Entries by Debbie Worgan

All the Broken Places 

by John Boyne 

reviewed by Wendy Tucker 

All the Broken Places is a sequel, of sorts, to the best-selling Boy in the Striped Pyjamas that, like Markus Zusak’s The Book Thief, was originally published as Young Adult Fiction but both books quickly became best-selling novels in the adult fiction category and both were made into successful films. Both are set during the Holocaust of WW2. Both authors felt that Young Adult readers should know about the Holocaust and both were criticised by survivors for a too soft approach. That judgement … Read more »

Pumpkin Gnocchi

by Flick Ruby

500 g baked pumpkin pulp
1.25 cups plain flour
½ cup of grated parmesan cheese
ground black pepper to taste

Bake a halved butternut pumpkin, or peeled pieces of pumpkin, for 1.5 hours. Let cool and scrape pulp into a bowl, adding the sifted flour, grated cheese and ground pepper (I use a lot!). Knead the ball of dough for two minutes or until smooth. On … Read more »

Nutmeg Cake

by Flick Ruby

1½ cups soft brown sugar
2 cups SR flour
125 gm butter
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 egg
1 teaspoon grated nutmeg
Generous handful of walnuts
Small 20 cm springform cake tin

Combine sugar and flour in a large bowl. Rub in the butter until it’s like breadcrumbs. Grease the cake tin with butter. Press half of the mixture evenly over the base of … Read more »

Absurdly quick and delicious soup

by Flick Ruby

2 big tablespoons of your favourite curry paste – mine is Thai green, but this works with Massaman, red, yellow or any curry paste in a jar
1 can coconut milk
500 g of frozen chopped spinach
1 cup of veg or chicken stock
chilli flakes if you like them

Heat up the curry paste, adding a few tablespoons of the coconut milk. Stir and cook for a minute or two, until you can smell the … Read more »

Feed the soil not the plants!

by Mark Evans

The soil is the most important part of any garden. Not only does it provide a place for the plants to anchor their roots and gain structural support, but it is also the plant’s source of water and nutrients. Ideally, a good soil will be deep and friable and loaded with organic matter and humus.

Organic matter is essentially the waste and remains of plants or animals. … Read more »

Chris Franks: ‘biting off more than it was sensible to chew on.’

by Jen Severn

Chris and Bev Franks married in Sydney in 1963. Her dad had a bush property (now the Bermagui Heights Estate) and they moved down to develop it. ‘The plan was for us to clear it then share-farm it,’ says Chris. ‘We started off without a cracker. So while we were clearing the property and sowing it down, I needed off-farm income.’ He heard that the Bermagui Country Club needed … Read more »