[HOME-MADE] ORANGE WALNUT OLIVE OIL CAKE

It's been really icy and rainy in Sydney... weather that makes you crave wintery and Christmas-y food (in a Northern hemisphere sense I guess. Christmas food here often means barbecue at the beach). I've also been trying to make lots of sweets and desserts myself, since I'm hoping to cut down store-bought food as much as I can, and really I can never get enough of baking anyway. It's so calming - your mind is not really thinking about much besides making sure you're getting the steps right, and it gives you this satisfying, pad-on-the-shoulder type feeling when you watch your ingredients change form, colour and volume, and come out of the oven as these perfect things that lift everyone's mood for the day.

So I reached out to one of my favourite any-day-of-the-week cake recipes again, from the Lottie + Doof blog that I so dearly admire. The orange and walnut mix takes me straight back to my childhood winters in Germany, and since I discovered baking with olive oil, it's become my preferred fat in cakes ("fat in cakes" sounds so classy by the way... not). It's a simple recipe yet delivers such a fulfilling product, and doesn't leave your kitchen as a bomb side after making it either. AND make sure you watch the egg and sugar mixture turn all creamy, almost custard-y; makes me all giddy thinking back. It's not the greatest looking fella but but no one will really think about it once they have their first bite.

So if you have a spare half hour with nothing to do one day, need an emergency cake that needs to impress (whenever that might be) or just simply want to warm your home and fill it with Christmas-y smells, please don't hesitate.

Orange walnut olive oil cake (slightly adapted from Lottie + Doof)

• 1 1/2 cups walnuts
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 4 large eggs
• 1 1/3 cups sugar
• 1/2 cup freshly squeezed orange juice (roughly 2 oranges)
• 1 1/2 tablespoons finely grated orange peel (roughly the peel of the two oranges used for the juice)
• 1/2 cup olive oil

Preheat oven to 180C. Butter a 9-inch springform pan (I use oil out of laziness) and line with baking paper.

Grind walnuts in food processor until roughly ground, resembling breadcrumbs. Combine ground walnuts, flour and baking powder, and set aside.

In a separate bowl, beat eggs with an electric mixer until frothy, around 2 minutes. Slowly add the sugar, and beat until thick, creamy, pale yellow, around 4 minutes. Slowly add nut-flour mixture, then orange juice, peel and olive oil, mixing until just combined (if your bowl gets too full, use a spatula combine all in order to avoid splashes).

Pour mixture into prepared pan and bake until toothpick inserted into centre comes out clean, about 50 to 60 minutes. Let cake cool in pan before transferring to a platter (it doesn't need to cool completely, but while warm it needs to be transferred carefully as it breaks more easily); dust with icing sugar before serving (optional), or just dig in straight away like myself.

[SUITED UP AND BAREFOOT] THE F&B DIARIES OF A MELBOURNE ADDICT

Let's be honest: there are so many restaurant reviews out there I don't think I need to be the 185638524th person to, say, take a photo of Bodega's fish fingers, list its price and rave about how good it is. My love for Melbourne's wining and dining scene, however, is unable to stop me from sharing some of my favourite destinations with you, especially as a non-local. Feel free to cross check with your trusted food blogger.



* Pope Joan [77-79 Nicholson Street, Brunswick East]
Go for: that brunch you don't deserve every day because it is too good
Expect: travelling a fair bit out of the city to be rewarded with breakfast heaven. The dishes are so beautifully prepared and plated and are definitely well-portioned too, to make sure you'll roll out the door completely happy - think smoked salmon, parsnip croquettes, red slaw and slow cooked egg (all in one dish, that is). If you seriously can't stand eggs for breakfast they have a range of sandwiches and cakes and other sweet dishes that looked fantastic as well. To me it was probably the most impressive breakfast/brunch ever, and the girls on the floor make sure you're looked after too!


* Hanoi Hannah [180 High Street, Prahran]
Go for: Viet street food, Prahran style
Expect: authentic Vietnamese (REAL spring rolls! Grilled beef in betel leaves! Veeeeery loooovely pho!) and fun spinoffs of some favourites in a very cute, Melbourian setting - rustic and funky and cosy, without forgetting that trademark Viet painting on the wall and the chilli sauce and cutlery holder on the table. Get the coconut lychee slushie too - oh em gee so refreshing! It kinda felt like I was eating at home again, only to walk around the corner back onto Chapel Street. Jackpot.


