winter

how i love winter

it's been cold enough to

 celebrate the new season with an open fire

cook comforting food

and cosy up in one of my quilts 

oh..how i do love it 

apple, rhubarb and ginger crumble*

tea with hazel

serves 4

 ingredients

6 medium sized granny smith apples 

4 stalks rhubarb (i used homegrown)**

1-2 teaspoons finely grated ginger

1 tablespoon (tbs) golden castor sugar

70 gms butter

70 gms castor sugar

70 gms moscovado sugar

70 gms plain flour

2 tbs oats

method

~ peel, core, cut each apple into 8 sections, and place in acidulated water
~ cut rhubarb into 4 cm pieces
~ place apple pieces in a large saucepan with 3-4 tbs water and cook over low heat stirring gently until the apples are al dente
~ place apples in greased oven proof dish along with rhubarb, ginger and sugar
~ rub the butter into the flour, sugar and oats and top the fruit with the crumble mix
~ bake at 180 deg c until the crumble is crisp and brown and the fruit underneath is bubbling

serving

~ serve with cream, vanilla ice cream or as i prefer with a homemade vanilla custard

notes

*   i've been making apple crumble for years using the same recipe but i changed a couple of things recently such as adding ginger instead of lemon to the fruit and oats to the crumble mix..i've tried adding oats before but not in such a small quantity..it seems to make the topping adhere just the right amount so that it's biscuity and crunchier than my previous crumble..
**  at last i have the variety of rhubarb i want and like..the thinner stalked red one..my last two attempts at growing it resulted in unnaturally zealous plants with green stalks that stayed green despite everything..i tried to love it but i was put off by the green gloop it cooked into so it had to go..

this in pristine condition enamel dish is a recent op shop purchase..

do you love winter too?

homemade yeasted crumpets

i really understood the whole battery hen thing when my children and i raised baby chooks in our laundry..light on, they'd start pecking mechanically at their food, lights off, they'd sleep..it was quite cute but also confronting because i could see how their instinct to feed in lit surroundings left them open to abuse..

i saw similarities between battery hens and humans recently when i went on long plane trip..there we all were jammed into too small seats pecking away at food while the light was on and then nodding off when it was dark..well..some of us were..not me though..i've never been able to sleep sitting up..even when i was young..for instance, when i was in my twenties travelling with friends by overnight train from san sebastian to paris (it was free because the ticket sales staff were on strike) my friends had no trouble nodding off to sleep but i recall staying awake the whole night puffing on too many cigarettes and staring into the dark..by the time we got to london (several days and more sleepless nights later) i was really sick with a middle ear infection and a swallowing razor blade like throat infection..it took a trip to a hospital emergency department, antibiotics and several weeks of rest to recover..at three score and more it's the same for me with flying..yeah i know..first world problem..no one made me go..not like the poor battery hens that have no choice..

one thing i longed to do as soon as i returned home was make sourdough bread but my starter had gone into a neglect based decline..to make matters worse it developed a cheesy smell and black mould on the surface after i took it out of the fridge, with a view to feeding it, but then forgot about it..resuscitative strategies have paid off and it's looking a bit perkier today..not me though..four days later and i'm still feeling jet lagged..the fact that i'm not enjoying coffee from my favourite cafe after two weeks of not so good coffee says it all!

it doesn't matter that i can't make sourdough though because i've had crumpets on my mind ever since i came across 'the crumpet shop' in seattle washington..anyone who makes yeasted and sourdough things will understand how excited i was when i came across a shop dedicated to making organic crumpets on the premises in full view of the customer..the other thing that got me excited was the great way tea was offered there..it was drink as much thermos tea as you like for about $1.50 from a range of four hot teas and one iced tea..why can't we do that here? oh&s issues?

the only other attempt i've had a making crumpets was decades ago and i have a hazy recollection of the crumpet mix sticking to the egg rings and them not being very crumpetty crumpets..here i used a masterchef recipe..the minor changes i made are noted below..they're much better than my last lot but there's room for improvement..

