Eisteddfods and Soup Night

No, Eisteddfods and soup really don't have anything in common well nothing  I know of at least. But we did spend the better part of Saturday enjoying the voices at a 'local' eisteddfod (local being 125km from home) and we did have our Sunday soup night last night. The girls were part of their school choirs so it was a bit of a must to attend. And although I really do like listening to music, I will admit here and now that I am prone to getting fidgety when the program starts at 2pm and doesn't finish until almost 6pm.

Post Eisteddfod.

 We had a nice time anyway and got to spend a bit of time visiting a different town before the event. I also called into the organic market which I could see a few gaps in which might provide an opportunity next season. I just have to learn to become more confident and proactive in promoting the goods I have for sale. That will certainly be a test because I am not that type of personality at all.

 Our soup night was a real simple affair. Pumpkin soup made with a gifted Queensland Blue pumpkin. Hope had to have her own batch of French Onion Soup because my pumpkin soup doesn't appeal to her. In her own words, "it is too pumpkin-y". There are plenty of pumpkin soup recipes out there with all sorts of variations and adaptations so I won't bother sharing how I make it here.

The accompanying bread however was another matter. I think it is one of the nicest breads I have made.

I can't claim the recipe but I can share a link so you can make these delicious baguettes. And as is often the case, it is the simple and humble that is so impressive. A combination of water, flour, yeast and salt and voila... yum.

Music lessons, drama club and grocery shopping are on the list for this afternoon so I am off.
Tracy

Sunday Soup Night-tears in the kitchen

Tears in the kitchen and not because my I burnt the first batch of chocolate for my tart or because I cooked it a little too quickly in the oven and it had a soft crust on top. It was scruptious and decadent and make again delicious.

 

And not because my loaf of spelt bread turned out looking like a brick. It still tasted good and I'm not sure what happened overnight in the bread maker. It has made some great breadcrumbs.

 But because of this pot of trouble. A whole kilogram of onions chopped by me. I was in tears and no matter what anti-tear technique I try, I always cry. But for soup night, it was worth it.

'French' Onion Soup

 

Ingredients

60grams butter

1kg onions (I used half red and half brown), sliced

5 cloves garlic, crushed

a few sage leaves, chopped

1 teaspoon brown sugar

1 litre stock (beef is good because of the robust nature of the soup) 

 

Method

Place butter, garlic, onions and sage in a large pot. Cook over a low heat stirring occasionally for 50 to 60 minutes. The onions will become soft and sweet but not coloured.

Increase the heat and stir through the brown sugar.

Pour in the stock and bring to the boil then simmer for 15 minutes.

 

 

It is simple to make but requires the slow cooking to get the onions just right. And tasty enough for even Hope a confirmed vegetable loather to eat willingly.

Well, that was our first Sunday soup night for 2013. Next Sunday I'm favouring the idea of a spicy carrot and lentil soup but there are a lot of days between now and then to be tempted by something else.
Tracy

The best days

Today is turning into my favourite kind of day. A little rainy and cool with some dry periods to let me spend some time outdoors too. I have been running around a little too much for my liking and there is still another week of it but this weekend is free from to-ing and fro-ing.

 

 Last night we had a wonderful dinner with fresh picked vegetables. The girls wouldn't be happy if it was just vegies on the menu so I made a creamy chicken and tomato dish to go with some pasta along with a vegetable tian. The tian is a delicious way to serve different vegetables and easily adapted to include whatever is in season or in the crisper. I didn't take a picture of the finished product (too busy eating) so I won't put a recipe up until I make it again. I always like to see a picture of what I am cooking.

Grace, the musican, spent the morning in the kitchen making panna cotta for dessert tonight. Dessert isn't often on our menu but it will be nice for a change. Unfortunately her cooking involvement ends before clean up. SHe does assure me though that when she cooks at school she washes up.

The basket in the picture above, is loaded with tomatoes which this morning became sauce. This is an easy sauce which can be used straight away or frozen for later. It doesn't have any preservatives like sugar or vinegar so it isn't suited to beng bottled. But, it is delicious nonetheless.

