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Hiving Fun in Berlin

27 May

Last week-end I had the pleasure of attending the first ever The Hive European Blogging Conference in Berlin, Germany.  I had a wonderful week-end full of meeting new friends, learning the ins and outs of the blogging world and listening to some very inspiring women talk about their blogging experiences.  Unfortunately I didn’t take too many photos during the week-end because I was so concentrated on getting around to all the presentations and workshops and chatting with new friends but here are a few.

Presentation by Sister Mag.  These two women are so well spoken and inspiring.

 I was also lucky enough to participe in a really fun  food photography workshop by Anne from Anne’s Kitchen (who is the human equivalent to a cupcake…extremely sweet!).

We had a great selection of props, materials and food to work with. 

One of my favorite items from The Hive goody bag was this wooden USB stick from dawanda.com.Jillian in Italy name cards.

Thanks to all The Hive organisers for such a great week-end.  I’ll hopefully see you in Berlin again in 2013!

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Chocolate Shortbread with Minty Ganache Filling

17 May



Today I baked some delicious Chocolate Shortbread with Minty Ganache Filling and they turned out really really tasty.  At least for those who are fans of the mint/chocolate combination.  Which I seriously am.  It’s really one of my favorite flavour unions.

It all started when I had my first After Eight as a small child.  And the fact they come individually wrapped in those tiny black glassine envelopes makes them that much more appealing to me (lover of any sort of packaging!).

These are really rich cookies so one is definitely enough (ok maybe tw0).  The addition of the mint makes them slightly lighter than a shortbread with straight-up chocolate ganache.

Continue reading for recipe… Continue reading →

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Mme. Zsa Zsa’s Allemaal Rokjes

7 May

Last week my in-laws arrived in Italy for a long week-end.  It was really wonderful to have them here.  We went for walks, ate at restaurants, gardened, shopped, lazed around the house and, most importantly, went to my daughter’s first play (in which she was AMAZING of course).

As usual my mother-in-law came bearing many gifts.  Belgian chocolate, brown sugar, Flemish TV series for the kids, beautiful fabric  and a wonderful sewing book for me.

The book is called Allemaal Rokjes (All Kinds of  Skirts would be the rough English translation) and is written by Mme. Zsa Zsa.  Yes…it is written by a woman who calls herself Mme. Zsa Zsa!  Just that alone would make me buy the book.
There are many different skirt patterns and styles to choose from for both girls and  women. This frons rokje above is one of the first on my list to make.  It has a jersey waist band. How comfortable would that be for frolicking children?

The photos are really fun and quirky with a circus theme throughout.  I love how the instructions are hand drawn and the  patterns are all so easy to follow and understand.  I’m not sure if the book is available in English but it’s worth learning Dutch just to be able to use it.

I have a feeling that might be the famous Mme. Zsa Zsa in the photo.

One of the things I love about this book is that it includes the patterns for every single skirt featured.

This Madame Zsa Zsa seems like a very cool lady.  Take a look at her blog here.

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Gingerbread with warm caramel sauce

5 May


Today was one of those days that I just craved something from back home.  It was a chilly and cloudy day and I was wandering around my kitchen trying to find inspiration for something to bake.  I opened up my baking cupboard and the first thing I saw was a little carton of Maritime Molasses and a tiny tin of  pumpkin pie spice.  I knew immediately what I wanted to make.

I remember througout my childhood we always went to visit Peggy’s Cove (a famous Nova Scotia tourist destination with famous lighthouse).  We always stopped at the Peggy’s Cove restaurant to have a piece of their famous Gingerbread.  

So today that’s just what I made.  It’s an easy cake to bake and the sauce whips up in minutes.  It is very moist  and rich with a tiny hint of the spicy ginger.  My kids love it and we almost managed to finish the whole cake.  Shame on us.

Click for recipe…
Continue reading →

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Biscuits (or scones for you British folk out there)

27 Apr


There is seriously nothing yummier than warm-out-of-the-oven biscuits with butter and homemade jam (Strawberry-lime-Vanilla or Blood Orange Marmalade are perfect).  As a child I spent many hours in my grandmother’s kitchen making these biscuits and I’d have to say it was through this recipe that my passion for baking was ignited.

This is such a simple recipe and really perfect for kids to learn to do on their own.  My grandmother’s version is always made with vegetable shortening (impossible to find in Italy) but I have made them with butter as well.  They aren’t quite as light and airy but tasty just the same.

Here is the step-by-step recipe for BISCUITS:

Enjoy!

Take a peek at my daughter’s little film (fast forward) of making these biscuts here.

