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Friday 23 August 2013

Doorstop cuteness

When we first moved into the beach house, the bathroom door squeeeeeeeeeeeaked something dreadful.  You even had to try to not make eye contact while walking past just. in. case.  A breeze was madness-inducing, and the squeaking was always extra loud early in the morning when the little peeps were still asleep.  There was no sneaking into the bathroom, and if you have ever resided in a house with a small person, you know just how much you want to be able to sneak into a bathroom sometimes.  Bad squeaky door.

Of course, it's also been like that for an entire year because the only thing we actually did about it was say we really should do something about it.  It's just our way.

Then out of the blue a couple of weeks ago, the husband actually did do something about it.  He totally made it not squeak!  Which was very exciting until we realised that you must be careful what you wish for.  It turns out, the squeaky hinges were what was holding the door open day in and day out.  Dammit.  Or dammit at least until I realised that I could legitimately add something new to my shopping list.  Wooo!  And I'm not even making up the necessity to justify object adoration.  No sir (maybe a little bit).  Whoever designed the lighting in our house did a truly abysmal job of it (a despressing thing that the husband and I will eventually have to have redesigned and upgraded).  Probably the black carpet doesn't help either, in a house prone to being a bit dark anyway.  But, we do need the light that comes from the bathroom window, so the door needs to stay open. 

Doorstop shopping happiness!

I really wanted some design, so off to Father Rabbit went I and voila!  Cutest doorstop in the world.  I love looking at its beautifully turned self holding open my lounge door (I know.  I was shopping for the bathroom but I loved the newbie so much I had to put it in the lounge, so my poor old Dishy seashell doorstop was banished to the bathroom.  I felt a bit bad about that because it's served me well till now, but bathrooms are more seashelly anyway ... right?  Of course they are) and it amuses me that the oak doorstop has an acorn sitting on it.  It possibly also amuses me that it took several days to make that connection.

(Acorns and oak trees is also a bit of a long standing joke in our house.  One of those jokes that no one else gets, that isn't really a joke at all, but it's funny because it's really annoying.  One day, years ago, the husband is sitting at the table and says "If an apple comes from an apple tree, a pear comes from a pear tree, a peach comes from a peach tree and a lemon comes from a lemon tree and so on ... why does an oak tree grow an acorn?"  See, not funny.  But it pops up every now and again and drives me nuts, and therefore, the acorn on the oak doorstop is funny.  Seriously.  What was even funnier was the other day, out of the blue, the little ginger asked the husband the same question and was much less inclined to just scratch his head and accept the break in pattern.  That was funny.  Or at least, it was because he was demanding answers of the husband and not me.  Any similar type questions that make no sense are dubbed 'the new acorn'.  It really is a thing here.)

Thursday 22 August 2013

Lovely lemon

Lemon is truly one of my favourite flavours. Lemon cake, lemon muffins, lemon biscuits, lemon tarts, lemon meringue piiiiiie ... lemon beats out most things.  And it turns out, it's one flavour that can convince me to break my golden rule of not messing with a proven recipe.  I don't mean faffing with it myself, hell no.  That's just asking for it.  No, I mean, not to go looking for another recipe to replace one that is perfectly good (or roolly, roolly awesome) just for the sake of it.  I'm lazy like that.  If I'm going to do that, I try something completely different altogether.

You'd think I'd be more experimental, but I'm really not (roolly*). Or maybe I am getting to be that way between new recipe books and the Global Baker Project, and that's why it happened.  I put aside my tried and true, never-ever failed, everyone loves them (or pretends they do) melting moment recipe in favour of a new one.  Just to try. Convinced, because it had lemon in it.  Mmmm ... lemon. 

And you know, I over-baked them (tricky things, melting moments. A minute in either direction and perfection is lost forever) and the icing needs tweaking (too soft, and the flavour was just a wee bit off.  Too much lemon juice I think, especially for the way I like my final product.  I couldn't roll it to make it pretty, which annoyed me because melting monents need to be pretty, and it didn't set hard) but it's a most awesome recipe in the making.  This recipe had vanilla (I use vanilla paste.  I discovered it recently-ish and haven't touched essence since.  In love with the vanilla paste) and a greater quantity of flour than my other recipe - not by much, but just enough to make the difference I think.  And the lemon.  It just wasn't so sweet.  Which is possibly a bit dangerous.

