Relaxing

Blackbird Café

Posted on May 11, 2011May 10, 2011 by ghotiindustries

Onwards and upwards! Last Saturday had some of the most glorious weather Autumn has to offer.

Overlooking this spectacular view (and with a discount voucher) we sat down to a spot of lunch at the Blackbird Café.

Himself just needed to ingest copious amounts of fuel, and went for the Hawaiian Pizza.

I felt like being a little more daring and ordered the Crocodile Burger!

Crocodile is a very delicately flavoured meat. Vaguely peppery. I think it may have been a little too sweet for me with the mango chutney, but I was informed they have to cater to tourists’ tastes which tend to run in that direction.

Darling Harbour can really be a wondrous place. So long as I don’t have to deal with too many tourists I really enjoy being there!

I think I’ll have to procure some crocodile for myself and experiment with cooking it …

Chicken Paella

Posted on May 2, 2011 by ghotiindustries

Dinner time! Tends to be my favourite meal owing to how much time is able to be devoted to its preparation as opposed to other (slightly more rushed) meals. Today’s meal is all by Himself. He makes a mean Paella! He has also gotten extremely good with experimentation using this recipe as a base. The recipe is consistent in results, and therefore foolproof.

From this book.

This recipe.

The onlookers aren’t convinced. but what would they know?

Surrounding yourself with ingredients, makes for no nasty surprises later!

Cooking, cooking, cooking …

And it went so well with knitting!!! 😀

Bon Appétit!

Weekend Round Up

Posted on April 27, 2011April 27, 2011 by ghotiindustries

Long Weekends are such an odd phenomenon. I go into them with such high expectations, and long lists of all I would like to achieve, then my body catches up with the fact that I’m not at the day job and pulls my feet out from under me and demands down time! 😛 What’s with that?! So, here’s what I did do.

Friday we headed up the Hill to the Annual Easter FishBQ. Every year there seem to be more children running around, and less inebriation. I guess the babies are all getting older. It is so good to be able to see and catch up with people we used to see every week, even if it does now average once a year …

There was a new pair of socks begun as they are the perfect traveling project to take on the train for a four hour round trip! They are Marlene by Cookie A, in Dragonfly Yarns “Norbert” colourway which I got via a sock club last year.

Saturday there was a little local wondering and I bought the Julie & Julia DVD which I’d been wanting to see for a while. I have now watched it 3 times since buying it. I feel a sudden urge to buy Mastering the Art of French Cooking and expanding my repertoire. I love having a kitchen that I enjoy cooking in for the first time in years!

While watching DVDs I spent some quality time with my sticks and strings.

There was an interesting moment where the designer of this spectacular piece insinuated that I was an idiot, and in a moment of complete clarity I backed away from telling her what I thought of her. I’m still proud of myself for that one. However, Twitter heard all about it 😛

Sunday Himself cooked the most delectable dinner, which deserves a post all on it’s own, and which will be forthcoming in the next few days. He cooks so well and I always eat far more than I should when one of his creations is up for the offering!

Monday and Tuesday was when my body caught up with me and though I felt lazy, I also felt exhausted and so achieved very little other than further knitting, and some adorable cat photos. So I shall leave you with those.

I hope your weekend was wonderful!

Extra Long Weekend

Posted on April 21, 2011April 21, 2011 by ghotiindustries

But first! A new Catsle arrived at The Ranch last week! The old one had a serious lean to it!

Putting them together is always an experience!

I know it’s taken me all week to update but my nephew gave me the lurgy via his grandmother last weekend! 😛 Aside from the passing of bugs, much good food was consumed, and shops explored. This concoction is called a Dragon’s Breath.

A shot of espresso onto chocolate with chilli infused sugar syrup!

As we head into the long weekend, many of us will be travelling to see friends and relatives in a celebratory frame of mind. Please remember to drive safely, drink responsibly, and tell your loved ones how much you love them.

Be safe. Be well.