from dirt to dinner

Supermarket Sourdough Scam

2012-02-22T02:08:00.001-08:00

..sounds rather dramatic doesn't it? Do you know what you're eating when you buy "fresh sourdough" from Aussie supermarkets? (pics are of the good stuff)

In my quest to make purist sourdough (no additives and only the s.dough starter as a raising agent) and eat a low GI diet, I've been buying the odd loaf at the supermarket aka stupidmarket.

Fresh "Sourdough" bread has a big section in every (local to me) supermarket bakery area. So why is it that when I eat the organic sliced loaf, it FEELS completely different to eat than the in store baked stuff??

Taking a quick peak at the ingredients (OK! OK! So it's my favourite past time to read labels, ingredients, who grew, packed and produced the product. Sorry if you're nodding off to sleep, I'll get to the point.) and found a whole bunch of additives, preservatives and yeast in the bread. Most of which did have some sort of sourdough ingredient - I'm guessing to introduce the taste to the faux sourdough - but some had NONE! Using vinegar or lactic acid for the sour effect.
* pic is of the good stuff. Bills

Now here's a case here of misleading advertising:
*Yes, the bread has a sourdough element in it (most of the time)
*Yes, it's freshly baked
BUT:
*It wouldn't have the same Low GI rating as a true sourdough and..
*It would negatively impact those on diets requiring this low GI fermented product.
*It contains yeast which is a fast acting raising agent - fast production = more money but not the fermentation
*It has the sourdough starter for a flavour addition (not the point!)

Can I just EXPLAIN!? The whole point to having a sourdough bread is that it's a HEALTHfood. Not a fad food.

When grains, seeds, nuts and flours have been soaked, sprouted and/fermented the inhibitors are released (the chemical that helps preserve itself until ready to grow in the right conditions). This enables the high level of nutrients to be readily available.

Fermentation partially digests and introduces *friendly bacteria so those with IBS or other digestive and gut issues find this friendlier to their bodies.

I'm just a passionate person OK!? With one too many causes to fight for, I have to curb it all to focus on home, kids and figuring out what the heck's for dinner! So I chat, vent and blab to you. On here. Thanks. x

P.s. The big seller for me, was Bill's stone ground flour. We order this flour through the Co-op Stop and it stores exceptionally well in our foil pouches long term.
Any bread you see with a multitude of added vitamins and minerals is from a super duper refined and quickly processed flour - having to add a little back for all the goodness it lost in the fast money making process.

LOVE SLOW FOOD!

*with friendly bacteria there's always bad bacteria present. Though not in sourdough as it's cooked, but (lactobaccilus is what makes it taste sour) if you're concerned ask your doctor before eating the good stuff if you're on chemo or something! Home made Kim chi, sauerkraut, any yoghurt, unpasteurized milk/cheese, keffir etc etc

tricky bricky..

2012-02-12T03:48:00.000-08:00

Trying to find better recipes for sourdough bread, I've driven myself into a youtube stupor.
I just can't believe the amount of mind numbing, lengthy, helpful and not so helpful clips out there on the topic of sourdough.

Well, my patient friend who I called today (me being company deprived and home bound).. could tell you a thing or two about lengthy, mind numbing moments!

sorry

My purist desires are being compromised and I may just have to use some vit C, gluten and heaven forbid lecithin (non-soy based anywhere?!) to get sourdough bread that isn't tough or bricky.

....

Thrill or Fear? (wonderful things)

2012-02-08T00:50:00.000-08:00

What is it that we love so much about fear? This none OH&S slide on holidays was nail bitingly steep.
DS1 looked so scared that I thought he was going to cry - but up he went a dozen times.

I'm sure we don't really like being scared. If you got on a roller coaster with a friend, then sneakily took a bolt out of your pocket and said, "oops! look what just came out!" then you could really test the 'loving fear' theory on your friend.

I don't think we really like it at all. Sometimes it's good for us though. Not knowing the future, the stomach lurching moments, the thrills and anticipation, smiling, screaming, laughing... and about to wet yourself or puke or both.

I personally don't subject myself to roller coasters or other panic inducing rides. I like to stay safe.

LIFE is one trip full of anticipation, stomach lurches, tears, laughter, heart bursting happiness and puke that I wouldn't miss for the world. {Thank you for mine Creator and co-creators}

Just say something!

2012-02-02T01:09:00.000-08:00

With all the controversy over certain stationary items and t-shirts at the moment (and OH MY! are they shocking!!), I figured there was enough people on the case demanding change. There was an absolute outcry which was GOOD!

BUT when I walked into my local shopping centre to be confronted with a poster ad of a totally nude lady I was livid! I sent this letter in... I didn't hold back:

I am a mother of two young boys and have shopped at Westfield for the past 9 years.

I have three serious complaints to make about the inappropriate presentation

of advertisements and music at Westfield.

1. the Coca-cola advertisement on the board near Woolworths and pie shop of

a passionate kiss. Steamy hot kisses aren't appropriate!! I was really appalled

when I saw this and continue to be. Children see this and think it's ok to

kiss each other like that. It lowers the level of accepted (among their peer

groups) physical contact. It's showing us that since it's public it's ok

to do at any age. WRONG.

2. The new advertisement that has a NUDE poster of the biggest looser trainer.

WHAT THE HECK IS THAT ALL ABOUT!?! This isn't some sleezy back alley shop

with an Adults only sign, it's a GENERAL PUBLIC AREA. This goes beyond

acceptable and is nothing more than porn. Seriously! Having my 3 and 5 year old

boys look at a poster of a naked woman signals to them that it's ok to see

pictures like that. It's immoral and NOT G RATED.

