Author: Bunny Eats Design

Tofu Tuesday: Lumps in the night

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It’s been 4 weeks since Tofu’s surgery to remove two large lumps. Last week, Tofu was eating a little on his own, but still had to be force fed and he seemed like he was in pain. Last Thursday, he had another vet visit to see how he was going. The vet found edemas – lumps of fluid that collect around the body – in this case, it was protein related. There were edemas around his belly and his rump and vet could also feel a lump inside his belly. We were heartbroken. It was way too soon for Tofu to be growing new lumps and we felt that he couldn’t go through another surgery so soon. The Koala and I were scheduled to leave town the next morning so we left Tofu in at the vets while they started him on medication, praying that we wouldn’t have to make any big decisions while we were out of town. We tried not to think too much about it while we were away. Like Shrodinger’s rabbit it was best …

Valentine’s Day Aphrodisiacs

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Food bloggers’ potluck On Wednesday night, four food bloggers gathered for a delicious potluck. The theme was Valentine’s Day and aphrodisiacs had been thrown about in discussion. If you have a mind anywhere near the gutter, the dishes present all had sexy connotations. I recently saw a close up of a mussel on Instagram which could have been R18 and probably redefines the term “food porn”. So I brought my current potluck go to: baked mayo-cheese mussels. I’ve never travelled with these mussels so my heart and mussels jumped every time my Uber hit a bump or turned a sharp corner. The mussels went sliding around in their tray, possessed. Luckily none escaped the plastic wrap and the topping stayed on. As well as mussels, there were fresh oysters, satay sticks with greens, herbs and sauce by Carli from The Enthusiastic Cook, stuffed pasta shells with both smoked fish and a fascinating beet, beef and chocolate version by our host Maddy at Madicattt. Dessert was peach pie with dollops of cream by Bri from The Market. Kindred spirits understand that cameras eat first! As per our …

Tofu Tuesday: Gong Hei Fat Choy

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Happy Chinese New Year! Wishing everyone a prosperous year of the Monkey. May you have good health and good fortune. We visited the vet again on Friday to check how Tofu is going. He has gained weight and is now the same weight as he was pre-surgery. That’s good going since he had 2 large lumps removed. He isn’t eating much on his own though so I’m still syringe feeding him critical care 4-6 times a day. I bought a new pack of critical care which is apple and banana flavoured (instead of the original aniseed flavour) and the result is that feeding time is much cleaner. Less on the towel means more in the rabbit. I can keep up with the feeding schedule, but it would be great if he would eat more on his own. He’s usually such an enthusiastic foodie so it’s hard to see him not into his food. Thank you for keeping Tofu in your thoughts. Click here to see more editions of Tofu Tuesday.

Tofu Tuesday: After surgery

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It has now been one week since Tofu had surgery. Tofu had to stay 2 nights at animal hospital as he wasn’t eating or pooping after surgery. Since he came home on Wednesday night, we have been to the vet for a revisit once and are due again on Friday where he will be weighed again. His weight was down last time so we are hoping for a little weight gain this week to show he is springing back. His meds are finished now and he seems to be coping without them. His appetite isn’t back but we’re making peace with 3-5 syringe feedings a day. It’s hard work because he doesn’t want to cooperate, but it’s gotta be done. Who knew how messy feeding a rabbit can get?! I now cover myself with a towel before we start otherwise I’d have to get changed after each feeding. Tofu has been restricted to indoors only, though he made a run for the outdoors the day after he got home. He got to the top of the back deck stairs …

Our Growing Edge February 2016 Intro

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  HAPPY FEBRUARY! February is hosted by Chinelo from Good Cake Day. Theme: Love in all its forms. To join, click on the submission button below: We all have bucket lists. Whether they’re written down somewhere or kept in our heads and hearts. Our Growing Edge is the part of us that is still learning and experimenting. It’s the part that you regularly grow and improve, be it from real passion or a conscious effort. This blogging monthly event aims to connect and inspire us to try new things and to compile a monthly snapshot of what food bloggers are getting up to. If you have a blog and are planning to write about a new food related experience, join us! More info on the event can be found here. Some ideas you could try this month: Cook a loved one’s favourite meal Make up a recipe using an aphrodisiac Host a Valentines Day dinner Feast on your favourite food Make an edible gift to give to people you love Cook a romantic dinner for two Pack a picnic, your loved one/s …

