tasmania: launceston

We were reluctant to head back in to town after our stay at Bay of Fires but the time came to refill the water tanks (2 x 95 litres) and find a dump point. I'd never paid attention to dump point signs until this trip! 

J planned a morning walk from town to Cataract Gorge. Naturally I planned a visit to the providore enroute to stock up on local ham, cheese & fresh Manu bread. Throw in a few of those Lucaston apples (love the IGAs in this state) and you have yourself a picnic! 

The Mill Providore is a stones throw from Kings Bridge in Launceston (& I dare you to walk out empty handed) where you can park and begin the 15 minute walk to the Gorge. If it's hot take swimmers as there's a pool. The chairlift can take you across or you can rock hop or take the path along to the suspended bridge. It's an easy walk for kids or those who aren't keen on an arduous outing. In other words, you won't burn off the cheese you've just eaten! 

As it's close to town we stayed at Old Mac's Farm which offers unpowered sites (with water) along the banks of trout ponds for $10/n. J paid $20 extra to fish from the ponds. This was the scene just moments before he hooked a fish.... 

And dramatically tackled it in the reeds when it flipped off the hook! He wasn't going to let it get away!! 

I'd read good things about the food in Launceston so we made the most of the two days we had. 

Stillwater is a posh cafe downstairs from the Mill Providore. We were squeezed in but couldn't entirely relax despite our children being well behaved. The granola was INCREDIBLE but it might be a nicer place to eat with friends without children! 

With so much great produce in Tassie it's hard to go a day without being inspired to cook. I made Anni's walnut, apple & spice biscuits with Lucaston Apples, Coaldale Walnuts & added some Diemen Native Pepperberry for a bit of bite!

http://missmayblossom.blogspot.com.au/2014/03/anni-walnut-apple-biscuits.html?m=1

I didn't have the Thermomix going so I melted the butter on the stove and added the rest of the ingredients to the saucepan (off the heat). 

I sometimes wish we lived in a house and didn't have a weight limit. The Mill Store supplies Tassie with freshly milled flours & in large quantities!

A visit to Alps and Amici was the last thing on my list for Launceston. I went there for coffee beans, completely forgot, and came back with more Manu Bread, Bok's Bacon, the sweetest corn, sweet potato, pears & Tassie snow peas for $6/kg! And two double-shot flat whites. These were some of the best coffees we've had in Tassie. And there were so many more temptations in-store but we just couldn't squeeze it all in! 

The Glenbarry Bush Maze is a short 45 minute drive from Launceston. It was a natural place for us to stop for lunch on the way to Narantapu National Park. The kids loved the maze and the giant games & puzzles set out within the grounds. You can enjoy a coffee while the kids play. 

blackberry crumble on the farm

Each time I make crumble I think of my first few weeks of Uni & living out of home. A friend from uni called in & I was pleased to offer him some apple crumble I'd made with an oaty topping - very improvised. I'd never looked at a recipe for crumble & it was pretty ordinary really. I applogised to my friend but it wasn't until after he'd eaten it that my mature-aged uni friend kindly told me he trained as a chef before doing teaching. 

I didn't make another crumble until I found this - my favourite crumble recipe - for peaches or nectarines. (http://missmayblossom.blogspot.com.au/2012/01/just-desserts.html?m=1) 

J & the kids were out in the paddocks for the morning. They had the biggest grins on their faces when they returned with a shopping bag full of blackberries. 

They'd put on their long sleeved tops & trousers to protect them from the thorny bushes with gifts of black gold. Yum! 

I was kicking myself that I didn't have my scrap book with my crumble recipe in it when I realised is probably posted it on my foodie blog (missmayblossom.blogspot.com) and there it was! 

You may wonder how I managed to bake a crumble in a caravan but the truth is I used an oven that's in the shed on the farm although I do have an oven in my caravan. (Virtual tour to come). 

I turned those tasty morsels in to a jammy apple & blackberry crumble. 

ingredients

filling

shopping bag full of blackberries

5 large Granny Smith apples 

1.5 cups raw sugar

1 cup of water

crumble topping

1/3 cup brown sugar 

1 tspn baking powder

1 tspn each ground ginger & mixed spice 

3 tblspn flaked almonds (I didn't have any this time but I do recommend them)

60g unsalted butter, chilled and chopped into 1cm cubes 

100g plain flour

Preheat oven to 200°c. In a saucepan over a medium heat place 1.5 cups raw sugar and a cup of water before adding five green apples (cut into 2cm cubes with the skins on. Cook the apples until soft. 

In the meantime make the crumble topping by mixing sugar, baking powder, ginger & mixed spice. Stir in the flaked almonds. Crumble butter in to mixture to form pea-sized pieces then toss the flour mixture with the sugar mixture. 

{Note: I wouldn't want to make this topping in the Thermomix as it can easily be overworked & needs to be kept coolish but I do love that I can easily weight the ingredients on top of the bowl.}

Once the apple is soft add the shopping bag full of blackberries. Stir for three minutes over the heat before transferring to a pie dish. I liked to keep the form of the blackberries. 

Strew topping over fruit. Bake at 200°c for 25-30 mins until the topping is golden brown & the fruit is bubbling through at the edges. Serve with cream or ice cream.