Recent discoveries

These last few weeks have been filled with small and satisfying discoveries. This weekend, at my brother's recommendation, I listened to Stevie Wonder's classic album Songs in the Key of Life from start to finish. When I listen to music, I tend to listen to individual songs over and over again but listening to the whole album and concentrating on it was something I really enjoyed.

I've also been listening to Dirty John, a new podcast from the LA Times. It's an addictive tale of a deceptive relationship that begins to impact a whole family. It's based in Orange County and the opening minutes of the first episode almost put me off - they're violent and graphic - but it's worth listening even if it means skipping that part or listening with one ear.

My very first housemate (we shared a little cottage in Sydney's inner-west) used to work in the organic shop in our neighbourhood. We could rarely afford to buy anything but every now and then she'd bring home a block of Green & Black's dark chocolate. I stumbled across it in the supermarket the other day and I am hooked. It's much richer and more satisfying than other dark chocolate, so it gets savoured. Also - have you tried dark chocolate Maltesers? Another recent obsession :)

We had a book sale at work last week to raise money for the Indigenous Literacy Fund and I was lucky enough to pick up Brooke McAlary's new book Slow. Tony and I have been taking turns reading chapters, and of all of the books on slow living and minimalism I've sampled recently, this one really brings everything together. The best thing? It encourages slow change, which feels exciting and achievable.

And I am eagerly awaiting the arrival of Anna Jones's new cookbook, The Modern Cook's Year. Every Christmas I receive a book voucher from work and I've been saving my 2016 one for something great. We make her kale, tomato and lemon spaghetti all the time and have been shifting towards veggie-filled meals of late. The new book is due out in a few week's time.

Speaking of new cookbook releases, I've been loving the sample recipes from Helen Goh and Yottam Ottolenghi's book Sweet. I've bookmarked this apple and olive oil cake with maple frosting.

An awesome vegetarian cookbook

My latest go-to cookbook is The Love & Lemons Cookbook. I bought it for myself last month as a belated birthday present :)

I used to go to the farmer's markets with a very specific list of ingredients for whatever recipe I wanted to cook that weekend. I love this book because all of the recipes are built around one hero ingredient. It makes it easier to buy what looks good at the markets and make a meal around it.

The book is based on the blog of the same name and it's divided into 17 chapters, each based on a different fruit or vegetable. So far I've made the crispy baked eggplant (my favourite), miso and brussel sprout fettucini, pumpkin and black bean enchiladas (a hit with Tony) and the almond granola. It's been an excellent way to eat more veggies, which was one of my goals for the year.

If you're curious there are plenty of recipes to try on the blog. I started with this pumpkin and sage penne and added parmesan cheese and chilli flakes. I'm keen to try these almond butter brown rice crispy treats soon.

P.S - When it comes to eating more greens, I've been washing and spinning a big batch of rocket or salad leaves on a Sunday. And I've been making heaps more salads as a result :)

A very good baking book

After the duck cake there was a cake of a simpler kind, a flourless chocolate fudge cake made for a special morning tea at work. It was baked late on Wednesday night and as I pulled it out of the oven, I knew I'd made something special.

I've had the The Cook and Baker cookbook since late last year, Annabel Crabb raved about it on the podcast she shares with Leigh Sales and off I went to find track it down. The best thing about it? Knowing that the time, effort and ingredients that go into any recipe will definitely pay off. And most of the recipes are straightforward, which is great because most of my baking happens after work.

The chocolate cake was for a special send off at work, for a long-serving and very lovely guy who was a day away from retirement. I'm really enjoying being part of a bigger office, I've gone from having six colleagues to 40 or more. It gives milestones like this one the ceremony they deserve. I also learn so much from the tiniest interactions and it's slowly changing my work for the better.

P.S Thank you for all of your lovely comments about the rubber ducky cake. Here it is in transit to the event, which was packed. People were lining up around the hotel just to get in. My friend Louise was there right at the end and says my cake went for $100. It was also on the news that night! I was thrilled - with the cake and the opportunity to support an excellent local charity.