- Lightning Ridge
- Brewarrina
- Goodooga
- Narrabri
- Wee Waa
- Yarrie Lake
- Gunnedah
Granville, Tea Gardens, Granville (again)
Thursday 8 to Tuesday 13 May
We had a very good trip on the road after leaving Granville at 1035 hrs and heading for Tea Gardens. We commented on the highway that this was our first wet trip since having the 5R. We arrived at 1335 hrs and found a high, dry grassy place to set up, closer to the Church. This was a very short trip due to having to visit Reen’s brother in Singleton. See more about this in my reflection and baby brother memories. It was great to catch up with everyone at TGBC on Sunday. On Tuesday, at 1130 hrs, midst the dark clouds above, we packed up ready to head back to Granville. Coming into the city was very busy and we finally made it by 1430 hrs. It was an adventure dodging the parked vehicles in the street to get the 5R into the driveway, but we did it.
Memories of My Baby Brother
Brett Anthony Sandry born Thursday 3 December 1970 in Gilgandra Hospital to Gorden & Margaret Sandry. He was the youngest of six children.
I (Doreen) was 10 years old when Brett was born. I don’t remember much about the whole hospital experience except that Mum had to stay there for quite a while, possibly weeks, due to needing a hysterectomy operation almost immediately after Brett’s birth. Even when mum did come home she was unable to do any work around the house for up to six months, or until she had recovered completely.
Brett was kept in hospital for some days with mum and he was mostly bottle fed due to her being unwell. This meant that a lot of the caring for Brett fell on me as Dad was off working or driving trucks. I remember getting us girls ready for school in the morning, the boys stayed with mum and any extended family who could help. When I got home from school I would wash clothes and start preparing dinner and get the kids through baths and ready for bed.
When I think back, the six months seemed to go on forever and I worked so hard at keeping everything sorted out for mum. During this time Brett would sleep with me and he became very much like my Bub. I can remember thinking all I want to do when I grow up is be a mum. Even after mum was well enough to do everything again it was already evident that Brett had built a very close rapport with me and he really did become my Bub. I remember walking to the shops and going to the park with the other kids with him in the pram. I was like the big sister/mum to all the kids while we all lived at home. I have always called him Bub, right through his life. He made the point one time that I was the only one who could call him Bub, which was so special.
When we lived in a house on Warren Rd, Gilgandra we used to have a horse that we were able to ride in the back yard. On Brett’s 1st Birthday I dressed him up in a blue dress and tied a pink ribbon in his hair and he looked very sweet, I love that photo.
As I got older life changed and my focus changed and when I was 16 my outlook on life was moving toward young men. I actually left home in 1977 and moved to the city to work. I continued to travel back to Gilgandra regularly and spend time with my family. I was able to catch up on what’s been happening and how he was doing at school and with footy and cricket. We have maintained a fairly close relationship even though we were apart through our adult years.
We were lucky enough in 1999, during his working life, to have him stay with us in Granville for about six weeks. He’d had a car accident where his hand got crushed and his specialist had replaced some bones with metal and referred him to rehabilitation in Sydney to help him adjust to the changes. They told him he would probably only recover 30% of movement but he worked so stubbornly hard at it that he regained pretty close 100% —which is terrific.
Life has thrown in many changes with work, marriage, children, health issues and through all these we have still managed to visit with each other and catch up. It was great last Saturday when all five siblings got together at his house and had a great time chatting together and remembering.
Brett Anthony Sandry passed away on Tuesday 13 May 2025 at 10.00 am at home in Singleton with his wife, Elizabeth Sandry after a short but intense period of illness.
Apricot Chicken
Ingredients
2 tsp oil
600g chicken breast, cubed
1 large onion, sliced thinly
1 packet GF French Onion Soup
1 tablespoon Keens curry powder
405ml can apricot nectar
410g can apricot halves in juice, keep 1 cup juice. Cut apricots into quarters.
Basmati rice
Method
Heat oil in pan over medium heat.
Cook chicken and onion for 10 minutes, stirring until golden brown.
Combine soup mix, curry powder and apricot nectar and juice and pour into chicken.
Cover, reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Stir in apricot quarters and heat for 5 minutes.
Serve with steamed rice.
Serve 4 people
Bolognese Mince with Baked Potatoes
Ingredients
500g mince
1 large onion, diced
2 tblsp crushed garlic
2 x cans diced tomatoes
1/4 cup herbed tomato paste
3 tblsp Italian herbs
2 tblsp dried parsley
3 tblsp GF worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup beef stock (2tblsp powder stock to 1/2 cup water)
Grated cheese
6-8 large potatoes
Instructions for Bolognese
In a large pan brown mince for 10 minutes and add onion, garlic, herbs, sauce and paste and mix well.
