Homemade Hair do

It is hopefully the last night of this nasty heatwave.  It is 2 am and I am not sleeping as it is a) 30.5 degrees celsius outside right now, so inside add a degree to two and b) both my sons have contracted some nasty cold with an ever so charming smoker's cough . . . poor little men.

I should be sleeping but I thought, 'what the hey, I may aswell tell you about my latest disaster'

You know, I swore to myself that I would never hack at my children's hair like I thought my mother had done to me and my sister.  She would keep cutting until she got it even!  Check out my super short fringe. . .

I'm about 8 or 9 years old - in my friend's bedroom with her toys

Was it impatience, or did I wriggle and carry on?  Did she just have an unsteady hand or dare I say it, was she vindictive as I wasn't always the angel? (despite appearances, hee hee)

The eyes say it all . . . "Mummy what have you done?!"

Yes.  I have done the same to my son!  Oh the shame - not of him, never of him.  The shame that I have done what I promised myself I'd never do. 

Side profile, just so you can see the real extent of the damage!

But come on! He's the biggest wriggler, squirmerer, whinger EVER!  I really did feel like I was hacking at it.  It wasn't the first time, (eighth time?  He's always been hairy), so you'd think I'd have it down pat.  Two attempts and this is what comes of it.  He screamed the whole way through, but once you start you can't stop!  It has to be completed!!

His giant brother (25 years older), is getting married in March and Liam is a page boy.  Fingers crossed it will grow out by then.

Why did I cut it myself?  Am I too stingy to pay $10?  No!  I just didn't want the public tantrum!

And I now realise that my Mum did a darn good job at cutting my hair!

Have you ever done the same to your children?  Do you have a fail safe plan for either home do's or avoiding tantrums at the hairdressers?  Please share!!

Lunch time whimsy

It's fun, it's quirky, it cuts off crusts (which he eats separately anyway).  Got 'em from Mini Gourmets.  Oh, and he punched them out himself.  Love it.

One of my favourites: Salt & Pepper Tofu

My dominant love language is 'words of affirmation' - that is what I speak most, and from those that are dear to me, that is what I need to hear from them.  But otherwise, it is gifts - not materialistic gifts but gifts of food.  You give me food, I give you food - awesome. 

Now, I won't necessarily feel the love if you buy me a macca's burger . . . . I'm talking about home made yummy morsels . . . or being taken to a restaurant . . . and honestly, combine affirmation with gifts of food and you will have me as a best friend forever.  I love having people over for a meal and it gives me great joy when my food is appreciated.  On the flip side, I feel deflated if I have served a culinary failure or if my guests don't feel the need to say something affirming about their gastronomic experience.

Why am I telling you this? (apart from this is what bloggers do on their blogs)  Because, I am giving you the recipe to one of my all time favourite dishes: Salt & Pepper Tofu

I've made this a few times, and people who would normally turn their noses up at tofu have tried it, exclaimed how good it is (yes exclaimed!) and have gone back for seconds, thirds, fourths etc. 

I serve it as finger-food at parties or afternoon teas, but at home it is served up with a simple bowl of steamed vegies. 

I first saw this recipe in Kitchen by Michele Cranson for Marie Claire but I have simplified it.  I don't make the cucumber sauce as it is waaaaay too sweet, even for me, so a simple squirt of sweet chilli sauce into a dipping bowl seems to be just the ticket.

Brave New Fiona's version of Salt & Pepper Tofu (as inspired by Michele Cranson)

750 g firm tofu
2 egg whites, lightly beaten (1 egg white if using smaller pack of tofu)
2-4 cloves garlic, finely grated (use a microplane if you have one)
2-3 cm ginger, finely grated
1/4-1/2 cup cornflour
1-2 tsp each of ground sea salt and cracked pepper (or to taste)
enough oil to deep fry

1. Cut tofu into bite-sized cubes (about 1.5 cm square)
2. Combined lightly whisked egg whites with the garlic and ginger in a container that has a lid. 
3. Add tofu to egg mix and place lid on the container.  Gently tumble until all tofu is covered in the egg mixture.  Refrigerate until needed.  (I like a strong flavour to go through the tofu so overnight is good, but you can make in the morning for frying in the evening just as well.  If you forget to allow time for the marination, it is still yummy after 10 mins, just not as strong).
5. Put oil into saucepan and place on a high heat. 
4. Combine flour, salt and pepper in a rectangular shallow dish that has a lid. Place tofu pieces into base and put lid on.  Give it a gentle shake, turning up side down to quickly coat tofu (you may need to do this in batches depending on the size of dish).  Test oil temp by dropping one tofu piece in.  If it bubbles straight away, continue cooking in batches.  Drain on paper towel.

