Short and Snackish | Explore My Content

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I've always used social media as an enhancer to create a further connection with people. Whether it's reaching out to an old classmate or collegue, thanking someone on a post for sharing their tips or using it as my own visual diary - I love the ease of sharing it brings. Below you'll see my public pages where I showcase my experiences of things I've dabbled in.

Short&Snackish Instagram

As a South African-born, Bulgarian-raised individual, working within diverse international settings has always felt like home. To me, food is the one universal love language that transcends boundaries, as sharing a meal speaks of love and respect. Through food, I connect, celebrate, and nurture meaningful relationships

Made.You.Something Instagram

During the pandemic, I taught myself Illustrator, and now one of my favourite ways to wind down is by creating fun, quirky, and colourful illustrations to bring a little brightness to your day. What started out as playful way for me to express joy, curiosity, and the stories I see around me it is now my creative space to explore making new things.

This past weekend I had the pleasure of dining at @the_grand_exotic for the first time 🥰 It was a recommendations from one of my besties and oh my goodness I’m so happy I asked her 😍 The setting itself is magical and whimsical, making you feel like you’ve entered a new world where magic exists 💖 I enjoyed their corn fritters 🌽 but instead of salmon I had it with bacon 🥓 Everything we had was superb! 🤤

#ballitoeats #foodiesofsa #eatingout #eatingoutkzn

I made this video at the end of September and it’s been quite popular on tiktok 🥰 So I thought I’d share it here too incase anyone on Instagram is looking for #richardsbay accommodation 🛌

Mozambique offered us the most relaxing 4 day trip 💖 From smacking mosquitos, to eating delicious food with the ocean roaring in the background - it was pure bliss ✨

#mozambique #travel #instatravel #southafricantravel #travelafrica

I dont have kids so I do this for my adult friends 🤣 But here’s an way #halloweenlunchbox idea 🎃 Keeping it cute + simple 🖤

#foodies #foodiesofsa #halloween #easyhalloweenidea

Lemon jello shots 🍋

Prep Time: 20 minutes | Cook Time: 4 hours | Serves: 5 people

Equipment needed: NutriBullet, sieve, stove top & fridge

Ingredients:
• 4 large lemons sliced in half & insides scooped out
• 1 cup water
• 1 cup lemon juice (you’ll get this from the scooped out lemons)
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup gin
• 30gs gelatine

Method:
1. Place water and sugar on medium heat and store until sugar is melted
2. Add in your gelatine and reduce heat to low, continue to stir until all the gelatine is melted. If there are still some bits that are being stubborn, strain through a sieve
3. Blitz lemon insides in your nutribullet and strain through your sieve to get clear lemon juice
4. Remove your mixture off the heat and pour in your lemon juice along with your gin
5. Pour your mixture in the lemon casings and place in the fridge for a minimum of 4 hours to set
6. Slice into bite sized pieces and enjoy!

#foodie #foodiesofsa #lemon #lemonjello #jelloshots #ginshots #gin

Pickled red onions 🧅

So easy 👏

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Equipment: Empty jar

Ingredients:
Red onions, sliced
Apple cider vinegar
Fennel seeds (optional)

Method:
1.Grab your empty jar and place sliced onions in it
2. Cover them with apple cider vinegar (add fennel seeds if you’re using) and place in the fridge!

They’ll be ready in 4 hours, but the longer they sit, the juicer they’ll be 💖

#pickledonions #easyrecipe #homefood #foodiesofsa #pickling #onions

Homemade @nandosrsa inspired boujee bowl 🥗

Airfryer corn
Sliced baby spinach
Roasted red pepper
Diced pineapple
Lightly fried carrots & red onion
Rice cooked in turmeric & chicken stock
Chicken strips cooked with cumin, lemon juice, white wine & chicken stock
Topped with feta

Easy 👏

#fakeaways #foodiesofsa #nandosinspired

The best quiche recipe 🤩 All thanks to @sasko_sa 🥰 The dough is easy and always delicious! 🤤 I’ve had this for over 10 years and it was thanks to a dear friend & colleague who shared this with me that it’s part of my recipe collection ❤️

Prep Time: 20 minutes + 30 minute chill time | Cook Time: 20 minutes | Serves: 21 - 22 mini tarts but if you double up the dough recipe you’ll get +- 50 mini tarts

