WEEKEND 18-10-14 // APN ARM

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: P E O P L E : E A S Y E A T I N G : B O O K S : D I Y : G A R D E N : T R AV E L : E N T E R TA I N M E N T : F A S H I O N : H O M E MAKE: How to make a flower press and preserve your spring blooms.

Weekend

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FROM THE GROUND UP Matt Mo ra n reve al s h is s ec ret to b e tter -ta s ti ng fo o d and why i t s tar ts i n yo ur g ard en

+ R E A D //

How th e d i s app e a ra n ce of Xavie r Ru dd’ s g reat- gra ndmo t he r insp ir ed hi s u pco m in g a l bu m

+ T RAV E L //

T hree re asons why yo u should b ook a cruise for yo ur next holid ay ab road

+ EA SY EATING // Seven way s to pres erve yo ur s u mmer frui t an d ve geta ble yi el d

Saturday, October 18, 2014

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Weekend

we lco me // insi de to day

Home-grown freshness you just can’t beat WE E K E N D E DI TO R K ir i te n D ol l e

I

T’S very satisfying growing your own food, and it’s not just because you get to eat it straight off the tree or from the earth. There’s something therapeutic about tending a garden from seed cultivation through to nurturing the fruits of your labour.

We recently picked the last mandarin off our gorgeous, big tree that not only produced some 400–500 fruit this year, but fed the entire neighbourhood morning tea for a couple of months.

Now, I wasn’t traditionally a mandy fan, but within moments of plucking one straight off the tree and being sprayed by its citrus mist, I was converted.

You can’t beat the freshness. So much so, when friends visited they’d take a couple home only to return with a milk crate upon their next visit.

With our last pickings we experimented by making a mandarin wine and made the rest into marmalade.

This week I sat down with Matt Moran, who is fuelling a revolution in kitchens across Australia, stressing the importance of seasonality and embracing locally-grown produce.

Of course, we can’t grow everything ourselves but sourcing ingredients responsibly from local growers or farmers’ markets should be non-negotiable.

When we know the history of our food and where it comes from, Moran believes it tastes better.

That is why fresh produce and seasonality are the common dominators at all eight of his restaurants.

With stone fruits and a basket of other produce coming into season this summer, anyone with a vegie patch, herb garden or backyard orchard will know that when you’ve got an abundance of produce it can be overwhelming. So included inside are seven quick and easy recipes to preserve them to enjoy year-long. Have a great weekend. : P.S. We’ve listened to your feedback and increased the font point size throughout Weekend for easy reading.

TRAVEL: MELBOURNE

EASY EATING: THE WEEKEND COOK

+ inside today

READ // Decorated chef and all-round

nice guy Matt Moran talks life, market gardens and why growing your own food always tastes better EASY EATING: SCRUMPTIOUS SEVEN

READ // Xavier Rudd sits down with

Weekend to discuss his latest upcoming album and his spiritual connection behind it

EASY EATING // The Weekend Cook shares a delicious spring lamb recipe; plus seven ways to preserve your produce TRAVEL // Why cruising should be at

How to navigate your Weekend:

: We’ve colour-coded your magazine for easy reference.

Each section listed on the index page is coloured accordingly throughout. If you’d like to skip to Easy Eating, look for a yellow : symbol, or a magenta : symbol to skip to Home and Make.

the top of your travel list; plus what saw the rise of Melbourne’s classy cuisine scene?

HOME // Back to nature: earthy, organic homewares to style your interiors

YOU: TAKE 5

MAKE // How to preserve flowers with this easy-to-make flower press

CLOSET // How to sync your wardrobe with nature’s neutral tones

STUFF // Cool gadgets to use

around your home and all at the control of your smartphone

YOU // How to build your confidence; plus five things to do for you

SCREEN LIFE // Actress Melissa McCarthy talks about the inception of the hilarious new comedy, Tammy

RELAX // The verdict is out on the latest page-turners, CDs and DVDs

: ON THE COVER: Matt Moran. PHOTOGRAPHY: Robert Palmer. : CREATIVE: Megan Sheehan. : CONTRIBUTORS: Seanna Cronin, Alexia Purcell, Megan Kinninment, Kiri ten Dolle, Tracey Hordern, Maggie Cooper, Steph Mulheron, Matt Sawtell, Simon Irwin, Judy Horton, Maree Curran, Peter Chapman, Ann Rickard, Bethany Fairfull, Greig Morgan, Meredith Papavasiliou, Greg Bray, Karin von Behrens, Viki Thondley, John Grey, David Nielsen, Roy O’Reilly, Rowena Hardy and Nick Bennett. : CONTACT US: weekend@apn.com.au. : ADVERTISING: Contact your local sales consultant.

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Weekend

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IN S ID ER

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FOR delicious springtime recipes, check out our Easy Eating pages inside

wi th Sea nna Cro n i n

PHOTO OF THE W EEK

Sunday’s fizzer a reality I SHOULD have listened to my heart and placed a bet on Shannon and Simon to win The Block Glasshouse when I had the chance.

A few weeks ago I wrote about why I thought the brothers deserved to win but how they probably wouldn’t because of the size and southerly aspect of their apartment.

I’m happy to be wrong, although the renovation show’s final auctions were anything but a pleasant affair for most of the teams. After a promising start that saw Chris and Jenna and the brothers pocket more than $300,000 each, the hype seemed to suddenly and inexplicably leave the High Street building and there was no way for the other three teams to jump off the sinking ship.

Newlyweds Max and Karstan earned $40,000, while Dee and Darren and Michael and Carlene earned just $10,000 each.

While I’d be jumping for joy if I made $40,000, or even $10,000, it’s easy to see why the couples were so devastated. They renovated five apartments at a breakneck pace in just three months, and then fronted up for two months of solid publicity.

Expectations were high after the four Fans vs Faves teams took home $2.4 million between them just six months ago. In this sense, The Block is more “real” than most reality TV shows. While personalities and events can be edited throughout the renovation process, there’s no way of predicting the results of the auctions and, once the bidding starts, there’s no alternate endings or second takes. Sunday’s fizzer is a timely reminder that getting on a reality show is no guarantee of success.

While there are questions surrounding the Glasshouse reserve prices, and rightly so, real estate is just as fickle as television and – when you combine the two – you have to be ready for any outcome.

REAL ESTATE AS FICKLE AS TV FIVE APARTMENTS RENOVATED HYPE LEAVES THE HIGH STREET

: This week we asked you to share a dinner you made and were proud of.

Edelyn Jenkins shared this mouth-watering spread.

To see your photo published here, join our conversation on Facebook each Wednesday.

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WHY NOT TRY wi th Me g a n K i nni n m e n t

Looking forward to the past

I

F I was to create a time capsule representing life in 2014, with two young children it would include an iPad programmed to Minecraft, a recording of Pharrell Williams’s Happy on repeat and as many multi-coloured plastic loom-band bracelets as it could hold.

The process would be trickier if you were curating a capsule that represented all life on Earth to be opened (if ever it was found) by extra-terrestrials.

This was exactly what NASA scientists did in 1977 with the launch of the Voyager 1 and 2 spacecraft. They wanted to send a “greeting from Earth”, with the late astronomer Carl Sagan tasked with creating the “Golden Record” – a phonograph record containing 115 images of life as it was in 1977, recordings of natural sounds, music from different cultures and greetings spoken in 55 languages. It initially

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It w i l l b e a b o u t 4 0 , 0 0 0 ye a r s b e f o r e t h e Voya g e r s g e t c l o s e t o a ny o t h e r p l a n e t a r y sy ste m .

: The Block Glasshouse winners Simon and Shannon Vos. PHOTO: MARTIN PHILBEY

included a photograph of a nude couple (it was the ’70s after all), however that was deemed too risque.

It will be about 40,000 years before the Voyagers get close to any other planetary system, and who knows what may be left of Earth by then, but, as Sagan said: “The launching of this bottle into the cosmic ocean says something very hopeful about life on this planet.”

Did you know there is a society established to promote the

+

+

Look after your plants

w ith Al ex ia P u rce l l

A P P OF THE WE E K

YOU’VE bought a plant or raised one from seeds and, a month in, they’re limp and lacking in nutrients. You’ve either drowned them in water or accidentally starved them. Now what?

Sprout It is a clever app that keeps up with your garden and lets you know what’s going on with your plants. It develops a Grow Plan for your crops with customised guidance you need at the right time.

Download Sprout It from the App Store or Google Play for free.

PHOTO: EDELYN JENKINS

: A time capsule representing 2014 might feature a recording of Pharrell Williams’s song Happy on repeat.

PHOTO: CONTRIBUTED

study of time capsules? Yes, this is an actual thing, called the International Time Capsule Society.

It estimates there could be as many as 15,000 time capsules out there and is dedicated to maintaining a registry of them. It offers these handy tips for DIY time capsules: select a container, a secure location and a retrieval date; choose an “archivist” or director; and, most importantly, don’t forget where your time capsule is buried.

Megan Kinninment blogs on the offbeat at www.seekerofthelostarts.com.

Carrie Bickmore drops baby bombshell : CHANNEL 10’s The Project presenter Carrie Bickmore hit the top of Facebook’s trend list over the past week when she dropped a baby bombshell in the middle of the show. While discussing a royal pregnancy, Bickmore said: “Speaking of babies, I have some news for you tonight ... I am having a baby.” The news took her co-hosts by surprise and sparked an outpouring of well wishes on social media. Bickmore already has one child, seven-year-old Oliver with her first husband Greg Lange, who died in 2010 from a brain tumour.

Charlie v Swayze – Dirty Dancing dance-off : He’s only eight years old but Charlie has the moves and gives Patrick Swayze a run for his money in a video of him dancing the (I’ve Had) the Time of My Life routine from Dirty Dancing. The footage of the quick-footed youngster delivering the dance routine step-by-step went viral on social media this week after his mum posted the video on Facebook. To check the video out, search Charlie vs Swayze on YouTube.

AT TH E WATER COOLER

What we’re talking about this week : Carrie Bickmore.

PHOTO: NETWORK TEN

Alexia Purcell is APN ARM’s social media co-ordinator: @alexia_purcell.

