Cooking Club: Winter Warmers

On Saturday night, my friends and I had our latest Cooking Club dinner. This time, we had a full table of six (seven including six week old baby Lucas). Our theme was 'Winter Warmers' and we all came away with a collection of delicious recipes perfect for the current cold nights. I remembered to take photos although they all have a golden glow to them as I couldn't suss out the lighting and camera settings.



To decorate the table, I used a piece of grey and white striped fabric as a runner (I had actually bought this fabric for our nursery). I didn't use any fresh flowers this time but instead placed a pot of parsley in the centre of the table and made some origami flowers using some pretty double sided gift wrap I bought from Kikki K. One roll provided plenty of paper for five of these flowers as well as enough to wrap my 'spot prize'. I actually had fun putting these together one night in front of the television. You can find the tutorial for making these cute flowers here. I followed the instructions exactly only I didn't use glue but instead tried double sided tape which I think is definitely a better option. It's funny because this week after my dinner party, I was flicking through the latest Real Living magazine and actually spotted these exact origami flowers which had been made into a ball.



To break away from my usual white and silver edged Maxwell and Williams crockery, I borrowed my friend's pretty Marie Claire side plates which fit in perfectly. I also made some labels for each dish using a printable Martha Stewart template you can find here (there are also other colour options you can choose from).



My traditional spot prize for one of my guests this time was the parsley plant, a handy measuring glass from Wheel and Barrow and a jar of vanilla bean paste.

As for the yummy dishes we shared, our menu consisted of:

- Zucchini and Prosciutto Soup
- Spiced Pumpkin and Coconut Soup
- Chicken and Mushroom Pie
- Sweet Potato and Pancetta Risotto
- Crumbed Scotch Fillet
- Moroccan Beef
- Chocolate Orange Croissant Bread and Butter Pudding



I've shared the two soup recipes below, but if anyone is interested in the other recipes, let me know and I'll do another post.

For our next theme in August, we are going to break away from dinner recipes and have an afternoon tea instead with 'Teatime Treats' of cakes, biscuits and slices. I'm looking forward to decorating the table prettily and have already got a few ideas floating around in my head.

Here's those soup recipes for anyone who would like to try them out...


Spiced Pumpkin and Coconut Soup

1 tbsp red curry paste
1kg pumpkin, peeled and chopped
4 cups chicken or vegetable stock
1½ cups coconut milk
1 large red chilli, seeded and finely sliced

Place a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the curry paste and cook for one minute. Add the pumpkin and stock, cover and cook until the pumpkin is tender. Place the pumpkin mixture in a blender and blend until smooth. Return the soup to the saucepan. Add the coconut milk and heat through. Ladle into bowls and sprinkle with the chilli to serve.



Zucchini and Prosciutto Soup

1 tbsp olive oil
1 brown onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
100g prosciutto, chopped
1 tsp thyme leaves
3 zucchini, grated
2 cups chicken or vegetable stock
feta cheese, crumbled (to serve)

Heat a large saucepan over medium high heat. Add the oil, onion, garlic, prosciutto and thyme and cook for 4-5 minutes or until the onion is softened. Add the zucchini, stock, salt and pepper and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer for 10-15minutes or until the zucchini is cooked. Use a hand held blender to partially blend the soup, leaving some texture. Ladle soup into bowls and top with crumbled feta.

A Happy Week

Although Grace and I did nothing overly exciting, last week was a really good week and my happy mood has extended into this one too. Here’s an assortment of things that have been making me smile and some things I'm looking forward to…



… the two bunches of flowers Grace and I bought this morning from the Beaufort Street flower sellers. We went for a drive north of the river to buy a cushion from Domayne and made a detour to buy a cheap bunch on the way home. They add a touch of colour around the house and make me smile when I walk past them.


… our Rinnai flame effect gas heater (in the background of the above photo). Last year, we spent the majority of winter without a heater when our very old one died. Getting a new one wasn’t all that straightforward but thankfully this year, ours has been working a treat. It’s so lovely having the 'flames' glowing away at night.



