tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-49414100481151368122024-02-03T06:22:56.182+11:00Thoughts Of A MoniRandom thoughts that run through my head about food and life...Monihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14216532130742672009noreply@blogger.comBlogger155125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4941410048115136812.post-30058766013652428302017-05-01T15:42:00.000+10:002017-05-01T22:46:39.468+10:00Our Wedding Weekend Part I - The Bengali Wedding<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
First up, this is not a sponsored post. This is my way of recognising all the amazing people and businesses that helped make our wedding so special. As I mentioned in a previous post, we had two weddings, which spanned across a weekend. On Saturday, we had our traditional Hindu Bengali wedding, and on Sunday, we had a rustic garden civil ceremony followed by a reception. Both these weddings took immense amounts of work to organise and it neither would have been possible without the tireless efforts of our friends and family. <br />
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When we first started planning the Bengali wedding, we very quickly realised that this event was not just for us, but for my parents. It was their chance to hand over their daughter to her new family, and introduce their new son in law to everyone. This is very different to the Western concept of a wedding, but one that is accepted, and respected, in subcontinental culture. As a result, I quickly realised that things would run a lot smoother if I refrained from constantly voicing my opinions on things, and just run with what my parents wanted. Lucky for me, I have a mother with excellent taste, and I agreed with almost all her decisions!<br />
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We decided to hold the Hindu ceremony, followed by a luncheon reception at <a href="http://www.internationalreceptions.com.au/" target="_blank">The International of Brighton</a>. This venue is one of the few in Melbourne that have their own dedicated Indian chef, and for the Indian weddings we have attended there, the food has always been magnificent. The staff at the International were terrific. I think all Indian weddings involve high levels of chaos and we were no exception. We didn’t have our guest lists finalised until the night before, we dropped our bonbonieres off a few hours before the tables were being set up, we changed our booking hours on the last day, infact we were probably the worst clients. But The International of Brighton handled all the craziness that we brought with ease, and always managed to make things work. <br />
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A special mention must be made about Chef Raj. Food is an essential element of an Indian wedding, and so we had a specific meeting with him to discuss the menu. We applied a collaborative approach to design a three course menu, plus canapes during the ceremony, and together we came up with dishes that we were really pleased. Chef Raj brought many new and innovative ideas that we hadn’t thought of, things like a tandoori spiced chicken sausage rolls as a canapé, or serving buttermilk alongside the drinks, both of which were big hits with the guests. We also had a new dhal recipe on our menu, dhal bukhara, and this this was a highlight of the meal for both vegetarians and meat eaters alike. <br />
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A Hindu wedding takes place under a mandap, a canopy held up by four pillars. The four pillars have various symbolic representations including the four Vedas (sacred Hindu texts), or the parents of the bride and groom, who are integral participants in the marriage. Our mandap was rented from <a href="http://www.wedding-mandap.com.au/" target="_blank">Wedding Mandaps</a> that services all of Melbourne. Bob from <a href="http://www.wedding-mandap.com.au/" target="_blank">Wedding Mandaps</a> was extremely helpful and extremely reliable. He provided not only the mandap, but a lot of the decorations around the venue. He worked extremely efficiently, having set up everything the night before in only a few hours, so that nothing needed to be done the morning of the wedding. We cannot speak highly enough about Bob, and would definitely recommend him to others.<br />
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My wedding sari was chosen by my mother in India. I didn’t even see the sari until she got back, but because I tend to always agree with her taste in Indian attire, I wasn’t too worried, I knew she’d choose well. It was bought from a shop in Kolkata, called Traders' Assembly. It was a red Benarasi silk sari, which is traditional for Bengali brides, with rich gold thread work. It was very heavy, so by the end of the day I was very exhausted carrying it around, but it was gorgeous, so definitely worth it.<br />
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Most of my jewellery was passed onto me by my mother and grandmother. This was quite special for me, as much of it was worn by my mother for her wedding. I wore special upper arm ornaments that had a real vintage feel about them, which was expected given that they had been worn for three generations of brides. These are rather indulgent pieces of jewellery, and so it was an honour to be given these for my wedding.<br />
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Our photographer for both weddings was Ian Cooray from <a href="http://www.iccaptured.com/" target="_blank">I.C. Captured</a>. I had seen Ian’s work from other friends’ events and the photos that he had taken captured the mood perfectly. I had also seen him at work, photographing dance concerts for my dance school, and I was impressed by his commitment and professionalism. We were lucky enough to have a pre wedding photo shoot with him included in our package. Whilst we were not very keen on any pre wedding photos, this opportunity proved invaluable as both we and Ian were able to see what kind of styles and poses worked for us, which helped the photo shoots at both the weddings run smoothly. <a href="http://www.iccaptured.com/" target="_blank">I.C. Captured</a> also had a very quick turnaround time, and only a week after the wedding, we were sent a link to a hundred photos taken across the weekend. We will receive the remainder of the photos in the months to come, but it was very exciting to see snippets of the celebrations so quickly, and also to be able to send them to friends and family living overseas.<br />
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As we were both aware, Indian weddings are filled with chaos and craziness, but this is what makes them so much fun. In amidst all the commotion, we still managed to have an amazing time, and we hope all our guests did too.<br />
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Photo credits: IC Captured and Shubroto Bhattacharjee</div>
Monihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14216532130742672009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4941410048115136812.post-60761095431484226892017-04-20T12:50:00.002+10:002017-04-20T12:50:45.433+10:00Barry<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Barry is a bit of a Northcote institution. It feels like it’s been there for ages, and is always busy, with people spilling out onto the tables on the sidewalk if the weather is nice. Funnily enough we’d never been there, but on one morning when we were told there would be a ninety minute wait to get a table at Tinker (yes, you read correctly NINETY minutes), we decided it would be safer for all concerned if I was fed sooner rather than later. And so we strolled down High Street to Barry, found ourselves a spot at the communal table and realised how much better I felt already, just knowing that food would be present in my very near future.<br />
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As usual, I started with a coffee, Five Senses, and I was suitably satisfied. It provided me confidence that my breakfast would be good.<br />
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I decided to go for a relatively healthy breakfast choice and settled on a breakfast salad. My bowl was lined with slices of pan fried caciocavalo (which is the Italian version of haloumi), and balanced with crisp spring vegetables, pomegranate jewels, two poached eggs and dressed with lemon juice and dukkah. As someone that loves cheese, eggs and vegetables, this really was the perfect dish for me. The dukkah was lovely and nutty and the acid of the lemon brought the dish together.<br />
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Of course, all opinions were subject to the yolk porn test, which Barry passed with flying colours. On a side note, the gooey yolk was delicious to mix through the salad as an additional dressing!<br />
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The other half decided to completely indulge and chose one of the sweet specials. His breakfast was house made donuts, served with plum curd, pistachios and fresh blueberries. Naturally, he thought it was delicious, (how could you not when every element sounds delicious!), but it was a very small serve. He could have easily eaten about three serves before he was full!<br />
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A special mention must be made about the service we received. Despite being busy, the staff were very attentive and constantly making sure our needs were met. The fabulous staff, the bustling atmosphere and the creative and delicious food made for a lovely brunch adventure.<br />
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<a href="https://www.zomato.com/melbourne/barry-northcote" target="_blank" title="View Menu, Reviews, Photos & Information about Barry, Northcote and other Restaurants in Melbourne"><img alt="Barry Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato" src="https://www.zomato.com/logo/16582562/biglink" style="border: none; height: 146px; padding: 0; width: 200px;" /></a> </div>
Monihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14216532130742672009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4941410048115136812.post-1280678062708508982017-04-11T13:38:00.001+10:002017-04-11T13:40:30.106+10:00Kerala x Host<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
The team behind <a href="http://www.wearekerala.com.au/" target="_blank">We Are Kerala</a> and <a href="http://www.hostdining.com.au/" target="_blank">Host Brunswick</a> have joined forces to present a series of collaboration dinners, showcasing Indian food from the state of Kerala with a fusion twist. Mischa Tropp together with Laura Neville create a beautiful 4 course meal, focusing on South Indian flavours and these are matched with curated drinks by the team at Host. The food is dominated by flavours of curry leaves, mustard seeds and coconut, but are complimented with a modern twist to bring them into the fine dining world.<br />
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Mischa is of Keralan descent, and both he and Laura have spent time in India learning about ingredients and flavour combinations, which was evident in our meal. Our dining experience commenced with a trio of starters. We were served a passionfruit half with chilli salt, a steamed South Indian rice cake known as idli paired with chickpea and a parcel of goat’s curd, pickled pumpkin and curry leaf. There were also non vegetarian variants of these dishes, which included chicken liver instead of the chickpea gravy and boarfish to replace the pickled pumpkin. These dishes gave us a taste of what was to come and left us eager for the meal to continue.<br />
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The next course was a little more substantial and consisted of two small plates. The first was smoked tomatoes served with coconut, Kashmiri chilli and ruby grapefruit, with the non vegetarians served raw kingfish instead of the smoked tomato. This was a fresh dish, with punchy flavours. The second plate was grilled eggplant served with a spicy sauce made with a spice blend called recheado. There was a slight amount of heat in the recheado, but it warmed the palate up for the next course.<br />
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Main course was an array of dishes served on the table, almost like a mini banquet. We received a traditional cabbage curry, known as thoran, an okra pachadi, which is okra in a creamy yogurt based sauce, chickpea curry (or beef fry for the non vegetarians), and ghee rice. We were also served some epic sized pappadums which were amazing. The highlight of this course for me was the okra pachadi. Okra has long been one of my favourite vegetables, and when served in the creamy gravy with the strong flavours of spices, it really was a perfect match. I later found out that the recipe was from Mischa’s mother, so it was no wonder that it tasted so good, everyone knows that mums are the best cooks!<br />
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By this time we were getting close to ridiculously full, but we activated our dessert stomachs to enjoy the last course. Served on a ginger sable, was a ball of carrot sorbet (or halwa for the Indians!) coated in goat’s yogurt, and topped with cumin praline. The yogurt cut through the sweetness of the sorbet, and it provided a refreshing end to the meal.<br />
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Host provided the perfect surrounds to enjoy this meal and the curated drinks were also carefully thought out. We tried the iced soy chai mocktail, but there were alcoholic options on offer too. We Are Kerala are doing beautiful, creative food and I look forward to seeing what the menu holds at their next collaboration dinner in April! This dinner is already sold out, but keep an eye on the <a href="http://www.wearekerala.com.au/" target="_blank">We Are Kerala website</a> and Instagram to see what other delicious adventures they will be involved in.<br />
