June marked the start of winter here in Sydney, and that means wholesome food, creature comforts and the overwhelming urge to hibernate. That, my friends, pretty much sums up my entire month.

When I tell people back home in the UK that it gets cold in Australia, they simply do not understand. Or rather, they simply don’t believe it. To them, Australia is all about the sunshine and beaches seen in Home & Away, the fact that there is a winter here at all seems unfathomable.

Admittedly, winter in Sydney is never as cold as London in the depths of January, but the colder months do bring an unfamiliar chill to the bones that make me yearn for nourishing soups, roast dinners and log fires. Admittedly, I don’t have a log fire, just a rather rubbish electric heater that makes me faint and curse when the bill arrives in the springtime, but that’s another story.

I was also a bit under the weather in June, you know the way – scratchy throat, itchy eyes, the imminent threat of a full blown cold – but it simply didn’t materialise. This meant that I was more than happy to stay inside, embrace my Nigella-esque skills and cook to my heart’s content, which is why food is a key theme in this month’s blog.

On the one night I did venture out, it was with relish. Some dear friends, Mr B and myself all hit a Mexican restaurant in Crows Nest on Sydney’s North Shore for a night full of laughter,  Coronas and super sized burritos. The food was great – top notch Mexican cuisine in this city is hard to find – and of course, it tasted a whole lot better sporting a giant sombrero. That makes it really authentic…right?

Here is June.

Mayhem in little Mexico

My first attempt at pumpkin bread

Beautiful sunflowers from my gorgeous man

Blustery Sydney

Baked Eggs – Turkish Style