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In My Kitchen - March 2012

1/3/2012

 

In My Kitchen March 2012

Cook, blogger and baker extraordinaire, Celia from Fig Jam and Lime Cordial, features a monthly segment titled 'In My Kitchen', where cooks from across the miles invite readers into their kitchens. It's delicious...  a little What's Cooking, What's Eating, What's Reading, What's Shopping and What's Happening at the hearth. I love participating and wish to thank Celia for this initiative. It's such a good thing!

Canberrans usually applaud the arrival of March. With an array of exotic tree plantings, our city is picturesque in Autumn, the weather is usually perfect and at this time we celebrate Canberra's birthday with the Canberra Festival. Emphasis was placed on the word 'usually' in my reference to the weather, because we have had no Summer to speak of and the rain has been tumbling down for what seems like several weeks! 

While I am concerned about the kitchen garden suffering with way too much water, this wet weather augers well for more time spent in the kitchen. In my kitchen this month are:
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These beautiful flowers (above), which were given to me by some of our dearest friends, Diana and Bryant, when we caught up over coffee and cake one Sunday just recently. in Essays, Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote 'Flowers and fruits are always fit presents ... because they are a proud assertion that a ray of beauty outvalues all of the utilities of the world'.
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In my kitchen is this delightful honeycomb heart, which Carmen Pearce-Brown ever so kindly gave to Peter and I as a Valentine's Day gift. It is really pretty and we just don't have the heart (no pun intended) to eat it! Carmen and her husband, Todd, are regulars at the Capital Region Farmer's Market selling their Honey Delight honey.
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In my kitchen is Lorenza de Medici's A Passion for Vegetables, a recent acquisition from the UK Book Depository and companion to A Passion for Fruit, one of my most favourite books on the subject. I simply cannot seem to contain my fetish for adding new/old cookery titles to my collection.
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In my kitchen is this divine Baby Stem Ginger in Syrup from Buderim Ginger. Delicious to nibble on as a snack, I recently added it to my marinated chicken wings with Tamari and Sweet Chilli sauce, garlic, orange zest and orange juice. The results were delicious! I am considering dipping some in good quality chocolate. It will be superb! Much experimenting is about to take place with the ginger as well as the nectar like syrup! Watch this space.
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In my kitchen and growing outside my kitchen in a pot are Isabella grapes, one of my favourite varieties. My father had about a dozen grapevines in his garden, which he nurtured, sprayed with white oil and pruned with precision just at the right time. Waltham Cross and Isabella were among them and they were so good, that even our family's pet dog would walk along nibbling grapes from the low growing bunches on the vines! LOL. We knew never to eat any from that area, as most likely Alice had been licking those bunches!
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In my kitchen are plump bell peppers or capsicums. I'm really fond of capsicums and love the crispness of these as a snack, especially when they're sliced into quarters and topped with flavoursome cheese.
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Another favourite way with capsicums is a confiture or stew with tomatoes and onions known as Lecsó (pronounced 'LATCH-oh'). A dish that my mother taught me, I liken this to the Sicilian Peperonata, minus the Balsamic vinegar and herbs. I have come to know it as my Hungarian peperonata ... which is a little cheeky of me, but I think that that name sounds sexier than lecsó. 
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Also in my kitchen is this stunning camphor laurel chopping board, which we picked up at the Gorman House markets recently. Hard to believe that this beautiful piece has been crafted in Broadwater NSW from a weed!
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A scrumptious store bought treat in my kitchen is Cranberry and Pistachio Biscotti made by Mother Meg's. I first discovered it at the Campbell Grocer, one of our favourite 'pop in on the way home' stores. Peter and I race to see who gets to eat the last one!
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Also from the Campbell Grocer, in my kitchen is Careme handmade pastry from the Barossa Valley. This is a very handy staple to keep in the freezer for those days when life is too short to make pastry from scratch.
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In my kitchen are the spoils from the kitchen garden. The strawberry patch has provided us with such a bounty of beautiful fruit, including this beauty which was almost as big as my hand! I have picked several this size and the flavour is outstanding.
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In my kitchen are two more batches of peach and passionfruit jam. I barter this jam with my friend, The Dog, who provides me with fresh, free range eggs from his chooks, Bellatrix, Nymphadora, Minerva and Poppy. The Dog swears it's the best jam he's tasted. I swear the whites in his chooky's eggs are like jelly. So fresh!

