Stuffed Bell Peppers | Preserved Bell Peppers

My bell pepper bush has exploded with these gorgeous bright red gems. The question I had was... what do I do with them? I have been asking my foodie friends and experimenting and here's what I've found out...

Stuffed bell peppers

1. Cut the top off and deseed the bell peppers. 
2. Place right side up in a large saucepan and just cover with olive oil. Make sure each one is filled with oil.
3. Poach the bell peppers for about 15-20 minutes until softened, but still in shape. Don't let them fry.
4. Let them cool in the oil, then remove. (Keep the oil for future use. It's got a good kick to it). 
5. Mix about 100 grams of soft goats cheese, 2 tablespoons of parmesan cheese, 4 tablespoons of flat leaf parsley and a drizzle of the oil you used to cook the bell peppers.
6. Put the stuffing mixture into a piping bag (or a plastic bag with the corner cut off) and fill each bell pepper with the mix. 
7. Serve with a nice cold beer or a glass of Pinot Gris.

My friend Amy, who gave me this recipe says...

"Just use your instincts on the filling. Truthfully, I use whatever I've got and have been known to add any number of stuffings:
- basil pesto and half a bocconcini ball sitting in the top (massive crowd pleaser)
- parsley, anchovy, feta
- olive, parsley, chunky breadcrumbs"

Thanks Amy - these are a winner!

 

Preserved bell peppers

 I have also preserved the bell peppers with success. This takes a bit longer to make, but it also lasts longer than the stuffed ones (the stuffed ones get eatten pretty quick!), they are nice to have on hand for cooking.

1. Place the peppers on a grill or bbq plate and grill until the skins are blackened and the peppers are soft.
2. Place the peppers into a paper bag and close, to allow them to steam. 
3. Once cool, peel, deseed and slice the peppers (yes, it gets messy!)
4. Place sliced bell peppers in a medium saucepan, with a couple of sliced garlic cloves and a few spigs of thyme, and cover with olive oil.
5. Bring to the boil, and then spoon into steralized jars and seal immediately.
6. Once opened keep the jar in the fridge. You can use the oil, as well as the peppers, in all sorts of dishes.

 I had about 600grams of bell peppers and it made one medium sized jam jar worth.

 Other uses for bell peppers...

You can also simply de-seed and freeze them to use in cooking later on. I also give them away to neighbours and friends. There's nothing better than sharing your crop for others to enjoy... it also sweetens the deal when you ask them to feed your dogs when you go on holidays!

June in the garden

 As far as gardening in June goes, I didn't do any...

   

 We were away for the whole month. I was really surprise at how well the garden held up while we were sipping cocktails and sunning ourselves on a tropical island! 

The bell pepper bush has exploded with gorgeous red bite-size gems. I love collecting them from the garden by using my shirt as a holder... it reminds me of adventures in the garden with my sister, Clare, when we were kids. I have preserved one batch with garlic and thyme, and am poaching and stuffing another batch with goats cheese, parmesan and parsley today. Yummy!

 

The parsley is lucious and gorgeous green. I will be taking some to my next girls dinner to give to the girls. Nothing better than sharing your produce with loved ones!

 This lovely plant is adding some much needed colour to the garden, now all the marigolds have died back and gone to seed. The edible flowers and leaves are a great addition to a winter salad. I got this plant from my Grandma's garden, so it makes me smile every time I see it.

 My "weeds"... corriander. I have not planted corriander for YEARS. It just pops up all over the place. This bed was left empty before I went away, and when I came back it was full of delicious corriander. It's even in the lawn, smells great when mowing!

 

"Laura's Strawberries" all the way from the Atherton Tablelands. Laura is my little sister, and she sent me some strawberry plants in the mail as little babies. They are growing well and starting to flower! 

 

Before and after...  the lemon grass is taking off.

 A shot for Mum...the 3 beds along the side fence.

 Dad came to visit a while ago, and he can never bloody sit still! So I gave him a job to do... "prune" the mock oranges. These used to be about 2 meters high. I must say, they loved the prune and so did the rest of the garden.

As a result of the garden having more sunlight, the rosemary hedge finally stands a chance!

I love succulents, and I'm experienting with making different patterns out of the various varieties. I'm thinking a stripe pattern like this will work well out the front around our mail box.

An old milo tin, covered in fabric and planted with succulents.

 
Succulents in an olive oil tin.


More ovely succulents...

This plant was a gift from the birds.

An old tree stump turned pot plant. I just dumped a head of potting mix into the centre and planted some crawling plants in. A old eye sore is now a beautiful feature.


The pot came from a flower arrangement I was given, and I got the climber as a cutting from a neighbour (they may or may not know about that part!)

What does free range mean?

Today I saw a horrible sight.

Today I saw one of those transport trucks loaded with live hens. They were visibly shivering, cold, wet and suffering. If you haven't seen one, google 'truck transport chickens' and you'll see what I mean.

This broke my heart and made me think about the whole chicken industry, and more importantly what I buy.

Is "Free Range" what we think it is? 


