Tag Archives: australian food blogger event

The weather has been crazy hot in Adelaide for three days now.

Now I love hot weather but when it’s hot I want to be eating hawker noodles in Asia, swimming at the beach or lazing by a hotel pool, cocktail in hand. When I’m trying to shoot ice cream, working on a client project or doing the school run, a very hot day is rather a bore because I focus on how hot and uncomfortable I am, rather than the job at hand.

Enter this icy dessert, designed to blow all those heat-cobwebs away and leave me feeling refreshed and energised.

This Strawberry Granita is so easy to make — my 6 year old could do it without any trouble — and it’s absolutely delicious. It’s healthy, too, as I’ve used rice malt syrup as a sweetener instead of sugar.

So when I found out the theme for Sweet Adventures’ new hop was License to Chill I knew I had to make this.

For those new readers, Sweet Adventures is a group of Aussie foodbloggers – 84th & 3rd, The Capers of the Kitchen Crusader, Dining With a Stud, and I, The Hungry Australian, who host a monthly, dessert-themed blog hop.

Previously, we have hosted: Tropical Paradise (January 2013), Sweets for Santa (December 2012), Cake and Three Veg (November 2012); High Tea (October 2012); Feeling Saucy (September 2012); Berry Nice to Meet You! (August 2012); Nuts About Sweets (July 2012); Sweet as Pie (June 2012); What’s Your Cup of Tea? (May 2012); Lemons (April 2012); Layer upon Layer (March 2012); Love at First Bite (February 2012); Death by Chocolate (January 2012); Festive Favourites (December 2011); and Great Australian Pavlova (November 2011).

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Can you believe it’s only one week until Christmas?

Nope, I can’t believe it, either. This year has flo-o-o-wn by.

I love this time of year. It’s a time to remember what’s important and to spend time with those we care about. It’s a time to give thanks. It’s a time to reflect on the ups and downs of the year and to look to the future with hope and energy.

And of course it’s also a time to eat and indulge one’s sweet tooth! :D

So welcome to Sweet Adventures’ Sweets for Santa Blog Hop.

For those new readers, Sweet Adventures is a group of Aussie foodbloggers – 84th & 3rd, The Capers of the Kitchen Crusader, Delicieux, Dining With a Stud, and I, The Hungry Australian, who host a monthly, dessert-themed blog hop. You can visit the other blogs taking part in our hops via the thumbnails at the bottom of each post.

Previously, we have hosted: Cake and Three Veg (November 2012); High Tea (October 2012); Feeling Saucy (September 2012); Berry Nice to Meet You! (August 2012); Nuts About Sweets (July 2012); Sweet as Pie (June 2012); What’s Your Cup of Tea? (May 2012); Lemons (April 2012); Layer upon Layer (March 2012); Love at First Bite (February 2012); Death by Chocolate (January 2012); Festive Favourites (December 2011); and Great Australian Pavlova (November 2011).

This month, it was my turn to host again and of course I went with a festive theme.

This Fig, Raspberry & Ginger Ice Cream Cake combines some of my favourite Summer flavours. Figs are at their most luscious now, while the raspberry and ginger help create the ‘wow’ factor.

Merry Christmas everybody. May you all enjoy a day filled with love, laughter and deliciousness!

Sweet Adventures Blog Hop: Sweets for Santa

If you blog about food we’d love you to join this hop. We encourage you to be as creative as you like – the only rule is that your recipe must be something in keeping with the festive theme.

Simply follow the steps below and join the fun!

1. Publish your Sweets for Santa post on your blog sometime between Monday 17 December 2012 – Australian Eastern Standard Time [AEST: Sydney] and will 1:59pm Monday 24 December 2012 AEST. Entries are linked in order of submission and only new festive recipe posts are eligible.
2. Click here for the Link Code. Copy the code and add it to the bottom of your Sweets for Santa post (you will need to do this in HTML view). Adding the code will create the thumbnail gallery of all the other entries and let visitors hop from other blogs to your blog and vice versa. If you are on wordpress.com (i.e. not self hosted) the list will not show on your blog so please create a text link back to this post instead.
3. Grab the Sweets for Santa badge from here and add it to your post. Just right click on the image, ‘save as’, upload to your site and add it to your post. Link the badge or a line of text to this page so that others can view the instructions on how to join.
4. Click here to Enter the Hop. This is really important! The badge and thumbnail list are on your post so make sure to enter the hop so that you appear in the list. For question 1: add the URL of your Sweets for Santa post, not your homepage. For question 2: for caption/title add the name of your dessert. For question 3: for ‘your name’ please enter your blog name. For question 4: your entry is automatically submitted when you click ‘crop’.
5. Your linked post WILL NOT appear straight away in the blog hop thumbnail list as this is a moderated hop. Your post will be visible in the list after approval.
6. Hop around to all the other entries in the blog hop, sharing the comment love.
7. If you are on Twitter use the #SABH to tell the world about your Sweets for Santa post. Follow us @SweetAdvBlogHop or like us on Facebook for new hop announcements and general deliciousness.

