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Ham and Cheese Sourdough Rolls

November 23, 2015 by Celia @ Fig Jam and Lime Cordial

Here’s a simple idea to use up leftover bits and pieces in the fridge.

The next time you have excess sourdough rolls…

Cut them diagonally most of the way through, then butter each slice lightly. Stuff them with bits of ham and cheese from the fridge (I used ham offcuts, English cheddar and a bit of d’Affinois that was approaching its expiry date). Obviously you could fill them with anything you like, but the cheese does add a nice gooeyness…

Wrap individually in foil and stash them in the freezer…

The next time life gets hectic, pull a roll or two out and allow them to defrost on the bench (don’t unwrap). Preheat the oven to 180C with fan, then pop them in.

Once the rolls have heated through and the cheese is melted (from memory, ours took about 20 minutes), unwrap and eat with your fingers…

These were surprisingly delicious and consumed with gusto by my perpetually starving sons. It’s nice to have premade holiday lunches for them in the freezer!

Posted in Recipes | 25 Comments »

Snippets

November 17, 2015 by Celia @ Fig Jam and Lime Cordial

Teaching Emma to bake bread…

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Making Mum laugh…

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Monthly flower delivery…

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Angel bookmarks…

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Baby JJ’s christening…

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#prayforparis

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Sukiyaki in Glebe…

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She-nanigans…

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Two brothers…

…always walking…

…in step…

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♥ With love to you all ♥

Posted in Musings | 73 Comments »

November Jewels

November 9, 2015 by Celia @ Fig Jam and Lime Cordial

It happens every November.

I’m not sure if it’s the changing light, of the approach of Christmas, but at the same time each year, I pull out my boxes of vintage Swarovski crystals and silver findings, and I start wrapping loops.

I find the process very meditative and the sense of satisfaction which comes from creating a new piece is incredible. This year I set myself a challenge – to see what I could make using only my existing (admittedly substantial) stash.

These 12mm Swarovski Tabac (tobacco) rounds are quite rare. I adore their smokiness, but the colour wasn’t popular and was quickly discontinued in the larger sizes. I’ve wired them very simply onto sterling silver…

This year’s earrings have a slightly hippy feel to them…

As I’m wearing quite a few of my friend Valentina’s vintage china pendants this spring, I’ve made a pair of white bell earrings to match. They’re Swarovski crystals (from the 1960s) in a rare opaque finish…

I think they work well together…

As do these ruby drops on large sterling hoops…

My lovely neighbour Michelle popped over this morning to pick up this set. The vintage Swarovski Montana crystals are a deep grey blue, and they match her eyes…

After a week of spreading out over the dining room table, completely absorbed in the design and making process, Pete finally said, “it’s time to put the pliers away, babe”. Bless him, he’d quietly cooked dinner for three nights in a row. So I’ve tidied all my boxes of treasure away into the study…for now…

Do you have a hobby which completely absorbs you?

Tutorial: Make your own Crystal Earrings

Posted in Cool Things, Food & Friends | 32 Comments »

In My Kitchen, November 2015

November 1, 2015 by Celia @ Fig Jam and Lime Cordial

In My Kitchen November 2015 is now closed.

Please join us again in December!
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In my kitchen…

…was a fresh Australian salmon. This large 70cm fish cost just $31 from Costco. We roasted it very simply, stuffed with fresh garden herbs, and seasoned with butter, salt and freshly ground black pepper…

In my kitchen…

…there is always chocolate! Dark hazelnut praline pieces and our favourite chestnut flour brownies…

In my kitchen…

…is a piece of labradorite, photographed from two angles. It has a stunning blue iridescence in the right light. And it’s named after the district of Labrador in Canada, not the dog breed…

In my kitchen…

…are two very grotty enamel roasters. I use them twice a week to bake bread in, and because I’m lazy, I never bother washing them. It doesn’t impact at all on their performance…

As so many of my fellow bakers know, baking sourdough in these covered pots is the easiest way to get a fabulous loaf every time…

