Occasional stories, food and travel inspiration
In my last post I blogged about taking professional and creative risks and working outside of my comfort zone. My culinary comfort zone, so to speak, is modern Australian food with an empha
I love taking risks in a professional and creative sense because I believe that I do my best work when I'm working without a net. It's when I'm working on something that really scares me that I ha
It's a stereotype -- but an accurate one -- that Asians express their love through food. Like my parents, I see cooking for someone as an act of love. Years ago my (Western) ex husband and I
A few months ago I received an email from a blogger who wanted to know how she could improve her writing and photography. As you can imagine, it's not a question that can be answered simply or qui
Nearly everything that has happened since I started The Hungry Australian in mid 2011 has been a welcome surprise. But nothing has been quite as surprising (astonishing?) as finding out on Wednes
It was my brother's birthday last Sunday and my sister in law asked me to make the cake for his party. As they were expecting 60+ guests, I made this cake, as well as my Fig & Vanilla Bean Ch
Me: I don't feel like myself. Friend: What's going on? Me: Lots of stuff. Big stuff. Heavy stuff. I've started dating again, too. Friend: That's good. It's about time you got back o
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 have mixed feelings about Autumn. I don't like the colder weather, the rain or the wind. On the other hand, plums are still in season at the moment and they're magnificent. I love plums for t
Freshly picked, beautifully ripe, crimson-hued figs. Is there anything better? Picking Figs Regular readers may remember that I went fig picking at Kate's house last year. Kate is a fellow foo
In case I'd forgotten that it's Valentine's Day on Friday my Inbox is filling up with media releases from restaurants keen to promote their Valentine's Day menus. Now I've had good Valentine's
I was at a dinner party many years ago when a friend of a friend said, "it's better to have low expectations. That way you'll never be disappointed." I was speechless. All I could think was here wa
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
I'm still in semi-holiday mode at the moment, hence my recent lack of posting, commenting and interaction on social media. Between the hot weather, making the most of the school holidays, and my curre
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 crazy hot in Adelaide, South Australia, at the moment. This week it's going to hit 40+ degrees Celsius (104+ degrees Fahrenheit) five days in a row. That's five days of sweltering sun, plants cr
Most home-cooked dessert should be simple - some fruit and yoghurt pots. An easy upside down cake. A boozy sorbet for the grown ups. It's the no-stress, no-fuss type of dessert you can put together wi
Summer is my favourite season and an Australian summer takes some beating. I love the longer days and warm nights, the brilliant blue sky, the steady hum of happy insects in the garden, the endless
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
Sponge cake is like my favourite pair of skinny blue jeans. Worn with a fitted t-shirt and ballet flats, my blue jeans are my everyday wardrobe staple, suitable for the school run, cooking in, writ
Friday night is movie night at my house and on movie night we often eat pizza. Sometimes I make it and other times I buy it - it all depends on how tired or lazy I feel. Either way, pizza and movies a
Some things don't make sense to me. Home laser hair removal kits. Hipster beards. Trying to give new parents advice when you've never had kids yourself. Caring what people do in the privacy of thei
Can you believe it's almost December? Yes, it's that time of year when the calendar fills up, you try to catch up with everyone you've ever met in the space of a few weeks, you eat your body weight in
In early 1999, I moved to London from Adelaide. I'd been working for a few years by then and I told my family and friends the move was necessary for a broader work and life experience. Secretly, I was
The other day I was at the beautician for a once-in-a-blue-moon appointment. A blonde lady in her 40s was examining my skin when she said, "of course people from your country always have an issue wit
This time last year I was in Dubai on a media trip (one part of my job that definitely does not suck). So following on from the Rosewater, Cardamon and Pistachio Bundt Cake I made last week, here i
I've been on a organisational binge lately. It's not nearly as exciting as a romantic binge or even a chocolate binge but I don't think my home has ever been so sorted. My study, studio, styling kit,
I've previously blogged about my love for oysters. In my eyes, they are a perfect food. Eaten natural (raw) they need only a spritz of lemon to bring out their gorgeous, briny taste. The ot
After the success of my Plum Upside Down Cake in honour of my literary heroine, Anne of Green Gables, I knew I had to continue down this topsy turvy path. So when I spotted some gorgeous rhubarb an
When my mother was pregnant with me she ate a family block of Cadbury Milk Chocolate every day. Yep, that's correct. 200 grams of chocolate. Every. Single. Day. Under those circumstances it
