shoestring cottage: The Joys of Mail

Sunday, April 1, 2012

The Joys of Mail

Early on in our days at Shoestring Cottage we were at a garage sale where we picked up a “new” letterbox. The man who sold it to us enthusiastically explained that it was a classic New Zealand design and demonstrated the remarkable “Tripsava” function, whereby you can tell whether the postie has delivered mail and thus save yourself an unnecessary journey to the letterbox. As it is about three steps from our front door to the letterbox this is perhaps not essential, but we couldn’t resist the sturdy old fashioned letterbox nevertheless (and of course it was a bargain).

Mr Shoestring has been meaning to renovate that letterbox ever since, but because of his recent “resting” status since his redundancy he has finally had the time to complete its refurbishment. (He only did the preparation actually, the painting was done by his long suffering lifelong friends.in their pane lbeating workshop) What a magnificent job they did. It is possibly a bit too grand for the cottage, but nothing wrong with a few new accessories for an old girl like Shoestring, she certainly deserves some pampering. Though the letterbox has such delusions of grandeur, it is nearly as large as the cottage.

Rear view - no mail - trip saved!

Rear view - mail has been delivered

When you have mail delivered the "flip up" flap goes down - go and collect it

Letterbox seen from the front

This week it was announced that the price of a postage stamp was going to be increased (yet again) in our fair land, the reason being that fewer people were sending mail; to make it cost efficient to handle the post, the price had to go up. I felt this was a pity. I have received all kinds of wonderful unexpected things in the mail over the years and it seems to be a sign of the times that people are keeping in touch with tweets, emails, and even blogs (quelle horreur!) and that we have lost the desire or ability to communicate longer and possibly more coherent and articulate messages.

Just this month my mother in law was saddened to receive news that her penfriend of 62 years, whom she had never met, had passed away. They originally contacted each other through an advertisement in a magazine where people sought penfriends. Her penfriend’s son had discovered the letters in his mother’s personal effects and felt compelled to send a letter to the sender. He was touched to find out that his mum had maintained a relationship with a friend on the other side of the world for so many decades and wanted to let the friend know of his mum’s passing. He said that obviously the correspondence with another woman on the other side of the world had been very important to his mother.

So, having turned all these interconnected things over in my mind I resolved that from now on I will try to send mail to my friends – the contents may not be of great import, but it will be a pleasure to give somebody that surprise of getting something other than a bill or a speeding ticket in the post. (Of course in time I am expecting a veritable flood of return communications.) My girlfriends and I went through a phase a few years ago of sending funny cards to each other and it is about time we picked up where we left off. Watch out ladies, you are next on my list!

Strangely enough I was talking this over with my friend M at a party on Saturday night and she must have been thinking along similar lines, because she coincidentally had a card for me. Things are starting to come together in the campaign for more mail. I am hoping for a little blip in the postal service statistics, or if everything goes really well a steady rise. Here is the card M gave me, very retro New Zealand kitchen, perfect. It even has a set of scales and some mixing bowls, not to mention the kitchen utensils which make Mr Shoestring's heart sing.

At the risk of becoming a ranter I couldn't resist showing you a photo of that thuggish plant I was telling you about last week. Sure enough, as feared this week a zillion (perhaps that is a slight exaggeration) more of these wretched lilies had germinated and some of them had even bored their way through inoffensive and harmless leaves of their neighbours in their quest to cover the entire garden. Can you see where this one has speared its way right through the leaf which stood in its way? Tsk tsk, I can see desperate measures are called for - I just haven't figured out what they are yet.

There was an even more gruesome discovery on Sunday morning. Mr Shoestring gave a little gasp of surprise as he surveyed his domain, then went dashing outside to see what the ghastly yellow blobs were in the front garden. One of them had completely covered some of the plants and we couldn't imagine what they might be. A search on the internet revealed them to be "witches' butter", a sort of fungus which grows when the conditions are just right. Apparently the fungus originates in bark and we hastily scooped up the repulsive fungi and hope no more will appear. According to our sources the fungus is edible but when I told Mr Shoestring this news he said he had nearly been sick just scooping up the horrible stuff and wasn't about to try eating any.

