A week ago my beautiful Mum, Jean, collapsed at home. She was taken by ambulance to hospital. She's finally coming home today.
Mum is 81 but still very 'with it'. We have been best friends for 52 years.
I speak to Mum every day and share the good (and the bad) things that happen in my life. My Mum is a great role model - she taught me how to be a mother, how to laugh, how to love, how to be a 'cup half full' person rather than the alternative.
She is a strong believer in "everything happens for the best" and "what goes around comes around".
She's been a hard worker all her life. She was a cook and I thank her for fostering my own love of cooking.
My Mum is the best grandmother - she takes such pride in her 7 grandchildren. She makes them laugh because she can be a character at times. A simple phone call or visit from her grandkids can make her smile for days.
I am so lucky to still have her with me.
I love you Mum. xxx
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Sunday, May 16, 2010
Monday, April 5, 2010
Easter at the Hunter Valley - wine region of NSW, Australia
I hope everyone had a special Easter break wherever you were.
We left early on Good Friday morning to avoid the traffic travelling north for the Easter long weekend break and it worked - we had an easy 4 hour drive in pleasant weather.
We were meeting 4 other couples there - our friends Paul & Vicky and Mick & Megan along with their friends Tim & Janet and a couple from Victoria, Warwick & Tina. We'd booked 2 lodges at the Adina Vineyard and Olive Grove.
www.adinavineyard.com.au
I loved the lodges - very modern, great views over the vineyard/olive grove AND best of all - each room had it's own good-sized ensuite.
Looking out from the living area of our lodge.
We left early on Good Friday morning to avoid the traffic travelling north for the Easter long weekend break and it worked - we had an easy 4 hour drive in pleasant weather.
We were meeting 4 other couples there - our friends Paul & Vicky and Mick & Megan along with their friends Tim & Janet and a couple from Victoria, Warwick & Tina. We'd booked 2 lodges at the Adina Vineyard and Olive Grove.
www.adinavineyard.com.au
I loved the lodges - very modern, great views over the vineyard/olive grove AND best of all - each room had it's own good-sized ensuite.
Looking out from the living area of our lodge.
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Starfish - Kioloa, NSW, Australia
Sarah & I had a wonderful weekend at Kioloa on the New South Wales south coast with a group of second year marine biology students from the Australian National University.
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
The story of the three little pears...
Two years ago at Easter a friend asked me to prepare the entree (starter in the US) for a formal dinner party at her home. There were 16 guests. It's always good when you share the cooking load.
When she handed me a recipe for a pear salad I was a little dubious. I'm not a big pear fan.
This recipe is amazing. The juices of the pair whilst roasting caramelize over the pancetta (or prosciutto) and gives it a beautiful crispness and flavour. After baking its laid on peppery rocket, topped with shavings of parmesan and then honey vinaigrette poured over it.
Even reading the recipe I wasn't convinced however once you taste it...well...see for yourself.
The recipe comes from one of Donna Hay's Autumn magazines - possibly 2008. www.donnahay.com.au/
Roast Pear and Pancetta Salad with Honey vinaigrette
10 slices pancetta
5 small firm pears (corella or small red pears are best)
cracked black pepper to taste
1 tablespoon thyme sprigs
300g rocket leaves (arugula)
250g aged parmesan cheese, shaved
Honey vinaigrette:
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon wholegrain mustard
1/4 cup wine vinegar
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees celcius. Place the pancetta on a baking tray lined with non-stick baking paper. Place a pear half cut side up on each piece of pancetta. sprinkle with pepper and thyme, then bake for 20 minutes until the pears are soft and the pancetta is crispy.
Pears on Prosciutto ready for baking
While the pears are baking, make the vinaigrette. Place the honey, oil, mustard and vinegar in a bowl and whisk to mix.
To serve, place a small pile of the rocket leaves on each plate, top with a piece of pancetta, a baked pear half and some shaved parmesan. Drizzle with the honey vinaigrette. Serves 10.
Ingredients for the honey vinaigrette
One of the things I love about this recipe is that I can prepare the pears and pancetta on a baking tray, cover and leave in the fridge ready to go into the oven and also prepare the vinaigrette well ahead of time. Easy to take to someone else's house to cook. It's then just a matter of putting them into the oven and assembling the finished product.
The recipe is easily adapted for vegetarians by omitting the pancetta - still very tasty.
Delicious.
When she handed me a recipe for a pear salad I was a little dubious. I'm not a big pear fan.
This recipe is amazing. The juices of the pair whilst roasting caramelize over the pancetta (or prosciutto) and gives it a beautiful crispness and flavour. After baking its laid on peppery rocket, topped with shavings of parmesan and then honey vinaigrette poured over it.
Even reading the recipe I wasn't convinced however once you taste it...well...see for yourself.
The recipe comes from one of Donna Hay's Autumn magazines - possibly 2008. www.donnahay.com.au/
Roast Pear and Pancetta Salad with Honey vinaigrette
10 slices pancetta
5 small firm pears (corella or small red pears are best)
cracked black pepper to taste
1 tablespoon thyme sprigs
300g rocket leaves (arugula)
250g aged parmesan cheese, shaved
Honey vinaigrette:
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon wholegrain mustard
1/4 cup wine vinegar
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees celcius. Place the pancetta on a baking tray lined with non-stick baking paper. Place a pear half cut side up on each piece of pancetta. sprinkle with pepper and thyme, then bake for 20 minutes until the pears are soft and the pancetta is crispy.
Pears on Prosciutto ready for baking
While the pears are baking, make the vinaigrette. Place the honey, oil, mustard and vinegar in a bowl and whisk to mix.
To serve, place a small pile of the rocket leaves on each plate, top with a piece of pancetta, a baked pear half and some shaved parmesan. Drizzle with the honey vinaigrette. Serves 10.
Ingredients for the honey vinaigrette
One of the things I love about this recipe is that I can prepare the pears and pancetta on a baking tray, cover and leave in the fridge ready to go into the oven and also prepare the vinaigrette well ahead of time. Easy to take to someone else's house to cook. It's then just a matter of putting them into the oven and assembling the finished product.
The recipe is easily adapted for vegetarians by omitting the pancetta - still very tasty.
Delicious.
Leopard Slug - Wollongong Botanic Gardens, Australia
I spent Monday morning at the Wollongong Botanic Gardens doing a worm farm workshop. Lots of fun and really interesting.
The Leopard Slug's name comes from the dark spots on it's body. It is the largest of the introduced slugs found in Sydney and is found throughout Australia. Leopard Slugs feed on dead animal tissue, cat food and pet faeces (this one was found living quite happily in a compost bin).
Just out of interest...Slugs and snails are hermaphrodites, having both male and female reproductive organs. When they mate, Leopard Slugs become entwined and lower themselves from their branch on a thread of mucus to exchange sperm. After the exchange has taken place they return via the mucous thread, eating it as they go.
Too much information?
australianmuseum.net.au/Leopard-Slug
The Leopard Slug's name comes from the dark spots on it's body. It is the largest of the introduced slugs found in Sydney and is found throughout Australia. Leopard Slugs feed on dead animal tissue, cat food and pet faeces (this one was found living quite happily in a compost bin).
Just out of interest...Slugs and snails are hermaphrodites, having both male and female reproductive organs. When they mate, Leopard Slugs become entwined and lower themselves from their branch on a thread of mucus to exchange sperm. After the exchange has taken place they return via the mucous thread, eating it as they go.
Too much information?
australianmuseum.net.au/Leopard-Slug
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