Baking bikkies

I have been baking biscuits tonight to take to work tomorrow for a birthday party.

As always when such occasions arise I pull out my trusty 1977 Australian Women's Weekly Biscuit and Slice cookbook.

I must admit for years I have actually been cooking the same one or two recipes but lately I have been lashing out. Apart from my old favourites: vanilla biscuits which are perfect for choc chip cookies or jam drops and to die for florentines, I have recently tried two slices:  raspberry/coconut and passionfruit.

Tonight I made orange coconut biscuits, rolled in sugar before baking. Oh yum! I wish I could convey to you the smell as they came out of the oven. They cook in 10-15 minutes so they were quick too.

I have parcelled up a box for my work and a few for my husband's work too.  Hope you have a great week!

Chickens finding themselves at home

Its been a cool, wet summer. So much so that nature seems to be saying, give up on summer and lets get on with autumn instead.

We had sunshine over the weekend so the chookies got to spend lots of time outside. They love scratching around in the garden.

They dash around so fast that its really hard to take photos of them. I have a growing collection of blurred photos.  So here's the best of them so you can meet my girls at last.

 This is Scarlett. She's the most shy. We have red soil here so like the pale cows and Border Collies who live around here her white bits are starting to look a little rusty.

 Kate in front with Scully behind.

 This photo of Scully is shockingly blurred but I think it works. The hens do a little scratch dance. Step forward, scratch scratch, step back, peck peck, step forward.... I will try to make a film of them.

Here's a better one, she's honing in on a worm.
The girls are delightful. They make lovely soft noises. They're funny but soothing to watch.

And they give us eggs for brekkie. Good girls!

And now another storm is breaking. The thunder is upsetting the dogs and I can hear rain pounding on the roof. Luckily its not too long to bed, I do love listening to good heavy rain. Sleep tight

Making bunting

I spent a day making bunting with a good friend this week. After an excursion to the fabric store we came home with ecru gingham and palest mauve linen with hydrangeas.

We stitched the flags uncut in a long line.

 After cutting out and turning we laid the flags out - we chose to leave a small gap in between and alternated the fabric.

 Sewing on the bias binding.

 The finished flags. So pretty.

This was our first try at bunting. It is easy if a little fiddly. Sad to see so many makers selling their work for so little though - this takes a lot of materials and a fair bit of time. Great result and so worthwhile. I want to see creative work valued. At least these flags will be well loved.

Home made tomato pasta sauce

Tonight I'm making and bottling tomato sauce, using my Fowlers-Vacola preserving kit.

It has been a success I think. This is the first time I have used this recipe. 2 kilos of tomatoes and 1 kilo of apples made 4 jars of sauce. It is quite time consuming and very messy but I'm glad I did it.

I will make another, double, batch over the next few weeks.

First I chopped up the tomatoes, put them in a large saucepan with chopped onions, herbs and garlic.

 The recipe calls for a Fowlers-Vacola product called saucesetta. I tried the co-op where I buy my jars, lids and seals. No luck. I tried online cooking supply shops. No luck. I discovered some forums where people weree discussing what was in it - was it a thickening agent or spices? Not a lot of help

So I emailed Fowlers-Vacola. I got a very prompt and helpful reply. So here it is, the defintive answer.

"We deleted Saucesetta from our range approx 6 years ago, you may like to use a blend of cinnamon, garlic, cloves, allspice, salt, ground mustard seeds and nutmeg in equal qtys."

Then I added apple, sugar, salt and vinegar, brought it all to the boil, then down to simmer.

 I pureed the sauce but left it chunky. Here are the bottles with their rings, lids and clips in place.

 The bottles stay in the preserving kit for an hour, so I'll be up for a bit longer tonight.

In truth I have had the ingredients for almost a week but have been too busy to make the sauce. I came home from work tonight and almost talked myself out of making it. You know how it goes, I was tired, hungry.  I knew it would take a while. I am really glad I persevered though. I have a wonderful sense of accomplishment for a Monday night!

Speaking of accomplishments I am about to reach blog post number 100! So I think its about time I made some updates, announced my blog plans for 2012 AND hosted a give away.

So please stay tuned.

Rainy days

We have only had one or two sunny days this summer. When there has been a brief break in the weather we had spectacular skies.

Goats milk soap

I have made two batches of goats mik and olive oil soap this week.  I have made this for my Mum. She, and I, have dry sensitive skin and this soap is gentle and moisturising. I hope it works for her skin.

One of the greatest advantages of making your own soap, like cooking, is knowing exactly what is in it. I read the ingredients on soap and wonder what on earth most of them are. To make soap you need two ingredients only: fat (animal or vegetable) and lye, other wise known as caustic soda (or draino).  People are often shocked to hear lye is in soap but its a fundamental ingredient. The fat and lye react and make soap. After being mixed and let cure for 4-6 weeks the combination is no longer toxic but pure soap.

 This recipe uses vegetable shortening, olive oil, sunflower oil, goats milk and lye. So simple, so pure. Ok I would never use pure olive oil for cooking, only ever extra virgin olive oil in this house but according to the recipe book some of the stuff in the poorer quality oils actually aids the soap making.

 The goats milk and lye reacts to a shocking orange colour. This mix is highly caustic so be careful!

 Add the lye solution to the melted vegetable oils (I only make vegetarian soaps) and mix to trace which is when it starts to solidify and look like custard. Sadly not good eating!

Poor into molds quickly. It can get hard to work with more quickly than you would believe. This recipe goes to trace faster than any other basic recipe I've tried. Sometimes you can stir for hours but not with this one.

I always leave my soap to cure for 6 weeks, with sensitive skin I don't take a risk on 4 weeks being enough. I can wait a little longer. Soap hardens within a day or two so really the way you know it isn't ready is that it tingles and burns when you use it. Better to wait I say and enjoy your lovely soap at its best.  I record the date I make it. I always think I'll remember, but I never do!

My favourite soap book is listed under my Books I'm reading page. I have taught soap making and its great fun.

Trials and tribulations of keeping chickens

I have committed mistake no 1. Ok, I hear you say, mistakes where bound to happen. This is the first time I've had chickens to look after. So how bad can it really be you ask?

I almost starved my hens to death!

Tragedy averted now I hope. Its been really wet here for over a week but I have diligently gone down to the bottom of the garden twice a day and fed and watered my three hens.

As instructed when I bought them, I have been giving them layer mash and scratch mix. They didn't seem to like layer mash. I gave them fresh stuff but they didn't eat much. I gave them scratch mix - I tossed it down on the straw in the bottom of their coop and they scratched away merrily.

All good so far.

Today, one week after I brought them home, I cleaned out their straw and replaced it.

That
is
when
I
realised....

We raised the coop off the ground a little so the timber wouldn't rot.  There is heavy mesh on the bottom to fox proof it.

But, the feed had fallen/been pushed through the straw, through the mesh and underneath.

Too
low
for
them
to
reach
and
eat!

So today I have changed the system. I have put a plastic box lid under the feed tray to catch any stray food. Temporary measure, I'll do something better when I find something that fits well in the coop. I have mixed warm water and milk powder into their mash and they have eaten it all up. And I have given them some spinach leaves from the garden.

Phew!

What a fright that gave me. So I will be more careful now.

Poor little girls, this is supposed to be a chicken holiday club not a boot camp.

Now I vow to make it the ritz!!