sweet sunday

After two days of torrential rain blue skies have finally broken out. YAY! So I'm off to the Farmer's Market this morning, before coming back and getting into loads of essential tasks. One essential task is bunkering down this afternoon and reading The French Laundry Cookbook by Thomas Keller. A chef friend lent it to me, and I'm pretty sure it's going to inspire me. In fact, I'm going to choose a recipe to cook next Sunday night (Sunday nights shall henceforth be known as French Laundry Night).

Oooh, just remembered, I'm also off to the movies this afternoon to check out Silver Linings Playbook - our movie date was washed our last monday.

French word of the day: équilibrer (eh-quil-e-brear) balance.

Have a fabulous Sunday.

image from housetohome.co.uk

underground epicureans on high

I don't know if words are going to do justice to the magnificence of the Underground Epicurean experience last night. But I'll try. It was bucketing with rain, so, instead of dining on the rooftop of a city building - we had an apartment set up with long tables, glassware galore, and lovely tealights glowing in little jars. We had our first glass of champagne for the night and the waitresses brought around the most incredible oysters with an eschelot dressing.

Hello.

I read the menu. Died a bit. Went to heaven. Came back again.

Hello prettiness! The most perfectly plump figs drizzled with honey, delicious spears of asparagus dipped in truffle oil and a quail scotch egg. Topped with watercress and toasted almonds.

That scotch egg?

Divine.

A taste sensation.

See that dressing on the plate? Every morsel went from my fingertip to my mouth.

A table of very satisfied epicureans. Lots of wine (or champagne in our case) chatting and orgasmic Ooooohhhsss over the food.

I've only had venison once before. Raw, as carpaccio at Subo. I think it's now my fave. This rare cutlet, and the pile of shredded braise melted in my mouth. Those little balls of pumpkin were sublime, and all perfectly accessorised by a pile of spinach. There was a hint of chocolate there, but subtle, so subtle. It set off the dish. Everything hummed to a bring the meal to a delicious crescendo.

You need something to wash down the food. And it's true, champagne really does go with everything. In between courses the rain abated and we walked upstairs to the rooftop to take in the view.

What a view.

Oh look, another of my fave restaurants - "bonsoir le petit deux".

One of my fave things is watching chefs in action plating up. I actually got a non-blurry shot, but I love this one as it shows the speed and finesse used. Guys, you are AWESOME. Add Restaurant Mason and Chris Thornton to my list of Newcastle Chef Crushes.

Have you ever, in your life, seen anything more beautiful than this? No. You haven't. Macerated and compressed strawberries, vanilla, white chocolate honeycomb and candied violettes. My idea of heaven on a plate. And in my mouth? OH MY! The perfect combination of textures and flavours. I haven't tasted strawberries so delicious since France.

On the way home we discussed our favourite dish. T said his was the entree of figs, G loved the venison, my hubby adored the dessert. I agreed with each of them and said, yep, that was my favourite too. They pointed out that *every* course couldn't be my favourite. And I accused them of nitpicking.

White Rabbit, I love you for bringing this to Newcastle. Expect to see me at every single event in the future.

Oh, and a special shout-out to my lovely blog-readers who also attended last night. How FABULOUS was it?

French word of the day: magnifique - magnificent. 

Because, let's face it, last night was magnificence magnified.

flowers for friday

How pretty are these tuberose? And they smelt even better. Thanks III Bean for having these on your table the other day, they made my week. Now, speaking of making my week - it's Friday. Woo hooo! And tonight it's a special Undergrounds Epicureans at a secret location. I know there's four courses based on aprodisiac foods (ooooooh) and that the chef's from Restaurant Mason (a place that's been on my must-visit list for a while) but we won't know where we're going till we get the email at lunchtime.

Exciting!

I have champagne chilling in the fridge - after all, champagne goes with everything, particularly aphrodisiac foods don't you think? I'll try to snap off some sneaky shots for Instagram - find me there as PinkPatentMaryJanes (surprise).

French word of the day: amour - love.

my sweet addiction

I do like my coffee. It's the only way I start the day. If there is no coffee machine in my vicinity I start to get antsy. On Instagram the other day I'm sure a lot of friends giggled when they saw that one of my friends had strapped her coffee machine into a seat and seatbelt in the car for a weekend. I simply nodded.

