Weekly Podcast - Food Security

I know it is a bit early, but here is this weeks podcast.  I discuss the topic of the effect of Peak Oil upon our food security.  I hope you enjoy my ramblings!

Powered by Podbean.com

Feeling a Little Better

Finally, I am feeling a bit better. The abdominal pain is not so bad, but is still there. At least I don't feel as tired as I did a few days ago.

Today I had a CT Scan of the affected area, and visit my Gastroenterologist again tomorrow morning to see what treatment, if any, I need to have. Kim still thinks that I will end up in hospital on an IV for the entire Easter break! I hope not.

Also, I have spent the evening producing the next episode of the podcast. It will be published tomorrow night. I have even managed to get it listed in the iTunes Store, so for those inclined, you can search for me next time you open iTunes!

That's all for tonight, worn out by the days events, and looking forward to finding out what can be done about this pain.

Parmesan

Today I made Parmesan for the third time, even though I felt washed out, and went to check my blog for the recipe and noticed that it wasn't posted.  Parmesan is really called Parmigiano Reggiano, named after the two regions in Italy where it is made.  It is one of the worlds most famous grating cheeses.  Normal sized wheels of Parmigiano Reggiano weigh about 46 kg each, but this recipe is modified to make 1 kg of this delicious cheese.  It certainly beats the crappy, smelly, powered cheese you can buy in those green containers!  Everyone in my family gives it a massive two thumbs up, and we eat it shaved or grated on many types of pasta dishes.

So, in an attempt to aleviate that omission, here is how I made it.

Ingredients:

Brine solution (1 litre water plus 2 tablespoons non-ionised salt, boiled for 5 minutes)
4 litres full cream milk, at least 3.4% fat
4 litres lite or semi skimmed milk, no more than 1.4% fat.
1 quarter teaspoon direct set Thermophilic starter culture
1 quarter teaspoon Lipase powder, mixed with 20ml of unclorinated water
2.5 ml rennet mixed with 60 ml unclorinated water
2.5 ml Calcium Chloride mixed with 60 ml unclorinated water

As usual I set up all the utensils and ingredients before I begin, then I sterilise everything in water in the 8 litre pot for 15 minutes.  People are often surprised to discover that it is made with low fat milk (no more than 2.5% fat), because it has such an intense flavour.

Once sterilised, I put the big pot on a small saucepan of water to act as a double boiler.

Add the milk and alternate a litre of each type to so that it mixes well, and then bring the temperature up to 35C.  Once at temperature, add the Thermophilic culture and mix well.  Cover and allow to sit for 15 minutes.

Add the Calcium Chloride and mix well.  Then add the Lipase mixture and stir for a minute.  Keeping the mixture at 35C, add the Rennet mix and stir for at least 1 minute.  Remove from heat.  Cover and allow to set for 45 minutes.

When you get a clean break, cut the curd by using a balloon whisk.  Push the whisk all the way to the bottom of the pot and lift back out.  Do this all the way around all over the surface for 3 times.  This will ensure that you have cut the majority of the curd to about 4mm.  Let stand for 5 minutes, then stir at 35C for 10 minutes

Increase the temperature to 42C over half an hour and hold this temperature for 15 minutes continuously stirring with the whisk to prevent matting.  You will notice that the curd will start to shrink into smaller grain sized pieces.  

Increase the temperature to 52C over half an hour stirring regularly.  When the temperature has been reached you should notice that the curd will have a very small grain size and that it will be dry to touch and squeeky when you chew them to test for doneness.  Let the curds rest for 5 minutes off the heat

Drain the curds and whey into a cheese cloth lined colander.  Be careful as the whey is quite hot.  Gather up the cheese cloth and form a ball of curd big enough to fit into your 900gm mold.  Cover one of the corners of the curd with the cheese cloth and top with the follower then press at 2.5kg for 15 minutes.

Remove the cheese from the press, and slowly unwrap the cloth.  Turn the cheese over, rewrap it in the cloth, and press at 5kg for 30 minutes.  Repeat this procedure, press at 7.5 kg for 2 hours.  Repeat again, pressing at 10kg for 12 hours.

Remove the cheese from the mould and unwrap.  Immerse the cheese in the brine solution.  I use a 2 litre icecream container, add the cheese first then pour over the brine.  The brine should be at room temperature and not hot or the cheese will begin to break up and absorb too much salt.

Leave it at room temperature (21C) for 24 hours, and flip the cheese occasionally.

