What’s GREAT at the Market this Week?
This week we are shining the spotlight on Nimbin Valley Dairy’s great products and their recent Facebook posts about their latest batch of Washed Goat reminded me that cheese making by artisans cheese makers is a fascinating process. Some of our favourite cheeses take weeks, sometimes months to mature. Lots of expertise and patience Is necessary to get great tasting and award winning results
With more than five generations of dairying experience and more than 10 years in cheese making Kerry and Paul Wilson have what it takes to produce award winning cheeses and popular milk and milk products for the lucky people of the northern rivers.
Cheesemaker Paul explains that “our cheese starts with the freshest milk produced by happy and contented animals in a beautiful and loving environment. I combine this perfect ingredient with my knowledge of cheese making to create cheeses of exceptional character.”
Peak production time at the dairy is November through to February and lowest production is in July and August. Like other natural products goat milk is seasonal. Kerry and Paul said that they could use artificial lighting to maintain production levels throughout these
months but they choose not to treat their goats like machines. Everyone deserves a holiday. I am sure that this approach and Paul’s great expertise is why their cheeses are so delicious.
By the way if you missed an earlier post NVD’s Sainté Billie was a state winner in the 2918 Delicious Awards. Their entire range of products n are still available. And why not try making their CaramelisedOnion and Goat Cheese Tart recipe below.
FARM TOURS – It is the time of year when some of our stall holders offer farm tours. This coming weekend Saturday 9th June Sylva Lining Organics is hosting their annual farm tours
and brunch with Jonathan from JuJu’s. The Farm Tour is FREE but bring some cash for your brunch if you choose to partake.
COMING SOON and CHANGES – Seasonal produce updates and talks:
Fingers crossed and weather permitting Blueberry Fields returns next month. Harvesting has been amended as Otto said that they are about a month behind their usual time ripening due to the recovery time it has taken since last years devastating hail losses.
NEXT WEEK: Health talk by stall holder and qualified naturopath Jenny Kenneally-Clark- Eating your way to Health this Winter with Immune balancing Market foods and herbs. Jenny has 10 pre made medicinal tea blends that have been very popular and she has a few very special blends available to combat winter ailments & balance immunity. Her talk will commence at 9.30 on Wednesday 13th in amarquee outside.
Narbey’s Best Avocados will be absent during June as they wait for their Hass crop to be ready for harvesting. Doug knows to be patient and that is why his avocados are always so delicious. However Jumping Red Ant is still harvesting their Sharwill avos so these will be available for the next few weeks.
RECIPE: Caramelised Onion and Goat Cheese Tart
This is a classic goat cheese recipe. It contrasts the sweet, caramelised onion with the sharpness of the goat cheese and is topped off with a rich, crumbly pastry.
Ingredients:
Caramelised onion filling: 1kg onions, finely sliced + 125g butter + 1 tub chilli billy goat cheese (or other billy goat cheese)
Short crust pastry – 2 cups plain or wholemeal flour +½ tsp salt +150g butter, cut into small cubes iced water
Method: To make short crust pastry, sift flour and salt into a bowl. Gently rub in butter with fingers to make small crumbs. Add small amounts of water while mixing. Finished pastry will come away from the bowl in a soft lump. Cover with cling film and place in fridge for 30 minutes.
To make the filling: melt butter in a saucepan and add the chopped onion. Cook slowly until caramelised. This may take up to an hour (my tip: is worth the time to build up the rich caramelised flavours). Roll out the pastry roughly matching the shape of the baking tray. Spread the onion mixture around the middle and place teaspoons of chilli billy over the mixture. Fold the edges of the pastry back over the top of the pie to form rough sides. Bake in oven at 180ºC until the pastry is golden, about 20 minutes. Enjoy!
Cheesemaker’s tip: You can substitute the short crust pastry with prepared puff pastry if you’re short of time. Recipe is from the Nimbin Valley Dairy Website with thanks.🙏
🌦Weather: Showers likely with a temperature range of between 9 and 12 overnight and daytime temperatures reaching around 18 degrees.
*REMEMBER* ATM at the market!
We have an ATM onsite for your shopping convenience.
Entertainment: Sticky Rock Duo
Produce of the week (newest season produce is in bold):
- Apples
- Avocados – Sharwill’s from Jumping Red Ant during June
- Bananas
- Beans
- Broccoli
- Carrots
- Cauliflowers
- Capsicum
- Citrus – grapefruit, oranges, lemons, limes
- Cucumbers
- Dragon Fruit
- Fennel
- Lettuce
- Macadamia Nuts
- Passionfruit
- Pecan nuts
- Paw Paw
- Pears
- Raspberries
- Sweet potatoes
- Tomatoes
- Zucchinis
Seasonal Produce List Updated:
Vegetables
Beans (+organic), Beetroot (+organic), Bok Choy, (+organic) Broccoli, Cabbage, Carrots, Capsicum (+organic), Cauliflower, Chard (organic), Chilli (+organic), Cucumber (+organic), Corn, Eggplant (+organic), Fennel, Garlic (+organic), Herbs (+ organic basil, coriander, fennel, ginger, rocket, turmeric and more), Kale (+organic), Lettuce (cos organic), Fancy Lettuce and mixed salad greens, Micro greens (+ wide variety of organic such as alfalfa, barley greens, sunflower, broccoli, chick pea, radish and pea srouts), Peas incl snow peas (+organic), Mizuna, Onion (+organic), Mushrooms, Pak Choi (organic), Potato (Sebago) , Potatoes (kipfler ++), Pumpkin (+organic), Salad Mix, Silver Beet, Sprouts (+organic), Spinach (+organic), + Egyptian spinach, Sweet Potato (+organic), Tatsoi (organic), Swedes, Tomatoes (+organic), Taro, Turnip, Watercress, Zucchini (+organic).
Fruit
Apples, Apricots, Avocados, Bananas (Cavendish, Lady Fingers (organic also), Black muscat grapes, Blueberries, Carambola (star fruit), Custard apples, Dragon Fruit, Grapefruit, Grapes, Kiwi fruit (organic), Lemons + Limes (incl organic), Lychees, Mangoes, Mandarin (organic), Oranges (organic), Passionfruit, Paw Paw, Pears, Plums, Raspberries, Rock melons, Sapotes, Strawberries, Watermelons.
Flowers – Gerberas, Lisianthus, Roses, Tropical flowers – sassy heliconias.
Eggs – including organic
Nuts – Pecan nuts and macadamia nuts, nut oils, butters and choc coated nuts
Dairy – Cows milk, cheeses and yoghurt, kefir, cultured butter ++ Goats milk and soft cheeses, kefir AND award winning St Billie goats cheese.
Honey – Raw unprocessed Caldera honey, creamed honey and creamed honey with cinnamon! And bees wax candles.
Rice and Breads – A variety of artisan sour dough breads baked with a diversity of organic flours (including spelt and rye) and many flavours that use local market products including macadamia nutbread!
Mushrooms – Gourmet mushrooms – king oysters, white oysters, pink oysters, blue oysters, shiitake and Shimeji available at Wollumbin Gourmet Mushrooms and button mushrooms at Mountain View Eggs.
Meat – Beef, pork and goat (All Natural Meat Company produced), Salami (Nimbin Valley Diary) periodically + lamb and chicken sourced within the broader market radius and locally caught fish – very seasonal.