There are always lots of good things happening in my kitchen and I never seem to sit down, which is probably why people call me Bizzy Lizzy. Please pop in and stay for a cuppa! Thanks to Celia for hosting In My Kitchen. Say hello to Celia and her friends and see what's happening in their kitchens.

Tell me, dear readers, what's cooking, eating, reading, shopping and happening around your hearth this month?

Claire @ Claire K Creations link
29/2/2012 10:41:33 pm

I'm still so jealous of your strawberries but oh my goodness that honeycomb is the best Valentine's present ever!!! Thanks for the peek into your kitchen.

Lizzy
1/3/2012 06:30:23 am

Hi Claire... I will try to check the little tags on the strawberries to see which varieties they are and let you know so you can try planting them. The honeycomb is delightful and it was really sweet of Carmen to gift it to us. We were really chuffed. Thanks for popping in xo

Laura (Tutti Dolci) link
1/3/2012 06:53:30 am

I love the honeycomb heart, and "A Passion for Vegetables" sounds worth reading. Fun idea to open up your kitchen and give us a glimpse!

Lizzy
1/3/2012 07:02:40 am

Thanks Laura!

celia link
1/3/2012 07:00:09 am

Lizzy, you write the best posts! Thanks for your kind words, and I'm so glad you're enjoying the IMK posts! The rain has been playing havoc up here as well, the garden is slowly turning into soup.

I love that Buderim stem ginger, but we don't see it much anymore, and I've been using their naked ginger instead. I must look more carefully for it, as the syrup is divine and has a multitude of uses. And the camphor laurel board is just beautiful - nice to know they can do something with that pest of a plant! :)

Lizzy
1/3/2012 07:05:30 am

Celia, lovely, your posts are THE BEST! Pure inspiration there and thanks so much for hosting. I think my garden will turn to soup too, LOL! In my post I had the link to Buderim Ginger, perhaps you can get it online? They kindly and generously sent it to me to try. I love it! The board is beautiful, they had such a wonderful assortment, I could barely stop at one. Thanks for popping in!

Misk Cooks link
1/3/2012 07:47:11 am

A wonderfully interesting post, Lizzy. My favourite things are the chopping board and that beautiful flower. That pastry looks interesting, too!

Lizzy
1/3/2012 12:45:44 pm

Thank you, Misk, so very kind! I love the chopping board... and the flowers, well they just made my day! The pastry is handmade in the Barossa Valley... there is a chocolate version too!

Lisa link
1/3/2012 08:15:07 am

that chopping board is just GORGEOUS!

Lizzy
1/3/2012 12:46:35 pm

Isn't it just! I honestly could have bought two or three, they had all different shapes and sizes.

Mandy - The Complete Cook Book link
1/3/2012 03:20:30 pm

Hi Lizzy, WOW, what a treasure trove you have in your kitchen this month!
:-) Mandy

Lizzy
1/3/2012 05:51:46 pm

Thanks Mandy!!! ; )

InTolerant Chef link
1/3/2012 07:50:11 pm

What a lot of goodies indeed! That honey comb is just gorgeous. Love your jam, I have some peach and raspberry jam cooling on the bench right now peaches are still so nice and juicy at the moment, Yumm!

Lizzy
1/3/2012 08:03:35 pm

Thank you! The honeycomb is lovely... Carmen's honey is the best! And they have Active honey. Your peach and raspberry jam sounds divine!

Tandy link
1/3/2012 08:19:22 pm

I love your honeycomb but even more than that, I LOVE your chopping board - it looks beautiful :)

Lizzy
1/3/2012 08:40:37 pm

Hi Tandy... the honeycomb and the chopping board are getting rave reviews! Thanks for popping in.

The Food Sage link
1/3/2012 11:23:37 pm

I love the sound of Alice munching on low hanging grapes. What a lovely insight into your kitchen Lizzy. Your photos are great, too.

Lizzy
2/3/2012 08:19:20 am

Hi Rachel, LOL, thank you. Alice was a German Shepherd, a gentle old girl and definitely more of a person than a dog, if you know what I mean. Thanks for popping in, best wishes with the house sale!

heidiannie link
2/3/2012 12:59:09 am

Hi Lizzie!
You have great riches in your kitchen! I do enjoy seeing the largesse in the participating kitchens!
I love the ginger. I tend to eat crystallized ginger like candy- the syrup in that jar would be a great boon in many recipes- sweet and savoury!
I have a thing for wood- anything kitchen and wood, especially!
That board would never be touched by a knife here even if it is a "cutting" board!
Thanks for sharing!