* The Woods Of Windsor [108 Chapel Street, Windsor]
Go for: hunting lodge meets anything elegant
Expect: a venue hard to describe but suitable for anyone that's after anything good really: a casual drink, a proper sit-down dinner, something before or after the main meal... Similar to Porteno in Sydney, it's one of those venues that you know you can come in for all sorts of occasions and have an amazing time, while things are still done properly and formally. The big shelf along one wall stocks a whisky-focused bar, as well as books, taxidermies, and all sorts of other beautiful things to look at. Comes with a matching "forresty" and "autumny" menu - had drinks and dessert and actually can't wait to be back to try more.


* Cumulus Inc. [45 Flinders Lane, Melbourne]
Go for: the good stuff, all day long
Expect: the sleek, clean-cut Melbourian type of venue with bangin' food - serving breakfast, lunch and dinner. I've been back every time I went to Melbs so that must say a lot, doesn't it? Exciting flavours and ingredients are prepared in a very honest style of cooking, and most of the menu is to share but can be cut down into single portions - well that's pretty much my kinda style of eating. Went back last to have breakfast and just couldn't get over their bloody tasty blood sausage and smoked tomato in the English breakfast. Don't miss the canelés at the little pastry and takeaway section on your way out!


* Portello Rosso [15 Warburton Lane, Melbourne]
Go for: Tapas that are, uhm, pretty crazy?
Expect: a menu the size of which you'd probably underestimate, and feeling like Julia Roberts in "Eat Pray Love" when she was eating up in Italy - I just felt so alive working my way through the dishes. I honestly don't remember everything we had - I'm sure you can order anything and you'll be perfectly fine. I guess you'll have fun at any tapas restaurant if the food is good, but as I've said that Eat-Pray-Love feeling hit me so hard that all I can say is just go already. The team was so so nice too I felt so bad not finishing my dinner (because I was so stuffed!).

[BAREFOOT] MANLY MORNING MEALS

*At Infinity Sourdough Bakery

I loooove breakfast. More so going out for breakfast. Yes of course it's not hard at all to slice up an avocado and put it on toast at home, but it's the whole sitting-in-the-sun, having-amazing-espresso-coffee, having-the-choice-to-order-anything-you-want and people-watching-while-eating kinda deal that makes it such an exciting activity. And I never have avocado nor toast ready at home for brekkie anyway because most of the time I wouldn't get to them for the second time before they go bad/become stale/get mouldy. :(

So as the weekend is coming up again, hopefully the weather will stay nice for you (because I'm going to work so it doesn't really matter to me *sobs*) and maybe we can catch up for breakfast in Manly. (Well I work in the afternoon. You can go to the beach afterwards you lucky bastard!) If you prefer to avoid my company, here are four great breakfast spots that are a little different from the usual eggs on toast joints, which you can check out for yourself. I can't promise you won't run into me though.


1- Belgrave Cartel, where you get spoiled Italian style
Sometimes I wake up in the morning and the first thing that comes to my mind is their chicken schnitzel panini (with avocado, rocket, cheese and pesto mayo, OMG). I might even smell it too, that's how much I love it. Their Bircher muesli is my absolute favourite, and I'd smash a panini and the muesli in one go. Pasta of the day, tuna rissoles and corn fritters make it really hard to decide as well when you're super hungry. It's cosy and relaxed, and the mismatching tables and chairs just make you feel so much at home (well, that would be my home). Perfect little hideaway for a rainy day too. Plus little in-house art installation!

2- Infinity Sourdough Bakery, for a simple sunny morning
If you feel like something easy (such as my beloved avocado on toast, or in this case, avocado on sourdough), this is the place to be. Obviously their breads are the highlight (I remember bringing a loaf to my relatives' with some bruschetta and nobody could stop); add Little Marionette coffee and a sneaky little pastry and you're set. It's just off the Corso, but so quiet and calm that you'd just forget about the weekend hustle and bustle one street down from you. Bring a paper and soak up the sun!

