This month my kitchen is full of Tasmania produce that I lugged home from our recent holiday to the tune of much grumbling from Mr Grumpy. Sometimes he really earns that name. I'd never quite realised that Tasmania was such a large truffle producer, so was surprised to find a lot of truffle infused foods on offer. I settled on this truffle risotto, which will be handy to have in the cupboard for a quick meal when the weather cools down. The sea salt is a new addition to my growing collection of salt from around the world.
We ate much cheese whilst away, but sadly couldn't bring everything home. I stilled managed to tuck a small sample into the luggage though. The Pyengana Tasty Cheddar was awarded best cheddar in Australia last year, although to be honest I preferred the Vintage Cheddar. I don't usually buy 'flavoured' cheese but I really did like the taste of the Ashgrove Wild Wasabi, infused with Tasmania wasabi. We could only buy the cloth wrapped cheddar direct from Ashgrove so I couldn't leave without a block.
Speaking of wasabi, I had heard great things about the Tasmania wasabi but it proved very difficult to actually find. I finally located a packet of dried wasabi on our last day in Launceston, which will make approximately 100g of wasabi paste. Given how hot it is, this should be sufficient for a few meals. All I need to do now is make sushi. I have had sumac and ginger powder on my shopping list for ages so took the opportunity to avoid postage when I found a large range of Herbie's Spices at the same shop.
Yes I did carry all this salmon back in my hand luggage. The hot smoked salmon at is possibly the best I have ever tasted and I was not going home without some (or a lot). We have already started eating these supplies, which will last for up to six weeks in the fridge. Thankfully they also do mail order, so I can replenish when this lot is gone.
One of the berry farms we visited had a range of liqueurs made from their own fruit. Nigel Slater is quite the fan of Cassis (blackcurrant liqueur) in his pudding recipes, and I am quite the fan of Nigel Slater, so with my own bottle can now recreate more of his recipes. I don't often buy jam as I make a lot of my own low sugar jams. Yet I couldn't pass up this raspberry jam. It tastes of raspberries rather than sugar, which is how jam should be in my opinion. I have been meaning to make Worcestershire sauce for a while now. Maybe this will be my year. Until then I have this lovely bottle of artisan sauce to fill the gap.
That is it for my kitchen this month. Don't forget to hop over to Celia's at Fig Jam and Lime Cordial to see what is happening in other kitchens around the world.
