cookbookmaniac is spring cleaning

I was introduced to the many wonders of the Indonesian cuisine by a workmate from many years ago. Someone whom I affectionately call WuWu. She is the sweetest and most delightful person. I have to admit that I have not visited an Indonesian restaurant since her return to her motherland. Indonesian food just isn’t the same without her. One day, my sisters unexpectedly asked if I wanted to...

I recently went on a tour of Newtown with some lovely bloggers and was asked how many cookbooks I actually owned. Well, I never really counted them, but I think its safe to say that I have around 200. I regret purchasing quite a few of them, they are usually the ones that are generically strung together by book publishers to raise revenue. Most of the time I only end up buying the junk because...

I’ll admit it right now. I am not very good at taking orders from people, especially when it comes to food. My eyebrows furrow and my toes curl up when I hear a command. The kitchen is the one place that I want complete control and complete freedom to do what I please. However, when Pizzaboy sent me an email with a picture of something he saw on the internet, my toes started to curl and I...

“Oh my goodness. You have so many cookbooks. Do you cook from them all?” This is the question asked by most people who are perplexed by the size of my collection. In fact the IKEA shelf that I purchased specifically to house them is now full and there are books overflowing onto the floor. Most of the books that end up on the floor are far too obese for the lean wooden shelves...

Pizzaboy and I had been looking to dine at a portuguese restaurant for a long time and for some strange reason I always thought that Little Portugual at Petersham was a little too hard to get to. It turned out that it was within walking distance from Petersham station and the cluster of Portuguese shops wasn’t too long either. Take away bar Silva’s was easy to spot being on the main...

This recipe was the easiest thing to put together and photograph. I didn’t prep, nor expect it to turn out quite like it did. It’s funny how the harder I try, the less successful the outcome. No matter how often this happens I still love that little surprise at the end when I am astonished by my own cooking. This is my first attempt at five-spice anything. It must seem silly that...

This restaurant is so freaking awesome. I cannot think of a more appropriate introduction other than… YUMMO!! I dined at Perama with some always-entertaining food blogger friends Maria, Betty, Richard and John. We were looking forward to a great meal at a much applauded restaurant. However, what we got was a blow your socks off experience. Greek Salad $11.00 We started off with the...