making do

i love the alchemic way in which a few random ingredients can be made into something nutritious and delicious..for instance i don't have a plethora of spinach for making spanakopita at the moment but after a little bit of foraging on the home front yesterday i found enough greens to make a hortopita or wild greens pie..i gathered rocket (i have a lot of the smaller leaved variety that self seeds everywhere), dandelion leaves, violet leaves..yes they are edible, purslane, spinach, watercress, mint and wild fennel (i collected the seeds last year from the dandenongs, where it grows wild, while on a blackberrying expedition)..and i did a bit of tweaking with my phyllo recipe..

strifti hortopita (spiral wild greens pie)

tea with hazel

ingredients pie filling (these ingredients can be adjusted to suit individual taste and the ingredients to hand)

about 5-6 cups of mixed greens (i used rocket, purslane, violet leaves, watercress, spinach and dandelion)

1/4 cup of mint cut medium

1/2 cup of fennel fronds

1 egg beaten (1 tablespoon (tbs) reserved)

150 gms feta crumbled

150 gms ricotta

1 teaspoon (tsp) salt (murray river salt)

1 teaspoon pepper

method pie filling

~ cook the dandelion leaves first in a centimetre of boiling water for 5 to 10 minutes, then add the violet and rocket leaves and cook for a further 5 minutes..lastly add the purslane and spinach and cook until all of the leaves are well wilted

~ drain the leaves in a colander, cut up with scissors while still in the colander, and then press the leaves to extract excess water (the water is like a health tonic so i drink it)

~ mix the greens with the herbs, cheeses, salt, pepper and egg and set aside

extra ingredients

sesame seeds

melted butter

ingredients pastry

200 gms typo 00 flour

50 gms rimacinato flour

35 mls olive oil

1 tbs cider vinegar

1 tsp salt (murray river)

warm water

method pastry

~ place flours, salt, vinegar and olive oil in the bowl of a stand mixer and, with the motor running add enough water to make a soft dough

~ knead for 5 minutes 

~ remove the bowl from the mixer, cover with a damp tea towel, and rest for 1 hour

~ divide the dough equally into 5 balls, roll each one into saucer shaped discs, and rest covered for 30 minutes

~ roll each disc to a rectangle about the size of a large dinner plate size and until it's semi transparent

method assembly

~ butter each sheet of phyllo, place a fifth of the mixture along the long bottom end of the pastry, and then roll up into a sausage

~ coil the sausage in the middle of a lined circular tin

~ continue in the same manner buttering the ends so they adhere to the last piece
~ brush the top with reserved egg and sprinkle generously with sesame seeds
~ bake at 220 deg c for 10-15 minutes and then at 180 deg c for a further 40 minutes or until well browned
  

 comments

~ i think the pastry made with the typo 00 and rimacinata flours was better than my former phyllo for a savoury pie..it was certainly harder to roll out but its more robust and coarse crunch suited the savoury filling
~ i thought the flavours of the leaves and herbs worked well and none overpowered the others..i hadn't eaten violet leaves before (apart from chewing on a raw one recently when i discovered they were edible) so i wasn't sure how they would go but there was no stringy chewiness or weird flavour and if i hadn't put them in myself i wouldn't have known they were there..

i'm grateful
that i'm eating weeds because i want to
not because i have to..

very grateful

minestrone was a favourite when i was doing my nursing training at the royal melbourne hospital in the late 60's and early 70's...exhausted and hungry after gruelling shift work my friends and i'd often walk to carlton for a bowl of minestrone (or bolognaise)..it was always served with plenty of crusty bread and butter..i started making it myself when i was living in the north of greece..it was a wonderful all in one nutritious, cheap, warming and hearty meal for me and my soldier husband..the recipe i used then was from elizabeth david's italian food..it was one of four books i had at the time..the others were elizabeth david's french country cooking, the green and gold and a book on greek cooking

i'd forgotten about minestrone soup until this morning when i was thinking about how i'd use some stock i'd made earlier in the week..lots of options whirled through my head but when i thought about some of the other ingredients i had minestrone suddenly just popped into my head..

