Pinterest Things I Want to Make

The weather's warming up and I've got a bit of a spring in my step.  I'm all inspired to get cracking on a whole lot of decorating projects .This is on my pinterest inspired 'To Do' list:

I want to make a chalkboard to hang above our BBQ.

Source: Uploaded by user via Stylish on Pinterest

I want to makeover my Dad's old butcher's block

Source: homeroad.net via Stylish on Pinterest

I want to buy a comfy slipcover lounge.  I can't decide whether to get the chaise, or a 3 seat sofa with a footstool?  I like to put my legs up when I read.

Source: myshabbystreamsidestudio.blogspot.com via Stylish on Pinterest

I'd really like to add some box moulding to the living room walls.  Oh just the thought of a saw, mitre box, and a caulking gun are putting me off.

Source: homebyheidi.blogspot.com via Stylish on Pinterest

and I'd really like to decorate some old medicine bottles like these Pottery barn ones.

Source: potterybarn.com via Stylish on Pinterest

Hopefully, one at a time, I'll get to them all.  And just to make sure I'm going to join Moerks and give myself a deadline by joining Kidspot Crafting to a Deadline.

Have a great weekend everybody.  Hope there's sunshine in your corner of the world.

Vintage finds in the Barossa

Just wanted to share a couple of little vintage finds from the Barossa.  We went to a few antique shops and there were lots of things I would have liked to buy that simply wouldn't fit into my weekend size suitcase, but here's a couple of things that did .

This is a small square of tissue paper that would have been used to wrap around the oranges.  Imagine that - beautifully wrapped oranges grown in Australia.

I've popped it in a frame.  Now I have to decide where to hang it.

 This is a selection of vintage postcards - there's The Round Church, Cambridge; The Round Tower and Edward III tower at Windsor Castle and Edinburgh Castle.  There was a whole box of vintage postcards, but I chose these as they are all places I have been to.

And this one with the rippled edges is the Parma Baptisery in Parma, Italy.  We stopped in Parma when we drove from Lake Como down to Tuscany.  It was very hot and we ate a great big plate of Parma ham, as you do in Parma!

Finally I picked up this small rusty key, which fits in the keyhole of my great great grandfather's chest.  It doesn't work but I always wished I had a key for the key hole and now I do.

Enjoy your week. Spring has arrived in Brisbane and it's time to switch the jeans for skirts and dresses.

Drink More Water

Yeah, yeah, I know - drink more water.  In summer, I'm really good at drinking water, but sometimes I tend to forget.

Source: google.com.au via Stylish on Pinterest

Why should I drink water?

Because it's good for you! 

There are so many reasons - boost energy levels, promote weight loss, regulate body temperature, improve your skin, help prevent headaches, fight infections, decrease water retention, aid digestion, eliminate toxins, keep things moving (if you know what I mean), and your brain, heart and kidneys will thank you for it.

Tips to build the water drinking habit

• Carry a stylish water bottle with you.  Well it doesn't have to be stylish but it helps.  Living in Brisbane, water bottles can heat up pretty quickly so I use a stainless steel insulated water bottle to help keep the water cold (Camelback or Thermos are good)
• I take my drink bottle in the car or wherever I go, and try to refill it at least once during the day.
• Drink water at the temperature you like - chilled, room temperature or warm.
• Add a gentle flavour to your water - cucumber slices, a squeeze of lemon or lime juice, mint leaves, slices of apples & strawberries.   Don't add cordial and sugar.  There is a great article on drinking more water and links to flavoured water recipes at Good Life Eats here.
• This isn't an option for everyone, but we bought one of those fridges with the water dispenser and ice-maker and I noticed a big difference in how much water everyone in my family drinks now.  Convenience helps.  If you can't do the fridge thing, consider keeping bottles of water cold in the fridge and a bucket of ice in the freezer.
• Herbal tea counts as water. 
• If you drink caffeine or alcohol you need to be the water police and fine yourself with an extra glass of water.
• Find triggers to remind you to have a drink of water.  Eg:  drink from your water bottle everytime you arrive at school to drop off or pick up the kids, or when you pull up at a red light.

  

How much water should I drink each day?

There are all sorts of guidelines and formula's to work this out. 

8 x 8oz (240ml) glasses a day = 1.8 litres

Weight in kilograms divided by 50 (or weight in pounds divided by 2) 

Eg: 60kg/50 = 1.2 litres per day

I'm not one for counting and measuring too much, so I follow the Innocent Smoothie Wee-ometer.  Innocent smoothies are to the UK what Nudie smoothies and juices are to Australia - healthy and really yummy.  I have a copy of their recipe book which you can find here.

So if your wee looks or smells like you've been at the office party or spent a night out with Keith Richards rather than Wee Nirvana or I can pee clearly now, then you need to drink more water.

