Author: Bunny Eats Design

Winner of $150 New World voucher

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Hope everyone had a lovely weekend. With a big thank you to the New World Wine Awards I am pleased to announce the winner of the $150 New World voucher giveaway. The winner is… *drumroll please* Orlene Enoka! Congratulations! I hope you enjoy creating your own gourmet adventure with New World. Thanks to all who entered and if you missed out, don’t be sad,  I have more giveaways coming up so make sure you stay up to date with this blog and my giveaways by following my Facebook page here. This post was made possible by the good folks at the New World Wine Awards. Opinions are my own.

Te Matuku Oyster Festival and a deep fried oyster recipe

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The Koala and I had the pleasure of attending the Te Matuku Oysters on Waiheke on Saturday thanks to Jenny’s Tamarind Chutney and Te Matuku Oysters. Our first festival of any kind since last summer, the weather held up – aside from a couple of light showers, it felt like summer. Waiheke is an island just a 35 minute ferry ride from downtown Auckland with loads of pristine beaches, a warm Mediterranean micro-climate and a focus on growing quality food and wine. We started with a delightful pilsner from Albi Brewing Company and a complimentary 3 oysters each. We were in oyster heaven and gobbled up more than our share and at festival special prices, it didn’t hurt the wallet one bit. If you love oysters the festival is time to gorge yourself on fresh, plump oysters. If your preference is natural with a squeeze of lemon (or Worcestershire sauce or vinaigrette), then shucked oysters are just $20 per dozen. To give you an idea of market price, a local restaurant sells the same oysters at $48 per dozen. …

Our Growing Edge – November 2016 Intro

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November edition of Our Growing Edge is hosted by Alicia from Alicia’s Bits n Bobs. Just a reminder: 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 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. So if you don’t already have a foodie bucket list, it’s time to write one. Feel free to browse my list for  some ideas. Some ideas you could try this month: Learn a new technique Reverse engineer a dish from your favourite restaurant Cross something off your bucket list Cook something new out of an old cookbook Try a new cuisine To submit a post, click on the submission button below: More info on the event can be found here. Last month’s event October was hosted by Annika from We Must Be Dreamers. Check out her round up of all the HALLOWEEN submissions on her blog later this month. Below is a preview …

Learning to shuck oysters and a recipe for Oysters Tamarind Kilpatrick

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From my father, I inherited a fierce love for fresh oysters. If there was ever a moment I didn’t love raw oysters, I don’t remember it. As a kid, I ate my weight in oysters and any buffet worth visiting had fresh oysters in it’s offerings. Those in our family who loved them would eat a plate piled high. As a young adult, I once (or twice) turned up to family gatherings armed with several dozen shucked oysters on a polystyrene box, knowing they would go down a treat. Oysters are cheaper and fresher if you shuck them yourself but I’d never shucked oysters before. I vaguely remember my uncle wrestling with oysters but that didn’t interest me as a kid – I just wanted to eat them. In anticipation of the Te Matuku Oyster Festival on Waiheke this Saturday, I had the opportunity to shuck and cook up some plump Waiheke oysters. I’m no pro yet, so I won’t be sharing any shucking tips but I watched a bunch of Youtube videos (including this …

Taste of Auckland – Winners announcement

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Happy Friday everyone! With a big thank you to Taste of Auckland in partnership with Electrolux, I am pleased to announce the three winners to my Taste of Auckland double pass giveaway. The winners are… *drumroll please* Alice Chan, Mira Bi and Kiely Evans! Congratulations! I hope you and your friends enjoy your time at Taste of Auckland. Thanks to all who entered and if you missed out, don’t be sad,  I’m also giving away a $150 voucher for New World over here. Taste of Auckland in partnership with Electrolux is back for the eighth year in a row. Running from Thursday 17 to Sunday 20 November 2016 and once again at Western Springs, Taste of Auckland will be settling in for 6 sessions over 4 days of al fresco dining with wine and cocktails. Check out my write up about last year’s event and the year before last if you’re feeling eager and if you missed it, check out my intro post for this year’s event here. Advance tickets General admission $25, Premium $60 (includes 40 crowns), VIP $110. Concessions available. …

