Venn diagrams and Earthquakes...

Oh boy, I’ve been lazy lately. Not without reason, but I just haven’t felt the urge to write a post in my blog… until now!! Perhaps it’s the cold, miserable winter we’re in the middle of experiencing; maybe the earthquake rattled a few things loose in my head (haha!) or it comes down to simply pure laziness and lack of motivation – not sure. But here is my latest post, and I promise it’s full of yumminess and hilarity!

Because the days are rolling into one at the moment, I can’t remember the order in which things went, so I’ll group this post into sections

HILARITY

Every so often, there’s a sign placed on the footpath on Clarendon Street in South Melbourne. I think it’s from a local business – it doesn’t seem to be selling anything, it’s just out there for a giggle. I’ve noticed on previous occasions its featured zombies. Well, this week it was different…

On one side

And on the other…

HAHA!! I was never good at maths, however for whatever reason, Venn diagrams stuck in my head.

As I mentioned earlier, Melbourne experienced an earthquake the other night. I was sitting on the floor in front of the heater, watching a DVD of Grey’s Anatomy when there was a strange noise and everything started shaking and rattling. At first, I honestly thought it was a possum on the roof (as this happens nightly) however it kept going and I thought the glass was actually going to break. Fortunately, on the earthquake scale it was minor and there was no serious damage or injuries reported. It is VERY rare for Melbourne to experience an earthquake, and I’d never experienced one before – and I have to admit I hope to not experience another. I cannot imagine the terror that people experienced in Japan, Italy, Turkey or Christchurch in recent times – again, another reason why I am so lucky to live in Australia. However, in true Aussie fashion, we took the piss out of it and some online pictures and references went viral.

I noticed this the following day…

HAHA!

Last night, my brother popped over briefly. We were chatting, when I went to the freezer to get a Tofutti Cutie (YUM!). He looked at me, and told me he thought I was vegan now and why was I eating ice cream. When I informed him it was soy/tofu ice cream, his face crumpled up in minor disgust and he went quiet. I asked him if he wanted a bite to try – he ummed and ahhed, then said ok. He took a tentative bite, chewed then looked surprised. “Hey, that’s really quite good”, and proceeded to accept my offer of a whole one to himself – BAHAHAHA!! There is no chance of him ever becoming vegan (he had actually just come from a sausage tasting thing – yuck) but it’s another small win for vegans!!

FOOD

I’ve been doing quite a bit of cooking lately – this weather deserves comfort foods like stews and soups, so I have made some yumminess.

Ribollita

The soup on the stove, with the kale chopped and ready for be added!

A super easy, super tasty recipe from Vegie Head. Get on it! It’s so good, that even L-whack (who as a PhD candidate who has not time) has asked me to show him how to cook it!!

Moroccan tagine wraps

Minus the wrap!

And with a few changes because I didn’t have the right ingredients. Instead of sweet potato (kumara) I used normal potato, and instead of baby spinach I used a bunch of rainbow chard.

Stewed apple

An EssMick original recipe... haha!! I don’t really know what I did, or how much of stuff I added but it turned out tasty.

It went something like this;

5 apples (I used granny smiths), peeled and thinly sliced

Juice of ½ lemon

1 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/4 tsp cloves

Pinch of salt

¼ cup of water

Place all ingredients in a saucepan and simmer for 25 minutes, stirring occasionally. Eat!

My next blog will be about my mis-adventures with filo pastry… an entertaining and amusing evening for me whilst I was trying to be brave and use pastry for the first time…

Rumbly in my tumbly

On Wednesday, I swung by Northcote Bakeshop. I was hoping to get some more delicious grainy bread, and vegan empanada’s!! Unfortunately only one of those options was available (empanada’s baby!).

So I decided to try another one of their offerings. As it was late in the day for them, they’d sold out of most of their bread. It was a tough decision, choosing between their honey, oat & organic red quinoa sourdough or their potato bread with rosemary and nigella seeds… On this occasion the sourdough won (even though honey isn’t considered vegan) but I am glad I did!! It’s a dense, delicious loaf that went beautifully with my soup!!

Nom nom!