I used about 1kg of tomatoes which I sliced up and placed in a baking tin along with four cloves of garlic, salt and pepper and some herbs (thyme and oregano today). Drizzled with olive oil and baked in a 180 degree C oven for 45 minutes. We enjoyed some straight away with bread and the rest was strained and frozen. This amount of tomatoes gave me two containers for the freezer which can be used in pasta sauces or soups/stews when there are no fresh tomatoes available.

The other reason I like days which are cool and moist is because I can get a bit of sewing done. I have a few things to make and send away so today is just right. Well it would be if it wasn't so windy.

Tracy

Looking Drab

 The herb garden is looking totally drab. I have been weeding, mulching and tidying but it needs a real overhaul as far as the plants go. All four garden beds need some colour. The dahlias will be up soon enough but the flowers will be a while off yet. I have sown some nasturtiums and marigolds for some quicker colour.

 This is bed 2 and it is being swamped by sounternwood. It is growing right in the middle of the bed and is messy and like many messes, it seems to be spreading. I'm going to cut it back to try to contain it a little and hopefully make it fill out a little more.

 The lucerne mulch doesn't add much to the appearance of the garden either and the fact that it has been a few years since there has been any change, it is looking stale in my mind.

 Bed 4 has been almost wiped out by a pesky rabbit. It has been digging and nipping at stems. Some blood and bone to keep the rabbit away and some fresh plantings are definitely in order.

My zeal for planting in the herb garden has come at a good time. It is my birthday on the 20th so I am busy now writing a little wish list of plants that I might like. I am transplanting volunteer lavenders, oregano, borage and thyme so things should be looking good soon.

 The first rose of the spring has made an appearance. It is called Knockout but is in actual fact fairly plain by rose standards. I'm not big fan of pink but a rose is a rose and I like it anyway.

 This I am looking forward to. The jasmine is almost ready to burst and the archway is laden with it. I really can't think of a sweeter flower to enjoy though I am partial to gardenia as well.

Lastly (if you have made it this far) I wanted to share a link to  Julie Goodwin's Lemon and Lime Tart recipe. I made it yesterday afternoon because for one thing the lemon tree is offering us a plentiful supply and also because I was making turnip soup for dinner. I love turnip soup but I thought with something that sounded so humdrum on the menu I should sweeten it with a little dessert. The recipe I can report is easy and quite delicious.

I am off to do a little more stalking of my Christmas swap partner before the girls arrive home from school.
take care,
Tracy

Potatoes and Leeks

The garden provided me with some potatoes and leeks today. I have been ruthlessly clearing out summertime crops which have been keeping on during the earlier parts of autumn. Not too ruthless I have to say, there are still some beans left in the garden and the pumpkins are rampant and are showing very little signs of dying off. I have been breaking off the fresh growth on the pumpkins because it really is going to come to nothing. They are a mess but there are plenty so I am not complaining.

We have been eating a lot of meatless meals. It might seem a bit strange, living on a  farm with a fresh supply of poultry and lamb that we don't eat meat every day. The kids could gladly (as long as it isn't a lamb they have played with) eat meat daily and their requirements for it are probably greater than ours. So tonight, they will enjoy a cottage pie whilst Tim and I have a potato and leek soup. Simple food, where the flavours can shine.

No real recipe for the soup. I usually follow a similar formula for all of my pureed vegetable soups. Prepare the vegetables, boil them until tender (adding stock if necessary) and then puree. It works with most of the root vegetables anyway. Sometimes I will add lentils or even a bit of cream after pureeing.With the potato and leek soup, I will saute the leeks in butter before cooking with the potatoes.  Quick, easy and generally healthy too. A chunk of parsnip and thyme bread on the side and it's a meal.
Tracy

Tidying Up Bounty

The vegetable garden is a trifle chaotic right now. There is a flush of growth and everything was looking tangled and messy. I am not opposed to a messy garden but if I can't see the produce then I certainly can't pick it to cook. So I have happily spent most of the morning tying up rampant tomato bushes and discovering zucchini that really should have been picked a few days ago.

