Farewell Dinner

On the last night of the conference we were treated to a reception and dinner at MacLaurin Hall at the University of Sydney.  It reminded me of the fancy Harry-Potter style formals we frequented while at Cambridge.  The food was very impressive and very Australian.

One of my favorite dishes: seared tuna.  Here it was served with marinated French beans with tomato salsa & soft boiled egg.

Next up: pan-fried veal cutlet with grilled asparagus, chateau potato, fennel puree & balsamic reduction.  I have to admit I was a bit afraid of the fennel puree but it blew me away! Worked so much better here than mashed potatoes ever could have.

And finished off with a pavlova with vanilla cream and berry compote.  If you have a raging sweet tooth like me you would love this!! Australians really love their pavlovas and you see them on lots of menus…which got me excited since I had just made one for the June Darling Baker’s challenge.