I also couldn’t resist their fruit loaf. The picture I took on my phone is terrible and doesn’t do it justice!! So I stole a picture from their Facebook page. Behold the fruit loaf!!

Nom nom NOM!

SO dense with fruit, spices and sesame seeds – YUM!! I may have been seduced by the tastiness once I got back to my car, and managed to polish off about 1/3 of the loaf by the time I got home… hehe!! My lap looked like a sesame crop had exploded!!

Both these loaves were $7 each, a little more than I usually pay but I thought it would be good to try them and keep in mind for special occasions. I will definitely be back to try their potato bread – like apple & cinnamon, potato & rosemary is a match made in heaven.

If L-whack is lucky, I may save an empanada for him (I bought 2 this time). IF he’s lucky… ;-)

This weekend in Melbourne is a long weekend. I plan on keeping busy, catching up with a couple of girlfriends, brunching, shopping, walking, keeping warm – and having date night with L-whack! I’m also dying to get a pedicure – even though its winter, I feel I must keep my toes looking well-kept and pretty!

The other thing I plan on doing is finishing off Downton Abbey, season 2. Oh my goodness, if you thought season 1 was full of scandal and drama – just you wait til season 2!! Sooooooo good!

To finish off today’s post; I wanted to share a beautiful drawing of a rainbow that my 3yo niece (Z-monster) drew for me. Isn’t it gorgeous!

Behind the 8-ball

Friday evening, my back was aching for a massage (pardon the pun!) so I hiked my way to Chadstone to see my miracle worker Loco, and he sorted out my sore muscles. As it was dinner time by the time I was done, and it would take me a while to drive home, I decided to be brave and see what vegan options Chadstone could offer me! I knew there was a Lord of the Fries (which I am yet to try) but I wanted something healthy, and fairly light. So I made my way to Sumo Salad and asked the girl which of the salad options was vegan friendly. Happily, she pointed out 3 options (they also do hot food now, but I didn’t ask which were suitable) and I settled on a 3 bean & tomato curry, and a pumpkin & couscous salad.

Sumo Salad yumminess

Both salads were tasty, and I would be happy to go back to Sumo Salad.

Yesterday, The Age newspaper published a story on the health benefits of leading a vegetarian lifestyle. Cue vege-bashers. Oh man, some people are so ignorant. As I’ve said before, we should respect what people choose to eat (or choose not to eat) however I know that I am sick of the haters, the defensive meat-eaters who abuse, bully and belittle vegetarians/vegans. I do not understand this backlash and ignorance from meat eaters. Why do you feel so threatened?

I came across a funny, yet sadly true example of the ignorance (and in some cases, simple stupidity!) that meat-eaters come out with when they hate on vegies.

Found here

Unfortunately for them, they believe the stuff that has been spoon-fed to them by Dairy Australia, Meat & Livestock Australia and all the other pro-animal corporations out there. If someone chooses to eat meat, so be it – but at least be aware of where/when/how your food is produced, the reality of factory farming, and the possible consequences of eating such products. Have a read of Skinny Bitch, or The China Study. I don’t agree with everything that’s written in Skinny Bitch but they certainly have some very valuable information in there, and make you really think about what you’re eating (it’s not a bible, it’s a guide). And it’s NOT all about being skinny, as they put in the disclaimer at the end of the book!

I recently received my copy of The China Study and I’m looking forward to reading it soon (once I’m done with The Book Thief).

Having said all that, I will be the first to say I’m not perfect. On Saturday, I fell well and truly off the vegan wagon. My niece Z-monster and I made some tiny teddy chocolate cars, and unfortunately you can’t get vegan versions of what I needed (well, not that I’m aware of – please let me know if there is and how to get them).

Together we had an absolute blast making these, and Z-monster was really good at sticking all the pieces together – and boy, I had forgotten how tasty tiny teddy’s are!!

The left one looks a little unhappy... haha!!

We also fed some ducks, played chasey along the massive bridge at Fairfield Boat House, and sang songs in the car. I love my Z-monster, and it was awesome to spend the time with her.

Duck time!

