MakeCookGrow.com – Some gardening, cooking, creating and everyday suburban life

Empress Josephine’s Garden

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To the Maritime Museum in Fremantle to see the remarkable ‘Empress Joséphine’s Garden’. This project tells the story of Empress Joséphine from her life as a child in Martinique, where she was known as Rose, through to her time as the most powerful style icon in Europe and further afield.

Empress Joséphine in an empire style gown. She and Napoleon epitomized the Empire style in furniture, clothing, crockery and cutlery and interior decoration. The style was popular throughout Europe and the United Kingdom, where it was known as Regency style.

Botanical illustrations on crockery and fabrics.

Joséphine was betrothed to a French aristocrat Alexandre de Beauhamais in 1779 and after the marriage, returned with him to France. They had a son and a daughter and later separated. They never divorced. She had custody of the daughter, he had custody of the son. Her husband was beheaded in the French revolution, she escaped the same event by a change in the course in French politics. She married Napoleon Bonaparte in March 1796.

Empress Joséphine purchased the rundown estate known of Malmaison in 1799, making it her primary home. She hired a Scots gardener, Alexander Hawatson, to assist with the planning and construction of the garden. Unlike typically formal French gardens of the time, Malmaison’s garden was based on English designs. The garden featured winding paths, bridges, temples, lakes and little cottages, mimicking a grand English garden.

As an amateur botanist, Empress Joséphine sought flora and fauna from all over the World. She was especially fascinated with the newly discovered plants and animals from New Holland. She was determined and competitive about acquiring botanical specimens. She collected Australian specimens from Nicholas Baudin, who explored Australia and the Pacific as well as many other sources.

Empress Joséphine collected exotic specimens from Western Australia taken back to France by Nicholas Baudin, including melaleuca, eucalyptus, plus kangaroos, emus and black swans.

Leaders in all things fashionable, Napoleon Bonaparte and Joséphine were leading figures during the Age of Enlightenment. Along with the exotic plants and animals she coveted, she dressed in light transparent fabrics, which also immediately became fashionable. She created the Empire style of furniture, which reflected symbols of war and victory, such as golden eagles, classical palm leaves and laurels. Symbols of power linked the regime to the glory of the ancient Roman Emperors. This style was widely adopted throughout Europe and the United Kingdom.

Empress Joséphine developed Malmaison, 12 kilometres out of Paris, from a run down estate to the most fashionable destination in France.

Adept at promoting their style and influence, Bonaparte and Josephine dictated the style of everything. They dispersed paintings of themselves in Empire styled clothes and dictated what was fashionable. They entertained lavishly and shamelessly promoted their own style.

Empress Joséphine employed the then unknown botanical artist Pierre-Joseph Redouté to make a record of the plants at Malmaison. His exquisite artworks were acclaimed throughout Europe. Books of his works are still considered the epitome of flora illustration. His paintings and engravings, particularly of roses, are iconic and still appear on address book covers, note book covers and writing paper.

Unable to provide Bonaparte with children he divorced Joséphine and married a younger woman, Marie Louise, who became the second Empress of France. They had four children.

This presentation runs until January. All these images are from the audiovisual presentation.

We went back down the port to a brewery for lunch. It was lovely sitting in the gentle breeze eating squid and chips. The only problem was the Leeuwin, moored along side. Once the magnificent barquentine pictured above, it was hit by an enormous container ship entering port on a stormy night.

The hull. It will be repaired but is a very sad sight now.

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Solar Fountain and Reading

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birds, bees and the solar fountain

Hoping to attract more bees to the garden I set up a solar fountain in a terracotta bowl a few years ago. The fountain floats on top of the water and I thought the bees could stand on it and drink safely. More often, though, it’s used by birds.

During the process of stripping, sanding and sealing.

I originally sealed the terracotta bowl and painted it. The paint started to flake off after about 18 months, so I patched the bare parts. Then the paint started coming off all over! Annoying. So, I stripped, sanded and sealed the bowl, then painted it. Was pleased to find the solar fountain still worked. I have used three coats of a different sealer this time and hope it lasts a lot longer than previous times.

Fresh, functioning fountain.

The solar fountain is attracting bees and birds at the moment. We have so many birds in the neighbourhood this spring. Suburbs nearby have had old houses on big blocks with trees and gardens bulldozed and replaced by towers of units with little or no garden and rarely any remaining trees. It seems the birds have migrated to our suburb.

reading

Our local library is shut as it’s being relocated to another building. Although there is another library close by, I bought a few books to ensure I always have something to read. I prefer to borrow books from the library and only buy them if they’re remarkable and I know I will read them again at some stage.

