It's wild and woolly here in the Adelaide Hills yet that wont stop me from going Sophie Thomson's open garden today. Sophie has an amazing garden just outside of Mount Barker in the Adelaide Hills. She has types of people there sharing their skills and its wonderful just meandering through the grounds.
This year she has asked me to demonstrate at her Spring Open Garden and there's no better opportunity than sharing with you a version of my fermented Ruby Kraut and a delicious Giardiniera. Both are types of preserves yet they are both prepared differently and the vegetable's have different outcomes. Here are the recipes: Ruby Kraut 1 red cabbage about 1kg 4-6 beetroot- peeled and julienne 2 red onion- sliced 3 kohl rabi- julienne ½ bunch dill- leaves picked and torn 2 tblsp Salt 2 cups or so of filtered water. What to do:
Giardineira Ingredients: 1/2 head cauliflower, chopped into small florets ½ head broccoli, chopped into small florets 5 stalks celery, diced 5 carrots, diced 1 large red capsicum, seeded and chopped 3/4 cup sliced green pitted olives Spices for EACH pint jar: 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano 1/2 teaspoon coriander seed 1/4 teaspoon yellow mustard seeds 1/4 teaspoon fennel seeds 1/4 teaspoon black peppercorns 1/4 teaspoon red chilli flakes or Korean chilli powder 1 bay leaf 1 clove garlic, cut in half 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil For the Brine: 4 cups white wine vinegar 4 cups water 2 tablespoons salt- I like to use a natural salt like Ollson’s. What to do:
**IMPORTANT NOTE: If you're canning the jars for long-term storage it is critical to be sure you thoroughly wipe the rims of the jars to ensure no oil residue is on them, otherwise they will not seal properly. Alternatively, you can omit the oil during canning and add it later to your giardiniera when you open the jar.
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It's that time of year again when delicious Strawberries are in season.
I love using produce when it's in season and especially when it's locally or home grown. It's really important to me to let the ingredient shine without adding too many other ingredients (especially sugar). This recipe is easy and delicious. Great for lunch boxes where nut awareness is important. Nut free Strawberry Bliss Balls
It's the school holidays, it's cold and it's plastic free July!!! I don't know about you but I'm passionate about making delicious and nutritious treats for my kids and I love helping the environment. I also love supporting local so this Saturday (20/7) I'll be at Adelaide Hills Farmer's Market sharing some Raw Muesli Bites with you and your kids!!
In the Adelaide Hills we are fortunate to have so much choice when it comes to local producers and businesses. In Mount Barker we are lucky to have the Farmer's Market every Saturday morning where one can buy so many fresh and delicious foods. All locally grown, produced and the beauty of shopping at these local businesses is you can take your own bags, containers etc to fill! Thanks to Gai and Kevin Schiller for their contribution of dried fruit and Wendy at All Seasons Wholefoods Organic Cafe for the dry ingredients that we'll be using. Sometimes we get stuck for ideas of what to put in our kids lunchboxes. This is a simple recipe that you can whip up in a few minutes, can make extra to freeze and grab when you're putting together your child's lunch. It's also a simple step we can take to reducing waste and supporting local business. Ingredients
The weather is certainly cooling down here in the Adelaide Hills but that's not going to stop me making these delicious Kimchi Cold Rolls at tomorrow's Adelaide Hills Farmer's Market.
These delicious and quick cold rolls are easy to make and kids love getting into them.
I was lucky enough to be invited to the Adelaide Farmers Market to do a demo on how to make some easy, nutrient packed bliss balls. The Farmers Market is centrally located at the Wayville showground and I can not believe the amount of amazing produce that is available there as well as the awesome vibe from all the people attending.
The bliss ball recipe decided to make was an easy choice as all the ingredients were readily available... there were even locally grown apples that had been dried, ready for these delicious treats! These bliss balls are quick and easy and with a hint of cinnamon one would think they taste like a warm apple pie.
These bliss balls are fantastic as the weather starts to cool and the season's change. You can buy, slice and dehydrate your own apple. Activating nuts is a process whereby you soak the nuts in water over night, drain and then dehydrate for up to 20 hours on 45-50 degrees celcius. The reason we do this is available here www.facebook.com/cleverbelly/photos/a.356983398053791/620884218330373/?type=3&theater ![]() It's hard to believe its almost Christmas. This year seemed to fly by and what a year it's been! This is the first year I've been doing Christmas workshops and I love the energy that Christmas brings. I've had the pleasure to meet some wonderful people and best of all I get to share these delicious treats with you. This one we made at the Adelaide Hills Farmers Market on Saturday 8th December (tomorrow ;)). This has to be my new favourite raw treat... Almost white Christmas 🎄 nutrient dense and flavour packed! Get in my Clever Belly 😉😉 I hope you enjoy them as much as I do! Ingredients: 1 cup desiccated coconut 1 cup raw cashews 1/2 teaspoon concentrated natural vanilla extract 2 tablespoons maple syrup 1/4 cup cranberries 1/4 cup pistachios or pepita's.