Isn't it repulsive? It looks almost white here but was really a buttery yellow colour

I recently showed you a picture of my brugmansia, of which I was very proud. Imagine how jealous I was when I visited my mum and saw her plant this week - smothered in blooms and the scent was intoxicating too. I can see I am going to have to do better, perhaps if I plant it out in the garden instead of in a pot, and give it lots of shelter and good food I will be able to achieve similar results.

Last week I dried a lot of prunings from lemon verbena. This week it was ready to be mixed in with the lavender I had already dried, hopefully over the Easter break there will be time to make some sachets to fill with the mixture.

A year ago our number two daughter Tessa gave us a nasty fright when she collapsed during a 100 kilometre charity walk she had entered to raise money for Oxfam. We were very relieved this weekend when she completed this year's event, in a team called "Unfinished Business". Her feet were covered in blisters and strapped with tape, but she was very happy and planning a roast dinner with her team mates to celebrate.

We kept up the cycling this weekend and I am very pleased to report that I have no new cuts or abrasions, perhaps in the fullness of time I will master the art of bicycling after all. I did almost crash into a poor man coming the other way because I had been daydreaming and not seen him approach, but a miss is as good as a mile and he wasn't unduly concerned. Happy days, happy days! The blackberries were ripe at last and also there were lots of apples on a roadside tree, so we have harvested some for a pie tonight.

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Welcome to shoestring cottage

Shoestring Cottage –
Where “frugal” is not a rude word

Use It Up, Wear It
Out, Make It Do Or Do Without!

Mr Shoestring and I spend our
working weeks in Auckland, but
our free time is spent at Shoestring Cottage. Because we are as poor as church mice things
have to be done on the sniff of an oily rag, but we try to make a virtue out of
necessity and since buying Shoestring Cottage in December 2010 we have made all
our improvements and renovations as cheaply as possible including installing a
discarded kitchen, using windows and doors given to us by relatives, and using
fixtures and fittings donated by friends or bought from second hand and charity
stores. Our furniture is cast
offs or second hand and we have learnt to relish the challenges this creates.

We are devotees of the art deco period, including the time after the great financial crash of 1929 when
Western world was plunged into the great depression and there was a “make do
and mend” approach to day to day living and things were recycled and repaired of
necessity. We attend Art Deco Weekend
every February in Napier and also the winter weekends in July.

This blog is about our
cottage and our doings there, including gardening, renovating, crafty crafts and trawling op
shops for treasures. Also there are some
recipes and some tales about our “real” lives during art deco events.

Favourite Recipes

Summer Fruits Pudding

1 1/4 cups flour

120 g salted butter, melted

2 eggs

3/4 cup sugar

2 tblspns sugar extra (raw, brown or coffee sugar is nice)

4 cups seasonal fruits, sliced (or four cans various colourful fruits including cherries, apricots, peaches for colour)

Blend the flour and sugar together. Add the melted butter and eggs. Put the mixture into a greased, loose bottomed 24cm round cake tin. (One of those clippy ones which can be undone after cooking.)

Drain the canned fruits or if using, slice the seasonal stone fruits. Arrange the fruit on top of the cake mixture, making a pretty pattern and putting small things such as cherries or berries on last. Press down slightly. Sprinkle with the extra sugar and bake at 180 degrees for one hour. Serve warm with whipped cream for winter time, cool in summer time.

Excellent Lentil Salad

One large tin puy lentils

1 red onion, chopped

1 cup cranberries (or raisins/sultanas/currants)

1/3 cup capers (or 1/2 cup if you love them as much as I do)

Vinaigrette dressing:

1/3 cup olive oil

1/4 cup cider vinegar

1 tbspn maple syrup

1tbsp mustard powder

2 tspn salt

2 tspn pepper

1 tspn ground cumin

1/2 tspn ground cumin

1/2 tspn turmeric

1/2 tspn coriander, ground

1/2 tspn cardamon, ground

1/4 tspn cayenner pepper

1/4 tspn cloves, ground

1/4 tspn grated nutmeg

1/4 tspn cinnamon

To Suit You as Extras:

Baby spinach leaves

Almonds or other nuts

Feta

Fresh coriander, basil or parsley

Bean sprouts

Drain your lentils, rinse and dry. Put them in your serving bowl and add the onion and all the other "large" ingredients. Make sure the onion is very finely chopped so it doesn't overpower the flavour of the other ingredients.

Mix up your vinaigrette, pour it over and stir to combine. Leave for a little while for the flavour to permeate. This salad tastes even better the next day and it is delicious with the addition of feta, coriander and other herbs.