Cook for 10 minutes and add tomatoes, paste and stock, mix well and cook slowly for another 30 minutes.
Instructions for Potatoes
Pierce potatoes with fork and pre-cook in microwave for 10 minutes on plate with wet paper towel under and on top of the potatoes.
Place potatoes in a large bowl and pour over a little olive oil and a large sprinkle of salt and toss in bowl.
Place into pre heated air fryer at 210⁰ C for 40 minutes.
Turn potatoes at 20 minutes.
Build stuffed potato
Place potato in deep dinner bowl and cut across the top, turn and cut again.
Using a soup spoon squash the potato from centre to edge of bowl.
Spoon meat over the top of the squashed potato and sprinkle with grated cheese.
Makes 6-8
Cheeseburger Casserole Bake
Ingredients
1 tsp Olive Oil
500g Mince
¼ tsp White Pepper, ground
150g Bacon, diced
1 Onion, diced
¼ cp Tomato Sauce
¼ cp GF Yellow Mustard
¼ cp Mayonnaise
2 tblsp GF Worcestershire Sauce
1 tsp Garlic Powder
1 cp grated Cheese
3 large Egg
1/4 cp thick Cream
Instructions
Preheat your oven to 190C.
Place a large saucepan over high heat, add the oil, mince, salt and pepper.
Break the beef up and cook until browned, then remove from the heat.
Place the bacon into a non-stick frying pan over high heat and fry until crisp, drain off the fat and add the bacon to the beef mixture.
Add the onion, tomato sauce, mustard, mayonnaise, Worcestershire, garlic powder, and half the cheese into the beef mix. Mix well.
Add the beef mixture to a casserole dish.
In a bowl, whisk together the eggs and cream, pour over the beef mixture.
Top with the remaining cheese and bake for 30 minutes.
Serves 4-6 people
Serve with GF chips
Rock Cakes
Ingredients
2 cps SR Flour
½ cp raw sugar
½ cp butter, cubed
¾ cp mixed fruit
1 egg
½ cp milk
1 tsp vanilla
Method
Preheat oven to 200⁰ C.
Mix flour, sugar and add butter and use fingers to rub into flour until it resembles breadcrumbs
Add all other ingredients and mix well. Mixture should be lumpy.
Scoop soup spoon size dough onto greased pan, leaving space between for growth.
Cook for 10 min or until golden brown.
Bacon & Cheese Turnovers
Ingredients
2 Eggs
Grated or slice Cheese
Bacon
Puff Pastry
Method
Cut the pastry sheet into 4 squares.
Place grated/sliced cheese in the centre of each square.
Place 2 slices of bacon on top of cheese and fold corners over. You can use a toothpick to hold fold closed.
Beat eggs and glaze the pastry using a brush.
Cook in air fry at 200C for 12 mins.
Turn over for the last 2 mins.
Makes 4 per sheet
Apple Pie
Ingredients
770 g tinned apple pie
340 g packet vanilla cake mix
100 g butter cubed
Ingredients
Spray slow cooker with cooking spray.
Add the pie apples to the bottom of the slow cooker and spread out.
Sprinkle the cake mix over the pie apples, then dot the cake mix with the cubed butter.
Place a tea towel under the lid of your slow cooker and cook on high for 2 1/2 hours.
Serve with ice cream, custard or Cream
Serves 6
Chicken Laksa
Ingredients
500g skinless chicken breast, cooked & shredded
Black pepper
2 tblsp olive oil
1 tblsp minced garlic
1/2 tblsp minced ginger
1 tblsp minced lemongrass
1/2 tsp minced chillies
1 bottle Ayam laksa paste
1 tblsp raw/brown sugar
500 ml GF chicken stock
250 ml can cocnut cream
1 tablespoon GF soy sauce
2 portions GF noodles (rice vermicelli)
100 ml lime juice
1 med carrot, cut in thin sticks
3 large shallots, thinly sliced
1/4 cup bean sprouts, chopped
3 tblsp fresh coriander leaves, chopped
Optional—chopped chilli
INSTRUCTIONS
Season the chicken with ground black pepper and fry in pan, when cooked, set aside.
Heat oil in a medium pot over medium heat. Add the garlic, ginger, lemongrass and chillies and cook for 4 minutes.
Add the laksa paste and brown sugar. Cook for 3 minutes, letting all the flavours meld together and add the chicken stock, coconut cream and soy sauce.
Bring to a boil, cover and allow to simmer for 10 minutes.
Soak the noodles in boiling water for 10 minutes. Drain and serve into large noodle soup bowls.
Shred the cooked chicken and distribute among the bowls and pour any juices from the roasting pan into the broth and season with lime juice and more soy sauce to taste.
To assemble the laksa, pour the broth over the noodles and chicken. Top with bean sprouts, coriander, shallots and chilli, if using.
Serves 6-8