mosaic road

Morning has Broken

This was our sunrise yesterday. It was amazing and incredibly vivid. I was at the gym early and we watched the sky transforming, through the windows, in between wiping sweat from our brows and heaving kettlebells. Then driving home I was racing to find a vantage point to try and capture the blaze of colour . No camera I own could do justice to this sight, let alone with me as the photographer and I only had my phone camera in this particular instance, after all it was the crack of dawn !!  

I eventually found a reasonable spot , actually in my own street.  Because of suburbia there were tall buildings and pylons  blocking me at every turn of the way plus I had to get home , walk the Cocopop, have a shower and get to work, so time was not on my side. But it was pretty spectacular and so I thought I would do a bit of sharing with those Melbournites who were lucky enough to be sleeping in yesterday.

 

Make Your Own Pita Chips

Unused and uneaten pita or flat bread can be magically transformed with 2 ingredients and a hot oven. Tear into pieces, spray with olive oil spray, sprinkle with dukkah or other seasoning and bake for 10 minutes at 400 degrees.

A crispy snack will come out of the oven ready to have with or without a dip. This is one of the best reincarnation recipes in my repertoire . I dislike waste and if  lingering leftovers can be re born then all the better for us and our budgets.

Clocking up some Kms

Today I walked 20 kms. It was a beautiful day and I went as a training partner for J who is heading off shortly for the Camino. Lucky her  !! So very early this morning it was on with the hike boots and thick socks. Very nostagically I emptied my boots of  some sand from the Sahara, remants from my hiking trip in Morocco, last November.

The sun shone, the sky was blue, there was no wind and we walked along the sea front amongst enormous numbers of families enjoying the day. Lots of dogs were swimming , all the cafes were full and even the odd kite was being flown.

We made astounding time, stopping for coffee at the halfway point. The reward at the end was lunch at Mart. Corn fritters and lemon tart were the perfect way to celebrate as there was not a single blister between the three of us.

Olives to the right, Olives to the left

 

I have a Greek gardener who knows everything there is to know about olive trees. He even owns an olive grove somewhere in rural Victoria. So he has cared for my olives trees as if they were his own. He warned me last time he pruned the tree that there would be a bumper crop. Well, bumper does not cover it or even come close. This is a glut . I have bequeathed the crop to a Greek grandma, Anna, who lives in my street and every day or so she picks a bucket or two but the supply is never ending. I really should consider pressing my own olive oil  - I could have a new business venture on my hands !!!

Good Friday Thoughts

I know Good Friday was nearly a week ago but seeing the bakeries are all still bristling with hot cross buns I thought it was still reasonably topical.This year, as we do every year, we gathered at my mothers for a bun eating brunch.

This was not the case when I was growing up. Good Friday always seemed to be a bleak and dreary day, not a thing was open , no traffic was on the roads and we attended a long church service . May be it is purely my social circle, but I do not know of one person who went to church last Friday. Such a sign of the times.

Lunch and Lavender

Today I enjoyed a trip to Lavendula Lavender Farm for an al fresco lunch in their gracious garden.

 

 

 

 

As we are on the cusp of winter the lavender was not blooming but their shop was full of lavender infused produce, as was the cafe. Both lavender scones and lavender ice cream were featured on the menu. I prefer to stop and smell the lavender as opposed to eating it so enjoyed a classic Ploughmans Platter.

Great looking rustic pies and tarts filled the food cabinets and I enjoyed tasting my friends choices,  Goat ragu and Shepherds Pie.

 

The gardens are lovely to stroll in between courses and with the change of seasons, autumn colour abounds.

 

 

 

 

Geese and ducks wander the grounds whilst emus and goats live in the paddocks abutting the  gardens.

It is so good to get out of the city every once in a while to spend a relaxing day with friends. So much of our time is spent rushing through life at breakneck speed that a day like I enjoyed today is a rejuvenating tonic.

Successful Easter Baking & Happy Easter Everyone

I hope everyone has had a restful long weekend aways from the usual daily work grind. I revel in having 4 whole days to myself with no real deadlines. Our Good Friday family brunch is an institution and I contributed a Blintz Brunch Bake. I stuck to the recipe for a change and had huge success. This is an easy recipe similar to a crustless cheesecake using ricotta and light Philly.

A little dusting with icing sugar turned  a rustic dessert into a party piece, or sort of, but I am a less is more type unless we are talking chocolate. !!

My Cup Runneth Over !!

Although served in this lovely French blue coffee cup this is not an early morning beverage or a mid afternoon caffeine hit. If you wrap your hands around the cup expecting some warmth you will be surprised to only feel chilliness.  What this cup does hold is a late night indulgence, an espresso martini.  Last night, while out with friends I tried this and had to force myself to stop at one.  Too easy to drink !!  I am not a big drinker and may have one alchoholic drink every 3 months, if that. This martini could turn that around totally. 

Mac Mayhem

 

I have a pristine new Macbook Pro, all silvery and untouched by human hands . Owning this new baby creates a challenge and that is the one of moving stuff from my Airbook over to the Pro. Luckily a friend volunteered to take on this challenge. I think he regrets it now. Did I have all the compatible leads ?? Of course not !! He did manage eventually to set it all up correctly so the two computers would talk to each other. The two screens both said it would take 16 hours. Ok, I could live with that. After 18 hours both screens said quote - less than a minute to go - unquote. I got really excited . After yet another 12 hours the two screens still said the same thing. My excitement had certainly waned by now, as you can imagine. My friend gave me instuctions as to how to dismantle all the leads and seperate the two Macs. Hope springs eternal. Maybe next week we can get these two computers talking to each other nicely !!

 

Revamping the Chickpea

I know they are good for you and a great addition to our diet but I find it hard to enthuse over the humble chickpea . I tend not to cook with them but do have a couple of tins of them pushed to the back of the pantry shelves. Even further back than the tins I came across an ancient bag of dried chickpeas and decided to use them up. I followed the instructions and soaked and boiled with an unsurprising boring result. A revamp was called for instantly involving some spices and a good roasting. They got a very generous sprinkle of sea salt, smoky paprika, cumin seeds and curry powder and an hour in a hot oven. We now have a golden and spicy snack, healthy , oil free and quite delicious.