Autumn

Dear readers, I have been neglecting you.  I have been trying to finish this post for about a week.  I think this blog is becoming a "less is more" scenario.  We just seem to bounce from one busy week to the next, without a breather in between.  Since I was last here we have had a group visiting the garden...

This was the little stall of goodies we set up

been to Singapore to participate in a big food Expo with our lamb..

had school holidays and a houseful for Easter..

Flowers ready to go up to the bedrooms

There was food to be cooked and I did the usual staples, raspberry jam, pesto, chocolate ice cream and I poached quinces and made quiches.  We ate slow cooked lamb and a wing rib of beef with yorkshire puddings..

and had a lovely paddock picnic on Sunday, using our new barbeque plate..

Of course there were toasted marshmallows

and an Easter egg hunt,

long walks

and bowls of soup.

But that all seems like ages ago.  Since then there have been bonfires

and a lovely lunch with friends from Melbourne under the oak tree....

We had some beautiful lamb and some salads, one of which is an oldie but a goodie, and I was asked for the recipe.

BROWN RICE SALAD

I think I first saw this in a school fundraising cookbook and have seen it several times since.  There are a million variations, just use your imagination.

2 cups cooked brown rice

1 red capsicum, finely diced

1 cup currants

1/4 cup verjuice

1 cup cashews, toasted (or slivered almonds are good too)

1 cup sunflower seeds

A couple of handfuls of whichever fresh herbs you like (parsley, coriander and mint are good)

Dressing:

2/3 cup sunflower oil

2 tblsp soy sauce

3 tblsp lemon juice

The original recipe doesn't do this, but I soak the currants in the verjuice for about 15 minutes.

Combine all the ingredients in a large bowl.  Drain the currants and add the verjuice to the dressing, before mixing the dressing in with the salad.  Sprinkle a few herbs over the top.

Loving Spring

I have been trying to finish this post for a couple of weeks.  Although we have been at home for the holidays, there has been plenty of activity and the interruptions are continuous.  There has been golf and tennis, farm work and gardening, footy finals and shooting, rain and sunshine.  We have scrambled over the Grampians

and trampled over Mt Napier.

 There are lots of pretty things in the garden at the moment:

The Mme Alfred Carrier is the only rose flowering so far

I have been growing some giant rhubarb...

which was then cut up on a tray, drizzled with orange juice, a bit of orange zest, some brown sugar and roasted for 15 minutes before becoming a crumble with a few strawberries thrown in (recipe another day).

I made a really good chicken dish last week.  Rave reviews.  You must try this as it is sooo easy.

Preheat the oven to 200c.

Put as many chicken thighs (bone in) as you think you will need on a baking tray.  Halve enough new potatoes for everyone and scatter around the chicken.  I was able to dig up some from last year's potato crop in the old veggie garden.  

Place strips of proscuitto over the top of the chicken and dot about some unpeeled garlic cloves and sprigs of thyme.  Season with salt and pepper.  Put in the oven for 20 minutes.  I did this in the Roasting oven of the Aga which is very hot.

In the meantime in a small bowl mix 1 tblsp dijon mustard, the juice of 1/2 lemon and about 2/3 cup verjuice (you could use white wine).  After the 20 minutes take out the chicken and pour over the verjuice mixture.  Give it another 20 minutes until the chicken is golden and cooked through.