Borrowed time

This absolute gem is also in Rockhampton. When I was little it was the posh-est restaurant in town. It sits on a prime position riverside, and once sold will most probably be demolished to make room for tres ordinaire high rise units. I think it deserves a moments silence.

You can read the full listing here.

Finger crossed, through some miracle, she manages to stay on her feet.

.....and then there was one

Look at these beautiful dahlias my friend gave me, and all I had to do was feed her little cat. They are from Bangalow, from a prize-winning dahlia grower. Magnifique!

Did you know that The New York Times recently ran an article called 36 Hours in Brisbane? You can read it here. Of course, as you'd expect, the goddam koala features. Call me heartless, but that unattractive, unintelligent looking animal gets more than its fair share of exposure. All they seem to do is laze around looking uninterested and occasionally peeing on a visiting dignitary. What about the dingo, the emu or even the common old kangaroo is a more impressive animal?
Speaking of animals, Eric the guinea rabbit (remember I rebranded them) passed away from an unknown cause on Tuesday morning, so now we're just left with the one. Unfortunately, our very sensitive Mim was the one who found him. Peaches, the cold fish, couldn't have cared less but cried anyway, mainly due to seeing her big sister so upset I think.
Have a look at this fabulous old building that's for sale for only $590,000!

Imagine what a magnificent home that could be. The only catch is it's in Rockhampton, but if you're still interested, you can find out more here. It was built in 1883 and it's huuuuuge.
Work on our downstairs is coming along nicely. The framing is almost done, then we get the plumber and electrician in to 'rough up', then we can line the walls, and it starts to get really exciting!
I'm off to enjoy the rest of my day, my last as a 40 year old as my sister kindly pointed out.
I'll leave you with a beautiful photo my friend Rachel took in Paris. She has just moved there to live for the next three years.

Au revoir!

Let the Hammering and Dust Begin!

It's my birthday soon and my lovely (and very organised) friend Anna gave me this beautiful chartruese cup and saucer...and matching bangle.

It's amazing how a bit of colour can give you a lift.

Work on our downstairs rooms has started in earnest, and we are currently operating in the usual chaos that renovating creates.

This is the wall and ceiling frames. We have a large loungeroom, two bedrooms, a bathroom, laundry and study.
I've found the most beautiful interiors store, only problem is it's in Woolloomooloo, Sydney. Still it's worth a look here.  It's called Pad, unfortunately. They obviously didn't consult any branding specialists before naming it. But aside from that, it's absolutely beautiful, with equal parts classic, vintage, glamorous, unique, surprising and freshing.

I'll have that chest of drawers and chair...

that ottoman and settee, and throw in the drums and all the stuff on the sideboard....

plus I'll take that settee, the drum too and those two chairs, plus some bits and pieces in the background.

I'm petitioning for a CMC inquiry into the price of flea treatments. After paying $80 for 4ml of Frontline (excuse me that's $19,500/litre), Honey Bunny seemed to actually get more fleas. The company assured me that no matter how many fleas she had, she'd have more if I hadn't treated her with Frontline - that's a convenient argument. Now we're trying another one, Comfortis, which I have found priced from $59.99 on-line to $105 in-store!! What's going on people-who-make-flea-treatments?
Anyway, I've said my peace and I feel better for it. Now I'm off to prepare for our house guests.

Buckle Up

The day after tomorrow is a very big day for us. We start the downstairs of our house. It's built in at the moment, but not fitted out. It's been a very handy space for the past couple of years. It's housed our temporary laundry, temporary study, weights room, play/making room and storage area.
Hopefully, within a couple of months time, it will be a permanent two bedrooms, downstairs living room, study, laundry and bathroom.
I've been workshopping ideas for the bathroom. It's not without its difficulties. The room is small, narrow, dark (or 'grim' as our architect described it), and we're working with a limited budget.
It's my personal belief that these hindrances can actually encourage more creativity and in the end you can turn out a top notch room - we'll see, I won't talk it up too much.
I've just been filing a whole bunch of bathrooms I like the look of, and from there I'll see what elements of those I can work into ours.
I seem to be attracted to dark cabinetry. Really love this one below, especially the marble bench tops.

