My father, András, was a barber for most of his life. Thinking back it all seems so deliciously vintage now, if you understand my meaning. He wore a crisp white jacket and there was a red and white striped post out the front of his barber shop, Budapest Hairdresser. Leather and chrome swivel chairs took pride of place on the chequerboard black and white linoleum tiles, and mirrors lined the walls. On the bench tops, thin black combs sat in tall glass canisters filled with a mild solution of disinfectant. I can still remember the smell. Rolls of delicate white paper towelling sat alongside jewel-shaped plastic spritz bottles filled with water, together with soft-bristled wooden-handled brushes, electric clippers, brown rubber squeeze gadgets containing talcum powder, and rows of scissors and cut-throat razors which were tucked neatly into a cloth pouch. Working from home and doing what she could to help, my mother sewed stylish capes from black and white patterned fabric especially for the shop. In the 1960s, my older sister, Judy, worked alongside my father, as his apprentice, and actually she was the first female barber in Canberra. It was quite an achievement for the time and dad was ever so proud. I can remember that the story made it into a couple of the local newspapers! As a very young man, dad had trained as an apprentice in Austria, working with a kindly older mester (master). He often told me stories about how he'd made a living riding a rickety bicycle from Budaörs in Pest, to and from farms in the nearby countryside; bartering haircuts for chickens, eggs, milk, vegetables and even handmade shoes. Having migrated to Australia following the Hungarian uprising, dad quickly found work, initially picking grapes in Mildura and then he was employed in a barbershop called Lucio’s in East Row, Canberra City. It was1957, when Canberra was truly a mere slip of a town, despite being the nation’s capital. Later, having established a dozen thriving grape vines (and numerous fruit trees, ducks and chickens) in our back garden, dad bartered ute-loads of Isabella grapes with his friends, for vegetables and, yes, the occasional flagon of wine! Now I’ve veered off the track here, because the original inspiration for this snippet (no pun intended) was that I had promised to barter some home-grown cauliflower with a colleague who had shared with me perfect black figs from his garden. To my disappointment, the cauliflower seedlings I planted some months ago produced only masses of foliage… until recently, that is. Peeking through the green leaves are tightly bunched heads of pure white snowballs. How delightful! I had so lovingly prepared the beds, digging in plenty of well-rotted compost and worms; and have carefully pulled the larger leaves over to cover the cauliflower heads, securing them with bands cut from old rubber gloves. This helps to keep the florets shielded from the elements, and clean and white. The plants are coming along, so I should be able to honour my barter and reap the benefits in my kitchen as well. I love to barter, don't you? Home grown cauliflower is sometimes less than beautiful in appearance when compared to store bought, but the delicate taste is something else. It’s lovely in soups and curries, salads, tempura and puree. We enjoy the low fat “No-tatoes” way of cooking, based on steamed, pureed cauliflower mixed with soft cream cheese. Cauliflower cheese also makes a regular appearance on the dinner table at The Blue House, and I prefer this gluten free, less cheesy, lower fat version. My dear friend, Diana, gave me the recipe a long time ago. GLUTEN FREE CAULIFLOWER CHEESE 1 x small cauliflower, cut into florets 1 heaped tablespoon butter 1 tablespoon maize cornflour 1 cup low fat milk ½ cup grated low fat cheese, perhaps more 1/3 cup rice crumbs Place the cauliflower florets into a shallow microwave and oven safe dish (ceramic or glass is ideal). Sprinkle the cauliflower with one or two tablespoons of water, cover the dish with cling wrap and microwave the cauliflower for 5-7 minutes until it is just tender. Meanwhile, make a white sauce. Melt the butter in a small saucepan, add the cornflour and stir briefly over low heat, then stir in the milk with a whisk, making sure you break any clumps. Cook over gentle heat until the sauce thickens. Add the juices from the steamed cauliflower to the saucepan, stir through and then pour the sauce over the cauliflower. Sprinkle with the grated cheese and rice crumbs, then place under a hot grill for a few minutes until the cheese and crumb topping is nicely browned. Serves 4-6. My father, the gentleman barber... circa 1930s with the Mester...1960s, Canberra, Australia...1980s, Malua Bay... Fresh from the archives. This was another of the very first recipes to appear on Good Things. It's such a cracker of recipe, and features regularly on the menu at The Blue House. I do hope you won't mind me sharing it again now. I'd like to dedicate this post to my father, the gentleman barber who liked to be known as André the Great xox
Now tell me, dear readers, do you enjoy bartering? Who do you barter with and what goods do you exchange? And have you ever had a hair cut in an old fashioned barber shop?
