potionstopesto.blogspot.com: Mooving on....

Wednesday, June 16, 2010

Mooving on....

Since March, the shire has been invaded by cows – hefty, life size cows crafted from fibreglass and decorated by various artists.

I was a Cow Parade sceptic. Why take on a project that was originally created so that cows could appear on the streets of major cities? After all, we have plenty of the real things here and the idea of attracting even more tourists during the busy times of Easter and vintage seemed a bit silly. The ‘local ‘artists included famous names from hundreds of kilometres away while artists who lived here were overlooked. The cows, modelled on a Swiss variety, were made in China , so not much local input there either. It all seemed a bit silly, not to mention expensive. There was subversive talk of quarantining them for foot and mouth and of arranging a similar event with an Australian native animal and much admiration was shown for the man in Brazil who brought in some fibreglass bulls to service their cows one night.

The cows will disappear at the end of this month, to be auctioned for charity. I will miss sniggering about the reports of cows getting people arrested for vandalism or climbing the water tower, of cows being ridden, stolen or going for a swim out to the pontoon; the delight and amazement on the faces of the children who find the cow outside the chemist shop: the tourists asking ‘What is it with this cow thing?’; the comments by the retired farmer, worried that the cow might not get back up on her feet; the old ladies chatting to the cows while the Japanese tourists queue for a photo opportunity; by my being surprised to see yet another one lurking in an unlikely spot.

They are to be auctioned for charity at the end of the month; I hope some of the charity stays here. I’ll miss all the people watching!

The locations of these pictures include the local hardware, a street verge, the roof of the tavern, the water tank and my favourite, Rump on a Stump ( a spoof on a golden diver at one of the posh wineries), in a local park.
Life can be silly sometimes, can't it?

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Baked Olives

Pickled Red Cabbage

2kg red cabbage (prize winner if possible!)
3 Tbsp salt
2 litres spiced vinegar, purchased or homemade.

Shred cabbage finely, layer one third cabbage in a ceramic bowl, sprinkle over one third salt and repeat twice.
Put a layer of plastic wrap over the cabbage and then a small plate.
On top of the plate put a heavy weight. A pot of water or a couple of bricks on top of a round chopping board work well.
Leave overnight and in the morning drain liquid and rinse well.
Put in steriised jars and cover with spiced vinegar.
Leave one week before eating with cold meats or cheese or as a side dish with bangers and mash.

One of my all time favourites - perfect for a quick meal on a cold day.

Chickpea and Chorizo Soup

1 onion diced
1 red chilli seeded and chopped
1 Tbsp olive oil
420gm can of tomatoes, chopped
1 can water
2 tsp All Purpose Seasoning (see Seasonings)
1 chorizo sausage, cubed
1 can chickpeas, drained
150gm cabbage, sliced finely
Grated parmesan

1. Sauté chilli and onion in oil for 2 minutes, stirring.
2. Add tomatoes then water, sausage and seasoning powder and bring to the boil.
3. Add chick peas and cabbage and cook until cabbage is wilted.
4. Serve with a sprinkling of parmesan cheese.
TIP
Use other beans if chick peas are not available, use two cans for a main meal dish. Broccoli, cauliflower or spinach can substitute for cabbage. This soup improves with age, I like it better reheated.

Lemon Mushroom Pasta

Serves 4.
Dressing
½ tsp chilli powder
Grated zest of 1 lemon
1 Tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 cm piece ginger, peeled and grated
¼ cup white wine vinegar
¼ tsp salt
⅓ cup soy sauce
1 Tbsp honey
1 Tbsp dark sesame oil
3 Tbsp olive oil

Pasta
400g dried linguine cooked according to the package instructions
300g fresh mushrooms, sliced
1 Tbsp butter
2 tsp vegetable oil
1 block tempeh, cut in 2cm squares (optional)
1 Tbsp fresh basil, finely chopped
1 Tbsp fresh parsley, finely chopped
1 Tbsp spring onions, finely chopped
¼ Lebanese cucumber, sliced
1 Tbsp sesame seeds, toasted

1. Make the dressing by combining all ingredients, except for the sesame oil and olive oil in a food processor or hand blender. Run the blender for a few seconds, until all ingredients are combined. With the machine running, drizzle in the oils.
2. Heat a frying pan over high heat. Add the butter and oil and when the butter starts bubbling, add the mushrooms. Sauté on high for 3 minutes. Remove from pan.
3. Add more oil if needed and sauté the tempeh until brown.
4. In a large bowl, toss the cooked linguine with all the other ingredients and some of the dressing (to taste.)

Tempeh Pate

2 cloves garlic
1 onion
1 Tbsp butter
300g tempeh
2 eggs
3 Tbsp brandy or ¼ cup port
2 tsp mushroom soy
2 tsp vegemite or promite ½ tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp allspice
2 tsp chilli sauce
¼ tsp pepper
1 Tbsp sesame seeds

1.Saute chopped onion and garlic in butter until soft.
2. Place in food processor with all other ingredients except sesame seeds and process until smooth.
3. Pour into a small, well greased casserole dish. The pate needs to be at least 2 cm deep.
4. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and cover tightly with foil.
5. Bake at 180˚C for about 50 minutes until set. Remove foil and cook a further 5 minutes or until the top has browned slightly.

potionstopesto.blogspot.com

Wednesday, June 16, 2010

Mooving on....

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