Call the Midwife

January 30 2013
2 Comments
tags: , ,
by emma

I love this interesting and really empathetic show!  Sacrilegious as it is to say, I think it’s even better than Downton Abbey.

Based on the best selling memoirs by Jennifer Worth, Call the Midwife depicts a group of young midwives and nuns in east London in the 1950s, the incredible and intimate work they did delivering babies and caring for the community, their social lives, the often harsh, difficult lives of the families and what seems to be a very authentic and interesting look into Britain’s health system at the time.  For example, most mothers had their babies at home in this part of London, until maternity hospitals became more common.  Thinking about how controversial home births are considered by some today, it’s amazing to see such a different culture back then.

Call the Midwife

Call the Midwife

The characters are so likeable and real and, having been a nurse myself for over ten years, I can imagine how it must have been for those pioneer nurses so many years ago.  And as is always the case with period pieces, the fashion is always a plus – the clothes might be a bit more low key than some shows we’ve seen recently, but I still think the nurses are so pretty and glamorous on their days off.

A bit of trivia also; apparently this show has encouraged a lot of entries to midwifery from nursing students.  I also read recently that the 1980s show L.A. Law sparked an increase in the number of students choosing law at uni at that time and in the 90s it was the TV show ER which made my friends and I all want to be nurses.  Popular culture is such a powerful thing eh?!

Has anyone else tuned in?

Call The MidwifeCall The Midwife

untitled

 

 

Images and publicity stills from: TV series Call the Midwife, 2012-current, UK, Neal Street Productions

Oh so hot

January 8 2013
4 Comments
tags: ,
by emma

Well pretty much all over Australia right now we’re experiencing some record breaking hot weather, (poor Sydney as well as other cities will be 43 or even higher (!) today – that’s 109.4 to any US readers), with no rain for months, extreme fire danger and several out-of-control bush fires.  And it doesn’t look like letting up for the next week or so.

Right now I’m fantasising about moving to Alaska or Canada.  So stay cool everybody, or as much as you can.  I guess we’re going to have to just ride this one out.


Cherry mascarpone mini pavlovas

January 3 2013
5 Comments
tags: , ,
by emma

Is it wrong to say my favourite part of Christmas Day, after the hectic usual lunch, was lying down on our old yet much loved lounge in the air con drinking ciders, eating Japanese rice crackers and watching Community with Ant?  (if you haven’t seen the Modern Warfare ep, you have to, it’s fall-about-on-the-floor funny).

Anyway, I’m ashamed to say as an Australian I’ve never made a pavlova (oops) so thought I’d remedy that this past Christmas with easy to whip up, luscious cherry mascarpone mini pavlovas.  We like a pav in this warm part of the world – it seems I’ve grown up with the good old passionfruit, strawberry and kiwi fruit pavlova with whipped cream for as long as I can remember (and I love those!).

This ones a bit different though – taking advantage of summer cherries to make a luscious, yet Gothic looking sauce, the meringue was crisp on the outside, soft and gooey in the middle with cheesecake flavoured mascarpone.  It was very festive on Christmas Day and you can do it all fancy and stack the meringues up in layers if you prefer.

cherry pav25

Read more

Product Review (2) – Tassal smoked salmon and a recipe for Christmas breakfast feta, avocado, tomato and smoked salmon on sourdough

December 13 2012
5 Comments
tags: , , , , , ,
by emma

Earlier this week, I posted the first of 3 reviews for Tassal salmon.  Today’s recipe uses Tassal’s lovely, rich, thinly sliced smoked salmon inspired by a breakfast trend I spotted recently, the F.A.T. (aka feta, avocado and tomato), the latest breakfast offering in cafes, which is so cool right now, it’s ridiculous.

I kid.  It’s a really delicious breakfast and whether it’s cool or not is irrelevant.  So I’ve come up with my own dish – the F.A.T.S. – feta, avocado, tomato and salmon.  Don’t let the name fool you though!  It’s full of healthy things including Tassal’s salmon, which is packed full of nutrients.

