Good things at home

Sadly the school holidays are almost over.  Setting our own rhythm over the holidays and making the most of this beautiful autumn weather has been pure joy!

We have planted lots of garlic from the Diggers Club.

We have been testing and experimenting with our own Chai tea blend and a Beetroot and Chocolate Brownie for an upcoming local market I am involved in.

We have been picking beans from the vegetable garden and saltbush from the paddock.   If you sometimes feel the need to simplifying modern living this book is an inspiring and practical place to start.

Of course I have also baked a batch of sourdough.  This time I made a few big loaves and some little lunch or dinner rolls.  Some dough ‘balls’ have also gone into the freezer to take out later and roll into pizza bases.

What is happening at your place?

Has your home had a good rhythm this week?

Happy Sunday friends.

Op-shop fun

Here are some bits and pieces that have found their way into our home over the last few months.

The day of me purchasing my own life size caravan is getting closer but until then my collection of old toy vans continues to grow.  This little van was an Ebay purchase.  It is a bit rough but has plenty of character…I think my life size van may be in a similar condition when it finally comes into my life!              

Mum recently gave me this beautiful Carlton Ware plate for my birthday.  I love the retro style and soft colours.  I was thrilled to get a pre-loved gift; it is great recycling and makes me reflect on who may have owned it before me.  Thanks Mum x

On a recent trip to Adelaide we purchased this little enamel scoop from Antique Market.    This place is a must for anyone who is even vaguely interested in old things.  Put aside plenty of time because you can get lost in this shop for hours.

These little teapots came from our local Lifeline for next to nothing.  With a good scrub they are now almost like new.  I have a project in the pipeline for them, more on that later.

Have you found any treasure lately?

For more fun vintage finds link up with Sophie at Her Library Adventures.  

Easter camp oven cooking

Over Easter we camped on the shores of a beautiful lake and spent our days fishing, boating, canoeing, yabbying and losing track of time with my family.  


Our camp ovens were packed carefully and I was determined to make bread using a well practised recipe from the Bourke Street Bakery cookbook.  I like the way cooking outdoors away from the comforts of the kitchen requires you to improvise and simplify  things.  This loaf was a perfect example of basic ingredients put together with simple equipment and baked over red hot coals in the camp oven.  No temperature controls on the open fire!

We devoured this rustic loaf with a piece of blue cheese and a jar of home made Ploughman's pickles. 


In the evening we cooked a piece of home raised lamb in the camp ovens...a memorable family meal enjoyed by the fireside.  I only managed to get decent photos of the vegetables, the heat haze and shimmer from the fire provided tricky conditions for this photographer!

Camping brings the most important things in life into perspective. 


Is there something you do with your family to gets things back into perspective?

Autumn colour at our house

Autumn is a beautiful time to be

Getting a little craft on...

  

Poaching these beautiful quinces for an upside down cake...

  

Making pasta with the kids…

  

Experimenting with these Kourabiethes or Greek shortbreads thanks to my friend at tea with hazel...

We are going camping for Easter and I have two goals.  The first is to get reacquainted with our canoe and the second is to bake bread from scratch and cook it in the open fire to share with my family.  Happy Easter blog friends.

What are your plans?

In My Kitchen April 2012

Welcome to a little tour of what is in my kitchen this month.  To start with I am sharing some foodie treasure that came home with me after a recent trip to Adelaide.

After much deliberation over a wall of tea at T Bar I chose this China Golden Yunnan black loose leaf tea.  A pot of tea on the weekends is a ritual for us and this one was a good choice. It has a smoky taste and is a subtle mix of both green and black tea.  

Who can resist Haigh's chocolates?  Walking past the shiny window with a pretty Easter display we were tempted by beautifully packaged dark chocolate and a canister of serious drinking chocolate.  Yum!

Whenever we are in Adelaide we try to visit the colourful Kim Wang Asian supermarket within the Adelaide Central Market.  It is always full of interesting food and smells at affordable prices.  Amongst some other Asian essentials we left with a basic, functional wok…this is the second wok we have purchased over the years from Kim Wang.

If you love cheese the Adelaide Central Market  is paradise.  At almost every corner is a sparkling glass display cabinet brimming with every imaginable cheese.  The choice can be overwhelming but this time I settled on a tub of  Woodside Goat Curd from the Adelaide Hills.  This curd is so incredibly soft and smooth it could be eaten on almost anything.  How about pizza, salad or sourdough toast?  We enjoyed it on a biscuit with a cold beer at the end of a  busy Saturday.

  

We met old friends on Elizabeth Street in suburban Croydon for coffee.  This little strip of shops is pretty, a bit quirky, very groovy and has a real community vibe.  When our friends bought a packet of these sweet potato chips from the delightful Queen Street Grocer I also jumped on the bandwagon.  They were crunchy, not too salty and tasted quite natural.

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One of my favourite food moments for the month was hearing our kids; Annabelle and George calling from outside the kitchen door to greet me with this armful of goodness.  In their arms they had a capsicum, some basil, nasturtium flowers and a zucchini with the flower still attached.  Seeing my two little people so full of enthusiasm for good food is pure joy!

Lastly, the generosity of one of my foodie friends Paula,  made my week.  This lovely box of pomegranates, quinces and home made Vanilla Extract was left at her back door simply for me to pick up.  For me this represents far more than a box of incredible home grown produce.  It is about sharing, friendship and understanding.  Gestures like this make the world a better place don't they?

What is happening in your kitchen this month?  


Thanks Celia for this fun foodie game.  Please share and join in the fun at  Celia’s beautiful blog Fig Jam and Lime Cordial.