From Garden to Table and the Images in Between

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

2011-12-22T15:38:00.001+11:00

Hi Everyone,

I know I haven't been very active for a while. But, I just wanted to wish you all a very merry christmas and a happy new year.

I thought I'd better do it today, in case I don't get a chance over the next few days.

All the best and I look forward to sharing my blog and yours in 2012.

Deb xxx

Featherdale Wildlife Park - School Excursion

2011-10-26T21:16:00.001+11:00

The Fairy and I had the best day today. It was her first school excursion and I went along as a "Helper Mum". We went to Featherdale Wildlife Park at Doonside, near Bankstown, Sydney. The kids are studying Australian Animals at school at the moment so it was a great day out.

I had four kids in my team and they were fantastic. I can't complain one bit. I had a really nice group and we all had a ball. Here is a sneak peak of some of my pics from the day.

Australian Dingo

Tawny Frogmouth

Turtle

Chocolate Lollipop Cupcakes

2011-09-28T21:12:00.001+10:00

Smilie Chocolate Lollipop Cupcakes and the Fairy's teapot.
She had to make rainbow ones, white chocolate ones and milk choc ones.
We have all types. lol

The Fairy is going to her best friends for the day tomorrow, so we decided that she should take something for morning and afternoon tea.

And its Chocolate Lollipop Cupcakes!

Just a little bit of fun.

They're definitely not to the standard of the amazing MrsKT of Taylor Made Baking, but we try. And this lot were very much a family effort.

This morning I decided that I was really going to need a bit of help, to finish off the lollipops, make the cupcakes and decorate. So, as I got the Fairy ready to go to her Nan and Pop's today I also packed all the ingredients for the cupcakes. That way they would be ready for decorating when I got home.

Unfortunatley, Nanny Till and the Fairy had a bit of bad luck with the oven today; the first batch didn't rise and the second batch did but a little bit lopsided.

Mmmmmmm, but they still taste good.

So, we carried on regardless. And as you can see, they have a homemade, lopsided charm about them, lol. Somehow, I don't think the Fairy, her friend and his brother and sister will care what they look like. Afterall, cupcakes and chocky lollipops - that's a definite winner!

Some of you may remember that the Fairy and I like making chocolate lollipops for our decorations. This is the Dark and White Chocolate Torte that we made for a party on Australia Day. It was delish!

Party Girls

2011-09-25T18:24:00.000+10:00

Yesterday two of my favourite girls were partying. My darling little Fairy, who is an absolute social butterfly, was going to her fourth, six year old birthday party this month. She's had one every Saturday. And my dear sister Ez from Life..... Style'n was back home on a Hen's Night or actually Day/Night. They were doing a country pub crawl.

So anyway, we were able to catch up with Ez at our village pub before the Fairy went to her party. Here are the two of them together, dressed up in their party gear. Ez's do was fancy dress - psycadellic 60's-70's, hence the wig and slightly hippy costume.

Project Orange

2011-09-14T22:36:00.000+10:00

Welcome to my new series

Project Orange

I haven't really focused on a theme before in my photography. I usually just snap away at whatever I see that interests me, when I get the opportunity. And afterwards, I also enjoy the challenge of finding new ways to present an image through post processing.

However, yesterday as I was looking through my archive of images and my orange dahlias jumped out at me with all of their vivid vibrancy and I found myself thinking, "why not focus on the colour orange". I also remembered that my little sister Ez from Life....Stylen likes the colour orange and so I was inspired even more to develop a theme around the colour orange.

Tonight I have been developing a gallery for Project Orange on my RedBubble Site Deborah McGrath Photography and as I was doing a little general housework to the site I discovered that I already have a variety of Orange images showcasing a variety of subjects from fabulous flowers to bold King Parrots and even some rusty old ringlok.

I home you like my new series. These and many more images are available for sale at Deborah McGrath Photography. Click on the images or links to my RB site if you would like to see more.

Cheers
Deborah.

Vanilla Slice Recipe

2011-09-12T21:35:00.000+10:00

Hi Girls,

This is one of my absolute favourite recipes. Its sooooo simple, the hardest thing about it is stirring the custard until it is thick, smooth and glossy.

This recipe is a true winner. I've made it for home and for work and every time I get complimented on it. Everyone loves good old fashioned Custard Slice.

I have even decorated it with pink icing and used a gel pen to write a colleagues name on it, put candles in it and used it for a birthday cake. She loved Custard Slice so I made her one.

Anyway here is the recipe.

Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking: 15 minutes

Preheat the oven to 220 deg. c and place 2 sheets of butter puff on a lined baking tray. Prick all over with a fork and bake for 10-12 minutes until golden and crisp. Press to flatten if necessary.

I always line the base of my square cake tin with baking paper so it is easier to remove once set. My baking tin is the perfect size for a sheet of puff pastry, if you don't have one quiet that big, use a serrated knife to trim the edges to fit the pan. Place one piece on the base.

To make your custard combine 1 cup custard powder and 1/2 cup of caster sugar in a saucepan. Gradually stir in 300ml thickened cream and 2 1/2 cups of skim milk until smooth.

Continue stirring over medium heat until custard boils and thickens. You want it to look smooth, glossy and be really thick.

Pour your custard over your base.

Put on your lid and then make yummy passionfruit icing to put on top.

1 1/2 cups pure icing sugar and 1/3 cup tinned or fresh passionfruit (depending what you have on hand) and 1 tablespoon of melted butter. Mix until smooth and spread over the slice. Chill until firm. Cut into squares.

Deeeeelicous! Enjoy

Original recipe courtesy of Woolworths Fresh Magazine.

Meet our new puppy

2011-09-09T17:40:00.001+10:00

Hi Everyone,

I thought I'd introduce our new little Kelpie puppy, "Lilly". The Farmer brought her home this morning and she is absolutely beautiful. She is about 3-4 months old and very timid. She hasn't been handled much and is not quiet sure what to make of The Fairy's antics. Hopefully, with a little bit of love, patience and training she will make a good working dog.

Although she looks all black in the images she has white tips on her back paws and a small which stripe on her chest.

Curiosity -
The Fairy was on the swing set and it caught her attention.

Dealing with Scary Monsters at Night

2011-09-02T11:45:00.001+10:00

Wow, for a couple of nights this week I have been at my wits end. I have had to deal with a little girl who was too scared to go to bed.