Gold reds with easy tapas and $150 New World voucher giveaway

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As a graphic designer I’m often attracted to beautifully designed labels…but if I’m deliberating between two bottles of wine, the one with a little gold sticker gets the final say. I usually buy wine on special in the $10 to $15 range. If I’m feeling fancy, or buying a wine for a BYO birthday dinner I’ll upgrade to a $20 to $25 bottle. I don’t often go over that because I don’t have to – there are delightful wines to be had for under $25. The New World Wine Awards takes wine just seriously enough for your garden variety wine drinker. They’ve just announced their Gold, Silver and Bronze winners – all under $25. A panel of experts double-blind taste test over a thousand wines so you can be confident that the hard yards of wine tasting has been done for you. Thanks to the New World Wine Awards, I have a $150 New World voucher to give away so you can embark on your own gourmet adventure. Look for the gold sticker next time …

Freedom Farms giveaway winner

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With special thanks to Freedom Farms I am pleased to announce the winner for the Freedom Farms hamper giveaway worth $180. The hamper includes products from the Freedom Farms range including a whole chicken, chicken breasts, chicken thighs, pork roast, bacon, champagne ham, eggs, and chorizo sausages. Drawn by Random.org the winner is… **drum roll please!** Rhiannon Baldock Congratulations Rhi! I’m sure you’ll make great use of this yummy prize coming your way. Thank you for all your entries. I loved reading about how you all enjoyed chicken in all it’s versatile deliciousness. To keep up with giveaways and announcements, make sure you follow my Facebook page here.  

Tofu Tuesday: Food Writers NZ Conference

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Last Friday I went along to the Food Writers New Zealand Conference at Villa Maria with fellow food bloggers Ari from Ari Eats and Rhi from In Rhi’s Pantry. The goodie bags were AMAZING. I have to admit, we’ve already eaten almost half the goods so Tofu the bunny models just a portion of the goodie bag goodies for you today. There were a couple of other food bloggers there, and of course, food writers, chefs, and others in the food production, education and community sectors. The keynote speaker was Jonathan Bloom, journalist, consultant, writer and blogger over at WastedFood.com talking about wasted food. As a food blogger – and I’m sure I am not alone in this – I’m often gifted food that I wouldn’t normally purchase and the majority of gifted food doesn’t end up on this blog. If I’m not going to eat it myself, I always do my best to find that food a new home. I know the diets and preferences of friends and family and I’ve yet to come …

Taste of Auckland 2016 is coming and a giveaway

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Happy Friday everyone! We’re about halfway through October already and I am loving day light savings time. Longer evenings and we’re actually getting more sunny days than rainy days. November is my favourite month and not just because it’s my birthday (although that certainly helps). November means that my favourite festival of delicious proportions, Taste of Auckland is back for the eighth year in a row. Thanks to Taste of Auckland in partnership with Electrolux, I have three double passes to give away to three lucky readers (Total value $150). To enter, fill in the entry form at the bottom of this post including a skill question: Adriano Zumbo will be demonstrating at Electrolux Taste Theatre on which 2 days? The answer can be found here. Running from Thursday 17 to Sunday 20 November 2016 and once again at Western Springs, Taste of Auckland will be settling in for 6 sessions over 4 days of al fresco dining with wine and cocktails. If I gush a bit in this post, please understand I am a Taste fan girl. I …

Tofu Tuesday: Hoverbun

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Sometimes Tofu the bunny sits with his furry paws tucked underneath and with his extra bit of skirting around the back, he looks like a hoverbun. Thanks to The Koala for this idea. Disclaimer: Image may have been retouched in Photoshop. Hoverbuns aside, Tofu had us worried last week when his floppy ears swelled up to 2-3 times their regular thickness. I often overreact as a bunny owner, but rabbit health can take a quick dive so when you notice new symptoms, it’s important to act quickly. Took him to the vet who ran a bunch of tests. The swelling was already subsiding by then and they couldn’t find the cause. Could have just been a reaction to an insect bite. Other than the huge ears, Tofu was acting (eating and drinking) normally which was comforting. We’re super glad that Tofu’s geriatric tests came back pretty much all clear. He has some lumps in his belly as usually but they weren’t concerned as he’s just a lumpy bunny. Usually he has bladder sludge issues but since I’ve been …

Chicken hand pies and a Freedom Farms giveaway

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At the beginning of 2016 when bloggers everywhere were sharing their New Year resolutions, I shared my list of 5 things I wanted to do more and less of during 2016. One item on my list was “free range”. Animal welfare is important to me and I eat free range whenever I can. As of this year, I only buy free range pork, chicken and eggs. The good thing is, eating free range has become increasingly affordable and accessible as more consumers demand it. Full disclaimer, I relax this when eating out and would never even mention it if someone were awesome enough to cook for me. There’s a difference between showing integrity and being a dick. I hope free range becomes the norm in our lifetime and maybe one day we don’t have to worry about it at all. Until then, it’s good to keep track of accessible free range products. Freedom Farms is one of NZ’s most trusted free range brands and their streaky bacon (YUM!) is always on my shopping list. When I heard they launched a …

Tofu Tuesday: Farrah’s

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Farrah’s have launched their new Mexican range which includes spice mixes and a chilli tortilla (not pictured, was too yummy). I really like their taco mix which the perfect level of heat for me. Tofu doesn’t get to enjoy the food products but he loves playing with his new maracas. *Shaka shaka shaka* Click here to see more editions of Tofu Tuesday.