Meh.

I'm really (just really this time, no roolly) glad I took the photo when I did, straight after I made them and before I, after a long day, bunged the smallest peep's night bottle in the microwave to heat up ... somehow placing it onto the plate of setting melting moments without even noticing them (I put them in there to keep them safe from little hands, and the dog).  They looked mighty crap(per) after a good burst in the microwave.


Yoghurt cake with lemon syrup.  Just because.  I had a theme to play out.





*  I have absolutely no idea where the roolly comes from, but it amuses me right now, so hey!

Wednesday 21 August 2013

Here's looking at you: Not just a bunch of seagulls

It turns out that when you start trying to not be complete arse with a camera, you start to feel that there's a way of looking at things, and a way of looking at things. 

I really enjoyed these gulls.  I am also really glad none of them crapped on my head while I was standing underneath them.





Also, I lose my dog at the beach a lot.  I'm sure he thinks it's funny and I really suspect that he turns his head deliberately so I can't see his blaze.  Bad dog.

Sunday 18 August 2013

Wanna see my shopping list?

You know you do. 

First though, you know what made me a silly amount of happy this morning?  Last night, I was rummaging through the freezer while carefully considering what nourishing, amazing meal to prepare for dinner tonight (Bah hahahaha!  Did you buy that?  I was trying to stuff a new container of ice cream in the door) and I found frozen hot cross buns.  Woooo!  I'd forgotten I'd put some in the freezer to see how they'd cope with being frozen (awesomely, by the way) and so I had toasted, buttery hot cross buns with a cup of tea for breakfast.  Yum.

And now, because both kids have been sick (chicken pox for one, and a horribly coughy vomity coldy-flu for the other.  Deep joy) and the husband has been away and I've been working, I'm just going to post my shopping/wish list (sans Missoni towels.  Bummer).  This will also be a handy reminder of what stuff I actually wanted.

This, I'm buying.  Hungry & Frozen by Laura of  Hungry and Frozen comes out this week.  It's going to be my reward for ... something. 

 

A rhubarb plant.  I have plans for the fence I look out at from my desk.  Firstly, I'm going to re-purpose some old pots screwed to another fence on the property that are unused and no one sees, and I'm going to fill them with herbs.  Yay!  The BBQ that I'm currently looking at is going to be relocated to somewhere not where it is now, and I'm going to plant rhubarb in some form of planter, yet to be determined (I really love the tanksalot ones, but my budget doesn't.  The husband suggested planting it in the BBQ, which was completely weird.  I'll probably run with a half wine barrel.  The planter of champions).  I love rhubarb.  I miss having a rhubarb plant. 


Falcon enamelware.  I need two baking dishes that I can fit side by side in the (small) oven, and the pie dish ... I just want.  You can get them lots of places, but I love Father Rabbit.



This is pricey, so I'm saving this one for when the husband totally owes me.  That, thankfully, will be soon.  He's going on a course.  He'll be away for ages.  He. Will. Owe. Me.  (I'm not sure how he can owe me for looking after my own children, so we're going to leave it at that and quickly move on).


No-brainer.  Everyone has been talking about this for ages.  I have no idea why I don't have it already.


An Ekim Burger.  (Also, this picture is from their Facebook page.  I'm hoping they don't mind me sharing it about.  I'll get my own soon I hope)  Mmmmm .... burgers.


We need a new jug and this one will look uber cheerful on the bench.  I'm not sure it's my favourite colour from the range, but it's my favourite of the ones available to purchase as merchanise with Westpac Hotpoints AND I have enough hotpoints for both a jug and toaster.  Happy!  The husband wants to see in person though, before I start throwing all my hotpoints at it.  He's the sensible one.
  
 



Also on the list, but what I can't find an image for is Built for Caffeine by Ben Crawford (I'm pretty sure that's what it's called).  Due out in November, it's a design inspiration book featuring 20 New Zealand cafes (I think), so pretty much mooshes together two of my favourite things - design and cafes.  Definitely wanting that.

Saturday 17 August 2013

So. Much. Want.

This is where I wonder if the husband has heard of House of Missoni, and whether he'd buy that it's a Farmers brand if I were to sneak them into the linen closet ...

Probably not. 

Want to know how much they are?

le sigh. 

They are ALL the awesome though.  All of it.  Every last bit.  Except for the bird house shelf of course.  That was also quite a bit of awesome.

