Category Archives: Food

Lomandra / Mat rush

Had visit from friends, from our old life that is. We showed them around the property and garden.

We not only try to get a vegetable garden going but also we are interrested in native foods. We want to cultivate some of those native edibles.

So we were pointing out whatever you can eat both from nature and from the plant beds. Both mother and daughter ate happily everything I stuck in their mouths. (The dad took pictures.) Then we came to Lomandra or Mat Rush which we have not yet tried out but mom, without hesitation, trustfully pulled out a Lomandra leaf and started chewing. “How does it taste?” She began laughing. She was actually the first to taste it! Jen can be very convincing sometimes.

Trying out some lemons
Here we go, after our guest have tried it!

 

A bit slimy

Winter garden / Vinterträdgården

Jaha, gjorde vin enligt ett recept som kallades fängelse vin (prison wine) där man bara använder socker och frukt. Det gick bra ända tills dagen för flaskhällning då, över natt, hade vinet förvandlats till vinäger och vi tänker inte slösa våra få flaskor på hemgjord vinäger. Alla burkar och flaskor är vigda till saft och sylt… och vin. Men skam den som ger sig vi provar på nytt men den här gången enligt receptet för guavavinet. Med jäst alltså. Sen har vi också provat att göra godis. Kumquatskalen är söta – jo prova. Ät bara skalet och inget annat! Så koka socker som till pepparkakshusklister och släng in skalen. Första försöket funkade inte alls så vi kokade om och det blev jättegott men fortfarande inte knäckigt så ett försök till sker snart.

Vintersådden har just varit det blev bara snow peas som är ungefär som sockerärter. Hittade ingen bra översättning. Och mer sallat. Lite spenat blir nog sått nästa vecka och sen är det bara att vänta till början av september då det blir dax att så i småbyttorna igen och kanske en del frön hamnat i landet.

Sista frostdagen var sept 6 förra året. Annars växer det fint i grönsakslanden. Ettan haltar lite men 2:an och 3:an går bra. Vi skördar palsternacka, morötter, broccollini, kålrot, bok choy, kinesiskt kål -Granat, rukola, daikon massor av citrus – lime, citron, kumquat och grapefrukt -snart kommer några apelsiner också. Sen har vi fått massor av pumpor från olika grannar så vi står oss nog fram till och med vårsådden.

Vi har inte grävt så mycket på kommande grönsakslanden 4 och 5 men vi har hela augusti på oss så det är lugnt.

Men än är det kallt och vi sitter och trycker framför spisvärmen morgon och kväll.

Lilla barnbarnsbebisen är 1 månad. När ses vi?

Ok, so the prison wine failed. Stirred and stirred and it smelled Godsent but on the day of bottling it had turned to vinegar. And no we have no bottles or jars we can use for vinegar. They are all promised for either jam or cordial or the real thing – wine. We have actually no bottles left at all after last bout of cordial making.

Winter sowing: It is midwinter now and not much to do in the patches more than weeding. But everything is growing nicely oddly enough so we are harvesting daikon, carrots, broccolini, parsnip, swedes, Chinese cabbage, bok choy and rocket (rukola). Lots of citruses and all the pumpkins we got from nice neighbours so we are pretty fixed for food hopefully, until spring sowing starts. We have not dug any on the new patches in a while but we have all rest of August to do that job so we are in no hurry.

Today is kumquat-wine-making-day and need not bottles or jars until in 42 days. This time we add yeast but still none of the rest of the additives ordinary wine makers add.

Yesterday Jen made candy on sugar and the kumquat peel. It turned out really yummy but the sugar is not hard enough so next trial will be much better. Will cook the sugar in the cast iron pan until it´s almost like making glue for the ginger bread house. Just want to say read on the internet that kumquat peel is sweet and it is! so peeling them and cooking them in sugar = candy yum!

Still cold mornings and evenings spent by the wood fired stove. This week we are expecting some very cold nights and maybe some hard frost. We´ll see. Working outside in the sun in t-shirt works fine now though.

