You know you're ... these iconic eats feel like home, writes Jane Ormond.
Australian when ...
Clockwise from top, a few of our favourite things: Grilled prawns, here with lemongrass and lime; Anzac biscuits; Vegemite.
Photos: Supplied; Kirsten Lawson; Melanie Faith Dove.
A ustralia has no shortage of incredible food - the whole country is liberally peppered with world- standard restaurants and innovative cafes steered by imaginative and heartfelt chefs. 
But, as Australia Day approaches, it's time to break out those uniquely Aussie and occasionally daggy foods that may not be fancy, but they're the ones that care packages from home are made of.
Vegemite It's hard to imagine we were a nation of Marmite lovers, hesitant to change camps when Vegemite came on the scene in the early 1920s. But perseverance from the Fred Walker Company (including a short- lived puntastic name change to Parwill: "If Marmite... then Parwill!") paid off and now that salty, dark spread made from brewer's yeast, packaged in jars with sunny yellow lids and labels lives in just about every household in the country, adorning white toast and confounding tourists.
Australian prawns We may be dreaming of a white Christmas, but we're a country blessed with a sunny festive season where the afternoon is spent in the surf instead of in slippers. With that comes a bounty of lush, fresh seafood, including sweet, succulent prawns. Whether you like barbecued king prawns livened with a simple squeeze of lemon or a retro prawn cocktail in a glass, they are another wonder of Australia's natural riches.
Pavlova Named after the ballerina, Anna Pavlova, the not-this-again, hotly contested debate still rages: are the origins of this iconic dessert from Australia or New Zealand? Whichever side of the ditch you're cheering for, the good old pav still sits proudly on the dinner table. Our plate-sized meringue with its soft centre is classically topped with whipped cream and passionfruit pulp, perhaps kiwifruit and fresh berries, occasionally Peppermint Crisp, if you're my Aunty Audrey.
A special shout out goes to the chocolate ripple cake, the dessert saviour of all those who can't wrangle a stove.
Anzac biscuits The recipe for these iconic biscuits was designed to have maximum nutritional value (hence the oats) and to be able to stay fresh on the long sea journeys to reach to soldiers in Gallipoli (hence no eggs in the mix). Their lovely, dark flavour comes from using treacle or golden syrup as a binding agent. Bake a batch, store them in a decorative old tin, just like they were sent over in, and spare a thought.
Milk bar lollies Remember when you were a kid and you'd spend far too long ruminating over the local milk bar's mixed lollies, putting together the perfect 20 cent selection of Mates, Pineapples, Strawberries and Cream?   Maybe a couple of Musk Sticks, a Wizz Fizz, a Redskin, a White Knight? How about a Choo- Choo Bar? Australian mixed lollies are a whimsical lot and so much fun to revisit.
Grab a bag of Allen's Party Mix and make a beeline for the Teeth - you know what to do.
>>Take our Australia Day pav challenge and be in the running to win a KitchenAid stand mixer. Entries close at 11.59pm on   January 27. See goodfood.com.au for all the details including recipes, videos and Dan Lepard's how-to video.