The Paris Novel by Ruth Reichl is the first book I bought. Reichl is a well known American food critic, former editor of Gourmet and best selling writer of restaurant reviews. I have read Garlic and Sapphires, Comfort Me With Apples and Tender On The Bone, all about the history of food and also restaurant reviews. Reichl has written or edited many other books about food.

The Paris Novel is (surprise!) a novel. Stella arrives in Paris after the death of her mother, cautious and careful and lacking confidence. Her mother’s message to her was ‘ Go to Paris’. All sorts of unexpected events result in her becoming very well informed about designer clothing, French food and it’s history and art, all supported by discoveries not just in Paris, but further afield. Packed with information, The Paris Novel is actually a mystery surrounded by lashings of French culture. I’m enjoying the journey.

The second book I bought is Richard Osman’s We Solve Murders. Already well known for his bestselling series The Thursday Murder Club, which became a multi million copy record breaking seller around the World. The four books in that series were quirky, recognised the skills of older people, especially women and were a fun read.

Osman has embarked on another series, also about solving murders. We Solve Murders is the first book in the new series. The characters are well developed, the plot is well presented and fast moving and I’m sure this series will be popular. It has very good reviews but I’m taking a while to find it as wonderful as the previous series.

Did you read Anne Glenconnor’s first book Lady In Waiting, about her years as Princess Margaret’s Lady in Waiting from 1971 until the Princess’s death in 2002? It was a best seller. She followed up with two novels. I have just read her fourth book, Whatever Next? A courageous, honest and strong woman, she writes frankly about her turbulent marriage and how she survived it, the loss of her two older sons and nursing a third son back from a coma, the joy of her twin daughters and their families and her many friends.

Lady Glenconnor’s husband purchased and developed Mustique, where she holidayed frequently with him and the children and Princess Margaret and her friends and their families. He loved a great party, but also suffered from terrible mood swings and was violent. Lady Glenconnor developed skills to avoid some attacks and remained open to adventures and valued her many friendships. Now in her nineties, she is still inspirational.

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Arum Lilies, Vegan Leather and Other Things

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arum lilies

Arum lilies were originally introduced to Australia from Natal and the Cape Provinces in South Africa via UK gardens where they were very popular. They thrived in Australia and eventually ‘escaped’ from gardens. They are a declared a weed in most parts of Australia. Arum lilies thrive in wet conditions, particularly under trees in swampy areas. Many districts spray annually to eradicate them. They crowd out native vegetation, are toxic for animals and humans, they dominate wetlands and impede water flow.

Arum lilies are also very beautiful. They grew well where I grew up and even years after I’d left home my Father would bring me a bucket of lilies. I love them! I have grown a bed of arum lilies in our garden where they cannot escape. They continue to thrive and I enjoy having them indoors during their flowering season. I have never had any sort of reaction to them.

Image Pixabay

About forty years ago a visiting Dutch neighbour was aghast seeing a vase of lilies in my house! She told me Europeans considered them funeral flowers. Apparently the lily symbolises rebirth and are thought to give hope to the grieving family. Taking lilies into a hospital was also a faux pas. In contrast, they are commonly used as Easter decorations in churches. Lilies are seen in many of images of Christ’s resurrection.

vegan leather

I am not a vegetarian and like to think of all parts of animals butchered for meat being used in some way. I really like the nose to tail approach becoming more common. So I prefer leather handbags. They use by- products of meat production, they last a long time with little up keep and are usually strong.

Vegan leather is most commonly made from a polymer, polyurethane. Polyurethane is plastic. Vegan leather (pleather, faux leather, artificial leather) is usually wholly plastic but some designers only employ plastic to strengthen the plant based material being used, such as pineapple leaves, cactus, mushrooms and cork. But when the bag is no longer used, it is still a plastic bag.

Consumers avoiding ‘cruelty free’ materials, byproducts from turning animal skins into leather or have concerns about toxic waste and pollution should research the production and longevity of products made from plastic/polyurethane. Also, the alternate materials being promoted by PETA ( People For The Ethical treatment of Animals) rely heavily on fossil fuel to harvest, transport and manufacture vegan leather. Make up your own mind, but do some research first!

other things

Planted two different types of tomato seeds. One type, harvested from my Mother’s garden a few years ago, produces trusses of delicious, dark red, explode in your mouth tiny tomatoes. The bush grows quite tall and needs support.

The second lot of seeds I’ve planted were saved from a delicious tomato given to me by a lovely neighbour. She’d been given some tomatoes and kindly shared them. They were big and heavy and tasted wonderful. I think they will grow on a shorter, bushier plant. Fingers crossed I have two types during summer.

