Fruit & Vegetables

Celtuce is the Next Vegetable you Need to Grow

Meet celtuce- one of the most versatile, tasty, useful, yet least-known vegetables. Celtuce (lactuca sativa var. asparagina) is a form of lettuce which is effectively dual-purpose; the leaves can be eaten as lettuce, and the thick stem as a type of celery. This unusual edible will grow in a variety of climates, suffers minimal pest

Read More »

Carrot Hummus

Hummus is great, especially when you make it yourself. You can add in extra veggie goodness to make it healthier and more nutritious- just like this carrot hummus!Everyone has their own version and this is one I have perfected over the years to precisely suit my preferences. The beauty of this recipe is you can

Read More »

6 Top Crops to Grow at Home to Save you from Starving

Are you worried about the rising cost of food? Or even worse, a food crisis? We’ve seen unprecedented pressure on our food supply these past couple of years- things like extreme weather events, a shortage of fertiliser, logistical delays, rising energy prices and even a lack of fruit & veggie pickers are affecting us like

Read More »

Kale Chips

These kale chips are easy to make and so healthy that I ate mine for breakfast- yes really! These kale chips consist of nothing more than kale, olive oil, vinegar, salt and herbs, so they make for great eating at any time of the day or night! My kale plants were looking really good this

Read More »

Rhubarb Raspberry Jam-filled Cupcakes

When you make our rhubarb raspberry jam, you can make these delicious jam-filled cupcakes to go with it. The recipe is easy and it’s a big hit in my household. They somehow disappear in no time! The rhubarb raspberry jam is a very ‘clean’ recipe. It consists of nothing more than fruit and rhubarb. This

Read More »

Rhubarb Raspberry Jam

This rhubarb raspberry jam is so versatile that it’s more than just a jam! Naturally it’s fabulous on toast & breads, but it makes an interesting addition to pancakes, yoghurt or a filling for our rhubarb redcurrant pie. Why not try it as a filling for these rhubarb and raspberry filled cupcakes– they are sooooo

Read More »

Kratky Growing System: Simple Space-Saving Hydroponics

The Kratky growing system is essentially a small, portable hydroponic system for growing veggies that is quick & easy to set up at home. A type of passive or static deep water culture that works without pumps or any electricity, it was named after Bernard Kratky, a researcher from the University of Hawaii, who first

Read More »

Grow These 5 Perennial Greens to Beat $Price Rises

Grocery prices have risen sharply in 2022 due to inflation, and this upwards price trend doesn’t look to be stopping any time soon. Compounded by shortages due to the pandemic and localised extreme weather events, fresh produce prices in particular are higher than ever. We’ve all seen the $12 lettuces headline, but luckily as gardeners

Read More »

How to Grow a Ton of Asparagus

Asparagus is a tasty and versatile vegetable in the kitchen- you can eat it sauteed, fried, grilled, barbecued and of course fresh. There’s no wonder that asparagus is one of the worlds most famous veggies; it contains a wide range of vitamins, making it one of the most nutrient-dense foods you can possibly grow. Naturally

Read More »

How to Repot & Ant-Proof a Blueberry Plant

Like any fruiter growing in a pot, blueberries need repotting from time to time. They can be a finicky plant, and any movement or repotting has to be timed carefully. If you’re going to pot up or re-pot a blueberry plant, it should only be done during its short period of non-flowering. Depending on the variety,

Read More »

Rhubarb & Red Currant Pie

The rhubarb season is always very short here in the Netherlands- maybe that’s why I love it so much! I make the most of our short season by making several different rhubarb dishes. One of them is this rhubarb red currant pie, aka crumble. You can use rhubarb in savoury dishes as well as sweet.

Read More »

5 Practical Steps Towards Food Security

The rapidly rising price of food, especially fresh produce, isn’t news to any of us these days. Basic living is getting tougher everywhere: inflation is up, interest rates are higher, and supply chains are stretched to breaking point. Being scared won’t help, because it doesn’t lead us to safety or rational thought. But there are

Read More »

How to Make Ginger Powder

When it’s time to harvest your fresh ginger, what do you do with it all? Sure, you eat some, and you keep some for planting next season, but then what? What do you do with the rest of it? Ginger is a valuable crop to grow at home because it commands a high price in

Read More »

German Spatzle

Whenever I make Spatzle I think of my sweet grandmother. This German-inspired dish is something she used to make often. She wasn’t German, but lived close to the border and it was cheaper to do grocery shopping there. When she had a growing family it was a thrifty, simple & delicious dish everyone loved, so

Read More »

7 Ways to Make Your Food Last Longer

When we buy food we never mean to throw it away…but somehow it happens! With the ever-increasing cost of food-particularly fresh produce-it’s important to make the most of your grocery budget. Curdled milk, furry veggies and lanky herbs are familiar to us all- but can you avoid this? Is there a better way to store

Read More »

Pumpkin & Leek Soup w/Pine Nut Cream

There’s a reason that pumpkin soup is a classic the world over; because it’s delicious! A wonderful and traditional winter warmer, pumpkin & leek soup w/pine nut cream can feed a family and makes short work of a big harvest. Something about winter makes me crave smooth, creamy soups. The type that melt in your

Read More »

How to Grow Blueberries in the Ground

Recently I was asked if it is possible to grow blueberries in the ground in my area, and in Australia in general. The answer is ‘yes- as long as you create the right soil for blueberries first‘. Blueberries require an acidic soil, but most natural soils in Australia are quite alkaline. This means that you’ll

Read More »

How to Make Acidic Potting Mix -Recipe

Many people enjoy having their fruit trees and exotic plants in pots- and some of them require a specific acidic potting mix in order to thrive. In this article I’ll be showing you how to create an acidic potting mix that plants like blueberries, camellias and azaleas will love. Soil or potting mix ‘acidity’ refers

Read More »

How to Maintain a Fruit Tree

One of the most prolific fruit trees in my orchard is a dwarf navel orange tree. It’s 35 years old (don’t ask me how I know this!) and still going strong, but like all heavy producers it needs regular maintenance to stay at its best. In this article I’m going to show you how to

Read More »

How to Grow a Ton of Ginger

Ginger is one of the worlds most useful and beneficial foods. Fragrant, tasty, and with a multitude of health-promoting qualities, it’s no wonder that ginger is expensive to buy. But it’s crazy to pay supermarket prices when you can grow your own organic ginger for so much less. I’ve been growing ginger successfully for many

Read More »