Hello weekend

It's hard to believe the last days of summer are here. Lately the weather has been perfect for after work walks, after work ice cream, little picnics, and bike rides with extremely blue skies. But there were also moments this summer, when it was smoky and we were stuck inside, when I couldn't wait for the season to end. Still, I reckon there's time for one last peach pie before summer is truly done. We have a busy weekend coming up! More wedding cake testing and making, a gig tonight, a birthday party tomorrow, a brunch on Sunday. Here are some nice things to share:

Possibly my favourite ABC Life recipe of all time... a teriyaki chicken sushi bowl (it can be made with salmon too). Sort you marinade in the morning and chuck the chicken in the oven when you get home :)

This episode of Death, Sex & Money with Community actor Ken Jeong was my podcast highlight of the week.

How cute is Mari Andrew? "You never know when you might meet the love of your life!"

I am so close to buying the Beatrix Bakes cookbook! The Design Files have published a bunch of recipes including salty chocolate caramel bars, cinnamon walnut bundt, chocolate brulee tart and cocoa meringue roulade. Yum!

And a nice playlist to start your mornings (or perk up your afternoons). 

X

Hello weekend

Hello! I hope you've had a good week or at the very least, a couple of bright moments in an otherwise ordinary one. I was in Melbourne for work, which was busy and rainy and fun. There was just enough time for an early morning Lune croissant run and it pays to go in a group - we got to sample almost all of the offerings. If you get to visit, my faves were the plain and chocolate :) Travel always leaves me a little weary, so I'm looking forward to a sunny and quiet weekend. Tony's making pasta tonight, we have orange wine and we're planning a trip to a regional gallery and my favourite farm shop. To share:

I found this focus notepad at a lovely Melbourne stationary store. I'm only two days in but I've noticed that using it makes me stop and think about what I'm adding to my to do list and where it should go in my day. I am yet to fill the 'Don't do' section...

I'm midway through my first book of essays by Samantha Irby and will definitely read/reserve/borrow more of her writing. Each essay is surprising, funny and pretty eye opening.

A five-ingredient dinner with prawns, feta and tomato.

We watched Parasite on Valentine's Day. I'm so glad I saw it but gosh it gets intense and bloody for a good 15 minutes. My fave follow up read has been this story that explains what the 'Ram-don' noodle dish is (it looked so tasty!).

I really liked this New Yorker piece about work and life and how they can bleed into each other (but probably shouldn't).

For your next rainy night - Nutella bread pudding with blackberries.

P.S I'm making a test wedding cake this weekend, starting with the sprinkle layer. I also want to see how white I can get the icing. Wish me luck!

Rain!

Are you reading anything good at the moment? After dipping into a few non-fiction books and not really getting into anything, I started this book on Sunday and am almost done. It is so good - entertaining, a little weird and totally captivating. On Sunday I had grand plans to bake sourdough cinnamon scrolls for brekkie to make the most of the rainy/cosy vibes but we ended up having yum cha with friends instead. The scrolls were finished... at about 8pm that night and made for a cheery Monday breakfast, when it was well and truly bucketing down. Since then, I've been watching Oscar video clips and re-watching this hilarious choral tribute to Laura Dern :)

Another very nice thing - last week I loved The Show of Delights episode of This American Life. I've seen it recommended in so many different places and it lived up the hype for me. If you're not much of a podcast listener, maybe give this four-minute section of the episode a go. I almost cried while listening to it on the bus. It's been ages since I listened to this podcast and I've missed it. This episode made me think about taking a break from the interview-heavy shows and going back to narrative driven ones, which tend to be more surprising and better at getting me out of my own head.

In food news, I'm planning to make my very first wedding cake! My brother Zachary is getting married in March and I offered to make the cake, initially thinking - how hard can it be? Now I'm actually doing it, I'm a tiny bit nervous/doubtful. I can definitely make cakes and put my heart into it but have been doing some research and now understand there's a bit more too it than that, including cake maths. Still, I think I'll be fine!

I'm heading to Melbourne next week for work and am hoping to find some time to sneak off and buy a t-shirt from my favourite donut shop. Speaking of work, here's a lovely roasted nectarine dessert from Julia Ostro, with nut crumble and lemon cream. If you trade the cream for yoghurt, it becomes an extra lovely breakfast. Her new cookbook comes out soon and it looks so good!

Have the very best week.

X

All of the things

Hello! How have you been? Last week was another dramatic one - a big bushfire is burning south of Canberra, which grew very quickly due to a heatwave. While it's been nerve-wracking, I've felt calmer than I have in recent weeks. A combination of routine (yoga, Sunday markets) and novelty (an experimental music gig, my first facial in 5 years) definitely helped. As did a friend who works at the RFS, who called and made a special Whatsapp group for Tony and I to keep us extra informed. How great are friends? 😭 I hope you're doing well as we roll into February. Here are some nice things to share:

If you're a Man Repeller fan, its founder Leandra Medine is a guest on Laura Jackson's new podcast Hoste-ing. Also, how is Leandra only 30???

My new favourite potato chips.

We started watching Shrill over the weekend and it's the best show I've seen in some time. It's based on Lindy West's memoir of the same name. And you can watch both seasons for free on SBS OnDemand :)

Greta Gerwig, Saoirse Ronan, Timothee Chalamet and Laura Dern break down a scene from Little Women.

From ABC Life, a veggie soba noodle salad that's cooling and delicious. I love it as a healthy and quick dinner, it'd make a great work lunch too.

I really enjoyed The Daily's take on Harry and Meghan.

And I'm thinking about making this chocolate and coffee sorbet from Donna Hay sometime soon.

Have a lovely week.

 X