tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-59080171350128593672026-04-02T22:12:20.892+13:00an American girl's attempt at cooking, baking, living and generally not drowning in Wellington, New Zealandchoeyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00755887837683742676noreply@blogger.comBlogger87125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5908017135012859367.post-16700284710074437862012-06-11T13:20:00.001+12:002012-06-11T13:20:50.232+12:00

The smell of woodsmoke in the air and the crisp bite of autumn chill nipping at my nose send me into paroxysms of glee every year.   They used to remind me of camping trips, building fires to roast marshmallows over, and making big meals to freeze for the nights when you just want to shove something in the oven and be done with it.   Now they just make me jealous that I don't

choeyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00755887837683742676noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5908017135012859367.post-52613607831173612422012-05-17T16:32:00.000+12:002012-05-17T16:32:46.822+12:00

Last night I declared a “night off from everything” for me and Jonno.  That included any form of exercise, any kind of being responsible, and anything work-related.  I put the kaibosh on and we had to actually interact with each other, face to face.  Well, at least for a few minutes anyway. What does one do with a whole evening in which to engage with their partner?? 

choeyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00755887837683742676noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5908017135012859367.post-68043050605377028112012-05-17T15:04:00.002+12:002012-05-17T15:04:48.160+12:00

There is something about being forced to sit in front of a computer for eight hours a day that gets my creative juices flowing.  Please note however, that I do compose these posts on my own time, not on company time – I just tend to come up with the ideas while staring at something completely unrelated. So yes, after three months of unemployment/couch occupation, I have a job!  Which

choeyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00755887837683742676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5908017135012859367.post-14428582044880364392012-02-16T13:27:00.004+13:002012-02-16T13:29:10.785+13:00

Oh summer BBQ's, how I love you.  As an affirmed eater-of-all-the-meats living with a man who has a strange aversion to the red side of things, I love any time I can have a selection of protein that didn't start off life with wings.  I'm talkin juicy steaks, lamb chops, and sausages, yum.  That's for the Kiwi BBQ at least.  I do miss the American BBQ, of which the staple is

choeyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00755887837683742676noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5908017135012859367.post-44769773224768195692012-01-25T16:52:00.000+13:002012-01-25T16:52:29.740+13:00

I never in a million years thought my summers would look like they do in Wellington.  First of all - it's January, and all of the calendar-y type things that the teachers put up in my classrooms had snowflakes for January.  Hearts for Feb, shamrocks for March, eggs for April, flowers for May, sunshines for June, ice cream cones for July, sailboats for August, fall leaves for

choeyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00755887837683742676noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5908017135012859367.post-47875678800772955822012-01-24T17:09:00.001+13:002012-01-24T17:09:36.970+13:00

One night after a run, Jonno and I got home absolutely starving and with a whole lotta nothing in the kitchen, except for some beef mince and the occasional about-to-go-off onion.  I was groaning to myself, moaning, "what the hell do you make with mince other than meatloaf and burritos that is also quick and filling and doesn't take too many other ingredients?!" Please excuse the neon

choeyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00755887837683742676noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5908017135012859367.post-69366300994891604342012-01-20T16:40:00.000+13:002012-01-20T16:40:25.131+13:00

Noodles!! Noodles are fun, aren't they?  Even the word is fun.  Noodlenoodlenoddle.  Use your noodle!  And other such silly things. Now for the serious.  This noodle-y salad thing is seriously good.  So good that Jonno went back for seconds, even through it had some kick to it.  Jonno does not like much kick.  If you could measure the heat in something

choeyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00755887837683742676noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5908017135012859367.post-51875807239694073982012-01-12T16:20:00.001+13:002012-01-12T16:26:35.310+13:00

I'm back!!  Ok ok, I've been back in NZ for a week now, but you know I have to read through all of the wonderful posts that were waiting for me in my Google Reader before I could buckle down to do my own.  What should be on my NY Resolutions: de-cluttering.  This is my junked-up coffee table, in all its junky glory! In true New Year's style, Jonno and I have started our very

choeyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00755887837683742676noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5908017135012859367.post-9707749358290873792011-11-28T14:07:00.001+13:002011-11-28T14:33:39.216+13:00