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<i>Note: I was invited to dine at Kerala x Host , however all opinions are entirely my own. </i><br />
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<i>*A version of this article was first published on <a href="https://theplusones.com/melbourne/2017/03/31/kerala-x-host-collaboration-dinner-series/" target="_blank">The Plus Ones</a> website.</i><br />
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Monihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14216532130742672009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4941410048115136812.post-55090483359363183782017-04-03T10:37:00.000+10:002017-04-07T12:25:03.101+10:00An Apology and Taking Stock Quarter 1, 2017<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I should start with an apology. The first quarter of the year is over, and I think I've only managed one blog post. But I have a good reason. Seriously. I got married! So in between planning two weddings (that's what happens when an Indian marries an Italian), buying a house, selling a house, and just trying to get through life, the blog has fallen by the wayside :( But now that it's almost over (we just have to move house and we'll be done!) I'm hoping that things will pick up, and I'll be back into it. But in the meantime, I think it's only fair that I do a bit of a review of what's been happening, using the questions from the lovely <a href="http://meetmeatmikes.com/" target="_blank">Meet Me At Mike</a>'s blog....<br />
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<b>Making</b>: Lists. Lists of things to pack. Lists to things to get rid of. And also lists of people to whom we need to send thankyou cards for the wedding!<br />
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<b>Cooking</b>: Not much. We've hardly been at home. Instead I've been spending lots of time at <a href="http://www.thoughtsofamoni.blogspot.com/2016/02/tamil-feasts.html" target="_blank">Tamil Feasts</a>, who always send me with leftovers galore, plus we have two sets of parents who love having us over for dinner.<br />
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<b>Drinking</b>: Water. Detox imperative.<br />
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<b>Reading</b>: Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. I'm only of the very few people who have never read or watched the Harry Potter series, so I thought it was about time that I rectified that.<br />
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<b>Wanting</b>: Sleep. I am ridiculously sleep deprived. Daylight savings couldn't have come at a better time for me.<br />
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<b>Looking</b>: Forward to moving into the new house!<br />
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<b>Deciding</b>: What songs to use for our wedding video. I want some western music and some Indian music.<br />
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<b>Enjoying</b>: Looking at our wedding photos. I can look at them multiple times a day and it always makes me feel so happy! As cheesy as it sounds, it really was the perfect weekend. <br />
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<b>Waiting</b>: For the rest of our wedding photos. Unfortunately we will be waiting for at least another five months :(<br />
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<b>Liking</b>: Married life. It's nice :)<br />
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<b>Wondering</b>: What the <a href="http://www.thoughtsofamoni.blogspot.com/2016/02/tamil-feasts.html" target="_blank">Tamil Feast</a> menu will be this week. I'm lucky enough to have a volunteer shift, which means I get to spend time with some awesome people, and eat some delicious food.<br />
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<b>Loving</b>: The fact that we got our first wedding invite addressed to us as Mr and Mrs Russo. It's a bit special :)<br />
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<b>Considering</b>: When is a good time to change my surname. I've already decided that I will change my name, however given that we have a lot of bank paper work to sign regarding the house transfer etc, I figure I should wait until all of this is over to avoid any confusion.<br />
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<b>Buying</b>: A new drink bottle and a new wallet. Both my old wallet and drink bottle have died, and it's a perfect opportunity to replace these items with sustainable, environmentally options. I'm open to suggestions... <br />
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<b>Watching</b>: Not enough. I am so behind on all my TV shows, plus I've added to the list of shows I need to watch. At some point I need a week of downtime so I can sit there and watch Grey's Anatomy, The Leftovers, Black Mirror, Big Little Lies, Riverdale and Suits.<br />
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<b>Hoping</b>: For another holiday soon. <br />
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<b>Marvelling</b>: At how we and our families managed to get through our crazy wedding weekend in one piece and smiling on the other side!<br />
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<b>Needing</b>: Time. We have been so busy, that we really just need some time to relax and do nothing.<br />
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<b>Smelling</b>: The gorgeous eucalyptus type scent of my Burt's Bees lip balm. I love it.<br />
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<b>Wearing</b>: My DeJour jeans. I love them. If you haven't got a pair, get yourself down to Brunswick and get a pair of custom fitted jeans for a ridiculously reasonable price.<br />
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<b>Following</b>: Lots of different podcasts about my favourite TV shows. <br />
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<b>Thinking</b>: About writing our wedding thankyou cards. We really need to get onto it.<br />
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<b>Admiring</b>: My wedding bouquet, and all the wedding flowers in general. One of my husband's cousins took the lead on arranging all the flowers and she was seriously amazing. We gave her no brief, no clues on what we wanted, and let her have free reign, and she delivered beyond our expectations. We are so lucky to be related to such talented and generous people.<br />
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<b>Sorting</b>: My wardrobe. I need to do a purge before we move house.<br />
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<b>Getting</b>: Excited for Easter. I'll be glad to have a few public holidays and hopefully some time to rest.<br />
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<b>Opening</b>: Emails. My work inbox is a mess. I really need to clean it out.<br />
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<b>Giggling</b>: Thinking about various comedians I've already watched at the Comedy Festival. I'm lucky enough to be seeing a lot of shows this year as part of a media team. I've made a point to go and see smaller shows, by unknown comedians, and some of them are bloody hilarious. We saw <a href="https://www.comedyfestival.com.au/2017/shows/it-s-my-chapaati-and-i-ll-cry-if-i-want-to" target="_blank">Jeeves Verma</a> last night, and I haven't laughed that much in a long time.<br />
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<b>Feeling</b>: Exceptionally lucky. Life is good.<br />
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<b>Snacking</b>: On cheese. Our wedding cake was a cheese cake. Like literally, wheels of cheese, and we still have a lot of the hard cheese leftover. This is great news for me, it means I can spend the rest of my foreseeable future eating cheese and crackers with quince paste. It is not so great for my waistline though.<br />
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<b>Hearing</b>: The office hum. I miss being on holidays.<br />
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<i><span style="font-size: large;">What’s been going on in your life?</span></i> </div>
Monihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14216532130742672009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4941410048115136812.post-8923915956312705152017-02-22T08:30:00.000+11:002017-02-22T08:30:27.612+11:00Bang Bang<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Bang Bang at the Rifle Club in Elsternwick is the latest venture from head chef Matthew Dunbar. Formerly of Longrain, Chef Dunbar’s reputation precedes him, and given the popularity of the short pop up Bang Bang venture at South Wharf towards the end of last year, people have been long awaiting this new permanent home.<br />
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I, together with the other half, was lucky enough to attend a blogger dinner that was hosted as part of their opening launch. The weather gods were definitely smiling upon Bang Bang, as they turned on a glorious day. Designed to take advantage of the location, the concertina doors were opened up to create a spacious combined indoor and outdoor area that was basking in the afternoon sun. It was easy to see that this would be a perfect space for a summer evening, or a few cheeky Sunday bevvies.<br />
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We were treated to a selection from their menu. Focusing on Indochine cuisine, the flavours of Vietnam and Thailand were predominant, with a clear influence from the French evident, as a homage from their colonised days.<br />
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The dishes are all designed to be shared, encouraging a warm and friendly atmosphere. We started with an array of smaller dishes including little parcels of confit duck wrapped in a betel leaf. There was a vegetarian version too, which replaced the duck with pomelo.<br />
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We also had chargrilled prawns served with a roasted shallot and lime sauce, kingfish sashimi with caramelised cashews and trout roe, and crispy chicken ribs with Bang Bang sriracha. Vegetarians need not fear though. I had some special dishes made for me with the standout being a take on an egg salad served with a son in law egg, green mango and a basil and lime dressing. It was amazing and I could have easily eaten about eleven serves of this alone.<br />
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After the starters we moved onto the larger dishes including a tofu, avocado and sesame seed salad, with a mint, black vinegar and ginger dressing. This had all the carnivores at the table rethinking their opinions on tofu, and everyone was in agreement that you could definitely make a lot of friends with this salad.<br />
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We were served a roasted pumpkin curry with kipfler potatos and spiced with cinnamon and anise. It was creamy and warming, and we were all piling rice onto our plates to mop up all the sauce. The last dish of main course was a chargrilled Cape Grim short rib, served in a wild ginger and holy basil broth. The other half said it was was soft, melted in your mouth, and took the phrase ‘falling off the bone’ to a whole new level. <br />
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The serving sizes were very generous, and by this stage we were all fairly full, but there was no hesitation in activating our dessert stomach were we were served gorgeous plates of black sticky rice with mango, pandan cream, and coconut sorbet. Asian desserts are not usually my favourite, but this dish was lovely, with the fresh fruit and sorbet adding a refreshing contrast to the sweet, heavy black rice.<br />
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<br />To finish off the meal, we had watermelon with chilli salt. It was an interesting combination, although I think the chilli salt would have been better paired with a sour fruit like green mango, or even a tart pineapple.<br />
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Bang Bang is a beautiful space with equally beautiful food. It is a great place to catch up with friends and I will definitely be back to try more of the menu and perhaps have another serve of the tofu salad.<br />
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<a href="https://www.zomato.com/melbourne/bang-bang-elsternwick" target="_blank" title="View Menu, Reviews, Photos & Information about Bang Bang, Elsternwick and other Restaurants in Melbourne"><img alt="Bang Bang Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato" src="https://www.zomato.com/logo/18407341/biglink" style="border: none; height: 146px; padding: 0; width: 200px;" /></a> <br />
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<i>Note: I was invited to dine at Bang Bang as part of a media dinner, however all opinions are entirely my own. </i><br />
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<i>Image Credit: Zilla and Brook</i><br />
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<i>*A version of this article was first published on <a href="https://theplusones.com/melbourne/2017/02/15/bang-bang-rifle-club-elsternwick-restaurant/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The Plus Ones</a> website.</i></div>
Monihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14216532130742672009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4941410048115136812.post-48941546112893276262016-12-09T14:41:00.001+11:002016-12-09T14:41:52.637+11:00Axil Coffee and Roasters<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Axil is a name that is almost synonymous with coffee in Melbourne and so when I was trying to plan a breakfast catch up with an old friend in the eastern suburbs, I figured Axil Coffee Roasters in Hawthorn would be a good choice. At the very least, the coffee should be good!<br />
