now I may have neglected to mention in my last post that Leslie has her very own etsy boutique. But I am letting you know right now, with this sublime photograph you see above, from her collection, and this one you see below, both available for purchase…

The reason I neglected to mention this before is because Leslie has something special on offer that deserves a whole post of it’s own – for the rest of February, Leslie is donating $5 of each print purchased in her etsy boutique to wildlife victoria, a not for profit volunteer based organisation who are working ceaselessly in all fire damaged grounds in victoria, australia, performing search and rescue. Due to the recent devastation, hundreds of animals have been taken in for treatment and rehabilitation, with more coming in all the time…

left: i’m not sure where this image is from but it has done the rounds on emails in australia which is how it came into my inbox; right image from hyena in petticoats.

Leslie will also be waiving the shipping costs on her sales for the rest of the month, so now is a perfect time to purchase some of her beautiful work and help victoria’s injured wildlife.

Thank you dear Leslie. Our koalas, kangaroos, cockatoos, kookaburras, wallabies, wombats and plethora of other australian animals in danger will be so very very thankful. And I am more than touched to learn about your endeavour to help our precious wildlife.

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update 20.2.09: for more information about the recent victorian bushfires, please read this brief article, watch this documentary from ABC 4corners, and to help further, please make a donation to the red cross, wildlife victoria, or donate something you’ve made by hand to handmade help. to donate goods, here is a list of drop off contacts around the country.

unfortunately at the same time last weekend, north queensland was under threat from floods. This is also an area of devastation, so to learn more about this and make a donation, please click here.

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…is a perfectly renovated 19th century schoolhouse, surrounded by an expansive vegetable and herb garden, orchard, and berry patch. There are two Jersey cows, Wessex saddleback pigs, Barnevelder chickens and a flock of geese. Welcome to The Agrarian Kitchen in Lachlan, Tasmania…

Run by Rodney Dunn, former food editor of Gourmet Traveller and his wife Séverine, The Agrarian Kitchen is a very unique cooking school. Their aim is “to create a place where people can rediscover the simple pleasures of gathering and cooking with produce as close to its source as possible.” Sustainable farming practices are at the core of the Agrarian Kitchen philosophy…

So how did I come to know about this hidden gem? Well a few years ago, just before I moved to Paris, I used to work with Rodney as a regular contributor to Gourmet Traveller magazine. During one of our shoots he told me about he and his wife’s dream to create a sustainable farm and cooking school in Tasmania. I was intrigued and so inspired. Since this is a bit of a dream of mine, I had a hundred and one questions every time we worked together. Each time he would tell me about his new learning experiences in sustainability, and his friend and photographer Luke, would tell me about their latest adventures in Tasmania. How fabulous I thought. If Rodney and Séverine can do this, it would one of the most inspiring cooking experiences ever…

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(these are 2 of my favourite shoots with Rodney and his delish recipes at Gourmet Traveller. Featured on the left is Rodney’s chicken, fennel and tarragon soup with poached egg and on the right is his Baby Spice and Rhubarb Butter Cakes, click here for the recipe)

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Fast forward to today: Rodney and Séverine have successfully launched their cooking school. Among their first guests was Tetsuya Wakuda who enjoyed Rodney’s afternoon tea of freshly pulled French breakfast and plum purple radishes with aioli, chicken and wild fennel tramezzini and chocolate friands with dulce de leche.

The Agrarian cooking classes are now in full swing, with such seasonal masterclasses in artisanal subjects like making cheese and butter, preserving, baking bread, making pasta, charcuterie, ice-cream and confectionery. There are a maximum of 8 guests per class, and classes can be tailored to suit individual interests.

(how gorgeous is that wood-fired oven? It is designed by the late Alan Scott who was a world renowned oven designer and builder – his ovens are used by the world’s best artisan bakers)

A day at The Agrarian Kitchen sounds like heaven to me: first you pull on a pair of gumboots and begin foraging in the garden for the ripest fruit and vegetables. You return to the kitchen to prepare and cook a seasonal feast under Rodney’s guidance, then lunch with the other guests while enjoying premium Tasmanian wines and artisanal ales…

tea in the garden, anyone?

…pictured above is the tomato gluttony masterclass, and below is Rodney (centre) in action in the kitchen during one of the classes…

French Boy and I are super keen to participate in a class or two next time we are back in Australia. Having worked with Rodney I can attest to him being a very thorough and patient foodie (the perfect ingredients to be a teacher!), and his knowledge on food is immense. So congratulations Rod and Sev, enjoy your new life, and I look forward to seeing you both and enjoying all you have to share with us.

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All images are taken by the fabulous Luke Burgess and Amanda McLaughlin.

Thanks to Rodney and Séverine for sending the images.

For more info about the Agrarian Kitchen visit the website here. Be sure to browse it thoroughly as it is extensive and filled with great information about the surroundings and favourite Tassie places.

And to join the Agrarian Kitchen mailing list for regular updates on classes and events, please click here.

xx

…how gorgeous are these photos that reader Benedicte took the other day in her home town of Bergen in Norway? Be still my beating heart.

Benedicte dear, you make me want to jump on a ferry to your beautiful land right now.

All this snow reminds me of my childhood winters growing up in Quebec. I used to taboggan down the backyard rock garden, skate on my local lac, cross country ski in my local park and make a snowman everyday. Walking to the bus stop to go to school was not the best part of the day. But it was a hardship worth enduring.

Is it snowing anywhere else that I should know about?

boy oh boy does time fly ’round these sunny parts! our four weeks of sydney living are coming to an end and I am a busy bee collecting things from home to take home. and these little beauties will no doubt find their way into petits nooks & crannies in my suitcase.

xx

PS I’ve been so creative while here, I have bundles and bundles of things to share with you! are you sick of me telling you that yet?

PPS I feel like doodling all over these pretty shells – I can see a whole world in there, but I shall have to wait until I get back to my pen tablet. what do these shells inspire in you?

It’s only a piece of baker’s twine but it just looked so pretty tied to this tiny branch, hidden from the world. I felt like I’d found a secret treasure in the heart of the Jardin Des Plantes… I imagined once upon a time it had a love note attached to it – wouldn’t that make your heart sing if you found it?