Today's going to be one of those three coffee days I'd imagine. A full day at work followed by a night at the club doing the netball registrations. The face-to-face aspect will take two hours, and then there'll be meetings and trying to start sorting out the teams. Out of over 600 players.

Wish.

Me.

Luck.

French word(s) of the day: bonne chance (bonn shonce) - this means good luck.

ps: this wee elephant in my coffee came via a delightful lunch with a friend at Cupcake Espresso. Cute non?

happy hump day

I never understood what people meant by the term hump day - but now I'm in a full-time office job I certainly do. Today's that day that seems insurmountable, until you get to the end of it and realise that there's only two days till the weekend. WOO HOOO!

So, to get us through our hump day here's a divine bathroom - imagine soaking in it? And look, it has a special thingy to prop up a book. DIVINE.

French word of the day: semaine (seh - man) week.

Yep, let's just get through the week shall we?

image from housetohome.co.uk

and we have a bookclub

Woo hoo, ticking off so many things from my #52NewThings list this year - including the latest: start a book club. Last night, on Twitter, conversation turned to books, and then bookclubs and bam, before you know it a bunch of us are putting our hands up for a book club.

Hurrah.

French word of the day: biblioteque: library. Let's hope I get to read a few of the books in my library above...

meal planning monday

Okay, this week I'm not even going to say "Oh, I've got a busy week this week," because I'm sure you'll just say "Duh, PPMJ, when DON'T you - you gadabout you." So here's what we're eating. Not that meal above which was a delightful lunch of pork rillettes from III Bean at Hamilton - but it's inspiring me. Read on to find out why:

Monday: tonight I'm off to the movies to see Silver Linings Playbook with friends. It's an early session, so we'll have an early dinner of thai chicken breast salad. I'll marinate the chicken breasts in chilli jam after flattening them with a meat mallet to about 1cm thick. Then I'll grill these on the bbq and slice on the diagonal and toss through salad leaves.

Tuesday: I have burlesque tonight - a class I'm falling deeper, and deeper in love with each week. I'll make spaghetti bolognaise for dinner tonight as it's simple and reheats well.

Wednesday: nothing on tonight. Woo hoo! I'll make a thai beef salad tonight. Rump steak grilled and sliced on the diagonal tossed through leaves with lots of mint. YUM!

Thursday: it's netball registration night tonight, so I have to be at the club to help get everything sorted. Eep. Fritatta and salad for dinner tonight.

Friday: hubby and I are off with friends to another Underground Epicureans dinner. The chef this time is from the hatted Bistro Mason - no idea where it's being held. Shall fill you in later.

Saturday: I'm off to a friend from work's hen's party. It's Thai-themed so shall be heaps of fun. Hubby and daughter can fire up the bbq.

Sunday: I should make something new this week. Hmmm, what shall it be? Shall consult recipe book and let you know later in the week.

And that's it. Now, as for how that meal above is inspiring me - it's showing me how to plate up a salad and make it look magical. It's all about the accessorising! Let me know what you're eating this week.

Whoopsies, forgot the French Word of the Day. Here tis: entierement (on-ti-er-i-mon) - completely. Oooh, so I could say J'taime entieremont - I love you completely. Bless.

some kind of wonderful

I had one of those truly awesome nights last night. My friend C picked me up and we went to check out the film Monsieur Lazhar. Sadly, the screening at Nobby's Lighthouse was postponed and we went to a room in Panthers to watch it. Sure, the view wasn't hot - but the film was just lovely. We both sobbed - and then drove down to Terrace Bar just around the corner.

Yesterday was JJJ's Hottest 100 - but the Terrace Bar did something completely different (as per usual) and had a DJ spinning the Hottest 100 from 1989. We walked in the door to Nick Cave crooning The Ship Song and the scene was set for a fab night. They've got a cocktail menu up and running, so, naturally I had to imbibe. I had this fabulous creation with St Germain liqueur, gin, pineapple and lemon juice (I think). Twas yummy. They were also running random trivia questions where you could win a free drink. See that card there? That's the free drink I won three minutes after walking in the door.

Boom.

C and I sat down to sip our drinks, listen to ace tunes and chat about the movie. Of course, we also Instagrammed and Tweeted - and I checked into the Terrace Bar on Facebook. (Something I only do for local businesses to help their ranking on Google). One of our friends saw my update and before we knew it, he was walking in through the door.

