EDIBLE NOTABLES

EDIBLE NOTABLES SHARING IS CARING

Big Sur residents make it through tough times together

BY LAURA NESS PHOTOGRAPHY BY KODIAK GREENWOOD

We may all be people of this earth, but some of us are truly people of the land. For Clovis Harrod the siren call of Big Sur was irresistible. “It was like a lover who called to her,” says her granddaughter Helen Handshy. In the early 1950s, Harrod backpacked in Big Sur with a friend and it changed her life forever. Falling in love with the area, she left her husband in southern California and took her two children to start a new life in the coastal community, waitressing while building a homestead on five acres of untamed land. “I live in the cabin which was the first structure Clovis built; it has a plastic corrugated roof,” Handshy told us. Although she spent her childhood in Big Sur, as a teen Handshy found herself restless for the outside world and moved away. Inevitably, she was drawn back. “Big Sur is not for everyone. It wasn’t always right for me. I came back because Clovis needed help with the property and it’s been a huge blessing. The experience has been amazing!” Handshy tends many garden beds and prolific citrus orchards and is constantly thinking about what to plant next—because sharing with others has become her life’s work. The pandemic made that clear.

Abundance from the humble farm started by her grandmother was part of the inspiration for The Big Share—a weekly food exchange where everything is free. Handshy and co-founder Joseph Bradford, with whom she worked at Nepenthe restaurant before 2020 changed everything, were worried about their coworkers and others who couldn’t get unemployment when the pandemic shuttered businesses along the scenic coast.

“What attracts people to this rugged and remote place is the very thing that makes it hard to connect. There’s no community center, no cell service,” she says. But when Handshy, Bradford and other community-minded residents started taking bounty to the Big Sur Grange every Monday to share, word spread quickly.

“We packed up veggies and citrus from our gardens in our truck. Other people brought what they had in abundance,”

Above, volunteer Elsa Rivera distributing food at The Big Share. Right, Helen Handshy and Joseph Bradford at Clovis Harrod’s farm in Big Sur.

she says. “We encouraged people to disseminate to those in need. People started planning their trips around this exchange. If we can save 10 people a trip into town, it’s great!”

During lockdown, no restaurants were open and there are no grocery stores in Big Sur, so access to fresh produce was difficult. “You can’t get produce here unless you grow it yourself. It’s one of the biggest needs. People were so grateful,” she adds.

Then others started bringing jams and prepared foods. Farmers called with excess produce. Donations of dried foods, eggs and dairy products came in. Someone arrived with a giant truck full of fresh chicken and Handshy had to scramble to rehome the bounty.

At one point, The Big Share was distributing 168 USDA farm boxes weekly. Handshy estimates the program has given away between 3,500 and 3,600 pounds of produce alone since it started last fall. Clearly, there is a big need.

Handshy says local chefs, like Nick Balla of COAST Big Sur, have pitched in to help. “Whenever we have excess produce we take it there and he turns it into something wonderful. He took fresh green beans and pickled them with horseradish.”

Balla, who moved from San Francisco to Big Sur three years ago, loves the community and shares the program’s values. “I like to work with what’s at hand, rather than what could be sourced. When Helen brought me extra potatoes and flour, we made focaccia and sourdough starter. We made 200 pounds of focaccia that we could happily share on Monday! We are super passionate about feeding and taking care of people.”

Beyond the pandemic, the fires, road closures and so forth, Handshy is thinking ahead to the next disaster and partnering with CABS, the Community Association of Big Sur. Coastal landowners and stakeholders started the group in 1962, largely to prevent the area from becoming a national park. Her program will take advantage of CABS’ nonprofit status, so that all fundraising and funding can be done through it. “It will help us sustain this program, fund storage space and find a permanent home for The Big Share,” she says.

Big Sur resident Elsa Rivera, who also got involved in the effort, points out that it’s different from other food assistance programs. “It is truly a gifting economy of love and community. I’ve loved connecting important resources for Helen to help the local project grow and develop into a one-stop free shop where folks can come together safely to check on each other and feel connection when connection has been so lacking during COVID. It’s not focused on the subjective opinion of need; it’s sharing our humanity and friendship with each other.”

Another exciting piece of the program going forward is a garden incubator and seed exchange project underway on the 5-acre homestead. “We want to help people start their own gardens, so we’re using our property as a pilot project to develop starts. We’re growing kale, lettuce, tomatoes. We’re spreading the love and we want everyone to do the same,” says Handshy.

