09 Nov 2015
by Debra Manskey
in Biography, Chickens, Music, Performance, Tasmania, Urban Farming, Vegetable Gardening
Tags: chickens, good neighbours, NaBloPoMo 2015, Tasmania, urban farming, vegetable gardening
Further to yesterday’s post about the advertisement that labelled people who grow their own food as freaks, thank you so much for all your private (and universally positive) responses on social media. It means a tremendous amount to know that people are actually reading what I’m writing – as anyone who’s got a blog will know! I think where and how we source our food is an increasingly important issue – and obviously you folks do too.
I went to Oak Tasmania to play music today and as always, got there early to have lunch with my friends. And this is what I took…….
Freak Feast
In my lunchbox were two chopped hard boiled eggs, some torn English spinach and wild rocket, shredded baby kale, home grown alfalfa sprouts and a few fresh strawberries, all picked this morning. The only thing I didn’t grow was a half an avocado I cubed and tossed through it. A few drops of sesame oil and a sprinkle of rice wine vinegar made a lunch fit for any gardening freak 😉
And I have to share this with you all. I have the best neighbours ever! Yesterday Karen asked if I had a large square cake tin she could borrow for her daughter Georgia, who at 11 is getting very interested in baking. I found my old big tin at the back of the cupboard and apologised for it being so dusty – I don’t bake much now my son’s living independently.
Last night Karen knocked on the door to return the pan (cleaner than when I gave it to her!) and a plate with two huge slabs of fruit cake on it. Apparently, Georgia’s was given a recipe for fruit cake made with ginger ale and it’s a total winner, full of fruit, moist and not too sweet. I’ll have to see if she’s willing to share the recipe……. 😀
Georgia’s Fruit Cake
08 Nov 2015
by Debra Manskey
in Baking, Biography, Brewing, Chickens, Inspiration, Inspiration, Lyrics, Music, Produce, Rabbits, Urban Farming, Vegetable Gardening, Writing
Tags: happy human being, NaBloPoMo 2015, organic gardening, organic produce, super freak gardener, Tasmania
Late last week, Woolworths Australia released a new advertisement, featuring high profile personal trainer Michelle Bridges. The ad is spruiking a new line of frozen meals the supermarket chain developed with Bridges. During the advertisement, Bridges described people who grow their own food as “freaks” and suggested that precooked frozen food was preferable to fresh fruit and vegetables. As you can probably imagine, the uproar on social media was big enough to make the supermarket pull the ad almost immediately. There’s an article worth reading at the Guardian Australia.
Well, I guess I’ve been called worse in my time.
But it got me thinking about all the ways growing my own food makes me healthier and happier. First and foremost, I get a lot of physical exercise all year round gardening. Some of you might be aware I have a degenerative spinal condition, coupled with body-wide osteoarthritis. Over ten years ago, my then GP told me that I’d most likely be in a wheelchair within a couple of years. Not bloody likely! Occasionally, it lays me low and I need to use a walking stick but fortunately, acute episodes are rare these days. My current GP is convinced that my half an hour minimum in the garden has improved my core strength, muscle mass and general well-being – not to mention raise my normally low vitamin D levels and provide me with food.
And then there’s the food.
I started gardening at this house a week after we moved in, almost six years ago. I have potatoes for eight or nine months of the year and free range eggs about ten months. I grow enough garlic now for almost the whole year. I still buy brown onions and some carrots but stopped buying salad greens and herbs after about three months. The last couple of years I’ve been breeding meat rabbits as an ethical source of protein and I’m researching growing mushrooms and installing a beehive next spring. I’ve tweaked my salad greens into seasonal delights, and now we look forward to winter too because that means sweet, frosted kale, silverbeet, chicory, endives, corn salad and (my favourite) English spinach.
Baby raspberries
Fruit begins with rhubarb in September, and progresses through strawberries November and December, raspberries, boysenberries, youngberries, loganberries, silvanberries and (for the first time this year) blueberries from December to April and apricots, nectarines and plums from January to the end of March. I also have a peach and double graft apple I’m espaliering that will probably fruit next summer and a lemon tree that will be planted out in the autumn. And everything is picked fresh the day it’s needed so the nutrient levels are high. There is excess – I always grow too much – but it’s given to family and friends and I make cider and peri with excess fruit, fruit leather and dried chillies, beans and kale chips as well as freezing.