Remember if you're thirsty, you're probably already dehydrated.  You need to drink before you feel thirsty.  Now go grab a glass of water.  Be kind to your body.

Asian Chicken Noodle Soup

Pretty much anything Asian is a popular meal in our family, but my daughter particularly likes this chicken, sweetcorn and noodle soup, and it's a lot healthier for her than the 2-minute packet noodle soups.

Ingredients:
1.25 litres chicken stock (5 cups, 2.6 pints)
1 chicken breast about 175g/6oz
75-100g, 3.5oz noodles - egg or rice
100g, 3.5oz sweetcorn - fresh or frozen
3 shitake mushrooms - fresh or dried
2 spring onions shredded
1 tbsp light soy sauce
1 tbsp Shoxing wine
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
1 tsp fresh root ginger, chopped or grated
extra light soy sauce for serving

Method:

Poach the chicken - Pour the chicken stock into a pan.  Add the chicken breast, ginger and garlic.  Bring to the boil (or close to), then reduce heat and gently simmer for 20 minutes, until the chicken is tender.  Remove the chicken breast.  Allow it to cool slightly then shred.

I know one chicken breast for 4 serves of soup doesn't sound much, but look how much chicken you get from one breast shredded.

If you are using fresh corn, run a knife down the cob to remove the kernels.

Cook the Noodles - there are a couple of ways to do this. Boil the noodles according to the packet instructions, drain, and add to the soup. Alternatively you can divide the cooked noodles amongst the soup bowls and pour the finished soup over the noodles. This is common in Asian cooking. Another quick way is just to add the noodles to the soup when you add in the shredded chicken and sweetcorn, and heat the soup long enough so the noodles cook.

Make the Soup - Add the shredded chicken, noodles if cooking them in the soup, corn, mushrooms, half the spring onions and the soy sauce and Shoxing wine. Simmer for 3-4 minutes.

Ladle the soup into bowls.  you can make it look pretty by scattering over the remaining spring onions, or even adding some shredded red chilli, but my kids aren't that fussed on either.

Recently I bought these great new containers for the kids to take to school.  They are called Stayfit and I found them in Woolworths.  These are insulated containers for keeping soups, pasta and curries hot.  My kids get so sick of eating sandwiches, so they were really excited to take some Asian noodle soup to school for lunch.

This is the complete set that I bought - the hot soup container on the left.  A keep your salad cold container on the right, the white screw top has a small compartment to keep the salad dressing separate.  Then there are three little containers with gel lids that you put in the freezer to keep the contents cool - great for fruit and yoghurt.  The top container just has a plastic lid so it's good for dried fruit and nuts.

Notes & Variations:  Adjust the seasonings to your tastes - you can add black pepper, chilli or sesame oil.  Add or swap the vegetables - such as carrot, bok choy, straw mushrooms.  You can use fish stock and prawns (shrimp) to make an OMS friendly Asian Seafood noodle soup, or use vegetable stock and tofu for a vegetarian version.

Nutrition Information:  Shitake mushrooms are a symbol of longevity in Asia due to their health-promoting properties, particularly with the immune system.  They are a good source of vitamins B2, B3, B5 and B6, magnesium, protein and zinc (source).  When using shitake mushrooms, remove the tough stem and just use the cap part of the mushroom.

Seasonality:  Sweetcorn is a summer vegetable and is at it's best from November to March in Australia.  You can use frozen sweetcorn if fresh corn is not available.

Interesting Facts:  What do they say?  Chicken Soup for the soul.

Burlap and Measuring Tape Trim

While I was busy sewing my daughter's bed skirt the other day, I quickly whipped up this burlap (hessian) table runner using some leftover burlap I had and some measuring tape trim I found in Spotlight.

I just cut the hessian (burlap) to size and sewed a border about 1cm in from the edge.  I attached the measuring tape trim along each short end, and then frayed the edges of the burlap.

The measuring tape trim is a heavy cotton tape.  This is the cream colour.  Spotlight also had it in white and it was about $3 per metre.

Aren't these pale pink roses pretty?  They are just from Woolies and are displayed in old glass jars and bottles.

I had some tape left over so I glued it onto an old medicine bottle.  The other bottle is just a section of scrapbook paper that I glued on with mod-podge.

This was super easy to make.  I also think the measuring tape trim would look great around the hem of a skirt or other piece of clothing.  What would you use it for?

Sharing at: French Country Cottage, My Romantic Home,
Freckled Laundry

The Cook & The Chef - Maggie & Simon

I loved watching the ABC's cooking program The Cook and The Chef.  I've even got it on dvd.  So when we went to the Barossa for the weekend I had to visit Maggie Beer's Farm Shop.

At the end of the shop is a veranda with seats that overlooks the dam, and if you stick your head around there you will find ...

