A Crazy Lovely Week

So my little cookie launch finally came. It was a crazy week leading up to it where I didn't get a lot of sleep in between work, school and icing and packaging my little treats. I have to say though......it was a lot of fun. I had one late night putting the finishing touches on the cookies, and the only reason I was up so long doing it was because I was enjoying myself too much to sleep.

I really don't think I would have made it though this hectic week without all my lovely friends though. My cooking parter at school joked with my throughout all our classes, which cheered me so much and helped to keep me awake. We were both sleep deprived and overworked leaning over big marble benches trying to temper chocolate perfectly and not eat all the treats we made.

On the day of the little launch a heap of my wonderful friends came in to visit me and buy cookies. It was so lovely, and I felt so supported in my venture. Its wonderful to have such kind people in my life. Even one of my guy friends came in to show his support buy purchasing a little cookies decorated like a pink frilly dress. All these wonderful people warm my heart.

So the cookies will be selling at all the Little Cupcakes shops in Melbourne from now on. Check out this sight to find one near you!!


On top of all of this I had my last day at placement this week, and to be honest, I'm really going to miss that place. Once I got used to the five am starts, and the intimidating head chef, I actually fell in love a little bit with the quiet of that tiny pastry kitchen, where I would pipe, glaze, and bake pastries all day. I love the sweet hearted ladies who worked alongside of me and taught me so many little tricks, always offering my chocolate croissants for a mid morning snack. I think I'll really miss being about to have conversations that go:
Me: Hey, when you make macaroons what meringue type are you using? Italian
Pastry Chef: No I use french meringue in it.
Me: Oh I have never used french meringue in my macaroons.
Pastry Chef: Yeah then you don't have to boil the sugar to 180 degrees. I find its much more stable this way.
Me: What about regular meringue, without icing sugar? I find that never works.
Pastry Chef: No this is really good I'll give you the recipe.

I WILL MISS THOSE CONVERSATIONS! Because to me, they really ware the best sort of conversations.

I really do wish I had a recipe to share with you today........but lets be honest, I am much too tired for such things and I really need to start thinking about starting my next batch of sixty sugar cookies. For now though, I'll leave you with some little pictures of the cake I made for one of my lovely friends birthdays this week. Its super retro, and I like it because it reminds me of an old ladies swimming hat.

Much love.

Cookie Launch

I'm so very very very excited about launching my range of 'Cherry on Top' sugar cookies at 'Little Cup Cakes' in Melbourne this week. Its so fun to see all my hard work paying off a little bit. All my packaging is arriving tomorrow and my graphic designer (and wonderful housemate) is sitting in her room right now designing a logo for the labels. The smell of fresh cookies is floating in the air, and everything smells like cinnamon, sugar and spice. There really is nothing as good as hot cookies out of the oven is there?

Its wonderful to be starting this little venture.......because really, how else would I find a way I could work and sip red wine at the same time?

No but really, it is very fun. I think its a little bit romantic too. My parents met each other when they were running their own business ventures as well. My mum (an artist) was selling hand panted clothing at a market when she met my dad. They got married three months after that first meeting, and went on to paint more clothes together, until my dad opened a plant nursery. So the idea of starting my own venture feel just that little bit extra special.

The cookies hit the shelves at 11am on Friday. I'm expecting you too all rush in and buy hundreds of them (please!)

I was also thinking of having a tiny launch party.......really just an excuse for a wee soiree. Maybe just get a few of my nearest and dearest together to drink Champaign and eat some cookies.

Ekkkk I'm so excited about everything!!

Smoked Chicken Salad For The Soul

Sitting in bed at the end of a ten hour day at work I'm thinking about my next couple of weeks to come. It looks like there won't be a day off for another three weeks, and holidays are well and truly over. I cant believe how quickly they have gone, and how quickly all my week days have filled up again. Its a little bit scary, but at the same time very exciting to see all of my little plans starting to take life. I have so much work in front of my, but some of it is so fun that its hard to call it work.......for example, in about a weeks time I am launching a range of my sugar cookies at little cup cakes. I'll keep you posted with the details of this, because I want you all to rush in and by them off the shelves so that it looks like I'm a huge huge success.

