The Premier Table
The recipe for Premier's success has always been in the strong and lasting relationships we have built with our valued clients. For our 21st anniversary celebration, we compiled a cookbook titled The Premier Table, filled with recipes and stories from clients and staff past and present. Below is a sneak peak into one of the most yummy pieces of work we have delivered to date.
John Landmark
Agnico Eagle
Valued Premier Client
My journey into cooking started with Ottolenghi's Simple cookbook, a thoughtful gift from my wife. Prior to this, my culinary skills were pretty basic. The process of experimenting with recipes and mastering new dishes mirrors my professional journey with Jo and Premier Strategy. When our company sought guidance on community, employee, and government relations, Jo and her team provided invaluable advice and clear communication.
Just as I expanded my culinary repertoire, our collaboration with Jo broadened and just as I've discovered the joy of creating delicious and healthy meals, I've found the value in cultivating strong connections and effective communication in business. Food, like connections in business, has a way of bringing people together, creating memorable moments around the table and forging lasting relationships in the professional sphere.
Fishcake Tacos
Prep Time: 45min of cutting, slicing, and mixing - 1hr ahead of cooking
Cook Time: 10min
Servings: Makes 12 tacos, serving four
Ingredients
450g plaice fillets (or similar white fish), cut into 2-3cm chunks (skin and bones removed)
1 garlic clove, crushed
1 large egg
1 ½ tsp cumin seeds, toasted and finely crushed in a pestle and mortar
4 limes, finely grate the zest of all 4, then cut into wedges to serve
20g coriander leaves, finely chopped
120g Greek-style yoghurt
½ red onion, finely sliced
1/3 mango, peeled and julienned
1 red chilli, deseeded and julienned
3 tbsp vegetable oil
12 corn or flour tortillas, 15cm wide, warmed
Salt
Method
Place fish, garlic and egg in the large bowl of a food processor with 1 teaspoon of cumin seeds, three-quarters of the lime zest and 3/4 teaspoon salt. Blitz briefly until the fish forms a rough paste, then transfer to a medium bowl
Add half the coriander, mix together, then form into 12 round fishcakes, each weighing about 45g. This is a bit messy, but you will find a simple pleasure in making the patties by hand. Refrigerate for at least 15 minutes (and up to a day ahead), to firm up
Put the yoghurt, the remaining ½ teaspoon of cumin seeds, the remaining lime zest and 1/8 teaspoon of salt into a small bowl. Mix and set aside
In a separate small bowl, combine the onion, mango and chilli and set aside
Heat the oil in a large non-stick frying pan and place on a medium-high heat. Once the oil is hot, add the fishcakes in batches and fry for 2-3 minutes on each side, until golden-brown and cooked through. Transfer to a paper-lined plate
Serve each taco warm with one fishcake, cut in half, a spoonful of yoghurt and the mango mix. Finish with a sprinkle of the remaining coriander and a squeeze of lime
Tips
Everything can be prepared in advance - the fishcake mixture (uncooked), the yoghurt, the onion and mango pickle can all be made a day ahead and kept in the fridge - then just hop to the stove 5 minutes before everyone wants to eat, cook the fishcakes and heat the tacos. Reheat any leftovers the next day
And if you want a perfect wine paring - try this with a cold New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc
Franck Woitiez
Tag Energy
Valued Premier Strategy Client
My journey with Premier Strategy began in Australia while I led a French renewable energy subsidiary. Jo and her team's guidance helped shape our relationships with the government and local communities, ensuring the success of our projects. But what made our collaboration special was the intangible connection we shared. Jo became more than an advisor; she became a friend, a confidant, and a partner in our celebrations.
This unique connection inspired my choice of recipe: Coquillettes à la Truffe, a dish that embodies rare indulgence paired with simplicity. I often prepare it during truffle season, sharing it with friends and family, fostering moments of pleasure and camaraderie. I invite you to enjoy this dish, embracing the warmth of connection and the joy of shared meals.
