Re-organized Bar...

My husband went on a bizarre cleaning frenzy the other day and re-organized our bar.  It looks so beautiful now.  We organized everything into groups, spirits, vermouths etc so we are all ready to go and make some cocktails.

We stashed away doubles of bottles that we already had to ensure that one bottle would be finished before opening another.  We did also joke that we could almost do a 'Summer' and a 'Winter' bar by stashing away different elements that we only really use in particular seasons... maybe that is getting a little bit excessive though?!

I love our bar, it is quite the feature in our living space and visitors always comment on it.  So now it is dusted, organized and ready for Summer!

Everybody needs Cake Forks...

I was totally won over by these gorgeous Laguiole cake forks that match our cutlery set.  I figured that seeing we are hosting Christmas at our house this year, then we definitely needed cake forks to eat our desserts with!  Aren't they just lovely?!!!

Salt and Vinegar Kale Chips...

Kale, torn from the stems.

Everyone seems to be on a kale frenzy!  It is one of those superfoods that is meant to be super good for you and it is also pretty easy to grow too.

We planted some kale seeds in our veggie garden a little while back.  They did seem to take a while to really get settled but now we are definitely seeing the 'kale of our labours' and have a fantastic crop of it.

I had seen a few kale chip recipes around but was inspired by someone mentioning about Salt and Vinegar Kale Chips!! Oh my, I love a good salt and vinegar ship and this seems like a much healthier version.

Salt and Vinegar Kale Chips

These are very easy to make but can be a little time consuming.  So how do you make them?!  Well here you go!

1. Thoroughly rinse your kale and pat dry.
2. Tear off the leaves, discarding the tough stems and spines.
3. Place leaves on a baking tray in a single layer, it is important for them not to touch as they won't get crispy.  I line my tray with baking paper too!
4. Spray leaves with a little olive oil spray and then sprinkle a dash of white vinegar or other vinegar that you like onto the leaves.
5. bake in a hot oven (about 220 celsius) for about 4 minutes, check and see if they need turning after this or need a little extra time.
6. Remove, carefully place in a bowl and sprinkle with sea salt.

Depending on how much kale you have, you will need to replenish your trays and continue this process.  Don't worry though, these chips won't last long!  

Making a Meal Out of the Garden...

Our life is about shelling broad beans...

Our crops are definitely going off! After coming home to a fairly empty fridge after a trip interstate, we had to attempt to rustle something up for dinner!   My husband Mark (and chief veggie garden grower) rustled up this amazing salad to go with some steaks.  Proudly, everything is from our garden (except for the tomatoes) and was super fresh and delicious.

A delicious salad, straight from the garden.

So what is in it?  Well we have:

• homegrown broad beans
• homegrown white salad onions
• homegrown radish sprouts (these are just young radishes, we needed to thin them out anyway so may as well eat them!)
• and store bought tomatoes

A great salad, very simply dressed with some salt and olive oil, that was very quickly prepared!  Bless our little veggie garden!