Grandchild is 1 month. When will we meet?

Another winter’s day another kumquat cordial making

Well the kumquat prison wine failed. Will try with yeast tomorrow. but 7 bottles of cordial got made! Boding well for hot summer days.

We´ve had a few really cold days and a long bout of morning frost. On Tuesday we went to Kemp for some errands and it was a pretty nice windy and warm day. A day with few errands but a doctors appt. and getting the ute’s brakes fixed. It ended up with us being sent both here and there and the whole day was totally full and we got home in the dark. Phew.

Good thing was we only had to buy food for ca 100 $. We had 20 days of food at home this time. And we have veggies for all that time. Only bought cauliflower and some green beans. Wow!

The garden is thriving. Especially patch 3! Incredible! Even though we´ve had many frost mornings but light frost. We are flabbergasted. We have a lot to learn about the weather!

No frost! Jen woke with the bad back ache, it’s been eight days now, and took the day off after most chores were done. Mick joined her.

So inside work got done. Baked bread in the new pans. The old Danish big ones are loosing their black coating more and more. Straight into our stomachs no doubt. We bought new pans.

The bread came out well but not perfect. For some reason the oven died at some point. So bread got baked, then banana bread and macadamia cookies. All set now for coffee brakes. Still gotta make some more Key Lime Pie.

Pancakes for lunch and then a lot of dishes to be cleaned. Did some raking below the house and watered the patches. Something has started to eat on the Basil so arranged Parlsley all around it. All the Chinese Granat was eaten in patch 1.

Doing some macadamia nut outer part removal every day as they start cracking up.

Oh yeah tried out the Guava tea. Very odd taste. Not like Guava fruit and not like grass.

Drying Guava leaves
Tea is in the jar
First taste

 

What shall we eat today?

Most of the time food is not planned in advance. This year especially we have to make up everything as we go since it is not growing well in the patches. We have not made any home made salsa or cucumbers, those amounted to only two whereas last year we ate cucumbers coming out of our ears. So in the morning we decide what to eat. What is in the fridge and what is ready to be harvested in the patches.

Freezer prawns, rice fried with egg, swede, carrot, basil & parsley.

Yum!

Next. We have many butternut pumpkins/squash this year. They are not big but have become a staple. Better like butternuts! Here is the days butternut soup with, again, prawns and some homegrown red capsicum and fresh oregano. There is something more green in there,  might be green capsicum that was laying around in the fridge.

Butternut prawn soup

Kronan på verket. Nya rätter att göra av squashen? Halvera squashen och skåra den. Pensla med något gott fettigt. Kör i ugnen tills den är mjuk och fin, ca 1 tim. Senap, ost, hackade nötter som man gillar, örter som man har hemma och gillar och strö på och in i ugnen en kvart. Mumsmums. Eller vad man nu vill strö på.

Det gav idéen att köra squashen med något sött på istället, som sirap och nötter och lite smör eller liknande. Hmmmmmmm.

 

 

 

 

 

Vårsådden bara / Spring garden,

English after.

20161014 fredag. Nu är vi klara med vårsådden och vårplanteringen …. nej vi har avokadosarna kvar att plantera någonstans.

Så i grönsaksland nr 1 växer kvar från i höstas Sötpotatis, oregano, rabarber, vitlök, en dum lök som jag kastade ut, koriander och några rödsallat som är självsådda. Vi har nu på våren sått rukola, basilika, rosmarin, dragon och isbergssallad. Potatisen vi satte i höstas verkade ha dött så vi beslutade att denna rad var tom. Sen grävde vi lite och hittade några små nypotatisar. Några var lite ätna av. Vi har lagt undan dem att grodda.

