nourish: sugar-free, dairy-free ice cream

I've been inspired by recipes around the internets for 'ice cream' using frozen bananas, or coconut milk. Trialling our littlest poppet on an A1 beta-casein free diet (well that's specific, isn't it?) has worked a treat in the rashy-skin, ear-infection department, but led to no joy in the treat department.

I like to give my kids ice cream. Because I love them with food sometimes. So I had a go at making some frozen goodness that wouldn't send my little one into an itchy mess.

I give you:

Banana-strawberry-mango Coconut 'Ice Cream'

In a food processor, I whizzed 3 ripe bananas, a nice punnet of strawberries, the flesh of two mangoes, a 400ml can of coconut milk* and some honey to taste- about a tablespoon.

I poured the mixture into some muffin tins, then popped in the freezer to set.

Back into the blender to whizz the frozen mix into smooth, creaminess.

Enjoy!

*Full-fat coconut cream would have been even better, I think. Or better yet, the coconut fat collected from the top of an unshaken can of coconut cream, especially if you aren't using banana.

2 out of 3 children approved of this recipe. Thankfully one of them was the dairy-free kid.

in season: peach, mango and vanilla jam

Yum. Born out of the need to use up some on-the-way-out stone fruit from the fruit bowl, this jam was a bit experimental but worked a treat, and is deliciously sweet and tropical.

Grab these:
some peaches and mangoes- I started with about 7 peaches (some white, some yellow) and 2 mangoes
castor sugar
water
lemons
water
a big pot
kitchen scales
juicer
sharp knife

Do this:
1. Begin by preparing your fruit. Cut the mango flesh away from the skin and stone. Bob the peaches, with a cross cut into their bottoms, for a few minutes in boiling water. Peel the skin away (mind your fingers) and cut up flesh into small chunks. Weigh your prepared fruit- I ended up with about 700grams.
2. Work out how much sugar you need, based on a ratio of about 6 parts fruit: 5 parts sugar. I used about 500grams sugar because I'm not good at maths. Pop your sugar and fruit into your big pot.
3. Work out how much liquid you need, based on around 1/2 cup per kilo fruit. I juiced two lemons, then added water to make about 1/3 cup. Add this to the pot too.
4. Add vanilla extract (or the scrapings from a vanilla bean) to the mix to taste.
5. Slowly bring to the boil on medium heat to dissolve the sugar.
6. Boil gently until jam has reduced and is set. You know how to test jam, right? Put a couple of saucers in the freezer when you start. When you think your jam is ready, and the mix plops off the spoon in one continuous blob rather than dribbles in a liquid fashion, drop a small blob on your cold saucer. after a moment, run your finger through the middle of the blob. If it parts the blob, and the jam stays apart, it's ready!
7. Decant into hot, sterilised jars. I wash my (recycled) jars in hot, soapy water and rinse well. Then I place the jars and lids (up the right way) on an oven tray covered with a tea-towel. Then the jars sit in a lowish oven (150 degrees Celsius, fan-forced) for about 30mins. Put the lid on you filled jar, then upend the jar to sit on its head for just a few minutes. If you turn the jar right-side up again, before it starts to cool, you should be able to pop the seal in with your finger. This recipe made two-and two-thirds average sized jam jars. The recycled jars sealed beautifully, but the fancy-pants jar I bought new spilled when I tipped it upside-down. I think it's more of a preserving jar, perhaps.

Thanks to the Rushleigh- The At Home Chronicle for the great information about sugar, water, fruit ratios.

Do you have a stock or store cupboard at your place? Are you busy preparing summer fruits to enjoy later? I'm excited at the thought of some summery flavours to have on toast in winter. And after the success of my arancello, have plans to make some summery liqueur. What do you think- stone fruits or summer berries?

in stitches: scary cape

Some shiny red and black fabric became a scary vampire cape for my big boy this week, accompanied (naturally) by cake.

 

 

 

 

 

How-to: worms in dirt cakes
1. Bake your usual cupcakes and ice generously with chocolate icing.
2. Stick a sour worm into the icing on each cake.
3. Sprinkle with chocolate biscuit crumbles (I used Ripple biscuits that I smashed up with a rolling pin).
4. Eat. Outside.

Looking at lovely creative spaces in this creative month of November.

nourish: caramel cheesecake apple dip

Yeah. OK. Nourish might be wishful thinking here. How about we go with indulge, instead? Inspired by something similar on pinterest.

