Waste Not Want Not

It's peak harvesting time and I have been thinking about ways to save all those summer goodies to enjoy through to next years summer. I purposefully grew a lot of chilies this year. I love chilies in my stews in winter, in anything for that matter. My mum who is an expert in what veges keep in the freezer highly recommends chopping up fresh chilies and freezing them. Simply add to your dish, no need to defrost and voila you have "fresh" chili in your chicken tomato (let me get to tomatoes next) stew. I absolutely love a chili sauce, nice and hot just like you get in a good Chinese restaurant. I have yet to make my own so if you have a good recipe please throw it my way. 

Tomatoes are the cliché summer vege, well fruit if you are being technical. Last year I gathered as many tomatoes as I could and froze them in 400g lots. If a recipe called for a tin of tomatoes I would go to my freezer. Problem is they were gone in a flash. What I thought would last me well into winter was gone in a month. If I start now I might just save enough to while away the cold months. The last thing I want to do is buy tinned tomatoes, having read some seriously scary articles on BPA in tinned food I am stearing clear. You can also sun dry your tomatoes, let the uv rays do all the work, make chutneys, sauces, paste, passata and relish, oh the many uses for tomatoes. 

One more freezer tip from my Mum. She claims it is a French home cookers tip. Any discarded vegetables left over from your dinner preparations, don't throw them out, freeze them! Why you ask, as I did too. If you keep a container or freezer bag handy throw your carrot tops,  bits of onion or spring onion, celery leaves, any vegetable that would suit going into a stock, then when your container is full you have your ingredients for whatever stock you fancy. Pea pods, ends of garlic, kohl rabi skins, it's all good. Keep in mind beetroot will give you a purpley stock, as will the heirloom coloured carrots. Waste not want not!

I have been using a Stephanie Alexanders recipe for tomato sauce for years now. It is the tastiest I have ever come across. I portion it and freeze it. It is good on just about anything savoury I can think of. Perfect for a pasta sauce, great on veges, on your breakfast, as a base for other dishes, the options are endless. Here goes:

FRESH TOMATO SAUCE

500g ripe tomaotes, cored, seeded and roughly  sliced

1 onion, sliced

2 cloves garlic, sliced

1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil

salt

freshly ground black pepper

Tumble tomato, onion and garlic with oil and put them in to a saucepan (or spread in a baking dish into which mixture will fit without too much extra space). Cook over a moderate heat for about 15 minutes (or bake at 180c, tightly covered with foil, for at least one hour until tomato has collapsed, skins are wrinkled and brown and juices are flowing). When tomato and onion are soft, press everything through the coarsest disc in a food mill. Season to taste. 
For a smoother sauce, pass mixture through food mill's medium disc. For a thicker sauce, reduce sauce in a pan over a simmer mat, stirring frequently. For a thinner sauce, add 1/2 cup red wine (or sherry), water or meat stock. I don't have a food mill so I just use my food processor.

Now here is where you can experiment. Add your fav herbs and spices. Fresh basil, oregano, rosemary and bay leaves work a treat. I just use what I have on hand. Make sure you remove the bay leaf before passing through the mill. A whole red chili will make your sauce a little spicy, also remember to remove that before you mill your sauce.

I always use aromatics which make the sauce so much yummier. A small amount of bacon, a carrot, some celery and/or red or white wine from the beginning of the cooking time. The oven baked method is best if you use aromatics.

And one more tomato tip, this one is from Sue at Penninsula Fresh. If you freeze your tomatoes before making a chutney or sauce then you do not have to go through the process of skinning them. The freezing process breaks down the skin.

Have a great week,

Abbie x

Harvest N Graze Festival

To say the least our house has been abuzz these last few weeks getting prepared for the inaugural Harvest N Graze Festival this Sunday 5th February. My husband Warren James and his friend Darren Danielson (Fur Group) are waiting with anticipation, and a little teeth nattering, for the day to finally arrive. It has been a long time dream of Warren's and the boys have gone over every detail with a fine toothcomb, visitors will be impressed! There is an extraudinary lineup on the stage, I can hear us all singing along to Green Limozine by Michael Spiby and Throw Your Arms Around Me as Mark Seymour hits the stage at 4pm. 

The food is no different. Be prepared to over indulge, that's all I can say. I have no idea how I am going to decide what I want to eat, a little of everything maybe. Deep fried mushrooms have been on my mind for some time and I know I will be getting the super fresh calamari rings. If you are after something healthier you can find organic vegetable sticks sold by the grower which are great with a dip and an excellent option for your kids. 

