Tag Archives: recipe link

Nourished Life Gratitude List Week Six

Posted on by

0

Happy Monday my dear readers, I am sorry this list is a little late, but let me tell you that last week was a roller-coaster ride. There were highs and lows and ‘holy cupcake how will I survive this’ moments. Big changes are taking place in my thoroughly nourished life. Big changes that I will share with you all once the dust has settled a little and my world has stopped feeling like it’s balancing on a base of marbles. There were also extremely awesome moments this week, which culminated in Chris’s Thrift Shop themed birthday on Saturday night!

Without further ado I present this week’s Nourished Life Gratitude List:

Monday: An über day. I blogged about how Margaret Thatcher’s words inspired me to power through a fantastically-full day and relax at the end feeling like I had been in the world and left my mark on the day.

My hilly path on Tuesday's run.

My hilly path on Tuesday’s run.

Tuesday: My longest outside run in a very long time. A truly beautiful day to be out in the world enjoying the autumn sunshine and the feeling of life coursing through my veins.

Wednesday: My day started at dawn with some cross-training at the gym. My internship day was full of interesting tasks, and I got to come home and make chocolate chip pancakes for Chris to take for breakfast on Thursday morning.

Thursday: Today a door slammed so firmly and quickly that I nearly lost my fingertips and my self-worth in the process. I was so grateful that my family, my friends (especially the ever-lovely Jenny) and my darling Chris reminded me to see the windows and new doors that would open to me soon. I was also grateful that Chris and I spent the evening with Caroline and Tim at a comedy hypnotism show.

Sushi and Cheryl Strayed. Soul: nourished.

Sushi and Cheryl Strayed. Soul: nourished.

Friday: I bought a copy of ‘Tiny Beautiful Things‘ by Cheryl Strayed and sat sobbing over my sushi lunch. The insight on life, the way she implores each of us to take charge of the days that we have here, is truly what I needed today.

Saturday: Chris’s birthday party!! I still don’t have any photos to show you, but suffice to say I ended up in a motley outfit of American-flag printed mini skirt, black tights, and electric-blue glitter zebra stripe jacket – yeah it was that kind of night. A celebration of my sweetheart surrounded by many friends, and finished off with Chocolate Stout Cupcakes with Vanilla Bean Frosting. Of course, they were only 99c. (See here for Chris’s inspiration for the party).

Chocolate Stout Cupcakes. Didn't get to taste (weren't GF) but the grins on people's faces were enough.

Chocolate Stout Cupcakes. Didn’t get to taste (weren’t GF) but the grins on people’s faces were enough.

Sunday: Grateful to take it very slowly today, after a night of wine, dancing, and laughter. Chris and I napped the day away and then enjoyed some high-brow cinematic entertainment with Iron Man 3. (It was brilliant by the way).

This week promises to be busy and beautiful as well. But today, well, today I’m taking it easy and celebrating my darling’s actual birthday. So Monday’s Mantra will be posted tomorrow. For now, I’m off to cook a late breakfast and be grateful that 26 years ago a very special person came into the world, and now he’s mine. Happy Birthday my love. I am so grateful for you and all that you bring to my life. You are the most vibrant, hilarious, caring person I know. Here’s to many, many more birthday cakes, and many more birthday wishes come true.

You and I. Happy birthday sweetheart.

You and I. Happy birthday sweetheart.

Tell me, dear reader, what were you most grateful for this week? Any roller-coaster rides like mine? Or über days that you want to share?

Autumn Approaches

Posted on by

1

The roses are throwing out their end-of-summer blooms; the sun sinks below the horizon earlier; the air carries a crisper note of leaves on the turn, ripe pears and apples, and cooler nights to come.
Autumn has always been my favourite season of the year. It starts with an unfair advantage because my birthday is at the start, but the appeal goes beyond that. Autumn is the time when the universe changes its paint palette and sweeps a swathe of golds, amber, and scarlet over the dark wet green of late summer. The earth’s bounty is most plentiful in autumn. In this part of the world summer fruits are harvested well into march and mild temperatures mean a wide array of produce throughout the season. Autumn is best for running: not too cold, nor too hot, and the falling leaves crunch so satisfactorily under foot.