Want!!  My bathroom would rock these towels.


Thursday 15 August 2013

morning glory wholewheat carrot loaf

My feeling about carrots is that as a general rule, they have no business being in cake.  Or anything cake-like.  Which includes loaves.  No business at all. 

But, this is a Global Baker recipe (Yay Global Baker Project!), and the (self-imposed) rules are, I have to bake it all.  Sooo, I busted out the carrots. 

The super wet mixtures had me crossing all my crossables, and the not-ginger cranking the oven up to 200 degrees when I wasn't looking (early in the baking process too, little troll), made me hop a bit.  Looking at the picture in Global Baker, my end result was a bit more golden than it was perhaps intended to be, but it is seriously yum and definitely going to be made again.  (I tried it toasted this morning, and toasted is also good).

AND it has raisins in it.  Carrots and raisins, but still yum.  It makes no sense it me at all, but there you go.  I'm going to have to make a chocolate cake next, but to put the world to rights again. 

Naked loaf


Crumble topping



Voila!  A slightly fuzzy looking loaf of nomminess.  The photo-taking is a work in progress.

 

Monday 12 August 2013

Badass banana bread

See this?  (Yes, I know it's not banana bread. Patience)

This is soup.

Italian bean and pasta soup. With about 6 ingredients.

Impossible to screw up, some would say.

Guess what?

I really do not understand how someone who enjoys food quite as much as I do could be completely incapable of putting ingredients together and creating something edible. It boggles the mind, it surely does. And yet. This bad boy, which looks perfectly innocent, went down the sink because it honestly tasted of nothing but salt.  I had Nutrigrain for dinner that night. Nutrigrain!  (I was far too distressed to even consider baked beans or eggs on toast)  Bad, bad, evil soup.  A souper fail, even (Ha!  Hahahahahahaaaaa a ... aaa ... hem.  Or, maybe a little tee hee, because that was a little bit clever?  Wasn't it ...?  No?  *sigh*)

It is also an awful photo (pre-new camera), which it totally deserves.



And now, the banana bread which was so much more successful because for some reason, putting baking ingredients together is a totally different tin of biscuits to your cooking kettle of fish.  I should've just made this instead of the soup for dinner.  It has bananas so it's wholesome.

Banana cake recipes are the husband's favourite, and I'm pretty partial myself, so they always have to be tried when we come across them.  The variations we have all seem to serve a different purpose too - there's one that's good iced if you want (generally, we don't), one that you definitely don't ice - it has a brown sugar/chocolate sprinkling on top, a layer of it through the middle and is enormous, so a good sharing cake too.  There's another that doesn't need much banana action if you've only got a couple of manky ones hanging about in the fruit bowl ... and so on. 

This little gem just popped out of nowhere when I turned the page in my Kiwi Diary this week (Er, last week.  It was this week when I uploaded the photos).  Sweet!  It's proper banana bread too, not just a loaf tin sized cake.  It's the sort that tastes awesome fresh out of the oven, great sliced the next day (not sure about the other days. I'm really not expecting it to last that long), but also toasted and buttered.  Badass banana bread indeed.  Bam!


Sunday 11 August 2013

Sunday brunch, yo!

I've said it before, and I'll keep saying it.  There's not a lot I love more than parking up at The Raumati Social Club on a Sunday for brunch.  Except maybe on a Saturday.  Or Monday.  Or Wednesday through Friday.  Or for coffee, lunch, dinner, Sunday session tacos ...  Pretty much any of those days and any reason at all (or no reason whatsoever) do it for me.  I love it.  They're good peeps.

Happy


Sad

Happy.  So happy.

Happy, so long as I don't have to eat them. Mushrooms. Ack.


More happy.



Also, new camera!  Wooooo!  HAAAAAAAPPY!!  (I just have to take my time with the photos.  I feel like a bit of a dork, and then annoyed that I took photos too fast.  Silly)

Wednesday 7 August 2013

Well, hello there, awesome thing which I must have

The birdhouse shelf by Thing Industries.

I spotted it late last night sitting up in bed (late-ish.  Late enough.  I guess not really very late at all.  It sure felt late though) flicking through the latest Urbis magazine.

My office wall requires this shelf.  Requires it.

