A Simple Spring Day

We've had quite a bit of wet blustery weather (and yesterday had a cold southerly coming up which added an icy feeling to the air) that has kept us inside a lot and meant racks of wet washing sitting inside the house for a few days (and the days I could put them out on the porch the air was too damp to dry anything anyway).

Yesterday evening I checked the weather report for overnight temperatures and noted that it would get down to 4 degrees and that the wind had dropped off and the sky had cleared to a perfect blue - so not wanting to risk losing my potato and tomatoes we went down and covered everything over with a bale of straw that we use for the chickens nesting box. There was no frost, but I slept better knowing that it wasn't of concern.

So we welcomed the sun back today and just a gentle breeze to air the house out again.

The chickens were out for ages in the potato patches - scratching, dust bathing and basking in the sun.

Nathan had woken with bright ideas jumping out of his head lol - he retrieved a mug from the freezer that he'd frozen a toy dinosaur in the day before, removed it from the mug and spent a while smashing it from its icy surrounds. He was then keen to make a dugout in our dirt bank. So, he and Simon set to digging out a hole - of course, the bank wasn't really big enough to do much with, but he's now keen to put something inside it and rebury it.

The kids had fun collecting up the straw and leaping in it and pretending to be baby birds. Then gathered some lettuce and beetroot from the garden for lunch.



I caught up on more laundry and made lunch to enjoy in the sun.


The kids came in from the sun and sat down to draw for a while...

Simon took the kids down to the beach in the back of the bike trailer while I decided to make a gluten free pumpkin pie for dessert to take with us to my parents...

Now find other uses for the rest of the pumpkin. Still not halfway through it. I think we'll be having pumpkin soup tomorrow night.

Pumpkin Pie

sweet pastry:
175 g all purpose wheat free or gluten free flour (use appropriate flour depending on dietary needs)
100 g butter, softened (plus extra to butter the tart tin)
2 tbsp sugar (unrefined preferred)
1 large egg yolk
1 tbsp water

filling:
225 g pumpkin flesh, mashed if fresh (alternatively use tinned)
50 g sugar (unrefined preferred)
½ tsp mixed spice
1 large egg, beaten
185 ml evaporated milk (we used Carnation Light)

preheat oven/initial cooking temp: 220°C, fan 200°C, 425°F, gas 7
reduced heat after 15 mins cooking: 180°C, fan 160°C, 350°F, gas 4

1. Lightly butter and dust with wheat free or gluten free flour a 20cm (8") tart tin, if it has a removable base then it will be easier to remove the pie from the tin when cooked.

2. Into a large mixing bowl put the wheat free or gluten free flour, softened butter and sugar. Mix together until it resembles large breadcrumbs. Add the egg yolk and water and knead into a smooth ball of pastry dough. If the pastry appears too dry and crumbly then sprinkle with a little more water until it makes a smooth ball.

3. On a lightly floured surface (again using wheat free or gluten free flour) roll the pastry out to a size large enough to completely line the tart tin including the sides, trim the edges to neaten the pastry. You may find that the pastry is too fragile to roll out, in that case simply press it into the tart tin using floured hands, then trim the edges.

4. To make the filling place the sugar and spice into a large bowl and mix together. Add the pumpkin flesh and mix until well combined.

5. Add the beaten egg and mix until well combined. Then stir in the evaporated milk. You should now have a smooth batter.

6. Pour the pumpkin batter into the pastry shell, you can fill the pastry full as the batter won't rise, and put in the oven at the initial baking temperature shown above. After 15 minutes reduce the oven temperature to the lower temperature shown above and bake for a further 30-40 minutes.

7. Check how the cooking is progressing after approximately 25 minutes (at the reduced temperature) by gently slipping a thin knife or skewer into the centre of the pie. If the pie is still very runny it needs further cooking. The pumpkin pie is ready to remove from the oven when the filling is set all the way to the centre of the pie.

8. When fully cooked remove from the oven and allow to cool in the tart tin, serve at room temperature or cold. The pumpkin pie should be stored in the refrigerator.