The life and times of Libby Withnall

You can learn about the dairy industry here.

Part of our tour of the free-range egg farm included a demostration on how they use the seconds (not perfect) eggs to make pasta. This inspired Kevin to FINALLY use the pasta making attachment that HE bought for my kitchen aid mixer over a year ago.

Christy was keen to partake in their experiment and they were hard at work soon after we walked in the door. My suggestion to look up recipes or consult google was ignored, and somehow they managed to pull it off.

They make wholemeal fettucine for their first attempt. And it turned out surprisingly well.

To savour the flavour we enjoyed it with some butter and cheese.

The only problem with this pasta was that it got all stuck together. So the next day the machine was dug out again – this time to make spaghetti, which (based on my research) they decided to dry out a bit. My oven made a good drying rack .

Once we told the dogs to keep out of the kitchen it was safe to dry out in peace.

Amy was kind enough to make us a TVP Bolognase sauce to have with our spaghetti.

It was enjoyed by all. But if you want the recipe you’ll have to consult Kevin.

Not a lot has been happening in the Withnall household this week. Christy has been attending tennis camp in the morning and then they’ve been swimming and playing. I’ve been working on catching up on last years Project Life album – have ordered the remaining photos – just need to journal what I can remember . I’v also got this years album all set up and am determined not to get so far behind this year.

Anyway, today I thought I’d share our new favourite family meal – courtesy of Lisa at Bake Bike Blog. I’ve made a buritto bowl before – which is similar to this but instead of being in a bowl it’s served in a wrap.

Start by cooking some brown rice or get one of the precooked packets.

Then I sauted mushrooms with zuchinni and tomatos (from our garden). I would have added onion but Amy doesn’t like it. Basically you can add in whatever veggies you have available.

Then I added some frozen corn.

And a can of mexican chilli beans (Lisa added beans and seasoning but I’m more of a lazy cook ).

Lookin’ good but a bit liquidy. The first time I made this I also added a handful of baby spinach for some extra goodness.

Add the brown rice and magically an extra liquid disappears .

Now it’s time to prepare the wraps. Take your favourite tortillias, heat and add some sour cream.

Add filling and top with some cheese.

Then roll and enjoy. The mixture is yummy on it’s own as well. Thanks for the inspiration Lisa. Yet another of your recipes to added to our family favourites.

Just a  week or so ago I discovered there was going to be an Organic Expo in Sydney. It’s apparently the 6th year but I’d never heard of it before!! Luckily we had the Saturday free so I booked tickets for us to go, not really sure what to expect.

It was really good and much larger than I thought it would be. There were lots of stands about all things organic. And lots of food samples.  We discovered some delicious brown rice crackers and were impressed with these super sprouts. Kevin decided we should get the WHOLE set .

The girls enjoyed it too and were extra happy when they discovered the animals.

Before leaving we had an organic lunch from the cafe. I had a lovely vegetable pie. Delicious!

We’ll definitely try to get to return next year.

Well it’s been some time since we participated in Muffin Tin Monday but I thought it might be fun to get back to.

Todays muffin tins (shared by the 3 of us after school) included rice crackers, boiled egg with mayo, crackers, corn relish dip, babybell cheese, carrot, banana coconut loaf, watermelon, some Aussie m&ms and some milky way stars (from the UK). The pickings were a little on the slim side as I only decided to this in the morning.

This is definitely a fun way to have afternoon tea. And Christy even OFFERED to try some babybell cheese .

Sorry I’ve been such a bad food blogger. Between settling back into routine and being very blah about food at the moment I’m trying to decide whether to keep the food blog going. I know my posts are fairly boring but don’t know if I’ve got the time to make them more interesting. Maybe I should just do more food posts (like a weekly recap) on my main blog. Please let me know what you think.

To try and play catch up I’m just going to share some meals/snacks  from the week.

A red onion and chili roll from Bakers Delight. Not very good for you but VERY yummy .

Pita bread with cheese, mayo, tomato and homegrown sprouts.

My beloved green smoothie.

Hawaiian Stir fry – courtesy of Lisa at Bake Bike Blog. SOOOOOO delicious.

Homemade pizza – this was actually for breakfast

Cheese with plum paste on crackers.

An omelet made by Amy.

A sandwich while on an excursion with Amy.