Take the cheese out of the brine solution and pat it dry with paper towel.  Here is your chance to smooth the cheese with your hands if there are any rough bits.  Then place on a sushi mat and put it into the cheese cave at 13C/80% humidity for 10 months.  Turn the cheese daily for the first week, then weekly after that.  Remove any mould that forms on the exterior with some left over brine and a bit of cheese cloth.  This also helps to harden the cheese as it ages. 


I usually wax this cheese at about the three month mark, because otherwise, even if rubbed with olive oil the wheel is just too small to hold the required amount of moisture and it will dry out.  The first wheel of Parmesan made in May last year turned out very well and has that sharp flavour that Grana cheeses are well known for.  Here is some I grated with a fine grater and keep stored in the freezer.  We use a teaspoon per serve of pasta, as it is so flavoursome.

I am leaving the second wheel for a full year, due to be cracked open on my birthday in May.  I am looking forward to a few slices of shaved Parmesan on my birthday dinner!

The trademark texture and flavour of this cheese is obtained though the lengthy maturation process which results in a cheese with a hard, gritty texture.  I guarantee that this cheese is well worth the wait.

TGOG Podcast - Introduction

Now, some people have told me that I love the sound of my own voice and can talk the leg off a chair.  So to prove otherwise, I kept the first episode to a short five minutes, and it is an introduction to my sustainable living journey.  Editing proved to be a bit time consuming, and I didn't realise how many ums and errs I actually said until I had to remove most of them with the editing software.

Well, I hope you all enjoy the first real episode of The Greening of Gavin Podcast.

Powered by Podbean.com

P.S. Don't forget that you can subscribe to the podcast via iTunes by clicking the button on the left sidebar.  And leave a comment if you would like a specific theme or have questions you would like answered.

Greening of Gavin Podcast Project

 
I thought I would spice things up around here and start a weekly podcast!  Are you all as excited as I am?  I am not quite sure what format it will take, but here is something I prepared earlier.

Powered by Podbean.com

It is amazing what you can do with a couple of Sing-Star microphones and a bit of free audio software.

So to get the creative juices flowing, I am after some feedback.  I would like to make this as interactive as possible.  If you have any themes that you would like me to ramble on about then either leave a brief comment, or send me a more detailed email with a list of questions.  I will then get one of my family members to read the questions out, and I will try my best to answer them in each episode.

So what are you waiting for? Send in those questions!

Gav

No Place Like Home

We have been living on Planet Earth as if we were making an overnight stop at a cheap motel.  We throw towels all over the place, pile up take-away food cartons and beer bottles, and don't worry about the hairs in the sink or lipstick on the mirrors.

But our planet isn't a temporary stop over, and there's no cleaner to tidy up in the morning.  It's true that Nature can clean up almost anything given enough time, but this takes many centuries if not longer.

We will grow old with the problems our parents started - problems that we have been make worse a thousand times over.  Wouldn't it be nice to think when we have children or grandchildren that they won't grow up wearing masks to school, that there will still be butterflies fluttering around the flowers in the garden, and abundant natural wilderness to discover? 

To make that happen, we need to realise that the Earth is our home, not a temporary stop in the night!

Under the Weather

I have not been well of late.  I have been under the weather for about a month now.

I won't go into the gory details but it looks like I may have Diverticular Disease.  It is certainly not a nice condition to have, but suffice to say the symptoms, pain and the medication has kept me away from one of the things I love doing, and that is living and writing about sustainable living, and the day job that I enjoy.

Depending on how I go over the next few days, and if it doesn't settle down, I will probably be admitted to hospital for an nice big dose of IV antibiotics to kill off any persistant bacteria that has caused bleeding.  Like I said, not nice.  Then I get the pleasure of receiving a colonoscopy to check out what is really going on in the nether regions once the large intestine calms down a bit.  All I can say is thank goodness for modern medicine.

Anyway, enough medical stuff for one day.  It is off to bed early so that I can muster myself into work tomorrow.  If I am not around much, I wish you a happy Earth Hour, but please don't just celebrate the hour.  Think of it as the stepping stone to a great sustainable lifestyle and do a bit of research about the real big issues facing us all today.

Gav

Beyond Earth Hour

Earth Hour is celebrating it's 4th birthday this year on Saturday 27th March 2010 at 8:30pm in your part of the world!






In the past we have celebrated it at home, with candles and boardgames with family and friends.  Last year we had a front lawn party at the neighbours house which was a good excuse for a few home brew beers.

Quite frankly, every hour is Earth Hour at our place.  That is just the lifestyle we lead.  Don't get me wrong, I am excited about it as I am every year about this time.  Earth Hour is fun.




