End of season….

We’re definitely coming to the end of the Mandarin season here and all of a sudden the fruit & veg department in a certain supermarket seems to be flooded with a single variety. I have never tasted this variety so I’m not judging the fruit itself…..my favoured one is Imperial which is available just for a short while early in the season.

Anyway you can buy this particular fruit loose (complete with its own little plastic sticky identifying label) from the market style displays doted around the fruit & veg dept. The fruit is as it comes from the supplier – as picked, various sorts of sizes so you’re free to choose how many you want/like the look of.
Keep that $3.90 kg price in mind…..

If you want your fruit all the same size and don’t want the hassle of picking through and choosing, just wander to another section and you will find these there. For just a little more you can have all the same size bagged ready to pick up and pop in your trolley….


But hang on, did you noticed the weight. It’s only 750gms not a kg……
……..which if you look at extra price on the label (mandatory unit pricing) means it works out to $6.43 kg

I wonder if the actual fruit inside the peel tastes any different to those that cost about $2.40 kg less

Gotta do what you gotta do…..

Yes I know not great English but my interpretation would be ‘when you’re left with lemons…..make lemonade!’

Although in this case I chose to pick up the ‘lemons’

The little Butternut pumpkin is the one I choose for winter soups. It’s usually nicely sized …..and I can cut (and peel) it easily.  I know other pumpkins can be used but half the time I can’t even pick them up let alone cut the skin off so it’s the Butternut for me.

The cost of fruit and vegetables fluctuates greatly with seasons and no matter what supermarkets say about keeping prices low we keep seeing them rise week after week .  At the moment,  Butternuts, which are sold by weight, …in my mind…. have an exorbitant price attached to them so as I’m going to be peeling and seeding (in other words tossing some of it) I’ve been loathe to buy them.

Carrots on the other hand seem to be really cheap.  Carrots are a staple in our house…..no matter what time of the year there’s always some in the fridge.  In summer they are grated or thinly sliced julienne style with salads – in winter, well you name it they turn up in just about everything cooked in our kitchen

Oh look at that, said Catherine when she saw an enormous 5kg bag of carrots going for $3

‘And how long do you think it’ll take you to use all of them’ said The Golfer!

These days with there only being the two of us I usually don’t buy fruit and veg in bulk ……..unless I know we use it regularly, it will last or I have something special in mind but also…. because He with the long elephantine memory will always remind me of the times he’s discovered things in the fridge I’ve forgotten I’ve even bought!

So with those words having been spoken (and knowing The Golfer, who doesn’t usually come grocery shopping with me, would object to backtracking through the shop to pick them up later) I had to do a bit of quick thinking.
 How many casseroles did I have in mind to make during the next week?  Soup??  What do I have in the fridge at home?  Oh blow it, pick them up.  They’ll keep out in the freezing cold garage!

Broccoli or as known to some of our grandchildren in their very young days as green forest… as opposed to white forest…which was the name for cauliflower 😊 is another veg we use a lot of. It’s usually sold by weight and I find it ‘fun’ to watch shoppers choosing their broccoli – some just pick up a piece and carry on while others turn the pieces over and over to find those with the thinnest stems because they will be throwing that part away and don’t want to pay for something they won’t be eating.

Lately the stems, you know the bit in the middle where the little stalks and the green flowery bits grow from, have been really thick.  Occasionally I’ll put them in with other bits if I’m making vegetable stock but last week it seemed like most of the weight was in the stems so after slicing and dicing them those pieces went into a chicken and veg soup.

