Author: Bunny Eats Design

Farmhouse Pasties

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I’m glad I gave the traditional Cornish Pasty recipe a whirl already this autumn. Now I’m inspired to do some weird, non-authentic pasties. This next recipe uses some of the original ingredients like beef, lamb, onion and potatoes, but also puff pastry, bacon, carrots and cheese. You can put the cheese inside the pastie if you prefer, but I’ve sprinkled cheese on the outside. I thought it would look prettier, but it only looks ok.  I’m loving smoked cheddar at the moment. It has a distinctive smokey flavour that is divine with streaky bacon. I’m buying ethical meat when it’s convenient, even though free range vs organic vs free farmed can be confusing to the average home cook. It’s nice to remember that at least here in New Zealand, lamb and beef are free farmed at minimum. At best, they’re free range. I don’t think there are any wild cows or wild sheep out there. Although that might be interesting! Lamb and beef I consider my “happy meats”. It’s only chicken and pork you have …

Sayaka Minemura Breakfast Project

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I eat breakfast 2 to 3 times a week. Naughty. I know. I just can’t bear getting up early enough to work up an appetite and also whip up some breakfast. Maybe one of these days I will force myself to do some kind of breakfast project. Sayaka Minemura wakes up on the right side of the bed. Her breakfast series is whimsical proof that she sets herself up for a great day. See more at her Flickr stream: Breakfast Project

BUDDHA BUNNY BRAINWAVES #2

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A mutual joy of beloved but curious foods. Finding common ground in love of unusual foods is a pastime of mine. This afternoon, on separate occasions, I related the loveliness of smoked eel with someone and later with someone else, the magnificence of good quality anchovies. I get such a buzz seeing the delight in someone else’s eyes as we share our taste for something unusual. What unusual food do you love that doesn’t get talked about enough? Let’s talk!

Make Cornish Pasties

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After trying both venison and beef versions of Sarah’s Cornish Pasties at Splore a few weeks ago, I was hell bent on making some of my own. For those that aren’t familiar with Cornish Pasties, they’re a submarine-shaped pie and traditional ingredients include beef or lamb, potatoes, swedes and onion. These  parcels of goodness were originally baked for tin miners who worked underground and didn’t come up  to air at lunch. They ate these pies and with their dirty, arsenic laden paws. They clutched the crust, ate the pastie and discarded the soiled crust at the end to avoid poisoning. Cornish pasties are baked from raw ingredients and it surprised me that both the meat and the vegetables cooked perfectly in these parcels. Short crust pastry is traditional but after eating these, I may retry with puff pastry because I adore puff pastry. I find short crust to be a bit heavy. I used both lamb and beef (why pick one when you can have both), potato, swede and onion. This recipe adapted from the NZ …

Monday Bunday: Mandy Coon Bunny bag

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I don’t usually go ga-ga over celebrity styles, but there is something appealing about Zooey Deschanel. Tailored fit, whimsey, pretty dresses, vintage, less slut, more pin-up and more is more. I loved her wardrobe in the movie 500 Days of Summer and she was recently spotted with a Mandy Coon Bunny bag. Tumeke! Even though this bag costs a small fortune, it is sold out online. It kind of reminds me of this bunny shopping bag, only this bunny turns into a bag. You can’t have your bunny and bag it too.

Make Cornbread – Savoury and sweet

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Cornbread. Southern States. The Green Mile. Comfort food. Wholesome. The word cornbread just feels round and nice in your mouth. You say it with warm, drawn-out Rrrr sounds. Southern States remember? I think of the movie The Green Mile and how cornbread was presented as a heartwarming thank you present. John Coffey: I’m smellin’ me some cornbread. Paul Edgecomb: It’s from my missus. She wanted to thank you. John Coffey: Thank me for what? Paul Edgecomb: Well, you know… Paul Edgecomb: For a helping me. John Coffey: Helping you with what? Paul Edgecomb: You know. John Coffey: Ohh. Was your missus pleased? Paul Edgecomb: Several times. We don’t eat cornbread here in New Zealand but they talk about it so much in the movies that I’ve always wanted to try it. I always assumed it was a bread eaten in place of a bread roll for hearty meals. But now I see that it has more of a cake texture. I used the basic cornbread recipe over at The Fresh Loaf only I used polenta …

