Wednesday 28 April 2010

Orange Shortbread


Perhaps I have orange fever after my visit to Orange, but suddenly I am drawn to everything orange flavoured. I have tried some wonderful, fragrant oranges recently so I thought I might use some for my long-awaited return to baking.

This orange shortbread recipe is very easy, and is a nice twist on old-fashioned shortbread. Superb with a cup of Orange Pekoe :)

Photo and recipe courtesy of cuisine.com.au

Ingredients
125 g unsalted butter (at room temperature)
pinch of salt
25g rice flour
150g plain flour
1/4 c. caster sugar (plus a little extra)
zest of 1 orange, finely chopped
2 tsp orange juice

Method
1. Preheat the oven to 170 degree celsuis.
2. Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
3. Add the sifted flours, juice and orange zest, and mix until combined into a soft dough.
4. Roll out on a lightly floured surface to about 1cm thickness, then cut into fingers or desired shapes.
5. Transfer to a tray lined with baking paper. Sprinkle a generous pich of caster sugar over the top and bake for 20-25 minutes or until lightly golden.
6. Rest on the tray for about 10 minutes, then transfer to a rack to cool.

Notes
  • If orange isn't your thing, go lemony instead and replace the orange zest with lemon zest.
  • For extra decadence, drizzle some dark chocolate over these bad boys. Orange and chocolate is always a winning combination!

Ladybird x

A weekend in Orange


Over the weekend, my hubby and I had the pleasure of visiting Orange for two nights. My two favourite things about Orange were the spectacular autumn colours, and the people - they were so friendly!




Unfortunately despite there being loads of visitors to the region over the weekend, there was very little open - including the Vegetarian Restuarant, which was closed all weekend! :( You will find the majority of eateries (esp the more popular places for foodies) do not cater for vegetarians. So if you are vego and visiting Orange, it pays to do your research and maybe bring some back-up meals as we did.
  • For a wide selection of delicious wood-fired pizzas, try Provvista Woodfired Pizza. It's also BYO, so bring along a bottle of your favourite Orange wine.

  • We had the pleasure of sampling Bills Beans coffee at our accommodation but, alas, the cafe was closed when we visited over the weekend... D'oh! http://www.billsbeans.com.au/

  • We stayed at a great little place we found online called Serenity Studio. This little gem of a place was so lovely, and we'll definitely be back. http://www.serenitystudio.com.au/



Among many, some other food and drink places to visit include:
Other attractions/events include...
Orange F.O.O.D week in early-mid April
Orange Wine Week in October
Mt Canoblas and Lake Canoblas
Orange Botanical Gardens


For more information about visiting Orange in NSW, go to:
http://www.orange.nsw.gov.au/go/visiting
http://www.visitnsw.com/town/Orange.aspx


That's all from me for now :) Take care


Ladybird x

Tuesday 20 April 2010

Ladybird is back!

Dear Readers,

Oh how I've missed you all!

After a very long hiatus, I'm back! I am sorry to have dropped off the radar all of a sudden... I was not particularly well earlier in the year, so it was time to take stock of my health and my lifestyle. I have actually given up sugar (shock horror- I know!), but I feel a lot better for it. I have a lot more energy and I'm not complaining about the weight loss either ;)

I've made some big changes, and some of these changes mean that my kitchen is no longer a factory for sweet treats every other day. These changes will also mean the way I blog will be a bit different from now on...

I will certainly still be making tasty sweet treats and sharing the recipes with you. My friends and famly would be up in arms at the suggestion that I quit baking and, if I am to be totally honest, I still do love baking and it makes me smile :) But...  I'll also be sharing more savoury recipes from now - healthy, delicious and easy vegetarian recipes to tempt you :)

So stay tuned for some fresh posts. It feels great to be back already :)


Ladybird x
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