Ozzie Adventures: Adelaide
The next chapter of my journey brought me down to Adelaide, in southern Australia, for a visit with my other dear friend/soul sister, Ulyana. While we've been online friends, this was our first meeting in person. Wouldn't you know? It feels like I've known her my whole life and she's quickly become one of my best friends. We had a wonderful time together, in fact it was one of my favorite weeks during my OZ trip. Uly rented the cutest little vacation house for us in Hahndorf, a little German tourist town in the Adelaide Hills. The streets are lined with shops, restaurants, museums, and galleries, with many farms and wineries surrounding the town.
We managed to do a lot of things that week in addition to getting enough relax time outside. Naturally, a few trips to the beach were a "must". One afternoon we met up with Uly's friend Margarita for a trip to one of Adelaide's beautiful white sandy beaches for a special durian picnic. I'm really not sure what's better than indulging in durian dipped in raw chocolate sauce and crunchy cacao nibs on the beach under the hot sun. If you've never tried this combo, you must try it right away - you'll know exactly what bliss I'm referring to.
We enjoyed a big salad lunch at Bliss Organic Cafe one afternoon. It's a great restaurant and shop with lots of raw products and books.
Uly knew exactly where to bring me for organic raw milk. I was so excited! Raw dairy products are illegal in Australia, however producers manage to get around the laws by labeling milk and cream as "cosmetic skin treatment only". I love that this one is called Cleopatra's "Bath Milk". I tried two other raw milks in OZ. Nimbin Valley Goat Milk, and another raw cow milk - Oh so luscious and creamy! My staple breaky was a simple chia seed pudding with raw milk, chia seeds, vanilla bean, goji berries, and cacao nibs. Mmmm. I'll miss that milk!
A small dinner party was in order during the week too. We invited a few people over and made some food. Pizza (Recipe HERE) and salad were on the menu. I also whipped up a parfait style dessert with pudding, crumble and fruit layered together in a big bowl. Much to our surprise (a whole other story on it's own), the hardcore fruit folks, Durian Rider and Freelee showed up with a huge box of dates, figs, lettuce, and a blender. Harley made us datorate (dates and water blended together) which was a fun new treat to some people.
Another fun event occurred that week. Uly organized for me to teach a raw dessert class! It was a fun time shopping, prepping, and presenting. I did recipe demos/samples of:
Mandarin Cheesecake with Mango Ginger Topping
(See the original recipe with cranberry pomegranate compote HERE)
The week was so much fun that it zoomed by at lightening speed, and I was sad to leave at the end. I know I'll be back again one day though!
*Chia parfait photo courtesy of Simone Balestrin.
7 Comments
Hi!!! Love you Heathy Fairy! It was a pleasure to have you come stay mwa xxxx oooo
It's a shame Heathy that you came to Australia and passed over (ignored) Australia's unique indigenous fruits and spices and nuts. Ah well,more for me to enjoy!
How wonderful that you found friends everywhere you went! <br /><br />Harley stayed with me one night when I still lived in CA--was years ago now. That's fun that you partied together despite different approaches.<br /><br />I bet your class was awesome...
Beautiful friends, food and you! Love to hear about your exciting adventures, Heathy! I really think that Santa Cruz is calling your name! :-)
It looks like you had a beautiful time!! How awesome to find such like minded people all over the world! :) Your desserts look divine as always... Thanks for sharing!
Everything looks fantastic! I love Australia! The desserts look amazing! I love chia pudding - one of my personal favorites!
I just found out I have a dairy allergy, and I've been grieving for cheesecake, but I might have to give this one a try. Raw vegan desserts are probably a goodnthing for me to play with, since they're dairy-free and typically sugar and grain-free.