In My Kitchen: July 2026

July was a crazy cold month!  It was puffer jacket weather, especially when we were told that the heating at work was out of order until the end of winter.  The month started with school holidays and it just never returned to routine: Sylvia got sick, my bike had a flat tyre and there were lots of changes at work.  We had some good news with the work heating getting fixed earlier plus the pleasure of new armchair and some family history research.  Not much time or energy for new dinner recipes but lots of good food nevertheless.  I will soon write more about our outings in My Monthly Chronicles: July 2026.

Changes in technology drives me batty.  Too many websites are suddenly inaccessible without a login.  I usually just check my GoodReads books without logging in when I am at the shops so I know if I have read a book (I find it hard to keep up with what I have read in a series).  A few weeks ago in an op shop I found I could only see my books by logging in.  So I winged it and bought the book anyway and then got home and found I had read it!  Argh! On the same day I was not impressed to discover that Yahoo suddenly reduced the free emails cap from 1 terrabyte to 15 gigabytes.  It was painful but also liberating to reduce my yahoo emails from 17GB to 12GB.  Now I just need to keep them down and try and delete more photos off my phone!  It is neverending keeping up with technology.

My siblings have recently had quite a bit of travel between them.  My brother Dave was in China and brought us back a brilliant hot pot fridge magnet that you can see above with our foodie fridge magnets.

We didn't make many new meals this month but I enjoyed revisiting a few favourites.  Clockwise from top left:

• Our version of Minestrone is on our weekly meals a lot.  This one included parsnip and fennel
• Samosa pie - this is like an Indian style pot pie and tastes so good - why has it been so long since I made it!  (It had a lot of liquid so I added a spoonful of cornflour.)
• Meera Sodha's Vegan Broccoli, Fennel, Chickpea and Orzo Stew was one of the meals we made again after loving it the previous month.
• And Fried rice with tofu scramble - but a little different to usual with Sylvia making her tofu scramble separately so we could add it at the end of the fried rice instead of cooked in it.  One big advantage of this was the the turmeric only coloured the scramble so it contrasted with the pale rice.
   

I have posted about my Vegan roast dinner pizza using short cuts.  One of the shortcuts was making roast potatoes in the air fryer.  It only works with a small batch with our small air fryer.  I got tired of either wiping up a greasy air fryer tray or using paper inserts so I have purchased a silicone air fryer insert that be easily washed.  I first bought a nicer more expensive one but it did not fit so I gifted it to my mum who loves it.  Ours is cheaper and brighter and does the trick!
 

These frozen samosa pastizzi are a new favourite.  We buy thim in FOY next to the Coburg Woolworths at $11 for 12.  They take between 15-20 minutes in the air fryer at 220 C.  The crispy pastry and spicy vegeie filling are so delicious to pull apart.  It is a challenge to try and wait for the steaming heat to subside.  This is the only pastizzi there that are vegan.  While not that cheap, they are better value at 850g than the vegan samoa packet in the next door supermarket that is $12 for 500g.

A favourite from my childhood is is curried sausages.  I figured out how to do a tray bake of vegetarian baked curried sausages a while back and revisited the recipes when we needed warming food.  Sylvia is starting to really enjoy some curried meals so it was good to see her enjoy it.

I bookmarked a recipe for a one banana banana cake quite some time ago.  As I am now eating a few more of them I put one aside to get old and soft to try this banana bread.  It was a vegan banana bread with a crumble topping.  We loved it.  There is another old banana in the fridge right now so perhaps the universe is telling me I need to make this again!  Well, who dares to say no to the universe!

We are also having more sauerkraut in our kitchen on rice bowls and sandwiches.  The Gaga's gut loving Raw dill pickle kraut is a favourite.

While on Smith street to have lunch at Not so sushi,we had a wander down the street to browse some of the foode shops: Friends of the Earth, Soul Foods, Alimentari and Hinoki.  We mostly resisted temptation but at Hinoki we bought a couple of Daifuku (a strawberry and a green tea) and a packet of frozen edamame.  We use edamame quite a bit and needed some, but I think I was also swayed by the cute red checked packet.

