Leek and Potato Soup- ELC #8

Posted on September 25, 2014 by cityhippyfarmgirl

I’m not going to fancy this one up. There’s no verjuice, cream of, foam, quinoa or chia in there. It hasn’t been slow roasted, caramelised or reduced. It also waves a sugar, gluten, dairy free flag and that’s because it uses super fresh grown with love farmer fresh produce.

It’s Leek and Potato Soup.

Like I said, no fancy pants here. Leeks, potato, a half head of cauliflower for added good measure and water. Cook that all up until soft, blitz it with a hand held blender and delicately drop a little thyme from the kitchen window sill on the top. Add some of my favourite salt and dinner… is done.

Where did it all come from?

Potatoes- Naturally Grown Naturally Better, Crookwell, 240km

Leeks- Rita’s Farm, Kemps Creek, 50km

Cauliflower- Rita’s Farm, Kemps Creek, 50km

Thyme- my windowsill

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Have you checked out Give a Fork yet, run by Sustainable Table? You should, you definitely should. They are running a compaign during the month of October on #wastefree meals.

“Share a #wastefree meal with mates during the month of October and raise awareness and funds to help build a food system that is good for the environment, fair on Aussie farmers, ethical and healthy.”

Interested in taking the Eat Local Challenge?

Just how local is local? Well this depends entirely on you. Only you know how you and your family eat. Raise the bar just a little from what you already do. If making sure the majority of your meal includes solely food produced in your country, than make that your challenge. If you want to make it a little trickier, go for produced in the same state…trickier still within 160km.

My aim is to really know where my food is coming from for at least one meal a month, (where I will be posting here in the last week of the month).

Eat Local Challenge #7

Eat Local Challenge #6

Eat Local Challenge #5

Eat Local Challenge #4

Eat Local Challenge #3

Eat Local Challenge #2

Eat Local Challenge #1

Simple Living, Weekday Markets, Calendars, and Questions!… The Green Noticeboard

Posted on September 18, 2014 by cityhippyfarmgirl

Simple Living- a selfish joy. Loved reading this post from Tricia at Little Eco Footprints. It prompted a wonderful dinner time discussion at our place on what was important to us all. Weekday Farmers Markets, with Milkwood- the benefits of running a shorter shopping window during the week and why we should be utilising it. (I’d love to know whether you have a weekday market in your area and whether you use it.) Have you thought about next years calendar? Permaculture Principles has a wonderful one they put out each year. I’ve just bought some, (they have big squares to write in, oh yes they do.) And for something different, I’m over at the delightfully lovely, super duper green-Ecolosophy and answering some very important questions. Questions that involve- community, food, kitchens and what on earth I did to get on Death Row!?

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I quite often come across links that I find interesting, full of things I should know about and sometimes just down right fascinating.

Feel free to link any of your own green links in the comments. Let’s build this community green noticeboard board.

the green noticeboard || cityhippyfarmgirl

just a little bread and jam

Posted on August 21, 2014 by cityhippyfarmgirl

Jam in summer, marmalade in winter. That’s how it seems to roll around these parts. A steady supply of preserved seasons to go with the endless sourdough that seems to drift out of my oven. It’s a simple pleasure that never ever gets old.

What have you been preserving lately?

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For something a little different, have a peak at ABC’s Organic Gardener magazine- feeling pretty happy to be squeezed in between the lovely likes of fermentation king Sandor Katz and Kate of Foxs Lane.

Chocolate, Community and Choices

Posted on August 10, 2014 by cityhippyfarmgirl

I’ll let you in on a little secret. This place here, is my number one place to eat out. It doesn’t happen often, actually hardly at all really, but when it does…oh it’s bliss. Sheer bliss.

While this blog is not about food reviewing (and never will be) I can’t help but want to stand on my pedestal and shout…”you really should go there!”

