Almond and Rosewater Shortbread

We have a lot of morning teas around my workplace and sometimes I simply don't have the time or inclination to whip up some elaborate. These Almond and Rosewater Shortbread are just solution as they are a breeze to make, all the ingredients are in my pantry and they look great. Start by preheating your oven to 160°C and lightly greasing two baking trays. Take 180g of soften butter, 3/4 cup shifted icing sugar mixture and beat until pale and creamy.

Then add 100g almond meal, 3/4 cup plain flour, 1/4 cup white rice flour, 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves and stir until well combined.
Use your hands to gently roll the mixture into 8cm long and shape into crescents. Pop them into the oven for 25 minutes or until cooked through and just starting to colour. After removing them from the oven, brush them with rosewater and allow them to cool on the tray.

Dust them with a generous coating of icing sugar, top and bottom and enjoy. They keep well in airtight container our of direct sunlight for up to five days.

Rocket, Pear and Parmesan Salad

I was recently dropped by Miss Sarah's new abode and she cooked a lovely Rissoto and Rocket, Pear and Parmesan Salad. I liked the salad so much that I recreated it for lunch. Simply wash two large handful of rocket, peel and thinly slice a packham pear and dress with lemon and olive oil (I used Mandala Grove Gourmet Blend as it contains a mix of olive, avocado and lemon oil) and shave some parmesan cheese to garnish. Yummo!

The Ugly Pterodactyl Stage

A couple of weeks ago I brought home a box of six fluffy chicks. Well five weeks down the track and we are well into the Ugly Pterodactyl Stage. Scientists discourage the usage of the word 'Pterodactyl' as it refers to the genus Pterodactylus and instead advocate the usage of the term 'Pterosaur.' Pterosaur sounds rather plain so I will ignore scientific advice as decades of Marketing folk have.

Though this is a truly ugly developmental stage for chickens, it does reveal the gender. Souffle and Gertie have begun mock displays of dominance and this confirms they are unfortunately roosters. Roosters start to crow at 3am in the morning and hourly thereafter; they are also seasonally aggressive and thus few people will put up with a feisty rooster, unless they intend to breed from the bird. I have a month to find the lads a new home, so if anyone knows someone who would want to house an easy to handle rooster, drop me a line.

Willow and Spoon

It wasn't so long ago when I was bemoaning the lack of interesting cafes on Brisbane's Northside but I'm please to say that Willow and Spoon is another of these establishments working to fill the void. Despite Willow and Spoon being located on busy Samford Road, there is ample parking on side streets and you'll barely notice the traffic with the eclectic mixture of furniture and fresh plants.

Willow and Spoon continued to impress with its gorgeous menu. Presented on a wooden clipboard, Renee and I thought long and hard. Would we select 'Parlez Vous Franois?' A creme brulee french toast, raspberry and vanilla bean ice cream. 'Chloe's Wild?' Mushroom, garlic, spinach, tomato, haloumi and corn bread. 'The Swiss Miss?' Beef cheek, cauliflower gratin, tallegio cheese, foreign crumbs and poached egg. I really wanted to know more about these foreign crumbs ... but important business first, coffee! Willow and Spoon uses Blue Sky Coffee Beans and comes served in brightly coloured cups, with a unique collectible teaspoon and grated chocolate. I was impressed with the effort, but was I impressed with the coffee? It was serviceable but the milk lacked fullness and body. Renee wondered if it was cheap milk, I wondered if the steam wand was positioned too high, but we're giving the establishment the benefit of the doubt as we were later informed by the friendly and helpful staff that the coffee machine had broken down.

Renee ordered 'The Willow' consisting of bacon, eggs, tomato, braised red lentils and semolina toast. Though Renee was happy with her meal, though we both decided we were a little short on toast. I just love a poached egg between two slices of toast, so on one piece of toast simply won't do for me. But luckily, you can order toast as a side and my word it arrived fast. It was like magic!

I decided to order 'The Stateside' which consisted of shredded pork, pumpkin puree, home-style beans and a fried egg. Though I like a savoury breakfast, I prefer more retrained flavours in he morning so I have substituted a poached egg. Though the home-style beans were full of flavour it was tempered by the pumpkin puree. I really enjoyed this dish and I know I'll be back to enjoy this lovely local.

Rating: 4 out of 5.
Address: 28 Samford Road, Alderley, QLD 4051.
Open: Tuesday - Friday: 7am - 3pm, Saturday: 8am - 2pm, Sunday: 8am - 12pm.
Phone: (07) 3855 9580.
Price: Breakfast: $15 - $18. Lunch: $14 - $17.