Many who came to Big Sur decades ago planted fruit trees, but 90 percent of those homes are vacant now, with no caretakers. It’s an untapped and valuable resource, so they’re trying to contact owners to get permission to harvest.

If you have a garden in Big Sur that needs tending or harvesting, The Big Share team will help with that. About the only thing they can’t grow and provide is coffee. But given the generosity of the community, someone will likely step up and fill that need, too.

Says Handshy, “My dream is that every community in the world will be doing this. Share local! This is what I would like to see more of!”

That dream is perhaps the most valuable thing she has to share.

Handshy returned to Big Sur when her grandmother needed help with the farm and that’s where the idea for The Big Share got its start.

The Big Share thebigsurbigshare.com helen.bigshare@gmail.com

Laura Ness is a longtime wine journalist who contributes regularly to Edible Monterey Bay, Spirited, Los Gatos Magazine and the Wine Industry Network, sharing stories of the intriguing characters who inhabit the world of wine and food.

EDIBLE NOTABLES ART & BEER

Woodhouse Blending & Brewing debuts to rave reviews in Santa Cruz

BY MARK C. ANDERSON PHOTOGRAPHY BY GENEVA RICO

Portraits by creative director Tug Newett give the brewery an artistic vibe.

Where am I? Should I Google my location? These were my thoughts, even though I was confident I stood smack dab in the middle of Santa Cruz. Such was the power of the moment at new Woodhouse Blending & Brewing on a recent Friday afternoon. Maybe it was the kinetic pan-Latin music from Papiba & Friends. Maybe it was the dozen masked women dancing in front of them. Maybe it was the Brazilian street food—fried chicken-potato balls, savory beef pies and “crazy meat” sandwiches—flying from the kitchen. Maybe it was the airy brewery-taphouse setting with its striking art, high ceilings, clean lines and detail-driven design. Certainly it was the inspired craft beers like Wanderlust IPA and Houndstooth Hazy, flowing steadily from gleaming taps set against a taupe tile wall.

In truth, it was all of the above, which—coming on the heels of pandemic lockdowns—gave Woodhouse that wonderfully foreign feeling. I ordered a tart and tasty Orange Tier kettle sour to toast the mood.

Co-founder and head brewer Mike Rodriguez is the alchemist behind the beers and has been at his craft for two decades. Across stops at celebrated spots like The Lost Abbey and Mason Ale Works, his creations have pulled in 13 Great American Beer Festival medals and three more from the World Beer Cup.

Before any of those West Coast brewery gigs, he got his start out of high school at Power Plant brewery in Kansas City, Missouri, which is where a surprising amount of Woodhouse collaboration first sprouted. Fellow co-founder William Moxham met Rodriguez in middle school, but was in our area working for Apple and invited Rodriguez to join the Santa Cruz project. Rodriguez brought rugby buddy, brewing mind and accounting pro Tyler Johansen, another co-founder, with him. Fourth co-founder Ken Kieffer, whom Moxham and Rodriguez met in high school, came out from KC too. Newer partner Tug Newett is a pal from the Kansas City Art Institute. “We wanted to get friends involved who could contribute skills and pitch in a little money and help us get through,” Moxham says.

“We can bring the beer, so we’re looking for people who can bring in creativity and community. That’s the ultimate thing we can cultivate.”

Pre-Woodhouse, he’d been debating between going back to work 90hour weeks for Apple or starting his own business. “There’s three things I wanted to make besides art and music,” he says, “beer, coffee or wine. It was kind of a no-brainer because Mike’s always been a real close friend.”

The Woodhouse leadership squad started brewing here in 2018, after building the facility from scratch, hands-on, with help from Michael Doherty, the contractor who happens to work next door.

The operating philosophy: strictly small batch, traditional and nontraditional styles, with an emphasis on blending brews for aging in barrels, to “inspire enthusiasts, as well as aficionados, worldwide,” per the brewery’s stated mission. Soon Woodhouse’s Krisp Kristofferson international lager and Something for Something IPA were finding traction in discerning local venues like Beer Thirty and finicky places further afield like Santa Barbara’s Llama Dog and Ventura’s Fluid State.

The execution of the beers reflects Rodriguez’s no-nonsense, no-hype, no-attention-needed-or-wanted style. When I asked him what makes his flavor profiles interesting, he deferred. “Interesting is subjective,” he says. “I just try to make clean and consistent beer. That’s my job.”