3- Adriano Zumbo + Barefoot Coffee, for a fancy little one
Both couldn't have ever chosen better neighbours for themselves - it must've been fate. As much of a superstar Zumbo has become and I've kinda gotten over the macaron hype, you just can't deny that their sugarland is damn fantastic (although their bread and pies are really good too). Grab a croissant or a berry brioche (dessert for breakfast!) and pop next door to Barefoot, where they never - and I mean never - fail to deliver a perfect coffee. If you can't snatch a seat at the ever-busy cafe (where you can eat your Zumbo purchase too), head across the street to sit in the grass and watch the ferries and boats and stand-up paddleboarders.

4- Jah Bar, for an all-day fiesta
It's the real Spanish deal. No bacon and eggs, no salmon benedict, but tortillas and breakfast empanadas, and bloody marys and breakfast martinis, just to get the morning started (and to get you stay into the afternoon ha!). This would be the place to be on a lazy weekend, when you're in no hurry to get anywhere else and wouldn't mind getting some more friends in for an afternoon sangria. Or wine. Or cocktail. The morning menu is small but definitely different and beautiful (you know my opinion on Jah Bar food already), so if you're up for some fun, go!


By the way, what I mean by breakfast is "first meal of the day". Having breakfast past lunchtime is really no uncommon ritual for me. Just can't start your day without the morning coffee hey, whatever time it may be.

X

[SUITED UP AND BAREFOOT] FRESH BREAD FOR DINNER

Stumbled upon this video on my tumblr dashboard, and I've fallen in love - with the whole concept really: "real", artisan food, great passion and fine skills, and wonderful aesthetics. Everything that requires such beautiful craftsmanship, whether food, drinks, or anything else, should be celebrated and enjoyed to the fullest. Not only is the whole world moving towards a healthier, more organic, more "home-made" life, but also do these amazing people - who are definitely gifted, but also are just as "familiar" as your mate or your neighbour - show that with enough passion, persistency and love for what you do, you can be successful too. I wanna become one of them.

Check out Tartine Bakery & Cafe (makes me wanna go to San Francisco!), and The Makers, which documents the daily life of wonderful craftsmen in Brooklyn, New York.

Sorry for the recent lack of personal posts and photos; I actually have been spending amazing times with amazing friends but keep forgetting my camera. Sad face.

x

[BAREFOOT] SUNSHINE CAKE

I've been baking disturbingly a lot recently. Valentine's Day, lunch party at relatives', second attempts because the first batch didn't turn out as expected, and simply because I was bored and didn't feel like doing anything else. I know the last one does sound quite disturbing, but don't worry, there are days that I don't feel like doing anything but staying in bed and watch movies just like everyone else too.

I usually look for recipes for cakes or other pastries and desserts that are easy to make, look fairly simple and rustic, and preferably have some sort of fresh fruit in them. I don't like icing, don't like cupcakes, don't like food colouring. Too cutesy, and I always worry I might get some sort of food poisoning when food is neon green or baby pink.

I felt like poppy seed cake the other night (yes I tend to bake at night and beat eggs for around 8 minutes, sorry neighbours), and found this amazing recipe for lemon poppy seed cake on Smitten Kitchen. Being a smartass I already bought my ingredients before I found a recipe and therefore only had oranges, but it still worked absolutely fine.

I also thinly sliced up one orange to put on top of the cake - gives it quite a festive look, and balances well with the rich cake. For those who are interested in making it, I used a regular springform pan (the cake will become hollow in the middle but who cares when the cake is so good), zest of two oranges and a whole pack of poppy seed (which would be around 1 1/4 cups). I don't mind a lot of poppy seeds at all - I kinda miss German poppy seed cakes, which are pretty much black. But anyway, this cake is absolutely lovely, probably best enjoyed with a cup of tea, and I think it tastes nicer when it's cold too. Polly's friend Marsha definitely liked it because she had it twice, and it was pretty impressive to watch Nilly have her belated birthday cake last night - I don't think she shared much of it, and the quarter of the cake was gone before she knew.