Israeli Couscous Salad

(Israeli is the large ball type couscous, not the small couscous which looks like it has been milled or ground)

1 cup Israeli couscous

1 cup toasted seeds or nuts (sunflower seeds or pumpkin seeds are good)

1 handful of chopped coriander, parsley, or a mix

sea salt, black pepper

2 cups vegetable stock

1.5 cups dried cranberries

1/2 cup finely chopped red onion

Zest of one lemon and its juice

Optional Extras

Crumbled feta, baby greens, chopped cherry tomatoes, basil

Use a heavy bottomed large saucepan and heat 1 tlspn of olive oil. Add your couscous and stir until it is lightly browned. This takes a few minutes.) Stir in the vegetable stock, cover your pan with a close fitting lid, turn the heat down to low and simmer for 15 minutes or until the liquid has been absorbed. Drain in a colander but don't rinse it. Leave it to cool and then stir in the rest of the oil and the rest of the ingredients.

Spinach, Pea and Blue Cheese Soup

1 tblspn butter

1 large white onion, chopped

6 cups chicken stock

packet baby spinach leaves

500g frozen peas

1 wedge blue cheese, crumbled up finely or chopped

salt, black pepper

sour cream and mint for garnish

Melt the butter, add the onion and saute until the onion is soft. Add the stock, spinach and peas, bring to the boil. Simmer for about 10 minutes.

Use a stick blender to puree then return to the pan and reheat. Turn the heat off, then add the cheese. Check seasoning and add pepper if necessary, but it should be quite salty because of the blue cheese. Ladle servings into bowls, add a bit of sour cream to each and put a piece of mint on top of each bowl.

Kumara, Spinach and Coconut Soup

1 tblspn rice ban oil (or another oil with no flavour, not olive)

1 large red onion, chopped,

2 cloves crushed garlic

2 tblspn crushed root ginger

1.5 tspn chilli paste

2 medium orange kumara, peeled and chopped finely

4 cups vegetable stock

1 cup coconut crean

1 bag baby spinach leaves, stalks removed

salt and black pepper

coconut cream to garnish

Heat the oil, add the onions, ginger, chilli and saute for 5 mins. (Stir to prevent sticking and burning.) Add kumara and stock. Cover and bring to the boil, reduce heat and simmer for 25 minutes. Use a stick mixer to puree, then return to the pan and reheat. Add the coconut milk and prepared spinach, but just simmer until the spinach has softened and the soup is warmed through. Add pepper and salt to taste at this stage. Pour into warmed soup bowls and add a little coconut milk to the top of each, swirl.

Summertime Fruit Cake

Whatever is in season is good - especially if you have a glut

1 1/4 cups flour

3/4 cups sugar

120g butter, melted

2 eggs

about 4 cups sliced fruit (I used nectarines peaches apricots and berries for colour)

2tblspns sugar

Mix the flour and sugar together, then add the melted butter and beaten eggs. Pour this mixture into a loose bottomed, greased 23cm cake tin.

Slice up the fruit into reasonably even sized slivers, leave the skin on and then arrange the fruit over the top of the cake mixture. Put berry fruits randomly over the surface last if you are using them. Press down the fruits a bit. Sprinkle with the last bit of sugar and bake at 180 degrees C for an hour, or until the base feels set and the fruits look pretty and glazed slightly. Serve with yoghurt or cream if desired, or just unaccompanied.

Red Onion Soup

200g good red wine (not El Plonko please)

2 bay leaves

2 whole cloves

4 sprigs thyme

1 tblspn butter

2 tblspns olive oil

8 red onions sliced thinly (use food processor if you can)

2 cloves of garlic, chopped

1/2 tspn salt (use smoked salt if you prefer)

1 tblspn tomato puree

2 tblspns good balsamic vinegar

1 litre beef or chicken stock

Pour the wine into a large pot with the bay leaves, cloves and thyme. Boil until it reduces by half, strain and reserve the liquid. Use the same pot, heat the butter and the oil and put in the onions and garlic. Add the salt, stir all up and lower the heat to the lowest setting. Cover the pot, leave to cook very gently for 30 minutes. Check from time to time and if it is sticking, stir and add a little water. (If the seal is good on the lid it shouldn't stick because of the liquid in the onions.)