Grab these:
a tin of sweetened condensed milk, boiled for three hours to make caramel (or a tin of top 'n' fill)
a pack of spreadable cream cheese
icing sugar mixture
squeeze of lemon juice
half a packet of sweet biscuits, bashed into largish crumbs
4 or 5 of your favourite apples, cut into slices

Do this:
1. Spread you caramel into the middle of the plate. I only used half a tin, with the other half being saved for a higher purpose (eating directly out of the fridge with a spoon)
2. Sprinkle over your crumbles.
3. Beat the cream cheese to soften, then keep beating as you add in icing mixture and lemon juice to taste. Schplopp the cheesecakey-icingy mix over the top of everything else and spread with a spatula.
4. Place the apple slices around the edge of the plate for dipping and scooping. You will have to make a group decision about your feelings on double dipping.

Enjoy! What are you cooking this week, good looking?

in season: aussie farmers direct

In the midst of my exploration of the best source of local/organic/quality/convenient/budget-friendly (not asking for much, am I?) fruit and veg for our family, I received a knock at the door from an Aussie Farmers Direct representative. We used AFD years ago, back in the suburbs, with just the one kid. I was working full-time, and my cooking repertoire was limited to meals that began with a Maggi packet. There was no way we could keep up with the potatoes alone, so we dropped it.

But this time, I saw the magic words...organic...delivered...local...and signed up for an organic family box. The set up was easy, you pay via direct deposit, they send a text to remind you of the delivery. This is what we received...

 

Fresh, abundant, delicious. I had kind of expected the organic stuff to be lesser quality, like the sad bits of broccoli you see in the supermarket, but it really wasn't. A gorgeous cauliflower, which became the yummiest curry ever. A lush bunch of coriander and beetroot (which I roasted) were among the favourites. I noticed on the few packaged things that they had been sourced from Victoria (we're on the Central Coast of NSW), which sparked a little conundrum for me- is organic worth it if it has to travel many kilometres? So I hopped onto the chat function on the Aussie Farmers Direct website and asked questions about the source of the produce. I was very reassured to find that there are several packing depots in each state (which is why the contents of the boxes vary), produce is most definitely Australian, and sourced regionally as much as possible. This box cost $56 delivered.

 

For the sake of comparison and curiosity, I changed my order for the following week to a regular family box...

Again, beautiful, fresh quality. At $37 a box, delivered, significantly kinder on the budget. 

 

So I found a lot to love about Aussie Farmers direct, this time around, I think helped along by my shifting attitude towards food and eating seasonally. Whole pumpkin two weeks in a row would have really had me scratching my head (and throwing away pumpkin a few weeks later), but now that I am working on building up recipes to use produce when it is in season, I no longer find that daunting. The delivery is very convenient and easy, and so exciting for the kids to unpack. The sales service is very friendly and helpful, I find the website easy to navigate. Aussie Farmers is far more flexible nowadays, you can change your order week-to-week, pick and pay is available if you want to choose individual items, and you can put your regular order on hold, is your family gets, say, gastro. On a Sunday, the box contents go up on the website, so you can check what's coming and do some menu planning. The addition of organic produce makes me happy. We also signed up for the milk delivery (and butter), which has reduced my need to pop to the shops several times through the week. Hallelujah.

 

I would love if Aussie Farmers supplied more specific information about the source of the produce. I wish the pick-and-pack option wasn't so expensive (when a delivery fee is included) because i really need an extra ten apples for lunchboxes, and that's all I need. I look forward to the organic range expanding to include milk and meat, especially whole chooks. I would love the pricing structure on the website to be listed as a per-kilo price, so I can readily compare pricing. But these are pretty small things. Overall, the service and the quality of the produce is excellent.

 

At the moment, Aussie Farmers Direct are offering a $10 credit for new customers! There are no obligations or contracts, so you may as well give it a try.



nourish: apple tea cake

I don't know where I found this recipe originally*, I just know if I lose the envelope I scrawled it on, I will kick myself. So here 'tis, for prosperity.