3. I understand you have to appeal to all audiences when playing music but

"I wanna sex you up" is not appropriate shopping mall music.

So far with the heated kiss, naked body and music lyrics (which they DO pick up

and notice) I have no desire to shop at Westfield.

There are codes on television. So where are your codes of conduct?

I can only assume you were getting alot of money for those ads. I'm fuming.

So after a few emails back and forth, one claiming they weren't responsible for those ads as they're managed by someone else. They promised to give the feedback and follow up.

This is the final response I got:

I just wanted to let you know that all the Biggest Loser posters have been removed from the Centre entirely and we are in the process of removing the Diet Coke campaign.

The company who manages the advertising have taken on board the feedback. When it comes to advertising creative they do try ensure that all campaigns comply with the Australian advertising standards.

If you would like, you could also refer your complaint to the Advertising Standards Bureau (ASB) via the ASB website.

Kind regards,

Leanne Waterfield

Marketing Manager

So off to the ASB I go to make sure they at least hear what I, as a consumer, Mother and member of society have to say. It didn't hurt the last time I did.

Good result! I urge you all to stand up for the innocence of our children and for goodness. Just one email made a real difference. A small victory, but worthwhile.

"If only.." is the worst!

2012-01-06T02:03:00.000-08:00

"You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream" C.S Lewis
I copied this off a women's e-newsletter that came this week. It's EXACTLY what I need to remember and what I've decided to take action on already.

The thing is... I have no dream attached to my goals. In my experience, I've found that doing what I feel is right and being consistent pays off big time in the end!

Learning German is an old goal from 2002 when I started a distance education course and never finished it. Ten years later I could be fluent if I'd have just stuck with it!
German is just so impractical! Why not learn Japanese (we're close, only makes sense - lots of J. tourists!), Spanish - the most spoken language after English, or French (Fr. Polynesia's close, get an understanding for alot of words in the modern English language). It also sounds as ugly as the flag looks.. yerk!

But for some strange reason I'm loving it! It's confusing as heck, learning languages but at least my accent's ok!

I've finally decided that when I grow up I want to be a....
Oooh.. do I dare say? mmmmmm... No. For now I'll just learn the basics of chemistry and physics (like I never did at school because of the crummy teacher - lost opportunities make me gasp!)
Then in a couple of years when I'm enrolled I'll let you know.
For now, it's German, high school brush ups and little boys to enjoy (in the reverse order).

I LOVE my family! And thank you Mum and Dad. For extra time, for extra chats, for those feelings of home, of safety and relief in belonging. You get me and I'm so glad I get you for a while longer. xxxx (can you feel the tears spilling over?).

Suzi Style Recipes - Rocky Road and Honeycomb

2011-12-28T01:41:00.000-08:00

Ok Christmas treats were all dished out with great feedback! Well, for the Rocky Road anyway!

So here are the recipes:

Suzi Style Rocky Road - you know me, can't do anything without stuffing something healthy in there! All measurements are "-ish" add more or less, whatever you like.

2 x 375g packets of Nestle cooking chocolate Melts (I did one batch white and one batch milk)
1 cup whole dried cranberries (I got mine from Thomas Dux as they looked nice and plump)
1 cup desiccated coconut
1 cup whole raw cashews
1/2 cup cacao nibs ("raw cocoa is full of antioxidants that rival super foods like blueberries, and many antioxidant rich teas the cacao nib is also rich in good fat and minerals such as calcium, zinc, iron and potassium.")
Marshmallows - this was a bit of a blur.. it may have been 500g packet per batch... so just chuck a load in and see what you think..

I simply melted the chocolate in the microwave for a min. combined all other ingredients in well and then plopped it into a lamington tray (40x30cm -ish) that was lined with baking paper and buttered.

Cover with plastic wrap ( I have to use foil so the kids don't see it) and hey presto! Cut into half then in strips.

Honeycomb
Now you know when something turns out so well it's braggable!?! Well my first batch was.. then we had a couple of really humid days and it went chewy on the outside.. but still Yummo!

Here's my secret - GELATINE and the microwave:

1 cup white sugar
1 cup syrup (I used golden syrup but can be corn syrup, maple etc)
1 tablespoon white vinegar.

Stick those three in a pyrex dish and stick in the microwave for 6 1/2 mins on high, then wait until it's slowed down bubbling a bit before you take it out.

Then add a 1/4 tsp of gelatine that was "blooming" in a tsp of water - stir stir stir!!! (will start doing the bubble up thing here.)

Then quickly add 1 pre-sifted Tablespoon of baking soda - madly stir! stir! stir! (volcanic action here)
Then when it looks all mixed and is huge and foaming, tip it into a lined and super buttered baking tin (butter all the way to the top of the paper). NOT a tray but a cake tin. I used the smallest one I have about 20cms across. This way it's a high chunk and the gelatine makes better air holes throughout.

It'll take an hour or two to dry out, then cut/smash/splinter up, pack and store in air tight container. If you leave it to the air it will go sticky and chewy then eventually dissolve.

UPDATE: the Sauerkraut is great! I'm really surprised I managed to pull it off. It has a few more days to go but we've had really warm weather so I'm tempted to jar it up now and refrigerate... we'll see.

