The First Peach

I grew peaches! In Christchurch! And they taste amazing!

 So very proud of myself right now. Oh, and my wee tree. Didn't she do well! 

 I can't wait for the other eight to be ready! Not sure what the praying manti are going to do once we have eaten them all though, they have been having regular meetings on the peaches almost everyday...

Apricot Honey AKA Summer in a Jar!

It is the middle of summer in New Zealand at the moment (although the weather may beg to differ), which means access to an abundance of incredible, fresh, local produce. While I am doing my bit to eat my fill of this selection, some certainly needs to be preserved for the long winter months. I picked up this recipe for Apricot Honey, when I visited a friends' family apricot orchard. We picked until our hearts and tummies were content, and I ended up with a supply of delicious fruit, as well as this amazing recipe. I only wish I could remember the name of the orchard so I could credit them with it!

Apricot Honey
12-15 fresh apricots, stones removed
3 cups dried apricots, soaked overnight in water
2 cups sugar
Juice of 2 lemons
100 grams butter
3 eggs, beaten

Place soaked, dried and fresh apricots in a pot and cover with water. Boil until tender and puree until smooth. Combine puree with sugar, lemon juice and butter and stir until the sugar dissolves. Add the beaten eggs and cook, stirring continuously until the mixture thickens. Bottle in sterilised jars and seal. Keep refrigerated.
Makes about 6 jars.

This mixture is utterly divine and tastes like summer in a jar. I will have to be sure not to eat it all now, so I will have some for winter! This honey is delicious on toast with butter, dolloped on yoghurt, in smoothies, and something I haven't tried yet but am sure would be amazing - folded into homemade ice cream!

Apricot honey on vanilla-poached rhubarb with yoghurt and cream!

From My Kitchen - Sunday 23rd January

Having started my first 'grown-up' job in the past few weeks, I am having to make a lot of adjustments. Six years of Uni has not prepared me for how tired I currently feel at the end of the day (not helped by a 1 hour commute each way), and getting home later in the evenings means I need to be even more organised than I usually am, to get dinner on the table at a reasonable time!

Also, as my job also includes a lot of traveling, keep an eye out for a future post on eating well on-the-road!

Baking
- loaf bread
- wholemeal rolls for the freezer
(Still lots in the freezer and I am eating lots of fresh fruit for snacks instead at the moment!)

Dinner
Sunday - mushroom and thyme risotto with sauteed green beans
Monday - wild venison steaks, potato salad and BBQed, lemon-marinated zucchini
Tuesday - free-range pork chops, pumpkin and kale salad and corn-on-the-cob
Wednesday - caramelised onion, bacon and mushroom tart with garden salad
Thursday - roast pumpkin and tomato lasagna with garden salad

To Do
- marinate zucchini
- make lasagna filling
- make tart filling

Vintage Love

I can't get enough of vintage, it is my greatest love...

Source

To fulfill my vintage needs I have been doing a bit of online shopping lately, on two gorgeous, vintage clothing sites in particuar. I highly recommend you check them both out! Two new dresses arrived today, and it was major excitement at the letterbox. I can't wait for the weather to perk up so I can wear them!!

Source

Here are the links, you simply MUST look at them!


House of Maryanne Vintage

Vintage Marketplace

Source

Any other good vintage sites I should know about? Please do tell!

'Modified' Caeser Salad

No recipe this time, just another meal show-off, on account of it being so delicious!

'Modified' Caeser salad with: chicken, free-range bacon, croutons, cos lettuce, green beans, red onion, red capsicum, capers and homemade mayonnaise, topped with an organic, free-range poached egg. Very yum indeed.

Currently brewing a large pot of this amazing tomato sauce, and about to watch 'Exit Through the Giftshop'. Much excitement!

Zucchini and Mint Fritters

Anyone who grows zucchini/courgettes know that invariable, you end up with an excess. And on occassion, one gets away on you and all of a sudden you have a marrow! As I have hit this point in the growing season, I have been trying to come up with creative ways to use up the excess. Tonight for dinner, it was quick and easy zucchini and mint fritters, served with garden salad, sauerkraut and homemade tomato relish. Perfect for a 33 degree evening!


Zucchini and Mint Fritters
4-5 zucchinis or 2 medium sized marrows (about 3 cups when grated)
3 Tbsp chopped mint
3/4 cup flour
2 eggs
1/2 cup grated cheese
Salt and pepper to taste

Grate the zucchini and squeeze the excess liquid from it. Add to a bowl with all the remaining ingredients and mix until combined. Fry large spoonfuls of batter in a few tablespoons of olive oil, until golden brown on each side. Keep fritters warm until all mixture has been cooked. Serve warm or cold with salad and relish.

 

 

 

 

Handmade Pasta and To-Die-For Tomato Sauce

If you have never tried making pasta at home, you are seriously missing out on some fun times and extraordinarily delicious food. I am lucky enough to have a pasta maker, but if you don't it would still be possible, with a bit more work. Surely that would make it taste even better though?!

Most pasta recipes are very similar. Here is the one I use, which came from my little brother, who happens to be a chef (a very handy profession to have in the family!).

Pasta Dough 
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 cups white flour (I've had success with half white, half wholemeal too)
1 Tbsp water
A pinch of salt

Combine the eggs, oil and water. Add the flour and salt, mix until combined and then knead to a smooth, elastic dough. Add more water if the dough is too dry. Wrap in Gladwrap and rest in the fridge for at least an hour, or up to a day. I find the dough best (easier to use) after 6 or so hours in the fridge.

Roll the dough into flat sheets; I use number six on the pasta maker, but this is personal preference. Then, cut free hand or use the pasta machine to cut into spaghetti or fettuccine. To cook, bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil, with a splash of olive oil and a pinch of salt added. Add pasta (do in batches if you have a lot) and cook for only a few minutes - keep watch, it's very quick, and you don't want to overcook it! Pour cooked pasta into a colander to strain the hot water off quickly, and it's ready to go! If you are making your own pasta sauce, chef's always save a bit of the pasta water to add to the pasta sauce just before serving; about two tablespoons is plenty. The starch in the water helps to thicken the sauce. This recipe makes enough for about four people, but it all depends in how hungry you are. Sometimes Paddy and I can eat an entire batch between us!

Rolling dough into flat pieces. Paddy is an excellent hand model.

Now, into fettuccine...

Pasta on the clothes rack, ready to use.

Now, for the to-die-for tomato sauce. This a modification to a recipe that has been floating around in the blog world for a while. I decided to give it a try with fresh tomatoes (the original uses tinned), and it was utterly amazing.

To-Die-For Tomato Sauce
1 kg fresh, in-season tomatoes
50 grams butter
1/2 an onion, peeled but not chopped
Salt

First, peel the tomatoes. Then, cut out the hard core and dice them roughly. Place tomatoes and onion into a pot with a sprinkle of salt, to help draw out the moisture. Boil for 10 minutes. Then, add the butter and boil gently for a further 30 mins, with the lid off, so the sauce thickens and reduces. Discard the onion. Add a tablespoon of pasta water at the end, if you saved it, and stir to combine. Toss over warm pasta and devour.  It's that easy! Serves two hungry people.

This was so incredible delicious, I am going to make a large batch to freeze, for a taste of Summer during those dark Winter months that are approaching!

Served with fresh basil and a homemade wholegrain roll. Oh, and a few glasses of red wine...