Bread Power

Gee I haven't visited Tony for ages. I wondered if he would remember to come up to me if he saw me carrying a bag of bread. Well, only one way to find out.

Tony came to live with us when he was twenty years old. We have one and a half acres and he lived there for about eight or nine years. We had to order in bales of hay to get him through the winters, but generally he had enough feed on the place to get by. And of course anything extra I gave him.

He used to give me such a hard time when I tried to lock up the chickens. I used to carry the chicken scrap container and I lost count of how many times he nearly knocked me over. Then I began to take some extra bread for him and I tossed it as far away from the chicken pen so I could tend to the chickens in peace. It began the ball rolling for what was to become a routine for years. Tony would wait for me in the same place at the same time every afternoon waiting for his daily bread.

When our kangaroo Josie grew up and ventured out into the world, "our backyard", she used to give poor old Tony such grief. I guess Josie was young and frisky and playful. She would go up to Tony and literally "box" him in the face. Tony would shake his head in protest and snort, but he never hurt her. It was a different story though when Josie decided to take him on by his tail. She would grab and pull his tail and jump backwards. Tony used to wildly shake his tail and neigh with dismay, but it didn't stop her. Sometimes he got so fed up he would kick up his hind legs and once he even made contact with her. I was terrified he would kill Josie, but her reflexes were good and she would manage to get away unscathed. Mostly.

I wonder if he remembers Josie and what a pain in the neck she was. I wonder if he remembers the chickens or the guinea pigs that used to run under him and use him as a shield from hawks while they ate underneath his body. How he never squashed any of them was a mystery.

Sometimes I used to see Tony staring up at the gate or over the fence. Just what was he thinking. Maybe he wanted to get out. Sometimes he did. And just like a mischevious child we had to entice him back with a bag of goodies. In his case, bread, carrots or apples.

We took Tony to our farm about three years ago. I wondered how he would get on because he was no spring chicken. He is over thirty years old now. I remember he was rather put out and upset when we left him there all alone for the very first time. I came home and worried about him all night. I raced out the next day and took him some bread and spoke to him for a while. This went on for about three days.

Then Tony discovered the cows. They adopted him and he loved them. And it seemed they loved him too. Over time whenever we spotted the cows there would be Tony in amongst them. He went from being beseiged by a pesky kangaroo on a small block of land to being adored by fifty cows on magnificent green pastured hills in a beautiful valley. He has loads of feed, loads of company and the best view in the world. Our Tony is living like a king!

Aaaah! I think a little memory bulb just lit up.



Of course he hasn't forgotten. I wonder how the bread tastes after all this time.



The memories come flooding back. And he is loving his bread.



His curious fans come up for a closer look to see what all the fuss is about. Aren't they just beautiful.



Now that Tony has enjoyed his fill of bread, I guess it's my turn to get "bready". On rare occasions I buy a loaf of raisin bread, but I find it get's stale after only one day. Perfect. I decide to tweak an old recipe for bread and butter pudding and I am not holding back on the tweaking! Recently I purchased some small pudding dishes and I wanted to use them. Usually the whole lot gets layered in one baking dish. Here goes.

Raisin Bread and Butter Puddings

4 slices raisin bread, crusts removed
butter
orange marmalade
4 eggs
1/4 cup castor sugar
2 cups milk
freshly grated nutmeg

Spread the bread with butter and Orange Marmalade. Gosh I'm down to my last jar of my homemade orange marmalade.



Cut each slice of bread into quarters. Arrange the slices to fit into your buttered dish. I used two of my small basins.



Whisk together the eggs, sugar, milk and vanilla. Add some orange zest for extra flavour if you like. Strain the mixture into a jug. Pour some of this mixture onto the bread. Allow to sit for about 4 minutes so that the bread absorbs as much as possible.



Grate some whole nutmeg.



Pour more of the mixture in; allow to sit again till it absorbs as much as it can. I did this three times. Sprinkle the puddings with nutmeg.



Do not be tempted to fill the dish all the way to the top. This picture below shows the maximum level you should allow.



I had some extra mixture that I could not fit into the puddings, so I poured the remainder into another dish. I was going to have some of the baked custard dolloped on the side. One needs to be creative!



Bake in a preheated oven for about thirty minutes or till well risen and baked through.



After a little while they will have deflated a little and begun to slightly come away from the sides.



