Orange F.O.O.D Week producers markets + the Agrestic Grocer

Yesterday I spent the day in the Central West. Some may say I am mad to have driven about 6 hours (round trip) just to visit the Orange F.O.O.D Week producers market, but I don't care! It was the most beautiful day and it made me appreciate farmers and producers even more than I already did.

F.O.O.D Week is on annually in the city of Orange NSW (roughly three hours west of Sydney) and I had been busting to get to one of the events. Some of the really popular events had already been booked out by the time I realised I wanted to go, so the producers market on Sunday was a must for me.

I read something on Facebook last week promoting people to shop at their local farmers market. Basically the post said if you were to stop shopping at your local supermarket they wouldn't notice the loss in business. If you in stead purchased your produce from a farmer's stall at the market you know where your money is going and are supporting the farmer 100%, your purchase might even save their farm.

I am in love with shopping up at farmers' markets. There is something about buying wholesome, fresh food and meeting the people who grew it.

Walking through Cook Park on my way to the markets. Such an enchanting park, don't you think?

So off I drove to Orange for the day with Trav's esky in tow. As well as heading to the markets, high on my list of things to do while in Orange was a visit to the Agrestic Grocer. I found their Facebook page through another blogger and they were also a part of the F.O.O.D Week events. I was expecting a quaint little cafe with some fresh produce and coffee but was blown away at how nice a business this was!

Located on the Wellington Road side of Orange (a little way from the centre of town), this restaurant is so beautiful and has the nicest, wholesome feel about it. I wanted to stay all day.

Plus, all of the producers I met at the market stock their products at the grocer so anybody from Orange (and visiting) can purchase home-grown goodness when ever they feel the need!

One side of the business is dedicated to the groceries and produce and the other side is the restaurant with kick-ass beer garden and live music! You can feast on locally made goodies and drink fresh brewed beer or coffee all day.

Everything about this place made me smile, I only wish we had somewhere like this closer to home! (A new business venture perhaps??! ha!)

This one trip to Orange to indulge in the gorgeousness they have on offer has made me really think about where I spend my money and how I want to live my life. Living more simply is something I am aiming for this year (and for the rest of my years) and if starting small and being mindful of where my food comes from and who I am supporting whilst buying it is a step closer to that, well then I am off to a good start!

E, x

Inspired

Hi there friends, once again I have been caught in the whirlwind that is life and have had no time to blog.

Ok, I lie. I had time to blog last week when I took a week off work to get stuff done and to take a break but the urge to blog did not come over me. Sometimes you've just gotta go with the flow... you know?

Anyhow, this week has been a busy one, and as I sit at my office desk I feel mentally and physically tired. I have not been treating my poor body that well on the food front - I haven't been eating takeaway junk or anything like that and have been working out hard as normal but I know when I get busy and stressed I rarely cook proper meals for myself and I get by on the old bowl of cereal or smoothie for dinner here and there.

I can tell I need to nourish my body better next week so meal prep this weekend is crucial. Not nourishing your body with good amounts of food can be just as bad as eating a truck load of junk - I need to remember this.

In light of all of this 'exhaustion' talk, I wanted to share a couple of things that are inspiring me at the moment. All this talk about food brings me to a fantastic blogger and business woman who I mentioned in my last post.

Sophie Hansen of Local is Lovely released her book this week, (titled the same as the blog) and I am super excited to read it. Her blog is beautiful and she shares so many great pictures of her life on the farm, recipes and the amazing food she produces and makes into glorious meals. I just placed my order and cannot wait for it to arrive!

This cooler weather is making me miss working on my parent's veggie patch which sadly has now died. The summer was brutal to the patch and I was battling to keep it alive last year and my parents have not had the time to keep up the maintenance since.

Now that I live in the city and have no yard I am having to resort to 'patio planting' inspiration! I have sighted the cutest planters on The Block Shop's website. (Yes I am addicted to that show!) These jelly planters are about $55 or so and would look super cute hanging on the patio (they also come in different colours). I'm not sure they'd work for veggies but I'd settle for some yummy herbs or a pretty weeping plant.

