Friday 1 February 2019

In My Kitchen - February 2019

So, we're all back to it, then?  Work, school, real life ...  And blogging :-)  I hope you all had a lovely break and festive season.  We did, even though it has been one of the hottest summers on record.  The air con has been working overtime, and our water tank is only 1/3 full.  Bats are falling dead out of the trees, and feral horses are dying in the outback due to the heat and lack of water.  Sad days indeed.  And there are bushfires down south too ...    

I told you I'd have a lot to show you this month, and I do.  These things accrued over a couple of months just FYI :-)  Here we go:




a fair bit of mustard


Every summer I make a batch of sun-dried tomato and basil mustard for Mr P.  He is a big fan, and loves to smother his lunchtime sangers (sandwiches) in it.  I'm more of a sweet mustard pickle gal myself.  Oddly I've never made pickles so I must give that a try one of these days.  I learned to enjoy mustard while travelling in Britain years ago, where we would buy Marks & Spencer's (the department store) ham sandwiches, which came with a liberal dose of dark brown mustard.




my annual delivery of bio-dynamic garlic 


Also every summer, I rush to buy a box of Patrice Newell's garlic, as it is snapped up quickly by restaurateurs and canny cooks from all over the country.  I divvy up the cloves, and freeze them, skin and all for the rest of the year, hopefully.  Sometimes I run out!



as per the label


And I make mango chutney every Christmas break too.  I recently discovered frozen 100% mango chunks at the stores so I often use them when I'm in a hurry.  I know, I know, it's crazy when fresh mangoes are around, but it is so quick and easy ... sorry to all the purists out there :-)  



my new sauerkraut crock


Our friend Miss B. made this for me.  She forgot to glaze and fire the weights so I'm still waiting on those before I can make some sauerkraut.  Plus I think Winter is probably a better time to make and eat it anyway.




a Christmas gift


Haven't tried this one yet but looking forward to it.  I think it would be marvellous on bacon.  We were in Yosemite National Park one time, and not able to get dinner due to not having evening wear with us (in a National Park!  Those crazy Americans!), so breakfast the next day was a most marvellous, fabulous thing. Overlooking the redwood trees, we ate lashings of bacon and eggs and maple syrup.  The best ever!  I have been a huge fan of the combo ever since.




my homemade Irish Cream liqueur

I always make this at Christmas, giving away a bottle if I'm feeling generous.  It is very rich and moreish.  And absolutely has to be made with Irish whiskey.  I've tried others and it's just not the same.



dare I say?  yes another wooden spoon  


This is a little sweetie I bought over the Christmas break, up in the hinterland of the Sunshine Coast when visiting friends who were staying up there.  Yep, it had to come home with me.




another cookbook (and a Snow Gromit in the background) 


There are lots of fab recipes in this book.  I've never been much of a Donna Hay fan, but there looks to be many interesting recipes to try ... so hang onto your horses, you will be seeing some luscious bakes soon on the blog.


And last but definitely not least:  here is my great-niece Lolly, all dressed-up appropriately in her lolly-strewn costume for her recent first birthday party.  I call this her Frida Kahlo look:-)  She's sitting here on her granddad's knee, delighting in a cherry tomato.  What is she thinking? :-)  Tomatoes - eek!




the great, the magnificent Lolly

Permission kindly granted by her mum (my niece) for this photo to go out into the IMK world.


I won't overload you with more stuff this month, my friends.  But please feel free to join in with your IMK post too.  Everyone is welcome!  Here's how to add your post to the IMK link:


1. Adding via the link button at the bottom of this post.  Instructions can be found on the sidebar of this page,   under Add your IMK link

2. Comment on this post, providing a link to your post so I can add it to the linky list below   (with your email address, please)

3. Email me: sherrym1au@gmail.com, with your link or any  queries about the link
 process  




   

    An InLinkz Link-up
   


   



                      

Sherrys Pickings

46 comments:

  1. Hi Sherry -- You can't imagine how many news stories this week have pointed out that while Australia, as you say, is burning up with a heat wave, we have a huge abnormal invasion of the Arctic air mass, creating havoc throughout a wide swath of America. It was -13ºF when I got up, has warmed up to -10. Just spent an hour or so trying to thaw frozen pipes --- while you are suffering from bats falling out of trees and other indignities of heat.