I read this article last week that says baking is like therapy. So true! You have to pay attention to all the steps and also don't want to waste time running around the kitchen to find shit, so you have to be fast and organised. But it's a really calm kind of concentration and gives you enough time to think while not getting too involved with it. I loved watching the texture of the 8 egg yolks and one whole egg for this cake change during the 8 minutes of beating. Whatever my problems were, it was pretty satisfying to see the end result, which really was "pale yellow and very fluffy", almost like whipped cream.


I guess some would really find me disturbing now.

[BAREFOOT] SIMPLE MORNINGS

Rediscovered greek yoghurt with honey. Just a bowl of this makes the day a summer day.

[SUITED UP AND BAREFOOT] PICKED UP IN AUSTRALIA #2: COFFEE AND SANDWICH

Hemingway's lunchtime pulled pork sandwich with vinegar chips. And of course a latte and lunchtime Hendrick's Gin. Kidding.

Sandwiches and coffees are consumed anytime before dinner here. Which is cool, because it's quick and fun, and still has this relaxed feel to it, probably because it reminds one of sitting-on-the-street-people-watching brunching. Although for brunch we'd most likely have a bigger meal, but you get my point.

So Down Under they're really into their sandwiches, and I love all their adorably yum creations such as pulled pork and apple chutney, chicken and cranberry, pancetta and egg, et cetera et cetera, because it like a whole meal squeezed onto bread (and often times also falling off your bread). There's always rocket leaves on sandwiches, and how good is avocado on toast? Coffee is a big thing too here; you're actually pretty cool running a coffee shop, and almost uncool already not running around with a coffee in the morning.


Random side story, but since we've mentioned Hemingway's: I was just sitting at Jah Bar tonight having some wine and a quick dinner (after a long day of HOTS individual cycling and not making that much money, and chasing other deadlines) when the Hemingway boys came in and were sat next to me (I know they didn't want to, and neither did I). I go there all the time for my weekly dose of booze and now they've found out they're not the only one. But they know their position in my heart - Paul asked: "So what's your second favourite place in Manly?". Too charming.

[SUITED UP] THOUGHTS ON: LATE NIGHT STUDENT FOOD

So I think it was Wednesday when I stayed at college all day long to finish my last assignments that were due on Thursday. I didn't finish until around 10 at night (I actually hadn't finished, I just thought it was time to go home and I'd manage finishing the papers at home), and was mind-wreckingly hungry. All takeaway shops were pretty much closed (even McDonald's in Manly closes at like what, 10pm on weekday nights?), and it was way too late and way too stressful to sit down alone at some restaurant - I mean, I do that sometimes, but not at 10; people would think I'm a friendless alcoholic. And of course who would bother making food at that hour of the night? (I refuse to buy instant noodles because I know I'd get addicted, and I'd very soon have pimples all over my face.)

I was craving for a hot bowl of rice and chicken à la Jipang, or a $10 Ivanhoe steak, or even a juicy Benbry burger. I just wished there had been a place open late into the night, especially half way through the term when all those assignments are due and exams are coming up, serving some quick, hot, filling dishes (not like fat-free sushi or dry and flaky meat pies, which are actually pretty awesome after a night out). You'd most likely bump into so fellas from college there, and you'd have a chat about the Economics exam or the Contemporary Issues journal article over a beer and a steaming dish of awesome something.

Think home made student food (man Polly's and my student food is pretty dope. Pastas and stirfries of the finest quality), open kitchen, bar stools, a nice selection of beers and wines for the poor student to calm down after/before their nervous breakdown, funky but quiet crowd, meeting up for a healthy late night dinner. It would even work for hospitality people who don't finish work until even Coles is closed.

Anyone seeing the potential? I'm giving away a free business idea here, please can someone hear our desperate cry for a midnight meal? If not maybe I should be jumping in after I finish my degree.


Something very ironic happened when I was just about to start writing - our neighbour from downstairs came up and offered some free Thai takeaway because they delivered the wrong meals and he doesn't eat meat. Wish there were more Friday nights like this.


And what I did on Wednesday night? I went to Coles for some butter chicken. Meh.

Our hangover chicken avocado sandwich (with Brie cheese!). Would work on exam nights as well.

[BAREFOOT] PICKED UP IN AUSTRALIA #1: THE BIG BREKKIE.

You know you don't wanna say no if I do happen to invite you over for a morning meal.