Live in the Sunshine

So I'm off on holiday...

Thank you to "freephotos at guru" for the image

in reality this means for the past few days I have been hard out cleaning in preparation for the house sitter. Bear in mind that our family members (including a 2 1/2 year old) have just moved to their own house this week after 2 months here and you will understand that I am busy cleaning windows.

I decided to challenge myself whilst doing the windows by doing them with my eyes shut, to see what it might be like cleaning as a sightless person, going by touch. Of course, I was able to open my eyes after each one and rate myself - I did quite well - you should try it sometime.
I use Dr Bronner's castille liquid soap in hot water, followed by newspaper to dry, and that makes a great job. I like that the Dr Bronner's I use is peppermint scented, which is known to be invigorating and insects dislike it.

The young ones have done incredibly well, selling a house in Perth, moving the family (plus cat and dog) back here, buying a new house, finding 2 jobs and childcare. Plus shipping back a car and a container of furniture etc, all within about 3 months. What a huge undertaking - I take my hat off to them. 
One of the nice things about retiring means that I have been able to help out. That is a luxury these days.

We are one week away from the start of Winter here, and last week I picked aubergines and tomatoes from outdoor plants. This is not usual here, but they are in a warm position. It has to be climate change. We seem to be more fortunate here, in our own little micro climate than so many others are around the world, where the effects of climate change have been much harsher. 

I'll be back in a bit....just off to do a bit of living in the sunshine and swimming in the sea, and maybe drinking a few cocktails as well as the "wild air". Cheers!

Ants 'n' Cinnamon, Upcycled Market Umbrella to Clothes Frame

In this post....

Ants
I always seem to be banging on about pests here, but hey - they annoy me. So when I find something that works, I figure others might like to know too.
Have you tried putting cinnamon on ant trails to keep them out of the house? 
Apparently the smell confuses them and they just stay out. I've tried it, and they've gone - yay! 

Mozzarella Failure
A few weeks back I wrote a post on making haloumi cheese is easy  I commented that my next cheese would be Mozzarella. Well! After a following a recipe for "30 minute mozzarella", which the author described as so easy that her 9 year olds make it all the time - I had a big fail! It made some kind of cheese, which I have been hiding in white sauces,(and using up the ton of buttermilk this way too) but it definitely wasn't mozzarella. I'm going to blame the rennet.

Upcycle Market Umbrella Frame to Clothes Drying Frame
I have been hankering to replace our plastic coated clothes drying frames.

Drying frame - all rust, flaking plastic and sharp edges - out it goes!

I saw a gorgeous one in an eco shop in Auckland, fold-up style and made of wood, but it was well over $100. Probably one of those good investments that would last forever, but it seemed a lot.
Where we live is prone to great sudden afternoon gusts - so when I forget to drop the market umbrella in time, it can be doomed.

The bones of a deceased market umbrella

The remains seemed too good to just throw away, so I came up with this plan to utilize the parts into a wooden frame for clothes drying.
I have to say that the end result, which now stands without leaning, is largely thanks to my lovely Derek, who redid a fair bit of my initial construction.
I think it's great! 

Fabulous new drying frame

The next one, we have decided, will be more suitable for larger items, as this one is better suited to smaller pieces that don't need so much room to hang. And maybe we will be able to make the next one a folding frame. Perhaps I will let Derek design it.

You can see some more of my upcycles in these posts dog dishes, dog bed from a suitcase,  upcycled fish smoker from a washing machine,  upcycled jewellery

About Kiwis and Chia Berry Low Sugar Jam

I know, people have been going mad for chia seeds for a while now with their health benefits and ability to gel up.

Chia seeds

I'm a little late catching the boat, but have been adding chia to my toasted muesli mix and bread recipe lately. What I really wanted to try though was a berry and chia recipe for jam, which thickens up with no sugar. We all want less sugar, right? 

Berry Chia Seed Jam

Strawberry chia seed jam - no sugar!

2 cups of berries
2 tablespoons of chia seeds 
2 tablespoons of warm water
2 tablespoons of honey - but I used xylitol/stevia to taste

Bring the berries to the boil in a saucepan, then simmer for 5 minutes. Stir in the chia seeds and simmer for a further 10-15 minutes until it is the consistency that you want. Add sweetener to taste and pour into clean jars.
This is one to store in the fridge as it won't keep otherwise, having no sugar. So don't make a huge batch.
It's great on toast or stirred into plain yoghurt or used in baking.
The original recipe was one I found on Oh She Glows.com

Kiwis

Now I know quite a few people from around the world visit my blog, so this is for you. I feel the need to point out the difference between a Kiwi - our iconic flightless bird here in New Zealand, and a kiwifruit.
If you meet a New Zealander, they will often refer to themselves as a Kiwi. That's just a patriotic thing.
Recently we went to a kiwi meet prior to the release of this endangered bird into a safe area. This is the first time in my life that I have actually seen one up close, rather than behind glass in a kiwi house. They are a nocturnal bird, and flightless. They are at major risk from predators - stoats and weasels, rats and dogs. As none of these predators are actually native to New Zealand, kiwi numbers have been declining rapidly. 