It all started with chatter in the sandpit. You see her little friend at our Day Carers after school decided to tell her ghost stories while they were playing in the sandpit. Her friend is a couple of years older and didn't mean to scare her, but did.

So that night she was scared because she had 'scary thoughts in her head' that someone was going to kill her and didn't want to go to sleep.

So, what did I do. Well I tried just about everything from leaving a lamp on, giving her a giant stuffed gorilla to sleep with, reassuring her, rousing on her for not going to bed (I know not very nice but I didn't want to pander to her either) and letting her listen to music.

The Farmer and I were beginning to wonder how we were going to get through this little phase and its not easy for me as he is at work at night so, I'm a single parent in some ways. Anyway, we decided that last night we would let her check the doors to reassure herself that noone could get her and she was safe and also to get a book on being scared or afraid.

So, last night she checked the front door and decided that it was too dark for someone to want to try to come in and then we made light of the situation and played a bit while we were going to bed.
I told the fish they had to tell me if she was coming out and we joked about the fish talking. Then I remembered that my wonderful sister-in-law had brought her a box of Trace Moroney books on feelings so we read

and also feeling loved and feeling happy.

As her bedroom is off the loungeroom I promised that I would sit on the lounge next to her door so no one could get her and let her listen to music.

It worked. My wonderful little girl who goes straight to bed without too much hassle is magically back. And that's a relief.

If you haven't read them, I do thoroughly recommend the Trace Moroney books on feelings. They are beautifully illustrated and well written. Trace Moroney - When I'm Feeling Series of Books

Lightning Ridge Historical Society Building - Garden Art

2011-09-01T10:09:00.001+10:00

One of my favourite images from our trip to Lightning Ridge - Lightning Ridge Historical Society Garden Art is available on my Redbubble site Deborah McGrath Photography.

One of the interesting things about Lightning Ridge is their use of found objects as art and also tourism signage. They actually have a tourist trail called the "Car Door Trail" which is literally old car doors used as a markers showing you the way around the town and the trail. Great concept really.

The Fairy's new fish

2011-08-31T21:49:00.000+10:00

Hi everyone,

I just thought I'd introduce to you the Fairy's new pets, her goldfish. She has a small fish bowl in her bedroom with three goldfish and a sucking catfish. Unfortunatley "Kitty" the sucking catfish wasn't feeling very photogenic on the day these were taken, something about having a "bad whiskers day" so you can't meet her. We will try to get her when she is having a better day.

This is "Googly" our Black Moor

Saiorse (phonetically pronounced Seer-Sha) and Meg named after her two besties. Both are Fantails.

We've been a bit worried about Saiorse (the little orange one) as she stands on her head a lot for long periods of time. So she has currently been moved to quarantine - an old icecream container and seems to be doing quiet well. Hopefully she'll be happy again. She's been in quarantine for a couple of days now and is eating fine and no longer standing on her head so I will re-introduce her back to the bowl on Friday when we clean it out.

Lightning Ridge - A Renovators Dream

2011-08-28T16:02:00.000+10:00

This little gem is definitely a 'renovators delight' and would have to go for a 'bargain basement price'. Yep its air conditioned, rustic and full of charm. lol.

This little cottage is in the centre of town and has been left as it was.

In order to preserve the cottage they have used mesh to keep everything in tact. Even the window openings have been meshed so that people can look in but, not damage the building.

The kitchen

The lounge room

The sign on the front door.

This is just one of the little gems that can be found in the "Ridge". We hadn't been there for 6 years and it was great to have a short wander around and take a couple of holiday snaps.

Lightning Ridge or Bust.

2011-08-18T12:25:00.000+10:00

Hi Everyone,

I know its been a while since I've blogged. I guess life just caught up with me and I've needed to take a break from all forms of social media for a while. I've also been doing a bit of knitting on these cold winter nights which has been nice.

Anyway, tomorrow we are heading to Lightning Ridge (the Ridge for short) for a four or five day break. We have friends out there on a large property (28,000 acres) half way between the Ridge and Colleranabri (I thinks that's the correct spelling). We haven't been out to the Ridge since I was seven months pregnant with The Fairy which was over 6 years ago. So, we are really looking forward to catching up with our friends and sharing in Cod's 60th birthday celebrations.

One of the big things we want to do is show The Fairy the Ridge. The Ridge is a popular spot for Opal Mining and her Akubra is called "The Lighting Ridge" and has a small opal on the hat band. She envisages that she is going to find some opals out there. lol. We will be staying in the Ridge on Friday night so we can show her some of the attractions, particularly the Australian Opal Centre.

Anyway, that's about it for now. I promise to post about our adventures and some pics next week.

Take care, I hope everyone is well and I look forward to renewing our blogger friendship.

Our little lambs

2011-04-26T13:54:00.000+10:00

Its lambing season at the farm and we have some little beauties coming along. Here's a couple of pics I took over the weekend from the ute when we were checking on them. We have to be fairly vigilent when they are lambing as they can be taken by foxs, eagles and crows.

Although the majority are white we get a few that throw to colour. This little one also has a light brown spot on its side.

Twins, aren't they adorable.

A Day at the Farm with the Garden Fairy

2011-04-26T11:03:00.001+10:00

Hi Ladies, over Easter we spent a few days doing some fence repair work to a couple of river and creek crossings on the farm. On the Saturday the Garden Fairy came with us for the day. These are really long days and can be a bit boring for someone her age so, she spent other days with Nan and Pop. Anyhow, she came down armed with a full back pack which included colouring pencils and books, paper to draw on, books to read and her leapster explorer with its camera attachment.

So, this is a day spent on the river from the Garden Fairy's perspective. Sorry the images aren't high quality, but they are off a leapster explorer and she did a pretty good job.

First up meet the star of the Garden Fairy's camera shoot and also constant companion for the day 'Big Sal'.

'Big Sal' loves swimming, riding on the ute, pats and working sheep. So she loved her time spent on the river.

Here are some of her images taken when we were doing the crossing on the Turon River.

Cutting a tree off the fence line

Yep, I was there looking glam and untangling wire

For this section we had to renew the fence from the top of the bank down to the waters edge and then go across the other side and do the same. We still have to do the fence across the river yet.

We then moved upstream along Jews Creek to fix the fence to the crossing there.

