Sunday 12 August 2012

In my kitchen and craft August 2012

We have spent most of the weekend at home after a week of illness last week.  In my kitchen I have been baking.  I was inspired to make Treacle scones by the announcement of International Scone Week by Celia, Joanna, and Heidi.  I used a slightly different recipe (by Ena Baxter) to my usual.  It needed more milk.  I need to learn to judge scone dough consistency.  So instead I am sending this post to Celia for her In My Kitchen Series.

In my kitchen are tins of beans I don't usually find canned.  Black beans.  Pinto beans.  Adzuki beans.  They were purchased at Wholefoods in Brunswick.  I am still deciding how to use them.

In my kitchen we have been enjoying snacking through pretzels, soy sauce rice crackers, chilli rice wheels, rice snacks, and fruit balls.  This is the best fundraising package so far from Sylvia's child care centre.  We sold a few but we enjoyed them too much to hawk them about much.

In my kitchen these La Zuppa soups are just passing through.  I take them to work to eat for lunch if I don't organise a packed lunch.  I used to be very good at making my own soups to have at work but I don't make them as much these days so I usually rely on leftovers or sandwiches if I like the bread we have about the house.

In my kitchen are many salts.  I was surprised at how many I had when I decided to photograph them together.  Saxa is the cheap supermarket salt.  Wild garlic salt (in the plastic bag) bought in Healesville.  Maldon salt is in the spice hog.  Australian Lake Salt is yet to be opened.  French Lavender Salt and Fumée de Sel (smoked salt) come from Gewürzhaus in Carlton (where I did a double take at $13 for a small bag of smoked salt).  I don't know how I became such a salt fiend!

In my kitchen is a new Gaspard and Lisa bowl that my mum brought Sylvia back from Paris.  Sylvia loves watching this cartoon on the telly.  Unfortunately the ABC seems to have been changing around a lot of kids shows and a few that she loves have been taken off the schedule.

My mum also brought back an icing pen for me.  I haven't used it yet but am looking forward to doing so.  I am sure it will be very handy for icing birthday cakes!

In my kitchen is ice cream.  This is odd.  We rarely buy ice cream.  Especially in winter.  Sylvia and E started drinking smoothies last weekend when they were ill and now they want ice cream too.  I haven't had this Skinny Cow ice cream before.  The caramel ice cream is creamy and had a nice flavour but the chocolate biscuits taste slightly plastic.  Nice for a change!

In my kitchen is a sumo mandarin.  It is one of the ugliest pieces of fruit I have ever seen.  I am not sure I can bring myself to eat it.  Yet I could spend hours just gazing at it in fascination.

In my kitchen are craft projects.  I was inspired by Brydie to knit this scarf.  I couldn't resist buying this wool of many colours.  I've promised a scarf for Dolly and George but haven't had the heart to pick up the knitting needles again since finishing this scarf.  I hope one day to do tassles on a scarf and learn to knit beanie hats.

Can you guess what our other craft project has been?  Emerald City?  Yellow brick road?  Why yes! Wizard of Oz characters made out of toilet paper rolls!  I wanted the witch's hair to be green but Sylvia insisted on red.  We used coloured paper, coloured foam sheets, googly eyes, wool, string, fabric, paper bags and foil.  By the time we got to the tin man, Sylvia had lost interest and my attention was waning but I wanted to finish it.  It was a fun activity.  I am sending these to Red Ted's Art Blog - lots of other craft ideas there!

32 comments:

  1. At first I felt like you were in my kitchen - our house has been a place of sickness for weeks, I have been making lots of scones, I bought some black beans on Friday and we have been crunching through lots of rice crackers (though not fundraising ones - that's a brilliant idea instead of chocolate). But then we certainly don't have one of those crazy looking icing pens (looks a bit, err, medical for my liking!) and your Wizard of Oz setup is just brilliant! Love it that you soldiered on after Sylvia got bored - isn't that always the way? Have a great week x

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    1. Thanks Lucy - scones, rice crackers and black beans are great in any kitchen - agree that rice crackers instead of chocolate is great for fundraising - sadly my concentration usually last longer than Sylvia's when we are making stuff but when it comes to playing with it, her stamina outlasts mine!

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  2. what a fun post! wow that is a lot of salt! :) and how cute are those wizard of oz characters! Such a classic movie. i feel like watching it now:)

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    1. Thanks GF happy tummy - I have watched wizard of oz so often lately that I don't feel the need to watch it again :-)

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  3. So many delicious good things in your kitchen. I did the marketing for Global Organics when the company first kicked off! Good to see they are still around!

