Jam packed week with Rhubarb Jam

It’s been a hectic couple of weeks at the Observatory! For a start, my birthday was on the 4th, and aside from a massive pub crawl the night before, the highlight was the party, in which we sat on the roof drinking, cooked up a mass of steak, and generally got rowdy, not to mention the amazing mouse cake that my amazing friend Liesa made! Seriously, the woman is talented, she’ll be dragged in to make every novelty kids cake my future offspring ask for! IN addition to the birthday shenanngians, I’ve spent this week in Sydney with Matt. Whilst officially I was here for a two day Palliative Care meeting, we went up two days early, spent Tuesday running around the city, catching the ferry, spending hours getting lost in the Botanic Gardens, and generally having a great time. We stayed in a small hotel in Potts Point, just down from Kings Cross. That night, we had an amazing dinner at a small pasta place in Darlinghurst (well worth a look if you’re ever in town!), had a few beverages at The Sugar Mill whilst listening to a table of guys singing karaoke, then discovered the gem that is Goldfish. The guys there were great, and even though it was quite busy, took the time out to discuss their cocktails, make suggestions, debate benefits of certain alterations, and generally deserved a much bigger tip than I could afford that night. The Mika is highly recommended!

Wednesday saw Matt being incredibly brave, and meeting my father’s side of the family. After breakfast in the Cross, it was off to the nursing home to see my Nana, who we took out for a lovely lunch. Unfortunately completely forgot to take photos, as we were having such a great time talking. Hard to believe she’s turning 90 in less than 3 weeks, she’s so on the ball, and if it wasn’t for a bad hip operation, would probably get around town better than me! Then it was off to The Rocks with Matt and dad for a bit of exploration (read: pint @ the Irish pub), back to Paddington for a wander around the old strip (my Nana used to live just off of Oxford St), and another pub visit before dinner with Dad, his wife, and my half-sister at the most amazing backstreet pub (500g NY steak, bleu, with pepper sauce? YUM!). The night was topped off with delicious ice cream from the strip, before collapsing in to bed and instantly falling asleep. Apparently Matt was all geared up to go out, and was trying to convince me to get up again, oops. Probably just as well, with my 7.30am train trip to the airport for the meeting that started today. Matt goes back on the last plane tonight, while I’m still here for another meeting fun-filled day on my own!

Since doing all this trekking around, all I wanted for breakfast this morning was toast with rhubarb jam, but couldn’t get the toast, let alone the rhubarb! I love rhubarb, it really just screams summer for me. I used to hate it as a kid, but my matured palate can’t get enough of the stuff. I had two big bunches the other day, and rather than see it go to waste waiting to be eaten, I decided to make a batch of jam. I do this every year, and it lasts me for ages, mostly because of forgetting it stashed up the back of the fridge! Whilst sweet, I don’t tend to use much sugar (relatively), and it has quite a tart bite to it, which is divine. Mmm, first thing going in my belly when I get back Saturday morning.



Rhubarb Jam

What you’re going to need

• 2 bunches fresh rhubarb 
• Sugar (I use raw or similarly low refined sugar) 
• Apple cider vinegar 
• Spices (I use cinnamon, ginger, star anise and all spice) 

Wash your rhubarb, and trim off the tough ends and leaves, leaving you with the stalks only. Chop these up into 1cm lengths, and place into a heavy-based saucepan that holds them comfortably.

Sprinkle some sugar over the top, I usually find ¼ cup works well at this stage. Throw in your spices (I leave the cinnamon quills and star anise whole, and grind any other spices I use), and give it all a good mix. Cover, and leave on the bench overnight to macerate. You shouldn’t have to add any more liquid, and by the next morning, there should be a nice syrup starting to form.

Add a few splashes of vinegar to the mix, to preserve the beautiful pinky-purple colour of the rhubarb, then place the pan over low heat. Keep an eye on the pan, mixing occasionally until the fruit is stewed down to your desired consistency. I like mine to be a little bit chunky, but still spreadable. I highly recommend tasting along the way, and adjusting your spice and sugar levels if needed. If the cooked mix just resembles stewed fruit, and has little syrup, you may need to add more sugar.

While your jam is cooking, sterilize some clean jars by filling and surrounding them with boiling water, then popping them into a warm oven to dry and stay warm. Once your jam is ready and still hot, pull out any large bits of cinnamon or star anise*, then transfer it into the hot jars, trying to ensure as few air bubbles as possible. Put the lids on their jars, then turn them upside-down, and leave them on the bench to cool. I label each jar, and then keep them in the fridge, mostly because I don’t have a whole lot of cupboard space, and partially from habit of living in a crazy hot climate.