These gates are normally strung across the creek. At this spot its probably over a metre (3-4ft) deep and some of the gates are in the water. The idea of a creek crossing is that the fence over it is able to move with the water while keeping the stock in. However, during the huge storms in December-January this spot which is, as you can see not that wide, would have been about 50 feet across and at least 12 feet deep in the middle.

Some of the gates are in the water still. Again we've fixed the fences to the bank, but the rest will be an 'in the waders and in the water job' for The Farmer with me assisting from the bank.

This fence was moved by the water from up the hill to along the side of the creek. We had to pull it back into place so that it could be re-strained and the posts put back in. Here you can see The Farmer in the top right of the image, me in the middle and the water on the left. Mid way between The Farmer and myself is a few logs bunch together. That's about the height of the water level there.

Such a pretty and tranquit spot don't you think?

Happy Easter

2011-04-22T09:17:00.000+10:00

Hi Girls,

I just wanted to wish you all a safe and happy easter with lots of yummy chocolate.

Deb xxx

Rabbit courtesy of Aussie Gal from the Flickr Creative Commons site.

Best Ever Banana Cake

2011-04-20T15:13:00.000+10:00

Hi Girls,

I thought I'd share with you our family favourite Banana Cake recipe. Its really simple, moist and quiet light. And as you can see from the image above, doesn't make it off the cake cooler without being cut straight from the oven. Yum!!!!

Ingredients
125g butter or low fat margarine
1 cup caster super
2 eggs
3 ripe bananas - the riper the better.
1/4 cup skim milk
1 1/2 cups self raising flour - sifted

Method
Cream butter and sugar, beat until light and fluffy.
Add eggs and beat well.
Beat in mashed bananas
Add milk.
Stir in sifted flour with a spoon.
Pour into a greased and lined tin and bake for 45mins in a moderate oven (180 deg. C or 160 deg. C for fan forced).

Delish hot or cold. If you serve it warm as a desert add a dollop of passionfruit yoghurt or be naughty and serve with whipped cream and sliced caramel bananas.

Caramel Bananas
Slice one banana and add to a non stick pan with butter and brown sugar. Allow the butter and sugar to caramelise and coat the bananas. I also do apple or pineapple this way. Just slice thinly and use in place of bananas.

Deb's Tip - I place ripe bananas left in the fruit bowl in a bag in the freezer until I need them. That way I always have enough bananas for this recipe.

My Pumpkin Vine

2011-04-19T22:42:00.000+10:00

Hi girls. As you all know, I love my little garden and at the moment I'm particularly impressed with my pumpkin vine.

Why am I impressed? Well for several reasons.

1. Its the first pumpkin vine I've ever grown.

2. Don't you just love my one big pumpkin - its a beauty I think.

3. At this time of the year, around here, it should be dead and buried. We should have had a huge frost by now and the vine should have died. However, we haven't and I am still growing pumpkins. I have three to be precise. The one above and two small ones that are about the size of a tennis ball, plus there are still a couple of flowers on the vine. I'm hoping that the frost will hold off long enough for the small ones to grow to a decent size. But, since we are about to go into May and the end of Autumn. I'd doubt it.

4. This pumpkin variety is special. Its not your average pumpkin. Its a hybrid. It is the result of cross-pollination in my parents garden last year. I harvested the seeds from the one they gave me. Its really sweet and yummy. So, I'm glad I at least have one good pumpkin from the vine.

But, there are other great reasons for loving this vine - check out the pics and see what you think.

Its grown in and around my camellia bush. My big pumpkin actually grew nestled in the branches of the camellia and it was only last weekend that it went to ground.

This little one is growing under the Camellia amongst the bulbs.

Then there's the natural abstract of the vine. I love the pattern it creates on the fence and if you look carefully you can see my third pumpkin dangling there.

How about this. Look at all the twists and twirls that the vine creates.

And just for fun. Since I had to water the garden this afternoon I decided to play with some aperture and shutter speeds. This was taken at 70mm, F5.6,1/4000 sec with the flash. Don't you love the circular motion it captured and the strong earthy colours?

introducing the Garden Fairy to a new hobby - Stamp Collecting

2011-04-11T22:16:00.001+10:00

Hi Girls, I just had to share tonight. Sorry no pics. But, I had the absolute pleasure of introducing my little Garden Fairy to a new hobby and a lifetime of collecting tonight - Stamp Collecting.

I have been thinking about this for a while and just waiting until I felt she was the right age to really appreciate and begin to learn about stamps. I've been collecting since I was around her age. An Aunt gave me my first album and funnily enough I still have it and several others. I've collected on and off over the years and get a lot of enjoyment out of looking at the beautiful stamps and finding something new and interesting.

There's so much to learn from stamps - you learn about different cultures, animals, history and so on and so forth, I could go on and on.

Anyway today I was in the post office and decided to buy her, her first album and kit. She loved it!!!!!!

And when I got my old collection out, she thought it was fantastic. Needless to say she is taking it into town to her Carer's tomorrow to show her friends.

She was taking everything in like the little sponge she is and has really embraced the concept of not only collecting as a hobby, but also that this is something for a lifetime. That she may pass her collection on one day. Ok, I know you are thinking that this could fizzle afterall she's only five. But, remember so was I when I started.

Anyway, if you're looking for something to nurture an inquisitive young mind, I suggest stamp collecting. They have great kits to get them started at the post office which include an interactive DVD which we have yet to look at - she was too engrossed in the stamps. And there is just so much to learn from collecting.

A glorious day on the farm

2011-04-10T11:37:00.000+10:00

Yesterday's weather was nothing short of spectacular for this time of the year and perfect for getting out doors and doing some hard gritty work. So, that's what we did.

The Farmer and I spent the day at the farm while The Garden Fairy took in some 'me time' with Nan and Pop.

We spent the morning mustering and drenching our heavily pregnant ewes, who are due at any time now. This is the girls on there way back out to their paddock. I hope to be posting pics of gorgeous little lambs soon.

Then we did a little bit of fence work - straightening posts and fixing broken wires. These two pics were taken from the first ramp. The second is looking back across to the cottage, shearing shed and yards.

After that we went for a bit of a drive out to check on some creek crossings to be fixed up over Easter. This is where the fences over the creeks have been damaged from heavy flooding. We have about 10 to do so it should keep us busy.