The Coquillettes a la Truffe
(Truffle Pasta)
Prep Time: 30 mins
Cook Time: 10 mins
Servings: 4
Ingredients:
250g Coquillettes (French pasta)
100g Paris ham, diced into 3cm cubes
60g Gruyère cheese, diced into 3cm cubes
1 small box of truffle bits in their juice
50g butter
1 tsp Cognac
1 tsp Port
2 small chives, minced
Method
Cook the pasta as indicated on the package. Once cooked, drain the pasta and place in a warm serving dish
Drain the truffle bits and keep the juice
Melt butter in a pan, add the truffle bits and cook for one minute
Pour in Cognac and Port, stir and allow to reduce a little, then add the truffle juice and the minced onion. This is your truffled butter
Add pasta to truffled butter and half the diced ham and cheese
Serve, then sprinkle remaining ham and cheese on top, along with fresh truffles
Tips
Use fresh truffles to sprinkle on the finished dish and preserves for the preparation.
Very small Coquillettes pasta is best.
Method
Nominate a driver, passengers and a start time and collection point. Have all road trip participants meet at the agreed point, enter the vehicle and begin the journey towards the project site
Open Google Maps on your preferred device and search for bakeries that are around a 2-hour drive from your starting position and on the route to the project site. Select your target bakery and begin driving. Once a bakery has been nominated, have a passenger call in advance to reserve the required vanilla slice portions
Arrive at the bakery. Reverse park or parallel park as required. Ensure boots are clear of excess mud and enter the bakery. Nominate the person responsible for ordering and paying for the vanilla slice(s)
Complete transaction
Tips
Keep receipts to enable an expense claim
Use the bakery stop as an opportunity to also order coffees to compliment the vanilla slice(s)
Use your hands to devour the vanilla slice(s). It Is traditional to take full bites of the slice. Those who were raised incorrectly may remove the crusty iced top and eat the vanilla slice in layers. It Is best to turn a blind eye should this occur
Important Measurements
Temperature
The slice should be stored in a cool dry location and eaten at room temperature or below
Weight
Yes. You will put on weight, but it is totally worth it
Additional Guidelines
Never ever order a vanilla slice with pink icing
Never ever be tempted to order the chocolate éclair
If you are visiting a Beechworth Bakery, you may substitute a vanilla slice for a bee sting
Dennis Freedman
Aquila Capital
Valued Premier Strategy Client
My first encounter with Premier was in 2016 during a town hall near the Victoria-South Australian border, Jo was representing a renewables developer. Afterwards, we got together for dinner near Mt Gambier and ate and drank virtually everything they had. While my recipe by rights should be the amazing rib eye steak with peppercorn sauce from that night, unfortunately, I lack the recipe. And that night is only one of many memories.
Over the years I’ve had the pleasure of working closely with Jo on multiple projects. This has meant numerous trips mainly throughout Victoria. Every road trip, at least for me, has meant a stop at a rural bakery. The standing order is a vanilla slice and a coffee. So, given that I’ve had more vanilla slices in my interactions with Premier than rib eyes, my contribution to this cookbook is the ‘Road Trip Vanilla Slice’.
Australian-Japanese Sponge Strawberry Cake
Cook time: 1 hr 30 mins
Ingredients
35g vegetable oil
50g cake flour or low protein flour
50g sweetened condensed milk (or 40g Icing sugar)
1 tsp vinegar
Method
Pre-heat oven to 150C
Line the bottom of a 15cm round pan with baking paper. The cake will be baked in a water-bath
Heat oil to about 70C. Remove from heat and quickly sieve the cake flour in and whisk well. Whisk condensed milk into the batter. Then add egg yolks and mix well. Set aside
In a separate bowl, beat egg white and vinegar to soft peaks
Combine 1/3 of the batter and 1/3 of the egg mix. Continue to combine until all the batter and egg mix are mixed, but be careful not to over mix
Pour the combined batter into the prepared pan. Tap it twice on the counter to reduce any big air bubbles inside. Swirl the batter with a wooden stick to further remove big bubbles
Place the pan inside a larger pan. Fill the larger pan with hot water halfway up the height of cake batter
Bake for 70-80 minutes then serve cooled with fresh cream and strawberries
Crème Brûlée
Prep Time: 20 min
Cook Time: 40 min
Servings: 4
Ingredients
450ml double cream (equates to two-and-a-bit punnets of Bulla Double Cream)
100ml full cream milk
1 vanilla pod
5 egg yolks
50g caster sugar, plus extra for the topping
Method
Heat a fan forced oven to 170C
Place four 175ml ramekins into a roasting tin at least 7.5cm deep (or a large deep cake tin). It needs to be deep enough for a baking tray to sit on top of the tin, well clear of the ramekins.
