Domestic Chris(tine)

Grand Final Fever!

2009-09-30T07:13:00.000+10:00

We're in baby! The mighty Parramatta Eels have continued their freaky run of wins and have actually made the grand final.

You may remember me blogging about this game we attended and I was happy we won that! Ironically, we play the Storm again on Sunday.

So because I am a massive dork (and I had some blue sprinkles) I made these little cuties on Monday night.

Oh yes, the Fever has hit, and its hit us hard!

And this is the current Meal Plan

DC
xoxoxo

Jenolan Caves, NSW. August 2009

2009-09-17T19:54:00.001+10:00

The husband and I ventured out one Sunday to the Jenolan Caves. The Caves are about 1 1/2 hour past the Blue Mountains, which are about 1 hour from our house, so it was a decent "Sunday drive".

The Caves are that typical place that you'd have gone to on a school excursion. But not me, I'd never been before so i was very excited. For those who don't know of these caves, they are massive underground, well caves, that have been forming for a really really really long time. They are formed by limestone..... falling from the roof...... something about air and water, maybe minerals?

Ok, I wasn't really paying attention, more taking photos and staring at the shiney sparkly rocks! It was a really great day, if you are near you really should visit. I would suggest taking your lunch as well. Unless you go for burgers made with frozen pattys whacked on the grill STILL FROZEN, or meat pies with chewy pasrty. The coffee smelt good though.

Anyway here are some pics.

At the end of the tour they put on some coloured lights, a bit tacky perhaps?

This is the only building at the Caves. Its a hotel/cafe/souveni shop.

The terrace to have lunch on is lovely though

The water was so blue it looked kind of algae-y

We came across some old bones, I really hope they were from an animal.

xoxox

1 down, 27 to go!

2009-09-14T21:34:00.003+10:00

~~12. Go to Max Brenner.~~

A few weeks ago my friend and I visited Max at Parramatta.

And we fell in love with him.

Meal Plan

2009-09-14T21:18:00.000+10:00

S: birthday party
S: birthday party
M: spinach, ricotta & mushroom tarts w/tomato salad
T: chicken schnitzel w/potato panckaes w/salad
W: putanesca - him; potato & leek soup - her
T: spaghetti bolognaise
F: fish & oven fries

S: beef cannelloni
S: pumpkin & ricotta ravioli
M: chicken florentine
T: pumpkin risotto
W: steak & salad
T: chicken burritos
F: lasagne

The Past and Present Meal Plans

2009-09-11T06:56:00.000+10:00

This was last fortnights (please excuse the typing and no photos, the camera is here, somewhere....)

S: beef stroganoff
S: chicken caesar salad
M: spaghetti bolognaise
T: spinach, ricotta & mushroom tarts w/tomato and pinenut salad
W: tacos
T: creamy pacnetta & roast garlic parpadelle
F: theo's (you might see this pop up alot, its our local charcoal chicken place that the husband visits when I work on Friday nights.
S: out
S: chive & ricotta gnochi
M: chinese beef noodles
T: fish (him) & lamb (her) w/salad and oven fries
W: veal schnitzel w/creamed spinach & veg
T: enchiladas
F: quick grab-what-you-can- meal because we were heading to the football

The Present:
S: pumpkin & ricotta canelloni
S: steak w/onion gravy & veg
M: homemade pizza
T: grilled chicken w/pumpkin & spinach salad
W: potato & leek soup
T: spaghetti bolognaise
F: take away after the football (nothing sader than eating crap at 11pm after your team has lost, but alot.
S: chicken caesar salad
S: Fathers Day (out)
M: lamb cuttlets w/veg
T: spinach & ricotta pasta shells
W: sweet potato topped beef pie
T: roast cauliflower, sage & almond risotto
F: fish (him)

I am almost done with this coming fortnights. Reading back on the last months worth of meals, it seems I like to cook with ricotta!

xox
DC

Um, hi...

2009-09-09T19:57:00.003+10:00

Long time, no type, hey?

How you been? Good I hope.

I apologise, I do have things to blog about, I will catch up. Really, I will. I have 3 meal plans (1 past, 1 present and 1 future) to share, a story about our trip to the Jenolan Caves, and some cooking adventures to show you too.

Sit tight, I will be back

xoxox
DC

Meal Plan (a bit late...)

2009-08-10T19:51:00.002+10:00

I apologise for the lateness, our printer was playing tricks on me so I couldnt print it. I couldn't show you the ugly hand written copy now, could I!

Our Neighbour and the Passionfruits

2009-08-09T20:18:00.007+10:00

We have great neighbours.

They are both pensioners so we have no worries about loud music and wild parties, and they always keep an eye on our place when we are at work or on holidays.

One neighbour is an old single Greek guy, the other a Dutch couple.

Our Greek neighbour likes to grow things. Last summer he had corn in the front yard and grapes out the back.

I was hanging some washing out this afternoon and noticed he was pruning back some kind of vine plant thing.

We said our hellos and he asked if I like passionfruit. Um, yes, yes I do very much so love passionfruit! He came bag with a massive bag full for us. I love neighbours!

This is where 3 of them went.

Tea, Scones and All That Jazz....

2009-08-06T18:28:00.007+10:00

Last Saturday Mum and I went of to the city to see Chicago the musical at Starcity. Not before a lovely morning tea at Harrogate Tea House in Pyrmont.

Sydney was also hosting the boatshow, and didn't she turn on the good weather!

I could watch the fudge maker guys all day. I don't actually like to eat fudge, but I like to watch it being made.

So, do you put cream first, or jam?