 

I am a fan of these salt and vinegar sweet potato nibbles which are a pleasing light snack.  Sylvia enjoys them because they are vegan unlike a lot of flavoured crisps.  We just can't work out why a flavouring like lime and black pepper needs to have milk in the ingredients.  

We went to the Coburg Farmers Market because it was the last market appearance by the always amazing vegan Better Now Bakes before they open their new shop in Brunswick East.  As usual we were too tempted and came away with so much fantastic baking: the richest best tahini brownie, the piquant pickle chive and dill scone, a fluffy tasty Japanese curry focaccia (with potato, furikake and seaweed?), a pleasing yuzu white choc and coconut cake and a scrumptious and gorgeous apple maple and pecan cake.  We will miss them at the market but can't wait to visit their new shop which is set to open very soon.

We bought some beige food from KFL - soy chunks, potato curry puffs and vegan eggs - that made the vegan ham from the supermarket look colourful!  The curry puffs weren't anywhere near as good as the samosa pastizzi's above but Sylvia loved them.  She has also been enjoying vegan ham and cheese sandwiches.  There are some plans for the soy chunks but we have no idea how to pry apart the frozen vegan fried eggs.

Here are some vegan supermarket purchases: iced matcha latte with oat milk, hearty mushroom and lentil pies, vanilla rice puds, packaged tofu scramble, the tea collection of iced mochi (hojicha, genmaicha and matcha), and a frozen mango sticky rice with coconut milk.  We have had most of these - the pies were really good with a pre-chopped kale slaw pack, the scramble was nice enough in a taco bowl, Sylvia was excited about the sticky rice with mango and the mochi.  There is a wee box of panadol to signal there there was pain too but not enough to stop Sylvia eating good food.

When I asked my sister Fran to surprise me when she had me in my family KK gift giving I knew she would find something interesting.  With the cold weather we finally got to try the Ground Pleasures original hot chocolate powder that she gave us.  It was amazing.  I am pretty fussy with hot chocolate powder but this was so good that we finished it within weeks.  Sylvia gave it a dash of pizazz with her hand held milk frother and a sprinkle of hot chocolate powder on top.  It is not the cheapest and is not in supermarkets but we might need another box before the end of winter.

Life is chaotic and busy so it is wonderful when we can slow down and create collages.  This is one I made in the kitchen in July.  You can see the mess it makes in the background of the hot chocolate photo but even with the cleaning up, it is a relaxing activity.

 

It is a year since we had our house painting.  Two of the outstanding things to do over that time were to buy a new chair for the loungeroom and to find a green teacup for the glass kitchen cabinet.  In July we managed to achieve both.  We have looked at so many photos of chairs on FaceBook market place and found it really hard to find the right one.  This floral chair was not my ideal but it is close enough for jazz!

In June I bought a green teapot and tea cup set that I really love.  More recently Sylvia fell in love with another green teapot set, this time at the Salvos op shop where we bought our chair.  It has not been easy to fit both tea sets into the cabinet but Sylvia was determined and made it work.  I have compared the three iterations of our cabinet above.  In July 2025 I organised a fairly spacious cabinet after quite a few items were sent to the op shop.  The following month Sylvia reorganised with some of the op shop pieces she loved.  Then in July 2026 the cabinet is now full with lots of lovely green.

Finally here is a close up of the cabinet so you can admire some of the detail on the new green sugar bowl with a few sentimental items including a gnome salt and pepper shaker I bought as a child and a green decanter I bought when living in student share houses,

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 event that brings together some wonderful bloggers who share glimpses into their kitchens.  

CERES Winter Solstic 2026

We had good memories of the Winter Solstice at Ceres in 2024 so we went again.  This year it was done differently with a family friend Friday night and an adult only celebration the next night.  We went on Saturday which was different from last time, with a craft market and a gorgeous festive space in an old train carriage, as well as the usual food trucks and music.  It was a rainy night but so enjoyable to spend the wet dark night at CERES where, as the website said "a time to reflect, reconnect, and celebrate the light’s return."

with a small craft market with lots of great products.  I really loved how they decorated an old train with a Christmas tree and candles and reflective words.  

