Make these tasty appetisers for your next book club and you’ll be the main character in everyone’s eyes

Mozzarella pulls with sweet & sticky sauce
MAKES 12 • TOTAL TIME 1 HR 15 MIN + FREEZING  

FOR THE MOZZARELLA STICKS
Flour ¾ cup
Salt 2 tsp
Pepper 1 tsp
Garlic powder 1 tsp
Egg, beaten 1
Water 1 ½ tsp
Breadcrumbs 145 g
Italian seasoning 1 tbsp
Mozzarella, cut into 2 cm thick sticks 600 g
Oil, for shallow frying

FOR THE SWEET & STICKY SAUCE
Red pepper, deseeded and finely chopped 1
Red chilli, finely chopped 1
Ginger, peeled and grated 1 cm
Garlic cloves, minced 2
Tin chopped tomatoes 1 x 400 g
Castor sugar ½ cup
Red wine vinegar 2 tbsp

FOR THE MOZZARELLA PULLS
1. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper, then set aside.
2. Combine the flour, salt, pepper and garlic powder in a shallow bowl. In a second bowl, whisk together the egg and water. In a third bowl, combine the bread-crumbs and the Italian seasoning.
3. Working with one piece at a time, dip the mozzarella sticks into the egg, followed by the flour mixture, backinto the egg and finally into the crumbs. Place the crumbed cheese sticks on the prepared baking sheet and freeze for 45 minutes.

FOR THE SWEET & STICKY SAUCE
1. Combine all the ingredients together in a pot and bring to a boil. Simmer for 15 minutes, then lower the heat and cook for a further 10 minutes until reduced and slightly sticky. Remove from the heat.

TO SERVE
1. Heat a pot of oil over medium heat. Deep-fry the mozzarella sticks in batches of two until golden brown and crisp, about 3–4 minutes. Remove from the oil and place on a plate lined with a paper towel.
2. Serve the mozzarella sticks immediately with the sweet & sticky sauce.

Cheesy issue? To prevent the mozzarella sticks from breaking during frying, handle them as little as possible. If any cheese starts oozing out, fry the sticks for a little longer until the cheese is set.

Sticky glazed meatballs
MAKES 12 • TOTAL TIME 45 MIN

FOR THE MEATBALLS
Ground beef mince 500 g
Breadcrumbs ½ cup
Chopped spring onions ½ cup
Flour 1 tbsp
Egg 1
Garlic clove, minced 2
Ginger, finely grated 1 tsp
Salt 1 tsp
Ground black pepper 1 tsp
Olive oil 1 tbsp

FOR THE STICKY GLAZE
Brown sugar ⅓ cup
Rice vinegar 2 tsp
Hoisin sauce 2 tsp
Soy sauce ½ cup
Cornstarch 1 tbsp

TO SERVE
Toasted sesame seeds 1 tbsp
Handful freshly chopped spring onion

FOR THE MEATBALLS
1. Combine everything besides the oil and form into 12 balls.
2. Heat the olive oil in a pan over low heat. Fry the meatballs for about 4–5 minutes on each side or until cooked through. Set aside.

FOR THE STICKY GLAZE
1. Reduce the heat of the pan to low and add the brown sugar, rice vinegar and hoisin sauce and stir to combine.
2. In a separate bowl, whisk together the soy sauce and cornstarch until well combined. Add to the pan and cook for 2 minutes, stirring, until the sauce is thickened.

TO SERVE
1. Remove the pan from the heat and add the meatballs, stirring gently to coat them in the glaze.
2. Serve the meatballs threaded onto skewers and topped with freshly chopped spring onions and toasted sesame seeds. Enjoy warm or cold. 

Recipes & styling: Jezza-Rae Larsen
Styling assistants: Sjaan van der Ploeg & Kirsty Buchanan
Photography: Callen Jefferson

These phyllo veggie parcels are crunchy, flaky and oh-so tasty. They are also perfect dinner pasty starters especially for vegetarians.