Sunday Salivations

Ginger Sun Tea and Chocolate Chip Bars

White Tomato Essence Soup

 Vanilla Bean Panna Cotta with Rhubarb

Sunday Salivations

Strawberry and Rhubarb Meringue Pie

Fusilli with Pancetta and Cremini Mushrooms with Fresh Mint

Coffee Kugelhopf

Persimmon and sultana slice

 “Time is a game played beautifully by children.”
― Heraclitus, Fragments

I am not one to keep a New Year's Resolution, somehow, the habit of life seems to get in the way. This year, my littlest has helped me to keep at least one; being present.

When looking after a 9month old who doesn't know how to be still you cannot lend yourself to languid daydreams or mindless internet browsing. Avert your eyes for a moment and more than likely your attention will be brought back by the sound of tears or your mobile phone being used as a drumstick against the skirting board. You can never truly 'baby proof' a room, the curiosity and sheer determination of a child to learn and explore will overcome any obstacle you can place.

As exhausting as it can be to be completely engaged in her every waking hour, I am thankful for it as I might have missed the moments that I will keep forever. Like the moment, on shaky legs, she used her activity box to stand unassisted on her two stocky legs, arms raised in the air, smiling triumphantly with gusto. Or the moment soon after where without warning, she suddenly decided to take her first step which was followed by the sharp intake of both her parent's breath and then immediately by their ear-piercing shrieks of joy and laughter. The kind of love that fills your heart to the point where you think it will burst is unique to that of a parent for their child. These nine months with Valentine have stirred feelings within me that I didn't think existed. There are so many feelings of love felt in a lifetime, but the love I feel for my daughter is the sweetest and deepest of them all. I fell in love with my husband moment by moment, but my love for my child was already within my bones.

Although I have had nary a minute to devote to my own leisure, like delving into a good book or stirring a bowl of cake batter, I do not mind, as babies truly do grow up in the blink of an eye. Now that Valentine is on the precipice of walking independently I am  madly gathering as many precious baby-only moments as possible. Each incoherent babble. Every tranquil feed at my breast. And all of the new discoveries and accomplishments she makes on a daily basis. I am storing these treasures in the chambers of my heart so that one day, when I only see her face on occasion or hear her voice through the odd phonecall, I can visit those rooms of memories and remember when she was once my baby.

ease: 5/5.
prep time: 10mins.
cooking time: 30mins.
total: 40mins.


taste: 3/5. Suitable when peckish.

I have to admit, persimmons are not a fruit I love, which is why I try to 'bake' them into being yummier. I think the main reason I didn't enjoy these slices were due to the chunks of persimmon; they are just a little too 'sweet' for me.

The blend of spices were heady and warming, I could definitely picture picking giant morsels of these before a fireplace with a hot toddy in the other hand. The texture was a touch dry for me but otherwise they were a decent snack, but not something I would daydream about.

would I make it again: No, even though they are healthier and vegan, they were less stellar than the Persimmon and sultana muffins I made a while back. I'd rather keep searching for tastier vegan sweets.

recipe: http://www.melangery.com/2012/01/persimmon-bundt-cakes-fat-free-and.html

Sunday Salivations

Kiwi Fruit Muffins with Coconut

Fig, Gorgonzola and Honey Tartines

Up, Up and Away Cake

 

Sunday Salivations

Crostini with Balsamic Strawberries, Ricotta and Pea Shoots

Potato Wedges

Self-saucing Mocha Choc Pudding

 

Sunday Salivations

Lemon-Blueberry Drizzle Bread

Herb Roasted Chicken with Truffled Cauliflower Mash and Lemon-Caper Gremolata

Earl Grey Berry Tart

 

Banana and chocolate chip muffins

“Climb the mountains and get their good tidings. Nature's peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees. The winds will blow their own freshness into you, and the storms their energy, while cares will drop away from you like the leaves of Autumn.”
― John Muir

I like to think of the beginning of Winter as a time to shed any worries or cares; to strip myself bare and rekindle the flame of my inner being.

It is during this season that I feel the need to simplify and declutter my life. It seems even more important to me now that I have a child, to show them what life truly is; the love of yourself and others, the Earth that nourishes and sustains us and buckets of laughter and fun. If you have shelter from the storm, food in your belly and the company of loved ones there is nothing else to need. It is so easy in our world to get caught up in the trivial and to bury ourselves in the material that we lose touch with nature and who we are at heart. I would like to teach my daughter to be present, to love genuinely, and to remember what truly matters...

So I spend these last Autumn moments frolicking in every ounce of sunshine I can, catching as many falling leaves as I can and relishing as much of its last bounty as I can.

These muffins came about due to some languishing bananas, and as I never wish to have any food go to waste (any produce we don't eat, my father's chickens do and boy do they leave nary a morsel behind). Funnily enough, it is often the unplanned recipes that turn out best :)

What things do you like to do before Winter begins?

ease: 5/5.
prep time: 8mins.
cooking time: 25mins.
total: 33mins.


taste: 4/5. Childishly grand.

These muffins remind me of childhood lunches with sticky fingers, crumb dotted mouths and high pitched squeals of joy.

The muffins are wonderfully moist with pockets of sweet banana and patches of dark, melted chocolate. They are quite sweet despite the fact that I did reduce the amount of sugar by 1/3cup although I did add a little more banana, the sweeter your bananas the less sugar you need.