Today its home and getting the housework done. The Farmer has gone to a Clearing Sale at Rydal. There's some Dorper Sheep over there for sale among other bits of machinery and livestock. Who knows what he and his Dad could come back with. The bank balance is hoping that the most to be purchased will be a steak sandwich from the local Bushfire Brigade BBQ. But, I shall just have to wait and see. lol.

Cinderella Goes to the Ball

2011-04-07T21:21:00.001+10:00

The Garden Fairy has attended her first frolic and I've made my first Princess Costume. Yes, I made it myself. And I'm quiet proud of my effort, and believe me, it was a mammoth effort.

I'm not the greatest dress maker in the world being pretty much self taught. My Mum is a great sewer and so is my sister Trish. But, I wasn't all that interested growing up and only started as an adult. But, every now and again over the years I've given it a go. Although mainly my sewing extends to mending things for The Farmer.

So, over the last couple of weeks, I set the machine up and got the overlocker out of its cupboard much to the excitement of the Garden Fairy since in her almost 6 years she'd never seen the overlocker. And we made a dress. Which is why I've been absent from my blog and photography for a couple of weeks. I've had a very important project on. Cinderella had to get to the ball!!!!

Of course with any project or journey there is always lessons learnt. So here are mine!

Lesson No. 1 - Don't rely on the shoes that the Garden Fairy has in her cupboard, sometimes its best to get new ones. These little black and silver shoes seemed perfect.....until the little metallic silver fibres started to pull the overlocked hand sewn hem as you can see. Needless to say by the end of the frolic half the hem was out.

Lesson No. 2 - Don't hand sew the hem. Use the rolled hem foot. Now that this is over I'll unpick the hem, wash the dress and learn how to use the rolled hem foot to finish it properly.

Lesson No. 3 - This is a big one!!!!! Little princesses can't stand still even when asked to pretend they are statues when they have a skirt that will twirl or a pretty dress that they simply must look at from all angles in the mirror - which makes it extremely frustrating for a harrassed mum trying to fit the dress or pin up the hem.

Showing her Pop how to do the Chicken Dance

They danced flat out for nearly two hours dressed in all sorts of wonderful costumes.

Oh, and Lesson No. 4 - There is nothing funnier than a group of adults trying to follow kindergarten - second grade children in group dances like 'Nutbush', 'Macarana' (I think that's how its spelt), 'The chicken dance' and a new version of the good old 'Hokey Pokey' - 'The Disco Hokey Pokey'. Try keeping up with that one.

The most important lesson or reminder of them all though, is when you see your little girl looking like a princess and so proud and confident in herself. That's what makes it all worthwhile.

My Autumn Garden

2011-03-23T15:10:00.000+11:00

The great winter garden experiment has begun. What crops can I grow and harvest in a cold climate garden during winter?????

Mini Broccoli

Over the weekend, I started preparing the garden for winter and planting some winter growing crops. Veges aren't usually grown around here during the winter, this is my little experiment to see how things go and also how much the suggested growing season times are extended.

My plan is to try to harvest veges from my garden all year round. My garden is never going to be a complete source of vegetables for us. Its not that big. However, it does supplement my groceries and I get a lot of pleasure out of it. I also enjoy growing a few differant varieties such as heirloom beetroot varieties. This time I have also planted heirloom carrots for something a little differant.

My first broccoli is ready to pick and I noticed this morning another tiny little broccoli head in one of the plants. I am waiting to see the start of the mini cauliflowers. I planted mini varieties because there is only three of us and I can't see the point in growing the larger varieties which are too big.

Mini cauliflower and brocoli plants and pink rainbow chard bordered by Alysum.

My vegie patch is intermingled with my ornamental garden. I love the sculptural effects the vegies bring to the garden and the interest. I have two pumpkin vines growing along the front fence at the moment and one of them has turned back inside the garden and started to wrap itself around the camillia. I haven't photographed it yet although the vine has lots of lovely yellow flowers and one or two small pumpkins forming. I will get some pics once it gets some more pumpkins on it.

Here you can see the silver foliage of the Mountain of Snow and Thyme under the same plants with Daffodil and Jonquil bulbs beginning to emerge.

At the moment, I am still harvesting baby carrots, red and green oakleaf lettuce, strawberries, heirloom beetroot, tomatoes and heaps of lovely fresh herbs.

So far I have All Season Carrots which will be ready to pick as the Baby Carrots come to an end and some parsnip seedlings growing beautifully. On Saturday, I planted beetroot and burpees beetroot (yellow) seedlings, plus a number of seeds - All Season Carrots, Heirloom Carrots, Heirloom Beetroot, Turnip and parsnips. According to their packets they should be ready to start picking May - late June. However I'll be happy if they make it into early spring. I have saved a portion of the garden which I will prepare so that I am ready to start planting in spring for the summer crop.

I brought some pansies and begonias yesterday to brighten up the garden and the shady spots during the winter months. I love pansies, they always remind me of happy sunny little faces. So bright and cheerful.

Dark & White chocolate Torte

2011-03-21T22:39:00.001+11:00

My First Torte - Woohoo! It wasn't as hard as I thought it would be.

They always manage to make these things seem easy on those cooking shows. So, I thought I'd give one a try and found a really easy recipe in a little cookbook I have called 'Everyday Chocolate' by Love Food (TM).

We went to a BBQ next door on Saturday night, so I voluteered to make a dessert. There were five little girls going to be there and at present The Garden Fairy has the chocolate making bug so that is why we have chosen to decorate with Chocolate and White Chocolate Lollipops. They were a real hit too. As you can see she really was busting to get into them. lol.

Any here is the recipe I used.

The Torte

4 eggs

100g 3.5 oz caster sugar

100g 3.5 oz plain flour

butter, for greasing.

The filling

300ml/ 10 fl oz double cream

150g/ 5.5 oz dark chocolate broken into small pieces.