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The coffee was indeed excellent, with rich aromas and full bodied flavour. It was the coffee that I had come to expect from Axil.<br />
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Taking a look at the menu though, I found it to be rather standard and not very creative, especially when considering the savoury options. Whilst there were some exciting sweet choices like Ferraro Rocher waffles or red velvet pancakes, I have always preferred a savoury breakfast. These days, breakfast menus are full of inventive options but Axil clearly prefers to focus on basics.<br />
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I ended up choosing the fritters (duh), which were made with zucchini, corn and haloumi, and then topped with avocado, spinach, a poached egg and relish. Rather than a few small fritters, they served up one large fritter. This meant that there was less crunch, and the fritter was more cake like which was a bit disappointing. Still, the flavours were very good, and anything with haloumi makes me happy. The eggs were poached well, and whilst there is no photo, you can trust me when I say that I had great yolk porn material.<br />
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My breakfast companion settled on smashed avocado on toast with sides of scrambled eggs and salmon pastrami. (Lucky he’s already got a house, otherwise there would be no chance he could save for one!) There was a little bit of confusion with his eggs order (only one scrambled egg came out, when he specifically asked for two) but it was quickly resolved.<br />
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The space inside Axil is huge, with tables a plenty, and despite the large crowd, the service was still very good. However, with Melbourne’s café game so strong, and so many places really pushing the boundaries with their offerings, personally I am more inclined to try them rather them returning to Axil. But if you are a traditionalist, and like your standard breakfast options, this is certainly a place you should visit.<br />
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<a href="https://www.zomato.com/melbourne/axil-coffee-roasters-hawthorn" target="_blank" title="View Menu, Reviews, Photos & Information about Axil Coffee Roasters, Hawthorn and other Restaurants in Melbourne"><img alt="Axil Coffee Roasters Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato" src="https://www.zomato.com/logo/16577471/biglink" style="border: none; height: 146px; padding: 0; width: 200px;" /></a> </div>
Monihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14216532130742672009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4941410048115136812.post-74798000645864740802016-11-10T08:15:00.000+11:002016-11-14T15:02:03.564+11:00Son Of A Pizzaiolo<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Breakfast in a weekday is an indulgence that I don’t often get to enjoy. But when it’s a Monday that you’ve taken off work, because you’ve run your first full marathon you definitely take the opportunity to take advantage of the fact that the cafes are empty and you can easily get a seat. Unfortunately the marathon had taken a major toll on my feet, leaving then battered and me unable to put any weight on them, so we had to go to a cafe where we could park straight outside the front door.<br />
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We settled on Son of a Pizzaiolo. I knew they had recently revamped their dinner menu, but I was keen to try them out for breakfast. As expected, the café was almost empty, and so we had our pick of the seating. There were some standard tables, but we decided to sit in a booth, American diner style!<br />
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The other half started with a flat white, but I declined and stuck with water. Given that the marathon had most likely dehydrated me, I didn’t think coffee would be a good idea. I did have a taste of the flat white though, and I was suitably impressed. Son of a Pizzaiolowas certainly doing the Italians proud. The pretty latte art was also a nice touch that put a smile on our faces.<br />
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The menu was full of creative options, that looked delicious but neither of us could go past the cheesy scrambled eggs. Set atop two polenta hash browns were scrambled eggs with aged pecorino, grilled mushrooms and crispy kale, all dressed with chives and red sea salt. The other half went for the standard version also had chorizo, but the staff were more than happy to swap that out for avocado for me. Rarely do we order the same dish, but this time we made an exception.<br />
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Our opinion of the dish was also almost identical. The cheesy scrambled eggs were a hit, lots of cheese, lovely and creamy with the right amount of seasoning. The mushrooms and the crispy kale were also important elements to the dish and when combined with the eggs created a beautiful blend of flavours. Unfortunately the polenta has was a bit of a let down. Perhaps it was the fact that in my head, I was hoping for something like a potato hash brown, but unfortunately the polenta was was rather heavy and stodgy, and lacked flavour. In retrospect, if I couldn’t have a potato hash, I think I would have preferred this dish with toast, but hindsight is a great thing indeed.<br />
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Nevertheless our experience at Son of A Pizzaiolowas lovely and we will definitely consider going back. The service was impeccable and I was very impressed at how friendly the staff were. The flavours they combined worked well, and left me keen to try their dinner menu some time in the future. <br />
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<a href="https://www.zomato.com/melbourne/son-of-a-pizzaiolo-thornbury" target="_blank" title="View Menu, Reviews, Photos & Information about Son of a Pizzaiolo, Thornbury and other Restaurants in Melbourne"><img alt="Son of a Pizzaiolo Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato" src="https://www.zomato.com/logo/16713974/biglink" style="border: none; height: 146px; padding: 0; width: 200px;" /></a>
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Monihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14216532130742672009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4941410048115136812.post-61491136747242993722016-11-07T11:04:00.000+11:002016-11-07T11:04:37.704+11:00Tahina<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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High St, Northcote boasts a plethora of eateries varying in cuisines, prices and styles. Regardless of what you are after, there is bound to be an option for you there. One Sunday night, when we couldn’t be bothered cooking, we decided to pop down there for a cheap and cheerful meal. To me, cheap and cheerful is that type of meal that is easy on the wallet, without any pretences of starched tablecloths or fancy folded napkins, but doesn’t compromise on taste and instead offers a hearty, home style feed. <br />
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I had seen Tahina mentioned in a few guides, and all of them wrote about the delicious food that was offered. It seemed like exactly the place for us and so we headed there. <br />
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Tahina is an Israeli restaurant that serves vegetarian food. The vegetarian aspect is not however highlighted, and it was only when I took a close look at the menu that I realised that no meat dishes were available. The offering is simple. You either choose a pita pocket, or a shakshouka platter. Or if you are like us, you choose one of each and do a swap half way through. Both these options have a few varieties to choose from but the basis remains the same. <br />
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For the pita pocket, I chose the sabich. The highlight of the pita pocket was definitely the bread which was fresh and soft. It was filled with eggplant, hard boiled egg, potatoes, Israeli salad, pickled cabbage and brought together with hummus and tahini. The combination of flavours were amazing, in particular the eggplant which was soft and melted in the mouth.<br />
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The shakshouka came in a choice of red, green or white. The red is obviously the traditional version in a tomato based sauce, but we decided to be adventurous and have the green version, based on a slow cook of broccoli, zucchini and spinach with avocado and olives thrown in. There was a subtle hint of cumin through the dish giving it a wonderful aroma. The eggs were floating in the sauce, but there was also a vegan version available where they were substituted with eggplant. I imagine this would be equally delicious. The shakshouka was served with a green salad, pickled cabbage, hummus and pita bread. Don’t make the mistake we initially did and try the pickled cabbage by itself, it certainly has an odd flavour, but when combined with all the other elements, it added a wonderful freshness.<br />
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<br />Tahina doesn’t bother with fancy service, elegant décor or a spacious dining area. Instead it focus on the food, and for people like me, it is just perfect. Given how busy it was on the night we visited, I would say there are a lot of people who agree with me. <br />
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<a href="https://www.zomato.com/melbourne/tahina-bar-northcote" target="_blank" title="View Menu, Reviews, Photos & Information about Tahina Bar, Northcote and other Restaurants in Melbourne"><img alt="Tahina Bar Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato" src="https://www.zomato.com/logo/18024983/biglink" style="border: none; height: 146px; padding: 0; width: 200px;" /></a> </div>
Monihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14216532130742672009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4941410048115136812.post-33023531525991886542016-09-21T15:58:00.001+10:002016-09-21T15:58:24.209+10:00Kustom Burgers<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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OK, I’m calling it. I have a new favourite vegetarian burger. I thought nothing could beat a vegetarian patty made with minced mushroom, but Kustom Burgers have taken it up a notch or seven.<br />
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It was Sunday evening. I was exhausted after having gone on a 32km training run in preparation for the Melbourne Marathon, my legs could no longer move, and all I wanted was a burger. And so it was decided, burgers for dinner. Given how tired I was, we decided to go somewhere close, and so we decided on Kustom Burgers. <br />
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I had seen Kustom Burgers on a few ‘Melbourne’s Best Burgers’ lists, so I figured they would be worth trying. Their menu showed that they had a vegetarian option, so it was all systems go, and off we went to satisfy my burger craving.<br />
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Kustom Burgers is a smallish shop on High Street in Northcote. Quite strangely, a large section of the shop is taken up by a parked pick up truck with a race track in the tray. Whilst it’s pretty cool, I’m not sure whether it’s worth sacrificing so much seating space for it, especially when tables and chairs are already at a minimum. It’s obvious that the owner has a passion for cars, with all the décor relating to the automotive theme. <br />
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We took a seat at the counter, overlooking the kitchen, so we had a clear view of the chefs at work. The speed and efficiency at which they worked was impressive. The orders were coming in at a constant rate, and the kitchen remained calm and in order. It wasn’t long before our burgers arrived, and given how starving we were, we really couldn’t wait to dig in.<br />
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Whilst there was only one vegetarian option on the menu. It was bloody amazing. Entitled the Combi Southern Fried Mushroom Burger, it was exactly as described. Firstly let’s start with the mushroom. I love mushrooms and a deep fried mushroom only makes it better, but when it is coated and crumbed with herbs and spices it takes it to a whole new level. Think southern fried chicken, but in mushroom form. This was then topped with cheese, jalapeños, chipotle mayo and a slaw, and all together, it was without doubt the best burger I’ve had. A big call I know, but definitely deserved.<br />
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<br />The other half had the FJ Holden Aussie Burger. Like all good things Aussie, the burger had an egg, beetroot and a generous slather of tomato sauce. Unlike the Americans who cook everything to charcoal, the burger was cooked medium, and the usual suspects of cheese, onion, tomato and lettuce completed the burger. The other half was impressed.<br />
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The only slight let down was the chips. Whilst they were inoffensive (deep fried potato is rarely offensive), they were just generic McCains fries. I knew this because I could see the bags being emptied, and it was a little disappointing. I would have definitely preferred hand cut chips, with rosemary salt.<br />
