Wednesday 11 December 2013

A Golden Time!


Kalgoorlie is 595 kilometres  (370 miles) East-Northeast of Perth. It is now known as Kalgoorlie - Boulder as the two towns have joined.

The town was founded in 1893 during the Yilgarn - Goldfields gold rush. The original name Kalgoorlie is derived from the Wangai word Karlkurla, meaning "place of the silky pears". 

The street pictured above is Hannan Street, named after Paddy Hannan. The story, in 1893, Patrick (Paddy) Hannan, Tom Flanagan and Dan O'Shea were travelling to Mount Youle. Along the way one of their horses had problems with a shoe, which halted their journey. It was then the men noticed signs of gold in the area and decided to stay put. On 17th June 1893, Hannan filed a Reward Claim, leading to hundreds of men swarming to the area in search of gold and Kalgoorlie, originally called Hannan's, was born.

The concentrated area of large mines surrounding the original Hannan site is referred to as the Golden Mile. This is considered by some the richest square mile of earth on the planet.

A water pipeline was designed by C.Y O'Connor, an Irish Engineer, to take water from Mundaring Weir, near Perth, to Kalgoorlie. The area was very dry and, with a growing population, the town needed more water. On the 16th July 1896 Sir John Forrest, then premier of Western Australia, introduced a Bill to Parliament authorising the raising of a 2.5 million pound loan to construct the scheme.
Many ridiculed C. Y. O'Connor and told him it would not work. Unfortunately, he committed suicide less than a year before Sir John Forrest officially commissioned the Goldfields Water Supply Scheme.

Another  interesting story from Kalgoorlie is about President Herbert Hoover. Early in his life he received a diploma from Stanford University in The United States of America for geology and mining. Not long after, Hoover found himself on a ship bound for Western Australia. The long journey took him via France, Italy, Egypt and India before arriving in Albany, Western Australia. The following two weeks were spent in quarantine as smallpox had been discovered aboard ship.

During his time working in Western Australia, Hoover's travels took him to Kalgoorlie, where he often frequented the Palace Hotel. There are stories about how he fell in love with a barmaid at the hotel. When he was leaving to return to the United States, he composed a poem for the barmaid which hangs next to the elaborately carved mirror. A gift to the hotel in the foyer from Hoover, it is still there today.

Upon returning to the United States of America, Hoover married Lou Henry, with whom he studied at Stanford University. Later Herbert Hoover became President of The United States from 1929 to 1933.

This is just a sample of Kalgoorlie and its history. There is so much more to see, maybe you will visit one day! 

Beer is the most common drink served in any pub or hotel in Australia. For something different, try my Tia Maria recipe!

Bernadette's Homemade Tia Maria

Ingredients

1 cup of water
1 cup of brown sugar 
4 teaspoons of powdered coffee
1 cup of rum
4 teaspoons of vanilla essence
Method 

In a saucepan on low to medium heat, boil the water and sugar for 10 minutes until it is like a syrup. Then, take off heat and add coffee and vanilla and let cool.

Lastly, add rum.

Place in a clean, sterilized bottle and leave for 1 week before using.

It is like a liqueur, best served in a glass of ice and milk, or you may prefer by itself with ice.

Enjoy!!! 





 
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Friday 29 November 2013

Dinner With The Presidents!

The White House in 1889 




Often, I read cooking articles and look at  recipes from around the world. The other day I came across these which caught my eye and wanted to share them with you. 



Picture of The White House in 1889  

The President was Benjamin Harrison, 23rd President of the United States of America from 1889 to 1893. (Grandson to President William Henry Harrison)

PRESIDENT HARRISON’S WHITE HOUSE CHRISTMAS DINNER MENU 1889

MENU 

Blue Point oysters, half shell 

SOUP 
Consomme royal 

ENTREE 
Bouches a la reine

ROAST 
Turkey, cranberry jelly
Potatoes duchesse
Stewed celery
Terrapin a la Maryland
Lettuce salad, plain dressing 

SWEETS
Mince pie
American plum pudding 

DESSERT
Ice cream
Tutti frutti
Lady’s fingers, macaroons, Carlsbad wafers 

FRUITS
Apples, Florida oranges, bananas, grapes, pears

Black coffee

To see the article in full I have added the link below.

http://clickamericana.com/topics/featured/christmas-dinner-from-the-white-house-1889


The next Christmas Menu for the White House was at the beginning of World War 2.

