In My Kitchen: February/March 2015

It’s once again time for In My Kitchen and as per usual this is a collection of things from the past month — a small snippet of those seen over on Instagram — in loosely interpreted categories and no particular order. With a double dose because February flew by before I knew it. As always I’m linking up with Celia for IMK.

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Kitchen Shenanigans

Even though we eat gluten our go-to pizza dough is from Emma Galloway’s cookbook My Darling Lemon Thyme (because it is just that good).

When I found a half batch of dough sitting in the fridge from a few evenings earlier I took it out, let it ferment on the counter overnight, threw in some more water and flours let it rise and baked.

Voila, gluten free bread. You can go visit Emma here.

Then because it’s summer I topped it with cinnamon tahini, white nectarines and golden plums.

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Summer means Sunday sunset sessions at the beach with mates — we usually show up with leftovers from whatever I’ve been shooting and plenty of fresh fruit.

In other news an upside-down cake carrier makes for the perfect portable fruit platter. You’re welcome.

I usually cut watermelon like this but sometimes I use the same method without removing the rind — perfect handle for eating, no watermelon-slice-face, everybody wins.

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Distinct possibility used stripe-y straws for shoot, please forgive me. Although as it’s for a kids cookbook I’m totally calling fair use.

I then ate these ‘healthy’ chocolate crackles for breakfast every day until they were gone, because healthy and because chocolate. In other news this is why my pants don’t fit…

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Almost every day I share pretty pictures over on Instagram of what I’m shooting. This, on the other hand, is the reality of what my kitchen looks like after a day of prep-style-shoot-repeat. Filtered of course because black and white makes it bearable – ha!

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The other night I took Ray the sourdough starter out from the back corner of the fridge for the first time in oh, a couple of months (yes, really)…

In an act of faith I poured off the dark liquid, tossed out about half the starter and fed him with an unmeasured quantity if white, rye and filtered water. After about 18 hours on the bench in summer heat he looked like this.

Good boy Ray, good boy. Maybe one day I’ll starting making proper bread with him and not just Steamed Buns and Rye Crackers.

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I Make Stuff

Two more months of #7vignettes with Interiors Addict. I like all the images individually but not necessarily how they work together. I think I need to start theming a bit.

February:

March:

Have you been playing?

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No computer, no camera, no food, because sometimes I need to make stuff with my hands. It’s terribly handy to have a friend with a building site (and all the tools) close by, in other news I’m covered in dust.

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Little bars of gold (aka beeswax straight from the hive) for a project – the benefits of knowing a beekeeper. Packed up with a note to not heat it too much lest it explodes. Distinct possibility this has to do with that previous photo.

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On location, fighting the weather. Worth a mention that RJ was roped into assistant duties with the promise of food, bless him.

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Food Finds

Can we talk about how cute doughnut peaches are? Also, delicious.

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When on the way home from the beach you see a sign for $9.90 lobster tails you buy said lobster and grill it for dinner.

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Coconut Chai* from New Zealand family-run tea company Storm & India is my new indulgence. It is buttery and smooth, loaded with slivers of coconut and spice, and even the canister is a bit special.

Only down side is that the tea leaves are quite fine so even with a mesh strainer they end up in your cup but that doesn’t really bother me.

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And because one can ever have enough tea…

I tried Moringa at the Vitality Show late last year and really enjoyed the teas so when a sample pack* showed up at my door I was quite pleased. Moringa is a superfood (yes, another one of those) grown in the Philippines and this one is by an Aussie who’s family owns a plantation.

I do keep forgetting to sprinkle the powder over my morning porridge so can’t attest for the super-powers just yet, but the Moringa/Bee Pollen/Turmeric tea is simultaneously refreshing and calming.

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There is every chance I started to wiggle like an excited puppy when I found out tomatillos were in season at the farmers’ market.

I nearly bought the stall out of the husked green-tomato-esque fruit then headed for the Australian garlic seller because tomatillos plus garlic equals Roasted Tomatillo Salsa Verde (even though the salsa was more purple than green because look at the colour on these things – I’ve never seen anything like them!).

The chillies are from the plant in my kitchen window that I grew from a seed a few years back and they are hotter than sin.

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General Miscellany (and more props…)

Gorgeous old scale spotted at a friend’s building site. RJ was not amused when aforementioned friend told me to take it. I win.

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Look at my desk all schmexy, dressed up with a Metro marble-base lamp and new glass water bottles from Freedom*. RJ has already claimed the blue one for work.

In other news I don’t have a desk, I do however have a photo prop board and a floor – it’s all smoke and mirrors round here people. Smoke and mirrors and sexy lamps and slightly droopy plants.

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Now this is the kind of Valentine’s love I can get on-board with (haha, pun totally not intended but genius if I do say so myself).

It’s kind of like Freedom* was spying on me while I was wandering around the store the other day — and now that it lives in my house I can’t stop using it in shots.

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Because everyone needs pretty, sparkly lights and a bit of faffing.

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I had just finished shooting for the day and made a pot of tea when there was a knock at the door…  The copper basket from Freedom* may have shown up with a cake in it, but I have a thing for notebooks — and now I have a thing for notebooks.

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Filed under things that were not mine when I left home in the morning, that were mine by the afternoon (because it’s been a while since a good round of #oppshopobsession).

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Filed under things I want in my house. Note to self, get house.

It’s an AGA for those keeping score. I spotted this at a media event* launching a new apartment sized version that is just as gorgeous and half the size. I now know all about radiant heat cooking and it sounds amazing but I think I’d still go for the more traditional Falcon gas one.

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Flowers as props for a shoot still means I get flowers.

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I was tagged over on Instagram for #20beautifulwomen. I’m no good at selfies but after about one hundred and fifty seven or so tries I ended up with this. In other news, I bought a shirt with pineapples on it.

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This isn’t remotely food related and isn’t really fair to everyone in the northern hemisphere buried under a thousand feet of snow, but we’ve gone to the beach more this summer than in the past five years and it makes me deliriously happy.

This shot was taken on the last day of February — Australia has this silly rule that seasons change on the first day of the month rather than on the much more logical equinox/solstice around the 21st. It’s probably related to the national habit of abbreviating everything, but as a result everyone spent the day bidding goodbye to summer.

We however went to the beach, the sun was hot as it beat down on our backs and the water was clearer than I’ve seen it all season.

Let it be know that I will not be saying goodbye to summer just yet and I will not enter into any arguments to the contrary. If you need me I’ll be in the ocean.

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That’s all folks!

Make sure to pop over to check out the other IMK posts listed in the sidebar of Celia’s site — there is always great stuff to be found.

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* Asterisked items were received for editorial consideration in accordance with my editorial policy. All opinions are fully my own, I don’t have time to share stuff I don’t like. Supercalafragalisticexpialadoshus. Beam me up Scotty.

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