Time for a little baking

Here we go again... same ole, same ole.  It’s Friday the 17th and preparations for Christmas are well under way, well by the social committee anyway.  Maybe not in the kitchen just yet. What Christmas means to most commercial operations is either a day or two off due to high operating costs and increased wages, oh and of course the fact that many mums and dads (wait staff) will be producing semi ridged smiles and expending precious goodwill that may better be concentrated  on loved ones gathered around the Christmas tree. Christmas can also mean getting up really early, grabbing a few coffees in between slicing smoked salmon, poaching eggs or rolling out pastry ready for Danishes then feeling your way through a foggy and confusing day of good wishes and warm fuzzies from colleagues,  then high expectations and time critical demands from the consumers. 

I’ve been placed in a rather unique position of having to cater to 73 plus expeditioners (consumers) who, on the flip side, are also the loved ones to whom I’ll stand side by side with whilst gorging on the excesses of the Christmas spirit.  Either way I’ll win right?  So let’s just take it easy and do the menu planning next week.......Hey the social committee needs a draft of the menu so they can get it approved and printed off... and they sorta need it now.?
Well Tony and I merged grey matter and scribbled down in chefs’ hand ( very similar to Doctors handwriting) a simplistic menu of running salads, seafood buffet, old school roasts with accompaniments, dessert table (Christmas pudding included) and a cheese board.

I’ll be able to update the blog with the exact menu after Christmas.  Things can change for any reason down here.

With the first version of the menu now making it’s way around our local intranet I felt a sense of calm and even a little energy.  Baking!!
I love finding time to bake extra goodies for the crew. It gives me a feeling of pride and satisfaction knowing people will soon discover tasty sweet morsels arranged on various platters dotted around the dining room. When I was a little kid I remembered coming home from school and opening the lid on our two toned brown Tupperware cookie container... looking in all I could see was darkness (this thing could act like the TARDIS sometimes).  I knew the jar was empty yesterday, was it still today?  I’d throw my arm up in the air, pull the sleeve up past my elbow and dive down inside. Just as a shag comes popping up from the oceans depths .......so too would my hand. Yes!!  It’s loaded!!  What have I scored?  Fudge.  Hmmmm, I’d have removed that lid at least 3 more times before my sister got home.  Then I was the self-appointed guardian of the jar.  I loved my mother’s baking ,who doesn’t?

Apricot Slice

Well there was nothing holding me back. Armed with a 2006 edition of the Edmonds recipe book, (mini cooks bible... in N.Z anyway), memories of my childhood delicacies and a fully equipped kitchen I set about creating a pantry full of icing and coconut topped treats.

Ginger Crunch

A little baking on Saturday and a lot on Sunday left most of my stock containers in need of a topping up.  Ginger crunch, hedgehog (fudge), jam slice, lemon and apricot slice, coconut brownie, caramel slice ,  Anzac biscuits and toffee apples.  I thought this would last me a week (my mother probably thought the same back then).  As it turned out we had a visit from the Indians on Monday, including their construction workers, and a Chinese delegation made an appearance on Tuesday.  By Wednesday my goodies were all gone.
It still felt nice making them.

Here we go again... same ole, same ole.  It’s Friday the 17th and preparations for Christmas are well under way, well by the social committee anyway.  Maybe not in the kitchen just yet. What Christmas means to most commercial operations is either a day or two off due to high operating costs and increased wages, oh and of course the fact that many mums and dads (wait staff) will be producing semi ridged smiles and expending precious goodwill that may better be concentrated  on loved ones gathered around the Christmas tree. Christmas can also mean getting up really early, grabbing a few coffees in between slicing smoked salmon, poaching eggs or rolling out pastry ready for Danishes then feeling your way through a foggy and confusing day of good wishes and warm fuzzies from colleagues,  then high expectations and time critical demands from the consumers.

I’ve been placed in a rather unique position of having to cater to 73 plus expeditioners (consumers) who, on the flip side, are also the loved ones to whom I’ll stand side by side with whilst gorging on the excesses of the Christmas spirit.  Either way I’ll win right?  So let’s just take it easy and do the menu planning next week.......

Hey the social committee needs a draft of the menu so they can get it approved and printed off... and they sorta need it now.?
Well Tony and I merged grey matter and scribbled down in chefs’ hand ( very similar to Doctors handwriting) a simplistic menu of running salads, seafood buffet, old school roasts with accompaniments, dessert table (Christmas pudding included) and a cheese board.

I’ll be able to update the blog with the exact menu after Christmas.  Things can change for any reason down here.