Auckland Seafood Festival 2016

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If you enjoy sensational, succulent seafood, then make sure you visit Auckland Seafood Festival this long weekend. My sister and I hit Auckland Seafood Festival on opening night and we had a truly delightful time.  We both love seafood so we shared a bunch of things we both enjoy. Arriving shortly after opening, there were no queues so we didn’t have to apply any strategy based on length of the queues. Last year I gave crayfish a miss because the lines were horrendous. Nothing like that this time around. We started with oysters and the Bluff farmed oysters at Sanford Oysters looked good to us. These were freshly shucked and served with malt vinegar and lemon (6 for $22). We had a little browse and then hit up Besos Latinos for some Peruvian ceviche ($14) and seafood empanadas ($10). The ceviche really hit the spot and the empanada (fried fresh to order) reminded us of a seafood pie.   Always popular at Auckland Seafood Festival are Auckland Fish Markets’ crayfish tails. This year they had grilled half cray tails …

Baked frittata

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I first made this dish the day after a hangover. I never crave greasy food after a hangover, I prefer foods that are a bit more hearty or nourishing. Even better if it’s something that I can pick at over a period of time rather than have to eat the whole thing at once. Over the past week or so I’ve tweaked this a recipe a little and we’ve eaten this for both breakfast and weekday lunches. Hot or cold. Both are good. Future me might make this the day before a night out so it could be picked at the following day. That would be amazing. I’ve just planted a bunch of seedlings including basil, oregano, thyme and sage so I’ve used a mix of these in this frittata. You can change up the ingredients, use ham, sausage or chicken in place of bacon if you have them. Other vegetables like courgette, broccoli, capsicum would also work. Just make sure you use egg, cheese and potato. Baked Frittata Ingredients 2-3 potatoes 6 free range eggs …

Tofu Tuesday: Abdominal laparoscopy

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On Saturday we went back to the vet to get Tofu checked out again. After a feel about, the vet was concerned about some lumps in Tofu’s belly. Two lumps had been noted in the past but now a 3rd could be felt. Lumps can be bad news. Best case scenario would be lumps of fat but there was no way of knowing what they were without going in. Tofu wasn’t in pain, but he wasn’t eating much and that could have been related. So yesterday, Tofu was scheduled for an abdominal laparoscopy. A laparoscopy is when they poke telescope through a tiny tube into the body which feeds images of what’s going on inside to a monitor. I received a phone call from the vet late yesterday afternoon. Tofu was in recovery at time of call, a bit groggy but doing well. Two fatty lumps were found and removed by surgery. One lump was the size of an egg, the other lump was the size of a ping pong ball. These may have put pressure on his …

Spicy garlic beef and eggplant

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This recipe is inspired by a dish that led me to fall in love with eggplant. I used to hate eggplant. For reals. I found it absolutely disgusting in flavour and texture. Now I love the stuff. I rejoice when I see eggplants for under $1 each at my local Asian grocer. Weird right? I’m constantly amazed at how my palate has changed and this blog has been a great record of the changes.  The Koala also used to hate eggplant but likes it now too. Have eggplants changed? Have we? Spicy garlic eggplant can be found at many of the Chinese restaurants along Dominion Road and I think I first tried this at Shaolin Kung Fu Noodle, though Barilla Dumplings also does a mighty fine version. Vegetarians and meat eaters will enjoy this tasty dish. I’ve adapted this to include beef because well, I like beef. Feel free to skip the beef or replace with another vegetable such as mushroom (or more eggplant) for a vegetarian dish. Spicy garlic beef and eggplant Serves 2 with …

