To Krill A Mocking Turd

Well its been a while  shrimps.   SOO  much is happening in NZ.  An Election. ..We love a good hard election.  See you soon  

The “Pitch” featuring Tina Nixon – Masterton Mayoralty candidate

LET THEM EAT CHEESE

Today the Rock  milked the cow and I had 8 litres  of milk to play with. I decided to make mozzarella but maybe because the rennet was old or Im a crap Cheese  maker all I got was a pasty cross between ricotta and quark. But i was not to be shamed. I found this recipe for Ricotta cakes They are a cross between a Sally Lunn and a scone. light tasty and rich. I added some currants and choc bits for interest. I wont ice them as they are sweet enough.

Ingredients below.  heat oven to 180 deg  cream butter and sugar add eggs and ricotta and vanilla the add dry ingredients and mix  lightly . drop on tray and back for about 15 mins. They are really yum

 

• 2 cups (400g) white sugar
• 250g butter, softened
• 425g ricotta cheese
• cup of currants and cup of choco drops
• 2 teaspoons vanilla essence
• 2 eggs

• 4 cups (500g) plain flour
• 2 tablespoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 cups (180g) icing sugar
• 3 tablespoons milk

BEAUJOLAIS BESTIES

Today  we returned to an old haunt  for lunch -  the Wellesley.  It is with out a doubt one of the most beautiful olde world hotels of NZ.  The soft scent of good cigars and old spice ooze from  its dark panelled oak walls  .
A  forever stilled bisons head hangs  over an old wood smoke drenched fireplace. A  baby grand piano sits on black and white checkerboard tiles in   the Hotel lobby waiting for musical fingers to make the keys dance.

  We dined  at a table in the corner of the bar. It seats a spreaded ten or an intimate dozen.
The old McGinnity Restaurant was once draped in starchy  white linen redolent of the sumptuous leisurely  privileged age of last century .  

Now it is a renamed bistro style café - 1815.  It is not well patronised, probably because few people realise it has been opened again post earthquake repairs needed to shore up its weak brick bones.  

A chef came up to the bar and we  all in unison squealed with glee. Chef Anton from our beloved heady days at the now defunct Beaujolais wine bar  in Woodward St was master of the 1815 kitchen.  

Recently lunch in many establishements has become tiresome as plates are over dressed with  all manner of flowers.  Moleculargastrofuckery abounds in the trendiest of food dens. But  I don't want flowers with my meat and I don't want to drink from a jam jar..
And that's the reason we squealed  when we saw  Anton  as he does real food  real good. His plates do not need to be dressed. The substance of the food he cooks with love  is enough get the mouth waters streaming.
The menu was basic  as it appears the hotel is hampered by the last of the earthquake repairs .We opted for a tasty  haloumi and tomato bruschetta to start . We fought over the last one. It was seasoned well  and flavours balanced to perfection.
Then we opted for Chef Antons most popular Beaujolais Dish. A steak sandwich with béarnaise  sauce and chips. It is as wonderful as it is simple. The meat was tender, rocket crunchy and the chips crispy. It took us back to the days where and when deals were done , politicians rolled, rumours started, lies told, truths sacrificed, affairs begun and finished, $1000 bottles of wine savoured over endless afternoon hours and Stump jump red quaffed in the time  it took to ring parliaments bells.

And on that steak were no flowers, no microgastrofuckery  no silly plastic syringes- just good meat, good salad and good chips - food in no need of frippery.

The service was impeccable, the surroundings welcoming and company was just grand. And we welcome back Anton, a man that knows good food don't need no frills. I do hope Anton enters Wellingtononaplate  

