Garlic seed, Rhubarb & Apple pies & Jumping Johnnies

Ok, so I know it's late in letting you know.....and some of you may have already received them....but the Garlic Seed is on it's way.....(four days ago)...lol. I'm spreading myself a bit thin these days...and blogging seems to be one of the things that is falling behind.....

If your wondering how much seed you are getting....I discovered that each little ball on the flower head is full of seed...so I just measured out 1 tablespoon of the little flower balls..and popped them in a press seal bag. So depending on how many seeds are still trapped in the flowers....that's how much seed you are getting.

I've started a test with the garlic seed, but Richard (my gardening friend) tells me it can take 4 or 5 weeks for the seed to germinate....I covered the seed (not shown in the photo below) lightly with more soil and the pot is in the hall way on top of my recycling station. (If the weather fines up and we get some hot days, I will think about transferring it out to the hothouse) We now have a skylight in the hall, so it's bright and I can keep an eye on them. This spot is working well for storing seed while it is soaking or drying.

On to some yummies........

I recently cleaned out the Rhubarb bed ready to give it a feed....I also found that I need to relocate some of the crowns to fill in some gaps...but that won't be happening any time soon, because of all the rain we are having at the moment. So anyway....I had some Rhubarb to use up......

I have also collected the seed this year from my Nan's Rhubarb plants...If you would like some seed from my Nan's Rhubarb plants; send me an email for my address...then send me a self-addressed stamped envelope....and I will get some to you. I think it's awesome that I am able to share my Nan's Rhubarb plants with others....her Rhubarb lives on......and I think she'd like the thought of that.

Rhubarb & Apple Pies
I cut up the rhubarb and I had some apples to use up from the crisper....and stewed them both together.....added a little bit of sugar to taste....and then I had the perfect pie filling. Using Nan's recipe for pastry again....I began assembling the pies....(if your wondering...yes, I re-use my foil pie trays)

What a mess............
but only because I shoved the trays on the bench for the photo...lol

Having just enough stewed fruit for one last pie....I couldn't see the point in having the oven on for one pie.....so I made some open pies....by blind baking the pastry flans....then dividing the fruit mixture between the four flans....They weren't very full...so I sliced up some pears and placed them on top. A few circles of pastry later....and a wash of milk before going into the oven.....yummmmmm

Not bad, not bad........

Pictures for the Jumping Johnnies.............


Yep, Jumpin' Johnnies again.............If you have been following my blog for a while, you will remember my saga with the Jumping Johnnies recipe......I finally have photos I can share with you. You can also find a printable version of the recipe with 4 copies on one page...so you can share the recipe of-course with your friends. I will also update the recipe pages with these photos so that the photo's are with the recipe.

I had a lovely response from my last post, wondering what others are up to....so I will ask again....
Have you been baking?.....Tell me what you've been up to in the kitchen. 
Maybe you've been busy in the garden?........
If you have a blog and have posted about it...leave a link with your comment...I'd love a peek.

And the winner is........

I hope you didn't think I had forgotten about the Garlic Giveaway!.... It's just been crazy busy around here and I have seriously fallen behind with some of my duties including my blog.

Thank-you to all the wonderful people who entered, it seems that garlic is a very popular food...but I knew that anyway...lol....I loved the creative comments.

In the original post, I said the following:......................

The give-away for 10 lucky readers....

*The best comment will receive a clove of the garlic to use however you wish....(maybe pop it in the ground, or use it in cooking)...


The lucky winner of the clove of garlic is...

 *Tracey and Tribe - Congratulations Tracey!!

*I will also choose 9 more comments to send some seed to....This give-away is only offered to Australian residents though..and I will need to check what states I can send it to....So, sorry to those who aren't eligible...I'd still like to hear from you too.....

The lucky winners of the garlic seeds are......