I love to cook and especially when I have something inspiring me. I am going to use these too big zucchini for some soup, a zucchini chocolate cake, a slice and some biscuits/cookies too.

This zucchini isn't too big so it will be served at dinner tonight. The tomatoes will go along with some parsley and other goodies to make a tabouli.

I am very much a cook who is inspired by what I have. I will first see what is in the garden or fridge and pantry and then consult the recipe books rather than find a recipe and then hope I have the ingredients. I do however on occasion see a recipe that I would like to make and then go about buying the ingredients.

Pistachio and cranberry biscotti

I saw this recipe on Viv's blog and it tempted me enough to buy some dried cranberries. I'm glad I did. My biscotti might be a little more toasted in appearance than it should be but it is delicious and it was simple to make and might just be on the healthy side as far as baked goods go.

Tracy

Chocolate Melting Moments

Today I am suffering the after effects of a few episodes of insomnia. Tiredness. Walking around with many things to do in my mind but without the energy or the motivation to do them. I have done what I have to and probably a little bit more on top because that is what you do right!?

I needed to bake and I thought something small and just a little bittersweet would be nice. Something that will be nice with a cup of herb tea (coffee is once again on the contraband list). Melting moments sounded good and a little cocoa to jazz them up even better.

I really should have taken the time to find the proper piping rose because if you use the wrong one like I did, they look just a little bit like something the dog would do. Still taste good though.

Chocolate Melting Moments

Ingredients

125 grams softened butter

2 tbsp icing sugar

2 tbsp cornflour

3/4 cup plain flour

1 tbsp cocoa

Method

Preheat the oven to 180 deg C and line a baking tray with baking paper.

Cream the sugar and butter together.

Stir in the rest of the ingredients until combined.
Place the mixture in a piping bag fitted with a half inch rose and pipe stars onto the baking tray.

Bake for approximately 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool.

Today I sandwiched the biscuits together with Nutella (yuck) because the girls like it and it is easy. But a chocolate ganache made with 15 grams of butter and 90-95 grams chocolate melted together and allowed to cool and set to a spreadable texture would be even better in my opinion. Obviously I do not like Nutella.

Tracy

Advertising works

I am a bit of a cricket tragic. I usually prefer to listen to the commentary on ABC radio but sometimes if I am sewing or have something to keep my hands busy I will sit down and watch it. I am also a traditionalist so I like the test matches most but last night I did watch a little of the limited ver match. The advertising this year for the major sponsor really did work its magic on me. It did make me want a chicken burger.



I didn't succumb fully to the lure of the ads. I made my own. I even felt adventurous enough to make my own mayonnaise. Homemade burgers were given the thumbs up by the four of us but only the adults enjoyed the homemade mayonnaise. The verdict from the youngsters was that it was too eggy. Not so, it only had one lonely egg yolk in the whole mix. It was very yellow though and quite unctious.

Although I am missing my boy, I have had such a great day. Baking, bike riding and working here at home on the farm.
Tracy

Any excuse for a cake

It seems in our household that any excuse for a cake is a good one. A quick morning tea with my parents and sister which just happened to coincide with a birthday. The birthday was for my parents's dog, Mia, so their really was no need for a celebration cake but the humans enjoyed it even if the birthday girl had not even a taste.

I don't often make sponge cakes but I was in the mood to have something a little light and it works a treat with a cup of tea.

Simple Sponge Cake

Ingredients

4 eggs

165 grams white sugar

100 grams cornflour (wheaten)

30 grams custard powder

1/2 tsp bicarb

jam of choice

whipped cream

Method

Preheat oven to 180 degC.

Grease two 20cm round cake tins.

Beat eggs and sugar for about 10 minutes until thick and creamy and the sugar has dissolved.

Sift the dry ingredients twice and then sift over the eggy mixture. Fold gently until combined.

Divide mixture between the two cake tins and bake for about 20 to 25 minutes.Turn cakes out onto a clean tea towel and allow to cool.

