think Matt really thought I had lost the plot completely when I called him to see if Mick and Bec would mind if I dug a fire pit in their backyard. I had been doing a little reading on traditional Australian food and wanted to make Damper bread. Nowadays most people who make damper cook it in the oven but I wanted to go the way of the of the Australian bush and cook it in the ground. Since it has been so wet here I was given the go ahead. For those
of you who might have doubt in my outdoor skills I dig a lovely fire pit if I do say so myself.I cooked dinner for Matt, Alan, Cheryl , Matt's dad Barry and Matt's step mom Laurel. Everyone pitched into the damper action. Cheryl had called a few days before and became my conseille
r of damper. She had grown up making it with her family. She even added more fun to the plan asking if I wanted to make some Billy Tea. I had no idea what Billy Tea was but evidently it goes hand in hand with damper. She even went out and got all the supplies including a camp oven( a somewhat cleaner way to cook the damper than just throwing it in the ashes).
r of damper. She had grown up making it with her family. She even added more fun to the plan asking if I wanted to make some Billy Tea. I had no idea what Billy Tea was but evidently it goes hand in hand with damper. She even went out and got all the supplies including a camp oven( a somewhat cleaner way to cook the damper than just throwing it in the ashes). Matt and Alan got the fire going. Unfortunately, the camp oven had to be "cured" before use which takes two hours so we went for the f
oil method...just wrap the dough in foil and set it in the bottom of the fire covering the top with ash and burning logs. I learned a bit about the history of damper from all the dinner guests. Damper was the bread of Australian swagmen traditionally made with flour, salt and water...stuff that could be carried around easily. I went for a little fancier recipe that I got off the Internet http://aussieslang.com/features/australian-damper-bread-recipe.asp
oil method...just wrap the dough in foil and set it in the bottom of the fire covering the top with ash and burning logs. I learned a bit about the history of damper from all the dinner guests. Damper was the bread of Australian swagmen traditionally made with flour, salt and water...stuff that could be carried around easily. I went for a little fancier recipe that I got off the Internet http://aussieslang.com/features/australian-damper-bread-recipe.asp I personally had never heard the term "swagmen" and didn't think to ask what it meant so I looked it up this morning on Wikipedia my personal favorite online resource. " A swagman is an old Australian term describing an underclass of transient temporary workers, who traveled by foot from farm to farm carrying the traditional swag." In American terms I think the closest equivalent would be like the hobo with the kerchief on a stick. Chicago and much of America was filled with hobo camps throughout the depression. "Hobos" differentiated themselves from so-called "bums" by a desire to work but a necessity to travel around to find the elusive work. A high level of swagmen travelled throughout Australia in the depression years of the 1890's and 1930's as well. The most famous "swagman" is immortalized in what some Australians think should be their national anthem "Waltzing Matilda". This is a great version of the song with further explanation of some Australian terms.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=INdjRCNcZj0
When we first
pulled the damper from the fire I thought I had a dismal failure on my hands but HOORAY!! The damper actually came out not half bad. We dug the middle out of the charred outside and it was quite tasty...somewhere between Irish soda bread and scones. I made some homemade honey butter to go with the damper....YUMMY! 
When we first
pulled the damper from the fire I thought I had a dismal failure on my hands but HOORAY!! The damper actually came out not half bad. We dug the middle out of the charred outside and it was quite tasty...somewhere between Irish soda bread and scones. I made some homemade honey butter to go with the damper....YUMMY! 
So next on the agenda was the Billy Tea. The tea thing seems pretty straight forward. You put in water, one handful of leaves for each cup of tea needed and one extra handful for the "Billy" (the name of the specific tea pot). Next set the Billy on the fire until the water boils. Now, here is where things g
et tricky. The leaves are all floating around in the tea so you have to get them to the bottom of the Billy somehow. The Australian way is centrifugal force. The Billy is swung round and round over your head until all the leaves are forced to the bottom of the pot. I was all ready to swing until a huge protest of nervous Aussies stopped me. I am sure their heads were filled with scenes of emergency rooms and third degree burns...silly Yank spinning a Billy. But Cheryl had faith and being the consummate profession
al went first and showed me how to do it. Then I did it!!! I spun the Billy and not one drop of the boiling water touched me. I really felt like I was inaugurated into The Aussie Club.
et tricky. The leaves are all floating around in the tea so you have to get them to the bottom of the Billy somehow. The Australian way is centrifugal force. The Billy is swung round and round over your head until all the leaves are forced to the bottom of the pot. I was all ready to swing until a huge protest of nervous Aussies stopped me. I am sure their heads were filled with scenes of emergency rooms and third degree burns...silly Yank spinning a Billy. But Cheryl had faith and being the consummate profession
al went first and showed me how to do it. Then I did it!!! I spun the Billy and not one drop of the boiling water touched me. I really felt like I was inaugurated into The Aussie Club. We had a great time out by the fire drinking our Billy Tea! Thanks to all you guys who were here and helped me make the Damper and Billy Tea like a real Australian.
