Level up your entertaining by adding Australian Native Saltbush and Warrigal Greens to the Classic Cob.

Warrigal Greens and Saltbush Cob

Serves 4–6
Preparation Time: 30 minutes
Cooking Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:

1 cob loaf
1 tbsp olive oil
4 spring onions, thinly sliced
250g bacon, diced
2 sprigs saltbush leaves, finely chopped or 10g of Saltbush dried
10 Warrigal Greens leaves, finely chopped
2 tbsp chives, thinly sliced
250g cream cheese
160ml (2/3 cup) pure cream
160g (2/3 cup) sour cream
200g cheddar, grated
Salt and ground Pepperberry or use Warndu Native Salt Mix
1/2 baguette,
sliced Sea Parsley, Native Thyme, Saltbush and Seablite  (Herbs for topping) - If you can get fresh, use 5g of dried tea flakes or ground or check out our substitution guide to learn how to substitute native foods.

Method:

Preheat the oven to 160°C. Cut the top off the loaf and reserve, then pull out the bread from the centre, leaving a 2cm shell. Tear or chop bread into coarse pieces.

Heat oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add spring onion and bacon and cook, stirring, for 5 minutes or until bacon is browned and onion has softened. Add saltbush and warrigal greens and toss quickly until wilted. Remove from the heat.

Add chives to the pan, stir in cream cheese, then add cream, sour cream and cheddar. Stir to combine. Season with salt and ground pepperberry.

Spoon dip mixture into cob shell. Arrange the lid, bread pieces and sliced baguette in a single layer on a baking tray around the loaf.

Bake for 20 minutes or until lightly toasted.

Top dip with herbs, replace the lid and serve warm.

This is an edited extract from First Nations Food Companion by Damien Coulthard and Rebecca Sullivan, photography by Josh Geelen, Murdoch Books, $49.99. 

About the Australian Native Foods 

“Warrigal” means “wild” in Dharug language, and European settlers were known to use it to help prevent scurvy. It can be bought fresh – the younger the leaves the less bitter – and you can think of cooking it like silverbeet or bok choy.

Warrigal greens are available at selected Harris Farms, Something Wild and other fresh food grocers. Substitute Warrigal greens for spinach or bower spinach.

The same goes for Saltbush; if you can’t source any, use capers, caper leaves, karkalla, seablite or samphire to create the same salty bite to cut through the creamy filling. 

Learn more about Warrigal Greens and Saltbush.