Homemade: Shark Fin Soup

Of course I did not make this. This is my dad's awesome shark fin soup.

He makes about 15 litres of the thing (only on special occasions) and by the second day its all gone.

Xmas Yumcha

Seriously, how many xmas meals are there?!

The first two dishes we ordered off the trolleys. Deep fried? check. Prawns? check. Lots and lots of sauce? check. I only managed the one shot before the table became a blur of chopsticks, empty bamboo steamers and spilt sauces. Not a pretty sight, but typical for yumcha.

Boxing Day Fuel

Nothing beats a plate full of steamed dumplings to energize you for a full day of hunting down bargains in the boxing day sales. In the end I didn't end up buying anything but at least I had dumplings!

Xmas Day Cupcakes

I had absolutely no time at all to take ANY photos of ALL the food I made for the xmas dinner that we hosted at home. Believe me when I say that everyone was completely stuffed and I needed 2 full days to finish off leftovers.

After everyone left I did manage to take one single shot. Here are some cupcakes made by my mother in law

Cute aren't they? Even two days later (seriously, we had tons of leftovers) these cupcakes were still soft and moist. They were made with organic blue shelled eggs which turned the sponge a lovely golden yellow color.

Xmas Deserts

Since I took some photos of just some of the deserts that were made for xmas, here they are:

Very cute!

Grace's very professional Strawberry cream cake. It deserves a schmancy name like Strawberry creme a la Grace. It was a teensy tad dry but it was sitting in the fridge for a while. We are all happy for another attempt :D

I call these Brit's Choc Nuts Kapow! Cookies.

There were plenty of other home made deserts, but all my photos are blurry so will have to rely on someone else to upload them.

Xmas

It seems like every second day there is an Xmas get together where there is waaaaaay too much food. For example:


Fresh bread rolls from Footscray's vietnamese bakery with a hearty chicken & vegetable tomato broth

Spring rolls. yum!

I can't remember what the name of this dish is, but it was a DIY and so of course I piled on the spring onions and chilli sauce. Eye-wateringly delicious.

Korean

Can you believe that you get all this (and more) for just $10.50?!


Here's what you get:

Rice
Beef Bulgogi
Kim Chi
Salad
Prawn Tempura
Vegetable Tempura
Takoyaki (Octopus Ball)
Gyoza
Side dishes x 4 (not pictured)
Miso soup (not pictured)
Can of softdrink (not pictured)

10 Dollars. And 50 cents. That is all. This is definately worth a return visit (when I am more hungry).

Xmas Work Lunch

For our end-of-year team lunch we headed off to the Studley park boathouse cafe for a two course meal:


Smoked salmon on a potato croquette with capers and creme fraiche. Maybe it was the picturesque location, or the fact that we were out of the office on a work day, or maybe it was because we had to wait for 2 hours for everyone to show up before we could order, but this was DELICIOUS and I inhaled it.

The entree was quite filling (for me) so I needed some assistance in finishing off the Porterhouse steak with peppercorn sauce on top of the soft buttery potato mash.

Very satisfying.

All You Can Eat Xmas

It's been a while since I had an All you can eat marathon session, and this time I finally remembered to take (some) photos for the blog.

Nothing like a gigantic plate of fresh prawns to whet your appetite (annoying to peel though)

Ahh, the wall of deserts. Wonderful! Of course we had to try each and every one

Chocolate fountain!

And now the mini deserts:

Clockwise from left: Coconut Jelly, Orange Jelly, Raspberry Sponge Cake, Black Forest Cake, Creamy Custard (fantabulous)

Clockwise from top: Banana split, more creamy custard, creme brulee, mini cream tart, maxi cream tart

Even more creamy custard (can you guess which one is my favourite?), banana crepe, chocolate mousse, berry cheesecake.

And finally, strawberry cheese cake, bread pudding, profiterole, creamy cheesecake and lime jelly. They are all so cute and wonderfully presented. Its no wonder we we one of the first groups to arrive and one of the last to get kicked out leave.

Work Xmas

On this plate:

Bread Rolls
Greek Salad
Baked Potato
Roast Beef and Gravy
Boiled Egg with Mustard Mayo
Pasta Salad
Mustard
Horseradish
Green Salad

Needless to say, I did not need second helpings.

On a side note, horseradish on beef is absolutely fantastic!! Why have I only discovered this now?!

Xmas Dinner

Xmas dinner with friends was delicious (and filling!). Everyone brought a dish:

Fruit Punch, yum!

Ricotta and Spinach pastries, and the wonderful ferrero rocher table settings (home made by our craft savvy hostess!)

Duck Confit Rissotto. Wonderfully rich and flavourful.

Eggplant salad.

Steamed Barramundi
My last minute contribution after my disastrous attempt at 'home made'. A cookies and cream cake (from the local bakery). Decadence personified.

To finish off the wonderful meal, some milk tea, Hong Kong style.

What a great way to start the xmas (feasting) season!

Post Work Meal

mmmm chicken and mushroom risotto

Steak and potatos

Spicy Fish

The name of the restuarant is not at all ironic. Check out the thick film of chilli oil in this fish dish!



It comes with a delightful (chillied) side dish. I could not feel my tongue for the rest of the day.

Fluffy dumplings. Delish!

Pasta

Basso's is great for a work day lunch if you don't want/plan to have dinner that day.



I should have put a can of coke or something next to this gigantic main plate of spaghetti to put it in perspective.

An entree chicken avocado penne. Filling!

Not pictured: the delicious complimentary bread rolls and butter (in case you weren't full enough!)

Cawfee

Britts and pieces here.

So, living in Melbourne is pretty fantastique due to the vibrant culture associated with coffee and art. I decided to finally embrace this and explore the hidden and celebrated dwellings of caffeine obsessed minions.

Having a book such as 'the coffee guide...Melbourne 2009 edition' is pretty helpful in these situations. The cafes listed in this guide are recommended on the basis of "beans" as opposed to "stars". My coffee compadre and I thought it was only fitting to visit the 5 bean cafes first and foremost. Plus the weather was a bit shite (as per usual in melbourne) so we needed a hideaway.

Our first venture was to Switchboard on Collins Street. A small unused cigarette booth from eons ago is the home to two lovely chaps who make coffee and toast a damn good sandwich from 7:30am to 4pm weekdays. The cafe is tucked away from the eyes of the public, which makes for an air of secrecy and intimacy. There is a spacious (grungy) undercover, yet outdoor area which the previous owners have furnished with amazing op-shop furniture (warning: they are insanely comfortable and may result in excessive sitting).
The coffee: I had a cappucino, which was presented in vintage brown cups and matching saucer. Generously dusted with cocoa powder, the coffee was lightly bitter and very smooth. A good 'anytime' cup of coffee. Toasted sandwich = ohmygodDELISH! too yummy to stop and take a photo of unfortunately.

bulldog clips holding the plastic table covering adds a lovely vintage DIY touch.

Second trip was to Primary (399 Royal Parade, Parkville). Located in amongst the Monash University pharmacy buildings, Tram 19 to North Coburg will deliver you promptly to this sleek cafe. Home to many-a-students on their long "lecture breaks" it is a clean, modern place to grab a quick coffee. This place is famous for its latte art (which the resident barista has claimed gold at the annual latte-art competition). My latte was so pretty, i didn't want to ruin it..but the taste was refreshing, bitter but balanced with one sugar. A hazelnut cluster accompanied this mid-afternoon caffeine blitz, which was really an over-sized, over-chocolated ferrero rocher. Delish.

(L-R) cappuccino, half-eaten hazelnut clusters, latte, coffee guide

Musical beans for thought: Coffee & TV - Blur