midge & judy

:: easter & eating ::

there is something about easter and the days leading up to easter sunday that put me in a homemaker frame of mind.
it seems that the mister is always rostered to work over the easter break. lots of our friends and family go away and those that don't are usually involved in their own family celebrations. it always leaves me feeling a bit lost.
i has become our pattern over the past few years to spend the time at home and working around the house.
knowing that our winter is just around the corner makes me think about the long days ahead when we will be spending much of our time inside and so it makes sense to me to do the spring clean now so that the house is in order and comfortable.

 i seem to have the time and the enthusiasm for cooking things that take a little bit of extra effort.

for months now i have had a wish to master the art of the macaron.
for those that have tried, it's a tricky process with a number of elements going into the preparation.
our first attempt yeileded 24 of these little circles of sweetness.

they are filled with salted caramel and need to be put up on the top shelf out of my reach.
 for many years now i have also wanted to have a go at making my own hot cross buns.

 i love the process of bread making. it's so rustic and therapeutic with all of that kneading. and i love the reward of seeing the dough rise and develop into something delicious and honest like a simple loaf.

 the buns were fun to make.
i love the way they look.

today will be the taste test when we heat them up for a good friday afternoon tea with a cuppa.

with all of these complex pastry skills being put to use i needed a quick and easy dinner to satisfy the troops and this one turned out to be a winner and will become part of the midge's kitchen repertoire.
it's quick (30 mins max) and delicious.

CHICKEN AND OYSTER MUSHROOMS WITH RICE STICK NOODLES

500g of chicken tenderloin diced into 2cm cubes
aprox. 12-15 oyster mushrooms sliced thickly
a handful or two of bean shoots
a white onion cut into  1/16th size pieces
garlic & ginger grated

2 tbs. soy sauce
1 tbs. rice wine
 1/4 teaspoon of sesame oil        
 a good pinch of white pepper
1/4 cup of chicken stock
combine all of these ingredients to make the sauce

in a wok or large fry-pan heat 3-4 tbs of peanut oil to a high heat.
stir fry the mushrooms until coloured and tender (about 6-8 mins)
remove from pan
still on high heat cook the chicken in batches until golden on the outside but not fully cooked through

meanwhile cook the noodles in boiling water for about 6 minutes until just soft
return the mushrooms and chicken to the pan with the bean shoots.
add the sauce ingredients and allow to bubble and thicken.

reduce the heat.
when cooked through (4-5) mins ad to the strained noodles and stir through.

garnish with some julienne strips of spring onion and diced chili to taste

 yummo.
i'll have to go for a run to make room for some easter eggs! 

 

:: inner nanna ::

how will i know when i am overdoing the nanna?
i have always embraced my inner nanna. i love a doily and the odd tablecloth, i'm very partial to bit of embroidery and i love nothing more than a good souvenir  tea towel.
but i am a bit concerned that i may have gone too far with my latest craft project.

 is it possible that covered coat hangers are pushing the boundary?

 i'm not sure if it is too much
i think i quite like them.

 should small chilren have recycled vintage linen coathangers in their rooms? or are they just too nanna?

 i think that i may be suffering from an overdose of nanna identity.
after a morning of riding my bike from one oppie to another and hauling my stash home in my bulging backpack it occured to me that maybe it has gone too far. 

 

 

:: cosy ::

i love this time of year. the nights and mornings are cold, the days are crisp and sunny. perfect days for hanging out in the crafty cottage.

 today i got busy with a spot of shoe making. 

 i made a start on some hot water bottle covers.

 the basket on the shelf under the window is slowly filling up with sock monkeys and molly dolls.

 perfect afternoons for a bike ride before dinner and then an evening in cosy corner catching up on a bit of stitching.