Grab these:
3/4 cup plain wholemeal flour
3/4 cup self-raising flour
3/4 cup caster sugar
125grams butter, melted
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
two(ish) apples, diced

Do this:
1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius (moderate). Grease and line a springform tin.
2. Combine everything, except the apples, in a bowl.
3. Press 3/4 of the batter into the base of the tin.
4. Sprinkle apples over the top, followed by the remaining batter. For added yum, sprinkle over some raw sugar mixed with cinnamon.
5. Bake for 40-50 mins, until golden. Cool in tin (if you can wait that long).

Do you like my 50c Johnson Australia plate? Yeah, so do I. Score!

*If this is your recipe, please let me know so that I can praise you like I should.

whole chook challenge: roast + laksa + stock

I told my lovely grandmother-in-law about my whole chook challenge. She was amazed (amused? horrified?) when I confessed to never having roasted a chicken before. When her kids were little, she worked in a chicken farm/processing plant. And was allergic to chickens.

But! I can proudly say that in the past week, we have consumed no chicken other than the one, free range chicken I bought on shopping day. This is the story of the Neverending Chiii-iiicken (ah-ah-aaaah. ah-ah-aaaah. ah-ah-aaaah).

Once upon a time, I bought a chicken. A whole bird, labelled free-range. Being on special that week, the cost was the same amount I would normally spend on breast meat for one meal for my family of five.

On Sunday night, I roasted the whole bird. I found a lovely recipe for lemon and tarragon roasted chicken, but having neither lemon or tarragon, I made orange and rosemary roasted chicken instead. As I prepared the whole bird, I reflected a little on the life given to sustain ours- I felt very grateful and humble. I served the chook with roast potatoes, onions and sweet potato, steamed carrots and beans and a gravy made from the roasting juices. We carved the chook at the table.
Orange and Rosemary Roast Chicken
Pat dry your chicken with paper towel, thoroughly drying the inside of the cavity.
Into the cavity: season with salt and pepper, pop half a large orange cut into wedges, a couple of bruised garlic cloves, half a brown onion cut into chunks, and a nice spring of fresh rosemary. Tie the legs with kitchen string. I also tied the wings.
Onto the skin: Massage the juice of half an orange well into the skin, all over. Sprinkle with some olive oil and season well.
Into the oven: I cooked my chook, sitting upon a rack in my roasting pan, in a 200 degrees Celsius oven, for around an hour. Pour water into the bottom of the pan, and keep refreshing throughout the cooking. Check that juices run clear of use a meat thermometer.
Pan juices gravy
Add about a cup of water to the empty roasting pan. Bring the water to the boil, on the stovetop if your pan can go on the element, or in the oven. Stir it well to get all the crunchy, sticky bits up off the pan. Add a tablespoon of plain flour and whisk quickly until the gravy thickens. You could use arrowroot if you like a clear gravy. Season to taste.

On Monday, I removed the remaining meat from the carcass and set aside. I used the bones of the bird to make a stock. Slow cooking at its best, and very, very simple.

Chicken Stock

Break or cut the meatless chicken carcass into four smaller pieces. Roughly chop two carrots (don't bother peeling), three celery sticks (including the leafy bits), and a brown onion. Put everything into a big pot, along with some peppercorns, a couple of bay leaves and a couple of squashed garlic cloves. Cover with plenty of water. Bring the pot to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for ages and ages, until the broth tastes chickeny. When you like the flavour, strain well, then leave to cool so you can skim the fat. If you want to store in the freezer, return the stock to the heat and simmer to reduce even further, then you can use it like a concentrate.

On Tuesday, the remaining meat was used in a laksa- delicious but very, very hot! I use a supermarket laksa paste in a jar, with coconut milk and heaps of veggies. Make sure you have a nice big bunch of coriander and a pack of fresh beansprouts too. Yum.

All in all, I'm really happy with the economical use of the whole chicken. My stock will go into some roast veggie risotto for dinner tonight, so three meals is a pretty good stretch, I think. I will definitely be using chicken in this way from now on.

If you have a great recipe using leftover chicken meat, please link me up!

nourish: whole chook challenge

Did you know that Australians consume an average of 37kilograms of chicken meat per year? We eat chicken in this house, probably on a 1:2 ratio with red meat. Do you know how much of my chicken meat I bought as whole birds in the past year?

None.