I am heading off to Bathurst this weekend to attend my godson's baptism. I have never been asked to be a god parent before so I feel so honoured and excited that my friend would ask me! It should be such a great weekend. The weather forecast is looking a little chilly so I need to be thinking about stocking up on a couple more winter knits! I love a change in the season!

Stay happy!
E, x

Bondi Farmers Market

Yesterday I got up early and decided I wanted to visit the Bondi Farmers Market. I have been fixated on going and visiting Bondi for some reason since I moved closer to the city. I had been there before and I am told the beach is not great for swimming in but I wanted to visit it anyway, plus I heard the markets there are good!

So it took me about an hour to drive in and the weather was suppose to be terrible with rain and storms but Mother nature held out long enough for me to explore the markets and get to walk along the beach for a little bit.

It was beautiful down there yesterday. The storm clouds were rolling in but it was humid and warm enough to swim. I wish I had packed my new Seafolly swimmers so I could christen them the right way (in the ocean of course!)

Anyhow, after I got caught up looking through Bondi Wholefoods (which is a great store/cafe by the way! - They are soon opening online, I'm excited! I really hope they post out here!) I realised that I had only paid about $5 for parking and it was going to run out if I didn't make it back to the markets soon!

I rushed into the fresh produce stall and was in heaven! I get so overwhelmed at these kinds of things and often don't know what to by. Next time I am definitely going to take a couple of recipes with me so I can purchase with meals in mind.

I stocked up on some usual stuff that I have in my fridge however: some scrumptious baby tomatoes, a big bag full of rocket, some dutch carrots, a bag full of apricots, mangos and a litre of almond milk! Yum!!!! I love almond milk and will be making my oats with this this morning.

Despite all of the amazing food, I could't go past the flower stall. Oh the flowers.

As soon as I spotted the peonies I was in love. These are my favourite flowers (on par with hydrangeas) and the stall holder had them in white and this lush red. So gorgeous!

And in true "hipster" fashion, on my last stop before hauling all of my goodies into my car I had to try a cold pressed juice. I asked the stall holder to recommend me a juice out of the green or the red. He said that everyone seems to be jumping on the 'green smoothie/juice' bandwagon but his favourite was the red beetroot juice mix. I can't remember what was in it (maybe apple and something else) but it wasn't too bad, although I think I'll try the green next time.

The only thing I am super bummed I forgot to get was some of the "Bondi Yoghurt" I have been seeing posted around Facebook. Aw well, maybe next time.

Have you been to the  Bondi Farmers Market before? Do you live in the Sydney area and know of any other good markets to visit? 

I'd love to hear about them! I love a good market!

E, x

A few of my favourite things

One of my favourite things about being back home in the country for uni holidays is getting the opportunity to get outdoors and enjoy the little things that country life has to offer.

One of these things is veggie gardening! I have had a love of veggie gardening for some time now and have never really had the space in either of my rentals that I have lived in to have a big veggie patch. Fortunately our family home is situated on a 5 acre paddock so there is plenty of room to grow gorgeous veggies!

Unfortunately this past summer has been a super hot one for our region so our veggies suffered. My parents also work a lot so they don't have a lot of time to put into the garden as much as they would like to.

Over the last week and a bit of me being home, I have made it my mission to bring the veggies back to life! So far I have managed to harvest some capsicums and an eggplant and I am trying my hardest to save our zucchini plant and get to the tomatoes before the bugs do!!

Our plot is only small at the moment but I have big plans if things keep going well!

Today's harvest from the Nelyambo (this is our house paddocks name) veggie patch also came from our lovely hens who I am glad to report did not get washed away with all of the rain we had last week! Still doing us proud and providing our family with plenty of yummy eggs.

