Lucy in the Sky with . . . Polka Dots

Usually when I use my icing printer, I format the image to the size I want before printing.  I decided to play around with something new and print out a patterned page frosting sheet and cut it to fit my cutters.

Some of you have asked....my printer is an Epson WorkForce 30 Color Printer ; it is compatible with the food coloring cartridges.  You can find a list of all the compatible printers from KopyKake.  The printer itself is pretty affordable; it's the ink that is expensive....$90 for the set.  {That's why it took me so long to order one!  It was a major dent in my Starbucks fund.}

First, I ordered some digital paper from etsy.  Oh my gosh, there are SO many cute designs available!  I think I now have 100 digital papers in my arsenal.

{The smart thing would have been to TRY my idea before buying all of them, but I got a little carried away.}

Second, I printed the image on a full sheet of icing paper.

Third, using a food coloring pen, I traced the cookie cutters I used and then cut the icing sheets.

Forth, the cookies were outlined and filled with white royal icing.  While the flood icing was still wet, I applied the icing sheet.  It's not a perfect fit, so....

Fifth, after the cookies were dry, I went over the borders and added piping.

Do I love my icing printer?  Yes.  

But here's my problem with it...and maybe somebody can help me. 
The original image was this:

It looks so different on the cookies.

But, when I made these cookies, the colors stayed pretty true.  I'm so confused.

Anyone have experience with this they'd like to share?

Usually when I use my icing printer, I format the image to the size I want before printing.  I decided to play around with something new and print out a patterned page frosting sheet and cut it to fit my cutters.

Some of you have asked....my printer is an Epson WorkForce 30 Color Printer ; it is compatible with the food coloring cartridges.  You can find a list of all the compatible printers from KopyKake.  The printer itself is pretty affordable; it's the ink that is expensive....$90 for the set.  {That's why it took me so long to order one!  It was a major dent in my Starbucks fund.}

First, I ordered some digital paper from etsy.  Oh my gosh, there are SO many cute designs available!  I think I now have 100 digital papers in my arsenal.

{The smart thing would have been to TRY my idea before buying all of them, but I got a little carried away.}

Second, I printed the image on a full sheet of icing paper.

Third, using a food coloring pen, I traced the cookie cutters I used and then cut the icing sheets.

Forth, the cookies were outlined and filled with white royal icing.  While the flood icing was still wet, I applied the icing sheet.  It's not a perfect fit, so....

Fifth, after the cookies were dry, I went over the borders and added piping.

Do I love my icing printer?  Yes.  

But here's my problem with it...and maybe somebody can help me. 
The original image was this:

It looks so different on the cookies.

But, when I made these cookies, the colors stayed pretty true.  I'm so confused.

Anyone have experience with this they'd like to share?

reade more... Résuméabuiyad

Apple Pie

Slice of Pie

It's been a couple of weeks since I posted about anything I've made or baked myself, even though I've definitely been cooking!  FYI guys, last week I got the new Nigella book, Kitchen, and it is frikkin' awesome!  A massive thank-you to Sandra for pre-ordering it for me!  I've been absolutely loving it and cooking heaps of recipes.  I have to stop myself from writing too much about it right now, but as you can tell, I'm really excited, and can't wait to post about it in more detail!  (It sure has been ages since I cooked heaps out of a Nigella book.  Does anyone still remember my project?)

Now, obviously this recipe is not from Kitchen, but one I cobbled together myself, after some insistent requests at my house for an apple dessert.  Who was I to refuse?

I used the pastry recipe from Nigella's cherry pie (How to Eat), which I've also used recently for a cherry and apple pie.  Made it all by hand, thank-you very much, because I don't have a processor at my new place. (Yet!)  It was actually a lot easier to work with than my previous attempts and didn't fall apart or break on me - perhaps because I did it by hand rather than processor I didn't overwork it?  Either way, I was able to roll it out thinly with no problems.

Filled with almond meal

I got the filling from Donna Hay's Modern Classics 2, which I chose mainly for its pretty appearance and simple recipe.  I lined a shallow 20cm pie tin with the pastry, and sprinkled it with almond meal to prevent it from going soggy.  I peeled, cored and chopped a few granny smiths, and cooked them in a pan with butter and water until slightly softened.  Then I added a bit of sugar and cinnamon, and arranged them in the pie tin.

Filled pie!

