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Archive for the ‘Frugal Living’ Category

Getting Ready for Christmas

Posted in Food & Friends, Frugal Living on December 12, 2012| 67 Comments »

At our house, it isn't Christmas until the fat lady swings...

At our house, it isn’t Christmas until the fat lady swings…

Christmas is less than a fortnight away, and we’re not ready.

We’re actually not even close to ready. Normally by this time of year, we’d have Christmas presents sorted, meals planned and the house tidy.

This year, we’ve been frantic – Pete’s siblings arrive on the weekend and I haven’t even thought about what I’m going to feed them. I’ve only just started making Christmas presents, and things keep breaking down – the dishwasher, then the oven, and now the back (guest) toilet.  We haven’t had time to make any jams, Christmas cakes or puddings.

Sigh.

I’ve decided there’s no point stressing about it all. Sometimes life affords you a little control, other times you just have to hang on for the ride.

So we’re having a low key Christmas. I’m going to glaze a couple of hams, because they’re easy, and having a leg in the fridge means we’ll never be caught short of a meal…

Judging from the garden, it will be a squash-based festive season. After years of whinging about not being able to grow zucchinis, we are on the verge of a glut.  The tromboncinos look ready to take off as well. I’m sure we’ll be sick to death of them in a month or so, but at the moment I’m so excited by how fast they’re growing that I keep running outside to admire them…

This year we’re going with tried and tested favourites from the kitchen, including…

…Vanilla sugar…I’ve made a huge 3kg batch, ready for packaging up…

…Chocolate chip cookies…

…World Peace cookies…

…and lots of moulded chocolate treats (more to come in a future post!)…

If you’d like some ideas for homemade gifts, please have a look at our Christmas page.

The tree finally went up last weekend, and it’s always a joy to pull our fat mermaids out of their box…

Here’s the third mermaid in the set…

How are things going at your place?

I’m sorry if I haven’t stopped by your blog for a while – it’s been really hectic.  But it’s also been a month filled with family and friends, so I’m certainly not complaining! ♥

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Busy Busy Busy

Posted in Food & Friends, Frugal Living on December 9, 2012| 63 Comments »

What a busy time of year it is!

We’ve had visiting friends and family, appointments, school concerts and end of year parties. We’ve also had a busted dishwasher (now fixed), blown elements in the oven (now fixed) and a broken Emile Henry pot (sob).

I was so excited at having a working oven again that I made a double batch of sourdough. The white dough was turned into cottage loaves (above), and the spelt into boules…

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Chocolate tempering has started in earnest for Christmas – these are our “Ironic Freddoes” – a 62% blend of Callebaut 811 and 70%, made even darker by the addition of cacao nibs…

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We experienced a David Attenborough moment in our backyard last week as we watched this Robber Fly (also known as an Assassin Fly or Bee Killer) feeding on its captured bee…


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I spent a glorious afternoon with the divine Debra Kolkka of Bagni di Lucca. After lunch, we visited the White Rabbit Gallery…

…and ate raspberry and lychee sorbet at the gallery’s Tea House…

We were given a sample tray of different teas to choose from…

I chose the bamboo blend, while Deb had an exquisite Princess Flower tea which bloomed in the pot. Our pots were refilled with boiling water twice as we chatted…

  . . . . .

Back at home, we harvested the first of our purple potatoes…

…our Lebanese zucchinis are really starting to take off…

I sliced them into strips with a potato peeler and stir fried them with an assortment of other vegetables…

cu11

. . . . .

I hope you’re all happy and well, and enjoying
this festive time of year as much as we are!

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Christmas Succulents

Posted in Frugal Living, Garden on November 23, 2012| 54 Comments »

The succulent mania continues! (My ever patient husband is sighing in the background..)

This year for Christmas, I’ve decided to pot some up as gifts. I’m starting early, in the hope that they’ll have grown in a little by the end of December.

I began with a $4 terracotta bowl from Bunnings – this one was 15cm/6″ wide. I also had some mini pebbles, potting mix, shells for decoration, and succulents – a couple were bought very cheaply, and the rest were foraged from friends’ gardens…

I began by putting a little mesh over the hole of the pot, and then covering it with an inch or so of pebbles. Drainage is very important to these plants…

The pot was filled with a premium potting mix (this one had coconut fibre in it), and then the cuttings were artistically planted.  Design isn’t my strong point, but these plants are fairly forgiving. I gave the pot a thorough but gentle watering to clean off the leaves and settle in the roots…

Finally, the pot was “top dressed” with pebbles and a strategically placed shell…

A note on costings – I bought the pebbles and shells from Bunnings – a large bag of shells was $5, and the pebbles were $10 for a five kilo bag.  When finished, these small gift pots will end up costing about $10 each.