Once in that blue moon period when I do go out, I want to go somewhere that holds similar beliefs to me. Going somewhere where the selling points of a dish are “Salmon from Alaska, oranges from Malta, cheese from Turkey and wine to wash it all down with from Italy”. Nope, it just doesn’t cut it for me, I’m seriously not interested. Tell me the bacon is from a small scale farmer a few hours away, the milk is from the outskirts of Sydney, the eggs are organic and the plated greens were grown three metres away in the small backyard. Now that’s going to make me sit up and pay attention.

Also add to it being some of the best tasting food I’ve ever tasted and I will be scrambling for any opportunity to get a table again.

Now when time ticks by and life gets in the way, their cookbook will be tiding me over. The pages talk of how they started, seasonal eating, not wasting anything and community– all topics of which I’ll happily devour every page, (which is includes this rather tasty Chocolate Beetroot Brownie.)

beetroot brownie || cityhippyfarmgirl

Coming back for a moment, to that wonderful C word that I love so much- community. It’s important to me here in blogland. It’s important to me in ‘real life’ and is also one of the big things that has struck me every time I’ve been lucky enough to eat there. (And it really is a privilege to eat out , for anyone!) Community is something that really seems to jump out at you, even just walking down the street. You can tell that this is a close knit area that really looks out for each other, (which also includes famed sourdough legend, Iggy’s just a few doors down.)

Living in a big city, if you are lucky enough to be in the position of choosing to go out for a meal, then considering where your dollar is going just makes sense. It makes wonderful sense. Combine a little chocolate and community in with those choices and you have yourself a pretty great combination I think.

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Tell me, what are some of your favourite community minded places (or books) to eat or hang out at?

St Albans

Posted on August 7, 2014 by cityhippyfarmgirl

Sometimes living in the big smoke gets a little bit too much for me. A ticket out is needed, and some cleaner air needs to be inhaled in. A particularly sunny Sunday at the end of July was going to be just the day to do it.

St Albans was calling. It was an area we had never explored and seemed to be the perfect spot to go for a day trip. Packing three excitable kids in the car and not much else, we headed off.

Turns out it was the perfect spot to go. It was so lovely, I already want to go back. St Albans boasts the historic Settlers Arms Inn, a lovely sandy river bank to play on, no mobile coverage (this is a good thing) and an abundance of leafy green trees to wander around. It also has a kumquat tree laden with ripened fruit, a lovely lady that owns an equally lovely camel, great pub food for when you get peckish around lunch time and the best collection of letter boxes I’ve seen in a long time.

Time stood still. Wonderful lunch was eaten. Clean air was inhaled and I’m very grateful for St Albans being on the map.

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If you are planning a day trip out of Sydney, I highly recommend it, and if you are looking for accommodation in the area, how ridiculously awesome does this place look?

If you have never seen a camel laughing, please scroll to the bottom…this lovely long lashed camel thought my kids jokes were HILarious.

Pumpkin and Jerusalem Artichoke Soup- ELC #6

Posted on July 31, 2014 by cityhippyfarmgirl

On a weekend out of the city recently, there was talk of visiting a local farmers market. I quite like talk like that, even if I’m the one who initiates the talk (ahem).

So to market we went. Buying up on some lovely locally grown organic vegetables, a succulent for $2, and a chopping board. Now I’d been on the look out for a little board quite awhile now. Time was passing, calendar pages were changing their years and still, I hadn’t found quite the ‘right’ board. I knew they were easy enough to make, but I just didn’t have access to any decent wood.

Then I came across ‘The Man at the Markets’, a man who who knew his chopping boards, and every tiny piece of the different woods behind them. After a general chit chat about the weather and the local area, we started talking about the boards he had for sale. Giving each one a run down on the type of wood it was and how to look after them, and what I was going to do with it.

It was this little one that caught my eye though, asking him about it, it turns out it was from an old skirting board from an equally old house just a short distance away from the markets. You can still see the nail holes if you look closely.