I probably could have gone a bit higher with the apples - in Donna's book she fills it up super-high, almost triple the height of the pie, but I think this is more for cosmetic reasons than for taste.

Then it was a matter of putting on the pastry lid, sealing the edges and trimming it nicely!

Topping the pie

 
In the oven for a short while, sprinkled it with castor sugar, and then it was time for pie. *Bow-chicka-wow-wow!*

PIE!

I love the billowing top of the pie.  My edges were a bit wonky, but I think it adds to the rustic charm.  I actually found it quite hard to seal the pastry because I rolled it out so thinly and it was in a shallow tin.  You'll see the first time I made a pie with this pastry, I used the same tin but had the pastry much thicker.  It not only looked prettier, but I thought it tasted better the first time.  Y'all know I'm a biscuit / pastry fiend!  The more crunchy pastry goodness, the better!  The second time I made a pie this pastry, it was a larger tin, but still thinly rolled, which I think worked well apart from the dodgy looking edges!

I served the pie with vanilla ice-cream sprinkled with cinnamon-sugar.  (Got the idea from seeing the Löwenbräu "Christmas in July" dinner on ChocolateSuze's and Helen's blogs.) I double checked with Ze German, she confirmed that they do it back home in Germany - approved!

Cinnamon sprinkled vanilla ice-cream

And let's have a look inside the pie: mega apple chunks, light flaky pastry and a hint of cinnamon.  (Or a "tinge" of cinnamon, as my Malaysian mum would say!)




I think it looks quite good with the big chunks of apple and billowing top (like a pastry version of Southern Cross railway station, hehe), but after eating the pie, I must say I prefer a grated or pureed filling.  And as mentioned above, I'd prefer a thicker pastry.  Doughy goodness - yes please!  I had half of the pastry leftover, so I could easily have gone for thicker pastry.  But despite all my nitpicking, it was actually a rather fabulous pie, and was ecstactically received.

I'm sure no-one will complain, however, if I start working on perfecting my apple pie.  Any volunteer tasters?

Slice of Pie

It's been a couple of weeks since I posted about anything I've made or baked myself, even though I've definitely been cooking!  FYI guys, last week I got the new Nigella book, Kitchen, and it is frikkin' awesome!  A massive thank-you to Sandra for pre-ordering it for me!  I've been absolutely loving it and cooking heaps of recipes.  I have to stop myself from writing too much about it right now, but as you can tell, I'm really excited, and can't wait to post about it in more detail!  (It sure has been ages since I cooked heaps out of a Nigella book.  Does anyone still remember my project?)

Now, obviously this recipe is not from Kitchen, but one I cobbled together myself, after some insistent requests at my house for an apple dessert.  Who was I to refuse?

I used the pastry recipe from Nigella's cherry pie (How to Eat), which I've also used recently for a cherry and apple pie.  Made it all by hand, thank-you very much, because I don't have a processor at my new place. (Yet!)  It was actually a lot easier to work with than my previous attempts and didn't fall apart or break on me - perhaps because I did it by hand rather than processor I didn't overwork it?  Either way, I was able to roll it out thinly with no problems.

Filled with almond meal

I got the filling from Donna Hay's Modern Classics 2, which I chose mainly for its pretty appearance and simple recipe.  I lined a shallow 20cm pie tin with the pastry, and sprinkled it with almond meal to prevent it from going soggy.  I peeled, cored and chopped a few granny smiths, and cooked them in a pan with butter and water until slightly softened.  Then I added a bit of sugar and cinnamon, and arranged them in the pie tin.

Filled pie!

I probably could have gone a bit higher with the apples - in Donna's book she fills it up super-high, almost triple the height of the pie, but I think this is more for cosmetic reasons than for taste.

Then it was a matter of putting on the pastry lid, sealing the edges and trimming it nicely!

Topping the pie

 
In the oven for a short while, sprinkled it with castor sugar, and then it was time for pie. *Bow-chicka-wow-wow!*

PIE!

I love the billowing top of the pie.  My edges were a bit wonky, but I think it adds to the rustic charm.  I actually found it quite hard to seal the pastry because I rolled it out so thinly and it was in a shallow tin.  You'll see the first time I made a pie with this pastry, I used the same tin but had the pastry much thicker.  It not only looked prettier, but I thought it tasted better the first time.  Y'all know I'm a biscuit / pastry fiend!  The more crunchy pastry goodness, the better!  The second time I made a pie this pastry, it was a larger tin, but still thinly rolled, which I think worked well apart from the dodgy looking edges!

