I had been contemplating my next post for a few days when Dave sent me the following link:
http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2008/12/the_year_2008_in_photographs_p.html
Be sure to view all three pages (click next at the bottom).
These are some of the most amazing photos I have ever seen, some merely because of the powerful and shocking subject matter. Some photos have warnings, believe me these are not for the faint-hearted.
Other photos are amazing because the photographer was in the perfect place at the right time.
Oh how I dream of taking photos like these.
14 January 2009
05 January 2009
Happy New Year!
Hello and Happy New Year to you all.
Sorry I haven’t posted in a while – the first week of my holidays was fairly uneventful and I was away in Melbourne for the second week. So of course, this post is about my Melbourne trip.
I flew in on the 29th and was planning on staying with my friend Lina for a couple of days before moving into an apartment with my friends from Canberra. Lina lives in South Melbourne and so Monday afternoon we walked to the Eureka building to observe the Melbourne skyline from the tallest building. The lift up was moving at a fast 9 meters per second. The height was frightening.
That night we had a lovely meal at a Vietnamese restaurant, the chilli quail entrée being the highlight of the meal.
Tuesday we went for a drive to Geelong. I had never been to Geelong before and was pleasantly surprised by what I saw.
Wednesday afternoon I checked into the apartment and had a nap whilst waiting for my friends to arrive. That night we headed to Prahran for a Thai meal and then over to Lisa’s Aunty’s place for New Year's Eve celebrations.
New Year's day we had breakfast in St Kilda and I also purchased another pair of havaianas (I need another pair of havaianas like I need a hole in the head). Then we all headed to Albert Park to spend the day at Lina’s mum’s place as she had extended a New Year Day’s lunch to my friends as well as me. It felt like we had just finished off cake and coffee before we were being told to stay for dinner, which we did! The food was great and plentiful.
Friday’s only objective was to get to "Books for Cooks" book store on Gertrude St, Fitzroy. The ad said "Browse the day away in Australia's only specialist cookery book store with over 25,000 new, out-of-print and antiquarian books in stock". I couldn't imagine anything better. We got there only to find it closed until the 6th January. This was probably a blessing in disguise because I also need another cookbook like I need a second hole in the head! We ended up just wandering around the streets of Fitzroy. We stopped for a coffee and Lisa and I thought we might have a small snack so I ordered a slice of apple struedel. I’m not sure if the staff thought I needed fattening up, but I ended up with the entire slab of struedel instead what I thought would be a quarter of what was on display.
For dinner we decided on a Spanish restaurant, but I've lost the business card so can't give you the details. The dessert was amazing! Churros with chocolate dipping sauce, yum! And I should point out that this wasn't the first churros with chocolate that we had eaten over the few days in Melbourne.
Saturday was simply fantastic. First we went to a café in Prahan (Amici’s) where I was served the best coffee of the trip, and Frank reckons his scrambled eggs with mushrooms were potentially the best he had ever eaten. A good start to the day. Lisa and I then headed off to see Billy Elliot whilst Frank attended a wedding ceremony. The musical was amazing and after the show I met two of the stars. Meeting ‘Billy’ himself nearly had me in tears (I’m sure I’ve mentioned on this site before that I am pathetic!). After all the excitement and not having had lunch, we all munched on “Lord of the Fries”, an infamous kiosk in Melbourne where you get great hot chips and you can choose from a variety of different sauces/toppings.
For dinner Saturday night I had booked us in to eat at “The Press Club”. You might have heard of the owner/chef ‘George Calombaris’ who sometimes appears on Ready Steady Cook.
http://www.thepressclub.com.au/main.html
We decided on Kerasma ‘C’ – a six course tasting menu as selected by the chefs on the night.
The meal was exotic to the eye and amazing to taste. The most 'interesting' course to taste was the cracked wheat soup (soup of trahana and mastic), but the highlights (for me) were things like the cumin roasted beetroot and the coffee ‘kafe’ pannacotta.
Once again I was quite pathetic when George actually walked into the restaurant to check on proceedings. I stopped short of introducing myself, but I really wanted to.
Sunday entailed making our way into the city to undertake a spot of retail therapy, saying goodbye and flying back home. But as you can see from this post the focus of the Melbourne trip was definitely on food. We all agreed however, that it had been one of our most successful trips yet. Love you guys! Thanks for an awesome time.
NB. All shots taken on either my point-and-shoot or Lisa's!
Sorry I haven’t posted in a while – the first week of my holidays was fairly uneventful and I was away in Melbourne for the second week. So of course, this post is about my Melbourne trip.
I flew in on the 29th and was planning on staying with my friend Lina for a couple of days before moving into an apartment with my friends from Canberra. Lina lives in South Melbourne and so Monday afternoon we walked to the Eureka building to observe the Melbourne skyline from the tallest building. The lift up was moving at a fast 9 meters per second. The height was frightening.