Pour the double cream into a medium pan with the milk
Deseed vanilla pod by slicing lengthways with a sharp knife and split in two. Use the tip of the knife to scrape the tiny seeds into the cream mixture. Drop the vanilla pod in and set the pan aside
Whisk together egg yolks and sugar for one minute with an electric whisk until paler in colour and a bit fluffy
Place the pan with cream on a medium heat and bring almost to the boil. As soon as bubbles appear around the edge, remove from heat
Pour the hot cream into the beaten egg yolks, stirring with a wire whisk, and scrape the seeds from the pan
Strain hot mixture through a sieve into a large bowl, pushing through vanilla seeds
Scoop off the pale foam sitting on the top of the liquid and discard. Give the mixture a stir
Sally Torgoman
KPMG
Premier Strategy Valued Client
My initial encounter with Premier Strategy was through the incredible Jo. From our very first meeting, I sensed she was more than a business leader – she was a person with both intelligence and compassion, capable of achieving transformative outcomes for her clients. It was as if I had found an old friend in her; her advice always resonated deeply. This recipe is my humble confession: it took me 18 tries to perfect it, and on the 19th attempt, I got it just right. The spongy, subtly sweet, and fresh taste serves as a reminder that the fruits of hard work are always worth savouring.
Matthew Parton
Stromlo Energy
Valued Premier Strategy Client
Jo and I have been on dozens of trips up and down the country with Premier, supporting meetings with wind farm neighbours to discuss the merits of each project and how it may affect them. As well as many, many, good honest Aussie farmers, we have met an odd cast of characters including moonshine-makers, blue story writers, lobster fishermen (we pulled in the traps), and everything in-between.
The one constant that has been with us all around the country is our love of crème brûlée. Anytime we see it on the menu, we give each other a glance, knowing that we both need to save room for dessert. This is a recipe that I've made at home a few times, but never for Jo (which needs to change). I hope you like it as much as we both do!
10. Pour enough hot tap water into the roasting tin to come about 1.5cm up the sides of the ramekins. Pour the hot cream into the ramekins so they're filled to the top. It's easier to spoon in the last little bit
11. Place ramekins in the oven and lay a baking sheet over the top of the tin so it sits well above the ramekins and completely covers them, but not the whole tin, leaving a small gap at one side to allow air to circulate
12. Bake for 30-35 minutes, until mixture is softly set. To check, gently sway the roasting tin. The crème brûlée is ready if they wobble a bit like a jelly in the middle. Don’t allow them to get too firm
13. Lift the ramekins out of the roasting tin with oven gloves and set them on a wire rack to cool for a couple of minutes only, then put in the fridge to cool completely. This can be done overnight without affecting the texture
14. When ready to serve, wipe around the top edge of the dishes, sprinkle 1½ teaspoon of caster sugar over each ramekin and spread it out with the back of a spoon to completely cover.
15. Spray with a little water using a fine spray to just dampen the sugar, then then use a blow torch to caramelise. Hold the flame just above the sugar and keep moving around until caramelised. Serve when the brûlée is firm, or within an hour or two
Tips
Make sure the blow torch is fully fuelled before starting. There's nothing worse than having to run to the shops because half of your crème brûlées don't have crispy tops!