Seasons Of Valley Cafe & Gallery - Angaston in the Barossa Valley

The Barossa Valley . . . named by colonel William Light after the Battle of Barossa . . . a battle fought in the Spanish Peninsula War back in 1811.

For many . . . it's now an ideal holiday retreat at any time of the year.

And the shots taken by Angaston photographer Doug Coats highlight the many seasons of this world famous valley.

Doug's the part owner of the Seasons of the Valley cafÈ and gallery . . . which is one of the more recent additions to the Barossa's culinary scene.

About eighteen months ago Doug and his wife Marjorie purchased Franklin House . . . the 1840's home of Angaston's First Doctor Horace Dean . . . who went onto become a Legislative Councillor . . . and was later forced to leave in disgrace when it was found that his medical degree was a sham.

But what you see here now is what you get . . . fresh cafÈ style food made from local seasonal produce . . . like Marjorie's popular home made pasta.

She uses six cups of Durham semolina and eight duck eggs . . . and that's it.

"And because they're free range, they add a lovely colour to the pasta".

Once mixed . . . the results are immediate and delicious . . . and the pasta is about as fresh as you can get. It's then blanched in boiling water and is ready in a matter of seconds.

"Because it's so soft, it's not going to take very long at all"

For Marjorie, this latest venture is just part of a continuous thirty year connection with food.

"After working in the food industry creating recipes for food companies, advertising magazines and so on, I decided to go into the restaurant industry""

It was while creating her own published recipes that Marjorie met Doug. He had the job of photographing her creations. And no doubt they were as mouth watering then as they are now. Her passion is for fresh food . . . and that's why all the ingredients for her sauces come from the backyard garden

"So now let get some broccoli shall we?"

What's come from the vegie patch and the homemade pasta machine is soon on your plate ... and as you tuck in you can also savour the other seasonal fare . . . Doug's photographs of the Valley in all its glory.

"I love the change in seasons. There's so much variety on a small area. You can go back time and time again to the same place and get an entirely different image. It's quite astonishing really".

"Here you can come back in an hour and get an entirely different shot".

For a serving of local Barossa produce and the local sites . . . head to the Seasons of the Valley CafÈ and Gallery. It's open daily from 10am until 5.

For more information email: info@postcards.sa.com.au