Sunset Picnics

Towards the end of summer we started an evening ritual of home cooked meals on the headland overlooking the sea at sunset. The evenings were beautiful, sky ablaze with warm pink, orange and golden rays as the sun dipped below the western horizon. The air still comfortable enough to enjoy the last of summer's warmth before the change in seasons heralded thick socks, layered clothing, indoor play and our favourite scarves from last year.

I find the change in seasons so enchanting as familiar rituals see us cooking warm meals in place of raw salads, mulled wine in place of iced tea and focussing on slowing down. There's outdoor play whilst the sun shines and I'll admit most picnics I spent chasing Love to scoop another spoonful of dinner into her mouth as she was too excited chasing our little brown dog to sit still on our blanket. This summer she would gleefully yell 'Yook Mama!' whilst pointing at flowers, insects, birds soaring high above or rainbows in the summer rain out to sea. She's still perfecting the elusive 'L' sound. I'll miss 'yook' when she learns to say 'look', just as I miss it when she called our beloved Coco dog, 'Toto'.

I'll also miss sitting there overlooking the sea and thundering waves below. Now that daylight savings has ended, it is usually quite dark by the time I arrive home from work. My evening rituals have begun to include cooking hearty soups, preparing abundance bowls bursting with vegetables and leafy deep greens, brown rice and immunity supporting vegetable broth.

Each morning Max, our cat curls up in my lap as I squeeze in a few photo edits before Love stirs. We used to plan morning beach walks but now we prefer to snuggle as long as we can before starting the day. Yes, even our beautiful fur children know when to slow down to enjoy a warm cuddle as summer transitions to gorgeous autumn.

I've revisited my manifest diary with more intention. Have some of my goals changed now that the seasons have changed? Only slightly for my family goals and manifesting more home-focussed nature based play in the form of tending our vegetable garden (which provided us with two round butternut squash this week, perfect for roasting and warm salads!) and potting indoor plants now that we're indoors more.

We painted ladybugs, whales and moons on smooth pebbles from the beach and seaside forest. Soon we will gather them into Love's woven grass basket and hide them for other children to find around the local playground.

I love how the cooler weather brings us closer together.

Farewell beautiful summer picnics and hello autumn backyard fires under the stars.

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Sunset Picnic on the Riverbank

Dear Byron,

I took this picture on my birthday. Do you recall the beautiful picnic we shared as a group of perfect strangers played stringed instruments, sang and drank wine nearby? From our picnic rug we dined on soft cheeses, delicatessen treats, almonds and fresh juice from the local Bellingen market.

We nibbled, sipped and made shadow shapes of mystical creatures from the long rays of the setting sun. We laughed like children but kissed like lovers on the river bank as an elderly couple paddled their canoe downstream. We joked as we discussed our plans for overseas adventures and when our musical friends left, we slow danced to the natural melody of the crickets and birds before the cool May air prickled the hair on our skin, signalling the night.

My sweet husband, in ten short days we will celebrate the beginning of your 27th year. I hope I make you as happy as you made me on my memorable day.

Love Bella xx

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Beach Campfire Tales

Our Beautiful Campfire on Secret Beach

On a cool autumn afternoon, two families packed woven picnic baskets with freshly prepared dishes to enjoy on a secret beach. Their hampers were brimming with homemade hummus, warm thai larb gai (cooked with homegrown thai basil, mint, red chillies and limes from their vegetable gardens), sweet spiced maple kumara, juicy wedges of navel oranges, red wine, spring water, damper and raw vegetables to be cooked on an open beach campfire.

We walked over a grassy headland, kicking up sand with our thongs and basking in the last of the afternoon light as the sun cast long shadows over the land and coastline. Along the way, my friend picked a tiny colourful flower and she surprised me by stating it was a weed. I find it intriguing that some weeds look so exotic and beautiful.

We descended the steep sandy hill to our secret beach, where we unloaded our precious cargo and commenced scavenging the beach for dry pieces of driftwood to build our campfire. Our neighbour dug a shallow hole in the sand as we stocked the wood pile with ghostly white pieces of wood that had washed ashore during the recent storm. As soon as orange flames began to lick the sky and our blackened logs began to glow red, we pushed shiny, foil-wrapped vegetable parcels into the fire to cook as the children played with our excited puppy. Wine and water flowed as tiny waves crashed onto the shore. Sunset dimmed in the sky and soon the air was filled with the aromas that had followed us from our kitchen.

One of our sides included steamed mushrooms with thyme, fresh from our garden.

Steamed Button Mushrooms with Thyme

500g button mushrooms
8-10 fresh thyme sprigs
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
2 Tbs olive oil
sea salt
cracked pepper

Peel or wipe the mushrooms with a damp towel. In a large bowl, coat the mushrooms with the finely chopped garlic, olive oil and toss with the thyme sprigs. Fold a long piece of aluminium foil in half and place the mushrooms on top. Season with sea salt and cracked pepper, then carefully seal your foil parcel by folding the edges together. The double layer is needed to prevent damage to the parcel and sand from mixing with your mushrooms. Cook the mushrooms on the side of your fire, away from direct flames for ten minutes. Carefully remove and open, taking care not to burn yourself on the steam. Serve in a small bowl.

