So the other Sunday I really felt like Ravioli and decided to give making it a go. I have to say it’s not really a spur of the moment meal because it did take a while, but was well worth it.

Ingredients for pasta:

1cup white flour

2 eggs

pinch of salt

handful of finely chopped spinach

Ingredients for filling:

1 clove garlic

4 sundried tomatoes

200gm chicken

1 small onion

1/2 cup feta or ricotta cheese

Extra seasoning as required and oil

1- Place flour, eggs, salt, spinach in a food processor. Pulse until well combined

2- Place the dough on a lightly

Floured board and knead well for 5 minutes, until smooth. Wrap in clear film and leave to rest for 20mins in the fridge.

3- In a pan cook onions until clear, add chicken and cook through.

4- Place chicken/ onion mix, sundried tomatoes and whatever your favourite seasoning is (I used a pinch of cumin and a few of chilli seasoning) in food processor and pulse until minced but still has texture. Crumble over feta and fold in.

5- Divide pasta into 4 pieces and flatten slightly. Using a pasta machine, on the thinnest setting, roll out each piece. Leave the sheets of pasta on a clean tea-towel until slightly dried. (I changed this step because I didn’t actually have a pasta maker… which meant lots of rolling with my rolling pin and it was still a bit too thick I think but not too bad for a first attempt).

6- Using a circle crinkle edged cutter stamp out 36 rounds.

7- Top 18 of the rounds with a teaspoonful of mixture, brush the edges with water and place another round on top. (I also changed this step and folded in half one round to make moon shaped ravioli instead of circle).

8- Bring a large pan of water to the boil, add the ravioli and cook for 3-4 minutes. Drain well and toss into a bit of oil (you can use some sundried tomato oil for yumness).

So as one of many semi obsessed new generation Crown Lynn appreciaters. So I convinced a supplier from work to let me have a bisque (unfired) one ready and waiting to paint. It took me a few months of looking at it build up the courage to actually paint it but I’m very chuffed with the final result…

Chinese pears are very yummy by the way

I wiped off the high points of the wings to highlight the details and made the beak slightly darker. I never really think of pink as my colour but I do like the subtleness.

Extra Cirricular on sale now!!

Excellent reading

Extra Cirricular stockists!!!

• Felt – online
• Toggle – online
• Big Cartel – online
• Katydid Paper Goods – online
• Endemic World – online
• Mag Nation
• Vesta Design Store – Queenstown
• Emma Collections – Wellington
• Dorothy Brown’s – Arrowtown
• Wanda Harland – Wellington
• Swonderful – Wellington
• Let’s Go Retro – Auckland

I’d like to say thanks for the lovely photos taken by Olivia from Lilys make believe who I also shared a stall with last weekend! And of course to everyone who put together Extra Cirricular.

My very own shopping list! All of these items can be found at the Devonport Market November 15th 10-3pm Devonport Community House, 32 Clarence Street, Devonport, Auckland.

So you don’t forget any of your friends and family download your own shopping list

Click on the thumbnail above

The November Devonport craft social was Christmas themed and this was my contribution…

A grinch themed eggnog bowl.

And in return I got some lovely earrings by Peach (http://hand2jewelry.ocnk.biz/) who makes gorgeous gem, stone and beaded jewellery.

A photoshoot seemed a great excuse to spend the afternoon making cupcakes mmmmm yum.

Basic vanilla cupcakes

Serving Size:

Makes 12 little baker cupcakes

Ingredients:

• 125g unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup caster sugar
• 3 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 ½ cups plain flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• ¾ cup (185mL) milk

Method:

Preheat oven to 180°C.

Place muffin papers in one 12-hole muffin tray or cupcake papers in two 12 little bakers.

In an electric mixer, beat butter for 2 minutes until pale in colour and creamy. Add sugar one third at a time, beating well between each addition. Add the eggs one at a time, beating for about a minute between each addition. Add the vanilla essence and beat until combined.

Sift flour and baking powder and add half to butter mixture with half the milk, mix until well combined. Repeat with remaining flour and milk.

Fill cupcake papers ¾ full.

Bake muffin size cupcakes for 20-25 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the middle of a cupcake comes out clean.

Transfer to wire racks and allow to cool completely.

Icing

• 50g unsalted butter
• 2 cups icing sugar
• 2 tablespoons milk
• Sprinkles or lollies (e.g. mini marshmallows or jaffas) to decorate

Icing
Cream butter until pale and smooth. Add the milk and half the sifted icing sugar. Beat until well combined. Add the remaining icing sugar and beat until mixture is light and fluffy. The mixture should be a spreadable paste; if it is too dry add some more milk, if too wet add more icing sugar.

When cakes are cold, spread generously with icing and dip into sprinkles or decorate with small lollies.

Shaving set – mug soap holder,  shaving soap bar +  shaving brush

Brush brush brush, soap can last up to a year of shaving!!

