Happy New Year,everybody!!!
Most here are a bit seedy today. I am being accused of leading my friends astray. It appears that I am personally responsible for their over indulgence in food and alcohol during the past week…
But life goes on and it is time for another ‘In My Kitchen’.
In my kitchen:
Is garlic…
and lots of it!!!
Do you remember when I put my garlic in? Here is the link. I had such hopes for it but I was nervous. Most people were not optimistic.
About 2 weeks ago, I turned off the sprinklers to try to dry it out. The next day, we had 40 mls of rain. I was quite worried that it would go mouldy in the ground. A week later, the soil was still moist but I decided to pull it up, anyway. Lucky I did because the next day we had 15 mls.
OK, I know I am showing off but what the hell. This was the day I picked them. They are now nice and dry.
In my kitchen:
Are these great chopping mats. I found them at Peters of Kensington. They were so cheap. I think about $2.00 for the 3. (I looked them up to check the price but Peters of Kensington do not appear to be carrying them anymore.) I really wanted them but the postage was going to be about $15 so I asked my sister, who was ordering other items, to add them to her list.
They are reversible. You get six colours and can chop on both sides.
Excuse the tomato and cleaver. Maus told me not to photograph them together because you don’t chop tomatoes with a cleaver but I thought the cleaver looked good and I wanted to show off my home-grown tomatoes.
In my kitchen:
Is this extremely large jar of olives. My friends, Alyson and James, gave it to me. I know the olives will taste good because it was James who taught me how to preserve olives. Here is a link to the recipe he uses.
In my kitchen:
Is a bunch of grapes. There were two but we ate one before I could take a photo. What is so special about this bunch of grapes is that they were a gift from one of our neighbours. Just before Christmas, he walked around our street offering each household a couple of bunches. It was wonderful. It happens regularly in the country but it is not so common in Perth.
In my kitchen:
Are these Hass avocados. They are also from a Perth neighbour. On Christmas Eve morning, he knocked on our door and handed me a bag of avocados. The second gift of fresh produce in two days. It was fantastic because ours, in Bridgetown (which are different varieties), have finished. Better still, these are ripening at different times.
In my kitchen:
Are these Christmas gifts. I got several cookbooks. One in particular I would like to mention is Mouneh by Barbara Abdeni Massaad. It is a Lebanese book but their climate is very similar to ours so most of the produce they preserve is the same as we do. There are 591 pages of preserving recipes. I just love it. If you are a preserver, consider getting it. You can get it from Buy Lebanese (they weren’t available in Australia). The books arrived in a matter of days and, even with the postage, they were no more expensive than books bought in Australia.
The other book by Barbara is Man’oushé. It is all about Lebanese bread and the yummy toppings they put on it. This, probably, does not have the same wide appeal as Mouneh but I love it.
In my kitchen:
Is my new pot. It is 15 litres. I wanted it for jam-making but I have been using it mainly to cook mountains of silverbeet. It will also be good for cooking the dogs’ food.
In my kitchen:
Are raspberries that I grew. Ok, there are not many but you have to start somewhere. I am so excited. The best thing is that the birds either don’t know they are there or don’t know what to do with them. I am sure they will catch on very quickly but, for the time being, we have raspberries.
In my kitchen:
Is all this nougat. Maus went to the Lebanese Bakery in Belmont and bought more than 2 kilograms of it. I think she got a wee bit carried away, don’t you? We will be eating nougat for months.
In my kitchen:
Yes, I know it is boring but this is just one day’s pickings. Luckily, it is beginning to bolt and, as it does, I am pulling out the plants. We have so much of it. There is virtually nothing else in my freezer. I wish the plants were in Perth so that when my generous neighbours came around, I could have swapped a mountain of silverbeet for grapes or avocados. In the country, if I ask everyone if they would like silverbeet. They roll their eyes and say, “I don’t think so.”
Please, also note my tomatoes. In a few days, there is going to be a flood of them but, at the moment, we have just the right amount.
If you would like to see what is in other bloggers’ kitchens this month, visit Celia at Fig Jam and Lime Cordial. Celia hosts In My Kitchen each month.
Passion Fruit Garden 
What wonderful produce Glenda! Your garlic looks amazing by the way. I hope the birds don’t catch on about your raspberries- we have some wild ones in the backyard and it’s always a fight to see who gets them first!
Hi Emilie, I think they will be onto them pretty soon! It doesn’t take long before they realise there is something yummy ripening in the garden.
