Highlight of Trip
white caviar on oyster
After beating around the bush driving more than 3hours through country roads, we arrived in time to witness an epic sunset at the back of the motel room upon checking in. Although the colours captured here does not do it justice - as it’s missing the purple hues, if you know what I mean, nonetheless it was a spectacular sight as it has been a while since I have seen such a jaw dropping sunset!
We hurried along in order to catch dinner in Shepparton as most places were shut early and landed up at Mustafah’s! Lovely Turkish food and managed to get complimentary Turkish tea too. Surprise surprise surprise!!! LG and D surprised us at Mustafah’s!! They dropped in to say hello and for a quick chit chat but did not join us for dinner as they ate at Peppermill which was 2mins from our motel!!! The restaurant was booked out when I rang so that was why we headed into town.
We woke up early and I prepared a “continental” breakfast for us before setting off to Arcadia.
It was wet and soggy but everyone braved the weather and we marched along for the hatchery tour. It was very educational and interesting how they farm the Murray Cod fish. We were lucky as it was the lst time it opened its doors to the public.
After the hatchery tour, we made our way to the stalls and sampled some White Caviar and Smoked Murray Cod.
The Aquna Gold (white caviar) was really yummy and I bought a 50g tub for $73.00. I guess if you know the process of how to farm caviar, you will appreciate why you have to pay top dollars for it!!!
Finally it was time for the Cooking Demonstrations. My friend Lillie is the Demo Chef so we have come to support her show! It’s a fun day out, get to learn a few new cooking tips and we get to sample the food too. This time LG was showcasing the Murray Cod 3 ways. Fish n chips with apple slaw… Fishcake on garlic bread with dill aioli and the last dish was a fish curry served on Jasmine rice.
LG invited me to join her on stage to help her with cooking the 2nd dish and I must say it was a good experience to lend a helping hand in front of a crowd!
Fish n Chips
White Caviar
Aquna Gold
LG
Fish Cake
Curry Fish on Jasmine Rice
After the show, we drove back into Shepparton to snap some happy shots and managed to find 2 cows and more or less drove in, circled around town and drove out as we wanted to get back to Melbourne before it gets dark!
Cows are Town Mascots
Along the way home, we came across this huge vineyard and drove into their property to take more photos (JT loves her photos).
It was an overnight trip, short and sweet as I had to be home for a birthday lunch the next day!
We stopped by Tong Wu on the way home for “water dogs” dumplings and it was so delish, I had 2 bowls of it!! (There is no dog in the dumplings… the filling is mainly made up of prawns/bamboo shoots/woodear fungus).
Water Dogs Dumplings
To top it off, I won a prize from the Arcadia competition. Cannot recall the last time I won any thing, so it was a good trip!
My Prize
Meantime, we await LG’s next gig and see where it will takes us!