Equipment Needed: Mixing bowl, grater, muffin tin or mini tart foil trays

Ingredients:

For the dough:
• 150g butter or margarine, cold
• 250ml Sasko Cake Flour
• 55ml cold water

For the filling:
• 375ml Cream
• 375ml Milk
• 5 Eggs
• Anything else you like! I enjoy adding onions, bacon & cheese

Note: You will use half the filling for one dough batch, so I suggest doubling up the dough 💪

Method:
1. Grate your butter or margarine into your flower using a grater. Tip, dip the butter in flour to prevent it from sticking. Your mixture should resemble bread crumbs.
2. ⁠Add your cold water and bring together until a dough is formed. If it’s too wet add a bit of flour, if it’s too dry add a bit more cold water.
3. ⁠Refrigerate for a 30 minutes before using
4. Roll out chilled dough until 1/2 a cm thick and cut with a cookie cutter, place in an oiled muffin tin or tart foil trays.
5. Add filling
6. Bake for 15 - 20 minutes in a preheated 180°c oven
7. Enjoy!

#QuickRecipes #EasyCooking #HomemadeGoodness #EverydayEats #FoodieLife #SavoryTart #SavoryBaking #TartRecipe #EasyTart #PuffPastryLove #30MinuteMeals #QuickAndEasyRecipes #WeeknightDinner #EasyEats #CookingMadeSimple #Foodstagram #InMyKitchen #FromScratch #FoodieInspo #HomeCookingDaily

Our beautiful housekeeper asked me to show her how to make scones and we had the best time! 🤩 I used @megankateswan’s recipe as she posted a 2023 tiktok video and let me tell you they were AMAZING 👏 I just might have made ours a bit big but who doesn’t love a vetkoek sized scone? 🤭

So easy! Megan’s recipe can be seen below, I did divide it in half to create two baking stations and it all worked out perfectly ✨

Prep Time: 20 minutes | Cook Time: 20 minutes | Serves: 10+ scones (depending on your size)

Equipment needed: Mixing bowls, grater, baking paper & oven

Ingredients

Dry ingredients:
• 1kg self raising flour
• 50g baking powder
• 300g castor sugar
• 250g butter, cold

Wet Ingredients:
• 3 eggs
• 250ml plain full cream yogurt
• 125 ml water
• Dash of vanilla essence

Method:
1. Mix your flour & baking powder together
2. Grate in your butter into your flour mixture until you have a breadcrumb like texture. Tip: dip the butter in the flour to prevent it from sticking
3. Mix wet ingredients together
4. Add wet ingredients to your dry ingredients and start forming your dough. You will need to place it onto a lightly floured surface to really incorporate everything. It will come together, trust the process & don’t over work it
5. Once your dough has formed roll out to roughly 2cm thickness and cut out your desired shape & size
6. Brush with egg wash
7. Place on your oven tray that has been lined with baking paper and bake in your preheated 180°c oven for 15 - 20 minutes or until golden brown

Enjoy with @ramasouthafrica , jam or @cloversouthafrica cream! ✨🍓🍦 Best combination is all 3! 😋

#scones #sconesrecipe #foodiesofsa

Gluten-Free Lemon Poppy Seed Cupcakes & Cake 🍋

Prep Time: 15 minutes | Cook Time: 15 minutes | Serves: 12 cupcakes + 1 shallow cake

Equipment needed: Mixing bowls, whisk, zester, cupcake tin, shallow cake tin, oven, electric mixer, piping bag with round icing tip

Ingredients
For the cake:
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 2 cups gluten-free flour (Health Connection Wholefoods)
• 3 eggs
• 60 ml melted butter
• 1 cup Greek yogurt
• 1 cup sunflower oil
• Zest of 3 lemons
• 1 cup castor sugar
• Juice of 3 lemons
• 2 tablespoons poppy seeds

For the frosting:
• 500 g softened butter
• 1 kg icing sugar

For topping:
• Fresh blueberries

Method:
1. Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F). Grease a 12-hole cupcake tin and a shallow cake tin.
2. In a large bowl, mix together the baking powder and gluten-free flour. Set aside.
3. In another bowl, whisk together the eggs, melted butter, Greek yogurt, and sunflower oil until smooth.
4. In a separate bowl, combine the lemon zest and castor sugar. Mix well.
5. Add the wet mixture (eggs, yogurt, butter, oil) to the lemon-sugar mixture. Beat until well combined.
6. Gradually fold this into the dry ingredients (flour and baking powder) until just incorporated.
7. Stir in the poppy seeds and lemon juice until evenly mixed.
8. Divide the batter between the 12 cupcake molds and the shallow cake tin.
9. Bake for 15 minutes, or until a skewer inserted comes out clean. Allow to cool completely before frosting.