Not surprisingly, this was as good as it sounds, with all the flavours and textures you could imagine all competing so well with each other; salty, sweet, creamy, smooth, crunchy and just plain luscious.  The smoky, savoury, buttery richness of the salmon lifted this to a luxurious level of breakfast eating.

I think this dish would be really special for a breakfast treat during the Christmas season, maybe Christmas Day if that’s your thing?  With a glass of champagne or sparkly something something (I love doing this, it makes me feel like a rock star or something, on any other day I’d never drink champagne in the morning.  Vodka maybe.  I kid again!).

This easy, festive dish will keep you going well until a late Christmas lunch or dinner, so give it a try because trust me, you won’t regret it and your holiday visitors will love you for it!

All opinions stated here are my own, I wasn’t paid to trial or review any products and I wasn’t under any obligation to write a positive review.

Read more

Product Review – Tassal fresh salmon and a recipe for Christmas baked salmon with tomato basil salsa

December 9 2012
Leave a comment
tags: , , , , , , ,
by emma

Recently I was contacted by Natalie from Keep Left on behalf of Tassal, who very kindly asked if I would review some of their beautiful Tasmanian salmon products.  Naturally I was super pleased to do this, as I love salmon and Tassal is a brand I buy regularly.

Atlantic salmon is an extremely healthy variety of fish (all those Alaskan bears can’t be wrong eh?!) which is packed full of good fats and nutrients.  Tassal’s products are a wonderful addition to a healthy diet as their products are easily sourced by consumers and are sustainable.  Tassal’s extensive product range, which is available from Coles, Woolworths and The Salmon Shops situated in Kew, Victoria and Salamanca, Tasmania, includes:

  • fresh Atlantic salmon fillets
  • fresh whole Atlantic salmon
  • sliced smoked salmon (including salt reduced)
  • a variety of plain and flavoured frozen Atlantic salmon fillets
  • tinned salmon
  • salmon antipasto.

I thought it would be fun to use Tassal salmon to develop some Christmas recipes with a difference, so will be posting three reviews and recipes over the next couple of weeks to help with ideas for the festive season – don’t forget to check back!

Today’s recipe is a wholesome, fresh and seasonal alternative to the traditional roast Christmas lunch for our very warm Christmas Day; it’s super easy to put together and the oven doesn’t have to be on for long.  It also has the most gorgeous Christmas colours so looks very festive and pretty on the dining table!

Tassal’s fresh salmon fillets are rich, melt-in-your-mouth and have a delicate sea flavour – they really taste amazing.  The raw fillets were fresh, smelled like the sea and were a bright, healthy colour (v. important).  The salmon portions went perfectly with sweet summer basil and tomatoes, garlic and lemon flavours, creamy fruity olive oil, rustic potatoes and crisp green beans.

I loved how fresh and flavoursome this dish was and although it tastes decadent, is actually very healthy and light.  Some crusty bread rolls were lovely to mop up the olive oil at the end and … a glass of crispy, cold white wine wouldn’t have gone astray but sadly we forgot the wine when we did our shopping!

Oh and if you have any left over as we did, it tastes great the next day tossed through some pasta with a bit more olive oil as a sort of impromptu salad.

All opinions stated here are my own, I wasn’t paid to trial or review any products and I wasn’t under any obligation to write a positive review.

Read more

Product Review – Bakers Delight Christmas treats and a recipe for Christmas cake butterscotch cherry trifle

December 4 2012
1 Comment
tags: , , , , , , ,
by emma

I was thrilled to be contacted by Kat from Keep Left PR to do a review for Bakers Delight, one of my favourite bakeries.  Anyone who knows me is aware of my obsession for bakeries, and I usually find it difficult to walk past a Bakers Delight without stopping and staring like a little kid at their delicious array of baked goods, then finally choosing something.

