tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11018898890545547092024-03-15T02:34:45.882+10:30food.shoes.travel.thoughts.Bliss is: a fabulous pair of shoes, eating a delicious cake, travelling somewhere, anywhere and having lots of time to think about anything and everything.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger112125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1101889889054554709.post-60200431132355877392012-01-29T19:30:00.000+10:302012-01-29T19:30:04.979+10:30Back to school<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Today is the last day of the summer holidays. I've spent the last two weeks preparing my new classroom, in my new school for my brand new receptions. Like most school teachers I'm not feeling much joy today. By noon today I'd scrubbed my house, made our lunches, laid out my new school clothes and was placing my school books in my bag, read to be placed on my new desk tomorrow morning. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM-vYDJLiyS7D2ZPJUpJTSthrPlIpf1ljZvgg61HV7uSBiILh8UsO2QXG2oK384dB32qN3nHzKusKazV0SaQ34vL81Y4jaXDjRwuz1Nobh7050GeH0l1lGNmUlzMOApTTPrVaZ1h5B8w/s1600/1305.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM-vYDJLiyS7D2ZPJUpJTSthrPlIpf1ljZvgg61HV7uSBiILh8UsO2QXG2oK384dB32qN3nHzKusKazV0SaQ34vL81Y4jaXDjRwuz1Nobh7050GeH0l1lGNmUlzMOApTTPrVaZ1h5B8w/s320/1305.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stirling</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxWVkZDoPrDOGNi0HKnXcaWoqkk-Viw-s1lFk3G4KzMIxVL-sAqIgpOlnFPQqkKUbH3I7oe0lgwXSB6WYz5VmpiyKW_Hd83psd4uX96IPH2BBuKFlIggSDZ5aWNOp5_8kanIuC1tlfeA/s1600/1304.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxWVkZDoPrDOGNi0HKnXcaWoqkk-Viw-s1lFk3G4KzMIxVL-sAqIgpOlnFPQqkKUbH3I7oe0lgwXSB6WYz5VmpiyKW_Hd83psd4uX96IPH2BBuKFlIggSDZ5aWNOp5_8kanIuC1tlfeA/s320/1304.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stirling</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAz1yVFaZLotRHTAWxi8ox-BCSQC9PuPZHLHpm13GAkd1etS6g59X3A5y6WLQGmgRcgfbaUKrUT7vcsndb7tTOQYjYoQBo_NmgH-iQrU9HrwilZ6GQXf2PKBl9rPm1NNSpiC8CJyhodQ/s1600/1306.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAz1yVFaZLotRHTAWxi8ox-BCSQC9PuPZHLHpm13GAkd1etS6g59X3A5y6WLQGmgRcgfbaUKrUT7vcsndb7tTOQYjYoQBo_NmgH-iQrU9HrwilZ6GQXf2PKBl9rPm1NNSpiC8CJyhodQ/s320/1306.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Stirling Hotel, one of my favourite Adelaide hill's pubs.</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGOM1M98M7_5f8-E5Oxm7lqBKcEwfgfUqtANqGEGmhNRYdCYR4jQMU8cERuyLRkGuy397j3iE95zI6U82x-6bxdDRGUFz3bUoki-3VZfArghKIwbUwxu76ZksrCfRROhR1IwH9ccI9Sw/s1600/1320.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGOM1M98M7_5f8-E5Oxm7lqBKcEwfgfUqtANqGEGmhNRYdCYR4jQMU8cERuyLRkGuy397j3iE95zI6U82x-6bxdDRGUFz3bUoki-3VZfArghKIwbUwxu76ZksrCfRROhR1IwH9ccI9Sw/s320/1320.JPG" width="240" /></a> <span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">To help ease my severe case of School Teacher Sunday Blues Mr PE and I decided to head to the Adelaide hills for a bakery fix. There is nothing that </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">savory</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> pastry and sugar can't fix. Or so I thought. </span><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinGWchUjlbQdSAR8haNer-ywMMB-KQUXhGcGutknQTlTR1IXb1pRZEwmihKEBdtnHqmZa2VNDXrye5jYVPOxHfyFFL1kPZqAS5kMDojwkwNmZfPlvaldqI32iybzX1aFMKe-xGcf8e-A/s1600/1321.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinGWchUjlbQdSAR8haNer-ywMMB-KQUXhGcGutknQTlTR1IXb1pRZEwmihKEBdtnHqmZa2VNDXrye5jYVPOxHfyFFL1kPZqAS5kMDojwkwNmZfPlvaldqI32iybzX1aFMKe-xGcf8e-A/s200/1321.JPG" width="200" /></a><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"></span><br /><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTs3w4zpEPNuIDyVbS91xDJbgl4siQgR_2XSNnn7hhdVUFU2XbzbaGf50nCNy-Y5k9X9a3UDSDOP5WqjE4UUfvFSMab5jwcVvEoGs0ZSpaZrx6C9j2hHs41IO_zY2VhUos3uuT629mrQ/s1600/1315.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTs3w4zpEPNuIDyVbS91xDJbgl4siQgR_2XSNnn7hhdVUFU2XbzbaGf50nCNy-Y5k9X9a3UDSDOP5WqjE4UUfvFSMab5jwcVvEoGs0ZSpaZrx6C9j2hHs41IO_zY2VhUos3uuT629mrQ/s320/1315.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We ate our lunch opposite the library <br />but sat on the grass. <br />A good compromise between a PE teacher and a Junior Primary teacher.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">In line with a normal teacher's workday, the most carefully thought out plans can easily go pear-shaped. There is no way of guaranteeing you'll know what the day will hold for you. Both towns in our Adelaide hills adventure close their bakeries on a Sunday. Aldgate's Bakery was closed as was our next stop back down the hill, Stirling. I won't begrudge any retail worker a day off. Especially if it brings me closer to my all time favourite "junk food": a hotdog. My eventual lunch may not have been what I'd set out to initially eat but I think it was a valuable lesson for me at the start of the 2012 school year. No matter </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">what those 20 little people bring to my classroom tomorrow morning we'll somehow muddle through it. 48 days until the Easter school holidays!</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Thank heck it was open 7 seven days...</td></tr>
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1101889889054554709.post-49591246443507270172011-11-19T23:24:00.002+10:302011-11-20T00:02:51.938+10:30Bite me Broome<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpis4qdV4rajRMyVMVLUMqRXP2IHXGAoU5mIFV7z32sC1a1dK2zq-ue4QzGkZB_aQypWM0woZS1LREXTxQ2RzCyNReXbsw6BSs034rkPJ8Eyvg400G85_Z4fdehjFfMTdmoqbvSJGy7w/s1600/broome1.JPG"></a><br />
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2011 is proving to be a bit of a travel year. </div>
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Which is nice. </div>
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I miss airports. I miss packing.</div>
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I digress. </div>
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A visit to Broome, Western Australia<br />
with very dear friends<br />
from my former London Life</div>
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provided me with ample opportunities </div>
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to photograph all the delicious food I encountered<br />
while my friends cowered<br />
in great embarrassment.<br />
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<br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com07 Bernard Way, Cable Beach WA 6726, Australia-17.958811891561137 122.21466064453125-17.989023391561137 122.17517864453124 -17.928600391561137 122.25414264453126tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1101889889054554709.post-70541919126075576072010-07-30T18:25:00.000+09:302010-07-30T18:25:00.684+09:30Pound Cake<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTJrZcqApkQ-o8Qx7u0enmx4e44BHbPg8VJQoXXTUW0oPQCt1Se1bbJ_RxUcu7a4_h2Tn2AqiK1e-NTvZU4s6Fo1Ck8HKQcH_d6HXm6dL7UG3q9SpFZPjm0cn4HLAd1jrMr9XUQ8E0wA/s1600/pound6.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498137698207764066" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTJrZcqApkQ-o8Qx7u0enmx4e44BHbPg8VJQoXXTUW0oPQCt1Se1bbJ_RxUcu7a4_h2Tn2AqiK1e-NTvZU4s6Fo1Ck8HKQcH_d6HXm6dL7UG3q9SpFZPjm0cn4HLAd1jrMr9XUQ8E0wA/s320/pound6.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><div><br /><div><div><div><div><div align="center">I've always wanted to make a pound cake. </div><div align="center">I expected pound cakes to be <strong>sturdy, solid cakes</strong>. </div><div align="center">The kind that require a strong cup of black tea with lashings of sugar. </div><div align="center"><strong><em>I was wrong.</em></strong> </div><div align="center">Pound cakes are soft, moist and so delicious that they don't need a hot drink to aid their consumption.</div><div> </div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498137219926440274" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIu-MS3fSJcdpCpqB_CkMXBxzMRw5KM4T6PVydTgRgW3UBV5Riru3drANxfxaD7nhFTZn9AwW3lvNPMLy81UfFtqclshkXfYOt13CQkNZSl9cfbd-OgIgGdXmTDr00ysI19DH_zFU-mw/s320/pound1.JPG" border="0" /></div></div></div></div></div></div><br /><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498137331281919554" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii8yRioDX3XWCxVEXokj0fEPrbrIGRlGFgDRnyla31miif8NqWLGw6A8y2Hz2DYAO3tTyASeYPdRYAlIKpTL26zkKdUQ8Sjfh4-cJTPPNvTbfNzIGexhbDyP4QlULwHjua8MyQm2NPRg/s320/pound2.JPG" border="0" /></p><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498137413230625282" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_qqRycX9ukJOo9sNidTCIF6kuV1ZgA2WrOmMmtX4sAfLbp-R1Ux1EQvewWME_1YU_Li4uqlHzTN2ciumZ0V8uw8ADz-_qejuZ2NTI343Sa4XHob1AsqGLkM8m-6s_fvgLx_MSr9CaLQ/s320/pound3.JPG" border="0" /></p><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498137506082733746" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQXv1qsARpgiowbP_8cGXSZaOEtP4f77G0fQCERB-238Azz4Q30CEBX5oIbYPfBN3OpWC1I-py9tcWDC8IRc55wAskow-5wcYwfzS3p_vNATKJSU74POz68GpA2xawVhOpFuM6QfKgQA/s320/pound4.JPG" border="0" /></p><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498137602536959538" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY1aAG2RSgVbYYVp3G4Tc0kIRIl6XwpBCnMuLGSTFfyqNLU20UOnSJ-SsKcKrlcjtV-uFzqydMCXJXZuVn0T0Imhui2BRZaMCyNyauz7xgM_poqpJFhLD1tA2H5a7cSI1WoXKD1D35Gg/s320/pound5.JPG" border="0" /></p><p> </p><p align="center"><em><strong>Where's that cup of tea?