Riesling Olympics at Fix St James

I post far more often about scoffing than quaffing, for three main reasons:

1. I can’t make wine

2. I am not confident in my abilities to describe the flavours of wine

3. Quaffing makes me forget to take photos and/or causes me to take blurry photos, which are rubbish.

Two Peas Café and Restaurant, Glebe

Two Peas is a delightful new eatery in Glebe/Forest Lodge, with food by chefs Nick Johnson and Tom Stoneham, and a lovely man named Pete at front of house. They are committed to the ethical, organic, local and seasonal is produce and in products, from biodegradable coffee cup lids to sustainable line-caught fish (hurrah!).

Pork belly & ribs stewed in orange, soy and spices

This is my mum’s best classic, comforting winter dinner dish and a firm family favourite. It fills the house with an incredibly enticing, warming fragrance from the star anise, cinnamon and orange, and reminds me of the happiest moments of my childhood. The pork is stewed until incredibly tender, so that the fat just melts in the mouth and the meat is worthy of ‘pulling’ pork status. The ribs are a treat for those who aren’t into pork fat (i.e. crazy people, and my sister).

Baby strawberry, vanilla & maple syrup teacakes

I love reading all the amazing posts from the Sweet Adventures Blog Hop, but never planned to join in, being such a lame dessert maker. However my brother Marc gave me a massive tub of the most delicious, sweet little strawberries today, so I though I’d join in this month’s Berry Nice To Meet You blog hop.

Mamak, Chinatown

Cheap, delicious and BYO, Mamak is my kind of place. It is deservedly popular, and arriving at 6.30pm on a Friday means an hour-long wait. Not always practical but worth it when you need a good Malaysian roti fix!

Spaghetti Pollanaise – a recipe inspired by Michael Pollan

Recently, we saw Michael Pollan talk at the Opera House. He was awesome.

The things he spoke of were not new to me. Ideas about eating locally grown produce; not eating too many refined “white” foods; avoiding foods so artificial that our grandmothers wouldn’t recognise them as food… But there was one line which stuck with me above all others:

Strawberry Fields Cafe and Patisserie, Dulwich Hill

While the lovely and talented Janice at Coffee 1st makes my ultimate favourite best ever coffee, and I love the gluten-free brownies she sells, I have a new favourite local for sweet indulgences… Strawberry Fields Patisserie.

Pasta alla boscaiola and an Ischia bianco

As seen on Masterchef Food Hub

Pasta all boscaiola, or ‘woodman’s pasta’, is a classic Italian dish which is in essence a combination of mushrooms, pancetta and cream. Some recipes include tomato, but I prefer mine without – which I assume is the earlier, original version anyway. It can be absolutely heavenly when properly and freshly made and feels oh, so very indulgent!

Sem-sav quaffing

 Though I’m not usually a fan of the semillon grape, this semillon sauvignon blanc had just the right amount of tropical sweetness to balance our rich, spicy Malaysian meal at Old Town Kopitiam in Melbourne. In keeping with the down-to-earth style of the restaurant, this bottle was a mere $18 (not BYO sadly) and kept our total meal cost to less than $50 for two of us.

Comforting chicken noodle “soup”

Inspired by my mum and guaranteed to feel you feel loved, this is not quite a soup, not quite pasta, and not quite a stew, but a very soothing and delicious fusion of the three. A fantastic way to use up an old roast/bbq chicken.