From the Sea to Your Table!

The lure of surf and sand, the waft of coconut oil and the crunch of salty hair is as much about the Australian coastal lifestyle as is the promise of eating great seafood – especially at Christmas.

Australians love their wild-caught seafood and the NSW coast, all 2137 kilometres of it, reveals an embarrassment of riches. The Commercial Fishermen’s Co-Operative located on Hannell Street in Wickham and at 69 Lakeside Drive in Swansea, is considered the most successful and most progressive co-operative in New South Wales, with all their fresh seafood caught locally by local fisherman.

Without a doubt, the Fishermen’s Co-Operative is the best place to get the freshest seafood in Newcastle and Lake Macquarie. Straight from the sea, to the boat, to you – the only way you could get fresher seafood is if you caught it yourself (and have you ever tried to catch a prawn?)

Plenty of the Hunter’s Christmas tables will be laden with fresh seafood during this festive season. You could keep it simple and make an ice-filled bowl of fresh prawns your culinary centrepiece, but we think you really can’t go past the good-old Prawn Cocktail to get your crackers-cracking! And really – classic recipes such as this never go out of fashion, because they're simply delicious.

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FISHERMAN’S COOPERATIVE

CLASSIC PRAWN COCKTAIL

(Serves six as an entrée)

INGREDIENTS 1kg cooked prawns, peeled and deveined 2 avocados ½ lemon, juiced ½ iceberg lettuce, finely shredded and chilled Chervil or dill, cherry tomatoes and lemon wedges for garnishing Marie-Rose Sauce ½ cup whole-egg mayonnaise (see notes) 1 tablespoon tomato ketchup (see notes) 1 tablespoon lemon juice Dash Tabasco sauce

METHOD 1. To make the Marie-Rose Sauce - combine all ingredients well, cover and refrigerate until needed. 2. Roughly chop king prawns (if using) into bite-sized pieces, or use smaller whole prawns. 3. Peel and dice avocados and toss with the lemon juice. Add prawn

and just enough Marie-Rose sauce to coat well when lightly mixed. 4. Place lettuce in the base of individual serving bowls. Top with prawn and avocado mixture and place a sprig of chervil or dill on top with a cut cherry tomato. Dress the plate with lemon wedges.

Notes: If you don’t want to make your own mayonnaise, use one made from whole eggs such as Paul Newman’s Own or Thomy. Use tomato ketchup rather than tomato sauce for this recipe. For a twist on traditional, try alternative species such as bugs, marron, redclaw, rock lobsters, scampi or yabby.

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WICKHAM SHOP HOURS Thursday 20th + Friday 21st December 8.30am - 5pm Saturday 22nd + Sunday 23rd December 8.30am - 4pm Monday 24th December 5am - 2pm CHRISTMAS DAY CLOSED BOXING DAY CLOSED Thursday 27th + Friday 28th December 8.30am - 5pm Saturday 29th to Monday 31st December 8.30am - 3pm NEW YEARS DAY CLOSED Wednesday 2nd January 8.30am - 5pm

SWANSEA SHOP HOURS Thursday 20th + Friday 21st December 8.30am - 4pm Saturday 22nd + Sunday 23rd December 8.30am - 1pm Monday 24th December 7am - 1pm CHRISTMAS DAY CLOSED BOXING DAY CLOSED Thursday 27th + Friday 28th December 8.30am - 4pm Saturday 29th to Monday 31st December 8.30am - 1pm NEW YEARS DAY CLOSED Wednesday 2nd January 8.30am - 4pm