With the first version of the menu now making it’s way around our local intranet I felt a sense of calm and even a little energy.  Baking!!
I love finding time to bake extra goodies for the crew. It gives me a feeling of pride and satisfaction knowing people will soon discover tasty sweet morsels arranged on various platters dotted around the dining room. When I was a little kid I remembered coming home from school and opening the lid on our two toned brown Tupperware cookie container... looking in all I could see was darkness (this thing could act like the TARDIS sometimes).  I knew the jar was empty yesterday, was it still today?  I’d throw my arm up in the air, pull the  sleeve up past my elbow and dive down inside. Just as a shag comes popping up from the oceans depths .......so too would my hand. Yes!!  It’s loaded!!  What have I scored?  Fudge.  Hmmmm, I’d have removed that lid at least 3 more times before my sister got home.  Then I was the self-appointed guardian of the jar.  I loved my mother’s baking ,who doesn’t?

Well there was nothing holding me back. Armed with a 2006 edition of the Edmonds recipe book, (mini cooks bible... in N.Z anyway), memories of my childhood delicacies and a fully equipped kitchen I set about creating a pantry full of icing and coconut topped treats.

A little baking on Saturday and a lot on Sunday left most of my stock containers in need of a topping up.  Ginger crunch, hedgehog (fudge), jam slice, lemon and apricot slice, coconut brownie, caramel slice ,  Anzac biscuits and toffee apples.  I thought this would last me a week (my mother probably thought the same back then).  As it turned out we had a visit from the Indians on Monday, including their construction workers, and a Chinese delegation made an appearance on Tuesday.  By Wednesday my goodies were all gone.

It still felt nice making them.

Photos to follow.

There's something so beautiful about the small things

"G'day dear....

Well it was nice to talk to you yesterday. How is the head today?  We are currently making our way through silky 'grease ice' and large icebergs. It's all very nice.  Do a google on grease ice ......... as our wake passes over the surface, water is pushed out over the top like spilling coffee on a table.  For only a couple of seconds it remains separate from the sea.......then it slowly combines with the grease ice and warms up a little to become water again. All very beautiful and new to me...............I suppose I'm in for a few eye openers down here.

A few of the guys eat their eggs on crumpets...............I might try it tomorrow. I understand the doughy texture and flavors would only enhance the egg taste. I'll tell you all about it.

I've made it through to the finals of the darts.................OMG.  I've played better than I've ever done before................more focussed, a lot more focussed. There were a few sharks that didn't enter the comp ...............so the results thus far are not a reflection of the quality onboard.  I'll keep you posted, its now a best of three for the win.

I cut some of the expeditioners' hair yesterday ...............did a good job and managed to get a kitkat out of it for payment from one. I'm not sure where the chocolate bar came from as they are not readily available on the ship......................but boy did it go down well in my cabin whilst I was editing a photo for the picture comp and listening to music. I felt like one of the boys on the roof in "Shawshank redemption"...........

I'm already feeling the small things will be very special things soon.

Fisia Fears (Mr Bear)...................cute little bugger!!!! Give him a big kiss from me but tell him it's from you.  A couple of nice pats and a comb for my favorite moggy.  And finally kisses for you my honey.  XXXXXOOOOO"

If you have any questions for Justin, he would be happy to answer them for you. Just send as a comment.

Finally some sun!!

"We are running in and out of flows/fields now........... you know the stuff that looks like one month old cream on a petri dish. It's nice

cause the swell has calmed down so I should get a good nights sleep............though when we hit little burgs they make a bit of noise on the hull.

Saw some sun today as well.......nice. We can't go out on deck at the moment cause its all iced up from the rough seas (it looks like a

ghost ship). Hopefully tomorrow!!"

It's great to hear from Justin that things are getting more pleasant at sea.  They have been through some really rough conditions. 
 
And from the sitrep...
 
"The view from the bridge is quite magical, with the mast and cargo covered in an expanse of white ice. Some patches of blue sky and sun also make a welcome break from the heavy cloud we have experienced during most of the voyage thus far. With the change in scenery, and the fact we are now south of 60 degrees, there is a sense we are entering another stage of our journey to the Antarctic continent."
 
POSITION:  60° 36' S, 117° 11' E
 
DISTANCE IN LAST 24 HOURS:  168.7 nm
 
AIR TEMPERATURE:  1 deg c
 
SEA TEMPERATURE: -1.2 deg c
 
CURRENT SPEED:  11 knots
 
"Due to the icy conditions, most outside decks are closed for the time being. However, expeditioners are enjoying the view from the bridge, and the binoculars and cameras have begun being used in earnest. Inside the ship, Jim's tours of the Engine Room have resumed after postponement yesterday due to rough weather."
 
I can't wait to see the photos that he has taken from/on the ship.

You can read the sitreps in full on the Australian Antarctic Division website.