They might seem rather ordinary, but I add three of these straight from the pan.

would I make them again: Yes.


recipe: http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Banana-Chocolate-Chip-Muffins-101020

Sunday Salivations - Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to the wonderful mothers in this world!

Strawberry Greyhound

Poached Egg with Crunchy Quinoa and Balsamic Brown Butter

Old Fashioned Apple Crumble

Baked french toast with blueberries

“One must maintain a little bittle of summer, even in the middle of winter.”
― Henry David Thoreau

 A pressed palm, the size of a round plum, pushes against the window pane as rivulets of raindrops run down its face towards the burgundy bricks below. Thousands of water droplets fall from slate-smudged clouds all morning, sometimes in dribbles and sometimes in torrents so relentless you cannot distinguish one liquid bead from another.
As much as my little one longs to feel the stalks of grass between her fingers and the wind to blow upon the nape of her neck, we stay huddled inside our nest until the clouds have their intermission, allowing silvery threads of sunlight to pass between their lumpy forms and the dewdrops to settle on the earth.

It is in these moments we snuggle into our warmest woolens and tallest shoes to splash around in the puddles and allow the crispy air to redden our cheeks and enliven our senses.
Little V has almost learned to walk, at 8 months of age she holds on to the nearest form of support and wobbles her way to wherever she desires to go. Although she cannot walk alone she is thrilled with this tidbit of extra mobility and loves to hold onto the weathered trunks of trees as she feels the texture of the bark or the slippery surface of a nearby leaf. It was also during a wintry-slumber that her first tooth peaked out from beneath her rosy gums, although she still seeks her nourishment from breast alone, I'm sure once she begins to enjoy the bounty nature has in store for her, it will come in handy.

Once the thunder rumbles and we feel the air begin to moisten, we scurry indoors, shedding our extra layers to play inside whilst I read aloud as the rain once again drums against the window's face.

What do you like to do most on a rainy day?

ease: 4.5/5.
prep time: 15mins plus overnight to soak if you wish.
cooking time: 45mins.
total: 1 hour (plus overnight if you wish to leave it in the fridge).

taste: 4/5. Tart, sweet and wonderfully hearty.

I chose this recipe to use up some left over challah bread, and boy was I glad I found it. Most mornings I rarely have time to make anything other than toast as standing over the stove is still something I cannot do with the little one now she is too heavy to hold one handed (she only likes her slings and carriers if we are on the move, standing still she hates the restriction). After reading the reviews I saw that I could prep this the night before (whilst hubby plays with baby) and then just pop it in the oven in the morning - hurrah!

Whilst hubby didn't enjoy it much (he hates anything resembling custard at all), I loved it, I even ate it for my lunch and dessert as well. On top you get a deliciously sugar crusted topping with smatterings of blistered and juicy blueberries. Beneath lies an almost custard-like base oozing with sweet cinnamon-spiked blueberry syrup.

I listened to the reviews of others and heavily modified the quantities in the recipe.

would I make it again: Yes, anything that I can prep overnight for a sumptuous breakfast the next morning is fantastic in my book.

recipe: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/baked-french-toast-with-blueberries-recipe/index.html

Autumn salad of pomegranate, pear & fig in rhubarb syrup

'...like the feeling you get on the first real day of autumn, when the air is crisp and the leaves are all flaring at the edges and the wind smells just vaguely of smoke - like the end and the beginning of something all at once.”
― Lauren Oliver, Delirium 

I've shouted from every soap box around how besotted I am with Autumn. I adore the varied weather that sends leaves ablaze before tousling them loose to pirouette gracefully to the dew misted earth. And of course, there is the bounty of food. In the beginning we have the last of Summer's beautiful berries, tantalising tropical fruits and vibrantly fresh veggies.  But for me, the middle is the most interesting. This is where you get the short lived wonders like the gorgeous garnet pomegranates with their sparkling ruby arils and the royal purple figs with their perfumed damask bellies. You also are gifted with pretty persimmons, charming custard apples, quirky quinces, bold beetroots, pleasing pumpkins - I could rant endlessly.

What makes this Autumn impossibly precious is that it is the first I have shared with my darling daughter. I have watched her, mouth open in awe as she tracks each dancing leaf and feels every warm kiss of wind on her cheek. I have laughed when upon tasting a touch of pomegranate juice her mouth has puckered and her eyes squinted. Seeing the world through her eyes has painted mine with colours I have never seen; my world has been transformed in the most wonderful way. I count my blessings each and every minute.

What do you enjoy most about Autumn?

ease: 4/5.
prep time: 20mins.
chilling time: 30mins.
total: 50mins.

taste: 4/5. Autumn's sweet kiss.

I knew I would love this from the ingredient list alone; what a spectacular selection of fruits. The vanilla adds such a wonderful delicate fragrance whilst the cinnamon and cardamom give it an exotic twist. The rhubarb provides a sharp tartness to counter the sweet pears, whilst the vibrant pomegranate pairs perfectly with the perfumed figs.

would I make it again: No, it tasted lovely but I found it more suitable as breakfast with yoghurt than as a dessert, and for breakfast, its a touch time intensive and rather messy (those darned pomegranates, so delicious but so eager to stain everything in sight!).

recipe: http://gourmettraveller.com.au/autumn_salad_of_pomegranate_pear_and_fig_in_rhubarb_syrup.htm