Auckland Seafood Festival 2016 – double pass winner

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With special thanks to Auckland Seafood Festival I am pleased to announce the winner for the double pass to next week’s event. Running 5 sessions over 4 days at Halsey Wharf which is downtown between the Viaduct and North Wharf. This event is for seafood lovers only. Expect to gorge yourselves on crayfish, scallops, oysters, scampi, whitebait, paua, octopus, mussels and various other seafoods. A list of stalls and their menus can be found here. Drawn by Random.org the winner is… **drum roll please!** Fran Bulidon Congratulations Fran, I hope you and your friend have a wonderful time at the festival! Thank to everyone else for all your entries. Reading the answers reminded me of all the yummy seafood recipes I’ve made. More information including ticket sales can be found at their official website www.aucklandseafoodfestival.co.nz Don’t forget, I have another delicious giveaway to be drawn today, check out my Facebook page to enter. I’ll leave you with a few pics I’ve taken from past seafood festivals.   

Tofu Tuesday: Gourmet

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Here’s Tofu’s dinner from the other night: Parsley – a natural remedy for urinary tract infections, diuretic Corn silk – a natural remedy for urinary disorders, anti-inflam, diuretic Coriander (cilantro) – anti-bacterial Cucumber – high water content Broccoli – Vitamin C Also pictured are carrot peel and false dandelion flowers. The plate is Bayley & Collis, a collaboration between chef Ben Bayley (The Grove, MKR) and Collis Studio. On Saturday, Tofu had a re-visit with the vet to make sure he was on track. Unfortunately, Tofu hadn’t eaten or drank much the morning of the visit so there wasn’t much for the vet to check. I must remember to give Tofu a big breakfast and plenty to drink before our next vet visit this Saturday. Tofu has lost 80 grams this week, probably due to pellets being cut completely. He should lose around 200 grams to be his ideal weight so I’m not too concerned about the weight loss and diet change. To help flush Tofu’s bladder and keep it free of bladder sludge, I have been syringe feeding him water. …

Auckland Seafood Festival 2016 – double pass giveaway

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2016 has started with a bang. Like just about everyone else, I have some dietary intentions for the year. I was feeling like were were eating too much red meat last year, but instead of saying, “I will eat less red meat” I’ve been saying, “I will eat more seafood”. The thinking is different, the end result is the same. So far in 2016, I have eaten yakitori scallops, whole grilled squid, salt pepper squid, herb-crusted pan-fried salmon, bagel with lox, yakitori salmon, mayo-cheese mussels, prawn pasta, Vietnamese pancake with pork and prawn, prawn fried rice, prawn and fish butter curry, fish tacos and a fish burger. Not bad considering we’re only 15 days in. Here’s to 2016 being a seafood-fuelled year and hopefully I’ll will cook or eat a seafood dish that I’ve never cooked or eaten before. With Auckland anniversary coming up, we can look forward to even more seafood at Auckland Seafood Festival. Running 5 sessions over 4 days at Halsey Wharf which is downtown between the Viaduct and North Wharf. Thanks to …

Fullers Waiheke giveaway winner

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With special thanks to Fullers I am pleased to announce the winner for the return trip for two to Waiheke via Fullers. Drawn by Random.org the winner is… **drum roll please!** Nicole Dekker Congratulations Nicole, hope you have a wonderful time on Waiheke! Thank to everyone else for all your entries. There was a record number of entries for this competition. Waiheke is the most Instagrammmed location in New Zealand so I guess that shouldn’t have been a surprise. For those who are interested in going to Waiheke Fullers have a new timetable over summer, with more ferry departures, and new menu for those who want to enjoy local delicacies on board. The new menu includes Passage Rock wines, Tuatara craft beer and cider, Waiheke fudge and Te Whau Lodge’s toasted muesli. I’ll leave you with a few photos I took when I visited Waiheke with NZBloggers last month. To keep up with announcements including giveaways, make sure you follow me on Facebook or Bloglovin’.