With all these things in front of me I've been thinking about the idea of working heard. I always knew that coming to Melbourne would be difficult at times (or even all the time.) I knew I would miss my family. I knew I would be broke at times. I knew I would have to work like crazy and I knew it would be a little bit lonely before I met all the wonderful friends I now have. I didn't understand what this meant though. I think I had an idealised idea of 'work.' I was so keen to get stuck into pulling together this little career that I idealised hard work into something of a movie montage. You know the sort where there is music playing in the background and lots of snap shots of wonderful things being achieved. Everything always comes together so quickly in these montages, making it look like hard work is just one eventful moment in time. This however doesn't seem to be the case. The more I work hard towards the things I want, the more I realise that there is no one moment where you are pulling everything together, or when everything makes sense. However its just a process of slowly applying the things that are important to your life everyday. When you look at it like this, its actually pretty simple. It can be harder to apply because it takes persistence, but this is kind of beautiful. 

So right now, I'm appreciating this simple slow beauty of just getting done all the things I need to get done, and enjoying them. When It gets too overwhelming though (I had a bit of a night of feeling like that recently) this is what I do:

Make a smoked Chicken and ricotta Salad.

You will need:

One smoked chicken breast

Half a bunch of asparagus 

1/4 cup of fresh green peas

1/4 lemon

salt and pepper

olive oil

1/4 cup of ricotta (from the deli) broken into little chunks

Heat a frypan with some olive oil

Break of the thick uneatable ends of the asparagus and add it to the pan. Cook for five minutes stirring from time to time. Add the fresh peas and continue to stir for two minutes.

Add the juice from the lemon.

Season

Cut the smoked chicken breast into 5 pieces and add to the pan. Cook for two minutes to heat the chicken through.

Add the chunks of ricotta and stir.

Take of the heat and pile it all onto your plate. 

Delicious!

Sweet Minty Tea

I have been in my tiny hometown for the last week and a half. It was such bliss. Mostly I went to the beach, sat in cafes, sipped coffees, cooked pancakes with my dad and read lots of books. Sometimes I forget how good it feels to just get out of the city. To just take your shoes off and wiggle your toes in the sand. To have no phone reception. To drink wine at lunch time in a nice restaurant. To read for hours. To ignore facebook. To float on the ocean. To sit in the sun. 

(My favourite farmers markets)

I felt so relaxed and was tempted to never go back to Melbourne. I planned out a little life in my head where I would work part time, and sit on the beach for the rest of my time. All I wanted to do was soak in all the vitamin D I could get. I could literally feel it just soaking into my skin and making me feel more healthy. However, Melbourne beckoned me back. I still have ten weeks of my course left to go.......and a career to pull together.

(A really good pastry shop thats in a tiny country town.....its crazy good)

When I landed at the airport back in Melbourne town I was a little sun burnt and had sand in my shoes. The sky was grey and I felt pretty sorry for myself. Being home sick is the worst, but I still have so much to do here. So many exciting things to discover. 

('Belmondo's' is my new favourite cafe with delicious cold drip coffee.)

Speaking of exciting things.......I'm just about to launch a range of sugar cookies that will be sold in selected stores around Melbourne. Its still in the process of being organised but I will keep you posted!

(Every time I go home we get all the girls together and cook a dinner party with lots of yummy food and wine. Here is a little sneak peak)

While I was back home I got in the habit of making fresh mint tea with the mint growing in the garden. Its so very very easy to make but super yummy.

Fresh Minty Tea

You will need:

About half a bunch on mint

1 Tsp of honey

1Tsp of green tea

Boiling Water

What to do:

Place all the ingredients in a small teapot (enough for two) and pour over the boiling water. Let steep for 5 minutes. Drink it all! 

(One of my favourite people celebrating two of our favourite things with me)

Here Are A Few Of My Favourite Things

From time to time when I get uninspired I go on a little inspiration quest. I watch shows, read books, and magazines, I go to new places and genraly just explore, and look for something to spur me on. I love these times because the more I do it the more I discover about myself, and that is really important to me. I learn things like how much family matter, and how important it is to have friends who genuanlly just want what is best for you. I have learnt that sometimes I much much much prefer I quite night in with a glass of wine instead of a pub full of strangers. I've learnt how beautiful it is to fall in love, but how important it is to fall in love with the right person. I have learnt that sometimes long flowing silk dresses that make you favourite barista exclaim "Goodness you look amazing!", are so much more sexy than tiny short skirts.

Today I am leaving Melbourne to go home and spend time with my family with a week and a half in Queensland. I'm so excited to see my old friends and have family time. Going home is also one of my favourite ways to boost inspiration. I get to rest up, cook for the family, sit on the beach, and sip lattes in nice cafes. Its bliss to be back on the farm.

Two of my friends came out with me for a little girls night last night before I head off. We drank cocktails and sparkling wine in one of my favourite bars. Its nice to know that when I get back to Melbourne I will have so many wonderful friends waiting for me back here.