I grönsaksland nr 2 har vi kvar från vintern och fortfarande skördar från Cos sallat, citrongräs, blomkål, persilja och några kinesiska kål. Vi har planterat jordgubbar som vi köpt på Bunnings, sötpotatis varav 5 är köpta och en grävde vi upp och en som dök upp och växte av sig själv. Sen sådde vi en isbergtyp-sallad, broccoli, paprika, kål, gurka, zucchini, salladslök och aubergine. Vi flyttade en massa tomter som hade självsått sig sen hösten och sådde några nya stora tomater, Grosse Lisse.

I nr 3 har vi fortfarande från vintern och fortfarande skördar från kålrötter, rödbetor, dill och några ärter. Vi har sått rädisor, purjolök, palsternacka, rotselleri, bladselleri, ärtor, mer sallad, röd chili, pak choi, lök, rock melon, vattenmelon, pumpa, morötter, mer rödbetor, ett gäng olika bönor och satt potatis. Rädisorna är uppe redan och vi skördar dem. Bönorna har dykt upp och ser bra ut.

I en 4: e ruta har vi planterat 24 majs och satt ett högre staket runt för att hålla borta hopparna. Senare kommer vi antagligen att täcka det med nät för att undvika fåglar också. Uppe vid vattentanken vi har planterat en del kronärtskockor på prov och nere i hagen en bit från veranda vi har sått några solrosor så att vi kan se hur de vänder och vrider sig efter solen. Fröhuset var en besvikelse i år. Det vi trodde var en trevlig blandning av jord och sand visade sig som cement i vissa fall. Endast sallat och kronärtskockorna klarade av det och kunde planteras.

Nu har vi 4 avokadoplantor att försöka räkna ut var vi ska plantera så att de kommer att vara säkra från frost. Ahh, vi har också sått en quandong i i en burk och det kommer att bli spännande att se om de tar sig.

Loquaten har frukt och vi äter av den. Den smakar plommon fast med lite beskt skal. Det måste vara ett ganska ungt träd eftersom det inte har särskilt mycket frukt ännu. Mullbären är börjar också mogna. En av de gula guavaträden har fått något som äter bladen men vi kan absolut inte se vad det är. Alla citrus blommar eller har blommat klart. Några kumquatar är fortfarande kvar på ett av träden och bör skördas snart. Macadamianötterna samt pecannötterna har blommat och vi väntar nu på att se om den blir några nötter av det hela. Förra året fick vi inte så många som året innan.

Så trädgården går fint just nu.

Grannen sålde aldrig sin tomt och det var hans kor som strövade på vår mark igen men han sålde korna och allt är tillbaka till det normala. Vi har haft ett par dopp i bäcken men vädret är lite svalare än förra året så vi är lite mesiga fortfarande.

20161014 Friday. So now we are done with the spring sowing and planting…. oh no, we have the avocados left to plant somewhere.

In patch one we have growing: Sweet potato, oregano, rhubarb, garlic, one silly onion that I threw out, coriander and some red lettuces that seeded itself. We have sown rocket, basil, rosemary, tarragon and iceberg lettuce. The potatoes we put down seemed to have died so we decided that that row was empty. Then we dug a little and found some small new potatoes. Some were a bit eaten. We have put them away to grow eyes.

In patch 2 we have left from winter and still harvesting Cos lettuce, Lemon Grass, cauliflower, parsley and some Chinese cabbage. We have planted strawberries that we bought at Bunnings, sweet potatoes some that are bought and one we dug up and one that popped up by itself. Then we sowed Iceberg type lettuce, broccoli, capsicum, cabbage, cucumbers, zucchini, shallots and eggplant. We relocated a bunch of tomatoes that had self seeded since autumn and sowed some new big ones: Grosse Lisse.

In no 3 we still have from winter and still are harvesting from Swedes, beet roots, dill and some peas. We sowed radishes, leek, parsnip, celeriac, celery, potatoes, peas, more lettuce, red chilli, pak choi, onion, rock melon, watermelon, pumpkin, carrots, more beet roots, and a bunch of different beans. The radishes are up and we are harvesting. The beans have popped up and look well.