I've popped this one in the file because, unlike our other bathrooms, I'm putting a major focus on storage, and bench space. Storage and benchspace. It's like rhythm and melody.

The next two are super pretty. I love the mirrored cupboards below.

Love the colour on these cupboards too and the style of them....and the bench tops and sconce lights....and that little blue footed bowl with the flowers in it.

I'm thinking that subway tiles will make an appearance.

Beautiful. Although, having just said our bathroom is small, narrow and dark, I think we can all safely assume the end product will look nothing like this.

My, I love this colour, but probably not for the bathroom. You've got to love a good pedestal sink, they're so pretty, but user-friendly they are not (I know this because they are in our other bathrooms).

I love the different compartments here, the dark floor with the light cabentry, the wallpaper on the walls and the space. It'll be difficult to replicate much of this in our bathroom.

Beautiful light, chair, floor, and probably cabinet?

This is a perfect example of 'pretty' with only the tiniest regard for practicality.

So, I'm nowhere near a firm plan, but the fun is in the research and the possibilities.

A fascinating hobby

Lady Hackett's Household Guide was published in 1940. This was Gwennie's copy, or maybe even her mother's?

I've mentioned it before. I collect old recipe books. Before you click away, wait. It's actually very fascinating. Cookbooks are barometers of a society's wealth, health, fashions and values. Cookbooks can become family heirlooms and a source of nostalgia. Meals can equal memories. Recreating recipes can transport us back in time to Grandma's table or our childhood birthday dinner.
I have recipe books from the late 1800s. Many of the recipes could be recreated now and look very much of our time, while other recipes include ingredients that have long fallen
 It's chock-ful-o-handwritten recipes and magazine clippings. This one is not just a recipe book, but a guide on how to run a house; how to make boots last longer, how to re-use this and that. Lady Hackett discusses treating snake bites and toothaches. She details home hygiene and arming your family with healthy habits like getting enough fresh air and taking daily exercise.
She includes recipes, although they are mostly the ones that have either become extinct or are now only available in high end restaurants under fancier names; beef tea custard, chicken custard, jellied chicken, fricassee of tripe and devilled pig's feet.

This is Best of the Bake-Off Recipes, 1969.

Let me tell you, you'd be the most popular girl in the room if you put this Bacon and Sausage Plait on the table at Sunday Brunch.

Bacon and Sausage Plait
Pastry
3 cups plain flour, 1/2 teas salt, 6 oz butter, approx 1/4 cup water.
Filling
2 boiled eggs, salt, pepper, 1/2 teas powdered sage or basil, 1/2 lb bacon rashers, 1/2 lb pork sausage meat, beaten egg for glazing
Pastry: Sift flour and salt into mixing bowl, rub in butter until mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add water, mix to firm dough. Turn on to a floured board and knead well. Roll out the pastry to 10 inch square.
Filling: Chop bacon and hard-boiled eggs, mix with remaing filling ingredients (except egg glazing), and place down the centre of pastry. Cut pastry on each side of filling into diagonal 1/2 inch strips; brush with egg. Lift alternate strips over the sausage mixture to form roll resembling a plait. Brush with egg, sprinkle with salt. Bake in hot oven 30-40 minutes.

I'm not sure if The Big Party Cookbook refers to the book itself, which is quite large, or whether it's to be used for huge gatherings?

Either way, take these Weisswurst Kebabs or Cocktail Banana Kebabs and Stuffed Sausages to your next barbecue invitation and you'll surely win yourself a husband.

Anyone who did Home Economics or 'Home Arts' as it was sold to us at my school, will be familiar with this ubiquitous little ditty. Day to Day Cookery, in all it's many revisions, was the text du jour of school kitchens - and maybe it still is? This one is from 1985.
Something I used to find hysterical as a teenager, and sady still do, is the recipe for a sandwich with....wait for it....eight steps! Step 4 is 'Cover with second slice and press together firmly'. You may be wondering how there could possibly be a further four steps after that one. I don't want to spoil it, just in case you want to read it at some stage.

