Visits
About Us...
- Jill Dyson,
- Southern Highlands, NSW, Australia
- Click on the link to read Jill's latest blog post. Jill has been running FoodPath in the Southern Highlands of NSW with her partner Nick since April 2010. They have grown the business to a level where they now include a range of activities including tours, workshops and collaboration with others (cooking schools, wineries, etc). During the past 10 years Jill and Nick have got to know the local producers and continue to promote and support these local small businesses. They have organised and run many food related activities including taste education workshops and producer visits. It was after they organised a successful tour for a group of chefs from some of the best restaurants in Sydney that they realised they could turn their interest into a business - and this led to the setting up of FoodPath - Culinary Tours with a Difference. Now Jill and Nick are working closely with Southern Highlands Tourism and Wingecarribee Council to help raise the profile of their area as a food destination where everyone will benefit - tourists, local consumers and the producers themselves.
Saturday, March 26, 2011
At the farm we were given a bucket each and shown which trees were ours. We donned our gloves and off we went. It was so quiet and peaceful with only the black cockatoos breaking the silence.
When we had enough we headed back to the shed where Dennis weighed the nuts and we bought those we wanted to take home. Other groups came and went, all down from Sydney and most were of Greek origin. Some people had been down twice in the last week!
During the Great Depression chestnuts provided valuable source of food for the poor. They made it into a type of nut leather or cake. Nick and I heard this at a chestnut workshop in Turin a few years ago - at a Slow Food Salone.
We gathered some sticks and made a fire under the chestnut roaster and ate our lunch while we waited for the fire to settle to embers. Flour Water Salt made a delicious picnic for us - gourmet sandwich, cake and bottle of juice.
When the fire was ready we put the chestnuts into the roaster and turned the handle to distribute the heat evenly. They had to cook for a good twenty minutes until the nuts opened and turned yellow. If you eat them too early they taste like blotting paper, but if properly cooked are sweet and buttery.
Did you know you can freeze fresh chestnuts to use throughout the year?
It was such fun that I have asked Dennis if we can take another group. The growing season is short. We have been offered two dates - Wed this week (30 Mar) or Sat (2 Apr).
LET US KNOW IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO COME WITH US NEXT TIME?
Price $30pp. Self drive. Chestnuts extra @ $6.50 kg. We will supply gloves. Wear solid shoes.
Please contact us from the website.
