welcome home!

There's nothing like coming home after a short stay away (or a long stay for that matter). Suddenly the space you were once feeling stifled in suddenly feels comfortably familiar. The smell, the furniture, the nooks and crannies, it all feels like home.  That's the feeling I got today when I walked back into my cozy hollywood hills cottage.

Although it's barely large enough to swing a cat in (sorry cat lovers) it's accumulated all the things that I love. The flea market finds, the hand me downs from family and friends, my shameless attempts at art, for better or worse, it all spells out the life that my love and I have created.

Though I can't deny that after spending some time on Design Sponge, I found some spaces that I'd also feel really comfortable coming home too...

This is my type of pantry! Everything in beautiful Jars like some kind of old fashioned food apothecary. Gotta love that rustic over head lighting too!

 Love these rustic shelves. I also love collecting rocks from different places I've travelled to. I have a fun little collection from all over the world.

This is an outdoor vintage tent ideal for leisurely outdoor entertaining. It's also has a beautiful daybed for sleeping the day away after one too many bites or sips of that desired cocktail... swwoooooonnn 

I love the idea of sneaking art into every moment of your life.... even the moments you'd least expect!

Bedrooms are to me, one of THE most important rooms in your house. It's the place we all usually gravitate to, to rest or heal.   It's super important to me that these spaces are clean and peaceful and allow me the tranquility to rest up in order to be energized for the day ahead!

xo tash

Full Moon!

It always made sense to me that the word "lunatic" centered around the word "lunar"... I grew up hearing stories of ER's overflowing with patients and my Dad's warning of "be careful tonight kid", was like clockwork during a full moon.  This weekend was quite the moon! Hope you all had a delightful weekend gazing up at that glowing beam of light.

Candy Darling...

Enjoying all that San Francisco has to offer is a full time job! I've been coming here regularly for almost four years now and I'm still finding things that I love about this city... Today I was delighted to indulge in one of my favorite past times, sugar! For those of you that have passed through these parts more than once, you'll notice my sincere affinity for all things sweet, like here, here, here and here (just to name a few!).

So when I heard about Candy Darling, from Gwyneth Paltrow's blog GOOP, I couldn't help but make the short trip to check it out for myself.

I must admit that when I arrived I felt an immediate pang of sadness as I was sure that they were going out of business. Fortunately this was not the case! The almost empty store front laden with boxes was nothing more than their onsite manufacturing operation bursting at the seams.

This boutique family business is filled with enough charm and high quality chocolate to have you coming back for more. While their selection was not wide the customer service was delightful and they did express plans to have the store filled by Christmas time! I told the owner that I'd be back to test all the new products.

...and I am a woman of my word :)

Til next time, Candy Darling.

xx tash

Take Me Out

...to the baaaalll game!

Whilst we do have baseball in Australia, everyone knows that it's one of America's most treasured past times.  After being in Los Angeles 5 years, I've only just experienced my first game at San Francisco's Giants AT&T Park. Oh boy was I spoiled, this stadium is absolutely stunning and if you're like me and not always the best follower of sports, you can gaze off into the surrounding bay, get lost in the sail boats and just join in on the fun parts like cheering and eating! :) 

Apparently if a player hits a ball into the glove, the coke bottle pops open and someone in the stadium wines $1 000 000!... Mind you, that's yet to actually happen!

....as always, thanks for stopping by xx

Oui Oui!

Tonight we had dinner at one of my all time favorite French restaurants which happens to be in San Francisco.  Garçon is packed with French charm and enough accents to have you believing you somehow avoided the pesky international airport and arrived somewhere in the Parisian district all within a short car ride through the Mission district.  With the delightful option of a Prix Fix menu, Executive chef Arthur Wall will truly make your taste buds dance! I'm so sorry about the quality of photos, once the wine was flowing and the lights were dimmed, I put down the camera to partake in some enlightening intellectual debate and dabble in the chocolate lava cake, creme brulee and blueberry sorbet... Oh how very French of me!

Copain, Syrah, 2007 'tous ensemble'

Seafood chowder

Grilled Asparagus and deep fried egg with rocket salad

Big Sur... Yes Sir!

Today was the day that we travelled to my favorite place in California, Big Sur.  We stopped by my favorite Bakery aptly named "Big Sur Bakery" and devoured some of their finest cuisine.  The food is absolutely delicious and always lingers in my memory long after the blissful sojourn in this redwood, hippy town.  Unfortunately the same can't be said for the employees of this delightful hideaway. I have a feeling they've seen one too many tourists in their day and have lost the 'free love, we're all in this together' attitude that seems as though it should be the currency of this town.  If you can put their misanthropic attitudes aside and enjoy the culinary delights of this hot spot, I promise you won't be disappointed. 

