More Autumn Harvesting

Mango and LimeMy autumn crop includes mangos, from a tree that is now nearly twenty years old. It is not a big tree mainly because it is into its second life - in 2001 a bushfire burnt the tree so badly that I thought it was dead and cut it off to a stump, but before I could get round to digging out the stump a new shoot emerged which has grown into a small tree and four years ago produced its first fruit. The biggest crop ever this year at 17. Because of the cool weather, I assume, the fruit does not ripen until April, though along with a lot of other fruit the mangos are starting to ripen in late March. They are a very welcome touch of the tropics and the taste takes me back to my youth in Queensland. The taste of tree ripened mangos is so ripe and luscious that you realise why this fruit has such a reputation, a reputation that is never reached by the fruit picked early transported and sold in the fruit shops of the southern states. I eat all the fruit from my trees fresh, on a very few occasions with prawns in a salad, but mostly just as is for breakfast.
Another warm climate fruit I grow is the Tahitian lime, these are also ready now, in fact starting to turn yellow as they get to the end of their ripening life....a gin and tonic is not the same without a slice of lime.
Apples
The Granny Smith apples are ready to be picked and stored, they will store in cold conditions for a all of winter, giving me time to deal with the golden delicious. Granny Smith is good for both eating fresh and cooking. The last of my apple trees is the Lady Williams its crop will not be ready until late May.
Max Dingle                                                                                          27 March 2014
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Autumn is here

Golden Delicious Apples and Persimmons

Autumn is here when I, and the parrots, get the first persimmons. The parrots, I must admit, start eating well before my Fuji fruit are fully ripe but they provide an early warning system, time to bag  and net off the fruit I want, leaving a share for them. They are however starting to get rather sneaky and trying to get their head inside the bags or crawl in through gaps in the netting. The apples were bagged quite a while ago well before they even started to ripen, in order to save them from fruit fly and from the birds.
The Fuji persimmons can be eaten while still firm like an apple and used in salads. Greens, finger lime caviar, macadamia nuts, peeled persimmon cut in chunks, olive oil , freshly ground pepper, fresh goat curd or feta or parmesan (NB while I peel the fruit, it is not really necessary, just wash and use.) Can also serve slices with the cheese course. I prefer however to leave the fruit until it is very soft and then spoon out the pulp to have as is, or every so often with clotted cream, ice cream or mascarpone. The pulp can also be used in cakes or puddings but the cooking seems to remove all taste of persimmon, although does affect the texture.
Golden Delicious apples are best fresh i e not stored for too long. They are wonderful cooked and seem to hold their shape fairly well rather than collapsing into mush. I eat fresh and cooked in all sorts of ways, especially in salads, apple pies, tarte tatin and cakes.

Max Dingle                                                                                                 23 March 2014
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Gastronomic Symposiums

Jacks and Jaggers
The Leeds Symposium on Food History and Traditions has been announced for 17 May 2014 at Friends Meeting House, Friargate, York, UK. The subject is kitchen technology from 1600 to the second world war - hence the Jacks and Jaggers title. For more information check out their website www.leedsfoodsymposium.org.uk

Food and Markets
Apart from examining historical, sociological and practical aspects of food markets this symposium will not forget the pleasures of marketing: the excitement of discovering new ingredients; watching the skills of market cooks preparing to order and the sheer enjoyment to be found in the peace, charm and sunshine of wandering around an open-air market. Details of the 11 to 13 July 2014 symposium to be held at St Catherine's College, Oxford, UK can be found online at www.oxfordsymposium.org.uk

Muzeum Gastronomie
If you go to the above you can also check out this museum of cooking history.
http://www.muzeumgastronomie.cz   You'll find it in Prague.  Jakubska 12, 110 00 Praha 1 - Stare Mesto.

Max Dingle                                                           21 March 2014
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cupcakes

 

 

 Cupcakes

 

 

fabulous cupcakes made by Foodies, Kim, Frances and Chere

                      
The Shoalhaven Foodies enjoyed a delightful afternoon recently. It was cupcake day and we were lucky enough to be able to enjoy not only cupcakes, but the beautiful ambience of Willow Wood in Broughton Vale, just outside of Berry, which has been built as a writers retreat.

