food

I love zucchini! It's an under-appreciated vegetable, for sure. Maybe that is because it tends to overtake people's backyard gardens and produce an abundance that you can't make a dent in, no matter how many loaves of zucchini bread you make. But, I guess I have a thing for underdog vegetables. A few days ago I was visiting my friend (you know, the one with the chickens) and she offered me some leftover soup for lunch. I never turn down a free lunch, and I love to try new soups. This one is going straight into the recipe box- the flavor was perfect, the creaminess lent it a satisfying richness, and the zucchini made me feel like I was eating something reasonably healthy. A small cup was the perfect amount for a light lunch. I asked my friend for the recipe, so she sent it on over: From Sundays at Moosewood Restaurant : (Serves 6) Ingredients: 3-4 leeks, rinsed well and chopped 1 large onion, chopped 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil 1 1/2 tablespoons butter 3-4 medium zucc...

I was recently asked to fill out an interview with Cafemom for their "In the kitchen with" blog. The interview and photos are up, so if you are interested in knowing more about me and my kitchen, check it out! http://www.cafemom.com/dailybuzz/food_party/3284/In_the_Kitchen_With_Bread_Honey

Professional trencherman. I think that's what I'd like to put on my next business card.It's the one word which is actually meaningful on the garbled Chinglish ode to Sichuan cuisine at the entrance to Golden Sichuan Restaurant. A trencherman, according to the dictionary, is a hearty eater, its origin explained by its medieval usage as some who "frequents another's table; a hanger-on or parasite".

Oh lord, if I don't post this now, it will NEVER get posted. We had gumbo the other night, dudes! My husband and his coworkers decided to have an impromptu gumbo cook-off, and he was immediately in muddy waters. One of his coworkers is originally from the south, and the other does a lot of southern cooking. I didn't get a chance to taste the other offerings, but I'm sure they were delicious. Let me be frank- you can put whatever the hell you want in gumbo. It's just a big ol' messy pot of gravy-like sauce, some meat, some particular spices, and vegetables. For this version, we made some decisions based on two variables- whether or not our son could/would eat it, and The Competition. Because we had a toddler to take into account, my husband chose a smoked beer sausage that really tasted like a mildly spicy hot dog. Andouille sausage would have been more traditional, and probably a little tastier, but we weren't sure if the little dude would dig it. Plus...

Don't forget the Eveleigh Farmers' Market officially starts this Saturday. One presumes there'll be no suckling pigs on offer like last year's Christmas Market but an undercover weekly farmers market in the inner city is just what Sydneysiders want and need.View Larger MapEveleigh Farmers' MarketEvery Saturday 8am-1pm243 Wilson Street, Darlingtonnear the corner of Codrington Streetabout a ten

Oh my god! What would you do if your friend sent you home with 6 fresh eggs from her backyard flock of chickens? I want to hard-boil and just eat at least 1 of them. I'm thinking something with runny/raw yolks, maybe a pasta dish with raw yolks or some kind of spicy rice thing, I don't know. They're pretty small, too. A friend of mine was recently describing a snack she made by cutting a hole out of a leftover dish of vegetable gratin and cracking an egg in the middle, should I do that?

Pop Tarts $8.95Growing up on a diet of Judy Blume, Trixie Belden, Paul Zindel and Robert Cormier novels, it was always the paragraphs about American food that intrigued the most.What were these magical treats called Tootsie Rolls, Twinkies and Kool-Aid? In an era pre-Internet--yes really!--these unknown mysteries could only be pictured in my imagination. For years I pictured a bowl filled with

Well, it's true. Summer is off pursuing her design interests full time, and between me working every weekend, baby-sitting during the week, and hunting down freelance work wherever I can (drop me a line!), things around here have been placed on the back burner, so to speak. (Sorry. I know that was a terrible pun.) So, now you're stuck with me! I feel like I should address some slight changes now that the lineup has shuffled- the most important and glaringly obvious one being that I DON'T BAKE. I know, stop the presses. We never got around to making an F.A.Q. for this blog, but if we did, it would have looked something like this: Q: "How do you find the time to do all this?!" A: We're both stay-at-home moms. It takes a lot of time, actually, and for awhile we made plenty of time for it, but lately we've been finding ourselves with less and less time to do fancy things. So it goes! Life with children is constantly evolving. Q: "How do you eat...

