The last days of summer, just before school started, I remember as being lonely times for me. I was missing my “town” friends, because I lived 36 miles away on the West End. I was bored, bored, bored, but dared not say so or mom would find chores to keep me occupied.
Sometimes I had to be creative to find something to do. I had a best friend, Colleen Lamb, who lived only a mile away. We would play a game of looking up at the clouds to try to see the same cloud—she at her house by Lake Superior and me one mile inland. Believe it or not, sometimes it worked. I distinctly remember a cloud that looked like Richard Nixon, the early years. (Hey, Colleen saw it too.)
I thought of this when my daughter Zoe showed me the picture on the right of a perfect “loon cloud” she took over Lake John last week. I had to share it with you. Is there a chance someone else saw this cloud? That would be really special.
Zoe is not only a talented photographer, she is now a world traveler. She left on Tuesday to spend the next three weeks in Australia. While driving to the airport, it occurred to me that it was 16 years ago to the day I was bringing her home from the hospital as a three-day-old newborn.
Did you see this loon cloud in your neighborhood?
Now she’s flying halfway around the world? What was I doing?
My friends, it’s called a huge “leap of faith.” I started to get teary-eyed but then my two boys made me promise not to embarrass them by crying at the check-in gate.
I wonder now, as she lives a day ahead of her family, what does she look up and see? The same sun and moon, only 15 hours before we do, but what about the sky, what about the clouds? An Aussie might see this cloud but they probably wouldn’t call it a “Loon Cloud,” which it quite obviously is. I bet they might call it “Kookaburra Cloud.” (Hey, don’t laugh—we named ours Loon for goodness sake.)
Like our children, the sky is an amazing gift we receive each and every day. And like our children it is constantly moving and changing forms. One day a baby in my arms with a head full of beautiful hair and the next day waving goodbye at the gate. She may grow up and “fly” away, but her smile is the same. Always beautiful, trusting, full of hope and wonderful to look at, just like the sky. Okay, now I’m crying all over again. (I’ll try not to embarrass you.) Let’s celebrate with some Australian cuisine.
The sky is the daily bread of the eyes.
Ralph Waldo Emerson
Damper
Damper is the bush-bread of Australia. Drovers baked Damper in camp ovens buried in the hot ashes of their campfires in the Outback, but if you don’t want to build a campfire in your backyard, damper can also be baked in a normal kitchen oven.
Di rections: Sift the flour and salt into a bowl and make a well in the middle. Pour in the milk and mix. Grease the camp oven or round baking pan and dust with flour. Place dough in the camp oven or pan. Cut a cross in the top surface of dough. Close lid of camp oven and bake in the hot ashes of your camp fire for about thirty minutes, or bake in preheated normal kitchen oven for thirty minutes at 220° C (425° F). Eat with a cup of tea, boiled in a billy. (Don’t ask, I don’t know.)
Pikelets
Pikelets are little treats like scones usually served with coffee or tea. They are very much like little pancakes.
Ingredients:
bb1 cup flour
bb1 teaspoon cream of tartar
bb1/2 teaspoon soda
bb1 egg
bbFew drops lemon essence
bb2 tablespoon sugar
bbmilk
Di rections: Sift the first three ingredients together, and then add sugar. Make a well in the center of the mixture and drop in egg and some milk. Mix from center, gathering flour from the sides of the well. Add milk as needed to make a thick batter. Add a few drops of lemon essence to taste. Drop batter into hot frying pan to make three inch circles. Top with butter or jam.
Dinkum Chili (Beef)
Ingredients:
bb1/2 pound bacon
bb2 teaspoon oil, vegetable
bb2 onions, med,
coarse chopped
bb1 celery stalk,
coarse chopped
bb1 bell pepper,
seeded and chopped
bb2 pounds top beef sirloin,
cut into 1″ cubes
bb1 pound beef, hamburger
bb1 pound ground pork
bb4 teaspoon
bb3 teaspoon ground
red chile
bb2 garlic cloves,
finely chopped
bb1 teaspoon dried oregano
bb1 teaspoon cumin, ground
bb2 12-oz cans beer,
(pref. Australian)
bb1-14-15 oz can
whole tomatoes
bb3 teaspoon brown sugar
bb1 boomerang
Beef ) Di rections:
Fry the bacon in a skillet over medium heat. Drain the strips on paper toweling and dice and reserve.
Heat the oil in a large heavy pot over medium heat. Add the onions, celery, and green pepper and cook until the onions are translucent.
Combine all the beef and pork with the ground chile, garlic, oregano, and cumin. Add this meat-and-spice mixture to the pot. Break up any lumps with a fork and cook, stirring occasionally, until the meat is evenly browned.
Add the beer, tomatoes, and reserved bacon to the pot. Bring to a boil, and then lower the heat and simmer, uncovered, for 1 1/2 half hours. Wave a boomerang over the pot 14 times each hour from this point on. (This is definitely optional adding no noticeable flavor, just a touch of authenticity and fun.) Stir for three minutes. Taste, adjust seasonings, and add more beer if desired. Simmer for 2 ½ half hours longer.
Add the brown sugar and simmer for 15 minutes longer, vigorously waving the boomerang over the pot.
Makes 8 servings. Tastes Like Home columnist Sandy (Anderson) Holthaus lives on an alpaca farm in South Haven, MN with her husband, Michael, and their children Zoe, Jack and Ben. Her heart remains on the North Shore where she grew up with her parents, Art and LaVonne Anderson of Schroeder. She enjoys writing about her childhood and
mixes memories with delicious helpings of home-style recipes.
Leave a Reply