I served the pie with vanilla ice-cream sprinkled with cinnamon-sugar.  (Got the idea from seeing the Löwenbräu "Christmas in July" dinner on ChocolateSuze's and Helen's blogs.) I double checked with Ze German, she confirmed that they do it back home in Germany - approved!

Cinnamon sprinkled vanilla ice-cream

And let's have a look inside the pie: mega apple chunks, light flaky pastry and a hint of cinnamon.  (Or a "tinge" of cinnamon, as my Malaysian mum would say!)




I think it looks quite good with the big chunks of apple and billowing top (like a pastry version of Southern Cross railway station, hehe), but after eating the pie, I must say I prefer a grated or pureed filling.  And as mentioned above, I'd prefer a thicker pastry.  Doughy goodness - yes please!  I had half of the pastry leftover, so I could easily have gone for thicker pastry.  But despite all my nitpicking, it was actually a rather fabulous pie, and was ecstactically received.

I'm sure no-one will complain, however, if I start working on perfecting my apple pie.  Any volunteer tasters?

reade more... Résuméabuiyad

"So, just how long is it going to take me to make and decorate cookies?"

"So, just how long is it going to take me to make and decorate cookies?"   The short answer is...it depends.  It depends on how many you're making, of course, and how many colors of icing you are using, and how detailed the cookie design is, and how you are packaging them. Whew.

But, let me try to give you a rough idea. Let's go with 2 batches of cookies because if you're going to take the time to make them, you might as well make more than one.

First, the cookies.  Using this cookie dough recipe, plan on about 1 hour per batch.  With a 4.5" cookie cutter, you'll have around 12 cookies.  I bake mine 6 at a time, since I have a single oven.  I could do 2 sheets and rotate the them during baking, but I am usually too distracted by twitter getting in some housework (ha!) and forget to rotate.

Cookies (two batches)....2 hours
Cookies (cool completely)...1 hour

Next, the icing.  I use royal icing.  It's just as quick to make a double batch as it is to make a single.  I usually double my recipe just to ensure I have enough.  To make the icing and tint it, assuming you're making more than 2 colors, takes about 45 minutes.

Icing....45 minutes

Decorating the cookies. This is a little difficult to estimate and you'll have some down time here.  Assuming you have 24-30 cookies, you'll need to prep your icing bag and outline your cookies.  For a simple outline, allow 30 minutes.

Outlining....30 minutes

Next, you'll want to "flood" the cookies with thinned icing.  For me, thinning takes a while because I add water just a bit at a time.  You'll need to thin the icing, let it sit, stir, then flood.

Flood icing (thin)....15 minutes

Flood Icing (rest)....10 minutes

Flood icing (fill)......45 minutes

Usually, you'll have some sort of detail to add to the cookies.  First, the filled cookies need to "rest" for an hour or so before the next step.


Rest....1 hour

Finally, the detail work.  You may be adding sanding sugar, sprinkles, luster dust, extra piping, or all of the above, so this really varies.  Assuming the detail is a bit of simple piping on each cookie, allow at least a minute per cookie.

Detail.....30 minutes

Then, let them dry overnight.

Dry.....overnight

***This does NOT include clean-up time!***

---

So, for about 2 dozen, simply decorated cookies, I would allow 5 hours of baking/decorating with 2 hours and 10 minutes plus overnight of inactive/rest time. (Did I add that right?) But, remember, it depends! :) 

{In other words, don't start a cookie decorating project at 8pm the night before you need them.}

My advice....make the cookies a day ahead.  Even two days.  Even more than that and freeze them.  Yes, they freeze...even fully decorated.

Another hint, royal icing can be made ahead of time, too.  The icing will not be as stiff the next day, so if you have fine detail work to do, you may want to make it the same day.  Otherwise, it's fine.

I love this post from my friend Gail of One Tough Cookie...here's a little nugget of wisdom from her blog: "No matter how much time you allow for decorating the cookies, allow more."    See, she's smart and CRAZY TALENTED!

That's what works for me.  Do you have any hints for timing your cookie decorating?

"So, just how long is it going to take me to make and decorate cookies?"   The short answer is...it depends.  It depends on how many you're making, of course, and how many colors of icing you are using, and how detailed the cookie design is, and how you are packaging them. Whew.

