“We spent a delightful Thursday evening enjoying the crisp Eugenana air at Prickly Mo. Their wines are to live for (who wants to die anyway?), there was an array of belly-popping platters, other delights by the Flying Calamari Brothers (no prizes for guessing the top of their menu), and music by You3. We set up our chairs in front of centre” […]
See the rest of Michael’s post here
After a lazy afternoon at Il Castagno, we decided to dine in the nearby town of Ossaia. Rather than driving, we walked the easy 2km on a perfect spring evening.
The countryside was peaceful, scattered with gorgeous rustic farmhouses.
Ossaia literally means boneyard. There are apparently thousands of Roman soldiers who were defeated by Hannibal in 217BC at the Battle of Trasimeno, buried under the town.
The small community was enchanting, with some beautiful homes.
I’m not sure about this driveway, though.
La Tufa had been recommended to us and we found it easily.
We wandered through
to the inviting restaurant
but on this warm night we opted for a table outside.
The pizzas were delicious
and we had just enough room for nonna tart and flaming crème brulee.
The walk home was a little slower.
Last Sunday, we took Cooper for a drive off the beaten track to while away the afternoon at Prickly Mo.
The vineyard was established twenty two years ago at Eugenana but the cellar door is a more recent evolution.
The old shearing shed offers a unique tasting room experience and the comfy seating arrangements are irresistible.
Wet weather and storms had been forecast so the main deck was enclosed, gas heaters poised for Tasmania’s unpredictable elements (no, I don’t mean the customers).
We felt at home straight away, our philosophy obviously in tune with that of the establishment.
I’m sure there are a few stories to be told about this rustic ornament.
The highlight of the afternoon was the live music Sunday Session, on this occasion starring the very talented Neil Gray.
We savoured a lavish platter
and a bottle of rosé
while Neil entertained with masterful guitar work and smooth vocals, not to mention some nifty pedal shifting.
The microphone stand accessory is now on Michael’s wish list.
The storm clouds moved on, leaving nothing more than a few showers
and by the time we departed
the blue sky had broken through.
We enjoyed a leisurely drive home with the top down, reflecting on our wonderful day, four bottles of Prickly Mo in the back seat.
The warm, wet summer we have had so far has sent the rhubarb rabid.
I have given it away by the kilo, along with the recipe for the very popular rhubarb champagne and still am inundated. Fortunately, I have another fabulous recipe in my armoury – rhubarb & ginger jam. I thought I would share it in case you are in the same predicament. You will need 1.5kg trimmed rhubarb
chopped into small pieces.
Mix it in a bowl with 125ml lemon juice and 1.5kg sugar,
cover and leave it overnight.
Next day, transfer the mixture to a large pan
and finely chop a 4cm piece of fresh ginger.
Place the ginger into a muslin bag tied securely with string and add it to the pan.
Stir over a low heat until the sugar has dissolved.
Bring to the boil and boil rapidly 20-30 minutes, stirring often. Remove any scum during cooking. When the mixture has thickened, test for setting point,
put the muslin bag in the compost bin and spoon the jam into sterilized jars.
I am grateful for my husband’s penchant for Rose’s Marmalade, the jars are perfect.
It’s not the most enticing colour but the flavor of this jam is awesome.
We don’t usually do anything special to celebrate our wedding anniversary, but last Wednesday we broke from tradition and dined at our favourite restaurant. We were surprised to see a new addition on the way from the car park, a very impressive sand sculpture.
Bayviews Restaurant is so named for obvious reasons.
Every seat in the house has a wonderful vista of Bass Strait, beautiful in any weather.
We opened proceedings with a glass of exquisite Josef Chromy Pinot Gris
and were soon presented with a tasty pre-dinner morsel of beef fillet with carrot and cumin purée.
Dogs are prohibited on Burnie’s West Beach but we were entertained by an ambitious young fellow walking a rather uncooperative shopping trolley.
The palate cleanser of Pink Grapefruit sorbet was dispatched too quickly to photograph, you’ll just have to imagine it.
The main event was superb. I had slow cooked lamb shoulder on butternut pumpkin gnocchi, mushrooms, shallots with a salad of baby cress, toasted walnut, sheep’s fetta and 8 year old balsamic vinegar.
Michael chose from the specials board, pan fried Tasmanian scallops with housemade fettucine tossed through lemon beurre blanc sauce with cherry tomatoes and fresh dill.
A glass of d’Arenberg The High Trellis Cabernet Sauvignon complemented the flavours perfectly.
It was very relaxing watching the gulls mingling on the shore below and their indifference to the appearance of a pied oystercatcher.
For dessert, Michael once again chose from the specials, lemon curd tart with crisp meringue, local currants, raspberry coulis and honey & vanilla bean ice cream.
I couldn’t decide what to have, so I had them all!
The dessert tasting platter had smaller versions of Snickers semifreddo, chocolate mousse, caramel sauce, almond crumble, peanut praline & dark chocolate;
salted caramel tart layered with caramel sauce, banana chip praline, fresh banana & chantilly cream served with salted caramel ice cream;
basil crème brulee, Tamar Valley yoghurt, sable biscuit, fresh berries, passionfruit & lemongrass sorbet.
A big thank you to my husband for gallantly assisting with the devoration of my dessert. Sunset is past our bedtime these days but the shadows were lengthening as we made our way home.
I think we may have just created a new anniversary tradition.
cannonhillchronicles 