Sandwich the cooled cakes together with jam and cream.

Dust with icing sugar and enjoy.

I'm sure it would be better to use caster sugar but I usually don't have it at hand and regular white sugar seems to work just fine for me.

Tracy

Herbs and macarons

This is possibly the world's worst looking macaron. I have made them before but feeling a bit adventurous decided to try a different recipe and they just wouldn't form a 'skin' before baking and didn't have the right lift during cooking either. I have had a few problems with recipes from this source so I think I will steer clear of this magazine in the future. My sister, Kelly, has also experienced a few issues with the recipes too so maybe it isn't just this cooks fault.


Herb bed 1 had some attention today. I would really like to be able to make lovely drawings of the garden bed to map out where and what everything is... maybe next week. I looked at a couple of free online garden design programs but they weren't suitable. There are still a few empty spots but it is lush enough right now. Not a very culinary bed but lots of useful plants.

• curry plant


• Turkey thyme


• lemon balm


• lemon scented geranium


• fennel


• Avonview lavender


• garlic chives


• catnip x 2


• cherry tomato


• chives


• foxglove


• common thyme


• chamomile


• rosemary


• southernwood


• oregano


• santolina


• peppermint scented geranium

The list has surprised me with its length, I really didn't realise that there were so many different plants in this bed but herbs are really my favourite plants. It feels like a good time to be taking stock of what is in the garden and what can be added. New plants will have an easy time settling in while there is moisture in the gound and warmth in the air.

Advent calenders opening up tomorrow so it is excitement all round here.

Tracy

Banana Fruit Loaf

You never realise how much you like something until you can't have it.Bananas had been off my shopping list since cyclone Yasi made them unaffordable but they are back in my basket. I have missed them a lot. Bananas are one of the few fruits that I let creep in beyond the local eating parameters. Bananas and mangoes, I just can't say no to them. The availability of the new season fruit and also some stiff competition amongst retailers has even allowed me to buy enough to make a banana fruit loaf. It is sweet and moist but with a little bit of a healthy feel to it because of the fruit. It is a great loaf to serve warm and for those who are wont to, with a little butter. Besides that, it is easy peasy.

Banana Fruit Loaf

Ingredients
2 cups mixed dried fruit
1 cup black tea (I use Chai)
2 ripe bananas, mashed
1 cup brown sugar
1 egg
2 tablespoons milk
2 tablespoons honey
2 and 2/3 cups self raising flour

Method
Preheat oven to 180 deg C and grease and line a loaf tin.
Boil the kettle and make two cups of tea, one to drink and one for the cake.
Soak the dried fruit in the tea for about 10 minutes or the time it takes to drink your tea.
Combine all the ingredients together and mix until combined.
Pour mixture into the prepared tin and bake for about 65 minutes. It may take a little longer so test the cake with a skewer to see if it is done.
Allow to cool slightly and then turn out onto a wire rack.

As the kids don't particularly like this cake I usually slice it up when it is cool and pack the slices in the freezer separately. That way they can be defrosted and toasted or warmed in the microwave as desired.

Tracy

River Cottage Lunch

It may be quite some time before I actually have lunch at one of the River Cottage establishments but nothing stops me from having it at home. I used Hugh's recipe from the River Cottage Veg Every Day! book to make up Sunny Corner Farm version of a very satisfying baguette with broad beans and asparagus.

It was completely delicious and didn't suffer from my improvisation of home made bread rolls and cream cheese rather than goats cheese.

The chickens have been having the best time too. Their foraging is getting beyond what I am happy with, a little too free range. When they see me turning soil or weeding, they are there. It appears that I am the source of all things delicious to chooks. I am not about to lock them up (not yet) but I am seriously considering electric poultry netting as a control mechanism. I'm just trying to decide if the $300 price tag is worth it.
Tracy

Pesto

Basil Pesto

Ingredients

2 cups firmly packed basil leaves

quarter cup pine nuts

quarter cup olive oil

quarter cup grated parmesan cheese

2 cloves garlic

Method

Process everything in a food processor until it is a paste. Quick, easy and tasty.

