Julia Busuttil Nishimura

Seed muse

VOL. 4 julia BUSUTTIL NISHIMURA Julia is a food writer and cook who takes a seasonal, sensory approach to her dishes. We visited her Fitzroy North home to chat through all things summer entertaining – and get a pair of recipes to welcome the warmer weather.

FOOD WRITER
COOK

Q: What’s your food philosophy? For me, it’s all about simple, seasonal home cooking. It can be really pleasurable, the act of cooking and eating. It’s about ritual-making. With something as simple as your morning coffee, you’re creating these moments in your home. I talk about seasonality a lot but it really does excite me: capturing those fleeting, beautiful moments in the year. I love celebrating the first peach, the last tomato, before you know it the next one comes along and the cycle continues. That’s what underpins it all.

Q: Are your boys interested in food? Yuki is three and a half and Haru just turned eight, and they love being in the kitchen. As soon as I’ve got mixing bowls out Yuki’s there with his stool at the bench. Haru is getting really involved in hosting – he made lemonade for everyone over the weekend, and he’s started to get a kick out of making people happy with food and drink. It’s how I grew up too, helping my mum with her dinner parties.

click here for pasta recipe

Serves 4-6

400g semola (semolina flour), plus extra for dusting
200ml water
800g cherry tomatoes
Handful of basil leaves, plus extra to serve
4 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Sea salt, to taste
150g fresh full-fat ricotta
Grated parmigiano reggiano, to serve

Method To make the pasta dough, place the flour onto a clean work surface. Make a well in the centre and slowly pour in 3/4 cup (180ml) warm water. If the dough feels very dry or difficult to bring together, sprinkle over a little extra water. Using your hands, bring a little flour at a time into the water until you have a rough dough. Use a pastry scraper to bring it all together. Knead for 10 minutes or until smooth. Cover with an upturned bowl and set aside for at least 30 minutes.

Working with a small piece of the dough at a time, roll dough into a rope about 1 cm thick. Cut the rope into 5 cm lengths and use your four fingers to press down and roll to create a small cavern. This is best done on a flat wooden board. Place the cavatelli onto a board or tea towel generously dusted with semolina flour. Repeat with the rest of the dough, arranging cavatelli in a single layer to ensure they don’t stick to each other.

For the sauce, place the cherry tomatoes, basil, garlic and olive oil in a deep-sided frying pan with a good pinch of sea salt over a low-medium heat. Cook the sauce until the cherry tomatoes have collapsed and the sauce is thick and rich. Check for seasoning.

“Seasonality really does excite me. I love celebrating those moments in the year: the first peach, the last tomato.” JULIA

Q: What do you like to keep in mind while entertaining over the festive season? I like to keep things really simple for this time of year. Summer produce lends itself to uncomplicated recipes – when you’ve got beautiful fresh ingredients you don’t need to do much with them. I love to set the table to create a sense of occasion. A beautiful tablecloth, flowers in the middle of the table, and nice glassware will go a long way. It’s about making people feel welcome – you want it to feel effortless but that actually does take a bit of effort. Lean into the season. Everyone feels relaxed, no one expects anything extravagant.

Q: What inspired the recipe you’re sharing today? Earlier this year, I spent quite a lot of time in Puglia in southern Italy. It was just starting to warm up when I was there, and I wanted to capture that holiday feeling. Hand-rolled pasta is such a fun thing to make, it’s something the kids can get involved with and you don’t need any fancy equipment.

click here for salad recipe

Serves 4-6

3 red capsicums
150g (3 slices) sourdough bread, crusts removed
500g Italian flat beans, cut into 5 cm lengths
4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 tomatoes, cut into large pieces
Large handful mint leaves, torn
Large handful parsley leaves, roughly chopped
40g toasted pine nuts
½ red onion, finely sliced
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
Salt and pepper, to taste

Method Grill the capsicums on a grill plate or over a gas flame until blackened, charred and beginning to collapse. Alternatively, capsicums can be roasted in a hot oven until blackened. When cool enough to handle, peel off the blackened skin to reveal the deep red flesh. Discard the core and seeds and set the flesh aside.

Grill the sourdough bread until golden and beginning to char. Tear into 3-4 cm pieces and set aside.

Place the beans and 1 tbsp of olive oil in a bowl and season with salt. Grill on a grill plate or a frying pan over a high heat for 4-5 minutes until tender and nicely coloured. Place in a large bowl along with the capsicums, grilled bread, tomatoes, mint, parsley, pine nuts and vinegar. Toss to combine.

In a small bowl whisk together the remaining olive oil with the vinegar and season with salt and pepper. Drizzle over the salad, toss to coat and serve.

Q: What do you look for when you’re shopping for homewares? I love mostly neutral tones and then I’ll add pops of interesting glassware and cutlery. From Seed, I love the Ava plates, the Eli tumblers, all the ash wood serving pieces. Summer food is so vibrant, you want the table to be simple so the food can be the star. The Seed range is perfect for that.

Q: How would you describe your personal style? I have to be comfortable when I’m cooking, but I still like to feel beautiful. I’ll be in natural materials like linen and cotton all summer. I love something breathable, something I can move in. I love floaty dresses, big sleeves, that combination of comfort and elegance. Basically I’m always trying to capture the feeling of being in southern Italy.