And yes, I'm quite aware that it costs an awful lot and it's only a shelf.  I just don't care.  It's looks quirky!  And cool!  So very cool!  It's a house shaped shelf and I can put my books on top of!  And stuff in!  Books!  My pen cup!  My coaster when it's not being held down by coffee! My ... I have no idea how big it is.  Were there measurements on the website?  Did anyone notice?


Tuesday 6 August 2013

Baking three ways

One. 

Healthy baking ... gluten, grain, wheat, dairy, refined sugar free (Petite Kitchen) espresso fudge brownies.

Except, they're not even remotely fudgey.  The promise of fudge is there, and the picture in the book certainly looks fudgey but ... I fudged them.  They tasted brilliant too which is what made it even more annoying.  I suspect being lazy and using runny honey over proper honey may have sunk me, but I've done this to brownies before.  Somehow, I turn them into cake.  Pah!


The kids liked them though.  Especially the little ginger kid who has food issues.  This everything-free baking and cooking seems to work for him.


Two. 

Not even baking.  I bought pikelets at Moore Wilsons, grabbed jam out the fridge (and didn't even check which jam I grabbed beyond it being red jam) and put cream in the Kitchenaid.  Lazy-pants.



Three.

Almost the total opposite of healthy baking.  Wholemeal oat ginger crunch cookies with ginger icing (Dean Brettschneider).


And, I had to take a photo of this, just because!  First cut into un-wrapped butter.  Bam!  (I needed 150 grams)  It's the little things.  What's a little bit annoying is that I cut it, thought myself a bit awesome, started to cut it up so that it could do its softening thing a bit faster and then decided that no, it was awesome enough to post, stuck the butter back together and took a photo ... but somehow during that process I gained a gram from 151 to 152.  Still,  clever-pants.


Monday 5 August 2013

So, this is exciting


A few weeks ago, we made a very quick trip to Auckland.  There were a couple of important visits that we needed to make but I was crapping myself about taking the small people away on a tight schedule.  I crap myself about taking them away anywhere fullstop, to be fair.  They were so good though, it was worthy of marvel (which we did, believe me, the entire way home.  We were high as kites on our success).  It was almost ... easy.  Obviously we both felt like we'd conquered Everest and could fall over backwards and sleep for an entire day with no encouragement at all, but it was a lot easier than I'd dared hope in the few weeks of pre-going away anxiety attacks as I anticipated small people in cars then on planes, missing naps and quiet time and getting very excited and over tired and all those things that small people do when they're travelling. 

So naturally the next step is to plan and start working towards taking them on a 14 hour flight to North America for a holiday in Canada next year.  Cos that's how we roll.

Saturday 3 August 2013

Beautiful summery winter day

Today, I'm wearing a t-shirt, two sizes too big because I was shopping with two small people and I grabbed a tee on a small hanger without considering that it looked really big, or checking that it also had a small label (it didn't).  Luckily, I was in Workshop and a Workshop tee is a wonderful thing, even when it's really over-sized it turns out.  This Workshop tee was also on sale, and a tee on sale is pure happiness (although that was 6 months ago.  Surely it's about time for another sale, hmmm?  Workshop?  Are you liiiiiistening ...?).  But anyway, two sizes too big tee and skinny jeans (which maybe were supposed to be skinny, or maybe it's just that I'm not so much. Either way, same effect really.  Sort of) and it felt like summer today.  All day.  Amazing how beautiful sunshine and a blue sky can change the world.

This is one of the views from the front of our house, taken off the deck.  I took this photo in the middle of last summer when we were all melting in mid-30 heat, but it looked exactly the same today. There was no mid-30 heat, more like mid-teens but that is my absolute favourite weather in the world. Clear, super crisp (or fecking cold, whichever you prefer), bright and beautiful.

Today was a good day.


I was going to show you that I'm working on improving my photos, by trying to take a stylish photo of the tee draped on a hanger or something, but we took the small people to the beach and I dropped ice cream down it (or rather, to be fair, I was holding a kid and she dropped icecream down it.  I usually do coffee myself), so that pretty much was the end of that.  No stylish photo.  I could've tried a selfie, but ... nah.  And trying to do a mirror shot would have involved cleaning the mirrors first, and I just couldn't be arsed. 

Instead, you can have this which is also summery and also an attempt at photo improvement. 

Raw lemon and coconut truffles (Petite Kitchen).  Yum.