a collection of recent moments

 enjoying a spring garden including these flowering geraniums

 our house supervisor of 15 years, her name is Bobbin

 enjoying the new kitchen, adapted from a recipe first seen on Masterchef

salmon wrapped in banana leaf steamed then framed with leek and potato soup

adorned with salmon skin crackle, lightly fried greens and a shaving of Parmesan

engaging with garden visitors

 re-purposed gutters nailed to the side of the shed overflow with juicy strawberries

 getting ready for the upcoming BVAC Pop Up Shop

Saturday 22nd & Sunday 23rd November 2014

in the Auditorium at Mt Coot-tha Botanical Gardens

and baking a few of our favorites

-these are a few of our recent moments-

sinking our toes into Aquaponics

We both enjoy our garden, it's an extension of the studio. A creative space to spend time sketching, reading or photographing each season brings new inspirations and surprises. Our latest garden venture is with Aquaponics which is a combination of aquaculture and horticulture. Fish swim happily in the bottom tank their waste is pumped up to the grow bed that sits on top of the tank, the grow medium and the plants process the by-products resulting in fresh water going back to the fish and lots of fresh herbs, Asian & salad greens and vegetables for us and our hens.

Clever husband with the help of Vic (Chris's hubby) & Dad set the tanks up earlier this year. They adapted two of those IBC tanks to become two systems both of which have Jade Perch in the bottom. Husband has since set-up a third system which has red-claw (a type of crayfish) in it. We have now had the systems for three seasons, we've both been very happy not only with the taste and amount of produce the system produces but also with how well the up keep fits around our day job hours. It takes 12-18months for the Jade Perch to reach plate size so it's a few months away before we'll farm those in the meantime we'll keep enjoying the other goodies. Here's couple of resources that we have found helpful for information / supplies: http://ibcofaquaponics.com/ & http://aquagardening.com.au/

welcome to a new month

enjoy:)

Oh Yeah! Spring has Sprung

Awaken it's springtime, yippee!! Go forth and enjoy the new season:)

inspired by colorful beds

 Calendula officinalis

 also know as Pot Marigold

 uses include medicinal, cosmetic & culinary

easy to grow, propagate from seed sown in autumn or spring

 once know as "poor mans saffron" as the petals dried or fresh add color to rice dishes and salads

The courtyard where we have the Aquaponics setup is protected so while the nights have been cool our winter days have still been warm. The grow beds are currently filled with marigolds, watercress, sweet basil, sweet peas, cos lettuce & Asian greens. I couldn't resist capturing a few shots of the colorful marigolds.

a little bit of jam & cordial - Rosella Jam & Cordial

 Recently we harvested the flowers (fruits) off the Rosella bushes we had growing

 there followed a day of making jam and cordial with the picked flowers

 Start by washing the picked flowers (fruits), once washed pop into a stainless steel pot.

 Cover the washed Rosella fruit (seeds and all) with water, just enough to cover the fruit. Bring to the boil.

Simmer gently until soft. The red color should have faded from the calyx (flower petals). Remove from heat and strain contents through a sieve, discard the pulp and measure the liquid. Once you have measured the liquid go ahead and make jam and / or cordial:

Rosella Cordial: Add the measured liquid back into the saucepan and add a cup of sugar to every cup of liquid. Heat gently until all the sugar has dissolved, stirring often. Once the sugar is dissolved bring to the boil for a couple of minutes. Take off the heat and add the juice of 4-5 limes and stir in citric acid (1tablespoon per 1.5 litres of cordial). Return saucepan to heat and briefly bring back to the boil. Bottle the cordial into dry, sterile bottles and seal while hot.

Rosella Jam: Add the measured liquid back into a saucepan and add a cup of sugar to every cup of liquid. Heat gently until all the sugar is dissolved, stirring often. Once the sugar is dissolved bring to a gentle boil and continue cooking until desired consistency when jam tested is reached. The green seed of the Rosella fruit contains the pectin. So, thus far I haven't needed to add any additional pectin. Bottle the jam into sterile jars and seal while hot.

Playing with flavor: To the cordial I added a piece of fresh finely grated ginger. For the second batch of jam I combined 500grams Strawberries, about 250grams of pealed and diced pear, 3 cups of Rosella Liquid, the juice of 3 limes and 750grams of sugar.

banana blossom coleslaw

We've had the bananas for a few years and have enjoyed several bunches of fruit. The inside of the trunks are beautifully patterned and fantastic for printing, and we've used the leaves to line the steamer instead of using baking paper, but I hadn't used the flower. A friend had mentioned that the blossom was edible, but I wasn't really sure how to prepare it.