Hints on Healthy Living by Dr Ulric Williams was written around 1931, I think. It has recipes with the focus being on good health. It is incredible to think of how many books have rehashed this same information in the last 82 years.
Dr Williams recommends eating as much of your food raw as possible and exercising daily. He includes recipes based on vegetables, fish, nuts and lentils. Sound familiar?

I love these little fundraising booklets published by kindergartens and schools. This one is from Mater Dei School in Ashgrove, published in 1991. Although that doesn't sound like very long ago, you'd be surprised how dated the recipes seem.

Davis Dainty Dishes was published in 1937. It has beautiful coloured illustrations of some of the recipes which seem extremely elaborate and surprisingly modern even now - orange ice cream, peach ice cream. Others are very much of their time; beetroot mould, salmon in jelly and lemon aspic.

On the other spectrum, the recipes in Square Meals for the Family (1939) are downright nauseating. First case in point, Sheep's Head and Barley Broth. Can you imagine coaxing your children to eat that?

There's also recipes for Beef Heart, Stuffed & Roasted (as if that makes it any more appealing), Tripe & Onions and Liver Paste for Sandwiches.

There's an advertisement in Square Meals for the Family from the Brisbane City Council Electricity Supply Department enticing people to have their electricity put on. It reads:

"Electricity scores. Your Matchless Servant - Electricity.

The more you use, the cheaper it becomes."

That concept has ended in tears!



 This Vogue Australia Cook Book (1969) is the height of sophistication. It includes classic French recipes like Le Coq Au Vin and Boeuf a la Bourguignonne. The book lists entire menus for specific dinner parties, many of which have also stood the test of time.

Beetroot salad with capers

Le coq au vin

Scalloped potatoes

Cheeseboard with water biscuits

Sliced preserved oranges

Other books like Cakes & Cake Decorating (1965) are demonstrative of the fashions of the day, and give us a little giggle.

Graham Kerr is a classic. The Graham Kerr Cookbook, as you can imagine with a recipe book from a man, is very meat-oriented.

And finally....are you still awake?

And finally, my favourite. The Australian Women's Weekly Original Cookbook (1977). As there have been over 800,000 sold, I'm sure you're familiar with it. This was my Mum's cookbook when I was growing up and she cooked up many a special meal from its pages.

I find old cookbooks very interesting, however, I completely understand if you don't. I hope you weren't completely and utterly bored to tears.

Lavender cakes and a productive weekend

We had a productive weekend with a tiny reshuffle to bring the outdoors in.

These black floors really suck up the light, so it's good to introduce light whenever possible.

I am madly in love with this cookbook at the moment. Delicious Simply the Best by Valli Little.

Just in the last few days I've made the roasted tomato soup. If you make it, I'd suggest sieving it before serving. Tonight I made the baked bouillabaisse which is cooked in paper. For my husband's  birthday cake I made the Orange Lavender Syrup Cake. Very good. Highly recommended.

This is the recipe.
250g unsalted butter, softened (don't be afraid)
1 cup castger sugar
4 eggs
1/3 cup sifted plain flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
finely grated zest and juice of two oranges
250g fine semolina
120g thick Greek style yoghurt
250g strawberries (although, as you can see I used figs)
For the syrup
finely grated zest and juice of two oranges
1 tablespoon of dried lavender flowers (I used a handful of fresh ones)
2 cinnamon quills
1 1/4 cups caster sugar
Preheat oven to 170. Greease a 23cm round springform pan, line the base with baking paper and lightly dust the sides with flour, shaking off excess.
Beat the butter and sugar until thick and pale. Add the eggs one at a time, then fold in the flour and baking powder, followed by the orange zest, semolina and almond meal.
Add orange juice and yoghurt and gently stir until combined. Pour into pan and bake for an hour until a skewer comes out clean.
Cool in the pan for five minutes.
For the syrum combine all the ingredients in a saucepan with 1 1/3 cups water and stir until the sugar is dissolved. Simmer for 20-25 minutes until it reduces a bit and slightly thickens.
Prick the cake with a skewer repeatedly and pour over half the syrup.
Toss the fruit in the remaining syrup and use to serve.
I served the cake and fruit with the syrup drained from the fruit and some double cream.
Serves 6-8.