More schtuff.

I know I know - its all been a bit heavy on the 'here is some work that is now in a frame!!!!' lately, and not enough 'here is some NEW work, but I just can't help myself. There is something so luscious about a framed piece, like putting the finishing touches on it. And look: shiny.

Apologies for the crappy image - I will try harder next time!

x

Laying down the law

Hello all! Here are some pictures of my work hanging in the Media Arts Lawyers (check out their website - it's awesome!) offices in Melbourne. Cool no? The lovely Romani Benjamin hung them for me, and don't they just look super cute? It's nice to have work in an unconventional place as opposed to the white cube. Loving their wooden in-trays too. Mmm. Gotta get me some of those!

And hey, if you're thinking you need some kind of law-like legal services, especially if your in the music/entertainment biz, these guys can sort you out.

x

Aqualung

After months of cutting, here's a large scale work for your viewing pleasure, just finished! It is so strange, this work is approximately 75 x 55 cm (quite massive for me, compared with my usual 10 x 15 cm type works), but just doesn't feel big! Not enough fish? Maybe.

I brought these fish back from Berlin (and have been painstakingly cutting them out for the last 2 months), so it's nice to be able to use them at last! I made this work with a friend in mind, who was keen to have a 'kitty explosion' for a new album cover - so we'll see how he finds it!

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Garden View

This morning I woke up with that feeling of nothing to do. I mean, don't get me wrong, there is heaps I could do, but I have nothing to do that needs to be done today. No jobs, no workplace to go to. It is most unsettling. I know I should then do the dishes, wash my linen, apply for grants and shows, do a yoga session ... but all I can seem to do is stare out the window.

There is this is the tree that sits in the 'no man's land' between my back yard and the next door neighbours. See, the neighbours own our house, and in an effort to create a sound barrier, fenced off about 3 x 10 metres of (our) yard. There is a gorgeous tree in the middle, with remnants of a tree house flaking away on it. For now I am just content drawing it, but come spring, I will definitely be climbing over that fence!

You know, if you want to see the images in more detail, you can give them a hearty click.

x

Cupcakes!

You may or may not know this about me, but I make cupcakes sometimes. And without wishing to toot my own horn too hard, they are pretty awesome. (Ok I totally toot my own horn.) Anyway, people are always asking me for the recipe, so HERE IT IS!!! My secret is revealed: these cupcakes are EASY!!!

This recipe requires NO sifting, NO egg separating, and NO other stupid stuff. Woot!
 

You can also make this one dairy free if you wish – just use nuttlex and soy milk (bonsoy is best for cooking) in place of butter and milk-milk (you know what I mean by milk-milk?). 

Only 5 ingredients! (yes that bluey white mountain is supposed to be self-raising flour, 

and the pinky white mountain is sugar.)

You will need:

120g softened butter

¾ cup caster sugar (regular white sugar is fine too)

1½ cups self-raising flour

½ cup of milk

2 eggs

Mini-muffin patty-pans and mini-muffin trays (if you have no muffin trays, don't fret - your cakes might come out a little flatter and less boing-y - they will still taste AWESOME.)

This recipe works just fine for regular sized cupcakes too – but they’re not as cute, and can become overwhelming to eat. (Isn’t it more fun to eat 5 little cakes than a few bigguns?)

What to do (here’s where it gets awesome):

1. Preheat your oven to 180˚C (I use a gas oven, you may need to adjust according to your oven’s power.)
2. Put all the ingredients in a bowl.
3. Beat said ingredients with electric beaters (wooden spoon, food processor –

    choose your weapon) until smooth and pale.

4. Put approx 1 teaspoon of mix into each patty-pan (if making mini size - if you are making regular size, a large desert spoon of mixture will do the trick) and bake for approx 20-30 minutes or until golden brown OR until a skewer comes out clean when poked in a cake.
5. Transfer onto a wire rack to cool. 

 

Just THROW it all in a bowl! It will make the cake mix happy!

(No, that isn't a vanilla bean in there, just a cartoon mouth.)

Do not add any ingredient that looks like the mouth in this picture, such as coffee beans, chocolates, sultanas. 

 Don't worry, the cake mix won't really get sad if you put the beaters in, this was just for dramatic effect.

Secret tips!!!

- I actually never really time my cakes! I know that is bad, but to be honest, they best way to tell is often through smell, and then by the way they look. If you are lying on the couch reading a magazine and you can smell some pretty sweet baking smells, then go and check out your cakes! If you have a terrible sense of smell, then please do not take this advice!

- If they look golden brown and slightly crispy, then they are probably ready! I always skewer one or two to make sure.

- Do NOT constantly open the oven to check on your cakes. They are FINE. If you are desparate to see what is happening, then perhaps look through the window of the oven door. I open the oven twice at most - if you open the oven too many times, cold air gets in and can KILL your cakes! Then you end up with these little rocks that are filled with raw cake mix in the centre (as I had a couple of weeks ago) and it is very sad. 

- Makes about 40 weenie cup cakes, or around 20 regular sized ones. I own one mini-muffin tray, and one regular sized one, so I bake a set of each - 24 minis to about 11 regular sized ones. They can cook together, but your mini cakes will take less time to cook, so be sure to keep an eye on them.

These cakes can be frozen for about month if you wish to ice them at a later date.

You wanna ice those suckers too? Ok! 

This cream cheese icing is really intended for carrot cakes. But it tastes soooooo good, I’ll pretty much slather it on anything. You can also just follow the ol’ classic icing sugar, butter and vanilla essence schtick, which works quite well too.

You will need:

Approx 30g softened butter

Approx 1 cup icing sugar

Approx 60g cream cheese or mascarpone

A few drops of vanilla essence or extract

What to do:

1. Combine (e.g. smooth and creamy). I usually use a bar mix, but a dessert spoon does a good job too.
2. If you manage to not eat the icing in situ, spread evenly over the cakes with a butter knife (it can be nice to try out some swirly motions with your knife) and if you're feeling feisty, why not decorate with some sprinkles, frosted flowers, smarties, etc. If you're feeling really wild, add a drop of food colouring to the the icing (not green - nobody wants to eat a green cupcake.)
   

 

These can be eaten straight away, refrigerated for about a week, or frozen for about 14 years. If icing isn’t your thing, these cakes taste amazing with cream and jam, or even on their own, fresh from the oven. Oooh yeah!

 

And then, YUMMY!!!

xx