Mosman man wins ultimate award in cimematography

From the Mosman Daily -  Feb 21   2013

Walnut Pesto thrives in Tuscan Mosman

Alvina's Bell at Podernuovo is calling me to lunch - happy memories!

Pesto is a favourite subject of mine.  This year, in my Mosman garden, one punnet of basil planted here and there, yielded constant harvest of a favourite, most aromatic herb.  

Traditionally Pesto  is made with pinenuts - perhaps they were plentiful in Italy but they still had to be super labour intensive!  Have you seen the way they have to extract each little precious pinenut.   An alternative is Walnut Pesto which evolved from the need to find ways to use the walnuts which drop from the old walnut trees on the property.  For family meals and for variation, I use a variety of nuts eg almonds and herbs for pesto - such as parsley & coriander.

We worked in the fields with Umberto, doing what needed to be done - digging out stones, picking grapes, making wine etc. 

I cut the lavender and rosemary back before winter - I had helped to plant it a few years ago but since everything grows so quickly it needed cutting back.

Alvina's bell is a suspended bronze bell which she rings when lunch is ready. She has tended the vegetable garden, harvested its bounty, applied her endless creativity, and the call of the bell means that a delightful lunch awaits. We eat, exchange experiences of the morning, make plans for the evening meal (everything revolves around food of course) then retire to our villa for siesta - maybe to doze or perhaps to read the current novel which was being circulated.

Alvina's Walnut Pesto Pasta (to be served with tomorrow's Fennel and Orange Salad)
Serves 4
400g (13oz) cappellini or angel hair pasta - sea salt and black pepper to taste
Pasta comes in different shapes and sizes like angel hair or capellini, fettuccini, fusilli, linguini, macaroni, spaghetti, etc. Capellini or angel hair pasta are long strands of pasta that are commonly used with light sauces.
Pesto
Large bunch fresh basil leaves
2 cloves garlic
1 large handful chopped walnuts
extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

Shred basil leaves and place in a blender with crushed garlic, walnuts and about 2 tblsp olive oil. Puree until smooth and then add the parmesan cheese and a little more oil.

Place pasta into boiling water with salt and cook for around 15 mins or until el dente which means firm to bite.
Pour over the drained pasta and garnish with fresh basil. Add a few more chopped walnuts and parmesan to taste.

http://www.timeintuscany.com/

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mosmanmeanders@gmail.com

 

          

Pre Mosman Meanders Photo Field Day


A beautiful day of 'lightwriting' on a field trip at Bradley's Head, Mosman, Australia, with photographer Christopher Maait.  Thanks Chris for your expertise and guidance at the Mosman Community College- and in helping me to feel confident and aware re taking better photos; (as I hope you will agree from viewing the video below.)


Chris - Yes I know, I focused on the background
instead of on you.

Cheers Claire
ps - this was before we started the book - see how much younger you look!

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Mango Magic





Mango magic

This dish was served to us by Alvina and Umberto www.timeintuscany.com , not in Tuscany but here in Sydney when mangoes were at their best. In true Tuscan style, fruits and vegetables in season are used in an amazing variety of simply delicious dishes.

For the mango jelly
makes 4 servings

2 ripe mangoes - peeled and cut
¼ cup caster sugar
Juice of 1 lime
1 cup water
1 tbsp gelatine powder
2 tbsp hot water
macadamia pralines - crushed

Place mango, sugar, lime juice and water into the jug of a blender and blend until smooth.
Strain the mango mixture through a sieve into a saucepan. Place it over medium heat and cook, stirring, until it’s heated through and the sugar is melted.
Place the gelatine powder into a small bowl, add the hot water and whisk well until the gelatine dissolves.
Add the gelatine mixture to the mango mixture and stir to combine. Divide the mixture into individual wetted moulds, cover and place into the fridge for 3-4 hours until set.

To serve, arrange slices of cut mango on plates, dip moulds in hot water and invert to release the jelly. Serve with icecream or Greek yoghurt if desired and sprinkle with crushed macadamia praline.



www.timeintuscany.com

It would be great to receive your feedback or suggestions. Click on "0 comments". You can choose 'anonymous' from the drop down menu if you don't have a google account. Or send an email - clara@babyboomerconnections.com.au

A taste of Mosman flavour

Hi Mosman Lovers
A huge thanks to Emma Page from Mosman Daily for your great article re Mosman Meanders in the Mosman Daily. You really captured the essence of the book.
Here is the link http://digitaledition.mosmandaily.com.au/#folio=21
I really liked the way the camera was in soft focus!
Cheers Claire

Mangoes - King of Fruits - Choosing & cutting

How to choose and cut a mango

The best way by far is to simply eat the mango after cutting it expertly as shown below. Recipes to follow.