... our beautiful bright pink camellia which is flowering in our backyard (although most of the pretty blooms fell to the ground in last week’s heavy rain). The photo above is the view I see from our kitchen windows each time I look out (if only those hideous palm trees weren't in the yard next door!) It’s so nice to have colour in the garden. Even the fallen petals on the ground are pretty.


…having a hair appointment on Wednesday. I’m looking forward to a bit of 'me' time, relaxing at the hair dressers with some magazines and a cup of tea and coming out feeling great. I love my wavy hair but I always get my hair straightened for something different when I go to the hair dressers.



… finally finding the perfect fabrics for the quilt I’m making Grace. I've decided not to go with pastel colours after all, but am using more vibrant, pretty prints. After much hunting, I stumbled across some great material at a few local quilting stores and Spotlight, along with some gorgeous pieces I’ve ordered from Etsy. Can’t wait for those packages to arrive and can’t wait to get stuck into sewing!


… being given a huge box of hand me down clothes for Grace from Paul’s cousin whose little girls had outgrown them. Grace thought it was Christmas and has been ‘playing dress ups’ all week as I slowly sort through what fits and what doesn’t. I used to be so excited as a little girl when my cousin passed her old clothes down to me.



…my growing baby bump. The picture above is the blurriest shot ever but at least it shows you my belly (it’s very hard to take a photo of yourself I’ve discovered!!). At 23 weeks, I’m getting lots of prods these days and I love lying in bed at night feeling our baby kicking away. The fact that we’ve only got 17 weeks left is a bit scary though!!


... curling up on the couch tonight with my cuppa in hand and a piece or two of the chocolate fudge I made purely as an indulgent treat for myself. I'm looking forward to watching Katrina on The Block and then flicking through the latest Real Living magazine.


I hope you all have a happy week ahead too. What are you looking forward to?

Artwork In Our Home

I read somewhere recently that you can tell a lot about a person by the types of artwork displayed in their home. That’s a bit unfortunate for us as we still have several bare walls yet to be filled. However, the artworks we have bought so far are all pieces we love. Today I thought I’d share with you some of my favourite art from around our home.

The canvas in our bedroom was actually a Christmas present one year from Paul. It is by Kanvas, a West Australian company based in Subiaco with a range of great designs and I had been eyeing this particular piece off for some time when I first discovered their website. With some help from one of my best friends, Paul managed to buy (and keep secret) exactly the canvas I had been admiring. It fits in well with the feel of our bedroom.



In our entryway is a signed print by artist Helen Norton. We purchased it from Helen’s old gallery (Cockatoo Gallery) in Fremantle which unfortunately no longer exists, although Helen’s pieces can still be purchased from other sources. We loved her quirky style of art and finally settled on the print above titled ‘Sniffing Dogs’. You can see more of Helen’s artwork here.

In our lounge is a small original oil painting we bought from ‘The Old Butter Factory’ in Denmark on our last visit. It is actually a scene from Albany and for its size wasn’t cheap, but we loved its colours and subject matter. Its title is ‘Come Walk With Me’ and it is by Lois Drygan.



Two small pieces I purchased from Etsy are by print gocco artist Bernadette Sipkes of Sugarloop. When I first discovered Sugarloop, I fell in love with Bernadette’s simple designs with their almost folk-like feel. A gold owl print now sits next to our computer and a green bird print is on the wall directly outside our study.





Finally, our kitchen / living area is home to three of our favourite artworks. Above my tea and coffee station on top of our kitchen bench is a canvas we purchased on our last trip to Sydney. It is a view from the Sydney Harbour Bridge and has an almost fishbowl effect to the way it has been painted. It’s fun trying to pick out famous Sydney locations like Bondi Beach or the SCG while the kettle is boiling.

On the opposite end of our kitchen bench are two prints by Sue Miller which we bought in Salamanca when we visited Hobart. The left piece is called 'Boats On The Derwent' and the other 'Emmalisa Off Battery Point'. The image on the right is particularly meaningful to us as we had a cruise on the exact ‘Emmalisa’ paddle steamer in the scene. We had these professionally framed once we were back home.