There have been many things said about Earth hour, good and bad.  I believe that it creates a sense of belonging to a cause, and sends a message that people want action on climate change.  Some people wrongly try and determine the carbon footprint of the event.  It is not about reducing our carbon footprint for one measly hour out of the 8760 hours in a year.  It is symbolic and it is about the empowerment it gives people the outlet to do what they think is right.  Given the opportunity, everyone wants to do the right thing by the planet.  After all, it is the only one we have and it is our home.


We usually power down for the entire day except for the fridge of course because that would be wasteful!  No TV! No computers! No lights!  Just family and meaningful conversations.  It is one day of the year that I just enjoy everyone's company.  A bit like Christmas day without the family arguments!

This year, we will be talking about the things we could be doing better to reduce our environmental footprint.  Even though we generate most of our electricity needs, there are always habits and behaviours that need to be reinforced.  Lights left on is always a classic by the kids, and it doesn't seam to matter how old they get, they still walk out the room leaving it on to get a rise out of their old Dad :-)

But then what happens at 9:30pm when the event is finished?  Do people just go back to their normal paradigm and flick the switch back on?  I don't know the answer to these questions, because before we changed our reality to that of a green one, we didn't participate in Earth Hour (probably because it hadn't been invented in October 2006 now that I think of it).  May I make a suggestion?  When you decide to turn the lights and everything else back on, why don't you calculate your own environmental footprint using the WWF Australia Footprint Calculator.

I gave it a go and to maintain our families lifestyle we would need 1.8 planets!  Go figure.  We do a heck of a lot around the TGOG urban farm but we still need 1.8 planets.  It is not a detailed as doing a carbon inventory, however it suits the purpose that it was designed for, and that is to make you realise that by making small changes to your lifestyle, you can indeed make a difference.

Oh, and before I finish, if you are in Melbourne, AU then pop along to Federation Square to join thousands of others and watch the movie Home for free!  Don't forget to bring your dynamo torch or candles.

So what are you waiting for, give it a go this year if you are not a regular attendee.  Get a bunch of friends together and enjoy the darkness together.  Spread the word via twitter and Facebook all your cyber mates letting them know about the event, and don't forget to take photos or videos and send them to earthhour.org.au.  They will post them up for the world to see!

And most of all, after the event has finished, don't rest on your laurels and congratulate yourself too much.  There is so much more to be done, and you are just the person to do it.  Don't wait for governments, because they won't change until we tell them to.

You are the change you have been waiting for!

A Change of Climate

This post is in two sections.  The first discribes the stages of change in humans, and the second are my observations about the state of Climate Change denial in the Australian media.

---

Change is a funny thing. Some people embrace it and find it exciting, while others resist it with their very last ounce of strength.  Why is that so?  Why would humans rather endure a status quo than change.  Usually, the change happens when they realise that the pain of the status quo is a worse place to be than the change itself or new reality. 

Lets dig a bit deeper to discover the emotional stages that happen when humans are confronted with a change.  The diagram below  is a seven-stage adaptation of the five stages of grief identified by Elisabeth Kübler-Ross, the acknowledged expert on grief and bereavement. Following publication of her book "On Death and Dying (1969)", it became clear to practitioners that the stages in the grief model were transferable to all personal change and had a far wider relevance than just to death and dying.  So, based on the evidence that all change contains some sort of loss, her model is used to this day to map where an individual is at any given stage of a change that is affecting them.  (Click to enlarge)

Now, although the stages are fairly consistent for each change you may experience, the speed at which you move through the stages varies from person to person.  You could fly through the first two stages, and get stuck in self doubt for ages before you finally accept the change, or you could whiz through to Experimentation in just a day.  It all depends on how expectant your mind was for the change.

Let go through each stage:

Shock.  This reaction is usually immediate or from experience, within a few hours.  Even if you have planned this change, the fact that it is actually upon you will give you a strange feeling of disorientation.   This stage will last longer if it is unexpected.

Disbelief/Denial.  Stage two.  You have usually managed to get back to everyday life at this point.  Intellectually, you know that the change has happened and what may happen, however emotionally, you may block out the new reality from daily life.  You will probably be processing this new reality in your sub-conscious mind. Cognitive Dissonance usually occurs at this stage, and you are more likely to get stuck in this phase if you are change resistant.

Self doubt.  This is a very uncomfortable stage.  Old habits and beliefs are no longer relevant, as are some of the things that used to be important to you.  Your sense of identity will be shattered.  You feel a sense of nothingness until you develop a new way of 'being'.  Your confidence will be low, and you may be fearful of the future, become angry, depressed, and have an overwhelming sense of guilt.  I have felt doubt as to whether I have made the right decision or whether I am up for the job.  You also may want to seek isolation to mull it over further, and at the same time feel unmotivated.