When the onions are tender add tomato puree, balsamic vinegar, reduced wine and stock. Cook gently for another 30 minutes.

Serve your soup with toasted croutons topped with Parmesan cheese finished under the grill - delish!

The colour is very rich and autumnal, the flavour is deep and slightly sweet because of the addition of the balsamic vinegar.

French Onion Soup

1 tblspn butter

1 tblspn oil (mild flavoured)

4 brown onions, very finely sliced (I use a food processor to save tears)

1/4 teaspoon sugar

1 clove crushed garlic - or more if you prefer

Good dash vermouth or dry white wine (optional)

1 litre beef stock

salt and pepper

8 rounds French stick

100g grated cheese (strongly flavoured)

Melt the butter and oil in a heavy pan. Add the onions, cover and cook very gently until they are soft. Stir from time to time. (This should take about 15 minutes.) Uncover the pan, raise the heat slightly and add the sugar. Cook, stirring frequently, until the onions are a nice even brown (about 15 minutes longer). Stir in the garlic and wine (or if you are not using wine, a dash of the beef stock). Scrape the pan to loosen the caramelized juices. Pour in the rest of the stock, season with salt and lots of pepper. Simmer, covered, for 30 minutes.

Dry the bread slices in the oven until they are slightly brown. Ladle the hot soup into a serving dish or four bowls. Float the bread on top and cover thickly with cheese. Slide under the grill until the cheese is melted and slightly browned. Serve and use all the French phrases you can think of, pretending you are in a little cafe in Paris at 3am. Put on your striped T-shirt and your red beret. Become silly and wait to be told to quieten down.

Popeye's Pie

At the moment we have masses of spinach and silver beet in the garden to use up, and this is a good way of chomping our way through it. Lots of people dislike using filo pastry because they feel it is too "fiddly" and fragile, but in this recipe it is simple to use. If you have your own chickens, spring is a great time to make this recipe and use a few eggs.

8 - 12 spinach leaves (or more if you are determined!)

1 medium onion

250g feta cheese

125g strong cheddar cheese

pepper

5 eggs

6 sheets filo pastry

60g butter

Wash spinach well, pat dry, chop fairly finely. Finely chop onion, add to the spinach. Add crumbled feta, grated cheddar, pepper to taste.

Take a sheet of pastry and fold to fit the greased baking dish you're using. Bush with melted butter. Place another sheet of pastry on top, again brush with melted butter. Repeat with a third sheet of pastry.

Spread the spinach and cheese mixture on top of the pastry. Beat egg until frothy and pour it over the spinach. Cover with remaining sheets of pastry, brushing melted butter between each layer and on top of the final sheet. Cut into squares. Bake in a moderate oven for 45 minutes or until golden brown. Serve hot, with a green or Greek salad to accompany.

Rendang (Indonesian dry beef curry)

A hearty winter time curry

Serves 6

1.5kg chuck steak (or blade steak)

2 onions, roughly chopped

2 cloves garlic, crushed

400ml coconut milk

2 teaspoons ground coriander seeds

1/2 teaspoon ground fennel seeds

2 teaspoons ground cumin seeds

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

4 teaspoons dried chilli flakes

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 stem lemon grass, crushed

2 teaspoons brown sugar

Trim meat of fat, cut into 3cm cubes.

Place onion and garlic in food processor, process until smooth.

Place coconut milk in a large saucepan. Bring to the boil and reduce the heat to medium. Cook 15 minutes or until the milk is reduced to half and oil has separated out. Do not let the milk brown.

Add coriander, fennel, cumin and cloves. Stir for minute. Add meat, cook for 2 minutes or until it changes colour. Add onion mixture, chilli, lemon juice, lemon grass and sugar. Cover and cook over a medium heat for 2 hours or until liquid reduced and mixture has thickened. Stir often to prevent sticking.

Uncover and continue cooking until the oil from the coconut milk begins to emerge again. Let the curry develop flavour and colour. Make sure it does not stick. When it is brown and dry it is ready.

Slice some extra onions and fry until crispy, along with some almonds. Sprinkle these on top to serve.

Broccoli Stir Fry

Humble ingredients but a delicious result.