But, let me try to give you a rough idea. Let's go with 2 batches of cookies because if you're going to take the time to make them, you might as well make more than one.

First, the cookies.  Using this cookie dough recipe, plan on about 1 hour per batch.  With a 4.5" cookie cutter, you'll have around 12 cookies.  I bake mine 6 at a time, since I have a single oven.  I could do 2 sheets and rotate the them during baking, but I am usually too distracted by twitter getting in some housework (ha!) and forget to rotate.

Cookies (two batches)....2 hours
Cookies (cool completely)...1 hour

Next, the icing.  I use royal icing.  It's just as quick to make a double batch as it is to make a single.  I usually double my recipe just to ensure I have enough.  To make the icing and tint it, assuming you're making more than 2 colors, takes about 45 minutes.

Icing....45 minutes

Decorating the cookies. This is a little difficult to estimate and you'll have some down time here.  Assuming you have 24-30 cookies, you'll need to prep your icing bag and outline your cookies.  For a simple outline, allow 30 minutes.

Outlining....30 minutes

Next, you'll want to "flood" the cookies with thinned icing.  For me, thinning takes a while because I add water just a bit at a time.  You'll need to thin the icing, let it sit, stir, then flood.

Flood icing (thin)....15 minutes

Flood Icing (rest)....10 minutes

Flood icing (fill)......45 minutes

Usually, you'll have some sort of detail to add to the cookies.  First, the filled cookies need to "rest" for an hour or so before the next step.


Rest....1 hour

Finally, the detail work.  You may be adding sanding sugar, sprinkles, luster dust, extra piping, or all of the above, so this really varies.  Assuming the detail is a bit of simple piping on each cookie, allow at least a minute per cookie.

Detail.....30 minutes

Then, let them dry overnight.

Dry.....overnight

***This does NOT include clean-up time!***

---

So, for about 2 dozen, simply decorated cookies, I would allow 5 hours of baking/decorating with 2 hours and 10 minutes plus overnight of inactive/rest time. (Did I add that right?) But, remember, it depends! :) 

{In other words, don't start a cookie decorating project at 8pm the night before you need them.}

My advice....make the cookies a day ahead.  Even two days.  Even more than that and freeze them.  Yes, they freeze...even fully decorated.

Another hint, royal icing can be made ahead of time, too.  The icing will not be as stiff the next day, so if you have fine detail work to do, you may want to make it the same day.  Otherwise, it's fine.

I love this post from my friend Gail of One Tough Cookie...here's a little nugget of wisdom from her blog: "No matter how much time you allow for decorating the cookies, allow more."    See, she's smart and CRAZY TALENTED!

That's what works for me.  Do you have any hints for timing your cookie decorating?

reade more... Résuméabuiyad

Organic Matters Food & Wine Store

Organic Matters Food & Wine Store
403 Riversdale Rd
Hawthorn East 3123
Ph: (03) 9882-7889
Website

I'm not particularly into organics, and was drawn to Organic Matters more for its good location and nice menu than for the fact that they serve organic food. I love free range meats and eggs, but for example, I wouldn't spend $6 on a packet of organic tortilla chips, just because they're organic. I'd known about the cafe for a while, but only went when I realised they serve Wessex Saddleback bacon! (You may remember this noble breed from the ri-donk-ulously expensive and delicious pulled pork shoulder I made twice a few months ago.) April was keen on going as well, so we went together on a sunny Sunday morning to try it out.

Apart from all the usual cafe stuff, and Friday night fish & chips, they sell a range of organic groceries - wine, sugar, pasta, bread etc...


...and have cakes, biscuits and salads too. The biscuits and cakes look delicate, pretty and appetising, unlike the heavy, carob-and-grain laden varieties (Nigella would describe them as "hessian-weave") that I've seen at other veggo and organic cafes around town.


I didn't feel like coffee (gasp, really?!), so went for a soy hot chocolate, my non-coffee beverage of choice. They don't charge extra for soy either, yay!
Weak latte, Soy Hot Chocolate - $4

Organic brown sugar - THE item of 2010 cafes in Melbourne.

Sandra had scrambled eggs with mushrooms. The eggs were soft and creamy, and the mushrooms had a lovely strong mushroom taste.

