Next semester, John who has been running our fantastic men’s breakfast will be beginning a new early morning program here at ACC focussing on heart-centred breathwork. Here is some further information, and if you are interested you can book in at this link…

Does your fur baby need a walk? If you own a dog in the Alphington area, are over 65, and for some reason (health etc.) can’t walk it as much as you’d like … or if you know someone in this boat, check out this program below!

Sarah at Council has contacted us because she has volunteer walkers already lined up, ready to make connections and take a dog for a walk regularly in Alphington.

Just contact the positive aging officer at Council … details in the flyer.

What a super neighbourly community service hey? Thanks Yarra Council for contacting us … and organising this terrific program.

We love Alphington Farmers’ Market! Always great to buy some local produce.

‘Tis the season for mushrooms, walnuts, spinach, onion and lemons. Here is the delicious food we cooked for lunch on Thursday at Garden to Plate.

Lemony chicken (using a lemon from Jill and a lemon from Sheryl) … and green onions and spinach from our garden, stuffed mushrooms (cheese and walnuts - amazing) and a roast pumpkin and potato mash. So very yum!

Stuffed Mushrooms (blue cheese and walnuts)

Ingredients

• 4 large mushrooms

• 100g blue cheese, crumbled

• 40g walnuts, coarsely chopped

• 6 fresh thyme sprigs (or dried thyme is ok too)

• 2 tablespoons panko breadcrumbs

• 1 1/2 tsp extra virgin olive oil or butter

Directions

• Preheat oven to 200C/180C fan-forced. Line a baking tray with baking paper. Remove the stalks from the mushrooms and finely dice. Arrange mushrooms on the tray.

• Mix mushroom stalks, cheese, walnuts and thyme.  Fill mushrooms. Top with panko breadcrumbs. Drizzle with oil or a small knob of butter and season with pepper.

• Bake for 20 minutes or until cheese melts and mushrooms are tender.

• Serve sprinkled with baby herbs if desired.

Mashed Potato and Pumpkin

Ingredients

• ¼ pumpkin, cut 3 cm chunks

• 4 potatoes, peeled and cut in 3cm chunks

• Salt and pepper

•  Butter

• Cream

• Nutmeg

Instructions

• Roast the pumpkin in the air fryer for 20 minutes, then microwave with a little water for 5-10 minutes to ensure they are well cooked.  Drain and whizz with butter, cream, salt, pepper and nutmeg.

• Boil the potato in salty water until soft, drain and mash, then add in the pumpkin mash. Add additional cream and butter to get to the right consistency. Taste and season as needed.

Creamy Lemon Chicken with Sage

Ingredients

• 2-4 chicken breasts, sliced in half and pounded thin

• 2 cloves garlic, crushed

• Handful of sage leaves

• Salt and pepper

• Olive oil

• 1 onion, thinly sliced

• 1/4 cup chicken stock

• Zest of 1 lemon, minced

• Juice of 1 lemon

• 2-3 cups packed spinach (or use 1 bag)

• 3 tablespoons heavy cream

Instructions

• Mix oil, garlic, sage and salt and pepper and cover chicken breasts. Marinate until cooking.

• Heat a large, flat-bottomed sauté pan to medium high heat, set aside the sage leaves and fry the chicken breasts for 3-4 minutes on each side, until done through. Remove the chicken from the pan and set on a plate while completing the rest of the dish.

• To the hot pan, add the red onion slices, letting them soften for 2-3 minutes. Pour in the chicken broth. The pan will sizzle. Stir the onions and let cook another 2-3 minutes until they soften more.

• Then add in the sage leaves, lemon zest and lemon juice and mix well.

• Fold in the spinach and cook for 1-2 minutes.

• Turn off the heat, stir in the heavy cream and season once more with salt and pepper.

• Add the chicken back into the pan and reheat in the sauce.

• Serve immediately.

Budgets, grants applications and acquittals, Council submissions … last week was flat out behind the scenes … and busy in person as well.

Lots of people attended the Embracing Life and Death discussions on Thursday afternoon. Crunch was a small group this time (but lovely - we did still life painting with gouache paint), we got a delivery of a couple of cubic metres of compost to keep us busy in the garden on Friday (thanks Nat at Darebin Council for organising this again!) … and two birthday parties were held at ACC 🥳 on Sunday.

This week CWA is meeting at the Gleeson Centre on Monday night, Garden to Plate is on Thursday at 11.30am … and it’s the long weekend … so we’ll see you back on deck next Tuesday.

Hope you make the most of it. I am planning to go to Rutherglen (to check out the wineries) with some of my oldest friends from university. Should be fun!

Cheers Leanne