chioggia beet salad and a 'year round harvest' workshop with grown & gathered

This is part one of a photo story of a sunny and blustery Sunday at Kelmarna Organic City Farm in the heart of Auckland with Matt and Lentil from 'Grown & Gathered' and Little Bird organics.

Before I begin, I'd like to say that these next few posts have been a long time coming.  Partly because I’ve been busy with some exciting projects, but also because I've felt the photographs from the 'Grown & Gathered' 'year round harvest' workshop at Kelmarna, were just too beautiful to have not been thought through. Whilst I've caught snippets of time here and there I somehow haven't been able to commit my full attention to editing and piecing it all together, something which easily happens when my mind is full of many things.  It also happens with things I feel are so special that I become almost fearful of publishing them,  in case I don't do them the deserved justice.  In any case, here is part one of my photo story of how this special day unfolded...

We began sitting beneath a giant tree around a table adorned with buckets of foraged wildflowers, while Matt and Lentil talked about Trading and their Flower Exchange at the Melbourne farmers market.  Instead of selling the flowers they grow on their farm for money they instead trade them for some other form of non-monetary consideration. This concept really struck a note with me - both because of the way Lentil described it but also as trade is something I seem to be doing quite a lot of lately through my photography. Yes, trading something you have in abundance, are good at, or passionate about, directly with another seems like a much more meaningful and beautiful way to transact. In any case the table of wildflowers, which you see in the photographs, were foraged by Matt and Lentil for the purposes of trading with workshop guests - a sample of the Flower Exchange in Auckland.

Following this, we walked with Matt and Lentil around the astounding 1 and half acre property of Kelmarna. Established in 1981, Kelmarna is a community garden and farm which has been organically managed for 32 years.  Complete with a pony and cows, bee hives, chickens, worm farms and compost, native trees, and organic fruits, vegetables and herbs. Kelmarna is an amazing place and the perfect backdrop for Matt and Lentil to share their knowledge.   

We learned about many things – taking care of herbs, bees, foraging, composting, harvesting and how to plant a new garden.  

We drank teas made with fresh herbs and we ate salad and drank juice made by little bird, with vegetables harvested from the gardens. 

To accompany this post, I have included a variation of little birds freshly harvested salad with chioggia beets.  This was served at the workshop with a raw cashew cheese and their raw almond based crackers.  

After living in Sweden, I have come to adore dill but you could substitute with a different herb such as parsley or chives in the recipe for the lemon cashew dip.  The dip is also great as a snack on it's own served with crackers, carrot or celery sticks.

I've also included a basic pickled shallot recipe, as Matt and Lentil love pickling vegetables from their farm. Pickled vegetables are also something I miss from Sweden, so all the more reason to include them.  Enjoy!  

chioggia beet & greens salad with pickled shallot & lemon & dill cashew dip

• 1 large handful of organic leafy greens per person
• 1/2 medium chioggia or other type of beet per person, alternatively half a rainbow carrot
• 1 Tbsp cold-pressed olive or nut oil such as macadamia nut or hazelnut
• juice of half a lemon or a splash of quality vinegar (apple cider, red wine for e.g.)
• pinch of sea salt or himalaya mountain salt

1.  Mandolin the beet or carrot thinly on a mandolin.
2. Toss the greens and beet in 1 Tbsp of olive oil a pinch of salt and 

pickled shallot

• 2 medium shallots finely sliced on a mandolin
• 1 Tbsp red wine or apple cider vinegar
• 1/2 tsp agave syrup or raw honey
• pinch of sea salt or himalaya mountain salt

1. Mix ingredients thoroughly and leave to marinate for 1/2 an hour minimum.  Stir a couple of times while the mixture is marinating.    

lemon & dill cashew dip

• 1 cup of cashew nuts, soaked in filtered water for a minimum of 2 hours
• 1/4 cup of lemon juice and zest of one lemon
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 1/4 cup filtered water
• 1 garlic clove
• pinch of cayenne pepper
• 1/2 tsp of sea salt or himalaya mountain salt
• 1 - 2 Tbsp finely chopped dill
• 1 - 2 Tbsp nutritional yeast (optional - this will give the cream a cheesier flavour)

1. Rinse cashew nuts in filtered water.
2. Blend all ingredients excluding the dill, in a high speed blender, until smooth.  
3. Stir in finely chopped dill.  

We recommend enjoying this salad combination together with a raw cracker or bread.   

dress me

A simple dressing marries flavours and can really bring a dish to life - which is why I love them!  I also think that everyone needs a myriad of simple dressings in their plant prep toolkit. Whether creamy and cashew-based, tart and vinegary, herby or citrusy. 