Topping

75g 2 3/4 oz white chocolate

1tbsp butter

1tbsp milk

4 tbsp icing sugar

Method

Whisk the eggs and caster sugar in a large bowl with an electic whisk for 10 minutes. Or until the mixture is very light and foamy and the whisk leaves a trail that lasts a few seconds when lifed.
Sift the flour and fold in with a metal spoon or spatula. Pour into a greased and base-lined 20cm/8inch round springform cake tin and bake in a preheated oven, 180deg. c/350 deg.f, for 35-40 minutes, or until springy to touch. Cool slightly in the tin, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
For the filling, place the cream in a pan and bring to the boil, stirring. Add the chocolate and stir until melted. Remove from the heat, transfer to a bowl, and leave to cool. Beat with a wooden spoon until thick.
Slice the cold cake horizontally into 2 layers. Sandwich the layers together with the plain chocolate cream and place on a wire rack.
For the topping, melt the chocolate and butter together and stir until blended. Whisk in the milk and icing sugar. Continue whisking for a few minutes until the frosting is cool. Pour it over the cake and spread with a spatula to coat the top and sides. Allow the frosting to set before serving.

My hints and tips.

I didn't have any double cream so used, thickened cream. It didn't thicken for me as it should so, I made up a little gelatin as per the packet directions and put it in the freezer for about 20 minutes. Then I had a nice creamy mousse to put in the centre of my torte.
I think that the filling would be delicous with some coffee liquour, tia maria or kalua maybe.
My icing ended up a little too runny, probably because I decided that I needed more than the recipe said I did so I ended up with a lovely little moat around my cake. I think I need some expert tips from the amazing Mrs KT at Taylor Made Baking. Her cakes are awesome and inspiring.
Wait until the icing sets before you get carried away and take the photos. I was a bit excited by it all really and so was The Garden Fairy.

Starting School and dealing with seperation anxiety

2011-03-17T21:20:00.000+11:00

My beautiful daughter started school this year and she really loves it. She has a wonderful teacher and seems to be making plenty of friends - particularly if the birthday party invites are anything to go by. Three so far. I'm looking forward to when they all actually sort out their little groups and don't decide to invite everyone Mum will allow to the party. lol.

Anyway, she has been having a few health problems. She's suffering from heart burn or reflux, runny nose, sore throat, coughing, sore tummy and headaches. As the term has gone on this has gotten worse. To the point that I have taken her to the Doctors and now have a referral to a pediatrician.

However, last night it all came to what I thought was a head. She was in tears, sobbing actually at about 9pm after being sent back to bed for the 10th time (I hear you all growning, they do try everything to get out of going to bed no matter how tired they are, don't they?). Anyway, I digress. It turns out that The Garden Fairy misses her grandparents, particulary her Nan, something chronic.

You see, since I went back to work when she was 9 months old, she has been cared for by her mostly by her grandparents, aside from two days per week in day care (1 family day care and 1 day in a childcare centre). The Farmer is on afternoon shift so he would have lunch with her before going to work but, she was mostly with his Mum and Dad. I have been very lucky to have such wonderful support. But, now I'm finding my little girl, who has basically had to 'quit Nan and Pop cold turkey' is missing them dearly.

I should also add that until recently they only lived next door, but now they have built a new home less than 5 minutes stroll up the road.

So, you would think that the solution to the problem is simple. Right. I told her that she could visit Nan and Pop when we get home of an afternoon a few days a week. I can drop her up the road, come home and organise tea, then walk up and get her. Problem solved. Yes......noooooo, not exactly.

She woke up this morning and was incredibly happy, normally she is this way. But, lately as she has been feeling worse, she has been down.   She even sang me a happy song she made up to express her feelings. No mention of sore tummies, or heartburn or headaches. I was on top of the world. I had done it, She's cured!

Nooooooooo.   Not exactly. Yes, she has been happy all day. But, tonight you guessed it, its bed time and including all the other excuses under the sun, she is still complaining about a sore tummy, heartburn and headache.   So, I think I may just give it a few more days. Maybe a week to see if my new strategy works and then, if things don't improve I'll make that appointment with a pediatrician.

Oh, I'm also making minor changes to her diet to remove any foods that can cause heartburn/reflux - she really eats pretty well anyway. And I'm making sure she eats early enough to digest her meal and eats lightly at night. Plus I have Mylanta Chew Tabs handy, if they are needed. The ones in the lunch box weren't touched today.

So, if anyone has dealt with this before or has any possible solutions to share I would really be grateful for the advice as I'm sure others would too.

Personal Ponderings - Getting back to us

2011-03-08T22:20:00.000+11:00

The Farmer and I have started to take the opportunity since The Garden Fairy started school to "get back to us". This hasn't been intentional in a "we need to do things together or else way" its just happened.

You see, for the last five years The Garden Fairy has been cared for mostly by The Farmer's parents while we were at work (I work days and he works afternoon shift). So, on weekends we have always made time for the three of us and if we wanted to go out it was mostly to a place she could go to. Afterall we are a family. But, now with her going to school she is with me all week, travelling to and from school and doesn't see her grandparents, except on weekends. So, she misses them and vice versa. Which gives us the opportunity to take advantage of the occasional Saturday night for a few hours.

As a result, we have been getting out more. We've been to the pictures twice and seen a couple of movies, gone out to dinner with a large group of The Farmer's workmates and last Saturday afternoon we called into the local pub for a couple of drinks before going out to the farm to feed the dog, check stock and do a couple of other things.

It has been really lovely and we are enjoying our new sense of togetherness. The Farmer even joked on Saturday night that it was "just like the old days".

I know that a lot of couples do make the time to have a set "date night" or to go away for a weekend together once or twice a year. And that these couples always say how important that is to their relationship. I've never really put much stock in the claim because, we do have a great relationship. But I have to admit that this has revived the romance and "sense of us", that we were probably both secretly missing.

I was talking about this a little while ago with a close friend and she said that to her, this time together doesn't have to be anything huge, it can just be getting fish and chips and having a picnic together at the lake. That does sound quiet romantic, don't you agree?

So, what do you do for together time?

Lets take a drive along the Botanists Way

2011-03-02T22:38:00.001+11:00

Welcome to the Botanists Way formerly, and still known, as the Bells Line of Road. However, our beloved Bells Line did receive a name change a few years back in order to promote it better as a tourist drive between The Hawkesbury and Lithgow Regions.

I love the Bells Line, I prefer to drive to Sydney and the Central Coast via the Bells Line rather than going down the Great Western Highway. There's always some magical view to see and the drive itself is more challenging and interesting. You don't get stuck in traffic either - another big plus.

Last Friday I had to travel to Manly to a Network event and, as always these trips start off early in the day. So here are just a couple of images that I took (and yes, I may have altered them slightly......). I'd have loved to have been able to take more but I had to be in Manly by 9.30am.

