Free Gelato Messina icecreams at Chatswood Chase 30th Aug

Sydneysiders love their Gelato Messina and you can score one of these limited edition bespoke icecreams by the iconic confectioners at Chatswood Chase on 30th August! Gelato Messina has designed these beauties especially for the opening of US retailers West Elm, Pottery Barn, Pottery Barn Kids and Williams-Sonoma on Sydney's north shore. Get in on the action!

Our Big Girl's Spring Ice Cream 5th Birthday Party

Well you know that birthday parties are big news around here, and my daughter has been planning her 5th birthday party for at least 6 months. She wanted to make sure that everyone could wear "whatever they want" and that there would be lots of ice cream and games and goodie bags. We put together a casually-styled, low-budget party, with lots of DIY, seasonal fruit and garden flowers. These are some pics from our big girl's Spring ice cream party!

Party: Spring ice cream 5th birthday party

Organised by: Steph Bond-Hutkin (that's me!)

Location: Sydney, NSW

Theme: Casual, budget-friendly, pretty ice cream party

Pat and Stick's Homemade Ice Cream Co.

Part II of my Sydney abcd Saturday Soiree coverage. Take a good look at these ice cream sandwiches from Pat and Stick's Homemade Ice Cream Co. and then race down to your nearest store and get one immediately. They are *that* delicious...

image: Milk & Honey Photography

We were so lucky to have two large platters of Pat and Stick's ice cream sandwiches at our Sydney abcd meetup and the combination of creamy icecream with biscuit was irresistible - every single one was gobbled down by our art, craft and design bloggers.

Pat and Stick's Ice Cream Co. is based in Tempe, where Pat, Stick and the team make the cookie dough, bake the cookies, make the ice cream and assemble the gourmet ice cream sandwiches. And that great taste? It's all about the ingredients - Belgian chocolate, real vanilla beans, espresso coffee, real butter and fresh Australian milk and cream. No preservatives, numbers, fillers or artificial anything.

We can confirm that ice cream sandwiches are great party food; the only trouble is choosing a flavour!

You can find Paty and Stick's Ice Cream Co. sandwiches at stockists across Australia.

Image: Milk and Honey Photography

Strawberry Chocolate Layered Ice Cream Cake

My darling baby Bondville turned 'big girl' 2 years old just after Christmas and we celebrated with this amazing strawberry chocolate layered ice cream cake. (Note to self: never again make an ice cream cake in the middle of summer in Queensland. It looked fantastic. It tasted fantastic, but the ice cream softened immediately, not helped by the warm chocolate poured on top. Oh, and the chocolate topping and bottom were too hard to cut through, and slipped all over the place when trying to cut slices. Yikes!).

So! If you'd like to try this pretty fabulous cake, I'd recommend cooler weather to start with. Otherwise it's pretty straightforward:
1. line a spring form (important!) cake tin with non-stick baking paper
2. melt chocolate for the base (either very carefully in the microwave, or in a bowl over simmering water, being careful that the water does not touch the bowl). I used Belgian Callebaut dark chocolate. Amazing!
3. pour the melted chocolate into the lined cake tin and freeze until set
4. soften 1 litre of ice cream and pour over chocolate base. Freeze until set. I used honey macadamia ice cream for the first layer.
5. soften another 1 litre of ice cream and pour over the ice cream base. Freeze until set. I used strawberry ice cream for the second layer.
6. melt chocolate for the top as per method above. Cool chocolate as much as possible while still maintaining runny consistency. Have candles and lighter ready as steps 7-9 will need to be quite quick to ensure your gorgeous cake doesn't melt too much.
7. Carefully release the springform tin, pull off the baking paper, and lift the cake off the base onto a board or stand.
8. Pour over the melted chocolate (don't worry if it drips down the sides) and place hulled strawberries on top.
9. Add candles, cut and serve before it melts!

It's a fabulous cake that requires no baking, but a careful hand with the topping. Enjoy!

PS - this cake would be amazing with the strawberry-themed printables party pack by the red thread.

Images: Steph Bond-Hutkin

Possibly the Best Gelato in Australia

I'm obsessed. My desire for gelato (any flavour, any time) from Gelateria Cremona in Rosalie, Brisbane, has lasted way past the honeymoon period. The flavours are incredibly clean and strong, and the gelato is very light - it doesn't leave an aftertaste.

Gelato artisan Gherardo DeFlorian uses only the freshest seasonal ingredients (nothing artificial and definitely no chemicals, stabilizers or emulsifiers) and the gelato is made right there on the premises. There is always something interesting/exotic to try as well as the staple flavours that everyone loves. Last night we had the cherry ripe and the honeyed fig and ricotta - both divine - and the green tea and persimmon are next on the list to try.

There are some interesting articles about the gelato-making methods at Gelateria Cremona in The Courier-Mail, Slashfood, and The Sydney Morning Herald, and food bling has given them a great review and Helen Thura posted a great article about the vegemite gelato for Australia Day. And they made the Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide 2008.

This is a definite must-stop destination the next time you are in Brisbane. 5/151 Baroona Road, Paddington, Queensland (07) 3367 0212.

Image: Vegemite gelato by Helen Thura.