The chicken and egg industry have done a great job through marketing in making us beleive that this is how all hens live:

When people decide to buy and eat ethically, the words free and range are pretty important. Slap these two words on an egg carton or on the meat packaging, and people feel as though they are making a good buying decision. But are we?

Sustainable Table makes a really good point: 

"In Australia and NZ there are no binding laws that define what free range actually means. As a result, accreditation bodies, of which Australia has six, apply their own definition of free range when accrediting farmers with that all important marker of ethical farming. Factors such as access to an outdoor area, stocking density, beak trimming and pasture cover, for instance, are all up for interpretation."


There are some horrible images available of  high density 'free range' houses, beak trimming and what happens to the male chicks, but I'd rather focus on the positive, yeah?


What can we do? 

• Look for these logos when buying eggs:

• Beware of clever marketing campaigns and packaging imagery. The picture on the egg carton could be the first ray of sunshine or blade of green grass the hen or egg has ever come close to.
• Check out the Sustainable Table Free Range Egg and Chicken Guide.
• Get your own chookies. They make domestic pets, and 3 or 4 can provide your family plenty of eggs.

Thanks to www.freerangefarmers.com.au for these images.

Now, guess what I'm up to this weekend? Yep, preparing our back yard for some chookies. True FREE RANGE, guilt-free eggs, here we come!

Blogs and Websites I love

There are so many blogs that I love and visit all the time, and there are so many blogs that I love ... and forget what they were called! Here's my 'to-remember' list. You should check them out too! Please let me know of any you think I I should add to my visit-list.

http://mynewroots.blogspot.com.au/ - Sarah is a holistic nutritionist and vegetarian chef. In her award winning blog you will find one-of-a-kind recipes, amazing nutritional information and mouth-watering photography.

http://www.missfoodieaus.blogspot.com.au/ - Kirsten is Miss Foodie! You will find her blog filled with beautiful photography, delicious recipes and restaurant critiques.

http://sensiblespice.blogspot.com.au/ - Amy is an inspiration. In her blog she shares her thoughts on parenting, food, some great recipes and other things that come her way.

http://www.sarahwilson.com.au/ Sarah is an Australian beauty - we need more personalities like her! She is a blogger, journalist, TV personality and social commentator. Her views on food, life and health are inspiring.

http://www.karenmartini.com/ Melbourne chef, restaurateur and food writer Karen Martini has been cooking professionally for more than 20 years. Great recipes and truly wonderful videos!

http://crafterholic.blogspot.com.au/ So many things to add to my 'to-do' list on this blog! 

Home Made Healthy Dog Bikkies

My friend Sal brought these dog bikkies over for Sunnie and Peppa to try and they love them. I love them too because they are full of healthy oils for their nails and coat and I know I'm feeding my dogs something good. The only one time Sunnie didn't try bowl me over for these treats was when we were at the beach, and unbeknowns to us had drunk about 2L of sea water... let's just say she was like a water pistol (from both ends) for about 4 hours! Poor puppy!

Anyway, Sal's thinking she'll make these with Sascha's blend mixed in next time for her older dog Bundy (as she turns the corner into middle age) and also to make them seem less appetising to her.... they're actually quite tasty!

Sal's Healthy Dog Bikkies

 

1. Into a large bowl mix

• 2 cups wholemeal SR flour
• 1/2 cup polenta
• 1/2 cup crushed linseeds (I just wizzed mine in the blender for a couple of minutes which didn't 'crush' many of them just kind of stirred them around really fast so maybe bashing them would be better... could also be therapeutic)
• 1/4 cup quick-cooking rolled oats

2. In a smaller bowl stir together

• 1/4 cup molasses
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup water

3. Combine wet and dry ingredients

4. Mix into a firm dough (like a biscuit dough). If too dry add water...too soft add more flour.

5. Roll out to 1 cm thick and cut into pieces.

6. Bake in oven 170'C for approx 30mins. Allow to cool slowly.

Thanks Sal!

Home made crunchy breakfast granola with chia seeds and goji berries

Home made crunchy granola

This is really easy, delicious and healthy!

2 cups of wholegrain rolled oats
1 cups of mixed nuts and seeds (I used walnuts, cashews, pecans, almonds, hazelnuts, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds)
3 tablespoons of honey
3 tablespoons of golden or maple syrup
2/3 cup dried fruit, chopped (I use apricots, pears, apples, peaches and goji berries.You could you figs, saltana's or dates)
1 tablespoon chia seeds
1 tablespoon flaxmeal



Mix oats, seeds, nuts and flaxmeal in a bowl (not chia seeds). Microwave honey and syrup for about 20 seconds until runny. Pour over the oat mixture and stir to combine until the oat mixture is coated. Tip the mixture into a lined baking tray and bake for 180 degrees for about 10-20 minutes (mine took 10 minutes, but my oven is a piece of sh*t!). Leave to cool. Once cool sprinkle with fruit and chia seeds. Store in an airtight container.

I serve with berries and soy milk, or yogurt. Yum!

I have been trying to cut refined and processed foods out of my diet. I think. I mean I am tying to eat whole foods. Foods that are still in their natural form. Sugar and refined flour is something that I'm trying to kick. When I say sugar I don't mean natural sugar from fruit and honey, I mean refined sugar.

