I have a little black book. A little black Moleskine actually that I write down places that I’d like to eat. It’s full of recommendations and I often  flip to it for inspiration and regularly consult with it. And one place that was on the top of the list and the very first entry was Brasserie Bread. It remained uncrossed off for ages, mainly as they are open during hours that I just don’t or can’t really get to Banksmeadow (near Botany) closing at 2pm on Saturdays. But this one Saturday morning, we had to be in the general area early at 9am and I immediately scheduled in a visit there for breakfast. And they’re now open on Sundays too.

Free kid’s cooking classes

It’s kind of in the middle of not very much and I don’t wish to offend residents of Banksmeadow but by that I mean there aren’t a lot of shops or a lot to do out there aside from visit. And visit they do. This Saturday morning the communal tables and separate tables are full. There’s a large gaggle of mums relaxing – and you might be wondering how a bunch of mums can relax. Easy, take the kids to Brasserie Bread where at 10am and 12pm, they can learn how to make bread for free and take home the goodies they make. Needless to say classes are booked months in advance and I can only imagine the mums relief at the day rolling round where they can offload their kinder if only for an hour to relax with a cup of Allpress and have a child learn the valuable skill of bread making at the same time. In the cafe area, the banquettes are said to be the right height for kids to stand on and peer into the kitchen windows and watch the bakers doing their thing. There are also adult classes for $130 per person.

The front display has their award winning pane croccante which we tried as part of the Easter Show deli bag which was fantastic. Although we tried a packet of the Nigella seed croccante, the Rosemary flavour is the award winner. Samples for these are generous and the rosemary is indeed the best out of the two.

There are also samples of their sourdough and lemon and garlic flavoured olive dips which are also delicious.

Having wanted to go here for so long and stalking the menu, I know what I want. Ordering and paying at the counter, we’re lucky to snag a table quickly. We order the sourdough pancakes which we can have with either raspberries and double cream or maple syrup and bacon. I choose the latter – nothing stands between me and bacon. We also order a Croque Monsieur and the Organic Sourdough toast with avocado, tomato & goat’s curd. All eggs are free range organic.

Allpress coffee

Organic sourdough toast with avocado, tomato & goat curd $10

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Over the past week or two samples have been arriving of some very yummy goodies. Somehow, unwittingly they all coincided with my birthday which happened to be yesterday so I just took it to mean that they were birthday presents. Do you like my logic?

I just want to say a huge thankyou to my friend Angela from Creating A Stir who sent me a most amazing package all the way from Japan. She knows I have a love for Pocky and Japanese Kit Kats as well as all other things quirky and Japanese so she sent me a mind blowing selection of food including: Kits Kats (in blueberry cheesecake, cherry and strawberry as well as an intriguing little packet of little kit kat balls); Pocky (in kiwifruit, coco banana, double dessert chocolate, and peach milk), adorable cake boxes, delicious sesame crackers, bento art toothpicks (I can definitely see myself getting into bento art); ginger peanuts; a moreish almond and fish snack; mushroom chocolate biscuits; Collon cookies in milky green tea; cupcake wrappers, chewing gum (including a dragonfruit and blood orange flavour! ), gorgeous origami paper, pretty chopsticks and  chopstick covers and green tea jelly snacks.

Angela’s card-cute!

The first to get eaten were the Blueberry Cheesecake Kit Kats which are amazing-with an eerily accurate blueberry cheesecake flavour. Next were the rest of it including the Kiwifruit Pocky (fabulous). In fact everything in there was an absolute delight. She has great taste that Angela-thankyou again

I also received some packs from the Lilydale Free range chicken range with Luke Mangan (of Glass restaurant fame). I was given a African Spice Breast Escalopes and Tarragon and Mint Thigh Cutlets. Flipping the packs over I saw that the African Spice Breast Escalopes only had a cooking time of 20 minutes for the entire meal so I saved it for when I was time poor and needed a quick dinner-the ultimate test. Escalopes are part of the breast of the chicken, pounded until thin and therefore quick to cook. I quite like chicken breast but my husband and parents don’t, always saying that it is too dry but I was willing to give this a go. Besides which there were 8 escalopes here so for the two of us there was quite a bit of meat and the calorie count per serve was pleasantly low at 585kj per 2 escalopes (yay!).

I made the requisite tomato salsa (substituting coriander for mint as that was all I had-it’s meant to be easy remember) and couscous and pan fried the escalopes after sprinkling them with the flavour sachet and oil. All up it took me about 30 minutes to cook with all of the chopping and preparation-you might be able to do it in 20 minutes but it would be a furious and fraught 20 minutes and you may lose a finger with the whole chopping part.

I took a bite of the chicken and they were juicy and tender and totally scoffable – I almost thought that it was a juicy thigh fillet. I greedily ate it happy in the knowledge that it was low in calories. For those that don’t like any additives, the dry marinade sachet for the escalopes reads a little like a cup a soup label so just keep that in mind but the other pack is just herbs. You can always buy the escalopes and make your own although the zero marinating time was good for me and I can definitely see myself buying these again. A pack of the escalopes is $11.40 per tray and the thigh fillets are $9 per tray from Coles. We did try the Tarragon and Mint thigh fillets but definitely preferred the African spice escalopes instead.

As for the rest of the escalopes? Apart from having them for dinner tonight, I’ll use these in a salad for lunch or in a sandwich (these are best and juiciest straight off the pan rather than reheated). And share them grudgingly.

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I’ve spoken before of my tyrannical behaviour as a child. I am a control freak from way back and ever since I could reach the stove, I loved making my mum breakfast in bed for Mother’s Day. It was always bacon and eggs with toast (lots of butter – I know how she likes it) and I’d carefully carry it to my parent’s bedroom and insist that they eat it in bed with me watching unblinkingly underneath my severe fringe and Anna Wintour haircut. They’d try and make excuses or want to put the tray down on the dressing table but this would make me terribly upset. I think I just wanted to see my parents doing something fun and I have a sneaking suspicion that Carol and Mike Brady were served breakfast in bed by the Brady kids and this was how I wanted my childhood to be.

Each year I make Portuguese custard tarts for my Father’s birthday and Father’s Day but for Mother’s Day it’s something biscuity or buttery as my mother adores butter. Last year she received a Gateau Breton and this year I made a 1234 butter cake for her birthday cake so this year for Mother’s Day I decided to make her some shortbread buttons as she is a keen sewer and knitter and buttery biscuit fanatic.

These shortbread buttons are fairly easy – just make sure to use the best butter you can find. I was relieved to say that they were so much easier than last year’s cupcake bouquet which took a lot of time but was probably a more spectacular looking effort than these. However I loved the homespun look to these and I know my mother will love them.

So tell me dear reader, what exciting things do you have planned for your Mother on Mother’s Day? Or if you’re a mum, what’s the best Mother’s Day gift that you’ve received (or wanted to receive)?

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