Ahh winter! Brussel sprouts, asparagus, artichokes, this is my favourite time of year for produce. Combining my two obsessions, brussel sprouts and tahini here is my current favourite recipe.
ingredients
500 gms of brussel sprouts, ends trimmed and yellow leaves removed
1 tbsp of olive oil
sea salt and pepper
1 tbsp tahini
1 tbsp of maple syrup (or rice syrup - liquid sweetner of choice)
1 tbsp of sunflower seeds (optional)
1 tsp sesame seeds (optional)
method
1. Preheat oven to 205 degrees celcius. Toss the brussel sprouts in the olive oil and sprinkles of salt and pepper (I love loads of salt but do it to your taste) and roast for about half an hour, shaking the pan every 5-10 minutes to get even coverage. The brussel sprouts are done when they look like a roast potato (see picture).
2. Remove sprouts from the oven and put into a heat proof bowl. Drizzle the tahini and maple syrup over them, toss to cover sprouts evenly then sprinkle with sunflower seeds and serve.
Tofu Scramble (gf, og) head chef’s signature dish – firm organic tofu hand-scrambled with white mushrooms, oirganic potato chunks, grated organic carrot, wilted organic spinach, organic tomato cubes, raisins, pepitas and sunflower seeds. Sprinkled with flaxseeds and sesame seeds. Pancakes (og, gf available) Bliss Burger (7 ingredient house-made almond, lentil and red kidney bean pattie mixed with carrots, fresh parsley, brown onion and rice crumbs, served with house-made onion jam)
So naturally after our dinner expedition to Bliss we had to go there for brunch the next day. I got the much raved about tofu scramble (but forgot it was just the scrambled 'eggs' that Lisa loved the most) this was almost too healthy for me, after Tom Phats super salty asian scramble tofu this lacked kick. A couple of teaspoons of soy sauce and it was right as rain (still majorly keen to try the scrambled 'eggs'). My friends had the pancakes and Bliss Burger which I had a bite out of each and they were DELICIOUS. Such a great idea to have burgers on the menu for brunch. I WANT TO EAT EVERYTHING ON THE MENU TWICE. NOM! Seriously Bliss is worth going to Adelaide for.
raw jaffa cake with soy cream banana cake with raw icecream and soy cream hot apple (hot organic apple juice infused with cinnamon, lemon thyme & cloves) bliss bomb (espresso, chocolate, milk & rice syrup, layered to create a sweet coffee explosion)
I'm obviously very behind because I went to Adelaide months ago, but better late than never right? Bliss Cafe is pretty much my dream come true. All organic, massive menu, serves rice, oat and soy milk. Makes a lot of their ingredients themselves like soy cream, mayo etc. The space is huge, with a big outdoor area which would be so lovely in the warmer months. Bliss also has a small shop full of vegan, organic goods. Me and my friends pigged out on dips and bread before we went in so we were pretty full and only got dessert. There are a couple of baked cakes and raw cakes/slices etc available. Both cakes were utterly delicious, particularly the raw ice cream, that was incredible. Bliss' prices are so cheap I really dont understand how they make money. All the food is incredibly fresh, the staff smiley and happy, the drinks menu in particular is seriously impressive. The warm apple juice was perfect, exactly what I needed on the cold winters night. The "Bliss Bomb" was the perfect combinaton of chocolate and coffee, combine it with oat milk at it was like a hot milkshake. The walls are adorned with local artists (I bought 2 prints) and the kitchen is really busy, giving a wonderful alternative for local chefs to cook in a veggie environment. Everything Bliss does is so ON, from local involvement to great food, it's a rare bird. Seriously impressed. We went back there for dinner which will be posted soon. Bliss inspires me to open my own place in Melbourne, its breaks my heart that it's not here.
