A Spring Cleanse at Moonacres School
Upon leaving a workplace recently, I was gifted a voucher for the Moonacres School at Robertson. Without hesitation I headed to the website to see what was on offer before the end of the year. I was excited to see a workshop which took my fancy and I immediately enrolled in Spring Cleanse with Holly
I was recently gifted a voucher for the Moonacres School at Robertson so, without hesitation, I immediately enrolled in a Spring Cleanse workshop with Holly Davis.
Holly Davis is a renowned, long-time wholefood, fermentation and sourdough baking teacher, and she is also the author of two best-selling books, Ferment and Nourish.
When we arrive at Moonacres School for our workshop, Holly has gathered about a dozen recipes that shout “Spring!” and our group of nine will prepare them for our lunchtime feast.
Moonacres School offers participants the opportunity to learn the art and craft of food, with a focus on learning by doing. The school attracts some of the best cooks and chefs in the business, all accomplished artisans, and all keen to share knowledge of their craft.
In-house teacher Anna Phillips, a foundation teacher/presenter at the Sydney Seafood School, greets the participants on arrival and offers a peppermint tea.
We are in awe of the beautiful space that is home to Moonacres School. A long island bench housing several cooktops and ovens takes centre stage. At one end is a tiled nook with a fuel stove that would warm the entire place should it be needed. Mirroring the length of the bench is a huge communal table, which we can tell is where we will be sampling the delights of the kitchen.
After we settle in our places, Anna plays a short film that explains the connection of Moonacres School to Moonacres Farm. Established in 2004 by Phil and Lisa Lavers, Moonacres is a thriving certified organic farm on 140 acres of fertile land and it supplies some of the top restaurants in Sydney, the South Coast and the Southern Highlands.
Around the room are baskets of fresh produce from the farm: bright-red rhubarb, brilliantly green fronds of baby fennel, shallots, green spring garlic scapes, fragrant basil and crinkly dark-green cavolo nero.
Holly explains that we will be using this produce in today’s recipes. The spring cleanse theme is all about teaching us the principles for resting and replenishing our digestive system after a long winter of hunkering down and hearty eating.
Holly says spring is the best time to eat light, digestible foods and a good time for eating less. She provides us with food-combining suggestions, perfect for cleansing. Holly reinforces the importance of chewing our food well, as the first step in the digestive process.
We pair up and take a station. Cooking partner Janene and I are assigned two recipes – chickpea, asparagus and goats’ fetta, and citrus broad bean smoodge.
Other recipes include quick kohlrabi and radish pickle, wok-seared squid salad and a delicious toasted sesame dressing for steamed greens. We end up with an incredible spread of about a dozen spring dishes.
Holly is passionate about fermented food and advocates adding a small amount of cultured vegetables to each meal.
We enjoy a sample of her wonderful ferments with our lunch, including crunchy carrots and cauliflower, honey garlic and a refreshing water kefir drink.
Read more about Holly Davis, her books and her life’s work here.
Moonacres School’s new manager Ange Clarke has recently taken over and has great plans for classes in 2023. Keep up to date with all the news from Moonacres by subscribing to their newsletter (scroll to the bottom of the page).
Locally, you can find Moonacres produce at Kiama and Moss Vale Farmers Market.
Alternatively, email lisa@moonacres.com.au to receive your regular produce box.
Learn more about the Moonacres Farm and the Soil Project here.
Moonacres Kitchen
Shop 6-7, 79-81 Hoddle St, Robertson
Phone: 4885 1788
Hearth by Moonacres
S2 Art Gallery Lane, Bowral
Phone: 4861 6629