Recently the banana blossom was featured on a cooking show which re-ignited my interest to have a go at cooking with it as there was one forming in the front yard.

So I made a little starter of banana blossom coleslaw topped with a handful of prawns and a wedge of lime - yum.

I made the coleslaw by firstly removing the outer parts of the blossom to reveal the lighter softer section. The lighter sections were sliced finely and popped into the bowl filled with cold water and lime juice until I was ready to assemble the salad. Into another bowl, I placed a handful of finely sliced cabbage, one grated carrot, one grated radish and a handful of bean sprouts. 

I made the dressing by firstly mixing together a combination of sesame oil, rice wine vinegar, homemade raspberry vinegar, palm sugar and a dash of soy sauce. Amounts were adjusted according to preferred taste. At this point, I could have mixed this dressing through the salad ingredients but our pallets like the creamy textures. So I added small amounts of this mixture to mayonnaise until I had the taste and consistency that makes our taste buds dance. 

The dressing and a couple handfuls of the banana blossom were added to the bowl with the other ingredients and everything mixed together. Served in small bowls topped with a couple of prawns and a wedge of lime. Pleasantly surprised by how nice it was, we're looking forward to the next blossom.

Related Posts:
Texture the element of art that stimulates sight and touch
5 Simple ways to enjoy everyday pleasures
Fabric Inspired by Crushed Paper

pinch n punch it's the first of the month

Depending on your hemisphere today we enter the middle month of summer or the middle month of winter

Enjoy:)

a tea that soothes the throat

When under the weather with flu, it is so lovely to be able to wander into the backyard to gather the ingredients needed to make a tea that soothes a sore throat. 

In a saucepan place chopped lemon grass, a piece of ginger and enough water to make a couple cups of tea. Bring to the boil, turn the heat off and allow to steep for three to five minutes.

Place a wedge of lime and the leaf of perennial coriander into your favourite cup. Pour (strain if you like) the steeped liquid into the cup. Add a teaspoon of honey, give a little stir, and now it's time to sip, enjoy & soothe.

We also picked fruit from our citrus trees and juiced them along with some carrot & apple. So while this week we may feel under the weather with flu, it is also kinda nice to be enjoying the rewards from our efforts over the last couple of years of incorporating more self-sufficiency and simple living into our humble home.

Related Posts:
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5 Simple Ways to  enjoy everyday pleasures

A little bit of jam & cordial - Rosella Jam & Cordial


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snippets of daily detail

a picture is a poem without words

-Horace-

Leaf of marjoram, citronella lantern, paper flowers, a lady beetle, a white picket fence and
lettuce that's gone to seed - these are a few of my daily things.
Exploring & enjoying snippets of daily detail one frame at a time.
  -inspiration everywhere, everyday-

making plant tags

Our garden it's an eclectic mix of plants, weeds, edibles, chickens, green tree frog, blue tongue lizard, geckos, insects and various items re-purposed to be garden features. A melting pot of inspirations and enjoyable moments. Recently I've been turning a small section into what I'm calling 'The Salad Bowl' a bed filled with a variety of herbs, lettuces, tomatoes, spinach, beans & rocket. A small area that we can wonder out to and pick a salad as needed. I often let a couple of the lettuces, rocket, basil & flat leaf parsley go to seed so fresh crops can pop through and I weed out the older plants. So I can keep track of what's what I've been labeling and having a wonderful time making these painted sticks to hold the labels.

The materials: sticks, an assortment of beads, sharpie pen, correction fluid pen, leftover house paint, wire and fabric & netting scraps (I used a few of the pieces leftover over from the disintegrate/integrate project). The how began with painting the sticks. Once dry I used the correction fluid pen to draw patterns on two of the sticks. I've wrapped the others sticks with the fabrics, beads and wire. I've attached the labels with either a piece of wire or cutting a slot in the top of the stick.

from the sketchbook - ginger study part 2

Beautiful and sunny over the weekend perfect for further creative playtime with our gingers. I started with a light rubbing using an oil stick onto fabric and some sketching.

Then I started to wonder what the inside of the flower looks like.

 I carefully cut from the top straight down to discover the inside.

 Inside has a beautiful texture and some parts are slightly raised enabling me to roll paint across the surface and use the flower like a stamp to firstly print onto paper and then onto fabric.

I call these exploration sessions creative playtime 
- the early stages of starting a new project/series -

a good time to explore ideas, products and techniques

Related Post:

From the Sketchbook - Ginger Study Part One