Willow Wood is the brain child of poet and artist Jennifer Mors and her husband David Badger. Willow Wood is actually a place for writers to concentrate on what they love most – writing. However, it was also a perfect location for the Foodies, with it's spacious kitchen, large dining area and wonderful views.




one of the delightful views from Willow Wood

Willow Wood, a place for writers and Foodies! photo by Chris Jallard, Red Berry Photography





Kim's gorgeous rose and pistachio cupcakes  photo by Chris Jallard, Red Berry Photography

Kim's Rose and Pistachio cupcakes.  makes 10

Ingredients:

100gms soft unsalted butter

3/4 cup caster sugar

2 tps rosewater

2 eggs

1  1/4 cups gluten free SR flour

1/2  cup milk

1/8 cup crushed pistachios

Butter Icing:

50 gms unsalted butter

1 1/2 cups icing sugar

2 drops rose pink colouring

1tsp rose water

A little milk if needed.

 

Method:

Preheat oven 180 c Line patty tin with cases.

Cream butter, sugar and rose water with electric beater.

Add eggs one at a time.

Stir in Flour, pistachios and milk alternately.

Bake for around 18-20 minutes.

When cool, Ice and decorate.  I put the icing in an icing bag and piped it onto the cake, and made a darker pink piped on as roses, sprinkled with ground pistachios.

 



Chere's  little "Continental Babes" cupcakes

 



Chere's "Continental Babes" 

 



I made a vanilla cupcake recipe using gluten free flour.   Because I used gluten free flour, I found the cakes were a bit flat and uninteresting, so I improvised!  I decided I wasn't going to use traditional cup cake holders, but little cups.  I found two sets of little cups at a Vinnies shop - some lovely, others a bit twee, so I hand painted some decorations on the twee ones using a permanent glass paint.

 

I cut the cupcakes into discs and arranged them on a large plate.... then I mixed up strong espresso coffee, a little dessert chocolate topping and a dash of lemon, lime & bitters cordial - that sounds weird, but it worked!   I drizzled it over the cupcake discs and left them on the plate to absorb the flavor.

 

I made a filling:

3 egg yolks, (fresh from my gorgeous chickens, Bamboo and Bangles)

1/4 cup brown sugar,

1 vanilla pod,

250g mascarpone.

 

Method: 

Remove the seeds from the vanilla pod, then beat the egg yolks, sugar and vanilla seeds together in a bowl over simmering water until pale and thick.   Take off the heat and beat until cool.   Then beat in the mascarpone.

 

I layered the drizzled discs (as above) alternately with the mascarpone mix in the little cups and chilled them overnight.

 

Before serving I topped them with a mix of freshly whipped cream and little chopped squares of cherry Turkish Delight.  

 

I made some spun sugar the day before and put that on top, creating different shapes for each "continental babe".

 



Frances' delicious cupcakes

 


Jen Mors enjoying the afternoon




David Badger obviously enjoying one of Kim's a cupcakes!

 Willow Wood is set on 5 acres in rural Broughton Vale. Due to officially open later in 2014, it will host four writers for one week of every month of the year. The writers will have their own guest room with queen=size bed, a desk for writing, ensuite and an external doorway to the verandah, so the guest will have easy access to the surrounding gardens and woodland. The house has open plan communal spaces – library, television area and comfy lounges to relax, read or enjoy some delicious morning or afternoon tea. Breakfast and lunch are self-serve to give each writer the opportunity to structure their day as best suits individual needs. The evening meal is a time for the guest-writers to join hosts Jennifer and David for a delicious evening meal and hearty chatter.

 

Over the past year or so, Willow Wood has hosted a number of events, including Peter Bakowski's Book Launches in 2013 and 2014 and a Peter Bakowski Poetry Workshop, a Brook Emery Poetry Workshop and most recently, our Shoalhaven foodies Cupcake afternoon.