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Still, you can’t have everything, and given how good the burger was, I’m willing to forgive their downfall on the chips. Will I be back? If they serve me another spicy crumbed deep fried mushroom I definitely will be!<br />
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<a href="https://www.zomato.com/melbourne/kustom-burgers-thornbury" target="_blank" title="View Menu, Reviews, Photos & Information about Kustom Burgers, Thornbury and other Restaurants in Melbourne"><img alt="Kustom Burgers Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato" src="https://www.zomato.com/logo/16713836/biglink" style="border: none; height: 146px; padding: 0; width: 200px;" /></a> </div>
Monihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14216532130742672009noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4941410048115136812.post-43554249009036754572016-09-08T08:30:00.000+10:002016-09-08T08:30:41.559+10:00Vanilla Upstairs<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="text-align: left;">Having grown up in the Greek capital of Melbourne, Oakleigh, the cafes along Eaton mall were a fixture of my childhood. Weekends meant that the patrons of the cafés spilt out into the mall, and the tables outside were full of Greeks, eating, drinking and enjoying themselves. These days, Eaton Mall has expanded further, there are many more eateries, and patronage is skyrocketing with the outdoor area full almost every night of the week.</span></div>
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Vanilla was one of the cafes from the old days, but they have recently expanded the premises to include a modern upstairs area, creatively (!) named Vanilla Upstairs. I was lucky enough to be invited to a media dinner there, where we were able to sample many of the foods and I was thoroughly impressed. <br />
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From the outset, what impressed me most was the friendliness of the staff. Like many immigrant cultures, family values were at their core, and this was evident in the way they ran their restaurant. Father Thanasi works the floor making sure everyone is happy, whilst his three children and their partners are responsible for the running of the restaurant. They also now have Chef Oresti at the helm of their state of the art kitchen, and is responsible for the amazing food they serve.<br />
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Our menu was designed as a sharing menu, which suited the Greek style of food perfectly, and it meant that we could taste a large range of dishes. Some of the dishes were old favourites, like the yemista, but Chef Oresti also took the opportunity to add some flair to some traditional dishes. One example was the Greek salad. Whilst typically this would involve tomatoes, cucumber, olives and fetta, our version had all of these ingredients but with a completely modern interpretation without any compromise on taste.<br />
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We were also lucky enough to taste a selection of Greek wines to match our food. I had never realised that Greece produced fine wine, so I was extremely impressed. Sommelier, Sheridan, shared with us her vast knowledge of wines, and by the end of the night, I’m sure most of us were convinced that Greek wines were comparable to their famous wine cousins in France and Italy!<br />
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Whilst Greek food may be assumed to be very focused on the meat, Vanilla Upstairs had no issues catering for me, the solo vegetarian on the table! I started with some beautiful pita bread and a trio dips. There was a tzatziki, a hommus and a baba ganoush. The hommus was a clear highlight, beautifully smooth and creamy and with the perfect amount of garlic flavour.<br />
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I also enjoyed the dolmades that were wrapped in a conical fashion and filled with a creamed rice. The creative flair on these enhanced the flavours, and despite loving the traditional dolmades, I was really impressed with these.<br />
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As a cheese lover, I had my eyes on the saganaki. In a new twist for me, the saganaki was pan fried and drizzled with honey and black sesame seeds. The honey added a lovely sweetness to compliment the heavy creaminess of the cheese, and it certainly was an unusual but very clever combination. I will be trying this one at home! <br />
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Obviously the meat eaters were also well looked after, and most of the table was busy eating all the delights presented to us.<br />
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The desserts we were offered were also quite impressive. We tasted a kazan dipi, which is a Greek take on the crème brulee. It was smooth and creamy, and served with kaimaki ice cream.<br />
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We also got to taste one of the chef's dessert experiments, a tahini mousse with sesame toffee crisps. It was very interesting to have sesame as the dominant flavour in a dessert, and for those that don't like their desserts sickly sweet, this would be perfect.<br />
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The evening was a fabulous one, mainly due to the warm hospitality, the delicious food and the lovely venue. Vanilla Upstairs has certainly raised the bar in the Oakleigh dining precinct and there is no doubt that the patrons are flocking. <br />
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<i>Note: I was invited to dine at Vanilla Upstairs as part of a media dinner and did not pay for my meal. I have however returned on subsequent occasions where I have paid the full price.</i></div>
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<a href="https://www.zomato.com/melbourne/vanilla-oakleigh" target="_blank" title="View Menu, Reviews, Photos & Information about Vanilla, Oakleigh and other Restaurants in Melbourne"><img alt="Vanilla Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato" src="https://www.zomato.com/logo/16576107/biglink" style="border: medium none; height: 146px; padding: 0px; width: 200px;" /></a> </div>
Monihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14216532130742672009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4941410048115136812.post-57836525609923078192016-08-31T16:34:00.000+10:002016-08-31T21:29:51.833+10:00August Favourites<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
It has been a while since I did my last monthly favourites posts, so it is about time that I caught up. <br />
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First up is a new store of which I have become a huge fan. Perhaps I am late to the party, because it seems many people are already onto it, but <a href="http://www.terramadre.com.au/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Terra Madre</a> is a brilliant shop. Located on High St, in Northcote, they stock organic fruit and vegetables, healthy grocery staples, environmentally friendly cleaning products and cosmetics, bulk spices, nuts and grains, and all sorts of other grocery items.<br />
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It has recently expanded, and I’m guessing there will be the addition of a cafe or a deli to the store (the glass counters give that away), but even without it’s an excellent place to shop. I can get most of my supermarket shopping done there, and it isn’t even that much more expensive.<br />
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(Photos courtesy of Yelp and True Local)<br />
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Those following my Instagram feed will have seen that I’ve started baking my own sourdough. I got my starter from <a href="http://thelifeofclare.com.au/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Claire</a>, and decided that I was going to try and be a little more self sufficient. I’ve got myself into a great routine, where I get the starter ready on Thursday night, make the dough on Friday night or Saturday morning, and then I am ready to bake on the weekend. I generally make two loaves which last the week (I don’t need that much bread), and often I gift loaves to family or friends. I started with just plain sourdough, but now that I have become more confident, I have started adding flavours. One of my favourites is an olive and rosemary loaf, which is excellent with dip. Nothing beats eating warm bread, straight out of the oven.<br />
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I’m also well into marathon training now, with the Melbourne Marathon less than seven weeks away. I’m now running distances that are longer than I’ve ever run before, and as a result, I end up so hungry half way through my run! I’ve bought myself this great belt, called <a href="http://www.ratathletic.com.au/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Fitube</a>, that allows me to store energy gels, keys and a phone all without the hassle of them jiggling around in a pocket. The belt is made of lycra, and slips onto the body, meaning that there are no clips, or no risk of it become loose or getting caught in anything. I’m a big fan. Note that this is not a sponsored post, nor did I receive this as a gift, it's just a great product that I found and love! <br />
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(Photo courtesy of Ratathletic)<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Have you had any great finds this month? Let me know below, I'd love to hear about them!</i></span></div>
Monihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14216532130742672009noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4941410048115136812.post-56294398944755454112016-08-15T08:30:00.000+10:002016-12-09T14:51:10.098+11:00Potato Curry in Mongolia<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I should start with an apology. Yes, I have been MIA on the blog, but in my defence, I have been away! If you follow me on Instagram, you may have gathered that I was in Mongolia. Yes, you read correctly, Mongolia! Completely random, I know, but so amazing.<br />
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When Mongolia was decided as the holiday destination for this year, I had no idea what to expect. I’d like to think of myself as reasonably well travelled through Asia. I’ve been to Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, China, Nepal and India. I can deal (sort of) with heat, I can deal with dust and pollution, I can deal with crowds, and I can definitely deal with Asian food. I had assumed that Mongolia would draw on my past experiences, and fit into my ideas of Asia but I couldn’t be more wrong.<br />
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Given the timeframe we were working with (I had three weeks of leave from work), and my lack of Mongolian language skills, we opted to go on a Dragoman tour. Going on tours can often be risky, you might not be able to see the things to you, you might get stuck with annoying people, and basically you don’t have full control of your holiday. But on the flip side, you have someone that organises everything for you, you don’t have to stress about anything, and if you get lucky, you can meet some pretty cool people. I have travelled with Intrepid in China and Peru with no issues, so I was comfortable going with Dragoman. I had actually booked my trip with Intrepid, but later found out that their Mongolian Overland trip was outsourced to Dragoman, but this was no issue.<br />
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Dragoman specialise in overland tours. What this means is that you get to travel the country in a huge truck, which is kitted out with all the necessities - a fridge, some tables, charging points, speakers for music and lots of storage room. You get to drive around, stopping where you want, and when night falls, you find a good camping spot, set up your tents and stay there for the night. It’s a great way to travel, to really experience the country, and venture off the beaten track.<br />
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Every night when we stopped, there was an allocated team that was responsible for cooking dinner. There was a lot of cooking equipment on board, including 4 gas burners, lots of pots and pans, and a well stocked spice box. The truck had previously been travelling through Kyrgyzstan, and there was an Indian on board, who had made sure that a decent selection of spices were purchased. So when a request was made for a curry night, I happily volunteered, knowing that I had ingredients aplenty at my disposal.<br />
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Mongolian cuisine is very meat heavy, and when I was travelling through the country I realised that despite the vast grassy plains, growing crops is not something that is common. Perhaps this is because of the harsh climate where it snows for a significant part of the year, but it means that most of the time vegetables are not even available, especially in the rural areas. On the night I was going to cook, the only vegetables I had access to were potatoes, onions, garlic, and some canned peas and canned tomatoes.<br />
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Based on what I had to work with, I decided to make a potato curry, or as the Bengalis would call it, alu’r dom. This is a curry I have grown up with as a child. My Sunday lunches were filled with alu’r dom, served with luchi or puri, and I would always try and outdo myself and eat more than my body could handle. The curry was always delicious, and as a result, I was apprehensive of whether my curry would even get close to the standards that came out of my mum’s kitchen. On top of that, I was to cook in a makeshift kitchen in the middle of Mongolia, for 23 people, with a significant amount of improvising. Still, I was really missing being in a kitchen and cooking, so I was eager to give it a go!<br />