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    1. Thanks Lizzy - yes lots of good things - I am still trying to think of what to do with the black beans

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  4. so much fun and deliciousness in this post!

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  5. I am always so in awe of all the wonders you accomplish!!

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  6. Hi Johanna, that scarf is gorgeous.

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    1. Thanks Passionfruit garden - sadly sylvia is not so keen on it but dolly likes it :-)

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  7. What an impressive kitchen - and your scarf is gorgeous! Lots happening it would seem, of the edible and craft varieties :) I hope you're feeling better enough to enjoy it all again before long.

    (Also, I have bought each of those tins of beans, separately, for the precise reason that I don't usually see them :) Foolishly, I then just ate mine plain, after pondering how to use them for weeks and weeks and giving up when it seemed to hard to decide!)

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    1. Thanks Kari - always busy in our kitchen (in a chaotic sort of way) We are all feeling better this week :-)

      I know what you mean about just eating them plain - I get all excited and want something really special but often just chuck them into any old dish

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  8. Really enjoyed seeing what's in your Kitchen. I too have just got a whole load of tins of unsual organic beans. We've lost our local organic shop which was so good, so I've now had to resort to online purchasing. I've a collection of different salts too, so it was fun to see yours. Have fallen in love with your scarf and I want an icing pen now!

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    1. Thanks Choclette - you are most welcome. Sorry to hea you have lost your local organic shop - I've not really got into online purchasing so I depend on having decent shops about, even if I can't get there all the time. Would love to see your salts

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  9. Oh my! I LOVE LOVE LOVE your loo roll Witch of Oz people. How adorable are they?!

    Thank you for sharing on Kids Get Crafty!

    Maggy

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    1. Thanks Maggy - can you believe that the wicked witch is the most popular!!!

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  10. What a lovely round up, that is great wool. As to the treacle scones is that Ena Baxter of Baxter's soups? Surely there can't be another!

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    1. Thanks Janice - I love those multicoloured wools! And yes that is ena baxter of baxter's soups - I was given one of her cookbooks that used to belong to E's mum - it is very meaty but I keep meaning to cook more from it and write about it

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  11. Love your Wizard of Oz play set- the yellow brick road and Emerald city add a nice touch! Your kitchen is filled with life and living- and that is the very best kind of kitchen!
    ( I have the same "icing pen" only mine said it was for injecting filling. Very interesting!)

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    1. Thanks Heidiannie - must remember the icing pen if I need to inject filling - and a lived in kitchen is exactly what I wish mine to be so it is nice you can see that in the post.

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  12. Thanks for such a fun post! I especially love the Gaspard and Lisa dish and the colourful scarf -they are just lovely.

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    1. Thanks Cakelaw - the gaspard and lisa bowl is getting more use than the scarf but they are all fun

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  13. OK firstly, garlic salt-how amazing! I also can't wait to see what you think of the icing pen. And your Wizard of Oz Emerald City craft project is such a delight! :D

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    1. Thanks Lorraine - the wild garlic salt was quite pricey but I have now moved it into the spice hog and am using it quite a bit - it is really lovely

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  14. Love your salt collection, I'm a bit of salt fiend too! I was very excited to find smoked salt recently as I had been looking for it for a while. I had to restrain myself from buying garlic salt the same day! I always buy dry pinto and black beans as the tins are so much more expensive than other beans and I use them often. The Wizard of Oz project looks fantastic, I remember getting hooked on Lego sets and finishing them off when my young man lost interest...

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    1. Thanks Mel - I love smoked salt - Gewurzhaus even has two types. I have not got into soaking and cooking legumes though I really should but I tend to use tinned - planning ahead isn't one of my strengths. E is much better with lego than I am but I can imagine getting into the sets

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  15. What a lovely selection you have in your kitchen this month, Johanna! I actually think your scones looked lovely! I think I've turned into a bit of a salt fiend as well - there are all sorts hanging around here - and I love your scarf!

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    1. Thanks Celia - the scones were nice but just not as fluffy as they should be. I think I have admired some of your salt on in my kitchen - it is such an easy way to add depth of flavour

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  16. So many adorable items! Love the salt, too, and that craft project--talk about creative!! Sylvia must have loved working on it. You've reminded me that I need to get back to knitting, too. . . some time. ;)

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    1. Thanks ricki - knitting is great once you get into it - but once I finished the scarf the knitting needles have disappeared despite good intentions

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