Fresh eggs for lunch

Last Sunday was market day, it is held on the first Sunday of every month.   I just love this market, all the fresh produce, cakes, breads, vegetables, plants and  the small producers with their own olive oils, olives, jams, chillis etc.   The smell of producers cooking at some of the stalls wafts through the market making me hungry, the first stop is always the coffee van, a skinny chai late is needed to get me through the morning, there is so much to take in here and I always come away with something.    My friends live close by, so as I have done a few times in the past I bought some cake and called into their house for morning tea.  They have a couple of free range chickens that just roam around where they like during the day doing what chickens do, and are then they locked up before nightfall.    Before leaving they asked if I would like to take some eggs, of course the answer was yes, who would turn down that offer.    Today while thinking about what to have for lunch I was also reading a blog that I follow, One Hundred Dollars a Month  I thought a version of this salad with a boiled egg would be just right.   Only one problem,  when searching through the pantry I found did'nt have Cranberries or Almonds, what to do, use what I do have which is sultanas and walnuts.  I also used a yoghurt dressing instead of mayonnaise, it was delicious, free range eggs from a friend are definately better than the shop bought free range eggs. Thankyou Anne for the eggs and thankyou Mavis for my lunch idea.

1 egg, boiled
small amount of fresh spinach
some rocket
sliced celery
1/4 of a tomato
1 spring onion
a few sultanas
a few walnuts
1 slice of Danish feta, crumbled
broccoli flowerets ( blanch or lightly steam if you like)

Dressing:
1 tablespoon greek yoghurt
little of crushed garlic
white wine vinegar to taste

Add everything but the egg and the dressing to a bowl, season with a little salt and pepper and mix together, Lay on a plate,  slice the egg in half or chop, whichever way you like add to the top of the salad mix.  In a small bowl add the youghurt and the garlic, to crush the garlic I mash it with a little salt against the chopping board with the back of the blade of the knife, it gets rid of that raw garlic taste, add the vinegar tasting as you do till it is the way you like it. I also added some finely chopped parsley. Serve for one.  Enjoy

Tiny baby cardigan

I'm really enjoying the weather we are having this late in Autumn, such beautiful warm sunny days and cool nights,  It's predicted to be around the mid twenties for the rest of this week and then some rain.    Last night I put the applique down, I needed some handwork to stitch this morning while at my quilting group and if I had finished I would have just been sitting chatting and drinking coffee.     What to do, then it came to me, knit a little cardigan for a friends baby girl.   This is a very tiny cardigan, little Lexi was born 1.6kg and  ten weeks early, she is in an isolet cot in the premature babies ward.    I am hoping she will be ok, that she will  gain weight and soon be able to go home with her mum, dad and brother, until then I am knitting a couple of things for her.  The pattern is from an old Patons knitting book I bought when I had my little girls, the wool is "Sullivans Baby touch"  in 4ply machine washable,  there are six 25gm balls in a box of wool that  I was given that were my mums, as I've said is the past, my mum knitted baby clothes for the Maternity wing of her local hospital and I have been waiting for a baby girl to knit for so I could use some of this.  The pattern is in pink but I think the white will be lovely.

One of my favourite photos

Last night I was talking to my eldest son, he is currently having a break from his cancer treatment, the next round of chemotherapy will start again in a couple of weeks but in the meantime he, his wife and young boys will be having a short holiday in the sun on the Gold coast.  He is feeling less tired and seems to have more energy now that the radiation and chemotherapy combination has finished.  This has given him some time to relax and do some of the things he enjoys, he is also able to drive again which has been a huge relief for my daughter in law.  During the conversation we were talking about my two gorgeous little grandsons and I remarked that one of my favourite photos was of Isaac and my son taken at my sons wedding.  This photo is just so natural  I thought I would show it you and let you see why I love this particular photo.