In my kitchen…

…is my collection of Juan and Olivia’s steampunk owls. I keep buying them as gifts, and then end up keeping them for myself. Each one has a distinct personality…

In my kitchen…

…is peeled roasted beetroot, grown by our neighbour Mark…

I blitzed it with a clove of garlic, olive oil, salt and a pinch each of cumin, coriander and sweet paprika. It makes a delicious dip…

In my kitchen…

…is Saturday morning bread! I tend to get a little carried away on the weekends…

In my kitchen…

…was a very simple midweek dinner – fresh sourdough and whatever else we could rummage up from the fridge. Ella Dee calls these picnic dinners, and it’s a great name! She gave me the delicious macadamias, and the jamon offcuts were a gift from our friend Johnny…

Finally, in my kitchen…

….are sidecar cocktails. The first batch for spring!

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Tell me, what’s happening in your kitchen this month?

If you’d like to do an In My Kitchen post on your own blog, please feel free  to do so. We’d love to see what’s happening in your kitchen this month!  Please link back to this blog, and let us know when your post is up, and we’ll add it to our monthly listing. Please upload your post by the 10th of each month.

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Here are this month’s posts…

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Ardys @ Ardysez (Alice Springs, Northern Territory)

Maree @ Around The Mulberry Tree (Gippsland, VIC)

JJ @ 84th & 3rd (Sydney, NSW)

Sherry @ Sherry’s Pickings (Brisbane, QLD)

Christine @ Food Wine Travel (Brisbane, QLD)

Laila @ Table of Colors (Finland)

Lisa @ I’ll Be There With A Fork (Brisbane, QLD)

Ale @ Ligera de Equipaje (Argentina)

Bernice @ Dish ‘n’ the Kitchen (Calgary, Canada)

Faye @ Veganopoulos (Melbourne, VIC)

Kari @ Bite-Sized Thoughts (London, UK)

Kavey @ Kavey Eats (London, UK)

Diane @ Photographs and Recipes (Massachusetts, USA)

Lori @ Cooks with Evie (Canada)

Johanna @ Green Gourmet Giraffe (Melbourne, VIC)

Lorraine @ Not Quite Nigella (Sydney, NSW)

Amanda @ Lambs’ Ears and Honey (Adelaide, South Australia)

Ella Dee @ Ella Dee (Sydney, NSW)

Glenda @ Passion Fruit Garden (Perth, Western Australia)

Sally @ Bewitching Kitchen (Kansas, USA)

Nicole @ Miss Food Fairy (Melbourne, VIC)

Emma @ Surrey Kitchen (Surrey, UK)

Cassandra @ Just a Little Piece (San Diego, USA)

Shaheen @ Allotment2Kitchen (Wales, UK)

Fiona @ TIFFIN – Bite Sized Food Adventures (Brisbane, QLD)

Tandy @ Lavender and Lime (Gordons Bay, South Africa)

Jane @ The Shady Baker (Broken Hill, NSW)

Emily @ Cooking for Kishore (New Jersey, USA)

Sandra @ Please Pass the Recipe (Brisbane, QLD)

Jan @ A Gluttonous Wife (South West VIC)

Gretchen @ Feeding My 3 Sons (South Carolina, USA)

Sally @ My Custard Pie (Dubai)

Debi @ My Kitchen Witch (Athens, Greece)

Anne @ Anne Lawson (Melbourne, VIC)

Vicki @ Boiled Eggs & Soldiers (Sydney, NSW)

Maureen @ Orgasmic Chef (Sunshine Coast, QLD)

Tania @ The Cook’s Pyjamas (Perth, Western Australia)

Maz @ The Toymaker (California, USA)

Greg and Katherine @ Rufus’ Food and Spirits Guide (Little Rock, Arkansas, USA)

Shari @ Good Food Week (Canberra, ACT)

Mandy @ The Complete Cookbook (Sundays River, South Africa)

Liz @ Bizzy Lizzy’s Good Things (Canberra, ACT)