Ester Wimborne
25/9/2011 09:35:33 pm
Dear Canberra foodies
Lizzy
19/7/2014 05:23:43 pm
Vale dear Ester... I have just realised how long we knew each other. You are so deeply missed by your beloved family and your many, many friends. xox
Lizzy (Good Things
25/9/2011 10:30:14 pm
Ester, thank you. I love that Country Dairy Stall at the Capital Region Farmer's Market. So yummy! 19/5/2014 01:21:54 pm
Hi Liz! Great recipe... we're thinking that we could definitely paleofy this one! :) Looks delish!
Lizzy
19/7/2014 01:04:27 pm
Hi Emma and Carla... paleofy... how interesting.
There were a few times I wished I could have got my hair cut at a barber shop - men's haircuts there were way cheaper than women's hairdressers!
Lizzy
19/7/2014 01:05:08 pm
Wow Andrea! Actually I cut my own hair for about 20 years too... my father bought me some scissors years ago. It is a money saver! 19/7/2014 12:34:44 pm
Your father's shop reminds me so much of the one I went to when I was a child (and had hair). It is so perfect that you show it in black and white, because my memories almost seem black and white, too. It's a lovely story, and the cheese looks great, too! Thanks, Liz!
Lizzy
19/7/2014 01:09:32 pm
Thanks David... I will try and share a couple more photos when I can find them! : )
Eha
19/7/2014 03:08:59 pm
Oh, Liz, that photo of your father in the barbershop is just so beautiful: may I say, so typically European. I DO remember barbershops . . . . of my own hair styling - after almost daily professional attention for decades, I have cut my own long straight hair for decades [oops! needs doing!!] - no problem: a quarter of an hour over the bathroom basin and I am happy :) ! Looks fine!!!!
Lizzy
19/7/2014 05:24:37 pm
Ah Eha, I can understand that... I did cut my own (short) hair for 20 years! You might enjoy the other photographs of my father that I have now added to the post xox
Eha
19/7/2014 05:35:31 pm
Just have and how!!!!!!! SO worthwhile returning after lunch!!!!! Our precious papas had to manage here at about the same age . . . your darling Dad at least he had a calling he could follow: mine with army/law did not . . . God bless!
Lizzy
19/7/2014 05:40:05 pm
And you too Eha : )
Lizzy
19/7/2014 05:30:01 pm
Francesca, thank you... rice crumbs are 100% natural crumbs made from rice... you can buy them in health food stores and supermarkets. I love their nutty texture and flavour. 19/7/2014 05:53:59 pm
Nice vintage photos! It's always great to reminisce and be proud of what our dads did. Thanks for sharing!
Lizzy
22/7/2014 10:22:54 pm
Julie, thank you for your very kind words xo 19/7/2014 06:39:44 pm
This is such a beautiful post Lizzy, a really touching tribute to your father - I loved reading his story. And the cauliflower cheese - a big favourite in our house, I'll be trying this recipe soon xx
Lizzy
22/7/2014 10:23:20 pm
Mrs M, thank you, that is so very kind... I know this is the kind of post you find so inspiring. Enjoy xo
Lizzy
22/7/2014 10:23:39 pm
And it's gluten free, Bec! : ) 20/7/2014 12:32:55 am
What a lovely family history. I loved the photos and the stories. Thank you for sharing.
Lizzy
22/7/2014 10:23:48 pm
Thank you so much! : ) 20/7/2014 12:58:49 am
I love those old photos! And bartering well...I don't grow much so I don't have much to barter really. I'm not so good at her. Also not so good with barbering too :P
Lizzy
22/7/2014 10:24:03 pm
Ha, Lorraine : ) 20/7/2014 12:09:04 pm
Really fun pictures of your father! And lovely cauliflower recipe. I've never grown it myself, but have bought it at farmer's markets. You're right, fresh, locally grown is so good.
Lizzy
22/7/2014 10:24:26 pm
John, you should taste home grown, it is sooooooooo good! Thanks for your kind words! 20/7/2014 03:10:18 pm
i love it when you go 'off topic" - i love reading about your parents and family life, such vivid stories lizzy.
