Nothing dull about school holidays. Stephanie brought young Charly and Jacob and their friend Hayley around today to make taffy. My goodness the cooking school was smelling delightful. The hook on the wall that looks like some Mediaeval implement of torture, is actually a taffy hook. It's sensational to see the lumps of toffee pulled … Continue reading Taffy!
Seems we have a lemon loving lady possum here. Our lemon tree, despite every possible effort, has suffered badly from her nightly grazing. We've hung bags of blood and bone in the tree, even special flashing lights as recommended deterrents. Neither worked - in fact we went out one night to find her playing with … Continue reading The lemon tree that nearly wasn’t
Wonderful place this Derwent Valley. Despite the bitter cold winter, or maybe even because of it, the property here looks amazing, so lush and green. Here are some photos taken from the verandah this morning.
Speaking of bread baking things - meet my new best (bread baking) friend. I bought this dehydrator from Teros in Hobart a week or so ago. I admit it was love at first sight - a dehydrator that would be easy to clean with really good capacity, and metal shelves instead of less than durable … Continue reading My New Best (bread baking) Friend
Look who's had a haircut … I'm afraid it was a necessary evil. Puppy Poppy could barely see out of her fur-covered eyes and would go running through the house, full pelt, and bang into all sorts of things. She hurt, or at least shocked, herself quite badly once or twice. What started out to … Continue reading Poppy’s bad day
In a class here last Saturday, we were chatting with the guests about local accommodation and eateries. In the course of the conversation a little known attraction of one of these venues was revealed. At the historic Tynwald Willow Bend Estate there lives, amongst others, a pig named Tina. From the time she was a … Continue reading A Pig Named Tina
Busy times today - such beautiful weather so time for a combined effort in planting onions and pink-eye potatoes. Jacob kept up his strength by eating a jarful of last summer's preserved cherries.
Lots of fun in the cheese making class here today. Before everyone arrived, I trialled some kefir muffins with apricots and lime. That was to accompany coffee before we started. (Here they are just before baking) Haloumi. Mozarella, Ricotta 2 ways, Paneer, Labna and more were on the list of cheeses to be prepared. By … Continue reading Cheese Making Class
Meanwhile in the kitchen, dinner preparation is late. However, I am hoping it will be good (I know there will be leftovers, there's way too much for the two of us). There's stuffed mushrooms and capsicums, also meatballs roasted with black garlic and rosemary that will be served with a roasted pumpkin sauce.
Well, I've been practising making cheese, as indeed I've written recently. I attended a workshop for extra tips from Mad Mille company at Habitat store last week. Each guest received a gift of a cheese making kit. Today in Hobart I purchased a large container for all my cheese making gear, and left the empty … Continue reading Rosie the Rascal Cat