A quick pizza dinner

This afternoon my sister and her husband called in for a drink, they were on their way home from a lovely long weekend break in the Grampians, they had been to a food and wine show.     Sampling wines from the wineries around the district, and of course, cheeses, olives, breads and other artisan foods.    They also interupted the sewing day I had planned, I was going to sit and applique all afternoon, they didn't stay long though, just long enough to have a cup of tea and share the lovely biscuits they brought with them and tell me a little about their weekend.  Worried about driving in peak hour traffic they decided to leave, after I waved them on their way, I sat down to pick up the block I had been working on and the phone rang, it was friend who wanted to have a chat.    I decided to think about an early dinner so I could go back to my applique after dinner.  What to have, I felt like pizza, home made of course, but I wouldn't have time to make a dough and let it prove, so I mixed a pita dough and instead of cooking the pita I  rolled it out, placed some of my passata sauce, a little cheese then onion, capsicum and mushroom on the dough and baked in the oven.  Guess what, I like it, a thin crunchy base with cooked vegetables on the top.   Now back to my applique.

Needle turn applique

This year I made the decision to finish all the UFI's in my cupboard, I'm slowly getting through them and while I have four quilt tops waiting to be sent off to be quilted I'm feeling happy to see this pile diminishing.    I have some sewing on the machine to do but tonight I'd rather sit on the lounge wrapped in a quilt and hand stitch.    With this in mind I searched for the blocks I started in a workshop quite awhile ago and only finished one of the four blocks in this set before packing them away.    This afternoon I have cut out the leaves and will sit and finish block two I hope, I may well fall asleep instead, but will make a head start on it.     The blocks are from Bon Bon designs and the set is called Endearments, the first block is "Juliette", block two is "Beatrice",block three is "Ophelia", block four is "Portia" these are my first attempt at needle turn, silk thread and number eleven needles, as you can see I have a lot of practice ahead of me.   These blocks will never be entered in a competition, only ever displayed in my home so I'm happy to stitch along and hopefully become more proficient.     I have framed the first block and it hangs in the passage of my home,  I'm not sure if I will do the same with the other three or stitch all four of  them into a quilt.     I've taken my stitchery keeper out of hiding, this is a post pac I covered in fabric and use to store my work, to keep my work clean and safe.    I have left one end unsealed so I can store cottons, needles and applique pins inside the pac.

Tuna patties

Last week I realised I haven't been eating enough fish, our local fresh fish supply was closed late last year and there is no where to buy fresh fish locally anymore.  Determined to eat more fish, to increase my omega levels I decided to make some tuna patties for dinner tonight, I'm using canned fish  because that's all I have, however these are so much nicer with fresh fish.        I'm using a basic recipe tonight, sometimes I also make Thai fish cakes but tonight I just felt like these.  I made a small salad and some brown rice to have with them, very nice.   I have to tell you though that my very favourite way to have them is between two slices of toast with shredded lettuce and lemon juice, usually for lunch.   

Fish patties

1 large potato peeled and chopped
185 gm can tuna ( you can use a flavoured tuna, lemon or lime)
2-3 spring onions
2 tsps lemon rind
1 egg lightly beaten
1 tbls chopped parsley
breadcrumb
Oil,  (I used safflower oil )

Boil potatoes in salted water till cooked, drain and cool.  Mash the potato, add finely sliced spring onions, lemon rind, egg, parsley, tuna and salt and pepper.   Mix till well combined,  form into patties and roll in the breadcrumbs till covered.  Place on a plate, then put into the fridge for about an hour (this stops them from losing their shape as they cook)   Pour enough oil into a pan,  just to cover the bottom of the pan, cook turning when golden brown, place onto some paper towel to drain.   Serve with a salad or some potato wedges.  This gave me six medium patties, some for the freezer. Enjoy.

A little sad today

Yesterday while cleaning the house and changing a few things around, I've moved my teapots from a small open cabinet to the hutch,  I found one of my grandmothers tea cups broken.  I have cared for these for over twenty five years and to find one broken is a little sad.  It did have a small hairline crack down one side so I was  expecting this to happen but it doesn't change the way I feel.    This tea set has been used a lot for afternoon teas with friends and my daughters, as a matter of fact it has encouraged my beautiful girls to appreciate the beauty in setting a table with a cloth, making tea in a pot instead of a tea bag, serving some home baked goodies and just sitting and relaxing with friends and family.    My daughters and I get together every few months just for this reason, its good to catch up with each other and discuss the things that have been happening in our busy lives.