In My Kitchen: May 2026

How can it be June already!  This year is speeding towards the winter solstice and beyond.  In my kitchen we have mostly been revisiting old recipes with a few new ones.  There have been lots of noodles, tempeh, greens and apples.  Above is a photo of a favourite recipe for Mee goreng that I tried with tempeh instead of tofu and it was so so good.  We've had lots of interesting food from supermarkets and the farmers market, with a few fancy morsels from Smith and Deli and Tofu Shoten.  

Life has been ridiculous as usual.  I lost my car key only to find it days later in my bed under the covers.  I subscribed to the Age years ago for local news but that has got so hard to find among the click bait that I have finally cancelled it.  I bought an insert for our air fryer that looked small but like so many other purchases, once inside our small house it looked much bigger and would not fit.  I had hoped that logging my account would have given proof of purchase, in lieu of a receipt, but I found out after a long queue that it did not.  

This is how I have been frying the tempeh in thin triangles so it gets crispy.  It was really good in Mee gorang and Laksa.  As you can see our egg flip had tired of overwork on the cast iron frypan and collapsed.  Or maybe it had too many falls on the ground.  

I also tried frying diced tempeh with tofu bacon marinade.  It tasted great but did not get crisp in the way that tofu does.  I will try it with bigger slices next time.  However the diced tempeh bacon was excellent on top of the cheese on a veg pizza.

I revisited this Pumpkin Laksa with both fried tofu and tempeh.  Sylvia did not fancy that pumpkin chunks so I pureed the pumpkin and added to the broth.  I used a vegan laska curry paste to save time making spice mix (though I still added onion and garlic) but it still took a while.  I also used broccolini instead of asparagus.  We were impressed at how good it looked when served with been sprouts, spring onions, a wedge of lime (off our tree) and Vietnamese basil.

When we had unused cabbage, I decided to look at a different sort of minestrone than our usual one.    The paler Minestrone with Cabbage and White Beans was a great change.  It was also a great  opportunity to use leek from the farmers market.  I changed this recipe to have more pasta, 2 tins cannellini beans, no walnut parmesan, added a finely chopped half a cauliflower, finely chopped herbs and garlic.  

The following night when we had leftovers I made Gaarlic pizza with our regular Fast track sourdough pizza base.   I sprayed it with olive oil, spread some garlic paste, sprinkled it with Italian herbs, garlic granules , flaked salt and black pepper.  Then I grated cheddar cheese over it. This made an excellent accompaniment to the soup.

There was half a cauliflower to use.  I had bought it because it was in season and it felt like we had not had much lately.  This half was fried in the air fryer with just a spray of olive oil and some seasoning.  It took about 18 minutes at 200 C.  I was inspired by the Tinned Tomatoes blog's Air Fryer Cheesy Cauliflower Steaks.  Ours were used in a bowl of vegies and beans with the below Mexican spiced rice. 

I have made the Mexican spiced rice from PlantYou quite a bit but this was my worst one.  It was soggy and I am unsure if it was due to getting the cooking time wrong (15 not 10 minutes) or if I put too much water in or both!  Sylvia thought it great.  I had thought I had found a good recipe for Mexican spiced rice and hope this is a blip.  In the past spice rice has always burnt so I liked this with more water than the recipe said.  I will need to try again.

This is a humble but delicious salad sandwich made with a potato sourdough bread from the supermarket.  Inside is cheese, mayo, grated carrot, sliced purple cabbage, rocket and mayo.

We walked most of the way to Tofu Shoten in Brunswick where they make fresh tofu.  Sylvia was excited to have the banana bread milkshake with fresh soy milk.  We tried the tofu balls which were nice by themselves but fairly plain and probably better in soup as recommended.  Best of all was the smoked tofu.  It was a lot softer than most tofu I cook with.  This was a challenge.  I wanted to feature it's fresh smoky flavours.  I found a fairly simple crispy breaded tofu nuggets recipe that was an excellent way to eat it.  I needed about 2 tbsp more of the milk.  It was much quicker than my usual tofu nuggets.  Next time I need to plan a recipe to add in the tofu nuggets.