Now that did turn out good – economical, what’s in the cupboard style, certainly not glossy cook book style.  As well as a small sliced chicken breast it included onions, the last of a packet of frozen mixed veg, also same of frozen peas and corn, some McKenzie’s dried soup mix, potatoes, broccoli stems, potato stock from the freezer mixed with chicken stock powder plus  several carrots.   After cooking I gave it a little whizz with Bamix using the chopping blade to ‘break up and circulate’ the chicken

Top shelf of freezer holds several tubs of Carrot Soup,…….. a fairly basic recipe, except I added some curry powder when I fried the onions and garlic to give it a bit of oomph…..plus  one remaining tub of the Chicken and Veg – well it was cold and that’s all there was left after having it for dinner two nights in row.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

It’s Monday, the day I sit here thinking and chattering about anything and everything – and as it’s the first Monday in Winter it’s a good enough time to let you know what we had for dinner last week😊

 So tell me, what did ‘you’ have for dinner last week ??

Pie and….

It’s always difficult to gauge what the food will be like at unknown pubs…..reviews are good but it often depends on the chef on the day.

Haven’t had a pie for a long time we said…….yes, they’re made on site we were told

The first one (on the specials board) at a well known country pub in Yarra Glen (just never visited by us) turned out to be a ‘pot pie’ – with chips and salad. I really should read menus more thoroughly as I wasn’t expecting that.
Pastry topping was fabulous- light and flaky with edges rolling down the side of the pot. (Just as in some circumstances it’s not bad manners to pick up a chicken bone and have a nibble so I deemed it ok to pull the pastry off and dunk it in the gravy. 😊)
The meat (that strangely was a bit chewy/could have been cooked longer before going in the pot) was in large chunks so had to be taken out to cut into more manageable pieces……I know I have a big mouth at times but. ….
Anyway here’s a plus – a definite plus – it, the vegetables inside and the gravy were hot. – just come out of the oven hot. So all was not lost there

Chips and salad……unfortunately very tired

We ate outside in a sports bar area – rough wooden floor, bench tables, serviceable metal chairs! No one else out there except some cheeky sparrows who kept us amused ‘battling’ with each other over a chip that didn’t make it to my mouth

********

So another Thursday rolled round, a free day for both of us ……oh the busy life these retired people lead…..where to today?.
‘What about we go to the pub down the road, the one on the corner on the way to Lilydale – another we haven’t been to for many a year ‘.
I’ll try a pie again – my back and legs were killing me and I needed comfort food. Also made on site so better still.

Pub food is often standard fare, especially seniors menus like this one – snitzels,, parmas, fish & chips, sometimes roast of the day and presentation varies from place to place. I knew what my order was going to be……however you should have seen the smile on my face when the young man placed this in front of me.
Stacking a meat pie on mash and placing onion rings so artistically on top of it all was a definite winner with me. The pie crust was crisp and flaky, the beef filling was pulled so no chewing necessary- it almost melted in my mouth, the peas might have been frozen but both they and the gravy along with everything else were piping hot.

The Golfer was not enthralled with his Nasi Goreng

The first cool day for ages so we decided to eat in the Bistro. A very large room with the visible kitchen and bar running down the room, basic tables and chairs with loads of room around each which encourages families to visit. Another quiet lunch because it was late when we arrived so there were only a few ‘old fellas putting the world to rights’ up near the bar – we shared a small alcove area with another couple at a table near to us.

And that’s my meat pie quota eaten for possibly a year or two 😊

Though nothing can beat them eaten out of a paper bag footy style.

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Seen in the supermarket….

December 23rd 2024

(All our fruit and veg must be labelled with country of origin).

Overheard in the supermarket

”Would you look at the price of that!”.
Huge price increase in lemons

”Definitely not in season, they’ve been in cold storage a while”.
As a winter crop the lemons would have been picked ages ago

”How do I know which is which?”.
Kiwi fruit is a known import and we do like to support our nearby NZ neighbours.

Off season we often see imported grapes from USA but I’ve never seen Kiwi fruit from there before. Wonder what deal Head Office have made


I don’t need either but I’m curious to see the kg prices again
Because this was the price (yesterday) per individual item on their website

😳😳😳😳😳😳😳

A conversation with a stranger…..

A very one sided one actually!

