YABBIE SALAD

Benedictine University students got a chance to taste a unique seafood salad from Down Under. Nutrition Major Tara Oliva chose to prepare a dish for a Taste of BU luncheon called Yabbie Salad for her Cultural Foods class in the fall 2007 semester.

Yabbie salad originates in Australia, and is actually made with Yabbies, crayfish found in Australia's fresh waters. Yabbies have been eaten for many centuries by Australians and is an affordable and easy dish to make. The meat found on the tail of a Yabbie is sweet, and the final color of the Yabbie, after cooking, is orange. The Yabbie claws can also be eaten and have a flavor different from the tail. Yabbies range in size, and may be very small or decently, medium sized.

Oliva enjoyed the Cultural Food class because of the opportunity she had to learn about foreign foods and other countries cultures. Oliva majored in nutrition because she hopes to someday be able to help children with obesity issues or eating disorders. "I want to help those with illnesses," said Oliva. Oliva also said, "I'm not interested in discovering amazing diets for vain people looking to drop a couple pounds." After obtaining her bachelors degree, she hopes to pursue her education further and get her master's degree. Oliva said she was finally been given the perfect opportunity to attend school, with two older kids, and a leniently scheduled job. Oliva explained how she previously never enjoyed cooking until recently, when her girlfriend taught her some tricks. However, her favorite thing to cook is still a mean bowl of soup.

Oliva hopes that with a nutrition background she will be able to help everyday people, friends, and family. Oliva believes nutrition is a very important preventative measure that can be learned before disease occurs. "In our culture, we are very lax about eating properly and taking care of ourselves," said Oliva.

Oliva's recipe for Yabbie Salad is nutritious as well as delicious.