Of Boil Ups and Noble offerings

Charlie  Nobles is a quality addition to an ample serving of great eating houses in Wellington. The occasion was the all too brief visit of the BOIL. A fine friend who works for Big Oil. Hence the nickname. And the  long lunches are, as you would expect, known as Boil Ups.  And damn if we haven't had some fine Boil Ups. It seemed fitting to have this boil up at Charlie Nobles as it was the former HQ of the NZ Rugby Union. And most of the gathered group had worked with or for the NZRFU.
The staff were attentive, welcoming  and fast. Our table was in prime place. Right in front of the open kitchen. The fit out of Charleys is classic and classy bistro and the place fair bustles with the business of sating the diners. We were within an ozone whiff  of  an ice bed of "in the shell " Bluff Oysters. At $6 an oyster they are very pricey. None of us indulged instead opting for starters of breads and dips.
The taramasalata dip was heavenly. As was the rich whipped pate. Knives were keenly scraped inside the jars to seek out the last morsels. Lips and knives were licked clean.
I love flounder so despite the attraction of much on the carnivores dream of meaty selections I opted for the Patiki. It was deep fried in a crispy crumb . So crispy I had to crack it to get at the sticky tender fish. I was worried it was overdone and it was - Just a smidge. I normally ask for my fish to be undercooked. It reduces the chances of a dry offering. Anyway the crispy fish was   very good. Not great but memorable. We drank Dog Point sauvignon and it loosened the chatter from us in an instant.
We talked of our lives and family and food  and politics as we always do.
I left late in the afternoon knowing  two things. Charley Nobles will be a stayer on the Wellington hospitality scene and time and distance do not erode true friendships.
And I'm suspecting  the gang might have to organise a Boil Up in Geneva.
BB score 8/10

a little bit of cookin

anzac biscuits

1 cup (150g) plain flour
2/3 cup (90g) rolled oats and 1/3 or whole grain oats
1 cup (85g) desiccated coconut
3/4 cup (155g) dark cane sugar
130g butter
3 tablespoons treacle
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
2 tablespoons water

put water treacle and butter in pot and boil.

add to sifted dry ingredients 

roll into small balls press flat with a fork  and cook  on a sheet of baking paper on a tray for 15 mins in a mod  160 deg oven

 

 

 

yuk and turduck.

the burger and the  gourmet roll. both  variations  of the Turducken. 

INTERNETTING THE DOTTY COMMOS

So WhaleOil busts open another political can of wrigglers. DOTCOMs plans are now public for all to see.

Well sort of. Bradbury has not  written a political strategy as much as he has written a very crap  comms  and engagement plan built round a launch. We don't know what the party will really do apart from fight some issues like the GCSB bill repeal and  that it wants to position itself as a political  kingmaker.

The name "internet party" reminds me of a idea a few IT peeps looked at over 13 years ago. They bought me on board to look at how we could make the idea fly. Basically it was a party where the members would vote on issues on line  and that would give their MP's a mandate issue by issue.

It was a bit before its time as social media, those days was a descriptor of a gossip columns in the local paper. It didn't get off the ground because everyone involved was short of the cash needed to pull it together.

So  maybe Kim  is thinking along similar lines. Not so much a party for the people but a party of the people

It has been interesting listening and watching commentators totally dismissing  the Internet Party. I was talking to a mate today who like me believes that no-one should write off this digital political spawn.

Its because we both see how cynical GenY are. These digital natives distrust everything and they hate most the things  which impinge   on their ability to move around on the net sucking up what the want when they want at the least cost.

The reason  we think the Internet Party has a chance is simple. DotComm literally has a big following on the net - close to 350 thousand on twitter and around 20 thousand on Facebook. He is seen by the GenYers as the man who is fighting against big business,  fighting what they see as Big Brother Governments and fighting for  their freedom in their new digital playground.

Everyday I watch in despair as young smart  men and women,  successful and educated , swear their allegiance to Dotcom.

He is the ante  hero they can identify with, a victim of what they see as  tyranny, a winner,  a master of the digital universe and irreverent. GenY struggles to take anything really seriously unless its something that impinges on what they see as their freedoms. So they revere him .  They see him as the only one who is fighting for their freedom on the net  - the place they are most at home.

DotComm knows how to deploy  the net, and that means he can harness this large group of normally apathetic voters by taking the one election issue they care about  their digital freedom direct to them - And he can talk to them on their smartphones and they can talk to him. Interactive politics has come of age.

While Bradbury may be v keen to be part  Kims party I would doubt that the paper that has been leaked is much more than a ham fisted  touting for some work.

Alistair Thompsons involvement is much more interesting. He does understand the net and his  undisguised admiration for  Dot Comm in the past means it comes as no surprise he  is jumping ship. He sees himself as a fighter for internet freedom . DotCom is his general.

I struggle to see why anyone cannot see that there is a serious possibility that after the next election - Key maybe sitting down thrashing out a coalition with DotCom. Wonder  who will be sweating then?



 

SMALL BLESSINGS

Its the small things that count.  We have tables in the  Wairarapa trains now and the seating has   been  reconfigured to give more leg room. an hour and a half  on a train is a long time so well done to state owned  Kiwirail for making these changes. Every carriage is full o public servants and for many of them the time on the train is spent  working. So there is an economic benefit in creating workspaces for  them. Its really a good example of a “whole of government “ approach….