IMG_2113

Memories from last Autumn

Cooking:

Roasted Eggplant Salad with Smoked Almonds & Goat Cheese (source)

Roasted Eggplant Salad with Smoked Almonds & Goat Cheese (source)

Things to do:

  • To keep my hands warm on long autumn walks (and bike rides!) these are so cute!
  • Things to make my winter garden sing! Beetroot, carrots, and beans would fit in my kitchen garden. Perhaps some sunflowers too.
  • Boots to keep my toes warm this winter – maybe these?
  • A pretty autumn picnic amongst the trees.

Moving:

  • I don’t know what we’ve gotten ourselves into, but this should come in handy when Chris and I line up at Tough Mudder in August…
  • Training for the Gold Coast Half Marathon and taking it s-l-o-w-l-y as I work through this asthma thing
  • I did my first Blogilates workout on Monday, and I loved it! Can’t wait to integrate this into my training regime on a more regular basis.

Thinking:

I know, I seem to love lists, but I promise you all tomorrow I will return with a delightful Gluten-free Spiced Carrot Loaf (perfect for a weekend breakfast), and on Saturday a warming dinner for these cooler nights and a rally to gather your family around the table.

Tell me dear readers, anything on your Autumn To Do List? Anything you’ve been reading or listening to lately?

Nourished Life Gratitude List Week Two

Posted on by

0

This week’s Gratitude List will sneak in just on time. The past seven days have certainly been nourishing and full of everyday moments to be grateful for. This weekend has been a combination of socialisation and study (exam tomorrow- hence the late post). I promise next week will be full of a few more recipes and reflections of a nourishing life, but for now I present my Nourished Life Gratitude List Week 2.

Monday: I ate my whole Lindt Chocolate Easter bunny without feeling guilty (for context, see this series of posts)

Tuesday: I had a glorious girl’s day out with my Mama who bought me a beautiful (and completely useless) pair of black heels (because every girl needs a pair of those!).

My beautiful Mama

My beautiful Mama

Wednesday: Received much-needed motivation from my Chris to go and workout after work and I ended up having a great workout!

Thursday: Cappuccino Thursday with Jenny resumed and I got an unexpected (and much appreciated) chocolate treat.

I made these for Chris's work and stole one for Jenny!

I made these for Chris’s work and stole one for Jenny!

Friday: An interruption free run after my doctor diagnosed my breathing problems as Exercise-Induced Asthma. 9km in an hour might be slow, but I’m back in the game and on the way to the Gold Coast Half Marathon!

Oh happy legs!

Oh happy legs!

Saturday: My belated birthday party was a huge success (in my humble opinion). Most of my favourite faces were at the table and we had a glorious feast and lots of laughs.

Guess I'm tastier than the cake!

Guess I’m tastier than the cake!

I made Rich Slow Cooked Pork and Red Wine Ragu from one of my favourite bloggers, while my darling friends brought home-made ice cream(s), sangria (I must get Melissa’s secret recipe…) and asparagus and haloumi salad (it’s fried cheese people, come one, it doesn’t get better than that), and my sister made my gorgeous birthday cake: a Flourless Chocolate Hazelnut creation that was perfect with pistachio ice cream!

Grilled Zucchini Roll-ups from the Sprouted Kitchen Cookbook

Grilled Zucchini Roll-ups from the Sprouted Kitchen Cookbook

 

My Mum, Dad, and Casey transformed our lounge room into the perfect supper space with the help of some fairy lights and sunflowers.

See, pretty...

See, pretty…

Sunday: A sleep in and lazy post-party Sunday brunch and Scrabble session with my darling was the perfect way to energise before starting to cram for my exam tomorrow.

He won. Again.

He won. Again.

This week has been a definite success, and I am finding more positives each and everyday. As I looked around the table on Saturday night I realised that if, in forty years’s time I look around my dining room and see the same faces with a few more wrinkles, I will consider my life a success. This group of friends, this family, that is cobbled together and expands each passing year, that combines so many interests and home towns that stretch from Roma to Vancouver: they are my people, my tribe, and even when weeks or months stretch by and we don’t see each other, the next time our paths cross it is like no time has passed at all. And that, dear reader, is a lot to be grateful for.

Tell me, what were you grateful for this week?

Vanilla bundt cake with coffee-cream glaze

Posted on by

16

High tea has always been special in my family. I still have vague childhood memories of starched tablecloths, fine bone china, buckled-patent leather shoes, and the colourful hats that filled the window of the milliner’s shop that once occupied the space adjacent to my favourite tea room in Brisbane. When the lovely Jennifer at Delicieux announced that she was hosting the Sweet Adventures Blog Hop and that the theme was high tea, I just knew that I had to take part. Please hop over to check out Jennifer’s gorgeous Triple Chocolate Honeycomb Cake and the other yummy entries!