Frosting:
1. In a large bowl, beat the softened butter with an electric mixer for about 15 minutes, or until it turns pale and whitish in color.
2. Slowly add the icing sugar, continuing to beat for another 15 minutes until light and fluffy.
3. For the cupcakes: use a piping tip to make a shallow hole in the center of each cupcake and pipe a small amount of frosting inside before decorating the tops.
4. Frost the cupcakes and cake generously, then finish by topping with fresh blueberries.

Note: This recipe makes more frosting than you’ll need. Extra frosting can be stored in the freezer for later use.

Additional Note: Because this recipe is gluten free it’s best enjoyed fresh. Eat within two days for best flavour & texture

Sunflower cupcakes inspired from @mycupof_char’s flower cupcakes using pineapple slices 🍍

I used @inapaarmanskitchen’s vanilla cake & icing mix for the actual cupcakes and it was pure perfection 💫

@staffordssa’s chocolate disks finished them off and made the sunflower vision come to life 🌻

#cupcakes #flowercupcakes #sunflowercupcskes #springcupcakes #diycupcakes #cutecupcakes #baking #baker #foodies #foodies #foodiesofsouthafrica #foodiesofsa #sunflower #sunflowerseason #sunflowers

I played private chef today for my families👩🏽‍🍳 It’s not even a week since I’m back in South Africa from Bulgaria and I was already missing the food 🥺 So I whipped up our usual go-to while we were there:
🥗 Shopska salad
🥩 Kuftetas
🍟 Chips with cheese
🥑 A Happy salad (a salad we tried while we were at Happy, but I forgot the avo)

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A portrait of a friend at her besties wedding 💖 Started June 1st, finished June 18th 🥰

#selftaught #cuteartwork #cute #digitalartisit #artillustration #artist #digitalillustration #illustration #art #artdrawing #drawing #portrait #creative #create #portraitillustration #memorykeeping #memory #gift #sassy #fun #illustrator #southafricanillustrator #personalisation #gift #portrait #quickart

A portrait of a friend eating dinner at Bottega Frawli, in Malta 🥂 Started June 17th, finished June 22nd ✨

#selftaught #cuteartwork #cute #digitalartisit #artillustration #artist #digitalillustration #illustration #art #artdrawing #drawing #selfportrait #creative #create #portraitillustration #memorykeeping #memory #gift #sassy #fun #illustrator #southafricanillustrator #birthdaygift #personalisation #gift #portrait #malta #restaurant #dinner

1/3

I wish I could tell you this was finished, but it’s far from it. I started doing this one, back in 2023 (I’m pretty sure it was 2022 actually, but I don’t have the file to prove that date - as everything gets updated to the latest date when it’s opened) I wanted to do an illustration of my favourite place in Cape Town. A place that always gave me a sense of warmth when I arrived and I got inspired so I could conduct my work. As time passed, restrictions on laptops got more intense because it became so popular, but I always still managed to sneak a spot on the counter and enjoyed one of my favourite meals. This place watched me grow as a freelancer and housed me as I found my artistic side. I wanted to pay tribute to it by showcasing the different parts of me it’s accommodated and showcase some of my favourite things. Most recently I decided to turn it into my LinkedIn cover page, even though it wasn’t finished, because what better way to showcase my work than on a platform which speaks to your skill set.