Combined the lights in the darkness, the pagan celebrations 

dark - different from last time - kids and adults

This year we will be holding not one, but two solstice celebrations – a family-friendly Friday night and an adult-only celebration. Both will culminate in 

website

kids celebrations and fun but adults more reflection and reconnection  

When we arrived about 5.30, it was still light and the rain was holding off.  We were greeted with the stals in the Mystic Marketpace.  I enjoy arriving at a party early to get my bearings before it gets too lively.  That was how this felt.  (The tickets to the event were booked out well in advance.)

Soon the darkness fell upon us to provide a canvas for the warm glow of welcoming lights.  We love visiting this beautiful green community environmental space that is a green oasis in the midst of our city.  It was lovely to see it lit up on the longest night of the year.

The market stalls were mostly crafts; lots of candles and crystals with the occasional honey and fudge.  One of my favourite stalls was the Beaded Petal Co where beads had been painstakingly threaded onto wires and bent into exquisite flowers.  You can see a close up of the flowers in the below photo collage.
 

We moved on into the indoor market with more interesting products on offer.  One of my favourite stalls had the sea anemone and air plant jelly fish.  I loved the dark wicca illustrations and jewelley and there were many candles and crystals to add to the gentle lighting.  It was still fairly quiet when we first looked but really busy later.  

The winter solstice is the perfect time for mulled wine and I am quite partial to a snifter.  I bought some in the CERES Merri Cafe & Bar near the car park but it was also on offer further towards the creek among the food trucks.  I was pleased I remembered to take a keep cup even though I could not find my glass keep cup.  It was just the warming drink I needed for the wintery evening.

We didn't go to the uv face painting station but instead walked down the hill to the music and food trucks space under rows of ligths.  I was delighted with some native Australian animal lights.  Above is a pink koala.

Behind this fun possum light you can see the "stage"for the bands.  The live music added to the mellow mood.  Unfortunately it was not great weather to stand around watching the bands.

We wanted to chec out the food trucks before there were any queues.  Sylvia had decided she would make a beeline for Wokking Amazing which you can see behind the kangaroo light above.  The brightly painted and brightly lit truck beckons in the darkness.

I was keen to try the Samosa Chaat a the Purple rabbit food truck.  It was an Indian inspired meal of -smashed samosa in a chickpea curry served with mint tamarind chutne, cashew yoghurt and a crispy potato topping.  

We stopped at the CERES Kitchen stall which was serving cakes and hot drinks.  Sylvia was impressed that the Chai latte was vegan.  (I was surprised that despite many being made with soy milk, not all of them are because there can be honey added on milk in the chair mix.)  She enjoyed her warming drink.

Once we had our meals and drinks, it was cold and drizzling with so we headed to the sheltered half of the building with the band on the other side.  In the foreground of the picture is a little wombat light.

The sheltered space had floral arrangements where mulled wine and other alcoholic drinks were being sold at a bar.  There were only a handful of tables which were already occupied.  We asked to share a table with two free chairs and were welcomed by a couple of friendly women.  As we ate and chatted, the space filled up and got noisy with all the socialising as well as the live music behind the bar.

Sylvia had bought a Peking duck pancake and a nuggets and chips munch box from Wokking Amazing and was very pleased with her choices.  I had some of the chips but was not so keen on nuggets or mock duck.  My samosa chaat was very satisfying and I was glad it was not too spicy for me. 

CERES has an old Red Rattler train carriage and it was very welcome with the wet cold night.  It is two spaces with tarot readings in one half and a reflective festive space in the other half. 

Christmas decorations can sometimes seem like the commercial part of a religious event.  The festive space in the train with a Christmas tree, candles and greenery felt more authentic.  It makes so much more sense to have them in winter than in our usual summer Christmas.  It seemed more in sync with nature and the focus was on reflecting on the cycles of nature and the candles being symbolic of calling the sun.

I really loved this space but it was busy.  We had a short queue outside to get in and were directed to move in a line along the displays rather than being able to really stop and reflect in the way I would have liked.  Having said this, I found it a calm and hopeful space.

Along the way were contemplative readings among the candles and fairy light that were keeping the dark at bay.  People were quiet as they slowly moved through the carriage and there was a sense that the space was as sacred as any church.