Scrambled eggs on Zeally Bay sourdough toast with buttered mushrooms - $16.50

April also went for scrambled eggs, but had a side of bacon with hers. (Haha, probably because she'd patiently listened to me blab on about it for ages!)

Scrambled eggs on Zeally Bay sourdough toast with grilled Wessex saddleback streaky bacon - $16.50

I wasn't super-hungry, so I ordered soft-boiled eggs with toast soldiers with bacon. It was the same price as the scrambled eggs, and felt like less value-for-money, but I guess there's no point forcing yourself to eat more just because it's a cheaper option! (God, I'm so not Asian right now!)
Boiled eggs & Zeally bay sourdough toasted soldiers with grilled Wessex saddleback streaky bacon - $16.50

And in fact, I am so glad I ordered the soft-boiled eggs - they were just what I wanted! Check out how gooey and soft they were!


And the bacon? It was delicious. It was quite a fatty cut, with only a few strips of actual meat on them, but it was so intensely salty and bacony that I couldn't have eaten much more. I loved that they came in thick slices, so much nicer than the depressing shrinkwrapped bacon rashers in supermarkets.

Overall Organic Matters is a pleasant enough place for a breakfast or brunch. I haven't been for the fish & chips nights or the special Saturday night dinners so I can't comment on those. It was on the expensive side - $12 for eggs, and $4.50 extra for bacon - but this is to be expected given that it's mainly (95%) organic. But actually, seeing as other cafes in the local Camberwell / East Hawthorn area charge similar prices for less reputable eggs and bacon, I think Organic Matters is a good option if you are in the area.

GIVEAWAY ANNOUNCEMENT: I'm pleased to announce the winner of my Nuffnang giveaway!  A big congratulations to Agnes for her funny and creative comment!  Please email me your details so the peeps at Nuffnang can send you your prize!  I hope you have lots of... um... fun with your chocolate!

Organic Matters Food & Wine Store
403 Riversdale Rd
Hawthorn East 3123
Ph: (03) 9882-7889
Website

I'm not particularly into organics, and was drawn to Organic Matters more for its good location and nice menu than for the fact that they serve organic food. I love free range meats and eggs, but for example, I wouldn't spend $6 on a packet of organic tortilla chips, just because they're organic. I'd known about the cafe for a while, but only went when I realised they serve Wessex Saddleback bacon! (You may remember this noble breed from the ri-donk-ulously expensive and delicious pulled pork shoulder I made twice a few months ago.) April was keen on going as well, so we went together on a sunny Sunday morning to try it out.

Apart from all the usual cafe stuff, and Friday night fish & chips, they sell a range of organic groceries - wine, sugar, pasta, bread etc...


...and have cakes, biscuits and salads too. The biscuits and cakes look delicate, pretty and appetising, unlike the heavy, carob-and-grain laden varieties (Nigella would describe them as "hessian-weave") that I've seen at other veggo and organic cafes around town.


I didn't feel like coffee (gasp, really?!), so went for a soy hot chocolate, my non-coffee beverage of choice. They don't charge extra for soy either, yay!
Weak latte, Soy Hot Chocolate - $4

Organic brown sugar - THE item of 2010 cafes in Melbourne.

Sandra had scrambled eggs with mushrooms. The eggs were soft and creamy, and the mushrooms had a lovely strong mushroom taste.

Scrambled eggs on Zeally Bay sourdough toast with buttered mushrooms - $16.50

April also went for scrambled eggs, but had a side of bacon with hers. (Haha, probably because she'd patiently listened to me blab on about it for ages!)

Scrambled eggs on Zeally Bay sourdough toast with grilled Wessex saddleback streaky bacon - $16.50

I wasn't super-hungry, so I ordered soft-boiled eggs with toast soldiers with bacon. It was the same price as the scrambled eggs, and felt like less value-for-money, but I guess there's no point forcing yourself to eat more just because it's a cheaper option! (God, I'm so not Asian right now!)
Boiled eggs & Zeally bay sourdough toasted soldiers with grilled Wessex saddleback streaky bacon - $16.50

And in fact, I am so glad I ordered the soft-boiled eggs - they were just what I wanted! Check out how gooey and soft they were!


And the bacon? It was delicious. It was quite a fatty cut, with only a few strips of actual meat on them, but it was so intensely salty and bacony that I couldn't have eaten much more. I loved that they came in thick slices, so much nicer than the depressing shrinkwrapped bacon rashers in supermarkets.