I freeze mine in small quantities and use when desired.

Today is a real outdoors day. The weather is perfect (though some rain would be very nice) and I have spent the morning in the garden and also checking on the livestock. It certainly makes the job easier that they are all followers. Here are the older ewes hoping I have something sweeter than grass to offer. I didn't.

We are in the process of finding a new ram for our flock. We would also like to buy a few more registered breeding ewes too but that can wait until the right girls are available. I would like to add a couple of pigs and some cattle to the farm too. We haven't had cattle for a few years now and I miss them.

The benefits to being home alone is that you don't have to share. The first mandarin this season. I'm going to wait though because it will taste better shared.

Tracy

Harvest Monday-16 March, 2011

Daphne hosts Harvest Monday for anyone who wants to share what they have harvested and what they are doing with it.

Basil Pesto

This week has been about harvesting the remnants of the summer garden. There have been fresh harvests daily for our meals but the focus is definitely on gathering what is frost sensitive in the garden and putting it by for later. I made pesto from the basil. It is frozen now in single use amounts. The pumpkins have had a frost on them now which apparently helps with the flavour. I'm not sure if this fact or fancy as we have been eating pumkins untouched by the frost and they were delicious nonetheless.

The harvest total for the week is 4.773kg/ 10.5 pounds. This includes butternut pumpkin, jap pumpkin, basil, other herbs, spring onion, climbing princess beans,lettuce and rocket. We also 'harvested' 4.5kg/9.9 pounds of turkey on Saturday too which is in the freezer for a winter meal or two.

Coconut and Lime Cake

I used some of my many, many limes in a lime and coconut cake. This cake is quite delicious and moist.

Coconut and Lime Cake

Ingredients

150 grams butter

1 cup sugar

zest and juice of 2 limes

2 eggs

quarter cup of milk

half a cup dessicated coconut

200g grams self-raising flour

Method

Pre-heat oven to 170 degrees. Grease and line 20 cm round baking tin.

Cream butter, sugar and zest until thick and creamy.

Add eggs and combine well. Add juice, flour, coconut and milk.

Pour batter into prepared baking tin and bake for about 50 minutes or unti la skewer comes out clean.

Leave in tin for 5 minutes then turn out onto rack to cool. Or even better, enjoy a piece warm from the oven.

Usually I leave this cake unfrosted and just dust it with icing sugar. This time however, I iced it with a cream cheese and lime frosting and added a few snapdragons as decoration. A little more decadent but worth the effort. I've been trying to use flowers in my cooking a little more of late. I'm still unconvinced about their taste value but they are pleasing to the eye.

Tracy

Seeing Red

The garden is full of ripe red tomatoes right now so I can be forgiven for seeing red. They are ripening well with the heat we have been having and a couple of kilograms come in every day or so. More than enough. It is at this time of the summer each year that I always question my thinking in spring when I platned out so many bushes. Rest assured though, I will do the same next spring and face a glut in February and March.

The tomatoes are in all shapes and sizes and if there are too many, they are always appreciated in the poultry pens. It hasn't come to that yet. I'm not sick of making pickles, tomato sauce or chutney yet.

As a change though, I have been making tomato soup. I only make it in the summer when we have our own tomatoes and it is delicious. It tastes just as good from the freezer too and can give you that little taste of summer in the midst of winter.

Summer Tomato Soup

1 tablespoon olive oil

1kg tomatoes, peeled and chopped

1 onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, chopped

1 carrot, chopped

1 handful of basil leaves

500mL stock

quarter cup of cream

Method

Heat olive oil in a large pot. Add onion, garlic, carrot, tomatoes and basil and gently fry for a few minutes until the onions soften. Add the stock to the pot and simmer for about 20 minutes. Remove from heat and puree with a stab blender or in a food processor. Stir through the cream and reheat but do not boil.