At the end of the journey was a place where we were invited to write down our obstacles in life to be burnt to ashes and our intentions that we wished to bring to the light which would be planted to create fertile soil and new life.

It was odd to step outside back into the world.  More people were queuing to get in and there was another queue nearby for the tarot card readings.  

We stood by one of the fire pits to warm up in the drizzling rain.  A small woman at our side talked to us about how she was about to have her first performance as a fire dancer and of her respect for the flames.  I really wanted to stay to see the fire sculpture that was promised as a spectacular finale but it was rainy and the ground was pitted with puddles.  Instead we headed home feeling the calm and glow of the solstice.

CERES Winter Solstice
Corner Roberts & Stewart Streets
Brunswick East, VIC 3057
5pm - 10pm, Saturday 20 June 2026
https://ceres.org.au/winter-solstice/

To see links to most posts on CERES, go to my CERES Winter Solistice 2024 post. 

Vegan roast dinner pizza using short cuts

I have been eating roast dinners since I was a small child.  They come naturally to me.  Even being a vegetarian has not changed this.  So when Sylvia said we should have a vegan roast dinner pizza I embraced it wholeheartedly.  Although it took about 3 hours from making the dough to taking the pizza out of the oven, it was fun to do on a quiet night when I could jut potter around the kitchen.  If you love pizza and love roast dinners, and are open to experimenting, this one is for you!

We made a pizza chunky with brussels sprouts, roast potato, nut roast and cauliflower and flavoured with gravy, white sauce, brie and cranberry sauce.  It was a lot of work but it was worth it.  I am writing it up here today because I want to record some of the ways I made an effort to make it easier.

You can see in my photos that this was a modern pizza, not just because it veered away from traditional pizza toppings but also because it used the air fryer for the potatoes.  I hadn't made air fryer roast potatoes before but I would do it again, especially for a small batch of roast potatoes.

My air fryer is quite small so it took two batches of potatoes at 20 minutes each to roast.  It doesn't sound so quick but it worked well on a busy day when I was juggling lots of recipes and could use the timer on the air fryer to remind me when I got distracted.  I think the constant shaking helped them get crisped up.  In the first batch I was careful turning them and spraying again when turned.  The second batch was sprayed with oil once and shaken lots of times to distribute a small amount of oil and salt.

I also made the cauliflower cheese in the microwave, the fried the nut roast ion top of the stove and steamed the brussel sprouts in the microwave.  I am used to the convenience of steaming sprouts in the microwave but this was the first time I used these short cuts that made it easier to cook the cauliflower cheese and nut roast.  

Usually I made a white sauce for the cauliflower cheese in a fry pan, boil the cauliflower, then tip the sauce over the drained cauliflower and add grated cheese before baking.  This time I just made the roux in the microwave like I have seen my mum doing.  It needed some good stirring but seemed quicker.

Nut roasts, as the name implies, are cooked in the oven.  They are usually a loaf that takes quite a while to bake and the when done they need time to cool to avoid being sludgy.  So I cooked mine on the stovetop.  It was more like a burger but the mixture was classic nut roast.  Once I had fried it, I used my egg flip (or spatula) to break it into small chunks to make nut roast crumbles.

I am recording what I did to make all these components because short cuts is how I manage my life (or try to).  I have many ways I can eat a quick gravy, easy white sauce or short cut nut roast crumbles.  Of course this is not fool proof.  I have already tried the white sauce again.  I misread the recipe and added 2 cups of milk instead of 1 1/4 cups and had to change up the timing, incorporate more flour and butter with rigorous stirring and increased the flavours.  At least it wasn't that hard to begin with so it was less stress when it didn't go quite right!

It took me so long to get all the ingredients ready so I could add the toppings to the pizza base that my fast track sourdough pizza dough rose for much longer than usual (about 2 hours) and was in great shape as a result.  

Making everything for pizza meant it did not want to be cooked too much because it gets a second burst of cooking when the pizza is baked.  It also did not have to all be hot at the same time, which is one of the challenges of serving a roast dinner, because it would all be hot once baked on a pizza base.

