Great Ocean Food: The joys of spring are coming

It has certainly been a long cold winter and there may be more to come, but I have been busy clearing some trees and have noticed a slight change in the season.

Now I’m not promising balmy beach weather, but it seems the really chilly stuff may be behind us. Buds are certainly forming on most of our deciduous trees and the days are definitely longer.

Sadly we have not had the rain we would like but it would be churlish to complain given the dire drought in other parts of Australia.

Maybe we will have beautiful spring rains in September and October.

Aboriginal tribes had six seasons as part of their understanding of the local climate and on that basis, we are already through deep winter and on to early spring.

It makes sense, as every week sees a change in our climate this time of year. It is also time to look forward to football finals and horse racing. The Cats nearly managed to escape their finals obligations this year. Let’s hope the thrashings of Fremantle and Gold Coast give them a renewed vigour and vitality for the whole of September. Yes, I mean all September including the last Saturday! By that stage spring produce should start finding its way into our cooking.

One of the vegetables I always look forward to is asparagus. It seems to be available year-round, but it is the spring asparagus I enjoy most. Steamed gently and served with a poached egg and shaved parmigiano reggiano, there is no faster and more elegant dish. I also frequently eat asparagus with a squeeze of lemon and Meredith goat’s cheese; nothing else is required (other than a glass of wine).

Asparagus risotto is another simple dish I adore, but unlike these other meals, it takes time and attention to detail.

I have been cooking risotto for many years and find it paradoxical in that such a simple dish can take so long to perfect.

My secret is in the stirring, which must be done continuously, with purpose and allowing the rice to be absorbed one ladle of hot stock at a time. The result is a creamy texture that can only be achieved by this process.

To boost the flavour, I also add pea puree to my vegetable risottos.

*This column ran incorrectly as “On the Plate” by Mary-Ellen Bellville on August 23, so is re-run here as Great Ocean Food by Tony Le Deux to make amends for the error.