I've never cooked a whole chook. The convenience and habit of buying my chicken in skinless, boneless pieces- almost always breast, sometimes thigh- at a cheap price has been deeply ingrained in my shopping routine.

image

I was touched and inspired by Kate's post about the preparation of chicken at her organic farm. I felt a call to action, to inform myself about the products I buy, cook for my family and eat. To mindfully consider. We aren't at the point of going vegetarian, although my recent focus on quality, local, organic fruits and vegetables has had the happy spin-off of increasing the number of vegetarian meals we are eating throughout the week.

I am setting myself a challenge:

Buy only whole, free-range chicken for a month.

One meal of chicken breast costs around the same as a whole free-range chook, which should yield two meals, if I'm clever. I need to do some learning about how to piece a chicken, and also the yummiest roast.

Hit me with your favourite whole-chook recipes.

nourish: bread

Things have changed this week. We have become a house of home-made bread. And what a glorious thing that is.

It all started last weekend, when my family came to visit. I thought I would give a recipe for five-minute-bread I had seen on Down to Earth a try. It was a huge success, and I've had a fresh loaf baked every other day. It truly is a simple exercise, much simpler than the results gained!

Pane di casa. Literally.

You will need a heavy lidded pot. I already have an enamelled cast-iron one which I love making rich, hearty, slow-cooked things in. Mum and I spied a wider, shallower version in Aldi last week, so we snapped one of those each.

It really is as simple as mix, leave, shape, bake.

Mix: 5 cups plain flour + 2 1/2 cups water + 1 1/2 teaspoons salt +1/2 teaspoon yeast
Leave: cover and leave overnight in a warmish place
Shape: Ease the dough out of the bowl and shape however you like.
Bake: Preheat the lidded pot in a very hot (250 degrees Celsius) oven for 15mins. Bake for 30mins, then a further 10mins at 200 degrees Celsius with the lid off.

I have had some fairly brickish results from past breadmaking efforts, but this one is a keeper. I know because i just wrote the recipe down by heart.

Ham and Cheese scrolls looking oh-so-toasty.

My tips:
I've been using 1 1/5 cups wholemeal flour and 3 1/2 cups white.
Warm water seems to help with the rising more than cold.
If you have an oven with a separate grill section, you can turn the oven on low and sit your dough in the grill section to get nice and cosy and rise a little quicker.
The less you touch it the better. The recipe calls for a quick knead after rising, but my better loaves have been turned out and only very briefly massaged.
Stock up on butter. You are going to need it.

These babies will be going in the freezer for emergency school lunches.

Do you make bread at your place?

in season: whole orange cake

My Nanna used to make whole orange cake, and the smell and little chunks of rind send me back to childhood immediately. She would make lemon cream cheese icing for hers. I struggle to not scoff the whole cake the moment it is out of the oven. My recipe is a hybrid of Rhonda's from her book/blog Down to Earth and Aunty Sue's recipe. Aunty Sue isn't really my aunt, but a very close friend of my mother-in-law, she taught me how to embroider. But of course, no recipe will ever hold a candle to my Nanna's.

Grab this:

Do this:

I must be finished the bucket of oranges, right? Not quite, but the rest will be another round of cakes, I think, and perhaps some fresh juice for a sick little man home from school. I'm happy with the range of recipes I created with those juicy, golden orbs:

Spiced Orange Roasted Chicken

Choc-Orange Self-Saucing Pudding

Orange Passion Cordial

Arancello (Orange Liqueur) Two Ways

Roast Veggie and Orange Salad

Sweet Orange Syrup and Serendipity Pancakes

Whole Orange Cake

I'm yet to try Greer's Orange and Walnut Cake, but I will soon!

What in-season ingredient are you cooking with this week?

in season: roast veg and orange salad

During a glorious weekend of family visiting and staying and eating and staying out of the cold, windy weather, I made the most delicious salad of warm roast veggies and oranges.

Not a picture of vegetable and orange salad? No. Because I also had some wine. I'll get back to orange syrup shortly.

My salad was to be a fennel, haloumi and orange salad. I had never tasted fennel before, and when I did, I spat it across the kitchen decided my palate wasn't sophisticated enough. Please tell me how to use fennel. So, instead, I did the following:
roasted three beetroots, peeled and quartered, with a little olive oil and salt and pepper
roasted large diced pumpkin and eggplant in a hot oven
opened and drained a can of chickpeas
ordered requested hubby grill a block of haloumi that I had cut into strips
caramelised (ooh, fancy) some leeks that I'd cut in half
segmented two oranges
made a lazy dressing of olive oil, apple cider vinegar and Australian mustard
threw arranged it on a platter one handed while holding a glass of wine. sprinkled over the chickpeas and dressing.