 

The first item to go on the pizza was the gravy.  I usually fry onion til quite soft to make a gravy because it adds great flavour.  My mum just used gravox powder and water on the pan that the meat is cooked.  I decided I could bypass the onions and focus on frying the flour and adding flavours.  I added some vegemite to darken it because light coloured gravy looks odd to me!  The gravy was a success!  This short cut is not just for this pizza but because Sylvia has learnt to love gravy (at last) and wants me to make it more often.

Then I arranged the ingredients one by one.  They ended up being quite crowded but I liked that there were individual pieces that made me feel like I was eating a roast dinner.  It was like being Violet Beauregarde being amazed at the flavours when chewing on the 3 course gum at Willy Wonka chocolate factory.  Only, I am sure you will agree that pizza is better than gum!
 

This pizza is perfect for a fun alternative to a Christmas roast dinner or for jaded pizza lovers.  Both of these worked for us.  I love Christmas in July.  Sylvia is tired of the same old pizzas.  We were both delighted with our amazing roast dinner pizzas.

More roast dinners on Green Gourmet Giraffe: 

• Roast dinner like mum used to make - nut roast, roast potatoes, roast pumpkin, cauliflower cheese, peas and gravy
• Parsnip nut roast with onion and sundried tomato gravy, mashed potatoes with olives and yorkshire puddings
• Stilton nut roast with stuffing balls, roast potatoes, roast pumpkin, sprouts, gravy and cranberry sauce
• Haggis and cheese mole nut roast with chocolate and red wine gravy, roast pumpkin and sprouts
• Golden beetroot nut roast with roast potato chips, roast pumpkin and creamy leeks and peas.  

Vegan roast dinner pizza 
An original Green Gourmet Giraffe recipe
Serves 4-6 

• 2 x large pizza bases (I used my fast track pizza bases)
• handful or two of brussel sprouts, trimmed and halved
• 1/2 a wheel of vegan brie, diced 
• 2-3 dessertspoons of cranberry sauce 

Air fried roast potatoes 

• 4 medium potatoes, chopped
• olive oil
• salt

Microwave cauliflower cheese

• 1/2 head of cauliflower, cut into florets 
• 1 dessertspoon of vegan butter
• 2 dessertspoons of wholemeal flour
• 1 1/4 cup soy milk
• 1/4-1/2 cup nutritional yeast flakes
• 1/2-1 tsp seeded mustard, 
• 1/2 tsp garlic granules
• juice of half a lemon
• pinch of salt

Frypan nut roast crumbles

• 1 medium piece of dried bread, grated (I used rye) grated
• 1/3 cup walnuts, crushed with a fork
• generous dessertspoon of white sauce
• 1/tsp dried onion granules 
• 1/4 tsp dried mixed herbs 

Easy gravy 

• 1-2 dessertspoons vegan butter 
• 2 button mushrooms, finely chopped
• 2 dessertspoons of flour 
• 1 cup water 
• 1 tbsp tomato sauce
• 1 tsp stock powder 
• 1/2 to 1 tsp vegemite (gives it colour) 
• 1/2 to 1 tsp dried mixed herbs 
• 1/2 tsp garlic granules
• 1/2 tsp onion granules 
• 1/4 tsp smoked paprika
• good grinding of black pepper

Air fried roast potatoes  

Placed in saucepan with pinch of salt and cover with boiling water.  Bring to boil and then simmer for about 2 minutes or until almost cooked.  Drain.

Spread potatoes in one layer in the air fryer (if your air fryer is small like mine you will need to do this in two batches).  Spray with olive oil, and sprinkle with a pinch of salt. Air fry for 10 minutes at 220, 6 minutes at 200, 4 minutes at 190, shaking half way and at the end of each period. 

Microwave cauliflower cheese

Steam cauliflower florets with a little water until just tender.  (About 5 minutes but check and shake around midway through.)  It needs to be firm enough that it wont fall to pieces when being stirred into the white sauce.

Melt 1 tbsp vegan butter in microwave in a small mixing bowl (30-40 seconds).  Mix in flour and microwave for 20-40 second.  It should be cooked enough that it dries out slightly and smells cooked.  

Gradually add in the soy milk.  At the beginning add just a small amount each time and stir vigorously after each addition until it is a smooth mixture.  (If you add it too quickly it is hard to stir in and is more likely to be lumpy.)  As the mixture gets thinner, add a bit more and a bit more until it is thin enough to add quite a lot.