versatile minestrone

tea with hazel

serves about 6 people

ingredients

2 litres stock (i used homemade)*
100 mls red wine
3 medium onions cut into medium dice
2 fresh garlic heads cut into quarters*
1/4 cabbage cut into large chunks
6 celery stalks cut medium (i used homegrown which have smaller stalks than most commercial celery)*
1 large carrot cut into medium dice
2 medium potatoes cut into medium dice
1/2 cup arborio rice
3-4 thin slices of double smoked bacon cut large (i used skara)
1 teaspoon (tsp) chilli*
2-3 tablespoons (tbs) organic tomato paste
8-10 dried tomatoes cut into medium pieces
parmesan rind cut into chunks
6 ruby chard leaves and stalks with stalks cut into medium pieces and leaves cut large*
large handful of rocket leaves*
1 cup fresh broad beans*
1-2 bay leaves

olive oil

salt and pepper

to serve

chopped parsley (i add it as a garnish because i find parsley goes an unpleasant dull colour when cooked) *
freshly grated parmesan
extra olive oil

method

~ saute bacon, onion, garlic, carrot, celery, cabbage, potato, chilli and bay leaves in olive oil until the onions are translucent
~ increase heat, add wine, and cook for a minute or so to burn off the alcohol
~ add stock, tomatoes, tomato paste, parmesan rind and rice and simmer for 20-25 minutes
~ just before serving add chard stalks and leaves, rocket and broad beans and cook until just tender
~ adjust seasoning

to serve

~ garnish with plenty of parsley, some parmesan and a drizzle of olive oil

notes

* home grown or home produced ingredients

suggested alternative ingredients

~ replace the stock with water
~ use other leafy greens such as spinach, kale, mustard greens, nettles and dandelion
~ replace the tomato paste and dried tomatoes with passata or fresh tomatoes
~ replace the fresh broad beans with cooked dried beans such as haricot, lima or kidney beans
~ replace the rice with pasta or use both
~ omit the bacon
~ saute the vegetables in good quality bacon or pork fat

one of life's pleasures for me is turning my home grown produce into a wholesome meal..it's not about money per se..sure this soup cost very little..for me it's more about being in touch with the ebb and flow of seasonal produce..and growing my own keeps me firmly in touch with the hard graft of those 'on the land' who provide us with sustenance..i'm grateful..yeah that's it..very grateful.. 

rosemary and lavender cold processed soap

i had to climb over a car to make this soap..and i'm not speaking figuratively..i literally had to scale a celica..it's a mixed blessing letting my son store his vintage car in my garage while he's away for six months..for one thing i had to do a bit of long overdue clearing and cleaning first..it was a case of three days work, nature strip donations and some excited hoarders..one of whom brought a trailer..and i loved being able to help my boy out..the downside is that it's now a mission to get to stuff like my soap making paraphernalia..i did get my boy nick to check that i could access the narrow passage between the car and the stuff stored along the sides of the garage..he did a quick shimmy..i was satisfied it was possible..but later when i tried myself it was a different story..i hadn't accounted for our differences in agility and circumference!

rosemary and lavender cold processed soap recipe

tea with hazel

ingredients

1000 gms olive oil 

500 gms copha

25 gms beeswax

215 gms sodium hydroxide

400 mls filtered water

a cup or so of rosemary leaves*

lavender*

method

~ process 200 gms of the olive oil and the rosemary and leave to infuse for a couple of weeks

~ strain through muslin

~ follow the instructions here for making the soap except after pouring the soap into the container sprinkle with lavender before covering and insulating the container

notes

* i picked the herbs from my garden..i used the rosemary fresh but the lavender i picked and dried last summer..it's a french lavender that doesn't look anything much in the garden and it doesn't smell particularly lavendery when fresh but once it's dried it has the nicest lavender scent of any i've grown..

~ each bar cost approximately $0.65..the beeswax i found at an op shop for $0.50!

 it doesn't show up but the soap is a lovely soft green colour with some pretty shading on top caused
 (i'm guessing) by the lavender

i'm looking forward to using it in a few weeks time

herbs de provence and rose olive oil cake

do you remember in the seventies when carrot cakes were all the rage? no..weren't even born then! well..believe me when i say they were de rigueur and cutting edge gastronomy back then..what? a vegetable in a cake? oil instead of butter? wow!

i got on the carrot cake bandwagon with great enthusiasm..come on..i'd just returned to australia after having lived in a small town in the mountains of northern greece for a few years..i was easily excited.. 

one day i thought i was being clever when, instead of using a flavourless oil, i used extra virgin olive oil to make my usual carrot cake..no surprise then that it tasted strongly of olive oil but my taste buds just weren't up to the flavour in a cake even though they were olive oil inured so i reverted to the flavourless stuff..now fast forward to yesterday when i put all of my decades old extra virgin olive oil in cake prejudices aside to make this recipe..the cake has herbs de provence in it too..what? herb de provence in a cake? wow!

i found the recipe for this herbs de provence and rose olive oil cake here when i was looking for ways to use all the grapefruit my girl kat gave me..the flavours in this cake intrigued me but i wasn't sure how i would like them but i think they're wonderful..i thought the rose water* would dominate but it's quite subtle and goes really well with the grapefruit..and the herbs de provence* add intriguing and delightful notes that complement the delicious fruity flavours of the olive oil..not being one to waste much i made candied peel from the juiced grapefruit skins..that was the only thing i did differently..oh..hang on..i did cut down on the sugar a bit..