And some of my Dad’s birthday cake

Not a bad view for a leisurely breakfast on a Sunday morning. We joined my Aunt and other family members (including the bride & groom when they surfaced) for breakfast in the hotels dining room. We were the first to arrive and the last to leave so must have really enjoyed ourselves.

I wasn’t that impressed with my first walk around the buffet. After almost 12 days of buffet breakfasts on the cruise I just wasn’t into it. However the sign by the front entrance had me a little more excited.

Eventually I decided to start with tea (can never go wrong with that) and bircher museli – which I have NEVER had before. I still don’t even know what was in in but I quite enjoyed it and ate about half.

Sometime later I decided on a chef made omelet. Mine had 2 eggs cheese and vegetables and was REALLY lovely.

Towards the end of our two hour breakfast I had another cup of tea and a raspberry muffin. This was sooooo yummy and unfortunately the last one left .

After checking out we headed home, stopping to buy so water as I was in desperate need of something to hydrate me.

We decided to stop for lunch at the Nan Tien Temple for a delicious vegetarian lunch.

Though it was rather cold outside (we were sitting in the shade), lunch did not dissapoint. Amy and I shared a chai tea – but I really didn’t like it much. Kevin’s chai latte was much better .

I chose the veggie chow for my lunch. So yummy. I’ve never had anything here I haven’t loved.

And I also had one of Kevin’s dumplings.

Mid afternoon included more tea and a couple of oatmeal raisen cookies.

After a lazy day dinner was an easy one of cheese on toast. So simple, yet so yummy.

Up and at ‘em today with a red carpet ready workout, followed by a green smoothie. The best way to start the day if you ask me .

Then it was time to pack and get organised for my cousin’s wedding. Amy made us both a sweet bean burrito (mine was wrapped in mountain bread instead of a tortilla) to have in the car, with my morning cup of tea.

We then drove to Manly. It took about 2 hours due to heavy traffic. I had a banana along the way and we arrived in time to join my parents (who had come up yesterday) for lunch. I had vegetarian quiche, salad and half a roll.

We chatted for a bit and then had a cup of tea. I also indugled in an anzac cookie and shortbread.

Then it was time to get ready for the wedding. You can read a full recap here.

There wasn’t much in the way of vegetarian nibblies but I did have one goats cheese tart.

The table was beautifully set.

The meal itself was very uninspired I thought. Being a lacto-ovo vegetarians there are lots of great meal options. Instead I got a salad for entree.

Pasta for the main

and fruit for desert.

It was all rather nice but nothing to rave over. I only ate about half of everything and complimented with a yummy roll.

and Kevin’s ice-cream…

Then there was the wedding cake.

I love the idea of cupcakes and how cakes are personalized these days. Too cute.

What do you think? Here’s the real bride and groom.

The cake was delicous. So fresh and light.

After some dancing I enjoyed a cup of tea and a chocolate.

Got up at 6.30am and took the dogs for a walk. So nice it’s getting warm enough for an early morning walk.

Later after dropping the girls at school I had some cruskits with spreadable cheese and a much longed for cup of tea. Hopefully next week I’ll be back in the swing of things and making proper breakfasts again.

Then it was off to the beauticians for a mani, pedi and eyelash & eyebrow tint. So good to have eyebrows again .

When I got back at 12pm I made a salad with a lentil pattie.

It was rather cold today so my afternoon snack was a warm bowl of veggie soup.

Dinner tonight was a family favourite – sweet bean burritos. I cheated and used an old photo.

Kevin and I ate dinner watching TV, while the girls sat outside on our driveway (in the cold) with the neighbours. Crazy!!!

Definitely had a good nights sleep so felt a lot better this morning. We were running rather behind this morning so I didn’t get my breakfast until after dropping the girls at school. On the menu today – banana on toast and a cup of tea.

I spent the morning getting the house all tidied and organised and in between worked on uploading photos to snapfish. Morning tea was tea and a couple of oatmeal and raisen cookies.

Lunch was a salad featuring egg.

Amy and I had to go into town this afternoon to buy dresses for my cousin’s wedding on Saturday – nothing like leaving it to the last minute. We were successful and stopped by Gloria Jeans on the way home where I got a Iced Chocolate.

When we got home my order from Doorstep Organics had arrived.

This will restock the fridge for sure.

Dinner tonight- pumpkin lasagne (dug out of the freezer) with corn, potato and cauliflower. Hmm.. it all looks very yellow .

Supper was a cup of tea and some ginger cream biscuits from the UK.