Going bananas here. Found a bagful of over-ripe specimens on a specials table at a fruit market. First - a banana cake for the Wednesday morning tea platter. Cream cheese icing of course, but a bit rich for some maybe? Therefore drizzled it with some preserved passionfruit pulp to counteract that factor. As for the … Continue reading Bananas!

The inaugural Literary High Tea was held yesterday afternoon in New Norfolk at Glen Derwent colonial property. Much respected Meg Keneally was the guest author. During her excellent presentation, she related true stories of a number of convict characters, with a special focus on Mary Bryant. She also spoke about (my personal favourite convict) William … Continue reading Inaugural Literary High Tea at Glen Derwent

Very pretty here this morning at Molesworth in the sunny spells between showers. Love the way the raindrops cling to the tree outside the kitchen window. Dear old Tom makes the most of the warmth in the armchair on the verandah. Not that he looks particularly pleased - he's perpetually cross these days. (I've had … Continue reading Molesworth morning

I've had lots of requests for the recipe, so here it is, that indestructible cake of yesterday's post: UPDATE!! - for toasted banana bread, just scrape off the icing and toast slices as usual. Oh my goodness - delicious, spread with butter, yum. For the future I won't ice the loaf, but will have it … Continue reading Banana Bread Recipe

Surely this must be one of the most indestructible cakes ever. In the absence of any biscuits or muffins to serve with a cup of tea, I quickly made up a recipe for a simple banana bread. I started it out in Hester, the wood-fired stove in the house. That oven decided to smoke, so … Continue reading The Indestructible Cake

Seems an age since I've posted anything. So for anyone who thinks I might have hung up my apron and gone AWOL from the kitchen, here's a little baking done this morning. For the Wednesday morning tea platter - carrot cupcakes with lemon/lime/tangelo cream cheese icing, sprinkled with with butter-infused toasted flaked almonds. There's bread … Continue reading A little baking on a chilly Molesworth morning

I have a space available in the Making and Baking Yeast Goods class this Saturday. Loads of bread and other yeasted goods to be made. Please contact me if you would like to book that place.

Just spent a few wonderful few days judging in the Tasmanian Fine Food Awards. Now back home and with stocks of cordial concentrate noticeably diminishing, time to go to the freezer and pull out all the remaining berries and currants of last summer. There's blackcurrants and red, jostaberries, blackberries and mulberries Hester the heater comes … Continue reading Berries of Summer in Winter

So had to wait till today to cook those rosemary crumbed Halloumi chips with fresh-made aioli. This, I can tell you, was worth the wait. It's the best lunch I've had in a long, long, long, long time. Some people ask to see the finished Halloumi dish - this is it, rustic I know but … Continue reading Halloumi again

Did someone say Halloumi? Yes, an ABC listener did yesterday. I've been longing to make it ever since. With 8 litres of milk (pasteurised, not homogenised) in the fridge needing to be used one way or another, I've succumbed to temptation and two batches of Halloumi are on the go. The basis of dinner tonight? … Continue reading Halloumi