Overall Organic Matters is a pleasant enough place for a breakfast or brunch. I haven't been for the fish & chips nights or the special Saturday night dinners so I can't comment on those. It was on the expensive side - $12 for eggs, and $4.50 extra for bacon - but this is to be expected given that it's mainly (95%) organic. But actually, seeing as other cafes in the local Camberwell / East Hawthorn area charge similar prices for less reputable eggs and bacon, I think Organic Matters is a good option if you are in the area.

GIVEAWAY ANNOUNCEMENT: I'm pleased to announce the winner of my Nuffnang giveaway!  A big congratulations to Agnes for her funny and creative comment!  Please email me your details so the peeps at Nuffnang can send you your prize!  I hope you have lots of... um... fun with your chocolate!

reade more... Résuméabuiyad

Tuesdays At The Table - Spinach With Shallots

Happy Tuesday, ladies!!  I'm currently up to my eyeballs in painting projects and had to schedule this post.  I hope it posts as planned.  :-)  If not, leave me a comment and I'll get it fixed ASAP!

I love spinach!  It's tasty, healthy and can be incorporated in so many dishes.  When I only have a few minutes and need I good side - this is my "go-to".

Spinach With Shallots

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 shallot, diced
1 (10 ounce) bag baby spinach leaves
Salt and pepper to taste

In a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat. Stir in shallots and cook until transparent, about 5 minutes. Add spinach, sprinkle with salt and pepper; cook and stir 3 to 5 minutes until leaves are wilted and reduced.

What's cooking in your kitchen?

Happy Tuesday, ladies!!  I'm currently up to my eyeballs in painting projects and had to schedule this post.  I hope it posts as planned.  :-)  If not, leave me a comment and I'll get it fixed ASAP!

I love spinach!  It's tasty, healthy and can be incorporated in so many dishes.  When I only have a few minutes and need I good side - this is my "go-to".

Spinach With Shallots

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 shallot, diced
1 (10 ounce) bag baby spinach leaves
Salt and pepper to taste

In a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat. Stir in shallots and cook until transparent, about 5 minutes. Add spinach, sprinkle with salt and pepper; cook and stir 3 to 5 minutes until leaves are wilted and reduced.

What's cooking in your kitchen?

reade more... Résuméabuiyad

New House Wish List

I'll be out a bit out of touch for the next week.  Painting, moving, organizing and accepting furniture/appliance deliveries will be dominating my time.  Don't worry - I have a few posts set to appear through the week and I'll be back soon with some "before" and "after" pictures to share.  :-)

Like most people, I have a wish list for the house... here's what current resides on that list.

Yep, I want a white picket fence.  Not only is is pretty - but I need to keep the pups safely in the yard.

Speaking of gates...I'd like a good baby/puppy gate that keeps the fur-kids out of trouble while I'm at work, and blends in with the house.

I'm not a huge fan of night lights...but I find this moon in a jar so cool!  You place it in the sun during the day and it lets off a soft blue light most of the night.  I want to put it in the bathroom.

Even though I'm painting my room blue - I think this rug from IKEA will bring a nice touch of pink into the room.

The kitchen geek in me is just itching for a nice Crock-Pot!!

I love this address stamper from Expressionery!

The weather is turning cool - and I think that's the best time for a nice fire pit and a glass of wine with some friends!

I'll be out a bit out of touch for the next week.  Painting, moving, organizing and accepting furniture/appliance deliveries will be dominating my time.  Don't worry - I have a few posts set to appear through the week and I'll be back soon with some "before" and "after" pictures to share.  :-)

Like most people, I have a wish list for the house... here's what current resides on that list.

Yep, I want a white picket fence.  Not only is is pretty - but I need to keep the pups safely in the yard.

Speaking of gates...I'd like a good baby/puppy gate that keeps the fur-kids out of trouble while I'm at work, and blends in with the house.

I'm not a huge fan of night lights...but I find this moon in a jar so cool!  You place it in the sun during the day and it lets off a soft blue light most of the night.  I want to put it in the bathroom.

Even though I'm painting my room blue - I think this rug from IKEA will bring a nice touch of pink into the room.

The kitchen geek in me is just itching for a nice Crock-Pot!!

I love this address stamper from Expressionery!