Acceptance.  You have come to the decision to accept the change and face the future.  By letting go, the pain goes away and finding your new way of being becomes exciting and a challenge rather than a loss.  Your energy levels will be going up, as this stage usually begins just after rock bottom on the emotional scale. You still might not know what you are going to do, but at least you know that your reality has changed.

Experimentation.  You try something new from the new paradigm, but don't be surprised if you can't stick to the plan.  You could be all over the place, trying little changes to fit with your new reality.  You will still be working it out in your mind, however your energy levels continue to rise.  Try little things before attempting any major change at this stage, because you may slip back to self-doubt if a large experiment goes pear shaped.

Search for meaning.  When you have embarked on your journey towards your new reality, you may start to appraise where you were before the change, what has happened since and why.  You will begin to fit your experience into your "life story" and reexamine your view of yourself and the world around you.  You will start to make sense of it all.

Integration.  At the end of the change process, and all being well, you will be comfortable and confident, feeling you belong or seek belonging in your new life.

Now just a realisation on my part.  Change may be difficult at times and for a long period, but it can also be exciting, energising and uplifting.  It is a part of life.

Also remember that just because there is a model does not mean that everyone will experience all stages or the same change in the same way as others.  Every person is different and the above model is for guidance only.

---

This brings me to the subject of Climate Change and the human mind.  You can probably see where I am leading with this little phychology lesson.

I remember that when I discovered about anthropogenic climate change, I went through the first three stages in the period of about four hours.  By the time I have watched An Inconvenient Truth, and walked back to the office, I was well into acceptance, but still dazed and confused as to what action I needed to take.  This entire blog is a testament to my acceptance and steps 5, 6 and 7 of my change.

Now, I have noticed of late that some media outlets have been a party to the second stage of change which is denial.  For what purpose, I don't know, but I have a few theories.  This has especially ramped up after the Climate Gate scandal, and the failure of COP15. They (certain newspapers, and networks) have been performing a smear campaign of climate change denial on a grand scale, attacking the overwhelming mountain of evidence that the world's climate systems are indeed changing rapidly and that we, humans, are the major cause of this change.  The attack has been relentless and daily.

So, due to the acidic introduction of self-doubt in to the minds of the many, where is the collective consciousness of the Australian people now?  The early adopters of the new reality remain steadfast.  Those that are part way through the change process may remain stuck in denial and self-doubt for some time longer. 

But there is light at the end of the tunnel.  Finally, after two months of constant bombardment of climate change denial, mainly funded by vested interests, the CSIRO and the Bureau of Meteorology, which contains some of Australia's premier climate scientists have stood up to these bullying tactics and have simply articulated scientific fact in a way that the average Joe was able to understand.  I quote from ABC On-line.

The head of the CSIRO, Dr Megan Clark, says the evidence of global warming is unquestionable, and in Australia it is backed by years of robust research.
Dr Clark says climate records are being broken every decade and all parts of the nation are warming.

"We are seeing significant evidence of a changing climate," she said.
"If we just take our temperature, all of Australia has experienced warming over the last 50 years. We are warming in every part of the country during every season and as each decade goes by, the records are being broken.
"We are also seeing fewer cold days so we are seeing some very significant long-term trends in Australia's climate."
Dr Clark says the long-term data across a number of measures stacks up in favour of climate change proponents and against those who say the planet is not warming.

Great news, but not new news to this little black duck.   I am well through the change process insofar as Climate change goes.  Here is a quick fact that I learnt during my ACF GreenHome Community Leaders training.  Face to face communication is the best way to pass on information.  Deep down, I kind of knew this tit-bit of information. 

So therefore, even the statement by the CIRSO and Met Bureau, even written in laymans terms and expecting people to react to the information in a positive way is certainly not the best way to get the message across.  Even this blog post has its limitations and may not be fully digested.  As I stated, the best way to pass on information is to have a conversation.  It doesn't need to be confrontational at all.

I find that often the best way to get the other person to begin to understand the new reality and maybe begin to act upon the information is to mention something you may have already done yourself.  It could be something as simple as discribing how much money you have saved a quarter on your electricity bills by means of energy efficiency, or it could be about the garden you maintain and the benifits of home produce, or it could even be the gift of jam that you made yourself!

When these conversations come from the heart of a personal friend or trusted colleague, the recipient comprehends these action in a far better context to climate change, than say, shutting down Hazelwood power station by launching a protest and shackling yourself to the front gate.