</strong></em></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1101889889054554709.post-2609949523790517102010-07-28T17:25:00.000+09:302010-07-28T17:25:00.323+09:30Do you use your oven timer?<div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1F5k-vIK4U2LmWbj0gqJ_cJgeq5F6mBVQoedy4jIba757vfs6DtVOkqMJD0X9hRaV3GUmtvGEPnDUd-XS9KYhB_LoNsBF6DGeBRdqyHIe0bG2cKExufO_QamKmY3-wiUF0tfB2IwjKA/s1600/nana4.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498121343123098962" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1F5k-vIK4U2LmWbj0gqJ_cJgeq5F6mBVQoedy4jIba757vfs6DtVOkqMJD0X9hRaV3GUmtvGEPnDUd-XS9KYhB_LoNsBF6DGeBRdqyHIe0bG2cKExufO_QamKmY3-wiUF0tfB2IwjKA/s320/nana4.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><div>My mother has never used an oven timer. </div><div>A lot of what I know about baking comes from my mother. </div><div>Which means that I have never used an oven timer. </div><div>Until now. </div><div>A friend was over and we were talking in my kitchen. </div><div>She asked me how I liked my oven timer. </div><div>I told her that I didn't know how to use them so I never bothered. </div><div>She laughed at me, turned the dial and my oven timer was ticking away to it's goal time. </div><div>How easy! </div><div> </div><div>The following banana bread is made using honey and buttermilk. </div><div>It is super delicious and soft. </div><div>The recipe also includes a saucey glaze which I sadly didn't have time to make.</div><div> </div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498121613951998722" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj05VyXMHYKPvU-3OoHIObqQIqOy_NB1oM212vcBJpe0fydipQtq49WmtzYEefQ5mmyHVBioaLBtjsEjU0Uv7ysiuAydUkUDF2YGNjS2nmbKSye16siAKR8MdGDceIgvtN4rY5_Zqdz4Q/s320/Nana+3.JPG" border="0" /></div></div><br /><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498121529031677778" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgt-0QRno12wtxj2w5YxAO0ze-YfniAUWBqxh9SwL8EN0deQW1TVksYOH6K2VJ-P-2dw5iar_3mmS_AtYLH_CoR2t_WvB0DUE-2FIQuxqoj2KE0SOETXobdb26ehT79g-1JE8i7XhtJgQ/s320/Nana+2.JPG" border="0" /></p><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498121440747092802" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMGlaasAlE_UAI7EkldwB1kKox2TOteMVHfiCCTZNN4O_f2my7PHO-5XraRm4K5EzeTAej7SYaiQ_fUw2ChOPc97PI-ZuGGqFhtklJGnewhIJlOPyB4mCBgPu14oLA-zvLdJHbQ9mLQA/s320/Nana+1.JPG" border="0" /></p><p> </p><p><strong>Recipe from <a href="http://www.taste.com.au/">here</a></strong></p><p><strong>Ingredients (serves 8)<br /></strong>Melted butter, for greasing<br />125g butter, cubed, at room temperature<br />185mls (3/4 cup) honey<br />2 eggs, lightly whisked<br />3 medium ripe bananas, mashed<br />60mls (1/4 cup) buttermilk<br />300g (2 cups) plain flour<br />1 tsp baking powder<br />1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda<br />1 tsp ground cinnamon<br />Thick cream, to serve<br /></p><p><strong>honey almond syrup<br /></strong>160mls (2/3 cup) honey<br />80mls (1/3 cup) fresh lemon juice<br />80g (1/2 cup) almond kernels, coarsely chopped<br /><strong></strong></p><p><strong>Method</strong><br />1. Preheat oven to 170°C. Brush a medium (8.5 x 19cm, base measurement) loaf pan with the melted butter to lightly grease.<br />2. Use electric beaters to beat the butter and honey in a large mixing bowl until creamy and evenly combined. Add the eggs, one at a time, and beat well after each addition until well combined. Add the bananas and buttermilk and beat until just combined.<br />3. Sift the plain flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and ground cinnamon. Fold the flour mixture into the honey mixture with a large metal spoon until just combined. Spoon mixture into the greased loaf pan and bake in preheated oven for 45 minutes. Cover with foil and bake for a further 15 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre of the bread comes out clean. Stand bread in the pan for 10 minutes before transferring to a cutting board.<br />4. Meanwhile, to make the honey almond syrup, combine honey, lemon juice and almonds in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring to the boil and cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute.<br />5. Slice the hot bread, place onto plates and drizzle with the honey almond syrup. Serve immediately with thick cream.</p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1101889889054554709.post-18021589044360658542010-07-26T16:41:00.009+09:302010-07-26T16:58:57.578+09:30MIA<div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-6mlzQbAhRpWHG0P67vo1ftifLHL1nPCQqKg_FTisN9A9rPcYHMLVL7LSfLYjDdL7y5p-6p0_oYJfz1897m3QABdDbxdOwgCRk7YHyRQDwt46J5OblxbbvZlAijIB0nY4X2-jzzd7gg/s1600/where_in_the_world_is_carmen_sandiego-show.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498113081933723106" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-6mlzQbAhRpWHG0P67vo1ftifLHL1nPCQqKg_FTisN9A9rPcYHMLVL7LSfLYjDdL7y5p-6p0_oYJfz1897m3QABdDbxdOwgCRk7YHyRQDwt46J5OblxbbvZlAijIB0nY4X2-jzzd7gg/s320/where_in_the_world_is_carmen_sandiego-show.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div align="center"><br />I was a little shocked to realise that I have not blogged since February.<br /></div><div align="center"><strong><em>FEBRUARY! </em></strong></div><div align="center"><strong><em><br /></em></strong>I have certainly baked and cooked during the last few months but a few things have eaten away at my time and prevented me from blogging.<br /><br /><strong>Things such as:</strong> </div><br /><br /><div align="center"><em>getting married</em></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498109848042343810" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 214px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjabAcwQ0wJU5AJhJ9kxTIw-WlmmcWo7z75-rJV3ZSwLj_evgLX1Hk5DgZrgrhasE6s1c9Sd2e4sDoZZ8EUgr3ZTJs96fh6TUivSALADh7Vhyphenhypheno8bhkO9LBtJWVMBB8IMuZY-wjLe9JkdA/s320/Cake+for+blog.jpg" border="0" /><br /><br /><p align="center"><em>Turning this</em> <img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498110641005446290" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdByO4W2f4tHg2tvo83F-zvjS5gm8_TFWOlOIJ3cUxw-IWKef8D-strIlS7Zvn4vEhr-RWzpRDrdsLZuRA6R1Cac01T5M_tkLUSbFByiwMroKM7hxOdJPlAaddMvig963eULsmCQognw/s320/kitchen+from+hallway+door.JPG" border="0" /></p><br /><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498110898842277986" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDxEv1NbxAcTbbjeAK0QAua_UX1rlPL7tkJz3XnsZXzKyS-5MopzEDw9sAUrP8DmFDLMbcCqQLjP7V3BUjV7Und4OCU-iMp3dfxLTImHxm_Tfr2PHPQzMg3sSZdsocgLIzML4N_q8YzA/s320/kitchen+island+and+glimpse+of+back+door.JPG" border="0" /></p><br /><div align="center">into this</div><br /><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498111239578751170" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA2_tkBDU-aENk_URla-hmIwgiTg80zRKNIp2FNLC-VvUYbIxpZVnkgfENJxpigu7uaWlfKIGy5NKAIrEt-OqR3ubzW_8_HfHf4Fr8YMj1QcvK1vXsDpuuPLNfXox38pTr746xOziT3Q/s320/kitchen2.JPG" border="0" /> </p>(obviously still a work in progress!)<br /><p><br /></p><br /><p align="center"><em>and returning to school to once again be a teacher</em></p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5498112585031171298" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitt_exKUbgRslFvLiEZhuKY5MHAlUnSfh7KRTuV_3yt928PLbGvu8K0AQCXMXG3QNtbxuV8SXDPX-1Ng8ZuxhbCDYyDo-0r16JiUbsD6vDaNx4eUjTHAoFeUxrFcqmvUHj_JYcIgyyqw/s320/teacher.jpg" border="0" /><br /><br /><br /><p align="center">Our house renovations are almost complete, the wedding is a happy memory and my return to the classroom is slowly starting to feel routine.<br /></p><p align="center">So the next few months should mean lots of blog posts as I put my new kitchen to work.<br /></p><br /><br /><p align="center"></p></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1101889889054554709.post-40007207512953952552010-02-27T19:25:00.006+10:302010-02-27T19:48:29.191+10:30I was a teenage mother....godmother that is!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8taYMTlMd9fvFyu6c9BXydxBIQ6P09P85v8CbwndUm7dA6X53Aq35wyMtEYCV65n6us0Tff3qS9iFPclQSKRC6DnZ82h5TEp5W_P3JqnK8gvZQHmfX8f5RBqFYU1b356Vvdhaybu-lw/s1600-h/nicky+bicky1.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8taYMTlMd9fvFyu6c9BXydxBIQ6P09P85v8CbwndUm7dA6X53Aq35wyMtEYCV65n6us0Tff3qS9iFPclQSKRC6DnZ82h5TEp5W_P3JqnK8gvZQHmfX8f5RBqFYU1b356Vvdhaybu-lw/s320/nicky+bicky1.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5442849069332068514" /></a><br /><div align="center"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">I was 12 when my youngest cousin,<strong> <span style="font-size:130%;">FireBug</span></strong> was born. </span></div><div align="center"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">I was shocked (<strong>but thrilled</strong>) to be asked to be <strong><span style="font-size:130%;">his godmother</span></strong>. </span></div><div align="center"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">To say that FireBug is a character is a bit of an understatement. </span></div><div align="center"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">He has been entertaining our family with his antics for the last 17 years. </span></div><div align="center"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">Imagine a 5 year old who is home sick from school, asks his grandmother (who is babysitting him) if he can phone his friends but instead calls the police for a chat and you have my godson.