There they are again, those old blackened bananas in the bottom of the fruit bowl. Before I chuck them, I think of the waste and feeling a wee guilty I decide, to not only make some muffins, but to kill two birds with one stone and resurrect the belly. Good ole Growling belly. A couple of years ago I had so much fun keeping this blog, and then, well, along came instagram and I got on the bandwagon of photo blogging life. So here we go, the home’s full of the sweet scent of baked bananas and the blog is humming along.
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Ok, so I heard that Vietnamese bakeries are amazing, and despite their unassuming store fronts, they have an amazing and loyal following. So armed with a big hunger and just a few dollars in my pocket, I finally entered one such establishment named, predictably, ‘Saigon Bakery’ on Victoria St, Richmond.
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When I was a little girl, there was nothing better for breakfast than my grandmothers Matzah brei, served in a little frypan topped with her own apricot jam. It was so delicious that I knew I just had to be loved beyond measure! Well, this weekend was Easter break and we drove 2 hours out of Melbourne to Thornton to my aunty and uncles farm. Rose spoilt us rotten with 3 delicious meals each day. My favorite was her very own take on Matzah brei made thicker and more cake like, topped with caramelised apples and bananas and loads of honey.
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Note to self: whilst in Melbourne, stop at any sandwich bar and marvel at the potential for a super fresh, high stacked salad sandwich. Remember with a shudder, the nasty mayo laden coronation chicken, sad single soggy lettuce leaf and watery tomato slice, so typical of the London equivalent I had to make do with. So rejoice, order with the lot, add avocado and pineapple and a splash of sweet chilli. This is my favourite Australian lunch. Obviously a bakery like Babkas will supply the best freshly baked bread, but with the rise of the Vietnamese bakeries across town, you can get one super cheap just about anywhere. N. Tran bakery at 263 Chapel street Prahran is great; their white bread rolls lighter and crispier than most.
A gem in the crown of Melbourne eating, Claypots is the kind of establishment I adore. Totally focused on simple, fresh, and generously proportioned seafood dishes, flavoured by the influences of Indian, Malaysian, Morrocan, Cajun and Chinese fare, Claypots remains a firm favourite and apparently number 29 of all things to do when visiting Melbourne according to Trip Advisor.
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Karen Martini is the visionary and much awarded chef behind Mr Wolf, a rustic Italian wood oven pizza restaurant on Inkerman St in St Kilda Melbourne. So many people had told me to go here that I didn’t just because. Well, that was just plain stupid, because the food here is so incredible. Pricey yes it is, but sometimes, just sometimes, it’s really worth it.
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A glorious and typical sunny day in Australia requires nothing more than good friends, a backyard bbq, and a pile of freshly grilled veg.
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That moment when you cut into a light fluffy poached egg, and the creamy yolk spills over layers of toast, smoked ham and avocado, has to be one of my favourites. But how oh how to guarantee that perfect creamy oozy egg? I was delighted to see that Felicity Cloake on the Guardian food blog, had taken it upon herself to really explore all techniques which you can see here.
I decided to try her most recommended technique, the ‘Vortex’ method and was delighted. It not only works perfectly but produces a super professional and pretty tear drop result. My only modification is that I used a small wok for the water as it gives the perfect depth of water and creates a deeper vortex for the egg to poach in. For Sacha and I there was a 3 minute wait between eggs, which was hardly a wait at all, and the first egg was still warm and perfect.
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