In the supermarket looking at the broccoli thinking those are nice big heads rather than the tiny little ones they had recently, which I don’t like buying because you end up with two lumpy stalks and not one when I hear….

“Oh the Reindeer Carrots are back…I’ll have to get some for the grandchildren”

“Oh my goodness would you look at that”

“Gosh that’s cheap, I’ll get two”.

I’m not usually a chatty person when I’m shopping but curiosity got the better of me and I turned round…..

My talkative shopping neighbour then went on to tell me $1.95 was an extraordinarily low price for cauliflower at the moment……who on earth would want to buy a coloured cauli (most likely full of chemical dye)…..and labelling the carrots as just the thing to give to Rudolph was stupid but her grandchildren thought he’d like them. And with that she plonked a bag of carrots in her trolley and moved away – but not until she’d rummaged around in the cauliflower section for the 2 largest ones she could find.

Oh dear I thought, she’s not going to be happy when she gets to the checkout and discovers the ticket actually said $1.95 cauliflower halves……lower down was a ticket saying $3.90 each.

I did pick up a nice head of broccoli even though it had gone up to over $7 a kilo but it’s the same everywhere (unless you grow your own that is) and am still wondering if anyone bought that manky looking purple cauliflower priced at $3.50!

(Also wondering if anyone else in Melbourne is having ‘eye problems’…..something seems to be playing havoc with my eyes. They’re red itchy gritty, weepy at times – which is usually what happens when it’s hot dry and windy not hot moist and muggy – so I’m limiting my screen time and using the occasional antihistamine)

If we eat out….

If we eat out many more times I’ll have forgotten how to cook by the time we get home😊.
A fabulous curry – King prawn salad – plus Spanish mackerel & calamari rings all came my way during the last week!

(The galleries will open with a click – scroll along to see photos in full)

Lunch for our day out in Ayr was at the Anzac Memorial Club (RSL) so food was what I call pub style. Basic, good value, usually pretty good. Best ‘no name’ curry I’ve had for a while – and so much of it. Doggy Bags were allowed (not always the case in some restaurants) so half of my enormous serve came ‘home’ with me.
******.
Sunday saw us down at the marina having a fabulous lunch fresh off the boat at Birds Fish Bar. Quiet and almost empty when we arrived- busy, tables filled with families when we left

It’s changed a lot over the years, renovated after the COVID restrictions (no more BYO – they have a liquor license now- deters the noisy ones they say)……the fishing boats still tie up out the back and ‘deliver to the door’….can’t get fresher than that!

****.
And then this week there was one of our ‘special treats’ – Lunch at The Cove……the restaurant in the white building visible (far left side) across the bay from here at Queens Beach.

Certainly not posh by ‘big city standards’…… Simple decor, very basic tables and chairs, good food, well priced menu, open to the outside but protected…..with views to enjoy over and over again.

Oh, and when I start mentioning clothes that are shrinking and I’ve no idea why, you can all smile and nod knowingly 😊😊😊

Sharing with Min and others at Wednesday Words and Whimsy – HERE

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It would have been so much nicer…..

If it had been plated differently!

Wednesday is our ‘treat’ day.
The day we often treat ourselves to lunch out.

It’s Ladies Day at the golf course (yes they still have such things) it’s set aside through to 3pm for ladies only to play which means a certain someone is at a loose end

Could be a local beach morning or a drive down to Cannonvale or further on to Airlie Beach or even a drive up to Ayr…..all within an hours drive and always with a lunch I don’t have to cook myself (or ask The Golfer to come up with)

So last Wednesday we stayed local – Rose Bay then into ‘town’ for lunch at one of the hotels (pubs)

Some of you know I do like a curry
If it’s on the menu I’ll give it a go
So when I saw one of the lunch specials was……

SRI LANKAN CURRY
An authentic blend of traditional spices & chicken served w/ fragrant rice & naan

I gave that as my order BUT was I surprised when this turned up
All in the one bowl!

I don’t mind the naan on the plate – but didn’t enjoy the soggy ends where they’d soaked up the thin sauce.