The various partners divided and conquered emerging tasks, with Johansen tackling city regulations, Kieffer spearheading IT and everybody wearing a number of hats. Early in 2020 the team began converting the wood mill that abutted the brewery into a 3,000-square-foot kitchen and tasting room that peeks into the brewing space from above.

Today the landing enjoys a sweeping tasting bar, several high top tables, curated art pieces and clever scrabble-letter beer menus. That main space flows out onto a deck that overlooks a parking lot pavilion with picnic tables and more high tops beneath modern shade sails, flanked by a rack of beer barrels.

Sharing that platform is one of the priorities for Woodhouse’s leadership. Creative Director Newett cites music-centric events, art openings, salsa lessons, yoga-with-a-beer sessions, a florist pop-up and, recently, a car show.

“We can bring the beer, so we’re looking for people who can bring in creativity and community. That’s the ultimate thing we can cultivate,” Newett says. “We’re not trying to be a big established brewery. We’re looking to be a community support system for emerging local entrepre-

Opposite page, the Woodhouse crew (l-to-r) Deana Newett, Tyler Johansen, Josh Tabije, William Moxham, Mike Rodriguez, Ken Kieffer and Tug Newett.

neurs and artists—cooks, painters, musicians, whatever.”

That’s already happening with the food, which is where an operation like Sampa Kitchen comes in. It’s a three-sibling team dishing Brazilian fare as chefs-in-residence. Complementing the main menu items like bolinhos de queijo (deep-fried potato dough stuffed with oregano and mozzarella) and tortas de frango (a traditional South American take on chicken pot pie) are rotating specials. On my visit that meant wild salmon in cilantro lime sauce, porção de calabresa and chicken-baconpesto sandwiches.

“I like how the place is set up as an indoor-outdoor type of thing,” says Sampa point person Natasha Malia. “In Brazil we grew up outdoors and we drink a lot of beer, so it’s a perfect combo with Brazilian food. We love it.”

As part of the arrangement, Sampa is prepared to decamp for regular guest chefs, whether they’re veteran home chefs (like Moxham’s mom doing Filipino specialities) or industry pros (like cult Surf City hit Full Steam Dumpling). Food trucks like Pana Venezuelan also make appearances.

“Culture and travel inspire us to do different things and ethnically we’re a diverse group of collaborators,” Moxham says. “We want to mix it up.”

Woodhouse’s early popularity in local bars and brisk can sales amid COVID told them their beer had found a following. With the tasting space’s mix of art, design and openness, they felt they had a formula for a special spot. But they didn’t anticipate being so busy they’d be running out of beer.

“We were confident that we’d get a good reception,” Moxham says, “but we didn’t think we’d get a near 100 percent return rate.”

Perhaps that’s because there’s more at work here than food, drink and setting. When I first visited and tasted through a flight, Newett and I didn’t talk about the brewing operation or its Kansas City roots or what I was sampling. We talked about how creatives might struggle with their own artistic value, or drug abuse, or personal worth or depression—and how outlets for expression can figure in.

In other words, the talk of art and community isn’t a sales pitch. It’s an ongoing driver, and one that gives the place depth it might not otherwise enjoy. At the moment the most captivating pieces include an oxidized penny arrangement by Newett’s wife Deana and a series of portraits by Newett himself—of Amy Winehouse, John Coltrane, Anthony Bourdain, Frida Kahlo, Jean-Michel Basquiat and Prince.

It helps conjure the type of space that’s hard to create but now easier to find, no Google geography searches needed.

Mark C. Anderson is a roving writer, explorer and photographer loosely based in Monterey County. Follow and/or reach him on Twitter and Instagram @ MontereyMCA.

Woodhouse Blending & Brewing woodhousebrews.com 119 Madrone St., Santa Cruz

EDIBLE NOTABLES PERMANENT PARKLETS

Outdoor dining becomes the centerpiece of a plan to revitalize downtown Hollister

BY KATHRYN MCKENZIE PHOTOGRAPHY BY COLINE LECONTE AND KATHRYN MCKENZIE

While many cities around the Monterey Bay are debating whether or not to remove restaurant parklets, Hollister has boldly stepped forward to make its outdoor dining structures a permanent fixture in its downtown. Parklets, built to accommodate outdoor dining during the pandemic, have become a common sight outside restaurants. Now that the COVID threat appears to be waning and indoor dining has come back, there’s a fierce debate going on in cities such as Carmel, Pacific Grove, Santa Cruz and Capitola over whether the structures should remain.