note: * i used a french rose water concentrate imported by the essential ingredient purchased from here and herbs de provence, brought back from france by my dear friend robyn, that included rosemary, thyme, basil, marjoram and summer savoury..

have you come across any flavours that have intrigued and surprised you lately?

ethical dilemma

i've been thinking a lot about my food choices lately..it's nothing new though because i've been ruminating for decades..you see there's a part of me that would really prefer to be vegetarian or vegan..actually i was vegetarian for about four years but i reverted to limited meat eating when i became increasingly unwell..

one of the issues that concerns me is the way we have commodified animals for human consumption..it doesn't rest easy with me at all..in hunter gatherer times animals had a bit of a chance but with animal domestication their destiny is now predetermined..treating them well is all fine and good but it does seem a bit weird to go all 'oh i'm so nice to these animals..aren't i such a good person'..and then turn around and kill them, cook them and gobble them up..it's very hansel and gretel..

i've no answer to this dilemma though so i only eat small amounts of meat occasionally that i incorporate and balance with other ingredients..i'm not one to crave a big juicy steak or hop into slabs of meat from spit roasted animals..easter was not a good time for me when i was living in greece..yeah..i loved the ritual of easter sunday's lamb on the spit and all the palaver associated with preparing it and cooking it but i just couldn't eat any of it..

one thing that i've been doing lately is cooking more beans..i used to cook them more..my children grew up on beans and lentils and while i still cook lentils often i've neglected beans in the last few years..i've found that a big batch of home cooked baked beans is a great thing to have in the fridge..for instance, my girl kat came over to do patchwork with me on sunday and instead of me having to make something from scratch and take time away from our precious sewing time together i was able to reheat some beans that i then served on some homemade apple sourdough*** toast and topped with grated cheese and a couple of thin slices of crispy skara bacon..she loved it..i've also been having them for breakfast..and they're great to have on hand for days when i've been too busy to prepare and cook a meal..

versatile baked beans*

tea with hazel

ingredients

500 gms australian great northern beans**

3-4 medium onions cut fine

2-3 celery stalks cut fine (i used home grown)

2 largish carrots cut fine

1 green or red chilli (i used home grown)

4 or more garlic cloves cut fine

2-3 bay leaves (i used leaves that i stole from a tree in my neighbourhood that's hanging over a fence)

3-4 tablespoons (tbs) organic salt free tomato paste

2 teaspoons (tsp) powdered english mustard

1 tbs treacle
3-4 tbs cider vinegar

1 organic hot chorizo sausage sliced

olive oil

pinch of bicarbonate of soda

salt and pepper

method

day 1

~ cover beans with water and leave to soak overnight

day 2

~ drain the beans and add fresh water to cover, add bicarbonate of soda, and cook until just softened

~ in another saucepan saute the onion, celery, carrot and garlic until semi translucent

~ add chorizo and cook until the slices are starting to brown on the edges

~ add tomato paste, some of the bean cooking water to loosen the tomato paste, mustard, vinegar  and treacle and mix well

~ add the beans and the bean cooking water and season with salt and pepper

~ tip into a baking dish, drizzle with oil and bake at 180 deg c for about 1 to 1 1/2 hours or until most of the liquid has evaporated and the top is slightly browned

notes

*     yesterday's version
**  they cost me $5.50/kilo..the baking dish of beans makes about 5-6 servings so it's a really cheap but nutritious meal
*** sourdough with grated fresh unpeeled organic apples, organic rye, biodynamic wholemeal and a bit of organic white flour and amaranth seeds

suggested alternative ingredients

~ replace the cooking water with unsalted stock
~ add vegetables and herbs such as capsicum, fennel and/or parsley
~ use brown sugar or molasses instead of treacle or omit altogether
~ use dijon mustard or add mustard seeds at the vegetable saute stage
~ replace the tomato paste with passata or fresh tomatoes
~ omit the chorizo or replace with chunks of bacon or proscuitto
~ use other beans such as lima or haricot beans
~ use good quality left over fat such as bacon or pork fat to saute
~ before baking dust the top with paprika

serving suggestions

~ top with a poached egg
~ serve with sausages
~ add grated cheese and crispy bacon (omit chorizo)
~ serve with a salad
~ sprinkle with fresh parsley

~ use in a jaffle or a toasted sandwich if like me you threw your jaffle iron away

there is great discomfort that comes from the realisation that there is no answer to my problem and that the issue will never go away..i have a tendency to want answers and solutions but sometimes there just isn't one and that's just how it is..

