The mysteries of life…and water kefir

Life is replete with mysteries. They make conversations rich and adventures possible. Mysteries get me up in the mornings, and they soothe me to sleep at night. Right now, one of the world’s little mysteries is bubbling and fizzing away quietly on my bench top: water kefir, on its second fermentation. It’s a mystery because […]

Cauliflower and broccoli: rediscovered

What are your early memories of eating cauliflower or broccoli? My most vivid memory is at my grandparent’s house. Actually, the memory is replicated with each set of grandparents, maternal and paternal. As you wish, you may picture either house – the one heaving with cozy family love matched by Central Queensland humidity or the other, one of the […]

"In Sydney, the forest speaks Polish at Easter"

…and Diego Bonetto listens. Last weekend, I had the privilege of participating in an edible weeds walk on the Cooks River. Led by Diego, about fifteen of us spent an enthralled couple of hours discovering some of the culinary and medicinal gems that typically just disappear below our shoes. Some of these weeds are comfortable […]

Cooking through abundance: a few sweet ways with lemon myrtle

Here is a recipe for anyone who has more lemon myrtle than they can keep up with! You can only drink so much tea, right? Lemon Myrtle Syrup Cake Ingredients Syrup (start the night before): Four generous handfuls of fresh or dried lemon myrtle leaves 2 cups raw sugar (could use honey) 1 lemon Biscuit […]

Showered with love

Last Saturday it rained at moy pocket. At the family farm we hosted around twenty intrepid land for wildlife enthusiasts who were there to explore the astounding bush regeneration project that my parents, especially my tireless mama, have devoted themselves to ever since we moved to the clapped out ex-dairy subdivision in the early 1980s. […]

Getting practical

In the summer of 2010/2011 I made a pact with myself to get better at things. Practical things. You see, my home state was 75% underwater, and I was hard-pressed to garner any practical skills to help out with the recovery mission. I’m never going to be a bobcat driver or a carpenter, so I made a list of other useful […]