Lead cast of Chicago (which was brilliant brilliant brilliant!)

Act 2 about to start.

It's just not a day in the city without a visit to the Lindt Cafe.

Lindt Macaroons (top l-r: coconut and vanilla, bottom l-r dark choc and milk choc)

The Classic Lindt Balls (l-r peanut butter, raspberry and cookies and cream)

Tomorrow is Friday, are you excited? I am. I hope you all have a great day.

xoxoxo

Weekend away - Bathurst Part 3

2009-07-30T21:36:00.005+10:00

Dinner was at what I think was the only restaurant that wasn’t in a pub or Chinese take away. Cobblestone Lane was just beautiful. So filling, oh my goodness I think I could have rolled out of the place.

Entree - Hazlenut & chive souffle

Main - Spinach & Ricotta gnocchi with swiss chard

Chocolate fondant. To. Die. For.

The next day we woke to a not great day, weather wise. All the more fun I think, I was prepared for cold, I didn’t get cold on Saturday, but boy, did I get cold on Sunday! Another good thing about Bathurst is that everywhere is adequately heated. You actually need to take a layer off when you go into a shop/cafe/where ever.

We found a cafe (that was in the pub) open early so we ate a hearty breakfast (me the toasted muesli, him the omelette with bacon, mushroom and shallots) and head up to “the Mountain” to do some car things.

On the starting grid, pole position, of course!

At the very very top of the Mountain, the view is breathtaking.

Oh, there is a Museum on cars too.

A few hours and some rumbling tummy’s later it was lunch time. We had spotted a steak house place so we’d thought we’d give it a go. Wish we hadn’t. We had no luck with lunches in Bathurst! Oh well, we will try a pub lunch next time.

My steak sandwich was ok, not sure it tasted Angus-y though.

Oh and did you think we could leave without another trip to Annies? I think not.

Husband didn't really have 2 ice creams, he was trying mine.

Thanks for reading my epic tale of our little trip to Bathurst.

Weekend away - Bathurst Part 2

2009-07-30T21:10:00.004+10:00

I had seen Annies Ice Cream Palour on the big map I bought and thought it was one of those typical ye’ olde parlours you see in every other touristy town (you the ones that just have the massive tubs of Streets of Peters, and you hoped that the milk maids were out back churning the ice cream by hand). Well yet another gem found in Bathurst. Its ALL homemade!

Bathurst is big on War Memorials.

In the other park, more of a garden.

Lovely little cafe, unfortunately was closed :(

But! We got Annies!

Oh it was as a kitsch as I'd hoped!

In the little Bathurst Museum, $4 well spent I think.

By 5pm it was starting to get pretty chilly. We headed back to the unit to have some coffee to warm up and quick back before dinner.

We had foxtel in the room too which was a bonus. Only because we had the sport channel and the 5.30 game was about to kick off. Ask me who was playing, go on. You guessed it, the Eels! I couldn’t believe our luck. And I had made a 7.30 reservation for dinner too, so that meant we could watch the entire game. Usually I make dinner for 7pm, someone was looking over us that day! Oh and yes, we won too.

Weekend getaway - Bathurst part 1

2009-07-30T20:41:00.006+10:00

Last weekend, we went to Bathurst. Everyone we told assumed there was some kind or car related reason as to why we were going. Ok, so it is home to a pretty popular and unique race track, but surely there is more to this country town than a race track.

Gladly, I can report there is.

There is the superb gardens in the town centre, the views of the surrounding paddocks and hills when you look down the streets, the old houses (some of which are being restored to their former glory), the one of a kind shops (most of them were closed though, but I love that they still believe in closing at midday on a Saturday) and Annies.

We left home about 9.30ish on Saturday and headed the Bells Line Of Road way, as opposed to through Katoomba. The drive was gorgeous, thanks to perfect weather. I was so tempted to stop at the fruit shops at Bilpin, but decided that on the way home was probably a better idea (FYI, we didnt stop on the way home, far to cold and wet, just wanted to stay warm in the car).

Arrival at Bathurst around lunch, perfect, time for food! We checked into our accommodation (side note, people at Bathurst need to look up the word 'luxury' before they use it to describe their hotel) a lovely self contained unit. Thankfully, ours was truly luxury. Well, compared what else was on offer. We cann't rave about the encore apartments enough!

The bed was tidy, but i just had to jump on it before i took a photo

We walked into the town centre to search for some lunch. As i mentioned there was not much open, even the cafes closed at 2pm. The husband is a bit of a meat pie connoisseur so we tried Becks bakery. I opted for a turkish bread roll with chicken cheese and sundried tomato. Verdict on the pie - not good. Drats. Not to worry, time to explore the town (and take photos!)

Is it normal to be in love with icecream?

2009-07-23T21:16:00.004+10:00

If its Digger flavour from Homer Hudson then yes, i think it is normal. This has done nothing to help my already unhealthy love of icecream.

Thankfully its a limited edition flavour. For the waisteline and the wallet, its $6 per 500ml!

But oh so worth it!

I demand you all rush out to coles/woolies/franklins and get yourself a tub. NOW!

Monday night football!

2009-07-23T06:53:00.003+10:00

Monday night just gone the Husband and I went to the footy. His mum had scored free tickets, which is lucky because we would not have gone otherwise.

You see, we support the Parramatta Eels. And if you follow the NRL, you would know what a cruddy season they are having. I didn't really want to spend money on seeing them loose. Again (and also in the freezing cold!)