bitter grapefruit and whisky* marmalade

my girl kat brought me a whole lot of home grown fruit recently that she got from work..several of her colleagues had taken apples, lemons and grapefruit to work for anyone to help themselves but because there were so few takers i became the lucky recipient..i've made a few different things as well as this marmalade but i still have many kilos of fruit left..none of it will be wasted

bitter grapefruit and whisky marmalade

tea with hazel

makes 5 jars

ingredients

1 kilo grapefruit

1 kilo sugar**

1 litre filtered water

1/3 cup whisky (i used chivas regal that was gifted to me by a friend for cooking)

method

~ cut the grapefruit in quarters, remove and retain any seeds, and then slice the fruit finely

~ place the seeds in a muslin square and tie up into a sachet with string

~ place the grapefruit and sachet in a large saucepan, add water, and leave overnight or for about 12 hours

~ boil the fruit for 30 minutes

~ add warmed sugar but do not allow to boil until the sugar has completely dissolved

~ once the sugar has dissolved boil rapidly, stirring every now and again, until set has been reached

~ add whisky and boil for a minute to cook out the alcohol

~ squeeze the seed sachet to extract as much pectin possible and discard the sachet

~ ladle the marmalade into warm sterilised jars and cap immediately

notes:
*   'whisky' denotes scottish whisky whereas the spelling 'whiskey' denotes irish or american whiskey
** i tasted the jam as it was reaching set and it was not sweet enough so, after removing the jam from the heat, i added an extra 250 gms of sugar..after the sugar had dissolved i brought it back to the boil and set was reached quickly

i really like the bitter flavour of marmalade..do you?

this post submitted to punk domestics

frugal friday

there's a wonderful independent grocer/green grocer not far from where i live..it's not one of those super sophisticated places where to shop there comfortably you need to get dressed in your finery, have a manicure and a blow dry..rather..it's more laid back..

i like shopping there for several reasons..for one thing it's a family run business and as such the shop has an intimate and friendly atmosphere..and they stock a great range of products some of which are not available in the conglomorates that are threatening to take over the country..for instance i can get trachana and pasta for pastichio there..and they're not caught in a time warp because they stock a variety of spelt and gluten free products..one thing i particularly like are the huge bins they have out the front of the shop which are laden with seasonal fruit and vegetables..most of it is not of conglomerate supermarket quality..but it is still good quality..for instance yesterday i bought new seasons apples and oranges..now..yes..some of the apples had the occasional branch mark, they weren't all uniform in size and some were misshapen but otherwise they were perfectly fine..same with the oranges..navels and valencias were mixed up together and some had too thick skin but they're easily avoided..they were $0.98 and $0.78 a kilo respectively..and i bought a 2 kilo bag of slightly brown skin bananas for $2..i ate one later..perfect..not soft at all..and even if one or two do go a bit soft before i can eat them all au naturale i'll just make smoothies with them..and they had lovely large fennel bulbs that i bought for a $1 each..they also had 5 kilo bags of potatoes for $2 but i didn't get one because i'd already bought a bag for the same price a few weeks earlier..ten kilo sacks of onions rarely cost more than $6 there so i always buy them this way and i rarely have any rot..i just keep them in a cool place and if any start to sprout i just use those in stock..

it never ceases to surprise me that anyone would choose to pay more at a conglomorate supermarket when this shop is only 100 metres away..i've done a rough and ready calculation and worked out that the fruit and vegetables i bought yesterday cost a third of what it would have cost me at the supermarket..and i wonder if some of the people shopping in the supermarket are also those who find that food prices are increasing..go figure!

roasted fennel and potato soup

tea with hazel

ingredients

1 large female* fennel bulb

6 -8 small potatoes**

3 medium onions** 

4-6 garlic cloves (i used homegrown)

2 teaspoons (tsp) fennel seeds*** 

1/2 tsp chilli flakes (i used my own homegrown, dried flakes)

2 litres stock**** (i used homemade)

salt and pepper

olive oil

extra chilli flakes or tabasco

method

~ remove stems from fennel bulb, retain fronds and cut bulb into thick slices

~ cut potato and onion into medium chunks

~ place fennel, potato, onion, garlic, fennel seeds, and chilli flakes in a large shallow baking dish, drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper

~ bake at 180 deg c until the vegetables are starting to caramelise

~ remove vegetables to a saucepan along with the stock, bring to the boil, reduce heat to a simmer, and cook until the vegetables are soft

~ puree the soup with a stick blender or in a blender

~ serve garnished with fennel fronds, a dusting of chilli and a drizzle of olive oil

notes

*       they're tastier..or so they tell me..