               *Sheridan

               *Dell

               *Donna

               *Deb

               *Debbie

               *Lisa

               *Melinda

               *Inner Pickle

               *Darren (Green Change)

I checked on the seed today, and it's still drying, although should be good to send shortly......

It's still on the heads, so I might separate it to speed up drying some for sending.

By the time I receive everyone's addresses, it should be fine to send on!

Could all the winners send me an email, 

npe09777 (at) bigpond.net.au 

with their full name and address please

so I can send on your prize!

GIVE-AWAY for 10 lucky readers....HUGE GARLIC

Well, what a year it's been already.  Welcome everyone, to 2012....I hope you all had a lovely Christmas break....I'm pleased to tell you that I am back in the blogging world, and have many blog ideas for the year.....Hubby is back home too, looking for another job. He wasn't really given a reason for the dismissal, but we think the company may have lost the contract for the work he was doing. So for now we are unemployed again and hubby is applying for mining work daily.


First up, I want to take time to say hello to all my new readers this year, both followers and lurkers (lol) I welcome each and every one of you. Don't be shy,...don't be a lurker......lol I may not always have time to reply to the comments individually. But I sure do love reading them.


Like many of you, I've been busy with family life this year..and getting back into blogging has been slow going ...until now......This post, I could not hold off....It's just toooooo exciting NOT to share.

Free bounty of Giant organic garlic

Have you ever seen a head of garlic this huge? 

Almost 500 grams.....Almost half a kilogram

Almost 500g for one head of garlic

With each monthly drive to my garden course in Jamberoo, I have had my eye on some Wild Garlic along the road....When the bright purple colour of the seed head reaches for the sky amongst the drying grasses...How can you not spot it?  I'm one of those people who when driving, can spot a fruit tree a mile away....Hubby reckons I turn into one of those bobble heads on a long drive...
Richard, my garden teacher told me he travels that road very often, but has never spotted it....He told me he drives with tunnel vision...lol...I think he will try to spot it now that I've told him where it was though. I gave him some anyway.

After researching different varieties of garlic, I think this is very similar to Elephant Garlic. With the recent floods in the last couple of years, I can only assume that it was washed down from someone's garden, as it tends to be closer to the little creeks AND Mother Nature has kindly self-seeded the garlic every year since.(just my opinion after observing what is in the soil when digging it up). It will be there for many years to come, I'm sure.

What about just one clove of garlic

weighing 154 grams? 

The garlic has a lovely strong aroma and will fill my stores year after year, now I plan to grow it too. 

I have saved the seed heads as well, which are now drying out. Richard told me that you don't need to leave them on the plant to dry out, before collecting them.....each little green jewel will dry out to become a seed.

Oh, how I love gathering seeds...especially when I end up with plenty to share out. Some will go to the students in the garden class, and some will be shared with the community gardens in the area....not to mention handing it out to friends and family.

Giant garlic seed
waiting to dry out

If you live near Noosa, you can get your own huge garlic at Super Natural Organic Garlic (SNOG) which will cost you roughly $28 per kilo . They have a lovely informative blog on how to grow your own garlic too....along with some great recipes to share.

Hmmmm lets do the math on this one.......5.6kg at $28 per kilo.....$156.80.....Now that's a huge bounty.

The give-away for 10 lucky readers....

offer finishes at the end of the month!

*All you need to do, is tell me what you would do with some of this garlic ..maybe you have a great garlic recipe to share.

*The best comment will receive a clove of the garlic to use however you wish....(maybe pop it in the ground, or use it in cooking)...

*I will also choose 9 more comments to send some seed to....This give-away is only offered to Australian residents though..and I will need to check what states I can send it to....So, sorry to those who aren't eligible...I'd still like to hear from you too.....

I've already added it to my herb mix or soup starter.....I also have it finely minced and in Olive oil in jars in the fridge.....

I can't wait to read what everyone comes up with.....

Universal Herb & Garlic Mix - for Every day!

