A Little Dithering, A Little Catch-Up and a Lot of Mozzarella Cheese

January 10, 2012 · 25 comments

in Changes,Cheese,Gluten Free,Vegetarian

Possums, hello!  And Merry Christmas, Happy Hannukah and Happy New Year all rolled into one! There’s something I want to talk about. I’ve been meaning and meaning to come here but I didn’t know quite what to say – it (whatever “it” is) is as yet unformed so I think I need to approach it sideways as one might a nervous cat, or like many things in peripheral vision it might disappear.

Though as a child I regularly flew between New Zealand and Japan on my own, there was always someone to meet me at the other end. My nana delights in telling a story with three-year old me as its protagonist, coming off the plane, waving to my as-yet-unmet poppa and gaily singing out “hi poppa!” I think to her, this represents a blitheness she doesn’t associate with herself as a child put in an unfamiliar position and therefore amazes some part of her with every retelling – of which, incidentally, there are many; we are a family that delights in repetition.

While I sometimes wish I had a rapier-sharp wit, I comfort myself with the fact that my brother and cousins at least, appreciate that a joke told many times becomes funnier as it ages. I mean, it saves breath – you don’t even have to tell the whole thing after a while.

The first time I went on a trip without someone to meet me though, was when I visited Vietnam with Anna. It was a trip of less than two months but when I came home it took me as many to feel here again.

See more dithering and mozzarella here

Tagged as: cheese, milk, recipe, rennet

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Alles Gute Zum Geburtstag Lieber Florian

December 16, 2011 · 14 comments

in Austria,Mains,Summer

December the 16th is, in my opinion, one of the most auspicious days of the year; without it, my life would be immeasurably poorer. The reason it’s such a happy day is because it’s the birthday of three (three!) of my favourite people. I know it’s not the done thing to choose favourites but let’s face it, we all do, right? And the favouritest of them all, is the one beginning with F. Also, the word “favourite” is beginning to look as if I spelt it wrong so I’ll stop using it now. Also, it would be weird if the month of December went straight from the 15th to the 17th, don’t you think?

Without the events that unfolded on the 16th of December a number of years ago there wouldn’t have been anyone to tell me about Duvetwochen, an Austrian celebration of the end of winter whereupon all the people of the village bring their duvets to the market square and throw them in a pile. The most elderly are then invited to choose a new duvet followed by the next eldest, and the next and so on. It is possible I have heard, to buy key-rings with tiny duvets attached to them as a memento of this, frankly odd, festival. No-one ever mentioned what happens if two people are born at the same time but I like to imagine that they have it out, right there on the street, and the last one standing is the first to choose.

Had the 16th of December been skipped that year, there’d have been no-one to inform me of the importance of consuming a boiled egg on the first day of snow (the famed Snow Egg) which is supposed to give one strength for the impending doom, I mean winter.

No 16th of December, none of these, the most imaginative of my numerous nicknames: Sarakue, Sayakue, The Hashbot, Shiksenbaby, Monkey Lady and The Bogbot.

Without the 16th of December I wouldn’t have had the chance to meet the person with whom I’ve spent many of my happiest hours.

So, December 16th, thank you for existing. You are a special day. A great day.

What’s your favourite day of the year?

See guanciale and zucchini flower pasta recipe here

Tagged as: bacon, cheese, could be vegetarian, courgette, garlic, guanciale, herbs, italian, own recipe, parsley, pasta, recipe, zucchini

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Halloumi and Making Friends and Influencing People

October 23, 2011 · 28 comments

in Cheese,Gluten Free,Vegetarian

Even though this weekend marks the end of my first semester back at school, what I really want to say is: I made cheese! Not once or twice! But thrice! Don’t mean to show off or anything (I’m showing off) but I made halloumi, mascarpone and there is a camembert maturing in the cupboard under the stairs as I type. Camembert!

Making cheese is one of those elemental things like making bread – not only does it make me feel supremely capable and accomplished but tricks other people into thinking I am too (bonus!). And, apropos of nothing, that was five exclamation marks in one paragraph and I mightn’t stop there! Even though my favourite English teacher told us too many exclamation marks dilute their effectiveness and furthermore are just lazy! So hold on to your hats people, I’m on the rampage this morning.

One of the things on the long list of great things about coming home is having met my friend Marly, a cheesemaker, among other things. Her parents are German and with her pink and white complexion she fits the part perfectly – I can sort of imagine her wearing a milkmaid’s dirndl (is there such a thing? I might have made it up). She wasn’t wearing anything of the sort when when came over to make halloumi though but it turned out squeakily toothsome all the same.

Making halloumi is easier than making macaroni cheese, I kid you not. Unless you think macaroni cheese comes out of a cardboard box, to which I say “pah!” and also “I did not know you could get macaroni cheese in a box until I went to San Francisco earlier this year and spent an hour peering at all the stuff in the supermarket ‘cause that’s what I do when I go to new countries.”

So, without further ado, this is how you make friends and influence people: Make halloumi and feed it to them. That’s it. For realz. Unless they are vegan or hate cheese. In which case, they probably won’t be.

Also, between the 25th and 31st October, the Royal NZ Foundation for the Blind is organising “Bake a Difference” which involves baking some stuff and selling it to raise funds – fun way to fundraise right? Especially since I know lots of you love to bake. So, get on it people!

See halloumi cheese recipe here

Tagged as: cheese, milk, recipe, rennet

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