The quicker and more frequent we have these simple conversations, the faster we will be able to sow the seeds of change in a rapidly warming, and soon to be resource scarce world.  The personal aspect of these simple yet powerful conversation is what I believe make it such a convincing method of communicating a message with the view to prompting someone to question their own status quo and begin the change process for themselves.  You cannot get much more personal than talking to a small group of people, as it is kind of in your face! 

So if you are inclined to talk to your friends and family about climate change or any change for that matter when you are finished reading this post, go ahead and site the basic scientific facts, but make sure you articulate the actions as personal ones, that give hope and make them feel empowered to do more and challenge their norm.

This is the only way we will be able to collectively make the changes necessary to make the world a more liveable planet for future generations to come.

Dripping at the Co-op

My main post for today is over at the Simple Green Frugal Co-op, and is titled "Low Pressure Drip Irrigation".

When I last checked the post had no comments, so I don't know how popular a subject it is.  I just wanted to compress my 3 part irrigation series into one complete post, that would enthral everyone to rush out and set up their own.  Maybe I was a little too optimistic!

Anyway, I have also been writing for the Caroline Springs Community Newsletter, and I now have a column called "Green Living Tips".  I have had lots of nice feedback via email, including one person who wanted to pay me to set up raised garden beds.  Here is the link to the newsletter for March, and my article appears on page 18.  If anyone would like to recommend articles to cover in my monthly column that you think the residents of Caroline Springs would like covered, please leave a comment.  Remember, it must be something I have already done during The Greening of Gavin.

Gav

Weekend Round-up

Another big weekend just past.  Lots of cleaning up in the garden, some herb planting, lots of composting, and some cheese making.

First, I mowed the nature strip and fed the clippings to the chooks.  Then I cleaned up the main tomato bed, after I harvested the remaining fruit.  I even kept the green ones for a nice green tomato chutney.  Two wheelbarrow loads of vine later, I started to cut up the vines into smaller pieces so that they would fit into the compost bins.  That job alone took me 2.5 hours!  Very relaxing though.

Then I pulled the 2007 crop of curly leaf parsley and lemon thyme which were spent, and replaced them with seeds I had collected from the curly leaf parsley last year in one pot and some flat leaf parsley in the other.  In another long pot I planted garlic chives and normal chives, hoping they will sprout okay.  In the final pot, I planted some oregano seeds to replace a bush that had died over summer.  All pots had a small handful of blood and bone mixed in with the soil and a couple of handfuls of compost to aid in water retention.  I will report on their progress in the coming weeks.

Whilst I was in the garden, Kim was finishing off a set of three paintings that a friend had on commission.  Here is one panel from the set.  All hand drawn, and what I clever wife am married to!

We also cleaned up the front yard, because we had to get a gum tree cut down due to it being riddled with borers.  Not very safe, so we paid the $400 to get it removed and not a bad price from one of the local tree surgeons.  We moved about 10 logs around to various parts of the garden, and they make nice little stools to have a rest after a bit of gardening.  I kept some for firewood to use when I eventually get around to making my outdoor cob oven.  Here is Mr Man cutting down the tree.  We both had a tear in our eye the day it came down.

That was Saturday, and out that night to dinner at some friends house, laden with eggs, eggplants and cherry tomatoes. We had an very enjoyable evening.  Thanks Christine and Cath.

Sunday, I went to the gym (to keep the back muscles strong), and proceeded to the hardware store for some seed raising mix and dolomite lime as I had run out of both.  I then did a bit of shopping, trying to source as much local produce as possible.  We are still doing quite well on our 160km diet, and I will write an update during the week.  We certainly haven't given up on it.

Then it was out with the milk and down to the business of making a kilo of Pepper Jack cheese.  I started at 1230 and finished at around 1700.  This cheese requires a lot of stirring to expel the whey.  By the end of it, both my arms were aching, and it was time for a beer or two.

It looks a bit lopsided, but as it dries it will firm up.

I will wax the cheese it in a few days when it is dry to touch.  It is quite a moist cheese, and still holds quite a bit of whey.

As the kids were coming for dinner, and Adam was moving back home for four months, I quickly put a couple of free range hens in the oven, and washed the vegetables ready for them to peel.  There is no such thing as a free lunch at our place!

We then got some bad news from Kim's sister.  Pam, Kim's mum, had had a mild heart attack, and was recovering in hospital after having a stent inserted into one of her coronary arteries.  Kim got very upset when she learned of this, and understandably so, but once she talked to her mum, she felt much better.  Pam is recovering well, and I talked to her tonight.  She sounds quite chipper for someone who had strong chest pains and surgery yesterday!  Rest up Pam, and a speedy recovery.  Take the time to smell the flowers as you get better.