One all the milk is incorporated, microwave until it thickens (about 1-2 minutes.  It can bubble up high so needs to be in a bowl with some extra space and checked regularly).  I found the top part of the sauce will thicken quicker than the bottom and needs to be well stirred in after about 30 seconds. 

Add nutritional yeast flakes, a pinch of salt, seeded mustard, garlic granules and juice of half a lemon. Taste and adjust flavours if necessary.  

When the sauce is done, tip in the cooked cauliflower and gently toss in the sauce.

Nut roast crumbles

Heat frypan.  I use a cast iron frypan which can heat forever  but if a lighter frypan I just heat it on low and turn up heat when ready, if necessary.

Mix all ingredients together to make a stiff mixture (a bit thicker than a dough).  Take handfuls of mixture and flatten into a small discs (about 5cm in diameter) with damp hands (to stop it sticking).  

Take pieces of mixture and flatter into a disk.  Spray frypan with olive oil and fry disks over high heat until browned on each side.  A bit of crunch is good as you want some different textures on the pizza.  Use a spatula to break up in the pan or take off the pan and chop into chunks.

Easy gravy

Melt 1 tbsp butter in a med frypan  Fry the mushrooms for a few minutes until softened.  Stir in the wholemeal flour to make a thick paste (roux).  If it is really dry you can add another tablespoon of butter.  Fry, stirring frequently, until it browns slightly and smells cooked.

Gradually add 1 cup water, stirring well after each addition to make sure there are no lumps.  Stir in the remaining ingredients, noting that the vegemite needs some good stirring so it colours all the gravy rather than ending up as a black blob (you could stir a spoonful of water into it before adding it if you prefer).

When all the ingredients are mixed in, heat over high heat, stirring frequently, until it boils and thickens slightly.  (It will thicken more as a cools).

Brussels Sprouts: steam halved sprouts with a little water in a microwave tub for about 3.5 minutes or until just soft when stabbed with a sharp knife 

To prepare the pizza:

[Press or roll out the dough to make 2 large pizza bases if you are not using pre-made bases.]

Preheat the oven to 200 C.  Spread each base with gravy, arrange cauliflower pieces, brussel sprout halves, and potatoes on top.  Sprinkle with nut roast crumbles.  Dot the brie and cranberry sauce around the toppings.  Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the toppings olden brown and the edges of the pizza base are golden brown and sounds hollow when tapped.  Serve hot or warm.  Can be kept wrapped in baking paper overnight and reheated tge following day.

Notes:

The components should not be cooked until they are too soggy.  They need to be cooked until just tender and then when cooked again on the pizza they will continue to soften.  They can be prepared ahead of time.

If you don't have pizza bases, you can just make a roast dinner with these components 

There are many possible versions:

• I used my fast track pizza bases.  I make these regularly to keep my sourdough starter alive but I have also made them as fast track yeasted pizza bases (without sourdough).  Either are really easy but even easier is buying pizzas bases ready made.
• Sylvia sliced her brie rather than cutting it into blobs.  
• I would add roast pumpkin. 
• Sylvia would add roast carrots.  
• I would double the nut roast as it didn't make enough of an impact.  
• If you don't have dried bits of bread in the freezer that need grating into breadcrumbs, you could buy breadcrumbs or blitz some old bread in the blender. 
• If you are making the nut roast without the white sauce in the picture, you can substitute with , silken tofu and besan, or a yoghurt or cream cheese or an egg and maybe a bit of seasoning if needed.  I would even use a mashed banana.  Anything goes to moosh together all the dry ingredients into a thick dough.
• If brussels sprouts are out of season other green such as peas would work.  
• If mashed potato are what you are used to in roasts then you can use that instead of roast potatoes.
• If you have leftovers from a roast dinner they would be really quick to make into a pizza.  
• We used Damona vegan brie.  If vegan is optional, you could use dairy brie or camembert instead.  Or  there is enough flavour to just leave out the cheese.

Also:

I know the white sauce is béchamel sauce, just as I know that cauliflower cheese is cauliflower gratin.  But sometimes I am just the kid from the country and not at all fancy!

