By Alesha Capone
Finding ingredients in nature and preparing them to use in every-day cooking will be the focus of a foraging workshop, to be held at The Garden Feast in Werribee next week.
Head chef Craig Huntley said that he and sous-chef Jason Brereton, often went “foraging” to find ingredients to use in the café’s menu.
Mr Huntley said that he and Mr Brereton foraged for food items – including mushrooms, saltbush and seaweed – in coastal parks, forests and marshlands located in areas including Williamstown, Altona, Woodend and Point Cook.
He said that people who attended foraging workshops at The Garden Feast were often “very shocked” to discover the variety of produce available in nature.
Mr Huntley said the café made all of its food in-house, except for bread, and did not purchase any pre-made or frozen ingredients.
“I don’t write our menu, nature does – the reason we change the menu constantly is that we let the nature and the seasons dictate our menu,” he said.
“We want to let the ingredients speak for themselves.”
Mr Huntley will host a pizza-making workshop (cost: $45) at The Garden Feast on Saturday at 2pm, while the foraging workshop (cost: $25) will take place on Sunday at 2.30pm.
See gardenfeast.com.au/event-directory/ to book.
The Garden Feast café and nursery is located at 63-71 Railway Avenue, Werribee.