Love to you from all of us here in Oz. xox

After a wonderful dinner, we talked about lots of things and cheered up Kim with a glass of Rose and some jokes.  Kim was emotionally drained by about 2130, so everyone called it a night.

After some reflection on what I have just written, it was quite a busy and emotional weekend.

Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

Never again with I put the seeds of this wonderful vegetable into the worm bin! 

Tonight we discovered the true delight of roasted pumpkin seeds.  So simple, and Kim, Ben and I all agreed that they tasted somewhere between roasted peanuts and popcorn and oh so healthy a treat.

It all started out when I cut open one of the Golden Nugget pumpkins I grew.  Kim made some home made sausage rolls and I thought that they would go nice with some roasted pumpkin, potatoes, and some steamed runner beans.  When I cut open the pumpkin, I had never seen seeds so plump and fat.  I thought to myself that there must be something I can do with these.  I knew I couldn't use them to plant next year because there was a very good chance that the pumpkins cross pollinated with each other, so they wouldn't grow true to type.

So, after our yummy dinner, I decided to do a quick search on the net for a recipe.  A few fancy ones came up like candied pumpkin seeds, but I was after something a little more rustic and simple.  How hard can it be to roast a pumpkin seed?

Well, not very hard at all so it seems.  I took as much of the pumpkin pulp off the seeds as I could, gave them a quick wash and dried them with a clean tea towel.  Then I put them into a ramekin and tossed through 1 Tbspn of Olive oil and quarter of a teaspoon of sea salt. 

I spread them out onto baking paper and put them into a pre-heated oven at 140C.

After 15 minutes they should be brown but not burnt.  I let them cool on the tray and then we simply ate them all up in no time flat.

So easy to make and a shame to waste what I wouldn't have hesitated to throw in the worm bin in the past.  I am now a humble convert of the roasted pumpkin seed.  I can't wait to crack open one of the Australian Butter pumpkins to get to the bounty of seedy goodness.  Who needs peanuts when you can have these? You can't get a more local snack than that!

Soap Factory

The soap factory is in full production mode.  Kim and I have been very busy making lots of different types of soap for a big order we have from a friend.  We have been making two types, a basic castille (olive oil) soap with various fragrances for display, and a more bubbly and cream soap for friends and personal use.  I use the following oils; Olive, Rice bran, Sunflower, and Coconut for the proper soap.  The initial batch of Rose soap was used here at home, but I took in a sample to work and sold seven bars to my collegues.  They were very pleased with the smell and I have had back glowing reports of how nice it is to use.  I also agree, as we have used up the rest of it already.  I am on to the castille soap now, which is creamy, but not a lot of bubbles.  Still works okay though.

On Sunday, we make 5 kg and added some colourings as well as fragrance.

The purple slab is Lavender with flowers, the Pink is Sweetpea and Vanilla, and the White is Sandlewood and Musk.  They all smell divine.  My friend Michael visited Lush (a soap shop in Melbourne) and told me that they are selling slabs like this for $80 a kg!  You even have to cut it up yourself.  What a rip off, when it only costs us about $10-15 a kg to make depending on how much extras we add to it.  I bet they use cheap palm oil bought in bulk to keep their costs down even lower than mine.  That is quite a profit margin.

Anyway, here is the soap after it has been cut into bars.

Lavender with flowers

Sweetpea and Vanilla (smells like fairy floss to me).

and a lovely display of our wares by the artistic Kim. 

Don't they just look good enough to eat?

In four weeks time we will be selling some of them for $5 a bar to whoever wants them.  Kim has asked me to set her up a blog so that she can start up a small cottage business, and she really loves making soap.  I will be getting that off the ground in the next few days, and help her set up an Etsy shop as well.  I have heard that they are quite simple to run and the selling fees are much less than Ebay.  Not wanting to be too forward, but if anyone is interested in buying some, please drop me an email.

So, lots of fun at the TGOG soap factory, and stay tuned for a link to Kim's shop of homemade soaps. 

Thirteen Years...

...is how long I have been married to the most wonderful human being on Earth! 

March 8th, 1997 was the most memorable day in my life.  It seams like only yesterday that I said I do to you in Portsmouth, England.

Kim Leanne, you are my love, my light and my soul mate.  May we both live long, and prosper together for many years to come.

I Love You xox

Pumpkin Time

Pumpkin season is upon us here on TGOG's urban farm.  This is the third year I have attempted to grow pumpkins and this year has been the most successful.