Lizzy
2/3/2012 08:20:58 am

Hello Heidiannie... yes, I will have to think about whether I use the board for cutting or not.... I have been using a beautiful crepe myrtle board from Tasmania and it is standing up very well... just lots of olive oil to season it. Thanks for calling in!

Liz link
2/3/2012 08:36:53 am

Oh, Lizzy, such fun happening in your kitchen! You've made me excited for the approaching spring season...the flowers, the berries, the farmers' market! And I, too, love that gorgeous cutting board...great find! Have a wonderful weekend~

Lizzy
2/3/2012 08:41:51 am

Hello Liz (that skinny chick can bake!). Oh how wonderful that you are heading into Springtime in your part of the world. I hope that the weather is kind to you. The cutting board is very popular with my readers! As I sit here, I can smell the camphor laurel, it's quite strong and intoxicating!

The Dog
4/3/2012 08:37:15 am

Alas, Poppy passed away recently, (RIP). So the egg supply is a little diminished. But the jam is sooo good we will divert our supply into bartering for the jam.

Lizzy
4/3/2012 01:28:48 pm

Oh, how sad! RIP Poppy. May the other girls continue to provide us with a bounty! Bartering is a great way of doing things, don't you agree? I'm glad that you and MB love the jam. Peter and I LOVE and appreciate your fresh eggs.

Glenda link
6/3/2012 10:32:05 pm

What a lovely array of things in your kitchen, Lizzy. I especially love the look of that ginger. I wish you hadn't mentioned 'A Passion for Vegetables' and 'A Passion for Fruit' I have neither, and now they are both on my radar.

Lizzy
7/3/2012 07:20:06 am

Hello Glenda, welcome! The ginger is lovely... and those books really are a great addition to the bookshelf of any cook who is passionate about fruit and vegetables. Please pop in again!

Jane @ Shady Baker link
7/3/2012 10:19:39 am

What a delight Lizzy! I agree...Celia's foodie game is wonderful. All the things in your kitchen look amazing but the honeycomb heart makes me melt, so pretty and perfect! I cannot buy Careme pastry anywhere locally, but I hear so many good things about it. I somehow need to work out how to get my hands on some! Happy cooking and growing my friend :)

Lizzy
7/3/2012 06:00:04 pm

Hi Jane, my friend! It's fun, isn't it! The honeycomb is delicious. You should be able to get that careme pastry online, no? Let me know if I can help you. Happy cooking and growing backatchya!

Sous Chef link
7/3/2012 04:50:12 pm

What lovely colourful goodies you have in your kitchen,that jam looks stunning with the dark seeds! Thanks for sharing.

Lizzy
7/3/2012 06:00:45 pm

Hi there, thanks so much for calling in. The jam is delicious, truly delicious, and I am not a real jam eater! Happy cooking.

Jo link
12/3/2012 11:50:40 am

thanks for visiting me! what a beautiful post, lovely flowers and fruit and jam to dream about. My little dog eats fallen blueberries and has been known to chase the blackbird off the bush, so your story about Alice rings a bell here :D

Lizzy
12/3/2012 09:53:28 pm

LOL, ha! Jo, that made me smile. Alice used to chase the birds away from the grapevines too! Thanks so much for popping in!

Karen link
23/3/2012 08:12:00 pm

Hey Lizzy, that reminds me I have a jar of preserved ginger in my pantry. I bought it to make Delia Smith's Ginger and Lemon cake but never got around to it. Must get onto that. Its really hard to find these days - like most things in the supermarket these days, unless they are a Coles or Woolworths home brand :-(

I love your peach and passionfruit jam. Looks divine. My mother used to make tomato and passionfruit jam when I was young.

Lizzy
24/3/2012 07:16:49 pm

Hello Karen, that is so true about product availability, isn't it! I love the Buderim Ginger products, so lovely! Thank you for your kind words. The jam is superb!


Comments are closed.

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    Üdvözölöm
    Photo of Liz Posmyk, Food Writer, Cook and Traveller

    ​Cooking and writing have been a lifelong passion.
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Good Things is written and published by Liz Posmyk © 2011-2020.   All rights reserved.
Excerpts may be used provided that full and clear credit is given. Thank you.


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