While most high tea platters are filled with scones, finger sandwiches, and other individually portioned small treats, I love the idea of having at least one larger cake present at high tea. Not only for the pleasure of slicing into a freshly baked and glazed treat and sharing with your friends, but also because when all the scones are gone and only creamy crumbs remain, and the finger sandwiches have sneakily been fed to the dog after everyone has gone home, there is always cake leftover for the next day.

 

Vanilla bundt cake with coffee-cream glaze

This recipe was adapted from ‘More from Magnolia’ by Alyssa Torey. This volume is a quintessential addition to the shelf of any sweet tooth.

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups plain flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 cup rice bran oil (or other flavourless vegetable oil)
  • 3/4 cup caster sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 1 cup milk

Method:

  1. Preheat oven to 180ºC and grease a 9-inch bundt pan.
  2. In a small bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
  3. In a large bowl place oil, caster sugar, and eggs. Using a hand mixer on medium speed beat ingredients together until smooth and thick. This will take about 3 minutes. I set my oven timer just to make sure I beat it for long enough.
  4. Beat in vanilla. Switch to low speed and add dry mixture in three parts alternating with the milk. Beat until smooth after each addition.
  5. Pour batter into bundt tin. This is a very liquid mixture.
  6. Bake cake for 45-60 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the cake comes out clean.
  7. Remove cake from oven and allow to cool in the tin for 10 minutes, then turn out and allow to cool completely before glazing.

Coffee-cream glaze

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 cup cream
  • 1 heaped teaspoon instant coffee
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 1/4 cups icing sugar

Method:

  1. Measure cream into a small microwave-proof bowl. Heat on medium power for 30 seconds, remove and stir, and then heat for another 20 seconds. Be careful as the cream will be very hot at this stage.
  2. Add vanilla and instant coffee to the cream and stir until smooth.
  3. Add coffee cream to the icing sugar and whisk until smooth. Cover, and refrigerate until cool.
  4. Pour over cake. Reserve any extra coffee-cream glaze for dipping slices of cake into after your guests have gone home….

 

Now, head over to Delicieux and enjoy the sweet treats from other Sweet Adventures Blog Hop guests!

Comfort and Cookies

Posted on by

3

These end-of-winter days are the ones that drag the most. Showtime has come to Brisbane, the annual agriculture show called ‘The Ekka’ has swept into town: the harbinger of spring. However, showtime is always, always, accompanied by strong winds (even referred to by the weatherman/woman as ‘The Ekka’ winds), and recurring bouts of the cold. This week poor Mum succumbed to the cold, and I was able to play nurse as I have been at home most days. I find a little joy in making chicken soup, laundering the sheets, and disinfecting things, so I was more than happy to take care of Mum as much as she used to take care of my little sister and I when we got sick as little kids. Happily, Mum is making a full recovery, after telling me yesterday she was ‘happy to lie here and wallow in freakish misery’ while went out for a walk.

This morning when I woke up, I could feel a little niggle in the back of my throat that told me that despite near-obsessive levels of hand washing, clean strengthening meals (like this one – I have leftovers for tonight), and daily sunshine, I too might be experiencing what I like to call ‘temporary immune system failure’ (I don’t like the s-word, sick that is). I am not whinging here, merely providing some background to the baking that happened today. When I need comfort, when I need that something to fill an only-food-can-solve-this-problem hole – I turn to the humble chocolate chip cookie. There is something in the moistness of the crumb, the chunks of semi-sweet chocolate, and the very legend that accompanies the chocolate chip cookie that quietens the little girl that still lives inside my heart.

So I give you, the best gluten-free chocolate chip cookie I have yet to taste. Make it. Take one, sit a little while with a cup of tea and a blanket and just comfort yourself by enjoying something that tastes like what a hug feels like.

Gluten-free Chocolate Chip Cookies

Makes about 15 large cookies, you can be more moderate with the size if you would like. But really? Does moderation apply to chocolate chip cookies?