Blueberries starting to form
Also there’s a creative aspect of getting my hands in the earth – it makes me feel good about the world and gives me inspiration to write. When I’m in the garden, I lose all track of time and get to think about things I need to. I’ve solved some really big problems over the years out in that garden. I plan and plot and think about the season to come as well as the one I’m living in, it’s a window to the future.
And finally, there’s those wonderful moments when you can sit back, rest, enjoy and just be…………….. ❤
My favourite spot under the Chestnut tree
06 Nov 2015
by Debra Manskey
in Biography, Urban Farming, Vegetable Gardening
Tags: NaBloPoMo 2015, organic gardening, recycling, repurposing, Tasmania, toilet roll grow tubes
Well, it’s finally the end of the week, and I’m bushed! I was supposed to go to a gig tonight some friends are playing but I’m just too tired. Tomorrow, I’ll be out in the garden again and cooking a family dinner – my son’s coming over.
One of my jobs tomorrow is dealing with some of the seedlings I’ve grown in the last month. I love sitting in my greenhouse, listening to music or audio books while I work. It’s very relaxing.
With small seeds, such as chillies, herbs, salad greens and any brassicas (cabbage family, such as kale, broccoli and mustard greens) I use a three stage process.
First, I plant the seeds in punnets, keep them moist in the greenhouse and wait for the magic of new plants to happen. It’s silly but even after all these years I still get a thrill when I see new plants starting 🙂
New vegetables!
Secondly, I prick them out from the punnets into cardboard toilet rolls and let them grow on in the greenhouse until the roots are showing, which encourages downward root growth and eliminates transplant shock – one of the biggest killers of young seedlings. I didn’t realise until recently that this isn’t common knowledge! I cut the rolls in half first, which makes a perfect size for me and it doubles the number of mini grow tubes I have for the season. I’ve found that plastic trays from my few supermarket purchases are great to put the completed seedling tubes in, making them safe to carry around the greenhouse and the yard.
All recycled and ready to go!
The cardboard is just the right thickness to take up and hold moisture without falling apart immediately and I use a fairly compost-rich potting mix that holds together reasonably well. Like a lot of repetitive jobs, there’s a rhythm I get into when doing this. Perhaps it’s the musician taking over but I find this really relaxing. It takes practice when doing small, delicate seedlings but the best tip I can offer is go slowly – there’s no rush. Also, keep a permanent marker handy and I recommend marking the plant name and date on at least one if you’re doing a tray of the same thing. I also keep a garden journal next to me and write down what I’ve done in case something happens to obscure my one labelled tube.
Shungiku – Garland Chrysanthemum just done
A few days before I want to plant them, I take the trays of rolls out and let them harden off under a tree. The final stage is planting the seedlings still in their roll in the garden bed.
With big seeds like corn, beans, peas, pumpkins and zucchini I mark the first roll and loosely pack however many I need in a tray. Then I use a pencil or stick as a dibbler and put the seeds in and cover them. The snow peas and beans in the photograph below will give you some idea of the wonderful root growth and size of the plants.
Ready to go in the ground
These have been out hardening off since Tuesday and will be in the ground tomorrow 🙂
In the meantime, wherever you are, have a wonderful weekend and take care ❤
05 Nov 2015
by Debra Manskey
in Biography, Chickens, Produce, Urban Farming
Tags: free range eggs, NaBloPoMo 2015, pickled eggs recipe, putting food by, sterilising jars in oven, Tasmania
You might have gathered by now that my household’s been having difficulty keeping up with the incredible egg laying ability of my beautiful girls. This morning I had 26 eggs in the fridge, the oldest ones were only laid six days ago. I date my eggs with a pencil as soon as they come up to the house, something my mother used to do to keep track, and as you can see from the photo below, some of them are quite gigantic!
A dozen free range eggs and an old pickle jar, waiting to get together!
So, I decided to make very old fashioned Pickled Eggs. I haven’t had these since I was a child (yes – that long ago!) when my mother used to make them occasionally when we had a glut.
I still have some dried chilies from last year’s crop, so decided to use one in the pickling brew, along with allspice berries and a couple of bay leaves I dried a few years ago from a friend’s tree. The vinegar was mostly home made thanks to a vinegar “mother” my dear friend Sara gave me last year (see yesterday’s post about Sara – she’s pretty wonderful!) and topped up with some shop-bought white vinegar. Older eggs are actually better for hard boiling, as they’re easier to peel, so a few of mine have a few “dents” in them!
