Oh yes, the romance of train travel may be a cliche’ but have you ever thought about the romance that goes on among those who work the trains. Or what it takes to prepare a proper meal while rolling along. Today’s guests David and Joy took us to the buffet car of the Riverina express in the 50s, where Joy was a waitress and then the cook. David worked on the trains for 43 years, he swept Joy off her feet in romantic Junee. They have lots of great food stories, from WW2 bananas, to the 23 wild ducks and why a rolling kitchen needs an electrician always at hand (just in case your oven breaks down while cooking 23 wild ducks of course).
The connection from the Riverina Express leaves Junee for Narrandera
JOY’S LAMB’S FRY AND BACON
a.k.a. David’s favourite meal
Soak 1 lamb’s liver (lamb’s fry) in a bowl of water
with 2 teaspoons of salt for about
1 hour.
Then slice the lambs fry, dip slices in plain flour,
then fry slices in a a small amount of oil,until a nice crusty brown
coating is obtained.
Transfer fry into a saucepan, then make a thin gravy with plain flour,
scraping all the lovely crumbs from pan.
Add 2 rashers of bacon,cut into small pieces, add to saucepan with fry and simmer
slowly until lambs fry is tender…….
serve with mash and crusty bread….
serves as many as you like……
BRANDY ALEXANDER PIE
A very easy pie, says Joy.
1-2 sheets frozen, thawed shortcrust pastry
250 g. white marshmallows
1/2 cup milk
1 tbs instant coffee powder
1/4 cup warm water
2 tbs brandy
300 mL cream, whipped
Decoration: whipped cream rosettes and chocolate mints
Line a 20-23 cm fluted pie pan with pastry. Prick pastry with a fork, bake in a pre-heated 200C oven for 15 minutes, or until golden. Cool.
Combine marshmallows and milk in a saucepan, heat gently, stirring occasionally. Dissolve coffee in water, stir into marshmallows. When smooth, remove from heat and mix in brandy. Cool.
Fold in cream, pour into pastry case and refrigerate for 3 hours or until set. Decorate with cream rosettes and quartered mints.
THE BELLY BULLETIN
Seven fast food chains, including McDonald’s, Pizza Hut and KFC, signed an industry code of conduct in August 2009. This code allows the industry to self-regulate fast food TV ads, and limit advertising of unhealthy food to children. Two years later, a study led by Sydney University has found kids are still being exposed to the same number of junk food ads. TV ads for junk food have stayed the same since 2009 : 1 per hour overall and 1.3 during peak viewing times for children.
“Children’s exposure to unhealthy fast-food advertising has not changed following the introduction of self-regulation” the researchers said. They have called on the Federal Government to ban fast-food advertisements for children.
The Federal Government says it is continuing to monitor the effectiveness of voluntary codes.
The CSIRO has been given permission to conduct Australia’s first trial in which humans will eat genetically modified wheat. The wheat has been modified to lower its glycemic index and increase fibre. It is being grown in outdoor trials in the ACT.
The CSIRO’s Matthew Morell say animal feeding trials of up to three months have been done. If the animal trials are found to be successful, the CSIRO will move to human trials in about 6 months. Dr Morell believes its a first for GM wheat. No genetically modified wheat strain has ever been approved for cropping in Australia, and Dr Morell is not aware of any being approved internationally.
Greenpeace says there should be animal feeding trials for at least two years, and that the short trial periods show that there is no real intention to test for negative health effects. The CSIRO has developed the GM wheat in a partnership which includes Europe’s largest grain company.
If you’d like to participate in the community food gardens survey by Tara Baker , that I have previously mentioned on belly you now only have until this Thursday, June 30. Southern Cross University Honours candidate, Kara Baker, is interested in hearing from local community members from the Northern Rivers to determine the likely community support for new gardens throughout the region. The survey is anonymous and only takes a few minutes. The results of this research be part of Kara’s Honours thesis and may also be published. LINK to survey
If you have any questions Kara Baker, k.baker.11@scu.edu.au
And finally, a disaster relief idea that should be very popular in Australia. One of Japan’s biggest brewers is planning to deploy a beer wagon to serve cold ale to tsunami survivors and people involved in reconstruction. The fast-chilling beer wagon will make the rounds of summer festivals and other events along the tsunami-devastated east coast. It is expected the beer will be served free to disaster survivors, and is also designed to help people who work up a sweat while working on reconstruction projects.
MUSIC
Serge Gainsburg – scenic railway
Transvaal diamond syndicate – train a coming
Elvis Presley – shake rattle and roll
Tess Mc Kenna – Gippsland Train
KIU – Trains