function.
  3. Evenly spread the butter over the lobster. Place onto a wire rack with a tray underneath. Roast for 22 minutes or until the lobster is just cooked through.
    Remove lobster from the oven, and spoon over buttery pan juices. Serve with torn pita bread and lemon wedges. Making sure you dip the bread into all the delicious butter juices.

We’re calling it, this is the dessert of summer! An irresistible combination of luscious panna cotta and refreshing frappé coffee. This dessert was made for summer entertaining.

  1. To make the panna cotta, grease 4 x 150ml capacity glasses.
  2. Meanwhile, place the pure cream, sugar and instant coffee mixture in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat and stir until sugar has dissolved. Allow the cream to infuse for 5 minutes.
  3. Soak gelatine in cold water for 5-6 minutes to soften.
  4. Squeeze excess water from the gelatine and add to the cream mixture, stirring until gelatine has dissolved. Season with Maldon Sea Salt flakes. Divide among glasses and refrigerate for 5-6 hours or overnight, to set.
  5. To make the cream, place the thickened cream into the bowl of a stand mixer attached with the whisk attachment and mix on medium for 3-4 minutes until stiff peaks form. Fold in the sour cream and whisk for an extra minute. Spoon the cream onto the panna cotta and serve with an extra season of Maldon Sea Salt flakes.

This is a very easy, fuss-free recipe with a cooking time of roughly 40 minutes on the outdoor grill. The best part is the marinade for the chicken, which is made with an infusion of gentle, warming spices like smoked paprika and chipotle paste to give a spicy kick to the meat. With a dash of runny honey and the juice of a lemon, the marinade is bought to a sweeter, zesty level.

Did you know spatchcocking is the method in which you split a whole chicken by removing the backbone so that it is completely flattened. This will reduce the cooking time significantly, which is ideal for wanting to cook in a much speedier fashion for your hungry guests!

Here is how to make our Spatchcock BBQ Chicken…

  1. Start by spatchcocking the chicken. Place it on your board breast side down and the legs at the bottom facing towards you. Use a pair of sharp scissors start at the end with the parson’s nose and then cut either side of the backbone all the way up so you remove it completely.
  2. Then flip the chicken over and use your hands to press down on the breastbones and legs to snap the small bones and flatten the chicken out.
  3. Now prepare the marinade by mixing together the olive oil, garlic, smoked paprika, cumin, chipotle paste, runny honey and lemon juice. Season this well with Maldon Salt and cracked black pepper.
  4. Place the spatchcock chicken on a large tray and the coat it well with the marinade, making sure it gets into all the cavities and is evenly coated.
  5. Leave this to marinade for at least 30 minutes, but can be left overnight in the fridge too.
  6. When you are ready to cook your chicken, heat up the BBQ. The best way to ensure even cooking is to cook the chicken skin side up on the indirect coals for approximately 20 – 30 minutes. Then turn the chicken and place it on the hot coals skin side down for about 10 minutes until the skin is nice and crispy. This really does depend on the heat of your BBQ so make sure to keep an eye on it.
  7. If you aren’t using a BBQ you can simply cook the chicken in the oven at 180C for 15 minutes and then place under the grill for a further 10 to crisp up the skin. A spatchcock chicken cooks much quicker than a whole chicken.
  8. Serve the chicken alongside your favourite side dishes – we’ve done chips and salad. It also goes well with garlic aioli mayonnaise.
  9. Keep your leftover chicken for the next couple of recipes and make sure to reserve the chicken carcass.

This simple pasta dish is packed with fresh flavours of prawns, feta and tomatoes. Perfect for spring entertaining, or a tasty mid-week meal!

  1. Peel and devein the prawns, making sure to keep the tails intact.
  2. Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a large saucepan over medium heat and cook onion, pepper, parsley stalks and garlic for 8-10 minutes until softened. Add the prawns and cook for 5 minutes until the prawns are cooked through.
  3. Add the tomato paste and cook for a further 2 minutes until caramelized. Followed by the wine, allow the wine to reduce by half. Add the crushed tomatoes and simmer for 20 minutes until thickened and reduced. Add the dried oregano and the crumbled feta
  4. Cook pasta according to packet instructions. Reserving ¼ cup (60ml) water. Add pasta to the pot and toss to combine.
  5. To serve, scatter with parsley leaves, divide pasta into serving plates and top with extra feta.

Recipe by Helena Moursellas.

Helena Moursellas’ Salted Walnut and Cinnamon Kataifi brings together the perfect balance of sweet and savoury, topped off with Maldon Sea Salt. Enjoy with a Greek cup of coffee!

