I have two secret hiding places, but I’m not going to tell you where they are, in case you’re ever over at my house and I excuse myself to go to the loo and you happen to be left alone in one of the rooms where there is a secret hiding place present. I don’t want you discovering my lolly stash. My four-year-old son, who apparently has the hearing of a bat, can hone in on the rustling of a chocolate wrapper from three rooms away, even when he’s sound asleep and it’s 3am. I swear, if I ever wake up with a case of the midnight munchies, I’ve barely got the contraband chocolate in my hand before he materialises right next to me, gazing up with beseeching yet flirtatious eyes, enquiring charmingly, “Can I have some of dat?” I outsmarted him tonight, though – or so I thought. He was tucked into bed when I broke out a muesli bar. Two seconds later, he was framed in the doorway, saying, “I need another hug and a kiss – and ohhhhhh, what do you have therrrrrrrrre?” in a voice sounding creepily similar to what I imagine the Wolf from Little Red Riding Hood is like, except toddler-pitched. “A muesli bar,” I replied smugly, knowing there was no way he’d be remotely interested in this healthy snack which wasn’t candy. He came closer, arms outstretched for his hug. Except when he leaned in close, he turned his head and took a bite of my muesli bar – and gobbled half of it before I even managed to sputter, “Hey! That’s mine!” With a grin, he trotted off to bed, and all I could say to his retreating back was, “Go brush your teeth again!” Hmph.
What I’m reading this week:
Cooked: Food for Friends (Hardie Grant Books, $24.99). 100 delicious dishes, all supposedly able to be whipped up fast – every mum’s dream, right? The apple and blackberry crumble muffins were pretty damn delicious, although the recipe only makes eight (and seriously, who makes just eight muffins? You can bet I tripled that recipe, stat). My only gripe is that not every recipe has an accompanying photo, which I think is a must-have. Still, the coconut fish cakes with cucumber pickles were awesome, and next I’m going to try the fried banana chips (the chef recommends eating with a cold beer on a hot day, but I think I’ll try them with hot chocolate instead).
Katherine Granich
