Lowtide


Galley Essentials with Amanda


Amanda and her niece, Mary-Ann, taste test tomatoes.


The start of our


current sailing season incorporated outfitting Mahina Tiare in my home country of New Zealand. To take a break from the seemly endless boat projects, I embarked on a road trip north from Auckland to Whangarei for much requested “Auntie Time”. The little person I especially had to visit was my niece Mary-Ann. I’m not an exceptionally clucky person, but this little pumpkin is a cutie and we had a mighty time together. At only 16 months old, Mary-Ann


has not yet come across a food she does not like. “Yum Yum’s” is one of the three words she utters, although by the time Auntie Mandi left she’d also learnt “Oh Oh!”. Little did I know that a trip outside to play in the garden has a dedicated sequence of events starting with mum Karen reproachfully requesting Mary- Ann to wear her gumboots in the yard. Then we were off, first it’s a dash to the cherry tomatoes, where after grabbing a fistful, a few quickly get shoved into the mouth. Next it’s the swing for a pushing session after which it’s a run to the vegetable patch were carrots get yanked from the ground along with a silver beet leaf being ripped from it’s mother plant. We’re not done yet for a bounce on the trampoline and a ride in the wheelbarrow are both required to complete the backyard tour. I was not to leave Mary-Ann’s


garden empty handed, for I returned to Mahina Tiare with a bounty of cherry tomatoes, silver beet and fresh herbs of mint, basil and cilantro; courtesy of my brother David’s green fingers. Karen attached the following recipe to the lush bunch of silver beet and it proved to be a scrumptious dinner for John and I a few nights later. We were celebrating the 48° NORTH, SEPTEMBER 2010 PAGE 36


with cheese sauce, lasagna then cheese sauce sprinkled with remaining cheese. Bake 40 minutes at 425°F.


A few days later


our last remaining boat chores were a c c o m p l i s h e d including bending on


Homegrown and Traveled Provisions


by Amanda Swan Neal


launching of Mahina Tiare and leaving the boatyard for a quiet anchorage.


Mushroom Lasagna


2 tablespoons olive oil 1 onion - sliced


3 garlic cloves - minced 1 lb mushrooms - sliced bunch fresh basil - chopped salt and pepper 2 tablespoons butter 3 tablespoons flour ¼ teaspoon fresh grated nutmeg 2½ cups milk


1 cup grated cheese 8oz fresh lasagna sheets Heat oil in a large pan, add onion and


garlic, sauté 3 minutes. Add mushrooms, cook 5 minutes, remove from heat, add basil, salt and pepper. Melt butter in a medium pot, stir in flour then nutmeg, salt and 1 cup of milk. Whilst stirring, allow the sauce to thicken, add remaining milk and return to boil. Remove from heat and add ⅔ of the cheese. Grease a 8x10 casserole dish, spread half a cup of cheese sauce over the bottom, cover with a sheet of lasagna, then half the mushroom mixture. Repeat, finishing


the sails. Our Leg 1 expedition members joined at noon and after clearing customs at the downtown quay we set sail for Tahiti. John had been watching the always-changing weather for a month, but now the standard weather pattern had drastically changed. A low had formed NW of NZ and was predicted to deepen and very slowly meander toward the northern tip of the country. The computer analysis from Bob McDavitt MetService recommended that our most efficient routing was that of the letter W! Our first goal was to reach East Cape,


the eastern tip of NZ, to catch the tail end of the large high pressure that had favored NZ with summery conditions for the past few weeks, thus avoiding storm force winds forecasted for northern NZ. We were able to sail occasionally, but mostly the winds fluttered around 5-7 knots. The spells of motoring were frustrating for our crew, but the calm conditions gave me the opportunity to utilize my fresh herbs in these lunch salads.


Minty Sprouted Mung Bean Salad with Chicken


2 cups dry mung beans – (sprouted for 2 days)


2 lb roasted chicken meat - shredded 2 bunches scallions - sliced thinly 1 bunch of fresh mint - chopped finely 4 eggs - hard boiled ½ teaspoon salt ¼ cup olive oil


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