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Weekend GRAND OFFERING: Xavier Rudd will release his next studio album, tentatively titled Grandmother, next March.

re ad

+ Spiritual guidance F a m i ly i s at t h e h e a r t o f s i n g e r - s o n g w r i te r X av i e r Ru d d ’ s f o r t h c o m i n g a l b u m

By Ka r i n vo n B e h re n s

T

O WRITE about Xavier Rudd with anything nearing the beauty and humility infused in his music would require both a connection to something unearthly while simultaneously being deeply grounded, like the man himself.

It is his own connection to spirit, specifically the spirit of an old woman he thinks may be his great grandmother, that flows through his music and into the lives of all that listen.

“I feel like since I was a little boy I’ve always had an old woman’s spirit with me and that’s where a lot of my music comes from,” he said.

Rudd said he felt strongly about the woman’s influence in his work, which provided a certain objectivity.

“It’s probably a huge part of why I respect my music. I don’t tell it what to do, I just respect it. I don’t try and involve my own ego. You wouldn’t tell your grandmother what to wear to church, you just take her to church. That’s kind of how I treat my music,” he said.

His latest album, being mixed in Jamaica by Errol Brown (who also mixed a lot of Bob Marley’s music), is not only a cross-cultural collaboration with eight-piece band the United Nations, all from diverse backgrounds, but a homage to grandmothers all over.

“I think I’m going to call this record Grandmother,” said Rudd, who has long been trying to solve the mystery of his great grandmother’s disappearance.

“I have indigenous roots on my father’s side which was a

shame job, my great grandmother disappeared when she had my grandmother. We don’t know a lot about her, it’s a mystery I’ve been chasing over time.”

The sudden disappearance was pre-stolen generation, a time when few records about the treatment of Aboriginal people were kept. Rudd went so far as to have a historian look into her death record. “I think that mystery is unfolding…,” Rudd’s voice trails away as though this knowledge has just arrived to him on a cloud as he speaks.

“So I’ve been very drawn to my indigenous side and full of frustration as to why that was never talked about and why.”

His mother came from a very different background – an Irish potato-growing family – and Rudd was baptised a Catholic before attending a Catholic high school.

In addition to his biological family, Rudd also has an indigenous family which he was adopted into in Arnhem Land about 10 years ago, “quite randomly”, he says.

“My wala (brother in Yolngu Mata), I can’t say his name because he passed, he came to me out of the blue and said it was part of his dreaming that I came up there.

“He’s with me at every gig.”

Given the Aboriginal name Mana, which means shark, Rudd has had people describe him as a messenger for country and the mob. This connection is not limited to Arnhem Land.

He also has a strong connection to the Kimberly, an area which inspired his seventh studio album, Spirit Bird, and he is on a mission to spread the word and protect the Kimberly.

“I’m going to run 220km along Aboriginal song lines as

part of a film, that’s happening next year,” he explains. “It’s going to be called return to spirit.”

The goal of the film is to create the level of awareness required to bring about the world heritage-listing of the whole of the Kimberly, one of Australia’s last remaining “untouched” wilderness areas. Also on the cards for next year is Bluesfest.

“We’ve had a pretty busy few months and we’re in the process of making a cracker of an album, which is fun and exciting, but a little bit draining.”

The album from Xavier Rudd and the United Nations (Grandmother) “drops” three weeks before Bluesfest so it will be a ripper of a gig.

Touted as a roots, reggae-based album, it is a complete departure from what they have been doing. “It’s coming to a really exciting time, it’s a great band, it’s a kicking band,” Rudd beams.

United Nations includes Bobby Alu on drums delivering island-style Samoan sounds; Tio Molantoa, a Southern Sutu man from South Africa, on bass; Uncle Eddie, an elder from PNG, playing the Hammond Organ and Rhodes; Georgia Carowa, an indigenous Australian with Bundgalung roots; and Aleisha Meilor, who is part indigenous Australian, part Papua New Guinean. The lead singer from Kooi, Peter Hunt, with his mellifluous voice, and Chris Lane from Oka on trumpet and flute, from the Sunshine Coast and Brisbane respectively, will also feature.

With such an awesome crew the gig is going to be impressive and Rudd’s great grandmother’s spirit will no doubt have her hands full conducting.

: Xavier Rudd and the band United Nations will appear at the 26th Annual Bluesfest in Byron Bay from April 2-6, 2015.

PHOTO: CONTRIBUTED

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Weekend

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+ Moran, a man for all seasons

By K i r i te n D o l l e

M

ATT Moran is synonymous with paddock-to-plate cuisine. The man so passionate about produce has a family background in farming that goes back five generations. Before he was crafting edible works of art from the by-products of Darwin pearls or combining Fleurieu Peninsula alpaca with snake beans in a curry, he was well accustomed to the hardship faced by producers.

When Matt was age six his father, after selling a property at White Springs that had been in the family for more than a century to buy a nearby property, went broke and lost everything. His family packed up and moved to western Sydney, near Blacktown. But it was life on the sheep and dairy farms where he was raised that instilled a fire in his belly for the integrity of ingredients.

“I always say if you know something about the food you are cooking with and you are using, it always tastes that little bit better,” Moran told APN. Now, he’s fuelling revolutionary change in kitchens across Australia by teaching about the importance of eating with the seasons. It’s the driving force, together with local produce, behind the menu for his eight restaurants and catering businesses, which are co-owned by MorSul partner Peter Sullivan, in Brisbane and Sydney, including ARIA, which has been awarded two coveted chef hats. It’s also the dominant flavour of his latest book, Matt’s Kitchen Garden Cookbook, inspired by his garden restaurant Chiswick in Woollahra.

“The book is all about market gardens, which all comes down to seasonality,” he explains. “This time of year, spring lamb is the best, mangoes and peaches are all coming into season, asparagus is everywhere. I follow the seasons, rather than my favourite foods.

“When asparagus is in season we should be using it and really grateful that we’ve got it. When it’s not in season, we shouldn’t be buying it from other countries. What we should be doing is looking forward to when we have it again. We’re changing and I’m going to help change it.”

This is also the reason he’s made the 20,000km journey through South Australia and Western Australia to meet the producers for the second season of Paddock to Plate on Foxtel’s Lifestyle channel.

“My father and I have a property in the Central Tablelands and we farm lamb and beef cattle, so it’s pretty important to me for producers to get some credit for what they do, how hard they work and how much they love what they do,” he

says. “I encourage people to go to farmers’ markets and grow as much as they can to feed their families, rather than buying it from a supermarket chain. I think if you know your food’s history, it tastes better.”

His grandfather was also an oyster farmer from Tasmania.

“That’s where I learned how to eat oysters and open them,” he laughs.

Not quite as popular for their meat here in Australia are pearls, which are one of the highlights of the Paddock to Plate season finale airing on Wednesday, when Moran explores the red dirt and big skies of the Kimberley.

“It’s epic. We go up to Cone Bay, we go mustering cattle and go out to Paspaleys on their boat and get some pearls – it is a cracking episode. A lot of our pearl meat goes overseas as it

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I e n c o u ra g e p e o p l e t o g r ow a s much as they can ... I think if yo u k n ow yo u r f o o d ’ s h i st o r y, i t t a ste s b e t te r is considered a delicacy over there but obviously the beautiful pearl comes with it and it’s amazing watching how they do it, and what an incredible family with a vision.”

Paspaley harvests about 80% of Australia’s pearl meat from its farms between Broome and Darwin. About seven tonnes goes overseas every year, mainly to Japanese and Chinese markets, which pay about $100 per kilogram. It tastes like a cross between a scallop and abalone, he says.

“I use a little bit of pearl meat and do some ceviche and I go up to Cone Bay and cook some barramundi – the best barramundi in the world – and I go mud crabbing.”

Through Paddock to Plate, Moran has forged close friendships with his suppliers and a greater understanding of the issues producers face.

“A lot of them have diversified over the years because they’ve had to survive. A dairy farmer is not just a dairy

GET THE BOOK: Matt’s Kitchen Garden Cookbook is published by Lantern, RRP $49.99.

: Matt Moran in the garden to promote his latest book, Matt’s Kitchen Garden Cookbook.

PHOTO: ROBERT PALMER

farmer now, he produces veal or he makes cheese or he’s the guy who fixes the fences next door. It’s getting harder and harder for farmers and I really sympathise for them.”

Moran, born in Tamworth, dropped out of school at 15. By 18, he owned his first business baking cakes and tarts for delicatessens, while working at La Belle Helene in Sydney’s Roseville, where he completed his chef’s apprenticeship.

Moran employs more than 500 people at restaurants including the Opera Bar in Sydney and Riverbar and Kitchen in Brisbane.

“Every restaurant is different but it is all about produce.

You are always going to do a better job by having good produce,” he says.

His latest ventures include a second Chiswick at the Art Gallery of New South Wales, which is set to open next week, and plans for a landmark three-storey restaurant at the Barangaroo precinct in Sydney, due to open in March 2016.

Moran said it would be like nothing he’s ever done.

“You look at Singapore now and people are building rooftop gardens on all the big buildings,” he says. “I’ll grow some herbs – I can’t give away too much yet.”

When asked how he would sum up his career so far, Moran’s answer was simply: “Not finished.”

+

R EC I P E by M att Mo ra n

Caramelised onion, speck and cavolo nero tart INGREDIENTS: : 50g speck, thinly sliced : 8 small pickling onions : ice cubes : 1 tbsp olive oil : 20g butter : 2 tbsp sherry vinegar : 70g cavolo nero (Tuscan kale), trimmed and torn : 200ml milk : 200g sour cream : 6 eggs, beaten lightly : pinch of cayenne pepper : pinch of salt, or to taste. Shortcrust pastry: : 11⁄3 cups (200g) plain flour, plus extra for dusting : pinch of salt : 100g unsalted butter, chilled and diced : 1 egg.