I'm going to do some reading up on organic or alternate methods to getting rid of bugs from our veggies. Over the last week I had to resort to using an insecticide just to try and save what was left of the rotting and dying patch but I'd really like to start using organic alternatives to keep our veggies as healthy as ever!

Do you have any suggestions?? Any green-thumbs out there with some tips for me?? Please comment, I'd love to hear from you :)

E, x

This week...

Reflecting on this past week, I think I've learnt a few things....

1. People can and will always surprise you. Whether its a good surprise or a bad one, people are constantly surprising me. I'm learning that some people aren't really as they seem, and some people are really making me smile.

2. Exercise is my friend!! After a long couple of weeks getting used to being back at work and getting my "groove" back with exercise (lol) I've noticed such a change in how I feel in the morning and my motivation levels have sky rocketed! Yay!

3. Fake tan is my new best friend! Thank you to my good friend Jess.C who has motivated me to attempt fake tanning at home. For as long as I can remember I have envied girls with a beautiful sunny glow when Summer rolled around and this week I decided to bite the bullet and try a bit on my ever-so pasty and white legs. Well Jess you were right! I am now addicted to this tan. I love it, my legs look so golden and sunkissed and all this without an inch of sunburn! Hooray!!! lol

I'm using this awesome product by the Aussie label SugarBaby. I swear by this stuff!

4. Meeting new and different people is great!! After my life changing trip to Europe I came home feeling like I could tackle anything. Now I am throwing myself into new and different things in attempt to meet different people. I've met some awesome people and now spending some time with these "new friends" is making me really happy! Its not so scary putting yourself out there and getting into different friend "circles", I've learnt it can turn out to be a really good thing.

5. Gardening is not just for Nannas! I am loving getting into our garden and veggie patch. I am currently throwing myself into "reviving" my poor neglected basil plant that I thought had died already. Come back to me little Basil!!!!

6. Also along the lines of exercise, I am STOKED that online shopping is becoming more and more popular with general stores. I shopped up a storm at Running Bare online. Check it out if you (like me) need a makeover when it comes to your work out clothes. (I can finally retire my "Year 6" memorial t-shirt from making appearances in our local gym. lol) Plus, its also another awesome Aussie brand! Yep, I'm flying the flag for shopping in our country! hehe

7. Lastly, I am discovering a new love obsession with Sundays (not just Saturdays!) Today was a beautiful day and I've had a big smile on my face almost all day! I love the weekend.

How has your week been?? Fill me in, comment below!!

What do you think about....

....Organics??

I mean, organic anything? Food, cleaning products, beauty products, shampoos ... whatever!

Over the past few days I have been thinking about all of the crap we put into our mouths and on our bodies in the way of preservatives, chemicals and what not in all of the products we eat or use daily, it really gets me thinking. I have developed an interest in what it means to be "organic" and I'm interested in learning more about the benefits of using organic products.

I mean, it makes sense doesn't it?

When I was staying with friends in Holland last month I was blown away and so inspired by their way of living on their gorgeous little farm! They have a veggie patch to DIE for, they make all of their own food from their fresh produce and its just delicious, and they know exactly what has gone into their meals and I love that!!

I noticed as I rode my push bike through the farm land and into Aalten (a small town in the countryside) that the Dutch people really are the fresh food and produce people! I went to a small market and the produce was amazing! The flowers were so gorgeous, I was in love.

It has totally inspired me to get our garden and veggie patching going properly again and to focus more on homegrown, fresh produce where I know exactly what has gone into my food.

Do you grow your own veggies, or make your own "organic" products to use at home?? What do you think about organic stuff??

I'd love to hear all about it!

Ellie..............x

All things Merry and Christmasy!

Merry Christmas everyone!!

Gosh I love this time of year, and now that it is Boxing Day, I have to admit I am a little sad that it's all over for another year.

Yesterday was a great day spent with my gorgeous family, opening presents, laughing, relaxing and eating... LOTS of eating!