Speaking of kids, where do I begin! On the Graze Stage you can find great kids acts, my daughter will vouch for that, and plenty of other activities to keep them happy. Brandy the Cow will be offering her udder to those who want to give it a squeeze, Gemma the stilt walking giraffe will be roaming around all day, a petting zoo will get the kids up close and personal with the farm animals and a face painter will be set up too.

Tickets are $39/adult and $5/kids, plus a family pass is an option as well. I know it might seem a little exy to some but when you consider a ticket to see Mark Seymour at your local pub would cost you between $30 and $50 you are really getting a lot of bang for your buck. Check out their websit for more info.

Bon appetite,

Abbie x

Corn, it's so Australian!

I was so excited at the last Caulfield Farmers Market when I came across Jonella Farms fresh baby corn. I bought a few from their plentiful basket and they were packed in my shopping bag ready for home. They didn't make it home as my three year old daughter ate all three at the market. I went back for more and every day she takes one out of the fridge, peels it herself and hoes in. They are a lot sweeter and crunchier than the variety you purchase pre packaged, I definitely recommend giving them a go.

I hope you are all managing to stay cool in the heat this week. It looks like our late summer season has finally decided to arrive. Australia Day is going to be a hot one, I hope you are all able to spend the time celebrating our great country with some farmers market lamb (and corn of course!) on the barbie.

And a little afterthought on my last blog. I forgot to mention rhubarb in my list of what's in season. How could I, this vegetable, yes you read correctly it is a vegetable, is available all year round. I love it stewed on top of some custard or if it's too hot for custard some yummy vanilla bean ice cream. It freezes really well too if you have some left over.

Have a great week,

Abbie x

New Year, New Resolution

My new years resolution, start a blog. Here I am ticking it off my list already. Welcome to my first blog of the year, my first blog ever actually and I hope you enjoy it. Before I venture any further I do not claim to be an expert in what I write about. I do know my fair share about all things food and farmers markets as I have been running farmers markets since 2006. I am incredibly passionate about it and am always eager to learn more. Feedback is always welcome.

Savoury Muffins with Miris Mustard

Makes 12

Ingredients

• 2 cups self raising flour
• 80g butter, melted
• 1 egg
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1 tblspn Miris Gourmet Mustard
• ½ cup each of grated cheese, chopped ham, diced spring onions & chopped sundried tomatoes (you can use anything that’s savory).

Method

Combine all wet ingredients first and gently mix into flour – DO NOT OVERMIX. Mix through the grated cheese, ham, spring onions & tomatoes. Bake in 200C Oven for about 20 minutes or until golden brown.

Great for a spring picnic or a gourmet basket at Spring Carnival!

Miris Products, Caulfield Farmers Market

Roasted tomato and goats cheese salad

Ingredients

• cherry tomatoes
• olive oil
• Yumm Balsamic Drizzle
• rocket
• goats cheese

Method

Place some cherry tomatoes on a roasting pan, drizzle with olive oil and roast at 180C for 15 minutes. Drizzle on some Yumm Balsamic Drizzle and roast for another 5 minutes..

Balsamic Drizzle is also delicious drizzled on winter roast veggies, on pizza’s (pumpkin, rocket & feta is a favourite), lamb backstraps or sautéed mushrooms served on crusty bread.

Yumm Dressings, Caulfield Farmers Market

Roast Shoulder of Pork with Fennel and Orange

Ingredients

• 1.2kg Fernleigh Free-Range pork shoulder
• 2 tablespoons of crushed fennel seeds ( use a mortar and pestle )
• sea salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• grated zest of an orange
• olive oil
• 2 tablespoons of freshly chopped rosemary

Method

Prepare the pork the night before. Remove the skin score and set aside. Combine herbs, orange zest, olive oil and seasoning and rub all over meat . Refrigerate.

Preheat oven to 240c or 220c for fanforced. Place prepared pork in a roasting pan with skin on top . Rub lots of sea salt into the skin, this will help with the crackling. Place chopped vegetables such as onion, carrots, potatoes and fennel around the pork and drizzle olive oil over the whole dish. Season with sea salt and lightly toss vegetables to coat. Place in oven. Cook for half an hour then turn the oven down to 180c or 160 for fanforced. Cook for another hour approximately.

General guide with pork is half an hour for every 500g of pork.When a skewer is inserted juices should run clear. If not return to the oven for another 15 minutes or so. Don’t forget to leave your meat to rest after cooking. Happy Eating !!

Fernleigh Farms, Ballarat Lakeside Farmers Market