<br /><br /><strong><span style="font-size:130%;">Today is Firebug's<em> birthday.</em></span></strong> </span></div><div align="center"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">He's never been a big one for sweet food but has always loved <em><strong>plain shop brought biscuits covered in icing and splattered with sprinkles</strong></em>. </span></div><div align="center"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">So I've put on my godmother hat and made him some of his favourite treats.</span></div><div align="center"><span style="font-family:Trebuchet MS;"></span> </div><div align="center"> </div><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB_JFOrqIxKHyvhKa7nudH_d_cG3VruPOvaelHDxJSE8bLi50e_9ECevq8JZT50gEmwTI7ywVB8zqDiIiWkZTbm6_6Sv4zwTxbcMfbK16DPYJvnZPvOn0tfRUO3d-lh0SySHI3bI4uPA/s1600-h/nicky+bicky2.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB_JFOrqIxKHyvhKa7nudH_d_cG3VruPOvaelHDxJSE8bLi50e_9ECevq8JZT50gEmwTI7ywVB8zqDiIiWkZTbm6_6Sv4zwTxbcMfbK16DPYJvnZPvOn0tfRUO3d-lh0SySHI3bI4uPA/s320/nicky+bicky2.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5442849327214980418" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8eFzAz7TQKLnwqXOy7nxh8G1wbLYJL9P7C8pmsmS9B58NE6vGwZndMGJQfRk5oPa8oyJ8fOd5GQg-gx0tAltmQQ5IXaPvORC2ec3JPZ0ZtuotOqKPkIx6UPWcchFaLYQ5I3p7bplyhA/s1600-h/nicky+bicky3.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8eFzAz7TQKLnwqXOy7nxh8G1wbLYJL9P7C8pmsmS9B58NE6vGwZndMGJQfRk5oPa8oyJ8fOd5GQg-gx0tAltmQQ5IXaPvORC2ec3JPZ0ZtuotOqKPkIx6UPWcchFaLYQ5I3p7bplyhA/s320/nicky+bicky3.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5442849620786503826" /></a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1101889889054554709.post-2631651352976954882010-02-10T14:34:00.014+10:302010-02-10T15:41:12.205+10:30It's over....<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhe6iu1lDhGenHo1A0ZVk4hYSxEcdMcYMTmdVvfDQL72z4PgpMvrJukN1yeZJ2jMYnnOP7zwCezPm70GrQcdktVkfJJwch-DnYVcnmLp24xWeE1RB_4lTEOKbMkUiutELvt40wl-2jGQ/s1600-h/uc3.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhe6iu1lDhGenHo1A0ZVk4hYSxEcdMcYMTmdVvfDQL72z4PgpMvrJukN1yeZJ2jMYnnOP7zwCezPm70GrQcdktVkfJJwch-DnYVcnmLp24xWeE1RB_4lTEOKbMkUiutELvt40wl-2jGQ/s320/uc3.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5436472179293649554" /></a><br /><br />...my career as a uni student that is. <br />After two of the hardest years of my life, a research project that <em>gave me insomnia</em>, limited spare time and being stuck in front of a computer for 2/3 of the day <em>I am finally free</em>.<br /> <br />My final research report is ready to be bound and presented to my supervisor. <br />I'm returning to teaching while I look for a job and I could not be happier with all the free time that awaits me this year.<em> Well, once we finish renovating our house and get married in April that is</em>.222My reward for finally writing that 12000 word report? <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhImHH4KDjAG0wk2qbY4eZTSEZ_ebOw2w9L4th6OMIC4TZYEAfX8hl3ktf58-KiiMTHOj-tXVyD1n1toKVujAXCfHRcSSWc1FZEIAqhUNIpF9smxWu5tZVuFe02UlFKiTAGaAmdETYeFg/s1600-h/uc+cacao.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhImHH4KDjAG0wk2qbY4eZTSEZ_ebOw2w9L4th6OMIC4TZYEAfX8hl3ktf58-KiiMTHOj-tXVyD1n1toKVujAXCfHRcSSWc1FZEIAqhUNIpF9smxWu5tZVuFe02UlFKiTAGaAmdETYeFg/s320/uc+cacao.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5436473580821317714" /></a><br /><br /><em>A chance to bake a cake using real Cacao. </em><br />Yep, I've never used real Cacao before. After this I don't think I'll use anything but Dutch-processed Cacao from now on. <br /><em>Opening the box of Droste Cacao was like breathing into a chocolate cloud. </em><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtXzw8x-iWvZznBnARtNKpbyoR6J3X88nAuX8m8DBqtU4csQ6j7Vffctdln4X62q5BU8oheefWEyAYZkrwa5hcknPDzA-ZNHHcGRu3Nqobz22p8mG9ikNOyx2MLux5k1MviNhyyB-dbg/s1600-h/uc+slice1.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtXzw8x-iWvZznBnARtNKpbyoR6J3X88nAuX8m8DBqtU4csQ6j7Vffctdln4X62q5BU8oheefWEyAYZkrwa5hcknPDzA-ZNHHcGRu3Nqobz22p8mG9ikNOyx2MLux5k1MviNhyyB-dbg/s320/uc+slice1.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5436474753304013986" /></a><br /><br />Some internet research opened my eyes to the fact that not every recipe calling for cacao allows you to substitute Dutch-processed instead of the natural form. Apparently only recipes that list baking powder instead of soda can contain the Dutch-processed. Whoops! My bad.<br /><br /><strong>Recipe for Chocolate Layer Cake</strong><br />150g chopped butter<br />1 cup castor sugar<br />3 eggs<br />1 1/2 cups self-raising flour<br />1/2 cup plain flour<br />1/3 cup cocoa (I used Dutch-Processed but you already knew that)<br />1/2 bicarb soda<br />1/2 milk (I made mine buttermilk by adding vinegar)<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTNNpkJZtpYTixS_v3XAksO1kZ6Vetwbgoy18UMYqhWUbfbJk5KkMOlahcJqx43wlObVRtbWb7I6gZreP_e2OqTkna49pF632QKc0DADQ0RS7nCLmHj4Nt4bIdQypxrPJet1B0UbWG3w/s1600-h/Uc1.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTNNpkJZtpYTixS_v3XAksO1kZ6Vetwbgoy18UMYqhWUbfbJk5KkMOlahcJqx43wlObVRtbWb7I6gZreP_e2OqTkna49pF632QKc0DADQ0RS7nCLmHj4Nt4bIdQypxrPJet1B0UbWG3w/s320/Uc1.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5436471645558430210" /></a><br /><br />Grease a deep 20cm round cake pan.<br />Combine all ingredients in a medium sized bowl. Beat on low speed with either a handheld or electric miser until ingredients are combined.<br />Beat on medium speed until mixture is smooth and has changed colour.<br />Spoon and spread mixture into prepared pan.<br />Bake in a moderate over for roughly 70 minutes. (I actually texted mine at 60 minutes and it was already perfect)<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhflFRC15GYt2B1OoE4eKCh1qEaQs4IWpqK_SuE1iM99aU8A-ghzajBmBIrxThxubIQM4JOrvYPQQPEMzVxHPBi3jWVqtz7uCx46emRe-aV24mKKdBkOgNJ5dLYMBJwucskTGKUxWS2nw/s1600-h/uc2.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhflFRC15GYt2B1OoE4eKCh1qEaQs4IWpqK_SuE1iM99aU8A-ghzajBmBIrxThxubIQM4JOrvYPQQPEMzVxHPBi3jWVqtz7uCx46emRe-aV24mKKdBkOgNJ5dLYMBJwucskTGKUxWS2nw/s320/uc2.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5436471859538702354" /></a><br /><br />Cover cake with the icing of your choice. <br />I used lemon buttercream as I'm slightly obsessed with buttercreams at present.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHZQU2_soNnYM2AyeHkWaLXHRnRRgM0WJyOyrAOXZh7XbNj0uyu_TOefRxAdxh5YosN6hV7Wq2kwMdHZ5Gl7yQ9zGicgQqpVSdAT6g8djjMjxGy80rEQrW58ytCMJiHa0Yx8yeimgwqw/s1600-h/uc7.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHZQU2_soNnYM2AyeHkWaLXHRnRRgM0WJyOyrAOXZh7XbNj0uyu_TOefRxAdxh5YosN6hV7Wq2kwMdHZ5Gl7yQ9zGicgQqpVSdAT6g8djjMjxGy80rEQrW58ytCMJiHa0Yx8yeimgwqw/s320/uc7.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5436472780488019346" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGRZp4fh6FwceeHUfGB1de2pa5T255gvzkO5AWzSlxoBvptJCV_AFBP_0fzQKSTFcogBV7P1EjWcaaP8670gsWh0mB1UXmgcCFRNStnOHb2D3lGKSoW8_t5AdjLGieaVrPyr66dq6AqA/s1600-h/uc8.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGRZp4fh6FwceeHUfGB1de2pa5T255gvzkO5AWzSlxoBvptJCV_AFBP_0fzQKSTFcogBV7P1EjWcaaP8670gsWh0mB1UXmgcCFRNStnOHb2D3lGKSoW8_t5AdjLGieaVrPyr66dq6AqA/s320/uc8.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5436472953395932002" /></a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1101889889054554709.post-47421938754198624462010-01-26T15:22:00.009+10:302010-02-11T16:46:55.109+10:30Australia Day<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH8XyFIOuTpQ0YqcAZebNOF-7umCWP2TPU_9Yg-O5_9bFcRLirbK28SOBWbFzxl0F5hpxrqiPTFAfxM7YR8vnsk5zqup7RvVV44tI6IKWzWGeAshXo5etg-U71j2qg7VsyOTLxNzJkXg/s1600-h/a1.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5436862212017078162" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH8XyFIOuTpQ0YqcAZebNOF-7umCWP2TPU_9Yg-O5_9bFcRLirbK28SOBWbFzxl0F5hpxrqiPTFAfxM7YR8vnsk5zqup7RvVV44tI6IKWzWGeAshXo5etg-U71j2qg7VsyOTLxNzJkXg/s320/a1.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><div align="center"><strong>Australia Day BBQ's mean many things to many people:<br /></strong><em>Friends<br />Family<br />Alcohol (possibly too much of it) </em></div><div align="center"><em>Pavlova<br />Sunburn<br />Triple J Hottest 100 Countdown </em></div><div align="center"><em>Lamingtons<br />Flies<br />Back to School</em><br /><br /><strong>Cupcakes don't immediately spring to mind.