On Sunday, I cooked Husband’s Healing Soup from Oh She Glows. I made a slight adjustment, by adding a fresh bunch of organic kale, using 1 cup of pearl barley, and using chickpeas instead of edamame.

Please excuse the crap photo, I didn’t have suitable light and my phone is on the way out. I served it with the last few pieces of 7-grain sourdough from Northcote Bakeshop, so I’ll need to make another trip!

At this point, I would like to say that Whole Foods should come to Australia. A place with fresh, healthy, organic produce and has something for everyone. Their mission is to supply people with the best quality of food so that they can live longer, better, healthier lives whilst promoting sustainability. A bit ironic given it’s an American company, but I think the model/concept would work well here.

As lucky as I am to be Australian and call this wonderful country home – I also believe that we are lacking in so many areas. Whether it’s the availability/price of products (like cars, clothing, technology), the issue of ‘gay marriage’ (I’m all for equality), to the food options we have to us (or should I say LACK of options – there is such a small amount of vegan friendly products available readily to us). Australia is behind the 8-ball, which is such a shame.

Hanging with some locals

Hello Monday morning, where did the weekend go?

On Friday evening, I had a long overdue haircut. My hairdresser Rebecca, left yesterday to go on a 5-week holiday to Europe – needless to say, I’m jealous. I got home, and warmed up the vegan empanada I bought from Northcote Bakeshop. Really delicious. I put it in the oven on 200°c for 15mins and it was perfectly toasty and filling. For $5, it is a pretty good price. It did fall apart a bit, but that’s not an issue for me!! I’m looking forward to heading back to the Bakeshop to check out their other offerings.

Sunday morning, I had to run some errands. I also stopped via a specialty Indian grocer and bought some fenugreek leaves. Judging by the size of the box, I don’t think I’ll run out anytime soon!!

$2.99 for 100g box!

Sunday afternoon, L-whack and I went for a leisurely walk in the local parklands. Whilst we were there, we hung out with some of the locals!

It’s pretty awesome seeing wild kangaroos so close, and also so close to the city. Although for international readers, kangaroo’s do NOT jump down the street, nor do we keep them as pets. ‘Roos are pretty dangerous animals, and if you ever come across one – just let it be.

I came across an injured little bird (with bloody sharps claws - he managed to get my finger!) so L-whack and I gently bundled him into a shoe box, wrapped him in a towel and took him to the nearest animal shelter. He wasn’t able to fly, and had injured his foot (claw?) so it was a relief to take him somewhere that would be able to help, and properly care for him. They were optimistic of his recovery, and were going to pass him on to a wildlife shelter once the vet had looked at him in the morning. It sounds stupid, but I was really sad to leave this little guy, I didn’t get to say goodbye to him!! So to Mr Birdy, wherever you are – I hope you’re back flying with your homies soon!!

It was pretty cold, but it was lovely coming into a warm home and being greeted by a delicious warm bowl of Soul Food Winter Vegetable Stew, courtesy of the delight Miss Vegie Head!! This is seriously such an easy recipe – I guarantee it tastes awesome!! I may have had 1.5 bowls of it… hehehe!!

Accompanied with a glass of organic, vegan red

Trivia, sourdough and Downton Abbey!

On Tuesday evening, I went to my first vegan social group event!! It was a trivia night at Whole Lotta Love on Lygon St in Brunswick. Being the nervous nelly I am, I was quite scared going in there on my own, but once I got my glass of wine and spotted an empty spot at a table, I took a deep breath, made a beeline and introduced myself!! It ended up being an enjoyable night (even though my team lost miserably – we came second last – hahaha!).

On the way home, I came across my first tram surfer. I cannot comprehend how anyone could be so stupid.

Yesterday was a truly fun day! For the next couple of weeks, I’m taking Wednesday off work to spend some time with my nieces (long story) and it was such a beautiful day.

I arrived to 2 gorgeous girls excited about the day ahead. We played some chasey and hide & seek, before heading down to the local park where we played on the play equipment and had lots of fun. We came back and played some more, before settling down into doing some watercolour painting. My artistic skills are lacking, however I enjoyed doing some painting with Z-monster, whilst S-monster was happily playing with some toys.