So, you can imagine my joy when they won. THEY WON! Against Melbourne Storm, which is a bit impressive. 18-16 to be exact, yes a missed conversion was all that separated them.
Funny that that was the final score. My Grandpa (bless him) and Nanna used to be on the footy. But only the Friday night game and would always bet on the 'pick the score' option (can't you tell I'm a massive TAB junkie with my wealth of knowledge) The score they would pick? 18-16. Every single Friday night game.

You'd be suprised how often the score ends up like this, and when it does, I smile and think about Grandpa.

Anyway, here are some picks from the game (which was also Nathan Hindmarsh's 250th first grade game, all played for the Eels)

Meal Plan

2009-07-22T06:50:00.002+10:00

The shopper, the bargain hunter & the cupcake maker

2009-07-19T14:57:00.005+10:00

The shopper

The bargain hunter

& the cupcake maker
(recipe courtesy of the lovely Alicia from http://the-red-deer.blogspot.com/2009/06/baking-mondays-f-is-for-ferrero-rocher.html, do visit her blog, its amazing!)

The meal planning is coming around faster it seems since I've started blogging. I do have a fresh one ready to show you all, I know you all are on the edge of your seats waiting (nod people, nod!hehe).

Oh and the last ep of Master Chef is being aired tonight, BOOHOO! I will miss it, I love watching cooking shows. I hope Julie wins, I would LOVE a copy of her cookbook.

I hope you all enjoyed your weekends, I know i did!

DC xoxo

28 by 28

2009-07-15T21:13:00.002+10:00

I've seen a few other bloggers do their own lists and I thought I would attempt my own. I will admit that this list has taken me since my birthday (1 month ago) to actually complete. I am not that goal orientated, so it was a challenge to think of 28 things I want to do in the next 11 months. Yikes, not a year anymore, better get cracking!

1. Buy myself some Tiffany & Co.
I have been to the store in Sydney 3 times, all to buy things for others. No fair!

2. Get to my 10 year anniversary at work.
I will have been at my job 10 years in March 2010. I hope I get there.

3. Learn to play my keyboard.
This was a gift from the Husband for my 25th birthday. I just had to have one. I think it hasn't been played in 2 years.

4. Make a kids birthday cake.
You know those iced creations from the Womans Weekly cook book, they look daunting and challenging, and fun!

5. Avoid McDonalds & Hungry Jacks.
The Husband and I went to HJ's a few weeks ago for a quick lunch. I felt crap all day afterwards. Never again.

6. Start donating plasma and platelets.
I donate blood, but i want to step it up a notch and donate these as well.

7. Build our wood fired oven.
I have the perfect spot for it, I can see many a pizza night on our deck too.

8. Decorate 'my room'.
We have a 3 bedroom house, 1 room is ours, 1 room is the office/music room, and the other is a nothing room, currently residing in there is the unplayed keyboard and a very uncomfortable futon sofa bed. I have BIG plans for this room.

9. Eat at L'Etoile.
We are MASSIVE Manu Fieldel fans from Ready Steady Cook, and have been putting off going to Bilson's where he is a chef because, lets be honest, I can't part with $45 for a main that I'm not sure of what is actually in the dish, that was until we found out he has opened up his own bistro in Paddington, L'Etoile. A little more us (read: in our price range).

10. Cook zuchini flowers.
Something that I have never been able to find at out local fruit market, but did spot them at the growers market at Castle Hill. No excuses now!

11. Visit the Hunter Valley.
Never been, love to go, might be a spot for our anniversary get away?

12. Go to Max Brenner.
Simple task you would think, but each time I go I am so put off by the massive que snaking out the door and around the corner. One has opened at a shopping centre near us, so maybe a random Wednesday night would be better after a visit to Max's.

13. Make afternoon tea for my Nanna.
One regret I will always have is not taking my Nanna out for tea when I had the chance. She is too frail to leave her nursing home, so if Nanna can't go the scones, the scones shall go to the Nanna.

14. Go to Dubbo Zoo.
Another place we will go 'one day'. No more saying 'one day'.

15. Drink French Champagne.
Just to spoil myself.

16. Buy (and not kill) a pet.
We have thought about a bunny, but might start with a gold fish.

17. Finish landscaping our yards.
We have an empty garden bed at the front and a lop sided garden bed out the back. Time to fill the blanks.

18. Watch 'Gone With the Wind'.
Just to see what the hype is about.

19. Learn to say 'no'.
I often bite off more than I can chew, I must start putting 'me' first, but not in a selfish way, of course. Just trying to be more realistic in what I can manage.

20. Get Jovica to give blood.
Just another thing that has been put off over the years.....

21. Go to a Gold Class movie.
Again, just to spoil myself.

22. Go shopping in Paddington.
I love love love the markets at the school, and also the lovely shops on Oxford St. I don't go to that part of Sydney often so I am going to commit an entire day to it. Also Donna Hay's shop is there.

23. Go on a picnic.
In summer I plan to take advantage of being so close to Nepean River and day light savings.

24. Go to a State of Origin game.
Just something we put off as well. Game 3 is on at the moment so it makes me extra excited to go.

25. Rebuild the linen cupboard.
It's not really practical. It needs to be painted. I don't like it. It needs a revamp!

26. Take my mum and dad out for dinner.
They spoil us so much, so I'd like to return the favour.

27. Go to Canberra.
Just to get away for the weekend, maybe when its not so cold.

28. Make the 'perfect' cupcake.
I struggle with cake mixes, and icing. This challenge could cure both!

Wish me luck!

Its Wednesday and I can't wait

2009-07-15T07:04:00.002+10:00

Yeah, I know I am a day late, but I can't wait for lunch today. Our office is closing for the afternoon and we are all being taken out to lunch by the boss as a thankyou-for-all-your-efforts/end of financial year celebration.