JONES NO JERK.

So its a 3 way race as we predicted. The surprising thing is that Cunliffe has hoodwinked so many people. We thought his narcissistic traits would have put a off a lot of punters.

Jones has never lifted his pedal from the metal. He has shown that he is wily, smart and honest, well as honest as you will get any poly to be.

He deserves to carry the red banner.

50 SHADES OF PAY AND CONFIRM

I  have been watching the Labour leadership battle with a great deal of interest. It is clear Shane Jones is emerging as the peoples prince. He has always been a classy orator in both Maori and English. He appears lazy but that's because he is inherently a very smart man  - intellectually fecund in fact. He was born to rule.

So his time has come - so to speak.

  2 rumours have been circulating the beltway - the first relates to Jones state of health. He  fought off bowel cancer- but the word is that it is back - easy to believe as it seems he is fighting for the top job on the left as  if he has nothing to  lose.

The second relates to his infamous indiscretion - his onanistic play in a lonely hotel room egged on by the frantic coupling of some  pneumatic porn starlets.  His remote decision to pay and confirm resulted in political emasculation for a while but at the time the kumara vine was heavy with the rumour that it was not Shane who had wracked up the porn bills  but a member of his whanau.

He came dangerously close to showing undue favouritism in the Bill Liu scandal. And if there is anything that points to a serious personality flaw then this is it but in this scandal he proved to be as slippery as a coozer covered in KY.

Shanes crime was never about the porn. It was about expecting the taxpayer to foot the bill even if he paid back the charges eventually.

Yet it seems to be the fact he watched porn that dogs him . The irony is that the heavily pornographic novel 50  shades of grey is a world wide best seller. Millions of sticky fingers turned the pages as readers became  engrossed by its scintillating romp in the musky world of slap and tickle. The fine line between pleasure and pain was bolded  in everyday ink.   Now it is to be made into a movie - thus mainstreaming the masterbatory murk.

So Shanes guilty pleasure, if indeed that is what it was, will soon be available at Video Easy for all the aunties to watch.

Labour is such a broad church  encompassing vast differences in the religion of  lefty politics that this race  could well see all three candidates get close to  30 percent of the vote each . And as the factions bow to such very different political idols  - it is unthinkable that either Robertson or Cunliffe will bow out at the 11th hour if it  looks like Jones is gaining too much support. Dogged by Dogma they are.

Jones is the dark war hardened  stallion and knows it. He makes the other two look like braying mules. Hooton says as much today in NBR.

Jones , the peoples prince may yet get his money shot.

Christchurch Spiced Mussels - health benefits unleashed?

There have been lots of people interested in how my dad Robin is going in his battle with cancer. He was diagnosed with the rarest and most aggressive form of lung cancer early in April. He was a life long smoker. He had a 7.5cm tumour in the lower part of one lung. He was told his outlook was not good. His ability to take any form of treatment has been hampered by the fact that since dad was about 12 he has only had one kidney and in the last few years it has been a bit shakey. Dad was told that he would be given chemo in very light doses and some radiation treatment.

Anyway one of dad old mates, when he heard of dads plight,  offered to give him some pills his company  developed - a combination of a highly concentrated form of mussel oil and curcumin and piperine.

He said he had given them free to some of his close friends who had been diagnosed with cancer- and he  told me  "they are doing ok."

Clinical trials of curcumin are underway at Leicester university to look  at ways to increase  its efficacy. Piperine is considered to be one substance that allows the curcumin to have a better effect.
I told dad that there were no promises but he said that he was happy to give it ago.

Dads  tumor has shrunk to nothing - the doctors have upped his treatments as he has responded so startlingly. He takes 23 pills a day. and has taken them since mid April.
He has been told that he has gone from being in the 90% of people who will die in a reasonably short time with this cancer to the 10% who will probably live for some time.
Anyway I think dads mate is a very smart man - self made , a pioneer in the seafood industry and he has a degree in physics.

So people have asked me just what dad has been taking . The pills are  manufactured and marketed by Bio MER here in Christchurch.

 

Press on the link to find out about them.

I think that my good mate  may well be onto something. Time will tell. But I can say that dads recovery has surprised his doctors - astonished some in fact.

Dad is convinced the pills are a key factor in his recovery and I think he is right.

Glorious, Gorgeous and Free.