I know everyone cant run back home to a beach town every time they are worn out and lacking inspiration, so I would like to share with you some of the inspirations that have been getting me by this busy busy term at pastry school.

My Inspirations This Term.

Rachel Khoo 
Rachel is my new favourite celebrity chef. I've been getting so inspired by her cooking (like the pepper meringues I made recently)........but also, her style is AMAZING. Its so fun to see other people doing all the things I dream of doing, and with such style. She has been one of my wardrobe inspirations over the last few weeks. I very very much recommend you check out her recipes, style, and very sweet show called 'The Little Paris Kitchen', where she whips up amazing tasty meals in this tiny tiny space.

Sophie Dahl

This lady is another celebrity chef that I'm loving at the moment. At first I was unsure of the whole model turned chef thing, but after watching her show and reading some of her recipes I fell in love with her work. I love how funny, dramatic and whimsical she is. My favourite thing about her cooking is that it all based on her mood that day. On her show she will do a little segment on sad cooking, and then cooking all the food she makes when feeling down, or she will do a segment on romantic cooking, and tell stories about meals she has cooked for men she once loved (I could totally relate to this....and just her way of thinking in general.) Her food is simple, and usually a little indulgent. I made a mexican dish she prepared on her show and it was so delicious I cooked it over and over again that week. 

Clare Bowditch 

No, this one is not a chef, but she is another beautiful inspiring wonderful woman. Clare Bowditch is one of my favourite musicians, who place so much soulful, beautiful music, that it always cheers me up and makes me jump out of bed when I'm feeling a little low. I love listening to this music when I cook.

Albert Street Food and Wine.
I'm not so sure if this place counts as inspiration? Its more just one of my favourite places to go for a cocktail when I need a martini and some girl talk. The place just received a hat, and the food is great (but a bit on the expensive side when your a pastry student, so we usually just stick to one cheeky cocktail.)

House of Humble

House of humble is a little blog by a Melbourne couple. Its just about there lives as a newly wed couple, and the things they get up to. Its really beautiful to read about these two lovely people doing their lives together, thrift shopping, going to cute cafes and making craft. It makes me remember to enjoy the simple, beautiful things in life. 

So I hope all these beautiful things that are making me so happy can inspire you too! Soon I'll be posting more yummy recipes, but until then, have a lovely day. 

Grapefruit and Pepper Meringue Tartlets

I remember sitting in the airport alone two years ago and waiting to board a plane. I was heartbroken and scared. "This is it," I thought "this is the rest of my life." I had with me one small suitcase and a tiny amount of money in my savings account to get me through the first few months at pastry school until I could find a job. I had worked hard all year in order to be able to do this....to start a new little life, a brave new adventure. Everything was going to come together in the next two years. I had planned to graduate top of my pastry class, meet a nice boy and go on to maybe start my own business, or make a fortune doing something amazing and creative.

I had pegged a lot of hope on these two years, and what a crazy amazing two years they have been. I'm only one term off graduating pastry school, and at times I've been feeling nearly as scared as I was that day I was about to board the plane. Somedays it has all seemed a bit like a strange dream.

(From sneaky drinks with one of my favourites, at my favourite bar.)

I'm so proud of the life I have made for myself here, full of wonderful, interesting people, and a job which I enjoy. However I cant help but think that maybe I expected a wee bit too much out of those two years......maybe I expected myself to be fully 'grown up' by twenty two........and well I'm not. And the elusive 'price charming' has yet to appear, ever though I have seen glimpses of him in several people, unfortunately the 'real deal' is yet to show up.

So what next? I'm really not so very sure. I've been looking into the costing of attending the top pastry school in the world, which is in paris (of course) and if I stumble upon $52,000 thats where I will be heading (honestly, if you attend that place your set for life in the pastry world........all the cool kids in the hospitality world go there.....alas.) Until then though I'm just going to start applying for jobs and baking cakes at home, and dreaming up some big dreams, because you never know what might happen.

Three years ago when my mum asked me if I could do anything with my life what would I do I said it would be going to pastry school, but I thought it would be impossible, and here I am. If someone asked me today I would tell them my ideal plan would be to study at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris, it feels impossible, but maybe not!