Then we get to go home from the restaurant, early mark, WOOHOO!

But, I have ironing to do when I get home, BOOHOO!

Happy Bastille Day!

2009-07-14T21:58:00.004+10:00

Not that I am French, or been to France, or really want to go to France, but I thought I'd make the husband and I profiteroles with créme pâtissiére filling in light of this French national holiday.

From Donna Hay: modern classics book2

They were amazing! Whats french for amazing? hmm....

I was tagged and I didn't even know it!

2009-07-08T16:15:00.002+10:00

I'm so hopeless with blogging business, the lovely Louise from http://deliciousdelectabledivinefood.blogspot.com/ tagged me 2 weeks ago! oh the shame!

I *think* i am then to tag some of you? yes? well, considering i am new at all this, i tag you all!

Here are the rules:

Respond and rework; answer the questions on your blog, replace one question that you dislike with a question of your invention & add one more question of your own.

What is your current obsession?
Baking

What are you wearing today?
Grey wide leg pants, purple scoop neck top and black boots

What’s for dinner?
Gnocchi (refer to the meal plan)

What’s the last thing you bought?
A gorgeous new Diana Ferrari dress, sigh, I cant wait to wear it!

What are you listening to right now?
The buzz and hum of office air con

If you could go anywhere in the world for the next hour, where would you go?
Cronulla, to see my sister.

What is your favourite colour?
At the moment, red.

What is your favorite piece of clothing in your own wardrobe?
My new dress!

Describe your personal style?
Comfortable. I've never put fashion over comfort. It would explain why jeans are my uniform...

If you had $300 now, what would you spend it on?
I'd save it for holidays.

What are you going to do after this?
Wait for the clock to strick 5 o'clock.

What are your favourite films?
Harry Potter series, The Goonies, Grease, The Princess Bride, Willow, Chicago, soooo many more.

Your favourite smell?
Ground coffee.

Do you collect anything?
No.

What makes you follow a blog?
Photos!

Who would you love to have dinner with?
The husband.

What’s one thing you dream of doing?
Being a SAHW

What is your biggest regret?
Saying 'one day i'll take Nanna and Mum out for afternoon tea'. Nanna unfortunately had a bad fall at her nursing home and fractured her neck. She has now moved to a higher care home and is too frail to leave :(

What is your favourite thing to do on a rainy day?
Bake.

Do you have a tattoo?
No.

Are you left handed, right handed, ambidextrous, or a little of both?
Right handed.

What are you looking forward to in the next 12 months?
Planning more holidays and weekend aways.

Whats your favourite song at the moment?
No You Girls - Franz Ferdinand.

Meal Plan

2009-07-07T20:20:00.004+10:00

I'm back!

You might note that i have been inspired by our Thai restaurant trip that i am making a chilli jam stir fry. Now, just to find some chilli jam.........

Busy few days

2009-07-07T17:56:00.003+10:00

I'll start with a picture of the sky from last Friday morning. It was beautiful! What a lovely way to start the day.

I do have my new meal plan to share, it was ready on Saturday, but I need to amend it as Saturday and Sunday night didn't go according quite to plan.

The husbnads Aunt is in hospital recovering from a stroke. Friday night she was admitted, things didn't look good. Saturday saw some improvement, and as each day passes she is talking more, awake longer and wanting to sit up. All good signs. So Saturday and Sunday nights were spent with family. Why does it always take something like this for extended family to get together?

Saturday-day I went to the growers market at Penrith. I have been to the Castle Hill version, and must admit it is sooooooo much better (and bigger). I did manage to buy some chocolate (later to discover they were horrid) and some eggs.

And while I was walking past the theatre, I noticed that Steel Magnolias the play was, erm, playing there. Great! Mum had said only last week she wanted to see that! On closer inspection, tour dates are 1-4 July. Saturdays date. The 4th. Dam! But the good news on the theatre front is that Mum and my tickets are booked for Chicago the musical! Im so excited!

I will return with the meal plan and what very well could be my first succesful batch of caramel slice!

xoxo

The door, the mat and the belated meal plan

2009-07-01T20:34:00.002+10:00

A few things to show you tonight.

1. The new door, all painted. I have to admit its growing on me. What do you think?

2. Our new door mat. The old one was worn, daggy and old. It was here when we bought our house 5 years ago, it was here with our tennants and its stayed on with us til i found one i actually liked. And you can see the colour of the door better here too, see its a bit purple.

3. Last week and this weeks meal plan. New one to come on Saturday, im actually working on the new one tonight.

Just going back a few months....

2009-06-30T21:51:00.004+10:00

to Anzac Day.

I started my blog after Anzac Day so i didnt report on what we got up to. We attended the Cronulla service as it was closer for my sister to meet us at (dont even ask what time we had to get up!)

This note attached to a simple posy of flowers has stayed with me, i feel the sadness and the longing in the words each time i look at this photo. Im feeling greatful tonight.

Catch Up!

2009-06-28T13:13:00.002+10:00

Well, its been a while. I apologise, i have been stricken with a rather bad cold, but i am back! Almost 100% and ready to catch you all up in the happennings of my little life. I'll do it in point form, it will be easier. Let pick up from Saturday 20th:

*Got my delivery of Tuppaware goodies from my party (my mother in law bought me some biscuit containers as my birthday present which i was thrilled to receive) and started to notice i was getting a sore throat.