Other treats I made this year are:

Mulberry jam (to clear the freezer to make way for ham mainly!)
Fermented mustard (coriander, garlic and honey mustard)... it's... an acquired taste :o)
Honey almonds with a cayenne kick

My fav gifts received this year:

* A basket of home grown carrots, parsnips, onions (with decorations and chocs) from my kindred spirit American friend Heather
* A gift bag full of mini jam jars with home made jams - ok one or two jams is impressive but four!?! Plus they're all interesting; passionfruit and peach, kiwi and orange marmalade, wine jelly and choc hazelnut spread. Plus chocs, from my very soft hearted friend Kay (she made them for all the oldies she looks after, and seriously doesn't have the time!).
* A dwarf Meyer lemon tree from my husband (and tea pot with mesh strainer inside for my new herbal tea fetish - rooibos chai is my fav at the moment)

And for next year?.. I'll remember to get more sleep, wrap early and buy food for boxing day! - what a mistake to make ;o\ Maybe some mini gingerbread houses to give away.. or I might go back to the easy peasy chocolate candycane fudge... Oh gimme a break! I'll start thinking about that in June :o) haha!

Christmas lights..

2011-12-23T03:11:00.000-08:00

Last night we went to the Temple lights about 20mins away. The lights were already on and the boys loved running down the bush lined paths to be in the middle of it all.

On the life size Nativity the boys seemed to like Herod and the soldier the best. I think the armour had a bit to do with that! They're doing their mean king faces.

They liked the Shepherds too ..

And "ooh"-ed and "aaah"-ed over baby Jesus and ran past the wise men.. they do take ages to get anywhere!

DS2 enjoyed the art exhibition and I'm sure would have learned alot if it wasn't for DS1 saying "come oooon!" the whole time. We gave the missionaries there a bag of 'white Christmas' we'd made (the white chocolate version not that skanky copha and milk powder blerugh!) and off to see the lights again.

The pics weren't great so you'll just have to go and see them yourself if you're in and around Sydney.

On the way home we visited a street famous for it's Christmas lights - OH MY! They were crazy spectacular for house lights!

off to bed. Christmas is tiring.. and very very enjoyable. It was nice to see the big Nativity, our teddy Nativity at home is a bit slack in the acting department and they keep falling about the place with giggles. Messy toys they are!

Merry Christmas!
THE COAT
A GIFT TO THE WORLD

Fermented foods..

2011-12-17T03:04:00.000-08:00

I'm making Sauerkraut
Here's a quick rundown of what I did. There's so many ways, so this is Suzi style.

1. I got 1.5 ORGANIC cabbages, 3 organic carrots and a red onion (any pesticide/fungicide will prevent fermentation)

2. Chopped it up finely, salted it (use Maldon, Himalaya or any salt that hasn't been processed or iodised) and then I left it covered overnight to wilt.

3. Then I stuck it in my food grade plastic tub and smooshed and bashed the heck out of it with my masher and rolling pin end until the natural water content was released.
4. This is when you add flavour if you like (see Polish lady links below), but I didn't have anything interesting on hand.

5.After layering with herbs/mixing in dry spice, it needs to be weighed down. I placed a plate over the top to keep the cabbage from rising. I used zip lock bags filled with water to weigh it down. It's nice as you can see what it's doing through the bag.

6. Cover with cling/plastic wrap, gently place lid ontop and leave in your kitchen for 3 days. Then move it to a cooler place (but not the garage, you don't want to the process to slow too much) for about 3 weeks checking daily.
                  (mine's orange because of the carrots. I'll try purple cabbage and beetroot next time)
                                              --------------------------------------------------------

There is so much anecdotal evidence about fermented food that I'm not sure what to think. I like and agree with some of the information.. but find a niggle in my mind about the lack of evidence either way.

I just pick at what I feel like doing and if it makes me feel good, then that's great! You'll hear about it :o)

                                                                                                                                             ( pic milk and water Kefir "grains")
Dom, (click here for his site)and has started a big come back (from the traditional cultural use) of Kefir, shows the breakdown of micro-organisms found in milk Kefir. I'm sure you'll gasp when you see some of the bad names in there. They seem to have a use though at keeping the others in check and are generally regarded as safe. Interesting reading...

Milk Kefir tastes like a cross between cream cheese and plain yoghurt.. hard to drink a glass of that a day. Water Kefir you can flavour with fruit like the original fizzy drinks. Ginger would be great!!

BUT Kefir is a bit high maintenance for me. A bit like sourdough. I love sourdough bread and I can FEEL that it's low GI. It's an alkaline food which helps prevent inflammatory conditions but you have to feed it all the time. Thank heaven for freezers! (baby jabba is sleeping there right now - he may be dead... )

                                           -------------------------------------------------
So anyway I watched this Polish lady who makes the traditional recipe for Saxon Sauerkraut. She's great to watch and I love it when she sticks her feet in!

Then went to this site for the recipe I used as I was sure it would be fail safe. She talks a lot but it's all interesting. I'd like to see lab results though.. as the proof seeker I am, how does she know it takes 3-4 weeks to get "Tri-i-llions of lacto-bacillus" ??

So! What's your fermented favourite?

There's a huge amount of them out there, naturally fermented soy sauce for one, homemade kimchi (at any good Korean eatery, sauerkraut (NOT the one in the jar with vinegar), Kombucha, Sourdough bread (stone ground please)... and the list goes on...EDITED TO ADD: Chocolate!! Hello!! Cacao pods are opened, fermented and then the cocoa butter (cream colour and a good fat) is separated from the brown solids that we use as powder.

