A little more about Monika & my Journey into Social Media!

It was brought to my attention, how my blog could be good exposure for Courtney's Quality Meat. 

While this is true, it wasn't my 1st motivation. 

Last year my dad passed away as a consequence of Dementia/Alzheimer's, over the last 5 years his mind failed him increasingly. At the very end, when we placed him in a nursing home, 2.5 months before he died, Dad knew where he was. He couldn't look after himself, up until the home we (my sisters) were taking care of dad in his own home. 

At the home, it was a locked up facility, you couldn't fault the staff, but dad knew exactly where he was. He always was very stubborn about entering a home, he couldn't speak very well, but he'd gesture wildly with his hands & utter words to the like 'idiots' & want to go home. Dad was aware of the other patients inabilities, even though he couldn't dress, bath or toilet himself properly. We had to assist him with meals as most of the time he'd lost the ability to use forks & knives. 

So understanding how late a stage of his illness, he was in & yet he was still aware of where he didn't want to be! 

I understood the few words & gestures dad could say & do, but to an outsider, they would only see an old useless man. He was my dad.

Now while it only seemed like his memory had been causing him problems in the last 5-6 yrs, I recognised, now, that when he was in his 50's he would ask me questions about "what we were doing?" Dad had asked my sister the same question & been given details of the event. At the time we thought he was just checking up on us. 

On recognising his behaviour & knowing, my own memory was very vague, I've been trying to learn a little of what the younger generation take for granted. 

 Computers have been mind boggling!  

I have been determined to master the basic skills required to turn on & manoeuvre a computer. As with everything I ever learnt, I need to repeat it over & again to retain the information.
 After being burgled for the 3rd time & losing my laptops twice, the new laptop came with windows 8 & a touch screen, but runs slower.
 So I've learnt to be patient while loading occurs. With a very small budget (NIL) I've endeavoured to start up our web page, thanks to Tash, my daughter in law. I've still got to try & add updates myself.
Next step, I started a FB business page. In the process, I've been following classes, webinars & following groups specific to helping on social media. For me it's been a slow journey, procrastinating & busy with life. I test out the posts,to see which ones work better. I would love to build an interactive audience, that talks cooking, recipes & share viewers meal photos as well.

Hence the next step, Nonna's Apron, my blog!
Thanks to my niece Alissa, who started me off & will help anytime I call. It's time-consuming preparing, uploading my photos, taking more photos when I cook, also cooking more for my photos! BUT I've always wanted to write, so this is my outlet. I'd love to do a workshop on blogging. Maybe my next Goal. I'm also trying to delve into the applications that came with Windows 8, photo apps & learn how to edit my photos.

Marketing with social media is a very broad. I've posted on google & yet don't know what that looks like. I'm tweeting but need to learn more about hash tags etc. I'm a bit of a Twit when it comes to Twitter, knowing my tweets are going out, but not sure Where?

Lena went down
a water-slide the 1st time
 on her 80th birthday!

By the way! If you want to buy something useful for the older Generation, consider a Tablet, yeh not one you swallow, the electronic sort! Does that compute? My mum in law, Lena, turned 80 in  January. Several years ago, we bought her an iPad, there were a few hiccups while learning, but it opened Lena's world up. While we do sit with our heads in our tablets sometimes, we do communicate often. We Skype, we Face Time, we email, & we follow each other on Facebook. :)

My Wonderful Family minus Shayne!

So marketing with social media is my aim, but I've a long way to go!

The blog is also a memoir of recipes for my children & grandchildren.

Ha, Ha, Me a long time ago!

I do have a Wish List, besides the learning.
1. Attend another cooking class with May Issac in the Kenmore Hills.
2. Go on a Tour to Sicilly with Dominique Rizzo.
3. Take my girls & grand-kids to Sydney for a family holiday.
4. Learn to experiment with my cooking.
5. Attend some Art Classes.

Did I mention I'm a Hairstylist & that it's my other Passion?

Now I'm off to the Kitchen to make & photograph, Cheese!
By the way, again, I'm a bit of a joke in the family, always photographing food. " Hold on I need to take a photo"! I'm sure on my headstone, they're going to write, " Hold on, just 1 more photo"!

Press Release! The 'Great Australian BBQ' Comp

'A Recipe for Disaster'?

Local Butchers' wife Monika Courtney, from 'Courtney's Quality Meat', teamed up with  a customer Jeff Ram, Photographer, & Justin Pickering, Butcher, to enter "The Great Australian BBQ"  Competition.  

A brainchild of Simon Dell & Emma from Two Cents, the competition was formulated to bring Awareness of Meals on Wheels Activities. 

Meals on Wheels not only provide daily meals to the Elderly,  but recipients include, people with disabilities & returning home from hospital. Their Clients not only receive their nutritious, balanced meal, but a Daily Knock on the Door & a Friendly Smile from a Volunteer, sometimes the ONLY friendly face they'll see. 

When asked why Monika, from Courtney's Quality Meat , got involved, her motivated response was, " we'll there's a movement going round now, 'pay it forward' or when you go to a coffee shop, someone has paid for a coffee to treat a stranger, so I figure if we do the same for ' Meals on Wheels' someone who is struggling this week, will receive the same surprise & feeling that someone cares & I love a challenge". 

