Introducing Alison Spurgeon of Lemon Myrtle Cakes, to the SAGE Farmers Market in Moruya
After 20 years as a local vet in Narooma, Alison looked to her productive garden as something that would “keep her busy”. Her market stall has done that and more, and in busy times she can’t keep up with demand.
Her garden is full of interesting plants that are also useful. As well as a bountiful vegetable garden, there are many different citrus including finger limes. We also saw macadamias, Davidson’s plum, rhubarb, peaches, plums, and of course lemon myrtles. The leaves of lemon myrtles are dried then made into an intensely flavoured powder which is incorporated into biscuits and cakes. While the items at the stall fall into the “treats” category, Alison is continually striving to give them higher food value with less sugar. She uses a lot of almond meal in her cooking and many of her best sellers are also gluten free. Market produce such as milk, hazelnuts and honey are also used as key ingredients. The chickens and ducks have very generous “runs” and produce most of her egg requirements. The duck eggs are particularly prized for cakes. Cut flowers provide a colourful addition to her stall, especially in spring, and are lauded for their creative mix of Australian natives and exotics. Alison has no ambitions to get bigger, and values her income from the market to put back into her beloved garden. To meet the other SAGE Producers visit the SAGE Meet The Producers webpage You can follow the SAGE website for news and updates or via their Facebook Page here The SAGE Farmers Market provides a marketplace for consumers to access locally grown or harvested food directly from the producers and growers within a 160km radius of Moruya., under safe and controlled conditions. Every Tuesday afternoon from 3pm at Riverside Park, Moruya