Finally I managed to take a week off  from working on the Christchurch Rebuild. All I wanted to do was spend time at our wee piece of paradise up the mystical  Rangitumau Valley  and get out  and about with my friends and  enjoy the culinary and bacchanalian pleasures of the Big Valley during the month of Wellington on a Plate. My holiday  got off to a great start - first up was  the Glorious 12th - a day of shooting and sumptuous food modelled on the Scottish day marking the first of the Grouse Hunting season,  held at one of the Wairarapas fine homesteads -Sulphur Wells.  I discovered I cant shoot for shit - well clay birds at least.  So I think I will have to stick at being somewhat of an expert in dressing feathered things as I am a muttonbirder and pluck and gut and cook I can.

 

The  day  progressed from shooting  to the piping of the haggis, and then the quaint and often hilarious "addressing of the haggis"  a  sacred ceremony of great import.  Then it was off to dinner to dine on a dish outrageous as it was tasty - the legendary Turducken. Turkey, stuffed with duck stuffed with chicken. I was hoping for a quail tucked  up its bum but alas twas not to be. The haggis was very good perhaps not as chunky as some but devoured with gusto.

The wines were from Urlar and its affable owner and Scotsman  Angus Thompson was resplendent in his kilt  with its badger sporran . Urlars wines are some of the best in the Wairarapa - and indeed a star performer in the  Gladstone sub region. The whites in particular are flinty with considerable depth and length. Wines to be savoured not quaffed.

The second Wellington on a plate event  was  the  gorgeous ladies lunch. And GOOOORGOUS it was. About a 100 well coiffured women turned out to wine, dine and whisper loudly of food, politics and family. Catered by the  Medici café in Martinborough  - the fare was rich and aromatic .   The wine  was from the Poppies vineyard - which is also home  to the stunning Poppies function venue where  for the feast redolent of Casablanca enthralled us all .  Poppies Pinot Gris, in the Alsace style was  superb but at  $40 for a take home bottle a little pricey.

It was also a privilege to meet Mary Biggs of  Lavenders Green Fame. It was warming to meet so many inspiring and talented and well connected women who keep the wheels of commerce and community turning in the Wairarapa.  It will  be a must attend event next year .

Finally a good and talented friend   who stayed with me  and was my plus 1 for the  gorgeous ladies lunch,   bought me a jar of  olives she had brined herself as a gift for her bed.The interesting thing was they were from  trees planted in Roxborough St in Wellington  by the WCC for public use.  This is an idea that appeals to the  forager hunter gatherer in me. I'm happy to climb fences to pick  damsons from an ancient plum trees on my travels around Wairarapa   and on a dewy autumn mornings can be found, basket in hand, merrily  picking  the freshest of field fungi for my brunch.

Thank you Wellington on a Plate Wairarapa team. You did good.

 

WRITERS BLOCK MELTED

Must be the silky soft keyboard of my new HP envy - its a little bit notebook and a lot tablet. The old man is crook. He has the Big C as its found fertile ground in his nicotine soaked lungs.  Anyway  he is carrying on doing the things he loved. I have always loved writing so I am going to write what I want when I want. Roarprawn was a blog started in another time in my life and its flavour changed over the years. It will change again - less political but always irreverent.

HAYESY HAY DAY

Today we baled and stacked 300 bales of hay. It was a bit of a family affair, Mum always at the ready with a cuppa and a scone,  Dad,76 with one kidney and some dodgy pipe work happy to get on an ancient Fergy tractor and haul it around the paddock that has some tight corners. We started the job yesterday in 29 degrees - today was  aslightly cooler but sticky 27 degrees uncomfortable.

And then there is the Rock who has a passion for doing things the old way which means using old stuff. Some of it 30 - 50 years old. We had our moments - the Holland Baler busted its boiler a couple of times but the Rock , as he almost always does , fixed it. And the Hay conveyor chewed bales for a while till we worked out a bulging guiding rod was the culprit  it was fixed in a paddock moment with the most intricate of tools  - a sledgehammer. Two bangs and dang if it didn't slide the bales up like butter. 

Son Matthew joined us for the last round of the paddock so there were three generations of Campbells outstanding in their field. It also meant the oldest skited to the youngest by ripping round the paddock  only to be sworn at to slow down. Dad might want to do a lot of things at his age but apparently driving a  62 bedford truck scooping up hay sedately is not one of them. 

The bales were neatly stacked in our shed  - almost all of them - a mate took about 60 straight from the paddock for her stock. 