 It really was delicious, and looked very pretty, which you can't tell from the photo.

I actually segmented too many oranges for the salad, so when I got up in the morning I made a big batch of pancakes, and some orange syrup to go with them.

The orange syrup was simply a matter of bringing equal parts fresh orange juice and sugar to the boil, then simmering until it thickens. I'm sure you could be posh and put some grog or spices or something in it, but I was hungover hungry. And, I made the best pancakes of my life! Accidentally. because I didn't have buttermilk and used a yoghurt/milk combination instead. I call them,
Serendipity Pancakes
get this:
2 cups flour
1/2 cup caster sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 egg
1 1/2 cups natural yoghurt (I used my first batch of home-made which was unsweetened)
1 cup whole milk

do this:
Mix dry ingredients in a big bowl.
Whisk wet ingredients together.
Combine wet into dry, mixing to a smooth batter. Add more milk if it isn't runny enough.
Fry blobfulls of your desired size over a medium-high heat. In butter.
Serve warm with sweet orange syrup. Or butter. Enjoy!

in season: arancello two ways

While orange passion cordial will be fine for the kids, I have a big summer planned. My bestie and I have been alternately pregnant and/or breastfeeding for the past seven years. Our youngest, final babies have both said bye-bye-booby in the past month, so preparations are now in place for many a fine summer's evening swilling fancy cocktails like ladies. Or something.

This should be a nice Christmas treat: Arancello. It's like limoncello, only with oranges, apparently. I've put two jars down, one spiced and one plain. I found a good technique and base recipe here. Then I found inspiration for a lovely spiced version here.  This is what I did:

In a big jar with a good seal, combine the following:
The zest and strained juice of four oranges
2 cups vodka
1 cup sugar

Shake daily for a week, to dissolve the sugar. Then shake weekly, resting in a cool dark place for at least 6 weeks. As long as you can stand to leave it, the better the flavours will be. Strain and chill well before serving.

For the festive spicy version, I added
1 vanilla pod
3 cardamon pods
2 cloves
1 cinnamon stick

Hoping it will taste as good as it smells!

What's your favourite festive tipple? Are you getting ready for a handmade Christmas yet?

in season: orange passion cordial

When Catherine suggested a cordial recipe for oranges in season, I thought well that's not going to happen. My darling loves cordial, but I'm not a fan. I don't buy it, he tries to sneak a bottle in over summer. The kids don't even really know what it is. I looked at my eleventy-billion oranges and the three questionable passionfruit in the fruit bowl and wondered if I could make orange and passionfruit cordial?

A quick goggle search yet again informed me that I am the inventor of nothing.

Ta Da!

Impressive, no? And it was easy-peasy.

Grab this:
1 tablespoon finely grated orange rind

1 1/2 cups orange juice

4 passionfruit, halved

2 teaspoons citric acid
1 1/2 cups caster sugar


Do this:   1. Combine 3 cups cold water, orange rind, orange juice, passionfruit pulp, citric acid and sugar in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to the boil. Boil for 10 minutes or until mixture has reduced slightly. Strain into a heatproof jug. Pour into hot, sterilised bottles and seal. Refrigerate until chilled.
2. To serve: Use 1/3 cup cordial to 1/2 cup chilled sparkling mineral water or iced water.

I only had three passionfruits.

If you can find someone handsome to help out with the juicing, all the better.

Bubble, bubble.

Straining the pips.

The oranges were full of the most delicious juice, the colour of the cordial ended up really vivid! It's just biding its time in the fridge for some warmer weather.

Was cordial a big part of your childhood?

in season: choc-orange self-saucing pudding

Oranges are a lovely friend for chocolate. Case in point: jaffas.

I've adapted my favourite recipe for Chocolate Self-Saucing Pudding (from an old Family Circle book called Comfort Food) to add a left hook of orange flavour. Because whilst I love chocolate, my love for chocolate and orange together is, well, indecent.