Bo luc lacTender beef cubes sauteed in special sauceserved with pepper and lemon juice"Toto, I don't think we're in Marrickville anymore..."Except we are in Marrickville, and we're in a bar. A bar. With cherry red textured floral wallpaper, and wall-to-wall timber and fancy light fittings. Are you sure I'm not in Newtown?I say this because the change in Marrickville's landscape over the past

I am going to make this rather short, since I have never been one for long, dramatic goodbyes, especially in the world of blogging. Recently, I have found myself lacking the passion and means for continuous food-related updating, spending the majority of my online time blogging over here . And so, I have decided to hand over Bread & Honey to my friend and up-until-now co-blogger Alice. Besides, she is the one who takes all those gorgeous photographs you all know and love. As for my future in food blogging, I think I am going to start a side blog to my regular website centered only around the sweet side of the food world (and of course, the beautiful design that surrounds it.) We'll see how that goes. Anyways, so long. I have had a lovely time doing this. Take it from here, Alice! xoxo, Summer

Everybody likes freebies, and it was clear that readers agreed with a flood of entries for the prize giveaways celebrating 1,000 posts on Grab Your Fork. A whopping 852 entries were received in total.I wish that everyone could win, but alas, there will only be eight lucky people shrieking over their emails this morning. Congratulations to all the winners - you should have already received your

Schweinshaxn $31Oven-roasted pork knuckle with sauerkraut, Löwenbräu bier sauce and mashed potatoYou've just had chocolate for breakfast. What would you have for lunch?Pork knuckle.Of course.Because I'm with chocolatesuze and if there's one thing I've learnt from my eating adventures with her, it's that she's always ready to move onto her next feast.There's a kind of wild woman crazy-eyed look

I feel like most of my posts start the same way- blah blah blah, when I was a kid, I was a picky eater, now I'm not, blah blah blah. I can't remember the first time I tried a hard boiled egg, (it wasn't that long ago) but I love them now. I often forget they exist- and when I remember, I'm like- HEY! You can do that? Let's do it right now! I'm not the type to keep hard boiled eggs around, usually I just make them when the mood strikes and eat them right away. That's what I did today. I crumbled some on a salad, and the sliced one and ate it with a pinch of sea salt. If you google "perfect hard boiled egg" you'll find that everyone is an expert when it comes to boiling eggs. I've read a lot of recipes that say to boil for 10 full minutes, but that sounds crazy to me! Considering how easy it is to overcook scrambled eggs or fried eggs, I can't imagine applying that much consistent heat. I'm in the Martha Stewart, " ta...

Food blogs are finally in fashion.After several years of having to explain a) what is a blog and b) why I photograph my meals, it seems that finally, finally, people get it. At least in the UK, anyway.On Wednesday of this week, the UK Times Online headlined their Food & Drink section with the article The Art of Food Blogging. Far from a quirky personality piece about eccentric foodies, Lynne

First of all, thank you all for your lovely wishes and kind messages on the previous post . Little Nora Adeele and I spent 10 days in the maternity clinic growing and recuperating (with K. by our side every night, feeding me and the clinic staff with his delicious cannelés ). We've been back home for over a week now, and I'm happy to report that our wee girl has already gained 400 grams on top of her birth weight, purely on breast milk diet, so she's doing well. As we're still learning each other's daily routines, my cooking has been erratic and quick. Something that can be whipped up within minutes and then left unattended until I can finally eat it, with baby on one arm and spoon in another. This soup is a good example. I made it yesterday - it demands about 10 minutes hands-on time (for peeling and chopping the onions and carrots), and then couple of stirring motions every now and then. I've had many a lentil soup this winter, and this is definitely one of th...

I couldn't imagine going into business with my brother. Or any family member. But brother and sister team Alex and Fanny Chan have done just that, and look sheepishly happy for it.It's been a series of serendipitous events and deliberate detours that led to the creation of Boon Chocolates, one of the latest handmade chocolate boutiques to open in Sydney. Listening to her heart and making a

In case anyone was wondering, this is how you make a chopstick rest out of the chopstick paper wrapper...with thanks to the G-man for acting as hand model.Stylish, functional and a great time-filler whilst waiting for your food to arrive.