Oooh, my little baked custard pot was looking rather delish as well.



When the puddings have cooled; slide a knife carefully around the edge; invert onto a plate; twist and lift. Grate a little orange zest on top. Voila!



Oh my. This turned out better than I thought. I didn't need to add any extra custard. It is rich enough on it's own and would be perfect with some stewed fruit. I am really, really pleased. Who would of thought some humble bread could look this good. Seriously, try it!

Throw-Together Sponge

I feel like some good old fashioned home made sponge cake. No fan fare, no fanciness. Simple and fresh with good quality ingredients. The eggs are crucial here. Free range are essential. Sorry, but they make all the difference.

After my hectic week-end, I was working away, when I had this urge. I went into the kitchen and made a sponge. I made it with no cookbook, no accurate measurements and no intention of blogging the recipe. I hadn't made one for yonks, and I felt a lot more attention to detail was required for cyberspace showcasing purposes. Then I thought, what a load of rot! This is me and this is how I feel like cooking today. I'm not the AWW or an expert chef or a cookbook stylist. There seems to be a national obsession all of a sudden with food looking perfect or artistic on a plate. Blame Masterchef especially Poh (don't get me wrong as I really liked Poh). Whatever it is, I say "barr" all that and let's get back to cooking and eating soley based on taste. And while we're at it, let's make it purposefully rustic and thrown together. With love of course.

This is my throw-together sponge and you can easily make one too. I am here to show you how to replicate my recipes if you like them and I want to be "unthreatening" about it. There is a lot of fear associated with the humble sponge. I'm here to release you from that fear. If it sinks or shrinks or isn't baked enough or is overbaked, what's the worst that can happen. You can still eat it and you will have learnt from the experience and any mistakes. Jot down any mishaps and try to avoid them next time. It's called 'practise". And by golly have I had some practise.

I've made heaps and heaps of sponges and they are far from perfect; but they are very tasty. My favourite is probably filled with lemon butter. But one must use what one has on hand and I was far from disappointed with the strawberry filled results. Hubby and Nikka loved it and I heard lots of "ooooooooohs and aaaaaaaaaaahs" as they polished off their plates. I listened for any complaints about the lack of artistry on their plates. None came. The cake was totally consumed today and that's okay.

Sponge Cake

4 free-range eggs, room temperature please!
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup caster sugar
1 cup of self raising flour, sifted about 6 times
about 20gm melted butter
1 or 2 tablespoons very hot water

200 ml beaten cream
1/3 or 1/2 cup strawberry jam (I used my strawberry and apple)
1 punnet fresh strawberries, sliced
1 heaped teaspoon icing sugar
1 or 2 teaspoons cointreau or fresh orange juice
extra icing sugar

It's important to have prepared all your ingredients so they are ready to go. Also to have your oven pre-heated and your baking tin greased and lined.

Using a stand electric mixer, beat the eggs on a medium high speed for about 2 or 3 minutes. Put in the vanilla extract. Increase the speed to maximum. Add a couple of tablespoons of sugar one at a time and allow to mix for a couple of minutes until it has all been added. Your mixing time may take up to 12 minutes.

Remove the bowl from the stand and take out the whisk used to beat the eggs and sugar. Add half the flour and gently incorporate into the egg mixture using the same whisk. You need to find which action best suits you in order to do this. It's quite an important step. I slowly turn the whisk then raise it into the air allowing the mixture to fall. I do this the whole time. Add the remaining flour. Add the hot water and melted butter together; pour down the side of the bowl and continue with the gentle whisk till you see no more traces of flour. You should make no more than half a dozen turns with the whisk.

Pour into the baking tin; bake in a moderate oven for about 30 mins or till done. Please refrain from opening the oven door until almost done. Sponges are notorious for sinking if the door is opened too early.

Take out and place onto a rack; only for a minute or two. Using a knife, you may need to go around the edges to help release any cake that is not easily coming away from the sides. Turn onto another rack immediately; peel away baking paper; cover with a teatowel. Allow to cool.

Unfortunately I didn't take any photos of the steps because I really hadn't planned on posting this recipe. Posting came to mind after I removed the cake from the tin.



I was really happy with it.



This is where the free range eggs pay off. Apart from the superior taste, just look at that magnificent yellow colour. Glorious.