Grab this:
1 orange
60 grams butter, melted
1 cup self raising flour
3Tbs cocoa
1/2 cup caster sugar
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup milk
1 cup brown sugar

Do this:
1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Brush ovenproof dish with melted butter.
2. Sift flour and 1 Tbs of cocoa into a bowl (or, if you are me, don't bother sifting because it makes you feel naughty). Mix in caster sugar.
3. Mix the zest of the orange, egg, butter and milk in a jug. Stir mixture into flour mixture, make sure there are no lumps. Pop the batter into your dish. Stick the kettle on.
4. Mix the brown sugar and the remainder of the cocoa in a little bowl. Sprinkle, sprinkle over the batter.
5. Juice the orange and put the juice into a measuring jug. Once the kettle has boiled, top up the juice to make 1 1/2 cups. Carefully pour the liquid, over the back of a spoon, onto the batter.
6. Pop it in the oven for 30-40mins.
7. Serve with cream and/or ice cream. You should put dibs on the corners, they are the best bits.

in season: spiced orange roasted chicken

I cooked this recipe for the first time back when I had no clue as to what turmeric and cumin were. I've come a long way, baby. It was in a Super Food Ideas magazine, and can be found on Taste.

Grab this:
1.2kg chicken thigh fillets
1/3 cup fresh orange juice
1/3 cup honey
2 tsp olive oil
2 garlic cloves, crushed
2 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground turmeric
1 orange, thinly sliced

Do this:
1. Place the chicken in an ovenproof dish. Add the orange juice, honey, oil, garlic, coriander, cumin and turmeric and gently toss until combined. Season with salt and pepper. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge for 1 hour to marinate.


2. Put the kettle on. Preheat oven to 180°C. Use the water in the kettle to make a cuppa. Place the orange over the top of the chicken. Roast in the oven, basting with pan juices, for 45 minutes or until golden and cooked through. Go outside and play with your kids while dinner is cooking. Place on a serving platter.


In the interests of more ethical eating, next time I will make this with a whole chook, pieced. It will just take a bit longer to cook with the bones in. I served this up with some roast vegetable cous cous, and some carrots from the farm gate that looked like little people, trying to run away. I threw a handful of torn up coriander leaves through the cous cous and over the chicken, I made sure I had dibs on the oranges, which went kind of jammy and sweet.

Do you have a main meal recipe that stars a citrus fruit?

a conundrum of ethic proportions

I knew, deep down, when we made the decision to move from the suburbs to the sea, that such a move would involve big changes.

And it really has. We welcomed new life and love to our family. I started thinking about living more simply, buying more consciously, and began twelve months of meaningful giving. I even learned how to make my own deoderant.

But in the days that have followed our lovely excursion on the farm gate trail, I've been struggling to come to terms with the truth, and feasability, of ethical consumption. I finished off my shopping, as per normal today. I did the groceries at the sort-of-local BiLo. I gave myself a mental pat on the back as I popped organic raw sugar into my trolley, over my usual store-brand raw sugar. Well done me, so ethical. So mindful.

During the quiet unpacking moment in my day (OK, I haven't put the pantry stuff away yet, my attention was diverted when I smashed a jar of anchovies all over the floor), I picked up the packet of sugar. Australian Certified Organic, the front reads. Then I read the back. And got pissed off. Packaged in Australia from imported ingredients. I understand the rule of reading the fine print, I really do. But the Australian certification kind of gave me the feeling that this was a local product. I should also note that I made the choice to buy this sugar because it was only slightly more expensive that my regular buy. I didn't buy organic flour, because it was easily more than double the price.

Then we popped into the butcher. I've been shopping there weekly for about 3 months now. Every week I tell myself I am going to ask about the source of the meat I am buying. And every week I chicken out. I feel like there would be something offensive in me saying So can you tell me about where the animals are raised? What are the conditions like? And I know these are valid questions, but in my head I just sound narky. So I ended up buying way less than I normally do, as if that compensates for thrusting my head firmy into the sand.

Off to the fruit and veggie shop, which I love. A small, independently owned shop, with beautiful produce. I only needed apples and coriander after our lovely haul from the farm gates, but I grabbed a punnet of strawberries as a treat for my two smalls, who were doing a really nice job of behaving like humans. As we polished off three quarters of a punnet, I noticed that the delicious strawberries were from North Queensland. That little treat travelled (conservatively) 900kms. That's from the farm to my place, without travelling to a wholesaler or market first. Oh.

