Lemon Butter recipe.

After posting the Lemon Butter story today, I have had 2 requests for the recipe. (Thanks for asking Judy, and Jan)
So I thought another Blog would be the easiest way to do this, and if readers are not interested, well, skip this entry!

I am indebted to Nicole Cody, who posted her recipe on Google. I followed her instructions.

It is easiest to assemble all the ingredients BEFORE you start the cooking.

You will need     4 large eggs;            3/4 cup sugar (I use caster sugar);      
                       1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
                       grated zest of 1 lemon            125g butter, cut into cubes.

Cook it all in a basin over a saucepan of boiling water. Don't have the water boiling too frantically because the heat produced will curdle your lemon butter.
And likewise, if the boil is too slow, your lemon curd will be slow to form.


With this in mind proceed.

Put the eggs and sugar into the basin, and whisk over the boiling water until the sugar dissolves.

Then add the butter, and whisk until it is all amalgamated.

Now add the juice and zest, and continue whisking over a lower heat.
Don't let your mixture boil.
Keep whisking until the lemon butter is rich and silky, and will coat the back of a spoon. (This last whisking only took a few minutes for me, but can take up to 10 minutes)

Put into sterilised jars, and cool before putting the lids on.

Sunshine in a jar!   Looks terrific, and tastes fabulous. (Not an objective statement, but if you love Lemon Butter you'll understand)
Enjoy making your own, and let me know how it turns out.

The above amounts made two jars. So I repeated the procedure, for another two. Nicole's recipe states that you can double the mixture with excellent results. I may try that next time.

Lemon Butter (or Lemon Curd as some people call it)

It is ages since I wrote anything for my Blog....but really there are no excuses. Just lack of drive. Busyness. Doing other stuff.

But yesterday I made some Lemon Butter.
It was my first ever attempt at this. And it was so easy, and so satisfying (yes, I feel very very smug) that I had to Blog it. Just skiting, in other words!

Why had I never done it before? I am not sure, but this month I had absolutely no excuses not to make it.
The lemon tree has been laden with beautiful lemons.
The chooks have been laying well, and regularly.  The main ingredients were at hand.
No excuses!

 

Plenty of lemons, waiting to be picked.

I Googled for the recipe and found an excellent one, complete with photos of each step, which I used.
And it was all so easy. I was "fair amazed"
(Thanks to Nicole Cody, who posted her recipe last year)
So now I will post my photos.

All the ingredients necessary for mouth-watering Lemon Butter.

First step...whisking the sugar and eggs, over a water bath, until sugar is dissolved.

Next add the butter, lemon juice and lemon zest.

Whisk these ingredients until the mixture is creamy, and silky, and coats the back of a spoon. (It only took me a few minutes, but may take up to 10)

Aren't they beautiful?

After filling these 4 jars there was a little left over in the basin. I looked at it for about 10 seconds, wondering whether to store such a small amount in a small bowl.  No, I decided, why dirty another container? So then just indulged myself by licking the bowl. It was delicious. My mouth still waters, just recalling the taste of the lemon butter. 

Now that I can make lemon Butter, and it really is SO easy, I will making lots more...there are plenty of lemons left on the tree!

A few unexpected farm visitors.

In this last week or two we have had a few visits from some of the local wildlife.

First of all, it is snake season here on the Granite belt, and our reptilian inhabitants are more active this year than they have been for years.
We have Red-Bellied Black Snakes, ( Pseudechis porphyriacus) and Eastern Browns.  (Pseudonaja textilis)
I don't mind them, as long as they know their place.....which is out among the vines, or in the surrounding bush, but when they come close to the house I feel just a little nervous.
Can you blame me?



 

The snake's tail is in the foreground. The black irrigation hose is in the background.(just to save confusion)

This fellow was a large, and long, Red-Bellied Black, and I saw it out of the corner of my eye, as I was sitting at the table having coffee.
By the time I found my camera it had crawled away into the garden, and all I captured was its tail as it slithered across the black mat.
The encounter made me feel a little nervous.
Had any snakes crawled into the house? 
A quick check under all beds thankfully was negative. Much relief from me.




A few days later another Red-Bellied Black was sliding along our front verandah.
This time my camera was handy, and I went outside to photograph it.
I was not being brave.....it was a small snake, and most Red-Bellied Blacks are timid, and avoid humans when we are near them.