Old jars are something of a passion of mine and the one I used here has been home to many delicious creations. To sterilise it, I washed it thoroughly in hot soapy water, rinsed it well and put it in the oven (about 120 C) until all the water had evaporated. The lid went in a saucepan of clean water and simmered for 10 minutes. Here’s the recipe:
Pickled Eggs
Ingredients:
12 hard boiled eggs, peeled a clean, sterilised pickle jar and lid approximately 4 cups of vinegar
1 dried chili 2 bay leaves 4 or 5 allspice berries 1 teaspoon sugar a pinch of salt
Method:
Start by boiling the eggs for 8-10 minutes (you want them really hard for this). Once they’re cooked, plunge into cold water and tap each to stop them cooking any further. Put the clean, wet jar in a low oven to sterilise. In a saucepan, heat the vinegar, stir in the sugar and salt until dissolved with a wooden spoon. Add the allspice, chili and bay leaves and cover, reducing the heat. Simmer for about ten minutes. While it’s simmering, peel the eggs carefully, wash them in cold water to remove any tiny pieces of eggshell and put aside in a bowl.
Check the jar, if the water is completely evaporated it’s ready to use. Carefully remove it from the oven and put it on a board, preferably on the stove top next to the simmering pickle (this reduces the risk of spills and accidents). Take the sterilised lid out of the water with tongs and put it on the board to cool. Put the wooden spoon in the jar and roll the eggs in gently. Then, very carefully and slowly pour the hot vinegar and spices over the spoon and make sure the eggs are covered. Put the lid on firmly to create a seal and leave to cool. Label and date your jar and put them in a dark cupboard. They should be ready in 4-6 weeks – I’ll be trying mine on my birthday – and they will keep for up to a year.
The finished Pickled Eggs
What pickles do you love to make? Let me know in the comments 🙂
04 Nov 2015
by Debra Manskey
in Biography, Chickens, Produce, Urban Farming, Vegetable Gardening, Writing
Tags: espaliered fruit trees, friendship, Sara Hewitt, Stargold, Tasmania, vegetable gardening
Today I had a proper day off and visited my friend Sara. Like me, she’s a creative soul – a writer, gardener and chicken fancier. I took a couple of bush squash seedlings and she gave me a few Roma tomatoes and a bag of fresh lemons off her heavily laden tree. (With all the eggs I’ve got at the moment, I feel a Lemon Meringue coming on in the next few days!) We catch up every couple of months, last time we did a big seed swap and laughed ourselves silly around her dining table.
My new Roma Tomato plants, potted up and ready for staking
Her garden is amazing, it’s quite small and she’s made fabulous use of the space, with fruit trees espaliered against a north facing fence, an unwanted bathtub the perfect home for strawberries and blueberries, tight block plantings bordered with container salad vegetables, a very efficient and productive greenhouse and an ingenious enclosed corner for her two chickens that can be wheeled across fallow beds.
Sara is also a nationally renowned psychic and astrologer and has been writing professionally for years, contributing regular columns to some of the best known magazines in Australia. She also has her own business Stargold and does readings for clients both in Australia and worldwide.
Over coffee, we worked out we’ve known each other for just over 30 years. We’ve shared houses, seen each other through numerous loves and break-ups, pregnancies, child-rearing and (more recently) health issues and growing into middle age as stylishly and (dis)gracefully as possible.
I treasure her friendship very, very much for two major reasons. Firstly, even if we haven’t seen each other for years there’s never any uncomfortable silences – we always manage to pick up wherever we left off without reservation. Secondly, despite the years we still have the capacity to make each other genuinely laugh – a truly priceless gift.
A heart-shaped Strawberry discovered in my garden
03 Nov 2015
by Debra Manskey
in Baking, Biography, Chickens, Urban Farming, Writing
Tags: baked cheesecake, cardamon, free range eggs, NaBloPoMo 2015, orange blossom water, organic produce, recipe, Tasmania
Henrietta, Queen of the Chicken Coop
My six gorgeous girls are working overtime at the moment and I’ve got a glut of eggs. I give them away to family but even so, they keep on laying. It probably has something to do with all the weeds I’ve been pulling out of the garden these past few weeks, which are full of delicious insects and worms!