Christmas prep

2011-12-12T14:14:00.000-08:00

This year I've been following the Household Management 101 programm for a stress free Christmas.. when I say following I mean reading and picking out the odd thing to do.

I read back on the tasks today and I'm happy to say I've done alot of them already! Well, the silly things like "put up the decorations".. no brainer. I'm always pretty organised for Christmas. I'm a forward planner so start my ideas off in June! We moved house this year though, so it's slowed me down a little.

Happy to say the overseas presents have been posted, cards being written today and an extra special gift of home made decorations made by me and the boys going out too. We did them ages ago and just varnished and re-glittered them yesterday. Here's hoping they make the trip in tact.

A couple of years ago I made Mamma Karries which were an absolute HIT! Flip, they take an age to make though. Lots of fun if I have a whole day to myself.

I made them with hazelnuts which was perfect but larger nuts would be easier and faster.

Which leads me to this year's list of Christmas treats... a bit of a quandary since I don't have an extra freezer to make and pack them into, like gingerbread dough, peppermint candycane fudge, choco biccy balls ( you know the ones with swt cond milk and coconut right?)... so I'm having to re-think.

I'll still do the spiced honey almonds... mmm.. maybe some home made herbal tea? We'll see.. Maybe our new honey man will deliver the honey comb in time! ... Probably not with all this rain. Grow some chest hair and get a mack on MAN! No seriously, the flowers keep getting knocked off in the rain. No flowers, no honey.

Also...

Whoopie Pies are FINALLY hitting the stores.
Possibly even replacing cupcakes - or an equal competitor at least. Hooray for stupid cupcakes moving over! Why do I think they're stupid? Probably because I don't have the time or inclination to stand there for an age doing individual decoration, piping and cutesie-fying just to impress. That's fine and wonderful if you want to and yes I do think they're nice to look at but think it's a little pointless all the same.
Don't you think Woopie's just make sense!? Icing in the middle. No icing overdose in the first bite or disappointing dryness at the end.

Thank - you Amish folk for sharing another corker with us :o)

I haven't even started on my current rant about fermented foods.... do they have to be so yuck?! Sauerkraut's on the go. Kefir's in the too hard for now basket.

There's a first time for everything..

2011-10-26T18:12:00.000-07:00

This month we've had alot of firsts.. not all of them good!
DH chased a beautiful young goanna that was half way up the private road we live on. He's always been very careful with them and only ever gotten a scratch. This time he got bitten, hard. Actually it was more like a chew! Not one to hold a grudge, he showed him off before letting him go (click to enlarge, you can see the BLOOD from DH's hand dripping down the goanna's leg (lace monitor)

We made Halloween lanterns ( a week early). The bright orange imported pumpkins were $4 a kilo!! So we got a rock melon and later a watermelon. DS1 had a great time and I sat on the floor with the melon heads each night with the candle on in their room as they dropped to sleep.

No room in the fridge so they didn't last long.
Another first was home made foccacia pizza.. I really should have halved the dough, it was ALOT of dough. But super fluffy (even for my stone ground, light sift, whole grain flour) and really yummy! A definite hit.

Here's DS2 with his and my first try at making pasta through my (flippin' fantastic) juicer. Again, it was that stoneground flour.. so it wasn't great in this recipe but just for play was great. DS2 loved it and I wished that I'd started the kids on wholegrain pasta from birth (they love quinoa/barley flake/seedy bread and raw veggies.. forgot about brown pasta!)

FOR THE FINALE:
The other firsts this month were... DS2 falling off the retaining wall in our new place. Fell onto concrete and miraculously was fine within 20mins! Dad has had more blood transfusions (which unfortunately isn't a first) and is on his second course of chemo.. worrying so I can't even write about it. I'm a Daddy's girl. x

Our unparked car rolled down the drive (took an hour then we heard it!) and crashed into the bush taking out boulders and trees in it's path. We had four paramedics on scene (my husband and his co-worker to come and check it out plus his boss and station manager to open the bush trail gate for us with their special rescue key).
Must have been a sight for the neighbours!! Freaked out one guy coming to walk his two dogs on the track. He went pale and stuttered, "wa? ww. w. w. wah?" hhahaaha No-one was in the car, it was just a crush mess.

The skeptic was wrong... phew!

2011-09-30T15:47:00.000-07:00

Well this is too good to miss.
Might I say, that I FLAT REFUSED to go to the two Norwex parties/demos that a friend invited me to.
AFTER I'd researched it to the hilt and realised that this could be bigger than Tupperware (with the SAME Antibac Microfiber being used in hospitals in MY country. I found lab tests, clinical and hospital trials - Proof! Proof! Proof! After getting up off the floor.. and picking up my jaw, I decided, arms crossed, scowl and skepticism on the inside, to go and see a Norwex demo.

It was THE WORST party plan/direct selling moment I'd ever been in. The lady stood at the front and droned on and on and ooooon. I think once she said, "if you want to try one...".
I sneaked in the other room with the hostess and one of the cloths (Antibac Enviro) and with my TUT and eye-roll found a vegemite smudge on the carpet... "HANG ON! did that actually come out?? Oh... it did".