If you aren’t sure how to do something please leave a comment or get in touch.

I love feeding people.

Maybe it’s the Chinese mother in me but I often express my affections through food. So if you’re in my good books, I’m going to want to feed you.

So every year when Christmas rolls around, my daughter and I make an edible Christmas present for our special friends.

Last year we made this Sweet & Salty Chocolate Bark and the two years before that we made snickerdoodles, those sugar and cinnamon-crusted biscuits. She was only three years old the first time so she just dipped the cookie dough into the sugar and cinnamon mixture and then licked her fingers all over.

This year we haven’t decided what to cook yet. I have a gorgeous new KitchenAid Artisan Stand Mixer thanks to the lovely people at Filtered Media and KitchenAid so I’m definitely going to be making something with it.

Maybe we should make a few different batches of home-made ice cream and serve it like this delightful dish at Press Food & Wine that I enjoyed a little while ago. Christmas Day is bound to be hot here in Australia so ice cream could be just the thing.

Alternatively, I have some cute Christmas-themed cookie cutters so we could make festive biscuits with a marshmallow fondant. My daughter and my toddler son should be able to manage helping with the cut outs and pressing on the fondant. They’ll be extremely good at helping to eat them, too.

There’s also Christmas Day lunch to consider, and this year I think I’m going to make some kind of show-stopping cake. Christmas is a great excuse to whip up something rather special, isn’t it?

So why all this talk about Christmas, I hear you ask?

Well, this month it’s my honour to be hosting Sweet Adventures’ Sweets for Santa Blog Hop.

For those new readers, Sweet Adventures is a group of Aussie foodbloggers – 84th & 3rd, The Capers of the Kitchen Crusader, Delicieux, Dining With a Stud, and I, The Hungry Australian, who host a monthly, dessert-themed blog hop.

Previously, we have hosted:

• Cake and Three Veg (November 2012)
• High Tea (October 2012)
• Feeling Saucy (September 2012)
• Berry Nice to Meet You! (August 2012)
• Nuts About Sweets (July 2012)
• Sweet as Pie (June 2012)
• Tea (May 2012)
• Lemons (April 2012)
• Layer upon Layer (March 2012)
• Love at First Bite (February 2012)
• Death by Chocolate (January 2012)
• Festive Favourites (December 2011)
• Australian Pavlova (November 2011)

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Spring is here! Hurrah!

*Happy dance*

Spring has arrived not a moment too soon in Australia. I love the possibilities of this season, the all-day feeling that something good is just around the corner.

What am I saying? All sorts of good stuff is happening right now! Here’s my list of what’s making me happy at the moment.

1) Sweet Adventures feeling saucy bloghop

I love our monthly, Sweet Adventures’ dessert-themed bloghops. They’re a wonderful way to meet new food bloggers and collect all sorts of interesting new recipes. So if you blog and cook, you really should join us for September’s hop, Feeling Saucy. You could make a self-saucing pudding, a sticky date pudding with caramel sauce, a chocolate sauce to accompany vanilla ice cream or a berry pudding with berry sauce – we encourage you to be as creative as possible! Check out all the details over at The Capers of the Kitchen Crusader, our hostess for this month.

2) Guest posting for JJ at 84th & 3rd

Isn’t it amazing that I can be in two places at once? Right now I’m here but I’m also guest posting for the lovely JJ at 84th & 3rd. Spooky, huh?  So head on over to JJ’s fabulous blog and check out my Delicious Power Crackles recipe (pictured above). JJ’s having the adventure of a lifetime around America at the moment but I’m sure she’d love to hear from you, too.

3) Goodies from the Adelaide Beauty Conference

On Saturday 1st September I was honoured to be part of a panel discussion on blogging at the Adelaide Beauty Conference. I had a great time comparing notes with the other panellists, Celeste and Melissa, and meeting a great bunch of local beauty bloggers. At the end of the day I left with four (!) goody bags containing over 30 products to try from some savvy Australian beauty companies. I’m currently using the awesome Instant Length Transplant Lengthening Kit from Mirenesse and it is indeed so much more than a mascara. I’m also loving A’kins’ Cellular Radiance Serum, Natio’s Colour Creme Gloss in Happy (how appropriate!), Sukin’s antioxidant eye cream and Kuu Konjac’s Pure Sponge.