    I'm going to see about making mango chutney from frozen mango! I never seem to catch the fresh mango season at the right moment for chutney; obviously we have no mango trees as they aren't even frost tolerant, much less resistant to this winter.

    best... mae at maefood.blogspot.com

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    1. hi Mae
      isn't it weird to think how we have opposite weather patterns atm? and so intense. yes it is very sad that lots of birds and animals are suffering and dying. and just awful for the farmers. i have a mango chutney recipe on the blog if you need one btw:) keep warm! cheers sherry x

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    2. HI Sherry,
      I just compared your mango chutney recipe with mine. There are several differences that probably affect the flavor. In particular, my recipe uses Chinese chili-garlic past for the chili heat, as well as cardamom, candied ginger, and allspice. Also, all my chutney recipes use brown sugar which makes it richer. (I don't know if you have the same type of brown sugar we have -- they do not usually have it in England or France.)

      URL for my recipe: https://maefood.blogspot.com/2008/08/chutney-recipes.html

      best... mae

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    3. thanks Mae. always interesting to see how other people make a similar dish. i also have a nectarine chutney recipe on the blog, and i tend to use that one but with the mangoes.. cheers S

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  2. The sun-dried tomato and basil mustard sounds very interesting! I didn't even know that mustard comes in flavors. Evening wear in a national park - that is crazy. I thought it was all about camping, hiking, shorts, and flip flops. Such an adorable little niece :)

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    1. thanks kelly - for dropping by and for the comment re my gorgeous great-niece. yes you can get all sorts of different mustards - i happen to like it grainy and herby as does hubby. cheers sherry

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  3. Lolly is a real cutie. And I had no idea about the horses and bats-that's terrible! :o It has been such a hot January.

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    1. oh thanks lorraine. she is a darling. i know it's so tragic about all the dead and dying animals both domestic and wild and farmed.....

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  4. Love reading your blog Sherry - always makes me smile though not the bit about the extreme weather and the animals - and people!

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    1. Hi M
      Thanks heaps for dropping by and your kind words xx

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  5. The weather around the world is bizarre. Extremes everywhere. I look forward to seeing the weights for your sauerkraut jar too, its a lovely gift by the way. Lolly is a sweetie and the outfit is pretty sweet too. I quite like Donna Hay, so will look out for the book at the library and sundried tomato mustard has me interested, please do share how to make this at home - would be appreciated. Look forward to joining in IMK in the next few days

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    1. hi shaheen
      my mustard recipe is on the blog. just type into the search button. hope to see your IMK post soon:) cheers S

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  6. Love what's in your kitchen this month. I'm very jealous of your 'kraut crock - what a talented friend you have. I also love all your homemade preserves and personalised labels. I think your mustard sounds very interesting... I love mustards myself, but I seem to be alone in that with the rest of the family turning up their noses (their loss!)

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    1. hi lisa
      yes she is a very clever potter! hubby makes the labels for me so i am very lucky. check out my mustard recipe on the blog! cheers sherry

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  7. I love mustard but have never made it from scratch. Not sure why – just haven't gotten around to it. Love the crock. I need some weights for my own but am working on sourcing some. I love Donna and use three of her books all the time but suspect that many of the recipes in yours are just tweaked or re-styled version of the ones I already have. She rarely lets me down.

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    1. i don't know why i haven't gelled with donna hay yet. maybe this book ... thanks for joining in this month. cheers sherry

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  8. Ooo...can you share the recipe for the mustard? It sounds amazing. I've only ever made one Donna Hay recipe and that's the pavlova she made on MasterChef and it is stunning. Lolly is such a cutie! and thanks as always for hosting. =)

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    1. thanks jen, great to have you here in IMK land. the mustard recipe is on the blog. just type it in on the search button. Yes i have to say Lolly is a real cutie.:) cheers sherry

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  9. I want that mustard recipe, please! :)

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    1. hi debra
      it's on my blog from a few years ago. just type in mustard in the search button! cheers sherry

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  10. HI Sherry, I commented the day I added my link, it seems to be MIA. I hadn't had a response so thought maybe I'd check here. I have this trouble with Mae's posts all the time. I'll try again. I haven't connected with DH either, just something don't appeal to me, I really should just try one recipe. My lighter received the Modern Baking book for Xmas and I swear I added 2kg from just looking at the pics.