*Head to Bunnings to collect our chosen door paint. Change mind, I start looking at orange and red shades, husband gets annoyed with me and we agree upn a browny-purply colour called 'coffee house'. Get home, look at the colour again and decide to rename the colour 'choclate yogo'. IK! Apply first coat and hate it.

*Caught up with some friends over dinner at Little Italy at Blacktown. I had high expectations and was kind of let down. By the service mainly. And i thought it a little pricey for pasta at Blacktown. Wont return.

Sunday 21st
*Woke up to the worst cold in history. I think it may even be worse than man flu (NO! i hear you all say), aching back, temp of 38.1, stuffed head. Feel. Really. Awful.

*This has now ended any chance of any baking i had planned, retire to lounge and stay there while the husband collects dinner and makes a pretty good nurse.

*Husband continues to paint door. Still hate it.

Monday 22nd
*No work, couldnt possibly make the drive into Parramatta in one piece. Back to bed to watch infomercials on the "Sham-WOW" and consider ordering 1 (would have been 2, because i would have gotten 1 for free!) Did you know it holds 12 times it weight in water!

Tuesday 23rd
*Back to work because the thought of sitting in a medical centre's dirty waiting room to declare my symptoms to my GP so he could tell me to go home and rest and keep up my fluids for the sake of a medical certificate is too much to bear (this work place policy really grinds my gears, having 2 consecutive days off for having a common cold should be mandatory and shouldnt be accompanied by a medical certificate. Maybe if its an employee who constantly takes time off, but i have a mountain of sick leave i have accumulated over the 9 years, yes 9!, i have been with the company. Doesnt that count for anything? ok rant over)

Wednesday 24th
*Witness the demise of the NSW origin team. Shame, shame, shame. In bed before full time.

Thursday 25th
*Do you know i couldnt even tell you what i did.... Can tell you i still hate my door.

*May have passed on my cold to the Husband, oops.

Friday 26th
*Wake to the news that Farrah Fawcett has lost her battle with cancer.
*Reverse out of my driveway and slam the brakes when i am told Michael Jackson has passed away. What?
*TGIF! But for me and another lady i work with its a late finish (10pm) as we try to get our office in order for another financial year. This is re-occur for many Friday nights to come....

Saturday 27th
*Sleep in, oh lovelly sleep. Skip house work. Get stuck into baking! Karen Martinis salted peanuts and chocolate chip biscuits. (I now use the unsalted peanutes as husband couldnt warm to the salt and chocolate combo)

Tools of the trade - its all done in the food processor!

Creaming the butter and sugars

Blitz!

Add 1 egg, cinnamon, honey and vanilla

Blitz! And again with oats and flour

Mix with heaps of choc chips

And because the husband wanted some with and some without nuts, make separate batches.

Try not to eat them all at once!

I also managed to make a cheesecake, its still in the fridge. Untouched. I'm tempted to dig in, but i will wait for tonight.

*Meet my brother in law for Thai (last week was cancelled so it was now this week). It was delish! We let him order as he knew what was what and we dined on Pad Thai, Beef and veg with Chilli Jam and a red curry chicken thing that i cant remember the name of. It was wonderful. I can recommend Saute in Phillip St Parramatta.

*While there i suggested we go to Max Brenner after for hot chocolate. Then i looked over the road and spotted a new cafe called The Chocoalte Room. Hmm decisions. We decide to walk to Max's, but spot the massive que and walk back to The Chocolate Room. Oh. My. God. I will have to go back and remember to take my camera! The little chocolates are like mini pieces of art. The hot chocolate is rich and decadent and so many varieties! Must return soon!

That brings us to today. Another sleep in, yay! Sun is shining so more laundry is being done and my mammoth pile of ironing just wont go away, even wishing with all my might, it wont disapear. Damn. Think of me as i tackle my most hated part of house work, oh how i hate ironing!

Pop Quiz

2009-06-22T17:21:00.002+10:00

After reading Jo's from http://youarenearlythere-joanna.blogspot.com/ answers on her pop quiz, i though i would answer them too.

What do you have in your handbag right now?
Wallet, keys, phone, lip gloss, some pens, my last shopping list. The usual.

What was it about your husband that attracted you to him... and what keeps you with him?
He makes me laugh, we laugh often, which i love. I couldn't live without him so i keep him around.

Who was the last person you received a text from, and what did it say?
My friend L, after i told her i couldnt bring around her tupperware order.

When was the last time you travelled on public transport?
I caught the bus after doing some errands for work. There was a sign in the bus on "cough etiquette". Shudder.

What's the best party you've ever been to?
My 21st. It was a fancy dress and we were all so silly, it was a great night.

What makes you angry?
People throwing cigarette butts out the window or a car, on the street, in a garden bed. It makes my blood boil.

When were you happiest?
In the days after our wedding. We hadn't lived together before so it was all very exciting being all grown up and in charge. Also i was happy having my life back after 2 years of wedding planning!

Who was the last person to make you cry?
My husband on my birthday when he suprised my with my present.

What item would you never throw out?
My wedding dress.

What's your biggest indulgence?
Food.

What keeps you awake at night?
Car hoons that think the speed hump near our house doubles as the starting grid for their "lets see how fast we can go down a suburban street" drags.

Which famous person is your all-time greatest crush?
Probably Jon Bon Jovi.

Yesterday driving to work....

2009-06-19T06:44:00.003+10:00

it started to rain, while the sun was out. Not only did that make it very glarey, it also gave us peak hour ants a pretty rainbow to look at. Pitty about the servo in the foreground though.

And not to leave out the drive home, this is the usual view, lots of brake lights!

