Overnight camp at Wright's Bay ...

It was cold and drizzly on the weekend but we braved it and decided to go camping...

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First stop, to Robe and The Wild Mulberry Cafe for lunch.  Gus chose a chicken caesar salad and I had the Vietnamese chicken salad which had mint, coriander, bean shoots, crispy fried onions, chicken and dressing that was so tangy - yum!

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A bit further on from Robe, heading towards Kingston, is the turn off to Wright's Bay.  There is not a lot there, just a small bay and coastline...

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Lots of seaweed washed up along the shore...

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Overcast days do not make a beach look very pretty...

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Such a pity that lots of weed is washed ashore...

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The camp ground is just a large paddock, all unpowered sites...

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Coastal flowers ...

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The caretaker's humpy ...

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Our camp set up with tarp for wind protection and the dark blue change room/ensuite toilet...

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Our cosy bed - we have swag liner sleeping bags that zip together and this lovely snuggly red fleece rug (the Ruby rug).  The tent bed is slightly larger than a normal double bed so there's plenty of room.

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Salad ...

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Cheese and pear for nibbles...

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Potato fries with Moroccan seasoning...

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We cooked them on the barbecue grill with foil and kitchen paper so they didn't stick.  Did a good job.

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Steaks!

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Delicious dinner...

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 Got the billy on to fill hot water bottles for bedtime.  Gotta have warm tooties!

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Cheers - Joolz xx

Sloppy hamburger mix ...

... not to be confused with Sloppy Joes! This recipe has been doing the rounds at camp grounds and caravan parks in these parts for years. You can make any sized quantity of it, double, triple the ingredients to suit your crowd. I think the beauty of it is that if you still need to feed a few more people that turn up late, just add a bit more flour, milk and onion and it will extend to feed the hoards!

Chop 1 large onion, finely

Grate 1 large carrot, finely

Add 1 packet of chicken noodle soup mix

Add 500 gms beef mince (or chicken/pork would work too)

Add 1/2 cup plain flour

2 teaspoons dried parsley

1 egg

Salt and pepper to your taste

Now add in 1/2 cup of milk and I find the best way to mix all of this ...

... is with a food safe dispoable rubber glove. Get in their and squish it all about and get it all combined. Add another 1/4 cup of milk at a time until the mix is ... sloppy!

Here it is packed ready for our camping trip today - if it happens - we have high winds, drizzling rain and its 16C ... Sigh! But a night by the sea tucked up in Ruby sounds good, right?

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As I said, if you now added a bit more flour, milk and onion to this quantity, this would feed 3-4 more people.

I'll let you know if we end up going ...

Cheers - Joolz xx

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Comfort food on a cold day - Cheesy Scones

 I've been enjoying my roses around the house.   All too soon they will be past their best...

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 I treated myself to Ree's 3rd book - it is stuffed full of good food, some recipes I hope to use over Christmas.  Her recipes are naughty though - imagine whipped mashed potatoes which have cream cheese, cream and butter in them!  Heart attack city!

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 I've been married for 27 years and have never owned or used a pastry blender.  Such a good tool - no more rubbing in butter and getting it all under my fingernails.   It was all blended in no time...

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 We are back to cold weather today - 15C - so I thought I'd knock up some little savoury scones at lunch time.  This is actually the recipe I used to make dumplings to go on top of a casserle I made a while back.

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 Cheesey Scones/Dumplings

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1 cup SR flour

1/2 tspn baking powder

25 gms butter, softened

salt and pepper to taste

25gms parmesan cheese, grated

sprinkle of dried parsley or chives (or use fresh)

not quite 1/2 cup milk to make the dough

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Rub the butter into the flour and baking powder, add in the cheese and parsley, s & p then make a dough, cutting through the mixture with a knife until it comes together.  Turn out onto a floured surface and gentry form into a ball.  Press down with your fingers until it is about 1/2 inch thick and cut into rounds or what ever shape you like.  Brush with milk.

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This does only make a small batch (eg. enough to top a casserole) so you might like to double the batch if you are doing scones.
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Bake in a 190C oven for about 12 minutes, rotating half way through cooking.

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I didn't have fresh bread at lunch time, so these hit the spot nicely and they were really good as dumplings covering a casserole.  Quick and easy and satisfying...

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Sunshiney day ...

Beautiful sunshiney, Spring day here today. Its so good to see blue sky!

My carpet roses have popped and I love this rich crimson one.

They basically thrive on neglect. Gus got the sprinkler system going yesterday - I can't believe we haven't watered before this, this year.

The Bonica's will need dead heading soon, once the flowers go off. If I leave them, they get weighed down too much.

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The back garden and my veggie patch...what, cant you see it? See the two planters under the clothesline? My thriving tomatoes!

And finally, our huge flock of sheep. Hello, DJ and Rack-Of (Lamb)!

Better get back to work, I just had to show you the sunshine!

Cheers - Joolz xx

Posted with Blogsy by Joolz