It really doesn’t feel like it, but I got married one year ago today. Which means that one year and three weeks ago, I was locked in my kitchen, making batch after batch of my favourite chocolate chip cookies. Lemme splain. It's very hard to get past this stage without consuming the entire bowl of dough. See, I’m American and Jonno is Kiwi, and we wanted to bring in elements of both our

choeyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00755887837683742676noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5908017135012859367.post-73015864523048479402011-11-22T13:28:00.001+13:002011-11-22T15:28:48.420+13:00

Thanksgiving is next week and I am a very sad girl because for the third year in a row I’ll be missing my Mom’s delicious t-giving food. I love most everything about Thanksgiving – drawing up the menu, making a shopping list, doing the big shop, helping Mom in the kitchen, making the table look pretty, seeing my aunt, uncle and cousin, eating so much food it hurts, and passing out without

choeyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00755887837683742676noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5908017135012859367.post-74296626360547518352011-11-18T16:22:00.001+13:002011-11-18T16:59:41.724+13:00

HALP!! Can someone please tell me what day it is? What time of year?? What am I supposed to be making for dinner?! I am so confused! The weather’s just gone all glorious in Wellington in the past week or so, and all I want to do is sit outside with a sweet, fizzy adult beverage and read my book. But then when I read the blogs from America they’re all about Christmas and the cold and winter and

choeyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00755887837683742676noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5908017135012859367.post-13746891069331445422011-11-08T16:17:00.000+13:002011-11-08T16:25:30.835+13:00

1. When I got home from the gym last night, I had an unshakable desire to bake some bread. So I did, and miracle of miracles, it actually rose! Not like my previous attempt during the winter. I’m thinking that putting the starter in the sunshine to prove may have had something to do with it. 2. Then I ate Nutella straight out of the jar. True story: I only discovered the existence of the glory

choeyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00755887837683742676noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5908017135012859367.post-79375371164823569382011-11-07T17:18:00.003+13:002011-11-08T16:26:25.530+13:00

So you know how I’m seasonally challenged? Well I’m just going to say that this recipe is for the Americans, because pears are still sort of in season over there. So yeah, Mom, this one’s for you. A progression of the Pear Cake - here we are, bathing in the morning sun. Also, remember Apple-Gate 2011 – the box of fruit that was occupying my hallway? Well it also included a big lot of pears,

choeyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00755887837683742676noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5908017135012859367.post-10401503906620003322011-11-04T15:19:00.000+13:002011-11-04T15:19:09.313+13:00

I make really strange decisions sometimes. I’m not sure my brain is wired properly. I wear weird combinations of clothes that I swear look awesome before I leave the house, and then later see photos of and have one of those "what the hell was I thinking?!" moments.  Once for bookclub, I brought two bags of yeast rolls as my ‘plate’ because I (a) had just mastered making a bread product

choeyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00755887837683742676noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5908017135012859367.post-58492921723972114892011-11-03T16:00:00.000+13:002011-11-03T16:00:14.680+13:00

One of the suckiest things about breaking up is all the relationships you lose along with your boyfriend/girlfriend. I know this is nothing new, but the other day when I was trying to figure out what to do with the bagillion apples occupying my hallway (related to the trillion kiwifruit that lead to this kiwi cake), the first thing I thought of was an apple cake that my ex-boyfriend’s mother used

choeyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00755887837683742676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5908017135012859367.post-4458387059253119942011-10-27T16:40:00.002+13:002011-10-27T16:40:42.111+13:00

Clearly I'm not a master froster of cakes.  Yet. I had big dreams for this post. Dreams of revelling in the glory of the All Blacks’ victory in the Rugby World Cup on Sunday night, dreams of detailing Jonno’s celebratory leaps and whoops of joy, dreams of recounting the tension and drinking to cope with the stress of the game! And then this thing called a Critical Contingency happened.

choeyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00755887837683742676noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5908017135012859367.post-40785727491118774622011-10-21T14:28:00.000+13:002011-10-21T14:28:05.432+13:00