 

:: sunday snippets ::

{sunday snippets}: a collection of photos from your week.  No need for words.  Let the pictures tell your story.

i have never been short of a word
and so this meme which is intended to be represented by pictures not words is a challenge for me.

there must be some words to describe our sunday 
cooking girl, french toast, birdy boy, mr 11 penning thank you notes, coconut macaroons, mr norris, piles of washing and molly mama dolls await branding.
sunday snippets list can be found at tinniegirl 

:: doing ::

what is happening at your place?
what are you doing?
at our place i am enjoying lots of things.
i'm enjoying cooking and eating

 we are eating lots of fresh clean flavours, spicy thai flavours enhanced by beautiful herbs from our garden. from the garden to the plate makes for a an enjoyable cooking and eating experience. i love to walk out into the garden to collect thai basal, lemongrass, coriander, chili and limes then bring them into the kitchen to make a green curry paste.
i'm enjoying the beautiful autumn days,

 and the lorikeets that flock into the garden every afternoon at five o'clock. i wonder how they know what time it is?
and i'm stitching

 these little girls will need to wait until tomorrow to have their tummies filled with stuffing

 and some little babies made to fill their pockets.
finally, i am missing my big girl.

she is away on school camp for three days. she will be home tomorrow and will undoubtedly be tired and muddy and full of stories. 

:: today ::

11 years ago today the mister and i welcomed the youngest member of our family.
today we gathered as a family and celebrated  mr 10's transition to mr 11.

 he is a sweet boy,
still young enough to give the best cuddles and rely on the approval of his mum and dad.
he is considerate, 
always offering assistance,
and he never ever gets a drink or a snack for himself without getting one for his sister.
 he is funny and popular and an accomplished mimic in a cheeky, bad boy kind of way.

he is adventurous,
the highlight of his life thus far was the caravan adventure.
he often tells me that he misses the red dirt of central australia.
he would take off again in a heartbeat.
he is not so good at remembering or being organised.
he is quite absent minded
he has been known to put his shoes in the fridge or attempt to put his school shoes on without socks.

 he is very sensitive.
he struggled to hide his disappointment this morning when his birthday present did not include the one thing that he wanted, a minecraft tee shirt.
there were big fat tears but not in a bratty,ungrateful display.it was just in a heart wrenching, unable to disguise his sadness kind of way.

he is an enthusiastic lover of food and cooking.
he started the day with traditional (in our house) breakfast pancakes.
he ordered gnocchi for his birthday dinner which he ate with gusto after initially critiquing me as having undercooked it.
his favorite desert was fashioned into a birthday cake by arranging 11 mini pavlovas on a platter.

he had a great day, especially after being gifted with a minecraft tee shirt and a creeper canvas complete with back-lighting made especially for him by his adoring mum.
happy birthday T,
you are the best 

 

:: sunday snippets ::

it is such a long time since i joined the sunday snippet gang
here it is

 
glutenous rice in lotus leaf parcels



 
splash the wonder dog

and a wee bit of stitching

thanks for the chance to play along cathy

:: if you go down to the woods ::

today is the day that the teddy bears have their picnic

 picnic time for teddy bears

 the little teddy bears are having a lovely time today

 they are sitting on their picnic rug enjoying jam sandwiches, cupcakes with cherries on top, a jam roll and classic bear fare a pot of honey. yummo.
(they are in the mail bron) 

:: family ::

we were lucky to spend the weekend down on the coast with some of my extended family.

 each labour day long weekend it has been our custom to go away together.

 this year was a new location at Ocean Grove on the Victorian coastline.

 three generations , my mum, some of my siblings, my nieces and nephew, aunt and uncle, kids and the mister and then a few friends for good measure.

 it is a rare treat to spend a couple of days together, cooking and eating, all sleeping under one roof, waking to share a coffee and a leisurely breakfast together.

 plenty of time for walking, exploring, bike riding, playing on the beach, reading, sleeping and relaxing. whatever takes your fancy really.

 time spent with people who know and love you, accept you in all of your quirky goodness, talk to you and more importantly listen to you.

 time to laugh at and with the beautiful children that we have been blessed with.

 time for them to frolic with their cousins. with ages ranging from almost 13 down to almost three they all have a ball with age and gender presenting no boundaries to their ability to get along.

 to my way of thinking that is what family should be.

 in the closing weeks of the beach season i cant think of a better way to spend a long weekend. 

:: snapshots::

no time for blogging.
here's why

it's tomato sauce season

dozens of bottles of sweet, red, garlicky goodness

 sunny autumn days alternating with above average rainfalls invite long hours in the garden

sometimes i think i can see the flowers growing

another trip to the nursery for supplies to fill in some gaps

and i'm stitching like a madwoman to get supplies ready for saturdays market

a basket of monkeys

a pair of miss molly mamas

bags and bibs in multiples

the most viewed wall in my house is the one in my sewing room,
my blog must have cobwebs i think