I don’t mind some sort of salad – served separately, not floating in the sauce

I don’t mind the rice on the same plate – but prefer it or the curry in a separate bowl

The beef (which was what the dish was all about) was cooked just right, tender, not chewy, with an interesting ‘spicy’ taste

The cutlery (spoon included – didn’t have to ask for one) came in those packets with the corny jokes

so really I had nothing to complain about.

It’s just it would have been so much nicer (read – more appealing) if it had been plated differently.

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Train Tram & Ferry

(Sitting in drafts unpublished from last year – took place Saturday 9 April 2022)

‘We can get off at Flinders Street and walk’ he said. ‘How far, how long?’ I asked

‘Not too far’ he said. ‘A couple of kms’. ‘You’re joking’ I replied

’OK, well we’ll get off at Spencer Street, and go over that way. It’s about a 15 min walk’

‘Not sure I can make that after sitting on a hard train seat for 45mins. It’s Saturday, so change at Ringwood then stopping all stations to the city’ I said.

‘Alright then, I’ll forgo my morning walk. We can get off at Flinders Street and take the tram right to the dock’ he said.

Oh the joys of living with a back condition that can impede walking – and a man able to walk an 18hole golf course with no problems at all.

And this was the place to be – at the Melbourne Ferry Terminal
Victoria Harbour
waiting for the ferry to Portarlington

We had the Lady Cutler on our left, the Bolte Bridge in front and the pineapple looking Banksia Apartments along with the leaning Marina Tower to the right

Bolte Bridge dead ahead

Be prepared- a welcome?? sight as you wait to board

On our way now sailing past some little wooden boats outside The Victorian Wooden Boat Centre. The Enterprize (replica) was docked alongside there as well.

Now we’re all out to sea – well not quite. . .
just dodging the Saturday sailors as we begin our way across the bay
(Port Philip Bay)

Then it was all aboard for a special trip – a gift for a special anniversary.
Sail, Rail & Dine – delayed a whole year because of ‘you know what’.
https://www.theqtrain.com.au

*******

A stop at Suma Park allowed people to get off and stretch their legs. There was nothing ‘arranged’ there so it was just wander up and down admiring the carriages and the engine if you walked that far forward (plus a very nice bench which I couldn’t resist). We could see staff tidying up the dining rooms preparing to serve desserts when we got back on, so true to form for many of them, when the time came, smokers who’d been asked to stand away from the train all left it as late as possible – puffing away then stamping it out just before they scrambled onboard.

Our girls bought the gift thinking we were going to be pulled by the steam engine – sadly he was booked for a special weekend event .. but we did get a glimpse of him further up the track 😊

Then it was time to get the coach back to Portarlington to connect with the ferry back to Docklands. No sitting outside on the return trip, this is how it was all the way across the bay. Dark clouds and strong winds!

We’d planned to wander round the Docklands area but it was cool, wet and windy when we got off the ferry – the tram and train home to our far eastern suburb sounded like a far better idea.

April 8 1961 – April 9 2022

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Sharing with Wednesday Words &Whimsy hosted by Min HERE

Surprise find….

More birthday treats – we had lunch in Healesville last week at a ‘new to us’ place imaginatively called No.7 Healesville……their street number is 7 🙂

The beauty of using gift vouchers is they often take you out of your comfort zone…specialising in Mexican fare using a shared plate system this definitely wasn’t a run of the mill pub lunch affair. I enjoyed it so much I nearly forgot to catch some food photos 😊

My almost finished serving of Thyluda, avocado, pea, baked ricotta, herbs – on the plate
Silver trevally ceviche, pineapple vinaigrette, cucumber, purslane – in the bowl

Eaten outside under a big brolly on a sunny but not too hot day it was surprising how filling seven small courses plus wine and coffee was – my very ladylike comment when I got in the car was “Don’t drive off yet, I need to loosen my trousers, I’m stuffed”

Not my photo

Outside table tops made from what appeared to be rough slabs of concrete!