![]() I’m not going to sugar coat this! It’s the time of year where sweet treats are everywhere and if we’re not careful we can overload on them. This causes the “baddies” in our gut to go into a frenzy, for our blood sugar levels to spike and our mood to go from good to bad rapidly. How important is eating well during this time? Just as important as ever!! Whilst it can be challenging to avoid these foods it’s important to continue to feed the “goodies” in our gut and remember that things like this should be an “occasional” thing. Personally I’d rather avoid them all together as this is not food. The more of this kind of thing we eat the more we crave it! How do you stop the cravings? Be prepared for them by having nutrient dense food, like nuts, close by. OR have a go at making these delicious Christmas Pudding Bliss Balls. Increasing the probiotic rich food you eat will help those goodies tackle the baddies. And always remember to practice kindness to oneself. If you eat something that’s not so great then be mindful of the self talk and find a way to create a positive mindset. Love ya guts 😘 Christmas Pudding Bliss Balls
Puddings 1 cup raisins 1/2 cup pepita's 1/2 cup sunflower seeds 2 teaspoons mixed spice 1/2 teaspoon concentrated natural vanilla extract Juice of 1/2 an orange 2 strips of orange zest (optional for garnish) Cashew Cream 1 cup unsalted raw cashews Water to cover 1/2 cup water 1 tablespoon pure maple syrup or honey 1/2 teaspoon vanilla Dash sea salt Puddings
![]() The past 3 mornings here in the Adelaide Hills have been chilly. Car windscreens and hoses have been frozen solid and it seems like the perfect time to make some warming Kimchi Soup. In Korean cuisine, kimchi is not only a condiment or pickle; it is also used as an ingredient in many cooked dishes. Kimchi soup, called Jjigae, is a satisfying example. The fermented kimchi quickly provide deep flavour to the broth, so it makes for a quick and easy winter meal. Aged kimchi, which is more intensely sour, is the preferred type to use. The soup is smooth with a hot and sour kick. This recipe is the one I demonstrated at the Adelaide Hills Farmers Market on Saturday 30th of June 2018. I hope you all take the time to make this and enjoy at home. Belinda. Ingredients:
Broth 6 cloves of garlic 5cm piece of ginger 300g Asian greens 4 spring onions 2L water 4 tsp tamari Kimchi Soup 1 Tblsp of oil (can you sesame if you wish) 1 medium onion, chopped 2 cups kimchi, aged if possible, squeezed dry and chopped 1 tablespoon Korean red pepper flakes (gochugaru) 1 cup kimchi juice 8 cups of Broth (above)- you can use chicken or beef broth if you prefer. Wontons 2 spring onion finely sliced ½ teaspoon ginger, finely grated 1 large garlic glove crushed ¼ teaspoon sesame oil 1 tablespoon tamari ½ a cabbage, outer leaves removed, washed and cut into 5mm strips. Salt Freshly ground black pepper 1 packet of square wonton wrappers To serve Spring onions and seasonal Asian vegetables What to do: Broth.
As many of you know, part of Clever Belly's mission is to empower children to learn how to make their own food. One of my proudest moments as a mother was the day my son made an omelette, from scratch, on his own. I knew from that day forward that he had the skills to feed himself... I won't talk about the washing up part, it's a work in progress :) This week I have the pleasure of working with the Mount Barker Library in their school holiday program where children have the opportunity to cook a delicious pumpkin and chickpea curry, make naan bread and whip up a cucumber raita. This will all get served on a bed of rice and be gobbled down quicker than it takes to make. The children will make everything from scratch...grinding the spices, kneading the dough and rolling the Naan bread as well as grate the cucumber for the Raita. This will be a great opportunity for some fun to be had and some mess to be made. The curry recipe I've made many times at the school I work at and every time it's a hit. I hope you enjoy making it at home as much as the kids do at school. Belinda. Chickpea, Pumpkin and Potato Curry
This will serve 4-6 people Ingredients: 1 medium brown onion- coarsely chopped. 1 cloves of garlic- finely chopped 2cm piece of ginger- finely chopped 1 Tablespoons Vegetable oil 3/4 teaspoon tumeric (ground) ½ teaspoon cumin seed 1 1/2 teaspoon coriander seed 250g chickpeas (pre cooked) 250g pumpkin, peeled, seeded and diced 250g potato, peeled and diced 1 teaspoon of salt 300g of tomato- cut into dice (or 1 tin of tomatoes) 1/2 cup coconut cream 6 bokchoy leaves- washed and cut into strips. Coriander leaves to garnish Method:
Simple Naan Bread This makes 4-6 naan bread. Ingredients: 1 teaspoon of dried yeast 1 teaspoon runny honey 45 g butter- melted 250 g strong white bread flour , plus extra for dusting sea salt 3 heaped tablespoons natural yoghurt Method:
Cucumber Raita Makes 1.5 cups. Ingredients: 1 Lebanese cucumber, halved lengthways 1 cup Greek Style Yoghurt 2/3 cup fresh mint leaves, finely chopped Method: Remove and discard seeds from cucumber. Finely chop half the cucumber. Grate remaining half. Step 2 Combine yoghurt, mint, chopped and grated cucumber in a bowl. Season with salt and pepper. Spoon into a serving bowl. |