Well, I seem to be over my crappy cooking phase. Phew. So allow me to share with you the delicious meal with shared with friends on Saturday night. I'd bought a standing rib roast, divided into two - with two ribs in each piece. After lunch on saturday I stabbed these all over by plunging a knife into the meat and then stuffed them with slices of this gorgeous purple garlic. I popped them into the cooking trays, grated lemon zest over the top, strewed them with thyme sprigs and drizzled over some olive oil. After massaging all this in, I poured some red wine over the top and popped them in the fridge.
The night before I caramelised some finely diced french shallots, added thyme and a cup of red wine which I simmered for an hour so it was rich and reduced. I then popped that in a jar and kept it in the fridge.
An hour before I started cooking I removed the meat from the fridge to bring it to room temperature and started warming up the bbq with all burners on high. When it was time to cook, I turned off the middle two burners, brought the meat out and seared it till it was brown on all exposed sides before popping it back in the aluminium trays and placing them in the middle racks. Then I pulled down the hood, and settled back to drink more champagne. In an hour they were roasted to rare perfection {I had my trusty meat thermometer to ensure that they were} and I pulled them out onto a plate to rest. Then, in the trays with the juices, I added the red wine and shallots that I prepared earlier, deglazed and reduced for around 15 minutes.
All this was served with cubes of potato cooked in duck fat {also on the bbq} and a green salad with walnuts. The meat was then sliced into a huge Fred Flintstone cutlet each, the red wine jus drizzled over top and we all enjoyed it immensely.
After this? A chocolate tart and caramelised pistachios with vanilla icecream {I couldn't find any creme fraiche anywhere on Saturday!}. Yum.
Emily Blunt looks utterly exquisite in the pages of Vanity Fair - I think I'll be tracking down an air freighted copy of this one at Borders. I adored Ms Blunt in The Devil Wears Prada, caught her in The Jane Austin Book Club the other day while I was lying on the lounge feeling poorly - and on Sunday night, was mesmerised by her turn in Dan In Real Life. She's so transfixingly beautiful that I could watch her in anything, but what's most amazing, is that there's a bundle of talent within that glorious skin.
Now that my hubby's been excavating the side yard, ready for gravel paths to be laid, I feel mere moments away from my parterre vegie and herb gardens. Having a little potager out the side of my house will be bliss. It's a pretty sunny spot, so I imagine most herbs and veg will do well. 
You know what, I don't think I've featured a pair of Louboutin's on my shoe of the week - so here's la premiere. I adore the scarlet sole, but was bored to death with seeing them on every starlet's hoof around town. Now every wannabe is wearing those Vuitton numbers that look like the set of Survivor I can re-embrace Louboutin's - and what better way to do so than with these multiple Mary Janes? Classic black patent is my go-to fave for shoes, it always looks fresh.
My daughter is not at all fond of school holidays, which is a shame, as we're currently in the midst of them. We've been trying quite a few things to keep her entertained, but doing tasks around the house seems to be top of her list. Yesterday she ironed my napkins - and did a magnificent job. Just in time for my guests who're coming up on the weekend.
Foxgloves are just the most magnificent flower. With their spires towering over a metre high they're the perfect backdrop to a garden. I haven't had any foxgloves for a few seasons, and I miss their lanky prettiness - so I'm buying a punnet of white foxgloves this year, and planting them around my pink Gertrude Jeckyl rose and in front of my cream and pink climbing Pierre de Ronsard rose. The border in front is dotted with varying Iris so it should make a pretty site come next spring.
Hope you all have a lovely easter filled with special times with your family and friends. Wouldn't it be nice if one of said friends were crafty enough to make pretty easter decorations like these? I found them on CountryLiving.com and think they're impossibly divine.
Isn't this a pretty idea. This vignette, in a farmhouse featured on countryliving.com exemplifies spring. A collection of simple bottles, that rejoice in their colours and shapes celebrate that glorious spring bloom - the daffodil. Of course it's autumn here in Aus, but still, couldn't you just imagine a bloom for every season?
How could you not want to seriously immerse yourself in household chores with products as beautiful as these? I do so adore Cath Kidston's eye for design, wandering into her store in Wimbledon my delighted peepers didn't know where to alight. 
