jan and everyone elses summer of tennis

well it's tennis season - and that can only mean one thing

backhand

forehand 

juice 

is that not the worst teenage boy joke you ever heard???  (i keep forgetting i am not a teenager anymore, but that doesn't stop my potty mouth).

so i hear that Melbourne goes a bit crazy about the tennis.  From my memory it always seemed like the weather in melbourne was at its hottest when the open was on, so i cannot confirm or deny that until it actually happens. 

my inner city life has so much going for it and guess what - i have a tennis court at my apartment. it's brilliant, i can just go and book it and it only costs me the price of my weekly rent.  there is also a pool and a bbq and i am in walking distance to the city.  

so the subject of tennis came up this week and my friend Elena and I jumped all over it and decided to go for a hit.  you know what happens when you put the letter S in front of hit - well that kind of summed us all up.  Two quickly became four and it was nonsense. I don't think any of us have played recently, but that didn't stop us from having a fantastic time.  So according to Yaz....

yep, the only way is up - that's where we want the balls - up, up, up....like they have taken a little blue pill, up above the net, in the court, not over the fence, not under the net, not beside the court - in the fucking court, in the fucking marked off area, where tennis is meant to happen

 

i did do a little practicing in my lounge room, but maybe i should have worn a sweat band - it might have lifted my game.

 

well the tennis was fun and i love that one of our avid players was wearing boat shoes. we are looking at doing it a couple of times a week.  surprisingly, i can actually move following this sudden burst of all over body activity.

But following all that funning around, i needed a quick tasty dinner and here it is.  Gnocchi with Raw sauce

Get some gnocchi
Boil your water so you can cook your gnocchi
while that is happening, in a small dish, grate a tomato, add some crushed garlic, finely chopped chilli (if you want the spice), some ripped basil leaves, a splash of olive oil, a small bit of butter and some Himalayan salt and some pepper.

Cook your gnocchi till it rises to the top of the saucepan - this is the fail proof way to ensure it is ready. This is the right kind of floater.

Scoop the gnocchi into the sauce bowl.  Stir gently and the heat will melt the butter, wilt the basil and kindly warm the mixture.

Serve it up.  i didn't add any parmesan to this, but it is just as lovely without it.

It's a dish that likes to be eaten with a spoon, as it become almost like a yummy soup.  Enjoy.

So, i have tennis again tomorrow, can't wait - it's bound to be another adventure in ball chasing.