METHOD: To make the shortcrust pastry, place the flour and salt in a bowl and use your fingertips to rub in the butter until the mixture resembles fine crumbs. Make a well in the centre and add the egg and two tablespoons chilled water. Mix in gently until a light dough forms. Shape the dough into a disc, wrap in plastic film and put into the fridge for 30 minutes to rest. Preheat the oven to 170°C. Roll out the dough on a clean, lightly floured benchtop until it is 3mm thick and large

enough to cover the base and sides of a round 18cm tart tin with a removable base. Carefully ease the pastry into the tin and gently press it into the sides, ensuring there are no air pockets. Trim any excess. Use a fork to gently prick the base to prevent the pastry rising. Line the pastry base with baking paper and fill with baking beads or dried rice. Blind bake for 15-20 minutes, then carefully remove the paper and rice or beans, and bake for a further five minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool. Leave the oven on. Cook the speck in a small non-stick frying pan over medium heat until light golden. Transfer to paper towel to drain. Cook the onions in a large saucepan of salted boiling water for 5-6 minutes, until tender. Drain and refresh in iced water. Remove the skins, then halve the onions lengthways. Heat the olive oil in a heavy-based saucepan over low to medium heat, add the onions, cut-side down, and cook for 3-4 minutes or until caramelised. Add the butter and vinegar, stirring to deglaze

PHOTO: ROBERT PALMER

the pan. Transfer the onions to a bowl and set aside. Blanch the cavolo nero in a saucepan of boiling salted water for one minute, then drain and refresh under cold running water.

Place the milk in the same saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Remove from the heat. Stir in the sour cream and egg and season with the cayenne pepper and salt.

Pour a little of the egg mixture into the tart shell, then scatter over one-third of the cavolo nero. Repeat in two more batches of egg mixture and cavolo nero. Arrange the speck and onions, caramelised-side up, on top. Bake the tart for 20-30 minutes, until golden brown and cooked through.

Serves six to eight.

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Weekend

ea sy ea ting

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USUALLY DAN IS MANNING THE BARBECUE AND I DO

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ALL THE WORK.

THE WEEKEND COOK w i th M a g g i e C o o p e r

Markets bring farms closer IT’S not as easy for those living in urban areas to follow the paddock-to-plate philosophy, but it can be done with a little thought and planning.

Rural dwellers have access to farm-gate sales on country roads and often their neighbours are supplying the local butcher or greengrocer with their products.

But now in so many Australian cities, farmers’ markets have sprung up recently; they mean most of us, if we have the time and inclination, have an opportunity to meet the growers and producers of our food, and can buy products in season and grown nearby. We get a better feel for what we should be eating and when. It’s the next best thing to growing our own food.

Wandering around an open-air market is so much more pleasant and relaxing than the artificial lighting and the chill of impersonal supermarkets, and chatting to growers gives us the opportunity to ask questions about what we are serving our families and ourselves.

: Barbecue smoked salmon, fennel and orange salad.

+ Fish in a flash

Roasted rack of lamb with mustard seeds

INGREDIENTS: 2 tbsp finely chopped fresh rosemary leaves : 1 tbsp mild mustard : 1 tbsp seeded mustard : 1 clove garlic, peeled and finely minced : salt and pepper, to taste : 1 tbsp olive oil : 2 racks spring lamb with 3-4 chops per rack METHOD: Preheat oven to 220°C. Combine rosemary, mustards, garlic, salt and pepper in a small bowl and set aside. Heat oil in a heavy frypan and brown lamb lightly on all sides. Spread mustard mixture on fat side and transfer lamb and cooking juices to a roasting dish; cook at 220°C for 15 minutes. Remove from oven and cover with foil; allow to stand for 10 minutes. Serve with roasted potatoes and steamed green vegetables. Serves two.

Email Maggie at maggies.column@bigpond.com or check out her blog herebemonstersblog.com

PHOTO: CONTRIBUTED

Saturday, October 18, 2014

PHOTO: STEPH MULHERON

B a r b e c u i n g s m o ke d s a l m o n m a ke s f o r a q u i c k , f r e s h a n d t a st y m e a l .

EAT

w i th Da n & S te p h Mu l he ro n

W

E HAVE been very fortunate to have teamed up with Bunnings Warehouse across Queensland and northern New South Wales.

We hit the road regularly to visit a Bunnings store to showcase three quick, affordable and fresh dishes that can all be created on a barbecue.

We absolutely love it. We get to travel and meet a lot of lovely people, it’s nice to get out and about cooking on a barbie for punters, and usually on a Saturday if Dan isn’t at the restaurant he would be in the aisles of Bunnings anyway.

We like to keep things simple. We do many samples of each dish for you to taste, and you can also take the recipe home to cook for your family and friends. We show you how easy it is to throw a delicious meal together in minutes.

Usually Dan is manning the barbecue and I do all the work.

It’s so much fun – we love to talk about MKR, behind-the-scenes goss and what we have been up to since the show. This week we have included a quick, fresh and delicious recipe, which is one we have showcased at a few Bunnings stores.

Barbecue smoked salmon, fennel and orange salad INGREDIENTS: : 4 x 150g slices of premium smoked salmon : 1 large fennel, shaved – keep fennel fronds for salad : 1-2 large oranges, segmented : ½ cup of walnuts.

Dressing: : Juice of 1-2 oranges (or squeeze the oranges after you have segmented them for the juice) : 1 tsp whole-grain mustard : 1-2 tbsp olive oil : salt and white pepper. Herbed creme fraiche: : 1 small tub of creme fraiche : big handful of fresh dill : salt and white pepper.

METHOD: Grill the salmon on a hot barbecue plate for two minutes, then turn and repeat. Take off heat, sprinkle with fennel and toss through. Add all the orange segments.

Dressing: Combine all ingredients for the dressing together in a bowl and taste, then season or adjust so you can taste all flavours equally. Herbed creme fraiche: Add two tablespoons of creme fraiche and dill into a small processor.

Blitz until combined then stir this into the remaining creme fraiche. Dress the salad and then plate a nice mound of salad then the salmon on top. Place three small dollops of herbed creme fraiche on top before serving. Serves four.

Dan and Steph Mulheron won My Kitchen Rules in 2013: www.danandsteph.com.au.

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ea sy e ati ng

+ Comfort in kitchen

+

THE FACTS: Stefano’s Pilsner, Alcohol content: 4.7%. Price from $18.99 per 6 pack/$60.99 per carton.

MY SHOUT

B r i n g b a c k o l d - f a s h i o n e d m e t h o d s t o m a ke p r e s e r ve s

wi th Si m o n I r w i n

sea salt : 3 peeled and thinly sliced shallots : 1⁄2 tsp pepper corns, coriander seeds and dill seeds : 1 bay leaf : 2 sprigs fresh dill : 700ml white wine vinegar. METHOD: Top and tail the cucumbers and cut in half and into quarters. place in a large mixing bowl and toss in the salt and leave at room temp for 12 hours. Wash off all the salt and pack cucumbers into sterile jars. Add the sliced shallots and cover with the vinegar. Seal and keep in dark place for 3–4 weeks.

Freezing fresh herbs : Preserved lemons are great gifts.

PHOTO: CONTRIBUTED

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S CRU MPTI O US SEVEN wi th Matt S aw tell

Y

OU’VE grown a bumper crop of your favourite produce. What do you do with the fruits of your labour? You preserve it, of course.

Pickled beetroot

INGREDIENTS: : 4 large beetroots : 1 cup white wine vinegar : 1⁄2 cup apple cider vinegar : 1 cup water : 3⁄4 cup sugar : 1⁄2 tsp pepper corns : 2 bay leaves : 3 whole cloves : 1⁄2 tsp mustard seeds : 1 cinnamon stick : 1⁄4 tsp salt METHOD: Wash beetroot thoroughly and cover with water in a pot, and cook until tender. Cool and remove skin.

Cut beetroot into slices about 1cm thick. Place 1 cup water and all other ingredients in a saucepan and bring to the boil.

Simmer for five minutes and then strain. Pack beetroot into hot sterilised jars and top up with vinegar mixture. Seal and store in a cool place.

Preserved lemon

INGREDIENTS: : 3 small lemons : 1 extra for juicing : 6 tsp rock salt : water that has been boiled and cooled : 1 sealable sterile jar. METHOD: Give the lemons a good scrub with water and vinegar to clean the skin. Cut the lemons in quarters but do not cut all the way through. Place 1 tsp salt in the bottom of the jar and 1 tsp inside the lemon, stuff the lemon into the jar and repeat with the other two, adding a tsp salt between each layer. Add juice of remaining lemon and top up with the water. Seal the jar and leave for 3–4 weeks before using.

Pickled cucumbers

INGREDIENTS: : 400g small pickling cucumbers : 100g

INGREDIENTS: : Use any fresh herb or a mixture of herbs here. I used a mix of : 1 bunch basil : 1 bunch Italian parsley and : 1 bunch thyme. METHOD: Pick the leaves off the stalks and place in a food processor and pulse until finally chopped or you can cut by hand. Place chopped herbs into ice cube trays and top with a little water and freeze.

When cooking you can pop one or two in your dish.

Stefano’s Pilsner, Mildura Brewery

I

INGREDIENTS: : 2kg ripe medium-size tomatoes (make sure they are still firm) : 3 tsp sea salt METHOD: Cut the tomatoes in half and cut a cross across the inside where the seeds are. Lay on a wire rack with a tray under it and place tomatoes seed side up and salt all the tomatoes. Let them sit for 20 mins and turn over. Place in the oven at 60 degrees. Keep the door wedged open about 1cm and leave in the oven for 8–10 hours. They are ready when half their size but are still soft. Store in sterile jars in fridge up to two weeks.

AM always in awe of people who have a memory for tastes and flavours. Every now and then you come across somebody who can pick up a glass of wine and say something to the effect of “the prominent tannins and slight hint of aldehyde on the nose combined with the walnut overtones lead me to think it’s a Barossa shiraz, possibly the pepperjack from Saltram”.

And blow me down, if they aren’t usually on the money or thereabouts.

In fact, I have a neighbour, Hugh, who, while he would freely admit he is not in the Master of Wine class mentioned above, has a good memory for a beer. His talent came to the fore when we were sharing a six-pack of the beer for this week’s review – Stefano’s Pilsner from the Mildura Brewing Company.

Hugh reckoned it tasted like the Abotts Lager he fondly remembered from his youth as it was in all probability the brand of the first sip of beer he took from his father’s glass. Abotts Lager was considered a bit more upmarket than Melbourne bitter and some others in the Carlton stable, without being over the top – in effect a white-collar worker beer.

It disappeared from bottle shop shelves in the mid-90s, albeit to have a brief resurrection in limited release a year or so ago although, in truth, the most notable thing about it was the can, which had a lovely white retro look about it. The beer, however, was by all reports a bit underwhelming.