Kuriimu korotte $10.00Cream croquetteThere's always something happening when you eat yakiniku. Yakiniku, or grilled meat, involves a smoking hot grill, lots of dishes arriving on your already crowded table, and a frenetic pace of food photography. Argh!But when the food tastes this good, you want to capture each detail. We head to Wakana on the recommendation of M&L, a non-descript restaurant on

Just a quick note that ABC Sydney will be broadcasting the Melbourne memorial service this Sunday, as part of the National Day of Mourning to honour those affected by the Victorian bushfires.As a result, the aforementioned interview segment on food writing has had to be rescheduled. I will advise the new air date and time in the week prior.If you would like to make a donation to the Victoria

Photographs by Matt Sanders . This recipe comes from my buddy Matt. Remember Matt? He's the darling who showed us all how to can peaches. How domestic! The same day I went over to his house to photograph the peaches, he was kind enough to serve me some leftover beef stew for lunch. It was delicious, and I made a mental note to bug him for his recipe. Recently he dropped me a line to let me know that he was making it, and then- because I was too lazy to come over and take pictures, he provided me with these lovely photographs in addition to his recipe! Score! Life couldn't be any easier for a blogger, haw haw. Here's what he has to say: Ingredients- -Center cut Beef shanks -Bacon -Onions -Shallots (or leeks) -Red wine (something decent enough to drink) -Beef stock (or water) -Carrots, Potatoes, Parsnips, or other winter root vegetables -Garlic -Rosemary -Tomato -Mushrooms (i like criminis, but white buttons work very well too) -Salt (kosher...

EDIT: Interview has been rescheduled due to broadcast of the Victoria bushfires memorial service in Melbourne. Will advise new interview date/time if and when it happens.Grab Your Fork goes live!I'll be interviewed on 702 ABC Sydney this Sunday, along with John Newton and Chris Mansfield on a discussion panel about food writing.Simon Marnie, host of 702 Weekends and long-time follower of Grab

Sydney weather has turned of late. Is it summer or winter? From week to week, Mother Nature weather can't seem to make up her mind.This weekend has been cold and wet. Last weekend was hot and dry. Two weekends ago it was unbelievably hot. That dry suck-the-breath-out-of-you kind of hot where your body radiates heat and trees seem to shimmer in the distance.What did we do? We had a picnic of

It's Valentine's Day today. I've never really bought into the whole overpriced-roses-on-one-token-day-of-the-year concept, but that doesn't mean I don't believe in romance. Because as much as men think that women are swayed by expensive jewellery, five-star dining and miniature carry bags in Tiffany blue, the best way to worm your way into any girl's heart is time and effort. Trust me on this one

$10 rump steak specialwith mushroom sauce, salad and chipsYou wouldn't expect to find a swanky bar in downtown Ashfield, but here we are at the Crocodile Farm Hotel and the recent revamp is obvious. Upstairs there's a flood of natural light, a balcony with giant plasma screen, booth seating and sleek white tables and chairs. It seems a world away from Shanghai Night across the road, but that's

Final Fantasy $14.00Black sesame and coconut ice creams accompanied by cool refreshing pieces of black jellydrowned in a shot of evaporated milkI remember when the cinema section of George Street was never-ending scaffolding, wooden board footpaths and giant long-abandoned holes in the ground. Now the area is filled with shiny buildings, trendy apartment complexes, and new restaurants and cafes

Recently my good friend Alia bought a sweet little home in outer SE Portland, the area where I am poking around. Until we figure out this home buying thing (I'm taking Home Buying 101 through the Portland Housing Center at the end of the month, very exciting!) I've been living vicariously through my buddies who have been lucky enough to get into some lovely little houses. Alia told me that last year, a persistent little green vine kept poking its way to the top of her compost heap. After covering it over and over, not really thinking about what it might be, she finally felt bad and pulled the whole thing out (it turned out to be several inches long!) and planted it. As it grew, it revealed that it was a bean plant. She pulled the pods open and was surprised to see little spotted pinto beans! The plant hardly produced enough beans to mention, but she ended up with a good handful, which she dried, and plans to plant this spring. I can't wait to help her pick, dry, and ...

