willunga recreation park
WILLUNGA ALMOND BLOSSOM FESTIVAL
26-27 July 2025
Saturday 11am – 9pm & Sunday 10am – 4pm
Tickets on sale april 2025
entry
Families $25
Children under 5 FREE
50+
Years of family fun
A weekend of show rides and family activities, with circus performers, animal nursery, camel rides, market stalls, live local music and lots of delicious food, wine and beer stalls.
Family Fair Weekend
A weekend of family fun with show rides, camel & pony rides, food trucks, live music, market stalls, fireworks, almond inspired cookery competition too.
Fireworks
Join us Saturday night around the oval for our annual fireworks display. Starts 7:00pm weather permitting.
Tour our Blossoms
Find some hidden gems in Willunga, bring a picnic lunch and enjoy a day out in July BLOSSOM PICNIC MAP or SELF DRIVE MAP
Almond Cookery
Love almonds? Present your best in our Almond Cookery Competition ENTER VIA LINK
Almond Cracking
Enter our Almond Cracking Competition on Sunday 1.00pm at the Almond Hub
Food & Drink
Wood fired pizza, burgers, simple healthy snacks, Asian dishes or ‘carnie’ food plus desserts & drinks
Market Stalls
A wide variety from woollen hats, preserves, jewellery, candles & artisan cards
Live music
Local live musicians, children shows in the big white marquee all weekend
Volunteers welcome
There is lots of variety. Please join us. VOLLIE SIGN UP
blossom maps
Find some hidden gems in and around Willunga. Bring a picnic lunch and enjoy the day out. Or follow the history of almonds in our region.
ALMOND COOKERY COMPETITION
Love Almonds? Why not enter our cookery competition
SECTIONS
FESTIVAL CAKE ALL AGES 1. Womens 2. Mens 3. Juniors |
SENIORS 17 YEARS & OLDER 4. Small Almond Cakes 5. Almond Biscuits 6. Almond Bread 7. Almond Novelty |
JUNIORS 12 – 16 YEARS 8. Almond Cake 9. Almond Biscuits 10. Almond Bread 11. Almond Novelty |
LITTLE ONES 5-11 YEARS 11. Small Almond Cakes 12. Almond Biscuits 13. Almond Bread 14. Almond Novelty |
RULES ALMOND COOKERY COMPETITION
- One entry per person per section
- Oven baked goods only *except for Novelty
- Almond Cake size 20cm diameter maximum *unless otherwise specified for the Festival Cake section
- Festival cake recipe will be supplied
- Iced or Un-iced allowed
- Supply 4 biscuits for judging
- Supply 4 small cakes for judging
- Exhibits to be on firm white paper/plastic plate/glad wrapped
- Exhibit ticket must be attached to entry on delivery to convenor (supplied)
Almond ingredient variations permitted
* Festival Cake will be judged on adherence to recipe
1. Whole Almonds
2. Crushed/Slivered/Flaked Almonds
3. Almond Essence
4. Almond Meal
Flour variations any grain
Self-Raising Flour
Plain Flour
*Disclaimer: Please be aware all exhibits on display will not be refrigerated. It will be the individual’s responsibility if consumed
*Judging: No discussions will be entered into if exhibitors wish to question the Judge’s decisions
Certificates awarded to 1st 2nd & 3rd place
2024 FESTIVAL CAKE RECIPE BY ALLISON REYNOLDS
INGREDIENTS
1 washed and dried large lemon
450g apples (such as Granny Smiths)
150g Butter melted over moderate heat and
put aside to cool
125g self-raising flour
1 1⁄2 level teaspoons baking powder
125g almond meal
225g caster sugar
2 large or 3 small eggs (around 185g)
28g flaked almonds
Method
Pre-heat oven to 160oC fan forced oven. Line 20cm loose-bottom cake tin with baking paper (bottom and sides).
Remove zest from the lemon.
Wash, dry, peel, core and quarter apples, and then toss and leave in the lemon juice.
Sieve the flour and baking powder together into a large mixing bowl.
Mix in the ground almonds, sugar and lemon zest.
Beat the eggs lightly and stir them into the flour mixture along with the cooled melted butter.
Spread two thirds of this mixture in the bottom of the tin.
Drain the apple quarters from the lemon jouice, dry and cut each into 3 or 4 slices, and arrange to cover the cake mixture in the tin.
Spoon the remaining mixture in blobs over the top of the apples and finally sprinkle all over with the flaked almonds.
Bake in the oven for approx. 70 minutes.
The cake should be golden brown and shrinking away from the sides of the tin, and skewer inserted in the middle should come out clean.
Leave to cool in the tin for 15 minutes before turning out.
Cool completely before storing in a sealed container in the fridge.
NOTES
Willunga almonds work fantastic in this recipe. Just grind your almonds
down until they reach a fine crumb consistency. Make sure all your
ingredients including butter and eggs are at room temperature before using.
festival cake recipes from 2019-2023
MARKET stallS
Discover a whole new world of creativity, stumble upon something new at every turn .....
