Tomato time....

It's the start of the full on influx of tomatoes.....I pick about 20 ripening tomatoes off the plants each day....so far have made passatta, have bottled some and made tomato sauce.....running out of ideas....will blanch, peel and freeze some today as the ones I have picked are ripe....been giving lots away...everyone loves to receive homegrown tomatoes.....as always growing things is amazing !!

Homemade organic toasted muesli ...

Had a bit of spare time so I made up my favourite organic toasted muesli.....just organic oats, organic coconut, organic nuts: almonds: macadamia: walnuts: pecans: hazelnuts: pumpkin seeds, macadamia oil and organic honey to coat, then toasted in the oven ........when cooled add chopped organic mixed fruit : apricots, apple: raisins: pear: sultanas: cranberries..............delicious for breakfast with bananas, mixed berries and organic yoghurt ....so nice I gave a jar to my girlfriend along with her birthday gift !

Everyday Composting

The need to reduce the amount of rubbish put into the bin and to make good fertilizer for the garden is helped along by composting.....I'm not a compost nazi, but I do put all vegie peels, tea bags, and other scraps (not cooked, meat or dairy etc.) into a bin in the house which is then transferred to the outdoor compost bins, which will be put into the garden beds when they have decomposed. .....I also have the worm farm which uses the kitchen scraps, tea bags, wet cardboard and especially avocado peels...the worms just love the avocado.......it is going along nicely now and producing plenty of worm tea which goes onto the vegie beds.....did go a bit sour for a while but used a handful of garden lime and this removed the smell......every little bit helps to save the environment and reduce landfill....

Very busy Saturday morning.....

Tomatoes dipped quickly into boiling water

Peeled skins off and placed in pot to cook till soft

Passed through a seive to make the Passata

Not bad for a mornings work !!

Wow, what a busy Saturday morning I had.....finally had enough ripe tomatoes to give the Passata making a go......very easy....only made two containers for the freezer but was a great practice for when I have heaps of ripe toms.......also baked a loaf of bread.....made a fruit cake from my Auntie Joyce's family recipe which has been handed down a few generations....used up zucchini overload by making muffins and zucchini soup....delicious soup,......recipe off the internet, added a bit of cooked bacon and croutons when serving...fantastic.......so great to make food from scratch...very new to this experience and absolutely enjoy the process....especially when some of the produce has been grown in my own garden.....amazing !!

My first mosaic ..

Along with creating a simple and sustainable life, the move to the hills was to persue all of the creative aspirations I harbour......along with writing and painting I am trying my hand at mosaic.......I have a vast empty space on the outside wall along the verandah and am working on a piece that will measure 1800 x 600.......I looked on the internet how to mosaic, planned a design and started....so far I am really enjoying it....quite medatative and a bit like doing a jigsaw...breaking up pieces and placing them to create a picture...a bit theraputic....I love having a permanent creative space in the house where I can work.....its magic.

Another beautiful summers day

The weather has been absolutely beautiful this past week....so great to get out into the garden and let the girls out to free range in the backyard.....they are so funny to watch...another of the girls has gone broody, but there will be no more fertilized eggs to pop under her ....been there and done that....not sure if the two 9 week old babies are girls or boys....they are starting to act a little agressive so I think they may be roosters.  This will be a problem......have to find them a new home if that is the case.  The Isa Browns don't seem to go clucky at all, but both of the light sussex go broody from time to time...they make great mums though.  The chicks are still nesting with mum at night even though they are pretty big now.  Hope she won't be too sad if I have to give them away.    The vegie garden is still proving very prolific......the tomato vines are almost touching the ground they are so laden and this morning I was happy to see that a new fruit is on the Qld blue pumpkin vine....it has a lot of catching up to do with the other two monsters that are already growing.

Will be adding another four raised garden beds this weekend....it is quite addictive........I just want to plant more and more crops and watch them grow......amazing.  My friends and family are reaping the rewards as the oversupply of goodies is making its way to them....I made the beginners mistake of planting all the seedlings at once instead of staggering the planting, so I have a plethora of produce all at once.....currently looking up recipes for preserving tomatoes.....have loads of them and will have a try at bottling them...as usual, have not done this before so will see how it goes...fingers crossed... next season I will stagger the planting and hopefully have a steady supply instead.

Writing Group

My Gumboots

I've recently joined the local community house writing group...a lovely bunch of creative people who have all come together to learn and hone their craft under the guidance of Marie...I've been trying to write for a long time but lack the confidence to share my writing....hopefully the class will help not only develop my skills but also encourage me to share what I write with a larger audience....fingers crossed.   First small assignment was to write about what you see when you look out of any window.....I looked out my studio window and saw the gumboots....so I wrote about that....not sure that I am ready to share it on this blog.....will get some feedback and then decide.......who know perhaps I will put it up here !!