Enjoy with some toasted sourdough and goats cheese, added to a cocktail, on your morning muesli, straight from the jar with a spoon…




* If you’re like me, and forget to pull out the chunky bits, never fear, the flavours of the spices will just continue to infuse in the jar, and you may have to watch out for sudden crunchy, flavourful surprises when sucking the spoon. I have a jar that tastes more like licorice than rhubarb =/

From one joint to the next

Don't let the laugh fool you, this was my hell for most of 2009

In January 2009, I injured my knee quite severely. I spent the best part of a year on crutches or wearing a brace, not able to bear weight. I went from 5 days a week at the gym, softball, baseball, triathalon and rockclimbing, to nothing, losing 10kg in 4 months, my thigh wasting to half its size within that time. Despite visiting naturopaths, physios and surgeons, having MRIs, CT scans and gods only know how many tests, no one was actually able to tell me what was wrong. There were plenty of theories, ligament damage, ruptured ACL, meniscus tear, cartilage damage, but none seemed to cover the complex range of problems I was experiencing. I iced, heated, strapped, massaged, drugged, herbalised, rested, exercised and stretched, with very little improvement for many months. Eventually, my body adapted, and the other parts of my leg took over from whatever the injury was. I went to the local community physio once a fortnight. Eventually I was able to walk without aids, and even run (very!) short distances, but I didn’t regain the strength or stability. Rather than helping me toward my old form, the community physio refused to see me once I regained function, i.e. I could walk. Things like rock-climbing or triathalon were, and still are, completely out of the question. I still have issues with pivoting, balance, loading, and couldn’t walk for 3-4 days a few months back because of jarring my knee on a wet floor.

This morning, I actually got a definitive answer.

I’ve been seeing a physiotherapist since dislocating my shoulder a month ago today, about 7 visits in that short time. Thanks to a highly intensive program, it’s back to 80%, which is great, as it hasn’t been 100% for years, and now it feels like it might actually get there. Basically, short of my doing more stabilization, endurance and strength exercises at home, there’s nothing more we can do for it. So, we moved on to the knee. He had read its convoluted history during the week, put me through the motions this morning, and within 10 minutes was shaking his head…

“How did they not pick this up as a meniscus tear?”

I swear, I bounced… on the good leg. Of course, there is a long road ahead. In order for me to be able to walk, other muscles had changed their usual function. We have to retrain everything from the hip down to go back to their original state. Even the two small and relatively easy exercises I was shown today had me fatigued and breathing hard after only 5 reps. It might be tiring, but I’m excited, I’m hugely motivated to get my body to where it should be, and I’m fueling my recovery with yummy creations like this! 

Monster tower of an organic lunch.

Local leg ham, grilled zuchinni, eggplant and sweet potato, vintage cheddar, baby spinach, sundried tomato and basil pumpkin hoummas on a fresh crusty roll. Delicious lunch, and great fuel for rebuilding muscle!

Hopefully I'll have some new recipes to put up in the next week or so, including rhubarb jam and maybe something involving a rabbit. Might also throw in to a conference wrap-up from my fun weekend in Lorne if I can pull anything non-sciency out of it! In the mean time, enjoy the last of our sunny summer weather, cause autumn starts next week!

Love Neysa xo

Physio and Pizza

I seriously forgot how much work physiotherapy can be. This morning I had my second appointment in 3 days, with another scheduled for Thursday, and whilst I am already seeing the benefits in terms of an expedited recovery, I would not want to be doing it if I wasn't working from home this week! Every two hours, I have to lie down with a rolled towel along my spine, arms stretched out, and ice packed around my shoulder for 15 minutes. On top of that, I'm doing a number of isometric exercises, and some other fun things involving a pulley and using my own body as a counterweight. Time to do anything other than physio – approaching zero.


It's not so bad. I have actually managed to be rather productive today aside from that. Grant writing and eye checks for the win! I also tried getting a bit acquainted with the Nike+ application/gadgetry I've had sitting around since I got my Macbook Pro back in December. Hooray for pre-Christmas deals! Basically it's two parts – the receiver, that plugs into your iPod, and a sensor that goes in your shoe. I've heard good things, and figure once I start running (waiting for the green light from the physio), it won't hurt to have a decent way of keeping track of workouts. If anyone has had any experience, I would love some feedback on how you use it.


And on the food front – amazing pizza for dinner today.

