What do you get when you combine breakfast and lunch?

Beautiful brunch

What do you get when you combine breakfast and lunch? You get brunch!!

Ahhhhhhh brunch. *sigh*  That wonderous meal that you have on a lazy Sunday morning when it has just proven too difficult to drag yourself out of that nice comfortable bed. (Often because you have been out late the night before)

Sunday brunch has also become a marvellous time to meet up with friends and family to enjoy a meal and ‘waste’ a few hours over tea and coffee. And brunch is a meal. Make no bones about it, brunch is much more than a bowl of Corn Flakes or a piece of Vegemite toast. Brunch is breakfast AND lunch combined. This is two for one and you make it big because it has to last you till dinner.

Brunch is an omnivores delight. Brunch lovers can go crazy on sausages, bacon, chorizo, hash browns, tomatoes, eggs, mushrooms, avocado, baked beans……….Sometimes all on the one plate. Two meals in one. 🙂 Good cafes don’t forget the vegetarian, vegan and gluten folk. There’s plenty of fruits, nuts, yoghurt, muesli, special breads and the like for them.

Melbourne’s cafes thrive on the brunch lovers. We want our Sunday morning cook-up but we don’t want the cleaning up that goes with it. So Melbournians hit the cafes in their thousands and we do so in various stages off disrepair or glamour.

Melbournians arrive for brunch in one of two ways, either looking like they’ve just crawled out of bed and climbed into the nearest items of clothing that they found on the floor or they are dressed to impress. Men are generally unshaven and dishevelled, clutching that double-shot latte in their hand with grim determination while they try to read the sports pages of the Sunday papers. Women, if they have braved the world without make-up, are hiding behind hats, scarves and sunglasses sipping that skinny soy cap as if it will breathe life back into them.

The brunch culture is a weekend ritual for so many. For me, it is an occasional luxury. And I like that it is an occasional luxury. If I ‘did brunch’ every weekend I would not appreciate the luxury that it is. Because, in reality, who can really afford to spend $25 per person for breakfast every weekend?? Not me. I’ve got more important things to spend $25 a week on. I could put that money away for some camera equipment!!! Or maybe a ticket to a musical. Or towards a decent holiday.

So I make brunch at home. And I have got it mastered. Lightly toasted home-made bread, cooked tomato, smashed avocado, well-cooked bacon and perfectly poached eggs that have herbs and marinated feta cooked into them. Freshly squeezed orange juice. As many cups of tea as I want…………

Admittedly, I have to do my own cleaning up but my brunch costs a hell of a lot less than $25 and I never have to deal with screaming children, smokers or car fumes. I get to choose with whom I brunch.

I can also stay in my pyjamas. 🙂

Well that’s something you don’t see every day.

One intriguing piece of fruit.

Had to do the grocery shopping today. Had to. Things were desperate. We were at the last of the milk,  we had no cold meat, no bananas, no salad mix……..    So I dragged the unwilling and recalcitrant #1 son out of his bed and made him push the shopping trolley through Coles, Aldi and the fruit and veg shop.

While negotiating the fruit and vegetable aisle of Coles to get to the deli I came across something that I had never seen before. Something unusual. Something that made me wonder just what the bloody hell one would do with it????

Have you ever come across the Buddha’s hand before? Have you ever made anything using the Buddha’s hand?

I had to wait till I got home so that I could Google it. Thank you Wikipedia. 🙂

Buddha’s hand, Citrus medica var. sarcodactylis, or the fingered citron, is an unusually shaped citron variety whose fruit is segmented into finger-like sections, resembling a human hand. In Japanese it is called bushukan (ブッシュカン).

The different cultivars and variations of this citron variety form a gradient from “open-hand” types with outward-splayed segments to “closed-hand” types, in which the fingers are kept together. There are also half-fingered fruits, in which the basal side is united and the apical side fingered. The origin of this kind of citron is commonly traced back to the Far East, probably north eastern India or China, where most domesticated citrus fruits originate.

Perfume

Buddha’s hand fruit is very fragrant and is used predominantly in China and Japan for perfuming rooms and personal items such as clothing.

Religious

The fruit may be given as a religious offering in Buddhist temples. According to tradition, Buddha prefers the “fingers” of the fruit to be in a position where they resemble a closed rather than open hand, as closed hands symbolize to Buddha the act of prayer. In China, the Buddha’s hand fruit is a symbol of happiness, longevity and good fortune. It is also a traditional temple offering and a New Year’s gift.

Food and medicine

Though esteemed chiefly for its “exquisite form and aroma”, the Buddha’s Hand fruit can also be eaten (often as a zest or flavouring) in desserts, savory dishes and alcoholic beverages (such as vodka) or candied as a sweet. The sliced, dried peel of immature fruits is also prescribed as a tonic in traditional medicine.

I, of course, simply had to take a photo of this unusual citrus. #1 son, of course, had to run away and hide from the embarrassment of his mother taking a photo of a fruit in the Coles supermarket.

Honestly, kids these days. They get embarrassed by their parents so easily.