One of the much-loved aspects of the Willunga Almond Blossom Festival each year is our market stalls
A variety of market stalls are located in the Festival Hall & around the oval over our family fair weekend. With a diverse range of displays including handmade woollen products, cards, candles, jewellery. Clothing including beanies & scarves to complement your winter wardrobe. Plus cakes, preserves, biscuits, plants and much more.
Market Stall sites are INVITATION ONLY
Email our Market Stallholder Coordinator for further information or queries: [email protected]
about our blossom region
Blossom Time
Almond trees are the first to flower in consideration with the other trees of the soft fruit varieties but the last to mature and be harvested. Blossoms started to appear in the coldest months late July & August.
Harvest Time
During the warmer months of February and March is harvest time or commonly known as’ knocking time’. Until recent years the method used was to knock the base of the boughs with a rubber waddy and the almonds would fall through onto a hessian sheet spread on the ground. The odd remaining almond on the tree was knocked off by using a long wooded pole. After completion the hessian was pulled into a long trailer called an almond boat or shovelled into bags. Now modernised ‘knocking’ is done with a hydraulic tree shaker which clamps to the tree base and vibrates. A mobile sweeper then forms rows of almonds on the ground for collection.
Almond Cracking in Willunga
Mr. G Max Herriot of Willunga invented and patented an almond cracking machine in 1942. His cracking machine was made locally and sold to almond orchardists world wide. The cracker consists of revolving discs with stuyds which the almonds pass through in turn cracking the shell.
History of Willunga Almond Blossom Festival
The festival has been the Willunga Recreation Park’s major fundraising event since 1969, when a local committee decided to raise money to build the Festival Hall. Today, proceeds from the festival continue to fund the maintenance and the continual upgrading of our park facilities. This week long event continues to be influenced, managed and powered by the generous donations of time, knowledge and dedication of volunteers within the Willunga community.
History of Willunga Recreation Park
The Willunga Recreation Park is “home” for many sporting clubs, markets, service and social organisations. These include the Willunga Football, Netball, Tennis, Cricket, Basketball and Table Tennis sporting clubs, the Willunga Quarry, Green Light and Artisan markets, Willunga Girl Guides, Meals on Wheels, Willunga RSL and CWA and Cinemallunga.
Part of the land is leased to Willunga CFS and the park is designated as an emergency centre when the need arises, as was recently the case with the fires in the Willunga Hills. It also provides sporting and Festival Hall facilities for the Willunga Primary School.
The idea for such a park in Willunga was conceived in 1855 when the first Willunga Show was held on the land later earmarked for the Recreation Park. In 1875 a meeting of residents determined that a public park be provided for the use of local residents and, in January 1876, eight (8) acres of land was purchased for the sum of 96 pounds ($192). This land eventually became known as Willunga Recreation Park.
In 1876 the oval was established and the Show Hall was built for 360 pounds ($720), followed by the oval pavilion in 1903. The Almond Blossom Festival began in 1969, with the aim of raising funds to build the Festival Hall [basketball stadium], which was opened in 1979.
Willunga Recreation Park has maintained its status as a multi-purpose park for the use of the residents of Willunga. Its management is the responsibility of the Willunga Recreation Park Incorporated (WRPI) volunteer committee on behalf of the community.
faq
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
- TICKETS: online option
- EFTPOS will be available at the gate for ticket purchase
- COSTS: Family $25 / Single $10 / Student & Concession $5 / Children < 5 free
- OPEN: Saturday 11am-9pm Sunday 10am-4pm
- FOOD: Carnival food, burgers, hot dogs, nachos, pizzas, Asian creations and icecream, vegan and gluten free options too
- DRINKS: Beer, wine, cider, soft drinks are available for purchase, plus water on tap
- Entertainment: Show rides, side show, live music, camel & pony rides, circus performers, science show, roving performers, craft activities, reptiles display, target golf and mini golf.
- Variety of market stalls
- Licenced event: Security check ID
- This is a Non-Smoking venue
- No BYO options
- No dogs allowed: Service Dogs exempt
- Car parking is on the street
- Public Transport: bus stop right out front on Main Road Willunga.
- Information via Adelaide Metro options are catch the train to Seaford and bus to Willunga Stop 97. Seaford bus #751 Adelaide Metro Routes/751 Seaford bus #751W & Aldinga Bus #755 & Port Willunga Bus #756
OUR SPONSORS // THANK YOU
Fundraising For your Future
Community owned and Community Managed Willunga Recreation Park
our events
Willunga Almond Blossom Festival
Chilli Fest Willunga
Jigsaw Willunga
Willunga Quarry Market
connect with us
We acknowledge and pay our respects to the Kaurna people, the traditional custodians whose ancestral lands we gather on