crumpet with butter and maple syrup

one of six red rimmed enamel and six blue rimmed enamel bowls i bought
from a wharehouse in los angeles

$13 for maple syrup from trader
joe's in los angeles

comments: 

~ i only used 1 teaspoon of yeast..next time i make them i'll use the full amount stated in the recipe
~ i thinned the mixture by adding about 30 mls of extra water to help bubbles develop on the surface
~ i used egg rings rather than the larger crumpet rings so my crumpets were smaller than traditional ones..the mix makes about 20 egg ring sized crumpets
~ i cooked them in batches of four in a preheated cast iron frying pan that i very lightly greased
~ i found that it was best to liberally grease the inside of cold rings with butter, place them in the frying pan, and immediately fill them with the crumpet batter..i tried heating the rings, greasing them with olive oil, and then filling them but the mixture stuck to the rings
~ in 'the crumpet shop' they cooked their crumpets in a semi enclosed environment so to replicate their method i put a baking tray over most of the top of the frying pan
~ i found the crumpets needed 10 minutes on a low heat on the first side and a further 5 minutes on the second side (i didn't grill mine on the second side as per the masterchef recipe)
~ i plan to make the next batch with sourdough

chestnut cupcakes with chestnut butter cream

chestnut cupcakes with chestnut butter cream

tea with hazel

makes 12

ingredients 

chestnut cupcakes

3 large eggs

125 gms castor sugar

150 gms almond meal

300 gms unsweetened chestnut puree

3/4 teaspoon (tsp) baking powder

1 tsp vanilla essence (i used my own)

chestnut butter cream

65 gms butter

3-4 tablespoons (tbs) chestnut puree

pure icing sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla essence (i used my own)

extra

finely shaved dark chocolate

method

cupcakes

~ beat eggs and sugar until thick and creamy

~ add chestnut puree, almond meal, baking powder and vanilla essence and mix until incorporated

~ pour the mix into a jug and divide mix between 12 hole paper case lined muffin tin

~ bake at 180 deg c for 30 minutes or until cooked when tested with a skewer

~ remove the cupcakes from tin to cool on a cooling rack

chestnut butter cream

~ beat the butter and chestnut puree until smooth
~ add vanilla and enough icing sugar to make a smooth, thick, mix

cupcake assembly

~ remove a 2 cm circle by 2 cm deep piece of cake from the centre of each cupcake
~ fill the cavity with a large teaspoon of chestnut butter cream
~ dust with chocolate

the cup, plate and vase are all recent op shop finds

the teapot is a recent purchase from a second hand shop in castlemaine

i bought it to join identical red, blue and orange op shop purchased teapots

i'd love to find yellow, brown, black and white ones to match

op shop treasure

i'd been feeling a bit disappointed with op shopping lately

i used to find treasure quite regularly at my local haunts but in the last few months i'd found nothing that i wanted

fortunately i hadn't completely lost heart because today when i visited them i found something in each three

there were two of these hidden away in a corner
they will join my other enamel cups

i bought these ($3 for the plate) from the same shop as the cup above

i bought this old chopping board ($3) today from an op shop that i had
 virtually stopped going to because it rarely has anything i want
it's in really good condition and according to the sales person
it had only been used to cut bread
i will give the top a light sand though and a coat of orange oil

i rarely see tea pots i want to buy but i love this blue metal pot ($4)
i'll only ever use it for decorative purposes though because
it's made of aluminium 

another aluminium tea pot ($5)

i bought the 2 metres of calico ($2) for christmas puddings
and the printed cotton baby sheet ($0.50) will be
used for patchwork

happy weekend..x

wake up

wake up

drink 

blue sky

clouds ethereal white

new life green 

spring

op shop finds

these vases don't seem to be popular at all..i've purchased them at different times and places over the last few
weeks for about $3 each