Mum….We’re out of bread.

There is almost nothing better than the smell of freshly baked bread.

“No my precious boy, we are not out of bread. I had a feeling in my waters that you had taken the last slices out of the freezer and not mentioned anything to me. So I made sure that I put the ingredients in the bread maker this morning before I left for work.”

Did you pick up on the sarcasm?

#1 son would have not been a happy chappy had he discovered that there was no bread in the freezer for his lunch tomorrow. I would have appreciated a heads up that we had run out, but young adults forget the basics. I just had that mother’s instinct, that ‘feeling in my waters’ that he had used the last slices for his lunch today.

So #1 mum made sure that the bread machine went into bake mode today. And when I arrived home at lunchtime to await the glaziers my nostrils were delightfully assaulted by the aroma of freshly baked bread. Is there a nicer smell in the world?

It was a traditional Aussie lunch for me today. Fresh bread (the crusty ends), still warm from the machine, slathered in butter and enhanced by just the right amount of Vegemite. Add a cup of tea to wash it down and I was in heaven.

Store-bought bread

Pane di Casa

I have in my house tonight……store-bought bread. This is a little bit of decadence. I hardly ever have store-bought bread because I bake my own in my Sunbeam bread-maker. Have done for nearly 15 years.

Why do I have store-bought bread in the house? Because Thursday is my naughty day when I treat myself to a Cheesymite scroll from Baker’s Delight and I get myself a little special something for afternoon tea. My customer loyalty card earned me a free loaf of bread today!!!

Tonight’s dinner. Toasted Pane di Casa with shaved ham and Tess’ home-made relish.

Old habits die hard.

Everything in readiness.

Today is Good Friday, a pretty big day on the Christian calendar and a bloody great day for those who enjoy a public holiday. Why? Because it’s a Friday and we don’t have to go to work. (unless you work in hospitals and emergency services. PS: I love you guys and I haven’t forgotten you.)

Traditionally, if you are an observer of the Christian faith in one of its many forms, meat is not eaten on this day. You can eat fish, and if you’re a vegan or vegetarian this is your day to shine.

I am an atheist. I was raised Church of England. I was christened, I was not confirmed and I’m not fussed. However, my mum and dad still follow the habits and traditions that they were raised with and the habits and traditions that they raised their three children by. We never ate meat on Good Friday.

Old habits die hard. Even today, the atheist that I am, I do not eat meat on Good Friday. I have raised my son with this same habit. I would be rather cross with him if he made a ham sandwich or went out and bought a hamburger for dinner tonight. And this seems bizarre.

Why do I bother? Why would my son eating meat today bother me?

It is a habit for me. I am 47 years old and this is what I was brought up to do. I respect the majority consensus on this day. It doesn’t hurt me and it certainly doesn’t hurt anyone else. Having one day a year that I ‘religiously’ make my vegetarian day is not going to hurt me.

I now have a new habit for this day. I make pumpkin soup. 🙂  I used to make a curried pumpkin soup (which is very yummy) until I found a recipe for roasted pumpkin and garlic soup in a newspaper supplement that I used to read. Oh my goodness!! Pumpkin soup will never be the same again. This recipe is sensational!!

So today’s photos are all about the new habit that will probably die hard.

Cut and ready to roast.

Nearly cooked. Just a few minutes longer in the hot oven.

OMG!! It tastes as good as it looks.

Hungover

Maybe I’ll feel better after a cup of tea and a piece of toast.

It feels like Melbourne is hung-over today.  The skies are overcast, the temperature is perfect for sleeping or staying in bed (somewhere in the low 20’s) and the streets are unusually quiet.

It feels like I am hung-over today. My mind is overcast, I just want to sleep or stay curled up quietly in bed and my brain feels unusually quiet.

Did everyone go on a St Patrick’s Day bender?

I can’t blame the demon drink as I don’t partake. My pathetic excuse is old age. I’m too old to go out partying in the middle of the week. For that matter, I’m too old to go out partying on the weekend. What used to take a long morning sleep-in to recover from now takes three days. I am not terribly happy about this state of affairs.

Perhaps I should take up drinking. Then I would have a more valid excuse than just being nearly 50.

Does this classify as a still life??

The breakfast ritual. 50mm ISO500 1/4000s F/2.8

Once again I was struck by the beauty of the light coming through my kitchen window. I was merely minding my own business, squeezing my orange for my daily fix of fresh OJ when I realised that I couldn’t let this moment disappear.

But I have a question………. Does this photo qualify as a ‘still life’? The items are still. They form part of my daily life.

In truth, they are an integral part of my daily routine. I used to buy a bottle of orange juice from the supermarket, but I became frustrated at the lack of true flavour. I was also unhappy about the use of concentrates and added ingredients, so I decided to buy real oranges and see what difference they made.

Not surprisingly, the flavours of the freshly squeezed juice was magnificent. The smell of fresh oranges in the kitchen every day is refreshing and now it has become a habit that I am not going to break. (As well as the lemon juice in a large glass of warm water that I guzzle every morning before I even think about doing anything else)

Is it weird that I take my little Tupperware juicer, lemons and oranges with me whenever I go away?

