love ♥ cupcakes

it's a long weekend, so i've been relaxing so much that i've almost forgotten that it is monday today!

we baked some strawberry vanilla cupcakes for afternoon tea, and spent most of the arvo decorating and taking photos of them. this week for much love monday, i'm loving very muchly -  cupcakes, and tiny teddies too :)

inspired by anna's 'much love' blog, check out anna's much love monday here

what are you loving this monday?

( see ) a different way

it's the twelfth day of the march challenge to do something different everyday. it's been fun thinking up new ideas for ways to make each day a little different, and a little more exciting. seems like food was the only variation i made in the first four days...hehe just shows how much i love it..oops :P so for the past week i've been trying super hard to do a few more non-food things, but yes, they do pop in here and there again...

how the adventure is going :

day five - going out at night after a tiring monday and had a great dinner with friends

day six - doing yoga listening to a remix of songs i haven't heard in a long time

day seven - walking home via a different route and enjoying the different scenery

day eight - downloading a new game app on my phone - draw something (it's addictive!)

day nine - gyming for almost two hours and felt so energised afterwards

day ten - step outside comfort zone from the naturally shy disposition of mine

day eleven - bake cupcakes with friends

day twelve - start the day with a morning jog

p.s. captured this with my camera the other day,

autumn is here!

how has your march been?

do something different everyday

summer seems to have gone by in a flash, can't believe it's autumn already! laura at see hear say has inspired me with her march challenge to do something different everyday. it's a lovely way to add a bit of creativity and spice to the daily grind, and also interesting to see photos and updates from other bloggers who have taken on the challenge too.

this march i'll be embarking little thirty-one day adventure - experimenting with new ideas, trying out alternatives to things i normally do and embracing spontaneity.

here's how i'm going so far...

day one : making wholemeal flatbread from scratch

day two : cooking without any recipes, just by feel

day three : trip to the chocolate apple factory...yum!

day four : trying handmade papardelle pasta for the first time

cafe time

the friar's cafe - a century old church refurbished into a bustling cafe, this was where we visited last weekend for afternoon tea. i loved the beautiful stained glass windows and antique wooden decor. 

the most delicious chocolate almond torte i've ever 

eaten! it's a rich cake with a beautiful balance of 

dark chocolate, nutty textures and creaminess. 

flourless orange cake with a punchy citrus flavour, 

silky texture and a pleasant hint of sweetness.

hot chocolate with that lovely layer of creamy milk

foam, and served with a slice of yummy almond biscotti

pumpkin tortilla

for the past two week i've been living away from home, which means i've been missing my family and friends in melbourne, and also missing the well stocked pantry at home! 

so here i've set up my own little pantry, with the bare minimum essentials and groceries that require minimal, or more often, no cooking at all. having been surviving mostly on salads which only require a bit of slicing and assembly, i do get a craving now and then to cook something. and perhaps try something new too. 

i had half a pumpkin left in the fridge, and also almost a dozen eggs which had been sitting there for nearly a fortnight, oh, and the onions were on sale at coles so i had a kilo of those... perfect for a pumpkin tortilla! 

tortillas are spanish omelettes, which are traditionally made using potatoes, and eggs of course. seeing i had some pumpkin handy, the idea just came together quite nicely. the little cooking experiment in the kitchen turned out rather neat. the recipe i've made up is pretty straightforward, and uses only 3 ingredients plus oil, salt and freshly ground pepper. the pumpkin and onions are full of flavour, and the eggs give it a good protein boost, so it's quite an appetising and substantial, yet healthy meal. 

pumpkin tortilla recipe

ingredients

one quarter large kent pumpkin - diced to 2mm cubes

two brown onions - halved and finely sliced

7 large eggs - lightly beaten

oil - 3 tablespoons 

salt & pepper to season the eggs

five simple steps

1. heat 1 tbs oil on in a frying pan and half cook the pumpkin ( approx 7 - 10 minutes )

2. meanwhile, in another pan / saucepan, heat 2 tbs oil and cook onions till golden brown

3. preheat the oven to 200 degrees celsius, and line an 18 x 18cm baking pan ( or similar sized round baking tin) with baking paper whilst letting the pumpkin and onions cool

4. place the pumpkin and onions into the baking pan and pour the seasoned egg mixture into the pan

5. bake for 20 minutes or until lightly browned and cooked through

buen provecho! ( spanish for 'enjoy your meal !' )

life is like a bento

the past few days have been a bit whirlwind busy, but with so much going on, every little morsel can be enjoyed in its own. rather than rushing every minute and scoffing down things in a blur, why not try a bite of each dish that the smorgasbord of life offers?

life is so much better in bite sized pieces - much like bentos!  

here are a few for inspiration, all courtesy of anna the red. she has a gallery of wonderful character bentos that is really quite a gourmet buffet for the eyes! they're super creative, a very cute!

and isn't this just perfect for much love monday ♥ 

such lovely and adorable sheep

hope you're having a bento-ful start to the week - full of creativity, colour and inspiring bites of life!