That night we had a lovely meal at a Vietnamese restaurant, the chilli quail entrée being the highlight of the meal.
Tuesday we went for a drive to Geelong. I had never been to Geelong before and was pleasantly surprised by what I saw.
Wednesday afternoon I checked into the apartment and had a nap whilst waiting for my friends to arrive. That night we headed to Prahran for a Thai meal and then over to Lisa’s Aunty’s place for New Year's Eve celebrations.
New Year's day we had breakfast in St Kilda and I also purchased another pair of havaianas (I need another pair of havaianas like I need a hole in the head). Then we all headed to Albert Park to spend the day at Lina’s mum’s place as she had extended a New Year Day’s lunch to my friends as well as me. It felt like we had just finished off cake and coffee before we were being told to stay for dinner, which we did! The food was great and plentiful.
Friday’s only objective was to get to "Books for Cooks" book store on Gertrude St, Fitzroy. The ad said "Browse the day away in Australia's only specialist cookery book store with over 25,000 new, out-of-print and antiquarian books in stock". I couldn't imagine anything better. We got there only to find it closed until the 6th January. This was probably a blessing in disguise because I also need another cookbook like I need a second hole in the head! We ended up just wandering around the streets of Fitzroy. We stopped for a coffee and Lisa and I thought we might have a small snack so I ordered a slice of apple struedel. I’m not sure if the staff thought I needed fattening up, but I ended up with the entire slab of struedel instead what I thought would be a quarter of what was on display.
For dinner we decided on a Spanish restaurant, but I've lost the business card so can't give you the details. The dessert was amazing! Churros with chocolate dipping sauce, yum! And I should point out that this wasn't the first churros with chocolate that we had eaten over the few days in Melbourne.
Saturday was simply fantastic. First we went to a café in Prahan (Amici’s) where I was served the best coffee of the trip, and Frank reckons his scrambled eggs with mushrooms were potentially the best he had ever eaten. A good start to the day. Lisa and I then headed off to see Billy Elliot whilst Frank attended a wedding ceremony. The musical was amazing and after the show I met two of the stars. Meeting ‘Billy’ himself nearly had me in tears (I’m sure I’ve mentioned on this site before that I am pathetic!). After all the excitement and not having had lunch, we all munched on “Lord of the Fries”, an infamous kiosk in Melbourne where you get great hot chips and you can choose from a variety of different sauces/toppings.
For dinner Saturday night I had booked us in to eat at “The Press Club”. You might have heard of the owner/chef ‘George Calombaris’ who sometimes appears on Ready Steady Cook.
http://www.thepressclub.com.au/main.html
We decided on Kerasma ‘C’ – a six course tasting menu as selected by the chefs on the night.
The meal was exotic to the eye and amazing to taste. The most 'interesting' course to taste was the cracked wheat soup (soup of trahana and mastic), but the highlights (for me) were things like the cumin roasted beetroot and the coffee ‘kafe’ pannacotta.
Once again I was quite pathetic when George actually walked into the restaurant to check on proceedings. I stopped short of introducing myself, but I really wanted to.
Sunday entailed making our way into the city to undertake a spot of retail therapy, saying goodbye and flying back home. But as you can see from this post the focus of the Melbourne trip was definitely on food. We all agreed however, that it had been one of our most successful trips yet. Love you guys! Thanks for an awesome time.
NB. All shots taken on either my point-and-shoot or Lisa's!
20 December 2008
17 December 2008
End of year pig-out
Today we had our end of year team lunch so we headed off to Henley Beach for a meal at the Thai Orchid. After that it was back to my place for dessert, as on Sunday after Jenna's birthday, I once again made the Chocolate Pavlova with the egg-whites left over from making the cream puffs.
The pavlova must be good because between the guys, they averaged about 3 slices each (I won't mention how many Richard had!). This time I have a photo.. or two.
The pavlova must be good because between the guys, they averaged about 3 slices each (I won't mention how many Richard had!). This time I have a photo.. or two.
14 December 2008
Jenna is 5
The baby of the family, my niece Jenna, turns 5 next week. Today she had her birthday party. I don't believe I have ever seen her so excited, and she had so much fun all day. For a few years now she has been a fan of Dora the Explorer, so she got lots of Dora gifts, but when she hugged one of the boxes...well it just completely cracked me up. I need to also point out the uncanny resemblance my niece has with Dora...she even has the same shaped head!
Happy 5th Birthday my sweet. I love you.
Happy 5th Birthday my sweet. I love you.
Custard
There seems to be hundreds of ways to make custard but recently I nagged mum to show me how she does hers...
4 tbsp plain flour
4 tbsp white sugar
600 mls milk
3 egg yolks
In a bowl mix together the flour, sugar, eggs and some of the milk, stirring until there are no lumps in the mixture. Gradually add the rest of the milk, stirring the whole time.