We had another go at making a spanikopita.  This one was bigger and better. I used a bunch of spinach and a bunch of curly kale so it was packed with greens.  It never ceases to amaze me at how little greens are left after cooking. Next time I will also add some fresh dill.  

Here is my final spanikopita.  We made a lot of changes to the previous spanikopita attempt.  As well as lots of greens, we used tofutti cream cheese (which seems to have made a resurgence in the shops) and the rest of the almond feta from the Damona factory.  It was probably double the size of the last one and I had worked out that I needed to bake the scroll in a round dish to keep its shape.  I liked the Damona feta more than Sylvia.  She is keen to try one with homemade feta so that is the next step in the challenge.

We were at KFL for sticky rice.  Sylvia has enjoyed it in the microwave pouches from the supermarket but it is neither the cheapest or most eco-friendly way to buy it.  So we headed to the KLF Asian supermarket.  While there we also bought Lychee and passionfruit Lady boba bubble tea (enjoyed), Vincent vegetarian food's vegan super vegie balls (still in our freezer), Surasang Japchae Gyoza (oops found they had shrimp paste in them and gave the rest away), Passionfruit popping boba and Pandan Chendol (these two were for a sticky rice dessert that is yet to be).  

We have only made the sticky rice once which involved soaking the rice overnight and then steaming in a steamer basket lined with cheesecloth.  I want to try this 16 minute method for cooking sticky rice in the microwave.

I ended up in Thornbury High Street after an appointment and visited Naturally on High.  I love a fancy health food store.  I got tempeh for Mee Goreng, a packet of Keogh's Guinness Irish potato crisps and Stroopwafels.  After the gyoza vegan fail I suddenly remembered that Guinness had once been not suitable for vegans but was relieved to find online that it is now suitable.  Which was just as well because the chips were really tasty and moreish.  They reminded me a bit of Marmite crisps (if I can say that without offending Guinness and Marmite fans!).  The stroopwafels were to share with Sylvia but I forgot to to check these and found they were not vegan.  So I had to eat them all by myself.  A delicious mistake!

 
I brought home this Snickers doughnut from Smith and Deli in Collingwood.  I was too ful after half a sandwich to eat it there.  I had expected a lots of gooey chocolate on top as well as caramel and peanuts.  In fact it was more like a chewy chocolate caramel fudge topping scattered generously with chopped peanuts and drizzled with a peanut sauce.  Although not as expected, it was excellent.  I loved the fudgy topping that was a lovely contrast to the soft doughnut.

We love our kombuchas and have enjoyed some of the Remedy Small Batch series.  Sylvia really loved the Lychee and Strawberry flavour and I really loved the pomegranate and cherry.  I also really enjoyed the Twinings Sparkling Tea with Raspberry Lemonade and White Tea.  It was fizzy and had a nice light fruity flavour.  However, I don't think it would replace my love of kombucha.

Carmen's protein pistachio delight - on special and nowhere to be seen the next week - sylvia annoyed that she gets drawn in by pistachios but then finds it has peanuts

These Zucchini, Pea and Danish Fetta Fritters were just for me as they were Vegetarian but not vegan.  I cooked them in the airfryer and they were beautifully crisp and light.  I ate them with hummus, red pepper, cherry tomatoes, baby spinach and our favourite Turkish bread from the Melbourne Kebab Station.

On Mothers Day, Sylvia kindly went out and to buy us doughnuts fromAll Day Doughnuts while I was out at a talk.  She chose Choc fudge, Coconut lime and Orange and rhubarb fritter.  (Yes, they had been sampled by the time I took a photo.)  Also in the photos are some presents from op shops including a replacement copy of a favourite book from Sylvia's childhood that we can't find.

Here are a few more supermarket purchases.  We were amused by the message on the vegan Oatly cream packet that we bought for leek and potato soup.  The dill was for the soup.  Sylvia wanted to try the Health Lab Mylk chocolate juicy cherry bars.  She liked them but I found they has an odd taste of added flavours.  I think they are like a healthy version of the less healthy Cherry Ripe chocolate bars, which I must prefer.