On the Stereo:
Mink Car: They Might be Giants 

Not so sushi, Collingwood

Our visit to Not So Sushi  started with Sylvia discovering that they were selling vegan deep fried burger sushi that weekend.  In a city where sushi is sold widely, this was an unexpected novelty.  Who could resist!  What followed was full of delicious crispy sushi, surprising good cucumber in a soda, and a peanut allergy fail that was totally our fault.

 

We got there before lunchtime in case they sold out.  Not so sushi was pretty quiet when we arrived and there were plenty of beautifully presented sushi in the display cases.  By the time we left it was much busier.

The sign on the wall reading "not so sushi, no rules, just rolls" proclaimed this as a place of innovation rather than tradition. It was an exciting change from the same old rotation of vegan hand rolls fillings in food courts.  It is usually, vegetables and tofu, avocado and cucumber or seaweed salad, which the occasional tempura fritter or slices of tofu fillings.

The sushi in the display cabinet looked gorgeous with the unusual drizzle of flavoured mayo on top.  The signs were very clear with ingredients and allergens.  We had to wait for our deep fried sushi to be freshly deep fried.
  

Once we had our sushi we went to the condiment station where we helped ourselves to chopsticks and small dipping bowls.  We bypassed the most interested sounding sauces - such as chilli honey, miso hot sauce and lemon myrtle & yuzu ponzu - and filled our bowls with the standard soy sauce and pickled ginger.

The drinks came in these transparent "cans" which look amazing.  I just wish that I could recycle them but don't think that I can with the metal lids fused onto the plastic bodies.  In the spirit of trying new things, I chose a Fizzy Cucumber & Mint Iced Tea - with blueberry puree ($9).  It was so good; the cucumber juice being a refreshing addition foil for the sweet drink.  I would definitely have this again.  Sylvia was also very pleased with her Blueberry Matcha (also $9).  We even got instructions on how much to shake each one when they were served.
 

There were so stools at benches inside but we decided to go outside and sit on the footpath.  It was a nice enough Winter's day and we were glad to sit under a big umbrella in case it rained. You can see below that we had a great view of the busy intersection between Smith and Elgin Streets and the 19th Century buildings on the corners.

There are our deep fried sushi.  We got two of the Vegan miso mac sushi roll ($5.20 each), at the right in the above photo,because Sylvia was so excited about them.  The grilled mock beef patty with onions sand pickles were crumbed, deep fried until they were crisp andf drizzled with miso mustard mac sauce,  She loved them but I found them rather a lot of mock meat (not my thing).  I was far more impressed with the deep fried vegan falafel sushi roll (left in above photo).  Unfortunately I didn't not note down the ingredients but I think it might have had hummus and pickles.

We also had a couple of chilled hand rolls: a Beetroot & Wasabi roll with beetroot, confit garlic wasabi mayo, cucumber, avocado, and a Broccoli & Edamame roll with roasted broccoli, smashed edamame, roasted sesame dressing.  They were really good.  Sylvia is not a lover of beetroot but loved it with wasabi.

After finishing our sushi, Sylvia fished around in her purse for an antihistamine pill.  She wasn't feeling great.  This was her second visit her and on the first she had felt really sick after the her first one.  When trying to work out what it could be, we found in the sign by the Broccoli and edamame sushi that clearly stated it contained peanuts.  We are usually pretty careful with Sylvia's peanut allergy but had missed this.  Perhaps because the ingredients seemed so unlikely to have peanuts.  I asked inside and was told that there was a small amount of peanuts in a pre-made sauce that goes into the roasted sesame dressing.  

I am relieved that it was only a small amount of peanuts and that Sylvia didn't have an anaphylactic reaction (because it is possible for her allergy to get worse).  It is her first known exposure to peanuts since she was diagnosed at the age of one with a peanut challenge test.  This was a reminder to us to be careful in looking out for peanuts in future.  Most of the sushi in Not So Sushi does not have peanuts so we hope to return but will check the labels more carefully next time.

Not So Sushi
334 Smith St, Collingwood 
Open: ​​Tues- Sun: 11am - 4pm
https://www.notsosushi.com.au/