Mango - Childers Queensland Australia

During our Northern foreshore  meanders - in mid January

it was so dry the grass was crunchy beneath my feet.

Two weeks later the area is in flood. Shades of Dorothea Mackellar
My Country

I love a sunburnt country,
A land of sweeping plains,
Of ragged mountain ranges,
Of droughts and flooding rains.
I love her far horizons,
I love her jewel-sea,
Her beauty and her terror -
The wide brown land for me!



Mangoes - Noosaville Markets

Is it ripe? You can't always judge the ripeness by colour as they come in many hues depending on variety. The best flavored fruit have a yellow tinge when ripe; however, color may be red, yellow, green, orange or any combination.

Ripeness of mangoes can be determined by either smelling or by gently squeezing. A ripe mango will have a full, fruity aroma emitting from the stem end and can be considered ready to eat when slightly soft to the touch and yielding to gentle pressure, like a ripe peach.

Cutting a Mango can be a slimy, slippery challenge. The best way to go about it is to start first with a ripe, but still firm fruit. If the mango is too ripe, it will be a mushy mess, and hard to cut into pieces, though easy enough to scoop out for pulp.

Cubes

Holding the mango with one hand, stand it on its end, stem side down. With a sharp knife in your other hand, cut from the top of the mango, down one side of the pit. Then repeat with the other side. You should end up with three pieces - two halves, and a middle section that includes the pit.

Take a mango half and use a knife to make lengthwise and crosswise cuts in it, but try not to cut through the peel. Using your fingers on the skin side, raise the fruit cubes into eating or cutting position. Simply serve and eat the fruit or for a salad peel off the segments with your fingers. Or use a small paring knife to cut away the pieces from the peel.
Take the mango piece with the pit, lay it flat on the cutting board. Use a paring knife to cut out the pit and remove the peel. Some simply eat this section holding it over the sink as you eat.

For easy slices cut off cheeks as above then slice lengthways

Or using a sharp thin-bladed knife, cut off both ends of the fruit. Place fruit on flat end and cut away peel from top to bottom along curvature of the fruit.Cut fruit into slices by carving lengthwise along the pit.

Nutrition - They are high in fiber and antioxidants and are rich in Vitamin A, C, E, B6 and potassium. They have been found to protect against colon, breast, leukemia and prostate cancers and promote heart health and lower blood pressure.

It would be great to receive your feedback or suggestions. Click on "0 comments". You can choose 'anonymous' from the drop down menu if you don't have a google account. Or send an email - mosmanmeanders@gmail.com


 

Mosman Meanders & foreshore flavours is a great gift for Mothers' Day

 We were very happy to be included in the best seller list.  Hope you
enjoyed the walks during your holiday.  We would love to have your feedback re the walks.
Consider  buying  Mosman Meanders & foreshore flavours as a gift  for Mum - she'll love the walks, history and of course the recipes.  Or take her on one of the walks, on Mothers Day ending up at one of the cafes.

 

Vision is a sight to see

SMH article  - 2/1/13

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/travel/activity/great-outdoors/grand-vision-is-a-sight-to-see-20130101-2c3xl.html#ixzz2GoKdKbwV



Mosman Foreshore

In 2006, the navy opened up the grounds of HMAS Penguin, allowing the completion of the walk from Chowder Bay across Georges Heights to Middle Head, and down to Balmoral beach.

It is now possible to walk all the way from Cremorne to the Spit, mostly on bush tracks.

The trail stretches for 10 kilometres and takes in some of the most stunning vantage points for Sydney Harbour. But as local author Claire Mitchell details in her new book about the walk, Mosman Meanders and Foreshore Flavours, there is much more to the walk than just heart-stopping vistas.

Mosman might be home to lawyers and bankers these days, but in the 1860s it drew a more bohemian crowd. From the early 1860s, several pleasure grounds were established on the foreshore of Mosman that attracted big weekend crowds. They arrived by boat at dusk to dance, drink and stroll through themed walks, ride carousels, or play skittles and other games.

The first of these was at Cremorne Point and by all accounts its "Ball Masques", illuminated by 5000 lamps and Chinese lanterns, were spectacular. But, by 1862, the event had turned into the Victorian equivalent of a rave party, judging by the description in the Herald:

"Its Ball Masque by moonlight were scenes of licence and vulgarity – the larrikin element too much to the fore."