The weather is turning cool - and I think that's the best time for a nice fire pit and a glass of wine with some friends!

reade more... Résuméabuiyad

Il Fornaio

I think I must be the last Melbourne food blogger to visit Il Fornaio - nope, I never went in its pre-Phillipa Sibley incarnation, and I totally missed all the buzz surrounding its recent re-opening. Oops! Bad blogger! I sure made up for it last Sunday though, with not one, but two visits!

Il Fornaio
2 Acland St
St Kilda 3182
(03) 9534-2922

I'm not normally down in St Kilda, but we had to run some errands down there, and thought we'd grab some lunch. During the day Il Fornaio don't serve their famous desserts, but offer a range of interesting and upmarket cafe foods - baguettes, savoury pies, pastries, cakes and so on. They also sell bread from Noisette, and I picked up a multigrain loaf. (I was very happy to see this, as we'd just come from Baker D. Chirico and they'd completely sold out!)


I was impressed by the coffees - they were rich and creamy. As you can see I went wild and ordered a cappuccino. (And it wasn't even skinny - gasp!)
Latte, Cappuccino (single rosetta pattern, pretty!) - $3.80 each

Funky sugar almost makes me wish I took sugar in my coffee.

I got a baguette from the cabinet - country terrine with pear and ginger chutney and cornichons. From memory it was about $12.

It was absolutely fantastic! The terrine was studded with pistachios, and I really liked the sharp and sweet chutney and cornichons. But what really made this baguette work for me was the thick smear of good butter, which prevented the chutney from being overpowering. Mmm.. butter.

Sandra was slightly more healthy and chose the ham hock and lentil soup. It was full of lentilly meaty goodness.

All in all, a pleasant little lunch, which came to about $40, if you include the loaf of bread, which was $7.50. I totally wanted to order a slice of carrot cake - it looked amazing! - but was really full.

Later that evening, we had dinner with my parents at Dainty Szechuan in South Yarra (blogpost to come soon, hopefully!), and whilst we were recovering from a chilli overload and lamenting the lack of dessert options, I had a bright idea and suggested we take a drive down to St Kilda! Luckily my dad was totally up for it. As soon as I explained what was in the Snickers dessert he was sold!

Il Fornaio looks really different at night. We got there at about 9pm, and it was very quiet and dark inside. I almost thought it was closed, until we noticed there were a few tables of people inside.

The waiters were really nice, chatting with us and explaining all the different desserts. Barista Daniel was especially friendly, and made great coffees, according to my parents. I do love my coffee, but 2 in one day and I'd be buzzing all night. So, a nice soothing cup of English Breakfast Tea it was.
English Breakfast Tea - $3.50

Su and I shared the Poires belle Hélène "my way", which looked very different from the version I made at home 4 years ago, haha. Traditionally Poires belle Hélène is made up of pears poached in sugar syrup, served with vanilla ice-cream, chocolate sauce and crystallised violets. Phillipa's version, on the other hand, has a poached pear filled with vanilla ice-cream, and a big chocolate fondant pudding.

Poires belle Hélène "my way" - $19.00

Dig into the pudding with a spoon and watch the molten chocolate pudding innards ooze out...

And there's the ice-cream inside the pear.

It was beautiful, but very rich. I'm glad that I was sharing it! And just quietly, I would have loved more vanilla ice-cream with it - there wasn't nearly enough for me inside that pear!

And what trip to Il Fornaio is complete without a mention of the famous Snickers dessert? We ordered 2 for the table: one to be shared by my parents, and one for Sandra.

TADAH!
'Snickers' - $19

As anyone who's read a newspaper or food blog in the past few months will know, the Snickers dessert is made of peanut dacquoise, caramel parfait glace, salted peanut caramel and milk chocolate mousse, with 2 plaques of milk chocolate. ZOMG. It really is one of those "Can't talk, eating!" moments.

And if that wasn't enough, we were surprised with a plate of super-soft rose marshmallows!

And yes, the next day saw a welcome return to the gym!


My folks and I loved Il Fornaio, and had a really pleasant evening. Great service, a nice atmosphere and incredible desserts. I definitely recommend it if you are in the area, or if you can think of a good enough excuse, hehe. At $19 a pop, the desserts are quite expensive, (but given the amount of work that goes into one Snickers, I can see why!), and if you were paying attention, you'd see that it came to $75.10 for 3 desserts and 5 coffees/teas. I probably wouldn't go back regularly, but just as a special treat.