Stefano’s Pilsner at just under $20 a six-pack is a bit more of an occasion beer rather than an after-work quaffer, but it is pleasant drinking. After drinking predominantly darker beers over the cooler months, this beer makes you feel like summer is well and truly on the way. Enjoy it with food that has a bit of spiciness to get the full effect.

Scrumptious.seven@gmail.com

Email myshout@apn.com.au.

Bottling fruits

INGREDIENTS: : 4 just ripe peaches, or any fruit : 120g sugar : 600ml water. METHOD: Make a sugar syrup by combining the sugar and water in a pot and bring to the boil for about 2–3 mins. Peel, cut in half and deseed the peaches.

Place into jars and top with the syrup. Seal the jars and heat seal using an oven method.

Mango and chilli chutney

INGREDIENTS: : 4 mangoes peeled and chopped : 1 onion finely diced : 1 red chilli finely chopped : 2 1⁄2 cups brown vinegar : 2 tsp salt : 2 tsp fresh ginger grated : 2 cups caster sugar : 1 tsp mixed spice : 1⁄2 tsp cayenne pepper : 2 tsp crushed garlic. METHOD: Combine mango, onion, chilli, vinegar, salt and ginger and mix in a large bowl, cover and sit at room temp for 12 hours. In a large pot add mix and sugar and stir until sugar is melted. Add the remaining ingredients and bring to the boil, reduce to a simmer and keep stirring until thickened about 1 hour. Bottle into sterile jars.

Semi dried tomatoes

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Weekend

fa r mer s ma rke t

+ That market magic LO CA L P RO D U C E

w i th Tra cey Ho rd e r n

T h e W i t c h ’ s B r o o m st i c k

D : Soprano singer Lecia Robertson and Margaret Curtis, on piano and harp, will perform this Sunday at Fins for a special, all-Italian event.

PHOTO BY KIRRA PENDERGAST.

+

W H AT ’ S O N

Would like a serving of opera with that?

S

TEVEN Snow’s latest incarnation of Fins is located just near the border at Salt, South Kingscliff, and continues to carve out its reputation as one of Australia’s hottest restaurants.

This Sunday all things Italian will be celebrated.

An afternoon of Italian opera, Italian wine and Italian food will be served from 3pm on the veranda.

The performing duo is Lecia Robertson, a soprano singer, and Margaret Curtis, on piano and harp. Both perform nationally and internationally in operas.

Acclaimed as “magical and inspiring”, this is a rare chance to experience live opera just metres from your table. Steven Snow described the event as “adding a touch of culture to the coast!”.

When not travelling with shows, the singing ladies both live in Bangalow on a mandarin farm. Fins owners, Steven and Morgan Snow, love to promote local talent.

“We love anyone that is very talented and these girls certainly fit that bill. It will be a great spectacle,” said Snow.

A handful of seats are still available for this special Italian Sunday afternoon. Phone Fins on (02) 6674 4833 or email dining@fins.com.au.

MAMA MIA! ITALIANO FEAST AT FINS THIS SUNDAY

Saturday, October 18, 2014

ONNA Harper is a part-time journalist and a former Rural Report and Landline correspondent.

Many years ago when her mother was ill, Ms Harper, her children and her parents made the big move to the Northern Rivers from the city. “So the kids could grow up in the country and have that experience,” she explained. That experience now includes a viable business that employs the whole family and then some.

The Witch’s Broomstick is a popular stall at the Byron Farmers Market that sells, “a wide variety of mushrooms – brown, white and exotic,” explained Ms Harper. “We grow them in shipping containers and specialised sheds with controlled temperature and soil.”

It turns out mushrooms are very fussy; they thrive between 8–18 degrees, depending on the variety and, according to Ms Harper, “they like moisture, but not the wet, they hate to be dry and they don’t like the humidity.”

The varieties of mushrooms grown and sold by Ms Harper and family include the popular large Portobello and shitake mushrooms.

“A great way to enjoy the Portobello is to bake them whole, then crack an egg in them and even add some fried bacon on top – it’s the perfect breakfast!” suggested Ms Harper. “Or try adding some pesto to them, while the shitake mushrooms are great in a stir fry or served with teriyaki steak, as they go really well with meat.”

The white mushrooms are popular in the summer months and are excellent served in salads or in a stir-fry.

Other produce grown by The Witch’s Broomstick include asparagus, broad beans, figs and raspberries. The asparagus and broad beans are seasonal in springtime – right now. The figs and raspberries are a summertime crop, plentiful from December to March/April, with the raspberries described by

: Donna Harper from The Witch’s Broomstick.

PHOTO: CONTRIBUTED

Ms Harper as delicious, “but a real bother to pick!”

Other popular items from The Witch’s Broomstick include homemade quiches, using their own mushrooms and meat from the Byron Bay Farmers Market, as well as a variety of pastries and their famous sausage rolls that Ms Harper’s 82-year-old father makes by hand.

: Contrary to the saying – real men love quiche too!

PHOTO: CONTRIBUTED

Mushroom and tomato quiche Courtesy of Donna and Carole Harper INGREDIENTS: : rice-base puffed pastry (homemade or bought) : 1 cup cheddar cheese, grated : 12 cherry tomatoes, chopped : 2 cups button mushrooms, sliced : 4 free-range eggs : 1 cup cream : 1⁄2 bunch shallots, sliced : mixed herbs, for seasoning METHOD: Preheat oven to 180°C. Line a quiche tin with the puffed pastry (trim if desired). Blind-bake pie base, then leave to cool.

Meanwhile, par-cook the mushrooms for 10 minutes.

Spread base of quiche tin with cheese and shallots, then add mushrooms and fresh tomatoes.

Beat the cream and eggs to a thick batter and pour over pie ingredients. Sprinkle with mixed herbs and bake in a hot oven (180–200°C) for approximately 20 minutes.

Serve with a fresh garden salad.

Serves four.

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ga rd en

TIP: Feed orchids in the warmer months with Yates Orchid Food or Thrive Flower and Fruit.

+

I N MY GAR DE N

wi th Ju dy Ho r to n

Time to re-pot orchids BLUES CREATE A SENSE OF SPACE WHITE ALYSSUM AT TR ACTS BEES

: Marigolds provide a vibrant splash of warm colour.

PHOTO: NAKANO MASAHIRO/AMANAIMAGESRF

+ Flowers in season C ri s p, co o l wh i te te nd s t o b e p op u l ar for sum me r .

G RE EN THU MB wi th Maree Cu r ran

S

PRING is a great time to inject some colour into your garden. Use a mix of perennial flowering plants that will bloom for years, and annuals which will provide a vibrant burst of colour for one season.

You can have great fun with colour combinations. Use warm colours (reds, oranges and yellows) to create a vibrant, exuberant feeling. Try red dianthus, bougainvillea, sunpatiens, petunias, or Geranium Big Red for brilliant reds. Begonia Big Red will give you vibrant red in a semi-shaded position.

Marigolds and calendula are fabulous yellow/orange annuals, and hibiscus will give you longer-lasting colour in these tones.

Cool colours like purples and blues create a sense of space as well as being more relaxing. You could use a blend of related colours, such as blues, purples, mauves and white to create an interesting yet harmonious display. The new Buddleja Buzz series is available in a dark purple, paler lavender and white, and Plectranthus Mona Lavender will give you purple flowers in the shade.

White is always popular for summer as it is so crisp and cooling. White alyssum is lovely and attracts bees for

pollination, and white petunias are a summer favourite with many. And don’t forget this year’s new release Dianthus Memories for gorgeous white scented flowers that are great for floral arrangements.

Colour can be great fun to play with. You can plant in a single block of colour, or use a few different shades of the same colour, or be a bit bolder and use complementary colours. Try orange and blue, or purple and yellow. White is neutral and often highlights other colours, so it can go with everything.

If you’re planting into a container, make sure you include its colour in the overall scheme too. Yellow and white look particularly good in blue pots, and I always love blue flowers in terracotta pots.

Those pansies that you planted in autumn and enjoyed all winter can now be replaced with heat-lovers such as petunias, dianthus, salvia, lobelia, marigolds, dahlias, verbena or zinnias. Cram them into pots, tuck them in the vegie garden, or in garden beds that need a lift.

The usual rules apply. Use a premium potting mix if planting in pots, or a soil improver if planting into garden beds. Apply liquid fertiliser fortnightly, and remove spent flowers to prolong flowering. Mulch well to suppress weeds, keep the soil cooler and conserve water. maree@edenatbyron.com.au

: Spring is a good time to split your orchids.

PHOTO: CONTRIBUTED

OCTOBER’S a good month to think about orchid care.

Many orchids have finished flowering and are about to go into their major growth period.

Cymbidium care Cymbidiums are the most popular orchids. They’re the ones with the tall flower spikes and bulbous swellings at the base of the long strappy leaves. This is the best time of year to tidy them up and get them ready for the new growing season.

Start by taking a good look at the orchid to see if the clump is crowded enough to need dividing. Sometimes this decision is easy: the bulbous bases are so crowded together that they’re almost bursting out of the pot. Or there are a lot of dead bulbs in the pot. With either of these situations, it’s worth re-potting. But don’t rush into it – a plant can stay in the same pot for a number of years. And remember, after orchids have been divided, it can take two or three years for them to reach flowering stage again.

How to re-pot a cymbidium orchid: : Remove the plant from the pot. Sometimes it’s even necessary to break the pot in order to free the orchid. : Take a knife or another strong tool and use it to lever between the bulbs (pictured). Separate the clump into at least two sections. : Remove most of the leafless, dead-looking or squashy bulbs. You can leave a single row of these back bulbs next to the leafy shoots. : Check the roots for damaged, rotted or tangled sections. Remove these. : Choose new pots. Yates Tuscan pots are ideal because they have plenty of drainage holes. Good drainage is critically important for orchids. : Pack some orchid potting mix into the base of the pot. : Sit the orchid in the pot and fill around it with the mix. Make sure that each bulb is sitting above the mix.

+

P RO D U C TS

October is time for orchids

ALL PRODUCTS AVAILABLE FROM BUNNINGS

: Osmocote 25-litre Professional

: Plant-orchid 50mm Poly Pack

Orchid Potting Mix provides the ideal root environment for growing show-quality orchids. RRP $10.97.

includes a selection of the latest releases. RRP $7.98.