deets: Bliss Organic Cafe - 7 Compton Street, Adelaide web:Bliss Organic Cafe $$: cakes, baked $7 raw $8.50 drinks, bliss bomb $4.90 warm appple $3.90
other voices, other times: vegaroo lisa dempster (whos post prompted me to go there) hot chocolate, dark desires
And so begins MIFF 2011. This year I am living the dream and taking 2 weeks off work. I am scheduled for 26 sessions, but have missed one (A Separation) and picked up another (Cave of Forgotten Dreams). I've been spending my days gloriously going from session to session, eating at Journal, Hoboken and MoVida Next Door (which is now open on Sundays HOORAY!). Killing time in between at ACMI, NGV, being on holidays in Melbourne is a glorious, glorious thang. Most of these films have a second session, if one catches your eye try and go,
Absolutely astonishing. What makes a documentary successful is a fascinating subject given the space and editing it deserves (I guess for most stories right?). Werners monotone, albeit hilariously dry soundbites only added to this for me (detracted for others). The subject, the oldest cave paintings ever discovered, are jaw dropping. The painting styles range from abstract impressionism to cubism to animation (!!). This pieced so much about humanity together for me, I couldnt stop the tears of joy and amazement. We are all linked together through a golden thread to the divine. My favourite of the fest so far (even though 3D makes me queasy). 4/5
tomboy
(couldn't find an english language subtitled trailer)
A gentle movie about a tween girl who wants to be a boy. Rather than hitting the hard notes on gender dysmorphia, it hits the gentle ones of families stuck in the middle of trying to protect their children but also letting them express themselves. I have to say, being a gay woman who has thought a lot about this stuff it actually challenged my preconceived notions of gender through the little voices in my head. I was surprised at some of the remarks that came out of my brain, gendered comments about appropriateness. In this way, the message of the film, was completely effective for me. It has given me a lot to think about without being a brutal, harrowing experience (such is a lot of LGBTIQ cinema). Beautifully shot, the child actors are particalarily wonderful, the relationship and playtime between the sisters will make any hardened heart smile. 3/5
I immediately bristle to the Wes Anderson comparisons, its SO much more. (I am sharply divided down the middle with Wes Anderson love Darjeeling, Rushmore HATE Tenenbaums, Steve Sizou). I had highish expectations of this, I love Richard Ayoade so I was keen to see how he would put something out there. Its EXTREMELY interesting from a artist input way to see how much of his style was in Garth Merenghis. Submarine is actually quite lovely, without being saccharine. Really hilarious, the crowd was hooting all the way through. I love that it was set in Wales (the Welsh accent!) I LOVE that Noah Taylor was the Dad (and retained Australian accent), I also LOVE that I had no idea that Ben Stiller 'presented' this (its prominently displayed on the American poster). There is so much win in this, its shot beautifully, like photograph stills. A remarkably strong debut. I originally gave this 3.4/5... but its deffo 4/5 from me now.
el bulli
For the remarkable subject and so much to shoot I didnt think this was very well put together, it lacked punch. It could have been stunning to look at but the camera work was shoddy. Altogether though it captured mood very well, Ferrans relationship to his head chefs, I was full to the brim of anxiety after being in the molecular gastro-dons presence for a couple of hours. It was also bitter sweet knowing now that El Bulli is no longer a restaurant. 3/5
Im a huge Tracy Wright fan, "The Affair" a skit in The Kids in the Hall is one of my favourite pieces of comedy of ALL time. So it was sad to know this was her last film (she died of pancreatic cancer June 2010). Its certainly Charlie Kauffman-esque but lacked the drama and mystery, the subconsious messages that make your skin crawl and your ears prick. I would definitely watch this again, perhaps when I'm less tired, but perhaps this is for the crowd who 'didnt get' Synecdoche because I really didnt get the greater subtext of this but loved and completely understood Synecdoche. 2/5
the solutude of prime numbers
(couldn't find an english language subtitled trailer)
Ok first of all its 2 hours long which usually pisses me off and its 2 hours long for the reasons that piss me off the most DRAWN OUT EURO ANGST. BLAAAHHHH. FFS.. wont someone kill themselves or EAT SOMETHING?!?!? The 2 leads are lovely creatures to look out, Isabella Rosselini in fine form as Italian MAMA, the Italian falling like a waterfall from her lips left me.. squirming in my seat. Mike Pattons score... was UHMAZING but didnt suit the film?!!? It was more late 70s sci fi.. perfectly suited for Kubrick (that would be an amazing collaboration)... not crippled twee euroangsty love story? Man Italians... YEAH ITS ALL SO IMPORTANT. 2.5/5
Visiting friends in the Blue Mountains over the Queens Birthday long weekend (I hadn't seen in 10 years! thanks Facebook!) it was our friends birthday and we wanted to make a cake for him (being those kind of girls) also being poor student types we wanted to be resourceful with what we had. VOILA! We had a Melindas brownie mix and a Deliciously Free cake mix we baked them both and decided to cram them together into a layer cake! Erin also had some Morinaga tofu in her cupboards as well as some frozen berries and soyatoo (a well stocked kitchen!) so we came up with this cake.