But downtown Hollister has embraced its 15-plus parklets, and in fact the city has made them an integral part of its downtown revitalization plan, according to Peter Hernandez, a San Benito County supervisor and downtown business owner.

“We’re really seeing a shift in the downtown area—10 to 15 years ago, it was really dead,” says Hernandez, owner of Ohana Shave Ice. Hampered by fast-moving two-way traffic, the area was merely a place to speed through on the way to somewhere else, he says.

Each of the parklets along San Benito Street has its own decorations. (photo Kathryn McKenzie)

Peter and Karina Hernandez and their kids enjoy some of the treats available at their shop Ohana Shave Ice. (photos Coline LeConte)

“Downtown is a lot more vibrant and busy than it used to be,” agrees Hollister Downtown Association Executive Director Corey Shaffer. “The parklets have definitely added to the ambiance.”

The Hollister parklets, all built according to city specifications and similarly constructed, nevertheless have their own personalities. Each business has added special touches like string lights, outdoor heat lamps, shade cloth or colorful patio umbrellas, cute signs and outdoor décor. Plant containers around the parklets were filled with beautiful succulents and other greenery by Growing Hearts, a Hollister nonprofit that helps adults with special needs develop gardening and landscaping skills.

Downtown revitalization had been discussed for some time, but COVID brought urgent focus to the issue. In order to help Hollister businesses survive and recover from the economic hardships imposed by the pandemic, the city decided to make room for outdoor dining spaces and reduce traffic by converting a four-block section of downtown to a one-way, one-lane street. Another unique feature that has been added, Hernandez points out, is angled parking spaces that must be backed into —a nod to Hollister car culture and one that makes it easier to display cool coupes, hot rods and motorcycles.

The parklets were inspired by similar outdoor dining spaces built along Third Street in San Juan Bautista, which has also made part of its main drag a one-way street. This creates space to accommodate the parklets and slow traffic, making it safer for pedestrians.

Hernandez says that seeing what establishments in San Juan Bautista had done with their parklets sparked conversation with the city of Hollister and the Hollister Downtown Association to do something similar.

Ad hoc outdoor dining spaces began popping up in Hollister in May 2020, when pandemic restrictions halted indoor meal service, and part of the downtown area was blocked off for this purpose. For the parklet program, says Daisy Caceres, senior support services assistant with the city of Hollister, the idea was to create a cohesive look for the downtown area that was also attractive. A series of meetings took place to iron out the details.

“It’s kind of a pilot program, and all new to us,” says Caceres.

What really made it feasible for downtown business owners, though, was a unique funding collaboration that involved both San Benito County and the city of Hollister. Both city and county pledged a portion of their federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) funding toward the parklet program, $80,000 from the city of Hollister and $150,000 from the county, according to Caceres.

Businesses, after building the parklets according to city-approved designs, were eligible to be paid back up to $15,000 of their investment. The only catch: The city council approved the downtown plan on Oct. 19, 2020, and parklets had to be completed within four weeks to qualify for reimbursement. A flurry of activity ensued with a fast and furious downtown makeover.

It wasn’t just restaurants and bars taking advantage of the parklet project. Two boutiques and a hair salon also put up structures. But eateries, bars and taprooms are the main beneficiaries.

Hernandez says this is part of Hollister’s “roadmap to recovery,” which also envisions the vibrant downtown scene as a draw for tourists who are passing through on their way to The Pinnacles and to Clear Creek Management Area—a popular destination for mountain bikers and off-road enthusiasts.

“The business community loves it,” says Hernandez of the new look for downtown. In addition to being a slower, family-friendly environment, “it’s a catalyst, a message to the community, to spend their dollars here.”

Part of the magic of the parklets, says Shaffer, is just being able to walk downtown and see who’s there and what’s happening.

“People are attracted to people,” she says. In the parklets, “people are gathering and having fun, laughing. That makes you want to be part of it.”

Kathryn McKenzie, who grew up in Santa Cruz and now lives on a Christmas tree farm in north Monterey County, writes about the environment, sustainable living and health for numerous publications and websites. She is the co-author of Humbled: How California’s Monterey Bay Escaped Industrial Ruin.

EDIBLE NOTABLES TEA TOME

When life slowed down during the pandemic, chef Karen Anne Murray sat down to reflect on 20 years of Eddison & Melrose with a new book that brings her teatime traditions home

BY RAÚL NAVA PHOTOGRAPHY BY MARGAUX GIBBONS

America’s Anglophilia reached new heights during the pandemic. The past year saw many of us bingewatching British television, but long before The Great British Baking Show turned us into armchair experts on Britain’s sweet treats, chef Karen Anne Murray brought a taste of England to the Monterey Bay area with her catering company, Eddison & Melrose.