4) Amazing almonds

I usually blog about my work projects on my portfolio site but I just had to share this one with you here. After all, it was The Hungry Australian that led directly to my new gig with the Australian Almond Board. I’m happy to let you know that I’ve been contracted by them to create a new recipe site showcasing almonds. It’s a tremendous opportunity and I’m excited to be working with them over the next 10 months on this project.

5) Opportunity International’s Food for Thought campaign in October

I’ve blogged before about the Food for Thought SA dinner happening soon at the Adelaide Entertainment Centre to raise funds for Opportunity International. What I didn’t know was that in October you can also hold your own event to raise funds and awareness for people living in poverty. Check out the details here.

6) The return of Almost Bourdain

Almost Bourdain, an incredible Sydney food blog authored by the talented Ellie is back! I was a big fan of Almost Bourdain when I started blogging and was sad and puzzled when she stopped blogging a year ago without an explanation. So I was delighted to learn today that Ellie is now back and sharing her recipes again. If you don’t know her blog go check it out right now.

7) Hanging with bloggers

Next month I’ll be heading to Melbourne for the ProBlogger Conference – if you’re going be sure to say hi. I’m excited about spending two days hearing from some fantastic speakers and getting to know bloggers from all over Australia.

8) The Hungry Australian takes a trip

I love, love, love to travel and it looks like I might be heading overseas next month on a food/art/fashion famil. It’s an incredibly exciting destination and somewhere I’ve never been before – I’ll let you know more as arrangements are confirmed.

Have a great September!

Christina xx

I’m feeling extra enthusiastic at the moment because I’m so glad to be on the mend after 3+ weeks of flu/cold. Speaking of feeling the love, here are eight things I want to share with you this month.

Eating, drinking, blogging

I’m so excited about Eat Drink Blog 3  – the Australian Food Bloggers Conference, that I and a committee of local food bloggers are organising for November 3-4 in Adelaide, South Australia. We have such an incredible line up of speakers this year – they are some of the most inspirational, talented and passionate food lovers around and I have to keep pinching myself to confirm that they’ve all agreed to be part of Eat Drink Blog 3. Registrations open TODAY so if you’re an Australian food blogger, check out the Eat Drink Blog site for all the details.

Bake the world a better place

On Monday 27th August the Red Cross are holding the Big Bake Cake, a charity event to raise funds for those in need. All you have to do is bake a cake, host an event (you could do it at your workplace or school) and encourage people to make a donation. Easy, right? For all the details and to register as a  host, check out the Big Cake Bake.

Moi at the Adelaide Beauty Conference?

A few weeks ago the lovely Celeste from Travelling in Mary Janes asked me if I would speak about blogging at the Adelaide Beauty Conference on September 1st. I told her I would be honoured to and then started panicking about what I would wear, beauty-wise, to the conference. My favourite perfume — Diptyque’s L’Ombre dans l’Eau — is obviously a must but I’m going to indulge my inner show girl and break out the false eyelashes, too. *flutter flutter*

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Hello! I’m back!

I’m still not 100% but at least the tastebud-destroying throat lozenges and heart rate-accelerating cold tablets are finito. Thank goodness for that because there has been so many nice things happening that I’ve wanted to share with you.

First up, I’m excited to let you know that it’s time for another Sweet Adventures Blog Hop!

For those new readers, Sweet Adventures is a group of Aussie foodbloggers – 84th & 3rd, The Capers of the Kitchen Crusader, Delicieux, Dining With a Stud, and I, The Hungry Australian, who host a monthly, dessert-themed blog hop.

Previously, we have hosted:

• Nuts About Sweets (July 2012)
• Sweet as Pie (June 2012)
• Tea (May 2012)
• Lemons (April 2012)
• Layer upon Layer (March 2012)
• Love at First Bite (February 2012)
• Death by Chocolate (January 2012)
• Festive Favourites (December 2011)
• Australian Pavlova (November 2011)

This month it was my turn to host again and I opted for beautiful berries.

So if you blog, and like to experiment in the kitchen, we invite you join us for the Berry Nice to Meet You blog hop kicking off on Monday 20th August.

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Ever since I started cooking with quinces a few weeks ago I’ve been dreaming up ways to enjoy this magnificent fruit.

