One of the benefits of this trending foodie culture that is currently engulfing society is that we, as a whole, are at least becoming more aware of what we consume. I'm aware that I now eat an awful lot of vegetables, and while I could spend quite some time explaining why it's nothing to do with vegetarianism per se, but rather an enhanced selectivity of who and where I procure meat from, quite frankly you'd be far better off popping out and grabbing a copy of River Cottage Veg Every Day...
Read MoreSundays in Europe
With the imminent departure home of my dear friends J & T looming large on the horizon, there'd been a request to imbibe in some unique Melbourne specialties to help cap off their long and respectively short Antipodean sojourns before jetting off to new adventures, and so I suggested they might like to pop around for Sunday lunch. A simple, relaxed affair was all we had in mind, although I suspect neither J nor T quite realised what it meant for me to say, "I'll do lunch"...
Read MoreShort & sweet
Cookbooks, for me, are a weakness, one of life's treats. And as much as I enjoy hopping from blog to blog and perusing the plethora of online gourmande-centric resources on offer, there is still nothing better than settling down with a good coffee and thumbing through my favourite, flour-covered tomes, taking in the beautiful aesthetic, and selecting the next kitchen adventure...
Read More*blush*
A few weeks ago I got talking to someone about what we bakers get up to around Christmas, and about the little hampers that TPB do. About how, when it comes to foodie gifts, it's important to select things that can be prepared in advance...
Read MoreA snack, to help tide you over
It so happens, at times, that things get away. Blink, and a month's flitted by. You feel as though you've been absent. But when you think back on the times when you've ridden out of town to make the most of a glorious spring day...
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Scooped!
It is important, I think, to have foundations, those fail-safe recipes that can be whipped up without notice, and which can be infinitely adapted in the pursuit of new culinary treasures. For me, ice cream is one such paragon, and while I've happily settled on an impeccable example of vanilla finery, more recently, the quest for the ultimate chocolate preparation has been on...
Read MoreA box of mystery
When it comes to fruit and veg I've always liked the idea of a "mystery box" - prepared just for you and delivered direct to your door as a tourney of kitchen wits - but I'm yet to take the challenge, for a number of reasons...
Read MoreBlood lunch
It's been a while and like many, we appear to have been suffering from the usual complaint that life gets in the way of life. But as the shackles of winter begin to break and we slowly venture out to cavort in the pleasures of spring we are once again reminded that it pays to make time for the things that we love, in which we delight, and that make us smile...
Read MoreMinus the sugar
Until recently, I've never had much enthusiasm for "healthier version" baked goods. Invariably they've been listless, substance-less versions of their former selves - mere abominations of what were once good intentions, which have no discernible flavour, and have quickly become so dry and disappointing that they deliver as much joy as a poorly executed scone...
Read MoreSugar and spice
Growing up I had the opportunity to row, and I loved the feeling of gliding across a crystal clear surface as you watched the dawn break over a crisp, peaceful morning. It was my favourite part of training, and I found there was always just something very centering about it. But as we built up to a big regatta the crew would sit down and discuss race tactics, and as we laid down the event day script the cox was inevitably instructed, "thirty seconds in, tell them to breathe"...
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