Also tidied up the remnant basil plant and added saved seeds to the pot. We use a lot of basil and I really like the scent. I bought pesto today because I’d been smelling basil. Looking forward to making it from my own plants, too.

Another blogger, sustainablemum. wrote explaining how she planned meals for her family. That was the push I needed to get organised. For months we’ve been spending a few days at a time away, returning home late in the evening. Dinner needs to be fast and easy. So often we have eggs on toast!

Beef Curry

Hungarian Goulash, looks a bit messy but smelt and tasted wonderful.

As suggested, I scrolled through a slow cooker recipe book I bought back from Australind, along with the slow cooker. Marked several recipes I knew would appeal to both of us and could be served with quickly steamed vegetables and noodles. Bulk bought the ingredients and made Beef Curry and Hungarian Goulash. The scents coming from two slow cookers was very tempting.

Will make another recipe I marked but have been online looking for a curry with more flavour. Probably do the same with the goulash because basically it was good but needed more oomph, too. I can take the precooked food from the freezer the morning we leave, put it in the fridge and it will be thawed and ready to heat when we get back. I also like the idea of not cooking every night, too!

Some for the freezer, some for the fridge.

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Triangle Families, Farmers and Menu Planning

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triangle families

Have you heard of Triangle Families? Me neither, until I read about it this morning. It was of particular interest as it turns out we are a triangle family, but I have never heard the expression before today. A triangle family is a couple with one child. Apparently Triangle Families have doubled in the past 40 years to the point where 40% of households in the EU with children are Triangle Families. ( here )

The reasons given for the growth of Triangle Families in Australia are complex and individual but include couples living in different circumstances from their parents and previous generations, couples wanting to further their careers and travel more frequently and rising infertility rates. Interestingly, 14% of couples feel they can’t afford to have any children, 9% are delaying having children and 6% have decided not to have children due to rising costs limiting their lifestyle choices.

Image Pixels

The article raises the common stigma attached to only children families. We have an only child, my Father became an only child due to the death of a young sibling, my cousin is an only child and has an only child herself, one of my brothers has one child and one of my nieces has one child, so it’s not uncommon in my family. The reasons are varied and complex and really nobody elses’ business but it was certainly of interest when I was younger with friends having their second, third and fourth babies. Close friends knew why and never commented. ( A friend with five planned children was often asked if they knew what was causing it or didn’t they have a TV!)

Although the article highlighted the apparent stigma surrounding Triangle Families, I’d like to think we are becoming more accepting of a range of situations and becoming a little kinder, too.

farmers

When you see the word ‘farmers’ did you immediately think of a male? Most people do! Can you believe until the 1990s women in agriculture couldn’t list themselves as ‘farmers’ on census forms? Change began with the creation of AWiA, Australian Women in Agriculture in 1994. This group set about changing how women on the land were perceived by the agricultural industry, government and the population generally.

Women have been an integral part of farming forever but were rarely recognised for their contribution. They did the same job as the men. Then the daughters of farmers began going to university and returning with degrees applicable to genetics, economics, diversifying farming practice and general skills used in efficient agricultural businesses.

Image Pixabay.

I frequently use ‘free to use images’ to support what I have written. I entered ‘women farms’ in the search box. There’s 555 pages of related images. I gave up after six pages as the only women in the images wore coolie hats, were up to their knees in water and obviously labouring in developing countries. Two others portrayed a woman draped over a lavender bush and another of a beautifully dressed woman standing amongst sunflowers. Finally found two acceptable images.

It has taken a long time for the work of women to be recognised. This is evident in the paucity of women representing farming on boards, in government and in the news. Women are not just labouring beside their husbands, they are running these businesses themselves. They are adept at using technology and data to make decisions and dictate change.

Image Pixabay.

This year AWiA celebrates 30 years of promoting women in agriculture. So, that’s something to consider as you eat your fruit and vegetables, add milk to your coffee, boil your egg and make your toast. Think about who might be responsible for that chicken breast you’re marinating for dinner, the steak in the fridge next to the bacon and butter. Things change slowly.

menu planning

I was reading a blog this morning I have followed for years. The author is recognised for her money management skills. Today she referred to menu planning, something I have never tried, but she runs a fortnightly list with some variations due to family celebrations or outings and what was well priced in the shops she visits.

The produce at the green grocer influences what I cook, along with time available and what I can pick from the garden. I have several perpetual spinach plants so we have spinach at least once a week, although I was away a while ago and came back to a big pot full of fresh leaves. Made a goats cheese and spinach pie. I always have herbs and lemons and there’s limes on the tree, too. I buy meat, chicken and fish depending on what looks really good.