**     the potatoes and onions in the bags i'd purchased were small to medium in size

***   i used seeds collected in summer from plants that have naturalised in parts of the dandenongs

**** i retained the carcass and the vegetables from boiling an organic and free range chook for soup stock and i roasted and reboiled both to create a second but just as flavoursome stock

costing

not including electricity and gas costs this soup, which would be enough to feed about 6-8 people, cost about $1.30..add a loaf of homemade sourdough and you've got a very cheap and nutritious meal..

happy weekend one and all

cumquat cake

i pruned my cumquat tree yesterday..it's looks so much better now that its heavily fruited lower branches have been removed because the bit of trunk now showing gives the garden a bit of depth and you can see my not so discrete anymore for eating stinging nettle patch..i don't know why it took me so long to work out that a good prune was in order because its demeanor's been bugging me for quite some time..

i find pruning's always a bit of a mixed blessing..there's the good bit where i like to stand back and admire my handy work and congratulate myself on another job sorted..but then slowly my eyes dare wander towards the mountain of prunings and suddenly my mood changes..in this case there was the old classic pruner's branch disposal dilemma to contend with as well as the dozens of cumquats that needed removing from the branches..

dealing with the branches was easy..i dragged them round the back and i'm ignoring them..for the moment..i made a cumquat cake for afternoon tea with some of the cumquats..such a lovely treat to have with a cup of tea after all my hard work..i pruned my roses too..probably a bit early but i'm one of those people who, once they get a pair of secateurs in hand, are a gardening menace..anyway, to use up the stash of cumquats i've ended up with i'd have to make about a dozen cumquat cakes..even i can't eat that much cake..

cumquat cake

recipe adapted from here

ingredients

300 gms deseeded cumquats
150 gms golden castor sugar
150 gms ground almonds (commercially packaged)
50 gms ground almonds (not too fine with skin on)
100 gms dessicated coconut
1/2 teaspoon sodium bicarbonate
2 tablespoons self raising flour
3 eggs

method

~ mix all dry ingredients together
~ process cumquats until pureed
~ whisk eggs and sugar until pale and frothy
~ gently mix dry ingredients and cumquat puree into egg and sugar mixture with a metal spoon
~ pour into greased and lined 22-23 cm spring form tin
~ bake 180 deg c for about 40 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the centre of the cake just comes out clean

comments/serving

~ this cake has a slight bitterness which i like and it's not very sweet so the cumquat syrup (i used my cumquat cordial which is thick enough to use as a syrup) i served it with was a welcome addition..and it's versatile and quick and really easy to make..

happy monday monday everyone..x

dandelion, stinging nettle and radish leaf salad

i don't have any typical salad greens such as lettuce, rocket or spinach growing in my garden at the moment

seeds planted in april didn't germinate

and i haven't managed to plant any more

but they're lots of stinging nettles, new dandelion leaves (after autumn pruning) and leaves from freshly picked radishes

to make the salad

boil the dandelion leaves for five minutes in a few tablespoons of water

add radish leaves and cook briefly

then add nettles and boil for a minute or so

drain leaves over a bowl

pour boiled green's water into a glass
and drink

dress the greens with lemon juice, olive oil and salt
and eat

happy winter solstice

may in my garden

i don't think i'd fully appreciated how much work i actually do in my garden until i came back from a recent two week trip..nettles, flanders poppies and borage plants had literally taken over my front garden as well as the degraded and in need of resurfacing gravel paths..most of the seeds i'd planted a week or two prior to leaving hadn't come up..kikuyu was sprouting long tentacles from next door's lawn and from my own lawn into my various garden beds..and my broccoli seedlings had a sporty polka dot look from being eaten by cabbage moth larvae..but my neighbour's father had mown my lawns..they'd well and truly needed mowing before i went away but i'd not had time..thanks ray..you're a legend!

the hard yakka

planted

~ broad beans, radish, onion, oak leaf lettuce, carrot and sweet pea seeds directly in soil (only the broad beans and radish survived my trip away)

~ ruby chard, dill and mustard greens in a seed raising box (the chard survived)

~ broccoli and pansy seedlings

~ relocated self sown cornflower seedlings

pruned

~ lemon verbena

removed

~ eggplant bushes even though they were still producing flowers

~ parsley and rainbow chard

~ lots of the ever over abundant nettles, flanders poppy and borage 

~ invasive kikuyu from my next door neighbour and from around vegetable garden beds that threaten to take over my hard won vegetable garden beds

~ carnations from the window box 

dug

~ vegetable garden bed where parsley and rainbow chard were removed and a section of the same garden bed that i have been trying to rehabilitate with compost and manure (it was covered in concrete up until a few years ago)

composted/manured

~ continue to compost all kitchen scraps and to cut up and compost all garden waste apart from invasive bulbs such as oxalis
~ composted and manured window box for resowing

extended new vegetable garden bed

~ i covered the remaining area in another op shop purchased woollen blanket ($4) and started adding kitchen waste and cut up garden material

the rewards

picked/picking

~ green beans (blue lake)..the plants are still producing a handful of beans every few days, radishes, egg plant, spring onions, chilli and rainbow chard