I always stop in at the Bilpin Fruit Bowl even on my early morning trips. The toilets are always open and by then my morning coffee has kicked in. The early morning sunshine was brilliant but, produced some really high levels of under-exposture in the image. So I had a little play. This first image is three images (two were copies of the original) photomerged after I'd played with the Colour Curves and pushed the highlights and shadows to the extreme.

This is one of the three images. I liked the softness that the increasing of the highlights and alteration of midtone contrast created.

Every time I pass this old truck I think "I must stop and capture that". The early morning light coupled with the freshness after a little bit of overnight rain really brought out the colours of this old girl and the surrounding landscape.

All of these images are available from my online gallery Deborah McGrath Photography

Hues of a Rose Series

2011-02-24T22:07:00.001+11:00

Hues of a Rose would have to by my most favourite digital image series. I hope you like it too.

The original rose - perfection

These images may be purchased as cards or prints from Deborah McGrath Photography through my Redbubble Site. All prints and cards from Redbubble are of the highest quality.

Personal ponderings - What's in a nickname

2011-02-23T11:38:00.000+11:00

Trish-a-to and Deb-a-doo

Yesterday, while surfing blogland, I came across a blog that I felt I had a bit of an affinity with - Debbiedoos Blogging and Blabbing. She blogs about blogging and has fun doing it. She provides other bloggers with a chance to gain exposure through her Newbie Linky Party and like all bloggers invites you into her fabulous life.

But, the thing that really got me, and the reason for this blog, was the fond memories the name of her blog brought back. You see, when Trish (A Dream House for Trish) and I were little our Grandfather used to call us Deb-A-Doo and Trish-A-Too. And naturally, this site started me reminiscing about my late Grandfather and our childhood.

It also made me think of the way that differant things trigger memories - but that's a whole seperate thing and definitely something to be contemplated by people much smarter than me.

But, it made me ponder. Throughout our lives we play many differant roles - daughter, sister, granddaughter, friend, wife, mother - and as a result can be known to others by differant pet or nicknames. Deb-A-Doo and Trish-A-To was something our Grandfather called us. My daughter has always called Trish - Trishy and I tend to do it now too.

One of my girlfriends is called 'Poochy' by members of her family and yet when she started working with us many years ago one of the Managers' nicknamed her 'Daisy' and its stuck - at least with a couple of us 'lifers' who've worked here for years.

So here is something to ponder. How much of our identity is tied to our nicknames or pet names? And how many names or identities do we go by throughout our life?

Just something to start everyone thinking for the day. If you wish I'd love for you to share your thoughts.

And to Debbiedoo, I'd just like to say - Thanks for taking me back to a time and a place where life was simple, the hardest job I had was to feed my pet rabbit and my most difficult decision was what to play today.

Bruschettina with Basil Tomato Medley

2011-02-22T21:40:00.003+11:00

Dark Opal and Lemon Basil from my garden
Available for purchase from Deborah McGrath Photography

This is becoming one of my favourite quick and easy light meals at the moment and its so simple. Great for a quick lunch or for dinner on a night when you've been out to lunch.

Ingredients

1 packet Traditional Pizza Bruschettina - I buy the Pane Toscano Brand from Coles.

1 punnet of Tomato Medley - again from Coles. I'm really impressed at the moment that I can buy just one container with a variety of differant small tomatoes in it.

Mushrooms

1 container of Bocconcini

Basil leaves

Cracked pepper

As a cold meal toast or grill the Brushettina as per packet directions. Then simply slice up your tomatoes and mushrooms, tear the bocconcini and basil leaves and gradually pile them on your bruschettina. Add a little cracked pepper and enjoy.

Or, if you prefer and I do. Don't toast or grill your brushettini. Instead place them on a lined baking tray and cook them in a moderate oven for about 15 minutes. Absolutely delish with the bocconcini melted over the tomato and mushrooms. Mmmmmmmm.

Let's take a drive around my farm

2011-02-21T22:10:00.003+11:00

I thought I'd take you on a little tour of my farm. But, before I do, I have to make an amendment to my blog. I started at the beginning calling my partner the MOTH. But, this acronym seriously doesn't suit my man. So, I am going to officially refer to him from now on as 'The Farmer' and I'm sure you will agree from the picture below that MOTH really doesn't suit him.

On the day this pic was taken we were mustering cattle and I had gone over the top of the hill, while he drove them along the creek. We met up a bit further along.

It's hard to believe looking at this shot of Crown Swamp that we had just made a decision to reduce our stock numbers because we were worried we wouldn't have enough feed coming into winter. But, we did have to make that decision. That's the nature of farming, its all a gamble.

Anyhow, back to my man, The Farmer. I think you will definitely agree with me he isn't a MOTH.

Now, as I said at the beginning, I thought we'd take a little tour of the farm today. The Farmer and I have a 2300 acre mixed grazing property in the Central Tablelands, NSW. To me its my magic place. I love the farm and wish that we could spend more time working it and less time working our full time jobs.

Yesterday we did a bit of a drive around to check on things and while we were driving I managed to take a few pics. You will get the chance to see the rugged beauty of this place with its majestic views and harsh, steep slopes. All the images were taken out the window of the car whilst driving on rough bush tracks, in 4WD with my 75-33mm lens.

Pantoneys Crown in the Capertee Valley

Pantoneys Crown in the Capertee Valley from my back gate.

Available for purchase from Deborah McGrath Photography

Would you believe we drove up that slope.

Or that there is a road here and if you look closely towards the top you can see where the road crosses this one. Also the slope on the left of this ridge is steeper than the slope above.

The road home.

Feral goats

These cockatoos nest in this tree every year.

Yep, another road. See the gate at the top. I know its hard to believe.

Looking across the front pastures from the ridge.

Soon bo be Mama's waddling along - due to have their lambs April/May.

The best pegs ever! Makes washing a breeze!

2011-02-19T14:17:00.000+11:00

Maid of Shade

Hi, I thought I'd share with you my favourite pegs. They really do make a differance to hanging out your washing. They are called Rainbow Pegs and are from a company called Maid of Shade. The best part about them is that your washing doesn't scrunch up with the wind. Particularly sheets and mens shirts or anything like that.