</strong> </div><div align="center"><br />It was my plan to change all that when I was invited to a friend's Australia Day BBQ. </div><div align="center">This friend will be marrying a butcher (my butcher in fact) shortly so there was no need to offer to bring our own meat along. </div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center">I, of course opted to take care of sweets deciding on chocolate cupcakes. </div><div align="center">Being pressed for time I cheated slightly and used a White Wings packet mix adding in extra vanilla of course. </div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5436862375590240002" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinlt1U0S_qC-piC-P9bXfwm15-dRe5ifBEnNjoogGqa1Fgds60pVaUwDDK4AASZIVzcGmzTeQNhPdm37axBmezk9g-rYhXq4CIkxqCG1J19XyG6hlXZeAOyqBjxeXUKJu5tbgwTHCjQw/s320/a2.JPG" border="0" /></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center">When it came time to decorate them there was no cheating. </div><div align="center">Of course <strong>green buttercream</strong> was the way to go. </div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5436863613477042034" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGLTx51utkCNDKGNkw3Py5glSZxzAhvRQjG1xuQRcGZQirChoPzv_g0zKpQYASDO94skDsggE2wqtzMPLJfRHNwxS0IofPSXezGX6VZYNEb005EB8M_icUahJCSH5YDv4d1A7N3r5E5A/s320/a9.JPG" border="0" /></div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center">To add the Australian yellow/gold element into the mix I went with <strong>Allen's Banana Lollies</strong>. </div><div align="center">You can't get much more Australian than a <strong>Banana Lolly</strong>. </div><div align="center">Some of my fondest childhood memories involve leaving a friend's </div><div align="center">birthday party clutching my lolly bag </div><div align="center">that always contained a few of the little gems.<br /><br />So here they are, </div><div align="center"><strong>Chocolate (Packet Cake!) Cupcakes with </strong></div><div align="center"><strong>buttercream icing and banana lollies</strong>.<br /><br /></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5436863130456659250" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3nsgayzLa26UI6o5GHM2lDxUin7RnpmrED733UER87ZIaSTwHEe_o1oloc546cvyaDrt9gkGxrAYDiSFYaWNuMLHDtamIKVFZjkHr8ClC9rhAFGmhxOU828-iUDVe_w-dcqF0Jb3LNw/s320/a6.JPG" border="0" /><br />I've been asked to make them for next year's BBQ so they must have been good! </div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1101889889054554709.post-82607567824022862192009-10-14T14:01:00.014+10:302009-10-14T14:25:06.454+10:30Eating in Robe and Kingston<div><div><div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcsRVN3nXiHBvHCn-CVFKgkrfaPyhlRC1mBsHFYd4QJxK0wfoLyU-bN8dNXybNiQFhxnyx31mSmrAXYjS-FtD5YAtgVFEu3fb3DDWJ_FfZ1mlDkCi6wocdu8gbYEGKZnW1PZ4HIAp5GA/s1600-h/robe+food2.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5392295908479296802" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcsRVN3nXiHBvHCn-CVFKgkrfaPyhlRC1mBsHFYd4QJxK0wfoLyU-bN8dNXybNiQFhxnyx31mSmrAXYjS-FtD5YAtgVFEu3fb3DDWJ_FfZ1mlDkCi6wocdu8gbYEGKZnW1PZ4HIAp5GA/s320/robe+food2.JPG" border="0" /></a><em><span style="font-size:85%;"> Carrot cake slice (Robe Bakery)</span></em><br /><div align="center"><div align="center"><br /><br /><div align="center">I took a short little break to visit a few lovely beach towns off the south eastern coast of my state. While both <strong><em>Robe</em></strong> and <strong><em>Kingston</em></strong> may be known for their gorgeous sandy beaches and increasingly magnificent holiday homes I think their marketing people have got it wrong. <strong><em><span style="font-size:130%;">Robe and Kingston should be known for their amazing bakeries</span>.</em></strong></div><div align="center"><br /></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5392295417679965010" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM1R2uRofvkEM3ghtV_sGAv5Ya2_NW2hy2sxCGHbftczioKtW9DIyIDud4v_rQ-YuaPKdSoqMCe_hb_rLu12RhCAHjH2W91TB_pgIm3NPzqdDGHY1gzWAfPcAtWTLbgjioCHe3K6AHVA/s320/donut.JPG" border="0" /><span style="font-size:85%;"><em>Donut (Robe Bakery)</em></span><em><span style="font-size:85%;"></span></em></div><div> </div><div> </div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5392296329809593298" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8pFByEQe0eCsXDTEmFQB3762Nzl7QJN-ptM3MsSLRDry1oL8EFKcmpCZAYf3JK__QLjlSj09sPjwFk4mgOBzStYddc1Ki-GHyxO4d8HutltnxOvvBwRnX4z3ANMGxHFpzYlUrvcfXeg/s320/van+slice1.JPG" border="0" /></div><div align="center"><em><span style="font-size:85%;">Vanilla slice (Robe Bakery)</span></em></div><div align="center"><br /> </div></div></div><div align="center">Mr High Heels did not grow up touring from one South Australian bakery to another under the guise of a 'family holiday' so he still doesn't understand why <strong><em>we can't just drive past a bakery</em></strong>. Or why we have to buy <strong><em>several cakes</em></strong>, both <em><strong>a pie and a pasty</strong></em> and <strong><em>numerous loaves of bread</em></strong>. What he really struggles with is comprehending <em><strong>my obsession with the vanilla slice </strong></em>(which I inherited from my father). </div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5392295528151634642" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqUt_0wZdlgJOnNgkBzgq_XLNPV2BGlrO2goGgXE73pVstoQZpH-tTYK0hKQB9gtwwbV1irpK6iEWRGSbE0KCQDYp83KQjIA9TRICTNH8ffDJXSsUvXmSuKcNT8TNJfnNJEqPh38T-uA/s320/finger+bun.JPG" border="0" /></div></div></div><br /><p align="center"><em>Fresh finger bun with currents, vanilla icing and spread with butter (Kingston Bakery)</em></p><p align="center"><em></em> </p><p align="center"><em><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5392295622809423986" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNxP5yOu1z9PTFCZSTSR97imbYcCG1HZpaA0eXUliypdtebA3eJYEK1Vz19XTW1dJUxhUMOH-H07con-fyKRDIQ6v7EiaLJaunOeh5OjknZM6pK8ulGQNTmCtUvnVd6OYu8-cS4v1V8g/s320/hot+dog+lunch.JPG" border="0" /></em></p><p align="center"><span style="font-size:85%;"><em>Two thirds of my all-time favourite junk food meal, hotdog and orange soft drink.</em></span></p><p align="center"><em><span style="font-size:85%;"></span></em> </p><p align="center"><em><span style="font-size:85%;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5392295707434969938" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLcvMqUD8ebhRBFBxP86rcsmcoKTV0wlyvpMzSllu7BlB4FrLIRX4EWPpoRaRqAULTvxHLbD0kpip0B71FRUKsNjk2uMGpF7AOJ3vBNJd5yYbA-Y7fFYtabEXOAgOem9j5H0hyJeZizQ/s320/lobster.JPG" border="0" /></span></em></p><p align="center"><em><span style="font-size:85%;">Lobster for tea, I now love seafood.</span></em></p><p align="center"><em><span style="font-size:85%;"></span></em> </p><p align="center"><em><span style="font-size:85%;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5392295817572085538" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifc_RLEg6IM23P0UFP1_EnPR5L9glQgpefc8vgsTH3Vfd6UM5x2hFTC-bcmcFHi8j98XtaZn0wk1v5W590ZjthK9A65uo_5OlLDAID5ylpOJYsAqZRn6EGvhu_Cav54wL65Fu0OxByog/s320/r43.JPG" border="0" /></span></em></p><p align="center"><em><span style="font-size:85%;">Plain meat pie (Kingston Bakery)</span></em></p><p align="center"><em><span style="font-size:85%;"></span></em> </p><p align="center"><em><span style="font-size:85%;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5392296726490770450" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW0mh4nXGHbu4oQx_BilHMF70MMkjg8oAOxN2sz6vg7V0hqzFykWD9Pk8ynGudbXw2YP1aqgdEq0lMUvpG7P6WmlAmxzRlk-1oiK64-ZhdzscJNpmW-Fp25tptWIT1aNgDMUT93CTPQA/s320/van+slice+Kingston.JPG" border="0" /></span></em></p><p align="center"><em><span style="font-size:85%;">Vanilla slice (Kingston Bakery)</span></em></p><p align="center"><em><span style="font-size:85%;"></span></em> </p><p align="center"><em><span style="font-size:85%;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5392296015825012786" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPkiXIy7FdzMlp_Y5n4GJml2HC1m7q5gfxtvlT2t5ZGkF7zla6cgHUt3HWxYw2CCq34ajuvlCXF-yr1KNQoAVBmftjOP-KyuXKunwXReRTVSAjepuTOiZnzp8SvHUM74hS8O-Bcb3CKg/s320/robe+food3.JPG" border="0" /></span></em></p><p align="center"><em><span style="font-size:85%;">Cheese cake slice (Robe Bakery)</span></em></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1101889889054554709.post-87355901651725323102009-09-17T02:12:00.000+09:302009-09-17T18:35:31.059+09:30Caramela's Caramel Slice<div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirTnwgurtaQOwD2kfMbDQK0y7wjcanrDuumSlAWyqEH8qcTL98SMLmiqm0flitmDPScKB8qdKGjsyHJrx8pag84y_EZcW-r38m_VNxG9TS5fGCkP2cDTY2S0H2ijpXZieWyxwzp4_kgQ/s1600-h/Caramel+Slice.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5351492780540042674" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirTnwgurtaQOwD2kfMbDQK0y7wjcanrDuumSlAWyqEH8qcTL98SMLmiqm0flitmDPScKB8qdKGjsyHJrx8pag84y_EZcW-r38m_VNxG9TS5fGCkP2cDTY2S0H2ijpXZieWyxwzp4_kgQ/s320/Caramel+Slice.JPG" border="0" /></a> </div><div> </div><div align="center">Today is my mother's birthday. </div><div align="center">She is a bit of a caramel queen. </div><div align="center">Two of her many signature dishes are </div><div align="center"><strong>creme caramel</strong> and </div><div align="center"><strong>caramel slice</strong>. </div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center">I did not bake the caramel slice featured above and below this text.It is mum's recipe and there is no way I'd attempt it myself. It just wouldn't taste right made my anyone other than mum.</div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center">It's an easy recipe but I don't want to make my mum's signature dish. </div><div align="center">I don't want to mess with my favourite slice of all time. As a child my heart would leap with joy upon seeing Mum pull this slice from the fridge.</div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center">She can't remember where she got the recipe from, most likely the back of a packet. </div><div align="center">Or perhaps it was on a tin of condensed milk.