Year one, I planted butternuts in a large pot and a fair bit of vine and lots of flowers, but it kept on drying out, so therefore no pumpkins.

Year two, butternuts again, and in a small garden bed.  For my hard work I received two smallish butternuts that were very tasty, but there were just not enough of them.

Year three.  Success!

I planted quite a few varieties but only three really grew well.  In the photo are Australian Butter, Golden Nugget and Queensland Blue pumpkins that I picked yesterday.  There are still about four more pumpkins on the vines still growing, and to my amazement I found a self seeded Butternut plant that has been pollinated amongst my tomatoes.  I should get two nice sized butternuts as a gift from nature!

So, why was this year different than the first two?  Well, I selected an area where the plants could stretch their legs, and prepared the bed with lots of organic manure and compost.  I also ensured that each plant had more than enough water and that the bed was well drained.  I set up drip irrigation to water them twice a week as allowed by water restrictions, and grey-water from our washing machine from just about every wash.  When each plant got about 5 metres long, I pinched off the growing tips so that side shoots would develop female flowers.  I then let the bees do their thing, and when I notice that they were not around, I tried my hand at pollination with some success.

When I harvested these seven pumpkins I kept as much stalk as I could on each of them so that they will keep for longer.  I removed the vines that were attached to them, being careful not to disturb or cut the vines to the still growing pumpkins.  I checked this morning and everything is still alive and well.  Later on today, I will be putting all those vines into the compost bin to rot down into more wonderful hummus.

I love pumpkins in soup, scones, roasted, mashed, steamed.  There are just so many ways to eat this wonderful vegetable.  I reckon we will have enough to get us through winter, and maybe into next summer at this rate!

Food Waste

In this day and age of refrigeration, it never ceases to amaze me that we, as a society, still continue to waste food.  Certainly this issue is prevalent in some western societies more than others.

Yesterday, I read that over 30% of all household garbage is food waste; peel, plate scraps, rotten food, tea bags, etc.  Now remember that this figure does not include food waste from Supermarkets, agriculture and the food industry in general.  In landfill these organic scraps become buried under tonnes of other waste and earth in an oxygen deprived environment.  As they breakdown they produce methane which is 25 time more potent than CO2 as a Green House Gas.  Not to mention the pure arrogance of being able to throw away food when over a billion people across the world don’t know where their next meal is coming from.  It makes me feel sick and sad.

So if this issue is so big, what are some of the solutions?  Well a few that I can thing of that can help you to divert food waste from landfill are really common sense and easy to implement.
The most obvious is to reduce food waste at the start of the cycle.  By this, I mean when you go grocery shopping.  Here are a few tips;

• Take a list.  By using a list you will most probably only buy the food items you really need, and in compiling the list you would have checked upon your existing stores at home and just be topping up.
• Don’t shop on an empty stomach.  From personal experience, you buy more food when you are hungry, and usually it is food that you just don’t need.  It is like impulse buying that kicks in due to hunger pains.
• Grow your own food.  Plant a vegetable garden and reap the rewards, financially, physically and mentally.  It has been proven that people that grow their own waste very little of their own produce.  Maybe it is pride, or the thought of all that effort you took from seed to table.

So by limiting food waste at the beginning of the cycle reduces waste overall. 
During the storage phase, there are other solutions to minimize waste.  Here are some thoughts that might help

• Menu planning.  Planning each meal may sound a bit anal, but it help you to utilize the food you have at hand.  Each item in your fridge (where most food spoils) will be accounted for and will usually be used before going furry.
• Use the crisper.  Your fridge has different compartment for different types of food.  The crisper is the best place for fruit and vegetables and usually last at least two weeks longer than in other parts of the fridge.
• Use stuff on hand.  Before you go opening another jar of jam, check to see if you have one already open in the fridge.  No use breaking the seal to find that you still have one that is three quarters full.

Finally, what to do with leftovers?  Leftovers are one of my favourite meals.  They can be put into containers and frozen for lunches during the week.  They can be used in other meals.  Cooked too many vegetables?  Try making a bubble and squeak.  Too much Christmas Ham?  Make a pea and ham soup, or freeze chunks of it for use in a few months time when you crave some hammy goodness.  Cooked too much soup?  Well freeze it so you can enjoy it later.  There are so many things you can do with leftover food. 
If worst comes to worst, at least your pets can enjoy a good feed, or maybe even the chooks can have a nosh up if you keep them.  Nothing goes to waste around here.  If the dogs won’t eat it, the chooks, or worms or compost bins will.  The only organic thing we throw into the landfill bin are bones, but only after we have used them to make a stock!

