Classes

Cookery classes with Jan are available at the Farmhouse on weekends, or some weekdays by arrangement, for small groups of 6 to 8 people, for a range of food related activities. Jan has trained in commercial cookery and was a Hospitality teacher for 20 years.  

Plan to spend a day here with a group of friends or colleagues by selecting one of the classes below, or customise a class to suit your group’s specific interests. You may also join a pre-existing group booking if the date and class type is suitable.

Please phone, text or email Jan with any queries or to request a booking. Check our website calendar for some planned class dates, but if you have a group of people interested we can find a date to suit you.

Long lunch

An option - a kitchen and garden tour if liked, but without the hands -on cookery - an artisan lunch with a set menu is prepared for you and served at a long table

12 midday to 3pm - $80 per person

Book a long 3 course set menu lunch with a group of friends or family for exclusive use of our dining spaces - Minimum 8, maximum 10 people seated inside, or up to 20 people on the verandah at a long table. Enjoy a freshly made-from-scratch authentic country style set menu using our own organic or local seasonal ingredients. BYO alcohol, suggestions available for pairing with courses.

Farmhouse cookery experience and long lunch

9am to 3pm - $120 per person

Book a cookery class with a group of friends, and spend a day together cooking in a relaxed country setting.

Start the day with a garden tour and gather some fruit, vegetables and herbs for the preparation of lunch. Morning Tea with fresh cake and espresso coffee or pots of tea is included. Recipes will be explained and a demonstration of techniques given. Become involved as little or as much as you wish with the preparation and cookery of ingredients for lunch.

Explore a variety of cooking methods using wood fire or gas, and extend your skills and knowledge to create a beautiful soup or entree, main course and dessert from scratch, using fresh produce and staple pantry ingredients. Skills will be practised by the class members to collectively prepare a meal, which will then be shared at the end of the class.

Cheesemaking

9am to 3pm - $300 per person

Follow the  process of cheesemaking with hands on experiences. We run our own small dairy herd and milk cows when seasons permit. Our milk is pasteurised but not homogenised and is suitable for cheesemaking. The Jersey milk is particularly creamy. When our own cows aren’t milking we use fresh milk from a local dairy.

During the class, simple cheesemaking processes are explained and demonstrated, then put into practice.  This involves adding the culture, setting the milk with rennet, cutting the curd, stirring and warming the curds, shaping it into hoops, and turning or pressing the cheese. All necessary equipment and ingredients are supplied for you to make your own soft cheese to take home. Some harder cheeses will need further time to be pressed and matured. Traditional methods are described for a variety of finished cheeses, such as ricotta, fetta, ploughmans, haloumi & camembert. Includes morning tea and a light lunch of farmhouse garden produce, cheese and sourdough.

Sourdough Breadmaking

9am to 3pm - $200 per person

A hands-on class demonstrating the techniques of sourdough breadmaking, which begins with an authentic starter culture fed by freshly milled organic wholemeal or rye and white baker’s flour, followed by mixing, autolyse, kneading, proving, shaping the loaves, more proving, scoring and baking. Investigate recipes and a variety of grains, flours and ingredients that can be used for differing results.

Morning tea, espresso coffee or tea, and a light Ploughman’s lunch with fresh sourdough, cheese and pickles are included.

Take home some bread samples, starter & flour if needed, and recipes.

Fresh Pasta Farmhouse Lunch

10am to 3pm $150

This short course demonstrates how to make pasta from scratch using simple pantry ingredients. Learn how to create different pasta shapes such as fettucine, cavatelli, orecchiette and ravioli with hands-on experience. Experiment with plain, egg-based and coloured doughs. Practice hand techniques and using simple pasta tools including gnocchi boards, a corsetti stamp, a hand cranked cavatelli roller, and hand or motor driven pasta machines with attachments.

Participate as much or as little as you like in making lunch for the group using our own ingredients for the pasta, sauces, salad and accompaniments.

Morning tea with espresso coffee and cake is also provided.

Take home a sample of your fresh pasta along with your recipes and know-how!

Preserving

10am to 3pm $150

Learn and practise principles and basic methods of preserving fruits and vegetables in this short course. This could include fruit bottling, pickling vegetables, relish, chutney and jam making, depending on availability of seasonal produce and the interests of the group. Late summertime is great for tomato passata bottling, while marmalade is the favourite in winter.  Participate in making batches of preserves and take home some samples.

Morning Tea is provided on arrival with espresso coffee or tea and cake, and a Ploughman’s lunch of sourdough bread, cheese and pickles is included.