Image Pixels

When I saw the glossy white to pale green to dark green leeks at the greengrocer I knew I was making Chicken and Leek Pie. It was very good. I often wonder how other people decide what they are making for dinner. Not only do I run out of ideas but the enthusiasm can be pretty low, too. That’s when we have oven roasted salmon in maple syrup and lime or lemon juice with boiled vegetables, because my husband makes one thing and that’s it! In warmer weather he’ll also barbecue some steak if he thinks to thaw it beforehand.

Chicken and leek pie.

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Busselton and the Margaret River Region Open Studios

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At 1.841 km long, Busselton Jetty is the longest timber-piled jetty in the Southern Hemisphere. The Underwater Observatory at the end of the jetty is one of only six in the World. You can take an electric, solar powered train to the end or walk.

Back from four days in Busselton. The Spring weather was glorious and we had a lovely break. We stayed at a new hotel overlooking the Busselton Jetty. Once a sleepy coastal town, Busselton is now a vibrant town with many cafes and restaurants, great street art, an art centre being built and so many shopping opportunities! We were surrounded by a brewery restaurant, a couple of other restaurants and a local pub where we enjoyed lovely scallops. The sunset each evening over the ocean silhouetted by the huge pine trees was remarkable.

We had headed down south to visit the Margaret River Region Open Studios, something we often do in spring. This year over 144 artists opened their studios to visitors. This is a great opportunity to visit painters, potters, printmakers, mosaicists, textile printers, timber artists, illustrators, installation artists and photographers. Some artists have purpose built studios, some have sheds, or enclosed verandas or a room in their house. There’s also a converted water tank and a sea container and a train carriage. Some are in beautiful bushland, some have views of the ocean, many have lush spring gardens buzzing with bees.

The region is divided into four areas and all the artists are numbered and can be found on the map for each area. The weather was wonderful, the people we visited welcoming and we really enjoyed meetings the artists.

The afternoon we arrived, we visited a gallery and some artists, then settled into our hotel. At breakfast the next morning we discovered a dear friend was staying there, too, so we arranged to meet each morning in the breakfast cafe to eat and chat. Later we set off to more studios. My husband and I like a paper copy of the catalogue, and we each mark the artworks we like and then I make a list of them for the four areas and mark them on the map, included in the catalogue.

Our first studio visit in Margaret River was Fi Wilkie’s Toot Studio, a converted hay shed. I really like her work and buy handfuls of her cards at a time, for thank you notes, brief letters and birthday wishes. This time we were there to pick up a lino print I had ordered. Not yet framed, but I know where it will be hung. She paints and prints diverse landscapes and the flora and fauna surrounding her home and in the north of Western Australia.

We had been surprised and delighted to find one of her works in our hotel room and discovered various pieces of Fi’s works are hung throughout the hotel.

Terrible photo of ‘The Balance Of All Things’ by Fi Wilkie. Part of the STILL AT HOME series, this print features her Grandma’s jelly mould, some old bread boards, scales, some local proteas on a mantle plus a magpie.

We visited several other studios and were surprised at how Margaret River has spread, with suburbs in areas which were just bush or farmland only a few years ago.

This region of the South West boast some fabulous bakeries, cafes and restaurants. One of our favourites is Claudio’s.

Unable to resist this salted caramel concoction, so that was my lunch washed down with a double espresso from The White Elephant Cafe in Prevelly.

My husband’s lunch.

Our afternoon tea. All from Claudio’s Bakery, all delicious!

This is where Margaret River joins the Indian Ocean.

It’s a popular surf beach. You can walk across the mouth of the river and head off to other great surf breaks.

I hadn’t been to the newly opened Margaret River/Busselton Airport. It is on the way into Busselton. There were about a thousand cars in the FIFO Carpark, so I wasn’t surprised to learn all the Virgin flights were for FIFO workers, known as Closed Charter Flights. Suddenly, the suburban sprawl around Margaret River right through, in places, to Busselton made sense. There’s a lot of FIFO workers living down south! There are three flights a week with Jetstar to the Eastern States.

This regional airport has a RFDS (Royal Flying Doctor Service) dedicated emergency service transfer facility. This enables 24/7 access without affecting other flights.

We enjoyed being down south and plan to return soon.

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Bits and Bobs

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laundry

Choice, the publication of the Australian consumer organisation of the same name, has tested more than 90 laundry liquids, powders, pods and sheets. They tested the products using front loading and top loading machines. Their comments about the efficiency of top loading machines were quite harsh.