Serves 3 - 4

1 medium brown onion, peeled and cut into thin strips

1 1/2 cups mung bean sprouts

2 tblspns peanut oil

1/2 tspn salt

1/3 cup hot water

1 desertspoon soy sauce

1/2 tsp sugar

1/2 tspn cornflour

1tblspn cold water

Wash broccoli and cut stalks into slanting slices. Divide the head into florets. Get all ingredients ready and to hand before starting cooking. Mix cornflour with cold water.

Heat a wok, add the oil and then toss in onion and stirfry for a minute. Add broccoli and salt, continue to stir fry for about three minutes. Add 1/4 cup of hot water with soy sauce and sugar, cover and steam veges for a couple of minutes. Stir and add 2 more tablespoons of water if it looks a bit dry. Cover and steam a minute longer until broccoli is crisp but tender.

Throw in the sprouts, stir, reduce heat and make a hollow in the middle of the veges. Toss in the cornflour mixture, stir it in the base of the hollow then mix it through the vegetables. Serve straight away.

Pork With Broccoli And Almonds

Serves 4

250g thinly sliced pork schnitzel

1tblspn soy sauce

3 medium onions, peeled

300g broccoli

2tblspn soy sauce

1tblspn dry sherry

1tblspn brown sugar

peanut oil for frying

1tspn cornflour

salt

Cut pork into thin strips and mix with 1tblspn soy sauce.

Cut onions into crescent slices.

Wash and cut broccoli heads into florets, stalks into match sticks. Drop broccoli into pot of boiling water and cook 2 minutes, drain, cool in cold water, drain again.

Mix 2 tblspns soy sauce with sherry, cornflour and sugar.

Heat wok, add oil, stir fry onions until light golden brown Do not let them darken and become crunchy. Remove onions.

Fry pork in batches, cooking until just done. Remove from wok. Return onions to the wok, add broccoli and pinch of salt. Stir fry until broccoli is to your taste, stir in pork, add sherry/cornflour/sugar mixture. Cook a few minutes longer, stirring. Serve with hot boiled rice.

Fran's Fabulous Apple Cake

Fran has been a dear friend for more years than I can remember - but it must be 30 at least. This apple cake recipe she shared with me decades ago has always been a trusty standby and has never failed me yet. Thanks so much Fran!

2 cooking apples

1 cup sugar

1 1/2 cups flour

1 tspn baking soda

1/2 tspn salt

1 tspn cinnamon

1/2 tspn nutmeg

1/2 tspn allspice

125g butter

1 egg

1/2 cup raisins

1/2 cup walnuts

icing sugar

Peel, core and dice the apples. Measure to get 1 1/2 cups. Turn into a bowl and sprinkle with the sugar.

Sift flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice.

Melt the butter and beat the egg.

Chop the walnuts.

Blend the melted butter and beaten egg into the apple and sugar.

Add the dry ingredients, stirring until just mixed. Add the raisins and walnuts. Stir until just mixed.

Turn into a well buttered tin. (A ring tin is good.)

Bake at 180 degrees C for 50 - 60 minutes.

Allow to cool for 10 minutes before taking from the tin.

Cool completely.

Sprinkle with icing sugar before serving.

If preferred this cake can be served warm as a pudding with yoghurt or cream.

Artichoke Dip

This dip is probably the most fattening and calorie laden food known to humankind - but delicious nevertheless. Thanks very much to Marie for sharing it with our craft group last December.

1 tin artichoke hearts
1 cup green olives
4 cloves garlic
3/4 cup mayonnaise (use best quality)
3/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

Chop artichokes and garlic then mix all ingredients together

Bake at 180 degrees C for 25 minutes

Serve hot with ciabatta or French baguette

Fresh Berry Icecream
This icecream can be whizzed up in moments and is deliciously cooling in summer time.

1 cup frozen berries
1/4 cup caster sugar
1/2 cup of cream
(Vary quantities according to taste)

Blend the berries in the food processor until the consistency of coarse sugar. While blending pour in cream and add caster sugar. This will only take seconds.

Serve with a little grated chocolate on top if desired, or with a few fresh berries on the side. Yoghurt can be substituted as a healthier option to cream if desired.

Dead Easy Carrot Salad
In case you thought we live on icecream and artichoke dip at Shoestring Cottage, here is a very delicious, simple and useful carrot salad.

