Cranberry ice-cream wreath

Look out for the small fruits in the district. I have found a great recipe which is low in kilojoules and would be fantastic to have at any time of year, but particularly during the Christmas season. It is so easy but quite spectacular. A combination of rasberries and cranberries is great. Or, you can substitute another berry.

Cranberry ice-cream wreath with raspberry coulis
Ice-cream
1 juice of one orange
3 teaspoons finely grated orange rind
3/4 cup (85g) crasins (dried cranberries)
2 litres low-fat vanilla ice-cream

Coulis
300gm packet frozen respberries
2 tbls water
1/4 cup 30gms) icing supar
1 cup fresh or frozen reaspberries or cranberries, thawed

Method
Line a 6 cup (23cm) ring cake tin with cling wrap. Heat the orange juice in a small saucepan and add the craisins and orange rind. Leave to soak until cool. Place ice-cream in a large mixing bowl and allow to soften slightly. Fold through the soaked craisins and spoon into the prepared tin. Press the mixture firmly and smooth the surface with the back of aspoon. Place in the freezer for at least 2 hours, until firm.

Place raspberries in a food processor or blender with water and icin sugar. Blend until smooth. Push through a sieve to remove all seeds and pour into a serving jug.
When ready to serve, tourn out the wreath onto a platter and remove the cling wrap. Top with cranberries or raspberries and drizzle with coulis.

Deep Bay Circuit

Stop at the Woodbridge Market for interesting, quirky, local crafts and scrumptuous preserves. I found the best cards and photographs here. We purchased a framed photo of a picker's hut. Take the road from the centre of town turning left at the local village store. It's a steep climb but the bike rider's love it. Watch out for them. If touring in the evening or at night watch out for wild life. There's plenty on all the Tasmanian country roads. This road winds up and over the hill with exciting views at every turn. Picker's  huts are everywhere. Saved by the conservationists. Well done Tassie.

Past the turn off to Hertzview Vineyard and down the other side to the estuary at Cygnet. Take time to have lunch at the Red Velvet Lounge and buy local produce at the Sunday market in the Town Hall. We were lucky to meet up with the Cygnet Garden Club's walk around town visiting the local vegetable gardens. Absolute freshness in Tasmania.

Cocktail hour

Working on Credence in the Kettering harbour is fun. The new marina is a big step up on the old one, despite it's charm. No more wondering what the tide. You can step straight on. Perfect for that impulsive invitation for a sail on Credence. No more worrying that your friends will lose their glasses in the leap on to the boat. Just step right up. Much less stress. We can concentrate on the departure from the jetty. It was perfect. The motor was purring. The friends were relaxed. They didn't throw the rope in and get it tangled in the rudder. What a relief! We are off and sailing towards Bruny island. Well, not sailing, motoring..........We can leave the sailing for another day. Out in the middle of the D'Entrecasteaux Channel we see the seals playing in the water. We motor up quietly and fairly close. What a magnificent sight!

We hurry back into the marina so we can all meet back at Wavestation for cocktails. Our friends are amazed! What a wonderful place. Step out onto the veranda and enjoy the view. Boats sail by. Boats  motor by pulling the salmon farms behind.  After a glass of   savingyon blanc we head for Peppermint Bay Hotel for dinner. Must be there before 8pm as the kitchen will close. No wedding tonight so we can dine down in the low area and watch the ferry arrive. The big oaks are lit up in the evening light, the expansive lawns are dotted with children playing. Their parents watching.

Next day we head for Cygnet and lunch at the Red Velvet Lounge.