Author: Bunny Eats Design

“All The Time We Laughing”

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The Koala and I are celebrating 6 years of marriage tomorrow. I can’t believe it’s already been a whole year since we went glamping on the West Coast. It was really good to get off the grid for a weekend. More than one wise person has said that you should marry someone who makes you laugh. The Koala has a wicked sense of humour. If jokes and humorous stories (OMG, the STORIES) were currency, we’d be rich! The Koala and I laugh together every day. We have an intricate web of personal jokes that span various languages and time periods. It keeps us tight buddies. When I tell people we’ve been married for almost 6 years, it often surprises them. I guess everyone has ideas of what a marriage is and this changes with each generation or even group of friends. I don’t have many married friends and it seems that my generation prefer to have children or buy houses before getting married. In case you’re wondering, we didn’t marry in a whim either, we were together …

A Lime Free $29 Challenge

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A few years back I fundraised $635 for Live Below The Line by cooking and eating $2.25 a day worth of food for 5 days. $2.25 per day is considered the extreme poverty line in New Zealand. I came up with a bunch of simple recipes based on $11.25 worth of groceries and blogged about my experience. I won’t lie, it was miserable. I experienced hunger and deficiencies. While I made sure I ate 3+ times a day, I felt foggy and light headed. Most days, I came home from work, ate a small, unsatisfying meal and went straight to bed. This really highlighted for me, the struggles the poor have to face daily. How can someone possibly get ahead if they feel like that constantly? Yesterday I saw the fury of the internet unleashed on Gwyneth Paltrow when she posted her $29 SNAP challenge. If you missed it, here it is again. I also got swept up in the fury and I reposted it to my Facebook page. 7 limes? What planet do you live on? …

Our Growing Edge April Intro and March Round Up

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Cynthia from Eat Munch Love has published the round up for Our Growing Edge March. There are some creative ideas in there and gorgeous photography by a wide range of bloggers. Have a look! It’s fabulous! For those who are just joining, Our Growing Edge is a monthly link up that aims to connect and inspire us to try new things and to compile a monthly snapshot of what food bloggers are getting up to. Time to tick off some foodie bucket list items. More info here. This month is hosted is hosted by Nikki from Everyday Life Mother and Wife. To join, click on the submission button below:

Tofu Tuesday: Off to the vet again today

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Hope everyone had a good Easter. Tofu might have found Easter a bit too stressful I’m afraid. The Koala found an abscess on Tofu’s chin on Saturday. It looks like his dewlap is enlarged, possibly filled with fluid? We called the vet straightway but it being Easter they were fully booked and couldn’t see until they open again on Tuesday (today). They were happy that since he is eating and pooping that he can wait a few days. Tofu can’t seem to lie down, but is eating. I’ll be taking him to the vet this morning. Hope it’s just a drain and nothing more serious. Tofu had full geriatric tests at the end of February. This included dental, bloods and x-rays, so whatever is happening is happening quick. Please keep the little fellow in your thoughts today. Post Vet Visit Update: Just got back from the vet. Best case scenario. The swelling has gone down completely and after a good feel and a squeeze, Tofu has been diagnosed with trauma to the skin. Just a scratch. The skin is thickened but …

Instagram update

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I have been using Instagram for 30 days now. I started using Instagram to force myself to take more photographs using my phone. I hated my camera phone a month ago, now I feel more confident. I thought I’d be an average 1 photo a week kind of girl, but one month later, it’s my count is closer to 30. Yikes! Here’s what I’ve learned so far: Instagram is insanely addictive. Photos taken using the Instragram app suck. I use my phone’s camera, then save and post to Instagram. Hashtags and proper tagging gets you more exposure. You’ll probably want to download some cute emoji keyboard. You’ll start looking at your world from a square composition. There are a surprising number of boobs on Instagram. People seem to like boobs. You can share to Zomato or Facebook and another few social networking sites instantly or at a more suitable time. You can add location, hashtag and tag people after you’ve posted. Light is your friend. Latergram. Feel free to check out what I’ve been up to outside of this blog over at …

Cheap date – $5 Wednesdays

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Academy Cinemas is a boutique cinema right in the heart of Auckland City. They’re located just under the public library and you might miss them if you don’t go to the library. They show a small selection of movies including biopics, festival, arty and indie. Academy Cinemas serve Stoke craft beer, organic juices, boutique wines, Kokako Coffee and Kapiti Ice cream. On Wednesdays, thanks to Vice, movies are $5 all day. Make sure you book ahead as this is proving to be quite popular. Tickets are usually $15.50 which is still cheaper than other cinemas who usually charge around $20. Academy Cinemas have an active Facebook page here if you would like to keep up to date with their goings on. Watch and Eat Combo I love a good dinner and movie combo and I’ve blogged about food and movie pairings before. Dinner and a movie can get expensive, but it doesn’t have to be. These are my suggestions on movie and dinner combos that won’t break the bank. All restaurants are within walking distance of the cinema (I’ve provided walking times) …