In a 4th patch we have planted 24 corn and put a higher fence around to keep the jumpers away. Later we will probably have to cover the corn with netting to avoid birds.

Up by the water tank we have planted some Globe artichokes on trial and down in the paddock a bit from the verandah we have sown some Sunflowers.

The seed house was a let down this year. What we thought was a nice mixture of soil and sand turned out like cement in some cases. Only some lettuce and artichokes made it through and got planted.

Now we have 4 avocados to figure out where to plant so they will be safe from the frost. Ahh we have also sown a Quandong in a pot and that will be exciting.

The Loquat we already have is fruiting well and we are eating. It must be quite a young tree because it does not have very many fruit yet. The Mulberries are also coming along nicely. One of the yellow Guavas have caught something that is eating the leaves but we can absolutely not see what it is. All the citruses are blossoming or done blossoming. Some Kumquats are still on one of the trees and should be harvested soon. The Macadamias have bloomed and Pecans are blossoming right now so we are waiting to see if any nuts will come out of it. The garden is coming along fine at the moment.

The neighbour did not sell his plot and it was his cows that roamed but he sold the cows and all is back to normal. We have had a couple of dips in the creek but the weather is a bit cooler than last year so we are still a bit wimpish.

New white stuff

Friday.

So the day after we did our shopping in Kemp the freezer on the fridge popped. It´s been on the on and off for a week but we thought stupidly that we would have some more time to check out freezers and fridges before it totally went dead. It has three settings and the middle setting was the one that ceased but this morning all of them refused even the quick freeze button. Thermostat must be broken. Yesterday we resisted to check out the white goods in town because it is so nice to come home while it is still light. We should have.

So this morning we have a fridge full of newly bought food and a freezer full of frozen food for 5 days = 11 meals each for 2 people. To have someone come out, a 2 hour drive, from Kempsey to have a look at the fridge/freezer and either say buy a new one or take it apart and say we need a new thermostat and pay out of our nose, then go back 2 hrs. No, just buy new stuff because we need it today.

It has rained some more during the night so the roads will be worse but WTH just pack all the “saw down trees and hack away the vines” kit and get going. Most of that stuff is always in the ute anyway. But good, no car fridge, no cooler and no carton for cans & bottles. And away we go. The creeks are up so we have to go through the bush.

First stop lunch at KFC. That chicken has most definitely been frozen.

Second stop, get a sturdy trolley at Bunnings. We can always use a good trolley around here. So we unpacked it in the parking lot and went over to pump the tyres. One tyre was leaking so back to Bunnings. They did not want to give us new tyres and the guy, after humming and hawing and talking to the manager, went over to pump the tyre himself. Haha, the tyre did leak! Theeen he gave us a new tyre for free. So back to the parking lot and put on the new tyre. They were pumped already. That took at least 45 min of precious time.

Things you think will be quick are never quick. Things that you think will take time are always quicker. Ain´t that odd.

So 3rd stop Betta and have a look at what they´ve got, not impressed.

Over to the pretty newly opened white goods outlet store by the railway. All goods they had were from east Asia. After a lot of discussions we chose a Daewoo. The freezer is much bigger then we old one and that is important to us. Had to ask the salesperson how it handled on the highway. She got it immediately and said she had not tried that yet. The salesperson made sure we understood that even though there was a five year warranty nobody would come out to our neck of the woods or even Bellbrook. They would send stuff and we would have to do the rest. So up with the Daewoo on the ute, standing up of course.

Onward home. Dark clouds everywhere but we did not get any rain – yay! We made it home without cutting down neither branches or the package on P-trail. Both creeks are still high but here we have bridges.

Slithering down our hill but we made it in one piece. Then into the house to move the old one into the storage room. Stupid fridge worked when we got home but it is so off and on and that is not good. Then slide down the new one and off with the packaging (by now it was pitch black) and roll up the stairs and into the house and on it´s place. Put on handles and wheels and so on and got it going. Yaya. After 2 hrs. Mick transported the freezer goods over to the new freezer and woah it almost disappeared compared to the old freezer. Still it does not look bigger on the outside but it is slightly.

