Tastes of the Murraylands included in newly published cookbook
Two local women have had recipes featured in Liz Harfull’s New Blue Ribbon Cookbook, which focuses on the cooks of South Australia’s country shows.
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If you’ve ever sampled anything from Carolyn Johnson’s oven, you’ve done well.
The Peake woman has built a reputation as one of country South Australia’s top show cooks, with blue ribbons at the Royal Adelaide Show and around the state.
Now her story – and one of her recipes – has been shared in a new cookbook by bestselling author Liz Harfull.
The New Blue Ribbon Cookbook showcases award-winning flavours and characters from around country SA.
Among the featured cooks are Ms Johnson and, from Coonalpyn, Julianne Wandel.
Ms Johnson told Murray Bridge News it was a “lovely compliment” to have been included.
“I’ve followed Liz for years, and seen her at many country shows,” she said.
“If anyone ever asks me for tips about how to get involved with show baking, I always direct them to her cookbooks – they’re an easy way to get started, with clear recipes, tips from the actual show cooks that put the recipes in and also some judges’ tips, so if you’re going to show at a local or even the Royal Adelaide Show, you can have some ideas of things to do, not do or be aware of.”
She hoped the book, and her contribution, would encourage more home cooks to consider participating in their local shows.
The recipe Ms Johnson contributed to the book is for “deliciously fragrant” rosewater and pistachio cupcakes, inspired by British baking influencer “Cupcake” Jemma Wilson but with a few South Aussie tweaks.
They had been known to cause stampedes in school staff rooms when Ms Johnson brought them along as a treat for her workmates, Ms Johnson said.
They were also popular at her family’s annual ram sale – instead of a bottle of wine, she offers clients a box of a dozen cupcakes.
The cookbook includes her tips for the best possible results: how soft the butter should be, what temperature the eggs should be at, and which piping nozzle is best for the buttercream icing.
Over several pages, it also tells the story of Ms Johnson and her family, from her youth on the Yorke Peninsula to the sheep stud she and her husband established in the Mallee, Carcuma North, and her show-going exploits.
She regularly exhibits in a huge number of cookery classes at Murray Bridge, Coonalpyn, Callington and Strathalbyn, plus the Royal Adelaide Show, where her Genoa cake was named the best in show in both 2015 and 2025.
She is also a category convenor at multiple shows, and has served as president of the Murray Bridge Agricultural and Horticultural Society.
Her daughter Elsie is already following in her footsteps, winning cookery prizes and being named SA Country Shows young rural ambassador in 2024.
Harfull’s first Blue Ribbon Cookbook, which also features tales and recipes from SA’s country shows, won acclaim around the world on its release in 2008, even being named runner-up at the prestigious Gourmand World Cookbook Awards in Paris.
The Adelaide Hills-based author described its sequel as another treasury of time-honoured recipes, and a compendium of priceless knowledge and advice from prize-winning cooks and meticulous judges.
“If you’ve ever tasted a sublime scone, looked in awe on glowing ranks of preserves, wondered if you could make your own dog biscuits or felt an itch to enter baked goods or preserves in your local show, and if you’ve ever wished someone would share their inside tips and tricks to help you achieve perfection, this is the book for you,” publisher Allen and Unwin said in a statement.
The New Blue Ribbon Cookbook will be published on March 3.
- More information: www.allenandunwin.com.