The thing is, I don't know about this stuff. I grew up in the suburbs, with parents who did their absolute best to feed, clothe, shelter and educate a large family on a limited budget. Here are some words I never heard around the dinner table growing up: ethical, organic, biodynamic, free-range, food miles. I don't recall eating a single vegetarian meal throughout my childhood. That's not to say my parents didn't do an awesome job- we were raised on simple, healthy food. Watching my mum cook gave me the gift of being able to pull a meal together using a few questionable zucchini and a packet of pasta whatever I have at hand.

Each question seems to uncover yet more questions. I don't feel like I'll ever get to the bottom of these issues, and how they relate to the choices I make. And even if I do get to the bottom of it all, what if we just can't afford to make the most ethical choice every time? If I make some ethical choices, where we can, does that just make me a 'weekend greenie'? I know that I am certainly going to keep on digging. I unearthed this article today, and it helped me focus my thinking a little. Whilst the list of things that just seem too hard seems to grow with the more I find out, there are some things I can do. The weekend's excursion showed me that we can get a good range of fruit and veg direct from the grower. It does involve an hour-and-a-half round trip, so we'll have to factor that into our week, somewhere. I can minimise the amount of meat we are eating, while I investigate ethical practices and look at where to source. I can choose organic, but I feel more inclined to buy local than to buy organic imports. I can keep reading stories from other parents asking the same questions, challenging themselves to feed their families in an ethical way. So many are so much further along this road than I am, I'm grateful to be able to follow along their journeys, too.

hitting the farm gate trail

We had such a lovely weekend. Saturday was filled with a visit and delicious (if I do say so myself) lunch with grandparents and great-grandparents. Sunday was spent taking a leisurely drive through the rural district not too far from us.

We hit the Mangrove Mountain Country Market. I wanted to check out the local, organic produce and had visions of filling my eco-bags with delicious, cheap, and maybe a little rough-looking fruit and veg. We grabbed some jackets, snacks and the kids and took the lovely drive through farms, lots of orchards. It was nice to have a change of scene from our beachy place to more country surrounds.

I bought some hot drinks and some best-ever-bacon-and-egg-sandwiches and the kids had a play in the dappled winter sunshine.

The market had a lovely array of stalls. We wandered into the hall, greeted by an elderly gentleman playing the clarinet. We saw beautiful local honey, spice mixes, hand-knitted clothing and hand-made wooden toys. And a dog in a stroller.

Outdoor stalls included the bloke with the orange truck, beautiful artisan bread, handmade jewellery and hair clips, some second hand stalls, some goat meat, organic soaps, pretty hippy things, olive oils and a small organic fruit and veg stand.

I bought some pretty hair clips, a white sourdough loaf and a bunch of citrus fruit. Yum!

We drove home along Peats Ridge Road, stopping in at farm gates along the way. One of the little shops was just fantastic. I got almost everything I needed for green groceries, lots of it organic, and all of it with some free advice on how to choose, store, cook or eat it. The farmer running the stall apologised for the state of some of the produce as I walked in. That front table is all organic, he said, That's why it all looks a bit...you know. Signs around the little stall informed me that most of the produce was grown on this farm, the rest was sourced from other local farmers. And that these pumpkins were the "Best I've ever grown!" I was so, so happy with my shop, and crossing my fingers I'll be able to find him when I'm ready for more! We also stopped at an avocado farm, and I got the giggles when my husband asked the young chap that came out to greet us whether he had any avocados left. Here is the sum of our Farmers Market/ Farm Gate Sunday Shopping Tour:

This cost a total of $46. The beautiful bread was $6, and the oranges, mandarins and lemons cost $10- they were from the market. The bag of avocados was a fiver, direct from the grower. The rest was $25, from my new best mate. I've decided I'm more of a farm gate shopper than a farmer's market shopper. I think I get a little overwhelmed with the super fancy gourmet produce that my family are highly unlikely to eat. In the end, I still need to feed the five of us on a reasonable budget. My tips for hitting the farm gate trail are:

1. Take snacks and drinks, especially when you have kids in tow. If you are making a day out of it, take along a picnic basket for lunch- perhaps a thermos to make a hot drink and some knives to cut the bread and avocados!
2. Take cash.
3. Take it slow. Be prepared to stop and have a chat at each stop. It's half the joy.

