Parents & Friends Community

PFC President: Danielle Johnston

In this ‘new normal’, of closed state borders and tighter purse-strings, no one is flying north (e.g. to Noosa) for winter this year (yet). So, it’s up to us to find other ways over the next three months to warm up here, in melancholy Melbourne, rather than basking in some bone-warming winter sun.

Here are just a few suggestions…

1. Warm up from the inside with “Brighton Bites” – our school cookbook

Embracing seasonal produce and cooking your heart out is a beautifully grounding and delicious way to keep the winter chills at bay.

In Melbourne in winter, the following produce is in season: Apples, beetroot, broad beans, broccoli, brussel sprouts, cabbage, carrot, cauliflower, celery, grapefruit, jerusalem artichokes, kiwi fruit, leeks, lemons, lettuce, limes, mandarins (imperial), onions, oranges (navel), parsley, parsnips, pears, potatoes, rhubarb, silverbeet, snow peas, spinach, spring onion, turnips. (Source: https://environmentvictoria.org.au/resource/eating-green-guide-seasonal-food/)

Some of these in-season fruits and vegetables match up nicely with recipes from our home-grown “Brighton Bites” cookbook:

Jong Sisters’ Apple Cake on page 204
Moroccan Roasted Cauliflower on page 174
Pork & Celery Dumplings on page 56
Easy-peasy No-knead Parsnip Bread on page 90
The Stranger’s Blue Cheese & Pear Salad on page 106
Potato & Silverbeet Pie on page 176.

Share photos of your cook-ups with other home chefs via our new “Brighton Bites” community Facebook page.

And if you’d like to purchase a copy of “Brighton Bites” for yourself or as a gift, please email: pfc@brighton.vic.edu.au

2. Take a bracing walk in salty air - or relax indoors in a warm salt room!

Walking along Brighton beach in the moist, cold, salty sea air is a healthy and uplifting way to get the heart racing in winter however, if you’re not into getting blown around, you can apparently get the same therapeutic benefits walking into a lovely warm salt room!

Salts of the Earth in Hampton, owned by former BPS teacher Marie Vastini, says: “Salt therapy is a natural remedy that involves inhaling pharmaceutical-grade dry salt in a comfortable, controlled environment. As you sit back and relax, a special medical device called a halogenerator will disperse microscopic salt particles into the room. You’ll inhale these tiny particles deep into your airways and lungs and they will also land on your skin. When you enter our salt room doors, you’ll escape to a world of healing and serenity. Each session runs for 45 minutes, which is the perfect amount of time to unwind.”

https://saltsoftheearth.com.au/

3. Hunker down & live-stream from your lounge chair (BYO popcorn)

After screening six Andrew Lloyd Webber productions, the YouTube channel The Shows Must Go On! has announced that it will continue to screen a musical every week for the foreseeable future. Each show goes live on the channel on Saturday at 4am AEST and usually remains viewable for 48 hours afterward. In addition to full-length videos, the channel streams clips and behind-the-scenes footage. The shows in the series are announced week by week. Up next on June 6 is 'Peter Pan Live!' https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdmPjhKMaXNNeCr1FjuMvag

Other Livestreaming and Streaming options include: