one heck of a sambo

seriously, sandwiches have never really been my first love. oh, yes, i do love a good vegemite sandwich (only on the freshest of white breads, butter & that black goodness). and yes, there are those fond memories of my mother who would send me to school with faces on my sandwich (currents for eyes, tomato for the mouth, carrot for the hair. and that was even in my senior year!). 

but have i found the sandwich bar for you. thankyou earl canteen (like the earl of sandwich... geddit?) for dreaming up a sanwhich that encompasses crisp skin free-range pork belly, apple, cabbage & fennel coleslaw, wilted silverbeet on a baguette. yes it tasted every bit as good as it sounds! if you are in melboune (heck, if you are in a 300km radius of melbourne) do yourself a favour and get. there. now.

quick thanks to melbourne gastronome for sending me in the right direction.

pics: earl canteen 

wedding fever...

for most of my life, i really did think that i was (middle) named after our queen. but what else was a 10 year old to think?

so is it any wonder that i'm getting a bit excited for this royal wedding?

my girlfriends and i are catching up for wedding party. we thought it would be a great idea to wear our wedding dresses. but there is no way i'll be fitting into mine anytime soon! instead, we're going to bring along our wedding photos to remind ourselves about our big day.

we'll eat some etons mess, drink a few cups of tea... and be thankful for our very own prince charmings!

call me a tragic, but i saw this tea towel on etsy and thought it too beautiful to pass up.

tell me, will you be watching?

spring has sprung

... after a very wet and wild week (or two!), the sun made a spectacular appearance this weekend...

we are a no-dryer household, so i felt a little chained to the washing machine with all the back log of washing... but i do love my trusty hills-hoist. such an aussie classic!

i also had a little fight with the (should be) white grout in the bathroom... a winner hasn't been declared yet, and alas, i don't think i'm a chance for the gold medal!

 

 there was also considerable time spent yelling at this little brood... we are dog-sitting two loveable cocker-spaniels for some friends at the moment! there is a lot of puppy love to go around, but sometimes i think they gang up on us!

tonight we're having a simple dinner of thin spaghetti with a cherry tomato sauce (and plenty of parmegiano!!)... oh bliss!


what domestic delights did you get up to this weekend!

gold star

if i had a gold star, i would give it to carl kleiner (photography) & evelina bratell (styling). this is the most crazy amazing food photography i think i've seen. ever.

it's for the ikea cookbook, and i know it's been everywhere in the blog-o-sphere but i just couldn't resist!

{cooking} best bircher

best bircher, originally uploaded by bec hem.

bircher muesli... one of the loveliest ways to begin a weekend.... and it's almost the weekend, right?

so i thought i'd post my best bircher recipe. it's very easy! so grab a few quick ingredients, head through the "6 items or less" checkout, and whip this up for a lazy weekend breakfast...

ingredients
[serves 2. Can easily be doubled/tripled/etc.]
1 cup apple juice
1 cup rolled oats
1 apple, grated
1/2 punnet strawberries, chopped
1/4 cup slivered almonds
2/3 cup natural yoghurt
2 tbs honey

 method
combine apple juice & oats in a bowl. cover and allow to soak overnight in the fridge.
just before serving, combine all the ingredients and mix well.

[would also be lovely with other berries, grated pear, banana... the list is endless!]

bon appetit!

50 things...

50 things i'm dreaming of... seeing/doing/learning/cooking/reading right now.

blog this's 50th challenge is to write a list of 50 things. any things! i did contemplate "50 things i need to cook" but really, i didn't think that'd be great reading!

so i'm breaking my list up. into little groups of 10. have a read.... get to know me a bit better... and make sure you check out the rest of the amazing aussie bloggers out there who are making lists of their own! and, of course, make your own!

...things i'm dreaming of seeing...

...the eiffel tower. just one more time... pleeeeese?

...penguins in the wild. which would mean a trip to tassie... i heart tasmania...

...some films - 500 days of summer, Paris, je t'aime, the september issue

...scotland. those rolling hills. and this house.

...norway. in the summer, preferably.

...my veggie patch growing healthy... and fast!

...australia becoming a nation full of  organ donors.

...a little letter in the mail from ABC Classic FM offering me a job...

...a puppy in my backyard!

...Heaven

 ...things i'm dreaming of doing...

...being a mum. i think that'd be pretty fun...

...becoming australia's next tv chef. (dreaming? perhaps...)

...some more bushwalking. i just need to find the time...

...getting a good hair cut. (i know this is impossible. but a woman can dream, right?!)

...filling my huge dining room table with friends for an elegant dinner party

...making a wall feature out of framed holiday pics

...wearing a beautiful ballgown at least once in my life (*sigh* i watched high society last night!)

...buying a scandinavian summer house. stat.

...sewing everything from this book

...blogging something fantastic!

...things i'm dreaming of cooking...

...macarons. yes, i'm obsessed

...schiacciata con l'uva. michael klausen's recipe please!

...pork belly. and wontons. oh my!

...rhubarb. in any way.

...salt & pepper squid. 

(are you hungry yet?)

...chicken pot pie - kudos the green table

...peanut butter biscuits - kudos city bakery

...chorizo. all ways.

...lemon curd.

...tarte tartin

...things i'm dreaming of learning...

...quilting. i'm thinking like this. and this. move over grandma. contemporary is HERE.

...more chopin. his nocturnes make me swoon. 

...how to be slightly more of a "morning person".

...the secrets to cleaning a shower. mouldy grout? you are my arch nemesis. 

...a little more french. oui?!

...the secrets to interior decorating.

...balance in life.

...the art form of milk frothing & latte art.

...where my favourite book went. lost for 2 years. never forgotten.

...to say no.

...things i'm dreaming of reading...

..."A perfectly kept house is the sign of a misspent life" now that sounds like my kinda book.
...cookbooks... heston. jamie. stephanie. that's happiness!
...persuasion. for the hundredth time.

... more books & magazines on my iPad. i love that thing

...my bible... one inspirational book. it's pretty powerful.

..."the elegance of the hedgehog". it's title jumps out at me...

...Lists :To-dos, Illustrated Inventories, Collected Thoughts, and Other Artists' Enumerations from the Smithsonian's Archives of American Art. this looks awesome.

...my google reader. total inspiration. everyday.

...twitter. it cracks me up. all. the. time. 

...any good novel, really.

thanks for reading!

for the love of macarons

bliss in a biscuit... i have a crush on these delicate delicate polka dots...

we found some amazing examples in paris... we bought some special birthday macarons from Arnaud Larher, he was awarded the Meilleur Ouvrier de France in the macaron category - basically saying he's the best in the business! we ate them sitting under the eiffel tower, making for a birthday i will never forget...

 all images : my flickr

i had to have a go at making them! these are my rasberry macarons with white chocolate ganache. i used this great recipe that gives really important tips on making the perfect macaron... and i just bought this book so the fun can continue!


have you fallen in love with this biscuit yet?

{harvest time} sqash

 

today's harvest of squash! they are beautiful furry bundles of yellow...

what's coming out of your vegie garden for dinner??

tastespotting

i hope you're sitting down.

because this is pretty fabulous.

a website where people put AMAZING pictures of food, and the link back to there blog with the recipe.

image :: m.e. on tastespotting

oh bliss.

so, my recommendation: RUN (don't walk) over to Tastespotting and get hungry and get inspired looking at all those beautiful pictures.

i found out about this life-changing website via the Melbourne Epicure blog, which, if you love cupcakes (as i do) you will LOVE this blog.

{cooking} chilli chocolate & pear tarts

i love my chocolate.  (that sound you hear, that's my husband choking/coughing/laughing in the background at that previous statement. he would call my love of chocolate, well, an obsession perhaps!)  chilli chocolate, in my humble opinion, is a pretty awesome part of the chocolate world...

my personal favourite is the Seatonfire Chilli chocolate (available in mild or wild varieties!) made by a family company in queensland - do yourself a favour and run (don't walk) to the specialty shops to buy some!

this is a little treat i made for my best friend when we caught up over the weekend. it's a gluten free tart that is sure to make a good impression! (and, it couldn't be easier).

ingredients

1 block dark chilli chocolate (usually about 80g), roughly chopped or grated

75g butter

3 eggs, separated

1/3 cup sugar, and an extra 2 tablespoons

100g ground almond meal

1 tin diced pears, drained (could also use fresh)

method
In a small saucepan, melt the butter and chocolate over a low heat, until glossy. Allow to cool slightly before adding the sugar, egg yolks and almond meal. Mix well.
Beat egg whites in a separate bowl until stiff peaks form. Add in the extra 2 tablespoons of sugar and beat well.
Fold the chocolate mixture into the egg whites carefully. Divide mixture between 6 greased ramekins. Add one piece of sliced pear into each ramekin, pushing it down slightly into the mixture.
Cook in a moderate 160degree oven for 35 minutes.
Serve with a dollop of fresh cream... Bon Appetit!

image :: Seatonfire

{cooking} butterscotch chips

meh. forget the humble chocolate chip. i have it on good authority that in the US of A you can buy butterscotch chips and peanut butter chips.

 

images :: hershey's

and do you think anything will stop me filling my suitcase with such wonderful things when i'm in new york?? then, when i get home i'm going to make these crispy salted butterscotch oatmeal cookies i found over at poppytalk.

bliss.

love (good) food. love life.

food.
i love to eat it.
i love to cook it.
i love to grow it.
i love to buy it.
i love to look at it, feel it, share it, smell it, touch it, taste it.

get the picture? i love food. good food, fresh food. food that is healthy & tasty & makes my life feel the better for eating it.

my heart breaks when i know people in this world can't afford food. but in some ways, it breaks even more when i know people CAN afford food, but still buy highly processed and bad-for-you-in-every-way food. there are some kids that don't know what a carrot looks like (no, really.). there are some families that will eat fried food (hot chips/pizza/chicken nuggets) every day of the week. the reality is this is making us unhealthy. very quickly.

so when i listened to this lecture by jamie oliver, there were tears in my eyes. he won a TED award, and made a wish :

"My wish is for you to help a strong sustainable movement to educate every child about food, to inspire families to cook again, and to empower people everywhere to fight obesity. " 

jamie oliver, TED wish

i say amen, brother. i'm with you all the way...

we all live in a yellow submarine...

we love a good cup of tea, here at a cup of kitsch... so imagine my delight when i stumbled across this beauty over at swissmiss. a submarine tea infuser? oh yes!

now that's what i call a cup of kitsch!

{cooking} for christmas

growing up, christmas was more about the food than it is about the presents (still is!). there are a few staples that i have to make, for it to really feel like christmas... both these recipes come from my mum. i use the same recipe, but mine never turn out exactly perfect like hers does! don't be deterred, they are always crowd pleaser's!

shortbread 

...the ingredients

250g butter, chilled, cubed

2 heaped tablespoons rice flour

1/2 cup icing sugar

2 cups plain flour

method...

place all ingredients in a large food processor and mix until mixture begins to form into a ball.

press firmly into well greased small patty-pans, or into one large lamington tray.

prick with a fork in a decorative pattern.

Optional: get extra fancy and push a walnut or pecan into the mixture.

bake in a slow oven (150degrees celcius) for 45 minutes.

cut in the tray when still warm and allow to cool in the pan.

rum-less rum balls 
(so as not to feel guilty about eating these for breakfast every day in december, i usually omit the rum... hey they have weetbix and sultanas! that's a totally healthy breakky, right?!)

...the ingredients

12 weetbix, crushed finely

400g can sweetened condensed milk

1 cup coconut

2 tablespoons cocoa powder

1 cup sultanas

method...

Combine all ingredients and mix well

roll handfulls of mixture and roll in extra coconut.

chill until hard.

what goodies make up your christmas?

{cooking} risotto

i'm not sure where my love for risotto came from. my mother, although the most tremendous cook, never cooked risotto. italian food is lost on her. pasta. risotto. parmesan. oh it's terrible just thinking about it!!! don't you think she is missing out on some of life's greatest enjoyments????

oh but risotto: i could write an ode to it. and not only can it make me swoon, but it is also my last-resort meal. the one thing i can cook when there is nothing to eat in the fridge. infact, risotto is the ultimate meal. it can be as simple or as elegant or as fancy as you like.

so, here is my risotto recipe. it's evolved over a few years... many thanks go to ursula ferrigno, curtis stone & jamie oliver for their little hints along the way.

image :: david loftus

 ...the ingredients

1 onion, diced very finely

2 cloves garlic, through a garlic press

1 tbs butter

1 tbs olive oil

1 cup aborio rice

a few cups boiling water

1/2 cup white wine

1 tbs chicken stock powder

multitudes & multitudes of freshly chopped herbs, salt, cracked pepper, parmesaan cheese.

the method...

fry onion and garlic with the butter and oil in a heavy based fry pan. cook until onion is transparent. add in the rice and stir for a minute or so, until rice goes a bit transparent. then add the wine, which will make a lovely bubbly broth for a few seconds until a lot of it evaporates. add in the stock powder here, and add half a cup of boiling water.

stir the risotto once, then let it sit for a few minutes until the water is all taken up. then add another half a cup of water. keep letting it all soak up, then add more... and so on until the rice is cooked until just a little bit crunchy.

here, add lots of freshly chopped herbs, freshly cracked salt and (lots of) pepper, and lots and lots of cheese. if you want to go really over the top, add a little knob of butter (or a tablespoon of cream) and just let the whole thing sit for a minute or two.

serve with an extra crack of pepper, a shredding of cheese, a dash of olive oil and a squeeze of lemon.

 delish!

and my latest variation-on-a-theme? pan fry some swiss brown mushrooms with plenty of butter, lemon thyme & pepper; and heap on top of the risotto. oh bliss!

what's your last-resort meal?? blog this wanted to know :: go on, you know you want to join in!

and, more importantly, what's in your perfect risotto dish??