~ parsley, basil, celery, tarragon, rosemary, thyme, mint, sage, chives, lemon balm, comfrey, pineapple sage, lavender, nettles, borage flowers, lilac flowers, marigold petals, violets, roses, hollyhock flowers, nasturtium leaves and flowers

~ rhubarb, the last of the pomegranate, cumquat and alpine strawberries

more hard yakka

need to

~ pick chillies for drying

~ plant peas, spinach, coriander, beetroot, mustard greens and potatoes (check seasonal suitability first)

~ plant a manure crop on bed where parsley and rainbow chard were removed and in the area being rehabilitated

~ replant onion, lettuce, carrot and sweet pea seeds 

_ replant carnations in window boxes

~ finish tidying garden edges

~ stay on top of weeding

~ remove bean plants when production ceases

~ pick crabapples

~ transplant lemon verbena and black currant bush
~ mow lawn (i use a hand mower)

rainbow chard, rice and lemon soup*

tea with hazel

ingredients**

1-2 bunches of young rainbow chard well washed

6 spring onions cut fine

3 celery stalks cut fine

6 cloves garlic cut fine

1/2 cup chopped parsley 

1/2 cup chopped celery leaves

1/4 cup torn mint leaves

1 cup arborio rice

2 litres stock (i used homemade)

juice of 1/2 lemon per serve

olive oil

salt and pepper

method

~ remove stalks from chard and cut into approximately 2 cms pieces and cut leaves to desired size

~ in a large saucepan heat a few tablespoons of olive oil, add chard stalks, celery stalks, and garlic and saute for a couple of minutes

~ add rice and cook for a few more minutes

~ add stock and bring to the boil and cook until the rice is al dente

~ add chard and celery leaves and mint and parsley and cook until the leaves are softened

~ add salt and pepper to taste

serving

~ drizzle each bowl with lemon juice and a little oil

rainbow chard coloured broth

notes

* this soup was inspired by a greek dish called spanakorizo (spinach rice)..i love the flavour of dill but i didn't have any growing so i added mint instead
** all the greens were from my garden

see you next month for 'june in my garden'

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?

cumquat cordial

please don't judge me too harshly when i tell you this but i've watched the film 'meet the parents'! there's a scene in the film where milking a cat is discussed..now you're probably wondering what the heck cumquat cordial has got to do with cats and their mammaries but bear with me..

i've made a few cumquat recipes over the last few years..there've been brandied cumquats and cumquat peel, cumquat jelly (the  gelatine one), cumquat marmalade, cumquat jelly (the jam one), cumquat curd and cumquat delicious (like lemon delicious but without the lemon)..and i've added cumquat marmalade to bread and cake..if you had a cumquat tree like mine you'd understand..and you can't give them away because the only people i know who'd be interested in all things cumquat already have their own supply to deal with..but don't get me wrong here people..i'm not complaining..it's just that cumquats are so small..yeah they're ever so cute and they smell adorable but they're the devil to juice..

cumquat cordial

sally wise

i doubled the recipe which made 6 bottles

ingredients

1000 gms cumquats washed and stems removed
3 kgs sugar
8 cups boiling water
2 heaped tablespoon citric acid

method

~ place sugar, citric acid and water in a large bowl and stir until the sugar is dissolved
~ process cumquats finely, add to the sugar solution, and then leave until cool
~ strain through a muslin lined sieve pressing to extract as much juice possible
~ pour into sterilized bottles and refrigerate

to serve

~ a splash of cordial with soda water or water

comments

even though this cordial is delicious i think it needs a higher cumquat to sugar ratio..and that's not just because i've got so many cumquats i don't know what to do with them! to counteract the sweetness i've been adding some fresh juice to each glass of made up cordial and that's worked well but next time i make the cordial i'm going to add it directly to the syrup to get the tangy flavour i'm after..i've given up on the juicer method since i made a miraculous discovery that's entirely technology free..i just squeeze each half between my fingers..mieow!

do you make cordial? if so what's your favourite?

blackberry season

i find it surprising that greek people don't eat blackberries*..they eat dandelions, frogs, snails, intestines..but not blackberries? and they don't eat mushrooms either*! i made a blackberry pie one autumn in edessa for eleftheria my landlady to try..she tasted it suspiciously and reported liking it but she never wanted to go foraging with me and she never accepted any on offer either..

i love them though and last week i was lucky enough to have a foraging day with my daughter alexandra..we didn't get many and the ones we did find were crunchy with seeds and a little past their best flavourwise..

my preserves cupboard is groaning with jam so i didn't want to make jam or jelly with them..instead i made an almond and blackberry cake and meringue nests filled with blackberry puree and cream and garnished with fig leaf dust** and blackberry syrup..that's it for this year's blackberries unfortunately..i had planned to go again with a friend but a daughter's wedding is taking priority over blackberries this year!