We enjoyed the top 10, chatted about music and then saw a fabulous band called Boatfriends perform. Lots of laughs, lots of fun.

Good times people. Good times.

French word of the day: boisson (bwa - sogn) drink.

sweet saturday

Sorry I'm late. We're just back from spending the night and day at my in-laws. My sister-in-law and her two gals fly back to England tomorrow night, so we spent the day just hanging with them.

French word of the day: Belle Souer: sister-in-law - don't you love it? Belle means beautiful so it's far nicer than 'in-law'.

I'm off to see a French film tonight. Sadly, not at the lighthouse as inclement weather has sent us indoors. But, who cares? It's French.

image from housetothome.co.uk

fabulously friday

Have a look at this.

Go on.

Isn't it divine? It was my lunch yesterday. A pea and mint crostini with a poached egg and crispy pancetta. It was masterful. The peas were fresh and light and perfectly studded with mint. The egg was poached brilliantly. I am kicking myself that I didn't take a shot after I'd cut the egg open so that the perfect yellow yolk oozed out.

But take a really close look. Look at that rocket. See how it glistens? It's because it's been dressed (with, if I'm not mistaken, a superb extra virgin olive oil).

Oh yes, there are some places who have such respect for the food that nothing is an afterthought. An inedible garnish thrown on to add colour. What's the point of that?

For years I've pushed the rocket aside and eaten my meal. And at the end, a pile of sad leaves has decorated my plate. What a waste. And I nearly did that yesterday until the rocket seemingly winked at me.

Watching a chef take pride in a plate. Seeing everything placed just-so. The dish wiped with a clean cloth before going out. That's a joy.

Where was this masterpiece served? At The Essential Ingredient on Darby Street Newcastle. At Quint Cafe. I shouldn't tell you this as the place was pumping yesterday with people in raptures over their food. But hey, while I like to keep a secret, some are too good to share. It's not the first time I've raved about Quint. And it won't be the last. So long as Jace is there casting his laser eyes over the service, I know I'm always going to be delighted.

summer lovin'

I'm hoping that by posting about how much I love summer, we might experience a bit more of one. So far we've had either stinking hot or grey and blerky - not much of the fabulous in-between.

Oooh, am off to a movie tonight with a couple of friends. It's called Paris/Manhatten so naturally I expect I'll love it. Then we're off to meet a couple more friends at Bar Petite for drinks and dinner. Happy times!

Quick post today - mainly to share that pretty shot above (took it outside the Civic Theatre - love the contrast of the palms against the twilight sky) and share my french word of the day.

French word of the day: laquelle - which one - as in, which one do you prefer?

new habits

So, apparently it takes three weeks to make a new habit. In which case - woo, hoo, HOO I am now a bed maker. Yep, three weeks into #52NewThings and my bed has been made EVERY SINGLE DAY! That's an achievement worth shouting about.

I've done a few more things too:

13: catch up with friends in real life - hey, you've seen my meal-planning posts, I'm catching up with friends A LOT. And it's awesome. I have fabulous friends.

27: weed out my magazine collection. Yep, the mags in the living room have been thinned by about 1/4. That's impressive (shhh, don't tell anyone that there'd be way over 100 there - home decorating mags mostly...)

42: flirt more with my husband. This is simple - he's a spunk.

And the other things from the past weeks too. Washing? Still being put away. New recipes? Attempted. This is the best thing I've done.

And there's more to come.

French word of the day: peut etre - perhaps, maybe

I love that word - I love the promise. It seems mischievous, flirtatious. Don't you think?

image from housetohome.co.uk

something different, something new

Last night I went to a Sushi and Sake night at the Newcastle Art Gallery. I've sipped on sake before, but couldn't say I was a fan. Do you know why? It's because I've never been introduced to the right kind of sake. Saying "Oh, I'm not really a fan of sake" when you've only tried one type is a bit of a sin. Because did you know that the range of sake is practically as diverse as wine? You do now.

Thirty lucky people turned up tonight to learn something new. Something fabulous. See that gorgeous woman at the left of the pic? That's Suzie from Subo. She spoke to us about the history of sake, and it was fascinating. It's created in a manner similar to sourdough, where the 'mother' is nutured and grown before become sake in a rather fabulous process. There are so many different aspect to the creation: how much the rice is polished beforehand, the filtration, the pasteurisation. Oh my. I was spellbound listening to Suzie speak. It's a passion for her, and there's nothing better than learning something new from someone who's also loving learning about it.