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Much to my delight, the curry was a bit hit! I served it with rice, and yogurt sauce (raita) and by the end of the meal, the pot was scraped clean! Perhaps it was the fact that we were starving, but it was nice to know that my curry tasted good. Perhaps a little bit of my mum’s talent and ability to improvise in the kitchen has rubbed off onto me!<br />
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Below is the recipe of the alu’r dom that I made. I’ve included variations, which can be adapted depending on what ingredients you have on hand. <br />
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<u><b>Potato and pea curry (Serves 4 - 5)</b></u><br />
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<u>Ingredients:</u><br />
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1kg potatoes, scrubbed clean, and cut into 1 - 2 inch cubes (skin on)<br />
2 tbs oil<br />
1/4 stick cinnamon<br />
2 cloves<br />
2 cardomom pods<br />
1 tsp cumin seeds<br />
1 dried chilli<br />
2 large, ripe tomatoes, chopped, or the equivalent in canned tomatoes<br />
1 handful of fresh or frozen peas<br />
1 large onion, either sliced thinly, or grated (or put through a food processor)<br />
2 cloves of garlic, crushed<br />
1 tsp sugar<br />
1/2 tsp turmeric powder<br />
1/4 tsp chilli powder (or more if you like it hot!)<br />
1 tsp cumin powder<br />
1/2 cup yogurt, coconut milk or cream<br />
Salt to taste<br />
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<u>Method:</u><br />
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1. Boil all the potatoes in water until they are cooked. Drain and allow to cool. Once cool, peel them and set aside. It is important to boil them with their skins, so that they don't fall apart.<br />
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2. Heat oil in a large pan. Once the oil is hot add the cinnamon stick, cloves, cardamom pods, cumin seeds and dried chilli. <br />
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3. When the seeds start spluttering (should take less than a minute), add the onion and garlic. Fry this mixture off until the raw onion is cooked off. If you have grated the onion, this will be difficult to tell, but estimate about 5 mins. (Grating the onion will mean that the gravy will be nicer).<br />
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4. Add the tomatoes and mix well.<br />
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5. Add the boiled potato and continue to mix gently, being careful not to break the potatoes up.<br />
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6. Add the ground spices, turmeric, chilli powder and cumin and make sure they are combined through the curry.<br />
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7. Add the yogurt, salt and sugar. At this point it would be wise to taste, and make sure that the flavours are balanced. Adjust if something seems out of whack - add more tomato and cumin if it is too sweet, more sugar if the tomato taste is too predominant, etc.<br />
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8. Allow to simmer for 10 - 15 mins. If there is too much gravy remove the lid to the liquid can evaporate. If it seems to dry, add water and cover.<br />
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9. Serve with rice, roti, puri or naan bread <br />
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And as a final note, put Mongolia on your travel wishlist. The food there isn’t very good, but the country and the landscape is seriously awesome.</div>
Monihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14216532130742672009noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4941410048115136812.post-56796802347207139282016-06-23T08:30:00.000+10:002016-06-23T08:30:12.545+10:00Rustica CBD<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span id="goog_2010217065"></span><span id="goog_2010217066"></span>A while ago I visited the original Rustica Canteen in Fitzroy with the other half, for breakfast. We were both rather impressed with the food and so, when my girlfriends wanted to organise a girls brunch sans boys and kids, I quickly suggested the Rustica branch in the CBD. Like many cafes, Rustica don’t take bookings for weekend breakfasts, but I was assured that the wait for a table on a Sunday morning wasn’t usually more than 15 minutes.<br />
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I had already checked the menu and it seemed that there were lots of common items across the two outlets, and given that I had massive food envy on my Fitzroy visit, I thought it would be a good opportunity to sample some other things.<br />
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Like most groups of more than 4 women (we were a group of about eight or nine) we ended up arriving one at a time for about half an hour until we all got there! Rustica were kind enough to not make us wait for the full group before they sat us, and instead gave us a big high table at the back of the café which we all joined as we arrived. However, they also took our order as we arrived, which meant that our food was arriving at all different times, and chaos ensued.<br />
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I chose to order the chilli scrambled eggs on their infamous Rustica sourdough but minus the bacon. I had ordered almost immediately after I sat down, and about twenty minutes past before I had received my drink or my meal. As I looked around, I realised that people who had arrived after me were having their meals served, so I flagged down a waiter and asked him if my order had been missed. I think he might have been knew, because he took my query to another waitress, there was some discussion between them, and then he came back to tell me my food was on its way. Fast forward another ten minutes and the senior waitress comes to me and tells me that my order has been mixed up and to confirm what I ordered. I tell her that I ordered the chilli scrambled eggs and she tells me she will be back. This time she returns quickly with my meal, chilli scrambled eggs, but with bacon. When I tell her that I had specifically requested for the bacon to omitted, she looked really confused. I did eventually receive my correct meal, but it was about an hour after I placed my original order. Don’t get me wrong, the food was delicious, but I could have done without the delay and confusion!<br />
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Luckily I was the only one on our table who had a mix up with their order. Everyone else’s food arrived on time, and correctly, and everyone loved their meals. As expected, the bread was the highlight, but equally important were quality ingredients and punchy flavours.<br />
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<a href="https://www.zomato.com/melbourne/rustica-canteen-cbd" target="_blank" title="View Menu, Reviews, Photos & Information about Rustica Canteen, CBD and other Restaurants in Melbourne"><img alt="Rustica Canteen Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato" src="https://www.zomato.com/logo/18138489/biglink" style="border: none; height: 146px; padding: 0; width: 200px;" /></a> </div>
Monihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14216532130742672009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4941410048115136812.post-85605808136590281082016-06-08T08:30:00.000+10:002016-06-08T08:30:03.130+10:00Victorian Wine Centre<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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I have often said that eating breakfast out is a huge indulgence. A meal which normally costs about $1.50 a home, can often increase to over $20 when you eat out. But admittedly, the options you receive at a café far outweigh the bowl of weet-bix I would ordinarily be having. So when you receive a message on a busy Saturday night asking if you want to catch up for breakfast on Sunday, it’s an offer I rarely turn down. After all, how can you say no to indulgence?!<br />
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A bunch of us met up in Middle Park with no clear plans of where we were given. I was happy to take a back seat and let someone else do the organising. Given how windy it was, there was a general consensus that we should avoid the beach and instead strolled along Armstrong St trying to find somewhere that looked exciting. We were a group of 7, so we needed a place that had a free table that was large enough for all of us, and we came across the Victorian Wine Centre. <br />
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At first glance you could be forgiven for thinking that this was a bar, or a wine shop, but it is infact a café or restaurant that takes their wine very seriously. However it was only 10am, and it would have most likely been frowned upon if we started our day with a champagne so we stuck with the traditional approach and ordered coffees. <br />
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Run by Italians, the Victorian Wine Centre clearly take pride in their coffee. Between us we ordered a variety of coffees including a flat white, a latte and a macchiato, and everyone was impressed.<br />
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The menu was heavily focused on eggs, with a few sweet options, but as usual I was in the mood for a savoury breakfast. In the end I chose a breakfast wrap. When it arrived, it looked huge! It was definitely not a wrap I could pick up, a knife and fork was essential. <br />
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Whilst the wrap was nothing exciting it was still nice. There was eggs (duh), cheese, salsa, and a dollop of sour cream. The serve of eggs was super generous but the cheese was not as apparent. The salsa was described as spicy, but it was fairly limited with the heat. Despite this, it was still an enjoyable breakfast, but nothing spectacular.<br />
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The other half chose to have house eggs. Served on a slice of sour dough was slices of tomato, spinach, feta, and two poached eggs. The plate was dressed with pesto and there was dukkah sprinkled on top. The dish was a flavour hit however it was deemed to be a little on the small side. However, we have big appetites, so perhaps it isn’t fair to use us as benchmarks!<br />
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Our morning at the Victorian Wine Centre was a good one. The company was great, the food was good and the coffee was excellent.<br />
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<a href="https://www.zomato.com/melbourne/victorian-wine-centre-middle-park" target="_blank" title="View Menu, Reviews, Photos & Information about Victorian Wine Centre, Middle Park and other Restaurants in Melbourne"><img alt="Victorian Wine Centre Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato" src="https://www.zomato.com/logo/16572588/biglink" style="border: none; height: 146px; padding: 0; width: 200px;" /></a> </div>
Monihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14216532130742672009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4941410048115136812.post-63392989773366336782016-06-06T08:51:00.001+10:002016-06-06T10:33:59.229+10:00In My Kitchen - June 2016<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
June is so full of birthdays for me, which means that a lot of meals are consumed at restaurants outside the kitchen. This is great because I love eating out, but it also means the potential of leftovers is significantly reduced which is a problem because leftovers are my staple food for work lunches. I spent the bulk of this weekend cooking up big batches of food that I can freeze to last a little while.<br />
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I made these infamous <a href="http://thoughtsofamoni.blogspot.in/2014/10/fake-sausage-rolls.html" target="_blank">fake sausage rolls</a> that I have blogged previously. I made a double batch of the filling, and froze half of it, so I can pull it out when I need it. These sausage rolls are always a hit with vegetarians and meat eaters alike, and are pretty healthy too. I can’t go without crediting <a href="http://herestheveg.blogspot.in/2006/09/august-26-2006-non-sausage-rolls.html" target="_blank">Where’s The Beef</a>, which is where I originally found the recipe, and years on, it is still a staple dish in my kitchen.<br />
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Winter has well and truly started in Melbourne, which means that winter vegetables are in season. I picked up a couple of heads of broccoli at the market. I had plans to make <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2009/mar/28/brocolli-gorgonzola-pie-vegetarian-recipe" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Ottolenghi’s broccoli and gorgonzola pie</a>, but I didn’t have some of the ingredients, so instead I decided to make a big batch of pasta. It’s a pretty easy recipe, and was a bit of a crowd pleaser.<br />
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<b>Ingredients:</b><br />
2 heads of broccoli, cut into small florets<br />
500g of pasta, I used spirals, but I’m sure you could use anything<br />
A generous amount of olive oil, say about 60ml<br />
3 or 4 cloves of garlic, sliced<br />
1 chilli (or more if you like the heat), sliced<br />
About 60g of parmesan, grated<br />
Salt and pepper to taste<br />
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<b>Method:</b><br />
1. Put the broccoli in a big pot of salted boiling water, and cook for about 3 minutes. Once tender, remove the broccoli with a slotted spoon and set aside.<br />
2. In the same pot, cook the pasta according to the directions on the packet. Once the pasta is cooked, drain, reserving about ½ cup of the water.<br />
