A long, slow summer of dam swims, good friends and yabbying

After our uncharacteristically wet spring and summer, the dam in the vineyard is full and has been the centre of summer entertaining. The brown, earthy, cool dam water is heavenly when temperatures hit the high 30s (that's around 100 F for all of you on the other side of the planet). As I write, we are expecting temps of around 40 C (or 104 F) tomorrow. Yikes!

The other thing we love about the dam is that it provides us with yabbies. Yabbies (known by the fabulous scientific name Cherax destructor) are basically freshwater crayfish, found in rivers and dams throughout Australia. They are tough survivors, burrowing deep into the bottom or sides of dams and rivers during periods of drought until they find moist soil. Yabbies can survive for years underground. Yabby meat is quite sweet and has been eaten by aboriginal people for thousands of years. The remains of yabby shells have been found in ancient aboriginal riverside middens dating back 28,000 years.



Yabbying is an Australian tradition - up there with icy cold beer and Christmas at the beach. All you need is a small piece of meat (the stinkier the better), a long piece of string, a degree of patience and low expectations. We took some dear friends from Canada and Sydney on a traditional yabbying expedition on a hot day in December. We had no luck with the old meat-and-string method (possibly not helped by me throwing myself into the cool water to escape the ridiculous heat - enough to make any yabby run for cover), so we set an "opera house" trap overnight. (Note; it is illegal to use opera nets in rivers, but OK in a small private dam). The following morning, our hard work and patience was rewarded with one, solitary, unamused yabby.



Our not-so-bountiful yabby catch - lived to see another day.

My hopes of a yabby feast dashed, we threw some sausages on the BBQ for lunch that day. But here is what I had intended to do with the yabbies;

Fresh yabbies with tomatoes, capers, fennel & chunky garlic croutons
This recipe is inspired by the books and recipes of Australian cook extraordinaire and regional food champion, Maggie Beer, with a nod to Jamie Oliver too. I can recommend  "Maggie's Orchard" (published in 1997 by Viking Press) and the beautifully photographed "Maggie's Table" (2001, Viking Press) for information and recipes on yabbies..and all of her books for any lover of good food!

First, prepare the yabbies for the worst;
Stun the yabbies by putting them into the freezer for half an hour. Best they are unaware of what is about to happen to them. Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil and throw yabbies in straight from the freezer. Cook for about 5 minutes, drain and, when cool enough to handle, peel the yabbies and remove the yucky bits.
Now, make the salad:
Throw into a bowl chopped tomato wedges, finely sliced red onion, a tablespoon or so of chopped capers, finely sliced fennel, grated lemon rind, lemon juice (tarragon vinegar is good too), extra virgin olive oil, basil leaves, salt and pepper. Toss well. If possible, let the salad stand for a little while to allow the juices to marinate the flavours together. This salad will be a bit like an Italian panzanella - salty, zingy, fresh, flavoursom.

And finally, the chunky crutons;
Take a loaf of good, solid bread such as Italian ciabatta and tear it into bite sized pieces. Spread over a baking tray, slop generously with olive oil and add one or two cloves of crushed garlic, salt & pepper. Toss well and bake in a moderate oven for about 5 - 10 minutes until crispy and golden.

Now toss the bread, salad and yabbies all together and serve in a generous bowl with a cold beer or a Canowindra chardonnay.

YUM!
Post script; Timmy the cat was found caught in the yabby net the day after yabbying, having climbed inside to get to the bait. He waited patiently all night to be let out and was not amused by our laughter or the fact that we left him in there for a few extra minutes while we rushed off to find the camera.



Just take the damn picture and get me out of here.