I brought mine from the Mudgee Field Days (held Mid July each year in Mudgee NSW). They are UV resistant, durable and pretty colours. Maid of Shade have a range of different products for your laundry needs including sexy little corset peg bags, lingerie wash bags, washing powder tins and of course great pegs.

So, click on the rainbow pegs link above and have a look. I think they're worth.

See even in the wind, my sheets are straight!

Birthday Floral Fun

2011-02-18T15:54:00.001+11:00

Its one of my closest friends birthday's tomorrow. So, this morning my other best Gal Pal and I decided to make her a beautiful floral bouquet for her birthday. My contribution was the Baby Spinach and Casey's was the Roses.

Sorry the pics aren't the best but, they were taken on a Blackberry which just added to our 'Vegie Flora' fun. Its been a bit of a joke around the office today. We keep telling everyone we are going into business and that they are going to now get bouquets by 'Vegie Flora' for their birthdays.

Actually, the baby spinach does add a nice touch and bit of fresh greenery to the roses. We know they aren't the best of flowers, her roses were coming to an end and are a bit storm damaged. But they are pretty anyway.

Savoury and Sweet Pinwheels

2011-02-14T22:00:00.001+11:00

Nectrine and Mascarpone Cheese Pinwheels

Pinwheels - some people call them scrolls. No matter what you like to call them they are delicious for any occasion; in lunch boxes, at a party, for dessert or just a snack.

They are quick and easy to make and here are a couple of our favourites.

1 sheet of puff pasty
1 beaten egg

Brush the pasty with the beaten egg and then add your filling.

Savoury filling suggestions:

Vegemite and Cheese

Or why not try:
Ham, cheese and crushed pineapple

Sweet filling suggestions:

Apple and cinnamon sugar (roughly chop 1 apple and toss in a bowl with cinnamon sugar)

Nectrine and macarpone cheese (spread the mascarpone on the egg brush pastry and then add the roughly chopped nectrine). In my opinion this scroll is best served with custard or icecream as a desert.

Method

Roll you pinwheels tightly to keep the filling enclosed. Then cut off the ends. Cut into eight even slices by halving, then halving again and repeating.

Arrange on a lined baking tray as so and bake at 180 for about 15-20minutes - until golden.

I hope to build on the list of sweet and savoury pinwheels so, I you have any yummy fillings you would like to add to the lists please let me know.

The Garden Fairy's Great Water Experiment.

2011-02-07T21:42:00.000+11:00

I love the inquisitive nature of my five year old daughter. For her everything is an experiment. On the weekend she found a bag of water balloons in a drawer and decided that she would create an "experiment" - to get them to explode. Armed with her balloons she went out into the yard and attached them one by one to the garden tap. My job was to photograph the experiment whilst I was raking the lawn. She had a ball and it kept her amused on and off for most of the day.

She's been watching to much Mythbusters with her Dad - If you're going to explode something you need to get behind a shield.

The explosion - oops where did that balloon go????

Maybe it needs more help, lets speed up the process and create "A Waterfall".

Once its full remove the balloon and there's your "Waterfall".

As you can see the shield didn't protect much. Lol. But she had a ball. This is a great kids activity for a hot day so, next time your shopping grab a packet of water balloons and let the kids have some fun.

I did think I was fairly safe though, but once she worked out she could get them off the tap I became fair game and was chased around the yard a couple of times. So, was Reg the Dog. Not sure, he was really impressed, lucky he just goes with the flow - pardon the pun!

Plum and Apple Jelly

2011-02-03T22:12:00.001+11:00

Hi, I hope that you like my first recipe. On our farm we have an abundance of fruit trees which include several varieties of apples, nectrines and plums. These were planted many years ago before we brought the place and so, I am not sure what all the varieties are.

This year the two plum trees fruited for the first time in the four years we have had the place and they produced some small, very sweet clingstone plums with a yellow flesh. I have done a bit of a search on the web and according to Fresh for Kids website they appear to be a

Wilson Plum courtesy Fresh for Kids Website

Angelina Plum courtesy Fresh for Kids Website.

As these plums are small, you can't easily remove the seed from the flesh and the thing I love about making jellies is that the prep is just so easy. You just chop the fruit as it is, and chuck everything in the pot; pips, skin, everything goes in. Which solved my problem of how I could cook these juicy little plums.

But don't worry if you can't find small clingstone plums like mine, the most important thing about the plum variety in relation to this recipe is that you use a nice sweet yellow fleshed plum.

Ingredients and method

6 medium sized sweet apples, I used Pink Ladies.
1.5 kg yellow flesh plums
2 Lemons.

Chop it all up and place in a pot with enough water to not cover the fruit or make it swim.

Bring this to be boil and simmer for 1/2 an hour.

Now you need to strain the fruit so that you get a beautiful clear liquid. I used a large bowl, large strainer and an old worn out, thin pillow case (alternatively you could use muslin). Sit the pillow case inside the strainer and just let it seep through. Don't be tempted to use a wooden spoon and force it, this will ruin the clarity of your liquid. Just let it slowly seep. When all the liquid has been strained from the fruit pulp throw the left over fruit in the compost bin.

Now you should have a beautiful clear liquid that is a gorgeous pink colour.

Testing for Pectin

You now need to test for pectin. This will let you know how much sugar to add and how quickly its going to set.

Go to your laundry or down the back shed and get the metho, yes I do mean the metholated spirits for those who have never done this before.

Put one teaspoon of your liquid in the bottom of a glass and add three teaspoons of metho.

Image from the Australian Womens Weekly "The Book of Preserves" p.4

If you mixture clots into one clot as above then it is high in pectin and you will need 1 cup of sugar to 1 cup of liquid.

If it forms a number of smaller clots then add 3/4 of cup of sugar to each cup of fruit.

If, however it fails to clot or forms a mass of tiny clots then you will need to add additional pectin. This can be done by:

Adding 2 tablespoons of fresh strained lemon juice for each 1kg of fruit used, after the sugar has dissolved (see below); Or
If you happen to have a packet of Jamsetta in the cupboard adding this as per the packet instructions; Or
Use a packet of jelly crystals which are close in flavour to the jelly you are making; Or
I have also been told that gelatine works but, I haven't tried it and am not sure what quantities you would use.