Fairyland at Clifton Gardens, the most popular, opened in 1863 and Balmoral Gardens boasted a 24-metre roofed dance floor.

The foreshore of Mosman also attracted artists and writers, who rowed across from the city to set up camp in the bush where they could relax and paint en plein air.

Artists Julian Ashton, Tom Roberts, Arthur Streeton and cartoonist Livingston Hopkins of the Bulletin congregated at these all-male camps.

The most famous was at Balmoral and is marked with a plaque.

Another, Curlew Camp, was at Sirius Cove and is marked by a faded inscription in a rock, which is dated 1890.

By the 1870s, the military had claimed part of Middle Head, Bradleys Head and Georges Heights to protect Sydney from the Russians. Stone fortifications, gun emplacements and tunnels can still be explored at Bradleys Head, though other fortifications at Georges Heights are off limits.

Legislation passed in 1903 allowing public bathing led to the construction of swimming enclosures at Balmoral and Clifton Gardens.

The final stretch of the walk from Chowder Bay to Balmoral Beach was opened in 2006, when the navy provided access through HMAS Penguin. There is a spectacular staircase through an angophora forest to Balmoral Beach.
Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/travel/activity/great-outdoors/grand-vision-is-a-sight-to-see-20130101-2c3xl.html#ixzz2GoKdKbwV

To his fellow sinners - Give yourself a show: New Years Eve

Mosman Meanders & foreshore flavours

features a few of Henry Lawson's poems - one of which is Mosman Bay.  He has to have been the most prolific Australian poet with his down to earth comments on so many subjects - it makes one think that perhaps his language of thought was "verse".   Here's one on New Year's Eve - to his fellow sinners.

 

Give yourself a Show: New Year's Eve

TO my fellow sinners all, who, in hope and doubt,
Through the Commonwealth to-night watch the Old Year out,
New Year’s Resolutions are jerry-built I know,
But I want to say to you, “Give yourselves a show”.

You who drink for drinking’s sake, love for lust alone,
Thinking heaven is a myth and the world your own—
Dancing gaily down to hell in the devil’s dance—
This I have to say to you: “Give your souls a chance”.

You who drink because of shame that you think will last,
Or because of wrong done you—trouble in the past—
“Nothing left to live for now,” you will say, I know;
But you have your own self yet, give that self a show!

You who want all things on earth—money, love, and fame
Having the advantage of worldly place or name—
You who have more than you want, even than you know,
In the glorious New Year give someone else a show.

You, the mischief-makers all, who in secret glee
Love to tell the villainies of a scamp like me;
There are things he’ll never tell—things you’ll never know—
Look into your own lives first—give the man a show.

You, the politician, who, for jealousy or gold,
Or for mean ambition, sell, or see your country sold,
Pandering to the hollow crowd, toadying to the low,
For shame’s sake banish selfishness—give your land a show.

Henry Lawson

New Year Reflections

Wishing you all a happy & successful New Year

New Year "Reflections from my garden" video is below

To view or add comment, click on No comments at bottom of page - you can comment as 'anonomous' on the dropdown menu; or send an email - mosmanmeanders@gmail.com

Secret wishes with real Christmas pud



Real Christmas pudding remains popular

To many, Christmas is a time for honouring tradition, but in a culinary sense, many here are abandoning the traditional fare for cooler options such as cold turkey and seafood.  

One dish, however, remains popular and will often sit side by side here in Australia, with our iconic pavlova. We enjoyed one such plum pud, a little early, cooked to perfection by my friend, Mary, Queen of Desserts. Much tradition and folklore is attached to the Christmas pudding. Traditionally each member of the family takes a turn stirring the mixture in a clockwise direction, making a secret wish as they go. Many people also bake lucky treats into their puddings. The pudding was usually made up to a year ahead, left to mature, then heated up on Christmas Day and brought to the table flaming with warm brandy and decorated with holly. it can be accompanied by custard ice-cream but it can also be served with cream, and brandy butter or hard sauce.
I'm breaking my tradition of 'fit in your jeans fare' http://fitinyourjeanscuisine.blogspot.com - forgive the straying - just eat a small portion if you can! Or add a little less butter and sugar. I usually reduce sugar by 1/3 and in this case, the fruit is sweet enough.

Claire





Here it is, the real thing - moist and fruity,
with a brandy haze!

This recipe is based on Margaret Fulton's rich Christmas pudding in the Margaret Fulton Cookbook, which was my 'bible' as an aspiring cook in the 60's.The fruit needs to be soaked overnight in brandy or rum.