President was Franklin D. Roosevelt, 32nd President of the United States of America from 1933 to 1945

PRESIDENT ROOSEVELT'S WHITE HOUSE CHRISTMAS DINNER MENU 1941 
(SPECIAL GUEST OF HONOR WAS BRITISH PRIME MINISTER CHURCHILL)

 MENU

Oysters on the half-shell with Crackers

SOUP
Clear Soup with Sherry

ENTREE
Celery, Assorted Olives
Thin Toast

 ROAST
Roast Turkey with chestnut dressing, sausage
Giblet gravy
Beans
Caulifower
Casserole of sweet potatoes
Cranberry Jelly
Rolls

Grapefruit Salad with cheese crescents

DESSERT
Plum pudding and hard sauce
Ice cream and cake

Coffee

Salted nuts and assorted Bonbons 

To see the copy of the article see the following link

http://blog.timesunion.com/tablehopping/29789/historical-menu-white-house-christmas-dinner-1941/

In Australia, Christmas Day is normally very hot, so the traditional hot dinner has changed over the years to a cold one. People enjoy cold seafood and turkey with salads. The hot plum pudding has also changed to a ice cream plum pudding. This is my recipe, hopefully you will try it!

BERNADETTE'S CHRISTMAS PLUM PUDDING 
 
Ingredients
 
Half a cup of caster sugar 
One cup of water 
Half a cup of raisins 
Three quarters of a cup sweetened dried cranberries 
Two litres vanilla ice cream 
One teaspoon vanilla bean paste 
Half a teaspoon of cinnamon 
Half a teaspoon of nutmeg
85g unsalted shelled pistachios, chopped 
One quarter of a cup of brandy 
Blackberries and or raspberries, to serve 
 
Icing sugar, for dusting
 
Method
 
Ingredients 125ml strong black coffee, cooled 60ml Kahlua (or other coffee liqueur) 60ml Marsala 200g savoiardi (sponge finger biscuits) 1.5 litres vanilla ice cream, softened 150g good quality dark chocolate, grated
Read more at http://www.goodtoknow.co.uk/recipes/384034/Bill-Granger-s-tiramisu-ice-cream-cake#xcU9m08hQskgKDbi.99
Ingredients 125ml strong black coffee, cooled 60ml Kahlua (or other coffee liqueur) 60ml Marsala 200g savoiardi (sponge finger biscuits) 1.5 litres vanilla ice cream, softened 150g good quality dark chocolate, grated
Read more at http://www.goodtoknow.co.uk/recipes/384034/Bill-Granger-s-tiramisu-ice-cream-cake#xcU9m08hQskgKDbi.99
125ml strong black coffee, cooled 60ml Kahlua (or other coffee liqueur) 60ml Marsala 200g savoiardi (sponge finger biscuits) 1.5 litres vanilla ice cream, softened 150g good quality dark chocolate, grated
Read more at http://www.goodtoknow.co.uk/recipes/384034/Bill-Granger-s-tiramisu-ice-cream-cake#xcU9m08hQskgKDbi.99
Line a 20cm square baking tin with baking paper. How to line a square cake tins video Combine the coffee, Kahlua and Marsala in a bowl. One at a time, briefly dip half of the savoiardi into the coffee mix and use to line the base of the tin. Layer half of the ice cream on top and then sprinkle with half of the grated chocolate. Repeat these layers, then place in the freezer for 4 hrs or until frozen. About 30 mins before you will be ready to eat the tiramisu, transfer to the fridge to soften. Cut into squares to serve.
Read more at http://www.goodtoknow.co.uk/recipes/384034/Bill-Granger-s-tiramisu-ice-cream-cake#xcU9m08hQskgKDbi.99125ml strong black coffee, cooled
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 1/2 cups strong fresh brewed espresso
  • 1/3 cup coffee liqueur like Kahlua
  • Vanilla sponge cake
  • 1/4 cup finely ground espresso
  • 2 pints espresso ice cream
  • Chocolate curls
    • 1 cup sugar
    • 1 1/2 cups strong fresh brewed espresso
    • 1/3 cup coffee liqueur like Kahlua
    • Vanilla sponge cake
    • 1/4 cup finely ground espresso
    • 2 pints espresso ice cream
    • Chocolate curls
    • 1
    Place sugar and 2/3 cup water in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat; stir in espresso and Kahlua. Let the syrup cool.
    • 2
    Using a serrated knife, cut sponge cake in half horizontally, making two layers. Place one layer in the bottom of a 9x9x2 inch baking pan. Using a pastry brush, brush with 3/4 cup cooled syrup. Sift 2 tablespoons ground espresso over cake.
    • 3
    Place espresso ice cream in the bowl of an electric mixer. Beat on low speed with the paddle attachment until spreadable. Spread ice cream over cake; top with second layer of sponge cake. Brush with remaining syrup. Transfer cake to freezer for 20 minutes.
    • 4
    Remove cake from freezer; sprinkle with remaining 2 tablespoons of ground espresso. Place coffee ice cream in a mixer bowl. Beat on low speed until spreadable. Spread ice cream over cake, forming large swirls. Return to freezer; freeze until completely hardened. To serve, garnish with chocolate curls.

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