My latest fad is cream cheese and quince jelly on toasted gluten free bread. The cream cheese and the quince jelly are perfect foils, subtley enhancing each other. I confess I’m a little addicted. Have you ever got up close and personal with a quince. The aroma of the ripe fruit is divine, evoking tropical […]
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Bottling Beetroot
I gathered up the last scraggy beetroots from my summer garden and bottled them today. I preserved the main crop about a month ago. These were the ones that weren’t big enough then. They still haven’t grown much but needed to come out of the ground. I buy beetroot from the vege shop all year […]
Vege Lasagne
Sounds dull doesn’t it! Vege lasagne, It won’t win awards for haute cuisine, but it does win awards in my book. What I’m looking for in a meal is something that tastes good, looks good, is nutritious, and is packed with fresh vegetables. This dish changes seasonally, is freezer friendly, child friendly, nutritious and delicious. […]
Rongoa Maori weekend workshop
Where to start! What a weekend. I attended the Rongoaa Maori, traditional Maori medicine workshop with Rob McGowan (Pa Ropata) and the lovely Donna Kerridge in Te Puke. Nestled in the ngahere, lush coastal forest, we were taken on a journey. Rob shared his knowledge of the land, the plants, the birds and our own […]
COMFREY Symphytum officinale
Comfrey was first brought to my attention after the birth of my son more than thirty years ago. My domiciliary midwife, the wonderful Joan Donnelly was a staunch advocate of eating weeds and comfrey was one of her favourites. She was a picture of health and as well as her weed salads she used to […]
Savoury zucchini slice
At this time of the year anyone who has a couple of zucchini plants in their garden and a few chooks is overrun with you guessed it….. zucchinis and eggs. This savoury slice recipe takes care of both of those little problems and what’s more you can freeze them in convenient meal-for-one sized pieces. I […]
Pickled Gherkins
Every couple of years I make sure to grow between eight to twelve plants of gherkin cucumbers and pickle enough gherkins for about three years worth of eating. They are one of the easiest vegetable plants to grow and they produce prolifically. It takes some commitment to be around during January and early February. This […]
CLEAVERS Gallium aparine
Today as I went wandering through the garden looking for cleavers to photograph I was captivated by the variety and abundance of weeds growing everywhere. Healers all, I felt such a gladness come over me. Every square metre of ground let run wild, had a fabulous collection of medicinal plants. Under the orchard where we […]
Christmas cake
Making my christmas cake is something I look forward to each November. For me it is the first marker of the festive season. Every year I use a different recipe. Years ago I would diligently follow recipes searching for the perfect one. These days I’m inspired by one of my daughters who makes amazing cakes […]
Figs in Port
Yes it’s true, Christmas is just around the corner. When my children were small we used to make almost all the pressies for friends and family. It was a way of getting the children involved in the spirit of Christmas and not so much into the stress around shopping and finding the ‘right’ present especially […]
YARROW Achillea Millefolium
Yarrow is a plant many of us welcome into our gardens without really knowing the depth and breadth of her true personality. She’s been around for centuries, used on battlefields of old to staunch many a bleeding wound from sword or axe. She has an affinity with blood, strengthening vessels and tightening tissues as well […]
STINGING NETTLE Urtica dioica
Dear stinging nettle, you are a plant much maligned by many, myself included. Yes I am intending to change my ways. Even though, uninvited, you have made yourself quite comfortable all through my orchard, and appear to take some pleasure in traumatising many an unsuspecting child by brushing against their legs and delivering your surprise […]