It seems I had found my board. It was locally made, recycled, looked good and seemed to fit pretty well with the pumpkin soup I had planned to serve with it. (What type of wood it is, I’m embarrassed to say I have no idea. The man did tell me, but it seems I forgot as soon as I stepped out of the market area….lovely wood I think it’s called now.)

Where is my food coming from?

Pumpkin- Red Bank, Eurobodalla

Jerusalem Artichoke- (Crave Natural, Apple Tree Flat)

Creme Fraiche- (Pepe Saya, Sydney)

Interested in taking the challenge?

My aim is to really know where my food is coming from for at least one meal a month, (where I will be posting here in the last week of the month).

Eat Local Challenge #5

Eat Local Challenge #4

Eat Local Challenge #3

Eat Local Challenge #2

Eat Local Challenge #1

Carrot Top Pesto -ELC #5

Posted on June 25, 2014 by cityhippyfarmgirl

The day I found out I could eat the tops of carrots was a bit of an exciting one.

“You can eat them!” I cried.

“Excellent.” He said, in a less than thinking it really was excellent, voice.

I pushed that lack of enthusiasm to the side as I was carrying more than enough excitability for this one to carry us both. Carrot tops eh? Who knew, actually it turns out lots of people knew, and I was just a bit slow on the uptake. So that’s why they quite often sell bunches of carrots with the tops still on… I just thought they were trying to keep the carrots looking au natural.

What would I make with them? How would they taste? And would I get it by the rest of the family?

Carrot Top Pesto

Bunch of carrot tops, washed and finally chopped.

A couple of cloves of garlic

Juice of a lemon

Enough olive oil to get a good pesto like consistency.

Pop it all into a hand held mixer, and pulse.

With Carrot Top Pesto made, what was I going to eat with it? I had some potatoes that were whispering to be popped into the oven with some rosemary, and that looked like it could be it. Too simple? Surprisingly no. Mr Chocolate drizzled his with some Pukara balsamic vinegar, (which gave it an extra zing) and not a murmur of objection was to be heard about the ‘different’ pesto.

The following day I had more of the potatoes and pesto together, leaving out the snow pea shoots, (which just quietly I feel are a bit of a chore to eat.) Delicious, seriously delicious. I kept taking another bite just to makes sure. Armed with an empty bowl and green speckled lips, I decided that yes, carrot top pesto was indeed a winner.

A local, frugal, seasonal winner.

How about you? Have you made any food discoveries lately? Ever made carrot top pesto? Do you think snow pea shoots are a bit of chore to eat as well?

Where did my food come from?

Carrots- Rita’s Farm, Kemps Creek 50km

Sebago Potato- Naturally Grown, Naturally Better, Crookwell 240km

Snow Pea Shoots- Lin’s Organics, Londonderry 60km

Rosemary- My courtyard

Lemon- My parents in law’s backyard

Interested in taking the challenge?

My aim is to really know where my food is coming from for at least one meal a month, (where I will be posting here in the last week of the month).

Eat Local Challenge #4

Eat Local Challenge #3

Eat Local Challenge #2

Eat Local Challenge #1

Cauliflower Curry- Frugal Friday

Posted on June 20, 2014 by cityhippyfarmgirl

The good thing about having a blog is that you can see how you have changed over time. Looking back on your words, thoughts, photos and certainly for me, my recipes. Sometimes I feel those recipes need a little shake up.

Now come winter time, this dish (or a variation of it) often turns up on our dinner table. It’s easy, it’s seasonal, it’s super frugal and it deserved a better picture than this one from three years ago.

easy cauliflower curry recipe || cityhippyfarmgirl

Cauliflower Curry

1/2 a large head of cauliflower

3 potatoes

3 sticks of celery

6 cloves of garlic

1 finely chopped onion

1 tsp coriander

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp turmeric

1 tsp curry powder ( a bit old school, but I like it)

400mls coconut milk

Dry fry the spices, onion, garlic (fresh chilli if you are feeling bold) and celery in a little vegetable oil. When they smell delicious, add the coconut milk. Let it simmer for a bit and then add your potatoes and cauliflower. Pop the lid of the pot on and cook it until they are as soft as you like.

city puddles

Posted on June 18, 2014 by cityhippyfarmgirl

The lure of the city puddle.

