Hut Christmas 2013 - ham

Two years ago we bought our first Mount Gnomon farm ham. They breed happy free range Wessex Saddleback pigs in north west Tasmania.

Again, a Christmas ham is a favourite memory of my childhood Christmas'. To feed my family of 7, the leg ham Dad would buy would be humongous, taking up most of the fridge. I remember as a teenager taking the delivery of our ham and Mr Bean sized turkey at the front door. I nearly collapsed under the weight of them. Dad never glazed it though. 

Rob generally glazes it with a mixture of whatever is at hand, usually quince jelly, orange juice and mustard. It does make it glisten so nicely, and looks pretty studded with cloves. 

Do you enjoy ham at Christmas?

Any tips for the glaze?

Monday's Menu

Back on track.
Sorry I'm yet to fulfil my promise of a risotto recipe post, but I will get there.

This week has been another quiet one. The only trip out from the hut over the weekend was to head to nearby Kettering and walk around the point (waving to the Bruny Island ferry as we left) and around to Trial Bay. A nice little stroll through some Allocasuarina forest and then some open eucalypt forest.
The puppies loved it. First of all it was a new walk. Second of all it was nice and muddy, so they came back with mud splattered bellies and paws. Thirdly, whilst we sat on the park bench handily placed on the point to watch the ferry they could paddle, and "accidentally" go in too deep!

So the menu this week:

Monday: Beef Shin stew with boiled potatoes.
Tuesday: Beef Shin stew with added mushrooms, potatoes and broccoli.
Wednesday: Stir fry rice with omelette.
Thursday: Pasta with Parmigiano-Reggiano, peas and parsley.
Friday: Mt Gnomon pork chops braised in white wine, fennel and apple with mash.
Saturday: Slow cooked lamb shoulder, with potato gratin and peas.
Sunday: Lamb, barley and vegetable soup.

A few treats during the week included a lunch date at Tricycle for pork meatballs on white bean mash, and a flying visit to Sweet Envy on Friday for our favourite potato and rosemary bread, and a few sweet treats. Rob picked a lemon meringue doughnut (which apparently was excellent, he declared Alistair a genius) and I had a Bada bing chocolate caramel biscuit, which was very good but I struggled to finish it.

Hope you had an enjoyable weekend.

A belated Monday's Menu

Sorry it's a little late this week.

Monday: Chicken and mushroom pie with rocket, pear and blood orange salad.
Tuesday: Vegetable and noodle stir fry.
Wednesday: Steak on rocket.
Thursday: Room service Wagyu beef burger. Hmmm. A once in a life time experience. I was just too lazy to head out and find something else.
Friday: Steak on rocket.
Saturday: Slow roasted pork belly (from Mt Gnomon Farm) with fennel, onions and carrots.
Sunday: Pork belly and vegetable soup.

Monday's Menu, a little late

Hello. Sorry I'm late. I've flat out this week with the conference booth, so have only just got the chance to create my weekly menu photo collage.
We're both still recovering from this silly head cold, so neither of us has felt all that keen in the kitchen. But there were some highlights still:

Monday: leftover beef Bourguignon.
Tuesday: chicken and ramen noodle soup.
Wednesday: Pasta puttanesca .
Thursday: Baked beans and fried eggs on toast!
Friday: Spinach, fetta and mint pastry triangles.
Saturday: Roast loin of Mt Gnomon pork (Vermey's are stocking them now!) on a bed of savoy cabbage and apple with potato stacks. With a fruit mince and apple crumble for dessert.
Sunday: Rocket salad, with speck, soft boiled eggs and croutons.


I hope that next week is a little less frantic and I have some more time to write here. I miss it.

Monday's Menu

It felt like summer. After a poor start to my culinary week in Canberra, we made up for lost time over the last few days.
Shropshire Lamb Shoulder from Mount Gnomon Farm on Australia day. It was seriously tender. I'll have to order another before long I think. Eaten with roasted vegetable couscous, mint, cucumber and yoghurt, and beans.
A lovely fruit mince tart decorated with hearts.
Basil, we ate it as pesto on Friday night and then with real tomatoes on fresh bread on Saturday and Sunday for lunch.
Chicken provencal, again, it's my new favourite summer dish, with steamed new potatoes or rice.
Banana ice cream, easiest recipe ever, blitz 4 bananas, add a can of condensed milk and some cream. Churn.
Berries, in summer puddings or mixed through whipped cream. Our little patch of alpine strawberries are going crazy.