Strawberry Fields

There are few luxuries when you are a poor university student but if I had to open the store on a dark Winter's morning, I would always pop down to the Eagle Street Markets and pick up a big punnet of fresh strawberries. That would be my breakfast, lunch and occasionally dinner for the day and I was happy.

But the only thing that beats eating fresh strawberries is actually going out to a farm and picking them yourself. So on the way home from Maleny, we made the snap decision to stop off at Batavia Berries (9 Kings Road, Glasshouse Mountains) and pick up a couple of kilos. The cost is $10 a kilo which is cheaper than current market price and you know every berry is perfect. There is also a beautiful sense of satisfaction you get from picking your own as you breathe in the cool air and enjoying the sound of dry leaves and red dirt under foot.

The Queensland strawberry season is currently at its peak and runs until October, so now is the time to explore one of the two hundred strawberry farms across the state. If you can't get to Batavia Berries, then this handy directory offers some alternative locations.

Grub Street

Grub Street is the local Gaythorne foodie haunt and despite the playful name, it is not located on Grub Street but on Samford Road. Owner and Chef, Travis 'Stix' Grigg is passionate about using seasonal and ethical produce (they use RSPCA approved free range eggs and pork) and offers a creative menu. In fact the current breakfast menu features dishes such as Orange and vanilla risotto with roasted apple and rhubarb, Beetroot cured salom with horseradish creme fraiche and chopped egg on sourdough toast and Asian pulled pork omelette with chilli jam, herb salad and black vinegar dressing. So I packed up some of my nearest and dearest friends and set off on a quest to Grub Street.

We arrived early and after scoping out the dining room (it seats 20) and the back deck, we decided to sit at a large table on the side. Pictured above is Amy's Mushroom duxelle with truffled pecorino scrambled eggs. Scrambled eggs seem easy to accomplish but I've had them served rubbery and watery more times that I care for. Bleh. But behold the wonderfully light and silky scrambled eggs.

Though I was sorely tempted the French toast with caramelised pear and wattle seed ice cream, I'm a savoury person in the morning and selected the Haloumi and Zuchinni fritters with poached eggs, spinach, za'atar and smoky eggplant. Though it sounds like a heavy meal, the smaller portion size and soft poached eggs made it amazing and extremely moreish.

But if you aren't tempted by the menu, then be sure to ask about the specials. This is Grub Street's Strawberry pancakes with blood orange icecream and chocolate. Is and Amy reported that the icecream was amazing. So while I'm quite happy to wax lyrical and sing the praises of Grub Street's offering ... I will say I left angry as we were bundled out the door within the hour. I understand the establishment has limited room (20 guests in the dining room and three tables outdoors), but to be asked within the hour to wrap up twice in an hour is poor front of house management. Weekend breakfast is more than just the food, it is also the experience of being able to spend time with friends. Grub Street could have resolved the issue in three ways:

• Set expectations at the start by starting a weekend time limit.


• Purchase more outdoor seating.


• Ask politely if guests would be happy to move to a smaller table.

Though I'm still incredibly disenchanted by this, Grub Street is still worth a visit. Just be prepared to eat and quickly depart.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.
Address: 1/440 Samford Road, Gaythorne, QLD 4031.
Open: Tuesday to Saturday. 7am - 2pm.
Phone: (07) 3855 9580.
Price: Breakfast: $6 - $18. Lunch: $10 - $18.

Happy 5th Birthday Baci!

My gorgeous baby girl turns five today and I can't believe how quickly the years have passed. It only feels like yesterday when I picked up this determined little fuzz ball from the Gold Coast. There has never been a dull moment since she arrived, so to celebrate I thought I would share with you some of my favourite images.

Baci is amazingly independent creature with a stubborn trip. I can recall as a 12 week old pup, I reprimanded her for climbing the stairs which would reduce most dogs to a quiver. But this tiny fuzz ball emitted a growl and continued. I had to install a sheet of laminated chipboard, until she decided climbing the stairs was painful and futile. Being my faithful kitchen companion, Baci is often underfoot and still back chats when I trip over her and rouse her from her sleep or a forging adventure!

Here is a photo of Baci at three months old, during the "ugly" puppy stage. All legs! You can see from the photos that Baci sports a Marilyn Monroe freckle on the side of her face.

This is one of my favourite photos Baci and she is six month old in this photograph. I shot this photo early in the morning, before taking her to the vet to be desexed. Needless to say she probably thought I was the worst Mother in the world, no breakfast and a vet trip!

This photo was taken by Ryan when Baci was two and a half years old. I think it captures her exuberance and spirit. Happiest of birthdays to my beautiful girl!