Fort Denison Cheese and Wine Class

Fort Densison: looking back towards Sydney CBD

canape: seared scallop, corn puree in crisp wonton cup

Yes I know.... I am going to get my cholesterol tested after all this cheese I've been having lately.
This was a special occasion though. A cheese and wine lecture from Claudia McIntosh from McIntosh and Bowman Cheesemongers on Fort Dension in the middle of Sydney Harbour. 12 farmhouse cheeses, 5 wines - and a beer thrown in to challenge the palate.

Claudia McIntosh conducting the cheese class

Our farmhouse cheese tasting plate

Willowbrae Goat Curd (Goat milk), Wilberforce, NSW.

tasting notes: mild and citric  8/10

Vanella Cheese Company Mozzarella (buffalo milk), Cairns, Qld

tasting notes: chewy anad tangy  7/10

Meredith Feta (goat's milk) Meredith Valley, Vic

tasting notes: sharp and salty  7/10

Jannei Buche Noir (goat's milk) Lidsdale, NSW

tasting notes: creamy and earthy  8/10

Woodside McLaren Camembert (cow's milk) Woodside, SA

tasting notes: whiffy and ammonic  4/10

Yarra Valley Black Savourine (goat's milk)

tasting notes: urine nose and rind   5/10

Barossa Valley Cheese Co. Le Petit Prince (goat's milk) Angaston, SA
tasting notes: pastures and damp fur   4/10

Barossa Valley Cheese Co Washington (cow's milk) Angaston SA

tasting notes: wet paddock  6/10

Pyengana Cheddar (cows milk) Pyengana, Tas

tasting notes:crumbly and sharp  6/10

Pastilla Nash Walnut and Prune log

back: shiraz,moscato, middle: chardonnay, front: pinot gris and water

Tarwin Blue (cows milk)

tasting notes: creamy, intense and balanced  8/10

Meredith Dairy Goat Milk Blue (goats milk) Angaston SA

tasting notes: mellow, tangy and round mouth feel   7/10

Dessert: chocolate tart with fruit salad

champers by the cannon

ships ahoy

shipping lane

Sails unfurled

Recipe: No-cook, 3-Ingredient Dessert

Fresh raspberry and vanilla-bean yoghurt sundae

A delicious dessert that is low on cost, time and calories? I don't believe you! Believe me. This dessert satisfies all the cravings and can be an indulgent DVD-home-on-the-couch treat-for-one or a swanky dinner party pleaser. The key is not scrimping on good ingredients. This recipe serves two.

Ingredients: one punnet of fresh raspberries, one tub of King Island Dairy Vanilla-Bean Yoghurt and some organic hazelnut crumbs

repeat layers of raspberries, then yoghurt in a cocktail glass

sprinkle with hazelnut crumbs(I prefer hazelnuts over other nut crumbs because they have a taste complexity similar to an Italian biscuit or cake crumb)

  Make sure every spoonful has a little sweet raspberry, tangy yoghurt and crunchy hazelnut

Chocolate-led recovery

I think I've mentioned my mother-in-law Gwen to you a few times. She is a one-off. No higher than a whirlpool washing-machine but with a similar G-force. Born on the same day 83 years ago as Queen Elizabeth II but with more airs and graces.She has Dame Edna's brutual comic timing but a fear of the world beyond her white picket fence a la John Howard. There's nothing she wouldn't do to help a stranger in need but "we have to keep those 'illegals' out of the country". Our Gwen is a swirling mass of contradictions. The only thing that calms her (other than her medications) are desserts and chocolates. Amen to the Cook's Garden in North Turramurra for their wonderful range of Colefax chocolates. Lunch today was a much more relaxed affair after they arrived.

Study in Leaf

All yesterday's talk about pure and natural and organic got me thinking about how difficult it is to connect with nature in the urban jungle we call home.

Watching my edible balcony grow every day gives me a joy and a sense of well-being that I get from few other activities. It's nurturing, it's meditative, it's restorative - it's life unfolding before your very eyes. It's also a good way to mark the passage of time... from day to night, winter to spring you realise time doesn't fly it ebbs and flows with grace and purpose.

Today I took a little more time than usual to look closely at my little green neighbours and realised what a wonder a simple leaf is. Not only is it the engine house for most plants' food production but its form and architecture are quite simply a thing of beauty. And without them, we couldn't survive on this planet.(and yes, I did remember to take my pills today...!)

Rainbow silverbeet

sugar snap pea

rocket

mint

oregano

carrot

beetroot

curry leaf

thyme

parsley

tomato

Mecca Munchies

Lunch today was courtesy of Mecca Cosmetics who invited me to the newly-refurbished Centennial Parklands Restaurant in Sydney to take part in a panel discussion about the future of the natural beauty industry. And before you ask 'what do you know about the natural beauty industry' I'll tell you. Not much. But I do know that I applied 26 lotions and potions from shampoo and toothpaste to moisturiser and lipstick before I left home this morning and that can't be a good thing. We need to consume not just green but less.

Zucchini frittata with tomato relish

Boccocini cheese with fresh tomato and chives

spicy chicken on eggplant puree and yoghurt

Pimms and lemonade

champers daahlink of course!

salad of ruby grapefruit, blood orange and grilled salmon

sourdough bread with olive oil and balsamico

green leaf salad

chocolate brownies with candied orange slices

mini strawberry and cream pavlovas

Sadly I did not get to try these, doh!