It saw me and reversed direction, heading away as fast as possible.

 So it turned around and went back the way it had come, finally crawling between the end of the boards and the wall.
We probably have a family of Red-Bellies living under our verandah floorboards.!!

Squeezing between the end of the boards, and a wall.

Two days ago my husband found a small bat  in the winery.
We think it flew in during the night, and could not find its way out again.
He wrapped it in an old shirt, and let it sleep the day away in a large bucket.
Not sure of its classification, but we think that it is a Queensland Blossom Bat.(Syconycteris australis)....a miniature blossom bat.

At dusk it became active.  You can see that it is very tiny.

At dusk it became active, crawling out from its safe place in the shirt, and stretching its wings.
Finally it flew off into the twilight.
It was very cute.....but we knew not to handle it.


And today we were surprised by 4 elegant black swans (Cygnus atratus) on our bottom dam.
They probably won't stay long, but they are so elegant.
Aren't they beautiful?

The water is so calm you can see their reflections.

Two of our 4 black swans + some ducks.

Over the last few weeks our bottom dam has become a home to a few types of water birds.
The 4 Black Swans are still there (even though there are only two in the above photo) plus some ducks.....you can see them behind the swans.

All our wildlife visits have been a bonus.........even the snakes!

(I wrote this blog a few weeks ago. 
Since writing it there have been developments in our visiting wildlife populations.
Yesterday the swans left...after three weeks with us. Yes, we were sorry to see them go, but as it is getting decidedly chilly here, maybe they flew off to warmer climes?  And an added bonus from the cooler weather is that the snakes will be hibernating, and I should not see any more around the house. That's a relief!)

The Annual Good Friday Activity at Ballandean.

Every Good Friday, our neighbours, Mario and Rosalie Costanzo, host the locals to a get-together, based around DIY pizzas.
Rosalie makes a huge amount of dough for the bases. 
Mario fires up the pizza oven.
Early arrivals help with the setting up of tents.

The locals have arrived.

Every guest arrives with their favourite pizza filling, plus wine, wine glasses, and chairs.

Everyone takes turns to make their pizza, which Mario then slides into the pizza oven, and cooks.
It doesn't take long to cook, and then it is cut into bite-sized pieces and distributed.
Easy.

The table where the dough is rolled. Our hostess, Rosalie casts an eye back to me!

One pizza prepared and ready for the oven, a second being rolled out. Wine is on the table behind this.

...and into the pizza oven.

The kids also enjoy participating in the preparation.

A pear and blue-cheese pizza coming up.

Our host Mario checking the next pizza.

...and now a new pizza-cooker! An apprentice.

The "apprentice" with Mario, who flours the pizza paddle.

Let's play in the water!

When bellies are full, and hunger is satisfied, there is fun to be had just mucking about on the rocks below the weir.

It is a wonderful time.
We all catch up on one another's comings and goings, drink some really good reds, eat some excellent pizzas.
At this very busy time of year, when most of us grape-growers and wine makers are flat strap picking, and fermenting, Good Friday, when all cellar doors are closed, is the time to relax, and enjoy one another's company.
All this with thanks to Mario and Rosalie.
A great day!

For Emma.....Fig Chutney recipe.

Just for you Emma.....and I am more than happy to pass it on.
And best of all.....it is so easy...easier than making Fig Jam.
So here goes....

The ingredients...

Here are the ingredients...and being the cook that you are, they can be varied to suit yourself.

850g of figs
150 ml balsamic vinegar
100 ml red wine vinegar
300 g brown sugar (it didn't make the above photo...not sure why)
1 lemon.....zest and juice
2 red onions   
2 teaspoon of mixed spice
10 g of fresh ginger OR 1 teaspoon of ground ginger
1 tablespoon of olive oil.
raisins.

 As you can see, I had no red onions, and also not having any nearby shops to dash to, I substituted white onions.  And I had to use ground ginger.


METHOD:

Quarter the figs.
Thinly slice the onions.

Fry the onion until lightly caramelised.
Add ALL other ingredients, EXCEPT the figs.
Season with Salt and Pepper.
Bring to the boil.
Simmer for 30 minutes.
Add figs, and cook for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Bottle while hot, and add lids.
Allow to cool.



The photos of the process are not very good Emma, but you get the idea!

Before adding the figs....smells delicious despite looking like this!

Figs added.

After cooking with the figs, for 15 minutes.