I think I must be the last Melbourne food blogger to visit Il Fornaio - nope, I never went in its pre-Phillipa Sibley incarnation, and I totally missed all the buzz surrounding its recent re-opening. Oops! Bad blogger! I sure made up for it last Sunday though, with not one, but two visits!

Il Fornaio
2 Acland St
St Kilda 3182
(03) 9534-2922

I'm not normally down in St Kilda, but we had to run some errands down there, and thought we'd grab some lunch. During the day Il Fornaio don't serve their famous desserts, but offer a range of interesting and upmarket cafe foods - baguettes, savoury pies, pastries, cakes and so on. They also sell bread from Noisette, and I picked up a multigrain loaf. (I was very happy to see this, as we'd just come from Baker D. Chirico and they'd completely sold out!)


I was impressed by the coffees - they were rich and creamy. As you can see I went wild and ordered a cappuccino. (And it wasn't even skinny - gasp!)
Latte, Cappuccino (single rosetta pattern, pretty!) - $3.80 each

Funky sugar almost makes me wish I took sugar in my coffee.

I got a baguette from the cabinet - country terrine with pear and ginger chutney and cornichons. From memory it was about $12.

It was absolutely fantastic! The terrine was studded with pistachios, and I really liked the sharp and sweet chutney and cornichons. But what really made this baguette work for me was the thick smear of good butter, which prevented the chutney from being overpowering. Mmm.. butter.

Sandra was slightly more healthy and chose the ham hock and lentil soup. It was full of lentilly meaty goodness.

All in all, a pleasant little lunch, which came to about $40, if you include the loaf of bread, which was $7.50. I totally wanted to order a slice of carrot cake - it looked amazing! - but was really full.

Later that evening, we had dinner with my parents at Dainty Szechuan in South Yarra (blogpost to come soon, hopefully!), and whilst we were recovering from a chilli overload and lamenting the lack of dessert options, I had a bright idea and suggested we take a drive down to St Kilda! Luckily my dad was totally up for it. As soon as I explained what was in the Snickers dessert he was sold!

Il Fornaio looks really different at night. We got there at about 9pm, and it was very quiet and dark inside. I almost thought it was closed, until we noticed there were a few tables of people inside.

The waiters were really nice, chatting with us and explaining all the different desserts. Barista Daniel was especially friendly, and made great coffees, according to my parents. I do love my coffee, but 2 in one day and I'd be buzzing all night. So, a nice soothing cup of English Breakfast Tea it was.
English Breakfast Tea - $3.50

Su and I shared the Poires belle Hélène "my way", which looked very different from the version I made at home 4 years ago, haha. Traditionally Poires belle Hélène is made up of pears poached in sugar syrup, served with vanilla ice-cream, chocolate sauce and crystallised violets. Phillipa's version, on the other hand, has a poached pear filled with vanilla ice-cream, and a big chocolate fondant pudding.

Poires belle Hélène "my way" - $19.00

Dig into the pudding with a spoon and watch the molten chocolate pudding innards ooze out...

And there's the ice-cream inside the pear.

It was beautiful, but very rich. I'm glad that I was sharing it! And just quietly, I would have loved more vanilla ice-cream with it - there wasn't nearly enough for me inside that pear!

And what trip to Il Fornaio is complete without a mention of the famous Snickers dessert? We ordered 2 for the table: one to be shared by my parents, and one for Sandra.

TADAH!
'Snickers' - $19

As anyone who's read a newspaper or food blog in the past few months will know, the Snickers dessert is made of peanut dacquoise, caramel parfait glace, salted peanut caramel and milk chocolate mousse, with 2 plaques of milk chocolate. ZOMG. It really is one of those "Can't talk, eating!" moments.

And if that wasn't enough, we were surprised with a plate of super-soft rose marshmallows!

And yes, the next day saw a welcome return to the gym!


My folks and I loved Il Fornaio, and had a really pleasant evening. Great service, a nice atmosphere and incredible desserts. I definitely recommend it if you are in the area, or if you can think of a good enough excuse, hehe. At $19 a pop, the desserts are quite expensive, (but given the amount of work that goes into one Snickers, I can see why!), and if you were paying attention, you'd see that it came to $75.10 for 3 desserts and 5 coffees/teas. I probably wouldn't go back regularly, but just as a special treat.

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