Well the colder weather suddenly arrived and we finally could sleep during the night without the fan on – just. I’ve actually been excited to actually snuggle under the covers and wear a closed in shoe… although I know that I will be wishing for warmer weather when we hit the middle of a Canberra winter.
April brings with it the opportunity to whip up some excellent slow cooked dishes and the excitement of new ingredients to be found at the farmer’s market – oh how I do enjoy seasonal produce. I love picnics just as much, I really enjoy any chance I have to fill those travel coolers or camping coolers from Gear Hungry that I have with treats, sandwiches to be shared and cold refreshments for our mini retreats into the wilderness.
As you may or may not be aware, Celia from Fig Jam and Lime Cordial is no longer hosting ‘In My Kitchen’ and has handed the baton over to Maureen at The Orgasmic Chef. Check out Maureen’s blog to see who else in joining in to the ‘In My Kitchen’ link up.
In my April kitchen…
…I’ve got these delicious Italian sausages from Balzanelli Smallgoods. A wonderful Canberra based company that attribute food, family, culture and tradition as the main ingredients to their success.
I picked up the Italian sausages as I wanted to give MKR contestants, Luciano and Martino’s, Fettuccine con Salsiccia & Funghi Porcini recipe a go.
In my April kitchen…
…There is a wide range of locally sourced mushrooms – another great find at the Capital Region Farmer’s Market in EPIC. These mushrooms also went into the pasta recipe from Luciano and Martino.
My other favourite thing to do with them is to create a simple mushroom sauce to go with a crumbed beef schnitzel from ANDO’s organic. If you attend the Farmer’s Market in EPIC, I highly recommend ANDO’s beef schnitzels they are super tender and economical – I crumb them myself.
In my April kitchen…
…I may have jumped ship on my favourite cold pressed juice from Canberra based company The Fix. To say that I was slightly addicted to ‘Look on the Bright Side‘ would have been an understatement. And then the other day I picked up the ‘Yin and Yang‘ after an awesome Yin yoga class and I’ve bought half a dozen since {from Ainslie IGA if you’re interested}.
It is a delicious combination of organic chia seeds, organic brazil nuts, organic almonds, organic cashews, organic agave, organic ground vanilla, organic ground nutmeg, organic ground cinnamon, himalayan pink salt and organic rooibos chai.
In my April kitchen…
There is delicious butter from Pepe Saya. Ever wondered why Australian butter is so yellow? Australian milk is rich in beta-carotene (vitamin A) because our cows are mostly pasture fed. The European-style, pale butter is a result of the grain-fed cattle which are housed in barns for most of the year due to differences in climate.
In my April kitchen…
I’ve pulled out the good old Scanpan roasting tray and I’ve got some of my favourite pork flavour combo’s going on. Roast pork with potatoes, fennel and pears – yes please!
In my April kitchen…
…We have way too many Easter chocolates. Although I must admit this decorated milk chocolate tiger that the boys received is pretty cute. 
In my April kitchen…
…I’ve finally been able to track down edible flowers. If you follow me on Instagram, you notice that I ask anybody and everybody who posts an image of edible flowers ‘where did you find them?’ They always reply with somewhere in Melbourne or Sydney. I was thinking ‘come on Canberra – we are a big enough foodie town to have edible flowers’. And then on Good Friday I came across these at Ziggys at the Belconnen Markets. So there you go fellow Canberra Foodies – ENJOY!
What new things have you picked up and tried lately? Do you purchase new brands or do you stick with what you have tried and tested? Are you choosing to give yourself a special treat or two this year? Are you a sweet or savoury fan? Have you been to the Farmer’s Market lately? Anything interesting happening with you and your family in April?