I was also very spoilt this year in the presents department! The biggest present that I received off my Mum and Dad was my very first Mix Master! I am soooo stoked! Its a gorgeous Sunbeam Cafe Series Mix Master. I LOVE it! It also made an appearance in the kitchen on Chrissie day when I attempted making my first ever Pavlova. After all, what time of Christmas would it be without a pav, right??!

I was sooo surprised with myself once I finished whipping up the pav from scratch and tasted it... it was a hit!!!

All of these years I have been thinking that pavlova's were hard to make, when in fact they're SUPER easy! Especially when you're lucky enough to have a snazzy new mix master to help you whip those egg whites!! hehe

Also on the Christmas front, I promised that I'd post about my Jellywares Christmas washer swap goodies, so here they are...

Firstly from Toni at The Red Boot Quilt Company I received this gorgeous red washer. It is sooo soft and beautifully made - perfect for the festive season!

Then I received this cute handmade soap holder, also in Christmas colours!

And inside was this neat bar of soap...

Also in my parcel of goodies was some very yummy chocolates (which I couldn't help myself with and ate already!) and some beautiful Chai tea and black tea... yummo!

Thank you so much for the goodies Toni! I love them all, it was such a nice early Christmas present to receive these in the mail!

In other news, today I strolled outside into our tiny backyard and noticed that I had 2 bright red and scrumptious looking tomato's hanging from my 2 tomato bushes! I was super happy to see these beauties as they're the first tomato's I've managed to harvest this season!

All in all, the last few days have been great and I'm looking forward to the next few off work! Ahh, holidays are so nice aren't they?!

I hope your Christmas day has been as relaxing and lovely as mine. Did Santa find you!?

Until my next post, enjoy the time off!

Veggie patch update...

These days I find myself wishing that I had more time on my hands to do the stuff that I love, like crochet, knitting and of course time to tend to my (slightly neglected) veggie patches!!!

This week has seen Roger and I both very tired and worn out with work and uni study (for me) taking its toll. I managed to snap a few piccies of the yummy veggies in our garden, that are luckily surviving even without my constant attention!

This little strawberry bud is looking a little thirsty but I'm so glad that its still growing strong. Hopefully we'll have some yummy strawberries in no time!

Some zucchini seedlings started to sprout!

Our tomato plants are slowly getting bigger!

We've been super lucky with all of the rocket that I've planted, it seems to flourish no matter the conditions! These little seedlings sprouted pretty much straight away!

The weekend is fast approaching and I have plenty of crochet/knitting and gardening projects to work on. What have you got planned for the weekend??

* smiles *

Ellie x

Harvesting...

Today I harvested some baby carrots from our veggie patch!! I was so excited to pluck the little orange veggies from the garden, some of them turned out better than others and some were really funny looking all curly at the ends!

These carrots were grown from seeds, they're some of the first veggies that I've ever grown and I've definitely learnt a few things since growing these babies.

Next time around I'm definitely going to space my carrot seeds out more so they have space to grow larger and over-crowding wont happen. But for now I'm happy with this first batch of baby carrots and are hoping they'll taste very yummy steamed maybe with some honey as honey baby carrots!!

Also this week I'm hoping to get some pretty crocheted bed socks started. I found this pattern on Ravelry and I love how they look.

Hopefully I can get them started when I find some more spare time!

Ellie x

First Seedlings

This month I planted my first ever veggie patch in a big poly drum that my dad gave to me! My BF Roger and I collected all of the dirt and things to get it all set up in our little back yard! I'm sooo excited about it! I planted seeds (which I was a little scared of doing because I've never grown anything from seeds) but as soon as I saw my first seedlings pop up I was ecstatic!!
The first seeds to show were the rocket seeds! I have been checking the seedlings everyday and slowly everything is starting to sprout! I think everyone should give a veggie patch a go! I cant wait until we can harvest and have our own fresh veggies for dinner! Not long now, bu October we will have our own onions! lol