According to Mark Serrets, editorial director at Choice, ‘ Fancy new products don’t perform as well as old school stuff.’ I think he is referring to powders. He continues,’In fact, some of the lowest scoring products barely performed better than just water.’ The laundry sheets marketed as being eco-friendly were some of the worst performing. The Choice tests also showed using half the recommended dose of product resulted in much the same outcome as using the full amount.

For front loading machines the top four products recommended were OMO Ultimate Powder (86%), second was OMO Laundry Powder (84%), third was OMO capsules (the most expensive product tested) and in fourth place, ALDI’S Laundrite Powder, scoring 79% . This product was the best performer for top loading machines, too.

I bought this OMO powder as it met the criteria for ‘stripping’ and returning whites to crispy, clean whiteness. It worked well. So why is it sealed in a plastic bag? The scent is so strong and overpowering I could smell it in the laundry from the front door! Totally overpowering but a few days on the clothesline in the sun removed the smell, so I’d use it again.

There are no guidelines available in Australia defining eco-friendly laundry detergents. Manufacturers can claim whatever they like on the box.

the country women’s association cookbook and household hints

This household bible was first published in 1931 during the Depression. My copy, originally my grandmother’s, was published in 1941 and was a gift to her from my Father. It was published under the direction of the Country Women’s Association of Western Australia with the added title, Non Sectarian and Non Political.

The recipes and household hints were sent into the CWA by women from all over Western Australia. The CWA is still active in many farming and some city communities. And online. Apparently, the CWA are publishing old recipes that can be made from things you probably already have in the fridge or pantry. Hearty and economical, these recipes are easy to prepare and apparently a hit. More information (here) Recipes and information also on Facebook, search cwa woy woy online, also on Instagram.

Apart from recipes. the CWA Cookbook has a plethora of household hints, some you might never need , such as How To Mend A Leaking Bucket, but some you might like to try, such as Reviving Flowers.

What prompted me to get out and search the CWA cookbook in the first place? I bought some lovely chicken sausages last week. I rarely eat sausages but the men in the family really like them. These chicken sausages looked fat and glossy. I bought quite a lot!

Eventually there were eight left and I decided to make old fashioned curried sausages. Nothing fancy pants like my usual curries, involving racks of spices. I wanted something old fashioned, ergo the CWA Cookbook. There were fifteen recipes for curries, none involved sausages, so I did as I always do, and went to Nagi’s recipetineats.com

Delicious, warming on a freezing night and enough for lunch the next day, too. Perfect. So good I went out and bought more chicken sausages. We’re having them for dinner tonight.

rust stains

While we were away recently I left several indoor plants on the table with ceramic watering spears partially embedded so water seeped into the plant pot. It was very successful. And a relief as it was very, very hot at the time.

Unfortunately, I also left a wine cooler with a potted plant in it on the table, too. The metal happily rusted onto the tablecloth. Initially I treated it with a blend of salt and lemon juice. Then I spread the cloth over a drying frame and left it in the sun all day. The rust marks faded, but not completely.

Not totally effective. More research required.

Searched online again. Found several sites recommending vinegar for removing rust stains. Using the Weed Killer spray bottle of vinegar I was able to target the stains. Then I left it draped over a small olive tree, in the sun. The stains had mostly gone. Washed it. Hung it out in the sun. No more rust marks.

Billowing in the breeze and now stain free. It is not actually a tablecloth, it is an Italian double bedspread, but I don’t have any beds that size. I have a table that size. My Mother, who gave it to me, was a bit surprised to see it being used as a tablecloth.

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Inflation & Cost of Living and Father’s Day

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We have a large shopping centre nearby. It has two supermarkets, one where we get some fruit and vegetables, plus sheep’s yoghurt and goat’s cheese, eggs, fish and often meat and always chicken. The other supermarket is where we buy pasta, frozen vegetables, crackers and biscuits and a few other things. I only prepare meals for two of us most of the time, so our shopping trolley isn’t very full. Most of our fresh fruit and vegetables come from a green grocer.

There is a whole array of other shops at the local shopping centre. There’s a David Jones, a department store, lots of clothing stores including R.M.Williams, Country Road and Camilla and Marc, cafes, a lovely gift shop and a Chanel shop. Plus lots of other shops like hairdressers, bedding supplies, a bank inside and two others nearby, also Mecca, which claims to be Australia’s biggest beauty retailer. I hope the gangs of very young girls I see in there buying skin care products are also buying sunscreen. Good places to eat close by, including a hotel and other cafes.

