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Food Photography Challenge – Chocolate Banana Bread

September 16, 2011 By Paola 5 Comments

I’m still trying to work on my food photography – don’t know why, love doing it. I’m going to set myself a weekly challenge to photograph a ‘difficult’ food subject.

This week’s was Chocolate Banana Bread, which is basically a big brown blob. I wanted to show the fudgey moistness and gooiness of the cake whilst introducing a bit of colour and getting everything properly exposed.

The colour bit was difficult – I had no fresh bananas left in the house, none of the other fresh ingredients are particularly colourful and flowers seemed a bit random.

In the end I settled for using my embroidered Mexican tablecloth, though I’m still wishing I had a brightly coloured cake stand or a knife with a brightly coloured handle. (More prop shopping obviously required.)

Anyway, did my photo succeed? Does it make you want to eat the banana bread? What would you have done differently? Critique away, I want to LEARN.

The recipe I used is here.

Fancy Hotel of the Week – Hotel Monaco, San Francisco

September 15, 2011 By Paola 5 Comments

For my recent escape to San Francisco, I was looking for a hotel that was not TOO pricey, centrally-located and yet still a luxurious treat. Through various Seattle foodie events, I’ve had the great good luck to get to know the wonderful Sheri Doyle of Pacific Northwest Journeys, who specialises in travel-planning throughout the Pacific Northwest. What she doesn’t know about travel throughout the region and booking hotels in San Francisco, Portland, Seattle, Vancouver and Victoria really isn’t worth knowing.

So I followed her advice and booked the Hotel Monaco (a sister hotel to the Hotel Triton, where we’d enjoyed staying before). Sheri made the arrangements, got me a great rate, asked if I wanted a goldfish in my room (!), and passed on a secret password which would get me a ‘nice treat’.

The treat proved to be an upgrade to a Junior Suite, the goldfish was delivered to the door of my room with a note telling me his name was Speedy, and I spend the next 24 hours just WALLOWING in the hotel. The staff were all delightful – friendliness and helpfulness personified – which is great if you’re travelling on your own.

I have to admit upfront that the décor – like the lovechild of a louche gentlemen’s club on acid and a fantasy French chateau – wasn’t really my thing and seemed a little dated, but it was bright and supremely comfortable and had that touch of crazy fantasy that characterizes all the best hotels. You may not want to try this at home, but goodness it’s fun to visit.

My room was very, very, very stripy. No other adjective seems appropriate somehow.

As for Speedy the goldfish? Well, he’s about the weirdest gimmick I’ve ever encountered at a hotel and I only said I wanted one so I could blog about it, but there was actually something strangely companionable about having a fish in the room. And he did have the most excellent manners – no snoring, no farting, very quiet. I was sad to leave him behind.

If ever you’re thinking of travelling around the Pacific Northwest, don’t hesitate to get in touch with Sheri. You’ll end up with a detailed itinerary, the best recommendations out there for accommodation, eating out and things to see and do, and the savings that she’ll get you on room rates will probably more than pay for her services. Oh and she is incredibly organised, friendly and helpful and a pleasure to do business with.

Adventures in Knitting – Mystery Shawl Knit Along

September 15, 2011 By Paola Leave a Comment

Those of you who know me in person know how much I DON’T like surprises. I’m the sort of person who sends the Husband long lists of links for potential Christmas presents, who plans trips with meticulous precision and who always reads the spoilers.

So I surprised myself last week by joining in with a mystery knitalong on Ravelry. This is where a designer releases a ‘clue’ (a few lines of a pattern) every few days or so and a bunch of people knit along and chat about the process online.

So here’s my latest knitting project after the completion of the first clue. All I know is that it’s going to be a crescent shawl, can be knit on laceweight or fingering weight yarn and has optional beads. I thought it might be fun to post up my progress so we could all see what it turns into.

The shawl is by the same designer who designed my Annis and my Abrazo so the chances are that I’ll like the finished product. I have also satisfied my inner control freak by choosing a comparatively cheap wool/silk yarn for the project (I’ll only need about a third of the skein). No 100% silk for this one.

As for the beads, I’d love to incorporate three colours, however, I’m not sure that I’ll be able to work out of the symmetry and pattern of the bead placement with the next clue, so I might stick to turquoise.

The next clue comes out on the 19th and then I have 10 days to knit it up.

Sia Does Crochet

September 14, 2011 By Paola 2 Comments

I’ve always found it difficult to describe Aussie singer Sia Furler’s music – it’s somewhere between dance-pop and soulful jazz, with an almost folksie vibe thrown in.

Suffice it to say though that she has an amazingly powerful, rich yet tender voice with an appealing break and I adore her music.