I took this photo of some of the stuff hanging around our kitchen.  We had bought a variety of apple s from the Coburg Farmers Market.  (I still miss the Three Bridges apples we used to buy there.)  They were great with muesli.  The limes in the cup are from our tree and were mostly used in limeade.  Not as many as we have had from our tree in the past but better after the trees have been battling citrus lime miner and gall wasp.  I only got one lemon from our other citrus tree this year.  Slim pickings.

Also in the photo  is a vase that Sylvia found in an op shop, a smart little tartan case where I keep my phone's headphones, a sparkly bracelet that Sylvia put back together with gorilla glue, some chimes that make music in the a garden, birthday cake candles that I washed individually after the ants got them, sweet little glass covered stand, and our score for a Scrabble game (Sylvia won)!

We had another visit to Coburg Farmers Market when we met a friend.  Our haul included the bread, tomatoes, leek, kale, eggplant, babaganoush, sauerkraut and pickled grapes.  On the way home we dropped into Terre Madre for a large bag of wholemeal flour and also purchased kombucha, Damona cheese and Love Love's Pistachio mylk praline and Double chocolate truffle.  All good stuff!

It was a long queue to buy Psomi bread but well worth it.  This former Australian masterchef contestant makes amazing bread.  The previous week, we had queued only to find that they only had their regular Farmers Bread.  So I got there earlier and hoped I could try the Black sesame porridge bread.  It was sold out again but we bought some wonderful olive bread.  Just look at that open crumb and shiny crust.

Even more amazing was the Mulled Wine Pickled Grapes from Acide.  It is not a stall we usually go to but Jo stopped to taste some of the wares.  We did too.  And walked away with a couple of jars.  The sauerkraut was great but these pickled grapes were amazing.  I've never seen any like it before.  The grapes are pickled in vinegar, sugar, star anise, mandarin peel, clove and cinnamon.  Slightly sweet with a bit of acid and lots of warm spices, they are begging to be on a fancy cheese board.

In case you are wondering about how we ate them, the olive bread and the mulled wine pickled grapes were wonderful on a grazing platter of red capsicum, cheddar cheese, fried eggplant, sauerkraut, cherry tomatoes and baby spinach.  Such a good dinner!

I am sending this post to Sherry of Sherry's Pickings for the In My Kitchen event. If you would like to join in, send your post to Sherry by 13th of the month.  Or just head over to her blog to visit more kitchens and her delightful seasonal hand drawn header.  Thanks to Sherry for continuing to host this even that brings together some wonderful bloggers who share glimpses into their kitchens.  

Aboriginal street art in Melbourne - for Reconciliation Week

At the start of Reconciliation Week( 27 May to 3 June) I heard Kerrupmara Gunditjmara man Travis Lovett interviewed on ABC Melbourne about his 900km "walk for truth "from Naarm (Melbourne) to Canbera.  He told Raf Eptstein that First Nations people want to be part of the Australian story.  Today as Reconciliation week ends (on Mabo Day), I make a small contribution with photos of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander street art and public art.

Artwork will not solve the complex problems of the First Nations community.  However, like many aspects of their lives, art is part of the the solution.   It creates joy and pride.  It is thought provoking.  It says: we are here.  The top photo is from Hosier Lane ("Aboriginal Lives Matter").

 
Historic image of urban Aboriginal woman: Fitzroy:

Magpies are by Indigenous artist Kent Morris (Barkindji), Tinning Street park, Brunswick

 

Aboriginal kids with spears in the bush: Collingwood (cnr Johnson and Smith Streets):

Artwork on KIN Fashion, First Nations Fashion and textile studio, Peel St Collingwood:

Brunswick - owl against Aboriginal flag 

First Peoples's Melbourne Art Tram: "sorry":

First Peoples's Melbourne Art Tram: "tick tock we wont stop":

Around the Block Winter Screenings, Brunswick:
light projections of artworks was "The Wurundjeri Seasons" project by Little Projector Compnay in Michelle Guglielmo Park at 260 Sydney Rd 

Blak Dot gallery, Saxon Street, Brunswick:
Always mural designed by renowned Kamilaroi artist Reko Rennie 

Look to See by April Phillips, Blak Dot gallery at Around the Block Winter Screening:

Entrance to Myer Music Bowl - Djirri Djirri Dancers by Adnate:

Presgrave Place, Melbourne CBD:

Untitled by Adnate and Salad Bowl Art, Gills Alley, Melbourne CBD:

More First Nations posts on Green Gourmet Giraffe:

Aboriginal flag cake

Aboriginal flag nut roast

Ideas for an Aboriginal flag on toast

Potter Gallery First Nations exhibition: 65,000 Years: A Short History of Australian Art  

Street Art in Melbourne: Aboriginal art (5) for NAIDOC Week 

Cloudehill Gardens, Miss Marples Tearoom and Ripe Cafe: a day out in The Dandenongs

The Dandenong Ranges on the east of Melbourne have long been a magnet for the city's day-trippers.  We had a wonderful day out there in late January with fantastic food, fun shopping and a walk around a lush green gardens that was very welcome after the record breaking heat the previous day. 

We are lucky to have such a beautiful part of the state on Melbourne's doorstep.  It is slightly over an hour's drive from the inner north.  The last part of the drive has great views as the road heads upwards into the hills.  Visitors can enjoy scenic drives, lookouts, walks, gardens, cafes.  (The Dandenongs are not to be confused with an outer south east suburb of Melbourne called Dandenong.  The mountain range and the suburb are joined by the Dandenong Creek.)

Ripe Cafe 
376-378 Mt Dandenong Tourist Rd, Sassafras

In late January, Sylvia had only been vegan a few weeks.  When thinking about where to eat, we were both wondering if we could get her a good meal.  There weren't heaps of promising places but we only needed one one good one and we found it in Ripe Cafe.  It had an impressive menu for vegans and beautiful food for everyone.

The day before, we had been sweltering with the air conditioner on in 44 C heat.  We had been making contingency plans in case there were bushfires in the Dandenongs.  It was a relief that it was a cooler day and no bushfire warnings when we set out but the buildings were still a bit stuffy.  

One of the signs of that scorching hot day that I remember most was out the front of Ripe.  The hydrangea flowers by the fence were mostly brown and crispy from the extreme heat.  With hindsight, I can see that these outdoor tables were probably the coolest but we were still craving air conditioning!

Inside the building we were welcomed by the rich dark tones of the wood panelling of the older part of the house that is one of the original houses from the early 20th Century soon after it become a village.  It has a rustic cosiness that would be great in winter. 

We sat in the older part of the cafe but at the end where we could enjoy the natural light where it opened onto the back deck.  This is a modern extension in pale wood with large windows opened up to the green trees out the back.  Fans were rotating in the high ceiling but it was still warm inside.

Sylvia and I shared the a couple of items because it was hard to decide which one we each wanted most.  We had the Italian tomato arancini served with salad and aioli ($24).  They were beautifully served with quite a substantial side salad of lettuce, cucumber, carrot, tomato, red pepper and red onion.  I love it when the side salad is bigger than its companion.  The crispy arancini were a fine match for the salad being crisp and tasty.  To drink I had a Remedy wild berry kombucha and Sylvia had an iced coffee.

We also had a magnificent Veggie Big Breakfast of Thai corn cakes with chilli jam, wilted spinach, guacamole, chargrilled pumpkin, dukkah & pecans, sourdough toast, beans, grilled tomato & mushrooms ($30), and a side order of vegan feta ($5).  This was so innovative and beautifully executed.  I really loved that they had the corn cake (even if the chilli jam was a bit too spicy but not outrageously so) and the pumpkin and pecans were also unusual but they worked.  Kudos for the lovely charred tomatoes and I approve of mixing the greens and mushrooms.  The home made beans and the feta were also delicious.  

It was heartening to see how good vegan food could be in the foothills of Melbourne.  On the way out, I really wanted to have one of the gooey brownies at the counter but there were other temptations nearby. 

Through the Looking Glass bookstore
3/383 Mount Dandenong Tourist Rd, Sassafras VIC 3787

Sassafras is one of the tourist towns in the Dandenongs with some fine shops.  We wanted to visit Miss Marple's Tearoom but were so full we browsed the shops first.  We passed the delightfully named Geppetto's Workshop toy store and the sweet aromas of Bluestone Candles before arriving at the gorgeous Through the Looking Glass bookstore.