This soup is adaptable and quite forgiving. If you like things a little heat, some chopped chilli is nice and coriander works well too. I'm about to make another pot now. It can simmer away while I do abit of outside work in the lovely cool change we are having.
Tracy
P.S. I just spent quite a while peeling the skins from a kilo of small tomatoes and I can offer the advice that it is best to use large ones. Not so fiddly. Worth the effort still even with cherry size.

Earl Grey Tea Cake

As noted yesterday, I made an Earl Grey Tea Cake. It is a moist fruity cake but not as dense as regular fruit cakes. Don't let the idea of the tea put you off, it really doesn't overpower the fruit flavours. It does make the dried fruit very plump and delicious. The kids weren't keen on it but maybe because it is a fruit cake I would have to sell it a little harder maybe warm with custard. That usually works. It could also be that it isn't an overly pretty cake, just wholesome.

Earl Grey Tea Cake

Ingredients

150 grams butter

190 grams brown sugar

1 cup strong Earl grey Tea

250 grams mixed driend fruit

215 grams self raising flour

1 egg

Method

Grease and line a 20cm cake tin.

Preheat oven to 180 degrees C

Place the butter., tea, sugar and mixed fruit in a saucepan and stir over a low heat until the sugar has dissolved. Bring to the boil and then simmer for about 5 minutes.

Cool for a few minutes.

Stir in flour and egg.

Pour into tin and bake for about 80 minutes.

Cool in the tin.

I rarely wait for the mixture to cool properly, I just let it cool enough to stop the egg from cooking when stirred in. I think the secret to the cakes moistness is boiling the fruit.

Now I am cooking a cheesecake and a slow-cooked lamb with harissa, dates and cinnamon. My son is coming home after a week at leadership camp so he will be mighty hungry. They probably only had bbq all week.
Tracy

Spring weather, Spring dessert

The weather had taken a decidely spring-like feel but today has reverted back to wintery winds in preparation for some more predicted rain. I am at the point with the rain that I have to remind myself not to complain because it will be summer soon enough and we will be in need of a shower or two.
The mower has been in action for the first time since autumn because rain + balmy spring days makes for lots of grass (and weed) growth.

Back in May, I was thrilled with my son's Mother's Day gift to me. A Blood Orange tree. It may be many moons before I have any fruit off it but the lure of Blood Orange Sorbet makes the wait worthwhile. My usual sorbet recipe was in a folder so through sheer laziness, I looked on the internet instead. I'm glad I did. David Lebovitz's recipe is so simple, just a combination of sugar, juice and the ice cream churn.

Blood oranges are so juicy that there is very little waste. The pulp that gets through the juicer doesn't even need to be strained so it is about as healthy as a sugary, juice concoction can be.

The colour alone is irresistible. It is a pity the kids love it too because sometimes you just don't want to share.

tracy

I Love Cooking

I always like cooking and feeding my family and others but at the moment, I am loving it. There is a lot in the garden to be excited about and there is enough left over for preserving for later. I don't buy a lot of new books (well not as many as I would like). When I do buy one It is usually after I have borrowed it from the library and made sure that it is a book that I will use a lot.I used a book gift voucher recently to purchase A Year in a Bottle by Sally Wise. I've already made a number of the recipes up using excess garden produce. Chilli Sauce from the half kilogram of chillies that I picked on Wednesday. It was quick and easy and I cheat by chopping the chillies in the food processor.

My favourite so far has been the Tomato Chilli Pickles. The finished product has a chilli hit without being overpowering and is nice with cheese and crackers but also good for a quick simmer sauce for an Indian style curry.

Another book that I've been using lately is Rachel Grisewood's Manna From Heaven. It is a fun book with great pictures, illustrations and with a story preluding many of the recipes. It is upbeat and just makes you want to get into the kitchen, get cooking and tasting the delicious finished products.

The Tian of Zucchini and Tomato was delicious as a side dish and good as leftovers for lunch the next day.

Chilli Sticks were quick to make in the food processor and are a tasty snack. Rachel suggests them as adult fare but my kids loved them.

As you can see, the kitchen has been productive. Throw honey extraction into the mix as well and everyone is happy.

Bye for now,

Tracy