i was very excited when i found this brand new japanese retro tea pot..it cost $4..it's a really good quality enamel 

i bought these grapefruit and lemons at a local op shop today for $2

each winter an elderly woman from gippsland picks bunches of jonquils from her property
and drives all the way to melbourne to deliver them to my local op shop where they are sold
for $2 a bunch..they've been sitting on my kitchen bench for 3 days now permeating
 the room with the most delightful scent

yes..i found two..this is a slightly smaller version of the teapot above and cost $3

two non stick cake tins in this lovely soft blue cost $1.50

i love cherries so much that i just had to get these..only .50c each

i bought this made in england johnson bros bowl because i want to cook souffle in keeping with my retro
 inspired cooking phase..i haven't made one for decades..it cost $4..

happy fossicking op shoppers! x

op shop treasure

after doing a regular walk with a friend yesterday in studley park i went to a local firewood retailer i knew about by the name of dunning's to get some wood so that i could have a fire last night for my children's and my dinner together only to find that they had closed down..i was really disappointed to find they were no longer operating because it was such an iconic business that had been there for 100 years..funnily enough my son and i had been talking recently about how much we loved dunning's wood yard and that we would be sad if it closed down..

anyway i decided i needed some cheering up after that disappointment so i visited an op shop that i used to frequent when i lived in the area before my move 4 years ago..i wasn't expecting to find anything much because other trips hadn't been particularly fruitful but i was pleasantly surprised to actually find the french ceramic hen, the 6 green jars, the vintage sheet, the sifter and the filing cabinet..i also found another rubber duck to join my ducks on parade!

and a little detour to another op shop on the way home after food shopping resulted in the purchase of the enamel bowl..on tuesday i found the enamel jug when my daughter alex and i did a bit of a detour on the way home via the op shop after having a coffee break at my local cafe..i spotted the lemons down a lane this morning but this is all i picked because i didn't have a bag with me..another better prepared trip is planned!

this made in australia propert sifter is in really good condition

relatively new jug made in romania

two piece french ceramic hen

i have a vision that involves another two of these

made in belgium

have you found any op shop treasures recently?

op shop finds

from the last two weeks..

$2 for a pretty hand painted vase
i found the mirror in an op shop too a couple of years ago

$8 for this finely cross stitched piece in a
lovely old wooden and plaster frame

$3 for an early australian fowler ware bowl
$2 for the brand new hand appliqued table cloth

$2.50 for this coloured enamel bowl
the table cloth is also an op shop find but from a few years ago

brand new still in their packet vintage single bed
sheets for $7

used but in good condition double bed sheet for $2

$5 for this new t2 teacup

hop on over to
the shady baker
for more op shop treasure

enamel 2

i love enamel plates..

'the leaning tower of plates'

and i have 56 of them in a variety of colours..and within those colour groups the plate and edge colours vary..for instance i have 14 cream plates but 4 of them are bread and butter sized with red enamel edges (these are my favourites)..and 2 of them are a bit larger with brown edges..and the rest are larger again with 2 having blue edges and the rest having green edges..the other plate colours are white, black, grey, blue, red, pink, green and yellow/orange..

and what do i do with them i hear you ask..well..i love to use them for afternoon teas..sometimes i will just use one colour but often i like to use a variety of colours to coordinate with the table linen, flowers and china..and as well as using them for entertaining i also use the plates on a daily basis..they're not dishwasher safe though so there's a bit extra hand washing up but that's never a concern.. 

but..the cups and plates don't constitute my entire enamel collection so look out for future enamel postings :)..

enamel

i love enamel cups..

and i have 78 of them..what do i do with them i hear you ask..well..sometimes they become window sill displays in colour order or mixed up..sometimes they have matching enamel teapots to keep them company..the unchipped ones i use to make pies or puddings or to serve sauces and salsas and they go on picnics and bushwalks for cups of tea..and the others make good vases for flowers..what do you collect? jane