</div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center"> </div><div align="left"><strong>Base:</strong></div><div align="left">1 cup self raising flour</div><div align="left">1 cup coconut</div><div align="left">1/2 cup brown sugar</div><div align="left">4 ozs of melted butter</div><div align="left"> </div><div align="left">Mix together and press into a greased flat tin approx 9 by 6 inches. Bake in a moderate over for 15 minutes.</div><div align="left"> </div><div align="left"><strong>Topping:</strong></div><div align="left">1 tin condensed milk</div><div align="left">2 tablespoons golden syrup</div><div align="left">1 oz butter</div><div align="left"> </div><div align="left">Mix together in a saucepan on low heat until blended.</div><div align="left">Remove cooked biscuit from oven and put topping on (while both still hot) and put back into the over for a further 15 minutes.</div><div align="left"> </div><div align="left">Once completely cooled ice thinly with either melted chocolate or your favourite chocolate icing.</div><div><br /><br /></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5351492988923114930" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglQUGv5w_Eql8r7oM956_GEmJt4V5YWGy31_5I9Id6F4Mn6-Nod7d8ClZpoRox9eMRnCpKzPpJqp41NSid9-qF2TjxE1JYhRhys78d-iU_-Fk2J6eY2Wlq7hTq3TEfVOLZ6VSKciFYYA/s320/Caramel+Slice+2.jpg" border="0" /><br /><div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1101889889054554709.post-37256905399576417702009-09-16T18:12:00.011+09:302009-09-17T18:21:10.470+09:30What do you mean it's not Christmas yet?<div><div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilts-uCZcQQnGvLvSshlawN1HM0VPvlNQ9hPozvCx-GghVe5pYg5d9UWmz6oFZJ_wZnigqVrnjhiSu1dKcazYN4JgybC7sO8f-1WamGgwdiKl-dP2KjLNFH8Jg-nAwZwHo-HmpXXQazQ/s1600-h/CWC5.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5382353734467145218" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilts-uCZcQQnGvLvSshlawN1HM0VPvlNQ9hPozvCx-GghVe5pYg5d9UWmz6oFZJ_wZnigqVrnjhiSu1dKcazYN4JgybC7sO8f-1WamGgwdiKl-dP2KjLNFH8Jg-nAwZwHo-HmpXXQazQ/s320/CWC5.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><div align="center">I<strong> love Christmas.</strong></div><div align="center">I love cookies.</div><div align="center">I love planning my Christmas Cookie Exchange party.</div><div align="center">This year will be the second time I have hosted one. I can't wait.</div><div align="center">I've got a few cookie recipes to try out.</div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5382006604900868546" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnPpJfCkXyh9fHLxqAmt28wvb0qqCUVie0pbm_M_-QyBInsnMt1MT6eAM6E9YHny8pvg0LbalDBKfmfUUg_p-tjVwke5d3FFJGsAqlOHbD3tEJB7YL9rZuNBLoSmmhyphenhyphen7A0YafR9M6dpQ/s320/CWC1.JPG" border="0" /></div><div align="center">The first one is a <a href="http://www.taste.com.au/recipes/20883/cranberry+white+chocolate+biscuits">cranberry and white chocolate biscuit recipe</a> involving one of my all time favourite ingredients, condensed milk. </div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5382353404920980674" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKFjSRUU5d1Et2D_TQML761P8OSRCRkqxZXiBB-j1YdoLidE84UvdW1B60ld4r5NsXBOYULZmO6OivbBnLom-RNhQqens9d-UcoatVzJ9T0wkzih7tzJnSD-E1fvMqcgVArrJbs4afyw/s320/CWC3.JPG" border="0" /></div><div align="center">This recipe yields a lot of biscuits. It would work very well if you needed to bake for a school fete. They are really yummy with a semi-crisp shell but a soft and crumbly centre which is owed mostly to the condensed milk. </div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5382354625349397106" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUe3xPypN5JQWdyC1s_yJzLTjl2DKiFs0OQ40OZ-ortE7xIXXYoj-Ae1QcI7rHaUfmcCRYGGc_cinopAoMYERd3u48tKqHyiMaspHBuX8cYDfIGiZmGAmIIxQZXMf9UxwhmedqyLMeqA/s320/CWC6.JPG" border="0" /></div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center">The cranberries and white chocolate work well together and give the biscuit a very festive look. If I go with this recipe I will drizzle each biscuit with melted milk chocolate, maybe with sugar sprinkles too. </div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5382354948382290690" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJg8QjW8WGMzf9oQESQFRnWRS05mjleVb7WMhLGaryfC5KUg9avux60LrV4Nxj0G_kuhuDZmvsA-gXyrqMJJsdSfDBLk45HSVk5buG_LB91bK6bJ6K2YKYN4kn4jaqY8YtHbEfhFewKg/s320/CWC7.JPG" border="0" /></div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center">I think a decoration trial will be in order soon too. </div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5382355261371074242" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMmM_TGFxVHSPjBZAS-W6TxBYjIOaPsklXM7DGyjU-xAmOb_1AvkYXgcBO7f_1QUWvPlVlCiwZZXuoV142o8HwwCV3LTKaL7XFd5xSP8Mmr1cL2ykn48HMFJ0l11cbZoyqTYjM6ndd2w/s320/CWC8.JPG" border="0" /></div></div></div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1101889889054554709.post-26566324720500708392009-09-14T07:57:00.001+09:302009-09-14T20:14:09.495+09:30Multi-tasking into Spring<div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmHtdPMFfrXVxRHI63Sqdp0XLGAifGdUGAKDlUnhfLmFpGiuZfBS83baJxW-FxlTXuy0FGApuu6kDCcpmSutnMZct3grRFE2l4oeGazTp2O7AYpaGTCwqswExPSMC7lt8CuqnMszLvqQ/s1600-h/C3.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5381268064263614050" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmHtdPMFfrXVxRHI63Sqdp0XLGAifGdUGAKDlUnhfLmFpGiuZfBS83baJxW-FxlTXuy0FGApuu6kDCcpmSutnMZct3grRFE2l4oeGazTp2O7AYpaGTCwqswExPSMC7lt8CuqnMszLvqQ/s320/C3.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><div align="center"><br /></div><div align="center">I am now 14 days into Spring 2009 but have just baked a classic winter warmer, apple and berry crumble. The last few days of sunny, warming weather have quickly moved on to make way for a colder temperature with even a spot of rain on the weekend. While I frantically went around the house looking for warmer clothes tonight I realised that I had no choice but to bake <a href="http://www.taste.com.au/recipes/12536/apple+blackberry+crumble">this crumble recipe </a>from taste.com my favourite go-to online recipe bank. </div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5381267271737787378" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtbwYtGxbDzeGlcrgi-zDpoujghyphenhyphenf4FJtL5Kj0SxNZUAQMWP2FOvtuMAZeLL8x0a5dtsaC-igl6GQmVOM5sK9eoyt36DtiXTMNxzu_k1BLROvnv8ivwKI0N68XMUEfLE2Atkjm2zbGvQ/s320/Apple1.JPG" border="0" /></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center">This recipe is one of my favourite kinds to work with. I like to refer to them as 'multi-tasking recipes'. You sort out one part of the recipe and get it going (in this case cooking the apples) while you prepare the final touches (in this case the crumble topping). I always feel super efficient after following recipes like this crumble one, such a good confidence booster!</div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5381267382877783458" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAmuoWOSgr71uGh3uUv53bZ6AQj3YIo-wvOpvxZy6_TC3v4T2K1oPcH4V7vz1bpr2l2Qu9Yn9h7Q0RQJGE5iaD7PSUnjSOA0vPNx73FRg5uG8UrpAyF8jV-TAh1LP5KMw8-Vwxv2w5og/s320/Apple2.JPG" border="0" /></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5381267461568633522" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWWP1FTc7kHUDIfg-0CZffCUxY1gK8qc0DcBvgXmTG0UC5y00CGdgO1iE8y01ZQLibEsXvN3w7JYkhkbQd40z1XdLZXTptsmN3WHsI6ysibDqDBc2_4H77Rxi0D_xFeoBPFb4EKxXeeQ/s320/Apple3.JPG" border="0" /></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center">I only had mixed berries on hand but they seemed to work well with the apple and cinnamon flavours and there were certainly no complaints from the eaters. I will admit that I was a tad naughty with this recipe and actually doubled the topping. Double the amount of corn flakes and oats surely balances out double the amount of brown sugar and butter, doesn't it?</div><div align="center"><br /></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5381267590803629250" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFxeiQz1i98b4QWLSSFNbDpaClkVlPqR6xFvHOh_AAc7DQDLxSwRrN-Cj4TFNwCV7nmeUOu8QtZLwHN3fDwYs45hw7WCFGMapu1j2fDxBo08y7ufS55nB-5plPgJqkOSq7evpag9VmvQ/s320/C1.JPG" border="0" /><em> That extra topping is so worth it!</em><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5381267742179681042" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigD0salZmLZfPka6Zq2wV1XyCCtLugDG9rGh317dq2T3eFMzp46k6xIyQvf1cdoiJoUk2Au4iZOnb0goHlgGo0Eh5J1ceFr6d0Z-nyrYFvH6EvRe00Z4lu7qSkNqosoFzt3NT5urGLBw/s320/C2.JPG" border="0" /><br /><em>The addition of the mixed berries give the apples an extra tangy kick.<br /></em><br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1101889889054554709.post-2667911139758071152009-09-07T22:22:00.000+09:302009-09-07T22:22:00.598+09:30Gourmet Obsessions<div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhGza7EWtcoYzNgouUaOSEUgskGtI1oTVY2R6mc-xeSpLBknAmJZ7wmXmTLUu6VU8uVahuLzsqxWFBHNJkaqkm0UHxpfm2navcyr5N8ZWBOpRCnWkVAJ0G9XGgapenhyphenhyphenaVbz5ADelLXg/s1600-h/BC3.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5377970349625786882" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhGza7EWtcoYzNgouUaOSEUgskGtI1oTVY2R6mc-xeSpLBknAmJZ7wmXmTLUu6VU8uVahuLzsqxWFBHNJkaqkm0UHxpfm2navcyr5N8ZWBOpRCnWkVAJ0G9XGgapenhyphenhyphenaVbz5ADelLXg/s320/BC3.