Make a big pot of chili

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I’ve made various short-cut variations of chili over the years, always in a frying pan, always just enough for two and always with a minimum of fuss. I wanted to make a bit ‘ol pot of the stuff so we could eat our way through it for as long as we could bear. Chili con carne literally translates to “chili with meat”. You know, carne, as in carnivore. Looking online, there are many variations and I was quite surprised that beans in chili is not regarded as authentic. Chili always appears with beans around here and I’ve never had chili without beans. It seems that in poorer areas, beans were added to make the dish go further and it became more common. A chili purist’s proverb goes “If you know beans about chili, you know chili ain’t got no beans”. My chili is mild and includes beans. Add more hot sauce or chili if you prefer something with more kick. A Big Pot of Chili Makes about 3 litres or 12 cups. A serving is …

Monday Bunday: Corker Bunny

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I’m sure many of you as children at adult dinner parties made fun creatures out of the cork and wire from a bottle of bubbles. Well, here is a step up from that. Introducing Corker Bunny! So sweet. An original addition to the wine bottle you bring to dinner. Bring your dinner party and your bottle corks to life with these cute, collectable animal parts. Each pack includes the body parts required for one Corker. Available in 6 designs: Monkey, Deer, Buffalo, Bear, Bunny & Crow.  Cork not included Available at Animica USA for just $7.99US with free shipping worldwide!

Hello Autumn, my good friend.

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The first weekend of Autumn is here and it’s certainly starting to chill. That humid, sticky-air feeling is giving way to a bite and the wind is almost unbearable. I haven’t succumbed to wearing a jacket yet, but I had to give into a scarf last night. Denial is fun. Autumn is my favourite season. Autumn in Auckland is usually warm enough still to do things, but not so hot as to need to shower or swim afterwards. I usually relish in Autumn after a long hot summer. We’re just not ready for it yet. I was reluctant to make a to list this season as we’ve got some big events planned which will take me away from my kitchen, but once I got started on my list, I was away. I managed to stop at 10. Probably overly ambitious as usual but I don’t know what I could cull. I’ve yet to complete any of my lists so far, but I’m a dreamer. I don’t need the smug satisfaction of reaching all my goals. Most …

A Cheated Summer In Review

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Summer is officially over. It has rained heaps this summer. Tomatoes have loved it. The rest of us have grumbled. Still we made the most of what we had and I managed to ticked off 7 out of 10 items on my Summer To Do list. Here’s a the summer summary of my to do list: 1. Have a picnic at the beach It wasn’t the picnic to beat all picnics, but hey, it was a picnic at the beach, a marine reserve in fact. There was still hot free range roast chicken, salads and breads before and after snorkeling. Like a comforting farmhouse meal only at the beach. Read about it here. There were no other picnics in our summer, but we did have plenty of BBQs in our backyard. So many that we ran out of gas. Must remember to refill that thing… With the funny weather we are having, I wouldn’t be surprised if we are able to squeeze in a picnic or two before the end of April. 2. Grow mint …

Roll Sushi

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In the very early ’90s, sushi became popular in New Zealand and I found out the sushi that I already loved, wasn’t cherished among my peers. Not then anyway. Before this discovery, my sister and I had been happily enjoying raw fish sushi in uncool bliss. At school, instead of bags of chips, we snacked on small packs of dried seaweed. When The Koala and I visited Osaka, Japan in 2008, we were surprised to find sushi we are familiar with here in NZ, is quite different to Japanese sushi. Like so many imports, sushi has morphed away from tradition. Tried and true is great, but weird reproductions can be great too. NZ was not ready for raw fish in early ’90s. There had to be another way. Chicken sushi, which is novelty in Japan, converted hoards of New Zealanders to sushi and it’s unlikely you’ll find a sushi joint in NZ that doesn’t offer it. Where would we be without wacky combinations to humour our palates? Some less than authentic sushi I’ve enjoyed over …

