use real butter

We have some well-traveled visitors staying at our house. SIX of them to be exact. Normally six guests might be a bit much, but these guys have been delightful and the easiest guests ever. Naturally we’re going to take anyone visiting in March (as long as they are able) skiing!

from the parking lot of the local hill this morning

Yes, our guests are a half dozen eggs that Hannah of Bittersweet crocheted for a traveling egg meme!! I’d like to point out that Hannah is fricking amazing. This young woman is so accomplished… it’s like she just finished a marathon and I’m still wandering around looking for the starting line with one shoe on! And it was Helen’s sweet and fun-loving nature to set the meme in motion. In no particular order, these adventurous eggs have graced the blogs of: Helen, Peabody, Mary (aka Breadchick), Ivonne, Lisa, and Anita. It says so on the carton, which we all sign. Actually, I know Anita was the last one because she sent them along to me with that amazing package of goodies. *love* Anita. I am honored and humbled to host these very special and adorable eggs.

I had to wait a week until I had recovered enough from treatment so I could show the eggs a proper time in Colorado. Proper = snow.

how many crocheted eggs get to ride a ski lift, eh?

I think the little dudes were scared shitless on the lift, but no worries - they were in good hands all morning. And by good hands, I mean they were in mine.

first evar tele eggs!

They loved it, but seriously, who doesn’t love tele? I guess it’s easy to love when you’re an egg and a tele babe cradles you down the slopes! Of course, in the afternoon I had to introduce them to Kaweah who was quite keen to sniff and lick and chew on them. No way I was going to let that happen, so after a lot of scolding she settled down and the eggs became confident enough to check her out.

why so glum, chum?

thankfully made of yarn and not real egg parts

auggggggggggggh!

The eggs are safe with nary a wisp of dog drool. Kaweah continually walks up to the table they are on and wags her tail. Sorry pup, but these eggs are headed overseas to someplace new, exciting, and… delicious!

We let the eggs rest while we drove down to Boulder to run a few errands. To celebrate that I can eat (and taste) solid foods again, Jeremy took me to The Med for some tapas yummies.

pizza margherita

some bistecca alla genovese (grilled hanger steak)

Then we strolled down Pearl Street Ped Mall to pick up some care-package goodies and what did I see to my utter delight and joy?

PATAGUCCI!

A Patagucci of my Boulder’s very own that opened a mere two weeks ago! I’m no fashion plate, but I do plunk down a pretty penny for good gear and Patagonia has *excellent* performant clothing and a great company mission. In fact, that picture of me skiing above? Every piece of clothing I’m wearing is Patagucci except the gloves (yup, even the clothing you DON’T see). Of course, I’m enough of a bum that I buy most of it on sale (fire sale, that is). Oh, and I do love myself some Italian footwear, namely Scarpa and La Sportiva.

Now if only a Trader Joe’s would open up, I’d really be pleased as punch.

Sorry for the hiatus, but I was on travel visiting with my two favorite kids in the world. It’s always a shock for me to walk into the kitchen of non-cooks. One of my old supervisors had a kitchen that was spotless and pristine because he never cooked. He ate out for every meal! I don’t know if that is the norm or the exception, but the family I visited eats out a lot (or orders take out) and their pantry is full of processed junk and convenience foods. I usually feel pretty ill after eating fast food once a month let alone daily. It’s a different perspective on food, that is for sure.

At one point I did manage to visit a Super H Mart which was awesome! I just googled it and found that we have one in Denver. A one hour and twenty minute drive is definitely better than a 3 hour flight. Sweet. They had lovely produce too, like these pretty Indian bitter melons:

They had baskets of scuppernongs on sale at the entrance. I didn’t know what they were and neither did my mom. She popped one in her mouth, bit down, and made a face like she was about to cry. She spat it out into her hand and said it was *sour*. That very evening, Joyce emailed me about scuppernongs and how she loves them. I followed her link to the wikipedia entry and laughed aloud when I read how they are eaten - without the skin. Now I’m really curious to try one. I’ll have to tell my mom about it after she gets back home.

