pantone801

Home Panorama

// May 14th, 2011 // 1 Comment » // Uncategorized

Its been a while since I posted a pic of our home. Mark took this with a panorama app on his phone. I think our place is looking quite funky. Click the image below to embiggen,

Soldiers on Toast

// May 10th, 2011 // No Comments » // Uncategorized

So last week I was sick at home missing work with a major case of the man-flu. Our pantry is usually well-stocked, but this day I could find nothing to inspire me and had not desire to go supermarketing. Soldiers on toast seemed to be all I could come up with, and this is the perfect brunch for a flu-ridden raining day, sitting on the lounge floor at the coffee table in my tracky-daks watching morning cartoons.

I picked up a clever egg timer a few years ago that is ingenious. You simply drop it into the water with the eggs and it changes colour as they cook, guaranteeing perfectly cooked whites and runny yolks. My other major S on T tips are to free range eggs, thick white bread, and good butter. I also like to apply salt flakes and freshly cracked pepper to the bread dripping with melted butter, rather then to the eggs themselves.

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Pimm’s N°1 Cocktail

// April 30th, 2011 // No Comments » // Uncategorized

A last minute decision to have a few mates around to watch the Royal Wedding last need called for some proper drinks. Pimm’s ?1 Cup is so London and delicious, the perfect match to watching a Royal Wedding. This drink uses a mixture of lemon squash, ginger ale and Pimm’s. I like the traditional pub lemon squash, this is much better than lemonade or Sprite as it is not very sweet and very tangy.
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Pride

// April 10th, 2011 // No Comments » // Uncategorized

A bit of a portfolio of some of my favourite pics I have taken at various events from Brisbane, the Gold Coast, Perth, Sydney, Chicago and Orlando.

Lensbaby Love

// April 9th, 2011 // 1 Comment » // Uncategorized

Short video for a competition made using only images taken with a lensbaby 2.0 lens

Piperade

// March 26th, 2011 // No Comments » // Uncategorized

This is a rustic French-Spanish dish from the Basque region of France and makes a hearty brunch or a late lazy lunch like we did today. The sweetness of the onion and peppers work so well with the velvety egg and smoky ham.

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, thinly sliced and separated into rings
2 capsicum, seeded and sliced into batons
2 cloves garlic, crushed
4 tomatoes
1 pinch cayenne pepper
8 eggs, beaten
10 grams butter
8 slices smoky ham

Directions:

1. Heat the oil in a large heavy-based pan and cook the onion for 3 minutes, or until softened. Add capsicum and garlic. Cover and cook over medium heat for 8 minutes, stirring often.

2. Score a cross in the bottom of each tomato. Plunge into boiling water for 20 seconds. Refresh under cold running water. Peel away the skin and discard. Roughly chop the tomatoes discarding the cores. spoon the tomatoes over the capsicum mixture and sprinkle with cayenne pepper. Cover the pan and cook at a medium heat for a further 5 minutes.

3. Remove the lid from the pan and increase the heat. Cook for 3 minutes or until the juices have just evaporated, shaking the pan often. Season well with salt and pepper. Add the eggs to the mixture and stir until well-combined and the eggs are just cooked.

4. Meanwhile heat the butter in a small frypan and cook the ham until browned. Arrange the ham of the Piperade and serve immediately with crusty bread.

(Serves 4)

Download recipe.

Persian Ferni (Rice Pudding)

// March 20th, 2011 // 1 Comment » // Food, Uncategorized

This recipe is from Ranchor, the head chef at Govinda’s Vegetarian Restaurant in Brisbane. He hosts regular cooking classes, and this is one the the recipes he made for us at a class.

Ingredients:

4 cups Milk
½ cup Rice Flour
2 / 3 cup White Sugar
1 teaspoon Rosewater
1 tablespoon Rose Petals (Dried of Fresh), plus extra for sprinkling
½ teaspoon Cinnamon, plus extra for sprinkling
½ cup Pistachios, shelled
2-3 drops Red Food Colouring

Directions:

1. Combine all ingredients in a pot and slowly bring to the boil, stirring constantly

2. Place in small ramekins, sprinkle with cinnamon and garnish with extra rose-petals. Chill for 1-2 hours.

(Serves 6)

Download recipe.

I’m Blue

// January 26th, 2011 // No Comments » // Uncategorized

So its no secret that blue is my favourite colour.I just searched my Flickr photostream for the word blue and found these pics:

A stunning 60′s building in Perth.

Blue ropes on the sails of mums yacht Zinkwazi.

Haymarket in Sydney

A feral cat in Beijing in China. Aren’t the amber and blue eyes stunning.

Mark standing against a painted wall. I took this at Pahia in the Bay of Islands in New Zealand.

Fresh Bread and Bruschetta

// January 13th, 2011 // No Comments » // Uncategorized

Floodwatch day three. On day one, the supermarkets sold out of every kind of bread (wraps, rolls, fruit breads… everything). Day two boredom set in, and I baked a couple loaves of bread. Day three Bruschetta for breakfast and if I get bored I may bake a few more loaves later in the day and deliver them to friends. (more…)

Handmade DIY Spring Rolls

// December 29th, 2010 // No Comments » // Uncategorized

One of my favourite Perth discoveries was Viet Hoa Vietnamese Restaurant (Unit 1 349 William Street, Northbridge), where they served DIY spring rolls, all the fillings laid out on your table along with stacks of rice paper rounds and bowls of steaming water to soften them. (more…)