A week or two back the Husband and I escaped for the evening to go and see her on tour in Seattle. The music was amazing; the band was cute; the support act (Danish singer Oh Land) was fabulous, Sia herself is as nutty as a fruitcake, with an appealing whimsical Aussie bluntness which made me laugh more than most stand-up comedians, and as the total icing on the cake, she had decorated her set with crochet. granny. blankets. Be still my beating heart. Really, who needs fancy lighting and special effects when you can have CROCHET?

Here are some photos of the awesome. Please excuse crappy phone photos

The backdrop comprised two huge granny square blankets on painted stripes, with ‘Sia’ picked out in balls of yarn.

Everything – amps, stools, mike stands etc. was wrapped in crochet.

Here’s Sia in concert at the London Roundhouse from the same tour. You can just about see the set in action.

Blueberry Boy Bait

September 13, 2011 By Paola 2 Comments

Speaking as we were about baking with kids, the Minx and I had very fun day for the last day of ‘mummy’ camp before starting school.

We went with friends for some pick your own blueberries (thanks Mercer Slough Blueberry Farm!) and then decided to do a spot of lunchbox baking afterwards.

The recipe for Blueberry Boy Bait from Smitten Kitchen seemed ideal lunchbox fare – easy to bake, easy to pack, not too sweet and packing enough blueberries that it could almost be counted as a healthy option. At least that’s what this mother tries to tell herself. Oh and did I mention that they’re rather delicious?

First pick your blueberries. I love how pretty they are.

Then mix up a plain-ish yellow cake batter (the full recipe is here) made with butter, a little soft brown sugar and half a cup of blueberries. The cake is then topped with more cinnamon-flavoured sugar and another half cup of blueberries so that the fruit is evenly dispersed throughout the cake. This is an ideal job for small fingers.

You should end up with a golden rectangle of purple-flecked yumminess with a slightly crisp crust. Cut it into small lunchbox-sized portions. Ours is now in a big ziploc bag in the freezer. Add a frozen slice to the lunchbox the night before and it will be fresh and ready to eat in time for lunch.

Incidentally the fabulous name was apparently bestowed by the fourteen year old girl who devised the recipe and came second in a baking competition back in the Fifties. She was obviously a marketing as well as a baking genius. Mr T, the only boy in our family aside from Flora the cat, confirms that the name is appropriate even though it doesn’t contain either beer or bacon.

Decorate!

September 7, 2011 By Paola 6 Comments

Holly Becker of Decor8 fame has been an online friend for the longest time. I started blogging a little after she did and she was one of the very first people to comment on this blog nearly six years ago.

I’ve done her Blogging Your Way course and cheered her on from the sidelines as she has gone on to her incredible and very much deserved success.

Holly is one of those people who is always generous with her time, her encouragement and, latterly, with the enormous reach and power of her blog. She’s one of those people who always seems to have time for a friendly word or blog comment, however phenomenally busy she is and has created a huge network of friends, followers and devoted admirers across the globe. And I’m not sure whether she ever sleeps or manages to have any leisure time as her output and the number of projects she’s involved in has always been prodigious.

I find her inspirational on so many levels and have always been sad that she managed to skip to Europe not long after I arrived in the US. We’ve never been on the same side of the Atlantic for very long.

When plans for her book tour were finalised, she invited me to come down and see her in San Francisco. And at first it seemed like a crazy idea to fly down just for a book-signing and a dinner. But a little voice in my head kept saying ‘why not’ and then Virgin America was offering great deals on flights from Seattle and before I knew it I’d booked flights and a hotel and was lined up for my first night away from the family in ages.

Holly and yours truly

And, all you mothers out there, I seriously don’t know why I didn’t do it sooner. I had totally forgotten the joys of plane travel without a fidgety six-year old; of mooching aimlessly round shops without being in a terrible rush or having to march a six year old to the toilet; of eating a most amazing lunch (thanks Boulette’s Larder) without having to worry whether the Minx had brought her DS or a book. For 36 hours I was single again, and goodness it was BLISS.

Holly’s book signing was at Anthropologie (beautifully decorated with these garlands and bunting from Paper Source. Note to self, must buy for the Minx) and she was accompanied by Leslie Shewring from A Creative Mint, who had also taught on the Blogging Your Way course. I also got to meet the very charming Victoria, of sfgirlbybay fame; the delightfully effervescent Alix (who had been a very fun team mate on the Blogging Your Way course) and Dottie from Modern Kiddo; the lovely Maja Brugos from Tikoli and Crystal Gentilello of Rue Magazine among other luminaries of the San Francisco design and blogging world.