Coarsely grate a few carrots and put in a pretty serving dish. Take a handful of black mustard seeds and put them in a small pot with a lid, heat with the lid on while rotating the pot on the heat to prevent burning. When the seeds have finished "popping" pour them into the grated carrot and stir through. Put some freshly grated black pepper, salt and plenty of balsamic vinegar on the salad and stir that through also. Looks pretty with sprinkles of freshly chopped parsley on top as a garnish too.

Kumara Salad

For those of you who don't live in New Zealand, kumara is a type of sweet potato much enjoyed here. I think most families have their own favourite recipes which are always requested at family get togethers and this is one of ours. Our number two daughter has asked me to put it on the blog for easy reference.

1kg kumara, peeled

1 orange, segmented

2 rashers bacon, diced and cooked until crisp

1 red pepper, finely diced

1 small onion, finely diced

2 stalks celery, finely diced

1/4 cup chopped parsley

1 cup mayonnaise, preferably homemade

1tsp curry powder (or more to taste)

Cook kumara until tender; boil, steam or microwave Drain i thoroughly. Dice the cooked kumara, and combine with all other ingredients apart from the parsley, mayonnaise and curry. Mix these 3 ingredients together and pour them over the salad. Lightly mix all to incorporate.

Serves 8 - 10

If you like, sprinkle with toasted sunflower seeds or pumpkin seeds.

Sinfully Rich Chocolate Mousse
200g plain good quality dark chocolate

4 large egg yolks

4 tblspn strong black coffee

2 tblspn dark rum, cointreau, orange essence or what you prefer to flavour your mousse

4 large egg whites

pinch salt

3 tblspn castor sugar

250ml cream

small amount extra chocolate to decorate

Break the chocolate up into squares and put into a large bowl over a pot of simmering water.

In another bowl whisk the egg yolks, coffee and rum together. Once the chocolate has melted stir it until it is smooth, and quickly whisk in the beaten egg yolk mixture until thick and blended together.

In a clean bowl whisk whites and salt until stiff. Whisk in sugar. Stir a few tablespoons of the beaten whites into the chocolate mixture, then carefully fold in the remainder. Use a large metal spoon; don't beat or stir or air will be lost.

Whip the cream until thick and fold it in.

Turn the mousse into 8 individual serving dishes. (Pretty unmatched old crystal glasses are pretty but then there may be a disagreement as to who has the largest serving.)

Chill for several hours before serving.

When serving, sprinkle a little shaved chocolate over each one.

Cheese, Mushroom and Ham Turnovers

250ml milk

1tbsp each butter and flour, mixed to a paste - and a little extra flour for dusting

140g mushrooms, cut into quarters

1tbspn olive oil

140g ham, sliced small

85g cheese (leftovers, use what you have), cut into small pieces

1tbspn mixed chopped herbs - sage, parsley, chives, tarragon

500g puff pastry

1 beaten egg

1. Make a white sauce as the base for the turnover filling. Bring the milk to simmering point, add the butter and flour paste. Whisk the past into the milk and allow it to boil for 4 minutes, whisking all the time to stop "catching". Now you will have a thick white sauce. Cool it while you fry the mushrooms in the oil until golden, then leave them to cool down.

2. Put the ham, cheese and mushrooms into a bowl. Gradually add the white sauce until everything is well coated. Add the herbs.

3. Roll the pastry onto a floured surface until it is nice and thin. Cut out four rounds, using a saucer to shape the pastry. Brush the edges of each circle with the beaten egg. Spoon the mixture onto one side of each circle, then fold over and seal the edges. (If you like, you can now freeze the turnovers for a month if you need to.) Brush the turnover with the egg, chill for 30 minutes.

4. Heat your oven to 180C. Put the turnovers on your baking tray and cook for 35 minutes or until puffed and golden. Leave them to cool a little, but eat warm.

Onion and Cheese Tart

Pastry

250g plain flour - and a little bit more for rolling

125g butter cut into cubes

1/2 tspn salt

Filling

2 onions, sliced thinly into circles

1 tblspn oil

2 eggs

280ml cream

250g cheese leftovers - especially strong cheeses such as cheddar and blues

1. Put butter, salt and flour into food processor - pulse till the mixture is fine crumbs. Put in 4 tbspn cold water, pulse until you have a dough. Turn out onto a floured bench, shape into ball. Wrap and chill for 20 minutes. Heat oven to 200C while pastry is chilling.