So the Rugby World Cup thing is about to end this weekend (Go the All Blacks!!) and I just realised that I still have photos from our trip to New Plymouth for the USA vs. Russia game sitting in draftland.  As this blog started as a travel blog and my Mommy will still want to know what I got up to, here's our trip in photos. And sorry, but there is nothing food-related in this post because

choeyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00755887837683742676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5908017135012859367.post-15114401084654992732011-10-20T14:55:00.000+13:002011-10-20T14:55:54.422+13:00

You can’t beat Wellington on a good day, or so they say.  Last Sunday dawned absolutely gorgeous and sparkling, cruelly mocking those of us who had partaken of the adult beverages while attempting to scream the Welsh to victory over the bloody French.  Our vocal support was to no avail – the silly Coqs kept the mighty Dragons down, albeit only by one point, and our heads were

choeyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00755887837683742676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5908017135012859367.post-86455119949479830292011-10-19T17:57:00.001+13:002011-10-19T17:57:18.672+13:00

Welcome to Christina’s House of Vessels - I promise these won’t hit a reef and crack down the middle and spill tons of oil into the Bay of Plenty. How terrible is that?? I remember reading one thing that the conservationists learned from the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico was that it really doesn’t help the wildlife if you de-oil them, especially birds, because by the time they are cleaned

choeyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00755887837683742676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5908017135012859367.post-71897089379732855342011-10-17T16:27:00.006+13:002011-10-17T16:30:53.984+13:00

A few weekends ago, I went to the market for some cheese and milk and came back with a bunch of fabric. I may have gotten lost and gone to the wrong market. But this one was much more fun and colourful, like my own personal wonderland! By ‘this one’, I mean the Frank Kitts Underground Market, which has been going in full swing on both Saturdays and Sundays during the Rugby World Cup. It’s been

choeyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00755887837683742676noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5908017135012859367.post-8132229179993428722011-10-17T14:59:00.001+13:002011-10-17T14:59:57.683+13:00

Yesterday started like any normal lazy Sunday, with a good lie-in til the sun was well past the midday mark, but don't tell my mother that! It ended with my husband dancing in the street and us staying up til 1am and beyond like naughty children because we were way too buzzed to go to sleep. In case you're wondering what all the fuss was about, the All Blacks smashed the Wallabies in the

choeyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00755887837683742676noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5908017135012859367.post-41793884955603685472011-10-14T15:34:00.001+13:002011-10-14T15:34:41.020+13:00

It happened to me in the Woolworths in Brighton when I was living in Melbourne. I cried because there was no pumpkin in a can. It’s not easy cooking in another country. I’m sure many people have had similar experiences that I’ve had, when you go to the grocery store on the hunt for a certain ingredient that you know should be there, because hell, it’s always stocked at your grocery stores at

choeyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00755887837683742676noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5908017135012859367.post-69870633827005768672011-10-11T17:43:00.002+13:002011-10-11T17:43:52.944+13:00

Something terrible happened to me recently. Are you ready to hear about it? I was accused of being a “girly-girl”. Gasp! I nearly had a fit of the vapours, I was so shocked! Me, a girly-girl?! Never! I had to know – “WHY do you think I’m a *shudder* girly-girl?!” The answer: “Because you wear skirts and makeup and brooches on your coat, and you like to bake.” All true things, but I must add

choeyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00755887837683742676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5908017135012859367.post-9304284585878125442011-10-10T15:45:00.000+13:002011-10-10T15:45:28.270+13:00

Growing up I remember getting up early on a Saturday just to watch cartoons, and I would sit in front of the TV from 8 or 9am straight on through til noon when the boring adult shows came on, like Masterpiece Theatre.  My favourites were Garfield, the Smurfs, Captain Planet, Alvin and the Chipmunks, and Winnie the Pooh.  It pains me something fierce that Hollywood has ruined three out

choeyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00755887837683742676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5908017135012859367.post-40047531074987037452011-10-07T13:27:00.000+13:002011-10-07T13:27:39.087+13:00

As I typed "vindication" all I could think was "vindication, kinda sounds like viticulture, which is related to wine, yummmmm." ----- A while back I wrote about one my Experiments, the one where I chopped up some kumaras and who knows what else, threw some balsamic on it and possibly some basil, totally thinking that this was a legitimate side dish idea.  My failure convinced me

choeyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00755887837683742676noreply@blogger.com0