We baked the cakes, piled whipped soyatoo onto the first layer then placed them together. Then we made the chocolate frosting, here's the link to making creamy chocolate frosting with tofu (and another amazing franken layer cake) and iced the entire cake with it. On the top we used the last of the chocolate frosting and soyatoo, and then boiled up the raspberries until they were like a jam and put it on top. It tasted AMAZING. Such a great franken cake effort!
These will rock you into diabetic shock like no other recipe on this site. I made these cuties for my first bake sale and they went so quickly I barely managed to get a shot of the last one!
ingredients
1 cup flour
1/4 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
1/2 cup dessicated coconut
1/3 cup nuttelex
Pinch of salt
1 x tin of soy caramel condensed milk
60g copha, chopped
125g vegan chocolate
method
1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees. Combine flour, brown sugar, coconut, nuttelex and salt to create the biscuit base dough then press into the bottom of a small slice pan (taste.com recommends a 3cm deep, 28 x 18cm (base) lamington pan). Prick crust mixture with a fork and bake until golden, about 20 minutes. Cool completely.
2. Pour caramel condensed milk over the top of the biscuit base, smooth.
3. Place copha and chocolate into a heat-proof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water (or microwave for 30 seconds). Stir until melted and combined. Pour over caramel evenly and pop in the fridge until set.
notes: Original recipe called for 1/2 a cup of butter for the base, its just too much for me. There were massive pools of oil, just felt it unnecessary. I would even go so far as to a 1/4 of a cup, you just need enough to bind the ingredients. I found this messy to cut up, I'm thinking about using a springform pan next time.
If you can't get to Radical Grocery you can get soy caramel condensed milk online (or at your local health food store hopefully). Any other helpful online Aussie stores guys?
I am currently obsessed with tahini I drizzle it on everything. Tahini on toast with sunflower seeds and LSA is my favourite breakky in the world! I've been trying to incorporate more raw foods into my diet lately and after meeting Miss Organic at the first shoe party I started looking at her website and of course this recipe caught my eye! These are SO delicious and SO filling! I pack 3 for a snack when I'm at work, they have replaced chocolate for me (which is a good thing). Quick and easy, I store them in a air tight container in the fridge. Nom nom.
Ingredients
1/2 cup tahini
3/8 cup raw agave syrup*
1/2 cup dessicated coconut
1/2 cup mixed pre-soaked chopped nuts (e.g. macadamias, almonds, brazil nuts)*
1 cup finely chopped mixed dried fruits (e.g. apricots, figs, currants)
method
1. Pulse in a food processor until combined. Roll into walnut size balls and toss lightly in coconut.
notes: I used 1 1/2 cups of raw trail mix. If you cant find raw agave syrup, I'm sure maple would work just as well.
Here's how the story goes, I always wanted to make a wedding cake. Last year I offered good friends to do theirs. Wisely I organised a time 2 months before the date for them to come and test the cake, make sure it was up to scratch and also help me work to a goal date (I had never worked with fondant before). Well I was going through a stressful time and taking on a two tiered fondant cake was just a tad too ambitious. So I gracefully backed out but felt pretty shit about it.
Fast forward to this year where I off-the-cuff mentioned to friends who were having an informal wedding, that I would be happy to do the cake. This time around I was much more zen about it all. I knew I would do 'butter cream' frosting. I knew it would be a tall layer cake as opposed to freaking out about dowel etc. So this time round I was bizarrely calm. I had already tested the cake recipe(s) with the first attempt so that was down. All that was left was the test cake, 4 x 6 inch coconut passion fruit cakes.
So I found out 2 packets of Soyatoo were not enough, I covered up the sides with coconut and thought it looked pretty good but wasn't sure what I was going to do when the real thing happened. I had the happy couple around to make sure they were ok with everything (and that they could actually cut into such a behemoth).
Now the cross section (mental note needed 4x amount of Soyatoo!)
All in all it turned out well and I knew what I wanted to do on the day. I baked the cakes the night before, leveled, basted them with passionfruit syrup, wrapped them tightly and popped them in the freezer (frozen cakes are a DREAM so easily to handle and they defrost good as new) . The next day I went to the venue early and constructed the cake there. I went for pure coconut cream frosting, I kept the cans in the fridge for a couple of days, scooped out the cream from the top, whipped it with a bit of coconut water from the cans then piled it onto the cake (this was my inspiration).
