Sydney turns its lights on...Vividly

The annual Vivid Sydney has started, this is actually the first year I've been and it did not disappoint. The idea is simple, to transform iconic buildings and structures in Sydney city with lights, music and projections. 

I personally think it's a great idea to get people out and about, to explore the city, to see these buildings that we've seen a thousand times in a different light. The atmosphere is great too, filled with people and music. Everyone is cheery, well minus the grumpy/sleepy kids getting dragged around by their parents. There's a night market full of food stalls in The Rocks, I had the best cheeseburger with truffled mayo there. Also a very nice pulled pork roll, the roll would've been perfect if the bun was softer. We had to separate the trip into 2 days as there was a lot to see and also by 11 we were extremely tired from all the walking around. The first night we just went around The Rocks and Circular Quay. The Opera House was definitely the highlight of the night. Each projection sequence told a story accompanied by music or narration, you could literally stand there all night, it was just that mesmerising. 

For the second trip we went on a Wednesday night which means a lot less crowd, hooray! Darling harbour comes alive with a Aquatique show, a show made up of water sprays, lasers and music. The show starts at 6pm so you better come a bit earlier to get a seat at the best spot if you want to see anything. The images actually gets projected onto the water spray which forms a screen, quite cool. 

Martin Place also gets a few installations, there was a lit up skull which can turn into someone's face via a camera. A what seems to be a mash up of speakers and lights...thing. A very awesome water feature that spells out words and images with water drops. A dome made up of changing light tubes. Food stalls and then there's my favourite, the MLC centre. Here, you will see creativity and imagination come alive as the centre is transformed into a giant tree. 

Vivid Sydney, worth going to the city for. Even though it is in the end just a bunch of lights, it does make a very fun night out exploring the city.

Recipe - Duck Confit with Crispy Potatoes & Witlof, Spinach & Apple Salad

I absolutely love French food, it's just so rich, full of flavour and character. One of my favourite dishes is the duck confit, duck maryland cooked in duck fat. However, this recipe requires a lot of time and effort, the duck itself needs at least 2 days of prep before serving but the end result is so worth it.

Serves 2

You'll need:


Duck Confit
2 duck marylands  
 2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed  
1/2 bunch of fresh thyme, coarsely chopped  
50g sea salt  
2 200g can duck fat
1/4 cup water  
1/2kg kipler potatoes

Salad
1 Witlof, leaves separated
1 handful baby spinach
1 small pink lady apple, sliced & tossed in lemon juice
50g rindless bacon, sliced into 2cm pieces
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 1/2 tbsp red wine vinegar
1/2 tbsp dijon mustard


Method:

1. Rinse the duck marylands with cold water and pat dry with paper towel. Combine salt, thyme and garlic, layer half the salt mixture on the bottom of an airtight container. Place duck on the salt and sprinkle the rest of the salt onto the duck. Cover and place it in the fridge for 6-8 hours, any longer the duck will be too salty.

2. Preheat the oven to 140 degrees. Remove the duck from the salt and rinse with water and dry with paper towel. Place the duck fat and water in a over proof and flame proof tray, preferably one that comes with a lid. 

3. Heat the fat until it starts to bubble and submerge the duck in the fat, make sure that the fat covers all of the duck. Layer with baking paper and then the lid, if you don't have a lid use foil instead.  

4. Bake the duck for 2 hours, when the flesh from the leg has pulled away exposing the bone then it is ready. Let the duck cool to room temperature and then refrigerate overnight.

5. Preheat oven to 220 degrees. Wash the potatoes thoroughly, place them in a saucepan with boiling water for 5 minutes or until just tender. Drain and cut them lengthways. Place potatoes on a baking tray, season with salt, pepper and 2 tablespoons of duck fat from the confit pan. Bake for 10 minutes or until golden and crisp.

6. Remove duck from the oven and wipe away excess fat but careful not to break the skin, place on tray and grill for 3 minutes or until the skin is crispy and shiny.

7. For salad, place witlof, spinach and apples in a bowl. Heat the oil in a pan and cook the bacon until brown and crispy. Remove the bacon onto paper towels to remove excess oil.