Just wondering if we enjoyed it enough to return as ‘paying customers’…will have to think about that. What new experiences have you had recently?

it’s not really her fault

Tiggers Mum is on a short work related detachment to Singapore and I’ve been reliving old memories from when we lived there in the 1960s.
Katong was where we called home

And for some reason I just have a hankering for this – Katong Laksa

Two very fuzzy photos from recent visits to the home of Katong Laksa.

December 2013
November 2017

So it’s six years since our last time there
think we might be due for another trip 😊😎

https://johorkaki.blogspot.com/2020/01/a-history-of-singapore-katong-laksa.html

Seen in the supermarket…

Noticed on the first day of Spring (September 1st) – mince pies and other foods – 16 weeks before they would traditionally be eaten.
How soon is too soon?

And the other question is – will they last??.

Wordless Wednesday- when pictures tell the story

Hidden benefits…

There is a little hidden benefit to having my man, The Golfer
out of the house several times a week.
He is out in the fresh air ‘working up an appetite’
while putting the world to right with his mates

Pumpkin soup in the making

While I am able enjoy my ‘taste test’ meal – quietly on my own
And get to ‘dress the table’ – my way😊

Looks good enough to eat!
Almond fingers – my favourite

And then of course have 2nds with him for dinner that evening 😊

~ ~ ~ ~

ps…the comment run around is still alive and well!
I’m having problems- others are having problems
I don’t think it’s related to me having changed themes recently but you never know
Anyway the old one has been retired so there’s no going back 🙁

Seemingly there are now very few WordPress themes that show comments on the home page.
So to be able to comment here on Still Waters you need to go to the actual post – click on the title- ie ‘open the post’ then scroll down to the comment box.

I think my personal difficulties are with Google/Blogger rather than WordPress. I’m working on it

Sharing with Denyse’s weekly link up Wednesday’s Words & Pic
Why don’t you pop over and see who’s visiting her today

Do you fancy lunch….

‘Come on we’ll go out for a drive and maybe stop for lunch somewhere’.
Days come and go in our house, even special ones and there was nothing really planned for last Wednesday (12th)
I did think….lovely – it’ll save me having to cook on my birthday😌

Not a lot to see as we drove along under grey cloudy skies and from the direction The Golfer took I thought we’d end up in Healesville but surprise, surprise, the car turned right at a ‘favourite’ winery. Zonzo Estate – on the Healesville – Yarra Glen Road.

We chose a spot inside…..too cold and windy outside….lots of other people there so the tables by the fire were already taken
But hey, the whole of the restaurant was cosy and warm and I knew the food was going to be good.

Slow cooked lamb in red wine accompanied with roasted potatoes
Folded Italian pastry filled with strawberry and hazelnut chocolate
Nougat gelato encased in meringue, domed on top of a sponge

A trip to the loo (just outside the main building but top class just like inside) means wandering along beside the little herb garden surrounded by a rustic fence made from realistic ‘metal’ pickets.
Wisteria hanging from the pergola, a very large garden urn on a pedestal , a dividing wall of logs plus views of the vineyard all help to soften this service area.

Unfortunately just as we were leaving the rains did arrive so I didn’t stop to take more photos.
I’m not grumbling because that was the start of this ‘weather event’ we’ve been experiencing in Victoria. Thursday turned out to be a doozy of a day…..resulting in one many Victorians will remember for a long time.
It would appear all the eastern states are now struggling to contend with the aftermath of floods.

https://www.9news.com.au/national/australia-breaking-news-today-latest-headlines-live-october-14-2022-weather-updates/0a05d80d-cc0f-420f-9a4d-24da9e7c2d7b

https://www.9news.com.au/videos/weather/clean-up-begins-in-victorian-town-devastated-by-floods/cl9aefm3i001q0jlwy19etn1o

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Wednesday’s Words & Pics is hosted by Denyse – pop over and see what interesting blogs have linked this week. Perhaps you’d like to join in as well.