How can you say no to something like that? I feel a bit guilty for buying the base, when I already had the stuff to make one at home, but I was being impatient, and didn't want to wait for dough to prove. Tomato paste base, chorizo, mushrooms, sliced fresh tomato, kalamata olives, topped with the epic cheese combo of tasty, pecorino and bocconcini, and torn fresh basil. Mmmm, heavenly. Of course when Matt finds out I didn't make the base, I'll be hearing all about it. His pizzas are always outstanding, mostly because he wouldn't be caught dead buying a base, and gets amazing, crispy crusts on his pizza stone. For that dedication to the pizzariffic cause!

Right, off to ice my shoulder and have dreams of pizza.



Love Neysa xo

Shoulders, Sumac Salmon and Salad

Strapping tape + hot weather

So I've blown my shoulder.

No idea how, as seems to be the case with every single one of my major injuries in recent years. Physiotherapist can neither confirm nor deny the possibility that it was a subluxation (partial dislocation) that caused the damage, all we know is that it's painful, I'm lacking movement, and I'm not allowed to start the training regime I had all figured out. Boo. Hopefully time, rest and physio will solve all my problems, but in the mean time...

After discovering him on FoodBuzz, I've been reading The Kitchen of A Runner, though blogger Matt has recently started up a new blog, The Athlete's Plate. He's one of the few bloggers I still follow religiously (And I promise it's not just cause his name is Matt!). Reading his blog over the past several months has really inspired me to take up the fitness mantle, especially the way he seems to manage to balance uni, work, family and his training, something I'm still trying to get a handle on. I also really enjoy his style of blogging, and his use of the medium to record workouts, interesting food, and all that good stuff. I was hoping to do something similar when I started training properly (instead of just the occasional swim or jog), but we'll see how long the shoulder takes to heal. However, while we're waiting for that situation to run its course, I can maintain the yummy foody side of things!

When my boyfriend came home from Thailand/Malaysia this week, I was rather keen to have him around for dinner. I seriously miss cooking for two people, and food is a great way to rebond. He'd not been terribly happy with the lack of vegetables during his stay in Malaysia, so when he got home, I wanted to make something healthy and green. While he was away, about 3 weeks, I had seriously cut back on my meat-based proteins (other than fish, only had meat 3 times in 3 weeks!), and had been eating a lot of raw food, and I wanted to stay true to that form as well. Enter this yummy number!

Sumac-crusted Salmon with Summer Salad

I've been making lots of trips to the green grocer and farmers markets lately, trying to avoid supermarkets and maintain healthy eating. Salads usually consist of whatever is on offer, which when you're buying from these sorts of places, tends to be more seasonal, and better for you! This super salad had the following:

• 3 large radishes, thinly sliced
• 3 medium sized tomatos, diced
• 1 lebanese cucumber, diced
• 2 carrots, peeled and thinly sliced
• 3-4 handfuls baby spinach leaves
• A generous handful of kalamata olives and alfalfa sprouts

This was all thrown in a bowl, and then had a simple vinaigrette tossed through: a few tablespoons olive oil, 15-30ml apple cider vinegar, one chopped red chilli, two tablespoons passionfruit pulp, put in a jar, and shaken till well combined. Yum! I'm a bit weird, I like my salads better the next day, once all the flavours have had time to meld, but the greens are still fresh.

For the fish, I had two pieces of fresh Tasmanian Atlantic salmon, boneless but with the skins still on. Heat a pan over high heat, and lightly spray with a little bit of olive oil (you won't need much). Pour some sumac onto a flat surface, such as a plate, and then coat the skin-free side/s of your fish. Once the pan in hot, place the fish skin down until it goes nice and crispy, then sear the other sides. I prefer my salmon quite rare, so I find an inch-thick piece will be fine with about 20-30 seconds a side. The sumac should turn a very dark red, almost black. Allow to rest for about a minute, then serve alongside salad.

• Sumac is a red/purple spice from the Middle East and Mediterranean, slightly tangy with citrus notes. And we all know anything red or purple is good for you thanks to all those antioxidants like anthocyanins and resveratrol. Mmmm.
  
• I'll admit that I borrowed the sumac-crust idea from work's menu. At Mr Hyde, we have a sumac-rubbed tuna served on a white anchovy and caper dressing with micro-herbs to garnish. Salmon, tuna and lamb cutlets are all amazing with sumac, and it just gets better if you pop them on the BBQ!
• If you're just after salad, but want something a bit more substantial, I've recently been making the same basic salad, then adding things such as grilled sweet potato, Meredith goats chevre, or shaved pecorino. Use what's local and fresh, and you can't really go wrong!

So where's the photo?
Oops. I started writing this before Matt arrived for dinner, and was so excited to see him I promptly forgot the camera. Bad habit I must break! Will update soon. In the mean time, would love to hear about other people's experimentation with sumac!

Love, Neysa xo