I chose to cut the cake so that I had three layers. You may prefer to cut it in half.
(In that case, spread the jam first, followed by the cream and then finish with the strawberries.)



Place the bottom layer onto a plate. I spread this layer with my Strawberry And Apple Jam



Place the next layer over the jam layer; spread this with fresh cream and top with the strawberries. I should mention that while the cake was baking I sliced and macerated the strawberries in icing sugar and cointreau. This helps to draw the juices out and really makes the strawberries luscious. Try it.



Plonk the top layer over the strawberries and cream.



Shake icing sugar over this top layer.



Take a knife; sharp or blunt and hook in. For today at least; presentation is out and taste is in!

The Final Postie Challenge - Part Five.

It was not as comfortable in the car ride home as it was when we were accompanying the posties. All five of us were in the car now, so seating was a little more crowded. I sat in the back with Mitch and Nic. There were intervals though that Mitch drove, giving hubby a rest, so that was good. I also sat in the middle which made it hard to lean on anything, but I won't whine. I opted to sit there after all.

Hubby was hoping that we would reach Innamincka tonight. We all loved that name. Innamincka. It sounded so intriguing. I wonder if the town is as alluring as the name. Mitch reminded me of the Slim Dusty song 'Innamincka Muster', and he even began to sing it. Him and his country idols. Mitch adored Slim but John Williamson takes the cake. I think. It's a close call.

We were travelling on the Strzelecki Track and the landscape was so brown, with hardly a tree in sight. The weather looked like it was turning. Nikka was going nuts out of the car window snapping away at changing clouds behind us. She absolutely loves big skies and clouds. Her favourite photographic subject I think. Drops began to fall from the sky and I asked our driver, Mitch, to please stop. He was in full-steam-ahead-mode. When things like this happen you just have to stop and embrace the moment. We all stepped out the car and I snapped some shots of a rainbow in the angry sky. Just stunning.




It passed very quickly. We were hoping for lots of rain so we could experience getting wet in the desert; drops in the desert was as close as it came.



Back on board and we drove for hours; each of us were nodding off in the back seat. The sun was just starting to go down and with darkish clouds still hanging about, it was not a good time for taking any more photos. So what do you suppose we saw next. It was one thing that Nikka had hoped we would see more than anything. Wild camels. One crossed the road right infront of us; the other fellow waited to see if we would pass then decided to do a quick dash instead. Nic jumped out of the car waving her camera wildly. She managed a few shots before they galloped away. We felt very priveleged to have seen them. No pictures from me though. Sorry.

We drove on into the night and passed what appeared to be a huge gas plantation in the distance. It was lit up like a christmas tree. We couldn't believe it. In the middle of the desert and it may well have been Las Vegas to use Nikka's description.

Hubby declared that when we get to Innamincka we would go straight to the hotel and get rooms. That hot shower was sounding so good. I don't want to think how long it had been without one. Finally we reached Innamincka. It looked to be a very, very small, dusty place. The pub however, like the gas operation, was also lit up like Las Vegas. This looked more promising. Yeah. The three of us waited in the car while Hubby and Dee went over to get some rooms. We were greeted with some long faces. There were none. Oh God. What now? It was nine o'clock at night.

Grumpily, Hubby ordered Mitch to drive around till we saw somewhere viable to set up our tent. God knows how at this hour. Poor Mitch, he took a turn which saw us heading out of town again. Hubby curtly told him to turn around. This was a lot harder considering we were lugging the trailer. Oh the trials. What next.

We turned into what appeared to be a camping ground; and it looked really full. You must be joking. Who on earth would come to this forsaken, dusty hole of a place. Lots by the looks of it. Poor Mitch was pounced on again by Hubby for driving too quickly around this camping ground. People were still out and about or sitting around fires and our vehicle was raising lots of dust as we drove around in futility. Unshowered, unfed and now holding my breath (wondering who was going to cop Hubby's next outburst), I decided this was not fun.

There was a stressed atmosphere inside our car. Gee, I wonder why. All of a sudden, Hubby ordered Mitch to go back to a certain tree he had spotted. We pulled up. We took a good, long, hard look and someone said "is this really the best we can do". And yes, it was. All of a sudden, Nikka began to laugh. This is ridiculous. It lightened up things. Then all of us smiled and began to laugh. Really laugh. Hubby looked up and commented on the stars. Barr the tent. He chucked out a long tarp on the ground and threw our mattresses on the tarp. I completed the rest of the bedding and the kids dived onto them like two year olds giggling and jumping. All of a sudden, this was fun. We couldn't believe how our long day's driving saw us end up here. Not what we imagined. And that is probably the best part.