3. Heat half the olive oil in a large frying pan or skillet. <br />
4. Add the garlic and chilli, and fry off.<br />
5. After a few minutes add the broccoli and fry off for another few minutes.<br />
6. Add the pasta to the pan, and mix thoroughly. Add salt and pepper to taste.<br />
7. Add the remaining olive oil, the water you had set aside from cooking the pasta, and almost all the parmesan. Mix well. The parmesan should melt and coat the pasta.<br />
8. Serve into bowls and sprinkle with remaining parmesan.<br />
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My batch was enough for about 4 serves, but bear in mind we eat large serves. You probably could have easily made it five serves. You could also add a few extra flavours like capsicum or wilted spinach. It’s a great way to incorporate more veggies into meals, which is something I am quite conscious of doing.<br />
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I found this amazing Connoisseur Murray River Salted Caramel and Macadamia Nut ice cream. This is usually quite a pricey ice cream, definitely reserved for special occasions, but I managed to find it on a super special, and we’ve been devouring it after dinner almost nightly. It is bloody delicious and I might have to stock up the next time I see it on special.<br />
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This post is part of the In My Kitchen series hosted by Maureen from the <a href="http://www.orgasmicchef.com/in-my-kitchen/in-my-kitchen-june-2016/" target="_blank">Orgasmic Chef</a>. Head over to her blog to see what is going on in other people's kitchens!</div>
Monihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14216532130742672009noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4941410048115136812.post-17889700342623163702016-06-03T10:14:00.001+10:002016-06-03T10:14:28.322+10:00Rice Paper<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span id="goog_2010217067"></span><span id="goog_2010217068"></span>China Town is generally the go to place for Asian in the CBD, but unless you’re having dumplings, these places aren’t usually very vegetarian friendly. As a result, we decided to venture down to Swanston St so see what we could find. We were going to go and see The Sound Of Music, so we were on a strict time schedule, and only had about an hour for dinner.<br />
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We had no plans of where we were going, but instead hoped that we would stumble upon something that appealed to us. As we walked along, we came across Rice Paper, which was unrelated to the very popular Rice Paper Scissors where it is close to impossible to get a table on a whim!<br />
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With a sign that said they specialised in Vietnamese street food, and a menu that had vegetarian options, we decided this was the place for us! <br />
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Rice Paper had an ordering system that was very similar to Pappa Rich. There was a menu for us to peruse, and a note pad and pencil on every table where we could write down our order. I made a quick decision and settled on the vegetarian spring rolls with vermicelli. This is usually one of my go to dishes when we go to Springvale for lunch, so I was keen to try it out somewhere different.<br />
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The service was super quick, and our dishes arrived in a matter of minutes. The serving sizes were generous, and my vermicelli came with a side of flavoursome nuoc mam sauce which I drizzled over the top. I was impressed with the ratio of spring rolls to vermicelli which is always my first concern. But I was equally impressed with the flavours and freshness that the dish contained. <br />
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My dining partner ordered char grilled pork on vermicelli, which some additional chicken spring rolls. Whilst she enjoyed her dish, she did comment that the pork didn’t have the authentic charred taste that she was hoping for which was a little disappointing, especially when you can usually count on street food for smoky, charred flavours.<br />
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Nevertheless our dinner was an enjoyable one, and I will definitely put Rice Paper on the list of quick dinner venues in the CBD.<br />
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<a href="https://www.zomato.com/melbourne/rice-paper-vietnamese-restaurant-cbd" target="_blank" title="View Menu, Reviews, Photos & Information about Rice Paper Vietnamese Restaurant, CBD and other Restaurants in Melbourne"><img alt="Rice Paper Vietnamese Restaurant Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato" src="https://www.zomato.com/logo/16576316/biglink" style="border: none; height: 146px; padding: 0; width: 200px;" /></a> </div>
Monihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14216532130742672009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4941410048115136812.post-14378920745668649902016-05-23T11:55:00.002+10:002016-05-23T11:55:58.396+10:00Your Thai Rice and Noodle Bar<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span id="goog_2010217069"></span><span id="goog_2010217070"></span>Over the last few weeks, I’ve been lucky enough to see a couple of great musicals. I saw Singin’ In The Rain, and also The Sound of Music. Both were great, and you should take the opportunity to see them if you can! This also meant that I had to find options for quick, pre-show dinners in the city and we managed to find some good offerings.<br />
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Down on Swanston St there are a couple of Asian restaurants that I like to put in the cheap and cheerful category. Your Thai Rice and Noodle Bar is located just near the Lonsdale St intersection and is spread across two levels. There is counter, a small amount of seating and the kitchen downstairs, and upstairs there is more seating. One the night we went, I was starving, and I was willing to settle for anything that was affordable and had vegetarian options so I was more than happy to give Your Thai a go.<br />
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The menu is set up like a typical Asian menu, with lots of pictures, and very affordable prices. Myself and the other half both decided to opt for rice options. I chose to have the vegetarian tom yum with Rice whilst the other half went for a beef massaman curry.<br />
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True to the cheap and cheerful tag, both meals were served on plastic melamine dishes that were sectioned into to compartments for the rice and the curry. Tom Yum is one of my favourite flavours, and true to expectation, my dish packed a good amount of punch. It was also quite generous with the amount of vegetables and tofu through the sauce so I was happy.<br />
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The other half was also reasonably pleased with his dish. Again, there was a generous amount of meat through the sauce and a good amount of flavour so he couldn’t complain.<br />
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Your Thai Rice and Noodle Bar is not a restaurant you would go to for a fine dining experience, or to impress a date, but it definitely does a decent meal at a good price point. The service is quick, the décor is basic, and the quick turnover of tables means that there are a lot of Melbournians who appreciate what they have to offer.<br />
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<a href="https://www.zomato.com/melbourne/your-thai-rice-and-noodle-bar-cbd" target="_blank" title="View Menu, Reviews, Photos & Information about Your Thai Rice and Noodle Bar, CBD and other Restaurants in Melbourne"><img alt="Your Thai Rice and Noodle Bar Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato" src="https://www.zomato.com/logo/16573622/biglink" style="border: none; height: 146px; padding: 0; width: 200px;" /></a> </div>
Monihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14216532130742672009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4941410048115136812.post-57511863975709242602016-05-17T08:45:00.000+10:002016-05-17T08:45:40.649+10:00Singin' In The Rain<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<i><a href="http://www.nuffnang.com.au/blogger/nuffnang-policy-on-sponsored-posts" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">This sponsored post is brought to you by Nuffnang and Singin’ In The Rain. </a></i><br />
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We often forget how lucky we are in Melbourne. We have some of the best restaurants, an awesome laneway culture, great shopping, and these days we are also privileged to have some of the world’s great musicals play here.<br />
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I was fortunate enough to go and see Singin’ In The Rain last Friday. After a sold out West End season, four Olivier Award nominations and a major UK tour, Singin’ In The Rain is set to delight Australian audiences starting with Melbourne, and following with seasons in Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth.<br />
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Admittedly, I didn’t know much about the musical. I had never seen the movie, and my entire knowledge of the show revolved around the title track, after all who hasn’t seen a clip of Gene Kelly singing and splashing about in the rain?! I could have done some research and read up on the story before I went to see the stage show, but I decided to go in blind so that I could get a genuine experience without any preconceived expectations.<br />
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Her Majesty’s Theatre is one of Melbourne’s grand theatres, and as we walked in to the hall, I thought of all the hundreds and thousands of performers who had graced the stage there. Like I said, we are certainly lucky to be in Melbourne.<br />
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Singin’ In The Rain tells the story of two silent movie stars, Don Lockwood played by Adam Garcia, and Lina Lamont played by Erika Heynatz, whose careers coincide with the cusp of the sound being introduced to the movies. Don and Lina are famous as the ‘it’ couple of the silent screen, but alas, Lina’s grating voice and inability to sing means that their time as a duo is looking shaky. Enter Kathy Selden played by Gretel Scarlett who is enlisted to be Lina’s voice behind the camera, throw in a love triangle and some comic relief from Cosmo Brown, played by Jack Chambers, plenty of 1920’s glitz and glamour, and you have yourself a great musical!<br />
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Adam Garcia draws on his dancing skills that led him to being one of the founding members of the Tap Dogs, and in Singin’ In The Rain, he is given the opportunity to showcase his talents. The star of the show is however, Erika Heynatz. She perfected Lina’s grating voice to a tee, and when the other half turned to me and said, ‘man she’s annoying!’ I knew she had mastered her role!<br />
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The trademark scene where Don Lockwood is singing and dancing in the rain is done superbly. 12000 litres of water are used each show (don’t worry, the water is recycled and reused!) and the first three rows of the theatre have been dubbed the ‘splash zone’ with patrons being given ponchos to protect themselves from the splashes! It certainly makes for a fun experience, and a word of warning, the splashes travel further than just the third row!<br />
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Playing for a limited season in Melbourne, <a href="http://singin.com.au/?utm_source=nnang&utm_medium=comblog&utm_campaign=melopen" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Singin’ In The Rain</a> is definitely not to be missed!</div>
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Monihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14216532130742672009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4941410048115136812.post-15434886067943421092016-05-06T08:52:00.000+10:002016-05-06T08:52:10.500+10:00In My Kitchen - May 2016<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Given the warmer weather was still hovering late into April, perhaps it is not surprising that my kitchen was still full of garden produce. <br />
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Firstly, the avocado tree at my parents’ place was fruiting like crazy this year. I think there was about a hundred fruit picked in total, with the tree still full. It’s just that the fruit was way too high to reach, even with a ladder. The thing about avocados is that they don’t ripen on the tree. They need to sit in a bowl for about a week until they are ready to eat. This means, that you will go from having no avocados, to having a bowl full of avocados that need to be eaten ASAP! Having said that, avocados are worth close to their weight in gold, so when I started handing out avocados to my work colleagues to ensure nothing went to waste, I ended up being very popular!<br />
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My parents’ chilli plant is also full of fresh, and super hot chillies. I have been packeting these up and giving them to family friends who I know love hot food! In the Bengali culture, we have a superstition that chillies should not be gifted to anyone. The story goes that if you give someone chillies, the heat and fire from them will translate into the relationship and the friendship will be in jeopardy. To circumvent the superstition, Bengali aunties ‘sell’ their chillies for a small fortune of 5 cents. The monetary transaction means that it is no longer a gift, but a sale, and the friendship is not risked! It’s funny, the logical part of me knows this is completely ridiculous, but yet, it is something I have seen since I was very young, and so the practice is almost inherent in me! I still have lots of chillies left for myself, so I’m thinking about turning them into a chilli paste or chilli sauce. <br />