3/3

You’ll see a snippet of one of my favourite beaches and its significance to my own heart is pure because it’s the town my fiancé decided to propose to me, honouring my family & their heritage. A special attention to detail I overlooked at the time but now treasure closely. Food shown here is from another image I drew earlier this year (I’ll be impressed if you know which one) and again it’s a metaphor of not only my love for cuisine but how, regardless of time and space, it always has the ability to bring us closer to one another. I’m grateful I took the time to learn how to illustrate and with time I hope to improve. But most importantly, I’m grateful I now have the ability to get lost in worlds that once only lived inside my head 🧠

An oldie I came across today 💕 This was inspired by the smoothie I made that day 💚 Started November 17th 2021 & finished November 19th 2021 🎨

#selftaught #cuteartwork #cute #digitalartisit #artillustration #artist #digitalillustration #illustration #art #artdrawing #drawing #selfportrait #creative #create #portraitillustration #memorykeeping #memory #gift #sassy #fun #illustrator #southafricanillustrator #birthdaygift #personalisation #gift #portrait #quickart

I went on a new adventure since April 22nd and I wanted to document with weekly vlogs 📹 It was important to me to have my own animation outro / intro - so I got to work and produced this cutie 💖 Took me longer than expected, because I had to get the animation right but I’m so pleased with how it turned out 🤩 Started April 14th, finished April 27th 📆 Fun fact: the audio you hear is me actually munching on potato chips 👅

#selftaught #cuteartwork #cute #digitalartisit #artillustration #artist #digitalillustration #illustration #weddingday #art #artdrawing #drawing #creative #create #portraitillustration #sassy #fun #illustrator #southafricanillustrator #gif #animation #cat #chips #personalisation

An ex-colleague is getting married this week, so I created an illustration from one of their photos from their engagement 💍 The only error I’d say I made with this was not paying attention to the size of the artwork and now half of it isn’t shown here 😂 But I still love how the top half looks 💙 Started April 28th, delivered April 30th 📅

#selftaught #cuteartwork #cute #digitalartisit #artillustration #artist #digitalillustration #illustration #engagement #art #artdrawing #drawing #engagementillustration #creative #create #portraitillustration #wedding #memorykeeping #memory #gift #sassy #fun #illustrator #southafricanillustrator #birthdaygift #personalisation #gift #portrait #concert

One of the first designs created for a client 🎨 Changes were made and the final design was very similar with minor colour changes 👩‍🎨 Started April 1st 2025, final delivered on April 10th 📆

#selftaught #cuteartwork #cute #digitalartisit #artillustration #artist #digitalillustration #illustration #whiskey #art #artdrawing #drawing #whiskeysour #creative #create #portraitillustration #wedding #memorykeeping #memory #gift #sassy #fun #illustrator #southafricanillustrator #personalisation #gift #portrait #collaboration #whiskeysour #whiskeyillustration

My second set of lips! 🫦 Created for a client ✏️ Started April 1st 2025, final delivered on April 10th 📆

#selftaught #cuteartwork #cute #digitalartisit #artillustration #artist #digitalillustration #illustration #weddingday #art #artdrawing #drawing #creative #create #portraitillustration #lemon #memorykeeping #memory #gift #sassy #fun #illustrator #southafricanillustrator #birthdaygift #personalisation #gift #lips #sour #gif

One of the first designs created for a client that didn’t make it past the first phase 🎨 They had photographs of these shots and didn’t feel the need for this to be part of the illustrations 💦 Still loved creating this one 🧡 Fun fact: the ones that take you the longest arnt always the ones that are chosen 🧠 Started April 1st 2025, showcased April 4th 📆

#selftaught #cuteartwork #cute #digitalartisit #artillustration #artist #digitalillustration #illustration #pool #drinks #whiskey #art #artdrawing #drawing #creative #create #freelancework #sassy #fun #illustrator #southafricanillustrator #personalisation #gift #portrait #collaboration #poolsideillustration

Made this for a friend’s birthday 🧁 Took a photo of the two of them at a #cigarettesaftersexband concert 🎫 Started and finished March 2025 ✍️

#selftaught #cuteartwork #cute #digitalartisit #artillustration #artist #digitalillustration #illustration #weddingday #art #artdrawing #drawing #weddingillustration #creative #create #portraitillustration #wedding #memorykeeping #memory #gift #sassy #fun #illustrator #southafricanillustrator #birthdaygift #personalisation #gift #portrait #concert

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Grab a seat, stay a while, and welcome to my little community.

Short&Snackish Instagram

Made.You.Something Instagram

Interested in viewing my portfolio? Pop me an email!

cheeky but cute.

Grab a seat, stay a while, and welcome to my little community.

Short&Snackish Instagram

Made.You.Something Instagram

​

​

Interested in viewing my portfolio? Pop me an email!

cheeky but cute.