Before I'd even touched one myself I was signing up (still with skepticism) as the urge to join at such an early stage (first two years) of Norwex being in the country was too good a chance to miss.
Back then it was $149 to join, now it's $59.95 - darn it! :o)

I am STILL FLABBERGASTED at how good this stuff is. The fact alone that it SELF SANITIZES still gets me.

Did I tell you the time when I proved the self sanitizing ability myself?? It's GROSS but totally worth hearing.

My husband is a Paramedic and has come home with a stomach bug three times now. I used one Antibac Enviro, damp, wiped over the door handles, taps, sink, then the loo - button and top, lid, inside the lid, seat, everything.. then used some Norwex loo cleaner. I think I even wiped the floor around the loo just incase.
Then EVERY TIME he used the bathroom in that unfortuante way, I used the SAME CLOTH to do the same things and only rinsed it very very very well under the hot tap and hung out to air on a hook near the sink.

NO-BODY GOT SICK! And you know very well that once a bug is in the house it rips through everyone!

I'm happy to say that I haven't had a stomach bug since I've been using Norwex and that's almost 2 years ago now.

I LIKE! click on the LIKE button on the right hand side below followers and you'll have access to my personal monthly specials. So worth it.

~Don't ask for lemon butter~

2011-09-19T04:52:00.000-07:00

Well since our new rental property has NO available growing space (ok so there might be a smidge but it's kid chaos in the garden), I've decided to take up preserving ("canning" in the US and "bottling" in the UK) to hopefully take some of that itch away.

So far it's not really working.. I'm enjoying bottling ALOT but there is no substitute for getting my hands dirty in cool loamy soil and planting out the first seedlings of Spring. Smelling the warm fragrant air, knowing that in a few months time I'll be overrun with zucchini, cucumber, tomatoes, beans, shallots, herbs, lettuce, silverbeet, beetroot, potatoes etc etc etc!!! We never got overrun with starwberries but we'd at least get about 250g per day for a month. That was nice. Plus a few experimentals..

Here in the new nest.. it's... well... in the bush (trees/wilderness). So even if I did grow anything it would be quickly devoured by possums or bandicoots. They'd either eat them or sit on them. Grrrr!

Our garden is NOT a place of tranquility as there's a 10ft retaining wall of climbable boulders at the rear going up onto the private road. I have boys. Climbers. Clever climbers. Oh help me!

Anyway, so I'm getting stuck into the food production side for a year at least.

6 ft leeks that were at the market for $1.50 each! LOVE leek soup so I chopped and froze them. Too bad I sold that tucker box freezer..

Lately I've been Strawberry Jaming. Because I have small kiddies, I like to do the recipes that have stages so I can stagger out the work and not ruin anything because of kids underfoot.

Here we have batch 1 and 2. Aka Strawberry Jam with bits and .. er... Strawberry Jam.
Batch 1 was 1.5kilos of strawberries (sliced and sat over night with sugar in fridge). Cooked with a packet of vacola jamsetta, juice of one lemon (there for the taste not the pectin) plus a knob of butter at the end to disperse any scum. YUM! Thanks Delia.

Batch 2 was 1.5kilos (smooshed and sat over night in sugar in fridge) with juice of 1 lemon and no pectin. Without that Jamsetta it took longer to reach setting stage. In comparison I thought this was too cooked. It lost that lovely fresh zing and was darker in colour.
Knob of butter at the end.

My cupboard!

From left to right we have: Hickson mandarin marmalade (didn't set but tastes sooo gooood!), Murcot mandarin marmalade (set. nice.), Piccalilli by the book, Piccalilli without electric scales (curried piccalilli actually tastes really yum too!), Batch 1 Strawberry Jam (the best one).

Below we have the bums so you can see the deliciousness. On the far right is a small sample jar from Batch 3 Strawberry Jelly Jam;

(ran out of time, sat in fridge for two nights so s.berries got almost dehydrated with the sugar sucking the juice out of them so they didn't cook down to mush. Then I had 2kilos of fruit and added 2 packets of Jamsetta so it's rather... jelly like. It's not conventional but oh my Gosh! the flavour is so there!)

So to tally up I have(Large jars are size 20 Vacola, approx 540g):

3 large jars Apple sauce (ok it was supposed to be apple pie filling but processed it wrong and had to re-cook it. YUM!)
5 med jars Piccalilli - by the book
6 large jars Curry Piccalilli
6 large jars Strawberry jam (1 each of Batch 1+2 and 4 of Batch 3 the Jelly Jam - yuuuuUUUm)
5 small Marmalade jars (1 Murcot, 4 Hickson)
EDITED TO ADD:
2 large jars wild plum jam
3 large jars pickled onions

Not to forget the fridge:
3 large jars of Strawberry jam, one of each batch
1 large Murcot Mand. Marmalade
1 small Murcot Mand. Marmalade
1 Piccalilli by the book

So! My strawberry jam tips:

Use Jamsetta as you keep that lovely fresh flavour and appearance of the fruit as you're not having to boil it for very long (maybe 16mins or less).
Do batches of 1.5kg at a time
Add juice of one lemon for flavour, it really compliments the strawberry. Then a knob of butter at the end, also for flavour
If you do the slicing the fruit and leaving over night in sugar method then don't leave it any longer and smoosh that fruit once it's in the pan.

Happy Jamming!

P.s. We stripped the lemons off our tree before moving.. how silly of me to think I'd have time to make lemonade and lemon butter. We gave lots away and the rest spoilt because of my optimism in having time in a new home. So don't ask for lemon butter.. there is NONE!

