Already the beginning of May

A lot has happened since the last update, so here is a quick overview:

March saw the Kumeu Show, one of the biggest A&P Shows in NZ. I had big plans for numerous entries but as the year passed things fell by the wayside. The main interest was the giant pumpkins, and 2 months prior I knew they'd be also rans, as the powdery mildew and drought took their toll. Anyway, they were just on 40kg so I entered them anyway...

When you compare it with the winner, mine (circled in red) needed another +150kg to be in the running.

As it turned out I got a first place for my shallots, second for my cherry tomatoes and we both got thirds for my giant root vegetable (a beetroot) and heaviest hen egg and V's tomato sauce. In all we won enough prize money to cover our entry fees so in essence we got a free weekend out of it, so no room to grumble.

April saw me begin to take an interest in charcuterie. I began by making 3 coppa like this one:

That has been followed by beginning a prosciutto, venison salami and a cotechino.

At the end of April we spent 10 days with Matthew in Taipei. It was great to see him and also fun to see Taiwan through different eyes. A good time was had by all.