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At the start of the year I spent a whole month strictly shopping local. Whilst I can’t say this practice has continued 100% (it’s just not always financially practical), I have made some changes to some of the products I buy. One of these products is milk. I did a lot of research, and came to the conclusion that milk from St. David’s dairy was the best choice for me. The cows from which the milk is sourced are located mainly in Eastern Victoria and the dairy is located in Fitzroy where the milk is processed and bottled, which means there are very few food miles. It is not a cheap milk, at $3.80 for 2L, but given that it lasts me about 10 days, I feel like it is worth spending the extra money on. On a side note, it is also bloody delicious. I can definitely taste the difference between St David’s and the el cheapo supermarket milk.<br />
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This post is part of the In My Kitchen series hosted by Maureen from the <a href="http://www.orgasmicchef.com/in-my-kitchen/kitchen-april-2016/" target="_blank">Orgasmic Chef</a>. Head over to her blog to see what is going on in other people's kitchens!</div>
Monihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14216532130742672009noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4941410048115136812.post-87866335887202866782016-05-05T08:45:00.000+10:002016-05-05T08:57:15.434+10:00Sister of Soul<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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I pride myself on knowing the dedicated vegetarian restaurants around Melbourne, so when a friend suggested we have our regular catch up dinner at Sister of Soul, I was blindsided! I had never heard of Sister of Soul, and a little Zomato research revealed that it was a vegetarian restaurant! I had been blindsided! But on this occasion I was happy to have been blindsided, because I love discovering new places!<br />
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Located on Acland St, just across the road from The Vineyard, and on the diagonally opposite corner to the newest vegan café, Matcha Mylkbar, Sister of Soul is named so because it is a run by some of the team from the previous vegetarian institution, Soulmama. <br />
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We were there on a Wednesday night, and when we got there, the restaurant was relatively empty. I had a quick peruse of the menu, which read very much like a fusion menu. The dishes were a mixture of Thai, Indian, Mexican, a little bit of Italian, and some American. I’m usually wary of menus that are so diverse, I feel like if they do too many things, they end up doing none of them properly. Still, I took a plunge and ordered a Thai sounding curry, the Jungle Madness, which was served with rice. <br />
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The first thing I noticed about my dish was how generous the servings were. I was super hungry, so this made me very happy and my first box was already ticked. On the surface the dish looked hearty and wholesome, filled with lots of vegetables, big chunks of tofu, and lots of chilli. There was also a wedge of lime which I squeezed for added freshness and zing. When I tasted the dish, I knew I had made the right choice. It was full of flavour, and the sauce was thick and creamy. The ratio of sauce to rice was also appropriate, and it was clear that nobody was skimping on the curry. Overall I was very satisfied with my choice, and my meal made me very content.<br />
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My dinner date also made an Asian choice, The Green Sister Stirfry. This dish was filled with all the standard Asian green suspects, gai lan, wombok, bok choi, as well as tofu and cooked in a choice of sauces - satay was the sauce of choice on this occasion. Rather than being served with the standard jasmine rice, this dish was served with brown rice, making it a very healthy option. It was declared to be delicious, so it was evident that Sister of Soul definitely do Asian food well. <br />
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We decided to indulge and share a dessert between us. I am not a big fan of vegan desserts, especially when they try and replace the dairy component with tofu (think tofu cheesecake – gross), so we decided to try the Not So Rocky Road. This dish came out as a deconstructed rocky road, and looked gorgeous on the plate. There was a scattering of house made vegan marshmallows, cherry jelly, fresh strawberries, dark chocolate ganache, salted chocolate dirt, toasted almonds and coconut. When we put a little bit of everything on the spoon and into our mouths, the flavours combined beautifully together. Dessert was definitely a big hit!<br />
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Overall I was quite impressed with Sister of Soul. Having never heard of it before, I will now be adding it to my list of go to vegetarian restaurants! I have also dismissed my initial reservations about the diverse menu. Perhaps next time I go, I will have to try something from a different culture!<br />
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<a href="https://www.zomato.com/melbourne/sister-of-soul-st-kilda" target="_blank" title="View Menu, Reviews, Photos & Information about Sister of Soul, St Kilda and other Restaurants in Melbourne"><img alt="Sister of Soul Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato" src="https://www.zomato.com/logo/16583336/biglink" style="border: none; height: 146px; padding: 0; width: 200px;" /></a> </div>
Monihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14216532130742672009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4941410048115136812.post-72063929244575553162016-04-20T13:15:00.000+10:002016-04-20T13:15:48.903+10:00Gratitude<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<i>This product talk is brought to you by Circa Homes and Nuffnang. </i><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheIxLbRM02BW_B67tpBZw4JiwP7iUWZzCpu4HrpaN4eIKVnL4FBvR7RJe7fECfRcHhCpeajonNfn8GaoKi6832Kkt7AAEVHmak6hxSZ2uhFmvLSPwiiXPSsxF49Hwtdm5H6pXcLSzRzws/s1600/Circa_Home_2016_Honeyflower_Sandalwood_260g_Classic_Candle_Back.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheIxLbRM02BW_B67tpBZw4JiwP7iUWZzCpu4HrpaN4eIKVnL4FBvR7RJe7fECfRcHhCpeajonNfn8GaoKi6832Kkt7AAEVHmak6hxSZ2uhFmvLSPwiiXPSsxF49Hwtdm5H6pXcLSzRzws/s640/Circa_Home_2016_Honeyflower_Sandalwood_260g_Classic_Candle_Back.jpg" width="640" /></a> Gratitude. It is an often forgotten aspect of our lives, and yet, we have so much to be grateful for. There is so much in my life that I take for granted, but so much of it is not available to many around the world.<br /><br />I am grateful that I have a healthy body. I am able to walk, to run, to drive, and to move without restriction. I am grateful that I have a roof over my head, clothes on my back and food to eat whenever I am hungry. I am grateful that I have friends and family that I can depend on. I am grateful that I live in a country where we assume the right to freedom. I am grateful that I live in a country where gender is no barrier to what I can achieve. I am grateful for the simple human values that my parents have imparted to me, because without them, without the basic principles of love, truth, righteousness, non violence, peace and happiness, life would be meaningless.<br /><br />I have so much to be grateful for and yet, I rarely take the time to acknowledge all that is good in my life. So I have decided to start a new ritual. I have started writing in a gratitude diary. Every night before bed, I am going to take a minute to write down one thing that I am grateful for that day. It might be something small like that fact that my new body wash makes me happy because it smells like rosewater, or it might be big like that fact that I am fortunate enough to be going to Mongolia in a few months to experience a new landscape and culture. Either way, both deserve to be equally acknowledged, for they both play a part in making my life happier. <br />
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<br />Every day may not be good, but it is important to remember that there is something good in every day. <br /><br />Circa Homes has brought out a limited edition Honeyflower and Sandalwood collection, just in time for Mothers’ Day. I am so grateful to have my mother in life, and I know I wouldn’t be a quarter of the person I am if it wasn’t for her. She has imparted her love of food to me, she has shared with me her fetish for clothes, she has helped me realise the importance of fulfilling my responsibilities, and most importantly she has showered me with unconditional love. <br />
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<br />This Circa Homes candle that I am so grateful to have been gifted, is just as warm and inviting as a hug from my mum, and this Mothers’ Day, with my mum overseas, I will take any sign of my mum possible. <br /><br />Circa Homes is also giving you the opportunity to win a limited edition Honeyflower and Sandalwood Collection pack, including <a href="http://goo.gl/OqX0kW" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">candles</a>, a <a href="http://goo.gl/TR2jlF" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">fragrance diffuser</a>, <a href="http://goo.gl/agIW5V" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">soy melts</a> and an <a href="http://goo.gl/jMYHoJ" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">electric wax warmer</a>. All the products have the comforting smell of honeyflower and sandalwood, and evoke so many feelings of gratitude. To enter, head to the <a href="http://goo.gl/tizIX4" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Circa Homes competition page</a> and see if you are lucky enough to win the pack, either for yourself, or perhaps your mum!<br />
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Monihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14216532130742672009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4941410048115136812.post-71380167154399626782016-04-16T08:30:00.000+10:002016-05-05T09:43:34.066+10:00Royal Stacks<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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On Saturday, I rode for 12 km, ran for 5km at <a href="http://www.parkrun.com.au/" target="_blank">parkrun</a>, and
then walked for 3.5 km (and then back for 3.5km) to get burgers for dinner.
Given all the exercise, the burgers, fries, milkshake and frozen custard (more
on that later) were completely guilt free. People often ask me why I do crazy
things like run 5 times a week. The answer is so I can eat ridiculous amounts
of food. I’m not willing to eat any less, so the only option is to exercise
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Melbourne is most definitely on a burger craze. Burger joints
are popping up all over the place and competition is rife. This is a good thing
if you are a burger lover like I am. A few months ago, Royal Stacks opened up
its first branch in the CBD, and it wasn’t long before their second store
opened up in Brunswick. </div>
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We got to Royal Stacks at about 6:30pm on a Saturday
evening. It was peak time for a restaurant, so it was no surprise that there
was a line outside, and we were told that there would be a twenty minute wait
for a table. We decided that waiting was not an issue, and before we realised
it, we were called inside to sit at a communal table. For those that didn’t
want to wait, there was a takeaway option, which was also doing a roaring
trade.</div>
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When we got inside, there seemed to be lots of empty tables,
so it seemed that they were a bit haphazard in getting people seated
efficiently. There was also not table service, so you had to make sure you had
someone at the table minding your spot whilst the second person was lining up
at the counter placing the order. Not a big issue, unless your spot gets
stolen, which was happening a fair bit.</div>
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The other half was responsible for the ordering, and he did
good. He got the Double Stack for him, and the Queen Bee for me.<br />
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Royal Stacks
only offers one form of protein for their burgers, beef, with the exception of
the Queen Bee which is made with a home made chickpea patty. The Queen Bee also
had the basic salads of lettuce and tomato, American cheddar, a special burger
sauce which tasted suspiciously like it was based on tartare sauce and one of
my favourite ingredients – pickles. I felt the bun was a little too sweet for
my liking, I prefer a more bready bun, rather than the sweet brioche bun, but
that’s just me. What I really enjoyed was the patty and the way the sauce
complemented it, and of course I loved the pickles. Over all it was a good
burger, but not amazing.</div>
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The other half had a similar opinion of his Double Stack. He
commented that everything was done well, but there was no wow factor. </div>
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We also got some cheesy fries to share. These were actually
my least favourite item. When I order chips, I want thickly cut chips that are
crunchy on the outside and soft and fluffy on the inside. The Royal Stacks
chips were French fries, McDonalds style, thin and with very little fluffiness.