5 jars of fig chutney (& vineyard in background)

And it is delicious....we have already sampled it. Yum.

Fig Jam.....but please don't call me "Fig Jam"

Yes, I know. I know. It's an acronym for "F*** I'm good. Just ask me" 
So I hesitated, for weeks, truly, before I posted this blog, because I don't think I'm good.....I just enjoy making and eating fig jam.
And  we have 10 fig trees here on the farm (yes, we love figs).

One of our fig trees, with figs in various stages of ripeness.

Two varieties of figs....on their trees ready to be picked.  I have to get them before the birds do!

There is no way that all the crop can be eaten...either as is, straight from the tree,  or roasted with sugar and then enjoyed with yoghurt, or ice cream.

One picking, and ready for jam OR drying OR chutney.

So what to do?
I dry some.   Great as snacks.

These have been halved, and dried...takes about 24 hours. Ready to be packed away.

Or I halve fresh figs & then grill them, with sugar , to make a delicious dessert...eaten with cream or ice cream or yoghurt. Whatever takes your fancy.

I have made fig chutney.  Lovely.

Fig chutney coming up! Ingredients assembled.

And bottles and bottles and bottles of fig jam.
(Is your mouth watering?   Maybe you don't like figs......???)

During the season, which is now, ripe figs are picked practically every day.

For jam, all I do is weigh them, then chop them up, and place in a saucepan.
I add about 75% of their weight in sugar...equal parts figs and sugar is too sweet for us.

Figs cut, sugar added.

Then cook.
I don't add water or any sort of liquid to the pot. The figs make their own juice with the sugar.

Cooking away.       Ready to start testing to see if it's done.

Easy.
Or as Jamie Oliver would say, "easy peasy"

We now have enough bottles of fig jam to keep us happy until this time next year when the figs crop again.

All done and dusted. Another few bottles of fig jam.

And don't you love the way home-made jams and chutneys are in such a variety of bottles and jars?  Can you pick the ex-Vegemite jars from the bottles in the photo?    Yes, the yellow lids are a give-a-way aren't they?.     Waste not, want not, as I was told as a child.

And that's just one session of jam making.....I have many many bottles stored in the wine cellar for use over the next 12 months.

But please DON'T call me Fig Jam will you?

Our three orphans.

Yes, we have three orphans.
What mental images are you conjuring up? 
Certainly not humans.  And grape vines don't produce orphans.
It refers to our last hatching of chickens. (see Blog 23.12.12)





 

When the chicks were ONE day old. The mother is a White Sussex breed of chook.

 
The mother died. We found her dead about 10 days ago.  The hen and chickens had been let out of their safe cage for a few days before this, and were always back in the cage for the night.   
The photo below shows the complete family, when the chicks were about a week old.

One of their early days of "free-ranging". The mother is trying to shield her three chicks from me.

At sunset, on this particular day, the chickens came back to their cage, but there was no sign of mum. We searched, and found her dead, lying in the grass.
What killed her? All we can think of is that she ate something which was toxic, or was bitten by a snake.  We eliminated the idea of a predator, such as a fox, because she wasn't mutilated in any way at all.

So what to do with the chicks?
We found an old soft jumper, and rubbed it over the dead chook's feathers, then put the jumper into the nesting box, inside the "safe cage".   The pheromones must have worked because the three chicks climbed into the box, and snuggled down among the folds of the jumper.

At that time our nights were still cool to cold, with minima hovering about 10 degrees.   How to keep them warm? The chicks were still quite small, and we doubted their feathers would be enough. My husband rigged up a lightbulb which gave radiant heat to the nesting box.
It worked because now the chicks are about 4 weeks old, and thriving.

The three orphan chicks!  Note the light bulb for radiant heat.

They are let out of their cage every morning.
They go straight out onto the grass, where they scratch, and fossick, and disturb lots of insects, which have, presumably, been there for the night. The insects are grabbed in their beaks, and then eaten.

They're also learning to fly.
They can flap their little wings and get up onto a nearby bench seat to snaffle any left-over bird seed, which has been put out for small birds such as finches.

Their mother was a White Sussex hen, but the chicks are showing quite a smattering of black on their feathers, so we are thinking that maybe the Black Australorpe rooster was the father???  As the "orphans" mature we should have a better idea of their genetic background.

Although it looks as if 2 of the chicks are camera-shy, you can still the black feathers appearing.