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Helen Goh

Helen Goh

Columnist

Helen Goh is a chef and regular Good Weekend columnist.

Welsh rarebit.
EASY

Helen Goh’s Welsh rarebit with leek and cider

Served alongside a celeriac and apple salad, this makes a fine lunch or Sunday-night supper.

  • 30 mins - 1 hr
  • Helen Goh
Mandarin and yoghurt cake with cardamom syrup.

Mandarin and yoghurt cake with cardamom syrup

Using both the peel and the juice of the mandarins maximises the fruit’s potential in this syrup-laced cake.

  • 1-2 hrs
  • Helen Goh
Helen Goh’s Carpathian vanilla slice.

Carpathian custard cake with choux pastry (aka eclair meets vanilla slice)

This Eastern European custard cake is made with choux pastry instead of puff.

  • 2 hrs +
  • Helen Goh
Mushroom, tarragon and parmesan clafoutis.
EASY

Helen Goh’s gluten-free mushroom, tarragon and parmesan clafoutis

This savoury adaptation of the French country dessert is like a crustless quiche.

  • 1-2 hrs
  • Helen Goh
Helen Goh’s pear and molasses cake served with creme fraiche.

Pear, ginger and molasses cake

Molasses and coffee bring out the spice, while the caramelised pears provide a sweet, buttery counterpoint.

  • 1-2 hrs
  • Helen Goh
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Helen Goh describes these pastries as “very appley” hand pies.

Helen Goh’s very apple-y hand pies

Using two varieties of apples adds wonderful flavour and texture to these turnovers, while apple cider vinegar makes the fruit somehow taste more of itself.

  • 1-2 hrs
  • Helen Goh
Helen Goh’s flourless chocolate crater cake.

Flourless chocolate crater cake

This cake’s central “crater” is a perfect cavity for holding a deliciously flavoured, softly whipped cream.

  • 30 mins - 1 hr
  • Helen Goh
Quince, cinnamon and ginger cake. Styling by Hannah Meppem. Food preparation by Breesa Swann.
EASY

Quince, cinnamon and ginger cake

Quinces are mostly inedible when uncooked. In this cake, they’re diced just small enough to soften in the time it takes the batter to cook.

  • 1-2 hrs
  • Helen Goh
Tabbouleh-inspired bread with whipped feta spread.

Savoury tabbouleh quick bread with whipped feta

Soaked for just a few minutes, bulgur wheat lends its characteristic nutty and chewy texture to this savoury quick bread. The addition of a good amount of chopped parsley, lemon juice and olive oil to brighten the flavours gave me the idea that this was a kind of tabbouleh in loaf form. Together with the whipped feta spread and a simple salad of sliced tomatoes, torn mint leaves, olive oil and salt and pepper served alongside, it makes a lovely light lunch.

  • 1-2 hrs
  • Helen Goh
Serve this vegetarian tart with a simple tomato salad.
EASY

Thin zucchini tart with basil and mint

At an agriturismo in Umbria last summer, we were served a zucchini tart that was both light and satisfying. When I asked about the herbs in it, the chef – with the lyrical name of Sunshine Manitoba – proudly told me how it was made. Here's my re-creation of it. Sunshine used a herb called nepitella, a kind of wild mint. I've added some basil, but dill would also work very well.

  • 1-2 hrs
  • Helen Goh