Kiwi - he looks cuddly, but his handler is keeping a firm hold on those feet. Kiwis make clicking noises with their beak when annoyed.

They have incredibly strong feet and can dispatch a weasel when they are big enough.
Listen here for a kiwi call


And these are kiwifruit.

No one here calls them kiwis - maybe it's a marketing thing overseas.

Thanks for stopping by - do visit again!

The New Artisans

The New Artisans

I fell in love with this book by Olivier Dupon when I first saw it whilst visiting a friend almost two years ago. When I got back home I requested it from our library, but unfortunately someone else loved it so much that they stole it before I could have it. So when we saw it in a bookshop, I decided that it would be one that I would enjoy dipping into and Derek kindly bought it for me.

The front part of the book is dedicated to different artists, with such beautiful inspiring photographs. The back section is a gallery, divided into different types of art, such as ceramics, metalwork, textiles and jewellery.
It's a great book to pick up and dip back into - makes me want to get over to my studio and create!

Picmonkey
It has been a busy week, but not a lot of new activity for my blog - so I've just decided to post up a few original images that I have made.

Poetry by Celia Thaxter

This is a little technique that I have taught myself from picmonkey.com
If you don't know it already, go and have a play - it's great what you can do - mostly for free, but if you want something fancy then you can pay. 
It's fun to be retired and have time to learn new tricks.

And a journal page, with a quote I like

Altered Book Journal page

Hey, thanks for visiting!

Which Kitchen Papers are Biodegradable and an Alternative to Baking Paper.

If you have followed my blog a little you will know that I am working towards a more environmentally friendly lifestyle. It is a slow process, there are so many areas to tackle. 
The best environmental choice in kitchen papers is, of course, not to use any of them, but if, like me, you are still working on the process, some are better than others. I definitely try to go the no paper way, and to be honest, I give in to household demand by having these in the house...hey, I'm working on them though.

Kitchen papers and foil - which to use?

Waxed Paper - this can't be used in a conventional oven, but can be used for covering bowls in the microwave. It can be used as lunchwrap, or for wrapping cheese, or pastry as you leave it in the fridge to chill. It can then be thrown into the compost as it is biodegradable.

Greaseproof Paper - this too is biodegradable and can be used as for waxed paper as above. It isn't any use in baking unless you grease it as it will stick to your food, so really, not much point.

Baking Paper - this is siliconized paper, sometimes known as freezer paper I think, and it is not biodegradable. I have been using this until recently with baking bread as I was having trouble with the loaves sticking in my ageing non-stick pans. But now, thanks to the internet, I have found a solution! See my recipe for Miracle Pan Release below. 

Tin Foil - this can be recycled in many places if it is clean. Or it can be reused in lots of ways, for example to scrunch up and clean your barbecue grill, or to clean your silver by lining the sink with it, adding a dessertspoon of baking soda and some boiling water and immersing the silver in it.
If you are using it to cover a roast, better to use a roasting pan with a lid.

So some alternatives...Fabric sandwich wrappers and bags, using containers with lids, reusable metal lunch boxes, putting a plate over bowls in the microwave and fridge.
And then there is....

MIRACLE PAN RELEASE

I found this recipe on www.lovebakesgoodcakes.com but I have changed it up a little - here is my version.

1/2 cup of flour
1/2 cup of coconut oil (original uses vegetable shortening, ie Chrisco)
1/4 cup of vegetable oil (I used canola. The original recipe uses 1/2 cup, but I have reduced this as the coconut oil has a lower melt point)

Combine all in a bowl and mix with a hand mixer until the mixture slightly increases in volume and looks smooth and creamy. Place in a covered container and store it in the pantry. Use it within 3-4 months or store it in the fridge for a longer life.
Use the Miracle Pan Release by painting on your bakeware prior to baking, using a pastry brush.

I was so excited to see how well this worked!

my poor worn bread pan

Painting on the Miracle Pan Release

The bread just slipped out of the pan - no sticking!

