The End of Winter

The End of Winter

It’s still quite shivery this morning as we welcome September 1st and prepare for the much longed for Spring.

You can see glimpses of it in budding berry canes, flowering fruit trees, and a shimmering green through the waving brown grasses in the fields. Chickens and geese are sitting on overflowing nests of eggs, and baby goats have found their sea legs and are galloping happily around the paddocks.

tiny white flowers

Veggies I planted months ago are now ready for harvest: beetroots, radishes, snow peas, sugar snap peas, kale, spinach, silverbeet, and lettuces. Blueberries are turning bluer, lilly pillies pinker, and I’ve even got a green tomato nearly two inches wide!!

heirloom beetroot

It’s such an invigorating time of year and I feel a surge of excitement as I make plans and start projects.

I’ve been taking time each day to linger over tea with my journal, jotting down hopes and ideas, scribbling lists, and giving myself a few moments to celebrate each little thing that is completed. I love those quiet moments of reflection that settle my frazzled self and help me focus on the important stuff with a peaceful heart.

Today I’m spending the whole day between my gardens and my office, getting things ready for this new season.

Yesterday I planted broccoli, cabbages, and a rogue tomato that popped up in my strawberry bed, and now I need to get them all mulched so they’re protected from the coming heat. There are potatoes to be planted, all sorts of seeds put in trays,  fruit trees sprayed and mulched, and seedlings transplanted. I do love getting out there in the sunshine, digging in the dirt, giving everything a good drink.

Over the winter my office became a catch all for myriad projects and is in dire need of a clear out and spruce up. I’m excited to get everything sorted and organized so my creative space is a haven again.

heirloom beets

Now it’s time to finish my last sip of coffee, bundle up against the morning chill, and go feed all the animals, collect eggs, and get the next load of laundry on the line.

What is your favorite part about the change of seasons? xo

Finding the Good On A Wobbly Day

Finding the Good On A Wobbly Day

Sometimes life goes a bit wobbly. The last couple of weeks have been difficult ones with my body reacting badly to a redback spider bite followed by a virus and then migraines. Good grief. I looked at Bear this morning as we relived the gong show that has been our life recently and laughed, saying, “You just can’t make this stuff up!”

Thankfully, all is not dreadful. We have twelve baby goats toddling about our farm, and it is not possible to stay discouraged with their cute little selves making us smile.

We had luscious rain this weekend and all my gardens are thriving. Even in the middle of winter we’re harvesting radishes and tomatoes, lilly pillies and blueberries, rocket and fresh herbs.

The last couple of days have been especially painful for me, but today I perked up a bit and decided to make the most of it by baking and cooking. I made a huge pot of chili, dark chocolate brownies, and two loaves of spelt bread. It smells marvelous in here, and it’s a relief to know that even if I get sick again, we’ll have good food to nourish us and keep us going.

spelt bread

This afternoon I was able to get out for a little walk with Luna. It was glorious. Such wondrous skies and rain-washed air and excited greetings from all the dogs as we strolled around the farm.

Allora sunset

Even when life is hard, I feel so lucky to live in this beautiful place with my Bear and our menagerie.

sunset in Allora

What keeps you going through wobbly days? xo

Winter Flowers and Spelt Crepes with Whipped Goat’s Cheese

Winter Flowers and Spelt Crepes with Whipped Goat’s Cheese

It’s a lovely cozy Friday night at home, rain falling on the roof, potato leek soup for dinner, last of the chocolate cake for dessert.

We had new friends visit this morning and it was so great to natter away like old friends as we perused gardens and orchards and swooned over the 8 baby goats tottering around so cutely.

After cuppas and promises to get together again soon, we waved good-bye and Bear and I headed outside to check on the newborns and feed the dogs. Then Bear disappeared into the shed for another medieval project and I got Luna and went for a wander through my gardens.

One of my favorite things about living in Queensland is that there’s always something blooming no matter how cold it gets, no matter how wild the weather.

Like these delicate rocket blossoms.

rocket blossom

And these oh-so-cheery calendula flowers brightening up these dark winter days we’ve been having.

calendula flowers

The rosemary is flowering and the tomatoes in my greenhouse, and this week my peas started blooming. Against all odds they’ve survived the frosts and bitterly cold winds and are tall and strong.

pea blossoms

I wanted comfort food today, warming soup, hot buttered toast, and a stack of spelt crepes.

We love spelt flour in our house, and I’ve been experimenting for months to see how it works in rolls, bread, pancakes, scones, and cookies. Today I used it in crepes and we are smitten. With crispy edges and beautifully browned centers, they tasted so good stuffed with whipped goat’s cheese and drizzled with strawberry chilli sauce made by my friend Jackie from Frog and Swallow Cafe.

spelt crepes

We had them again tonight with our soup, this time stuffed with roasted chicken, more whipped goat’s cheese, and sweet chili sauce. Scrumptious.

spelt crepes with goat cheese

What is your favorite filling for crepes? xo

Spelt Crepes

Ingredients:

2 cups milk or coconut milk
1 tablespoon brown sugar sugar
1/4 teaspoon Celtic sea salt
3 tablespoons butter, melted
1 cup spelt flour
1/4 cup white flour
3 duck eggs

Directions:

1. Place all ingredients in medium bowl, beat until smooth.
2. Cover and set on counter for 2-3 hours.
3. Heat griddle to medium-high heat, grease with vegetable oil or butter.
4. With 1/2 cup measuring cup, scoop batter into center of griddle, tilting pan so batter forms thin circle.
5. Cook until bubbles form on top, flip and cook another 30 seconds. Remove to platter and repeat until all batter is used.

