We are really spoiled with the food festivals we have here on the Sunshine Coast. First I told you about the Noosa Food and Wine Festival and that’s probably the king of them all with world famous chefs and food celebritites. Recently we went to the Eumundi Food Fest and this past weekend there was the Sunshine Coast Real Food Festival in Maleny in the hinterland about 35 minutes from where I live.
There was lots of hype on Facebook, Twitter and in the news but I wasn’t too sure what to expect. Well… it was FANTASTIC!
John is still getting EasyRecipe Plus finished so I carefully worded my invitation. “John, I’m going to the Real Food Festival up in Maleny this weekend, do you want to go? It’s only $20 for both days.”
“I really should work,” he said.
“That’s fine, I’ll eat enough for both of us.”
“Think it will be worth eating?” he asked.
“Dunno but there are several presentations that I want to see and I’m happy to go by myself.”
A few minutes later he said, “I’ll come. We never get out.”
And so we went. I’ve never seen so many people at a food festival. There were things to do from little kids to oldies. Noosa was extravagant with big names but the Real Food Festival was about the food. Imagine walking past a stall that sold sauteed mushrooms and you could have them spiced up any way you wanted or even served with sour cream. They were delicious. John ordered some and I tasted them. I took a photo but frankly, nothing can make sauteed mushrooms look good so we’ll keep that photo to ourselves.
The first presentation I wanted to see was the Micro Gardener and we were a few minutes late. Someone (that isn’t me) thought Maleny was a lot closer than it is. We walked into the main building and I asked a volunteer where the micro gardening was and she pointed to the far side of the festival and off we trotted. That was teaching children how to pot plants so we walked all the way back and someone else told us it was in an outdoor area so we went there. The wind had knocked the cover over and they took it inside.
We got inside and it was something else on the stage so I missed that one.
Fortunately we were able to catch Cameron Matthews with his modern European cooking presentation. He’s the head chef at the Long Apron restaurant at Spicers Clovelly Estate. The restaurant won 2 prestigious hats in the Good Food Guide and a star in the Australian Gourmet Traveller Guide. What a clever fellow he is and his food is beautiful.
He roasted some root vegetables in hay and then infused some milk in roasted hay and used that to make the mashed potatoes. He finished up by making a salad of fennel and fig and garnished with coriander stems.
He showed us how to trim a cut of meat and then took a steak from the sous vide and finished it off in a pan with butter and herbs and served it on a piece of wood that he burnt, blew out the flames and plated the meal on. He garnished it with a spring onion dipped in a squid ink batter and deep fried.
Amazing.
The top photo is Cameron’s fig and fennel salad and it looked SO good.
We had a quick bite to eat, wandered around a bit and John says, “There’s Genevieve and Paul.”
“Where??”
“Right there.”
“I don’t see them.”
Okay, are you saying, “How could you miss that?” Yeah, you’d be right. We met Paul and Genevieve through Twitter when they were just beginning their search to make fairy floss (cotton candy) in flavours like jelly bellys. It’s been fun to see one success after another. I’m going to have a giveaway of their floss one day soon. Interested?
We got back to the auditorium just in time to see Chris Klaas give a presentationn on food styling and photography. He’s a food photographer on the Sunshine Coast and I have crossed my fingers hoping he will give a food photography workshop up here soon. He made a tian with blood oranges, spinach, cole slaw and crab and plated it with a blood orange sauce. I apologise for the crappy photo – and of a food photography presentation too – but I was so interested in what he was saying that I wasn’t paying attention to what I was doing. My apologies for not getting a shot of the finished product, it was behind the camera and tripod and I couldn’t get the shot from where I was sitting.
Next came more eating and viewing all sorts of food related exhibits. There were chickens and their equipment, garden bed gadgets, a make your own pizza cob oven, school garden cook-off, growing and eating native bushfood, Thermomix demonstration and how to make superb coffee at home as just a few things to do. Kids had a jumping castle, gardening shows, camel rides and lots of places to run around.
I have no idea who these kids were but their music was a showstopper. As you can see, it might be the first week of Spring but it’s quite nice outside. We took our booty of chocolate covered coffee beans, Gino Russo’s Sicilian Tomato Sauce, fairy floss and mango chutney to rest up for Sunday’s visit. John decided he had to work so I went on Sunday by myself. I’ll share that with you soon.
Hi Maureen.
Since reading your blog, I’m so sorry I missed it. I’ll definitely be going next year.
Thanks for reviewing this.
Madonna
That looks like a fabulous day Maureen, such fun! I adore sautéed mushrooms. I styled some for a magazine at work last year and the trick is not to cook them too much. The shot turned out great!