: Strike Back for Orchids promotes flowering of all orchids. The organicbased pellets can be applied into pots or on the ground. RRP $15.93.

: Decorative and hardy orchid Miltonia adds a splash of colour to any living space or tropical or subtropical garden. RRP $21.98.

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.

Weekend

t rave l SMORGASBORD: A cultural and gastronomic feast awaits visitors to Melbourne.

: The Melbourne skyline makes a stunning impression.

PHOTO: GORDONBELLPHOTOGRAPHY

+ Cuisine’s so classy I m mi gra nt s i n th e ’60 s sp i c ed up c i t y far e .

T RAVE L

w i th A nn R i ck ard

V

ISITING a city you grew up in, long after you have left it, is exhilarating.

Melbourne’s museums, theatres, restaurants and bars did not receive my patronage during the three decades I lived there.

Now as a visitor I trawl the museums, get lost in the city lanes and check food guides to see what is hot.

I go to St Kilda to look in the continental cake shops in Acland St, visit Myer and David Jones, stroll the Royal Botanic Gardens.

Wherever you go, no matter how often you get lost, you are never more than a few minutes away from substance of the food and drink kind.

Melbourne is synonymous with food. But it wasn’t always so. In the 1960s the culinary landscape was bleak, but there was one place I remember as a beacon of gourmet hope.

In Collins St, it was called South Pacific ... or maybe South Seas ... and through its doors at the bottom of a narrow

Saturday, October 18, 2014

stairwell, it was an oasis of tropical splendour.

Fake palm trees and artificial rocks, synthetic plants and an imitation pond, dim lighting and plastic pineapples (I vaguely recall even a papier mache crocodile peering ominously through the palm fronds) – all created an island fantasy unknown to most Melburnians then.

I lied my way into a waitressing job there as a 16-year-old, telling them I was experienced when I had never even cleared a table at home.

The menu items all had cutesy names. A frothy sundae dessert called Papuan Piccaninny stands out in my memory because I spilt one down a customer’s back.

The customer took the “mishap” with grace, but not so the severe madam manager who sat high and haughty in a box on a podium near the crocodile, overseeing the floor.

It was agreed I would leave on the spot.

That desolate culinary backdrop of Melbourne in the ’60s changed with the arrival of immigrants from Italy, Greece, Malta and Sicily, bringing their cuisines with them.

Then came the Vietnamese with their vibrant fare, and well ... now you are so spoilt for gastronomic choice, it is bewildering. ann.rickard@scnews.com.au

: Flinders Street Station has style.

PHOTO: LEE TORRENS

FIVE MELBOURNE MUST-DO’S: : Visit the Emporium Melbourne in Lonsdale St for shopping and events. : Take a tram ride – you know you want to. : Join a lane and arcade walking tour, there are many to choose from. : See Les Miserables at Her Majesty’s Theatre ... the beautiful old theatre has been staging shows since 1886. : It’s almost spring racing carnival time – no better time to visit, especially for the biggie, Melbourne Cup. See more on: visitmelbourne.com.au

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t rave l

+

PHOTO: CONTRIBUTED

Go cruising where the sea’s the limit A cruise can offer you a world of difference. Making the decision to go on holidays is always an easy one.

Most of us never get tired of jetting off into the sunset and discovering a new destination.

Whether you’re planning an adrenalin-fuelled adventure holiday, a pampering spa break or a tropical getaway, choosing what type of holiday to take and where to visit takes time.

If you’re looking for an alternative to touring and road trips, think about cruising.

With a huge variety of options out there, including river, ocean and expedition, cruising provides a unique and convenient way to see the world. So, why book a cruise?

Wallet-free travel The term all-inclusive goes hand in hand with cruising.

With many cruises, once you have made your final payment, you can safely put your wallet away and prepare to enjoy limitless activities, dining and nightly entertainment, as well as access to onboard facilities such as pools, gyms and spas.

Go to the movies, have a day at the water park or check out a night-time show all on board, and the best bit, it’s all included.

Make sure you check the details of your cruise with your agent, so once you board you can sit back and enjoy eating, drinking and dancing to your heart’s content.

Unpack once If you’re looking to put your feet up and

W HY A C RU I S E S HO UL D B E O N YO U R HOL I DAY L I S T

relax, then cruising might just be your new best friend. With cruising, lugging your suitcase to the airport or struggling to fit in those extra purchases are a thing of the past.

You can hop onboard, unpack once and forget about your suitcase for the rest of your holiday.

The world is your oyster Another great thing about cruising is that you don’t always have to choose just one destination to explore. Simply pick an area of the world, such as the Mediterranean, North America, the Pacific Islands or South-East Asia, and you can experience a range of regions, cultures and cities, all for the price of one holiday. One day you could be shopping in Singapore, the next, sampling the local cuisine in Penang.

What about sailing through the Greek Islands today and discovering Turkey tomorrow?

There are plenty of reasons to make your next holiday a cruise. Whether you’re travelling with your family, as a couple, solo or with a group of your friends, there’s a perfect cruise for you.

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Weekend

h o me TIP: Look out for bamboo items, the highly sustainable product of the future.

+

T H E CY N I CAL HO USEWIF E w ith B ethany Fa i r fu ll

Hot under the collar with summer coming

S

O WHAT’S with this heat? I was really enjoying the season you Queenslanders call “winter” (know that we South Islanders roll our eyes a little when we say that). With summer not even really started, we have kicked off our quilts and let out a sigh of welcoming relief as the sheets settle.

Despite loving the perks of a seemingly endless summer, it’s going to take some getting used to – and until I do, I’m going to be left feeling a little hot under the collar and between the boobs. I shower more than ever now and I was borderline obsessive before the migration north. I’ve got about three different deodorants, and just getting out of the shower and drying myself off results in an instant layer of sweat – seriously.

I’m standing in the air-conditioned coolness of the bedroom with the hairdryer cord stretched to within an inch of its life while in my underwear because the whole exercise of drying oneself after a shower generates enough perspiration to warrant another shower.

I use anti-frizz shampoo and moisture-intense conditioner in an effort to combat the dry frizzy nest I’ve got goin’ on. Not to mention the balm for my ends and the anti-frizz spray to stop it all going to pot once I leave the air-conditioned comfort of home.

No longer do I buy synthetic fabrics.

Undies, oh undies, the lace lovelies that delight my husband have recently been barred from day wear in preference for cottons. I used to see Femfresh on supermarket shelves and wonder, “What the hell would you need that for?” Now I’d seriously consider buying it.

+ Eco chic I NTER IOR S w i th Tra cey Ho rd e r n

IT’S GOING TO TAKE SOME GETTING USED TO

T h ese hom eware s ar e as su sta in a ble as they are st yl ish LOOK, you’re probably not going to save the planet by choosing an eco-accredited hand basket .... but purchasing power can – and does impact the economy. Bamboo is one of the most exciting new products on the market. From bamboo bedding to bowls and flooring, its uses are plentiful, plus it is a highly sustainable product that does less damage to the environment than other comparable commodities Choosing products that are Fair Trade-certified means you care about the conditions and rights of workers, many in Third World economies. Little choices make for big differences.

PHOTO: JANKA3147

+

HO M E wi th Tracey Ho rd ern

Living off the grid THERE’S a lot of talk about “living off the grid” and getting back to nature. But what does it mean exactly? Meet a couple who have built their dream eco home, Ron Curran and Liz Friend. They wanted to build a house that would be entirely off the grid and to make the most of the stunning views to Mt Chincogan and beyond.

The site they chose to build on had all the ingredients: plenty of land, sunlight and, even more importantly, a virtually unlimited supply of water.

Like most cleverly designed eco houses, the two-bedroom residence is well located with the front of the cottage facing north-east. The cottage is fully insulated, keeping it warm in Saturday, October 18, 2014

FIRST ROW: : Dutch design chair from scrapwood, $49, Jasper & Eve, jasperandeve.com.au : Red bamboo bowls, from $34.95, Sampan, sampan.com.au : Maddesson emerald cushion, $145, Jasper & Eve, jasperandeve.com.au.

SECOND ROW: : Bosske sky planter recycled, $61.90, The Design Gift Shop, thedesigngiftshop.com : Dipped basket pendant light, $280.50, Eco Chic, ecochic.com.au : Pacific striped basket, $145, Eco Chic, ecochic.com.au.

winter months and cool in the hotter months. The eco house was lovingly hand-built by qualified tradies to Australian Building Standards using primarily recycled materials, giving it an attractive, warm look and feel.

The house has full solar (240-volt power with 12-volt lighting throughout, and solar fridge connections on 12-volt).

There is a solar hot water tank with two solar panels, plus there is a back-up gas hot water system. In total, there are four solar panels, plus four batteries, and an inverter.

For water supplies, there are two 5000-gallon tanks to provide rainwater for use in the cottage, plus a 1000-litre header tank and a 3300-litre tank at the back of the cottage as back-up for the garden. For communications, an Ipstar satellite dish was installed (for phone and internet), plus a digital television satellite dish.

To complete the off-the-grid dream house, several gardens have been established and these include the kitchen rock garden that produces rocket, parsley, strawberries, chilli peppers, aloe vera, pawpaw, rosemary and garlic.

The fruit orchard produces grapefruit, lemons, limes, oranges, avocado, dwarf peach and bananas, while the vegie

: Living off the grid requires dedication, imagination and grit.

PHOTO: TRACEY HORDERN

garden produces tomatoes, basil, rocket, spring onion, leeks, japanese baby eggplant, beetroot, capsicum, coriander, zucchini, lebanese cucumber, pumpkin, kale, spinach, tatsoi, lettuce and celeriac.

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make

+ A beaut barbie DIY

w ith G re ig Mo rga n

+

C R A F T w i th M a d i s o n S m i th

I nst allin g f ir e b r i ck s, p la ste ri ng a nd ap p lyi n g f i ni shi n g t ouc h es

L

AST week I showed you how to create the first stages of this beautiful barbecue and today I will cover installing fire bricks and doing the plastering.

This style of plaster finish not only looks good — giving you a Mediterranean feel — it is also easy to achieve as it doesn’t have to look perfect.

PART TWO OF BARBECUE BUILD

: STEP 1 A wood-burning barbecue will need a spark arrestor as this will trap any loose embers and stop them escaping out of the chimney. Measure, mark and cut four strips about 50mm-wide x 75mm-long on your 400x400 pavers, then cut the 400x400 paver to length to suit the angled pitch you require over the top of the chimney. Then, with your pre-mix, mortar the four corner pieces in place. Wait for the mortar to set before mortaring in place the angled pieces.