I will be updating this post with simple dressings as they come to light =)   

simple balsamic

When we first moved to Stockholm, I quickly became addicted to a salad comprising beets, goats cheese, honey, walnuts, leafy greens and a tangy balsamic dressing.  With the exception of the goats cheese, looking back I'd say this salad was one of the early instigators in my plant based adventure.  Here is a simple balsamic dressing, ready and waiting until my version of the 'early Sweden' salad is in place.  

• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 3 Tbsp filtered water
• 1/2 cup cold pressed olive oil
• 2 medjool dates
• 1/2 tsp raw honey (I like to use New Zealand manuka honey)
• 1 tsp chopped shallot
• 1/2 tsp sea salt or himalaya mountain salt

Blend all ingredients, except for the olive oil, in a high speed blender.  Once blended, slowly pour in the olive oil while the blender is running on low speed.  

Tips:  

• Experiment by adding your favourite chopped herbs for e.g. parsley, chives, thyme etc.
• Try varying by adding 1/2 tsp of dijon mustard to the blend.  Mustard and balsamic vinegar are great friends!

carrot, dill & onion crackers

I simply love it how food can evoke a memory... transport you back to a time or place. Dill does this for me which is why I love to use it.  One taste of it's frilly fronds and I am transported back to Sweden.  To celebrations.  To Marie's (Fred's Mum's), kitchen in Gothenburg.  Funnily enough though, I'm sure I wouldn't have been able to recognise dill in a herb line-up before we moved to Sweden!   

These raw carrot, dill and onion crackers are a lovely accompaniment to salads, as a snack, or on a party platter.  And, they are also really good for you, comprising nutrient rich seeds such as linseed, chia, sunflower and pumpkin. The recipe does require a few different steps, however I hope that doesn't deter.

Just to clarify, my crackers are 'raw' meaning that I have dehydrated them for a long period of time at a low temperature (42 degrees celsius/105 degrees fahrenheit).  The purpose of this is to preserve the nutrients in the ingredients, which can be compromised at higher temperatures.  'Raw food' therefore implies that the nutritional benefit to your body is greater (yay!). If you are not fussed about your crackers being raw, then i'm sure the recipe would work equally well baked at a higher temperature in the oven.  

I really like this recipe because it is a wonderful base for creating your own favourite flavour combinations.  Perhaps you have an affinity for a particular herb, like me and my friend dill?  Sometimes I'll spice things up by adding a  teaspoon of curry powder to the mixture. Experiment and have fun!  

Aimee xo

carrot, dill & onion crackers

• 1/2 cup of whole linseed
• 2 Tbsp chia seeds
• 1 1/2 cups filtered water
• 1/3 cup sunflower seeds (soaked for 2 hours)
• 1/4 cup pumpkin seeds
• 3 medium sized red onions
• 3 cups of grated carrot 
• 1 Tbsp lemon juice
• 3 Tbsp tamari
• 3 Tbsp agave syrup
• 3 Tbsp chopped dill
• pinch salt

1. Combine linseed and chia seeds in a bowl with filtered water and leave to soak for 2 hours.  The linseed and chia will absorb the water during this time.  If the mixture appears too solid, some more water can be added.
2. Soak sunflower and pumpkin seeds separately in filtered water for 2 hours. Rinse when done.
3. Once the soaking mixtures are ready, chop red onion into quarters and place in a food processor with the sunflower seeds.  Process until the onion is in small pieces (about half a cm).
4. Add lemon juice, tamari, agave syrup and a pinch of salt to the food processor and pulse a few times to mix the ingredients.
5. Combine mixture with the linseed-chia mix and add the grated carrot, pumpkin seeds and chopped dill (reserve some dill fronds for garnish). Mix as shown above.
6. Spread mixture onto dehydrator trays lined with teflex, or oven trays lined with baking paper.  The thickness should be just below 1 cm (it will become thinner during dehydration). Use an off-set spatula or the end of a spoon to make square shapes if desired.
7. Dehydrate at 42 degrees celsius (105 degrees fahrenheit), for 24 hours or longer if needed.  After half of the time (or when the crackers appear crisp on top, flip so the underside is exposed). If you don't have a dehydrator set your oven to the same temperature, however allow some air flow by leaving the oven door slightly ajar (I have done this by placing a spoon in the door of the oven).
8. Enjoy topped with your favourite toppings, crumbled on top of a salad, or as a side on a party platter.