Reo on the AirNZ screens this morning! I got so excited, pressing each button to see all the options in te reo, photographing the screen … that my flight closed for check-in. Oops.
Author: Shirl
Kirihou kore
Plastic free July … take up the challenge!
Apple Cider Vinegar
To make apple cider vinegar: Take one large clean jar, fill with chopped apples, then pour water over to fill the jar. Cover with a cloth or paper so that the mixture can breathe (but no bugs get in). Leave for 1-2 weeks. Strain, and there’s your vinegar.
Tips: To sterilise jars and lids, run through the dishwasher or pop in a cold oven, then turn oven to 100 degrees to heat. Remove after half an hour.
Organic/homegrown apples are best as store-bought ones often have wax coating or chemicals. You can even use apple scraps (e.g. peelings and cores) from making crumble etc.
Best to use non-chlorinated water. Boil and cool first.
The amount of time you leave the mixture to ferment depends on the air temperature etc. Do a taste and/or sniff test. I have been known to keep one for several months, and it’s fine.
If it forms a nice thick scum layer on the top, this is called the ‘mother’. Apparently you can use this to make your next batch of vinegar. I’m about to try this 🙂
Accidental vegan cake
I started making a cake for a hui, then realised I was missing certain ingredients, so I substituted … and the final result just happened to be a vegan cake! This is what happens when you discover you don’t have yoghurt, eggs or butter to make your cake.
Recipe: Mix one cup of Raglan coconut yoghurt, one cup of sugar, one cup of dried coconut, about 1.5 cups of self-raising flour plus juice and rind of two lemons. Add about 100g of melted coconut oil. Mixture should be like thick porridge. Bake in a tin for about half an hour.
A good mother
We make apple cider vinegar every year, but for some reason this one has a particularly good ‘mother’. That’s the layer on the top where all the ferment happens. I’m going to strain it off and try and do a second ferment from it.
Spray and wipe #2
Half white vinegar, half water. This bottle also has a lemon peel in it for lemony-scent.
The cost? estimated forty four cents.
Bin Inn white vinegar: $1.75/L, this uses approx 1 cup. #lovebininn
Spray and wipe
Easy spray and wipe: a squirt of dishwash into a re-usable bottle, top it up with water and a couple of drops of essential oil (if you want). The cost? estimated three cents per bottle.
Dishwash from Bin Inn $3.30/litre. This mix uses about 5ml. #lovebininn
Dinner by torchlight
One of the challenges of the shorter days is having to collect dinner from the garden by the light of a torch.
This Sunday …
We were honoured to have Miriama Kamo and Te Rerehua (and Kim and Gary on cameras) come and kōrero to us about the kaitiaki practices in our whānau. Screening this Sunday 9th June. See you there xx.