August - more-ish

2011-09-08T05:38:00.000-07:00

Ok so here's the most beautiful thing that happened in August (well, this year!). Meili and Sam got married.

http://emmykstone.blogspot.com/

This little boy was very shy and waited for quite some time watching his Meili being photographed before he had the chance to give her a temple garden picked posy.

Sorry... I know! So totally inappropriate to put these two subjects together... (sorry sorry sorry) BUT there's nothing more refreshing than the smell of brining vegetables. HONESTLY! It smells like fresh air.

Here's the mix after having the salt washed and washed and washed out. Then cooked up in spice, sugar and vinegar mix.

Piccalilli cooling and popping while I get the apple pie filling ready to bottle up. It ended up being apple sauce as I didn't know you had to process them straight away in the Vacola unit so I had to cook them up and re-sterilise all the jars before processing them again. Still... loving the apple sauce! I have it on good authority from my friend Sarah and her extended family that it's super delicious! (Glad it's not just one of those things you love because you were fed it all you're life!).

Here's the one good photo of me in years. It's likely to be a while before I post another pic of myself! I'm not the type to make my face the subject of my blog entries (so conceited when people do that!). Food is so much more interesting!

Don't I just make those braces look cool for a thirty something Mum to be wearing!? (er.. ha ha can I even use the word 'cool' at my age?)... Not too bad. After 2 years of invisalign and 4 months of braces I'll have straight teeth - yay!

.. finally

2011-09-03T06:23:00.000-07:00

Well after weeks of anticipating moving house, making mum's piccalilli (really more like a relish), strawberry jam and yet more mandarin marmalade.. we're in and settled.
The garden makes me anxious. Too many unsafe places, too exposed to the private road and NO ROOM TO GROW!
Gosh I miss growing vegies already. This is spring and I have this desperate urge to stick my hands in dirt, dig, sew, water, mulch and plan what I'll do with gluts of giant zucchini, cucumbers, tomatoes, onions and potatoes. I was even going to try corn again this year. At least I kept my curry leaf tree...

Humf! How dull. Still... I've got my new vacola unit and can start using up some of these age old jars I got on freecycle. I'll just have to make a trip down to the markets before the apples hike in price as the season changes. Make some pie filling.. then maybe some strawberry and apple jam next time.

Dud marmalade... YUUUM!

2011-08-07T16:07:00.000-07:00

No, Dud isn't a new kind of citrus fruit. This was a batch of Hickson mandarin marmalade. The smell and taste of Hickson's are sooo sweet fresh and delish! I used this at the bottom of muffin tins when making cup cakes. It's going to be yum on a lemon drizzle cake.

I couldn't help but stick ALL of the peel in. It wasn't bitter. It's the seeds and pith that are in the muslin that make it bitter. They have heaps of pectin which sets the marmalade.

I cooked it for HOURS but it didn't set. I think now it was due to my low cooking point and should have upped it alot. BUT even though it didn't set it's the most delish by far!

I made some Murcot marmalade the following week and it wasn't as nice. Too much sugar for my liking and didn't have the same taste as the lovely Hicksons.

So I got onto lemon butter instead. In my opinion, the microwave method sucks...... well, lemons. It doesn't have that sharp, delightful zesty taste. So I'm doing it by hand from now on. After we move anyway. Time to pack up.
x

Minding My Peas and Cucumbers

2011-07-06T17:52:00.000-07:00

You never forget that realization of sheer joy the first time you feel it. For me it was standing in my Father in law's allotment. He was far off picking beans.. or something and DH was about two feet to my right.

We were elbow deep in raspberry scratches. I remember the delicious tang of the baby soft raspberries in my mouth as I looked up at the biggest cloudless summer sky. I was blissfully relaxed and had DH by my side. It was only then that I realized my joyous passion in life (the first anyway.... :o)

The Cottage Smallholder's lovely write up on this book makes me want it to read it.

I think of my Father in law whenever this topic of allotments pops up.

Thanks Gramps! I'm sure I really didn't want to help you that freezing English spring when you asked me to help plant out all those seed trays.

We ate from your allotment EVERY night that summer with Kippers from the Isle of Man that you brought back. Bliss!!

Home Pickled Onions

2011-06-26T16:45:00.000-07:00

I've been itching to talk about this one! This is why I blog.. not to get a bunch of followers (though that's nice) but to blab about things where most of my friends wouldn't be able to share my enthusiasm on the topic.

I love pickled onions but my husband doesn't. But who cares?! I couldn't believe my luck when I found some at the supermarket. Since we're moving I'd much rather pack jars full of homemade goods than empty. Gives a bit of excitement. By the time we move and unpack they should be ready to eat. Though I might leave them until Christmas.

I did these the slow way, brining for 12 (or 24) hours before rinsing then stuffing in the jars with pre-spiced vinegar. All cold. I sterilised the jars and left them in the oven to cool before putting everything together.

The bucket was clean! I've already packed away my big brining bowl.

I couldn't find any pickling spice mix so I made two of my own. The MAJOR bummer with this is that it's impossible to find chunky dried bits of allspice etc. It's all powdered. So I did what I could though it's left the cloudy vinegar to settle with spice sediment everywhere. No matter, it'll still taste good just will be a little stronger over time than I wanted.

It wasn't until I'd done the two different spice blends that I realised I prefer white vinegar with a dash of malt... nevermind!

Ta Daaa!