Ok, late dinner in front of a nice fire. Phew.

So what´s on the menu

This is dry reading and no pics. Only for hard core eaters.

So what´s on the menu? Lunch and dinner:

Hamburgers / Hot dogs

Chicken soup (don´t remember what was in it) / T-bone steak with potato and salad

Chicken soup same as yesterday / Lamb leg roast with oven vegs:parsnip, potato & yam

Franks mash & pepper fried onion / Pork sweet potato & salad

Greek salad with boiled egg (egg IN salad is not very tasty) / Pasta, ham & cheese fry super yum

Franks a la Stroganoff / Orange chicken according to a Greek recipe on the internet

Ham sandwich / Cup cakes & popcorn

Chicken wraps, lots of fresh vegs in here / Cabbage and sage soup a la Nigella (this was totally disgusting)

Made fish soup on leftover cabbage/sage soup which turned out even worse! First time Nigella maybe last time too / Mince sauce with capsicum & potato

Pasta with sauce on franks / mustard, cream, carrots & leek, home made salami pizza (super)

Hot cheese tomato sandwiches / Bienenstich cake

Waffles with homemade jellies & syrups and jams / Tuna wraps

Lamb lentil stew (stew made from back of lentil package and added lamb, Indian stuff) super tasty / Chips beer cake & tea

Chicken with sauce: ginger squash capsicum leek & coconut milk / popcorn & wine

Lunch: Pork slices, chilli pepper fried onions with Uluru stew made from celeriac, swede, carrot yum yum

Dinner: Swedish prawn sandwiches, cup cakes made with lime & raisin

Lunch: Fried fish, rice & sauce from peanut butter, coconut milk a bit of brown sugar & Garam Masala super yummy

Dinner: Lamb stew made on tomato sauce, rosemary & garlic and our own dried beans.

Lunch: Bits from the pork leg roast with a ready made sauce from the store, rice and a simple salad.

Dinner: Pasta with a mince stew on capsicum, leek & our own squash.

Yep not ready to live on our home-grown vegetables yet but we are learning and next step is to adjust the sowing so that all does not ripen at the same time.

Went shopping and since it was cold and windy we had lunch at the Liberty Café: fish and chips. We also had a lot of food still in the freezer so we did not have to buy so much this time.

Store bought baguette with cheese and ham, popcorn after.

Now we take care of all the newly bought fresh meat. Usually the mince has the shortest date so we make something out of mince and the make 100 gram patties and freeze them. But this time we decided to make meatballs instead of patties.

So for lunch mince mushroom sauce with pasta and a simple salad.

Evening we had pork chops with a cream sauce with tarragon, potatoes and home grown beans.

Lunch was frankfurters in hot dog buns. Then we baked saffron bread for our little midwinter celeb. The evening passed with tasting the saffron bread and having popcorn and grog. Oooooo.

Next day was time for a nice dinner of Salmon with homemade Gravlax sauce, potatoes gratin Dauphinois and meatballs. Then we put the rest of the meatballs in the freezer.

Saturday saw us eating chicken curry and rice for lunch and BBQ scotch fillet with our own grown fried cauliflower and the Dauphinois for dinner.

Sunday: Sausage & cabbage soup / popcorn & wine

Monday: Biscuits with jam & cheese / chicken a l´orange with rice and corn.

Tuesday: Pumpkin soup & biscuits. The pumpkin soup is really butternut squash soup. Evening we made goulash on round steak and it came out to 4 meals so we froze 3 meals for the future.

Hamburgers / Lamb with potato mash made from potato & home grown swede root.

And the last day of the month we had leftover salmon from the Midwinter celeb. We made salmon sandwiches on newly baked bread and for dinner we had bits of port which we cut up and fried with mushrooms and our own squash, the last squash in the patch! Rice with that.

Soo yummy food…. all except Nigellas cabbage stuff.