Do you shop at farm gates?

nourish: pumpkin and citrus

I think I can safely say that I used last week's pumpkin to its full potential! Yet I didn't feel that all we ate was pumpkin. We enjoyed:

Pumpkin, Silverbeet and Ricotta Cannelloni
Pumpkin Soup
Pumpkin Scones

I was excited to see so many delicious recipes shared, too:
Catherine from A Time To Create shared this recipe, for Fetta Pumpkin Sausage Rolls
and then she hooked me up with a recipe for Roast Veggie Soup
Max from Blackbird has Spoken shared how she likes to make pumpkin into a pasta dish: I eat loads of pumpkin, i especially like penne alla zucca, (fry onion and celery, add 1 inch pumpkin cubes and a glass of white wine, cook with lid on until just softening then add chilli flakes and salt and deseeded chopped tomatoes until cooked and stir into penne pasta), hot pumpkin salad (chunks glazed with oregano and honey) and pumpkin and mozzerella arancini

If you have a pumpkin recipe on your blog, feel free to link up and I'll update our little collection!

Now, onto this week's In Season: Citrus.

We took a little day trip to check out a farmer's market on Sunday (more on that later) and had a beautiful drive through some orchard country. No surprises that we came away with a bucket of oranges, a bag of mandarins and some lemons.

The thing is, I'm not much of a fan of oranges. I had braces for seven years (!) as a teenager, and the thought of scraping metal through all that pithy flesh must be hanging around. But I'm determined to get over myself this week, because these babies are super fresh and juicy.

Do you have a favourite citrus recipe? Link me up!

in season: pumpkin scones

My mum used to make pumpkin scones when we were little kids. I remember their delicious crumbly sweetness. I was quite nervous to make them because a) I've not had much success with plain scones in the past, and b) they are a kind of weird thing to convince children to eat. But who better to go to for a scone recipe than those CWA girls?

 from The Country Women's Association Cookbook: Seventy Years in the Kitchen (2009)
Pumpkin Scones
Cream 1 tablespoon butter and 110g (1/2 cup) sugar in a bowl. Add 1 cup of cold mashed pumpkin and 1 beaten egg, stirring well to combine. Sift in 450g (3 cups) self-raising flour, stirring to make a soft dough. If the dough is too stiff, add a little milk. Turn out onto a lightly floured work surface and roll out. Cut into scone shapes and bake in a 200*C oven. If plain flour is used, add 1 1/2 tablespoons baking powder.

My tips:
2 cups of chopped pumpkin, cooked in the microwave or steamed, made 1 cup mashed pumpkin.
Don't fuss with the dough- the less action it sees the better. Barely bring the ingredients together before turning it out, then be oh-so-gentle when you roll. In fact, I didn't roll with a pin, I just patted it out.
My mum swears by using a glass to cut scones. Not a metal or plastic cutter. I don't know why. Just do it.
You could always add spices to accentuate the sweetness of the pumpkin- nutmeg likes pumpkin, but you could add more savoury spices like cumin too (these opinion are not the opinions of the CWA).
You must, must eat them warm, with a slathering of proper butter and the hot drink of your choice.

Even if you hate pumpkin, you will like these. My family had turned them to a few mere crumbs before even asking me why they were orange. Do you use pumpkin for sweet treats? Link me up!

in season: pumpkin soup

Everyone has THE BEST recipe for pumpkin soup right? Well, this is mine. It may not be the best, but it's quick and easy, and you can adjust the taste with whatever fancy spices you wish. If you want to be fancy.

Grab these:
I brown onion, chopped finely
2 cloves garlic, crushed
Half a medium Queensland Blue pumpkin, or a whole butternut pumpkin, skin removed, cut in chunks
1 large potato, peeled, cut in chunks
1 orange sweet potato, peeled, cut in chunks
1 cup chicken or veggie stock
water

Do this:
1. In a soup pot, gently fry the onion and garlic in some olive oil until soft. If you are adding any spices, throw them in at this point to release the flavour. (Do you use spices? Tell me what you like!)
2. Throw in the veggies and swish in a fancy way with a spoon. Add the stock and cover the lot with water. Bring to to boil, then pop the lid on and reduce to simmer.
3. Grab a glass of wine and let that baby simmer until the pumpkin and its mates are nice and soft. Each time you refill your glass, check to see if the water needs topping up, too.
4. Whizz with a stick blender. Serve with a dollop of sour cream and lashings of black pepper. And crusty bread. Oh, and wine, if there is any left.

Do you have a recipe for this winter classic? Link me up!