Anxieties I had: I didn't want to keep it in the commercial fridge, so many smells for the cake to absorb. Wasn't sure how the defrosting cake was going to go, would it destabilise the coconut cream and make it leak? What if it dried out (the heating in the room was pretty full on). I left the cake at 1pm and got there at 5.45pm to find the cake a bit dried out and crackly. I had left a bunch of coconut cream downstairs (panicked when I realised they had moved it out of the fridge and it warm!!) so I did a top up just before the wedding began and it turned out fine. It didn't stop me stressing about it all night and keep checking on it. I did one final cosmetic top up just after the speeches (just before the bride and groom were supposed to cut the cake) and after about half an hour of waiting I went to check on the cake and it was GONE and so were the BRIDE AND GROOM. The groom had extreme tonsillitis and had had a penicillin injection the day before so a couple of drinks had left him absolutely legless and they had to stuff him into a taxi at 930pm. So no picture of the cake being cut by the happy couple! :( but this was the finished product and I got loads of compliments on it. Would I do it again? Yes! But I would figure out a non drying out alternative to the coconut cream (hard one).
A big note: The vegan catering that the Grace Darling was *incredible*. Seriously incredible.
A subdued week, I'm trying madly to get 'caught up' as its halfway through the year and I'm really behind on film and music. I'm on track with most of my goals though which keeps me calm. This week was spent cooking (I have over 25 posts waiting to go up, I will try and do 4 posts a week for a while), watching film with my settling in flatmate, a gallery opening, a food bloggers dinner and Red Stitch.
out.
how I ended this summer
Visually stunning and exquisitely shot, how I ended this summer is a major find. Set in a remote Russian weather station in the Artic it submerges you into the 24 hour of sunlight hallucinatory paranoia the first timer Pasha experiences. A tense drama full of symbolism, tight and hypnotic, I seriously loved this film. 4/5
in a better world (revenge)
This film took my breath and heart away. Hard going but so full of beauty and humanity. A story of 2 children brought together through the pain of bullying and death, the need for acceptance, love, externalised emotion and our never ending quest to get another human being to acknowledge us. The acting in this (particularly the children) is some of the best and most natural I've ever seen. I cried my heart out at the sorrow and beauty in this film, it completely blew me away. Its my favourite film of the year, I'm leaning towards 5 stars but I'm sitting on 4.5 for now.
blokk - no vancancy gallery
I dont understand this, can someone please explain it to me? How can someone take Sailor Jerrys designs, paint them onto wood and call it their art? I'm all for reference in art but its.... just exactly copying his designs onto wood?
eatdrinkblogmelbourne - hosted by my aching head
It's no secret that I've been frustrated with the vegan community lately. I deleted my facebook entirely because I just got sick of the amount of negative comments and threads (I still get negative comments here but I refuse to publish them now). I blog about food, vegan food. I'm not interested in talking about food politics anymore, I've been down that road for the past 10 years. I'm at a place where I'm comfortable with my ethics. So to go to just a food bloggers dinner where all we talk about is FOOD and cooking and blogging was heaven for me. This is why I do it, I love cooking, I love teaching, I especially love eating, thanks to everyone who came, I had a ball (even though the vegan food was chips and dip - everyone elses food was bad though so I didnt feel left out hah!)
my romantic history - red stitch actors theatre
The best play (especially Australian content play) I've seen in ages. Funny, witty, scathing, if you have any interest in the theatre please go to this production its incredible. My review for Theatre Alive is up.
It's not often I go southside so when I do have a decent list of places to try which helps with the "oh god I'm so far from home" anxiety! I wanted to go to Blue Corn the last time I was in St Kilda (to see Grace Jones ONE OF THE BEST CONCERTS I'VE EVER BEEN TO!) but we went to Laus Family Kitchen instead which I found average so didn’t blog about it. Blue Corn is awesome, really super vegan and gluten free friendly. The dining room can be a little cold and the furniture is kind of uncomfortable but they certainly make up for everything with the food!