The magic of shadows

The power of light and shade.

Ok. It’s official. I have become a certifiable, crazy, photography lady.

There I was, just minding my own business, making a cup of tea when I noticed the shadow of the cup on the kitchen bench. A normal person would be looking at the strength of the infusing tea, but I have finally realised that I am not normal. I saw the shadow, I readjusted the cup to see how the shape changed and I grabbed my camera to photograph it.

…………….And then I placed my reading glasses down while I continued with the tea making.

Can I just say “Wow!!” ?

What would a non-believer do?

Thank you for the chance to have pancakes, and only pancakes, for dinner.

Today is an important day in the Christian calendar, Shrove Tuesday. But I live in a country that embraces and recognises many religions, Christianity, Catholicism, Hindu, Muslim, Judaism, Buddhism, Jedi just to name a few.  My home country also recognises and respects the right not to follow a religious doctrine. You can be an atheist or agnostic in Australia and not be considered unusual.

But what does this mean when we recognise, celebrate and even have national holidays because of these Christian events on our national calendar? Good Friday, Easter Sunday, Easter Monday, Christmas Day, Shrove Tuesday?? We hard-working Australians who do not believe in God or a God say “Thank you very much” and we enjoy the day (or days) off work that these days of recognition afford us.

On these days of holiday some of us do absolutely nothing. We might just go vegetarian for a day because we grew up being told that you didn’t eat meat on Good Friday and this is a hard habit to break. Some of us make the effort to visit family or friends and share in some of the fundamental good theory of religion, that of cherishing loved ones. Others visit the holy shrines known as shopping centres because, sadly, we’ve forgotten the art of visiting family or friends.

On Shrove Tuesday at my house we eat pancakes. Why this day has become known as Pancake Tuesday is a job for Google…..

Pancakes are eaten on this day because they contain fat, butter and eggs which were forbidden during Lent. Shrove Tuesday is celebrated the day before Ash Wednesday and is therefore the final day before the commencement of Lent, a Christian festival leading up to Easter Sunday (Easter Day).

I remember when I was little, mum used to make us eat a ‘real’ dinner before we could have pancakes. We eventually rebelled and convinced her that we didn’t want the ‘real’ dinner as it didn’t leave us enough room to eat lots of pancakes. (We didn’t have pancakes very often, only once or twice a year) It took a long time but we eventually won this battle. 🙂

Tonight, because it was Pancake Tuesday and for no other reason that this, we just had pancakes for dinner. And they were delicious.

And then there’s food

Great burger, crap service.

The weather was against us today. Plans for a sunset photo shoot down at the Altona pier were thwarted by an impressive summer storm. There was thunder, lightning and lots of rain. We would have had the pier to ourselves but any photo we may have attempted was going to look like a soggy, wet rag.

Instead we did FOOD!!! And the food was good. Unfortunately, the service was not.

I could just be getting old, but I am beginning to lament the steady decline in the customer service skills of wait staff in my state. Do they not realise that if they do their job well, they will reap the rewards of tips, happy customers, returning customers, new customers and continuing employment. When they do their job badly, the customers will not come back, they will write scathing TripAdvisor reviews, they will tell their friends that the service was bad and those previously potential customers never materialise into real customers and they, the wait staff, will potentially lose their job.

There is customer service and there is good customer service. Almost anybody can do basic customer service, and I qualify this by saying ‘almost anybody’, as I have met people who have absolutely no bloody idea what service actually means . Good customer service is a skill that can be taught and refined, but is often an innate quality that you are born with. You’ve either got it, or you don’t. And good customer service skills deserve to be recognised and held in high esteem.

Just the term itself…’customer service’. Service to your customer. It’s not rocket science. We customers are not asking you to donate your kidney to us, but we are asking that you make eye contact with us. We ask that you acknowledge us and speak to us if the occasion arises. We ask that you excuse yourself to answer the incoming call but then put the caller on hold and finish your dealings with us. We ask that you use manners and not reach over or in front of us to get something that could have waited a moment till we were out of your way. We ask that you remember that we are your customers and come and check on us occasionally to see if we need anything.

The list is endless, however it sadly seems that these skills are being forgotten by a generation of young customer service staff who have not been taught the basic fundamentals of customer service by their parents, their employers and their work peers. And the most important basic customer service fundamental is this: To make/earn money you need customers. If you don’t look after your customers you will lose them. If you lose your customers you don’t make any money. End of basic lesson!!

Customer service can be incredibly rewarding. It can be hair-tearingly frustrating, but 95% of the time it will bring great satisfaction. I should know, I’ve been in customer service in some form or another since I was about 13 years old. (I’ve been in it a LONG time) If you’re in it and it’s not making you happy, for goodness sake go and work in another field, you’re only upsetting me, your customer. And if you’re a boss, keep a close eye on your customer service people. Pick and keep the ones who do the job well, reward them, look after them and recognise their true value to your business because without them there would be no business to run.