Sometimes I need to get my bearings straight after I travel and this trip was no exception. I felt tired, disoriented, and without appetite - until it was time to make a grocery list. Then I began looking up recipes for things I wanted to try this week and suddenly the food enthusiasm turned on again. It probably helps to be in my own kitchen, looking forward to preparing fresh and delicious things that we like.

Fall is coming and I am so ready!

Some backtracking required here. I never got around to the last day I spent in Sydney with Kell, Jerad, and eventually, Mr. Jeremy.

Jerad and Kell’s weekly routine includes a trip to Paddy’s Market for incredible fresh produce. It’s like the Pasadena Farmer’s Market on steroids and indoors. I literally could have sat down and cried in the middle of all those beautiful fruits, vegetables, and herbs. While they shopped about for the best prices, someone like me would have paid double the asking price for food I cannot even get my hands on in Colorado.

i’ll buy all of these mangoes please, and two of the plums

We paused at Oporto’s for a quick lunch and my first introduction to Sydney’s best fast food joint. Surprisingly, Jeremy had raved about this place after his last visit to Sydney. It’s all very good, but the spicy sauce makes the whole thing. The sauce - the sauce!

i could have reconstructed kell’s dental structure had she not polished off the rest

this special sauce kicks a big mac squarely in the balls

The next big treat was the fish market where the use of the terms shock and awe really does apply. Again, several vendors displaying all manner of fishes, shellfish, crustaceans, cephalopods… whole, cut, on ice, live, in tanks, sashimi’d, cooked, with side of tartare. Jerad and Kell picked up some shrimp and balmain bugs for a pre-dinner snack. They did this just so Jeremy could try a bug!

hello lovelies

After some downtime back at Chalmers St. during a much-needed rainstorm, we went to pluck Jeremy from the airport curb and return to the flat for a treat and chat. Kell set out a fabulous spread of cold seafood, cornichons and pearl onions, cocktail sauce, and her homemade lemon cordial with soda water.

kell = maestra

poly is such a lover

Dinner that night was at Restaurant Balzac (named for the writer) where Jerad worked before his current stint at Manta. I’m sure my dining tour of Sydney has been totally skewed by the fact that I was in the company of a chef who knows just about every other chef in town. The four of us opted for degustation (chef’s tasting menu) and one member of each pair ordered the wine pairings. Service was impeccable and the food was sheer indulgence. The lighting was dark and I didn’t want to use flash, so the images were blurry because a woman on the verge of food coma cannot be expected to hold a camera steady for a nearly 1 second exposure. My memory is shaky too, so Kell - please correct or add info that I may have left off.

fennel volute and seared scallop

crawfish and pressed chicken

lobster ravioli

ocean trout, calamari, and vegetables

rabbit lasagne with rabbit tenderloin and offal

beef (tenderloin? ribeye?) on spinach with marrow

the ultra special complimentary cheese plate that jerad almost died trying to finish

strawberry mess (meringue, whipped cream, macerated strawberries)

chocolate volcano with guinness ice cream

The missing plate in the above images is the venison tenderloin (the option to the beef, but they split it between each pair) and yes, that was awesome too. I don’t need to emphasize how incredible the entire experience was - all four hours of it! I find it curious that I had never tried (was willing to pay for) degustation in my life until the first of the month for our ten year anniversary at the Flagstaff House. Then I suddenly had two more within the same month! Yes, I do count Jerad’s treat at Manta as degustation because 1) it was delicious 2) it was the chef’s tasting menu and 3) I felt like I was going to die by the 5th plate. The dinner at Balzac was extra special though, because it was with our friends who actually love and appreciate food more than we do! This was our treat for them (but also such a treat for ourselves). Honestly, we could not thank Kell and Jerad enough for their hospitality and kindness.

Needless to say, our dining experiences in New Zealand fell far short of anything Sydney had to offer.

Trip theme: Delicious Australia, Beautiful New Zealand.