Wow,
This looks like such a fun event!
Wow, what a fabulous festival. I love the look of the dish on the block of wood. Fairy floss (candy floss to us Brits) in flavours would be awsome! Great for a giveaway but not for us here I’m sure. I’ll just have to wait until Paul and Genevieve have built their international business. GG
Ah lucky u maureen! I wish I could participate and visit such an event. I think so we will have to invent those here in goa. lol I wont even ask u if u had fun, cause its pretty obvious. *jealous*
What a day! Thanks for sharing!
I love local food events and it seems we have them every few months.
I MUST hunt for a food festival near Boston. This sounds like so much fun!!! Love the photographs.
Oh this looks amazing! What wonderful looking food and what a fun day.
Well it looks like you had a great time, we have a culinary festival here but it is usually so HOT it is not enjoyable. I guess that is what happens when you live in the desert 🙂
I love food festivals, especially the one attended with my partner. We always talk about everything we’ve tasted 🙂 I can see you had fun as well.
We had a lovely time. I like it when John comes with me because he carries everything. 🙂
I wish I’d gone too! It sounds like something right up my alley.
Yes I’m excited about a fairy floss give away. I discovered those guys at the Noosa Farmer’s Markets and love the strawberry flavour I tried.
How utterly cool was your day!
Wow, I wish I could have went!
It looks so beautiful and the food looks amazing.. plus for so cheap?! Yum.
I love food festivals, and this looks like it was great.
Sounds like a great couple of days. I wish they had this sort of thing in my area during the summer.
I love Maleny, it’s such a pretty town. What a great food festival. The fig salad looks amazing but where did he source figs at this time of year? You’re so funny the way you write, Maureen, your posts always bring a smile to my face. I can just imagine John saying, ‘Maleny’s just around the corner, it won’t take long to get there’, but we all know you are the one who truly knows how long it takes to get there! xx
That fig and fennel salad is my kind of dish. Sounds like a fantastic food festival.
Sounds terrific! And you’re right about how hard it is to photography sauteed mushrooms! I haven’t actually tried it but it’s not something I’d look forward to. Any tips from Chis Klaas that you can share?
Sounds like a good time was had by all. You had me with the fig and fennel salad picture. What a gorgeous looking saald. So bright and cheery. Loved the splash of red. It would be perfect on a cold gray snowy day. Would cheer me up.
That chef made an amazing plate of food and such different techniques – hay? I would have loved to have seen the food and photography demonstration. We have a food festival here in New Zealand in November. I must slim down so I can taste everything.
Oh I remember meeting the people that organise it and they were really friendly and told me all about it. Good to see photos from the festival-thanks Maureen! 😀
What a fun day Maureen. Could you share a few of your wonderful food tests! We don’t have them like that over here. Or maybe I just have my head in the sand. Thanks for sharing all this, I’ll be looking out for them now.
I love these food get-togethers – fun for everyone and the weather couldn’t have been more perfect.
Thank you for sharing another fantastic food festival day my friend 😀
Honestly I am thinking of moving up to sunshine coast for them 😉
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
I have a lovely guest room 🙂
Hi Maureen! Oh, this looks like so much fun. Thanks for sharing that pic of the fig and fennel salad. I’ve been buying lots of figs lately. They’re definitely one of my favorites, and paired with fennel… that’s got to be delicious. You may be seeing that as one of my posts very soon! xoxo
woo! you go for it. Figs are gone here so I can’t make it. I have no idea where he got his figs from. 🙂
How exciting … I’ve never been to a food festival before … Sounds fun 🙂
We have Greek and German food festivals here. This look like so much fun, Thank you for sharing Hugs!
I love food festivals! This one looks like a major win: glad you had a blast 😉
I must try to get to something like this. Looks like a riot plus the added bonus of talking food with foodies all day.
I’m so jealous – what fun to be able to go to things like that. The only thing in our area is a Chocolate Fair – which I have to admit is quite wonderful.
A chocolate fair would definitely get my attention and my participation! No chocolate fairs around here that I’m aware of.
The picture says it all. It was fantastic and you guys had FUN!
Wow – looks like a fabulous day.
I’m deeply interested in the flavoured fairy floss – although I really shouldn’t be. 😉
oh i so wish i could have been there. It looks like a wonderful fun day filled with amazing food!
Oh what a fabulous festival! It looked like such a beautiful day and that you to to see and sample a lot! How I wish we had such festivals here! Great photos Maureen! : )
Looks like you had a ball! Love food festivals , especially the outdoor ones. Sun, food, other foodies to talk to = bliss. Thanks for covering this
It was brilliant, Adrian, thanks so much for stopping by.
