mosaic road

Why Didn't I Think of This !!

Overhaul your linen cupboard – store bedlinen sets inside one of their own pillowcases

and there will be no more hunting through piles for a match.

Isn't this a great idea and one I am going to adopt as a New Year Resolution !!

Fruitcake Slice

I am unsure how fruitcake became such a big part of Christmas eating and if truth be told I am not a big eater or maker of fruitcakes. Too many in my past, made by others, have been either leaden or dry as sand. If I ever do make a fruit cake then I make it in slice form like the one I did tonight. If I had been true to the recipe and had made a round cake then the cooking time was 1 1/2 hours, in slice form cooking time was 30 minutes. It is a great success and as I used pureed pumkin as part of the fluid content it is a beautiful golden colour and the smell was fabulous  when I got it out of the oven. 

Fabulous Main Courses

Here are some pics of some of the beautiful food we ate yesterday at our Xmas gym lunch at Sosta Cucina. S had the steak, another S had the harpuka and I had the lamb rack. It is quite a while since I had eaten out at a restaurant of this calibre and I did love every minute.

Sosta Cucina: Fine Italian Restaurant, Errol Street North Melbourne

via www.sosta.com.au

I had a wonderful luncheon here today - beautiful prosecco, in fact 8 bottles consumed between 12 of us !! I ate marvellous vitello tonnato, scampi, rack of lamb and grappa soaked cherries -just all delicious. We ate outside as it was a warm, humid day and i loved every minute sharing this meal with some gorgeous friends .

Success Story

The pet Advent Calendar has been a huge success with both man and his best friend. S only has to rattle the thing and she has the Cocopop sitting bolt upright on her best behaviour, just like she was in Sunday School. Friends and family have lined up for their turn to open the door and hand out the little canine treat. The final picture here is a blur. Now that's not just my bad photography but a true depiction of how fast the Cocopop can move when food is involved.

Finally - Cushions !!

Since purchasing my old cane chairs I have hunted high and low for suitable fabric and when that hunt became a lost cause I was ready to settle for any fabric, just no stripes !! The chairs are outside but under cover so weatherproof fabric was not essential. I did not want stripes and fell in love with various samples of material featuring pineapples and hummingbirds and jungle vines , all with slashes of eye catching, statement making colour. I went to a zillion interior design stores on my hunt and every single fabric I wanted was out of stock, out of the country or so way out of my price range I could not consider it for a second. I went on line in my search, even on ebay but to no avail. I really could not believe my terrible luck in trying to find some heavy duty canvas with a bit of a wow factor and in the end resorted to stripes. The cushion covers do look great, they zip off and are totally mould proof and rain proof . Hopefully they will be pet proof too as I know the Cocopop has already taken a siesta  upon the $660 stripes. I don't intend for that to happen again as I am determined to get my money's worth and spend as much of my summer as possible ensconsced upon these long awaited cushions.

Homemade Gifts

I am off to a big Christmas luncheon on Sunday and have made some little Rocky Roads as gifts for my friends. I make Rocky Road every year at Christmas and have made it in all sorts of shapes including big trees . This year  I have dolloped it into baby patty pans and sprinkled it with edible gold stars. I have placed two into a little cellophane bag tied with Chrissy ribbon. They are just little tokens and look very pretty.

Bake 'n Blog - Holiday Edition

Click here for the link to Jax does Design and all the info about this holiday edition of bake 'n blog.  You will be able to see what everyone else is baking !! I have made Cheat's Pudding Truffles, a recipe I make all year round using up any type of leftover cake and depending on the occasion I roll them in coconut or nuts or icing sugar or cocoa as I have done here. Sometimes they get eaten before they are rolled in anything !!! They always are fabulous to take to friends at this time of year. Happy Baking and Blogging everyone !!

Perfect and Professional

Further to yesterdays blog  -here is a store bought shortbread Christmas tree, iced to perfection. Not too hard, not too soft, no singed bits or crumbly edges. Golden brown and delectable. Now the question is will I continue in my quest or just buy up enormous quantites of other people's success stories !!!

Shortbread Shortfalls

Every Christmas for as far back as I can recall my mother has made shortbread. Perfect shortbread at that. Every Christmas I attempt to make shortbread and experience endless shortfalls and shortcomings. I have tried making it with and without rice flour, with and without custard powder, cut in shapes, made as a bar and other endless variations. Imperfection reigns supreme I am so sad to say. Dry, crumbly, singed, crispy - you name it, I've cooked it. Luckily the dogs are not fussy about their shortbread !!! Maybe this will be the year of store bought shortbread on our Christmas table.