Image Pixabay

Australia is experiencing high inflation and a cost of living crisis. This became really clear to me last week when I walked through the shopping centre. This once vibrant and busy shopping centre with good parking and everything from cut flowers to a new dinner set or a hair cut was strangely quiet. It was easy to get around. No long waits at the checkout. Also, not many sales assistants, although I was lucky to snag one who was very helpful. Customers in the coffee shops, but none were crowded. Sales advertised in most display windows.

In August, Channel 9 (here) claimed about 4 million Australians were struggling to buy food. Inflation is blamed on pressures due to high energy costs and labour shortages. Producers complain that they are being paid less and less by the buyers from the big supermarket chains. Primary producers are paying more for fuel, fertilizer, labour and transport. Politicians are threatening an inquiry into price gouging by the supermarkets. This problem apparently exists in Britain and the USA where similar inquiries are threatened. Inflation is a universal problem caused by quantitative easing and all the money spent by governments during the Covid epidemic.

Read in the Sunday paper that Woolworths, one of our two big supermarket chains, announced a net profit of $1.7 billion. This was later reduced to $108 million because of an ‘impairment’ to its New Zealand business. Coles, the other big supermarket chain, posted an annual $1.1 billion profit this week, a 10% increase. This duopoly controls 65% of Australia’s grocery market. (Source The Sunday Times, Sunday 1st September 2024)

roast lamb’

Sunday, 1st September was Father’s Day in Australia. Our son flew in from Singapore, en route from Taipei to Kalgoorlie, so we had a lovely weekend. I asked my husband what he’d like for Father’s Day lunch and he said Roast Lamb. I grew up on a farm and I think it was easy for my Father to butcher a lamb by himself, whereas he needed help for a bigger beast, so we ate a lot of lamb! I think we ate bacon for breakfast (we had a piggery, too) then beef or lamb for lunch and dinner. I don’t remember eating a lot of chicken but we ate a lot of duck in season. A friend of my Grandfather was a keen fisherman and I remember him exchanging fish for meat.

So for years I haven’t eaten pork, except ham and bacon in moderation and I haven’t eaten lamb. I wasn’t confident about cooking the leg of lamb I bought and as usual, sought Nagi’s recipetineats.com method and followed it exactly. Picked lots of rosemary and some mint for the peas and did as directed. The lamb turned out pink and beautifully cooked. The rest of the family were very pleased with it too. Made the gravy following the recipe and even sieved it, as instructed in the recipe, to remove the garlic skins, rosemary twigs and big bits of roasted onion. This was the best gravy, silky and rich but not overpowering. I also used her recipe for Crunchy Roast Potatoes, which were just fabulous.

Nagi suggested pushing the gravy through a sieve. Did as instructed, great gravy.

I’d made the pudding beforehand. We had a lot of red apples in the fruit bowl and I felt they needed using up. Generally Apple Crumble is made from green apples such as Granny Smith’s. Again, straight to Nagi’s Apple Crumble recipe. The scent of cooking apples and cinnamon was lovely. So was the Apple Crumble, served with vanilla icecream.

We had a lovely day with great food and the best part…lots of leftovers for dinner that night!

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Sunrise, National Gallery of London, Neighbours & Egg, Ham and Vegetable Pie

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sunrise

The days are getting longer! The sun is up before me now. I took this photo a few days ago.

national gallery of london

We have no plans to revisit the UK this year or next year but have very happy memories of previous visits to the National Gallery of London. Celebrating its 200th year, the gallery is considered one of the world’s greatest art galleries. A film has been made as part of the 200 Years of the National Gallery of London celebrations called My National Gallery. Various people working at the gallery, including cleaners, curators, security guards and the director were asked to identify the piece of work which meant the most to them and to explain why.

Great art can communicate with anyone and well known celebrities and other art lovers were also asked to identify one artwork that resonated with them and to explain why it was their favourite. Well known and not so well known people and paintings featured. Their stories were told along with stories about the original gallery, the architecture and development of the current gallery, the modernisation of the new areas and information about how some of the works travel for exhibitions around the UK.

During World War 2 the artworks were safely stored in a slate mine in Wales. Each month a painting was chosen to be returned to the Gallery and displayed. If there was an air raid warning, the painting was quickly taken off the wall and stored in a safe place below the building. During this time a famous concert pianist Myra Hess organised a series of lunchtime concerts, too.

Two things struck me as surprising. So many of the works chosen by the people being interviewed for the film were based religious or Biblical events. The second thing was with few exceptions, the artists were male. Women artists were not taken seriously. This was a thought provoking and interesting film.