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjYtwcGl6bm5n22ysa_QSVq6gdy7_3uSUABun-YZCY-9XoUeUZh4_7YZ-wZguI7LqHzy7IeubkvslyHBx1ft9I-78HIVCR3txHEUZnN_ihAdFR28hwnM9b6rF1ypsEvVuErBfwTRDtWg/s1600-h/BC2.JPG"></a> Since reading about bloggers raving about Gourmet magazine a few weeks back I decided to trawl it's website. I have fortunately managed to locate a newsagent that stocks Gourmet magazine and have in my posession two copies, one being the latest A-Z issue. </div><div align="center"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5377970865437898802" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4JjxY8Be9N6BJq7cYdgMGGYZJUEz9wiIdRUal5PTL83kk7XCA43TKNF6e4KZ1_0Re41blDBCqdAF6MJ0nN50bg1MM3_6oivSOujgr8JPwKXuqJKLFC57wynUsHVuDlrJF0yoPA_EpjQ/s320/BC5+(2).JPG" border="0" /></div><div align="center">Both copies have numerous pages that have gone onto my baking 'to do' list. The website has provided me not just with hours of fun but also <a href="http://www.gourmet.com/recipes/2000s/2008/01/buttermilk_cookies">this refreshing biscuit recipe for buttermilk cookies with a tangy hint of lemon.</a><br /><br /></div><div></div><div align="center">Any recipe that lists buttermilk as an ingredient will always get my attention.<br /><br /></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5377974416446548338" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc8RJmyQ5tgvoKbR6QUwKLtRjvlb98DzgUJNtNTKgHbeZg4tdIAQjKVEigm4mPeHVJqewTHwgMsY7F0QTFrxtacEfkip-kh5zpwmKMRsqviTvyOOioS90WUNlJa4Cj4oHtjpCZIwQk8w/s320/BC5.JPG" border="0" /><br /><div> </div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1101889889054554709.post-28684832609726082992009-09-06T10:03:00.006+09:302009-09-06T10:03:00.494+09:30French Toast for Australian Father's Day<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzqBbUVgyfp8XQeshkz525-9WfbjImn3A5Ix_piBN3wY4X2Q0_5_ZkfsGzrx1FmZStflUMbjxQltYNuMGzj2Cx81nG5aUyhSLzISNWgfl_DKI7XX_4OQ_40-RMHI9Uo6G5FwozNd7GRQ/s1600-h/f5.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5377931008821939570" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzqBbUVgyfp8XQeshkz525-9WfbjImn3A5Ix_piBN3wY4X2Q0_5_ZkfsGzrx1FmZStflUMbjxQltYNuMGzj2Cx81nG5aUyhSLzISNWgfl_DKI7XX_4OQ_40-RMHI9Uo6G5FwozNd7GRQ/s320/f5.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyr5BSeMVS7VaSxL4-79YyhrlwqcLuc2PRw5_2U1QMSSc_negLfpg_Y5bluXR7Cnj53vRXxEe9gbULWHUpX-Vu5QuhsY2q28WJUfp1OUmdkb0dGiox0YCvvrJTfK72PWd9-p_xBa7uCA/s1600-h/f4.JPG"></a><strong>It's Father's Day here in Australia. So I thought I'd give French Toast a go</strong>. As usual I used a recipe from <a href="http://www.taste.com.au/recipes/20892/french+toast+with+bacon+and+maple+syrup">taste.com.au</a> my mecca for online recipes. I left out the bacon and tomatoes. I also found that the egg/milk <strong>mixture yielded more than enough for 8 slices of thick bread</strong>. If I hadn't gotten slightly lazy I could have made 10 slices but hey, it's Sunday morning!</div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5377930455555413090" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiykdWrExgY9dYOWO_YoNpeDY1kbiGX6JOu4QDAOOtSiK04Ji9Yp3XimrZBjU4Y05tiNNDchFXXgddwuyxicoTB9bPR-wUPuj1hWoB8rple0Wi_R9A9sY7_C2pnYHQdu_EdScid_krKiQ/s320/f1.JPG" border="0" /></div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center">My father hits 65 soon and a friend remarked that perhaps he should be eating something healthier for breakfast on Father's Day. No way! <strong>I get my super sweet tooth from this man,</strong> he'll be eating voraciously for a very long time. His usual breakfast consists of a cereal of some sort, toast with <strong>his home-made plum jam</strong>, two cups of tea and a slice of whatever home-made cake my mother has in the pantry slathered with <strong>his home-made apricot jam</strong> and cream. For what it's worth dad is extremely active. You know it's either bitterly cold outside or outrageously hot if you find my father sitting down inside.<br /></div><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1101889889054554709.post-81342398948084240852009-09-05T09:23:00.000+09:302009-09-05T22:10:59.921+09:30Can't stop craving coffee<div><div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizl5az5kt__i6I1-bUBi1NglIe6hC4U1DiE4u-7sqyWauXhzPfea9e4xqK3gkom4mhzG80sT2dp5zutxWUjRJvkgnWGOMpzcGvD1QEkCJ9ovL7f5l1V4RS1mUhpZhOr0ab7iIIxUcxEg/s1600-h/cc7.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5377957820516671010" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizl5az5kt__i6I1-bUBi1NglIe6hC4U1DiE4u-7sqyWauXhzPfea9e4xqK3gkom4mhzG80sT2dp5zutxWUjRJvkgnWGOMpzcGvD1QEkCJ9ovL7f5l1V4RS1mUhpZhOr0ab7iIIxUcxEg/s320/cc7.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><div><div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgduz1U2gHlXMMZfCpJzzZkEnCsqpeMtOtz_beDaLOOZYhp6CXuLeNtjMtgwZKMRN5UWIOIT63gP1915jY-8OY-ZjdUE6j34Dumj7i0CAW2SzP1MC8ZRGGxICdi3x59D3vZ9BkIBWoERw/s1600-h/cc5.JPG"></a><br /><div><div><div><div><div><div><div align="center">The whole point of <a href="http://highheeledbackpack.blogspot.com/2009/08/cure-craving-with-cake.html">this earlier post </a><strong><span style="font-size:130%;">was to cure my coffee cravings</span> </strong>my making a coffee cake. It worked reasonably well. </div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center">Inspite of some strong cravings and the fact that on any given work day I walk past at least six establishments where I could purchase a cup, <strong><span style="font-size:130%;">I have been off the liquid bliss for quite a while</span></strong>. </div><div align="center">As a result my sinus headaches all but disappeared. </div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center"><strong><span style="font-size:130%;">I got over-confident last Sunday morning</span></strong> when I found myself at a friend's house for brunch. A friend who has a fantastic coffee machine. It would have been rude to refuse a cup. </div><div align="center">That latte was out of this world. </div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center">Did I ever pay for it though. </div><div align="center">A few short hours later and I started to lose my sense of smell and I knew I'd pushed it too far. Just proof that coffee really isn't for me. </div><div align="center"><strong><span style="font-size:130%;">So I'm back on the coffee cake wagon.</span></strong> </div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center">Today's <strong><span style="font-size:130%;">coffee cake version is care of Delia Smith</span></strong>, the merticulousy magnificant English cook. </div><div align="center">While my list of 'favourite' chefs/cooks/food writers </div><div align="center">is long and varied <span style="font-size:130%;"><strong>Delia will always be number 1</strong>.</span></div><div align="center">I promise you, that no harm can come to your baking </div><div align="center">or cooking when a Delia recipe is being followed. </div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center">Here is the recipe for Delia Smith's <a href="http://www.deliaonline.com/recipes/type-of-dish/party-food/austrian-coffee-and-walnut-cake-with-coffee-cream.html">Austrian Coffee and Walnut Cake with Coffee Cream</a>. </div><div align="center"><strong><span style="font-size:130%;">The only variation I made to the recipe</span></strong> </div><div align="center">was to use only mascapone in the coffee cream, </div><div align="center">I simply doubled the amount required. </div><div> </div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5377956906967963026" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTV4FRTrPbibvv7BupWFG0h2SauaNkgTsYR7nUCS2L5eO9vXB4IU-x34XlPpcn-ehtYiYTajXTAPZyo0vz8G1evl4jOA4NDqD4dH_m4wg4vjhbAqiYL-KxANe_v0CuXbF4TZD0YBVb_g/s320/cc1.JPG" border="0" /></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div><br /><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5377956983984540802" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvwooxx8V9275_eL3Uq6ZwedaLiBEQei7FNtw8nQo9dko0sGUf391Hp37uDE449h6RhPkPpKZ5cbGhlAsTvsCFF9NBZlDrPDV3FdbdalgG7An7qXXTadkSpfv4WqiAIK8w2Obe3zuIrg/s320/cc2.JPG" border="0" /></p><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5377957149428540146" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEU1FrcJfp_vY4Tcon00tlmB7fOjR6lazQ6hyEwD2RSUoufxq0Ym4fcoCzmMrYJQd3MMXhT-U8q393ekaQbS7oG8C-VNLZzTN5yEqMc0Ve9yooxg2RoKhN1F0in-ki5ITvIBXEn-eq2Q/s320/cc3a.JPG" border="0" /></p><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5377957359819646402" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhikkx7vp9HTAivNXP6JaFqw553rQAwGNG4f64asFDLXwfV50WnxMU6m27yYgc3HtmDYO5C1_66zGuuvyBNl29hhJNEay8G60cRKpGOoD6YJABN_3uMYw9EWphdKpFj3iFYQI0B7ea6eg/s320/cc4a.JPG" border="0" /></p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5377957628998343554" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIqz5gIZVsA8Fn4F98oNCVhND25L_7k4UqyXRNhJQGN9X6nS_sMB9SQOXW3MryAdQM7fFoeVjbxQxyJo3FbLrQG9sxEZoa93Cazgw00uR6xzsMPQb61KJAzbHGw88vqIrh2Rf-vJTtQg/s320/cc5a.JPG" border="0" /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5377957074336749634" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5u-yVVAMf9tQjwYYT8yrCS6cf8qYjWSZJc_XIHJuV-zzgaeEsdzznvrZwXF-IxdisobTjKlMST78EfKV0-gC6HeLl2Cu5gSXglq-KZinjQz_5A-TFoeB6EO6DtVpgbPXCFh09CSbgFw/s320/cc3.JPG" border="0" /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5377959195315068242" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj53n8r2d46a3kndgVRQMacwXJsR5VuGBZxBtPuqnrjaXnTHSAFN2OVuOVX6g5ThXKlQFC15bwgLNg7U1UNpfLrnc_zB0hz1IJ9lw1_EmCVHsm4EmBWzSlMj9TLcMD79HMaZxJIDWk8Zw/s320/cc10.JPG" border="0" /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5377958054461327810" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFlCF_cCfKgGnfi3fy6DTSLWkn2SoFOE7SDhEvuYHHiWxlZcHyJV_p_Pv8ONSfYxqE6CsTCGbIa-6fRpt9MzLpxopNzGuTok_i63t8yqKLh_CMPBnnDszIYw1NkQ76_cmjgB6HbQNKPA/s320/cc8.JPG" border="0" />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1101889889054554709.post-67720981340769931622009-09-03T21:56:00.008+09:302009-09-03T23:15:54.115+09:30Confessions of a Cheesecake<div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh56u4xEjga0EpYtzp-apgAwoNvEcloH3krECR-HTafPdgr6hwp0YJqC74QFUni4hzgZdg3CJp_NzsnAqpkttOq751NuCp5RtBg0U3Wsqhk7F1A9fWtp7zZJbOrOY597hdkJka-1dtdew/s1600-h/c3.