Cakes from Catherine

With some innovative help from her Mum, one of The Blue Ribbon Cookbook's youngest test cooks has used the orange cake recipe from Renmark show cook, Paul Hansen, to make cup cakes. The cakes were a special treat for her teacher's 50th birthday. Apparently, he was very impressed, and given the photo Catherine sent us of her efforts, we are not surprised!

Taking Blue Ribbon to the Outback

Adelaide chef Abbas Ibrahim is on the road this week, cooking for participants in the amazing Variety Club Bash, which raises money for charity. Abbas has had the gig for the past 10 years, with his curry nights a very popular feature for the bash crew. But last night he tried something a little different - serving up a recipe from The Blue Ribbon Cookbook for dessert. Jean Evans's popular apple square recipe, from Uraidla, in the Adelaide Hills, was made for about 450 people attending a special dinner at The Painted Desert, about 90 kilometres north of Coober Pedy. Abbas had help from fellow chef, Chris, at Woodbake in Stirling, who made the squares. When he isnt cooking for the bash, Abbas runs two take-away Indian food businesses under the name indis, at Crafers and Glenside.

And from London to Texas... and barbecue

Life is nothing if not diverse for Liz. Apart from being an author, she also works as a journalist and communicator within the rural sector in Australia, and represents the country on the executive of the International Federation for Agricultural Journalists (IFAJ) which brings together the world's rural press clubs and professional guilds for media and communicators who specialise in food and agriculture. The IFAJ has just held its annual congress in Texas, where Liz got to try barbecue - Texas style. The cook responsible was Sam, who actually works as a cowboy on a nearby ranch. The barbecue beef was a treat, served with a rich potato salad made with mustard and real home-made beans in a smokey barbecue sauce.

From Paris to London

After attending the Gourmand World Cookbook Awards in Paris, Liz travelled on to the UK where she caught up with friends, and on her way home this week, made a visit to the famous Fortnum and Masons store in London. The store is famous for its fine foods, particularly tea, and its fabulous window displays. But after spending so much time admiring fruit cakes in show competitions across South Australia, what really caught her eye was this magnificent display of tinned fruit cakes in the main food emporium.

It's a what?

Liz was fortunate enough to be a guest of the Guild of Agricultural Journalists in Great Britain this week, at the last ever Royal Show in England. The annual event held at Stoneleigh Park, near Stratford on Avon, has been running for 160 years but the society has decided to call it quits and hold smaller, more focussed events for the country's farmers instead. The show is quite different to royal shows in Australia - no side shows, no indoor competitions for general classes like cookery, crafts and art, no show bags. The primary focus is livestock, and what an amazing collection of popular and rare breeds were on show at the last event. For Liz, the highlight was undoubtedly discovering the 'woolly' pig - yes, a breed of pig with a thick, curly coat, originally from Hungary. For a collection of photographic highlights visit http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=113128&id=720821758&l=2bae472653

Slow Food experience

During her stay in Paris, Liz caught up with members of Slow Food, the international organisation which encourages people to explore and preserve traditional food cultures. Members of the Bastille Convivium took her to see a community garden they have established in a residential area in the heart of Paris. Volunteers from the energetic group also cook for their own community restaurant, set up at a local food market. Pictured in the community garden are convivium president, Diane Marshall, an Aussie girl, who left Melbourne about 20 years ago to live in France, Marion Desmartin, who is a publisher, and graphic designer, Corrine.

A blue ribbon experience in Paris

The Blue Ribbon Cookbook was named runner-up against more than 50 other finalists in the Gourmand World Cookbook Awards in Paris on July 1. Author Liz Harfull travelled to France for the event, held in the beautiful home of the famous La Comedie Francaise theatre company. Food and wine book authors from around the world gathered for the stellar occasion which featured a special appearance by Julia Powell, whose blog and memoir about her daily experiences cooking each of the 524 recipes in Julia Child's famous book, Mastering the Art of French Cooking, is about to be released as a feature film starring Merryl Streep and Amy Adams.

The Easy Recipe book category in which Liz's book competed, was won by Spanish author Xabier Guterrez. In announcing the winner, awards organiser Edouard Cointreau (pictured with Liz) pointed out the category was the hardest to win, with more than half the cookbooks sold around the world falling into this sector.

Cointreau, who is from the famous French wine-making family, acted as host and master of ceremonies at the event. Guests were served vintage champagne and cognac, and food prepared by students from the famous Le Cordon Bleu cooking school, which is headed up by his brother, Andre Cointreau.