AN UPDATE on Dishwasher Powder
You may have read my post for home made dishwasher powder some time ago. After using this for over a year I went back to store bought powder a little while ago. I have discovered that I can buy dishwasher powder by filling my own container, and I'm afraid it really does a much better job. There it's said. Maybe I will return to homemade one day, using them turn about to keep the dishes all looking good. 

Making Haloumi is Easy!

It turns out that cheese is one of the products that I can't buy without a plastic wrapper, unless it is prohibitively priced artisanal cheese. 

I have been planning to give cheese making a go, so when our lovely Australian friend Bindi was here recently, we decided we would just do it.
The recipe we used is called Home-Made Haloumi from the Simple Pleasures Cookbook by +Annabel Langbein.

Annabel Langbein's recipes are interesting and home-cook friendly  

The recipe is not as complicated as it first looks, and if it's made regularly would be a doddle.
You will need a 30cmx20cm cheese mould and a thermometer. I didn't have a cheese mould - which is a vessel with holes in the bottom, so used a steamer with a bowl and weight on top to press the cheese. It worked perfectly well, but just wasn't so beautifully shaped. Some people use a punctured ice cream container.

This recipe uses 8 litres of milk, but to trial it we made 1/3 of the recipe, and it worked great.

Home-Made Haloumi

Haloumi is best fried or grilled

First you need to sterilize your equipment, using a chlorine tablet (as you would use for nappies). We just used boiling water. So that is a 12 litre pot, a 20 litre pot, a large whisk, a cheese mould, muslin, a rack.

8 litres of unhomogenised full-cream milk
2 tsp rennet
4 tsp boiled and cooled tap water or bottled water
a little salt for sprinkling, plus 1/4 cup extra for brine

Put milk in the smaller pot and put this pot inside the larger one. Pour water into the large pot up to the same level as the milk in the smaller pot. Heat over a medium heat until the milk reaches 29 degrees celcius (and let me warn you this does not take long), then turn off the heat - it will reach the desired temperature of 32 degrees celcius with the residual heat.

Stir rennet into the 4 tsp boiled and cooled water. Whisk into heated milk.
Leave to stand for 45 minutes - it will hold at this temperature and you should not need to heat it. It will separate into curds (solids) and whey (liquid).

Cut the curds into 1cm cubes in a crisscross fashion then at 45 degree angles in two directions through the middle.
Return to the heat (still in the water bath), stirring gently until the temperature reaches 36 degrees celcius. The curds and whey will further separate. Remove from the heat and stand it for 5 minutes. 

Drain through muslin, reserving the whey. Line the mould with muslin and place over a draining rack. Transfer curds to the mould. Fold in the muslin, put a lid on the mould and weigh it down with a container of water or similar for at least 1 hour.

Remove cheese from the mould and cut into 8 pieces. Bring the whey to 85 - 90 degrees celcius then add the cheese in batches of 4 pieces, cooking 15 minutes without stirring. When ready it will spring back like a sponge. Lift out and place on the rack over a draining tray.
Sprinkle both sides with a little salt and fold each piece in half.

Make brine with 4 cups of water, 2 cups of reserved whey and 1/4 cup salt. Store haloumi in brine in the fridge for up to a month. It can be eaten the same day but improves after 24 hours. If it goes slimy, rinse it off and replace the brine with fresh brine.

What I like about this, apart from the superb haloumi, is that the whey (or buttermilk) isn't wasted. It can be added to smoothies or baking.
Next cheese I'm going to try making is 30 minute mozzarella.

Rattan Blind Makeover with Tapa Cloth

For a long time I have been meaning to do something about our bedroom blind. Now that we have family staying a while it was a little more urgent, given that the current rattan one didn't allow full privacy at night.

Rattan blind before - lets in too much light, and no privacy

The window is quite a big one, so a new blind would have needed to be custom made. A year or so ago we bought a huge tapa cloth on Trademe, which I have been using for various projects from lampshades to giftwrap and Christmas decorations for my Pacifica themed Christmas. I had the brilliant idea of lining the rattan blind with tapa cloth - and here is the result. 

Rattan blind with tapa cloth lining

I just took the blind down, cut a piece of tapa to fit the blind, slipped it in behind the cords then hand sewed it to the top of the blind, and at various other points to fit it snug.
I love how it looks and it works a treat now - plus it will keep the room warmer in winter. 
This idea could be adapted to all sorts of other materials - drop cloths, sheets or just curtain material.
Tapa is bark cloth, handmade in the Pacific Islands.