These lovely biscuits are dedicated to my sweet tooth.

It's not often I get a visit from her these days, but when she does pop by for a visit.....holy smoke!

Not one to enter a door elegantly, she will stumble her way through, tripping over anything and everything that is in her way, and when the door closes behind her, I exhale.

On her latest visit, I found this recipe......

Watercress:   Did you know that fresh cress has a higher concentration of vitamin C than oranges, more vitamin E than broccoli, more calcium than whole milk and more iron than spinach?  

And if that doesn't make you want to jump on your bike and pedal to your local farmers market, then how about the fact that it contains high levels of Beta-carotene, which when converted into vitamin A in our body, helps improve our vision, hair, skin, nails, bones and teeth.

It's also a hell of a lot cheaper than going to a beauty spa!

Did you know you can buy bread mixes in a box at the supermarket?  Apparently, they're made for our convenience.  

Seriously?!  

A box filed with fake ingredients and loads of sugar, designed to make us feel like we're bakers.  That we're filling our bodies with goodness just because we've switched the oven on.  I like to think we're a little smarter than they give us credit for.  I like to think I am.....well, at least occasionally.

Okey dokey, I've had my rant, so now to a quick bread recipe THAT IS packed full of nutrition and nothing fake in sight.

Pesto + Pasta is a dream food combination.

Unfortunately it didn't show up in my dreams last night, which were instead filled to the brim with kitchen renovations, builders and money disappearing rapidly from my bank account.  

"This is fun!" I have to keep telling myself.

Pasta played a big part in my life only a few years, ago.  Now things are a little different - I've upped the anti (and not to mention the nutrition!).  When I feel the need to twirl my fork, I now reach for buckwheat or brown rice pasta, or in this case, the humble zucchini.....

Sometimes I just need the comfort of chocolate.

Something about the smooth creamy texture that can make the sun shine and the birds sing again, and the added bonus of indulging in this particular sticky chocolate goodness..... there's not one little thing you need to feel guilty about.  Go ahead...pop a piece (or two) in your mouth! 

Nutrient rich, decadent and oh so satisfying.  I couldn't ask for anything more.....well, perhaps a cup of tea to go with.....I'm pretty simple.

In the weeks since 2015 began, I've been delving further into and experimenting with foods that detoxify, help alkalise my body, strengthen my immune system and provide me with much needed energy, and the humble spinach leaf, I've discovered, is just one of those ways.  It's also cheap, natural and readily available (unless of course you live close to those wonderful Nonna's baking their spinach and cheese pies, who buy up all of the spinach, which happened to me on the weekend.  Doh!).

So my present to your body today......a simple slow cooked dish packed full of this miracle of a vegetable.....

ou're gonna love this soup!

Correction.  If you love  corn, you're gonna love  this soup.  I promise.

It's fresh and creamy.  It pops in your mouth yet still wonderfully soothing.  It's a soup that makes you exhale in utter contentment.

Imagine how glorious your day would be if custard was part of it.  Thick, creamy custard studded with tiny sweet vanilla seeds and subtle lemonyness (look the other way if your an English nerd).  Custard that allows your shoulders to drop with each slow and deliberate stir of the wooden spoon.  Custard that contains organic and fresh ingredients and none of that naughty refined sugar, gluten or fructose.  

Mmmmm....just imagine.....

I have a love/hate relationship with fish.  I adore eating it and it's often my first choice when eating out, as it's a food I often crave, especially a thick white fluffy piece cooked to perfection and eaten on a warm Summer's afternoon - think crisp white wine, billowing  lace curtains and Nina Simone in the background and you have my idea of heaven.  My problem....I don't like cooking it.

Actually, I'm petrified of cooking it.

December saw my brain shift into overdrive.  Yep, I'm very talented.

I had recipes, measurements, cookies and butter coming out of every pore in my body.  I had blisters on my hands from chopping like a mad woman.  Dreams (nightmares) of forgotten ingredients and missed commitments.  And there was pumpkin found in places pumpkin should not be found.

Through all this annual self-imposed mayhem, there was my sister's birthday feast.  Catered by moi.

Breakfast.  I'm frustrated as hell.   

I'm bored out of my brain with toast and lately I just haven't been able to stomach the heavy creaminess of yoghurt and porridge.  All I crave is fresh vegetables.  Fresh green vegetables to be precise.

I've just recently started struggling with my breakfast - this is something I've never experienced before as it's my all time favourite meal of the day, but trying to come up with new quick, fresh ideas has me completely stumped. 

Having made this little soup on the morning of New Years Eve ready to take with me as a starter to our evening feast, I found myself happily slurping it down for breakfast.  I couldn't get enough of it. The fresh zing of the lemon, and the cool smoothness of the avocado and cucumber had me sighing in utter contentment.

Who said you couldn't have soup for breakfast?!

I'm not normally one who runs around in circles or 'fluffs' around the edges of things.  Being a Taurean, once my mind is made up it's full steam ahead, and watch out to anyone standing in the way.

So I'm at a loss as to why I'm fluffing around the edge of my health.

I've been told a million times from a million experts to run screaming away from gluten, but not wanting to be one of 'those people', I don't say anything and continue to munch away on food that's doing me harm.....and can I tell you.....I'm starting to suffer!  What a wonderful thing our body's are when they tell you they need help.  Now I just need to stop, breathe, listen AND act.

I read this line somewhere recently..."For children, Christmas means days of anticipation and then delight."  Cross out the first two words and this line could be about me.

I LOVE THIS TIME OF YEAR!  SERIOUSLY!

Apart from decorating the tree, creating gifts by hand is one of my all time favourite things which is why I jumped at the chance to be apart of Claire K Creation's Foodie Secret Santa! 

The assignment - Be given three fellow bloggers from somewhere in Australia.  Create edible Christmas gifts.  Package them up and send them on their merry way.

Here's my gift.....

Here is the treat I made my boss for his birthday earlier this month.

I didn't get a pay rise!  

Is that saying something about my baking skills?

Want to know the two reasons I chose this particular recipe for the Secret Recipe Club's 2014 Cookie Carnival?

Made with rosemary and thyme, this cookie brings up memories of curling up on the couch with my cup of tea watching the English murder mystery show with the same name.

And....

It's shortbread.  Enough said.

Did you know that by adding bananas into your diet you can help combat depression, make yourself smarter, cure hangovers, help protect against type II diabetes AND cure the itch of a mosquito bite?

Nope..they're not just for monkeys!

These little angels were my "goody bag".

Handed out at my Annual Christmas Picnic on the weekend.

They're light and fragile with a slight hint of spice.