Bakers Delight is an Australian owned company which bakes fresh goods daily on their premises for just about any occasion; they’re fantastic at Easter and Christmas, offering a range of seasonal goodies like hot cross buns and Christmas cakes.  My usual purchases throughout the year always include their amazing scones (if you haven’t tried their passionfruit and white chocolate scones, you really should).  They also encourage healthier eating by selling breads for specific tastes and dietary needs such as wholegrain, low GI and high fibre with ingredients such as chia, seeds and fruit.

For the longest time I never liked fruit mince pies (or tarts) but one day a few years back I spotted one of these little treats and, enticed by the cute size and delicate dusting of icing sugar, I tried one and wondered why on earth I’d been missing out all these years.  So every year I buy them as a treat in the weeks leading up to the holiday season.  You can imagine my delight this year at being able to trial and review not just Bakers Delight’s fruit mince tarts, but their gorgeously rich Christmas cake as well.

Fruit mince tarts are sold in singles or packs of 6.  I just love the crisp, buttery pastry with gooey, sweet fruit and a soft dusting of snowy icing sugar and … who can resist anything so adorably miniature sized?!  I like mine with a coffee for morning tea.

 

The Christmas cake comes in both large and small sizes.  With a moist, soft crumb and full of cherries, sultanas and currants with that dark, puddingy, traditional flavour and texture, a piece of this cake is wonderful with hot custard and a cup of tea.  It always reminds me of my grandmother’s annual Christmas baking when I was a kid.

So I thought I’d put together an easy, Christmas inspired trifle using Bakers Delight Christmas cake layered with lots of lovely, decadent things.  This trifle is so lush and indulgent; the fresh cherry sauce and sweet butterscotch tastes amazing layered onto the rich Christmas cake with the addition of cool cream and custard; I’m fairly certain that even people who aren’t lovers of Christmas cake would enjoy this.

So get yourself along to one of the many Bakers Delight outlets this Christmas season and pick up some goodies for your friends, family and coworkers this Christmas season.

Thank you to Kat and Bakers Delight for generously offering their gorgeous, Christmas sweet treats for me to review and as gifts to give away!

All opinions stated here are my own, I wasn’t paid to trial or review any products and I wasn’t under any obligation to write a positive review.

  Read more

Blackberry sour cream teacake

November 25 2012
10 Comments
tags: , ,
by emma

Blackberries are my new favourite berry; I just love their lush darkness and how purply sweet they become after baking.  Sprinkled over this soft, fluffy cake with a crunchy streusel topping they were lovely.

When I first made this cake, I was all about the full fat sour cream (and it is a sour cream teacake after all).  But .. in the interests of being more health conscious and because I was very kindly sent some lovely new yoghurt to try, I recently baked this using Chobani low fat Greek yoghurt instead and was really happy with how it turned out; the crumb is just as soft and appealing and the cake rose very nicely.

And I think teacake is the Australian way to say coffee cake?  Anyway, this pretty little cake is essential to have with a cup of tea or frothy coffee on a sunny morning.

Read more

Poaching eggs

November 18 2012
5 Comments
tags: , ,
by emma

A few years back I decided to try my hand at poaching eggs.  So my boyfriend at the time and I found a site which said to bring a frypan of water to a simmer, add some vinegar, swirl with a knife to form a whirlpool effect for one minute then slowly crack the eggs into the water.

We ended up with scrambled egg water and lots of swearing then laughing at how stupid we felt.  I also ended up with a phobia of poaching eggs for years with a bizarre idea that it was one of those things shrouded in mystery like year 11 physics (let’s just say I didn’t take it in year 12 and leave it at that), and that I had to line up for hours at super hip cafes on weekend mornings to eat poached eggs.

Not so!

On the weekend I decided, being inspired by my friend Jacqueline’s delicious post at Tinned Tomatoes, to try it again.  Jacqueline’s advice was so easy and sensible I just had to give it a go … and although far from a perfect result it worked!  I was so excited I had to share in case there was anybody out there who might be feeling the same way I did.