Burrata for NZ Cheese Month

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Happy NZ Cheese Month! I was over the moon last month when I joined a bunch of cheese-loving media on a NZ Cheese road trip. We visited some great local cheese makers, tasted some amazing and some polarising cheese and even met a lovely herd of water buffalo north of Auckland in Whangaripo. One of our stops was at Il Casaro, located in Glenfield in an unexpectedly industrial area proving that cheese needn’t be made out in the countryside to be good. Here we witnessed Italian cheese maker and co-founder Massimiliano make mozzarella by hand as he explained the process and treated us to freshly made cheese. New Zealand cheese is nothing short of phenomenal. The quality and creativity of our cheese is absolutely good enough for the world market, but many small producers can only meet the demand of our local appetites. This means that our very best cheese actually stays in the country. A win for us. In honour of NZ Cheese Month this month, I had the pleasure of trying this organic …

Our Growing Edge – October 2016 Intro

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October edition of Our Growing Edge is hosted by Annika from We Must Be Dreamers. Theme: Halloween   This month’s theme can be as literal or as abstract as you like. Just imagine the final round up as an epic Halloween pot luck spanning food blogs from around the world! Some ideas you could try this month: Make a Halloween treat Pumpkin spice something Cook a dish that uses only Fall colours Host a Halloween-themed dinner party Cook with an ingredient that could be considered slightly horrifying Invent a Halloween cocktail To submit a post, click on the submission button below: More info on the event can be found here. Last month’s event September was hosted by Chrystal from The Smallwood Parsonage. Check out her round up of all the yummy FAMILY RECIPE submissions on her blog later this month. Below is a preview of just some of the FAMILY RECIPE submissions.

Tofu Tuesday: Rainy weekend

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We had a lot of rain on Sunday. It was quite muggy so I opened the front door to let in some fresh air and the sound of the rain. Tofu the bunny is blind and I like to think that he appreciates sounds more as a result. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Genie @ Bunny Eats Design (@bunnyeatsdesign)     Click here to see more editions of Tofu Tuesday.

Dumpling wisdom from a retired dumpling professional

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I am a lucky girl who grew up eating home made dumplings. The dumplings we ate were stuffed with pork mince with different variations. I asked my Mum what ingredients were in the dumplings of my childhood and this post is based around her answer. 12 years ago, back when I was still a hungry design student, I worked in our family’s Chinese take-out. Since I loved dumplings so much, I helped myself to dumplings at the start of every shift. Free dumplings is a (self-proclaimed) perk of working in the family business. Dad made the filling and wrapped a hundred dumplings ahead of time and the dumplings were cooked during service. One of my duties was cooking dumplings fresh to order. So while I can’t proclaim I was a professional dumpling wrapper, I did get paid to cook dumplings. This makes me somewhat of a retired dumpling professional (see pro tips at the bottom of this post). Fast forward 12 years, my love of dumplings has grown. I don’t cook dumplings for money anymore and my …

Tamarind chutney and blue cheese pizza

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Happy Friday guys! Just a quickie recipe for a Friday when you can’t really be bothered cooking but don’t feel like takeaways either. Read on for punchy flavour, minimal fuss. This recipe is super easy and uses Jenny’s Tamarind Chutney, a locally made product with a loyal following. With a tangy sweet flavour and plenty of spice, this chutney elevates the simplest dishes. I tried Jenny’s Tamarind Chutney a few years ago at a food festival and it’s one of those products that keeps popping up in food magazines. My friends and family RAVE about this chutney so I’m not surprised it’s currently in the running for Bite’s People’s Choice Awards. Make sure you vote before 25 September because every vote goes into the draw to win $250 to spend at The Sugar Club. Enter your vote here. It’s weird to think that 6 years ago when I started this blog, I hated blue cheese. As in, “Ewww gross, get that stuff away from me”. In that short space of time, my palate has changed and developed …