almond and blackberry cake

meringue nests with blackberry puree and cream garnished
with fig leaf dust** and blackberry syrup

note

*   my comments are based on the experiences i had while living in greece several decades ago
** i've recently discovered that fig leaves are edible so i dried fig leaves and crushed them to a very fine powder to use as a garnish

further reading

http://www.naturalcuresnotmedicine.com/2013/03/fig-leaves-just-as-healthy-as-figs.html (health benefits)
http://kimberlyshaw.typepad.com/my_weblog/2009/08/fig-.html (fig leaf tea)

comments

~ i thought the almond and blackberry cake was a great recipe in which to use my precious blackberries because there were no other competing flavours to eclipse their beautiful autumn flavour..i think it's a versatile recipe that would work with other berries too and it would easily convert to gluten free by substituting the very small amount (40 gms) of plain flour with rice flour or any other gluten free flour


~ i like the flavour of the fig leaf dust..it tastes and smells just like a warm summer day under a fig tree

do you like blackberries or do you they're best left for the birds?

urban foraging

the bluestone cobbled lanes in my suburb were built in the late 19th and early 20th centuries for the night men who emptied the closet toilets..despite their less than salubrious history the lanes hold a fascination for me and when i go walking down one i'm taken to another world..

out the front, on the main streets, houses and gardens on their best behaviour

less self conscious when viewed from the lanes

back fences ramshackle and discordant

creepers and trees run riot

hear the sounds of the night man's cart

the clip clop of the horses hooves

and the wheels on the cobbled bluestone

in the eerie early morning dark 

see the vapour steaming horse nares

smell the sweaty hot horse smell

and (ignore) the stench of human excrement

tough, dark and serious

don't mess with me

volcano spewed aphanite
hewn by human hand
and hauled from the west of melbourne

i never see anyone else when i go walking down any of the lanes and that i like..it's a way of getting away without getting away..and an added bonus are the fig festooned branches that drape themselves seductively across my path..each autumn i am able to pick figs to my heart's content..and this year has been no exception..usually i just eat them fresh but this year i decided to have another go at making fig jam..yep..i've made fig jam many times before but even when i've added lemon peel and juice to counteract the sweetness i've still found fig jam sickly sweet..

not too sweet vinegar fig jam

tea with hazel

makes 1 medium jar*

ingredients

450 gms slightly under ripe figs, stems and blemishes removed, and cut to preferred size (i cut mine small)

325 gms sugar

100 mls filtered water

40 mls red wine vinegar

2-3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

method

~ place sugar, water and red wine vinegar in a saucepan, heat slowly, stirring, until sugar has melted, then bring to the boil

~ add the figs and boil until setting point has been reached (i used a potato masher to break up persistent pieces of fig)

~  remove from the heat and stir in balsamic vinegar to taste

~ pour into sterilised jar and seal

note:

* the recipe may be doubled but any further increase in quantity tends to effect the cooking and setting times which can have a deleterious effect on the taste, colour and consistency of the jam


are you an urban forager? if so, what do you find in your area?

this post submitted to punk domestics

yeasted coconut date and banana health loaf

i like calling this bread a 'health' loaf..when i ate it i reckon i felt better after having one slice so i had another one all the while feeling the good health vibe infusing my cells..but then..maybe it was just the cups of tea i had with it..

my eldest daughter gave me the scrabble cloth many years ago and the mug was a recent gift from my son

yeasted coconut date and banana health loaf

tea with hazel

ingredients

150 gms white organic flour

50 gms biodynamic wholemeal flour

50 gms organic coconut flour*

50 gms desiccated coconut

2 large ripe bananas cut into large chunks

10 large medjool dates stones removed and cut into quarters

1 tablespoon (tbs) finely diced candied orange peel (i used my own)

1 tbs finely diced candied lemon peel (i used my own)

30 gms organic coconut butter

2 teaspoons (tsp) honey

1 tsp yeast

4 tbs active sourdough starter (optional)

2 tsp murray river salt (less if using conventional table salt)

filtered water

method

~ place flours, desiccated coconut, banana, peels, coconut butter, honey, yeast and starter in the bowl of a stand mixer and add enough filtered water* to make a shaggy dough

~ autolyse for 30 minutes, add salt, and mix for 30 seconds

~ mix again for 15-20 seconds and rest for 10 minutes

~ repeat mix rest cycle once more

~ remove bowl from stand mixer, cover with a dampened tea towel, and leave until doubled in volume

~ turn the dough out onto a lightly floured bench, divide in two, gently knead in dates, and then place each piece into a large oiled bread tin

~ cover the tin with tea towel and leave until well risen

~ bake with steam at 230 deg c for 20 minutes, reduce heat to 200 deg c, cover the tin with brown paper, and cook for a further 20 minutes or until well browned