Materials

: A plank of wood – enough to cut two squares 30x30cm : Saw : 4 bolts and 4 wing nuts and washers : Drill and drill bit to match the width of bolts : Sandpaper : Cardboard box : Watercolour paper

: STEP 2 Mix water and cement to a slurry consistency then, using a brush, flick the mixture all over the framework. This helps the plaster to adhere well.

: STEP 3 Starting flush with the existing framework from the front on the left and right side, find the centre of the back inside framework. Now lay the fire bricks out in a running bond pattern, leaving about 8mm of space between the frameworks. With this first layer set out as a dry run, cut the fill-in pieces to suit the size of the gap as you go.

: STEP 4 Mix up your high-temperature mortar (follow the instructions for best results), then spread the mortar on to the base and between each fire brick. The joints should be kept to the minimum thickness achievable and no more than 2mm-thick.

Make sure the bricks are free of dust. With the next row lay the brick halfway over the joint of the previous bricks then lay in the same manner, checking with a level as you go.

: STEP 5 Mix three parts plaster sand with one part cement with plasticiser and water to create a workable consistency. The plaster should stick to the framework without falling apart.

Now trowel on one area at a time about 25-30mm thick, using a straight edge as a guide to work along when doing the edges and corners.

: STEP 6 As the plaster starts to dry start to shape it with a sponge, then finish rounding the edges and corners and removing the trowel marks.

Finally, add a removable stainless grill to fit with about

: Your plaster finish needn't be perfect, it will give your barbecue a traditional Mediterranean look.

PHOTO MICHAEL CRAIG

Materials

Fire bricks : High-temperature mortar : Cemplus plasticiser : Cement : Plasterer’s sand : Stainless food standard grate : 400x400x25mm paver (spark arrestor)

Tools

Wheelbarrow : Spade : Tape measure : Pencil : Square : Rubber gloves : Trowel : Pointy trowel : Straight edge : Brush : Sponge : Bucket : Tarpaulin : Grinder with masonry blade : Protective safetyware 20mm clearance either side, sitting on fire bricks to the desired height.

: HOT TIPS 1. For best results when plastering, set up a tarpaulin to cover your project—the shade will stop the plaster from drying out too quickly.

2. If the plaster gets too dry to work when sponging, flick water with a brush on to the areas where it’s required.

3. Grind out a curved shape to match the curved roof on the inside of the chimney.

Make a flower press THE humble flower press is perfect for preserving wonderful memories. Press the flowers your darling surprised you with, or save a few from your bridal bouquet. Just think how special it would be to show your children a few of the flowers you received when they were born. Of course, you can make your own memories – head outdoors and hunt down a few gorgeous wildflowers in preparation for this weekend’s project.

: STEP 1 Start off by marking the shape of your flower press on the plank of wood and cutting out with the saw. I’ve chosen a hexagon because I may or may not be obsessed with them! If you’re not comfortable with using a saw try asking your local hardware store to find or cut identical blocks for you. Once both blocks have been cut out, go over the rough edges with sandpaper.

: STEP 2 For pressure to be dispersed equally across the block the bolts will need to be placed about 2.5cm in from the corners. TIP: Clamp both blocks together when drilling and the holes will line up, making it easy for the bolts to slide right through.

: STEP 3 Alternate cardboard and watercolour paper and sandwich between the two blocks. Insert the bolts and screw on the wingnuts.

Now you have your very own flower press. Get out there and start collecting memories.

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close t LIGHT AND BREEZY: The au naturel look is ideally suited to the warmer weather that accompanies spring.

+

L I F E M O ST FA B U LO US w i th M e re d i th Pap ava s i l i o u

No apologies for being fabulous

I

T SEEMS I can be a bit of hard work. Or at least that’s what I have heard. I know, right. Incredible.

And it was from another woman, this nasty titbit came. Aghast. What about the sisterhood?

Immediately, upon taking possession of this little nugget of insight, I took exception. Terrible exception. I’m not hard work. Surely.

I was affronted. Offended. Hurt. Cranky. Really cranky. But then, as that all wore off, my confidence rekindled and I started to see this for what it was.

Then my little emotional panel beater started to right the wrongs. You see, hard work, like beauty, is all in the eye of the beholder.

I’m no saint (God knows, that is the truth). I’m not the perfect mother, lover, daughter, sister, friend.

I over-think, over-react, over-analyse. I pontificate, deliberate and catastrophise.

+ Elemental ease FA S HI ON

w i th Me re di th Papava si l i ou

‘‘

Be caus e what ma kes u s hard wo rk make s us wo r t h t h e ef f or t And while (I’d like to think) my moral compass is pretty well calibrated, I’m not the last bastion of wholesome values and goodness.

At one time or another, that’s something we are all guilty of. Yes. We can all be hard work from time to time. But the clincher – as always – is in the context.

It’s basic physics. Newton’s law: for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.

When emotionally poked, prodded and provoked, there should be no surprise when the reaction is not all rose cologne and sauvignon blanc – especially when there is a polar divide in moral orientation.

But sadly, to the misinformed, the delusional and the plain skanky, it’s not so much a surprise as a scoff and a lack of belief that their bad behaviour is not being accepted, much less well received.

To them, I don’t apologise. If that makes me – and those of you who relate – hard work, then the rest can suck it up.

You don’t, won’t, and will never get it. Because what makes us hard work makes us worth the effort – dare I say, fabulous even.

And there’s just no telling what the accusation of such says about those intent on delivering it.

WE CAN ALL BE HARD WORK FROM TIME TO TIME

+

ST Y L E wi th Tracey Ho rd ern

Super-sustainable yak wool JUST when you thought you knew every natural fibre there was, along comes yak wool. A beautiful, high-quality fibre that is warmer than sheep wool and as soft as cashmere, yak wool products provide comfort and quality and are fast taking over as the new eco knitwear.

Yaks have long had the traditional role of being the lifeline of the Tibetan people. China’s western region is home to more than 80% of the world’s yak population. For centuries, nomads in the region used yak materials to make a wide variety of products, from ropes to tents.

In January 2006, founders of the Shokay label visited Yunnan Province in western China. They saw a need for Saturday, October 18, 2014

Sp r i n g i s th e ti me to sy nc yo ur wa rd robe w ith n ature’s n eu tral tones AT THE height of spring, with visions of sand between your toes, cool fruity drinks and the smell of eucalypt and jacaranda on the warm northerlies, our fashion palette starts to take inspiration from the elements, using nature as a muse and drawing on all things neutral. While the tone and texture is light, by no means does natural equal bland. Key pieces and strategic wardrobe additions, sourced from your favourite local boutiques or online, make au naturel as simple as can be.

FIRST ROW: : Eton Hall linen shift dress, sizes 8-18, $199 from Meredith : St Tropez paper hat, one size, $59.95 from Witchery : Mexico white lace espadrille, $59.95 from Betts : Leather and wood bird pendant, 38cm drop adjustable cord, $30 from Elk : Skirt, sizes 8-16, $34.95 from MadeInHemp SECOND ROW: : Swingers timber earrings in huon pine, $120 from Minky Grant : Linen T-shirt, XXS-XL, $49.95 from Country Road : Abstract tropical scarf, $49.95 from Sussan : Sahara cotton shirt, sizes 6-16, $150 from David Lawrence.

innovation to alleviate poverty and they also saw an abundance of resources, namely, yaks. They recognized this as an opportunity to help create a sustainable income and improve the livelihoods of local communities in the region and the idea for Shokay was born, revolutionising the yak industry by introducing yak wool to the global market To maximise income from selling yak wool, Shokay sourced directly from local herders, and still does today. To improve the quality of the yak fibres, they conducted training on proper fibre shearing methods.

In 2013, the Shokay Design and Research Center in Shanghai’s International Fashion Education Center was established. Through the centre, they have increased work with many international brands and designers to encourage them to use yak wool in their collections. In the same way that products made with Australian wool carry a Woolmark tag, or American cotton a cotton tag, designers and brands that use Shokay yak fibres can use the Shokay tag.

Shokay now create high-quality garments that are fast becoming a wardrobe staple, offering the basics of knitwear all in super-soft yak fibre. Customers can buy shawls, scarfs

: The latest eco, must-have fabric is yak yarn from Shokay.

PHOTO: SUPPLIED

and wraps, plus a range of yak yarn in beautiful colours, so you can knit up your own yak creation. As well, there is a range of super-sweet knitted yak soft toys for children.

You can buy Shokay Yak wool at: shokay.com

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Weekend

st u ff

+ Downing cheap beer, army career bombed

+

GADGETS

B a c k i n t h e 19 8 0 s, A u st ra l i a ’ s o n ly wo r r y wa s t o t a l n u c l e a r a n n i h i l at i o n

‘‘

.

O N A L I G H T E R N OT E w i th G re g B ray

T

HINGS are going south in the Middle East again, so we’re off on another mission/operation/quest or whatever it is they’re calling war nowadays.

In spite of a very short and unremarkable career in the army reserves (much to the horror of my navy father and air force grandfather), I did learn several very important lessons: 1. Army booze is tax-free.

2. Don’t shoot an SLR left-handed (the hot shell casings will hit your right arm).

3. You can’t bomb your way to victory – sooner or later you’ll need boots on the ground.

4. How to peel a potato the army way.

As this was during the 1980s, when our only worry was total nuclear annihilation, I was having the time of my young life going to parade every Tuesday night, then getting stone motherless drunk for the price of a packet of chips.

Eventually some clown decided that our little social group needed proper army training, so we were loaded into a truck, which took several spine-crushing hours getting to a base that was an only an hour away by car.

+

R EVI E W: G AD G ET

Plug into flower power HERE’S a gadget amateur and seasoned gardeners will both dig. The Parrot Flower Power is a nifty device featuring an onboard sensor that assesses your plants’ needs and sends alerts to you smartphone. It observes four parameters essential to your plant’s health – sunlight, temperature, fertiliser and moisture – using bluetooth connectivity and a single AAA battery. The app features a library of more than 7000 plants, including information on how much sunlight each should receive and which fertiliser you should be using.