Baked Mayo-Cheese Mussels

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We dined with friends at a local yakitori restaurant last week. Although one of our favourite restaurants in Auckland for their tasty morsels of individually selected skewers, it had been a long time since we had visited and it wasn’t quite the same. My favourite dish, scallops wrapped in bacon were disappointing this time and the other dish I was looking forward to (chicken hearts) was unavailable. They did however, have a special on the blackboard: 4 mussels for $5. These were baked, cheesy, creamy, a little sweet and very different to how I usually cook mussels (steamed with sauce added). I don’t know exactly what was in the dish but I figured there was mussels, cheese, mayo and perhaps something sweet for balance. Boom I wanted more. The Koala and I split a portion and 2 mussels each is just a tease. So when our Foodbox delivered a kilo of mussels yesterday, I took it as a sign from the universe that I should try and recreate it at home. This recipe is deceptively easy, very quick, and uses just …

L’Authentique summer BBQ gourmet sausage pack prize winners

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Back to work this week and I hope this week is made a little easier with some summery prizes being drawn. With special thanks to L’Authentique, I am pleased to announce the two winners for the summer BBQ gourmet sausage pack prize. Drawn by Random.org the winners are… **drum roll please!** Sophie Stephenson and Patrick Jacobson Congratulations to the two of you. I hope you enjoy the hot and smokey Louisiana Andouille and the Asian-inspired Peking Maximus which is made with Hallertau Maximus Indian Pale Ale. I cooked some up as some tasty gourmet sausages and they went down a treat! Thanks to all who entered. Don’t forget, there’s also a return double pass for two to Waiheke Island via Fullers to be won this week. Waiheke is amazing in summer and you too can experience the food and wine haven. To enter, check out my post here. To keep up with announcements including giveaways, make sure you follow me on Facebook or Bloglovin’.

Tofu Tuesday: That feeling when…

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Tofu had a check up last week with bloods, poop and x-rays done. At over 8 years old, he is considered a geriatric so it’s be advised that he gets regular check ups. Most things can be caught early on. He had a little bit of bladder sludge which was treated by expressing the bladder rather than the bladder flush he had previously. We have a course of Metacam and we’re due back this weekend to see if the sludge has stayed clear. Tofu should definitely increase his water consumption to help with is bladder issues. Tofu doesn’t drink water very much. His water bottle holds about 300 mls and never needs refilling. Ever. I tip it out and refill it when I feel like it’s needs refreshing, but it never goes to empty…not even close. My estimates is he drinks about 3 mls of water a day. Average. Most days he drinks nothing, some days he drinks a little. Online sources say that rabbits drink between 50-200 mls a day. The difference is huge. Since our vet visit, I’ve been force …

2016 Manifesto

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  I recently read that we should apologise less and give thanks more. For example, if you arrive late for a coffee date with a friend, thank your friend for their patience instead of saying sorry. It gives good energy to your friend and the interaction is one of gratitude instead of apology. I apologise a lot. I have a guilty conscience. This year, I am going to stop saying sorry. I am doing my best. I am enough. Instead of writing New Year’s resolutions, for the past few years, I’ve been compiling a lists of what I want to focus more and less of for the year. My 2015 manifesto can be found here and still holds pretty true in terms of what I want. I admit I hadn’t reviewed the list in the last ten or so months and it’s been a while since I looked at my 2014 manifesto, but I’ve only tweaked the lists a little for 2016. 2015 was a wonderful year… I told the universe I wanted to be a food photographer and food stylist …

Our Growing Edge January 2016 Intro

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Hello everyone. It’s been weeks since my last blog. I’m still technically on holiday. The Koala and I got back from holiday a few days ago where we had a magic 10 days away with friends. I had grand plans of blogging and cooking up a storm over the holidays but turns out I just really needed to chill. I’m not going to apologise for my absence. With a new year, comes a new year of Our Growing Edge. New Year resolutions, healthy eating plans, adventurous and ambitions intentions for the kitchen. I’m sure most of you have ideas you’re itching to try this month for Our Growing Edge. I haven’t written my NY resolutions yet. I guess I’ve been pre-occupied this season, but I do hope to come up with some intentions for 2016 in the coming week. I’ve enjoyed reading your resolutions. Bucket lists and resolutions are a great way to focus ourselves and also to review the year that has just gone. It’s now 3 years since I started Our Growing Edge. With over 600 entries …