A few years ago when Chew Town was but a babe I met Simon Hart, Owner of Byron Bay Chopping Boards, and I bought a couple of his mini camphor laurel boards. We had a little chat about the blog and his boards and then I went on my way using his mini boards in my shots and loving the way they photographed.
You see I’m a sucker for a gorgeous wooden board – which I am sure regular readers of Chew Town will have gathered already – and so I am always on the look out for beautiful boards when I go about my day. I largely look for boards in one of two categories: 1. vintage boards with lots of wear and tear (see here and here) or 2. new boards with a beautiful grain. In my opinion, these are the two types of boards that photograph the best.
Finding new boards with a strong grain is rare though and so when I met Simon and saw his boards, I knew this wouldn’t be the last of my association with Byron Bay Chopping Boards and anticipated our paths would cross again.
It turns out that Simon became a silent follower of Chew Town after our initial chat and recently, a few years on, I received an email from him asking if I would like to catch up for a coffee to see if there is something we could do together to help him promote his business. As the daughter of an Italian entrepreneur, I knew how hard it was to start a business and so I was more than happy to meet Simon for a coffee and a chat.
Simon brought along some gorgeous grain flecked boards for me to take home and play with (and a couple to give away – see below) while we sat down to talk a bit more about his story. Simon started Byron Bay Chopping Boards in 2000 (14 years ago) while he was still a chef and cooking in Sydney kitchens. As many good business start small, he came across camphor laurel wood while travelling through Byron Bay in New South Wales and started making eco-friendly boards for himself and his friends using wood sourced in and around Byron. Simon’s boards always smell incredible and make using them a very sensory experience, this is because camphor laurel is a super fragrant wood with great anti-bacterial qualities.
After a short while, Simon gave up the kitchen tools and began working on Byron Bay Chopping Boards full time and now works with many of Sydney’s top restaurants creating custom boards for them to use as serving dishes. The business is still small enough to offer a complete customisation service so while you can buy a wonderful range of boards in the online store, you can also give them a buzz and work with them on custom boards.
But now, on to the burgers! I had been thinking for some time about making a burger inspired by Italian flavours, so after our coffee I thought this would be the perfect dish to showcase the boards and immediately started formulating a burger plan (as you do). I started with veal cotoletta (veal schnitzel for those more familiar with the German counterpart) and then began layering with rocket, a fresh tomato salsa (think bruschetta topping), provolone cheese and parsley aioli. The resulting burger was an Italian flavour sensation (parsley aioli is now finding its way into every dish I make) and it was a definite winner in our household.
GIVEAWAY
Simon has generously offered Australian readers of Chew Town the chance to win a gift pack of two gorgeous red ceder handle wooden boards from his range. One lucky winner will receive the Medium Red Ceder Handle Board and the Medium Small Red Ceder Handle Board with thanks to Byron Bay Chopping Boards.
For your chance to win, leave a comment on this post with your favourite food item to serve on a chopping board and the most drool-worthy answer will be chosen as the winner on Monday 17 November.
UPDATE: Congratulations to Kirrily who has won two ceder handle boards from Byron Bay Chopping Boards – the idea of her mexican feast definitely made my mouth water!
Veal Cotoletta Milanese Burger with Tomato Salsa Fresca and Parsley Aioli
Ingredients
VEAL COTOLETTA MILANESE
- 6 veal fillet steaks (or veal schnitzel)
- 2 eggs
- 2 tablespoons milk
- 1 1/2 cups bread crumbs
- 1 1/2 cups grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- Olive oil, for shallow frying
TOMATO SALSA FRESCA
- 4 roma tomatoes, finely diced
- 1/4 spanish onion, finely diced
- 5-6 basil leaves, finely chopped
- 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
- Salt and pepper, to taste
PARSLEY AIOLI
- 1/2 cup firmly packed continental parsley leaves
- 2 medium cloves garlic, minced to a paste
- 1 egg
- 1 cup olive oil
OTHER
- 6 Ciabatta Rolls
- Fresh rocket leaves
- 6 provolone cheese slices
Directions
VEAL COTOLETTA MILANESE
Place each veal steak between two sheets of baking paper and gently beat with a flat meat mallet until 4mm thick.
