Dried Fig Jam

Five times so far this month I have purchased  Fresh Strawberries in the hope of making up a nice big Yummy batch of Strawberry Jam,  an absolute favourite in this house.  Five times this month they have been eaten before I have even thought about reaching into the  cupboard for my preserving pan!

With no Jam left in the fridge, no strawberries left in the basket and me needing to fill a desire to preserve, I remembered the dried figs sitting at the back of the cupboard. So, Dried Fig Jam it is then!! 

Dried Fig Jam Recipe

Not the childrens favourite on hot buttered toast but It does go down quite nicely served as an after dinner treat with a slices of ripe Brie and  fresh Pear . . . 

Getting into the Quince of things....

With  all the pictures of fresh Quinces growing, Quince picking and Quince cooking splashed across some of my favourite southern blogs, you can imagine how excited I was when I got my hands on some of these at my local market, it was a straight ahead trip into the Kitchen to play...

On the Menu: QUINCE PASTE

How much fun was this to make!

Peel, Core and Chop up about 1 and 1/2 kg of Quince

add 1/2 cup of Water, bring to the boil then simmer for approx 1/2 an hour until the quince becomes soft and tender.  Then blend the mixture until smooth and mushy. 

Add 800gm of Sugar and stir on a low heat until sugar is dissolved.  Reduce heat to very low and cook for approx 4 - 5 hours. I used a simmer mat to keep a more consistent low heat and reduce the chance of my paste burning, it's also a good idea to use a heavy based pan. 

 Keep stirring occasionally. I was prepping up some other preserves in the kitchen at this time so I managed to keep a good eye on it and stirred about every 15 minutes or so...

it was very interesting to see it slowly change colour

 there is  apparently a scientific acid/pigment/chemical reason for this, but I am not going to go into that today . . .

and finally about  4 - 5 hours later you get this

A nice and thick paste that leaves the side of the pan and is a rich ruby red in colour.

Pour it into some greased molds and let sit for about 6 hours or until set.

I have always had a love of quince paste with a nice Brie or Camembert . . . usually it's one of Maggie's, but

this weekend when I head off to celebrate my Mothers 70th Birthday,  we will be enjoying a local Witches Falls Merlot,

 a nice King Island Brie and Gooseberry Jam Quince Paste!

Would you like cheese with that?

 

I found this Really Cool Cheese Grater recently at an Antique store, I don't usually buy from Antique stores as I much prefer the thrill of the bargain when I find something old and junky or old and useful, at markets or second hand stores. . . but when I saw this I just had to have it. I have a thing for cheese graters, I have several of them on display in my kitchen and plenty more stashed away for the day when my kitchen might just magically double in size!!!   I have noticed with my purchases of kitchen collections over the years just exactly why some utensils have become extinct and I have found others to be very practical indeed.  This is one of them. Best grater I have ever used.  It attaches to the bench like an old meat mincer, and works on the same concept. Turn the handle and out come grated cheese...no more grating off the edges of my fingers which I have done on many occasions in an attempt to grate large heavy chunks of cheddar.

 

  

 Tonight it was Pizza on the menu.
 Homemade pizza dough of course...

Voila!!!   Pepperoni Pizza!!! with stacks of cheese!!!

The result...

 Thick Creamy Curds

with Texture and Flavour...

and Colour...

and the Whey tastes like buttermilk....

Dear Santa,  Pleeeease can I have a Cow for Christmas :)

Farm Fresh

Milk....

I still dream about having a Milking Cow, a  little milking shed down the back by the chooks....

But in the meantime I have a  friend who has a friend who has a dairy....and I got 10 litres delivered today. 
Yum!  

My mother was raised on a dairy farm. I'm sure my mother  would probably rather forget having to get up at 5am to milk the cows, (then peddle 20 km on her bike to school) then have to do it all again in the afternoon...you know the story......

It was this farm that has given me some of the most  cherished and memorable moments of my childhood.  By the time my cousins and I started hanging out on the farm in the school holidays, my grandfather had passed away, and the days of the working dairy were long gone, however we were still lucky enough to have my Nana, and Fresh Milk from a couple of house cows that my uncle milked. We had fresh (sometimes even still warm) milk on our cereal for breakfast, and when we were thirsty we poured ourselves a glass of cold milk...I remember Nana saying "make sure you shake it up first" as the cream would sit on the top. That was my favourite part, I never did shake that bottle.

Its been nice to sit here, drink my glass of milk and take a long pleasurable walk back down memory lane....

Hubby tells me he was also raised on fresh milk, growing up on a remote property in New South Wales, it either had to be farm fresh or powdered...He is such a big strong man now!

Now, back to work...in the time I have taken to write this post, myself and the kids have already guzzled down 2 litres! So, that leaves me with 2 litres more to drink tomorrow and 6 litres to make my cheese, just enough.  I have heard that the cheese made with raw milk adds an extra depth and flavour, so this I soon shall see....

Fetta days are betta days

I've been experimenting with cheese making for a few months now...It is so simple and easy and I can't believe I never discovered this years ago...  SO much fun and SO yum...My fetta is a huge hit in the house and I have to say I am addicted.  It's hard to open the fridge and not have a little nibble. I have not yet shared this delight with many people as it gets eaten all too quickly around here, everyone is a fan, even little miss mads who does not go a day with out a slice on her plate.  I could spend a few extra hours here writing about the whole process and uploading photo's or I could head into the kitchen and get started on my next batch right now and I'll send you here for the recipe

My last batch I marinated in garden fresh herbs, lemon peel and fresh extra virgin olive oil from my brother in laws olive grove.  Just realised I need to make a new batch of this one!  I think I have little hands in the house helping themselves.....