Hi there. Well what an amazing experience it was to be part of the Christchurch Symposium 2017! I have to confess to feeling a bit brain dead at the moment, a combination of lack of sleep and being ‘over-inspired’ by the amazing work on display.

I take my hat off to the organising committee and to Bernina (the major sponsor), and everyone involved for an outstanding effort. If you are suitably inspired don’t forget to register for the next Symposium which will be in Auckland, 1-6 October 2019. The sooner that you register the better your chances of getting the classes you want as lower numbers are given priority. www.quiltsymposium2019.nz

We are still trying to put things back to rights in the shop, but this is a great special that we have at the moment (until sold out) for the Fiskars cutter and ruler set. Usually $49.00 these are now $29.00 – which is cheaper than buying a new rotary cutter on its own!

This is a new quilt that I have recently finished featuring nine different kimono. Available as a pattern ($23.00) or a kit ($185) it uses foundation piecing techniques to provide a very accurate finish to the blocks.

We have Katrina Hadjimichael from Australia teaching for us in Ashburton this weekend, so keep an eye out for some updates and photographs on the Annie’s Facebook and Instagram links.

Now..just in case you thought I had forgotten, the winner of last month’s draw for the $50.00 voucher is Marie King from Ashburton.

On to the recipe...(my mouth is watering just typing this!)

Baked Kumara with Roasted Garlic Butter

• 4 large orange kumara
• Olive oil
• Salt and freshly ground pepper
• 2 heads of garlic with the top third cut off
• 100 g butter
• 2 tbsp chopped parsley

Preheat the oven to 180 C. Cut the kumara in half lengthwise and brush them with olive oil. Place cut side up in a baking tray and season with salt and pepper. Place the garlic heads in the dish alongside and drizzle with a little oil. Pour a cup of water into the pan, cover and cook for 40 mins or until the kumara is tender. Cook uncovered for a further 10 mins.

Squeeze one head of garlic into a bowl and mix with the softened butter and parsley. Scratch the cut side of each kumara with a fork and then place dollops of the garlic butter on the top. (Use the other head of garlic to garnish the plate)

Happy stitching,

Rachel