June favourites list and a blood orange tart

Good morning! Yes it’s Monday but that’s ok, because below are more than enough distractions and inspirations to get you through to lunch. And also, because it’s citrus (and just weeks away from blood orange) season again, there’s the recipe for this tart too.

And just quickly, before you get reading – just a quick note to say regos are now open for the August round of the My Open Kitchen Ecourse. It’s all about social media, photography and food writing for farmers, growers, foodies and creative people like you. You can find out more and enroll yourself over on the course’s very own site. And if you are sick of me talking about it, I just added a bunch of ‘testimonials’ to the site too, so you can read what some of the lovely people who just finished round 1 thought of it.

Cost is $250 for the six week course, plus you get a little care package in the mail and a whole new gang of friends (we hang out lots in our closed FB groups and it’s so awesome to see new collaborations and friendships blooming from the first group who have just gone through).

June favourites list

I want to move my family into this house in Mersini, on the Greek Island of Donussa. From the blog of one of my all-time favourite photographers; Manos Chatzikonstantis (he shoots all of Tessa Kiros‘s beautiful books).

There’s no such thing as unicorn flavour. Or is there?

This cake – sooooo pretty.

And oh wow – check out this secret supper via Adventures in Cooking.

These potatoes and this book – both please.

I found this essay on Ukraine’s berry pickers and their radioactive crop super duper interesting.

Making perfume from rain. Really.

Our social media habits are apparently costing us 200 books a year. That’s a bit scary.

Relationship milestones told through food (via The Pool, a new-to-me website I’m quite enjoying).

Off topic I know, but the House of Cards episode recaps from Vulture are highly entertaining, possibly even more so than this latest series. Can I say that?

One of my favourite episodes of Netflix’s Chefs Table – Anna Ros of Hisa Franco. Lets all book tickets to Slovenia and go for lunch.

Thank you lovely Camilla for coming to lunch last F.O.O.D week and writing all about it. Great post!

I am obsessed with this ‘fire tonic‘. It’s like a big friendly punch in the guts. If such a thing is possible.

Going to get tarty with these edges.

Blood orange and goat’s curd tart

Blood oranges are coming back into season so lets celebrate with this stunner of a tart. Uncomplicated, delicious and absolutely perfect for a winter-y brunch with strong coffee or served warm for pud.

Flaky pastry

450g plain flour
50g icing sugar
450g butter, cold and cut into cubes

For the filling

200g soft goat’s curd
100g caster sugar
2 eggs
100ml thick cream
Seeds of one vanilla bean
4-5 oranges (bloods if you can get them!)

For the pastry wash

2 eggs
1 tbsp thick cream

For the pastry; combine the flour, sugar and butter in a food processor with a pinch of salt. Whizz until mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs then turn out onto a lightly floured bench and work into a smooth disc of dough. Wrap in plastic and place in the fridge to rest for 30 minutes.

For the filling; whisk together all ingredients until smooth. Peel and slice the oranges into segments, either horizontally as I did here or lengthways. Whisk the pastry wash ingredients together.

Preheat oven to 200C and line a baking tray with paper. Roll out pastry into a large rectangle, about the thickness of a $2 coin. Spread the pastry with goat’s cheese mixture, leaving a border all around of about 4cm (don’t worry if you end up with extra filling, it will keep in the fridge for a few days and might be an excuse to whip up another tart tomorrow). Top with the orange slices then fold in the pastry border to create an edge, pressing down on the sides so they stay put during baking!

Sprinkle with a little extra caster sugar, brush the pastry edges with the egg wash and bake for 20-25 minutes or until pastry is golden brown.