In my kitchen – November 2014

Um, how did it become NOVEMBER???? I’m sure it was August only last week.

And more to the point, why is summer here ALREADY? I’m completely sweltering in my office today, despite every door and window being open and the fan doing it’s lazy twirly thing. Any faster and the 27 piles of paper on my desk and on the floor with become 2,039 piles. Not a good look. I’m just NOT READY SUMMER. Either emotionally or physically. Sigh.

Oh well. Pass me the peanut butter Lindor balls and another cup of tea.

In my November kitchen…

… are these two recent purchases. I’m a massive fan of Ottolenghi’s and have all his books. He was recently in Australia and I’m so disappointed that I didn’t get to any of his events, but we just weren’t in the same city at the same time. Seems like a good excuse for me to go to London 🙂

The second book, Vegetable Literacy by Deborah Madison, was recommended to me by a few twitter friends, including the super lovely Diana Henry who told me it’s her favourite veggie book. I must say, Diana’s books are pretty great too, and one of hers has also recently found its way onto my cookbook shelf. No idea how…

In my kitchen…

… is wine. Surprise surprise. I have many wine loving friends, and when two of them came over for dinner recently, both bearing vino from Naked Wines, I was intrigued. One of them immediately gave me a $50 voucher to spend there, so of course, how could I resist! This one is one of my faves so far, although I must confess, my purchase decision was largely due to the cute little label as it made me think of mum (who was a spinner and weaver). I have to also say that while the Naked Wines I’ve tried have been good, their marketing has been excellent. I’ll write a post about that on my marketing blog one of these days…

In my kitchen…

… is this sensational maple crunchola breakfast cereal. I make a batch every so often and add it to yogurt and berries for breakfast or a snack. SO GOOD! It’s quick to make and lasts in an air-tight container for ages. If it starts to get a bit less crunchola-like just pop it back in the oven for 5 minutes on 180c and it will crunch back up.

In my kitchen…

… is my favourite lazy dinner. Or lunch. Or breakfast. [Note that I don’t normally have a glass of wine when I have it for breakfast…]. Could anything be more simple than cheese on toast? It’s been a favourite since I was about 5 years old. YUM!

In my kitchen…

… are some goodies from the generous folk at Barilla*. I certainly wasn’t expecting this much when they asked if they could send me some samples. I’m not a huge fan of commercial food in jars, but I do like these ones, especially when I’m away and want to cook a simple pasta dish. I also don’t eat a lot of pasta, and have recently started having issues with pasta grown from Australian wheat (and most other foods made with Australian wheat). Apparently it has a higher level of the protein that are found in gluten. However as Barilla is made from Italian flour, I have fewer issues. A good thing given spag bol is one of my top 3 favourite meals. Ever.

In my kitchen…

… was this quichey dish. What I like most is that the crust was incredibly quick and simple to make, and was made of oats, sesame seeds, almonds and parmesan cheese. The texture was far more pastry like than I expected, and I loved the parmesan cheese in it. The recipe is on the Thermomix community recipe site. I made up the filling based on what I had in the fridge – leftover roast pumpkin, goat cheese, caramelised onion, eggs, cream and cheese. It was such a hit that Mr Meatosaurus asked me to make it for his lunches a week later! Win!

In my kitchen…

… is loads of buttery and creamy goodness*. After chatting on twitter for maybe a year or two, I finally met Naomi from The Myrtleford Butter Factory when she was in Brisbane for the Good Food and Wine Show. She fed me many, many samples of her beautiful butter and then gave me a few to take home. OMG it’s SO DIVINE. I’ve mostly been slathering it thickly on my favourite sourdough (from Flour & Chocolate in Brisbane if you are wondering). I only have a tiny bit left 🙁

In my kitchen…

… are some new measuring spoons. I’ve been to Sydney a few times lately and on my latest visit I just happened to find myself in Victoria’s Basement. This place is a Sydney institution, found in the basement of the QVB Building. I reckon about 20% of what is in my kitchen was bought there when I lived in Sydney in the mid-late 90s. Yes, I too am astounded that the only purchase made that day was this set of spoons. Clearly I need to go back. Or visit their online store.

So, that’s my kitchen for this month. What’s in yours?? Any newly acquired goodies?

If you want to see what’s in a few other kitchens, then read the  monthly roundup, hosted by Celia’s from Fig Jam and Lime Cordial.

* Starred items were gifted to me in accordance with my editorial policy. I have not been paid to write about any of these products. All opinions are mine unless otherwise mentioned.