Today is Friday. To say this week has flown is an understatement. I will be back tomorrow with our meal plan, havn't had a chance to put one together yet. Tonight we are going to a Thai restaurant. I've not tried Thai before (gasp! i know!) I'm told its very good though.

We dont have anything planned this weekend, actually i plan to do a bit of baking so i might be back with pics of my creations.....

What are your weekend plans?

Hope you all have a great day

DC xoxox

Mid-week baking

2009-06-17T07:01:00.002+10:00

Choc chip cookies, and they are gooooooooooooooood!

Weekend wonderful/27 candles

2009-06-16T06:54:00.004+10:00

2 blogs entries for the price of 1 today. bargain!

Weekend wonderful
The niece came over on saturday for our little slumber party (which i was hoping included a full night slumber from the wee one) aka operation "dont go home with too many bruises from hitting your head on the coffee table".

Im happy to report there were no bruises, plenty of giggles and i even managed to get a sleep in til 8am! (oh boy sister wasnt happy with that! cheeky lady usually rises at 6.30 for her! oops)

She is a pretty easy kid to look after. She was happy running laps around through the kitchen, down the hallway back through the lounge room and around again, all without hitting many obstacles in her way. Pretty clever actually. Here are some pics to show her off

Playing "round and round the garden" with her nan aka the reinforcement.

Then on Sunday her mum and dad, and my mum and dad came over for an early birthday celebration lunch. I made the lamb rack again and it was soooooo much better this time around. We had it with a really nice and easy potato bake and a warm mushroom salad. Oh and the sticky date pudding for desert/cake.

27 Candles
Yesterday was my birthday. I got a sleep in by husband not going to work early which was wonderful. I had been very firm in my request for no presents this year, i dont neet/want anything, and i wasnt doing the normal chick thing and then pout when no present was given. I really meant it.

But to my absolute delight, husband had gone above and beyond (by that i mean he drove all the way to Miranda! hey, its not close to us!) to buy me a beautiful pair of earings. They are lovely. Im glad he ignores me sometimes. hehehehe.

I also got the happy little bird Pandora charm from my sister and mum is taking us to see Chicago the musical (not Peter Cetera).

And last night we went out for dinner. Us "westies" are lacking in restaurant choices out here. Unless you like a yeehaa steak house, or KFC you're pretty much out of options. Sure there is Church St in Parramatta that has many restaurants to choose from, but they are all overpriced and last time i tried to enjoy a meal in Church St, someone decided it would be funny to scare the crap out of all the patrons by throwing a setting of fire crackers out their car window. OK, so after all that we decided to try good ol' Black Stump at Wentworthville.

The restuarant is pretty new (used to be Chillis) and is really nicely deocrated (no pics, left the camera in the car, too cold to go back and get it). We both ordered the rib eye on the bone and it was delicious. So tender and just perfect. But not more perfect that desert! Ah my favourite course. I had the waffles and husband had this icecream concoction thing. Both were really nice, but husbands was the best, because it had peanut butter through it. Ah my 2 favourite things; icecream and peanut butter, only better when combined.

Promise when we go back i will take pics

DC xoxoxox

p!nk

2009-06-11T19:58:00.002+10:00

Yesterday was a long day.

Now i think about it, i was awake for 20 hours. Yikes, no wonder i was tired today.

Husband and I wake at 6am so it was an early start, then eventually, bed was 2am. I walked in the door at 1am, after a hot shower (OMG, do you know how cold it was early this morning!) my head hit the pillow at 1.30am, but i tossed and turned and replayed all my favourite concert bits in my head till about 2am. Yawn!

I spent the day with my sister and niece before we headed into the city to see p!nk.

I will be honest, i dont own a p!nk CD. Actually i havn't bought music in years. Not that i dont like music, i love music, but i tend to have my favourites already at home so it must be a great new release for me to want to buy it.

I think i might need to buy a p!nk CD now. Oh. My. God.

She is an amazing performer, if you have the chance to go, go. Seriously, you wont regret it, its fabulous. Our seats werent too bad, considering we were lucky to even get seats at all.

2 new shows have been anounced for late August at Acer Arena (thank God, closer to home!) that my sister and i would love to take mum to. I think she'd love it.

Anyway here are some pics.

For a sell out crowd at a p!nk concert, it was the most boring crowd ever. On your feet people!

Can you see that silver slippery dip in the middle of the stage? So cool!

Im on the left, sister on the right

She sang 'Sober' whilst on a trapeze, whilst being flipped and dropped and caught by the male trapeze guy. I, on the other hand would just be screaming my head off.

So tomorrow, is another day of recycled office air, phones ringing and paper to be pushed. The end is in sight. And it looks good!

Enjoy your Friday!

DC xoxo

Happy Days!

2009-06-08T15:24:00.006+10:00

I love long weekends, sadly there wont be another in NSW until October, but thats ok, just means we have to make the most of our spare time until then.

This weekend has startly superbly, and is set to end that way to because it is exactly 1 week till i turn 27.

So yesterday went swimmingly at the Tupaware party. I didnt have many people here (but you wouldnt know by the total of the orders!), I scored some freebies because i was the host and because my guests bought so much and all the food i made went down a treat! Check out the finished mars bar slice

And before i go any further, last friday was 'create new meal plan' day. So here it is.

Oh and Friday next week is supposed to read "homemade meat pies w/mash". Silly me!

This week is going to be a cracker. I can feel it.

*Today the husband and I went to Westfields (husband is awesome to go shopping with, he is so patient) and i managed to find 2 pairs of new work shoes, both on sale! And at the moment I have a pot of red lentil soup on the stove that smells divine.

