Occasional stories, food and travel inspiration
The other day, my boyfriend and I went to see British comic Chris Turner in his show, Observational Tragedy. Alternately witty, moving, and thought provoking, it prompted both spontaneous laughter
When I was younger I thought of life mostly in terms of goals. Everything was about achievements and new experiences. "Live overseas." Tick. "Get a great job." Tick. "Be a published
Regular readers may remember my grouchy Valentine's Day post from a few years ago, when I was newly separated from my ex husband and in no mood for romance. Back then, the very thought of being with
I recently met up with friends for our regular Cookbook Club lunch where we share dishes we've cooked from a selected cookbook. If you're anything like most people, you'll have a number of cookb
I'm a Summer gal so I love this time of year - the baking heat, the endless blue skies and the regular swims automatically put me in a good mood. But even I can get testy after a run of 40+ Ce
I'm a little obsessed with Summer fruit at the moment but can you blame me? This time of year is when my kitchen is overflowing with beautiful berries, stone fruit, cherries, grapes, mangos, kiwi fru
This recipe came about when I offered to make a dish for a weekend brunch at my BFF's a couple of months ago. With four kids in the house that morning -- my young niece and nephew had slept over t
I'm dating a man who is racist against salad and most fruit. His deep and abiding hatred is incomprehensible to me because I happily eat both every day. "It's the texture and feel of them," he s
After a particularly long, cold and tedious Winter, Spring has finally arrived in Australia. Hurrah! For me, Springtime is about enjoying the sunshine, catching up with the friends I've neglecte
It's always nice cooking for someone who really appreciates your food. My 5YO niece, Leela, is beautiful inside and out. She's generous, kind, strong-willed and intelligent. She's also, a
Over the years I've learned that regular exercise is not an indulgence but a necessity for both my physical and mental health. So every week I practise hot yoga, a type of yoga based on Hatha and
I had just dropped my son at childcare and was driving my daughter to school. "Book Week is coming up again," my 7YO told me. "This year I want to dress as Sleeping Beauty." "Sleeping Beauty?
I lied to my son the other day. I don't usually advocate lying to small and innocent children but in this case I felt it was justified. You be the judge. My son is four and a half. I've blog
Smoked salmon and I have had a long and regular love affair. I like it with scrambled or soft boiled eggs and freshly steamed asparagus spears, in a bagel with cream cheese, capers and cornichons, or
I'm feeling good. A new yoga studio has opened up two minutes from my house and I am loving downward dogging it regularly again. I've been swimming at least every other day and on Wednesdays I practi
It's still crazy hot in Adelaide so I've been experimenting with home-made ice blocks and sorbets. I can't stop eating the beetroot, carrot and berry flavoured ice blocks I made recently but my kids w
It's less than a week until Christmas and as usual at this time of year, I am feeling tired, unprepared and over-full. I'm tired because I'm doing my usual work/family juggling act while also tryi
Don't you love that scene in The Incredibles where Mr Incredible is eating shrimp on the plane and the autopilot says, "would you care for more mimosa?" It kills me every time. After the succes
My brother recently did some sorting out in my parent's garage. Over the years it had become both a repository and a dumping ground - it was a place for all those odds and ends that were important eno
When it comes to alcohol I'm a cheap date. As is the case for many Asians, alcohol is not my friend; consumed in anything other than small quantities alcohol makes me itchy, red and ill. Back in my
I adore figs. I love their colour, their flavour, and their texture. I die for their sensual shape and the way their demure green and purple exterior splits open to reveal a striking red and gold
My children love ice cream. In this hot weather, they're having it at least once a day, usually twice, and sometimes even before breakfast. (Shhh! Don't tell grandma!) So I was thrilled to discover
After paying homage to the Vietnamese pork roll in my last post about Mini Vietnamese Pork Buns, it's now time to honour the simple and delicious Vietnamese Chicken Salad (Goi Ga). Vietnamese salad
