The Lamington Engima

The Lamington Enigma : A survey of the evidence

Maurice French
Tabletop Publishing 2013 280 pp  ISBN 9780987432209

The lamington is of course an iconic cake in Australia, known through numerous school , girl guide and many other fund raising drives, as well as being a popular serving at morning and afternoon tea., and, lets face it, it is delicious, but where and who created or invented this cultural icon?
This book is an enjoyable romp through the history of this sweet, named for either Lord or Lady Lamington - he was Governor of Queensland, 1896 - 1901.  French provides us with intimate stories of colonial life at the end of the 19th century with quotes from various named and unnamed sources such as 'Lord Lamington was a pompous ass, and no one would have named a cake after him.' , and of course Lamington was allegedly rather rude about the matter of the cake itself, describing them as 'those bloody poofy, woolly biscuits' . 
This search for the creator of the lamington encompasses many trips through newspapers, cook books, family histories and interviews with surviving relatives of cooks, maids and governors. It also brings to light, in one of the meanders down a side track that Helena Rubinstein (of cosmetic fame) was either a maid or a governess in the Lamington household. 
The conclusion you will need to read for yourself but the journey there is really great fun. I will give the last word in this short review to the author, who acknowledging that with this publication, many people will throw new light on the subject matter and no doubt a few will quibble with the assessment, 'To them all I say:"Let them eat lamingtons"'.

May be purchased from Tabletop Publishing, 60 Phillip St., Toowoomba, Qld 4350 AUD $39.95 
or contact maurice.french@usq.edu.au 

Max Dingle                                                                               23 February 2014
http://www.maxdingleart.com/max-blog.html 

2010 Basket Press Shiraz

New release from Salet Basket Press Wines

2010 Basket Press Shiraz
This is a big wine, big in flavour, big in intensity and big in colour, winemaker, Michael Salecich, normally produces big wines but this 2010 made in the Shoalhaven from hand picked Adelaide Hills grapes is bigger than most.
Produced with the usual hand made finesse and given 45 months in American and French oak hogshead barrels before bottling in December 2013, the wine is a rich and intense deep purple.
The bouquet displays an intensity of ripe berry fruits, black current, blackberry and a slight mulberry note. In the mouth it is initially a bit unsettled from the recent bottling, there is a firm finish and strong kick from a high alcohol of 16% but with some air it settles down to very pleasant drinking especially if you , as I do, like what I call old fashioned Australian reds, those great reds we had in the 1950's, 60's and 70's big, bold and beautiful. Mellow but mouth filling with a great balance between fruit and the oak.
Get some of this wine and let it settle in your cellar for three months to get the best from early drinking but do not be in a hurry to scoff the lot, this wine will only improve over time and my guess is it will peak in about 20 to 25 years and still be a great drop for years after that. This wine is a bargain at the price it sells for, certainly not priced at the bottom end of the market but unique hand made quality products never are.                               See:                    www.salet.com.au 

Max Dingle                                                                                                            13 February 2014
http://www.maxdingleart.com/max-blog.html

Genetically modified crops

Genetically Modified crops
Here is a message via Slow Food about a court case coming up in West Australian tomorrow 10 February 2014.
If you are against GM crops there are ways suggested in Slow Foods message to show support.
Max Dingle                                                                                                      9 February 2014
www.maxdingleart.com

“Carlo Petrini, President of Slow Food International, said "The case of Steve Marsh offers concrete proof of the fact that GMOs pose a threat not only to our health and the environment, but also to a fundamental right, the right to food sovereignty. It is unacceptable that an Australian organic farmer should lose certification for approximately 70% of his land after it was contaminated by Monsanto GM canola from a nearby farm. GMOs are depriving farmers and consumers of their fundamental right to choose. The former cannot choose what they grow, while the latter often cannot choose what they eat. For this reason, we support Steve Marsh in his battle, and we invite everyone to participate in the global Twitter storm using the hashtag #IamSteveMarsh. Even though this is just the story of one Australian farmer, the way in which it plays out in the courts on February 10 could have global implications."

Slow Food is against the commercial planting of genetically modified (GM) crops.  We promote GM free food and animal feed and we are active in a global campaign against all genetically modified organisms (GMOs)!  We believe that we need to protect the future of food and farming that will benefit people and the planet and not the pockets of big business. 

Steve Marsh is a farmer from Kojonup, south of Perth, who lost his organic certification when Monsanto’s GM canola blew onto his farm from a neighbouring property in 2010.  Steve lost most of his income and has struggled for the past three years trying to make ends meet while working to decontaminate his land and get his organic certification back.  As Monsanto has a no liability agreement with GM farmers it prevents them from being sued.  Steve’s only choice was to take his neighbour to court for compensation of loss and damages.  Steve’s neighbour is well supported and well funded by a pro-GM organisation.

This landmark case against a farmer's right to grow clean food will start on February 10th in the Western Australian Supreme court. See some of Steve's story on YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YpQHuUTfRro&feature=youtu.be).

Now is the time to ask you to act. I am calling you to  take action to support Slow Food Perth , safe food foundation and Steve Marsh in his court case to fight GMO contamination on his farm and for his right to produce good, clean and fair food.  

What can you do?
Distribute this information.  Please send the information to your local journalists so that they are aware of the case with a clear message that Slow Food is against GMO’s.  Use social media to inform your members and friends or simply pass on this email to work colleagues, friends and any interested parties.

Support Steve financially.  Safe Food Foundation (http://safefoodfoundation.org) is one of the major supporters of Steve's right to farm GM-free food. If you are able to help, please support Steve  financially by going to http://safefoodfoundation.org/helpthisfarmer and donating (even the smallest amount can help).

Show support in other ways. If you cannot help financially, please feel free to send messages of support to Steve via www.facebook.com/HelpThisFarmer. Your comments are vital so that the collective voice of slow food opposition to GMOs  is heard in all parts of Australia and the world.

Keep up to date with the case.  For the first time in WA courts, journalists can tweet live during court cases. Follow journalists on Twitter who are covering this case and let others know which Twitter feeds to follow.
 
Slow Food's opposition to  GMOs can be found at: http://www.slowfood.com/international/22/gmos.

International Food Studies Conference

International Food Studies Conference


This one is a little late but you could still get there if you are quick !!!

17 to 19 February 2014
Food Studies: a Multidisciplinary Menu

This conference aims to bring together scholars who apply diverse methods and approaches, generating exciting interdisciplinary dialogues that respond to a range of core questions central to Food Studies scholarship. Contributions have been made in response to the following questions: what has been the impact thus far of Food Studies, both on other research fields and on our understandings of our past and present food habits and cultures? What have been the field's main achievements and unfulfilled promises? What are the core issues related to eating and drinking in contemporary society, and what can we learn from the past? What are the most fruitful and productive questions and methods to pursue in future food studies research?
Topics include:
Food / gastronomic heritage
Diet and culture
Food studies as methods
Drink and drinking
Contemporary debates on food and consumption
Food and travel
Migration
Globalization
See: https://www.adelaide.edu.au/food-studies/conference/
Or for more information email : foodstudiesconf@Adelaide.edu.au

Max Dingle                                                                                               7 February 2014
www.maxdingleart.com