2. Roll the pastry out on a floured surface till large enough to line a 23cm loose bottomed flan tin. Line it with the pastry, leaving excess pastry overhanging. Line with baking paper and bake blind. Bake for 15 minutes on a baking sheet, take out the paper and the weight you use to bake blind. Bake for 10 minutes longer until the pastry is golden.

3. While the pastry is cooking, fry the onions in the oil for 10 minutes until golden brown. Beat the eggs and the cream together, add salt and pepper to taste. Crumble up the hard eheeses and chop the creamy cheeses into small bits. Put the cheese in the pastry case, then add onions. Pour in the egg mixture. Turn the oven down to 160C and bake 40 minutes or until the tart is set and lightly golden.

Pea and Haloumi Fritters

250g frozen peas

125g ml milk

2 free range eggs

30g cornflour

100g plain flour

1/2 tspn baking powder

2500g haloumi cheese, chopped into cubes

1tbspn mint - and extra to serve

Oil for frying

1. Boil the peas for 2 minutes and drain. Puree them in a food processor or use a stick mixer, until smooth.

2. Whisk the milk, eggs, flours, baking powder and pureed peas in a bowl. Fold in the remaining peas, mint, haloumi cheese, salt and pepper.

3. Heat the oil in a large frying pan, add tablespoons of the mixture to the pan in batches. Press each fritter to flatten a little. Fry for 3 minutes or until browned on each side. Drain on paper towels and serve with mint, some lemon wedges and roasted tomatoes.

Post Overindulgence Soup

1 litre container Campbell's vegetable stock

2 carrots

4 spring onions

6 mushrooms

1C frozen peas and corn

2cm fresh ginger

1 sachet of miso concentrate

2 tblspns soy sauce

rice wine vinegar

chilli paste to taste

handful fresh coriander

Tip the vegetable stock into a large pot and bring to the boil. Meanwhile, chop the carrots into matchsticks. Toss in the carrots, peas and corn and simmer a couple of minutes. Add the mushrooms and spring onion. Coarsely grate the ginger and add that, along with the sachet of miso concentrate, soy sauce and rice wine vinegar. Put in some chilli to taste if you like your soup hot and spicy. Boil for 5 minutes, serve up in a pretty bowl and float the chopped coriander leaves on the top.

Miso can be found in the "International" section of supermarkets and is inexpensive.

Pan Bagna

1 French stick

1/2 cup olive oil for vinaigrette

2tbspn wine vinegar

2 cloves crushed garlic

2 large tomatoes

1/2 red onion

1 red pepper

20 black olives, stoned

5 anchovies

Slice the French stick in half lengthwise, but do not cut right through. It will be "hinged". Shake the oil, vinegar and garlic together and drizzle over the inside of the bread. slice the tomatoes, olives and red pepper and finely chop the olives and anchovies. Spread all these over one half of the bread. Close the bread, wrap in clingfilm and weigh down with a heavy pot or similar heavy object for a couple of hours.

Delicious Feijoa Sorbet
2C feijoa flesh

2tbspn lemon juice

3/4 C sugar

2 egg whites

1C cream

Mash up the sugar with the feijoas and lemon juice. Beat the egg whites until they are stiff. Whip the cream until it is thick. Fold the beaten whites into the mashed up feijoa and fold in cream.

Freeze until it is firm.

Half an hour before serving time, take it out of the freezer so that it can soften. Cut it into wedge shapes.

Serves 4

Blackberry Liqueur
3C 80 proof vodka

3C white sugar

3C ripe blackberries

1C water

Shake the water, vodka and sugar together to dissolve the sugar.

Carefully mix together with the blackberries so that the blackberries aren't damaged.

Leave to infuse for 12 days, or until the berries lose most of their colour.

Pour the mixture through a fine strainer (a sieve lined with muslin is good), and throw the berries away.

Pour into pretty bottles, label and add gift tags.

Quince Vodka
Wash 1kg of quinces to remove any fluff on the skin, then grate the skin and flesh. Throw away any pips you find. Alternating layers of grated quince with 150g golden caster sugar, fill a large jar. If you like you can add a cinnamon stick or split vanilla pod then top up with about 1.5 litres of vodka. Shake the jar every day for a week to dissolve the sugar. After that, shake once a week for about eight weeks. Strain the liquid through a fine sieve or a coarse sieve lined with muslin, funnel into bottles and seal and label them.

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Sunday, April 1, 2012

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