You know, let me know if you like it!

What do babies and kittens have in common? . . .

Unravelling balls of yarn!

I'm still trying to untangle the knotted mess.  I guess it is all part of the saga of the never-ending knitting.  Finally on the last sleeve which will be completed once I get untangled!  

And I still have to pull back the top third of the back to fix the pulled threads.  Not long now... (yeah right!)

Yes Cake!

Can you have a party without a cake?  I guess you can seeing that Rick and I didn't have a wedding cake (I baked about 100 Raspberry & Coconut cakes- more about that another time) . . . but can you have a 1st birthday celebration without a special cake?  I don't think so!  It just wouldn't be the same. 

So, being brave and new, I decided that it was time that I should confront fondant and tell it who's boss.  Ok, I actually enlisted the help of my friend Jen who has made a few multiple storey fondant decked cakes for her daughter's birthdays- but asking for help is not breaking the rules!

So you start with about three of these chocolate numbers.  Don't be put off if your cake sinks in the middle because you cut them to size and lay them like bricks with a butter frosting morter.



I bought that apron in San Fransisco and love it - thought I'd let you know . . .

Then you cut your fondant, add your dye paste and knead, roll and wrap!  Jen took these photos and laid the fondant on the cake for me (I didn't have time for mistakes so she did it!)

photographer

But I covered these vanilla cupcakes.  Oops, a bit of icing powder here and there!

This is the end result.  One happy little birthday fella and his little family!

Will I use fondant again?  Yes, perhaps.  It is totally a visual thing for me as I don't like to eat it as much as I like eating a sourcream frosting or a decadent chocolate ganache (with or without the cake!!)

So, I think I can tick fondant off my list of brave and new things despite the excessive use of icing sugar. 

xxx

Enthusiasm Bubble Burst

Hello friends.  You are very kind to still be following me even though I have let you down with no posts for a while.  I am a person that is seriously flawed (aren't we all?!) and my biggest personal angst is that I work in bursts of inspiration.  Bursts are wonderful when they come but when they go, I deflate.  Nothing creative is produced . . .  but I go on the prowl to find my inspiration and bring her back from being AWOL.

How wonderful is blogland?  Thank you to people like Jane from Life on planet baby and many others whose regular posts have helped stop me from going under whilst waiting for inspiration to return (The Happy Home is a perfect visual and creative pick me up).  I have particularly enjoyed trawling through some older posts from blogs I have regularly been following and discovering new blogs (blog hopping?).  I totally love blogs that have online stores attached to them like The Lark (yes, you too will create a wishlist if you haven't already).  And blogs like Frills in the Hills that lead to you wonderful on-line shops

And it was through blog hopping that I found a lovely Perth-based on-line store Mini Gourmets.  Don't you just love merchants that go that extra mile with nice packaging?  They wrapped up my cookie cutters with white tissue, real black ribbon and a delightful sticker of their logo. Included was a little pack of mouth freshners and a magnet.  Yes, I am a sucker for the tiny touches.

At the last minute, we decided to throw Dean a 1st birthday party (more about that in another post- on, off, on again, off and then ON!) and I needed small stars and circles. 

How do you stay inspired?

12 months has gone too fast

The epidural that lasted only 10 mins - not enough time to give birth painlessly but enough time for a picnic!

Whisked away to oxygen - I didn't get to see him for 3 hours!  I didn't get to feed him for 5 hours!!

It was a crazy day!

But well worth the effort, pain & tears- all erased the minute I held you in my arms.

I love you my darling son.  May Our Father in Heaven pour out His abundantly blessings on you always.

Happy Birthday!