The final stages

Once you've added your sugar you need to slowly dissolve it taking care not to let it boil and ensuring that you remove all of the crystals from the sides of the pot. To do this have a baking brush and glass of water on hand and run the damp brush around the sides of your pot. Once all of your sugar has dissolved slowly bring your liquid to the boil and allow to simmer for about 15 minutes. It will bubble up and develop a skum on the top of the liquid. Don't be tempted to skim this until it is finished. Be careful not to let it boil over.

Once it has thickened skim off the foam scum and carefully pour into sterilised jars. Be careful when doing this. You don't want to disturb the jelly too much, so use a small jug and ensure that your slowly pour your jelly down the side of the glass. This way you will have a nice clear and smooth jelly when it cools. Fill your jars right to the top as it will shrink as it cools. When its cool seal the jar.

Note: I haven't actually stated quantities here. As a rule of thumb I usually sterilise more jars than I need in a variety of sizes, (say 6) and then I just fill the jars as they come.
Sterilising your jar

If you have a dishwasher then you can sterilise your jars in the dishwasher using the rinse cycle on the hottest temperature.

If not, then the next best way to sterilise your jars is in the oven. Wash them well in hot, soapy water and rinse thoroughly. Then stand the jars right way up on a board in a cold oven making sure they don't touch. Turn the oven to slow and allow to 'cook' for 30 minutes. Remove from the oven, allow to cool and add your jelly.

Important note: Sterilise your jars early in stage one of the jelly cooking process. This way they will be cool enough to handle when you are pouring your jelly into them. Otherwise you have to use an oven mitt and its just awkward. Trust me.

I hope that you like this recipe. If you do, please let me know. I'd love to hear your feedback and if I've missed something in the methods, let me know also so I can fix it up.

If you love Quince Jelly you will love this. Its been a big hit with the MOTH and his family. The day I made it, the Garden Fairy and I took a small jar up to the MOTH's parents. She sat perched up at the bench with her Pop and they both had a spoon each and were eating it slightly warm from the jar.

The Garden Fairy's first day of school

2011-02-01T21:54:00.000+11:00

The Garden Fairy started kindergarten today. A wonderful and exciting new world is opening up to her and she is ready and rearing to grab it with both hands and run with it. She was so excited, and in the lead up to today, so was I. But, I have to admit to feeling a bit fragile this morning. She jumped out of bed bursting with excitment, I hugged her and felt the sting of tears. My baby is growing up. And fast.

She's still my baby and always will be. But now we are beginning a new stage in her life which will be filled with joys and triumphs, heartache and tears. Its the same for all of us, I know. But, watching this excited little person this morning as she prepared for school I couldn't help but feel a small sense of loss for the innocence of a toddler and a pre-schooler. She's a big girl now; she's 5 and a half!

Photographing Sydney #1

2011-02-01T21:34:00.001+11:00

Last December (2010 now), I had to go to Sydney for a couple of days. It was a really exciting time for me, as I always feel that you 'can smell the gum leaves on me' when I'm in the city, so this was my chance to be independent and explore a small part of the city on my own.

It was also a big step for me as a Mum. 2010 was the first time since the birth of my daughter in 2005 that I had spent any time away from her and this particular trip away (for work) was a three-dayer or two-nights. Big!!!!!! Missed her like crazy, even though I was heady with a sense of freedom and adventure.

Although, at that time there was a fair bit of rain around, I got a chance on the last morning to get up at 6am and explore the streets near my motel. I was staying in Ultimo, just a couple of minutes walk from the UTS (University of Technology Sydney on Broadway) which was the reason I was in Sydney, it was the second half of a 5 day short course at the Uni. Anyway, below are a few of the images that I took in my morning stroll. It was really a wonderful time to be out and about, the City was just starting to wake up and it was really peaceful.

This mail box was on a the front of a terrace house and I thought it was really quaint.

Harris Street - don't you just love the colours.

St Laurence Church on George Street, Sydney

St Laurence Church, George Street, Sydney - I loved the vivid red of this door

The spectacular red of this Bougainvillea vine on this terrace really made it stand out.

This wonderful window with a view was at the back of a bus shelter on Harris Street. The view is of a garden at Ultimo TAFE

All of these images and many more are available for purchase on my Redbubble Site; Deborah McGrath Photography. Please take some time to drop by and have a look, I'd love it if you did and I hope you enjoy my images as much as I enjoy creating them.

Sustainability........What do you, do?

2011-01-30T14:40:00.002+11:00

I've been sitting here this morning doing a mountain of paperwork and have just started to do the filing. This started me thinking about sustainability and what I actually do to reduce my carbon footprint on the planet.

Judging from this image, you could say not much. However I do pay my bills online but, then I print the receipt. I think that perhaps this practice should change and I should just record the date paid and receipt number on the original bill.

Paperwork Ugh!!!

I also have my modest vege garden which we started at the end of 2010 and is producing quiet well and reducing the amount of veges we need to buy at the supermarket.

This also produces compost and in addition to that Reg, the dog, also gets a lovely stew from vege peelings and other kitchen scraps.

At this time of the year, our fruit trees start to produce which is lovely and when the fruit isn't damaged, I am able to make a number of yummy treats to store such as jams, jellies and desserts.

We have a farm on which we breed Dorpers (a meat sheep) and angus cattle. So we also produce some of our own meat on occasion.

All of this helps to decrease our food miles so to speak. In addition to that, I'm also partial to a nice wine and so I prefer, where possible to buy local wines from nearby Mudgee or Orange (NSW).

I do try to recycle, but in the Lithgow area we have a crate system so, I generally only place the newspapers in it and put it out when its full.

So, that's some of the things I try to do for sustainability. What about you? How are you reducing your carbon footprint on the planet at home or at work? Lets share some hints and tips.

Welcome to my first blog

2011-01-30T07:30:00.000+11:00

My container garden

Hi, my first blog, so what's it all about. Its about combining my passions:

Gardening in my small garden which is a combination of ornamental plants, veges, herbs and fruit trees;
Creating wonderful dishes from my little garden and most importantly sharing a few recipes with you; And
Most importantly my photography. I will take you on a small photographic journey of my garden and any where that I find inspiration.

Over time, I will also introduce you to the important people and four legged friends in my life - my wonderful partner, the 'Man of the House', my gorgeous five year old daughter, 'The Garden Princess' and the master of garden destruction, 'Reginald the Dog'.

A pumpkin growing amongst the violets and bulbs.