Grapefruit curd and black pepper meringue tarts

Yes it sounds strange.....but its delicious. The recipe is from the beautiful Rachel Khoo

You will need:

For the curd:

• 1 grapefruit
• 100g of caster sugar
• 1 egg, plus one egg yolk whisked together
• 1 heaped table spoon of corn flour
• 50g of soft butter chopped

For the bace: 

• 75g of butter softened
• 75g of caster sugar
• zest of one lemon
• 2 egg yolks
• 100g of plain flour
• 2tsp of baking powder

Italian Meringue:

• 100g of caster sugar
• 2 egg whites
• 1/4 tsp of cracked black pepper

What to do:

1. First off start with the curd as it will need some time to cool in the fridge. Squeeze the grapefruit so that you have 90ml. Also finely zest the fruit.
2. Mix together the juice, zest, egg, sugar and cornflour. Place in a pot over low heat, and cook continually stirring. Don't cook too high or leave the pot otherwise it may scramble. It will be cooked when the mix coats the back of a spoon. Take of the heat and slowly stir in the cubes of butter, stirring until dissolved.
3. Preheat the oven to 180
4. To make the biscuit bace, beat the butter and sugar together with an electric mixer,until thick and pail. Beat in the eggs one at a time.
5. Add the flour, baking powder and zest, and mix together until it resembles a smooth paste. 
6. In Rachels she pipes the mixture into 6 metal desert rings that have been greased. Firstly you pipe the bace of the rings (in a circle like snail shape) and then pipe one ring up around the sides so it forms a sort of cup shape. I however don't own any desert rings so I did the same thing but in a muffin tin. I Oiled and lined the muffin tin with baking paper so that they would come out easily. If those instructions don't make much sense check out this tutorial as it explains it all very perfectly.
7. Place the piped bases in the oven and bake for 12 to 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool.
8. Lastly the meringue......don't be intimidated! Place the sugar and 2 tablespoons of water in a pot on low heat and stir until dissolved. Turn to high heat and boil the mixture until it reaches 118 on a sugar thermometer. I actually don't have one of these, and in pastry school we learnt to gage the temperature in which its ready by placing a fork in the mixture, withdrawing it, and then blowing between the prongs of the fork. If a bubble formed (like when you blew bubbles with a little bubble blower as a kid) then it would be ready. This however is kinda dangerous as sugar can really really burn your skin when its at that temperature. Another way to tell is if you drop some of the mixture into really cold water and a sticky ball forms that means its ready. Either way, find a system that works for you. 
9. Just before the sugar mix reaches this point, start beating together you egg whites and pepper with an electric beater until they are bubbly and a little fluffy.
10. Drizzle the sugar mixture into a running electric beater, and then continue to beat the mixture until it is glossy and thick.
11. To assemble the desert, place some curd in each bace, and spoon some meringue on top. Use a knife, or an offset pallet knife to smooth the top.
12. Brulee the tops of the tarts with a blow torch.....or if you're like me and yours blew up (or you just don't have one.) Place them under the grill for a minute or so, or until the tops get a little golden. 

Birthday Coconut Cake

Today I bought my first phone on a plan......and let me tell you, it was a little scary! My whole life I have used prepaid phones, afraid of the huge commitment of a plan. Today however I overcame this! I feel more mature already.

Ok ok.....I know this blog is meant to be about food, and romance, but let me tell you, I am much too busy at the moment for much romance......so you will have to settle with my stories of phones on plans and what not (the boy who sold me the phone was a wee bit cute though. I resisted asking him on a date, so that I could go home and do homework instead. I told you this phone is making me mature already.)


Anyway here is a little sneak peak of what last week looked like for me when I wasn't working......It was a week fully of birthday celebrations, and I felt lucky to share in all the fun with my housemate and her family and friends.

 Birthday Breakfasts!

 Cream Cheese Chocolate cakes! Delicious......and I loved the party sprinkles !!

 Cookie decorating time for parties!

Birthday Coconut Cake
(From Good Taste Magazine)

• 1 cup of desiccated coconut
• 400ml of coconut milk
• 1 cup of milk
• 2tsp of coconut essence

Soak all these ingredients together for one hour.

• 375g of butter
• 2 and 1/4 cups of sugar

Cream together until light and fluffy

• Add 5 eggs, one at a time

• Add 3 and 3/4 cups of self raising flour in alternation with the coconut mix.

Mix everything together so there is no lumps

Pour into two greased and lined cake tins (its best if one is bigger than the other so that one cake can sit on top of the other when cooked.)

Bake at 160 for one hour and a half.


For frosting:

• 300ml of cream
• 300g of white chocolate

Bring the cream to the boil, and pour over the chocolate.
Stir until smooth
Let the mix cool until slightly thickened

Place the smaller cake on top of the larger one, and cover with the white chocolate frosting.

Sprinkle with some extra coconut

And eat!