Dee opened up some red wine; cheese and crackers and the kids raided the small fridge and food box for whatever they could find. Drinking some wine and eating some cheese under the stars aint so bad. Infact it was really nice. We all felt connected to our surroundings and we sat talking, admiring the monsterous sky, the stars and the tranquillity. Apart from a sniffing dog or dingo not far from our site. Nikka said she hoped she had no body parts missing in the morning.

As usual, "find a tree or a bush" for going to the loo. Honestly this was hilarious. As we lay in our "beds", everyone was talking and humming and laughing making comments like "wonder what the rich people are doing right now". Because quite frankly I did feel "rich". My family was healthy, relaxed and happy. And safe. Unless of course that branch directly above fell down and killed one of us.









The first light of day. This was my ceiling.





A morning view of our luxurious bedrooms.



Wake up Boo Boo.



Wake up Borb.



And the last one up as usual is.....



Little kiddies climbing "our" tree. A dinky di coolibah tree actually.





We leave Innamincka. With fond memories and big smiles on our faces. I wonder if we had stayed in five star class would we be as happy. Everything is grand. Just don't raise that arm Mitch whatever you do. Ponky!! I'm too afraid to ask when was the last shower.

The plan today is to drive, drive, drive. Again. Let's see how far we get this time. The only real place we wanted to stop was the old "Dig Tree". It was about 65kms ahead of us, but we did have to backtrack 12kms to get there. Still, I didn't care. Mitch really wanted to see it. I'm so glad we did.

Most Aussies would have heard of Burke and Wills. Pioneering explorers. The dig tree holds particular significance because it was the landmark where a supply team held base there for four months waiting for Burke, Wills and their team to arrive. They ended up digging a spot near this tree and leaving the supplies. Then they left. They missed Burke and Wills by a couple of hours. Such a sad story. Burke and Wills ended up dying somewhere along the Cooper Creek, near Innamincka. One survivor from the party was saved by an friendly aboriginal and he lived to tell the tale.

The Dig Tree



A carving of Burke made by a stockman over one hundred years ago. It was fascinating. It reminded me of Mother Willow from Pocahontas for those of you familiar with that film.



An inside outback loo. Hurray.



Even a sink and tap. Just don't expect any water to come out, okay.



Let's go home.



The long and short of it is we drove till eight oclock that night. We pulled into the huge country Queensland town of St George and we found a room. We had that beautiful hot shower. Somehow it wasn't as sweet as I thought it would be. Somehow the previous evening was sweeter and certainly more fun. All that chaos and that is what I recall with the greatest affection. There must be a message in there somewhere.



We arrived home the next day late afternoon. I had one almighty sore backside. All that sitting and driving. Who would have thought. The aches from doing nothing.

Our postie adventure was indeed an adventure. I didn't know what to expect when we left. Am I glad we went? You betcha.


PS: I dedicate these "postie" posts to my daughter Larissa, who was unable to be with us on our family adventure. It was our first big trip without her and her presence was sorely missed. Oh I can just imagine her precious, infectious laugh at some of our more challenging moments. You were with us in spirit darling. Love Mama.

The Postie Challenge - Part Four

I was the alarm clock. It was up to me to make sure everyone was out of bed, packed and ready to leave for Lake Eyre just before sunrise. That part was easy. Dee decided he would ride out on his postie. He left ten minutes before Mitch, Nic and I headed out in the four wheel drive. We left our trailer behind and decided to come back for it. The turnoff was only about twenty kilometres away so that wasn't too bad. Our trailer was already beaten up so badly we weren't too confident it could handle much more. With the benefit of hindsight, thank goodness we left it behind!

Mitch drove and he did a splendid job. I am so proud of him. He seems to have really grown up lately. I was surprised at much how he could handle. Experienced drivers would have been really tested with this pathetic excuse for a road. All was fine up until the turnoff and then the 'fun' began.