The displays of books inside is attractively displayed in old wooden bookshelves that are filled with second hand books and on glass shelves with lots of mirrors and lights.  We were first attracted by a great selection of children's literature and then darling literary gifts.  It is filled with books I would love to read and I left with a purchase of the Red Queen by Margaret Drabble, which very much enjoyed reading.

The Little Eclectic Shop
Shop 1/372 Mt Dandenong Tourist Rd, Sassafras 

 

One of the reasons to visit Sassafras for Sylvia was The Little Eclectic Shop.  She knew of it because she is a fan of Moons Claygrounds that sells its gorgeous mushroom pottery here.  But there was so much more to see.  Lots of charming hand crafted items and carefully chosen eclectic second hard wares.  The shop is actually a series of sections by different sellers.  The displays are works of art.  

In this display alone you can see tea cups, floral kitchen canisters, earrings, wooden carved owls, fans, fabric mushrooms, vases, china thimbles, silver jewelry, memorial tea spoons, bunting.  Elsewhere were hard cover Enid Blyton books, stickers, felt dinosaurs, tiaras, hand knitted beanies and bookmarks.

One of my favourite items was the vintage candy dispenser that you can see above which was filled with odd buttons.  Also in the bottom left hand corner is a silver filigree butterfly hair barette with a stick that I bought for Sylvia for her birthday.  She loved it.
 

Miss Marple's Tearoom
382 Mount Dandenong Tourist Road, Sassafras

The famous Miss Marple's Tearoom is just a few doors down from Ripe so we could not pass up the opportunity to visit.  Initially we were concerned that there was nothing more for Sylvia than a drink.  Then we were delighted when she saw online that they have vegan scones with jam and cream.  It is such as delightful slice of English village life in an unlikely setting.

The exterior recreation of an English cottage looks odd in an Australian bush town.  Walking inside is like stepping back in time.  I have been there a couple of times previously.  You can read my post about a previous visit to Miss Marple's tearoom for Christmas in July.  Sylvia can't remember visiting with me and her dad when she was 2 years old.  (A couple of photos from that visit are in this post.) 

We were very pleased to be at Miss Marple's on the day when school went back when it was quiet and there was no waiting list.  You can't book so there are often queues. Unlike past visits, there was plenty of choice for where to sit.

There is so much to admire in the cosy village decor: the dark beams on the pale ceiling, the pots by the fireplace, the floral table cloths, the cute window seats, and the shelves around the walls holding old teapots. I am sure it would be a lovely setting for one of Miss Marple's denouements after solving a crime.

On the walls are black and white photos of Margaret Rutherford as Miss Marple.  She was well known in the 1960s for her role playing the amateur detective in films based on Agatha Christie's murder mystery novels. Miss Marple is an elderly spinster in villages riff with gossip and secrets.  I imagine that she would be quite at home in the this tea room but I am not sure the scones would be quite up to her standard,

This is the window seat where we sat.  Although it was a quiet day, the window seats were popular and we were lucky to chance upon one when someone was leaving.  It is so charmingly frilling and floral and cosy.

As I mentioned above, the scones were not the best I had had.  I was surprised that the normal scone were large wedges cut from a tray of scones rather than the traditional round scones.  They were a bit dry too but nice with jam and cream.  I was lucky that mine weren't as dry as Sylvia's round vegan scones.  She had vegan whipped coconut cream which was a nice gesture but a bit melty as coconut cream can be.  The highlight was the surperb home made strawberry jam.  That is to be expected in a part of Melbourne well known for its orchards and berry farms.

It is one of those ironies that we long for a traditional devonshire tea because it is part of the culture we grew up with but love the idea more than the reality.  My mum still regularly whips up a batch of scones.  Traditional scones are made with butter as well as heaped with crea.  Not at all vegan-friendly.  Sylvia had a big glass of red lemonade because we were still recovering from the scorcher the day before.  I had a peppermint tea and I do not like what a friend would call normali-tea.  Tanens do not agree with me.  Also I am not keen on cream.  We were not there for scone but for the vibe and despite the scones not being perfect, we were very happy to have afternoon tea at Miss Marples. 