As I sit here typing this , Im still feeling the scratch of a lonely grass wand on my slightly less ample arse  but  no one stirs. 

Asleep they are  -  dreaming of big bales and noisy machines, dust and a very tidy stack, a cleansing shower  and the smell of Mums fresh scones and my strawberry preserves from the house and a cold beer.   

BEAT UP OF THE YEAR

What a complete load of tosh. This is another example of  speculative journalism. Take a pinch of facts chuck in some fame seeking expert. Look at the worst case scenario and report it. 

Mind you if the birds glow in the dark they will be easier to catch.

However we are pretty confident that the titi's biggest threat is a hungry Rakiura Maori chap or chapess.

FINE WINE AND LODGINGS

Today was a great day. We woke up early at Spring Creek  motorcamp and I shot down to the creek to feed the eels.  They fought with the ducks and trout  for a few crumbs of bread.

Then we decided on a trip up the Wairau Valley. Our first stop was a small pub at Wairau Valley township where we had a toasted sandwich and I had a half of Matsons lager..  It was a nice light drop.

Then we went to one of a myriad spots that motorvan owners (mo'vanners) like ma and pa know about. Todays visual treat was Lake Argyle which is a small canal lake that is diverted from the Branch  and Leatham  Rivers to create a bit of power.. It holds a few fish - so ma and I went for a stroll to the big rivers while dad had a couple of casts in Argyle. While he claims he got a few nibbles there were  no fish in his bag on our return.  

On the way back  to Picton and our final night in the South, we stopped to get some cherries for lambcut  and some good white wines . I wanted some nice aromatics to go with the crayfish dishes I have planned for Boxing Day. 

So I purchased a six pack of  Gewurztraminer, Toru and Pinot Gris from Te Whare Ra wines. 

I have a few recipes to try out and will blog about the matches after Xmas. 

I am no true believer in biodynamic practices but  I am a  believer in loving the land and nurturing it and whatever the Flowerdays are doing it is good for the grape. Their wines are probably some of the most complex and interesting aromatics in the country. 

And I cant wait to pair them up with a range of crayfish,  whitebait,  and smoked eel dishes. 

Today was a brilliant day.. some great sights, fantastic people and good food and wine.. It doesn't get much better.. 

A GOOD BED AND A TANIWHA

Tonight we are in the Spring Creek motor camp. Its a lovely wee place and we are again in a cabin for $80.  So what did i get for $80?  A really nice bed  clean as , a bright and clean duvet a clean toilet and shower. 

Its old and built of concrete block but perfectly adequate.

Its light years away from this hell  hole in Kaikoura.

And this holiday park is set up for kids and has a delightful spring fed creek thats home to some huge trout and eels. 

Its the quintessential new zealand holiday park. 

KACK IN KAIKOURA

We  are on the first stay of a three day trip from Christchurch to Wellington. So far it has been fabulous to spend some time with mum and dad in their faithful steel steed - their motorhome known as Bugsys Burrow.  We stopped at Waipara Springs  winery for a stellar coffee and bought a couple of bottles of wine  and then stopped in Cheviot and had a noisy in a fabulous antique shop. Then we looked into a lovely gallery and struck up a conversation to find in ten seconds  flat that we found an acquaintance we had in common. This seems to be a national sport for Kiwis. Work out with a stranger someone you both know in the shortest time possible. With well travelled parents and a chirpy and inquiring old man - its a daily occurrence.  Now we are not too precious about where we stay on out trips and it makes it easier if its a camping ground with a power site for ma and pa and a cabin for me - that way we can stay together.  Their motor home is cosy for 2 but cramped for 3. So our first night park  up is in a place called the A1 Motel in Kaikoura. Its a place probably built in the 70's and its bloody tired.  Now we dont really mind tired but we dont abide grubby and this one is grubby.  It was $30 for the power site for ma and pa and $70 for my room.
We have with us some precious cargo - a mate who owns a lobster exporting company gave us over a dozen cray tails for xmas.  so a fridge is good. I unpacked them and put them in the fridges freezer and as i closed the door it fell off. Landed on my toe..  it hurt. but i could not help laughing.  the sheets are clean but the toilet would be a great centrepiece in a horror movie of the genesis of some alien life form.
So we wont be back. But like all good holidays the bad experiences are all part of the trip.  This morning we are off to cruise around Blenheim. A mate has offered us a cuppa tea and some fresh xmas baking.  And then Sunday sees us in Picton for the big crossing on BlueBridge.