  1. Pre-heat the oven to 180°C. Grease the base and sides of a 22cm x 16cm rectangular baking dish with some of the melted butter.
  2. For the syrup, combine the ingredients and 250ml (1 cup) of water in a small saucepan over high heat. Bring to a simmer, then reduce the heat to medium and cook, stirring occasionally, for 8-10 minutes, until the sugar dissolves. Set aside to cool completely.
  3. In a mini food processor, whizz the pistachios and walnuts until the nuts are finely chopped. Place in a mixing bowl along with the salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, clove, and sugar and mix to combine.
  4. Unroll the kataifi pastry and, using your hands, gently separate the pastry. Be careful when handling kataifi pastry – it is very fragile.
  5. Tear off a piece of kataifi, 4 cm wide and 14 cm long, brush with melted butter and place 1 tablespoon of the nut filling on top at the short end. Roll the pastry tightly to form a 7cm cylinder. Place on the prepared dish and repeat the process with the remainder of the pastry and filing. Any remaining butter, pour over the kataifi.
  6. Brush the tops of all the kataifi rolls with butter, and bake in the oven for 45 minutes.
  7. Once the kataifi are cooked, evenly pour the cold syrup over the top and allow to cool to room temperature and all the syrup has been absorbed.

Winter entertaining made easy with Helena Moursellas’ feta, pumpkin, and honey filo pita. Infused with Maldon Sea Salt, it’s the perfect blend of Greek flavours for your next gathering.

  1. Preheat the oven to 200°C. Line a large roasting tray with baking paper.
  2. Place the pumpkin, garlic, rosemary onto the tray, drizzle with olive oil and honey, season with Maldon Sea Salt flakes and cracked pepper. Roast in the oven for 25 minutes until tender.
  3. Remove pumpkin from the oven, discard skin from garlic and roughly smash with a fork. Place into a bowl along with the feta, herbs, cheese and egg.
  4. Grease a 20cm x 30cm baking tray.
  5. Place 1 sheet of filo pastry, with the long edge facing you, on a clean work surface. Brush with butter and place another sheet on top. Spread 4 tablespoons of the mixture along the side closest to you and roll up to fully enclose. Carefully cut in half. Place into the prepared baking tin and continue with remaining filling and filo pastry. Brush with butter, scatter with sesame seeds and place into the oven for 40 minutes or until golden brown and crispy. Slice and serve hot.

These slow cooked lamb shoulder gyros are not only the ultimate winter warmer, but perfect for entertaining. Serve up with pita bread, tzatziki and tomato salad for the ultimate feast that will have your guests coming back for seconds.

  1. Preheat the oven to 160°C.
  2. In a large bowl whisk together mustard, oil, Greek spice mix and 1 tablespoon of Maldon Sea Salt flakes. Place into the fridge to marinate overnight.
  3. In a large roasting pan line the base with lemon rounds, top with lamb shoulder. Using a small knife make 6 small incisions over the lamb and insert a garlic clove in each. Pour the marinade over the lamb and coat completely. Scatter with oregano leaves and pour the stock into the pan. Season with Maldon Sea Salt flakes. Cover with a large piece of baking paper and tightly cover with foil. Roast for 2 hours and 30 minutes.
  4. Remove baking paper and foil and increase oven temperature to 190°C and cook for a further 2 hours, basting with liquid and juices every 15 minutes.
  5. In a bowl combine, tomato, onions and chopped parsley. Season with Maldon Sea Salt flakes.
  6. Heat a chargrill pan over medium heat and cook pita bread for 30 seconds to 1 minute on each side.
  7. Using two forks shred the lamb and discard the bones.
  8. To assemble the gyros, spread pita with tzatziki, top with slow cooked lamb shoulder, tomato mixture and fried chips.

Hot Cross Bun Pudding with Drunken Bunny Sauce, a cracking Easter dessert recipe perfect for feeding a crowd. Featuring a Maldon Sea Salt laced peanut brittle and vanilla cream.

  1. Whisk together eggs, yolks and combined caster sugar and cocoa powder.
  2. Combine milk and cream, heat to around 40°C, pour over egg mixture and stir well.
  3. Combine butter, Maldon Sea Salt and orange zest. Slice hot cross buns and butter well.
  4. Lay buttered halves in baking dish. Pour over chocolate custard.
  5. Bake in a water bath for approximately 45 minutes at 165°C or until custard is set.

Drunken Bunny Sauce

  1. Scald cream and milk, pour over chocolate bunny and chocolate. Mix well.
  2. Add Grand Marnier to taste.

Salted Peanut Brittle

1. Caramelise sugar to dark brown colour.

2. Add butter and baking soda.

3. Stir in peanuts and Maldon Sea Salt.

4. Pour onto a lined baking tray to cool and set.

TO SERVE

  1. Crack the salted peanut brittle into shards and place around the surface of the Hot Cross Pudding.
  2. Pour desired about of Drunken Bunny Sauce over the top of the pudding (or serve on the side for guests to help themselves).
  3. Add lashings of vanilla cream.