A few weeks ago I posted a recipe competition – bloggers who blogged about one of the recipes from I Quit Sugar Cookbook had the chance to win three copies of my cookbook to give away to their readers.
beetroot and liquorice soup, photo by Susan Papazian
So many of you entered and it was so much fun looking at your dishes. But – in the words of a certain former MasterChef hostess – there can only be one (actually, three) winner(s). If I call out your name, could you please step forward…
Susan Papazian
Susan made the beetroot and liquorice soup, with ground fennel seeds. (I love the photography!) You can see Susan’s winning post here.
Megan from Veggies and me
Megan made the coriander pesto, and sweet potato soup (pictured below). I also loved the sneak peak into her
Because it’s a Friday. And because you might be in a baking frame of mind, with the weekend looming…I thought it might be nice to do another giveaway. This time Loving Earth are generously giving away
25 almond butter bark packs, each valued at $20
Each pack contains coconut flakes and cacao nibs, to help get you geared up to make my almond butter bark, one of the sweet treats in my I Quit Sugar Cookbook.
photography by Marija Ivkovic
I’m a fan of Loving Earth – their products, and their ethos. Everything is sugar, dairy and gluten free, as well as being minimally processed, and not made with synthetic fertilizers, chemical pesticides, or herbicides. And if you’ve bought my cookbook, you’d have noticed a lot of their products throughout!
To be in the running to win one of these packs, simply buy your copy of the I Quit Sugar Cookbook by clicking
I’ve been asked too many times to share how I pack to travel to not document things as I packed for this trip. And, between you and I, I’m glad there are others out there who get odd satisfaction from discussing this kind of stuff.
(Of course, by the time you read this, I’ll have departed overseas. The magic of WordPress scheduling!)
As a rule, I travel carry-on. I can survive with one small case for up to two weeks. But this time I’ll be away a few months, and I’ll be in different climates, so I have to get a bit indulgent. That said, my aim is to keep things under 15kg. Why? I can only say I’m ludicrously obsessed with streamlining my life and travelling light. My mates have responded to all this by saying, “Oh, it’s better to buy it over there”. Hmph, I respond. I probably won’t even do much of that. I just find stuff so heavy….
Some basic principles
These are some of the tricks entailed in my light travelling, especially when travelling carry-on:
* wear all your heavy, bulky gear on the plane (boots, jacket, jeans)
* pack thin layers (wool and silk is best)
* pack a cardigan that can double as a scarf
* streamline your beauty case. I use Jojoba oil for cleansing, face cream and body cream, for instance. I also drop into department stores and ask for “testers” of my favourite face scrub.
Consider this more of a “do as I say, not as I did” kind of instructional manual. For, if I can say upfront, it’s a requisite of publishing an ebook to make mistakes, not know what you’re doing, get frustrated, bounce between different designers, programmers, programs, formats….oh, my! Enter this world and know this! And also be kind to yourself once ensconced. Everyone gets it wrong! No one knows what they’re doing! Just enter the fray and play, I say.
Image by Kimberly Ripley
It’s also a tricky topic to actually find information on. This saddens me: many folk are very guarded as to how they do their ebooks, presumably because they’re hesitant to share their secrets to their success. And it has astounded me how often Jo and I encounter people who try to get “inside info” from us in the most tricky, surreptitious ways…instead of just coming out and asking for help. I’m more than happy to share what I know, and my contacts…although, it’s still a working experiment for me. I’m still playing in the fray.
And both entailed very different approaches. My next ebook will be done differently again.
But hopefully these tips will help you get started…
The first step
Decide whether you’re going to release your book just as a pdf (a document that you scroll down and can be read on a computer as well as on eReaders, but only as a pdf document). Lots of folk are happy with this option.
Or whether you’d also like to release it in the eReader formats (that is, readable as an ebook specifically designed and programed for the ipad, kindle, Nook etc). When you release in the eReader formats (called epub and mobi) they can also be uploaded and sold on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, ibookstore etc.
One thing to bear in mind: the eReader formats are a lot more clunky than the pdf versions. With the latter you
I recently found this article in the New York Times. Artist Wendy MacNaughton is obviously as obsessed as I am with famous writer’s daily routines and has compiled some illustrations of the quirky stuff pen folk turn to to get the right jolt of energy as they tap away.
