Friday Foodies: Island Menu |

There are people in the world who are lucky enough to find their place in it. That place that makes their heart sing, that makes them smile as they open the shutters on every new day. That place that is, in every sense of the word, home. I have two homes – my Sydney home and my London home. Both are different, both are places I love, but don’t ever ask me to choose, because I’m not sure I can. I feel at home in both places, and yet strangely not in either. All at the same time. It’s a bit of a mind flip this moving around the world habit, but it’s an addictive one that’s for sure.

Island Menu is a glorious little blog written by two friends, photographer Samuel Shelley and food blogger Catherine Miller, who are in love with their place, their home. In Tasmania. And what lucky people they are. To have that sense of home, but also to have the talent and skills to show it to the rest of us in the way they do via their stunning photographs and lovingly created dishes. Theirs is food that make the most of the truly, truly sensational Tasmanian produce. (They even seem to catch most of it themselves!) Most people don’t know much about Tasmania. They don’t know how beautiful it is. How incredible the seafood, the livestock and the other bounty that island offers.

If you fancy a cyber-trip to the other side of the world, this blog is for you. Reading it makes me a little homesick, which is strange because Tasmania is not really the part of Australia that ever pulled on my heartstrings before. And now I can see that living in the UK has changed me. I will always love the bright, bursting blue brilliance of Sydney, but I have also made room for the gentler environments of the world. Like Tasmania. Like England.

These are my favourite recipes from Island Menu, all of which, with a few tiny tweaks and some pre-preparation, would all be fantastic on a camping trip.

Trevalla (or other sturdy white fish) and saffron soup (pic above), recipe here.