Love My City – Link Up Intro

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As much as I yearn to travel, there’s something wonderful about going out in your own city. Finding new places to eat, enjoying various festivals and events in your local. Sometimes it’s hard to know what’s going on unless you’re committed to looking out for things to do. Jules over at The Kiwi Diaries founded Love My City last month. A monthly blogging event to connect bloggers and share spots and events worth talking about in our cities. I am delighted to host this month’s edition and for more information on how this started, check out the info page here. Rules Your post must contain the words Love My City and logo and the Host name and link to their blogs. Eg: This post is part of the monthly blogging event Love My City, where we share hidden gems and places worth talking about. This month event is hosted by [Host name] at [Blog name] Your entry must link to the hosts blog and to LMC original page. If you want to add an already published post, just make sure …

Tofu Tuesday: I am not a toy

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Easter is an odd time for a non-religious rabbit enthusiast. On one hand, there are bunny-themed displays everywhere (yay!) and on the other my heart breaks because many families hop off to the pet store to get themselves their very own Easter bunny for the holidays. In a few months time, when those Easter bunnies are no longer a novelty or hit puberty (and start humping), or become too big or feisty for small children to handle, the Easter bunnies are abandoned, neglected or dumped. Animal shelters are full of rabbits after Easter. It happens every year. A rabbit is a commitment, not a disposable party decoration to be forgotten once the season is over. If you’re only looking for something to decorate your holiday, please consider a soft toy rabbit or chocolate rabbit instead. Please inform your friends and family if they are thinking of getting an Easter bunny. Click here to see more editions of Tofu Tuesday.

Monday Bunday: Kumiko and Bunzo

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Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter by brothers David Zellner and Nathan Zellner and starring Rinko Kikuchi (Pacific Rim, Babel) is a movie that is currently being released in cinemas in the US. It did the film festival circuits last year and showed at Auckland’s Academy Cinema in July 2014 as part of the New Zealand International Film Festival. Kumiko is an office worker from Tokyo with a pet bunny named Bunzo. After finding a copy of the film Fargo on VHS, she says goodbye to Bunzo and heads to Minnesota to find the treasure she believes to be buried there. Here are a few shots of Kumiko and Bunzo. The poster below is from Amplify and designed by Sam Smith (Sam’s Myth). You can purchase a signed and numbered (100) poster for $95 from Posteritati. Check out an indepth explanation of the scene by The New York Times, Anatomy Of A Scene. For more information about Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter, please check out the movie website here.

Urbis Design Day – A Round Up

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Urbis Design Day has been going for many years now and if you follow me on Instagram, you might have seen some pretty designs on my feed last Saturday. Urbis is about local designers, showrooms and venues pairing up with creatives to make cool, interactive installations. This year’s creatives included street artists, a French patisserie (macarons), a landscape designer, a fashion designer, screen printing, footwear, 3d artist. There was also plenty of coffee, edible treats, and wine. My kind of day. I’ve been attending Urbis Design Day for a while now and in 2009 my girlfriends and family celebrated my hen’s party (bachelorette party) at Urbis Design Day. Urbis took a year off last year and this year they came back with a 2 day event. Friday was just for registered design professionals and Saturday’s version was for public with $30 tickets (or two tickets for $50). This year I tagged along with my sister Joey and her friends. We started just after 10am and finished up after 3pm, although the event didn’t finish until 5pm. In hindsight, I should …

Recipes for Easter

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From ages 9 to 18, I attended Catholic schools. I wasn’t a “Catholic school-girl”, but I was a “Catholic-school, girl”. Easter is a big deal for Catholics. Bigger than Christmas. I understand the ins and outs of Easter, I attended Easter mass and observed Lent for all my pre-teen and teenage years. But at the end of the day, for non-religious people like myself, Easter is a couple days off work, a whole lot of chocolate, hot cross buns and some feasting. Have you got any eating or cooking plans this Easter? Here in New Zealand it’s autumn and no doubt there will be many families firing up the barbecue for one final pow wow before winter. Here’s a round up some of my recipes for Easter. I’ve included lamb, hot cross buns, eggs, more eggs and a carrot cake just for the Easter bunny. Most of them teeter on the fence between sweet and savoury. Enjoy! Hot Cross Buns with Custard and Cognac (bread and butter pudding) A decadent version of bread and butter pudding using hot cross buns. Use traditional sultana …