Imagine having a healthy mix of fresh herbs and garlic, that you can happily add to your menu every day of the week; without the hassle of picking, washing, peeling, slicing and chopping each time you want to use them all........

I've found that happy place....in the Herb Mix that I make on a regular basis...Up until now, I had been calling it My Soup Starter....but it's taken on a whole new meaning in my kitchen lately.

Frankly, I'd be lost without it....(Well, almost, I've done ok up until now..lol)....
It's been raining on and off here for what seems to be forever....but long enough for me not to remember the last time I hung wet washing outside on the line....What I'm trying to get at here is.....I haven't had to run out to the garden for herbs at all. Why? Because of my All Purpose Herb & Garlic Mix!!

It's brilliant, flavourful AND time-saving!!
Thank-you to my niece Shona for the inspiration behind this mix. I have adapted mine to suit my garden, and I am discovering new ways to use it almost every day.....


Depending on what is growing in abundance in my garden at the time, depends on what goes in my Herb Mix. Here are some examples....the method is always the same......Whizz everything in the blender until finely minced, adding Olive Oil to blend easily. Store in the fridge in a sealed glass jar.

• 1 big bunch of spring onions
• a couple of Spanish onions if you have some on hand.
• a good cup of minced garlic..I just used the bottled variety (home-brand too)
• adding Olive Oil while it is whizzing to make a good spooning consistency.
• Store in an airtight jar in the fridge.

OR

• 1 big bunch of spring onions (from the garden)
• 1 large Spanish onion
• a good cup of minced garlic..(I use the bottled variety because I just don't have time to peel that much garlic)
• a big bunch of freshly picked parsley (also in the garden)  
• a bigger bunch of Sorrel (also in the garden) 
• a small bunch of Marjoram and Thyme (also in the garden)

Add Olive Oil while it is whizzing to make a good spooning consistency. Store in an airtight jar in the fridge. Remember, anything you add will be a time saver....If you have it, add it! I use this starter for many different recipes...I love it on the 2 ingredient pizza dough (oooh I have a good idea for some flat bread to go with dinner tonight) or stirred into cooked pasta. It also makes a delicious dressing too. The list is endless where you can use this Herb Mix.

OR

• 2 big bunches of spring onions 
• 2 large Spanish onion
• a whole jar of crushed garlic..(I use the bottled variety because I just don't have time to peel that much garlic)
• a huge bunch of freshly picked parsley 
• a bigger bunch of Sorrel
• a handful of Rosemary  
• a medium bunch of Marjoram and Thyme 

There was two of these jars.

It really couldn't be any easier....I encourage you to have a go...Make it up and see for yourself, what you can create with it.

Here are just some examples of 

what I have used it for.......

Silverside

Herb & Garlic Butter - Mixed

Herb & Garlic Butter - one for now, one for the freezer.

Roast Leg of Pork

Savoury Crackers

Chicken with Cheese Baguette

Roast Turkey legs

Roast Turkey Roll with herb butter and garden salad

HINT: When you only have one tomato, or maybe a few slices of cold meat, AND you have lots of people to feed....how do you choose who gets what on their sandwiches...Simple! You don't have to choose....just chop it all up...and share it with everyone. 

Ham & Salad Bread Rolls

That method works so well for any salad sandwich, and it's perfect for people who have false teeth problems. No tomato skins to bite through......or lettuce to tear with your teeth.....

Like I said, It's brilliant!.....here's some more ideas.....

Fresh Garden Tomato Salad with fresh peas

Herb & Garlic Bread

Prawn & Chicken Rolls
(Like sausage rolls, only better)

Base for Pizza

Roast Leg of Lamb

Hmmm, I wonder how I will use it tomorrow? ........

Oh, and I didn't even show you any dressings, sauces, or soups.....

Your time is just as valuable as mine...and If I find a way to save time in the kitchen, I'm sure going to share it with you all.

Is this something you would be interested in making? What meals can you see yourself using it in?