Thought I'd make a couple of pumpkin fruit cakes this evening. When I reached for the eggs, this is what I found. Can you spot the duck's egg? It's actually the one on the right. The one in the middle is a chook's egg, truly. The one on the left is a regular sized chook … Continue reading The Feathered Ladies’ Bounty

The lounge room is in desperate need of a vacuum, but who would want (or dare) to disturb dear old Tom, so contentedly sleeping in his bean bag in the morning sun? Unthinkable. He's been a bit distant of late, and very grumpy when he did come inside, only sleeping out of sight in the … Continue reading The Boss Returns

Meanwhile ….. on the HarperCollins website, the cover has been revealed for the other publication - the book that ABC's Paul McIntyre and I have written together. This is not, of course, related in any way to my next cookbook "Ultimate Slow Cooker" of the past week's frenetic photo shoot activity. Paul and I are … Continue reading The other (half) book

So the photo shoot for "Ultimate Slow Cooker" has come to an end, all done and dusted by late yesterday. Including accompaniments, 70 items were prepared in all (I just counted), styled and photographed within the 4 days. All credit to the great team who brought this together. Chris Crerar the photographer was amazing as … Continue reading Four Days of Mayhem

Let the games begin - or rather the photo shoot. Tomorrow we start a 4 day photo shoot of recipes for my new cookbook, to be released in March 2017. No prizes for guessing the subject matter of this one, the picture tells it all - it's another slow cooker book! There are more than … Continue reading Another book on the way

Almost another busy week passed by on the 'farm' with a hint of spring int he air. One eyed Jack the possum has settled in well, becoming quite accustomed to his changed circumstances. Each afternoon he saunters up to his cubby house and waits patiently for his dinner to arrive - a mixture of fruit and vegetables … Continue reading Spring on the Way in the Valley

Monumental day today - the time has come for bottling off the white wine. It's been sitting in the shed quietly doing its thing for months. Thirty five was the final bottle count, a real treasure. So far so good, tastes amazing. We never plan to sell any wine, just make enough for us to … Continue reading The Bottling of the Wine

You might remember a week or two ago that I spoke about one-eyed Jack, the old possum that lives here on the property. Because he is so aged and almost blind, he forages night or day, digging for corbi grubs in the grass and smelling out anything remotely edible. He seemed quite happy but we … Continue reading One-Eyed Jack