Food, Finds & Forays
Hey there....
How’s your week going? If you saw my Instagram post on the weekend you’ll know I’m missing lockdown of all things, or at least the slower pace of life it gifted us. For all it’s negatives there were positives many of which I’m missing and trying hard to reflect on and recreate in a way that fits into ‘normal’ life. This soup recipe is helping recapture the warm nourishing lunches I had time for but doesn’t take long to whip up. Likewise, I’m looking back on how we and our tastes change and evolve, sharing one of our favourite brekkies that’s made ahead and ready in the morning. A big bonus because I’m not good in the morning at the best of times let alone when I’m busy but I’m equally not good without a decent brekky under my belt.
In other news I hope you’ll indulge me with a little proud mumma moment while I share a project my son worked on last year that was published online this week. It’s not only exciting to see the project lauded but also see the finished product they created. I also thought you might like to see a little of one of my favourite tours from our recent holiday, maybe you’d like to explore the area too.
Finally I’m excited to see one of my favourite bloggers share exciting news of a coming book who’s publication date just happens to fall around my birthday. And to finish off a little comfort recipe by another much loved food author.
I’m off to assist in the kitchen at a french language retreat in another lovely Victorian village for the weekend. I’ll be sure and take lots of photos and report back….I’ve heard whispers it may be traveling to Paris next year. Watch their socials if this has sparked interest for you.
Enjoy the rest of your week,
S x
Food
Bircher Muesli
“Service please!” Bellowed the brusque Scottish head chef on my first day of my first hospitality job. Twenty one, hands shaking, cheeks flaming under the guidance of my supervisor, I reached across the pass shelf and took the large glass bowl of a creamy white gloopy concoction. It was 6.15 am and though bleary at such an early hour I still didn’t recognise what I carried out to the buffet in preparation for, soon to arrive, guests. “What is it?” I enquired. “It’s Bircher Muesli,” he barked across the kitchen, “now hurry along.” Now if you’ve ever worked in a hotel restaurant or kitchen you’ll know this exchange was not one meant with any malice on his part rather an indication of the rising adrenaline of impending service. I often reflect on this as I watch reality tv set in restaurants or cooking environments wondering if this is a tactic secretly employed by chefs the world over to build tension like a screenwriter would in a blockbuster suspense thriller or a football coach at half time wanting to rev up the team and inspire performance. At the time I was a little rattled and perhaps even somewhat shocked. My supervisor, a seasoned hospo professional from London, though well used to such shenanigans reassured and encouraged me and I, in turn, grew a little and became a little bit more adult as you do in your early 20’s contrary to how you perceive yourself at the time. As that morning progressed I asked my supervisor what indeed Bircher Muesli was. She explained what was in it and where it had originated from and offered me a taste. Until then I’d always eaten toast or cereal with the occasional bacon and eggs, very vanilla 1980’s Australia. Suddenly a whole new world of breakfasts opened up to me as the offerings on that buffet grew. Indeed my curiosity piqued, so too did the variety of things I enjoyed for breakfast grow from working there.
Reflecting on this I’m reminded how the maturity of our taste buds can be like markers for the passage of time and indeed our own maturity. Our willingness to try something new that we may have previously thought we disliked or in fact had never heard of transcends from the table and kitchen to our greater lives if we’re lucky and we look beyond toast and coffee both literally and metaphorically.
Historically bircher muesli was created by a swiss doctor in the early 20th century. Traditionally it was made with oats, nuts and fruit soaked overnight in apple juice and boosted with fresh grated apple in the morning. Originally intended to be a nutrition packed breakfast for ailing patients in hospital it remains a dish you can load up with all the essentials to get your day started well. You can make ahead in jars ready for a quick breakfast in the morning and indeed make a few at once given they keep well in the fridge for a few days. The recipe below is my concoction I make and keep in the pantry having it ready for mixing at night ready to go rather than lots of measuring and mixing each time. To make things a little easier I use dried apple which plumps up nicely overnight and marries well with the spices rather than arduous grating in the morning. Alternatively, my mixture can also be eaten well as a traditional natural muesli unsoaked with Greek yoghurt or with your favourite milk or milk alternative poured over with some fresh fruit.
Ingredients:
3 C rolled oats
¼ C LSA (linseed, sunflower and almond ground up and mixed. I use this one for bonus points. You could replicate it by whizzing 2 TBs of chia in a grinder, blender of stick blender to chop it up and make it palatable if unsoaked)
¼ C slivered almonds or your favourite nuts chopped up
¼ C oat bran
¼ pumpkin seeds
½ C dried apple chopped into small pieces
1/3 C shredded coconut
¼ currants
1 tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp of fresh nutmeg grated
¼ tsp ground ginger
Method:
Combine all the above and store in a well sealed containd.
The night before eating add 1/3 C of your homemade natural muesli mixture from above. Place in a jar and just cover with your choice of milk and stir. Add 100gm your favourite yoghurt (I use Greek for myself but my son prefers vanilla Greek) and stir well. Seal jar and and place in fridge overnight. Top with fresh fruit and a drizzle of honey and serve. You can pop some fruit in the jar the night before if you have a busy morning ahead for grab and go convenience.
Finds & Forays
My eldest son, for whom I was motivated to create a readymade muesli, is a hard-working carpenter. He rises with the birds starting his workday as the sun dawns over the suburbs. Over the course of the pandemic he was lucky to remain employed and largely uninterrupted in his work even traveling to coastal Gipplsand to work on a unique project combing art, architecture and sustainable building practices. Together with his colleagues they took up residence locally in one of the most beautiful seaside towns in Victoria building with care and craftsmanship until their ‘nugget’ emerged from the bush surrounds. I was enormously excited to see them receive their due in an online magazine with a gorgeous collection of photos. If this has piqued you’re interest you can even spoil yourself and stay there.
Speaking of travels have you done this touring around Victoria? The western half of our state can be a little less travelled. It’s enormously important to our agriculture industry with a rich history in sheep and cropping, particularly wheat and grain, but its tourism industry is still growing. With rolling droughts many towns have either shrunk or even collapsed. In an attempt to draw city dwellers to their area residents of a small town in the wimmera commissioned an artist to adorn disused wheat silos on a railway siding. It’s a breathtaking work which attracted worldwide attention and sparked a collection of attractions and tourism opportunities to otherwise fading districts. It’s always the road less travelled that provides some of the most interesting touring opportunities.
Do you follow this account on Insta? In my daydreaming of simpler things this week my interest was sparked by an exciting post by Fiona. I mean she had me at that title! I’ve pre-ordered and can’t wait to add this one to the shelves…. Maybe I really do need to drop a few hints about a new bookcase for my birthday in July.
Finally with all this talk of soup recently here and on my own insta I think I need something delicious to dunk in. I think this one will be a goody and even more so during the week for the boys to take to work with leftover soup to warm them up. It looks pretty easy and so squishy delicious.