JMW Turner (1775-1851) ‘An English Packet Arriving at Calais Pier’

Image, Royalty Free, Wikipedia

My husband’s favourite painting in the gallery is Turner’s ‘An English Packet Arriving at Calais Pier’ . We have visited it many times but often the gallery was crowded. He laid a plan. We’d be first in line when the gallery opened and would go straight to the painting, which was towards the back of the building. When we arrived, I talked to the guard and my husband had nearly fifteen uninterrupted minutes in front of the painting before anybody else arrived. Very satisfying.

neighbours

Do you have lovely neighbours? Since Anzac Day 2020 five neighbours on our side of the street have gathered regularly at each others houses for ‘get togethers’. Sometimes it’s to commemorate Anzac Day together, sometimes it’s ‘Christmas in July’ and sometimes it is for no reason at all, just an opportunity to chat and eat together. The dogs come, too.

Then circumstances resulted in one household preparing to move to another suburb! They’re currently packing and making moving plans. We will miss then being nearby but I’m sure we’ll keep in touch with regular ‘get togethers.’ So on Sunday we converged on another neighbour’s house to say goodbye and good luck. Everyone brought food to share and we settled in for a good catch up. Sad to see them go but they’re happy with their new house and they’ll be invited to every Neighbours Get Together.

Zucchini and Corn Fritters made with sourdough leftover mother/starter.

sorting

We’ve spent a lot of time sorting out my Mother’s house which involves a four hour journey as well as time spent doing jobs. So it’s no surprise that I couldn’t even recognise some of the things in our freezer. They might have been there for months. Time for a clean out. One of the finds was frozen ham. Half of it, chopped, was added to leftover corn from Sunday’s Zucchini and Corn Fritters, along with tomatoes and some spinach picked from the garden. Added eggs and some yoghurt and baked the resulting pie. Good to tidy the freezer and a rather nice pie, too.

Looks a bit rough, I know, but it tasted very good.

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Lego, Cooking and Painting

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lego

Sorting and emptying out my Mother’s house has made me realise she wasn’t keen on throwing out anything! I found a box in her shed with some of my dolls, their tiny teasets, many dolls’ clothes and their tiny wire hangers my Father made for my dolls’ house plus a bag of Lego. The Lego brought back so many memories. It actually belonged to my brothers but by the mid sixties they’d lost interest. I absolutely loved it.

There’s white rectangular building blocks, green roof tiles and red framed windows and doors. I designed and built mini houses. They sat on a flat base plates. There were none of the people available now in Lego, nor the fancy pets or pieces for ships, spacecraft or botanicals.

Lego was first manufactured in 1949. The plastic bricks quickly replaced wooden toys and were hugely popular. They enabled unlimited projects to be created, so long as they were square or rectangular. In the 1970’s mini figures appeared. The pieces could be taken apart and reassembled without effecting their structural integrity.

Sales began to slow down in the 1990’s due to competition from video games. Lego introduced the Star Wars and Bionicle ranges and sales soared. During this time, Lego was increasingly bought by adults to create their our designs. During Covid lock downs the sales of Lego skyrocketed, mostly selling to AFOLs ( Adult Fans of Lego) Many AFOLs have entire rooms dedicated to their collections. A television show appeared about this time called Lego Masters.

A keen collector of Lego as a child, my son’s interest was renewed during lockdown and he built many models. Last year at Christmas he surprised me with a beautiful vase and a collection of Lego flowers.

cooking

Visiting friends brought us some spinach. While it was still crisp and fresh I chopped it up and put it in a bowl with diced onion, some finely chopped garlic, three eggs and ground black pepper. I know it sounds like spinakopita and I did add crumbled feta cheese but also grated leftover red leicester from a grazing board because you know I try to avoid food waste. Didn’t have any philo/filo pastry, either, so used some puff pastry.

Constructed the pie in the bread baking tin and put it in the oven until the top was crisp and golden. This made two dinners for two hungry people!

Also made bread and butter pudding. We had leftover artisan bread. A friend also delivered a jar of orange marmalade so of course, I thought of bread and butter pudding! Nearly out of custard powder but as I read the ingredients listed on the box I decided I’d make it myself. I remember my grandmother standing at the wood stove, stirring a big pot of custard. We ate puddings with lunch every day and that often included custard on pies, crumbles, dumplings in golden syrup with added custard and stewed or preserved fruit also served with custard. We also enjoyed jelly and custard or cream from the freshly boiled and cooled milk. Does anyone still eat jelly?