How did you come about choosing your team? Well Justin was an obvious choice as he Loves cooking & coming up with new ideas in the shop, ( Justin works as a fully qualified butcher with us), his enthusiasm & excitement, definitely fitted the bill. We have many customers that love cooking & would have been great for the team, so when Jeff walked into the Butcher Shop, I asked if he would be interested in joining our team. 

With a mixture of family cultures & ideas, we came up with our Signature dishes! As the rules changed, the pressure grew! What started out as a BBQ Cookoff at Southbank, with 6 teams & judges, hosts, turned into a television production. 

Reality hit, I planned a schedule, wrote lists, we had some joint practises with a panel of friends for opinions. We chose recipes we thought interesting, local & with a Twist! Using local Queensland produce.

Our Signature dish for Seafood was ' Queensland Bush Tucker with an Asian Twist'.  Alistair McLeod  asked " Why are you cooking something you've only cooked Twice"? My response was, " We wanted to do something different"! 

I'm not giving away our other signature dishes, as you'll need to watch ' The Great Australian BBQ ' airing in May 3rd at 12.30 pm, on 7 Mate. 

What were the judges like?  "  Absolutely Wonderful, Queenslander Billy Moore, complimented our food, critiquing with good honest opinion. Dominique Rizzo, was gorgeous & an amazing lady , epitomising 'The Taste of Sicilly', & the Charming Alistair  McLeod, was full of great tips. The Hosts Mark Goldman & Liz Cantor were very funny, & made the day. The Crew from 'Light & Shade Media' Production Team were extremely professional. 

"And how would you all summarise the day? " It's unanimous, we had a fantastic day on set, it was a long day of filming, but we enjoyed the experience. Now I'm just wondering how we will look on the show, when it airs in May, 

I'm hoping the viewers will get behind our Team, for the Viewers' Choice Awards & support Our Team with donations to help Meals on Wheels!"  for everyday hero

5 Safety Tips in the Kitchen!

There are lots of opportunities in the kitchen for things to go wrong. I compiled a list of a few of the safety tips I have picked up through the years. Have a look!

Pouring hot oil into a cup!

1. This is something that shocked me, while I was at the outpatients (with Rebecca, see tip #2) at R.B.H Childrens Burns Unit. I always tipped my hot oil into a cup, until I met a child who'd pulled the cup off the counter to have a drink. The little girl had serious burns. Instead use a clean glass jar & keep well out of reach of children. 

2. The photo of Bec was while I had her sitting on a bench top next to the stove. I wasn't using the stove at the time, but Bec turned on an element. I saw it straight away & turned it off. After 5 minutes Bec leaned across the stove resting her hand on the hotplate, I saw it & grabbed her, putting her hand straight under the tap. I grabbed a tea towel & soaked it in water, then wrapped her hand. Getting her into the car, I drove straight down to the local Doctor. He gave her an injection for the pain, then we went into the Burns Unit at the R.B.H. Even though I was watching Bec & wasn't far from her side, being near anything that can burn could be a danger.

Handle out from stove top!

3. The handle of a pan is another danger, that everyone probably knows about. Always keep handles turned in or to the side. As I've gotten older, I have a new rule, Out of the Kitchen! I work better on my own, but I think it's a space thing. So the tip here is, plan when the kids will help you in the kitchen. it avoids chaos, but it's a wonderful passion to pass onto the children.

Plugged in Blender when cleaning!

4. Now this is something I've had a personal experience with but Stick Blenders can be dangerous!. I think at the time I wizzed it in the water to clean it, then I went to dry blender stick & accidentally touched the On button. Thankfully I had the thick tea towel. I know, Why was the blender still plugged in & on? As most accidents happen, in a moment of not thinking. Read here about another family members experience with her stick blender. Next tip: Unplug electrical implements before cleaning.

5. Now my last tip for today is to make a cuppa & go sit outside & watch the kids. While your in the kitchen your probably missing out on all the fun things the kids are doing. Like in this photo, where Bec decided to go adventuring up the embankment. Our pet dog was close behind her everywhere she went. Jordan eventually followed Bec up to make sure she was safe.

This looked like fun!

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I hope you find my blogs entertaining & helpful. My recipes are designed to make the thought of cooking a healthy nutritious meal less stressful, more economical (so you can afford a beautiful cut of quality steak) minimal preparation, & just less work for the COOK. Now get out of the Kitchen & Relax.

Welcome!

Yes I'm a Nonna, but I'm not Italian. The Italian influence comes from my Husband, Stephen's family. The Massotti Brothers emigrated from the North of Italy, Tresivio, a province of Sondrio in about 1921. Two brothers married Italians girls from back home who followed the men to Oz. Nonna and Zia welcomed me into their kitchens' to show me how to make fresh pasta, cooked pasta & risotto meals. The influence of garlic and rosemary will feature in some of my recipes, but I'm on a journey to spread my wings & experiment.

Nonna's Apron developed from the photo above that my grandchildren modeled. Stephen's Nonna, Maria, made and wore these aprons many years ago. Those were the days when an apron was standard issue in the kitchen. Stephen told me the only time you ever saw Nonna without an apron was when she went to church.
The yellow apron was embroidered by Nonna, while she made the small version of the Butcher's apron for Stephen as a lad. Aprons were synonymous with kitchens & draw a little nostalgia from my childhood into my early years of marriage, to the present day of preparing meat in our family butcher shop: Courtney's Quality Meat.