Lemons are falling off the trees -use them!
There’s no point grizzling about the weather, here in New Zealand at any rate. It is still winter, though some days it feels like we’ve skipped spring and gone straight to summer. But not so. There is often still a nip in the air and there’s a tad more rain to fall. So, make the most of it before you have to tidy up outside and get some veggies going. Invite friends for drinks! Cosy times are still to be had around the fire (or heater), with a warming drink (try a Mulled Wine) and something crisp and salty to nibble on. You will love the kumara crisps I’ve posted on Shared Kitchen this week. And there’s not a soul who can’t eat them – surely: meat-free, dairy-free, nut-free, gluten-free, egg-free, fish-free feeders, can all gobble them up. Phew. Oh, ok, raw food eaters will have to pass. And those who don’t eat carbs, and those who don’t eat fats. (It’s getting tiring, isn’t it? Food fad after food fad…. Seriously, there are people who don’t eat oil, not even freshly-pressed organically grown extra virgin olive oil…I can’t be doing with it.)
At Shared Kitchen we are about enjoying food – and as much healthy food as possible – with loads of vegetables. We love yoghurt, eggs, cheese, but we eat them in moderation. We eat meat! We eat fish! We love nuts and seeds. We have cake sometimes. We encourage and celebrate food cooked from scratch, and we do not shy away from deliciousness. Fried kumara crisps are simply awesome.
(Now, that nearly turned into a rant. Talk about free speech! But, with a little control, I can move on ….)
Kumara Crisps Try them
Lemons are falling off trees in these parts – it seems to have been a very lush year for fruit – and people are begging to have them taken off their hands. Maybe it is like that at your place, too. Great! Make lemon curd! I’m trotting out my lemon curd made in a microwave from the 2015 archives, likewise Louise Cake, because they are so good. I’ve given Louise Cake a twist and filled it with lemon curd instead of raspberry jam. It is SO much nicer, being less sweet. And I’ve posted a few notes about lemons – always worth reading about ingredients so that you can make the right choice when gathering up fresh produce.
Keeping on a sweet theme, I’ve posted a recipe for date scones made with sour cream. Sour cream keeps them nice and light, but the beauty with these scones is that you can make the dough in a food processor. Now I could rant about food processors and how the parts (lid, bowl) fall apart and CAN’T BE REPLACED while the body/engine is still raring to go for another 20 years. So you have to buy another food processor. But I better stop, I’m getting too angsty.
Date & Orange Sour Cream Scones
Our Shared Kitchen Food Products are off with a hiss and a roar, and don’t forget if you want them at an artisan food store where you shop, tell the proprietors to get in touch [email protected] Tell them I’m a very nice person who never goes off on a rant …
Next Saturday 25th August at Waiheke Library we are holding our poetry event The Love Jam, with a fabulous line-up of musicians, songwriters and poets, all performing original works, and after we’ll be off to a tribute concert for Tom Waits right next door at Artworks Theatre (both at the top end of Oneroa). Aaron Carpenter & The Revelators celebrate the release of their new EP Roll With Punches by performing an evening of their own stylized tribute to the world of Tom Waits. Waiheke rocks!
Tickets http://www.undertheradar.co.nz/ticket/8618/A-Tribute-To-Tom-Waits.utr
Have a good week.
Julie