So, even though I should be studying, with so many eggs on hand I thought I’d make a cheesecake with a twist.
Cardamon seeds, ready to grind – and six of the best from my chickens
I love the aroma and taste of cardamon in both savoury and sweet dishes, and it works superbly with citrus. Not having any oranges in the house, I got creative and put four tablespoons of lemon juice and about a quarter of a teaspoon of Orange Blossom Water, a delicious by product of orange oil distillation. It’s a powerful aroma and a common ingredient in desserts from North Africa and the Middle East to Malta, France and Spain. Like Rose Water, use it sparingly!
Cheesecake ready for baking
Orange Blossom & Cardamon Cheesecake (8-10 generous serves)
Ingredients:
1 prepared biscuit base (for a 28-30cm spring form pan)
6 large eggs 3/4 cup of sugar 500g cream cheese (at room temperature)
1 tab crushed cardamon seeds 1/4 teaspoon Orange Blossom Water (or more to taste) 4 tabs lemon juice
Method:
Break the 6 eggs carefully into a blender jar, add the sugar and cover. Pulse until the eggs are frothy and the sugar is combined. Spoon the softened cream cheese in, cover and blend until smooth. Add the crushed cardamon seeds (I do mine by hand, shelling seed from whole pods and grinding in a mortar and pestle – the flavour is much better!), the Orange Blossom Water and lemon juice. Blend this on a low setting until combined.
Pour this luscious mix into the base and bake at 150 C for approximately 45 minutes. I usually leave my cheesecakes to cool in the oven before refrigerating them. You could put sliced fresh strawberries or apricot on top – they go very well with Orange Blossom Water – or leave it perfectly plain. Either way, this is a delicious twist on an old favourite and I hope you enjoy it as much as my family and I did 🙂
The finished cheesecake, with tiny flecks of ground cardamon visible
What are your tips for using excess eggs? Please leave a comment below!
02 Nov 2015
by Debra Manskey
in Biography, Inspiration, Music, Performance, Urban Farming, Writing
Tags: friendship, Griffith University, joy, NaBloPoMo 2015, Oak Tasmania, Tasmanian stories, work
I’m a professional musician, writer and educator. My working week is made up of private students plus contract music and teaching roles. In between I have gigs and time to pursue and improve my own arts practice. Add to that, maintaining what amounts to an urban farm in the backyard plus part-time online study through Griffith University, and every week is pretty full.
I consider myself very, very lucky. The garden produces fresh vegetables year round, a good deal of fruit and some meat from our breeding rabbits, plus fresh eggs for approximately ten months of the year. Study enriches me in completely different ways and has provided me with different ways of looking at the world and my place in it, and then there’s music.
Music is my therapy and a major source of fun in my life – it always has been. And I’m lucky enough to be able to make money out of it.
My main work contracts are currently with Oak Tasmania, an organisation that provides support and services to people with disabilities. Every Monday I get paid to be a human jukebox and play all different kinds of music for a truly beautiful and diverse group of people. I enjoy it so much that I usually turn up an hour early and eat lunch with them before we start. In fact, I sometimes feel like I’m taking money under false pretenses – the clients have become friends and we enjoy each others’ company immensely.
Today I arrived as usual and started preparing my lunch, when one of my dear friends presented me with this beautiful little bouquet of home-grown roses because she appreciates me and what I do for her. I was so touched by the gesture I nearly cried.
My work is also my joy.
The roses are now in a vase, taking pride of place in my lounge room 😀
What are your work stories? Do you find joy in what you do? Please leave your story in the comments!
01 Nov 2015
by Debra Manskey
in Biography, Music, Performance, Singing
Tags: Cassie O'Keefe, live music, Meraki Management, NaBloPoMo 2015, Tasmanian music, Tasmanian original music, The Homestead Tasmania, UNLOCKED
So, here in the southern hemisphere it’s the evening of November 1st. Welcome to NaBloPoMo where the challenge is to write a blog post every day of this month.
I’ve just got home from an afternoon gig at The Yard at The Brunswick Hotel in central Hobart and it was really great fun. I caught up with old friends and met some new ones – and the music was great! UNLOCKED is run by Meraki Management and the brain-child of Amy Fogarty, who is something of a force of nature.