*Tomorrow we are back at work, but thats ok, because

*Wednesday I am having off and spending the day with my sister and niece before we go and see P!nk (which isnt before we have dinner somewhere in China Town, yay!)

*Thursday, Friday will be work again, but

*Saturday mum and I are going to the Growers Market at Castle Hill to find some goodies, then my niece is coming to spend the weekend with us! YAY!

*Sunday all my family are coming over for a double birthday celebration for Mum and I so there will be a yummy lunch

*Monday - my birthday!

Hopefuly it turns out as good as it is in my head!

Wishing you all a wonderful 4 days until the next weekend!

xoxox

You win some, you lose some

2009-06-07T04:12:00.010+10:00

Today i am hosting a Tupaware party for a family member who is starting her own party-type-business-hosting-gig.

So with that comes the task of catering for the event, and because i rarely do anything by halves when it comes to cooking and entertaining (read: always makes way too much food, and usually about 8 different dishes) i was really determined to plan this one right.

Its such cold weather lately (being winter and all) that i am really concious about serving my guests something warm, not some ribbon sandwiches straight from the fridge. I would have loved to have made some little cups of pumpkin soup, but i thought they would go cold if people didnt have them straight away. So i stuck to simple finger food that i could easily prepare and leave at room tempreature. Genius! So the menu for today will be:

*Spinach, ricotta and mushroom tarts - we have a bigger version of these for dinner sometimes so i know the recipe well, I served with a tomato and pine nut salad, for this event i am making miniature ones, sans tomato salad

*Tomato and basil bruschetta - simple and yummy

*Corn fritters topped with avacado salsa - i LOVE corn fritters so this was an easy choice.

*i cheated and bought a packet of yum cha - only because i needed to get a bottle of sweet chilli sauce for the above salsa and because we usually dont have it at home, i wanted to serve it with something so i wouldnt waste it.

And because i cant help myself :

*Mars bar slice

*Tea cake - was supposed to be Julie from Master Chef's Lemon Diva cupcakes but i ran out of normal sized cupcake cake cases so i thought i would be smart and use the small ones, and just put them on a baking tray. I thought wrong. This is what i found in the oven 10 minutes after i put them in

So that explains why i am serving tea cake bought by mum from the bakery on her way over. So that makes the husband officially the better baker of this house (for this week, anyway).

So that was my lose. Bloody cupcakes!

But, my win was my lovely mars bar slice, so easy, wanna see?

1. Melt these over low heat

2. Mix with this

Like so

3. Press into a slice tin

4. Cover with milk chocolate

Then cut them into squares or rectangle, what ever you want and try not to eat them all at once!

Oh, and if you are wondering why i am blogging at 4.30am, the husband has gone fishing with some of the other Tupaware husbands and i couldnt sleep with so many things to do today, so i'm up, blogging and about to do some ironing.

Have a lovely Sunday, oh and Monday, because its a long weekend! YAY!

xoxox

Who knew $5 could bring so much joy.....

2009-06-05T06:56:00.006+10:00

and help to make a bad day better?

oh, and thats not a ginormous doughnut, its a small coffee!

and, my day got even better when i walked in the house last night to the smell of baking. In my house. And i just got home. Who could be baking? The husband! Oh, i was so excited. Ok, so it was only a Better Crocker packet mix, but the house smelt amazing, he washed the dishes, AND started dinner too! And i thought i was the domestic one.

Whenever i bake cakes, they always end up sinking, i dont know why, but just they do. So i was uber impressed with the husbands effort (and so was he, bless him)

So its Friday, YIPEE! I'm not celebrating early because i still need to get through today, which for us is a big deadline day at work. But i will get through today minus doughnuts, cant promise minus the coffee, sorry!

Have a wonderful Friday!

xoxox

My little lamb.....rack

2009-06-03T19:26:00.004+10:00

I love lamb. Who doesnt?

Actually a few people i know dont, apparantly it has a strong flavour. It does if you think about it, but oh man, i just love lamb!

Saturday night on the meal plan read: macadamia crusted lamb rack with warm potato and bean salad.

This is what was served up (it was also a trial run for mine and my Mums birthday lunch in a few weeks)

The lamb was delicious. Ok so the crust looks a bit like a polenta crust, but i will add some fresh herbs next time and maybe not use the cornflake bread crumbs i used without realising (it did make it nice and crunchy though!) and yes, thats 5 cutlets you can count. Dont judge me, i love lamb.

And the warm potato salad, waaaaaaaaaaay to vinegar-y for me.

Knock knock.......

2009-05-30T10:15:00.007+10:00

I have been pestering the husband ever since we moved into our house for a new front door. It was a very old water-logged, orange glassed, horrid thing. Anyway, because my husband is a bit more practical than me, it was noted and agreed upon that we would wait until we built our front verandah before the new door so we wouldnt get the same water-logged problem as the old one.

Smart man my husband.

So here she is, in all her natural (read: unpainted) glory

She will get a coat of paint when we decide on a colour.

These were the ones that jumped out to us at bunnings. I wanted a bit of a statement colour.

But we have managed to narrow it down to 3 finalists.

We are both a bit fond of the bottom one as its a bit more brown which will match the warm colour of the lounge room, but our hall way is more grey so the middle one will go better, but then i like the purple in the top.

I think our poor door will be naked for a while.....

TGIF

2009-05-29T07:04:00.002+10:00

I love Fridays.

Actually, i love Friday nights more, cause i know then i have survived the week. And i am hoping i can get through today. If i can, i can say i survived a pretty horrid work-week. Work: bad. Deadlines: bad. Human error: bad.