In a shallow pasta bowl place eggs and milk and whisk with a fork until well combined. In another shallow pasta bowl mix breadcrumbs and parsley, and season with salt and pepper then mix till well combined.
Taking a veal steak, coat both sides in the egg mixture, then transfer to the breadcrumb mixture and coat again on both sides and set aside. Repeat with remaining veal. Cover with glad wrap and then set aside in the fridge until ready to cook.
TOMATO SALSA FRESCA
Mix all ingredients except salt in a bowl. Then slowly start adding salt till the flavour of the tomatoes is enhanced (you will notice that the flavour will change all of a sudden and become more intense). Then cover with glad wrap and leave in the fridge for 30 minutes for flavour to develop.
PARSLEY AIOLI
To a small pot of boiling water, add the parsley leaves for 10 seconds, then remove and place immediately in an ice water bath for 10 seconds (this ensures the aioli stays green). Squeeze the leaves to remove the water and finely chop.
Place the garlic and the egg in a bowl and blend with a stick blender slowly adding the olive oil in a stream blending till it is the thickness of aioli. Add the parsley and bled again until the mixture has turned green. season with salt and pepper and set aside in the fridge.
ASSEMBLY
First cook the cotoletta by heat 3-4 tablespoons of olive oil in a large heavy bottom fry pan over medium-low heat until hot. Place 3 slices of the crumbed veal in the pan and cook until golden on each side (about 1-2 minutes). Transfer to a plate lined with paper towel. Repeat with remaining veal adding oil between batches as needed.
Cut open and toast your ciabatta rolls then to the base of the roll add rocket leaves, top with 2 tablespoons of the salsa fresca, then a veal cotoletta and a slice of provolone cheese, then drizzle with the parsley aioli. Pop the top on the roll, repeat with remaining rolls and ingredients, and serve.
Chew Town was not paid to develop this recipe, but was gifted the Chopping Boards from Byron Bay Chopping Boards, with thanks. If you would like to learn more about Byron Bay Chopping Boards visit the website.
Oh absolutely delicious burgers Amanda, and stunning boards.
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Beautiful photos! I love to serve chicken wings on chopping boards and my favourite wings at the moment are maple and sriracha!
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i have a tiny obssession with serving things on boards too, hard to pick a favourite but i always like do serve a colourful salad on a board!
Just last night I served up a Mexican taco feast of spicy chicken thigh strips (inspired by your drumstick recipe a while back!), charred corn, black bean and capsicum salsa, guacamole, chipotle sour cream and fresh lime and tortillas served on a redgum board. Mexican is the best for boards!
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I love serving my sweet potato fries with homemade slow roasted tomato sauce and a dollop of aioli mmmmmmmmm so delish!!
Those are gorgeous boards! Make me wish I lived in Australia so I could participate in the giveaway. 🙂 Super recipe too — really nice.
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I seriously do not cook with veal enough. These burgers look so incredibly delicious, my mouth is just watering just looking at the images!
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What a coincidence. I stopped by his stall at the Newtown Festival on the weekend and was admiring all his amazing chopping boards!
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what good looks and yummmy, I want one myself. Thanks
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Oh, I just want to live in your photographs! What a gorgeous looking burger (on a gorgeous looking board). I like to put BBQ ribs on a chopping board and serve it family style straight from the board!
These burgers looks amazing! I love the flavor combinations!
what a gorgeous looking burger! please teach me some of your photography skills!
Anytime Milkteaxx
These are beautiful and what a lovely friendship you’ve created together. I would love one of these boards to put some pumpkin bruschetta on and drizzle with sticky caramelised balsamic vinegar.
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