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    1. hi sandra
      yes blogger eats up comments i reckon! goodness knows what will happen now that google+ is disappearing. i hope it won't affect the blog. yes what is it about her? i mean her recipes look ok but she just doesn't appeal to me at all. and on her latest tv show which i watched for a few minutes, she looked weird. facelift?:) cheers sherry

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    2. To Sandra, It's terrible that your comments are being eaten-- I have not seen them when moderating comments, so I have no idea what's happening, and no idea what to do. They aren't going to spam, either.

      Blogger is only grudgingly supported by google; they don't fix bugs much. I desperately hope they don't discontinue it as they are discontinuing G+

      sorry! from mae at maefood.blogspot.com

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    3. I’m getting a bit panicky about google+ going. I got an email from them saying make sure you have everything copied as they will be deleting it all soon! Eek!

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  11. Your grand-niece is gorgeous! What a cute outfit. I would love to try your Irish whiskey. And the Christmas decoration is so cute! For some reason I have a lot of maple syrup in my pantry. Must make some maple bacon xx

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    1. hi charlie
      how absolutely wonderful to see you here! yes she is a cutie in her lolly dress too. i like the idea of maple bacon jam. i must make that one day. cheers sherry

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  12. All your preserving is so impressive - I must check out your mustard recipe! And while I am not a fan of mangoes I like the chutney but saw a mention of nectarine chutney which appeals even more. I worry about preserves in this hot weather. Though Victoria hasn't had it so bad as other parts of australia (doesn't stop the bushfires) - the floods in Queensland sounds awful too. And how cute is lolly in that outfit and the snow gromit too! Have put up my IMK

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    1. hi johanna
      lovely to see you here. i tend to use the nectarine chutney recipe with the mangoes. it's a bit quicker than the mango one. I always keep my preserves in the fridge downstairs. it's QLD so everything goes into the fridge:) yep Lolly is a doll! thanks so much for joining in. cheers sherry

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  13. What fun! Love your mustard, and the Irish cream!!! Oh, and the mango chutney, frozen or not!

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    1. hi mimi
      yes i think it is sensible to use the frozen fruit at times. it is after all just 100% fruit!. thanks for dropping by. cheers sherry

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  14. Lolly is magnificent in her Frida outfit!

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  15. Love the sound of the sun-dried tomato and basil mustard! And your wooden spoon had to come home with you of course :)

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    1. Hi tandy
      Yep me and wooden spoons 🥄. I can’t resist. Thanks for joining in this month!

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  16. Sherry, I just added my link (thank you!) but I still have a hard time absorbing how "opposite" your piece of the planet is from mine. Currently it's 29F (-1C) and we don't usually get that "cold this time of year, but it is what it is. Your descriptions of how the HEAT has affected you (and the livestock) there made an impression on me. Hope you're safe & well. Loved your post, photos of your personalized gifts, and your adorable niece! Thanks again for hostessing IMK!

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    1. Thanks so much kim Glad you could join in this month. Yes it is hard to fathom the different weather we are all having around the globe. Hard times for many especially the farmers. Have a great month. Cheers sherry xx

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  17. Hi Sherry, you have great looking mango chutneys there, and the Sauerkraut pot is so cute!

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    1. Thanks veg hog! Great to have you here. Cheers sherry

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  18. Love the mustard and the chutney. I have the Donna Hay book too and love it.

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    1. thanks for dropping by, cakelaw. i must get stuck into that book soon! cheers sherry

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  19. Sherry, the sauerkraut pot is wonderful... love it. And, you can never have enough wooden spoons. Might think of getting the Donna Hay baking cookbook... I do love her style :)

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    1. Hi moya
      Thanks for joining in this month. Yes i do love my sauerkraut crock. So pretty I think.

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  20. So many lovely things in your kitchen this month - sorry it's taken me so long to come here and comment. I did post earlier - http://goodfoodweek.com.au/2019/02/life-whats-in-my-kitchen-16/

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    1. hi Shari
      how marvellous to have you here. I will check your post and add it a bit later!:) hope your month is going well. cheers S x

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