Strawberry Strudel 

Mixed Green Salad

Bouillabaisse Recipe

Okay so there's lots of steps in this recipe and it looks as though it's quite difficult but I assure you, it isn't. A fun little fact about this seemingly complicated fish stew, is that Greeks believe that Venus (the notorious love Goddess) served it to her husband Vulcan to lull him to sleep in order to consort with Mars... so it makes sense that you're spending some serious time behind the stove concocting this bubbling brew!
If you're ready for some serious chopping and a little bit of maneuvering then you won't be sorry. Not only is it jam packed with lean protein, vegetables and enough garlic to kill Dracula, it's the tastiest meal that will have you feeling as though you're lost somewhere on the coastal regions of the Mediterranean....sigh

I found this recipe here, and I was absolutely thrilled with the results... But there's plenty on this site to choose from!
Happy brewing my lovelies!

Ingredients

• 6 pounds of non-oily assorted fresh fish such as snapper, sea bass, halibut, grouper and monkfish - have fishmonger fillet the fish, reserving the heads and bones
• 1/2 pound medium sized shrimp, whole - have fishmonger devein and shell
• 1 dozen mussels in the shells, debearded and scrubbed
• 2 dozen clams, scrubbed

Marinade:

• 1/2 cup virgin olive oil
• 1 1/2 cups dry white wine
• 2 tablespo
• ons Pernod
• 2 fresh thyme sprigs, chopped
• 2 fresh chervil sprigs, chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds
• 1/4 teaspoon saffron threads

Directions

Cut the cleaned fish fillets into medium sized pieces. In a large non-reactive bowl, whisk together the marinade ingredients. Add the pieces of fish and whole shrimp so that all the seafood is coated with the mixture. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.

Stock/Fumet:

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 leek, split
• 1 onion, peeled and halved
• 1 garlic bulb, halved
• 1 fresh fennel bulb, roughly chopped
• 2 tablespoons Pernod

Bouquet garni:

• 1 small bunch fresh chervil, 1 small bunch fresh thyme, 2 bay leaves, strips of orange peel, 1 teaspoon fennel seeds and 8 black peppercorns - secure in cheesecloth tied with string
• 2 cups cold water
• 2 cups dry white wine
• 3 1/2 cups canned chopped tomatoes
• Reserved fish bones and heads
• Pinch saffron threads
• Pinch cayenne pepper

For the Stock/Fumet: In a large stockpot over low-medium flame, heat the oil and butter. Saute the leek, onion, garlic, and fennel for 5 minutes until tender. Deglaze with Pernod, cooking for 5 minutes to allow the alcohol to evaporate. Place the bouquet garni in the stockpot tied to the handle for easy removal. Add the cold water, wine, canned tomatoes and fish parts. Season with saffron and pepper. Simmer gently for 10 minutes, stirring to mingle flavors. Allow the stock to slowly simmer. Skim and discard the fish foam that rises to the surface. Do not boil! If the stock boils, these impurities will be incorporated into the liquid. Simmer for 15 minutes, turn off heat and let steep for 15 minutes. Pass the fumet through a strainer lined with cheesecloth.

Broth:

• 1/4 cup virgin olive oil
• 1 onion, peeled and diced
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tablespoon flat-leaf parsley, chopped
• 1/2 small orange, zested
• Clams and mussels
• 1 tablespoon Pernod
• 1 cup dry white wine
• 1 fennel bulb, chopped
• 1 leek, split and chopped
• 2 tomatoes, peeled and diced
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/2 teaspoon saffron threads
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• Marinated fish and shrimp
• Remaining fumet
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• Fresh flat-leaf parsley and basil, for garnish

Rouille:

• 1 large tomato
• 1 red bell pepper
• 1 potato, peeled and boiled
• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 1/4 cup fumet
• 5 garlic cloves
• Pinch each saffron and cayenne pepper
• Sea Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Croutons:

• 18 baguette slices, each approximately 3/8-inch thick
• 1/2 cup virgin olive oil

For the Broth: Heat the olive oil in a stockpot over medium heat. Saute the onion, garlic, parsley and orange zest. Add the clams, mussels, Pernod and wine. Steam open, about 2 minutes. Stir in fennel, leek, tomatoes, bay leaf and fumet. Season with saffron, salt and pepper, Add the fish pieces to the broth. Simmer for 3 minutes until the fish is opaque. Add tomato paste and adjust seasonings.

For the Rouille: Broil the tomato and bell pepper, turning to blacken all sides. Place the roasted pepper in a paper bag, close it, and let it "sweat" for 5 minutes so it is easier to peel the skin. Remove from bag, peel the skin and discard the seeds and stem. Peel and cut the tomato, squeeze out the seeds. In a food processor, puree the potato, roasted pepper, tomato, mayonnaise, fumet, garlic, saffron and cayenne. Season with sea salt and pepper. Cover and refrigerate until needed.

For the Croutons: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Lightly brush the baguette slices with olive oil and bake on a cookie sheet until crisp. Set aside.

Ladle the soup into individual serving bowls. Spoon the rouille over the croutons and place in bowl. Garnish with parsley and basil.