And just like that….

Minus the horrendous $10 price tag – they’re back on the menu again


I’m quite willing to admit I’m an Iceberg lettuce lover eater.
Please don’t put all those other iddybiddy bitter tasting little curly leaves on my plate
I won’t eat them because I just don’t like them

It might not be fashionable but I like the pale green colour of Iceberg
the crunchiness as well as the cool taste

Egg sandwiches need it, tiny prawns need it, potato salad needs it
I like the big rounded leaves, I’ve been known to eat them as a snack
They look good filled with chopped chicken tomato and cucumber

Torn or shredded on a large serving platter it makes a good bed for what I call my
‘help yourself green salad’
Finely sliced cucumber/raw zucchini/kiwi fruit along with green grapes topped with finely chopped spring onions. Different but we like it 😊

Now if the price of other vegetables start to drop all us non gardeners will be happy/er

Um..what am I going to do with that….

The price of fruit and veg is getting out of control and with all the strange weather over the past few months in growing areas round Australia the effect on that produce hasn’t been good. I know farmers can’t control the weather but I’ve looked at some of the supposedly fresh vegetables they’ve sent to market then on to greengrocers or supplied to supermarkets and more and more thought…no, we’ll try frozen or do without.
.
As well as a stall at the Sunday market a lot of local growers here have roadside farm gate (honesty box) stalls, which can be interesting because you never know what’s going to be on sale. It’s often ‘not quite right’ produce they know won’t sell – because consumers want good looking right sized (in their eyes) stuff.
The good thing is that it’s fresh…..not long been off the bush or out of the ground

We stopped at one the other day
The Golfer got out to have a look
‘Big tomatoes, huge green pumpkins, long zucchini’…..just get some toms and zucchini I called out and went back to my knitting

It turned out these are what he thought were zucchini/courgette!

My reaction when he opened the bag at home – what am I going to do with that!

Some would say, bless his heart he was only trying to help
and I should have looked my self.

Let’s just say Egg plant/Aubergine (any shape size or form) is not my favourite vegetable so I never buy them, in fact I can’t remember if I’ve ever cooked them and I know he’d pass if offered elsewhere
SO, in for a penny – in for a pound……it looks like we’re going to have to do a bit of cooking site surfing this week – for easy ways to cook them.
Because in the cabin I’m limited to a microwave and a two ‘burner’ ceramic cooktop!

What not to do….

Shop when you’re hungry!
You never know what might end up in your trolley


Interesting shapesthey might be good for an afternoon snack

Don’t bother…..

Hard to describe – like eating awful cardboard tasting air

~ ~ ~ ~

Easy to cook for quick lunch – could be good on a roll with salad

Don’t bother….

Very small and thin – size of product v size of box deceiving ( deliberate??)
Says made from Fish and Potato – think they left the fish out of this packet.

Soft and squidgy, almost gooey, not a pleasant taste at all

(The Golfer will eat almost anything.
But turned his nose up when I suggested he finish them up another day)

~ ~ ~ ~

Just have to remember the golden rule

What’s for lunch…..

There was a container of ’ooh that’s been there a while’ homemade chicken stock lurking under other containers in the freezer – made from a takeaway chook carcass, stripped flesh and onion – plus pearl barley….. discovered that fact when it was defrosted. I must have had something in mind when it was made – no idea what though.

After adding some frozen mix veg as well as half a packet of crunched up chicken noodles it ended up (with crackers and fruit on the side) as an ’interesting’ cheap and cheerful alfresco light lunch on a recent sunny (but cool) Saturday.

The Golfer must have been hungry – I hadn’t even returned with mine before he was cautiously approaching his….with a ’ what on earth has she served up this time’ look on his face.

Result:- couldn’t have been too bad because his bowl was emptied. There was no Oliver Twist ’I’d like some more’ moment though. I’m not sure what to make of that!!