So there you have a snapshot into some of our artwork. I’m not sure what these pieces say exactly about Paul and I, but they are all part of our ‘story’ we have built since we moved into our home over six years ago. I’ve spent a lot of time this week researching galleries around Fremantle and Perth that I can drag Paul along to so we can hopefully finally fill our bare walls. We’ll also check out the galleries down south when we go on a little holiday later in the year.

Do you have a favourite piece of art in your home? I’d love to hear about it.

Delicious Potato and Leek Soup

Image above via Ooh, Look... Food and Craft

I love making Potato and Leek soup, not only because it is hearty and warming (perfect for wintery nights), it’s super simple to make. I have always used a very basic recipe but when the June issue of Real Living magazine came out a few weeks ago, I decided to give their version a try.

The use of celery, garlic and vegetable stock (as opposed to chicken) appears to make a difference. However the definite magic ingredient for me was fresh thyme leaves. Fortunately this is one of the plants in my herb garden that has taken off so I had plenty to add to the pot.

If you’re after a delicious soup to try one wintery evening, be sure to give this one a go. I’ve written out the recipe below for those of you who don’t have the magazine. On the subject of cooking winter dishes, this coming Saturday is our next Cooking Club and our theme is ‘Winter Warmers’. I promise I will make it my priority this time to take photos and will be sure to share with you all any yummy recipes I gather. Stay tuned…


Potato and Leek Soup

50g butter
2 leeks, trimmed, washed and sliced
2 celery stalks, chopped roughly
3 tsp fresh thyme leaves
1 garlic clove, minced
1.2kg potatoes, peeled and chopped into small pieces
1L vegetable stock
2 cups water
sea salt
cracked black pepper
¾ cup cream, plus extra to drizzle

Melt butter in saucepan over medium heat. Add leeks, celery and thyme. Cook for 10 mins until leeks and celery are tender but not coloured. Add garlic and cook for a further 2 mins.

Add potatoes, stock and water to saucepan. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Increase heat to high and boil for about 15 to 20 mins until potatoes are very tender. Skim any scum that rises to surface and discard.

Use blender or food processor to puree soup in batches until smooth. Return blended soup to saucepan. Over medium heat, add cream and stir. Gently heat through.

Drizzle with extra cream and cracked black pepper to serve.

(Serves 4)

Putting Off Projects

It’s taken me a long while to realise this fact but I’ve finally accepted that my house will most likely never reach the fairytale ‘perfect’ standard I hoped to achieve ‘one day’. Too often, I put off projects I am keen to get stuck into because I think that our house isn’t clean enough to allow myself the pleasure of indulging in crafty activities as there are more important things I should be spending my time on. I’ll often tell myself that when ‘everything is done’, I’ll begin sewing that top for Grace or learning how to crochet.

The day that my sink is empty (and shining), all the washing and ironing done, the floors mopped, the carpets vacuumed, my bathrooms scrubbed and the house tidy is always going to be a long way off. It’s not that such a target is necessarily unachievable, it’s more that there will always be something to clean, something to sort through or some chore that could be done as well as lots of other responsibilities that go with being a stay at home Mum to a toddler.

I’ve decided I’m going to try and dedicate more time to the many crafts and homely projects I’d like to try. There are so many ideas saved in my ‘to make’ inspiration folder that I am itching to start. To begin with I’d like to make the quilt I’m working on for Grace’s new bed and provided that goes okay, I’d like to start a quilt for our new baby. Crocheting is also something I’ve wanted to learn for a long time so armed with the guide and crochet hook Catherine sent me, I’d like to try and make a pretty scarf for Grace to wear this winter. Gift tags, some decorative pieces for Grace’s room and a cross stitch runner are also things I’m planning to make.

I’m interested who else out there has my problem and keeps putting off exciting new projects waiting for that magical day when they have nothing else important to do? Which projects are you keen to get started on?

Also, this week, Homely One is being featured over at The Decorating Forum. If you’re not a member already, be sure to head over and check it out. It’s a wonderful resource for all home and decorating topics and provides plenty of advice that you may need.

Enjoy your start to the week!

I must apologise as I have no idea where I originally found any of these images as I've had them in my folder for a very long time. If any of these images are yours, please let me know and I will be sure to give them proper credit.