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Elephant tin time of year

26 Apr

Finally after all these weeks of cold and rainy weather we had a lovely sunny day.  Well at least half the day was sunny and warm.  In any case there was enough time to dig out our elephant tin full of seeds to plant for our upcoming orto (vegetable garden).Full of seeds from years past and new seeds collected over the last months.  And a few pairs of miniature garden gloves for those little gardening assistants we couldn’t do without.Making decisions about what to plant and preparing our seed-starter mini-serres for indoors.One of this year’s orto projects is planting as many different kinds of heirloom tomato plants as we can find.

Pink Thai Egg Tomatoes, Striped Stuffer Tomatoes and Fargo Yellow Pear Tomatoes.Snow White Cherry tomatoes, Black Brandywine tomatoes and Purple Cherry Chocolate tomatoes.

Piselli (sweet pea) is also a must.A little bit of water and a lot of luck and hopefully some of these plants will start sprouting soon.My salad bed (5 different kinds).  Anyone know if I planted them too closely together?

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Salone del Mobile (Milano Design Fair)

23 Apr

Every year in April there is the world famous furniture design fair Salone Internazionale del Mobile in Milano.  It’s a fair that showcases the newest and coolest in furniture and houseware design from countries around the world.

The entire city is transformed into a design wonderland.  If you stroll around certain neighbourhoods (Brera, Tortona and Naviglio to name a few) you’ll find old factories converted into showrooms full of the world’s most innovative new designs.  You’ll also stumble upon smaller, more intimiate design spaces which are located in old stone houses with vaulted ceiling or even car garages that are completey made over to exhibit anything from carpets to garden furniture.

The streets are packed full of people and there’s a really amazing atmosphere everywhere you go.  If you pop by on the Friday or Saturday evening there are many VIP parties, impromptu music concerts in the streets and beautifully clothed people everywhere.  We take our kids every year and they really love it.  There is so much to see, sit on, play with and learn about.

One of the many warehouses that are transformed into an exhibition space.I really fell in love with this bird feeder by designer Frederik RoijeThe famous kitchen in a crate.  You can push all the pieces in and close the lid.  The epitome of space-saver furniture design.

I agree with Ron Arad.  We have to let our children get bored.  It almost always results in the most fabulous creations.  That dreaded “Mom, I’m bored” could actually be the start to something beautiful.The e-bay building.  Is there anything happier than a kitchen that is almost entirely yellow?

A hot tub that will heat your wok/frying pan for dinner then chop your wood?  Yes please.The new version of the exercise bike that you use for a few weeks then retire to the corner of your bedroom.Il Salone Internazionale del Mobile di Milano 2013 will be held from April 9-14th (according to several online sites…dates not guaranteed).

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Japanese Handicrafts

20 Apr

On our recent trip to Japan we noticed that gift giving is a very important part of Japanese culture.  The Japanese are very warm and friendly people who try to show their appreciation for you in such gentle and considerate ways.  We were really moved by their generosity during our recent trip.

When we went to visit a good friend from my university days we were so touched by the gifts she offered us.  Her mother had hand sewn and created some beautiful, perfectly crafted gifts.  I can’t even fathom the amount of  time that must have gone into these pieces!

These are called Temari balls.  It is a traditional embroidery technique and these balls are given as a gesture of good will, friendship and loyalty.  They have very intricate designs that are usually geometric and symmetrical with many of the design elements being based on nature.  The colours are vibrant and so beautiful.

I would have loved to spend some time with my friend’s mother and watched how she sews all these beautiful gifts.  Maybe a good reason to return to Japan one day?

We were also presented with this small hand sewn purse filled with tiny little juggling balls and a beautiful hand sewn flower.  In the silk flower there is a tiny little pouch  filled with scented cotton and place enough to store small pieces of jewellery.


I think the Japanese juggling balls are referred to as Otedama.  You can find these little silk purses with the balls in many of the tiny boutiques around Japan.  So many thanks to my dear friend and her very talented mother for such lovely and thoughtful gifts.

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Casa

16 Apr

Back in rainy Italy and happy to be home.  We’re all suffering from some pretty serious jet-lag though (everyone up and ready for breakfast at 3:30am).

We spent the day unpacking, sorting through our Japanese souvenirs, doing laundry and talking a lot about our Japan adventures.

After two weeks of delicious Japanese food we had a typical Italian lunch of mozzarella and tomato salad, prosciutto, assorted cheeses and bread.  It was delicious.

It’s always great to travel and see the world but it’s also great to come back home.

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Classic Play Interview

10 Apr

Pop by one of my favorite blogs Classic Play to read an interview with Jillian In Italy in their Creative Family Series.  Pretty neat!

Classic Play!

 
 

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