For more information about Willow Wood, contact jenmors@bigpond.com

 

Blue Dog Country Cafe - Update

Great value in Wandandian
The Blue Dog Country Café is a very plain looking café in a line of shops in a cul de sac just off the Princes Highway in Wandandian, If you are looking for the latest designer décor this is not the place for you, unless you think bare brick walls, a mix of tables and chairs are the latest fashion, and judging by the décor in some of Sydney's new small bars, this may well be the case. What-ever...........
However since writing about this cafe in 2014 ownership has changed hands. The 2018 version is a stop for the hungry traveller who wants nothing 'fancy', just budget prices.

Max Dingle                                                          2018
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Harvesting and Eating

 The following are currently being harvested from my garden:

Finger Limes A really great crop of finger limes this year. Have two varieties, one that has yellow /pale green juice vesicles and the skin turns very dark green, almost black, when ripe and the other has red vesicles and
the skin turns from green to almost black and finally to red when ripe. if the ripe fruit is  left too long on the tree it will eventually split open exposing the flesh and then drop off the tree.

Pears
The pear also did very well this year, it is still fairly young and in the past has only had 3 or 4 fruit each year, but this year there were about twenty fruit, that I have just picked  and put in storage and bring out enough to ripen as needed.

Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
For breakfast I am having pears sprinkled with finger lime 'caviar', which really compliment each other. Am also using the lime vesicles on fish, on lamb chops, in salads as well as on and in desserts. Something that is really simple and extra wonderful is combining the vesicles with vanilla ice cream, the pop of the frozen globules and the flash of citrus is sensational.
A pear, rocket, macadamia nut, finger lime (all from the garden) salad, dressed with extra virgin olive oil and shaved Parmesan, is also something that is difficult to go past.

KarkallaThis indigenous plant commonly called 'pig-face', normally grows on sandy coastal areas and does OK in my garden but, understandably does not have the salty taste of the plants that grow near the sea. Being a low growing plant it also tends to get smothered by the wild excesses of the rocket, mustard greens , rapini, etc unless I am there to rescue it.
I use it fresh in salads and in sandwiches and with grilled meat, the Karkalla is quickly braised in a pan while the meat is resting.

Scarlet RunnerThis is a great bean as it flowers proflically making an attractive addition to the garden, crops well and will re-shoot the next year from a fairly large tuber / root after it dies down in winter.
The beans have a furry skin which does not affect the eating once they are cooked. These beans also have a reputation for being excellent for freezing, though I have always eaten all of my crop rather than freezing any excess.
I use the beans as per normal plus I delight in pasta with beans, tinned tuna, a touch of chilli, garlic, lemon or finger lime dressed with extra virgin olive oil.

Max Dingle                                                           5 March 2014
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Purslane

Purslane in my garden

Healthy eating

The rain has revived the garden, and all the self sown plants are going crazy, rocket, mustard greens rapini and purslane to name the quick starters. Purslane is mostly in 'western' cultures looked at as a weed, as you could guess by one of its common names "pig-weed". However in Europe, Mexico and Asian countries it is grown as both vegetable and edible medicine and I have also seen a reference to Australian Aboriginal people making the seeds into seed-cakes.
There are numerous species and it is easy to grow, in fact if you have it you certainly will not need to plant seeds. Purslane will grow in any soil, the current foraging movement in the cities find it growing in cracks in the pavement, but I like to have it in my garden beds - but it does need constant attention to stop it taking over the whole garden. If you have it in your garden then eat it, it one of the most healthy plants around having probably the highest Omega 3 contents of any plant, an essential fatty acid normally only found in quantity such as this in fish, as well as other fatty acids, antioxidants,  vitamins A, C, E and some B plus minerals, magnesium, calcium, potassium and iron.
The whole plant can be eaten, stems, leaves, flowers, seeds but usually it is best as the plants get older just to pick the 3 to 5 cm. Eat as is, in salads or on sandwiches, use as you would spinach, use in stirfries, and is also good as a thickener in soups. One of my favourites is my version of a Weed Pie, use the recipe for a standard fetta and spinach pie but substitute Purslane, dandelion, wild rocket, mustard greens for the spinach.

Max Dingle                                                                                 1 March 2014

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