Ingredients

  • 100 grams butter, softened
  • 100 grams brown sugar
  • 100 grams caster sugar
  • 1 large egg
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla essence
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 125 grams buckwheat flour
  • 50 grams brown rice flour
  • 50 grams almond meal
  • 300 grams chocolate of choice, chopped

Method

  1. Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F) and line a baking tray with baking paper.
  2. Weigh butter and sugars into a large bowl. Add vanilla and cream all ingredients together.
  3. Crack the egg into the bowl and beat into the butter mixture.
  4. In a separate bowl whisk together the buckwheat flour, brown rice flour, almond meal, salt, and baking paper.
  5. Add flour mixture to the egg and butter mix and stir until well combined.
  6. Dump in the chopped up chocolate (remember to test the chocolate first – quality control, people), and mix to distribute.
  7. Scoop out rounded tablespoons of cookie dough onto the prepared tray. Leave about 4 centimetres between the cookies as they will spread out as they bake.
  8. Bake cookies for 12-15 minutes. When you remove them from the oven allow them to cool completely before storing in an airtight container.

Of course, if you are like me and can’t wait for them to cool it is completely acceptable to make yourself a cup of tea and eat one straight off the tray.

Oh, yes, all better now.

Friday is for dreaming

Posted on by

3

The sunny blue winter sky could be any sunny sky I have had the fortune to see during my lifetime.

Today the clear cornflower dome is whisking me back to memories of spring in San Francisco and Los Angeles. Days spent wandering two of my favourite cities; taking photos of flowers, buildings, food, the endless horizon; new adventures to be found around every corner; and, the tingly-toes feeling of never knowing quite what is coming next.

Although it will be a while before my next long-distance holiday, I am already longing for the hills and sharp bay breezes of San Francisco and the craggy mountains and sage grass scents to be found on the city limits of Los Angeles.

This weekend, while I indulge in some California dreaming, I have a lot to look forward to under these gorgeous blue Brisbane skies.

I am planning on:

  • Some long walks with my darling sister, deep talks, high pitched laughter, and two pairs of sneakers
  • Baking bread with same sister (thinking of this recipe for the gluten-able, and this one for moi)
  • One (or two…) cups of my favourite coffee at the Saturday Farmer’s Market
  • Picking up the new Donna Hay magazine (it’s the annual children’s issue)
  • Finally making it to a hot yoga class (still haven’t used my seven day pass…oops!)

All of the photos above were taken during my spring visit to The Huntington Library last year. If you are ever close to Pasadena I truly recommend a visit, and remember to book in for a high tea.

A little teaser – with cinnamon scrolls…

Posted on by

4

This weekend was spent taking long, mist filled morning walks with my little sister…

We enjoyed the brisk air for 5 wonderful miles before hurrying home to defrost beside the oven and cook up some breakfast for Mum, Dad, and Trent.

From this wonderful recipe.

I prepared the dough on Saturday night while Jess and I indulged in some tragically attentive viewing of ‘The Bachelor’, and left them to slowly prove in the fridge over night. They came to room temperature as we greeted the morning with our walk, and when we returned I slid them into the oven and iced them before bringing them to the table.

Unfortunately I was not able to partake of the goodies (I made them on wheat flour), but next time, oh next time sweet cinnamon rolls, we shall meet over a cup of tea, and you shall not be safe…

After making these heaven-scented treats I was inspired to come up with my own scroll recipe. Check back later in the week for my Coconut Cranberry Scrolls. In the meantime check out this wonderful new book from Williams Sonoma (my source for these treats).

Movement Monday: Honouring Mothers

Posted on by

2

So many other mothers were awoken on Mother’s Day morning to the sound of sizzling bacon, the scent of coffee gently filtering down the hallway, and newspapers being unfolded for her perfect breakfast in bed.

My Mum was woken up by a 6 am alarm, a quick breakfast, and a brisk walk with thousands of other people in the annual Mother’s Day Classic.

Yet another reason to honour my Mum this weekend. When I set out to organise our family taking part in this event, which raises money for breast cancer, my sister was up for the 8km run with me, Dad just smiled and nodded at another one of my crazy sweaty ideas, and Mum put up her hand and said that she would be glad to take part because she knew how much it meant to me.

This morning we all made our way to the South Bank Parklands for the Brisbane Mother’s Day Classic event. Bright blue skies, light winds, and a reasonable starting time (9 am!) made for a wonderful run with Jess. One of the most special parts of this event is the tributes that people make to those who have been affected by breast cancer, and the stories behind the names on people’s bibs.

Today I ran in tribute to all my wonderful patients, my brave survivors, who teach me so much every day.

Thanks Mum for knowing how much this event means to me, and for giving up your yearly sleep in. I promise that next weekend will be welcomed by a pot of English breakfast tea, a plate of classic crepes with lemon and sugar, and a leisurely walk to the dog park to hang with your other (furry) daughter.