Best painting of a butterfly in the history of the world :o)

After I said goodbye to them for the day, I had to run a few errands and decided that I would swing by a couple of foodie places to see if they had something that tickled my fancy. And I was in luck!

I stopped by Northcote Bakeshop, which is a new bakery in the ‘dead’ area of High St, Northcote (if you drive along Darebin Road and didn’t turn at the T-intersection you would pretty much drive into the shopfront!). Their selection looked amazing, and so fresh. I ended up picking up a loaf, as well as a vegan empanada (which I will have for dinner tonight!). Their prices are very reasonable, almost TOO reasonable – I really hope they’re not introductory prices!! The loaf was $5 and the empanada was $5. I will post a pic of the empanada in the coming days.

7 grain sourdough from Northcote Bakeshop

After stopping by there, I kept driving up to Piedmonte’s which is on St George’s Road in Fitzroy North. They stock Tofutti, and I was in luck as they had replenished their stock!! I bought a pint of Vanilla Almond Bark, and Wildberry Supreme – yum! Of course, after that I drove home (dying from the delicious smell of fresh bread!) and eagerly sliced into the sourdough for a few pieces. It was YUM!

Of course after this, I had to go to the gym (for my impending food baby) so off I went to huff & puff and sweat my brains out!! It felt good, but I was pretty knackered by the end of it.

Last year, I missed watching Downton Abbey on TV. So I bought the DVD from eBay and caught up that way. Then I got impatient and ordered series 2 on DVD. So that’s when Channel 7 announced it was airing series 2. Oh well. My copy arrived on Tuesday, so I am revisiting series 1 before I get into series 2. I much prefer watching TV shows on DVD anyway – no ads, you can pause as you like, and watch as many episodes as you like in one sitting. I have a number of series lined up – Grey’s Anatomy (season 7), Mad Men, Brothers & Sisters. Woot! I’m almost done with Glee (season 2) and L-whack and I are about to start on season 2of Modern Family. So I think I’m all set for the long winter ahead of us…

BRRRRRRRRR!!!

Holy moly it was COLD this morning!!

My alarm went off at 6am (boooooooo!) and I got up, readied myself for a run along the beach before going to work, having a shower and feeling ready to tackle the day the best I can.

I jumped in my car (it was 3°c), picked up L-whack and drove through ‘peak hour’ even though it was only 6.30am (it is ridiculous how much traffic is on the roads at that time. I once attempted Hoddle Street thinking it would be a decent run as it was so freaking early – never again). We arrived at L-whacks place so he could change into exercise clothes before our walk.

At that point, the plan went pear shaped……. Next thing I knew, we were curled up in bed, having a bit more of a snooze before my alarm went off, and I begrudgingly rolled out of bed and went to work. Boo.

Silver lining?? Vegie Head’s ebook is up and running, and available at the ridiculously cheap price of $7!! (even cheaper if you’re not in Australia – our dollar has dived in value)

I am SO excited that it is finally here, ready for our eyes (and tummies!). I’ve been reading through it, and I cannot wait to start cooking up a storm!

You can get your copy here, and I truly mean it when I say it is a fantastic resource and the recipes are super easy to follow, even for the cooking challenged…

Just a couple of examples of what’s in the e-book

Mexican black bean Posole

Better than Reeses Peanut Butter 'Cheesecake'

Vegan Pho

I for one cannot wait to get cooking.

In other news, my nieces came over and Saturday afternoon and as they were coming inside, Z-monster started shrieking with excitement. Once she finally calmed down, she showed us what got her so excited.

“There might be fairies Nana – the fairies!!”

It is so wonderful to see such joy. Brings the biggest smile to your heart. 

Although the toadstool itself gives me the creeps. No idea why, but it just did!! (Perhaps it has something to do with my irrational fear of uncooked pumpkin - that's a story for another day)...

I also had another visitor yesterday. I went to the local organic fruit shop and bought some rainbow chard to make some soup. I haven’t taken a photo of it yet, but as I was soaking the chard to get rid of the dirt, a little tiny visitor came out of the bunch and paid a visit!!