As the beloved business celebrates its 20th anniversary, Murray invites us to join her for a cuppa and celebrate the tradition of tea with her new book, Tea Table: Inspiring Teatime Creations from California’s Central Coast.

“Tea to me is a sense of calm and tranquility,” explains Murray. “You can’t rush tea.” She’s right—tea requires time and patience waiting for the water to boil, for flavors to be extracted from the leaves, for the drink to cool to a drinkable temperature, for conversation to build sip after sip. “The whole sense of slowing down the pace, it’s very soothing.”

When life on the Central Coast ground to an abrupt halt last March, Murray saw an opportunity. “For some years, I’ve said I would write a book,” she recalls. “I realized things were going to be quieter and now would be that time.” Her teatime tome was born from a desire to offer a sip of serenity in the chaos of the pandemic.

As a chef, Murray cooks by memory, so she set about putting pen to paper and began writing a couple recipes down every Sunday morning. One morning last July, she spotted a wicker table cast off, by the side of the road. As the day wore on, she couldn’t shake that splendid table. Murray routed her return home past the abandoned table. Fortuitously, there it still stood, so she pulled over and loaded it into her car.

As Murray continued documenting her recipes on Sunday mornings, she snapped a couple of photos of each creation on this weathered wicker in her backyard. Murray grew so fond of the table, she took it to the beach to stage shots against Pacific Grove’s seaside scenery.

That’s when inspiration hit.

“It’s more than just a cookbook now. It’s based around this table,” explains Murray. She wasn’t just capturing recipes, she was capturing connection—sitting at a table and savoring a special moment, a special place, a special person—and welcoming readers into the culinary arts.

Murray credits her own entry into a culinary career to a successful home economics exam at age 13. “I wanted to do something I was good at, that I could have fun with,” she recalls. “Plus, I loved the idea of travel and figured out I could go anywhere in the world and always find work. People always have to have food!”

Born and raised in England’s West Midlands, she enrolled in professional chef training at nearby Birmingham College of Food and Domestic Arts (now University College Birmingham). “It wasn’t like England now where it’s known for famous chefs like Gordon Ramsay and Jamie Oliver,” she recalls. “No one was interested in the food back then—it was quite bland!” The intense two-year training course provided the fundamentals of cooking.

In 1986, Murray came to visit her sister who was living at Fort Ord and enrolled as a foreign student first in an advanced baking program at Cabrillo College, then for restaurant management at Monterey Peninsula College. Equipped with chef, baking and management training, Murray set off on her childhood dream of traveling the world and cooking.

For 12 years, Murray worked in kitchens throughout North America and Europe. She thrived on the high energy of restaurant kitchens, eagerly absorbing global gastronomy and learning how to think on her feet. While living in Vancouver, she established a personal chef business. In 1998, she returned to the Monterey Peninsula after meeting her husband Tom and soon after shifted her focus to catering.

Flipping through the phone book inspired her to establish Eddison & Melrose in 2001.

“I looked at all the caterers here at the peninsula at that time. There were hundreds, so how was I going to stand out?” she recalls. “I love tea,

Murray uses a box grater to get the perfectly sized bits of butter for flaky scones.

but I didn’t see anyone specialized in tea, so I decided I was going to be the tea person.”

She chose the name as a tribute to her parents—Eddison was the middle name of her late father and Melrose is the middle name of her mother. “‘Eddison & Melrose’ sounded right, sounded elegant to pair with tea.”

Murray started Eddison & Melrose by subletting spaces in Pacific Grove and Monterey before securing her own catering kitchen in Sand City. In 2009, she opened a storefront in Monterey’s Monte Vista Village Shopping Center.

Scones soon became one of her signatures. “I’d been making them on a regular basis and perfecting those. A lot of customers asked me for the recipe and told me, ‘These are the best I’ve ever had!’ I was even shipping orders to other states,” she recalls. “It made me realize this was something to tap into.”

By 2009, Murray had also spun off one of Eddison & Melrose’s most popular offerings into its own brand—Karen Anne’s Granola.

“It’s very much a baby of mine. I took a lot of time to develop different flavors,” she says. She now offers five granola blends made with slowroasted organic oats and other carefully curated ingredients. Her granola is available at Deluxe Foods of Aptos, Bruno’s Deli, Grove Market, Nielsen Bros. Market, Shopper’s Corner, Star Market and Whole Foods.