In summary, using some of these methods will help you to reduce your organic waste, and save you a few dollars in the process.  Waste not, want not!

Over at the Co-op

 
My main post for today is over at the Simple, Green, Frugal Co-op.  I have written a story based on the Aesop Fable, "The Ant and the Grasshopper", which I believe is a good message to emphasise in this period in time.

By being prepared for the worst, and hope for the best,  you can enjoy life to the fullest.  Aware, but not alarmed!  Well, that is what I have found anyway!

Gavin

Gavin's Most Excellent Weekend

Did you miss me?  I missed all of you!

Now that I have had my second visit to the  Endodontist, and that the tooth has settled down a lot, I can tell you about my most excellent weekend.

I had the privilege to be selected to attend the Australian Conservation Foundation - GreenHome Community Leaders facilitation training, where I learnt the following;

• Facilitating group and individual discussion.
• Guiding a conversation around sustainable solutions.
• Dealing with challenging people and differing views.
• Kicking off a sustainability-related project.
• How humans process change.

I had a blast, met 20 other enlightened people plus the ACF team, and am now an official volunteer GreenHome Community Leader!  I have an obligation to use my training at no cost to my audience, and to lead two conversations about sustainable solutions, and assist the group in formulating an action plan.

We got to practice a session over the two days of training which really helped out.  I am fairly confident that I will be able to finish my two or three sessions in the three months allocated.  If anyone in the Melton Shire area would like me to facilitate a session for their group about sustainable solutions, please contact me via the email address at the top left sidebar.

On Saturday night, we had a family viewing of Avatar, which blew us away!  What a great movie with a powerful eco message.  I must be the only person who didn't go to the cinema to watch it.  A great way to cap off a rewarding two days.

Sunday was a busy day.  Up early to get some chicken feed, and I managed to score 3 x 20kg bags for $50.  I was impress with that bargain.  Sis and I did some shopping for the evening meal, and then back home again as I still had lots more to do before the monthly meeting of the Sustainable Living Group.

I weeded the vegetable garden, while Sis harvested the tomatoes (about 5kg), and Kim helped set up the area we were going to use for the meeting.  When I finished, I harvested about 15 eggplants (looks like lots of brinjal pickles will need to be made), and I then went to count how many pumpkins I had growing on the east side of the urban farm.  I counted 1 Qld Blue, 6 Australian Butter, and 2 Golden Nugget.  The Golden nugget will get used this week in a pumpkin soup and once the vines die back, I will harvest the remainder and put into storage for use over the winter months. 

I then began to prepare for the meeting.  I was going to provide a demonstration on how to make cold pressed soap.  So, I copied a recent blog post that contained the tutorial and printed off the recipe that I was going to use from SoapCalc.  It was a mixture of the following oils; Olive, Sunflower, Rice Bran, and Coconut.  The recipe said it had good cleaning and lather properties with a moisturising effect.

I then scurried around, collecting all the bits I needed to do an outdoor demonstration.  Kim helped lay everything out before the meeting.  With everything set and 15 minutes to spare!

The meeting was great.  We had 8 attendees and after 20 minutes of updates it was time for the demo.  It was good fun showing everyone how to make the soap, and even more fun with Kim as the assistant.  Half way through the weighing of the oil, she let the dog into the demo area, and then chased him out again.  It was good to have some comic relief. 

Then came the serious part.  I looked like a mad professor when I put on my apron, gloves and protective eye wear before I started handling the Caustic Soda, to emphasise the need to treat this compound with respect.  They were seated about 2 metres away, so safely out of harms way.  Once I began to mix the oil and lye, I got them to stand so that they could see the trace effect, and the pour.  All went well, except that once the soap was in the mould it began to rise like a loaf of bread.  Very strange, and in the four batches we have made, we had never seen this before.  The soap settled down again and didn't overflow, but it was touch and go for a minute or two.  After the demo, we gave everyone some samples that we made from our first two batches that were ready to use.  They all thanked us, and departed.  What great members we have in our group.

I then popped down the bottle shop and picked up two bottles of local wine, and Kim, Sis and I drank, laughed and talked whilst Sis prepared Corned Beef silverside for us with mashed potatoes and steamed broccoli, carrots and beans.  With the cheesy white sauce on top, it was a delicious meal, and we were all very impressed with Sis's cooking skills and it was a first time for Kim.  It will be on our menu again, that is for sure, as we all loved it.  After dinner, I watch Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure and continued with the laughter.  It too is a good movie with a message.  Be Excellent to each other, and party on dudes!

So that was our most excellent weekend.  Full to the brim and action packed.  Rock on next weekend. I might get a rest!