The wireless plant monitor is available from RRP $59.

T h e a rmy tau gh t me th e fif t h an d m o st impo r t an t les so n : Se t t l e yo ur dif f ere nce s with o ut re so r t i ng to viole nce o r t h in gs w ill q u ickly tu rn to mus h There, after weeks of gruelling exercises, drills and marching, we finally saw action; when we started an all-in brawl during our first pub outing. Afterwards, our heavily battered squad was rounded up and marched off for spud duty in the field kitchen.

Oddly enough, as we peeled our way through several million potatoes, we developed close friendships, and some pretty big calluses.

Ironically, that was how the army taught me the fifth and most important lesson: Settle your differences without resorting to violence or things will quickly turn to mush.

Perhaps the politicians who are so keen to rush us into conflicts/crises/emergencies should sign up? It probably won’t stop future wars, but it’s an a-peeling idea.

Greg Bray blogs at gregbraywriter.wordpress.com.

: Philips Friends of Hue LightStrips are flexible two-metre strips studded with LEDs that can be controlled using your smartphone to personalise your lighting experience. RRP $124.95

: Forgot to turn the TV off when you left for work?

The Belkin wi-fi-enabled WeMo Switch lets you turn electronic devices on or off from anywhere. Simply download the app and plug in the switch. RRP $59.95

PLANT FOOD: Monitor your garden for sunlight, temperature, fertiliser and moisture using one little device.

: Kwikset’s Kevo takes home security to new heights.

It’s an electronic lock that can be opened by an iPhone app. Simply tap the lock with your finger. The app senses you’re near the lock and opens. RRP $329

Saturday, October 18, 2014

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www.northernstar.com.au

Weekend

yo u

+ Build confidence

SELF-ESTEEM LIFT: Look in the mirror and name out loud five things you admire most about yourself.

+

MOV E I T

Tr y t he se s im pl e ti ps t o i mpr ove se l f- e ste e m l eve l s, w h i ch w i l l h el p e mo ti o n a l ex pr es s i on a nd b e h av i our .

YO U w ith Vi k i Th o nd l ey

S

ELF-confidence is extremely important in almost every aspect of our lives, yet so many people struggle to find it. Your level of self-confidence can show in many ways: your behaviour, your body language, how you speak and what you say.

Do you have full trust and belief in your own abilities or do you hesitate and shy away from showing off your unique talents? Do you spend more time worrying about what others will think instead of doing what you believe is right?

Confidence and self-esteem often go hand in hand. So here are three simple, yet life-changing daily practices to build your confidence and contribute to a healthy self-image. : Think about five things you’ve already accomplished in life and how great you felt after achieving them. Write them down if necessary to really look at and take in what they represent for you. Pay attention to what you learnt from these experiences. When the going gets tough, remind yourself where you’ve been and what you’ve already overcome. You can get through the next challenge stronger, wiser and more capable. : Look in the mirror and name out loud five things you

Saturday, October 18, 2014

PHOTO: LUMINASTOCK

admire most about yourself. For many people this may be challenging. At first you may feel silly or uncomfortable, but it will become easier each time. Every time you look in the mirror, your will be aware of the previous list and as you look for new things, you gradually expand and change your self-perception. If this is difficult for you then it’s even more important that you do it. : Write down five things you are currently grateful for. Look around you for inspiration. Use the term, “I am grateful for”.

Switch focus from negativity and give your mind a positive lift. Look for new blessings every day. Engage in experiencing the positive feelings that arise while you’re doing this.

Connect with Viki via www.mindbodyfood.net.

Stand and deliver a longer lasting life ACCORDING to the University of Sydney, replacing each hour of daily sitting with equal amounts of standing is linked to a substantial reduction in mortality risk of up to 5% per hour of sitting replaced. On average we spend 50% of our days being sedentary, which has catastrophic consequences for our health, including chronic disease and poor mental health.

“Replacing sitting with walking and other moderate to vigorous physical activity resulted in a much larger reduction in mortality risk of 12 to 14% per hour of sitting replacement,” Associate Professor Dr Emmanuel Stamatakis said.

“It is absolutely imperative to find ways to incorporate some sort of movement into the daily office routine, even if only of a light intensity.”

PAGE 39

www.northernstar.com.au

Weekend

yo u

+

W E LOV E

wi th He len H aw ke s

+

TA KE 5

Freshen up your life with these tips 1. Plant a herb or vegetable garden

: “You call it facial hair ... I call it awesomeness escaping through my face.” Sound like the man in your life? Cranmore Home Beard Oil helps prevent “beard-ruff” and contains grapeseed, argan, hemp, kukui nut and jojoba oils to nourish the beard, making it soft and smooth. RRP $29 from www.cranmorehome.com.au.

Spring is the perfect time to sow some herbs or vegetables. In fact studies show growing your own vegetables could save upwards of $1800 year for a couple. According to Choice, choosing the right vegetables to grow at home can help offset the cost of food. You can grow a year’s supply of vegetables in a space as small as a domestic front lawn.

Moreover, being outside in a natural environment can improve memory and attention span by 20%.

beach days, try Sachajuan’s Hair In the Sun, $35, which contains a UV filter that stays in the hair even after washing or swimming, and can also be used as a styling cream. Info: www.sachajuan.com.au.

outlook on life.

PHOTO: ANDREUSK

2. Buy in bulk and share

Going organic needn’t be expensive. Form a small food co-op and get your friends, family or neighbours together and buy in bulk. By shopping with the seasons you’ll also save pennies. Try the farmers’ markets. A recent study published in the Journal of Environmental Research found that eating an organic diet for just one week can reduce pesticide levels in adults by almost 90%.

3. Eliminate processed foods

: For sexy summer hair that defies UV damage and

: Those who spend greater time outside have a more positive

About 75% of our salt intake comes from processed food.

Together with high sugar contents and food additives, consuming processed foods can lead to increased risk of cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, obesity, type 2 diabetes and cancers. Scientists suggest the best “brain foods” include organic ginger, chlorella and spirulina, organic beetroot juice, celery, cabbage and spinach.

4. Get outdoors

Research shows spending time outside makes people better at their jobs. It increases energy levels and feelings of vitality.

Those who spend more hours outdoors have also been proven to have better mental health and a more positive outlook on life.

5. Go coconuts

We’ve been going nuts for coconut oil for a while now. If it’s not in your pantry yet, it should be. Like bi-carb soda, the list of its uses is endless. Incorporate coconut oil into your beauty regime by applying to your hair with honey for a nutritious mask, combine with baking soda for a facial scrub, use it as a make-up remover or as a natural moisturiser.

Saturday, October 18, 2014

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www.northernstar.com.au

Weekend

scree n life TAMMY: “I had a dream you and your grandmother took a road trip and she was an alcoholic and sleeps around and I think it should be a movie.”

Tammy

: Stars: Melissa McCarthy, Susan Sarandon, Kathy Bates, Sandra Oh, Mark Duplass. : Director: Ben Falcone. : Rating: M. : Reviewer’s last word: Melissa McCarthy’s raw comedic talent and screen presence is almost enough to distract you from the messy script, which feels like it takes ages to go anywhere.

Star profile: Susan Sarandon : Susan Sarandon and Melissa McCarthy in a scene from the movie Tammy.

PHOTOS: SAEED ADYANI

+ A grand old time Su s an S aran don pl ays M e l is s a M cC ar t hy’s naug h t y g randm oth er i n Ta m my .

S CREE N LI F E

wi th Seanna Cronin

M

ELISSA McCarthy’s new comedy Tammy was inspired by a dream. Her husband, long-time collaborator and the film’s director Ben Falcone imagined the original seed of the project six years ago in his sleep.

“Ben came downstairs blurry-eyed, hair all over the place; he’d just woken up and he said, ‘I had a dream where you and your grandmother took a road trip and she was an alcoholic and she sleeps around and I think it should be a movie’,” McCarthy told APN. “We were just talking about it as we had coffee and we just kept talking about it. It rolled into the next day and then all of a sudden I said, ‘Can I call her Tammy?’ We were talking about their lives and where they lived and a week later we

: Quirky fact: Is one of two actresses who won an Oscar for playing a nun. : Best known for: The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Thelma & Louise, Dead Man Walking. : If you like this movie you’ll like these: The Heat, Bridesmaids, 22 Jump Street. : Quote: “I think the only reason I remain an actor is that you can never quite get it right. So there is a challenge to it.”

had a lot of the story in our heads.

“It was like we’re not talking about a dream any more, I think we just kind of did our outline (for the movie).”

McCarthy, star of the TV sitcom Mike and Molly, met Falcone at the famous Groundlings improv theatre and the couple has since worked together on Bridesmaids, The Identity Thief and The Heat.

He makes a cameo in Tammy as the fast-food chain manager who is pummelled with ketchup packets after he fires McCarthy’s character.

“It was really fun shooting that; he was very nervous,” McCarthy laughed. “When they were coming at his face he thought they were going to scratch his eyeball. We don’t fight at home, maybe that’s because I get to do that at work.”

Susan Sarandon plays Tammy’s alcoholic grandmother Pearl, who agrees to lend Tammy her car in exchange for fulfilling her childhood dream of seeing Niagara Falls.

“It’s not your sweet little old granny story,” she said. “She’s so camera savvy and so natural and present that it’s never

like she’s trying to do a line. She’s just kind of there and she makes no mistakes; she’s really effortless. It’s amazing to watch.”

Tammy embodies McCarthy’s love for the battlers and so-called losers of the world. “I have a real soft spot for watching people kind of struggle and kind of get in their own way,” she said. “As a performer I like to figure out what’s the weakness under the harsh behaviour. That’s what made me fall in love with her. She has to grow up.

“Susan’s character is 70-something and my character is in her late 30s, so it’s a coming-of-age story for two women who are not technically coming of age. They’re both such a mess to the other they force the other to grow up.”

As one of America’s leading funny women, McCarthy has shared top-line billing with Sarandon, Sandra Bullock and soon Bill Murray in St Vincent.

The 44-year-old is also widely tipped to be cast in director Paul Feig’s all-female reboot of the Ghostbusters franchise after working with him on Bridesmaids and The Heat. But she remains tight-lipped on any future ghost capers.

“The wonderful and talented Paul Feig is going to do the Ghostbusters movie and he has this great idea to do it with a female cast, but that’s all I know,” she said. “Anything he does is great. I think I’ve proved how much I love working with Paul, but I’ll let Paul make those (casting) decisions.”