Ania @ Milk, Toast and Honey (UK)

Liz @ Spades, Spatulas & Spoons (Oakland, CA, USA)

Moya @ Food and Tools (Bahrain)

Charlie @ Hotly Spiced (Sydney, NSW)

Jennifer @ Milk and Honey (Gippsland, VIC)

Tania @ My Kitchen Stories (Sydney, NSW)

Francesca @ Almost Italian (Melbourne, Victoria)

Sarah @ Say Little Hen (formerly Chantille-Fleur blog, North Queensland)

Posted in In My Kitchen | 77 Comments »

Living Mindfully

October 24, 2015 by Celia @ Fig Jam and Lime Cordial

It took me a very long time to figure out how to live life well.

When I was younger, I used to be so worried about what lay ahead that I never managed to really enjoy the present. Over the past few years, I’ve worked hard at realigning my thinking – to constantly pull myself back into the now and search for the joy and happiness in every moment. I’ve tried to be more mindful.

Life is rarely smooth sailing for any of us. But our days are also filled with small, perfect moments – we just have to learn to recognise and appreciate them. And to live them and enjoy them and bask in them.

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For me, early mornings are a special time, when everyone else is asleep and I’m pottering around in the kitchen. If I’m up before the sun rises, I’ll turn the lights off in the dining room and watch as the morning rays stream in through the back windows, moving across the table like a slow spotlight…

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Baking bread in the morning always sets me up for a good day. I love the stillness and the gentle light and the bounce of puffy dough under my fingers. Last week, my freshly baked loaves were singing and giving off sparks. If you look (and listen) carefully, you can just see them on the left of the video below…

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I moved out of home when I was 17 years old, so I never once take for granted having our boys still living with us at 22 and 19. Every moment feels precious, and I try to spend as much time with them as they’ll allow.

Big Boy and I have found a new spot to sit and drink coffee, where we can gaze out over the street. He and I never struggle for conversation; we have an open, comfortable relationship that I’m incredibly grateful for…

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We’ve nearly lost Small Man three times – once to cancer, once to pneumonia, and once to a 4-wheel drive (he was completely unharmed, but it was a very close call). Spending time with him is like holding treasure in my hands. He’s an incredibly interesting, quirky young man who sees the world in a different way to most people. The other day, he saw three monkeys hanging from the stairs at Mum’s house, and asked why there was one for “smell no evil”…

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I’ve returned to knitting after a 20 year absence, and I’m loving every stitch. My knitting is very basic – I’m only making kitchen cloths which are used to wipe down benches and then thrown in the washing machine. It’s the process which brings happiness…

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Six years ago, I wrote about how creating new things from raw materials fills me with an enormous sense of satisfaction. I still try to make something every day, be it a loaf of bread, or a few rows of knitting, or an origami butterfly. But since that time, I’ve also discovered the great joy that comes from repairing, restoring and conserving – saving something which might otherwise be destined for the rubbish bin and giving it a second lease of life.

It drives my poor Mum a bit nuts, but I’ll often arrive for dinner in a mended shirt – this one has just been repaired for the eighth time…

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Almost every day, I give thanks for the wonders of modern technology.

When we moved to Australia in 1969, my parents would only call family in Malaysia on special occasions. It cost them $7.50 for a three minute call – a small fortune nearly 50 years ago – and had to be booked through an international operator.

These days, for $30 a month, I can call or text anyone, anywhere and at anytime. My darling friend Dan lives in California, and I’ve just finished chatting with her for half an hour. We communicate as easily as we would if she lived next door. Sometimes we set up video cameras and have a virtual cup of tea together. I know that anyone born after 1990 takes this for granted, but it never fails to amaze and excite me that we’re all able to keep in touch so easily…

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Sorry to ramble – spring is in the air and it’s a joyous time of year.

Wishing you all a glorious, mindful, happy weekend!

May it be filled with many small, perfect moments! ♥

Posted in Musings | 61 Comments »

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