Being so thin, it also meant that they became limp very quickly. The cheese
sauce was also nothing to write home about, almost replicating plastic cheese. </div>
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But from this part of the meal it was all uphill. First off,
the salted caramel milkshake. YUM. The saltiness was perfectly balanced with
the sweet caramel, and it was amazing. I don’t usually get drinks, but this
milkshake was definitely worth it.</div>
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Then, as we were finishing off our meals, a waitress came
and told us that they would like to offer us their signature frozen custard to
try. I decided to try the pistachio flavour, and the other half went for
another round of salted caramel. Both flavours were amazing. The salted caramel
frozen custard was also the basis of our previous milkshake, so needless to
say, it was perfect, but the pistachio flavour was also a winner. I struggled
to tell the difference between frozen custard and ice cream, but regardless, it
was smooth and creamy and a great way to end the meal.</div>
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Royal Stacks has definitely made a big impact in Melbourne
after being open for a short time and the long lines outside the premises are
testament to this. Was I impressed? I wasn’t so impressed with the burgers, but
I will definitely be back for some more frozen custard, that’s what it was all
about for me!</div>
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Name="Closing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Signature"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" Name="Default Paragraph Font"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text Indent"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Message Header"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="11" QFormat="true" Name="Subtitle"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Salutation"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Date"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text First Indent"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text First Indent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Note Heading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text Indent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text Indent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Block Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Hyperlink"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="FollowedHyperlink"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="22" QFormat="true" Name="Strong"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="20" QFormat="true" Name="Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Document Map"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Plain Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="E-mail Signature"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Top of Form"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Bottom of Form"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Normal (Web)"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Acronym"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Address"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Cite"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Code"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Definition"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Keyboard"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Preformatted"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Sample"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Typewriter"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Variable"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Normal Table"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="annotation subject"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="No List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Outline List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Outline List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Outline List 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Simple 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Simple 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Simple 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Colorful 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Colorful 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Colorful 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table 3D effects 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table 3D effects 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table 3D effects 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Contemporary"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Elegant"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Professional"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Subtle 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Subtle 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Web 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Web 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Web 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Balloon Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="Table Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Theme"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" Name="Placeholder Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" QFormat="true" Name="No Spacing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" Name="Revision"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="34" QFormat="true"
Name="List Paragraph"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="29" QFormat="true" Name="Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="30" QFormat="true"
Name="Intense Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="19" QFormat="true"
Name="Subtle Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="21" QFormat="true"
Name="Intense Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="31" QFormat="true"
Name="Subtle Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="32" QFormat="true"
Name="Intense Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="33" QFormat="true" Name="Book Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="37" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" Name="Bibliography"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" QFormat="true" Name="TOC Heading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="41" Name="Plain Table 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="42" Name="Plain Table 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="43" Name="Plain Table 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="44" Name="Plain Table 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="45" Name="Plain Table 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="40" Name="Grid Table Light"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46" Name="Grid Table 1 Light"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51" Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52" Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46" Name="List Table 1 Light"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51" Name="List Table 6 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52" Name="List Table 7 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="List Table 1 Light Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="List Table 6 Colorful Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="List Table 7 Colorful Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="List Table 1 Light Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="List Table 6 Colorful Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="List Table 7 Colorful Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="List Table 1 Light Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
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<a href="https://www.zomato.com/melbourne/royal-stacks-brunswick" target="_blank" title="View Menu, Reviews, Photos & Information about Royal Stacks, Brunswick and other Restaurants in Melbourne"><img alt="Royal Stacks Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato" src="https://www.zomato.com/logo/18279066/biglink" style="border: none; height: 146px; padding: 0; width: 200px;" /></a> </div>
Monihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14216532130742672009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4941410048115136812.post-69979989239468325142016-04-11T11:19:00.001+10:002016-04-11T22:36:28.529+10:00Rustica Canteen<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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I have a thing for good bread. Freshly baked loaves of warm, soft sourdough, with a crunchy crust, perhaps scattered with grains of some sort, and lathered with butter is one of my many weaknesses. Cheese is my other weakness, but let’s not start with that…<br />
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Rustica Sourdough has long been on my list to try. Social media has been full of people raving about not only their bread, but also their delicious breakfasts. Located on Brunswick St in Fitzroy, is the original Rustica branch, where we decided to indulge on Good Friday morning. We got there relatively early, as early as one should wake on a public holiday, and headed down there only to be faced with a queue. Luckily we didn’t have to wait too long, as long as we were happy to sit on a communal table. This was no issue for me, infact I quite like the communal table because it means I can perve on everyone else’s meals!<br />
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We started with the usual coffees, a latte and a flat white. It important to note that the other half’s flat white was served in a cup that had a handle large enough for his index finger to go through and get a firm grip. It’s the small things that make us happy.<br />
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Given that a long weekend was ahead of us, I decided to go for a healthy option of sautéed greens served with a poached egg on sourdough. The other half went on a completely different tangent and ordered the cheesy, béchamel filled goodness of a croque monsieur.<br />
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As per the description, my meal really did come with lots of greens. There was brocollini, beans, snow peas and sliced avocado, all served with some grilled haloumi, almonds, and some salsa verde to tie it all together. It was presented with a poached egg, and sat on top of a thick slice of Rustica sourdough. This meal definitely worked. All the flavours blended well together, although, the cheese lover in me would have loved a little more haloumi. The bread was most definitely a highlight, and I was very satisfied with my meal.<br />
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The other half was equally impressed with his meal. Of course the bread was a standout, the croque monsieur was served on a pumpkin brioche which was rather unusual, but very much appreciated. It came with ham hock, gruyere cheese, seeded mustard béchamel and pickles on the side. It was also a winner. <br />
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Our breakfast that morning was a successful one, and we left very full and content customers. Rustica also have another couple of branches in the CBD and Richmond, infact I have a girls’ breakfast planned for the CBD outlet, so I hope it will live up to my expectations again!</div>
<a href="https://www.zomato.com/melbourne/rustica-sourdough-bakery-fitzroy" target="_blank" title="View Menu, Reviews, Photos & Information about Rustica Sourdough Bakery, Fitzroy and other Restaurants in Melbourne"><img alt="Rustica Sourdough Bakery Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato" src="https://www.zomato.com/logo/16579414/biglink" style="border: none; height: 146px; padding: 0; width: 200px;" /></a> </div>
Monihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14216532130742672009noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4941410048115136812.post-39132535961304137812016-04-06T09:21:00.000+10:002016-05-04T22:31:38.065+10:00In My Kitchen - April 2016<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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These In My Kitchen posts really highlight to me how much time flies. It feels like only yesterday I was writing the March post. Now it’s April, and we’re a third of the way through the year!<br />
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Eggplant is still very much in season, and as one of my favourite vegetables, I always try and pick some up from the market. This time, I used it to make a potato and eggplant curry. The picture doesn’t really do it justice, as curries generally are not very photogenic, but it was delicious. The recipe was taken from <a href="http://www.veganricha.com/2016/01/aloo-baingan-recipe.html" target="_blank">Vegan Richa’s blog</a>. She always has some great things to try out in the kitchen.<br />
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I’ve become a bit of a <a href="http://www.t2tea.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">T2</a> addict. Whilst I still maintain that the products are quite pricey, I can’t deny that they taste amazing. I’m a big fan of their mixed packs, because it means you can taste a variety of teas without committing to any one flavour. I picked up a box of their Choc pack, which contains delicious teas like choc chip chai, and crème brulee. So delicious, and perfect on a winter night with a choc chip cookie!<br />
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I was also given a Bessemer crepe pan from the Margaret Fulton range. I’ve never made crepes, so I guess now would be a good time to try! I was also thinking that I could use the pan to make dosas, the Indian rice flour pancake, which I always struggle to make because they stick in the pan and I can’t flip them! The man has a convex surface, so that you dip the whole pan into the batter to coat the surface and cook it on top of the gas flame.<br />
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I’ve been babysitting my parents’ garden, which means I also get to benefit from everything that grows in it! My dad has a bit of a green thumb, and I can remember growing up, that our kitchen was always full of home grown veggies. I never really appreciated this as a kid, but now that I am older, I can realise how lucky I was, and how much of a difference fresh produce makes to the taste of a dish. The garden currently has a flourishing bottle gourd plant. Called bottle gourd in English, lau in Bengali or lauki in Hindi, this is a vegetable that is very popular in India and other Asian countries. A member of the gourd family (duh!), it has a texture similar to that of a marrow, but has a slightly sweeter taste. It can be used in curries, in dhal, or a variety of other dishes. I have been eating a lot of bottle gourd this past month, as well as giving plenty away to friends!<br />
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This post is part of the In My Kitchen series hosted by Maureen from the <a href="http://www.orgasmicchef.com/in-my-kitchen/kitchen-april-2016/" target="_blank">Orgasmic Chef</a>. Head over to her blog to see what is going on in other people's kitchens!</div>
Monihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14216532130742672009noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4941410048115136812.post-26894161051824350752016-03-31T09:25:00.000+11:002016-04-11T15:34:06.394+10:00March Favourites<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
This month I’ve decided to change things up, and instead of doing the usual Taking Stock questions, I’m participating in <a href="http://vegetaraian.com/my-monthly-loves-link-up-mar16/" target="_blank">Tara’s (from Vegetaraian) link up</a> and posting my favourite finds for the month.<br />
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First up are the <a href="https://thankyou.co/bodyCare" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Thankyou products</a>. These have been on sale for a few years, but I had never actually bought them. They are slightly more expensive than similar products of their sort, but the benefit they provide to society makes them worth the extra cost. I got the hand wash and also the body wash (not pictured) both of which use part of the revenue to fund sanitary projects in third world countries. The bottles come with a label, with a tracking number which you can enter into the Thankyou website, to see exactly which project you helped contribute to. And whilst the toiletries don’t have the cruelty free symbol on them, this is only because they have not paid for the certification to officially deem themselves cruelty free.<br />
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I was also lucky enough to win tickets to the <a href="http://www.peninsulapicnic.com.au/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Peninsula Picnic</a> held earlier in the month. As the name suggests, the event is held in the Mornington Peninsula, at the Mornington Racecourse. It endeavours to showcase all that the peninsula has to offer in terms of food and produce, in a relaxed atmosphere. Whilst the event was sold out, it wasn’t too crowded, and everybody had a spot to put their picnic rug down, enjoy some food and a glass of wine, with the music of the likes of Timberwolf or Missy Higgins in the background. As an annual event, it’s one to put in the calendar for next year.<br />
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It had been a while between Ottolenghi recipes for me. I dusted off my copy of Plenty More and found <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2012/feb/24/roasted-butternut-lamb-rack-recipes" target="_blank">this gorgeous pumpkin dish</a> to make. It was very simple, and as with all Ottolenghi creation, full of flavour. Spiced with nigella seeds, cardamom, cinnamon, cumin, coriander and ginger, it was delicious when I paired it with lemon rice.<br />
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We closed off the month with a beautiful meal at Franco Choo’s. Franco Choo’s is one of our favourite restaurants, and I’ve <a href="http://thoughtsofamoni.blogspot.in/2014/10/franco-choos.html" target="_blank">blogged about it previously</a> so it’s not a new find, but what I did find was a post-Easter 20% off special that they had advertised on their Facebook page! In a matter of minutes we had a dinner organised for the next day, with some great company! And as always, the food at Franco Choo’s didn’t disappoint. I’m so surprised that this restaurant hasn’t received as much attention as its Italian cousins like Tipo 00, or Rosa’s Canteen, but perhaps that’s a good thing because it means we can usually get a booking fairly easily!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0OYCAVEm3XFQWh5aMwQ3vXhmChaDulGwj4O5qNTXdh5MBPfxp3jFiktwAvQGaQgsNAcRo1k8QrU2gUw1DCRRd6Fq1vZKh7nHwQ8dBUPnj7sEkEA_r2oIZ1oeeuTBilmEnYJq7Sbx9lMI/s1600/collage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0OYCAVEm3XFQWh5aMwQ3vXhmChaDulGwj4O5qNTXdh5MBPfxp3jFiktwAvQGaQgsNAcRo1k8QrU2gUw1DCRRd6Fq1vZKh7nHwQ8dBUPnj7sEkEA_r2oIZ1oeeuTBilmEnYJq7Sbx9lMI/s640/collage.jpg" width="480" /></a></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: large;">Have you had any great finds this month? Let me know below, I'd love to hear about them! </span></i></div>
Monihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14216532130742672009noreply@blogger.com1