One scoop or two?

Looking for that perfect ice-cream to compliment your hot apple pie? Well look no further, we have discovered a natural ice-cream that seems to have everything going for it.

Nushie's Natural is the perfect non dairy ice-cream; gluten, egg and dairy free, contains no chemicals or artificial additives and no added sugar. Its cholesterol and casein free, low GI, vegan and its certified organic, we have just found our perfect product!

Made from coconut milk and cashew nuts, Nushie's ice-creams are extra smooth and can be found in the following delicious flavours:

Chocolate with organic raw 100% cacao

Royal green tea

Strawberry

Truly decadent tiramisu

Vanilla with organic raw vanilla bean

To find a stockist of this perfect product, visit: www.nushiesnatural.com.au.

Tarian Pantry. Sharing the knowledge.

www.tarianpantry.com.au

The perfect brew.

I know coffee making is an art, both in roasting and presentation - I've seen the delicate patterns that don the top of a latte or cappuccino! However lets not forget there is an art of making the perfect cup of tea too.

I am not talking about the art of dunking a Bushells tea bag in a mug of hot water, adding milk and then masking the taste with too many sugars. Im talking about, quality tea leaves that have delectable flavours such as green earl grey with a mix of bergamot and rose petals - ah this is what tea breaks are all about.

Whilst shopping at the Queen Victoria Markets today the Tarian Pantry team stumbled across a lovely tea merchant - you will find no sweet artificial flavours of vanilla or strawberry here - these are the cream of the crop, the tea crop!

Follow the steps below and you will be well on your way to making the perfect cup or pot of tea.

Step 1 - Warm the cup or pot with boiled water, rinse then add the loose leaf tea in a bag or an infuser

Step 2 - Pour nearly boiled water straight into the cup/pot

Step 3 - Infuse for 3-5 minutes. As a general rule, the smaller the leaf the shorter the brewing time

Step 4 - Sway the bag or agitate the leaves in the infuser a few times, this ensures a more balanced release of flavour

Step 5 - Remove bag or infuser prior to serving

Note: Only black teas (with the exception of Earl Grey) should be served with milk.

www.tarianpantry.com.au

Vegetable Box of goodness

When stocking up your Tarian Panty with fruit & vegetables each week, remember to bring an eco shopping bag or ask for a vegetable box for your purchases instead of using and contributing to the production of plastic bags.

The most inexpensive way to do your produce shopping each week is purchasing from your local growers markets. A box of goodness such as what's pictured will set you back around $45...not bad considering this is feeding two people, its all organic and it easily provides goodness for 7 meals and 7 lunches.

And if there are any vegetables left overs at the end of the week, my kitchen tip: you can always make a soup!

www.tarianpantry.com.au

Imperfect is perfect

After adopting an organic lifestyle over 5 years ago, it soon became apparent that the produce I was purchasing did not look like that found in conventional supermarkets, featured on TV or pictured in magazines.

It wasn't to say that the organic produce I was buying was sub standard, it just meant I was buying produce that fell naturally off trees when ripe and that the produce was grown without the use of pesticides and insecticides. What I noted I was and still eating, was and is nature.

Nature gives us the gift of food, warts and all. I would much prefer to find dirt on my mushrooms, a worm in my lettuce and dark marks on my oranges than buy something that looks like its been airbrushed!

www.tarianpantry.com.au

Essentials for the fridge

At times we can become a little lazy in the kitchen but we must limit these moments as this can result in poor eating. Having a few pre prepared food items in your fridge will help you create tasty and nutritious meal in minutes not hours.

Roasted tomatoes

Add to pasta, tofu, green beans and lentils giving your dish a lovely sweetness and caramelised flavour.

Tomato sauce

Use as a sauce for your pasta or gnocchi, a base for your pizza or even a tomato concentrate in an indian curry.

Grated carrot & beetroot

Add to sandwiches, burgers, muffins, salads and the list goes on.

After a weekend market shop, I spend half an hour on a Sunday afternoon roasting the tomatoes, cooking the tomato sauce and grating a few carrots & beetroots. This half an hour saves me hours in the week and ensures good healthy eating for the working week ahead.

www.tarianpantry.com.au

New Discovery - Kamut

There is always something to learn about food, a new product, a new brand and most importantly, a new (or old) food that gets brought to your attention. Today I discovered Kamut pasta.

Kamut is an ancient grain, and a close relative to durum wheat. Kamut is considered nutritionally superior to many other forms of wheat with protein content 40% higher than traditional wheat. Kamut is high in vitamins and carbohydrates therefore produces greater energy than traditional wheat - ideal for that carb load needed when training for a marathon like myself!

Kamut has a sweet nutty flavour. Kamut pasta takes around 7 minutes to cook and makes the perfect meal when served with Tarian’s basic tomato sauce recipe with added swiss brown mushrooms, spinach, red peppers and onions.

www.tarianpantry.com.au

Feeling the cold?

Day light savings may have ended and winter on its way but it seems the dreaded lurgy has already found its way into my system. I am not one for getting sick, not that I don’t mind being sick, it reminds me how good it is to be well but I rarely get sick so when I do, it’s a bit of a shock to the system.

To combat this head cold of mine, I have been drinking Highland Herbs cold and flu tea – the tonic for all colds. Ingredients such as yarrow, thyme hyssop, fennel, ginger, peppermint, echinacea and elderflower, there’s nothing in this tea that won’t help you get better fast! Along with miso soup and steamed greens my immune system is getting all the medicines it needs without the need to visit a pharmacy. Go natural this winter.

www.tarianpantry.com.au

Using what is available to you

We have all stood in front of our fridge, door wide open hoping for inspiration on what to cook. 9 times out of 10 you close the door and order takeaway, right? Wrong. Look in your pantry, there’s always something lurking in there!

We all have a can of chickpeas in the pantry that have been there since you can’t even remember when. There are many uses for chickpeas such as making hummus, a chickpea curry with tomatoes and ginger or even tossing them into a salad with green beans and rocket.

It’s time to start being creative and use what you already have. And remember, it’s good to deplete the stocks in the larder; it means we are using everything in our pantry not just stocking up on top of it. This is good for the bank account & our environment.

www.tarianpantry.com.au