Breakfast is the hardest meal of the day to this for. Everything has so much sugar, and if it doesn't have sugar it has processed wheat! Cereal is especially high in sugar.

So, enter home made crunchy granola. This is something I've been wanting to do for a while but for some reason though it would be hard. But, it's really easy

It does have golden syrup in it, but at least I know how much and what's going into it.

Healthy At 100 {book} by John Robbins

My sister gave me this book for Christmas. I am not a big reader, but I cannot put this down!

John Robbins, takes us on a journey through the healthiest peoples in the world, including the Abkhasians, Vilcabambians, Hunzans and Okinawans. The differences between these peoples and our 'Western' lives are huge. It certainly makes you think.

Look, all I can say is, read this book!

Bestest Yummiest Healthiest Peach, Banana & Berry Smoothy

This morning I went to the Rocklea markets with my dearest friend Kate and her bubby, Lily-Rose. We got so many yummy fruit and vegies including fresh picked apples from Stanthrope, potatoes from Far North QLD (where I'm from) and delicious ripe peaches. By the time we'd walked arounnd the markets I had managed to squash the peaches into semi-smoosh in my bag. Smooshed peaches = delicious smooties!

Bestest Yummiest Healthiest Smoothy
Serves 2

Blitz together:
1 frozen banana
1 peach
1 handful of frozen blue berries
1.5 - 2 cups of milk (depending on how thick you like it)
1 teaspoon of chia seeds
1 tablespoon of flaxmeal

I was going to add honey at the end but didn't need to as the peach added so much natural sweetness. Flaxmeal and Chia Seeds are high in Omega-3, plant lignans and dietry fibre and just add a bit of substance to the smoothy.

Idea's to make life easier

Simone recently shared 25 Clever Ideas to make life easier. Here are a few of my fave's:

 Hull strawberries using a straw!

 Use wire to make a space to store gift wrap rolls against the ceiling, rather than cluttering up the floor.

 Overhaul your linen cupboard – store bedlinen sets inside one of their own pillowcases and there will be no more hunting through piles for a match. I have actually done this and it's awesome!

Rubbing a walnut over scratches in your furniture will disguise dings and scrapes.

To see all of the 25 idea's go to The Daily Buzz.

January Garden Photos

I thought I'd share a few photos of my January Garden.

 

Our Jasmine Star Christmas Tree. It flowers in abundance at Christmas time, gives a lovely smell and we don't have to throw it out at the end of December!

 My olive oil tin planters. Perfect for growing succulents. Just drill a few holes in the bottom for drainage if you want to do the same.

 Out the front. The neighbourhood cats kept coming into the front garden. Mum suggested planting Rosemary as a way of deterring them as the smell could be too strong for them. Rosemary is a natural insect repellent and it seems to work on cats too! I've also planted some of the native grass I bought back from Mum's garden on the Atherton Tablelands.

 Succulents are one of my favourite things to grow in pots.

 Another plant from Mum's garden. It survived the 1800km drive!

 More from Mum's garden.

 This funny little spot under the stairs has always been an ugly patch of dirt. The only thing I have managed to grow here is Mondo Grass partly because of the poor growing conditions, but mainly because of the dogs laying and digging in there. Now Sunny can lay in the cool grass and it survives!

 Native violet or Viola hederacea. One of the plants we got from the Free Native Plant Program run by the Brisbane City Council.

 My Passion Fruit vine is finally producing fruit! It was here when we first moved in but never really did much. I have been giving it some TLC over the last couple of years and now the fruit is divine!

Lemongrass. YUM! A must have in every garden. It's so easy to grow and it's zesty lemon flavour is beautiful in Thai cooking. It is also said to have a number of health benefits, especially when used in combination with other Thai spices such as garlic, fresh chillies, and coriander! Again, YUM!

Herb Robert or Geranium robertianum. It's a medicinal herb but I'm still not sure how to use it! Apparently it is as a remedy for toothaches and nosebleeds, I've also read it act as an insect repellent and there are even stories about it helping people beat Cancer.

 I saved this Marjoram plant from the markets... hopefully it will start looking a bit healthier soon! Some people say Marjoram can ward of bad luck so they put it in their homes and businesses. It is very similar to Oregano and can be used in many savoury dishes.

 A photo of Zone One of my permaculture garden. Hopefully by February this will be out of control with Basil, Parsley, Lettuce, Spinach, Coriander and what ever else I planted in there!

 I'm experimenting with propagating Basil from cuttings. Seems to be working so far... will let you know!

.

My ginger is growing! The rhizomes came all the way from Cairns, from my Aunty Arja's garden. Apart from being delicious, Ginger can help with nausea and research at the University of Sydney has found it may also reduce pain and inflammation.

As you can see a lot of my plants have been given to me from other gardeners as cuttings, bulbs or rhizomes. This is fantastic as it cuts down on cost for me, but it also tells a little story in my garden and I think of my Mum and Aunty (and sometimes the neighbours - hehe!) every time I see their plants.

I once read, when you become a gardener you become a thief! I like to think of it as sharing...