Summer Deck Update

So this is pretty much where I spent this weekend.

It's like Brisbane just suddenly realised it's February and it better turn up the temperature. It's been a real stinker of a weekend.

I've spent a bit of time peering over the deck railings and making mental lists of all the jobs that need to be done in the garden and then plopping down on the lounge totally at peace with the fact that none of them are going to get done today.

We picked up the outdoor lounge on sale at Freedom a few weeks ago - I thought it was a bit of a shame to get it at the end of the summer, but it's been brilliant and it's really encouraged us to get outside and utilise the deck a bit more. When I come home from work and stretch out on it I somehow don't feel as guilty as I would lying in front of the TV.

And although Mr Tchotchke loves it too I think he regards it as a new battleground for his ongoing war against over-cushioning..

Paleo Carrot Cake: Cavemen Deserve Treats Too

To treat myself for making it through four weeks of Paleo eating I whipped up a little Paleo Carrot Cake on the weekend.

It really didn't hold a candle to my favourite ever carrot cake at Bourke st Bakery in Sydney, but for a Paleo interpretation it was pretty good.

I started off with a recipe from Make It Paleo, but adapted it and reduced some of the quantities when I realised that their carrot cake probably cost $40 in ingredients... Here's my interpretation.

Alecia's Paleo Carrot Cake

3 carrots, grated

3/4 cup pure maple syrup

3/4 cup coconut flour

2 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp salt

1 tsp baking powder

15 pitted dates

5 eggs

2 tbsp vanilla essence

1/2 cup melted coconut oil

small tub of cream cheese

1 tsp ground ginger

a few walnuts to garnish

1) In a bowl, pour 1/2 cup of maple syrup and 1/4 cup water over grated carrots and pop in the fridge for an hour.

2) In a mixmaster bowl, combine sifted coconut flour cinnamon, salt and baking soda.

3) In a microwave safe bowl, add 1/4 cup water to the pitted dates and microwave for 30 seconds. Mash the mixture with a fork and then microwave for another 30 seconds and then mash again.

4) Add the mashed date mix to the flour mixture, and then add eggs, vanilla and coconut oil. Mix well.

5) Remove bowl from mixer and add the maple syrup marinated carrots. Fold through.

6) Grease a round springform pan with coconut oil and pour in the batter.

7) Bake in a 175 degree (Celsius) oven for 35 mins or until your skewer comes out clean.

8) In a small bowl, combine the cream cheese with 1/4 cup maple syrup and the ground ginger, and then when cake has cooled, frost cake with cream cheese icing and garnish with smashed walnuts.

If you're used to massively sugary carrot cakes then this isn't going to cut the mustard - but if you've been living on meat, veggies and green smoothies for four weeks then this is actually pretty good.

If I was going to make it again and wasn't being so Paleo-strict, I'd add 1/2 cup self raising flour so that it would raise a little more, and a little bit of icing sugar to the cream cheese frosting because I found the paleo version borderline savoury - but otherwise it was delish. 

And since it was so god-damn healthy I didn't feel guilty polishing off a few slices to celebrate nothing really particular on a Sunday afternoon.

A Pasta Fiend Goes Paleo

So I've been conducting a little experiment. A little food experiment - a Palaeolithic experiment to be exact.

I'd read a bit about eating "Paleo" - but I think it was this post on Sarah Wilson's blog that kicked me into gear and inspired me to give it a try. I've been having a few issues with my skin and thought I'd see if it made any difference, as most anti-inflammatory diets are no dairy and no wheat.

"Paleo" eating takes things a little further - with strict followers consuming no dairy, no grains and no legumes (so no corn, no beans, no peanuts - the list goes on). So basically you just eat lots of meat, fish, fruit and veggies. The rationale is that our bodies aren't designer to easily digest dairy, grains and legumes, and we should eat like paleolithic people did.

I bought the above book "Make it Paleo" and set out to give Paleo eating a try for a month.

As an avid pasta lover I predicted I wouldn't last a week - but actually surprised myself by how relatively easy it was. I've just finished four weeks - and although I allowed myself a few little cheats on the weekend (rice at asian restaurants, doughnuts at the markets..) to keep myself sane - I reckon I've been at least 90% paleo.

And what's the result? Well, I feel more energetic, less hungry all the time, and I think its improved my skin. I think planning ahead was a big part of getting me through four weeks - and "Make It Paleo" was really great for simple mid week lunch and dinner ideas.

Am I going to stick with it? Kind of. I'm going to try and keep it up on weekdays and continue to allow myself a little more freedom on the weekends. Because god I miss pasta. And cheese. And I'm sure even Paleolithic cavewomen treated themselves once in a while.

Surprise Harvest

I've gotten a bit disheartened with our veggie patch of late. My cucumber seedlings got scratched out by naughty chicken feet. My zucchini seedlings got eaten by rogue possums. My pumpkin vine shrivelled up and died. Ditto the choke vine. Ditto the corn. My chia plant still fails to produce any seeds. My two lone passionfruit are MIA.  My chillies are on strike. Sigh.

Sometimes its easy to get discouraged, when all the hard work fails to pay off. Sometimes you're too tired, too hot, too hungover - there are too many weeds to pull, too many grasshoppers to battle.

But sometimes a veggie patch is still generous enough to offer up some treats, despite the fact you've wilfully neglected it for weeks on end.

The sweet potatoes were a welcome surprise in a corner that I thought I'd harvested months ago. And the lemongrass might be a bitch to pull out but it's so low maintenance it can be forgiven. And the wee butternut pumpkin was the lone survivor of a vine that could't handle the summer heat. But it was so cute it finally motivated me to get back into the patch and sow some more seeds.

Taschen's The Vegetable Garden

Mr T hit it out of the ball park this Christmas.

Oh yeeeah! As soon as I ripped open the wrapping and saw the Tashsen logo I squealed a little.

There's a lovely flip through pamphlet with a blurb on gardening and the key for each image..

...and then 46 divine fine art prints of veggies!

They're pretty huge and did I mention there were 46 of them! I'm not exactly sure what I'm going to do with them yet - there's a wall in the kitchen that I could potentially frame 6 or 8 of them, otherwise I was thinking of maybe dotting them around our spare room so that future poppets would grow up with a love for illustrated veggies. Our veggie patch is very dry and unproductive at the moment so I think I'll just be admiring these veggies for a little while instead.

Pineapple Protection

I spotted this sign at the community garden at Davies Park whilst at the West End markets a fortnight ago.

I do my fair share of complaining about losing produce to possums and chickens - so I can certainly empathise with them. I missed the markets this weekend so I'm eagerly awaiting next Saturday to see if the little piney is still holding on.

I especially love the post script - if you can't make it out, it reads "ps - please, stop stealing this sign."

Christmas Tchotchkes

I love Christmas. 

I love the food, I love wrapping gifts, I love silly carols, I love ultra tacky house lights, I love putting up the Christmas tree and I especially love the ornaments.

These two vintage Christmas ornaments were from a small collection passed down to me from my grandmother. I still remember hanging them on her small tree as a kid.

I love buying ornaments on overseas travels (they're small souvenirs that get used at least once a year). This  Mexican mama is from our Playa Del Carmen.

And a pinocchio from Venice!

And a fluffy owl from Richmond in Tasmania.

This one is a lovely new addition - a gift from Germany from a very thoughtful friend.

And a gift from last year with a favourite line.

Let your heart be light -- Merry Christmas everyone!!