The first sake had the delicate aroma of lychee - and oh, the taste. So fresh, so delicious. We had sheets to keep score where we noted numerous characteristics of the sake (see above for my marks for my fave). The second was also a taste revelation and completely and utterly different from the first.  Plus it was then accompanied by the most amazing dish. Now, it was pretty dark, so my pic doesn't do it justice, but, well, hello lover...

This is a foie gras parfait with a cerviche of crystal bay prawns garnished with samphire plucked from around Newcastle's Bogey Hole. Damn, Beau Vincent knows how to do flavours and textures. Honestly, the only thing that held me back from licking that plate clean was a sense of propriety - however, I can't say that I didn't use my finger to make sure every last crisp rye crumb went into my mouth.

The Director of the Art Gallery, Ron Ramsay, spoke about the Japanese ceramics on display, which was absolutely fascinating. He's just fabulous - with a passion that spreads beyond the collection he curates at the gallery. Newcastle has the most astonishing collection of art, and we only see the teensiest bit of it at a time. We desperately need to add to the space for display and for storage. We've been gifted so many extraordinary works over the years by art lovers - they deserve to be paraded. I hope that the much-needed funds can be allocated so work on the expansion starts asap.

Nights such as these are a cultural awakening. My tastebuds are now open to what's on offer further than champagne and wine. In fact, my friends and I discussed how well sake would accompany duck confit...

Trying something new with open arms is always a success. PS: I need to get back to Subo stat, and work my way through that menu.

French word of the day: japonais (jap on ays): japanese

meal planning monday

The other night a friend of mine asked if I cheated with my meal planning. At first I thought she must have meant, you know, do I swap my meals around - or give in and buy takeaway - which you totally know that I do. These meal plans are always just a guide. Generally speaking, I'll follow through with about 85% success rate. But there are nights when it's too hot, or I'm too tired and so off to Sticky Rice for Thai takeaway we'll go. But my friend was actually asking what I said when I was going out - which, ahem, I tend to do quite a lot.

I seem to be a bit crazy-busy at the moment, particularly of a weeknight - and this week's no different. So here's a week's worth of meals, some of which only my hubby and my gal will be eating. So here it is - this week's meals. What are you eating? Or are you stupid-busy like me?


Monday: I'm off to the Newcastle Art Gallery tonight for a sake and sushi night while we check out Japanese ceramics. I'm going with my friends S and A, and our tastebuds will be tickled by Beau from Subo. YUM! Oh, and we'll be all cultural over ceramics too. Hubby and daughter are having steak and salad.

Tuesday: Burlesque class tonight. Last week's class was BRILLIANT with some new moves that had me giggling wildly and really gave me a workout. I'll make a chicken, lemon, basil and chilli flake pasta for dinner tonight. Just stir fry strips of chicken breast till brown, then add lemon zest, lemon juice, basil and chilli flakes. Toss through the cooked pasta and a couple of spoonfuls of the pasta water. Sprinkle with grated parmesan and serve.

Wednesday: I have a crazy amount of eggs in the fridge as I keep ordering a dozen eggs from Aussie Farmers and we haven't really been using them. Best make a spanish tortilla for dinner with potato and chorizo. Served with a great big green salad.

Thursday: I'm going to the movies - to see Paris/Manhattan and then catching up with a friend from Sydney and some Newy tweeps at Bar Petite for drinks and nibbles. Hubby and daughter can have mexican for dinner perhaps.

Friday: I never, ever, ever feel like cooking on a Friday night, but, as I'm such a social butterfly this week (again, I know) I should do salmon on the bbq as my gal loves it so.

Saturday: As our movie was rained out last week, I'm off to Nobby's Lighthouse again tonight. Because it's Oz Day I'll day some mini-pavs. I'm also going to make a poached chicken and nectarine salad for hubby and daughter - and take servings along for C and me.

Sunday: I need to make a new recipe tonight. I'm going to choose something from Nigella's new book Nigelissima - are you watching her new series on ABC on Tuesday nights? It's divine. I'm going to make Lamb Cutlets with mint, chilli and golden potatoes. Mmmmm.