8. Add remaining oil, vinegar and mustard into the pan where you cooked your bacon, whisk until it all comes together. Add bacon to the dressing and drizzle over the salad, toss to combine.

9. Serve immediately with the duck and potatoes.

Gimme Haute Dog!

Snag Stand

My apologies for the lack of posts in the last two weeks, the cold weather is making me lazy to venture outside to try new places to eat. But I did however stumble across this place called 'The Snag Stand', they specialises in 'haute dogs' which I guess is another way of saying gourmet hot dogs. It's always exciting to see places like these that put a spin on something that is so familiar to us all, like the simple hot dog. The one I went for is called 'Toulouse', it comes with a freshly grilled toulouse sausage, sautéed onions and rosemary mushrooms on a toasted brioche roll topped off with truffle aioli. Sounds very fancy schmancy right? It tastes even better! What you notice first is the aroma that is distinctively truffle and you can actually see the truffle in the aioli too, most places uses truffle oil instead of actual truffles. The hot dog itself is lean but not dry; the casing is slightly crispy from the grill. I love the bun, so soft and have a slight buttery taste which goes perfectly with the aioli. The onions and mushrooms also add that extra depth to the flavour. The whole thing was creamy, fragrant and finger licking good. It might be a bit costly for a hot dog ($10.90) but for this price and you get actual truffle pieces, I'd say it's worth it. 


Level 5, 188 Pitt St, Sydney

Tea+

I think that I've mentioned how awesome Burwood has become in terms of the variety of places to eat. If you've never ventured out into the suburbs of Sydney then you're definitely missing out. On one of those 'I don't feel like going anywhere so let's just eat in Burwood' nights, we went to Tea+. A small Taiwanese tea and light meals place at the end of Burwood Road. The Taiwanese love their milk teas; the one we got was called 'Pot plant milk tea'. As you can see, it looks like a pot plant. Tea, a layer of foam, a layer of crushed Oreos topped off with mint. It's cute to look at that's for sure, the taste is ok, like all the other milk teas I've had in my life. If you're hungry, try their large range of snacks, I recommend the basil chicken (chicken coated with pepper and potato starch and deep fried with basil leaves), Taiwanese pancakes and deep fried chicken cutlets (basically the same thing as 'Hot Star chicken' style).

Shop 9, 258 Burwood Road, Burwood
                                                                             

A guide to Industrial Chic

Our homes should be the place we love coming back to, so there's no reason why we shouldn't bring fashion and style into how we decorate our homes. I am loving Industrial Chic right now, think lofts, large open spaces with hanging pendants, natural woods, dark accents, vintage mixed with modern lines. To avoid the blandness of having only black and white, I would suggest adding pops of bright colours like the lemon yellow shown in the collage. It will liven up the room but do it in moderation, too much will be too busy for the eyes. This will also be the perfect chance for you to display your favourite black and white photographs and artworks, hang them in different sized frames on shelves or the wall to create that collage look. This is the perfect style for a bachelor pad don't you think?

For all the items and the prices click on the image.

Created using Polyvore

Fav Finds - May 2014

It's May! Almost Mother's Day too, what are you getting your mummy dearest this year? Fear not, here is my pick of the crop. Every mum is different so here's something for everyone and every budget.

1. Ice cream cone salt & pepper shakers from Pier1 - For the mums who loves cooking in style.  This is cute as a button, certainly making the task of grinding salt and pepper just that much more pleasant.

2. 'Mum's the word' pillow from Nordstrom - For the mums who loves decorating their homes with beautiful things. 

3. Medium 'Antigona' Tote from Givenchy - For the mums who loves high fashion and looking fabulous. Also for the ones who have the money to spend. The colour and design of this bag is quite timeless so it will suit mums of any ages.

4. Baleen clean nail brush from Modcloth - For the mums who likes to keep their nails in immaculate conditions and also like whales.

5. Refresh my memory box from Modcloth - For the mums who likes to travel/collect/reminiscent about things. Inside is a notebook, identifier tags, string-tie wallet, acrylic vial and metal trinket box. All comes in a very nice looking wooden box too!