MiNDFOOD CheeseFest 2015 – The skinny

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This time last week, I had eaten so much cheese my eyes were glazing over. This time last week, I was at the MiINDFOOD CheeseFest having just grazed my way through most of New Zealand’s best cheeses. I was lucky enough to get a trade/media pass which entitled me (and others) to a full hour of tastings and cheesemaker attention before the general public got in. I caught up with Bri DiMattina, local foodie, and blogger. Bri was the winner of the Curds & Whey Champion Home Crafted Cheese and Cheesemaker Award at last year’s CheeseFest. Being my first CheeseFest I was stoked to be cruising around with someone from the exclusive cheese society. Bri gave me some great festival tips and we rubbed shoulders with important people in the cheese and food industry.   I got to chat to one of the judges, Sonia Cousins, whose credentials include Cheese Activist, Cheese Judge, and Cheese Writer. I learned that like professional wine tasters, cheese tasting judges spit. Spit! It came as bit of a shock but Sonia assured me …

Diving into fish tacos

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  Warning: May contain innuendos. I love fish tacos. I dream of staying near the coast in Mexico and gorging on fresh fish tacos every day. We’ve enjoyed tacos at home a few times, specifically pulled pork tacos so when we received some lovely fillets from our delivery last week, I figured it was time to explore the fish taco at home. I’d never made them before, but it seemed pretty straightforward to me. I just made up the process as I went along. The perfect fish taco has a good balance of fish, salad and condiments. I hate a dry taco. Saucy tacos FTW! My preference is soft shell tacos, specifically corn tortillas. I first tried Tio Pablo’s corn tortillas last year when I was going through a gluten free phase, but turns out, I prefer the flavour of corn tortillas over flour tortillas. I used tarakihi fillets, but any medium white fish will do. Snapper, red gurnard, or trevally would also be suitable. Other types of fish such as flounder, turbot or salmon would probably be amazing. Feel free …

Tofu Tuesday: Destroyer of boxes

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It came to my attention last week that some bunnies are not as thorough as Tofu when it comes to dealing with cardboard boxes. I’d like to present to you a box that Tofu has been working on. Top photo shows “the good side” and then the bottom photo is the “no holds barred side”. As you can see, Tofu is quite talented at decommissioning a cardboard box. First he starts by nibbling the corners, then if he can get purchase, he tears off bigs strips from the sides. Finally, he goes in for the kill by nibbling the folds until the wall is breached. All this is usually done in the still of the night. The box lives under our bed. When you’re trying to sleep, torn cardboard is the noisiest thing in the world.

Urbis Design Day is back!

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After a year hiatus, Urbis Design Day is back. Gracing us again Saturday 21 March 2015, 10am to 5pm at nine locations around Auckland. With 14 exhibits/installations between showrooms, venues and designers, the day is a fun, interactive and inspiring look into architecture, multimedia, interiors, fashion and art. There are various personality and design aesthetic quizzes and interatctive challenges throughout the day. All transport is included in the ticket price. Tickets are $30 each or $50 for a double pass. I’m especially looking forward to: Ma Cherie (French patisserie / macarons) and Kenwood The DeLonghi Coffee Lab ECC (lighting) and Xanthe White (landscape) and Ingrid Starnes (fashion) Studio Italia and Hye Rim Lee (3D animation) Caroma and Revie (footwear) Find out more info on Urbis or buy tickets online here. I’ll leave you with some photos I’ve taken of previous events. This year will be my sixth Urbis Design Day. Excite!

Yakitori-Style Scallops and Bacon

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    Warning: Food in this post may cause incoherant babbling and sighs/moans of agreement. Scallops wrapped in bacon make me weak in the knees. I always order them if I see them in a Japanese restaurant and The Koala is a big fan of them too. The ingredients are a bit expensive, but making them at home is far cheaper than eating them at a restaurant and you’ll probably get much more. Fresh vs. Frozen It’s no longer scallops season here, but not long ago my seafood guy was peddling some fat scallops from Nelson. Although they were frozen, I thought I’d give them a spin. While fresh scallops are always better, frozen scallops are better than none at all. If using frozen scallops, defrost overnight in the fridge and make sure you drain them very well because a lot of liquid will appear on thawing. Never thaw scallops in water as this affects the texture and flavour. I think I was supposed to receive a dozen scallops, but I actually got 14 scallops. I took …