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5377222706737387650" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh56u4xEjga0EpYtzp-apgAwoNvEcloH3krECR-HTafPdgr6hwp0YJqC74QFUni4hzgZdg3CJp_NzsnAqpkttOq751NuCp5RtBg0U3Wsqhk7F1A9fWtp7zZJbOrOY597hdkJka-1dtdew/s320/c3.JPG" border="0" /></a> </div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div><strong><span style="font-size:130%;">Dear Cheesecake Gods,</span></strong></div><br /><div>The taste and texture of a baked cheesecake far outweighs that of non-baked cheesecake which is why I need your help. I have made <a href="http://www.taste.com.au/recipes/19425/new+york+cheesecake">this great recipe</a> from my favourite recipe site three times now. Each time I have the same <strong>problems: a sunken middle section combined with a big nasty crack.</strong> The <strong>taste of the cheesecake is heavenly, refreshing and very addictive</strong>.</div><br /><div></div><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5377231711479497058" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1Vu-fl6M-UKKxVkE1JMf5R7lbOE39tH5GRL3-vkS-4k9QjIRkwUuFgQ5qFiG3Sgm6bupMzas6JPxnob_jzkpQp9yF8fPjTZu7e3pwYLjN6cJasFpP31V4kXgnAyMH6C5VApHyojb1YQ/s320/c6.JPG" border="0" /><br /><div> </div><div><br />I have tried to use decorations to distract the eye away from my baking downfalls but there must be a way to ensure I perfect this recipe. There is only so much that <strong>melted chocolate and frozen, out of season berries</strong> can do!<br /><br /><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5377222620727077810" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK-j0rcAV-ZMjZQnROY_NPo2lZ2PNvWSddnCfacDoVBulBcstQ13dCA3g5wY1N4n78bD7UMiVLpFKEr2VP85ydEoFj5S3h2xL1R-mKYo_bX14qLa4uSpl5NhR7Sea9stDR763f18x3dQ/s320/c2.JPG" border="0" /></div></div></div><br /><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5377231822454936066" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWDb7_aGWPBDD9E-3rVmq6GXlvwOeswPVszmzJBdnk6GcZ-UxG1H79mbgu59OyD6z682gwRncQkJMr2DfElhfxcSYrD9aEW8mnDvnv5IeVd2i0KsCVC9lS1bv_mZ4xB9fGZvf0BXgwlA/s320/c7.JPG" border="0" /></p><p> </p><p>Is my oven temperature too night? Not high enough? Is my baking time a little off? The only substition I have made is swapping the<strong> plain biscuits for plain chocolate biscuits</strong> so that it becomes a lemon-filled chocolate-based cheesecake. Any advice you can give me will be much appreciated.</p><p>Warmest regards,</p><p>Miss High Heels<br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1101889889054554709.post-62020740104060494542009-08-30T20:51:00.000+09:302009-08-30T20:51:00.319+09:30I see red, I see red, I see red<div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtNyOWDFkx0Bl_32CR97mjV6i323lYfqqoMZ0sK3ktylbY3BYx9DbtPMEDMnzjRbyXEKhhX0JG3SulsBQw6BGiGz6KjVlIuGuvoayfP7pIRPw2lAmjWaWPi6iFbTOr4R5zkdxE1mvG1Q/s1600-h/RV1.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5374147376489624338" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtNyOWDFkx0Bl_32CR97mjV6i323lYfqqoMZ0sK3ktylbY3BYx9DbtPMEDMnzjRbyXEKhhX0JG3SulsBQw6BGiGz6KjVlIuGuvoayfP7pIRPw2lAmjWaWPi6iFbTOr4R5zkdxE1mvG1Q/s320/RV1.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br />My initial interest and now obsession with red velvet cake started with <a href="http://www.hummingbirdbakery.com/flash.html#home_in">this London bakery</a> which I have the upmost respect for. On my very first visit I remember being dizzy with excitement by the neverending choices of cake on offer. </div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center">The red velvet cupcakes grabbed my attention as I vaguely recalled there being some sort of red velvet cake mentioned in the movie 'Steel Magnolias'. </div><div align="center">Red is one of my favourite colours. </div><div align="center">I love velvet. </div><div align="center">Cream cheese icing has long been a favourite of mine so it was only natural that I should gravitate towards buying a red velvet cupcake. </div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5374154412175372370" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYMHZmaiDiIf8jjEas8B7n6xJyb0NrgU8lPrPXaBANnyOOyhQrFlxMWAbMv6MOSYLRwF99kmmLdfQBtZM4MAEeC_m0eUQYNcRk472AP8PzEzYquUTV_eEBNHPwQ1Fsw2wmfnQvU5iqEQ/s320/RVC6.JPG" border="0" /></div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center">That first bite in 2005 has led to four years of being enamoured with the look and taste of red velvet cake.</div><div align="center"><br /> </div><div align="center">It wasn't until late 2007 that I attempted to bake my own red velvet cake. I have used several different recipes and have to say I love them all. </div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5374154598228130402" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNTLfE_7Q0sUDSGo4hfhyphenhyphenEi_-Bw0L6vhQmrAlcVauYvFsD07ujXVnWW-uq__-VqfiepaXlbdH2qYY42cYS074qXW3ZW8qlRoH0asCIrM9RS4th9nwP8Z1dByXAh2HYIQFrTnAI_4J9Hw/s320/RVC7.JPG" border="0" /></div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center">I can't imagine ever getting tired of baking or eating red velvet cake. </div><div align="center">I've baked a few for different friends, cupcakes for my sister's birthday a few years ago and cupcakes for my cousin's engagement party dessert. </div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5374147988076013090" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZjOIJxtplNBakUBSB84fzpp9X7tMsgEmG24D7HegXYFD1cn0Q_Sq3yPJ6DXBcvqG03SB-fC36WNbLqkrSl9q6td7TCdkpgpgJvbMVtKfcQy2rp94aeAf1leoh6FIyz2E3-gzzOPnimQ/s320/RV5.JPG" border="0" /></div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center">Red velvet cake is still such a novelty here in Australia that people get very excited when they catch their first glimpse of red. </div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center">This cake introduced my good friend Speechie to the wonder that is red velvet cake. </div><div align="center">She was hooked on first bite!<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5374153703599588770" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXXfTr1n6NV3vtnpEr0vmamq70RNkApRwPLiZUvZr5cK7RwDuGIdIzNCbxwC1TfJNbpgcl7wnjFOqSS-SWHZXrHhxCiDbh7y8xvLy8uql9eAVkwlXNFV3IM3uzU_ZpZPrfYt7nFKTsIw/s320/RVC.JPG" border="0" /><br />I also got to try out my new cake decorating triangle.<br /></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5374154250913111170" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKVVu7Dvs0eJmZ_bYwb7qyouoM4hUDLpi_nnCZzNJW4nbms_E8_UDqwOvw-iFbyRLsIFNuAO6UGBzXtZNvJEQ6dotzXtd-wTGxZsZhKQ1MRDQlLnq49UsVZbcws_nzaHwBza9JXbuPbA/s320/RVC4.JPG" border="0" /><br /><div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1101889889054554709.post-20095215369007765652009-08-28T21:39:00.015+09:302009-08-28T22:22:35.546+09:30Recipes Without Recipes<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhri1cis53mHa9CSnMS3b66PqWWoxMymFdqDqmar3aFlEauZTWkWrImLvEsB0LEGw4cNJnackKaunKpGEcporz5U7tgnW516TZbYJ5Jr1jSSCYGUAL4Vg1GngrjP4JTnUmdCqV01rwr_w/s1600-h/V10.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5374992476510565218" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhri1cis53mHa9CSnMS3b66PqWWoxMymFdqDqmar3aFlEauZTWkWrImLvEsB0LEGw4cNJnackKaunKpGEcporz5U7tgnW516TZbYJ5Jr1jSSCYGUAL4Vg1GngrjP4JTnUmdCqV01rwr_w/s320/V10.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><div><br /><div><div><div><div><div><div><div align="center">My tea tonight consisted of roasted vegetables, cous cous and hommus. A good friend first cooked this for me and it quickly became a favourite. It's the sort of the recipe or cooking style that my mother would refer to as 'Alleluia'. Which could be taken to mean, 'throw it all together and pray that it works out ok'. Mum's interpretation is somewhat deeper. Her 'Alleluia' cooking method is more about an intuitive understanding of food and which combinations work best.