Serves 8

Prep time 40 mins, cook 6 hrs

• 250 gm / 1/2 lb each raisins, sultanas and currants
• 100 gm / 3 oz candied orange, finely chopped
• 200 ml / 7 fl oz rum or brandy
• 250 gm / 1/2 lb butter, plus extra for greasing
• 275 gm (1¼ cups) firmly packed brown sugar
• 1 orange and 1 lemon, finely grated rind only
• 4 eggs, lightly whisked
• 150 gm (1 cup) plain flour
• ½ tsp each salt, mixed spice, nutmeg, ginger, cinnamon and bicarbonate of soda
• 60 gm (½ cup) almond meal
• 140 gm (2 cups) fresh breadcrumbs

Combine dried fruit and candied orange in a bowl, scatter with rum or brandy, cover and stand overnight.

Using an electric mixer, beat together butter, sugar and rinds until pale and fluffy, then slowly beat in egg. Sieve together flour, salt, spices and bi-carb soda. Add to mixture in batches, alternating with soaked fruit mixture and almond meal. Stir through breadcrumbs.

Brush a 1.8 litre-capacity pudding bowl with butter, line the base with a circle of baking paper and dust with flour. Pour pudding mixture into bowl and top with another circle of baking paper. Cover with two layers of foil and tie with string.

Place pudding into a large saucepan with a wire rack or tea towel lining the base. Fill with enough water to come halfway up the side of the bowl. Cover and simmer for 6 hours, topping up water when necessary. Pudding may be made ahead and cooled in bowl. Reheat in a large saucepan of simmering water for 2½ hours. Serve with custard, icecream or cream.

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Or send an email - mosmanmeanders@gmail.com






 

Food is passion and brings people together

Hi there Mosman lovers




Are you feeling passionate or are we just friends?

I know you live in your own beautiful part of the world and you have your own providores (new word for me, Italian for providers), but the putting together of the antipasto plate for Christmas, requires skill, research and passion. 
Quattro Formaggi deli  - one of our local providors in Raglan Road, Mosman, has the mantra "Food is passion and brings people together."
Putting together an antipasto plate to serve with Christmas drinks is an easy matter when you have a fantastic variety of cured meats, cheeses and accompaniments such as below.




Barossa Smoked Wagyu Beef
Traditionally cured, cold smoked and heat treated.
Perfect served with a Hunter Valley Shiraz

Taleggio Cheese Proven to be addictive.
Semi-soft, washed-rind from Northern Italy
Serving suggestion - Adelaide Hills Pinot Noir

Happy Christmas Drinks

Claire

Quattro Formaggi Deli offers the best from Italy and abroad with a wide range of cheeses, antipasto, cured meats sliced on demand, estate olive oils, vinegars ....
www.quattroformaggideli.com/

It would be great to receive your feedback or suggestions. Click on 'no comments'   You can choose 'anonomous' from the dropdown menu if you don't have a google account. 

Mosman Meanders is launched!

Hi Mosman Lovers

Mosman Meanders & foreshore flavours is launched! We had a fabulous night at the Mosman Art Gallery with about 200 people passing through. Thanks to Paul Delprat for your entertaining opening speech and to all who attended for your support and interest.

Many bottles of wine were enjoyed, compliments of Tony and Rory  of Watershed PremiumWines Ltd,   www.watershedwines.com.au, 
Beelgara Wines also supplied great wine at a great price.  Sincere thanks to the cafes and delis for the wonderful food platters -  Avenue Road Deli, Bacinos and Ripples at Chowder Bay, Quattro Formaggi on Raglan and Fourth Village on Vista. 

Special thanks to Graham for a great job as MC and Chris for all the innovative organisation  and his family and friends for their generous help.
Here are a few photos of the night thanks to  Bill Lyndon, Photographer.
Thanks for being there - we felt megasupported.  We hope you enjoy the book.
Claire and Chris

 

 

 

Mosman Meanders great for summer reading

 

Hi Mosman lovers

I look forward  to summer reading because that's when I can lose myself in a good book. A favourite activity is to  plonk myself in a comfortable chair, preferably with water views and become immersed in the latest book usually recommended by a friend whose judgement I trust.

 

Then there are books which enhance the holiday and Mosman Meanders is such a book especially if you live in Sydney.  Thanks to public vigilance and the Harbour Trust, the former military reserves have been  preserved, making it possible to walk from Cremorne Point to the Spit via Balmoral.

You can learn about some of the history of the area and sample some foreshore flavours at local cafes.

 

Have fun

Claire

ps Pages and Pages, booksellers in Mosman, included us in their Summer Reading Catalogue.  See below.