I decided to show you how cute someone can be eating a piece of nectarine.

So I snapped him.

He saw me.

He did.

He felt my snapping self.

He got all curious.

The fruit lowered down.

The eyebrows went up.

And there was no more eating.

Never mind, I can show you how cute someone can be just, being.
Ignore the black mark on his face, which was a remnant of his parents attempt to test his development.
We marked him and then lifted him up to the mirror to see if he will try to wipe it off..or something.

He was not impressed by the mark.

Ok, so he doesnt know who he is, but we do.

And he is cute eating fruit or not, with random marks on his face or without.

Dont you ever say anything contrary.

I have done sushi before, but it was awhile since I have dived into this particular culinary delight. Until tonight.

As a family we could eat tons of the stuff. Baklava is no different and packs up the pieces one after the other. So it is a good idea to make our own instead of spending piles of money for an already done sushi.

Unfortunately I couldnt quickly get my hands on some roe, which would have made this so much better, but next time I will plan better.

The rice didnt turn out perfect, but the rest was fantastic, if I may say so myself. The piece of salmon was almost $15, but I made some sashimi, some of it I cooked briefly with sesame seeds crust and there was enough to make some nigiri sushi and maki rolls. The rest of the fillings were – chicken, smoked salmon, avocado, cucumber, carrot and sesame seeds. Rough estimates makes this tray about $25, maximum $30. Yummy and sensible.

Next time addition list – fish roe and Japanese mayo, possibly tuna and prawns

That is what has been around here. Hot.

Well hello in the new year. I think most of you are in the midst of winter, snow and all. Not us here, down under. We are simmering in the juices of summer and its not even the hottest time of the year. Someone kill me and chop me up and stuff me in the fridge. Although, I must say, that I have acclimatized to the heat the last few years. It doesnt knock me down like it used to.

The answer to the heat is usually, keep the blinds closed, the doors and windows shut and pretend you cant move too fast.

Other options are an impromptu consumption of ice chocolate on the floor of the kitchen:

I have never attempted such drink before. But decided to give it a go as I happen to have some milk in the fridge (for baking purposes). So here is my recipe, which was met with absolute approval by all and lets not forget that Mr.Blab is a professional American taster – in the know of all the sweet drinks, chews, lollies, fried sweets and the such.

So:

Home made Ice Chocolate

Mix well on the stove top a cup of milk, french cocoa powder and brown sugar.
When its all nice and smooth, mix that with the rest of the milk, quantity depending on how many drinks you are making.

Whip some cream with a dash of vanilla essence, or better yet some fresh vanilla seeds.

Now

get your glasses and put a few ice cubes in

followed by a few blobs of a good quality vanilla ice cream

pour your chocolate milky mixture in

plop a dollop of the whipped cream

shave some dark chocolate on top

Then pretend in never happened and dont blog about it, especially if you have aspirations for a healthy life and all.

So dont ruin your reputation. Just enjoy, preferably on the floor.

Then we moved to the darker part of the house, which is always cooler and the big fan and high ceilings help too. Here is also where the cardboard house resides at the moment.

It has an art wall inside now.

And a little Baklava too:

Who enjoys the hot because he usually doesnt wear much more than a necklace. And kids know good stuff. And being naked is good stuff, that is before we were all conditioned that its something to be ashamed of or that is something dirty and ‘private’. Scrap that, my kids will go around naked as long as their heart desires. Little B spends her day like that often and the other day Ms Fab changed from swimming costume to her clothes in the parking lot without even flinching at being naked for a minute. Made me happy somehow. I dont have that freedom, I dont think I ever had it in my conscious life. Even when my body was perfect by all standards of society, which I can only see now, looking back at it.

Radioactive poops?

We have those too. Its a specialty of ours.

It has nothing to do with the product I provide…I think.

Now to business.

We are approaching the 1000th  comment. I wanted to give that particular commenter a little gift of some sort. But I am not sure what you would like. So any ideas? You know what I do, can do or would like to do.

And I am whipping you all, as nobody wanted to share their views on What is Life About. Shame.

Did I mention its hot?

I love potatoes.

Every kind of potato you have, I will eat it – fried, boiled, smashed, mashed, baked (not faked)…

I dont indulge this passion too much though. But when I do, I go all out.

For this version you start with washed and chopped to big chunks potatoes.
I leave the skin, as its the healthiest part of them and it gets crispy by the end of this process.

Now, fill with water and throw in some sea salt and boil.