Whipped Goat Cheese

Ingredients:

1/2 cup soft goat cheese
2 Tbsp milk

Directions:

1. Place cheese and milk in small bowl (if cheese isn’t soft, warm slightly until it softens) and beat together until smooth and fluffy.
2. Spoon 1 Tbsp of whipped goat cheese down middle of each crepe, fold in half, and roll up like a cigar.
3. Drizzle with syrup of your choice.

Resting and Baby Goats

Resting and Baby Goats

It’s been rather quiet around here as I continue to recover from the spider bite I received last week. After further research of symptoms we learned it was almost certainly a redback, and that I’m one of the “1 in 5 people” who get the full body symptoms – nausea, fever, aches, and exhaustion. It’s been hard, but I’m trying to just accept what is and look for ways to thrive in it. Farm life doesn’t stop for spider bites, so I’ve been trucking along with lots of breaks for naps and rests.

Today I set up a stool in the meadow so I could keep an eye on the goats while they grazed. Although the fields looked brown and dry without anything to eat, close to the ground was a veritable feast of green clover, herbs, weeds, and grasses that goats love. It did my heart good to see that Spring is indeed just around the corner.

clover in a field

It was so nice to be outside instead of huddled in bed shivering from cold and fever. The sunshine filtering down was lusciously warm and the fresh air wonderful. Wrapped up in Bear’s flannel jacket I spent a happy couple of hours reading “wild” by Cheryl Strayed as the goats wandered about noshing on the green undergrowth. (Nothing quite like reading about someone else’s miseries to make your own more bearable. :-))

Apollo, one of our Maremma dogs, kept coming up for cuddles, nosing under my book and wriggling into my lap before bounding off to bark protectively at “dangerous” trucks and horses across the road.

After a good lunch and long rest, I bundled up again and went out to the goat yard to see how our babies were doing. I found this fellow newly born, snoozing contentedly in the sunshine. I don’t know where he got his light coloring, but he sure is cuddly and cute.

baby goat sleeping

The two sets of twins born over the weekend are doing well, learning to jump and always finding the sunniest spot to curl up for their naps. I can’t get enough of their cuteness.

baby kalahari red

Now it’s time for me to head to bed. Tomorrow is going to be a big day as we spend it in our orchards pruning trees, harvesting the last of our citrus, and planning where to plant our cider trees that arrived last week. I love their names – Improved Foxwhelp, Brown Snout, and Tremlett’s Bitter – and can’t wait for them to start producing well in a couple of years.

What project are you looking forward to tackling this week? xo

Preparing for Winter and a Maple Fig Cobbler

Preparing for Winter and a Maple Fig Cobbler

With great delight we welcomed the cooler temperatures of Autumn this weekend. I can’t tell you how lovely it is to not need a fan blowing on me all day just to keep going. I’m a happy camper.

With the decrease in temperature came an increase of energy, and I’ve been working hard putting up all sorts of fruits and veggies for the cold winter months.

Our markets are currently full to bursting with inexpensive boxes of ripe tomatoes, fat apples, and oh-so-juicy pears, and Bear and I happily load them into our car each week to be turned into delicious things.

slow roasted tomatoes

This weekend I made trays of roasted tomatoes and pureed them into scrumptious tomato sauce that is now frozen and ready for winter pasta dishes and hearty soups.

I hauled out all three dehydrators and have kept them humming as they dry stacks of tomatoes, apples, and pears. The dried tomatoes will be packed in jars with capers and garlic then covered with olive oil. The apples and pears are for snacking now and to be used in dried fruit pies and puddings down the road.

I also did a lot of baking, two dozen whole grain sunflower seed flat bread rolls and a loaf of sunflower seed bread.

Mmm, it smells so good in here.

sunflower seed bread rolls

I ended the baking, cooking, preserving frenzy by making a quick and easy Maple Fig Cobbler using up the last of the figs I picked with my friend Katy a couple of months ago. They’ve been waiting in the freezer for a just right recipe, and this was it. The hearty whole grain cobbled crust was a wonderful accompaniment to the melt in your mouth fig filling. It was a delicious way to end a busy day.

Maple Fig Cobbler

What is your favorite part about the season you are in? xo

Maple Fig Cobbler

Ingredients:

10-12 fresh figs, washed and quartered
2 Tbsp butter
2 Tbsp real maple syrup
1.5 cups whole wheat flour
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/3 cup butter
1/2 cup milk
1 tsp maple extract

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375 F (200 C).
2. In large saucepan over medium-high heat, melt 2 Tbsp butter and add fresh figs. Drizzle with maple syrup and simmer until sauce forms from the butter, syrup, and fig juices. Pour into pie plate.
3. In medium bowl stir together flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Using fingers, work in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
4. Add milk and maple extract, stir with fork until soft dough forms. Will be quite wet.
5. Using a tsp or your fingers, cover fig mixture with dollops of dough to create cobbled surface.
6. Bake for 20-25 minutes until crust is golden and fig mixture bubbling.
7. Serve warm or chilled.