Here’s my second attempt…

And here’s a larger one that I’ve planted up for my mum…

In our hot Sydney weather, the pots need morning sun and afternoon shade. I’ve been advised by the folks at Hamilton’s World of Cacti to give the pots a generous watering once or twice a week, ensuring that the soil dries out completely inbetween.

Debra Lee Baldwin, a US based garden designer, recommends treating potted succulents as long lasting floral arrangements.  I’m hoping to make one that I can use as a Christmas centrepiece this year!

PS. If you’d like more ideas, have a look at Alison’s archived post at This Blooming Life.

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Dinners at Home

Posted in Frugal Living, Garden, Recipes on November 11, 2012| 57 Comments »

One of the great joys of a backyard garden is that even when you’re sick and can’t get to the shops, it’s still possible to put a decent meal on the table!

When I was unwell a couple of weeks ago, I made a giant vat of pasta soup that fed us all for two days. It was flavoured with Johnny’s free ham bones and loaded with garden veg – kale, kohlrabi, broccoli rabé, leeks, chard, potatoes and carrots. This household staple (which Big Boy’s girlfriend refers to as “gruel”) is an absolute blessing – it ensures that everyone gets their daily vegetable quota, it keeps well and reheats brilliantly, and if I cook a large enough pot, there are leftovers for dinner the following evening.

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On Thursday night, we made potato pizza, using new season spuds topped with fresh oregano and garlic oil…

…perennial leek and anchovy pizza…

…and served them with meatballs, made by combining free range pork mince, sourdough bread crumbs, Francesca’s egg, cumin, coriander, salt and a generous splash of Pepe Saya buttermilk…

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And on Friday, inspired by Brydie’s post, we wandered into the garden and brought in four new potatoes, some Tuscan kale, a perennial leek and a fat beetroot. The leek and kale were chopped, the potatoes diced and the beetroot grated.  Four fresh eggs were beaten in a small bowl…

We fried the leek, potatoes and kale in a little olive oil until soft, then added the grated beetroot…

The beaten eggs were poured over the top, and the tortilla cooked gently until the base was set. A few cherry toms from our mad tomato tree were scattered over the top.

The pan went under the grill for just a couple of minutes to cook the top. It was absolutely delicious, seasoned simply with salt and pepper, and came entirely from our backyard. We served it with toasted cheese sandwiches…

In the past, dinner preparations often necessitated a last minute dash to the shops for supplies.  I don’t miss those days at all!

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Egg Safety

Posted in Food & Friends, Frugal Living, tagged on October 27, 2012| 45 Comments »

It always pays to get advice from people who are really qualified to give it. As the former President of FREPA (Free Range Egg and Poultry Australia), Meg Parkinson is an extremely reliable source!

Meg left the following comment on my Speedy Mayo post, and I’m sharing it with you, with her permission. If you recall, Annabel Langbein’s mayonnaise recipe came with a recommended keeping time of two weeks in the fridge, which troubled Meg.  When she remarked on it, I mentioned that some chefs suggest refrigerator storage times for unshelled eggs of up to a week.

This was Meg’s reply:

Hi Celia

I understand your confusion.

I have been on the committees which drew up the egg food safety codes in Victoria and then Australia. I assure you that around 24 hours is the microbiologically correct advice for yolk and whole egg – especially if some of that time has been spent at ambient temperatures. Salmonella grows fastest at 32C and above but still grows at other temperatures. When it has started growing and then is put in the fridge, the growth slows down but does not stop. Salmonella can get into egg by bad handling such as dropping shell in the egg after it has been handled – especially if hands have not been well washed. It also can get in by contact with hands, bowls, utensils etc which have not been properly washed.

Egg white has anti-bacterial properties which does mean that it can be stored for a little longer. Household fridges usually run at around 8C not the 4-5C most people think they do.

Cooking kills salmonella quickly, as does hot water and soap. People get sick when raw or undercooked eggs are eaten under trigger conditions. These are, for example, when there is a combination of incorrect temperature, poor handling and made more likely if the eggs have been stored on the bench or stored in second hand cartons which have had broken eggs in them.

I make mayonnaise from our own eggs, laid that day, just before I am going to use it. If it is not eaten in 24 hours, I throw it out.  I know it is easier for me, as we have a lot of eggs, but since mayonnaise is so easy to make this way I think it is better to stick to the 24 hour limit.

Regards

Meg Parkinson

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Some additional advice from Meg on keeping and freezing egg whites:

I would still keep egg whites for around 24 hours but 2 days is probably fine.  In Canada they say 2-4 days, but we say 2 days as our ambient temperature is higher (ie every time the fridge is opened warmer air moves into it).  At home, egg white is easy to freeze, just put in ice block trays.  When de-frosted they should be used immediately.

Meg also recommended the website of the Alberta Egg Board, with the caveat above regarding our warmer climate.  Thanks so much, Meg!

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