Boil until they they get soft, but not too soft. You will see why in a minute.

Prepare for the next step.
Run to the garden and grab some thyme and garlic chives.

Then on the way back grab the stick of french butter, you will need it.

Drain the potatoes, but leave a bit of liquid in and then throw in the herbs,
as much butter as you think you can handle. We handle a lot.
And pour a good dollop of extra virgin olive oil.

Now, put the lid on and cover it with a towel.

And then shake. Shake well to mix all the goodies and to make the potatoes rough.
Then pour them in a baking tray.

And put them in a moderately hot oven.

Then check out your pot and savor the left overs.
They are deeeeelishious.

I had to share…

When your pots look like that you are done.

I serve them with a huge salad, to counteract the attack.

But you can enjoy them anyway you wish.

Just make sure you make enough.

A few weeks ago we were browsing a book store and the girls chose a cooking book for kids as one of their purchases. The book got looked at and then found a suitable place in a pile somewhere…until two days ago.

Ms.Fab wanted to cook us something. She looked through, made her choice and a shopping list. Then we were off to purchase the needed items from the local store.

Ok, dont mine my outfit, but do notice the baby on Little B’s back. She was so proud and insisted to wear it to the store.

Loaded with goodies and after a short break at the park for a few crackers with cheese and carrot juice we purchased we arrived home and our chef went to work.

She cut all the things that needed cutting – mixed, measured and prepared the ingredients. All I did was just give her verbal hints as to how something should be done and basically rephrase the instructions in the book.

She also insisted on making us a salad and desert.

So, for dinner we got:

Its was all delicious!
I will be obsolete around here before I know it

He loved it!

If he dropped it even a bit, he would get into a distressed cry, like its the end of the world.
And than as soon as the pear got in his hands, he would devour it without any time to spare.

How:
Cut off some of the pear to expose the juicy inside and give it whole.
This helps to keep it handy, doesnt get all slippery and
the likelihood of big chunks coming off is very low.

Yes, the exploration into new tastes has began. No mash or purees here though, straight onto apples and real food we go. He likes to chew on a cucumber now and the other day he was gumming it through the side of his mouth, like a big chunk of steak. Too bad I was lazy to grab the camera.

They call it child led weaning now, but when I started it with my other kids, it just felt right. At this stage I am not after quantities of consumed food, rather its about exploration into this whole new world. Little lick here, small bite there and all under his own control, definitely no spoon proding unenthusiastic lips.

He has tried – cucumber, apple, pear, banana, broccoli, caramelised onion, garlic loaded tomato pasta sauce, mushroom soup, asparagus, carrot, beans and my all time, always favorite, amazing magical and oh, so convinient avocado. It deserves an odyssey or at last a short poem of some kind.
The list may look impressive, but all together I doubt we are past a few spoon fulls of solid food so far. And I am in no hurry. Its enough we have two girls chasing us around all day long with “I am huuuungry”, “What can I eat?”, “When is lunch/dinner?”, “I am starving”. Yes, two is enough.

It has been hot lately. Not too much, but just enough to leave me sweaty and tacky at the end of the day and to prevent one from doing much, if any physical work. Ok, the last part may be my personal comfortable excuse for not exercising since my can accident, but it doesnt mean that it wasnt hot.

On top of the whole self gradating void of active living I have stumbled upon, I had this unpleasant craving for a pile of chips. I bought a little cup at the cafe where Little B swims, but the pile of greasy smelly ex potatoes didnt quite do it.

So, I made my own. Cut up the pots, warmed the olive oil and fried the buggers. Sprinkle with freshly ground salt and pepper and enjoy. Or if you dont live on your own, share with loved ones (the small ones seem to eat them faster somehow, in opposition to their physical stature).

This almost did it, although the chips were not as crispy as I wished. For some reason they got out of the pan crunchy and then by the time they cooled a bit off they were softer. I need to perfect my chip making skills.

And the perfect accompaniment to a warm pile o chipos on a warm sunny afternoon?

What a wonderful world

The other day when I went to the fresh fruit and veg place, I was met with a huge variety of plums. Not one or two, but nine. They took half a wall to accomodate.

So I am looking at them, trying to figure out which ones to buy and then I thought it will be great if we have some fun with it. I bought one of each and opened the Plum Appreciation experience, or something like that.

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Its a mouthfull isnt it? The title I mean.
This is and has been my favorite dinner for months. You are getting the recipe now thanks to Mr. Blab who scrubbed the stove top today and inspired me to be useful.

So, here it goes

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