The Good Life
More Good Life on page 32
Tim Fischer touts train travel
Vegan chef course first in Australia
It is the only such course offered in Australia, and it has seen people flying in from all corners of Australia as well as from Europe and Hong Kong. Veet Karen, the owner/creator of Veet’s Cuisine catering business and Veet’s Vegan Cooking School, says that throughout the nine-module chef training no animal products have been used.
Mr Fischer is a prolific author whose works include Transcontinental Train Odyssey. The Ghan. The Khyber. The Globe and Trains Unlimited, in the 21st Century. He says, ‘You can enjoy the relaxation of train travel on every continent in the world’.
Plating up
The course is for people wanting to be vegan chefs, that is to only work with plantbased products. Seven of these people showed off their skills to their guests at the lunchtime graduation ceremony. Traditionally it has been difficult for people to train to be vegan chefs through the conventional system as they still have to be present when meat and animal byproducts are being cooked. Veet herself has extensive knowledge, expertise and creativity in the kitchen, combined with twelve years of teaching experience, and says that she has offered the course to make it possible for students to follow their passion and train in an area they love to work in. The graduating trainees are going on to start their own businesses, some establishing cafes, one starting up a food truck, one going into the health industry teaching people to eat healthily and two others are starting catering businesses.
The reluctant vegetarian When Michelle Hall’s husband told her, ‘You know you’ve just eaten tofu,’ her body gave an involuntary shudder, but it turns out vegetarian food can be for everyone. After attending the vegan cooking demonstration, Michelle reports, ‘For someone who is not a vegetarian, which also makes me not a vegan, I was certainly apprehensive about sitting down to a vegan three-course lunch. “Be open minded”, I said to myself… how bad could it be?
Mr Fischer, who is also the former chair of Tourism Australia, shared some of his recommendations of closer-to-home destinations: the towering sandstone cliffs of Carnarvon Gorge, Queensland; Bright in Victoria, and the scenic Great Alpine Road to Mount Hotham; Deloraine, Tasmania, complete with cheeses; Port Augusta, South Australia, and the historic Pichi Richi Railway; Albany, Western Australia, with its National Anzac Centre and beautiful harbour. ‘The southbound Ghan Expedition is as good as an experience as anywhere is in the world,’ he says. The four-day epic train journey travels through remote Australia, from Darwin to Adelaide, with whistle stops at Katherine Gorge, Alice Springs and opal-mining capital Coober Pedy. It is complete with private cabins and luxury dining, and Mr Fischer is adamant the Ghan experience is a trip of a lifetime. And his favourite NSW destination? Trainless though it may be at present – Cape Byron.
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Veet Karen has also brought together a great team of other facilitators who have shared with the students their particular field of expertise from raw food to Ayurveda, fermentation to sourdough baking, gourmet Asian to homemade pasta, Italian wholefoods to specialised vegan wedding-cake making.
For train-travel dining, he describes the majestic palace Le Train Bleu Restaurant, in the heart of Gare De Lyon train station in Paris, as ‘the best train restaurant in the world’.
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‘My meal was absolutely amazing. Not only did it look amazing, it was packed full of flavour, and I totally enjoyed every last bite. Veet did an amazing job teaching her class and you could tell she was very proud of their efforts. While this does not make me want to become a vegan, I am now more open minded.’
He recommends the European Alps for dramatic scenery: ‘You can catch a train right up to the base of the Matterhorn and just be in awe. Train travel is the best of the best, to indulge and relax.’
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Another drawcard of this course also has been the opportunity to use 100 per cent organic produce that is sourced as locally as possible, showcasing Byron Shire produce to the students. The course is broken up into nine modules and in each module there is at least one morning spent at a local farmers market.
The students deployed their cake-decorating knowledge to great effect.
Le Train Bleu Restaurant
‘I really urge people… don’t stay in Venice [Italy]! It’s expensive, and you can’t roll your trolley bags on the cobblestones. It’s far better to stay in nearby Padova, thirty minutes away by fast train, and commute to Venice. You’ll save an extra $1,000 on accommodation to spend on shopping. Scott McGregor (of Railway Adventures) and I proved this two months ago and it works an absolute treat.’
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The pride of the graduates was clear.
‘An itinerary without train travel is very lacklustre,’ says Tim Fischer (former deputy prime minister), who returned to Byron this week to speak at the Byron Writers Festival. Describing his last trip to Byron he says, ‘I loved the beaches and hinterland but was very sad to see the rusty train tracks. I’m glad to hear light rail is coming to Byron.’
Club By
Last Saturday the Coorabell Hall hosted an Australian first in cooking: Mayor Simon Richardson presented certificates at the graduation demonstration of people who have, over the past year, completed a vegan chef and lifestyle course set up in the Byron Shire.
By Caz Parker
7
18–20 Marvell Street Byron 6685 6202
Information: Visit to receive your free eBook Iron Rich Foods, recipes and ideas www.veetscuisine.com.au/blog/. To like Veet’s Facebook page go to www.facebook.com/ veetscuisine. Ph 6684 1507 or 0403 800 809
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The Byron Shire Echo August 10, 2016 29