My friend and former student, Cassie O’Keefe (above) was also on the bill and really nailed it with her set! We had dinner after (the food is really good, by the way) and Cassie and I are looking forward to our next gig at The Homestead, Thursday 19th November.
From my point of view, it was really heartening to see so many young musicians at today’s gig who are just starting out. It invigorates those of us who’ve been around the traps for a while and enables musicians embarking on their careers to rub shoulders with folks who’ve got some experience. There’s always something new to learn – no matter how long you’ve been doing this!
See you all tomorrow, where I’ll probably talk about some gardening things – my other great passion 🙂
Now it’s your turn…. What are your great moments as a mentor or mentoree? Leave your stories in the comments!
29 Oct 2015
by Debra Manskey
in Biography, Composition, Inspiration, Inspiration, Writing
Tags: Australia, blogging, creative writing, NaBloPoMo 2015, Tasmania, trying to become a better writer, Writing, writing challenge
Hi everyone,
It’s coming towards the end of the year (where did the last twelve months go?) and that means we’re getting close to National Blog Posting Month – NaBloPoMo.
The challenge is to write a blog post every day for the month of November and it’s really quite challenging to keep it fresh and interesting – from a writing perspective as much as for the audience. I’ve done it once before, two years ago. I had no home internet connection and did the whole thing from my mobile phone. If I can do that, this year is going to be easy 😉
If you’re inclined to challenge yourself writing-wise, click on the badge in the sidebar and get involved. It’s really a lot of fun and I personally found it a great learning experience.
Take care wherever you are ❤
28 Oct 2015
by Debra Manskey
in Baking, Biography, Brewing, Business, Chickens, Composition, Inspiration, Inspiration, Inspiration, Lyrics, Music, Performance, Produce, Singing, Urban Farming, Vegetable Gardening, Writing
Tags: Australian music, Australian original music, baking, brewing, Cassie O'Keefe, creative writing, Debra Manskey, egg glut, Griffith University, Inspiration, Kevin Gleeson, live music, Matt Dean, mentoring, performance, professional musician, singer/songwriter, spring, Tasmania, Tasmanian music, Tasmanian original music, Tasmanian songwriters, The Brunswick Hotel, The Globe Hotel, The Homestead Tasmania, The Yard, urban farming, Writing
Hello friends,
I love spring. The cycle of the seasons visibly turns and every day brings new things in the garden, the chickens are laying more eggs than we can keep up with, and here in Hobart we’re coming out of the hibernation of winter and starting to go out again.
Rhubarb Fool
Vanilla Ice Cream
Wee Beastie Sourdough
And I’ve been busy! In the kitchen I’ve been making Vanilla Ice Cream and Baked Coffee Cheesecake with the excess eggs, brewing and bottling cider, making Rhubarb Fool from the mass of spring rhubarb and my weekly “Wee Beastie” Sourdough. It’s been absolutely wonderful to eat so well, with so much produce coming directly out of the garden.
The garden is always a work in progress but I’ve started planting out climbing beans this week, there’s basil in the 
greenhouse and too many vegetable seedlings coming on to mention.
And there’s music happening too! I’m in the middle of a unit in Creative Writing for my second major through Griffith University. For my final assessment I’m planning to write a portfolio of new pieces that will become new songs. Depending how it goes, perhaps the core of another album.
Meanwhile, there’s gigs coming up too.
This Sunday at The Brunswick Hotel in Hobart, I’m playing a short set out in The Yard (the beer garden) with a bunch of other local musicians, including the incredibly talented Cassie O’Keefe and my friend Matt Dean. Very pleased also that this is a family friendly show, so feel free to bring your young music-lovers 🙂
Thursday 19th November, I’m sharing a night with Cassie at The Homestead in Elizabeth Street, one of my favourite places to go and hang out with friends. No idea what’s going to happen that one – we might even work out some songs to play together!
Friday 20th November, I’ll be doing the early spot at The Globe Hotel in Davey Street. If you haven’t caught this weekly event yet, I really recommend it. It’s organised by Kevin Gleeson who basically loves all kinds of music and is good friends with so many of us. It’s a great excuse to hang out and have a good time with mates.
And there’s more on the horizon! If you want to keep up to date with my shenanigans, hook up with me on Facebook here.
Yep, it’s spring and it’s busy – just how I like it.
Wherever you are, be well friends ❤
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Debra Manskey 