Looked up a recipe and gathered the milk, eggs, vanilla, sugar and a teaspoon of butter and made a pot of custard. Worked well. I buttered the leftover bread and added the gifted marmalade, arranged it in a dish and added the custard. Sprinkle of nutmeg and it was done. My husband likes bread and butter pudding for breakfast, also lunch and particularly dinner.

painting

I haven’t been able to paint for a long time. We spend a lot of time at my Mother’s house, dispersing her things, keeping the garden tidy and dealing with business matters. When we are at our home we are also trying to keep up with our own gardening, cleaning and administration matters. Add a few regular activities and there’s no time for painting. The table where I like to paint is also frequently covered in paperwork.

Spending an hour or so for the last few weeks doing some felt making and printing motivated me to put all the paper work on the table to one side and sit down and paint. I found some YouTube videos showing artists doing quick flower paintings. Decided I could spare twelve minutes to do the same. These paintings are wet on wet and rapidly completed. That means wet paper so the colour runs a little and is easy to apply. I tried several and have concluded this is not for me! My paintings looked nothing like those being demonstrated.

So many online tutorials, so not for me!

Much happier painting from life. It took a lot longer than the flowers tutorials on YouTube.

Looking at the screen trying to work out where my paintings went wrong I realised I was actually now looking at an arum lily and leaf in a vase behind the screen. Painted that and felt relieved I can still paint, just not quick, loose wet on wet flowers.

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Plastics and Autism, Lemons and Printing

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plastics and autism

Plastics have made so many aspects of our lives easy and disposable. But there is a dark side to plastics, too. The Florey Institute has just released the results from a decade long study clearly connecting a biological pathway between autism spectrum disorder and BPA (the plastic chemical bisphenol A). Boys are particularly affected by BPA. It can disrupt male fetal development.

Autism is defined as a neurodevelopment disorder with a wide spectrum of cognitive and behavioural changes. The research has shown that high BPA exposure suppresses aromatase, a key brain development enzyme. This has been noted particularly in males and has been linked to an increased likelihood of autism.

Image Pixabay

BPA is found in packaging, food and drink containers, cosmetics, even some foods, such as chewing gum. Common items with this plastic are food packaging, water dispensers, reusable plastic drink bottles, plastic wrap, takeaway cups, waterproof clothing, kitchenware and even sunscreen. Plastic makes these products stronger and more durable. There are many reusable alternatives.

lemons

No risk of scurvy in this house! The lemons are plentiful this year and we’ve been enjoying them in both sweet and savoury dishes. We had leftover lemon juice after I’d prepared dinner but my husband had a solution. It went into a glass with a generous splash of gin. Very nice, apparently.

The Lemon Chicken I normally make is a Greek recipe. This recipe has an Asian flavoured sauce, which was a lovely change. I served it with the pieces of lemon from the roasting dish but my husband found them too strong. I really enjoyed the intense flavour. Also, I used maple syrup rather than honey. I served it on mashed potatoes but rice would be good, too, except I don’t eat rice.

https://www.woolworths.com.au/shop/recipes/easy-lemon-chicken

One lemon provides about 31mg vitamin C which is 51% of the recommended daily intake. Vitamin C reduces the risk of heart disease and stroke, as does their fibre and plant compounds. Vitamin C plus citric acid, both in lemons, may help prevent anemia by aiding the absorption of iron. And they smell wonderful!

Also made these Lemon Crackle Biscuits. I omitted the desiccated coconut from the mix, so the biscuits were softer and spread out. They were delicious!

https://author-p35852-e148706.adobeaemcloud.com/shop/recipes/lemon-crackle-biscuits

We had leftover Lemon Chicken for lunch. Added mashed potato, carrots with mint and butter and baby beans. I also had leftover apples I wanted to use before we shopped again. Made an Apple Slice recipe which was easy and tasted great. The recipe actually states ‘green apples’ but I took a risk and used red apples. The slice was very good. Ran out of raw brown sugar so also used some brown sugar.

Visitors so I made a Lemon Cake which also had lemon flavoured icing and Brownies, no lemon at all!

printing

Our local library closes this afternoon and will be relocated to another building in the future. I have played mahjong there for years and also was part of an art group. We don’t know if we will be accommodated in the new venue. So we were just finishing off some printing projects this afternoon.

I had been very disappointed with the crispness of my previous prints. I cut a new plate, using the inside lining of a long life milk carton. I spent a lot of time pressing the image into the foil to ensure a crisp edge. Then I printed it in blue a few times and finally, in black. Quite pleased with the final monoprint. I have a piece of lino ready for my next project so will be drawing, carving and printing with lino.

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