And that's it. Phew.

image from housetohome.co.uk

we fade to grey

It's funny, grey's my favourite colour - except when it comes to skies. Last night my friend C and I treked up the very steep hill to Nobby's Lighthouse where we sat and had a fabulous picnic dinner under the clouds - that opened just before the film was due to start. The organisers very smartly called off the film, which we'll now see next week, as that rain set in all night.

But we got to see some awesome things. For example, as we were walking along we saw a dolphin diving through the waves off Nobby's beach. And then, while we were picnicing we saw a bulk carrier helped into port by a couple of cute tugs. It's a fabulous perspective of Newcastle atop Nobby's Lighthouse - I can't believe I've never been up there before, particularly as it's open most Sundays.

If you're in Newy and you get a chance, get up there.

French word of the day: gris (gree) - grey.

Enjoy your Sunday.

woo hoo, it's the weekend

Oh, I do love a weekend - don't you? Hours stretching out before you with nothing but fun in between {oh, and housework and stuff, but, you know - pop on some music and make it fun!} The weather's not looking hot here - grey, rainy etc, which normally I wouldn't mind - except I'm supposed to be heading to Summer Cinema at Nobby's Lighthouse tonight. Anyone up for doing an anti-rain dance?

French word of the day: pourquoi (pour kwa) why? When it comes to living I like to ask Pourquoi pas which means Why not?

PS: how delightful is this image above? Nothing I love more than a bit of greenery, some shabby white and glorious pom poms. It's from housetohome.co.uk my go-to site for droolworthy house and home pics.

Enjoy your Saturday.

flowers for friday

Happy friday everyone! Mine's bittersweet. I'm happy, because it's nearly the weekend, but I'm sad because it's my awesome team leader at work's last day. She's off to lecture in the work she excels in - her lucky, lucky students.

I've worked with lots of fabulous people over the years, and learned something from everyone. But E is something special. Her enthusiasm is ridiculously infectious - she made the entire team better at what they did. I've only worked with her for a few months, but she's made an indelible impression on me - and I know I've also found a friend for life.

E had a unique talent for managing - and I've learned so much from her. When you combine an incredible brain with a unique talent and genuine people skills you hit the jackpot. My work days won't be as bright without her in it - but I like to think that she's imbued the whole team with some of her spirit - so we can continue to shine in her honour.

I love it when people follow their dream - particularly when they dream big. Onwards, upwards and continue to soar E. I'll be here applauding with enthusiasm.

French word of the day: extraordinaire - incredible, wonderful.

No prizes for guessing who's inspired this word. Enjoy your friday. x

image from marthastewart.com

a touch of green

I think that my window boxes with herbs on my kitchen window sill are one of my favourite things. Is there anything better than just pulling up the window and grabbing a handful of fresh, green, tastiness to throw in your dinner?

My fave's thyme, I'll cook everything with it - but I've taken to adding fresh herbs such as coriander, chives, mint and parsley to salads. YUM! I feel a bit earth mother every time I add something I've grown to a meal that I'm cooking.

French word of the day: frais - meaning fresh.

What's your favourite herb and how do you like using it?

why didn't you tell me...

Hey, how come nobody has ever told me that making your bed every day means it's *almost* like clean sheet day EVERY DAY? How on earth did I seriously get to this age without knowing this? I am loving this making the bed thing sick. It's just such a fabulous way to start the day. I get up, pull all the sheets back to air it, shower and then when I come back into the room, I just straighten the bottom sheet, pull up the top one, fluff the pillows and pull up the doona. Voila. My red rose pillow goes on as a punctuation mark and we are set.

French word of the day: chambre - bedroom. (pronounced: chom - bra - with a rolling r of course).

Honestly, this whole #52 new things is changing my life. I went to Burlesque tonight and threw myself into it. It was fabulous. I have never laughed so much, or enjoyed myself more. Sure, there are quite a few moves I can't do because of my dodgy knee, but the ones I can I totally immersed myself in.

It really is the little things that make a big difference isn't it?

take me away...

Oh, Galleries Lafayette, I heart you. Can you believe that this is a shopping centre? Shopping's a pleasure in Paris when you're surrounded by such beauty. This is one of the reasons why I love Paris, and will ensure that I visit it again, and again, and again.

French word of the day: santé - health.

What do we have if we don't have our health? I know it's my focus this year (yep, on top of all those 52 other things I'm doing - but hey, some of them are health and fitness related non?)

So tonight I'm off to burlesque where I'm going to shimmy my butt off. Pour mon santé.