Tammy is in cinemas now.

+

R EV IE WS Wha t ’ s new o n th e bi g sc re e n

Fury

SCREEN veteran Brad Pitt leads a crew of talented young actors in this gritty, violent film set in the final days of the European offensive during the Second World War. : Stars: Brad Pitt, Shia LeBeouf, Logan Lerman, Michael Pena, Jon Bernthal. : Rating: MA 15+ : In cinemas: Thursday.

Saturday, October 18, 2014

Hector and the Search for Happiness

THIS giant hug of a movie will envelop you in its warm embrace, if you let it. If you’re a cynic then you’ll probably find this round-the-world journey to enlightenment a bit schmaltzy. : Stars: Simon Pegg, Rosamund Pike, Toni Collette, Stellan Skarsgard. : Rating: M : In cinemas: Thursday.

A Walk Among the Tombstones

THIS is the type of role we love seeing Liam Neeson in, and the Irishman doesn’t disappoint even though other aspects of this New York-set murder mystery do.

Dark, moody and stylish, the film’s look is fitting of the grim subject matter. : Stars: Liam Neeson, David Harbour, Dan Stevens, Robert Boyd Holbrook. : Rating: MA 15+ : In cinemas: Now.

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Weekend

re lax

+ Passions run wild A u t h o r L i ly K i n g ’ s E u p h o r i a te l l s a t a l e o f l ove s e t i n t h e j u n g l e s o f P N G

+

EDITOR’S PICK: Read Lily King’s Euphoria. Beautifully written, intelligent and engaging.

R EV I EWS

The Love Song of Miss Queenie Hennessy

By Jo h n G rey

E

UPHORIA is a fascinating story of love and betrayal in the jungles of Papua New Guinea that borrows from the lives and work of three 20th-century anthropologists, including the influential and controversial Margaret Mead.

Most of the narrative is in the first person, told by troubled English anthropologist Andrew Bankson (based on Gregory Bateson), interspersed by third-person sections about Nell Stone (based on Mead) and some of Stone’s writings.

Author Lily King’s style is intelligent and thoughtful, and switches comfortably between wit and emotional power.

By Rachel Joyce: In a parallel story to Joyce’s The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry, dying Queenie writes to Fry as he walks the length of England to her, revealing old secrets, pathos, hope and humour.

The Alexandria Connection

‘‘

Author Li ly King ’s st y le is in telli gent and tho ug htf u l, an d sw itc hes c om for tab ly be t we en wit and em otiona l powe r.

Jealousy and betrayal – both professional and personal – and the realities of surviving in tropical, tribal conditions pervade her story.

She continually shows her extensive research into Papua New Guinean anthropology yet never lets it get in the way of the narrative. In fact, each small revelation or puzzle about tribal life, relationships, mysteries and ritual enhances the story.

Like the lovers in the story, the reader is simultaneously seduced and unsettled by the deep cultural differences and eternal human similarities between the West and the jungle.

One of the most interesting borrowings and adaptations from Mead’s work is a four-point “grid” of personality types (based on Mead’s theory of “squares”), which could be adapted to describe and analyse individuals, groups or nations.

+

F I R ST READERS

w i th Jo h n G rey

Alfie’s Big Wish

By Adrian d’Hage: Dan Brown meets Indiana Jones and a slew of Bond villains. Clumsy exposition and cliche gives way to an Islamophobe conspiracy theorist’s nightmare, including New World Order plotters and a nuclear attack on Melbourne.

Thug Kitchen: Eat Like You Give a F***

: A love triangle between three anthropologists in Papua New Guinea underpins Lily King’s Euphoria. PHOTO: CONTRIBUTED

Australian readers should be grateful that Fen, the gruff Aussie anthropologist in this love triangle (based on Kiwi anthropologist Reo Fortune), says “crikey” only once.

Euphoria, published by Pan Macmillan, will be released November 1.

+

A recipe book that comes with a language warning: Healthy recipes without the self-righteousness. Google “Thug Kitchen videos” for more NSFW details.

NEW ON DV D ALFIE is a cute but lonely little indigenous boy, living in a traditional setting.

His friends’ families have moved away and he has no one his age to play with. Even hanging upside down in trees is no fun. So Alfie wishes upon a shooting star for a playmate.

He waits deep into the night, but nothing happens. Next day though, he hears something in the tall grass ...

This is a gorgeously illustrated and heart-warming story from Barkindji descendant David Hardy, after his success with Alfie’s Search for Destiny last year.

Magabala Books is Australia’s oldest independent indigenous publishing house, based in the pearling town of Broome in the far north of Western Australia.

Maleficent

A DARK and beautiful tale of loss, revenge, redemption and, at the end of the day, love. Interesting sidenote: it fails a reverse Bechdel test.

There is no scene where two men have a conversation that isn’t about a woman, which is a pretty great and unusual thing.

Saturday, October 18, 2014

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.

Weekend

+

mind TEST YOUR KNOWLEDGE: Quiz compiled by Roy O’Reilly

+ Don’t fret the threat M I N D YOU

Q UI Z

1. Which online retailer recently launched its first smartphone, featuring a display designed to respond to users’ eye movements?

w i th Rowe n a H a rdy a n d N i c k B e n n e tt

T h e b e h av i o u r m o d e l S C A R F c a n h e l p u s b e t te r u n d e r st a n d o u r s o c i a l n e e d s

2. Which German golfer won this year’s US Open?

3. Doyle’s Delight, named after Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, is the highest mountain in which Central American country?

4. Who is currently president of one country and co-prince of another?

5. Which team lost three consecutive NSWRL grand finals to the Dragons in the 1960s?

6. The letters IMF, the international financial body, stand for what?

7. The partner of which former Australian prime minister recently threatened to sue the Victorian premier in a recorded phone message?

8. The 1955 treaty to prevent communist incursion in the Middle East was (a) Baghdad Pact (b) Gleneagles Agreement (c) NATO? 9. Who is the federal member for the New South Wales seat of Cook?

10. Channing Tatum played an undercover police officer who becomes a college student to uncover the campus drug kingpin in which recent movie?

11. Which Asian country recently fell into line with other developed nations and made the possession of child pornography illegal?

12. Which national capital was formerly known as Batavia?

13. Which Hollywood star wrote a 1993 play in which Pablo Picasso meets Albert Einstein in a Paris bar?

14. Which dangerous new drug, a blue pill, is named after a phone messaging application?

15. Premier House is the official residence of the prime minister of which country?

16. Set in 1993, the men’s high jump world record is (a) 2.25m (b) 2.45m (c) 2.65m?

17. Is Greenland closer to Europe or North America?

18. Anwar Sadat, president of Egypt, was assassinated in (a) 1981 (b) 1991 (c) 2001?

19. From the kick-off, which Canterbury Test prop knocked-on in his own in-goal in the 1994 NSWRL grand final?

20. Name the director of the 1960 movie Psycho.

21. Dying recently at the age of 98 was which star of the 1966 movie The Good, The Bad and the Ugly?

22. Which Greek mythological character was killed by a wild boar?

23. At the Sydney Riot of 1879 at the Association Ground (SCG) during an international cricket match, which future prime minister was one of the umpires?

PHOTO: DIEGO CERVO

: The SCARF model can be applied to all forms of communications.

T

HE SCARF model is an intriguing way to observe our own and other people’s behaviour through change, often perceived as a threat. Given the key organising principle of the brain is to minimise danger (threat) and to maximise reward (pleasure), we also know that our social needs are treated in much the same way in the brain as the need for food and water.

These two themes are harmonised by David Rock, a pre-eminent neuro-scientist, within the framework SCARF, which links common social factors that activate either a reward or threat response in a range of situations. The behaviours can be observed in any situation where people engage to co-operate or collaborate.

The SCARF model involves five key domains of human social experience: status, certainty, autonomy, relatedness and fairness.

“Status is about relative importance to others; certainty concerns being able to predict the future; autonomy provides a sense of control over events; relatedness is a sense of safety with others, of friend rather than foe; and fairness is a perception of fair exchanges between people,” writes Rock.

Knowing that a restructure and change of role may mean a change in responsibility (status), a leader can consciously include opportunities for the person to set timeframes, make decisions and act upon them. A parent engaging with a teenager, occasionally challenging for other reasons, can avoid micromanaging them (autonomy) and engage with

them to plan activities.

SCARF is a very easy model to remember and to use in any communication to elicit a far lower stress (threat) response and a much higher reward (pleasure) response if we are mindful of our language and intention. It also helps us recognise (for ourselves and others) which of the areas is being impacted upon, what may have caused it and what we might do differently to change it.

By becoming much more conscious in the way we

‘‘

By be com ing mo re c on sc io u s in the way we constru c t o u r co mmu nic atio n we can a ss i st i n lowe r ing the barrie rs of res istance towa rd chang e construct our communication we can assist in lowering the barriers of resistance encountered when we bring ourselves, family, people, teams and organisations towards change.

Nick Bennett and Rowena Hardy are facilitators, performance coaches and partners at Minds Aligned: www.mindsaligned.com.au.

NEXT SATURDAY IN WEEKEND

24. Which former Howard government minister was recently elected national president of the Liberal Party?

25. A building at the Australian National University is named after which martial arts star?

ANSW E R S 1. Amazon. 2. Martin Kaymer. 3. Belize. 4. Francois Hollande.

(President, France; Co-prince, Andorra). 5. Wests. 6. International Monetary Fund. 7. Julia Gillard. (Tim Mathieson). 8. (a) Baghdad Pact. 9. Scott Morrison. 10. 22 Jump Street. 11. Japan. 12. Jakarta.

13. Steve Martin. (Picasso at the Lapin Agile). 14. Snapchat. 15. New Zealand. 16. (b) 2.45m. (Javier Sotomayor – Cuba). 17. North America. 18. (a) 1981. 19. Martin Bella. 20. Alfred Hitchcock. 21. Eli Wallach. 22. Adonis. 23. Edmund Barton. 24. Richard Alston. 25.

Jackie Chan. (Jackie Chan Science Centre).

Saturday, October 18, 2014

+ E A SY EATI NG//

S even e asy sum m er b arb ecue reci pes

+ MA K E // garden

How to b uild a herb