A stand-out September

Boy am I glad today is Friday, especially after the hectic work week I have had. Working a full time job + trying to keep the house in some sort of order + fitting in what fitness I can is proving quite the challenge at the moment. Particularly when pregnancy fatigue seems to have returned with a vengeance and I find myself yawning from around 2.00pm onwards lol.

So suffice to say I am happy the weekend has arrived. And a long weekend too (due to a public holiday on Monday.

And, although I should probably schedule in some nap time over the weekend, we have quite a bit planned, most of which revolves around food. A pre-game lunch tomorrow with family, an engagement party/dinner on Sunday, and lunch with friends on Monday. Should be deliciously fun!

While I was wandering around the supermarket tonight to get the ingredients for tomorrow's lunch party, I  realised it is that time of the month.

The end.

aka. time for another monthly recap. And, on reflection,  what a lovely month it has been.

It all started with our big announcement,

And my fertility story.

Over the month I revealed my hidden pregnancy diaries, and I progressed from 13 weeks pregnant to almost 17! (Full updates on the baby page).

Spring seemed to have sprung, but winter then returned with a vengeance. Hence, quite a few comfort meals...

Returned to our weekly menu plan.

 

Mr BBB made a kitchen appearance...

with a very tasty result!

We hosted a long Italian lunch, to cheer the Wallabies on to victory against Italy.

Where gluten free cannelloni...

 

And spelt chocolate brownies were the star features.

A craving for cherry ripe was had....

Resulting in a work in progress cherry ripe slice.

I outlined my experience with exercise during pregnancy, and admitted that my nesting instinct appears to have kicked in already.

There were bargain book buys...

And a tasty vegetarian revamp of an old favourite!

T'was certainly a stand out September indeed!

I just realised that last September I announced to the blog world that I would be tackling a Half Ironman. This September I announced that I would be 'tackling' a very different event - motherhood! It seems that September is the month of announcements for me lol.

And, it just dawned on me, that when I do my next monthly recap, I will be over halfway through my pregnancy. Crazy right!?

Here's to an Outgoing October!

What about you? Did you have a stand-out September? Any plans for the long weekend (if you are lucky enough to have one)?

Eggplant and basil parmigiana

It is hard to believe that only a week ago I was celebrating what seemed to be the start of Spring. For, in some cruel weather joke, the warm temperatures and sunny skies have been replaced with grey clouds and lots of rain.

Luckily there was a break in the weather this evening so Mr BBB and I could head out for our evening walk. We missed out on our walk last night due to rain, and I actually really missed it.

The star of last night’s dinner (and tonight’s…owing to leftovers!) was this eggplant that I picked up at the market on the weekend. It was starting to look a little worse for wear, so I knew it had to be used asap.

      

But what to make?

I remember seeking eggplant parmigiana on a blog sometime ago, and knowing we had tomato passata and mozzarella in the fridge, well I had my inspiration.

I started by slicing the eggplant and sprinkling it with a little salt.

They say that salting the eggplant will help draw out any bitterness, but to be honest, I don’t find the eggplants we buy here to be all that bitter.

After half an hour, I patted the eggplant slices to remove any moisture, and had a think about how to prepare the parmigiana itself.

I wanted the eggplant to be crispy, so I put together a mixture of chestnut flour (having had crispy success with it here), and also GF corn crummies. I then dipped each eggplant slice into a mixture of egg + milk (whisked) and into the flour mixture, until I had myself a plate of 'crumbed' eggplant slices.

Mr BBB took charge of the oil, and each slice was fried in vegetable oil for a couple minutes each side. Drained well on paper towel, then it was time to top.

Tomato passata...

A fresh basil leaf....

   

And mozzarella.

Into the oven, cooked until the cheese was brown and bubbly.....

Then onto a plate.

  

I served the eggplant with a simple salad of mixed greens, cucumber and walnuts.

  

Drizzled with this 'Greek salad dressing' that I was given as a gift a while ago.

 

As far as tasty meals go, this is certainly one that I will be making again.

The eggplant slices were packed with flavour, yet not too heavy, and I really enjoyed the overall flavours of the meal.

While there was a little preparation work involved, I wouldn't call it a difficult dish to make.

And the bonus?

Enough leftover for a quick reheat dinner tonight as well!

Eggplant Parmigiana (makes 12 slices)

• 1 large eggplant, cut into 12 slices (sprinkled with salt, left for half an hour then patted dry)
• 1 egg
• splash milk
• 1/2 cup corn crummies
• 1/2 cup chestnut flour
• vegetable oil
• 1 cup tomato passata
• 12 basil leaves
• 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese, grated

1. Preheat oven to 180C. Line a tray with baking paper.
2. Combine egg and milk in a small bowl, and whisk until well combined.
3. Mix crummies and chestnut flour, and pour onto a flat plate.
4. Dip eggplant slices, one at a time, into the egg mix, and then into the flour. Cover well, shake off excess, then set aside. Repeat until you have crumbed all eggplant slices.
5. Heat a decent amount of vegetable oil in a shallow frypan. Cook eggplant slices (in batches) for 3 minutes on each side, or until golden brown. Remove and drain on paper towel.
6. Line up all eggplant slices on the prepared baking tray. Top each with a spoonful of passata, a basil leaf and a sprinkled of grated mozzarella.
7. Bake in oven for 20 minutes, or until the cheese is brown and bubbly.