What a fun event Maureen…thanks for sharing the pictures…very cool 🙂
Have a wonderful week!
wow seems like there is plenty of good food there! 🙂 fill my stomach to the max!
Latest: Durian Dim Sum??
Mmmmmm fairy floss. Must confess I love it! This festival sounds like a great event, Maureen.
What a wonderful day of eating, browsing, eating, learning new things, eating….. I just love getting inspiration – like the presentation on the charred wood!! So cool. I’m up for fairy floss!! Never heard it called that way!!
You are spoiled! What fun food festivals you have!
Looks like you had gorgeous weather for the festival. The fig and fennel salad looks amazing! What a great way to spend a weekend.
Ahhhh love a good food festival! Especially when the sun in shining! Looks like a great day out 😀
This looks like so much fun and so many great events. I lOve it when they teach unique techniques and recipes so long as the crowd is t too large that you can’t hear. Thanks for sharing your day.
I like food related festival where you get to eat. 😀 How interesting the spring onion dipped in squid ink and fried?! WOW!
Dear Maureen, That looks like a good time!! Blessings dear. Catherine xo
Hi Maureen, aren’t good food festivals the very best? It looks like you had a wonderful time. Thank you for taking so many great pictures (and letting me live vicariously through you!)
I love food festivals and I’m really spoiled that there are so many of them near me. It’s a real food lover’s paradise. A LOT of food is grown and produced here.
Oh, I love all food & craft festivals. I drag the whole family and walk, walk, eat, eat, shop, shop!
I love food events like this one. So much fun! I’m so glad you got your hubby to take the day off and join you.
This looks like a fantastic event. If it’s on again next year, I’ll be sure to make the trip to Sunny Coast. Promise!
I am so jealous of all the fantastic food festivals you guys have down there – I need to start job hunting in Australia! Looks brilliant. And I love that conversation you had with your husband about going. *snort*
Oh my gosh – you have such fun! Love this post. Looks like a perfectly beautiful day to stroll around and eat food!
Maureen, that sounds like a great event to attend. I love all things food related, it’s just such a wonderful time with friends, family and food. I wish I was there too… 🙂
This looks like a blast! Although, I did gasp a bit when you said squid ink batter…may have given that one a miss 🙂 It just looked snazzy though!
Maureen, The food festivals look awesome. You are so fortunate. Looks so carefree and fun! Am dying to visit down under! 🙂
I need to move closer to you. This looks like so much fun.
Oh please do.. imagine the fun we’d have 🙂
Looks like so much fun! I hope Charlotte hosts one of these very soon!! 😉
I hope you get one of these too because it was loads of fun.
Sounds amazing – I love this sort of show, especially if you can learn something 🙂
I am so envious of this fun event! Looks like a delicious experience 🙂
How fun! Looks like an amazing day of perfect weather and great food… there’s pretty much nothing else you could ask for!
Wow, what a day out! I love the idea of the multi-flavoured fairy floss, and how cute are the girls on the xylophone! 🙂
Maureen, I’ve never been to a food festival where you could get sauteed mushrooms… what a treat! Enjoyed your write-up very much — wishing I coulda been there, but your writing brought it home!
This food festival looks amazing. It seems you had a blast that day. We have a lot of these food festivals in Germany, too. I really do miss them. Thanks for sharing.
I LOVE food festivals. I always learn something about an ingredient or a food item that I’ve never tried or a new way of preparing something.
I can practically smell each stall (except the potted plant lessons). You have definitely captured the atmosphere, Maureen, and what glorious sunshine. Send some immediately!
Yes, it was a great day….way better than I expected which is good because i drove for an hour to get there….unlike the Good Food and Wine show which has turned into the Good Wine show with no food, this WAS all about the food….great demonstrations, great live talk by Cyndi O’Meara and others…good to see The Natural Foodstore there as well as so many other great stalls……I will def be there next year….:)
I’m only 35 minutes from Maleny so it’s pretty local for me but I would drive for this festival for sure. I agree with you about the food. Noosa was all about celebrity. There was food of course and everywhere but we never got up close and personal with it unless we spent hundreds more dollars for the privilege.
Wonderful food festival! We are spoil too during Epcot’s Food and Wine festival which is coming up very soon!
ps: I attended University of the Sunshine Coast a few years ago for my MBA! Talk about coincidence 😉
Looks like a lot of fun! All the food sounds yummy 🙂
Thanks for coming by and I love food festivals 🙂 Maybe it’s because I can eat from the time I leave the car til I return to it.
What an incredible festival! I am so jealous.
It must have been so much fun!
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