Coconut Lemon Rice Pudding

 There's something satisfyingly decadent about rice pudding.  I wouldn't say it's much of a showstopper dessert where I would make it for a dinner party.  In fact, it's actually something I choose to make for myself when I want rice pudding.  Maybe it's the greedy girl inside me.  Rice pudding may not be for everyone, so I suppose I tend to keep it for myself.  First, a bowl of it hot from the burner to satisfy that instant craving, then maybe another bowl the next day enjoyed cold from the fridge.

It is in my humble opinion, the simplest of desserts.  Put together by what really lies within your pantry.  Maybe it could be considered the "peasant" of puddings.  Thrown together with just milk, rice (arborio for me), sugar, and really any flavoring that would please you at the moment.  The good old vanilla bean standby is always welcome.

Ricotta Pancakes with Roasted Strawberries

Christmas was very different for me this year.  I spent it with my wonderful boyfriend cooking a very simple roast chicken with mashed potatoes, roasted carrots and green beans.  We spent two days just being lazy.  Lazy meaning we stayed inside and not left the apartment.  Watched some movies.  Lots of Christmas movies.  I feel great now.  After a few days of not working, I feel rejuvanated.  Ready to tackle the week. 

And these ricotta pancakes...

Not that it requires much tackling.  I just measured all my ingredients in a bowl the night before and just combined everything when I woke up the next morning.  I even left my whites out at room temperature.  (They really whip much easier when they're not fridge cold).

Blueberry Rhubarb Olive Oil Cake With Oat Crumble

 When Jeremie and I are lucky to have a day off together, we like to walk around Circular Quay, a big tourist area.  I've been there many times and whether it was a weekend or not, there's always lots of people walking around.  There are so many restaurants, bars, and coffee shops to choose from it can make your head spin.  The world renowned restaurant Quay, Rockpool, and Aria are all in the neighborhood.  Our usual spot is this place called Opera Bar.  Named so because it's so close to the Sydney Opera House.  The Opera Bar is busy all the time, and there's always live music. Once the sun goes down, the view is spectacular.  Being right on the edge of the water, the view of the Harbour Bridge on one side and the infamous silhouette of the Opera House on the other, it's a hard view to beat.

Right ahead is the Opera Bar.  It's right across the water from Quay Restaurant.

After a big day of walking around, we usually stop by a cafe to unwind.  One afternoon, I ordered a banana muffin thinking I haven't had one in a long time.  Bad choice.  It was dry and had no traces of mashed bananas in it.  To top it off, it had a strong banana extract flavour and a few banana chips.  My hopes of eating a banana muffin were crushed... or mashed. 

J'adore le Chocolat

It's been about five months since I started at Kakawa Chocolate.  I've learned so much even though I'm only there a few days a week.  Tempering chocolate, making caramels, nut brittles, and marshmallows are all something I do on a regular basis.  I've recently been able to start hand dipping chocolates, something I still need to practice. 

Feathery Light Pavlova

I adore Pavlova. It is one of my all time favorite desserts. A soft and spongy meringue base with a crispy exterior, topped with whipped cream and fresh seasonal fruit. This dessert is so feathery light, you'd think you were eating air. In fact, it was created to honor the Russian ballerina, Anna Pavlova.

You can even find pavlova bases in the supermarket. (Aussies love their meringues and pavlovas). But it tastes so much better home made.

Nut Brittle

I couldn't wait until closer to the holidays before I post this recipe. It's ridiculously easy to make, and only requires a handful of ingredients. This used to be a staple on the petit four plate at Boneta. The recipe was to boil sugar, water, and butter to a specific temperature. But the recipe seemed unstable at times, turning my brittle into something almost grainy, like a bad fudge :(

Caramel ready for butter

Anzac Biscuits

So we've finally settled into our more permanent apartment. We were lucky our studio is equipped with a full kitchen including a dishwasher, oven, and stove top. Most studios in Sydney consist of a kitchenette... if you can call it that. I've visited some places that just have a portable burner, bar fridge, and half a sink. Although our kitchen is small and not equipped for much fancy cooking, I've decided that baking biscuits is a good start.

First Stage

Top: Confit Yuzu, Strawberry Balsamic, Chocolate Nougat
Middle: Chilli, Crispy Praline, Peanut Butter
Bottom: Mango Passionfruit, Green Tea, Lychee

I went to my first stage since arriving in Sydney. It was at a boutique chocolate shop called Kakawa Chocolates. It's still fairly new. Their doors opened less than two years ago. Just by looking at their website, it's obvious they make beautiful chocolates. Their pictures alone made me want to work there. The fact that they make their own ice cream sandwiches and gourmet chocolate bars, that won me over.

Everything they make there is fresh. Their production is in small batches, and made more frequently. They make these delicious hand wrapped soft caramels in five different flavors.

Japanese Sweets

Brownies, cheesecake, mile high lemon meringue pie, chocolate fudge cake... all these sweets conjure up images of classic American desserts. Chewy, crispy, creamy, fluffy, sticky, and all very sweet. Nothing wrong with sweet, but sometimes my teeth ache from eating something so sweet I feel the need to have to brush my teeth after. We are so accustomed to such sweet things we forget that all we need is something that just doesn't taste savoury to finish our meal.

This is when I discovered the art of Japanese sweets. I honestly didn't know much about Japanese sweets until I went to Japan. It opened my eyes as to what is considered a dessert.