In My Kitchen this month are some great time-saving organic ginger products, some delicious flavoured mayonnaise, a bounty of fresh produce and my Nana’s recipe book. Grab a cup of tea and enjoy the view from my kitchen.
I haven’t written an In My Kitchen post for a while, as quite frankly there has not been much happening. I have no idea where the year has gone, but it has left me precious little time for experimenting. Or for accumulating gadgets, something that Mr Grumpy is eternally grateful for. However, a change of season has brought with it stirrings in the kitchen, and I suddenly find myself with goodies to share.
I have long been a fan of the Ginger Syrup produced by The Ginger People. We love it poured over waffles or stirred into lemon tea when feeling poorly. So when I was approached to try some other products from their Organic Pantry Essentials line* I jumped at the chance. The minced ginger is a handy timesaver for spooning into stir fries and curries, and great for those times you discover there is no ginger in the house (Or is that just me??), and I love that the Pickled Sushi Ginger is not artificially coloured – most shop versions are a lurid and unnatural shade of pink. The product that excites me the most though is the Ginger Juice. I have lots of gingery salad dressings planned, without the bits that come from grated ginger.
If the demolition of the Ginger Bar by The Princess is anything to go by, their confectionery line is also very good. I can’t vouch for that personally as the bar disappeared before I could try it. You have to be quick around here.
Whilst I usually make my own cultured mayonnaise, I always keep a commercial brand on hand for those times that I run out and cannot be bothered making more. I was recently sent samples of the Birch & Waite’s Whole Egg Mayonnaise range*, which has both a traditional version and a variety of flavoured options. I have to say I am very impressed by the quality of the mayonnaise. It is well balanced, and not too sweet like many commercial varieties. We are seriously in love with the chipotle version. It has just the right amount of heat to it, and paired perfectly with our weekend pulled pork sandwiches. The Princess has also been dolloping the truffle mayonnaise on her chicken sandwiches, which I think is a big tick of approval. If you are in Australia, the line is currently stocked in Woolworths.
There is a lot of fresh produce in the kitchen at the moment. Whilst my own garden is bursting with broccoli and silverbeet, a recent trip to dad’s veggie garden resulted in this bounty. I love it when cabbages are so fresh that they squeak. The only downside is that this bounty arrived after I had completed my weekly meal plan, so now I have to rethink the whole thing to take advantage of the produce. I see caramelised brussel sprouts with bacon in my dining future.
And lastly In My Kitchen is my Nan’s recipe book. I collated this version from my Nana’s old recipe books as a Christmas present for my mum a few years ago, and obviously kept a copy for myself. I have dipped into it occasionally but have been making a more concerted effort to cook from it of late. I am discovering some fantastic yet simple recipes that the whole family love, and will be putting some of them up on the blog soon. Keep an eye out for them.
That’s about it for my kitchen this month. In My Kitchen is now hosted by Liz from Good Things, so don’t forget to hop over to her blog to check out what is happening in other kitchens around the world.
* These products were supplied to me in accordance with my Disclosure Policy.
^This post contains affiliate links. I will earn a small commission on any products you purchase at no additional cost to you.
Liz Posmyk (Good Things)
Oh Tania, your grandmother’s recipes! How very special. I am looking forward to trying the mayonnaise… as soon as the warmer weather comes. Lovely to see you playing IMK… and thank you for the kind words and lovely shout out x
tania
They are very special Liz … so many memories. Your comment about mayonnaise amuses me … I also associate it with warmer weather and eat a lot more in summer. I wonder why that is? Thank you again for taking on the hosting of IMK 😀
Lori
Those mayonnaises look yummy. What a great recipe book, a treasure!
tania
I love the recipes Lori. I am trying to cook more of them as they always bring back memories.
napoli Restaurant alert
Yum! What a lovely kitchen you have this month. Would love to get my hands on some of that ginger juice and will keep an eye out for the mayonnaise
tania
I am pretty excited about the ginger juice. The mayonnaise is very good, particularly the chipotle version. Check out the chiller section in the supermarket.
SeattleDee
You set my taste buds tingling with thoughts of ginger this and ginger that plus flavored mayonnaise. Yours is a tasty kitchen this month!!
tania
It is this month Dee 😀
Kim | a little lunch
Tania, I’m admiring your ginger stash and that “squeaky” cabbage. 🙂 I also hear ya on having to re-do (or re-think) your menu plan based on unexpected pantry gifts. (Waste not, want not.) I’m sure you’ll come up with some delicious revised meals! How lovely of you to compile your Nana’s recipes into a book. What a treasure!
tania
Lots and lots of vegetable dishes in the revised plans Kim 😉 I was too scared to use Nan’s old recipe books as they were so fragile Kim, so it is good to have a copy that I can scribble my own notes on.
Sherry m
Yes I have used that brand of mayo too. It’s not bad. I do love the look of that book of your nan’s recipes. How wonderful to have. My MIL had a heap of family recipes from a couple of generations of family cooks but threw them out when she moved. We were all devastated!
tania
Oh Sherry … that just makes me cringe. How sad for your family to have lost all that history 🙁 The recipes in Nan’s books were starting to fade where oils and fingerprints had overlaid the inks, so I am glad that the recipes are now preserved in another book.
sherry MacKay
I know- so awful to lose them. Her daughter (my SIL) had esp. asked her to make sure she kept them but lo and behold, they were gone when we cleaned out the house for selling. A tragedy!
tania
🙁 Sherry
Sylvia ritchie
Morning Tania, can you put some of your nans recipes on line. My mum never collected recipes and my Oma’s I couldn’t understand, but I remember making with her a couple of recipes which I still do for me as my family done sent like that sort of food. Thanks for reading from a cold but sunny autumn in England. Sylvia
tania
Hi Syliva. I am intending to start posting some of Nan’s recipes in the coming months so keep an eye out for them 🙂 I have already posted her scone recipe here, which appears at least once a week in my mum’s kitchen.