Marcelle Nankervis is a Horticulturist who has worked in the Horticultural Media for over 16 years.
She is passionate about Permaculture, Sustainability and Gardening for the Future. Marcelle regularly writes for Your Garden magazine and Better Homes and Gardens. Her first book was Plants for Australian Dry Gardens (Murdoch Books). Marcelle's second is Smart Gardening (Exisle Publishing).
Welcome to my Blog!
As a horticultural writer I often come across people, stories, tips, tricks and real gems of information that never really make their way out of my notebook. I am hoping to share a few of these insights here as well as my own gardening experiences, which includes getting my children excited about plants.
I believe that a strong connection with the garden and our landscape when we are young is vital. I am hoping that educating my children in "Green Living" and "Smart Gardening" will provide them with the fundamental building blocks necessary for them to live long and healthy lives, while also doing their bit in helping to create a sustainable and green future for all.
It amazes me that something so small can be turned into so much. In only half an hour of prep time, I took three small free range chicken eggs (these are from first time layers so still very small) and turned them into a jar of mayonnaise and a pavlova.
The egg yolks went into the mayo, and the whites went into the pav. When I am completely happy with the mayonnaise recipe I will post it along with the pav recipe.
What do you do when you have extra cream? I did think about making creme brûlée ... But opted for butter instead. So easy and so yummy. And with the buttermilk ... Martha Stewarts buttermilk pancakes. They were light, fluffy and completely delicious.
You don't need raw milk or cream for this. I used store bought cream and the results were amazing. Try it .. my kids loved being involved, learning where their food comes from and we will be using unadulterated butter instead of some processed store bought alternative. Even blocks of butter contain cream, water and salt. My butter, is just cream and pink lake salt. Yum!!
I had some raw milk left, because deliveries were very close together over the holiday period, so I made a round of Romano cheese, a batch of natural Yoghurt and then looked for something else ... something more delicious than just a smoothie for the kids .... I made Mozzarella and it is fabulous!
So simple, so delicious and so heavenly, I must thank Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall for his amazing recipes and for sharing his expertise.
I want to encourage everyone to try to make something yourself ... anything! Yoghurt is easily made from UHT milk if that is what you prefer. You don;t have to be a complete self-sufficient nut - I like to think that if you like good food, then this is the road to take.