The sun began to rise and Ooooh my, what a sun! It had to be the biggest, 'orangest' sun I had ever seen. I guess that is how the sun rises in this part of the world. Unfortunately I was too busy trying to see the road to admire it. It was blinding. I don't know how Mitch saw what he did because I could hardly see a thing. Truly. Really terrifying actually. I insisted that seatbelts had better be fastened because there were times we had taken the silly liberty of not wearing them.

As we tried to cope with seeing the road, all of a sudden the corrugations began. These are hard, ripple like bumps in the road that literally threw us about as we drove over them. It was so bad in places, that Mitch drove up the sand and offroad to avoid as much as possible. This was not ideal either, with bushes and rocks to dodge. This went on for what seemed like ages; although we had only driven about fifteen kilometres. Before long we caught up to Dee; who was riding very cautiously and slowly. This was going to be a long sixty two kilometres! We stayed behind Dee the whole way, but we didn't always take the route he did. It was every man for himself out there!

About thirty kilometres in, we came across the first postie heading out. He was alone and he wanted to get an early start on his long trek home. Clever fellow. He warned us about the bulldust holes up ahead and told us to watch out for the red flags because that is where the really bad holes were. He also said a few more kilometres and the corrugations would improve dramatically. We thanked him, watched him ride off in a puff of dust and on we struggled. I couldn't believe this awful road that would lead us to such a famous Australian landmark. What on earth must some of our international visitors think?

A little further and another truck appeared. It was three people from the postie group continuing their Aussie adventure as they were hoping to reach Alice Springs. We wished them well and loads of luck in their journey ahead. Mind you, we could use a little luck ourselves right now. The bulldust holes were very soft and deep and could absolutely wreak havoc with a vehicle's suspension if you hit one. Mitch hit a small one but other than that he managed to avoid the big baddies!

About twelve kilometres to go and another postie coming our way. It was Hubby. He wasn't sure if we were coming so he left early to find out. Well find out he did. Joining Dee, he turned back and we didn't see him again until we reached The Lake.

Lake Eyre. We made it.

If what I have been told is right; we are standing in the driest place in Australia; in the driest state of Australia; in the driest country in the world, Australia. Wow. That sounds rather dry, doesn't it.

Apart from dry, the word salty is most appropriate out here. Lake Eyre is a shallow salt lake about 35 feet below sea level, the largest lake in Australia and the lowest point on the continent. Wow. Although the view before us is rather stark and contrasting I somehow feel we are in a special part of the world. Although my insides are still "rattling", yes, it was worth it.

Needless to say, salt permeates through much of the ground and the sand. Unfortunately we missed seeing the lake full, by about two days. The water had retreated and was a long way back. It was soggy walking through some of the lake, but we didn't really see the water apart from way out in the distance. We have to respect nature's choice.















Salt crystals are easily visible on the surface of the lake.



The mummified corpse of a rabbit. In this salty environment it would remain preserved for quite a long time. We found a dead seagull and other birds too, but I thought one corpse was enough to get the picture.



Walking where only two days earlier water had been.



Some Lake Eyre vegetation.







Little red riding hood getting wind blown to bits.



The postie came. The postie saw. The postie conquered.
Despite the fact we had reached our destination this favourite quote of mine couldn't be truer; "It's not the destination that counts, it's the journey getting there". I love it and I couldn't agree more. Sigh!!



The wind had died down a little. We wasted no time. We hit the road with a sense of urgency. Our return trip was better (at least we could see clearly), however it was still long. I managed to get a few photos on the road back as we bade Lake Eyre farewell. As always, the posties had to ride upfront.



How quickly the landscape changes.







Two bikes about to disappear over the hill.



We are catching up.



What a brilliant blue outback sky!



We get back to William Creek safely but a little too slowly. I cannot imagine the long day's drive ahead of us. All of us pitch in to reload the trailer. With all this weight in the back now, perhaps the trailer won't bounce around as much. The posties are packed. Their travelling ends here. Next time I see our mailman delivering our mail, I shall view his "horse" with greater respect. I cannot believe how tough, reliable and well-made are these little posties. Hats Off to the postie!



We observe the map, the places we've been and the places we need to go.



According to this pole; we have 202 kilometres to get to Marree. It's time to commence our long journey home. Our trip however isn't over. We may have reached our destination, but the journey continues. Sometimes the most fun happens when one least expects it.



END OF PART FOUR.