What about you? Do you have a favourite eggplant dish?

So the nesting begins…

It is apparently common throughout pregnancy to go through periods of "nesting", particularly in the later stages. Nesting being the distinctive and uncontrollable urge to clean, tidy, and organise one's house / life.

I am not sure whether it is my already "need to be organised" personality, or perhaps the start of a "nesting" phase, but I most certainly have a growing list of things I want to complete before baby BBB arrives in early March next year.

Since moving into our new home last December, Mr BBB have done quite a bit around the house. There is, however, still a lot of things that I would like to have finished before our focus will undoubtedly be on the newest addition to the family.

Perhaps the biggest of these is our "garden"...

aka. leftover construction site – that currently bears no resemblance to a "garden", but more of a barren wasteland.

*hangs head in shame*

And let's not even mention Uluru mach 2 - that currently resides at the front of our house…

(Don’t ask. Let's just say it is the result of a dispute with out builder about top soil and block levelling).

So I am sure that it comes as no surprise that landscaping our yard is pretty much number 1 priority for us at the moment. And, although we initially had grand plans to do it ourselves, we have seen the light and are now getting quotes from some landscapers to come in and do the heavy work for us. Then (hopefully) with the retaining walls built,  the garden edging  put in and the block levelled / prepared, we can spend what small amount of spare time we have planting and creating our garden.

Garden aside, I have also managed to create quite the list of items I want to finish inside. What can I say....I am a list girl!

• Hallway - Put up photos.
• Study – install new desk along wall, hang certificate frames, build shelves
• Library – fix and hang pictures on wall
• Main bedroom – print and hang holiday photos
• Garage – spring clean and install shelves
• Lounge area – new lounge suite, table for laptop, new entertainment unit and coffee table
• Dining area – new table and chairs, build shelves / storage unit, hang picture or shelves above buffet
• Living area – new lights
• Deck – treat decking, new BBQ, light covers, table cover
• Kitchen – new frame for kitchen print
• Guest bedroom – new artwork
• General – Put together holiday albums and family yearbook

Some are certainly more achievable than others, but I am hoping to complete a few jobs each weekend to try and keep myself from being overwhelmed.

Oh yeah.....and I think we need make time in there somewhere to prepare the very important nursery too!

So, with all these little domestic tasks on the radar, I am sure to have lots of house updates to share with you over the coming months. Hopefully then I will be in a better position to do a long promised house reveal too!

What about you? Are you a DIY person or do you prefer to leave it to the professionals?

Brown rice sushi attempt

This was actually a dinner that we put together last week when we had a bunch of fresh produce that needed to be used. I have been craving sushi rolls a fair bit during my pregnancy, and although I am not able to indulge in the raw fish variety, tinned tuna and tofu were the star features of our recent version.

Along with asparagus (steamed), capsicum, carrot, avocado and cucumber.

Normally I make sushi using white sushi rice, but I decided to go with brown rice this time instead.

Sadly, it just didn’t quite have the right texture and the sushi rolls didn’t hold together as well as they normally do.

The flavours, however, were spot on.

And, when combined with the leftover vegies and tofu….

  

resulted in a quick and healthy dinner.

I just need to figure out a better way of making brown rice sushi!

What about you? Any tips for making good sushi rolls with brown rice?

Tofu Pad Thai and Bargain Book Buys

Some nights call for a quick and easy dinner. Like tonight. And stir-fry seemed to be the perfect solution!

Sauce: GF soy sauce, sesame oil, garlic and ginger.

Protein: tofu – marinated in the sauce while we went for our evening walk.

 

Vegetables: zucchini, capsicum and onion.

Stir-fried with flat rice noodles.

Topped with bean sprouts and coriander, served with lime wedges and crushed peanuts.

And dinner is served.

 

Fresh, healthy….

   

And packed with flavour!

Delish!

Oooh and check out this stash of second hand books I picked up at the Lifeline book fair over the weekend.

And quite the random stash it was.

From old school cook books…

To babies…

To classics, history, etiquette, fiction and sports biography.

Oh and I even managed to find a few books for Mr BBB…

     

All for $50!!! A bargain (and a great cause) indeed!

What about you? What sort of books do you like to read?  Its safe to say that I like all genres when it comes to books. But sports biographies and old school etiquette and lifestyle books seem to be my favourites at the moment.