So.much.food. Seriously order a plate between two people. Pictured is the dips platter with home made blue corn bread. Some of the dips didn’t float my boat, the corn bread was spectacular though. They also serve fresh chipotle with their meals which is a huge deal for me! On the decent Mexican in Melbourne stakes it sits comfortably between Mamasitas and Trippy Taco. If you're south of the border, hit Blue Corn! (thanks to Cindy and Michael for the recommendation).
Deets: 205 Barkly Street, St Kilda web:Google place page $$: my platter was $18 or $20 but could easily feed two people.
vegie wontons raw chickpea and cashew dip with linseed crackers
I'm a huge fan of the Vegie Bar. I lived on Rose st 7 years ago when I first moved to Melbourne and ate there practically everyday. I've tried the majority of the menu, most of which they do very successfully (cheap and cheerful food loaded with fresh vegies, servings big enough to share between 2 people). They have an updated menu with some raw items (they are opening a raw restaurant behind the Vegie Bar on the alley apparently) and stopped in the last time I was in Fitzroy.
The wonton/gyoza, although beautifully presented, didn’t really do much for me. The sprouted chickpea dip with linseed crackers was really super lovely though! I mean creamy, full bodied, just enough crackers for the dip. I've been back since (sans camera) and had the pickled beetroot 'rawvioli' filled with cashew cream ricotta, which was also delicious. The rawvioli is 3 small pieces for $8 but you forget how FULL you get eating raw food. I had the rawvioli and rice balls and could barely walk out of the joint. I'm really impressed by the Vegie Bar, they know what they do, do it well, its ALWAYS packed to the rafters and they've slowly expanded as time has gone by. Its been open for 18 years and has to be one of the busiest kitchens in Melbourne, the amount of food they pump out hourly is quite remarkable. Go and check out the updated menu, I'm impressed.
Deets: 378 Brunswick St Fitzroy, 03 9417 6935 http://www.vegiebar.com.au/ $$: raw dip, gyoza I think about the $9 mark for each dish
*I only did the first 3 pages of google, and chose to omit the carnivore blog. I've manually added Cindy and Michael as for some reason they do not come up in Google! (remember we had this problem before?). I always add the most recent of multiple reviews (from the same blog).
I'm studying an IT diploma at the moment (very slowly, 2 subjects a semester) and I often stop into Fo Guang Yuan for lunch on my way from school into work. A quiet tea house nestled into a Buddhist art gallery, Fo Guang Yuan serves mostly mock meat dishes (not GF friendly) and a huge array of teas. The service can be patchy, sometimes so quick you don't have time to settle in, other times so slow and so hard to get someones attention that you want to walk out. Not a place to go if you are in a hurry but I think that is the point.
Pictured is the jasmine tea, the bbq pork buns (which are lovely but MASSIVE) and the crystal dumplings which I whole heartedly declare the best dumplings in Melbourne (yes, I truly do). Like a kind of ugly mermaid, Fo Guang Yuan is still really amazing but hard to get to due to Monday to Friday lunch opening hours. I would suggest just going for a cup of tea, its a serene place to nestle into some work or reading. The cumquat tea is amazing but get it to share, having a whole pot yourself is pucker inducing.
deets: 141 Queen Street, Melbourne web:Fo Guang Yuan $$: cheap. buns and dumplings were around $7 each, tea is $7 for a pot (they will top up with hot water for free)
I had last week off and got SO MUCH DONE. Loads of cooking and eating and website making and cycling and talking with friends in cafes about amazing things. I also started catching up on film for 2011! MIFF is about to happen which I'm so excited over I could DIE. Are you going? A point of interest, I went to a wedding at the Grace Darling on Saturday and the vegan catering was INCREDIBLE. I highly HIGHLY recommend them (I also baked the wedding cake - I will be posting about it this week!).
out (film).
bridesmaids
Actually really good! I love Kristin Wiig, Maya Rudolph etc (who is married to Paul Thomas Anderson! who knew!). I got a few good belly laughs out of this, it makes me happy that I'm not completely dead inside to rom coms. 3/5
never let me go
Keira Knightly HATE. This was so weird and so inconsistent. Mark Romanek did a stunning job shooting it, it looks gorgeous, the light in particular is incredible but this film was SO boring. SO BORING. Watch Moon instead. 2/5.
The initial site redesign is up! Come over and check it out :) I've got a fair bit of content to re-write and things to move around but slowly slowly. I'm also going to start (once I get a digital SLR) rewriting and shooting my favourite recipes. I hope you like the new site!