I like that Maynard eats lime popsicles. Which just happens to be a recipe in myI Quit Sugar Cookbook.
I like that Walt…actually I just like Walt…eats protein. Ditto me.
So, last night Sarah was on 60 Minutes… The crew came and filmed her in Byron Bay a while back. She hasn’t actually seen the segment because she’s on holiday. I thought I’d share the segment, in case you missed it last night, and because sooooo many people have been asking across the blog, facebook, … Read more
As you read this, I’ll be on my merry way to the airport. Photo by Nick Meek
To this very moment, I’m not 100% sure where I’m going (after I land in London; read below for how I’d love your help on this). Or why. Two weeks ago I did a post on being a modern day nomad and that my challenge is trusting that I need to move on, often. And being OK with moving one dot at a time:
“But it’s become my latest experiment…to trust that the dots will join and that I must simply move to the next dot. I don’t have to have a complete picture; I just have to look out for the next one. Then the next…This, of course, entailsconstantly watching for serendipitous opportunities.
Alright then. Time to do it.
how it will work
Looking out for serendipitous opportunities…It will entail being quite mindful and less rushy than I normally am. It will entail taking up offers and invitations and ideas as they come up, gleaning advice from people who know more than me and just trusting from there. Few plans, just trusting.
I read a while back the best way to make decisions is to defer to others who know more than you. We have limited decision-making energy. So the less we use of it – by deferring – the more energy we have left over for good, important decisions.
I also have a few aims.
I’d like to record them so I can come back to them. Also, by putting them out to the world, as I am now, it means I have a better chance of honouring them.
* I want have to disconnect. Unglue myself from social media ties. It’s influencing my nervous system, my cerebral synapses. Even when I meditate, my whole nervous system can’t “let go” of this attachment to engagement. I keep ricocheting away from mindfulness to my “I need to respond to…” or “I have to update…” default positions. It’s got me really sad of late. To the point where I’ve been snapping with people, annoyed that they’re another commitment, another thing to respond to. Terrible. Terrible. I’ve written a post on this, which will run in the next few weeks.
Could I do it where I am, here in Australia. Nope. I have to have a symbolic break. I need a holiday from it. I need a holiday (it’s been 7 years since I’ve had more than two days offline).
* I’m looking for a new home. Australia ain’t cutting it for me just now. I’m not nation bashin’ or nothin’. Well, perhaps I am. My position is this: I find the political and social climate here flaccid. It’s been too good for too long and we’ve lost the striving, surging forward, fired up spirit that once defined us. Politics is a shamble, but it’s merely a reflection of where we’re all at.
A while back I did a trip with my Partner in Foodie Road Trippin’ Crime Marija Ivkovic. She takes the pictures in the equation. It’s become Something That We Do Together Now. We both love eating, “unplanning things”, stepping sideways to meet random characters and just Heading Off To See What Happens. That’s what a road trip should be about, I think.
Margan Vineyards, Broke
This route is a well travelled one by many who head to Byron for whatever reason. But most people fling through in one hit (Sydney-Byron takes 8-10 hours) or stop in one of the well-versed towns. But there’s a better way. Let me tell you about it…
Some things to know and bear in mind:
* Best time to do it? Any time is great. But winter is a wonderful time to be checking out some of the food on offer in the areas (mushrooms! wine! beetroot!). Also, the water is warm up north and Byron, once you get there, is wonderful from June-September.
* Inland or coastal? Try a combination. Most people do the coastal route up the Pacific Highway. There are some great bushwalks and towns to visit that I’m betting you’ve never heard of…and some of the most beautiful remote beaches…read on below. But with just a little skip to the left, inland, are some very rustic areas that are a boon to explore: The Hunter, The Manning Valley, the Bellingen area.
I did a call out a while ago for anyone who’d bought the I Quit Sugar Cookbook to make some recipes from the book and then share them with the #I Quit Sugar community on twitter and facebook, and Instagram. Bloody well done to those of you who gave it a crack. I’ve had some….cracker entries sent my way. I’m very grateful and so I’ve decided to turn the idea into a little competition! With prizes!
an Instagram share – from Lizzieloves
If you’d like to be involved, here’s how:
Buy my I Quit Sugar Cookbook (if you don’t already have it) and make one – or more! – of the recipes. Take a snap or two, and share the results with your readers on your blog.