Lizzy
22/7/2014 10:24:58 pm
It's well worth growing them, Elizabeth, though they do attract those cabbage moths. Thank you for your very kind words!
Lizzy
22/7/2014 10:25:16 pm
Rosa, thank you, I'm glad you enjoyed the photos and the recipe too. 20/7/2014 11:12:33 pm
What a lovely memory you have shared with us, and a great recipe. I was also amazed when my cauliflower started showing, and they taste to much nicer than any store bought one could ever taste :)
Lizzy
22/7/2014 10:25:38 pm
Tandy, thanks so much.... they sure do, don't they.... and thank you for your kind words! 20/7/2014 11:46:56 pm
My grandfather too was a barber. An old-fashioned one with the stripy pole, the glass jars of disinfecting black combs, the clacking tile floors and the pile of girly mags hidden from view. I never met him as he died when my mother was 12 but his barber shop carried on with only a nod to modernisation. There was no bartering as far as I am aware. But my grandmother did make cauliflower cheese. Probably a gooey one with all of the usual suspects. I like your take, Liz. But I don't know what rice crumbs are.
Lizzy
22/7/2014 10:26:46 pm
Hi Kellie, fancy that! My father had no girlie magazines... but he did have all the other trimmings of a traditional barber shop. Rice crumbs... I'm surprised you don't know... I wonder if you can source them in your part of the world... they are 100% rice crumbs... great swap for breadcrumbs. 21/7/2014 01:35:16 am
Lovely pictures and great memories. i dont think Ive ever tried home grown broccoli
Lizzy
22/7/2014 10:27:04 pm
Thanks Tania... it's cauliflower, not broccoli : ) 21/7/2014 07:47:56 am
What a fabulous post! I don't think I've ever even set foot in a barber's shop, but I remember being fascinated as a child by the colorful spiral barber's pole outside the shop in my hometown.
Lizzy
22/7/2014 10:27:26 pm
Mary Frances, you are so very kind, thank you! 21/7/2014 10:57:57 am
What a lovely trip down memory lane, I love that your father was the Gentleman Barber — it must have been that generation. I remember my Mom telling me a story of my dear Father, a true gentleman, having bought his first leisure suit in the late 1950's early 1960's for a BBQ they were invited to, still a full suit but not his traditional suit. He almost made it out the door wearing his new 'suit' but turned on his heals back into the house to put on a decent suit.
Lizzy
22/7/2014 10:28:02 pm
Hi Eva... isn't it wonderful that men of our father's era wore suits! Yes, cauliflower grows here in winter. 21/7/2014 11:40:35 am
I love reading stories about your family, Liz. :-) My Hungarian friends also immigrated to Australia after the uprising. I'm so glad your Dad and my friends made it out safely.
Lizzy
22/7/2014 10:28:15 pm
Krista, thank you so much, me too : )
Lizzy
22/7/2014 10:28:38 pm
Maureen, thank you for your very kind words... I so love sharing these old stories too xo 21/7/2014 08:31:00 pm
Love the pics of your dad Liz. I really enjoy reading posts that included someones personal stories. Great recipe too, Ive never grown cauliflower, but the stuff from the shops at the mo is amazing. Made some absolutely delish feeds. :) I have never tried bartering, so don't know if I am any good & yes to the old school cut in a barber shop, I grew up in a tiny country town and it was there or drive 3 hours. :)
Lizzy
22/7/2014 10:29:03 pm
Wow, how nice that you have those memories, Anna : ) 22/7/2014 08:50:59 pm
I must have missed this one in amongst the emails but enjoyed reading it and the photos. That's how I make cauliflower cheese ie: bechamel sauce based on cornflour with a sprinkle of cheese over the top so I just assumed everyone did the same. It seems not. I have half a head in the fridge at the moment but as we've already had it as a bake, I think I'll make a soup.
Lizzy
22/7/2014 10:29:51 pm
Hi Fiona... no, many make their cauliflower cheese really fatty and creamy and cheesy... whereas this is a more delicate and wonderful tasting version... try it with the rice crumbs too, you will be pleasantly surprised! Comments are closed.
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Welcome...Üdvözölöm
Cooking and writing have been a lifelong passion. Join me as I share with you my favourite recipes; postcards and morsels from my travels; conversations with cookery writers and chefs; and news on food, cookbooks and cooking. - Liz Posmyk
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NB: I use Australian standard measuring cups and spoons in my recipes.
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