Monday 7 January 2013

Girl crush

There is something I have to admit. I can't keep it on my chest one moment longer. I have a total and utter consuming girl crush on Darina Allan. She (and the family I've met) are lovely. Down to earth, friendly, passionate about food and most of all accessible. We are after all trying to learn every thing we can from her.

Day 2 started with a group breakie, yum porridge with honey and bananas, all kinds of soft and tasty bread, homemade of course and lots of nervous chat about how we had, or hadn't, slept.
Not able to go straight out into the gardens for a tour we settled into the demo kitchen. (Pictures below)

It's definitely a new kind of experience for me, sitting back in a classroom but with the smells of food surrounding you, a large mirror overhead to see what the chef in charge is doing just incase you can't see through that persons head in front of you!

No cooking as such in the morning but lots of bumf and information and general stuff.
Off for a quick tour around the gardens in the mud, see the piglets, the tour of inside the green houses where we planted our own salad plant and more general information.

Lunch rocked. Simple good food. Locally produced and just pure yum. Tomato and basil soup with a chive foam on the top. Then a mezze plate of shrimp, deviled eggs, charcuterie, pate, bread, cheese and then pudding. Lots and lots of pudding!

The afternoon was spent in the demo kitchen but this time watching the magic happen. Plate upon plate was whisked up in front as popped in the oven to cook. I have to admit if I hadn't have cooked previously this would have been an overload of information but as it was it was all fairly basic stuff. I'm also quite surprised at how sweet most of the dishes are. I mean really sweet. But maybe it's just me who loves something sweet but not too sweet.  A modern soda bread, apple crumble, rice pudding, oat biscuits, mushrooms in a cream sauce and lemonade…now tomorrow will be the day when we get to cook all of these things.

Today there are no pictures of the gardens, the grounds or anything outside due to the fact that there was far too much rain and wind for it to look anything other than mud…as for the food at lunch, it seemed to vanish off my plate before I had even the inkling of getting my camera out…maybe tomorrow!








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