Transfer the mixture to a saucepan and stir over a high heat initially, but reduce it to low when the mixture starts to bubble.
Tip - wash a lemon and cut off one end, pierce a fork through the other end and stir the mixture with the lemon for the essence.
When the mixture starts to get quite thick, take it off the heat.
If you just want vanilla custard then you can add some vanilla essence to the mixture.
For chocolate custard, put 3-4 tbsp of cocoa in a bowl and add a few scoops of the custard. Have the bowl in the sink with some cold water. Stir the mixture then gradually add the rest of the custard.
I made this custard to make cream puffs (which I bought, but can make if I have the time) to take to my niece's birthday party. I made both chocolate and vanilla, and filled the profiteroles with half vanilla and half chocolate custard. Sprinkle with icing sugar.
NB. If you need a larger portion you add more eggs and more milk only (i.e. with 6 eggs you would need 1 litre of milk).
4 tbsp plain flour
4 tbsp white sugar
600 mls milk
3 egg yolks
In a bowl mix together the flour, sugar, eggs and some of the milk, stirring until there are no lumps in the mixture. Gradually add the rest of the milk, stirring the whole time.
Transfer the mixture to a saucepan and stir over a high heat initially, but reduce it to low when the mixture starts to bubble.
Tip - wash a lemon and cut off one end, pierce a fork through the other end and stir the mixture with the lemon for the essence.
When the mixture starts to get quite thick, take it off the heat.
If you just want vanilla custard then you can add some vanilla essence to the mixture.
For chocolate custard, put 3-4 tbsp of cocoa in a bowl and add a few scoops of the custard. Have the bowl in the sink with some cold water. Stir the mixture then gradually add the rest of the custard.
I made this custard to make cream puffs (which I bought, but can make if I have the time) to take to my niece's birthday party. I made both chocolate and vanilla, and filled the profiteroles with half vanilla and half chocolate custard. Sprinkle with icing sugar.
NB. If you need a larger portion you add more eggs and more milk only (i.e. with 6 eggs you would need 1 litre of milk).
07 December 2008
Chocolate Pavlova
Yesterday for dad's birthday I made a pavlova that I had eaten over at the Hope's house a couple of times. It is truly delicious so I hope that Carol (or Nigella Lawson for that matter) won't mind me publishing it here. And apologies because I don't have a photo of the finished plate because I decorated it at mums.
Meringue base:
6 egg whites
300 gm caster sugar
3 tbsp cocoa powder
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
50 gm dark chocolate, finely chopped
Topping:
500 ml thick cream
Punnet of your favourite fresh berries (I used a frozen berry mix)
2 - 3 tbsp coarsely grated dark chocolate
Preheat oven to 180c but turn oven down to 150c when the pavlova goes in!
Beat eggs whites to satiny peaks, then add 1 spoon full of the sugar at a time while beating constantly. Stop beating when all sugar is dissolved and mixture is shiny. This can take up to 15 mins.
Sprinkle in sifted cocoa powder, add vinegar and chocolate and gently fold through the mixture.
Scrape mixture onto a sheet of baking paper on tray and make a disc with the mixture approx. 23 cm in diameter. Don't spread it too much or it will be a flat pavlova.
Bake in the oven for 1 to 1.5 hours. Turn oven off but leave the pavlova in there to cool completely.
NB. Nigella says that when it is ready, it should be crisp on the sides and dry on top, and when you prod the centre you should feel the promise of 'squidginess' beneath your fingers.
You can invert the pavlova. Whisk cream and pile on top of meringue then scatter berries over the cream and sprinkle with remaining dark chocolate.
Enjoy!
Meringue base:
6 egg whites
300 gm caster sugar
3 tbsp cocoa powder
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
50 gm dark chocolate, finely chopped
Topping:
500 ml thick cream
Punnet of your favourite fresh berries (I used a frozen berry mix)
2 - 3 tbsp coarsely grated dark chocolate
Preheat oven to 180c but turn oven down to 150c when the pavlova goes in!
Beat eggs whites to satiny peaks, then add 1 spoon full of the sugar at a time while beating constantly. Stop beating when all sugar is dissolved and mixture is shiny. This can take up to 15 mins.
Sprinkle in sifted cocoa powder, add vinegar and chocolate and gently fold through the mixture.
Scrape mixture onto a sheet of baking paper on tray and make a disc with the mixture approx. 23 cm in diameter. Don't spread it too much or it will be a flat pavlova.
Bake in the oven for 1 to 1.5 hours. Turn oven off but leave the pavlova in there to cool completely.
NB. Nigella says that when it is ready, it should be crisp on the sides and dry on top, and when you prod the centre you should feel the promise of 'squidginess' beneath your fingers.
You can invert the pavlova. Whisk cream and pile on top of meringue then scatter berries over the cream and sprinkle with remaining dark chocolate.
Enjoy!
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