Here’s what I did:

  • Bring a small to medium covered saucepan of water to the boil.
  • On boiling, turn down to low/medium.
  • Immediately crack each egg on the side of the pan and carefully (don’t get a steam burn) slide into the water (or as was suggested by Ann in the comment below, crack into a ramekin first).
  • You’ll see quite a bit of egg white in the water but don’t fret, it turns out.
  • Simmer on low for 2-3 minutes covered, standing by in case it boils over.
  • Use a slotted spoon to drain each egg a bit then place on your plate.

I ended up with 2 medium poached eggs after about 2 minutes.  If you prefer yours a little more rare, then simmer for a shorter time.

I served ours with brown mushrooms and spring asparagus sautéed in butter and black pepper.  So much yum for such a little, healthy dish.

 

Product review – ceramic water purifier @ Biome (and 20% off sale)

November 10 2012
12 Comments
tags: , , , , ,
by emma

Due to our drinking water being, ahem, less than desirable regarding certain additives, impurities and such, I’ve been on the lookout for a water filter for some time.  I drink a lot of water as I believe it’s important to health and wellbeing but I’m not terribly keen knowing I’m also taking in some additional properties – for me, it’s not just about the actual intake of impurities but also the fact that someone else is controlling what goes into public drinking water, if that makes any sense.  But don’t mind me, I grew up a hippie kid so I’m always questioning authority in some way!

In light of this, recently I purchased a ceramic water filter from Biome, an eco store situated here in Brisbane, Australia.  I’m really happy with it and it feels fantastic drinking fresh, healthy water.

And Biome are offering 20% off all water purifiers until Wednesday!

Some things to note:

  • The purifier removes 99% of impurities.
  • There are loads of different colours and sizes (mine is a 9 litre in duck egg blue and is super pretty as you can see).
  • It fits easily on a kitchen bench in a small kitchen.
  • It produces clear, fresh tasting filtered water.
  • My purchase is supporting an Australian, independent business.
  • The purifier is low maintenance although it does require regular filling so will depend on your usage (please see update below).
  • The water is filtered by a water filter candle inserted and fixed upright into the filter container by way of two washers, water is then poured into the filter container then filters into the body of the purifier ready for drinking.
  • It comes with a removable base – I don’t use the base as it seemed a bit unstable and our purifier is placed high up; I had visions of it toppling over (we have a couple of clumsy people at our place).
  • Before using the filter candle, it needs to soak upside down in a glass of water overnight.
  • The filter candle needs replacing every 6 months (for some models it’s every 12 months and this obviously depends on usage).  When replacing the candle you should also clean out the filter container and water container with a cloth and warm water (no soap or any other substance).
  • The filter candle may need a light scrub with a scourer every few weeks or so to prevent clogging of the water filter.

For those concerned about fluoride in their drinking water, you can also purchase SCP Fluoride Cartridges from Biome or Water Filter Company.  I have one of these now (as of 2014) and honestly, they’re well worth buying.

The ceramic water purifiers are manufactured by Southern Cross Pottery in northern NSW.

 

Disclaimer:  All beliefs and opinions stated in this review are mine.  I wasn’t asked to do this review nor did I receive any payment for it.  For any readers who are concerned about additives in their drinking water, including fluoride, I would encourage you to do your own research before purchasing a water filter.

Illustrated beauty and the Art of Afternoon Tea

November 7 2012
1 Comment
tags: , ,
by emma

The other day I spotted Alexandra Nea, The Art of Afternoon Tea, a delightful space with gorgeously creative illustrations and delicious recipes.

Alex is a fashion designer, collector of beautiful things, an illustrator of food, fashion, bridal and still life, and her work has been published in many high profile magazines and websites (who doesn’t love a bit of Downton Abbey-style afternoon tea?).  She also takes commissions for exclusive illustrations which would make a charming and unusual gift for someone.

It’s so wonderful to find something out of the ordinary and as much as I love the creative medium of photography, Alex’s finely detailed drawings really caught my eye with their art deco appeal.

UPDATE: Alex’s work can now been seen at Alexandra Nea and on Pinterest.

 

Illustrations used with kind permission by Alexandra Nea