2011-06-19T00:43:00.000-07:00

Ok so I bought this loooong cardigan on holiday at the Gold Coast almost 2 years ago. Loved the purple colour but not the figure hugging style. A huge NO NO for pear shapes such as myself. So I finally did something about it.
I turned this......(or a similar)

To this!

I cut the bottom off, hemmed it (WISH I'd have kept the tie belt as that would have made great edging for the bottom) and cut out circles from the off cut. then stretched them out as I sewed the edges in a button hole type stitch so they went all wiggly. Then pinned them on. I wish I had more material to do the whole collar. I haven't decided if I want them all at the front or all down one side so they'll stay pinned for the moment.

So well done me for being brave and going for it instead of looking for ideas on the internet.. then giving up before I've started.
xx

'bit O' recycling

2011-05-30T04:36:00.000-07:00

When my eldest was about 1yr old his Auntie in England sent some lovely summertime all-in-ones. As it turned out he didn't get to wear them with size growth, season change etc etc. Little boy number two wore them a couple of times but we didn't have a warm enough summer last year.
So! time to get rid of them.... couldn't do it, so I recycled them. I love the innocence of them and even decided to recycle a pair of unworn undies (DS2 has a big juicy bum and they were too small! haha)

stick em on some vliesofix and off you go.
Below are a few. Riley's 'pants' firetruck on his back

Elephants on the front and lion on the back

Then onto fixing the curtains that had ripped stitching after the boys had slid down them like a fire pole. I love them. They're so colourful and look like something from my childhood era. Just fun with no branding.

Your Dad's eyes...

2011-05-02T04:04:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago I was thrilled to find that my great grandmother (I've been doing her family line) had a previous marriage and son. Pictured below with his wife on their wedding day. He died the following year.
Talking about this to my Dad and the memories he has of his grandfather and extended family sadens me that I can't see any physical evidence. No pictures, no journal, nothing. Back then they'd burn them all.

So I'm very happy to have my great great uncle's pic right here.

When I talk with the boys and tell them how beautiful they are, I tell them who's parts they're made of (generally!). DS1 is tall like my brothers, my hair and face as a child - except the eyes. He most definately has his Dad's eyes. Soft, warm and deep (hopefully not googly but only time will tell!).

DS2 has Daddy's shaped head and nose. All the rest is mine! Though his eyes are a mysterious mix of blue and... ? Lungs and strength of Daddy (who has his Father's and grandparent's keen cycling abilities) and both extremely gifted in the energy, climbing and problem solving departments. Especially escapism. eek!

This is DH trying to get some sleep in the spare room.. apparently I did some sort of feminine breathing that was too loud for him to sleep through - the nerve!

It's nice to share family similarities with cousins.

.. and giggle about them with mums.

I personally find it so important to teach my children about who they are and where they're from.
Seeing those past and learning about them gives me drive, peace and happiness in the knowledge that they are the making of my genes and if they live against the odds that were in their lives then I flippin' well can! I love seeing similarities and owning a great heritage.

I can never really get out what I feel about it.. hope you get it.
x

Remembering special things

2011-04-22T07:10:00.000-07:00

I do feel rather Australian but when people talk of beauty my heart is most definately not here but in Britain and Europe. The wild flowers, twitch and trill of birds, green green meadows, bluebell woods, postman pat villages that I'd loose myself in and end up in Stratford-Upon-Avon (what the!?). Going for a drive with my family as a child on a Sunday arvo and finding an old farm house complete with work field and pigeon house out the back. Dating 1600 and something.

I miss the richness of history, language, food, diversity and feeling of European countries and their ancient, ancient places. Some of them shocking me with feelings of spirituality or history or connection of family.. I'm not sure which.

I miss Jersey Royals. I miss Jersey milk. I miss real Haggis. Rugged magnificence of large rivers meeting and making place names. Rummaging in the wilds and scrumping.
I miss Spanish driving, honking my horn at whatever and offending no-one. I miss hitching up our clothes and walking in the shallows for sandy miles to get to an island castle at low tide. Watching for days in Spring as the buds almost shake with anticipation on the cherry trees and finally burst open. The snowdrops peeping through the snow. The bank of daffodils in Spring at Easter time. I still love that wretched scent.
I miss German Christmas markets with the man yelling "Lecker Lecker" selling roasted chestnuts. Watching wide eyed as we attended Semana Santa and saw the resurrection float being carried by a crowd of men down the streets of Cuenca. Realizing we were the only non-Spanish, non-Catholic people in the whole town - magnificent!
I miss stinky, locally made cheese. I miss the distinct change of accent with a half an hour drive in any direction of Birmingham. I miss my feet being on soil that my ancestors walked. I miss family pub lunches and baltis. I miss the National Trust. I miss that awe inspiring moment of approaching Toledo with it's castle walls intact and very much a part of the city! The adventure. The stone cottages with thatched roofs in the village of my birth.

I don't really have that feeling of being in limbo anymore. It lasts for years and years. I'm sure all first generation immigrants feel the same. I've almost mastered the art of NOT rolling my eyes whenever I hear, "wow this place is so old it was built shortly after the first fleet arrived". My brain automatically inserts interesting history here.

Have I had a good old whinge?! Nope, just said how I feel (well except for that last bit!). I still think this is the best place to bring kids up. I like it here but do miss alot of rich and wonderful experiences from my younger days. I'm very very happy that I can sit here enjoying every burst of remembrance.

Speaking of remembrance. Here's what's been on my mind all week. This special weekend.

