• RECIPE: Cornflake Biscuits

    This recipe was a huuuuge favourite with our kids when they were youngsters, and whilst they are a bit fiddly to make, and it isn’t often that we make them these days, they are nice to have with a cuppa – and are a good way to use up ageing cornflakes. [we usually double the recipe] Ingredients 125g butter ⅓ cup (75g) caster sugar 1 large egg 1 tsp vanilla extract ⅔ cup (105g) sultanas or other preferred dry fruit (cranberries are good!) 1 cup (150g) self-raising flour 2 cups lightly crushed cornflakes Method Preheat oven to 180°C. Line a baking tray with baking paper. Cream butter and sugar until…

  • Springtime

    springtime

    -=- Spring is here, and everything is budding out, flowering, setting fruit, or has already grown at an amazing rate – as happens at this time of the year! We will take an intentional wander around in the next week or two to specifically take a pile of garden photos, and put them up to show you all how much it has come along in such quick time. It seems like only a few short weeks ago, that we planted out the purple and butter pole-beans that we had germinated in-doors during the cool, and already we are

  • ps to Northland

    . PS to the Northland post: Cant make any promises sorry – but have got the video of ‘Chef Suzette‘ down to less than half its original size! Hope it works for you 😀 xx  

  • Kiwi kidults return!

    . We’ve had the kidults that were in New Zealand for most of the last year, back home for the last two weeks. (aka the KWL team) They stayed at the house in town, and have been doing some wonderful work for us while they visited. There has been a lot that they have achieved over the last fortnight

  • Jammin’

    . Today we’re rockin’ it out – and we’re jammin’….! Strawberry Jammin’ that is 😀 Yep – you can buy home-brand strawberry jam for super-cheap at the local supermarket, but when you read the ingredients on the back of the jar/tin, it can definitely give you a case of the willies, wondering why allllll that unnecessary stuff is even in there – and wondering just how much actual strawberries it even contains… So – at the moment in our part of the world, strawberries are thriving, and if you don’t grow them, they can be purchased for around $4kg – so who wouldn’t want to make jam?!?! And today we…

  • A ‘real’ Farm

    . Just a quick post today… Based on the criteria on which our grandson goes by, we now have a ‘real‘ Farm. Strigidae Farm wishes to announce the arrival of Izzy and Jac. Welcome additions to our crazy fun-filled Family. They’ll get to be lazy fertiliser generators over the Winter, but come Spring, they’d best be earning their keep popping out the occasional egg – or they’ll be making a fine soup! 😀  

  • Cooler Evenings

    Another couple of weeks seem to have flown on by, and the much welcomed cool evening are finally settling in around Strigidae Farm, and we’ve been plodding along – getting bits and pieces done about the place. We had some fairly huge downpours when the cyclone was shifting off down the coast, some of which came in – but we’re old hands at this now, and its nothing that a couple of well placed towels couldn’t fix! One of the fun things we’ve done of late, is to make our own laundry detergent. Its a super easy process, and doesn’t take too long at all – and cleans the clothes…