Leslie Shewring and Alix from Modern Kiddo with Holly

All in all I had a fabulous couple of days and came away tremendously inspired to work more on this blog and throw myself more fully into the design world. It’s time for this Mamma to have some ‘me’ time.

Oh and the book? Well, it’s fabulous of course. Unlike many decorating books which are all about recreating the author’s own style, Decorate is all about uncovering and developing your own personal style and vision. It is chock full of gorgeous pictures, inspirational quotes and tons and tons of innovative, accessible and eminently do-able ideas for every room in the house. The book is sitting on my nightstand and is perfect way to unwind with a little bit of pretty at the end of a long day. And my house will definitely benefit in the long term.

As for Holly herself, well, she is as warm, charming and thoroughly lovely as her online persona. But then you knew that already. And also very tall.

And now I really must stop gushing and have a lie down. All this being nice does not come naturally at all.

Cherry Cake and Ginger Beer

September 1, 2011 By Paola 8 Comments

I set myself a low bar when it comes to mothering. If the Minx grows up to have good manners, to love books and to be able to cook then I figure she’ll probably always have friends, be passably well-educated and never go hungry. And that way it seems to me happiness lies.

Certainly I can think of few greater pleasures in life than devouring a good book or some good food. So you can imagine how much I enjoyed reading Cherry Cake and Ginger Beer by Yarnstorm’s Jane Brocket, which discusses all the delectable foods found in classic children’s literature, accompanied by scrummy-looking recipes and pen and ink illustrations from the works in question.

The Minx and I are currently on a bit of an Enid Blyton jag at present and revelling in descriptions of fabulous picnics with boiled eggs and sticky buns, Aunt Fanny’s cakes and of course lashings of ginger beer (which according to Brocket, Enid Blyton never actually says in her books).

I am amused to note that, while the plot intricacies of many of these books have completely receded into the mists of time, I can remember almost verbatim many of the food descriptions, such as this one from What Katy Did.

“.. and there – oh, delightful surprise – were seven little pies – molasses pies, baked in saucers – each with a a brown top and crisp, candified edge, which tasted like toffee and lemon-peel, and all sorts of good things mixed up together. There was a a general shout… a tumult of joy… in an incredibly short time every vestige of pie had disappeared, and a blissful stickiness pervaded the party.”

Oh how I wanted to taste one of these pies – ‘molasses’ sounded so delicious and exotic to this little British girl – and now I can, because I have a recipe.

Unfortunately the book is already out of print and quite difficult to get hold of – I suspect the market for it was rather too esoteric. American readers might be particularly frustrated as it focuses primarily on British children’s classics and old-fashioned British baking, though Little Women, Little House on the Prairie and What Katy Did all make an appearance.

But buy this book if you, as I did, grew up with the likes of The Famous Five, My Naughty Little Sister, Pippi Longstocking, Milly Molly Mandy, Paddington Bear, Anne of Green Gables, The Secret Garden, and Malory Towers. Get it doubly fast if you are re-reading these books with your kids and enjoy baking with them.

What do enjoy cooking and reading with your kids? The Minx and I are sorely in need of recommendations in both categories.

Oh and speaking of the Minx, she went back to school yesterday, oh frabjous day! So now I’m back blogging properly.

Postcard from Orcas Island

August 20, 2011 By Paola Leave a Comment

Loveseat

Postcard from Orcas Island

August 19, 2011 By Paola 2 Comments

Fancy Hotel of the Week – Melenos Lindos

August 18, 2011 By Paola 2 Comments

Ha! You thought you’d got away with no more Greek holiday snaps. Unfortunately it remains my intention to bore you all into submission. After all, what else is a blog good for?

I mentioned that we liked to stay in little unassuming hotels while in Greece, but we decided to break that rule for the first few days by booking into the Melenos Lindos, high in the acropolis of the ancient town of Lindos in Rhodes. This hotel gets so many fabulous mentions, that it seemed churlish not to try it out.

Images from hotel website

Unfortunately they contacted us a few days before we left and said that there had been a double booking and they had no space for us. They pulled out all the stops to secure alternative accommodation (which, thanks to its enormous swimming pool and spacious grounds was actually much more suitable for the Minx) and offered us a free dinner on their beautiful outdoor dining terrace.

Architect Anastasia Papaioanou and Australian artist-designer Donald Green worked together to recreate a traditional multi-levelled, multi-terraced Lindian mansion, decorated in a timeless way using traditional local crafts and antiques.

Here are some of my photos from our dinner, supplemented by the couple above from the hotel’s website, as I didn’t have my wide-angled lens with me.

Enjoy the spectacularly pretty.