Fresh sugar cane juiceThe Chinese celebrate Chinese New Year. The Vietnamese call it Tet. Every year Tet is celebrated by Sydney's Vietnamese community, culminating in a huge festival open to all. For years this event had been held at Warwick Farm, but this year it made the move to the Fairfield Showground. Speedy and I headed over to check out all the action with friends - a first time visit for

This little piggy went to Becasse.This little piggy went to Plan B.It's hard to tell which excited me more: the prospect of sinking my teeth into one of Justin North's famous wagyu burgers, or watching a delivery man hoist a whole pig onto his shoulder and walk past us into Becasse.Because it's not often that restaurants use and order whole pigs anymore. Whole pigs with heads still attached are

Does any city do al fresco dining better than Sydney?The Taste Festival finally comes to Sydney after its inception in London, and a rapid-fire international take-up in cities including Dublin, Dubai, Cape Town and Melbourne. The concept allows the public to sample some of Sydney's hottest and best restaurants in the outdoor sunshine of Centennial Park over four days in March.Jared Ingersoll of

Course #1: Yee sangIt's a family tradition of ours to celebrate birthdays by eating out together at a restaurant. The two Aquarians always get a combined celebration and at their behest, we headed to Makan at Alice's for their annual Chinese New Year banquet.Readers with good memories will remember that I'd already attended and blogged this banquet last year. Sadly the menu remains exactly the

I feel like ever since the new year, I've been showing up sporadically to make excuses for why I'm not updating this blog. Do I really need to make excuses for why I'm not blogging? How silly. Life gets in the way, of course! I'm working a second job now (nannying for a good friend, it's great!) and preparing for a lot of big things: trying to purchase a home- this is a long way off, practicing drawing every day in anticipation of going to tattoo school, so I can become a tattoo artist- these things are keeping me very busy! When we were in our heyday, Summer & I were churning out baked goods daily, chatting over coffee and updating as much as 3 times a day, but I put a lot of things aside to get this blog going. To be quite frank, I don't get paid to do this, and I don't particularly have the inclination to hassle people to put up ads so I can get paid doing it, it's a LOT of work to churn out all these photographs on a daily basis, especiall...

Lemon green tea with ai-yu gelatin $7.50Green tea ice cream with red bean icee and qq $7.50Lemon green tea with ai-yu gelatin $6.50I'm hopeless when it comes to ordering from a menu. It's a serious undertaking that requires assessment, adventure and a little bit of intuition.So when I first open the menu at Ten Ren Tea in Chatswod, I'm a little taken aback. There are over 200 different drinks

You can smell the charcoal from a block away. Its smoky tendrils waft toward us, taunting us, calling us, whetting our appetite and making our footsteps to El Jannah just that little bit faster.El Jannah means paradise or heaven in Arabic. It's a spiritual destination that many of El Jannah's most loyal customers profess to visit. The friend who recommended it to me closed her eyes as she told me

Chinese lion dancersThe Chinese New Year Parade is always a highlight in Sydney's Chinese New Year celebrations. This year the parade was held at night-time for the first time, a move that brought a new dynamic of darkness and neon.We took up positions on Goulburn Street at 6.00pm. Originally advertised as starting at 7.30pm, the heaving crowds were getting restless and a little agitated by

Soft shell crab tacos Spiced, crispy fried served with pickled vegetables and crispy wafersSoft shell crab tacos. You may as well substitute those four words with "heaven in every mouthful". And whilst soft shell crab seem to be as ubiquitous as pork belly on restaurant menus, I think that Raita Noda's version is one of the best.Once his signature dish at former restaurant Rise (a dish I first

Let me introduce you to our little baby girl. We don't know her name yet, as she was in a bit of a hurry arriving into this world, so K. and I are still discussing the possible options. But she's gorgeous, and despite being few weeks too early, she's doing very well. So are her parents :) She arrived into this world at 5.52 pm on Friday, January 30th, weighing in at 2460 grams and 48 cm. The picture above is taken this morning, when she's about 40 hours old (young?). As we'll be spending the next week or so recovering at the birth clinic, there won't be much cooking happening at Nami-Nami household at the moment. But don't despair - this might just give me a chance to finally tell about those fantastic food-related trips to Spain (meal at El Bulli!) and the US we had last summer. Life is beautiful.