So when Sweet Adventures‘ Sweet As Pie bloghop rolled around, I decided quinces had to be the star ingredient. But what type of pie would I make?

After a couple of false starts I settled on this Quince Meringue Pie, a kind of mish-mash of my Free-Form Apple Tart and my Mini Lemon Meringue Pies, using slow-roasted quinces.

Yes, roasting the quinces takes some hours. I’m not going to lie; this is not a dessert that can be made on the spur of the moment. But good things come to those who wait so think of this pie as the culinary equivalent of your perfect partner – chances are, it won’t be the first person you fall for.

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I love winter food and fashion but could do without the chill factor. All I want to do is stay indoors with the heating on. No wonder there are so many books on my list this month, but first up there is some very exciting news…

(1) Eat Drink Blog 3: the Australian Food Bloggers Conference in Adelaide!
Amanda from Lambs Ears and Honey and I recently received an unexpected email from the Sydney organisers of the second Australian Food Bloggers Conference. Trina, Simon and Jen wanted to know if we’d be interested in organising the next conference in Adelaide later this year. After discussing the idea with the Adelaide Food Bloggers Group we were delighted to accept! So if you’re an Australian food blogger, watch out for an official announcement soon. There will also be a number of excellent sponsorship options for companies keen to partner with Eat Drink Blog 3, so please do drop me a line if you’d like to know more.

(2) Sweet As Pie blog hop
Food blogger? Love pie? Then you must join us for this month’s Sweet Adventures‘ blog hop, Sweet As Pie. Hosted by the lovely KC at Capers of the Kitchen Crusader, this month’s blog hop is a celebration of pie in all its glory. So check out KC’s post, put on your thinking hat and get baking.

(3) Bedside table books
I’m reading a half dozen Australian cookbooks and memoirs at the moment thanks to Wakefield Press, Penguin/Lantern, and Hardie Grant. On my bedside table are Barbara Santich’s tome on Australia’s gastronomic heritage, Bold Palates, the charming Blue Ribbon Cookbook by Liz Harfull, Stephanie Alexander’s epic memoir, A Cook’s Life, the mouth-watering French Food Safari by Maeve O’Meara with Guillaume Brahimi, Barossa Food by Angela Heuzenroeder and Seasonal Fare by Susan Johnson.

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Sometimes one bite is all it takes for you to fall in love.

I should know. I fell head over heels the first time I tasted Floating Islands or île flottante.

I first experienced the delectable French dessert while holidaying in Paris with my dad in the early 2000s. I was working in London at the time and my dad had come to visit me. We spent 10 days travelling around the UK before taking the Eurostar to Paris.

It was my second visit to the eternal city and my dad’s first so we did all the usual tourist activities: we visited the Musée du Louvre, La Tour Eiffel, Cathédrale Notre Dame de Paris, the Arc de Triomphe, the Place Vendôme and Fauchon. We shopped and we strolled happily around the streets, loving being in such a picturesque city.

But mostly, we ate.

We ate croissants, confit de canard (duck confit), soupe de fraises (strawberry soup), foie gras, plateau de fruits de mer (seafood platter), pommes frites (French fries), bouillabaisse (fish stew), macarons, mousse au chocolat, crème brûlée, coq au vin, boeuf bourguignon, cassoulet and Niçoise salad.

One day we were sitting in a bistro, having finished yet another wonderful dish when I spotted île flottante on the dessert menu.

Île flottante. Floating island?

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We always have a big lunch on Christmas Day with around two dozen family and friends. It’s always a joyful day, with incredible food (everybody brings a dish), plenty of merry-making and lots of kids running around.

This year I’m down for a salad and a dessert. I already know that other guests are bringing a pavlova and a hazelnut cake so have decided to do something a bit different.

So my dessert for the Festive Favourites Blog Hop – Honey Almond Fruits – has three parts: Toffee Almonds, Honey Ice Cream and Fruit Salad.

I’ve chosen this combination for a number of reasons:

• Toffee Almonds is my mother’s recipe – she’s made them every year since I can remember and I love the smell of toffee cooking.
• Golden North Honey Ice Cream was my favourite ice cream growing up and it always reminds me of long, hot Australian summers. My kids love ice cream, so they will really enjoy this part of the dessert.
• Fruit is always lovely at the end of a big meal, being both light and refreshening.
• The Toffee Almonds and Ice Cream can be made the day before and the biscuits are bought. The fruit can be washed in the morning and just cut up on the spot, making this a very easy, low-stress dessert.