After today is over i plan to do nothing over the weekend. Zilch. Nada.

I havnt had a weekend like that in a long time so i think its on the cards.

Im even doing my f&v shopping on the way home so i dont have to go out tomorrow.

Did you see what is on the master class on MasterChef tonight? Chippies! i love hot chips, so i am so excited to see how the pro's to theirs.

Oh its excitement plus in this house! hehehe

Wishing you all a lovely Friday, and an even lovelier weekend, you deserve it!

xox
DC

Meal Planning

2009-05-27T07:13:00.003+10:00

Im a meal planner, have been since, oh how long have i been doing to housewife gig, um, 2 1/2 years now.

I read about it in a magazine years ago and the idea of it is to minimise food waste and only buying for the meals you have planned.

I dont go to the extreme of planning breakfasts and lunches, but dinner time would be a disaster if i didnt know what i was cooking when i got home from work.

So it started. Every other Thursday night i rummage the pantry and freezer to see what i already have to make meals of, then raid my cookbook cupboard to see what interests me and also ask the husband if he has a hankering for something in particular (the response is usually mexican or pizza).

4 lists are made. One for Woolies, one for the fruit market for the 1st week, one for the 2nd week
(i couldnt fit 2 weeks worth in our fridge), and one for the meat market.

I find a fortnight meal plan and subsequent grocery shop works for me. I think i'd hate Woolies if i had to do one every week.

Then, just in case you thought i wasnt insane enough, i make a little chart for the fridge that explains when and what we are having, also has little notes from time to time for things i might need to prepare a day or two in advance. Like if i need ricotta for something, but dont want to buy it 10 days early for example. You will also notice that i like to change the font and colour of my chart. Yeah, im that exciting.

So here is this fortnights meal plan.

My Hay Days.

2009-05-26T06:59:00.006+10:00

So you know that choc coconut slice i was telling you about from the weekend, it turned out gorgeously as i'd hoped, although the critic of the house (husband) said the icing was way too sweet. Crickey, it must have been for Mr Sweet tooth himself to mention it. So next atempt will be only a thin layer of melted chocholate, not the icing sugar mixture thats currently adorning it.

I'm really starting to get into Donna Hay. She has some amazing books out and her magazine is really pretty. Im not one to buy magazines, except for the christmas editions for Womans Weekly and Family Circle, but for that past 3 months i have bought every edition of Womans Weekly and also grabbed the latest Donna Hay over the weekend. I think i will start buying them all the time now.

Oh and did you know that Donna Hay has opened a shop? I am really looking forward to heading into the city to check it out.

Anyway, here is the choc coconut slice.

Look at the lovelly shopping list i got free with my mag this edition. She must have known i'm a list freak. Thanks Donna!

Sunday outings: Balmain

2009-05-25T05:42:00.008+10:00

The husband worked again on Sunday so i decided i really wanted to spend some time with my sister, brother-in-law and niece.

I met them at their place (completely in the opposite direction to Balmain) so we could all go together (because i knew i would get lost and also to maximise our together time). Balmain has become a favourite haunt for sister so i was keen to see what the fuss was all about.

So many pretty shops. Not nearly enough money. I'd love to go back to raid the lovely homeware shop near the park and also the bakery with the fig tart. Yummy!

Sydney cleared up yesterday so we could all frolic in the sunshine. It was nice to be not-cold again!

The coffee was great, and if you want a biiiig coffee, you can get one in a bowl.

The niece i speak of, couldn't possibly get any cuter.

I love weekends. What did you get up to?

Master Chef.

2009-05-24T06:45:00.003+10:00

If you watch Master Chef on chanel 10, you'd know about those mashed potatoes from the first master class.

I love trying new things in the kitchen, and truth be told, my mash is a bit meh so i watched the clip again and set out on my pomme purees mission. I baked my spuds on the rock salt, scraped out the fluffy centre and lossened them up with a fork (i know they said to use a seive, but really, i couldnt be bothered, oh and my friend L tried it and told me it made a mess, so that step went out the window).

On the stove went the milk to warm up and then added to potatoes over low heat and then mashed them a bit with a whisk and started to add the butter.

This is where i wish someone else was cooking so i didnt have to see the quantity.

My heart was hurting adding knob after knob, but i kept saying 'its a treat its a treat its a treat'.

Whisking away the potoatoes turned into a creamy cloud that i couldnt wait to try, and being the cook, you just have to taste test! OMG. So good.

It was served with grilled steak and some veg. Oh and i also attempted a red wine jus, also inspisred by the lamb glaze that George made in the same episode.

So would i make them again? Maybe for dinner guests, too much effort for mash.
Was it worth all those calories? I really dont think so. Save them for desert!

Which brings me to the sticky date pudding i made. I got the recipe from exclusivelyfood.com.au and it is seriously not only the BEST sticky date i have ever had, but is now my favourite thing to make.

Well, its another wet day in Sydney town, so whatever it is you have planned, i hope you have fun!

xox
DC

Jumping on the blogging bandwagon

2009-05-23T06:21:00.000+10:00

Hi there.

Welcome to my blog.

Im not really sure why i created it, but i read so many lovely blogs i felt inspired to start one myself.

Its currently 6.20am on Saturday morning, so i dont have much to share at the moment, but the day is young, so i will probably be back later with a post about my favourite thing to do on the weekend. Grocery shopping!

PS Its reeeeeeally wet in Sydney today so i hope everyone is somewhere warm, dry and safe!

xox
DC