Tofu Tuesday: The Ninja Cat

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Since this post, Tofu seems to be happy and adapting to being blind on one side. He doesn’t jump up onto our bed as much as he used to and he’s easy to catch when we want to bring him inside. But he’s a happy bunny and enjoys everything he did before blindness. He still comes in on his own and finds his way easily around the house. We have noticed a cloudiness over his good eye now too. This seems to come and go and we aren’t sure if it’s going to deteriorate to blindness too. For now, Tofu can still seem to make out shapes and light enough to interact with others. Including Georgie. We suspect that Tofu can see Georgie, he’s just humouring him. See past episodes of Tofu and Georgie here and their initial post here.

Monday Bunday: Kissing Rabbits Picnic Blanket

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It’s summer here at the moment and with so many of us trying to save money for this or that, a picnic with friends is a great way to spend an afternoon. I must admit, I don’t even own a picnic blanket. We just use a summer weight sleeping bag. How cute is this Kissing Rabbits Picnic Blanket by Anorak? A blanket like this would be a compact alternative to lugging around our sleeping bag. It’s on the pricey side at £36, but if you picnic a lot, it could be a worthwhile investment.  

Jamaican Me Hungry

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I heard of Jamaican Me Hungry when I tried their jerk pork at Splore 2010. Splore is my favourite music festival and Jamaican Me Hungry is my favourite Jamaican food source. They are caterers based out in Warkworth which makes them pretty niche. Jamaican food isn’t big here in NZ and I guess there isn’t much of a Jamaican population here. It’s shame because their food translates very well. 2 years later, last Sunday at Splore 2012, I had the pleasure of trying their curry goat. Wow. I was worried it would be a intense for a Sunday bungday (one that could have been hangover city), but I was feeling pretty good (considering the liquor and lack of sleep). The goat was oh-my-goodness delicious. I’m just sad that these guys don’t have a restaurant I can access. I really hope that the next Jamaican food I have is sooner than Splore 2014. http://www.jamaicanmehungry.co.nz

Summer is Peachy

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As we officially set upon the final week of the New Zealand summer, it feels like the climate is stubbornly refusing to let go of the heat. Sometimes I can’t decide if it’s hotter inside than out. Things are sticky. Especially after a hot afternoon nap. We’ve been cheated of summer this year with monsoon rainfall that is common in other exotic islands. So while Autumn will hit us in a couple of weeks, it still feels like mid-summer. Who knows? Maybe we’ll still be picnicking in April. It is peach season and I have no hard feelings for the fuzzy skinned fruit. I can eat it without peeling. But the salsa I made this week is more about flavour than the texture. This salsa tastes zingy and fresh. I haven’t added any chili to it, but you can add a sliced chili if you prefer. Serve with fish, chicken, steak or sausages. Tasty enough to add just a spoon but moorish enough to eat like a side salad. Use a nectarine if that’s all you have handy. Peach Salsa …

Love the books you read

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One of my new year’s resolutions is to read more books. At the risk of sounding cheesy, stories that enhance your life are worth your time. I’m currently reading a book that makes me fall in love with reading and words and life all over again. It’s not a foodie book but the characters are so well written I want to savour every morsel. I find myself gasping at beautifully written sentences and highlighting them for no real reason. It’s affecting the music I listen to and gives me a heavy feeling in my throat as if my heart has swelled up and is trying to escape out my mouth. The book was published in the 1950’s and I’m grateful that while the writer is long, long gone, he’s left a generous legacy of works. I’ll be slowly picking away at his books until they’re eaten up. I don’t think I’ll be writing book reviews on these books because these are not a foodie books, but I might be able to bend one of his …

Tofu Tuesday: The Island of Hooha

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We had an amazing weekend at Splore Festival over the weekend. This year’s theme was The Island of Hooha and it was great seeing everyone dress up for the occasion. Tofu didn’t come to Splore but he still posed for a few photos with us in our costumes. Here he is with the Safari Explorer.         Check out previous Tofu Tuesday posts here.