Murray beams with pride when explaining how families buy Karen Anne’s Granola in bulk and enjoy a bowl together every morning. She fondly recounts how some now ship granola to children who have gone off to college and how honored she is to be part of their tradition.

In 2018, Murray decided to refocus Eddison & Melrose, embracing granola and scones as flagship offerings when she moved to a new cottage in Pacific Grove’s Forest Hill neighborhood—ironically, the very location where she’d originally started the business in 2001. At Eddison & Melrose Oats n Scones, she has hosted private teas and prepared a menu of sandwiches, scones (naturally) and more for catering events.

Murray is excited for readers to take a taste of Eddison & Melrose home with Tea Table.

“I envision many families spending time together with those recipes,” she says, recalling recipe development with her son Andrew. “He’s 14 and he likes to cook. It’s a book he can pick up and follow the recipes in there. I wanted to create that ease for all readers.”

So put on the kettle, pour out a cup and let new traditions steep at your table.

Eddison & Melrose eddisonandmelrose.com 1180 Forest Ave., Ste. G, Pacifi c Grove

Tea Table: Inspiring Teatime Creations from California’s Central Coast, published by Pacifi c Grove Books, is available at Bookshop Santa Cruz and at BookWorks in Pacifi c Grove. Print and digital editions are also available through Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Raúl Nava (he/him/él) is a freelance writer covering dining and restaurants across the Central Coast. He authored the foreword for Tea Table. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram @offthemenu831.

License #656636

ECOLOGICAL LANDSCAPING

Bring the outdoors in with edible landscaping!

We’ll help you grow during all four seasons.

terranovalandscaping.com | 831.425.3514

Courtesy Karen Anne Murray, chef-proprietor, Eddison & Melrose Oats n Scones in Pacific Grove

Strawberry Lemonade

Courtesy Karen Anne Murray, chef-proprietor, Eddison & Melrose Oats n Scones in Pacific Grove

Often scones are too sweet and/or too dry. Murray thinks of these as having a touch of ocean spray—she reduces the sugar, adds a hint of salt and uses moisture to create a lighter texture.

2 cups all-purpose flour 1½ tablespoons baking powder Pinch of salt ¼ cup sugar 3 ounces cold butter (about ¾ stick) 1 egg ½ cup milk 1 teaspoon vanilla flavoring

Optional: ½ cup blueberries, raspberries or blackberries ½ cup all-purpose flour (for dusting) 1 teaspoon sugar (for sprinkling on top)

You will need a box grater with medium holes, rolling pin, spatula, 2½ inch in diameter cookie cutters and a large cookie sheet lightly greased with butter. Preheat the oven to 425° F.

Combine the first four ingredients in a large bowl. Grate the cold butter into the bowl with the other ingredients. Rub together with your fingers until the mixture is crumbled.

In a small bowl whisk the egg, milk and vanilla together.

Pour the liquid into the dry crumb mixture.

Using a spatula gently mix the ingredients together until a soft dough is formed. If making a fruit scone, add your fruit now and mix in gently.

Dust your clean board or countertop with flour and roll the dough to a ¾-inch thickness.

Using the cookie cutter, cut 8 scones and place 2 inches apart on the cookie sheet. Using the teaspoon of sugar, sprinkle the top of each scone.

Bake for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes turn the tray around and bake for a further 5–7 minutes until nicely browned.

Allow to cool for 10–15 minutes. Enjoy with butter, jam, curd, cream or solo. Makes 8 scones. This strawberry lemonade is a playful combination of two of Murray’s favorite summertime flavors and perfect for all ages. A splash of rum turns it into a really good daiquiri or Jamaican rum punch and adding tequila makes a strawberry margarita.

1 cup strawberries (fresh or frozen) washed, stems removed ½ cup sugar 1 cup cold water 2 tablespoons lemon juice, freshly squeezed 4 cups ice 1 cup cold water

You will need a saucepan, spoon, blender, strainer, pitcher and four glasses.

Place the first 3 ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Allow to simmer for 15 minutes.

Remove from the stove and stir in the lemon juice. Cool for 15 minutes.

Pour the liquid into the blender, add 1 cup of cold water and blend until smooth. Place the strainer over the pitcher and pour the liquid through. Add the second cup of cold water to the pitcher and stir.

Add 1 cup of ice to each glass. Pour the lemonade into each glass. Serves 4.