So many wonderful goodies from the garden! And some lovely Christmas presents too. Happy New Year!
Hi JJ
Thanks for visiting. We are now getting a little inundated with vegetables. It is wonderful but pretty soon it will be all over. New year wishes to you too.
Fabulous garlic Glenda. I’d show it off too if it were mine. Your raspberries look like little jewels; I can’t wait til ours start cropping again. We’ve had the shortest day so all downhill to summer now thank goodness. Anne
Lots of lovely goodies indeed! Your garlic looks great, mine didn’t do as well as expected but we had an unusually harsh winter. I have a few bulbs drying in the laundry though, so it’s not a total loss 🙂
I’m heartily sick of silverbeet too 🙂 but your tomatoes look delicious !
Hi Becca. I committed the cardinal sin, today. I actually threw out some silverbeet. Enough is enough!! A glut of tomatoes I can handle. At least, you can make things with them.
Great things in your kitchen Glenda…the cookbooks especially caught my eye, they both look fabulous. My favourite style/type of food. I might have to investigate these further for my own collection, thanks for sharing. Happy New Year.
Hi Jane. Please check them out – you will not be disappointed. If you like to preserve, I particularly recommend Mouneh. It tells you how to preserve everything and it is not the same old, same old. There is even a recipe on how to make arak!! I have been looking for a recipe to make grape vinegar for ages and Mouneh has it. I am going to try to make it this year. If you are interested, I can give you a run down on the chapters.
G and M, I am SO impressed with how well your fledgling veggie patch has grown! Could you please take photos of the beds for us, I’d love to see them. It seems only a few months ago that you put them in, and just look at all the produce you’ve had! The garlic looks fantastic – good for you, we can’t seem to grow them well in our garden. I know what you mean about the silverbeet – it just keeps going and going until even the chickens won’t eat it. And the tomatoes look beautiful – ours always end up with bugs in them, but yours look perfect!
The cookbooks look fabulous – look forward to seeing what you make from them. Man’oushe is a favourite in our house (the pizza, not the book), and we’ve taken to buying Jordanian za’atar to make it with – more flavoursome than the others!
All the best to both of you for a wonderful 2013!
Hi Celia. I am in Perth but when I go back to B’town I will try and take some photos. It is a bit tricky though, because the beds are quite low (they have sunk as they are supposed to do as the vegetable matter rots) and the sides are quite high so the only shot I can take is overhead. We will see how I go. Lots of love to you and Pete and the boys.
I love these segments of your blog…it’s interesting to see what you come up with…
Hi Glenda
Thanks and Happy New Year. It was hard this month coming up with things. We were so busy cooking, entertaining and visiting people, I didn’t have much time to get organised.
I left a comment but lost it somewhere in WordPressland.
Just wanted to say that your summer’s bounty is beautiful- thanks for sharing!
Love the garlic.
Hi Heidi. Looks like both popped up. Thanks
Glenda- thank you for sharing your pictures of fresh produce!
I am envious (a little more than I would like to admit!) of all the bounty from your garden and neighbours. Your garlic is beautiful- the grapes are gorgeous- and the avocado- well that brings up the envious again!
Hoping 2013 treats you well and is generous with bounty!
Hi Heidi. I just love getting home grown produce. It means so much more than buying it in the shops.
I love all the goodies from your garden and the cook books!! A happy 2013 to you and your loved ones, Glenda!!
Thanks Zirkie and a Happy New Year to you toooooo!!
What a fantastic lot of produce you’ve grown, Glenda. The raspberries look delicious and your photography makes everything look so appealing.
Hi Christine. Thanks for the compliment. Happy New Year.
What lovely goodies in your kitchen 🙂 I love the cleaver!
Hi Tandy Thanks for the moral support. It was nearly a domestic here:)
Dear Glenda, happy new year to you for 2013, may it be filled with good things! So many lovely goodies in your kitchen. Love, love, love the garlic! We grew our own too and it’s such a great feeling. And those raspberries, how wonderful! So many delicious things!
Hi Lizzy Happy New Year to you too.
Hey Glenda can’t you put a sign down the entrance to your drive – “Silverbeet for Sale”. The Lebanese books look great you certainly were spoilt.
Happy New Year for 2013 to you both.
Hi Gail Happy New Year. I also got The Lebanese Kitchen which looks great. I am coming back to Perth tomorrow. I will be home alone:(
Wow I am so impressed with all the produce that you are growing! All the very best for 2013 to you both.
Hi Sue Happy New Year!!