Completely pointless in keeping her out of them.

last swim

Posted on June 12, 2014 by cityhippyfarmgirl

Six months ago, I had promised myself I would swim on the first weekend of winter.

This year, I wanted to know when my last swim would be. Not for the season to have simply just stopped and trickled away. I also wanted a challenge. I wanted it to be dark and cold. As that’s what swimming in winter should be like, shouldn’t it?

The clouds were dark, the water was coolish, and every stroke of that first weekend in winter swim was divine. But now that I had made it to the first weekend of winter, maybe I should push it a little further? Second month of winter?

Or, should I just keep going though out the year? No more chickening out because the water is a bit cool for my delicate constitution. (Perhaps I could be one day brave enough for this?)

While the water was certainly cooler than last time I had been in, it wasn’t as cool as I thought it would be. 21C isn’t exactly arctic waters.

The outside air temperature was also cooler than the sea temp, but only recently so. This month just gone by was abnormally warm, not just here in Sydney but across a fair chunk of Australia.

Is what we have to look forward to in our future?

While some people rejoice in that they get to wear their summer clothing almost all year long, this kind of weather scares the hell out of me.

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Climate Council- Abnormal Autumn

Plants confused by extra warm autumn

First Light

Posted on June 1, 2014 by cityhippyfarmgirl

If I was starting another blog from scratch again, I think I would name it something watery like “Webbed Feet”….well, maybe not that one. Maybe, “The Old Sea Dog”. A blog entirely made up of photos and stories from the sea. A tiny corner to put my salty thoughts, and damp wonderings.

In lieu of having another blog entirely dedicated for my love of the ocean, I do get to sooth my cool water needs with some posts within here and reading this beautiful magazine– Great Ocean Quarterly.

If there is a part of you that yearns for the ocean, a desire for sand beneath toes, rocks by your side and a secret tiny longing for a merpersons tail, than this the magazine for you.*

It’s divine. Every. Single. Page.

There is no other magazine like it.

For the blog readers here, who are also salty people of the sea. This link is for you. A peek into how the article First Light was done in the magazines first edition.

Magic. Pure salty tinged magic.

* I get nothing for mentioning this beautiful magazine, except for the knowledge, that I’ve passed on to someone else who also likes the feeling of dipping their toes into the salty wet good stuff.

That’s just not vegetarian- ELC #4

Posted on May 28, 2014 by cityhippyfarmgirl

You’ll probably never find me getting nostaligic over a medium rare steak. It’s unlikely I’ll be looking forward to a dinner of sticky ribs. And just quietly I think roasted lamb tastes like a shearing shed. Meals round these parts are mostly vegetarian, and I like that.

However, just occasionally I feel like something, just a little something on the meatier side- heavily doused in a heady aroma of spices mind you.

Now goat isn’t my normal choice, but I’d made a curry before from it and had really liked the results. My slight, ever so slight issue with making a curry was local spices. Yes, there really wasn’t any. Could I get enough of a curry like taste from the fresh ginger, garlic and turmeric?*

Yes, I could. Combined with the roasted tomatoes and capsicums- which had intensified their flavours in the oven, it really was quite flavourful. The lime gave an added zing to it, and I quietly high-fived myself for keeping it all local, while still making a curry.

One thing that did come about from cooking this dish was my absolute respect for the ancient spice trade. No wonder they were traded like gold. (A new found respect for moderately sized spice rack too.)

*Next time I also know where to source some local curry leaves.

Goat Curry

700g chopped goat leg

(Booma Boers, Dorrigo)

finger of tumeric