Campfire Roasted Potatoes with Rosemary
Campfire side dish

Chat potatoes
Fresh rosemary sprigs
Olive oil
Sea salt
Cracked pepper
Butter (optional)

The number of potatoes you roast will depend on the number of people in your party. I tend to cook two for each person, plus an additional few in case you're hungry.

Scrub and rinse your potatoes and allow to drain. Prick each potato evenly with a fork about 20 times to allow for evening cooking, then slice a thin wedge in each potato to place a short segment of a fresh rosemary sprig. Spray each potato with olive oil, season with sea salt and cracked pepper, then wrap individually in aluminium foil.

* If you prefer to slice your potatoes in half, you can smear a generous dollop of butter on each half, before sandwiching rosemary between the two halves, spraying with oil, seasoning and wrapping in foil.

Once you have established your campfire, place the foil-wrapped taters into the coals and cook for 30 to 45 minutes. Remember to count how many you throw into the fire as the foil will blacken and make the potatoes difficult to see, especially after night falls.

How to test if cooked: Carefully remove a potato from the fire and push a fork into the middle, if you can lift the fork back out without lifting the potato, your delicious campfire roasted potato is ready- Be careful not to burn your fingers! The soft flesh will be fragrant with the rosemary, with a hint of smokey flavour from the open campfire.

There's something magical about sharing campfire tales on a beach with friends. The children danced around the flickering light as yellow embers floated towards the sky, like tiny fire fairies. We gazed at the stars as the fire grew smaller, making out constellations and watching as the moon cast a silver lane of shimmering mirrors over the ocean. When our fire went out, we kicked sand over the glowing logs and made our way home to the hum of crickets and the sounds of the slowly churning sea.

Love Bella xx

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An Autumn Picnic with Bubbles...

A vast and beautiful green park, somehow magically placed beside a humming city was the scene for our autumn picnic yesterday afternoon. Our picnic site was on top of a grassy knoll, beneath giant old oak trees through which honey-coloured rays of sunlight shone. The grass was soft and cool to walk on with our bare feet as we set down a large colourful beach towel to serve as a picnic blanket. My good friend Nicole, whom I met in Kindergarten a very long time ago accompanied me with her beautiful three and a half year old daughter, Adannaya.

Nicole began to unpack her large hamper immediately, first the chilled drinks and dip and crackers, then the beautiful freshly roasted chicken and avocado lunch wraps she had prepared. Ada assisted by unpacking all of the cutlery in one neat pile, before skipping and jumping around on the grass happily to her own playful chatter.

I peeled the lid from a warm potato salad I had literally finished preparing the moment before I hopped into Nicole's car when she collected me from home. The creamy salad was filled with golden roasted potatoes, fetta cheese, grilled chorizo and whole egg mayonnaise, with oregano and cracked pepper (I have another variation of this 'comfort-food', which I cannot wait to share with you very soon!). I then unclipped the lid of the mini quiches Byron had baked especially for our lunch.

Very soon the aromas of our food saw Ada bounding back for something to nibble on, and of course a few gulps of cool, sweet orange and mango mineral water.

It was at this point that Nicole presented Ada with a long plastic tube filled with liquid.

'Bubbles!' Ada squealed, and for the next two hours Ada blew bubbles with us and tried to catch them in the breeze.

We laughed and played as Ada took a million (or more) pictures on Nicole's Canon G11. Ada captured images of bubbles...

...trees, grass, birds, her fingers, her toes, Nic and I chatting (I think Ada did very well for this photo)...

...and just about everything else you can imagine, which Nicole fondly named 'pictures through innocent eyes'.

It was a perfect Autumn afternoon, cool and a little cloudy, with just the perfect amount of sunlight and I have to admit, it was very special for me to see how Ada and her loving mother played together.

After our lunch had settled, I brought out the mini gluten free pear, hazelnut and cinnamon cakes I had baked earlier that morning and as Nic and I chatted away our afternoon very happily, I was amazed at how quickly the time passed.

It wasn't long until the sky grew a little darker in the late afternoon and a shiver prompted us to slip our cardigans back on that we realised it was time for us to begin to pack away our picnic.

Just as we were about to leave, we had an unexpected visitor. It simply wouldn't be a picnic without one of these little guys!

We piled everything back into the car and Nicole drove me home, where we parted ways after possibly the best picnic I have ever been on.

I will share the picnic recipes during the week but for now, I'm going to have a glass of red to accompany a gluten free italian pasta I whipped up in 15 minutes. Minimal effort, plenty of flavour and I think... Perhaps a feel-good movie will provide the ideal end to a relaxing and fun weekend.

Bella xx

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