 

 

One other highlight was the staff.  They were really friendly and seemed happy to have a quiet day after the busy summer school holiday period.  It made for a relaxed visit.  After we paid, we had a look at all the jams and teapots on the old dresser by the door.

There were also many more tea pots on the shelf that ran around the high up the wall.  They were so fun to view with lots of them reflecting the traditional English villages such as the ones above in the shapes of an old cottage, a railway station, a red postbox and a table set for tea.  These were the sort of teapots you might find in an old fashioned English home and added to the charm of the tea rooms.

Cloudehill Gardens, 
Olinda

Our last place to visit was the Cloudehill Gardens (89 Olinda-Monbulk Rd) the next town along from Sassafras.  I had worried the gardens might look a bit wilting after a scorcher the previous day but they were gorgeous and green with lots of colourful flowers and welcome shade.  It was so much cooler outdoors and I enjoyed strolling around.  

 

The gardens had some very formal landscaping with lots of hedges and entrances to spaces framed by hedges or garden walls.  We only occasionally saw another couple wandering around but mostly it felt quite private.

 

 

Most but not all the details in this photo collage were from the more formal parts of the garden.  The flowers, water lilies, grape vines and occasionally pieces of garden art.

 

This tree was wonderfully complex with twirly branches twisting out at all angles like athe snake haired Medusa or maybe even like a bonsai tree all grown up!  It would not be out of place in a spooky horror movie or as one of the talking trees in Babes in the Wood.  As you can see, it evoked so many wonderful images!  

On the website, the history focuses on the 1920s for bringing rare and exotic plants from England, the USA and Japan.  I would have liked to ask if this was one of the trees that are almost 100 years old if I had read about these before we visited.

This view from the back of a brick shelter over a bench seat is another example of the wonderful framing of the garden.  We sat here for a rest and were surprised to hear what we thought were bells.

 

This was the pleasing view from our bench seat.  Lush garden framed the steps to The Commedia dell’arte Lawn.  I walked up that way in the direction of the bells but could not see anything and it was surrounded by hedges.  Instead I enjoyed admiring pieces of art.
 

Later as I walked high along by the kitchen garden, where I wished I could have some of the abundance of zucchinis or rhubarb.  I could hear the bells again so I followed the path to this structure that had huge wind chimes that were ringing out in the breeze like some mysterious magical calling.

From the bench seat, Sylvia and I parted ways as I decided to go further down into the less formal part of the garden.  There were avenues of trees, gentle steps, occasional artworks but less of the framing hedges and walls with flowers and water features.  Above is the Beech Walk.

In the less formal parts I would come across statues such as this one among the urns.  Some statues were the classical sort sort you might expect in a Victorian garden and there were quite a few of this woman.  I don't know who she is but it looks more person than the classical statues.

Towards the end I got lost, despite the helpful look of this little wombat figure at the top of stairs with tree ferns either side.  The map I was given at reception got confusing in the wilder areas.  Since then I have seen the map on the Cloudehill website which looks more helpful.  It has more details of the garden drawn in and comes with information about different areas.  Perhaps if I had had this map I would not have been messaging Sylvia that I would meet her at the gift shop as soon as I could find my way there. 

Tealeaves Tea Shop
29 Olinda-Monbulk Rd, Olinda

Our last stop was in Olinda where I was attracted to this find piece of Alice in Wonderland art on the wall of the Tealeaves tea shop.  I took a photo and had a quick look in the shop.  I remember when the Tealeaves shop was close to Miss Marples Tearoom in Sassafras.  The tea shop moved to Olinda in 2025 so they had more space for the huge range of mugs, teapots, tea accessories and loose leaf teas.  

By then I was quite tired and it was I was quite tired and could not give the shop the attention it deserved, but I enjoyed looking over the Australiana mugs and quirky teapots.  However I had a long drive ahead of me so I was soon back in the car to head home.

More Dandenongs visits in Green Gourmet Giraffe posts:

• Miss Marples - Christmas in July, 2008
• Tulip Festival - 2012 
• Puffing Billy - vintage steam engine journey, 2013
• 1000 steps (walking track) in 2014