Fix your 5 o’clock shadow

Four mug styles currently available

Imperial, Horseshoe, Pencil, Walrus

Bake cute individual cupcakes and muffins in these lovely vessels

Great for individual servings

Lemonade and Chocolate Chip Muffins

(thanks to: Allyson Gofton’s Best Ever Muffins)

Ingredients

3 Cups flour

2 tblsp baking powder

¼ cup caster sugar

Pinch salt

1 cup chocolate chips

1 cup lemonade

¾ cup cream

2 eggs

Grated rind and juice of 1 lemon

100 grams butter, melted and cooled

Method

1-Sift the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt into a large bowl. Stir through the chocolate chips and make a well in the centre.

2-In a jug, mix together the lemonade, cream, eggs, lemon rind and juice. Stir into the dry ingredients, and fold in the melted butter.

3-Divide evenly among 12 well greased muffin tins.

4-Bake at 220c for 15-20 minutes until well risen and golden. Cool in the tins for 5 minutes before serving with Lemon Cream.

Makes 12

Make into 30 mini muffins and serve with Lemon Cream as a sweet treat nibble for afternoon tea.

Lemon Cream

Lightly whip ½ cup cream then blend through ½ cup lemon honey

Lemon Honey

Beat 4 eggs together well with ½ tsp salt in a heat proof bowl. Blend in 1¼ cups sugar, 125 grams melted butter and the grated rind and juice of 3 large lemons. Stand the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water and cook, stirring constantly, until the lemon honey has thickened. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

Not just for coffee, great for vases, bathroom sets and holding your toothbrush!!

These vessels have been cast from disposable coffee cups. The appeal of a handmade product is that slight variations occur. This can happen in size, colour, shape and surface contour. Therefore every piece is totally unique.

Sea green collection

Table set up

Visit http://nzmovember.com/mospace/46735 to see how your sponsorship is adding up! 10% of every moustache mug purchase is going towards this lovely chap…

A bit of sillyness never hurt anyone. Thanks to my gorgeous models: Sarah, Kim, Lauren, Nicole and Jamie

Some lovely organised ladies have come up with a craft club- a super idea. First Tuesday night of every month Mezze Bar on Durham Lane 7:30 onwards. A good oppourtunity to eat yummy cake, have a coffee or glass of wine and chat with like minded people.

A tree in my garden sprouts some lovely baubles of flowers quite similar to miniature hydrangea flowers, they are a limey green colour, a great match for my lime cups, and they look great in the bathroom.

Bathroom flower arrangement in large daisy vessel

Close up

The market was a little quiet today, perhaps it was because of the intermittent Auckland spring rain that kept hounding anyone who tried to venture outside.

Popular seagreen colour close ups

My stall neighbour Glen is the proud new owner of this cute cupcake pincushion

Not just for hot drinks, a great bathroom accessory too

My Stall!!

Craft Social

Chocolate cake, lots of fun and wonderful crafty goodies. Is there any better way to spend a Sunday evening? We had a lovely group of 11 turn up for last night’s Craft Social at the Devonport Community House. The green themed craft swap was a great success. As you can see from this photograph, there were some extremely gorgeous goodies and everyone who participated was able to score something to take home.

Table of goodies

My swap result a gorgeous knitted flower by Heleen

‘CRAFT SOCIAL’

Once a month ‘Craft Social’ will be held in the Art Room, upstairs at the Devonport Community House.This is a come one, come all event where you can bring your latest project, have some cake and a nice cup of coffee and great conversation. Cost is $3 per person to cover room hire and goodies! We hope to bring you demonstrations, fabric swaps and other ideas as the group gets momentum.

Next ‘Craft Social’ to be held on October 11th 7.30pm October 11th – Pink/Breast Cancer Awareness Craft Swap. Bring along something to swap in the above theme (this does not have to be literally translated).

Devonport Table

Tea bag price tags- a definte eureka moment

My gorgeous table of goodies

Visit me and all of the other talented crafters on the first Sunday of every month! 10am-2pm

Visit http://www.devonportcraftmarket.blogspot.com

Devonport Community House, 32 Clarence Street, Devonport, Auckland.

Ross Mitchell Anyon

Ross has been throwing clay since 1975 after deciding painting wasn’t for him. The utilitarian aspects of pottery, creating something for everyday use, appealed to him. He is well represented in galleries and collections around New Zealand. In 2000, a major exhibition “Ross Michell-Anyon: a potters work” was held at the Sarjeant Gallery, Whanganui

Ross has long been an admirer of Asian ceramics and what he calls the “anonymous folk craftsman”. This term refers to the centuries old habit of not signing work however beautiful and accomplished it may seem. On a visit to Uzbekistan recently the pots he most enjoyed were made by potters for their own communities. “The pieces had a no nonsense look to them, none had been laboured over too long and the surface decorations seemed straight forward and economic… these pots were clearly made to be used until they broke, not to last forever”

Much the same could be said of Ross’s work. His honest use of materials, spontaneity of form and “un-fussed over” finish makes Ross one of New Zealand’s leading production potters.