~ cool the bread on a cake cooling rack 

note:

* coconut flour absorbs a lot of fluid so the dough requires more fluid than a bread made with conventional flours only

comments

~ the addition of coconut flour means that dough was not as elastic as per a conventional dough and so it was unkneadable

~ when i cut the loaf i was a bit worried that it was going to be rather leaden but the crumb was soft with an appealing denseness and the crust thick with a satisfyingly chewiness.it was ok the next day too

anyone for a game of scrabble with a cup of tea and a slice or two? just for your health of course!

almond cinnamon cake

i'm always on the lookout for interesting recipes using egg white only rather than whole eggs because i often have several left over from making custard, creme patisserie or ice cream..yesterday i came across a recipe for an almond cinnamon cake in the book 'nigellisima', that i'd borrowed from the library, that piqued my interest..this morning i made it with the four egg whites i had languishing..and..hey.. it's extra versatile because it's gluten and dairy product free..

almond cinnamon cake

'nigellissima' nigella lawson

serves about 8

ingredients (i halved the recipe)

4 egg whites

75 gms castor sugar

75 gms almond meal

60 mls light olive oil

1/2 teaspoon (tsp) baking powder

finely grated zest of small orange

2-3 drops almond essence

50 gms flaked almonds

1/2 tsp cinnamon

icing sugar

method

~ beat the egg whites until opaque and starting to hold their shape

~ add sugar in small increments whisking and until it's incorporated and the mixture is thick and shiny

~ mix in zest and almond essence and then add the oil and almond meal mixed with the baking powder in three batches

~ pour the mixture into a 20 cm baking paper lined tin, smooth the top and sprinkle with the faked almonds mixed with the cinnamon

~ bake at 180 deg c for 30 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean

~ cool in the tin on a wire rack

~ sprinkle with icing sugar to serve

comments

~ i think this is a particularly lovely cake..it's not very sweet so it could be served with a citrus compote or a citrus glace such as the glaced cumquats i've been wanting to make..and i think rhubarb would go nicely with it too

~ the almond essence flavour was not particularly discernible so i'd consider increasing the amount of  essence to 3-4 drops next time i make it

if you made this cake what flavours do you think would complement it?

banana buns to go

my daughter has over an hour's drive to work every day and she makes a coffee and takes breakfast with her to consume on the journey..probably not recommended in the healthy lifestyle dietary guidelines but that's what works for her..it works for me too because i get to make things that are easy for her to eat..nothing worse than drips and crumbs in the lap or down the front of one's freshly ironed top..i made up the bit about the ironing..she doesn't iron either so i guess ironing aversion must be heritable..

forget those horrible liquid breakfasts in boxes which incidentally remind me of the sort of thing that's whizzed up for fractured mandible patients and looks gluggy, grey and pre digested..get the idea? no..these buns have the good stuff in them but they're not slurped through an oversized straw..there's fruit, milk and complex carbohydrates and you need teeth to eat them..i read somewhere that there's a link between satiation and chewing so they work in that department too..

banana buns to go

tea with hazel

ingredients dough

200 gms organic white bread making flour

100 gms organic wholemeal spelt flour

2 ripe bananas mashed

15 gms butter melted and cooled

200 mls (approximately) low fat milk (i used 1/2 low fat milk and 1/2 whey from draining yoghurt)

1 large tablespoon (tbs) organic candied orange peel (i used homemade) finely diced

1/3 cup currants

2 teaspoons (tsp) honey

2 tsp cardamon

2 tsp salt

1 tsp yeast

2 tbs active sourdough starter

extra milk

ingredients glaze

1 tbs sugar

1 tsp gelatine

1 tbs boiling water

method dough/glaze

~ place flours, banana, butter, peel, honey, cardamon, yeast and starter in the bowl of a stand mixer and mix adding enough milk to achieve a shaggy dough 

~ autotolyse for 30 minutes, add salt, mix briefly, rest for 10-15 minutes, mix again briefly

~ cover dough with cling film and leave until well risen

~ remove the dough to a lightly floured board and gently knead in currants

~ divide the dough into 12, 70 gm pieces, shape into rounds, and place on a baking paper lined tray

~ cover buns loosely and leave until well risen or until an impression is left after a finger is pressed into the dough

~ brush the tops of the buns with milk and bake at 230 deg c for 15 minutes, reduce oven temperature to 200 deg c, cover the buns with brown paper, and cook for a further 10 minutes or until cooked

~ brush the tops of the hot buns with the glaze (see glaze method below)

method glaze

~ mix the gelatine and sugar with water and stir until dissolved placing the bowl over a saucepan of boiling water if necessary

grab a banana bun, butter it, and go to work or back to bed with a cup of tea!

this post submitted to yeast spotting