Little snail (Rex) is now safely roaming the garden

I also made some lemon blueberry muffins yesterday. I used this recipe as a base, however added some fresh lemon juice to make it more lemony. I’m pretty pleased with the outcome.

LEMON & BLUEBERRY MUFFINS

2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour (I used 1 ½ cups SR wholemeal, ½ cup white SR flour)

1 ½ teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

2 lemons (use zest of both, and juice of just 1)

1 cup sugar (I used ¾ brown sugar, ¼ castor sugar)

1 cup milk (you can use non-dairy milk, I used soy)

1/3 cup vegetable oil

1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

1 ½ cups fresh OR frozen blueberries (I used frozen)

Method:

·         Preheat the oven to 180°c (375F). Place patty pans in muffin tray.

·         In a medium bowl, combine together flour, baking soda, salt and lemon zest.

·         In a large bowl, combine the sugar, milk, oil, juice, and vinegar. Mix well.

·         Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, stir until just combined. Don’t over stir.

·         Gently fold in the berries.

·         Fill the muffin tins about 2/3rds full.

·         Bake until a wooden skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean, about 24 minutes.

·         Remove from the oven and let it cool for 5 minutes. After that remove the muffins from the tins and cool on a wire rack.

nom nom nom

ZING!

I asked for a strong soy flat white this morning, and I got one!!!

I don’t know why, but sometimes coffee is a little like alcohol for me (well, from what I remember as I rarely drink these days). Sometimes I have a cup, and I become wired, giggling and unable to concentrate. Other times, it does nothing. Strange, but highly amusing when I get affected by it!

Last night I roasted a beetroot. I have never cooked beetroot before, but I bought one last week and I thought I’d better do something with it before it gets old. So I peeled it, quartered it and wrapped it in foil and roasted it for an hour on 180*c. I’m really not sure what I’ll do with it (I put it in the fridge once it had cooled down) but I’m sure that it’ll be tasty. Maybe beetroot hummus, maybe I’ll add just a little balsamic and eat it on its own.

Oh, I took a photo of a piece of banana chocolate cake I baked for mother’s day. I didn’t bother to sprinkle any more icing sugar on it, but I easily could have.

Mmmmmmmm cake!

I was recently ‘invited’ to join Pinterest, and I’m having fun using it. If you’ve never heard of it, that’s ok – I had no idea what it was until about a month ago. It’s considered a social media tool (but I like to use it as a friendly reminder tool for my often forgetful and overloaded brain!). You pretty much ‘pin’ things on to your board. Sounds kinda lame-o, but it’s actually quite enjoyable. As Pinterest explains it;

Pinterest lets you organize and share all the beautiful things you find on the web. People use pinboards to plan their weddings, decorate their homes, and organize their favorite recipes.

Best of all, you can browse pinboards created by other people. Browsing pinboards is a fun way to discover new things and get inspiration from people who share your interests.

Our goal is to connect everyone in the world through the 'things' they find interesting. We think that a favorite book, toy, or recipe can reveal a common link between two people. With millions of new pins added every week, Pinterest is connecting people all over the world based on shared tastes and interests.

So I’ve come across a heap of new recipes, amazing beaches to discover, and cute pictures of animals – like below!! If you’re on Pinterest, feel free to add me (follow me? Pin me??).

Maldives - amazingly divine!

Hip Hop Kitty

Motivation when I just can't be assed...

Dreams... :o)

(what is this formatting thing on blogger? Sorry about this scmemozzle of a mess, but you can't format your pictures easily - if you know how, then please let me know!!)



I’ve also found my dream home. It’s located in Malibu, California and costs a mere $15 million. Haha! If you would like to donate to the cause, please let me know as all donations are more than welcome. You may even score yourself an invite to the housewarming!! HAHA!!

Le sigh. How I would love to be sunning myself on a beach somewhere warm and tropical at the moment.......


Update: As you can probably tell, I enjoy my cooking. And I have FOREVER wanted a beautiful KitchenAid mixer. Well there is a vegetarian website called Delicieux that is doing a giveaway, so to get an entry I need to give them a free plug - so here is the plug!! Now fingers crossed and I'll start dreaming about which colour I would like...