Hello Mojo

2011-04-21T04:30:00.000-07:00

Well it's been a long long journey from my first pregnancy 5 years ago my second 3 years ago and then Post Natal Depression for 18months. Urgh! Hormonal imbalances and crazy brain has finally abated and my cooking mojo (and happy fun mojo!) is back! Everyone's happy.

Ok so the pic of the preserved roasted capsicum looks.. erm.. unappetizing but they taste very nice. Sweet pickled.

The latest made up recipe is a treat, Apple Almond cake, It's moist like flourless orange cake, except has flour.. and no oranges.

The other night I did a beef casserole with Patritti and the next night when we had the love bird's over for dinner I made the BEST pastry in the whole world and stuck the casserole left overs in it. YUUUUM!

These pics don't really show anything amazing but it's all I've got for now. I ordered some millet flour, rye flour and a whole bunch of nuts, dried fruit and seeds etc from our last co-op order.

Helen (the lady who does the health food orders for me) and I both decided we're sick to the teeth of it. Sooo much work (doing it properly) with nothing in return. Not that getting something in return is sought after, but after doing this damned thing for 7 years now (and Helen for about a year I think) it gets draining, annoying and we end up resentful at those who can't be bothered to pick up on time, pay on time or even get the fact that it's voluntary and share the load a bit.

There are some absolute gems that genuinely are thankful and will help when they can! But generally after each order and the pain in the butt things that happen we don't feel very good about anyone and resent doing it. But how would we get the goodies!?! Aren't most humans motivated by self interest? Of course.

What I DO love is having a home stocked with wholesome ingredients, healthy great quality produce and having the satisfaction of cooking with them knowing the nutritional value is high.

This time I got millet and rye flours to try them out. The rye flour made great sesame rye crackers, nice and crunchy but not too hard. Nice with cheese. It also made GREAT 50:50 unbleached wholegrain and rye flour bread rolls. I know I know, they look flat. I didn't let them rise for very long and it's a sourdough starter so they really needed all day. They were soooo fluffy! Even the next day. PERFECT burger bun recipe. Found it finally!!

Gotta hurry up and pack these babies before the kids get too comfortable. There's a mouse in this house! I'm sure it won't be interested in the health food. There's plenty elsewhere

I pack dry goods (with oil/moisture content less than 10%) like THIS

Warm and Fuzzy Chocolate

2011-04-19T17:13:00.000-07:00

Thank goodness there are more people getting involved with fair trade. It makes such a HUGE impace that we really have no idea how our small choices affect the lives of others for good and bad.
x

On My Mind..

2011-04-14T05:54:00.000-07:00

Today we went to my favourite piece of open ground. I took the kids to the veggie garden first and was so happy to see them pointing out the ones that we also have at home. Pretty good for 4 and 2years!!

This big bertha of a ginger plant was flippin' amazing! It must be so old. Taking cuttings isn't too bad... is it? Na!

DS1 and his Easter egg basket. 3 picture shrink wrapped hard boiled eggs in a woolly nest.

Gorgeous Autumn day. We napped well!

Eat that Yellow Dragon (and Hooley dooley)

2011-03-29T03:27:00.000-07:00

Well here's a pic I forgot to put on before. (I think). The wiggly zucchinis from my neighbour down the street (who has a mandala garden like this one but way better). These are vertically climbing zucchinis that grew so many that she gave me about 3 kilos and then more. So what else but rabbit bread and the fluffiest, most moist and yummy zucchini lemon scones (yes they worked!).

Wiggly zucchini scones:

1 cup finely grated zucc

bit of lemon zest

1cup unbleached flour

1 tablespoon butter or coconut oil to rub into flour

1 tsp baking powder

That's it! rub in butter to flour and baking powder, add zucc and lemon zest and you're good to cut and bake. I think I baked at 170C for 15/20mins. Can't quite remember. Until golden anyway. YUUUUM.

Eat that Yellow Dragon... Fruit
About a year and a half ago, we went to the Qld/NSW border for a holiday. What luck to find a place called Tropical Fruit world!!! Steve rolled his eyes the whole day, "did you see that guy taking pictures of an Avocado on a tree?!" my response, "Why weren't YOU taking pictures?!"
Anyway, we got to try all the lovely tropical fruits and this one I've finally seen in the shops. I don't like the red one.

This one has the texture of a soft ripe pear, seeds like a kiwi and tastes like.... erm.... water. Maybe with a teeny tiny after taste of tapioca, but mostly just juicy water. HA! Oh well. Good for us I'm sure.

Hooley Dooley.. This bread is really olive oil bread made into mini burgers. I forgot that at such a high temp (220C) this kind of bread creates lovely air pockets. Olive oil bread by Richard Bertinet is simple. Flour, water, salt, olive oil. It's so fluffy and crisp it's delightful. NOT the ideal think for mini burger buns...

With sourdough starter the bread doesn't rise as fast BUT in the oven they really pop up.

Lucas loved stuffing carrot sticks through the holes and eating his that way.

These are the little guys. The burgers are made from left over red salmon, small kidney beans and sweet potato from the previous night's dinner. They SCOFFED them down! Woohoo!

p.s. I was out of carrots, zucchini and sunflower seeds.. oh and sultanas. So this is renamed "bird bread" with pepitas, raisins, currants and dried banana coins. I didn't let it rise over night, just 4 hours so it's a little dense but soooo nice and we love it.