The kitchen set where they filmed The Cook and the Chef.  I can't believe I'm standing in the kitchen!!!!

My husband thinks he's a chef!

The portrait of Maggie & Simon on the wall.

Oh what fun.  The next day, we headed over to  Artisian's of Barossa Cellar Door, where Simon Bryant was cooking for Gourmet weekend..

We had some wine and lunch while we were there.

and guess what?  I met Simon.

He is just so lovely.  He chatted to us for a while.  So friendly and genuine.  If you like Simon as much as I do, check out his website here. 

Now Maggie, if you're out there, all my daughter asked me to bring home from the Barossa was your autograph, but she is very smitten with Simon's photo!

Guacamole and Corn Chips

In Swank & Dugan's book The Multiple Sclerosis Diet, there is a section in the recipe part called The Cocktail Hour, with recipes for dips and snacks to enjoy when you have your evening cocktail.  Got to love it!  There is a recipe for guacamole in the book, but this is the guacamole I've been making for the past few years, and I think it's pretty tasty.

Ingredients:
1 ripe Hass avocado
half a fresh green chilli finely chopped
1 tablespoon Spanish (red) onion, very finely chopped
1 tablespoon coriander (cilantro) leaves, chopped
juice of 1 lime
pinch sea salt
black papper
Corn tortillas or other flat bread to make corn chips


Method:
Prepare your ingredients.

Put half the onion, half the chilli and a pinch of salt into a mortar and pestle and mash to a liquid paste.

Add the avocado - remove the skin, stone and roughly chop the flesh.

Add half the lime juice and roughly mash.  Make it as smooth or chunky as you like.

Add the remaining onion, chilli, and the coriander leaves and stir through.

Now taste the guacamole and add more lime juice until you are happy with the level of tangy-ness.  Adjust any other seasonings.

This recipe is based on the wonderful recipes by Thomasina Miers, in her book Mexican Food Made Simple.  Thomi won Masterchef UK, and has her own Mexican restaurants called Wahaca in London (see here).  I have been lucky enough to meet Thomi twice - once at the Borough Markets in London where she was filming a cooking demonstration for Market Kitchen, and once at her restaurant in Westfield London.  She was really lovely and was happy to have a chat.

Now for the corn chips.  Normally you would eat guacamole with totopos - deep fried corn tortilla chips, but I'm trying to eat healthy so I do mine in the oven.  I haven't found any corn or flour tortillas that don't have the 282 preservative in them.  Funny, there was public outrage over 282 in bread, and all the bakeries removed it, but it's still used in crumpets, muffins, torillas, and flat breads.  The best I have found so far is corn mountain bread wraps.

Brush (or spray) the wraps with a little oil.  I used avocado oil, you can also use EVOO. Then add some seasoning.  I used salt flakes and a squeeze of lime juice.  Cut the wrap into triangles and place on a baking tray.  Cook in a 180C / 350F oven for only 3-4 minutes, until they are lightly browned and crunchy.

These corn chips are very thin and crunchy.   The chips will probably break if you try to scoop up the guacamole so you may have to use a teaspoon or spreader.  If you can find fresh tortillas, they will be thicker. 

So enjoy this tasty guacamole and corn chips for your next 'Cocktail Hour'.

Notes & Variations:  Adjust the seasonings used to suit your taste.  Other seasonings that are popular in guacamole recipes are ground cumin and jalapeno chilli.

Guacamole with tomato & garlic - add a small clove (or part) of garlic with the red onion and chilli when you make the smooth paste and the beginning, then add half a tomato that has been deseeded and diced at the end.

Here are some seasoning suggestions for baking your own corn chips or pita breads - for use with any dip not just guacamole:

• Extra-virgin olive oil, crushed garlic, and either chives or rosemary
• lemon juice and black pepper
• dukkah
• paprika
• cumin
• salt and vinegar - balsamic vinegar is good

Seasonal:  A good outline of the types of avocados grown in Australia and their growing season can be found at Australian Avocados here.

Nutrition: Avocados are a good source of vitamin C, dietary fibre, vitamin K and folate (self nutrition data)

Interesting Facts:  Guacamole comes from the Aztec word for avocado 'guac' and sauce 'mole'.

Did  you know that avocados do not ripen on the tree?  It's actually when they are picked from the tree that triggers the ripening process.  To ripen an avocado store it in a brown paper bag at room temperature for 2-5 days.  Once ripe store it in the fridge for a couple of days.  If you only use half an avocado store the half with the stone still in it in the fridge.  The surface will brown, but you can scrape this away and use the avocado below.

The best way to tell if a Hass avocado is ripe is by the colour of it's skin.  As it ripens, it changes from green, to purple, to a dark black.

Green skin avocados such as Shepard and Reed do not change colour.  To see if they are ripe gently press the stem.  If it's soft, it's ripe.

Happy cocktail hour