Three Things This July: A Delicious Brownie Recipe, A Long Lunch Worth Travelling For and the Jasmine is Blooming.
Here are a few things we're loving this July — a delicious chocolate sweet potato brownie recipe, a long lunch worth travelling for, and the beautiful scent of jasmine in bloom.
There's something deeply comforting about baking on a cold winter's day. I grow sweet potatoes at home and this brownie recipe has become one of my favourites, a beautiful way to use them beyond the usual roast.
And they're not just delicious, sweet potatoes are quietly one of the best things you can eat for your skin. Rich in vitamin C to support collagen production and brighten the complexion, and full of beta-carotene which converts to vitamin A - protecting existing collagen and supporting healthy skin cell regeneration.
RECIPE
Note: I don't peel the sweet potato. I use the skin as it contains essential vitamins and fibre.
1. Preheat the oven to 180 deg. Grease and Line a 20cm square baking tin with baking paper.
2. Chop and steam 1 medium sweet potato until tender. I use a steamer basket on top of a saucepan. Allow to cool in the steamer section (without the saucepan underneath) with the lid off so they don't get soggy. Mash with a potato masher until smooth.
3. To a large mixing bowl, add sweet potato, maple syrup, almond butter, vanilla extract, and oil and stir to combine.
4. Add cacao powder, sea salt, nuts and baking powder and stir to combine. Then add flour of choice and stir until a thick, scoopable batter is achieved.
5. Pour into the lined tin. Decorate the top with remaining nuts and bake for 30mins. Check after 25mins to see if it is done. Ovens will vary. Insert a toothpick or the point of a knife into the centre of the batter. If it comes out clean it is cooked.
Note: If it is a bit fudgy when you test, you can remove from the oven and they will be a fudgy brownie but make sure the batter isn't gooey.
Fire, Flavour & a Long Lunch Worth Travelling For
If you're looking for an excuse to get out of the city this winter, this is it.
On Saturday 12th and Sunday 13th September, Milk HAUS is hosting an extraordinary open-fire long lunch bringing together some seriously talented names — celebrated chef Colin Fassnidge, James White of Olsson's Salt, and Milk HAUS's own Nat Taylor — for an afternoon centred around fire, flavour and beautiful local produce.
At the heart of the feast is a whole pig slow-roasted on an asado cross over open flame, surrounded by a generous family-style menu spanning land, ocean and garden. Add a welcome cocktail, live music from local legends Ocean Wizard, and views over the breathtaking Budawang Ranges and you have the kind of afternoon that lingers long after the last ember fades.
Grab your tickets before they sell out!
When the Jasmine Blooms
August is here, and with it comes one of nature's most intoxicating gifts. If you've noticed jasmine starting to appear on fences and garden walls, you're not alone in stopping to take it in.
It was exactly that moment that started everything for me.
Eight years ago I was driving when I caught the first signs of jasmine coming into bloom. I pulled over, picked a small spray and breathed it in. That was it. That single moment, being completely stopped in my tracks by something so simple and so beautiful, became the spark that started Delicious Vibrant Beauty.
This August, when you catch that unmistakable scent drifting through the air, I hope it reminds you to slow down, breathe deeply and notice the beauty quietly blooming all around you.
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