</div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5374990998191507778" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaSZz5nCLolEohDNPGyBf0fQlJmGzvKGkxw10lwJn7D2g4YtDSEvvQXoZ68PJGL0Qv73oIIvusisZtP1MkZqEFdfKoKqGkoK6Z7ILdtR8tz2xHYNuKZNbts84I6XhP-1GH6KV9IZF7zQ/s320/V2.JPG" border="0" /></div><div align="center"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5374990535379475122" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidYmGCH9Ry_-AgWpeW1FLWf9AnffeS2_MrhwJzfs3-DjrP9pSD23FW67zFsNPJyoy9YDdOLAAsFQyjSLMDnFypyCeE4oPp9FYHJy8M7F07JyMUU6mmqjdsKaunmZYpbgmekq5Fw9M4lA/s320/V.JPG" border="0" /></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div></div><div> </div><div> </div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5374991211472730658" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxE9FgccXbavtml3RoHidoauEopik_RrztJP1Dy0lm5x1PcHTcbZZDkPDO70bmtjCCK7J8J5mZKdw8mIzlDa_FFU0M4kzpZ0VzXPAIgjrHiMmlKrSVu0rToF_M0Rr0OS7LUsMQFD7Xng/s320/V3.JPG" border="0" /><br /></div><div align="center">Take any of your favourite vegetables, peel and chop them. Toss through some olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Add herbs and spices of your liking. I added dried chilli seeds, basil, thyme and rosemary. Cook on a moderate temperature for around 1 hour. Serve with plain cous cous and hommus to taste. Best consumed with a nice glass of red wine. </div><div><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5374992170824293762" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF9FSkvB4bfg1_x4AqUEf9tiaqJaMe5PqCSaYufYQpUiImruaAUb5LSFan8XHDnQN5jXGNDW1wLZllMZZIOk96Vl-Qi2W1JbIe4_nbnc05NAIfx9AmMtGhhvUj78S5tZXvyfrVmV2l8g/s320/V7.JPG" border="0" /><br /></div><div></div><br /><br /><br /><div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1101889889054554709.post-8146523690211770702009-08-28T01:27:00.000+09:302009-08-28T01:27:00.303+09:30I like getting new cousins<div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTb8WOMovCZVrPmqkRhc_vsEoARazrEp-bLTvnghTXDyO3sYfE77vLb3fOfNFEhANlGCTr-1PyHpr4WXr414z2AQvIufOZw167t578rbJuQWGgCyW8hwqwfj3Rk7vMk_wTSYbfMC23vg/s1600-h/Ed+cake9.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5358578006419206322" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 294px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTb8WOMovCZVrPmqkRhc_vsEoARazrEp-bLTvnghTXDyO3sYfE77vLb3fOfNFEhANlGCTr-1PyHpr4WXr414z2AQvIufOZw167t578rbJuQWGgCyW8hwqwfj3Rk7vMk_wTSYbfMC23vg/s320/Ed+cake9.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><div><div><div><div><div><div><div align="center"><div>The majority of my first cousins are either older than me or around my age. </div><div>So that meant that there weren't too many baby cousins born after about my third birthday. </div><div>Luckily my mother has a brother who is younger than her by nine years. </div><div> </div><div>This uncle and his wife waited to have a family and had their three sons when I was six, ten and twelve. </div><div>I remember being more excited about each of <a href="http://highheeledbackpack.blogspot.com/2009/06/how-to-make-italian-baked-chessecake.html">'The Boys'</a> being born than I was about Christmas. </div><div> </div><div>Apart from the birth of my two third cousins when I was nineteen and twenty-four, there have been no new cousins in the family for quite some time. </div><div> </div><div>Thank goodness for weddings! </div><div>Over the last 18 months my first cousins have begun to marry their partners and I have so far inherited two new cousins. </div><div>Two more will join them before the year is out.</div><div>One of my new cousins celebrated his birthday a few weeks ago. </div><div>I decided to welcome him into the family by baking him this cake:</div><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5358577270181503602" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiqyub8h6gkD7kA_S38bSrrYmcLEYwU3PikbaVTWvebP7Z0E3ckEXawO3A_B3cHyArein3GAsadiKAp6Mu7Or0sKzVy_oJTUfWtljgoBbq8YODrgkExgYSp2WfJbFORiTHcbDSBzcE4Q/s320/Ed+cake7+use+this.JPG" border="0" /><em>Buttercake with chocolate cream cheese icing, raspberry jam filling and licorice allsort decorations.</em><br /><br /><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5358578652117983522" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFQiK0SO9bAPePt2CN4lDkBUJ2a8Pm4EO8TYLNONAwCJwxMDfzltyvCFa5yT6tOQVmd5jcncdcXaweju4PhnSUMD6UKUCU1AGg5Ofvavv35Xw4h2WCU_GCi0N9DKLVB5hWKInAXq8-rQ/s320/P7030264.JPG" border="0" /><br /><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5358579088919627426" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIyq8l0P9a0Q5EzXCGeMn8b53Ju-Lt-e5kGx7huniTkrCdmInfJhWwHElZ2jM9NWGpP0KahRO0U3sWG9lCTNkQJlCx-KRv1FpjdBgGpJOgNE1phDePSHM6OX13M9EZ0-GbiSHrHwFJ-w/s320/P7030269.JPG" border="0" /><br /><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5358572871872177906" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzEdryruJS1sW2uIdTZZKPcCAIzyV328busl4lviYEt4dCTBfupxzSpC_bMZAEI4Ra74E3MzOAb7k5y3jigDrp7yRYSmkJ9ORc72tLvL4ylUgl3sda5n4baEV5C4e0eqCNvzDuwEec6Q/s320/Ed+cake2.JPG" border="0" /><br /><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5358573234231633250" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE65mtz84PNxecM_xf4YIG1lyHh7oeEgZgyDGYUNEt7vLuJKcAJ_5fRmyXhTeNjdkedTWE9rl72tsy_XmkIR8LFupMjAEBhkvgIlTSWBQaZZmF6AQDzZtPZfgDqDTBndcowJ2kQzhFdQ/s320/Ed+cake3.JPG" border="0" /><br /><br /><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5358575757008047762" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTlNtOX92cPSTwy1SKlr3oqjQwC7efAk0bKlkOxyi2u9Xj7JcjyHfGyk5phBTDuQWJnZ6IuoocMgCI2xFX-WkgdwXN6ShE_ULXLZ2IgrgXkXLfesA70QZ1bhxz7YXX5CNTtg1E-KBXEA/s320/Ed+cake5.JPG" border="0" /><br /><br /><div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1101889889054554709.post-74205915042624763012009-08-26T15:16:00.001+09:302009-08-26T15:19:56.914+09:30Vanilla Slice<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiELaA9Sy-ffcMrcOt7nXdGytD9-6kFQu-J9bTbFFQ6cyEScPkwWTbEU27K9NgSWKJ96Dtp0bvxg6BSv03vIBA-3XHwgDWzLiDQB4AQ_49m5hHo0zvjrOi9_gS2vjbvtlfwlMgmgmhn8Q/s1600-h/VS22.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5374145459012295122" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiELaA9Sy-ffcMrcOt7nXdGytD9-6kFQu-J9bTbFFQ6cyEScPkwWTbEU27K9NgSWKJ96Dtp0bvxg6BSv03vIBA-3XHwgDWzLiDQB4AQ_49m5hHo0zvjrOi9_gS2vjbvtlfwlMgmgmhn8Q/s320/VS22.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><div align="center">Who influences your baking?</div><div align="center"><div align="center"><br />My biggest baking influences would have to be <strong><span style="font-size:130%;">my Mother</span></strong> and <strong><span style="font-size:130%;">my Nonna</span></strong> with one of <strong><span style="font-size:130%;">my Aunts</span></strong> also providing me with lots of baking advice. </div><div align="center">None of these ladies has ever made <strong><span style="font-size:130%;">Vanilla Slice </span></strong>which is why I've always stayed away from baking them myself. </div><div align="center">I'd always just assumed that they would be too hard, too tricky, too messy or too fidly to bake. Wrong. Wrong and Wrong! </div><div align="center">No wonder <strong><span style="font-size:130%;">they say never to assume things</span></strong>. </div><div align="center"><br /> </div><div align="center">Since discovering the best <a href="http://highheeledbackpack.blogspot.com/2009/08/scandinavia-to-horsham.html">Vanilla Slice in Australia</a> it's fair to say I've been obsessed with learning how to bake my own. </div><div align="center">I used a recipe from the Australian Women's Weekly Cooking Class Cookbook. </div><div align="center">The whole process was a lot simpler than I'd imagined. </div><div align="center">So simple that I will definitely be making these again soon.</div><br /><div align="center"></div><br /><div align="center"><br /><br /></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5371549153118048962" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9Kx9nbhmYkH7MPUkAv2LP6dthb5rh2bLbQ0CxMsQFLopvshSY_TH0ouC4WnFWNb03jm0gUJQhZXs_m4jqIfXZWl7ob7FYp492psJLJmIPBNCVbycfo_G-LDdPkJ1Fbr_JRzzikscYiA/s320/V1.JPG" border="0" /><em>Preparing the store brought puff pasty.<br /></em><br /><br /><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5371549690805183874" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgW3CD_UI479WTa7mTp39IxAHDuEbQ1S4Pdk6GUpxZgqpoCmwvwGF2kNaBdBdjSX9FfGqSq1LHr777SoYaY4SUVbSlO3UevtxmzfwJPV733TY8nYzdULUzPOp8eeYqUcsphelpRNICgHA/s320/V3.JPG" border="0" /></div><br /><div align="center"><em>Have your tin, foil and bottom layer of pastry ready to go before you make the custard filling.</em></div><br /><div align="center"></div><br /><div align="center"><br /><br /></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5371549522471665810" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyV1pZ6Vaid7M7GOc8lUYOzmLfNbN7w9zUqsl7KiJDi0GH-QilxDSG-eGnS3hrBgAS7X4Ac4gaGezQRKHL8yvAKvyJ0zqqq5Qz9PzEZLdRrT2-_G-LOQFdMvnJPahrOEAnLe_SNpH7gQ/s320/V2.JPG" border="0" /><em>The surprisingly quick to make custard filling. As soon as it thickens get it off the stove and into the pan as it sets quickly.</em><em></em><br /><br /><br /><br /><div align="center"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5371549864925124706" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEga0PUooUradWR7RG5L3dAdcsYAhzzeGm1fvl8-MyEpembV6wFypFe6CZD1Yn3VguHABPsOKHjlkrVLi3KhAat3k5x0AnnOLhjJYJ3VJ61bQ2DTXfOEyKgkjp4gNVywjnpN5pv9okWLbg/s320/V4.JPG" border="0" /><em>After a little over 24 hours in the fridge the vanilla slice had set beautifully.</em></div><em></em><br /><br /><br /><div align="center"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5371550011679270946" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4I8sMCkUrOkZ3nx1-TCGtB1ZaZIhotGHtbc9B3iiAE4x-Tt7mlcqZ6l5av2Kz1LQaGPjaEPYFWNYOwzJMDexqwIWr1VAdag95y4UBYCGLwcetkHCmglXEtaRT3jl94gL7FqlCZlhQbQ/s320/V5.JPG" border="0" /><em>I went with super pink icing. Next time I'll use crushed berries or strawberries and make a real flavoured icing.</em></div><em></em><br /><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5371553823398514514" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYHr6TmWxdKf7llfFINMdbRMAQ0OvzgnFz2jF-v7RoCUMgs4472qy0TMLNyhbpGVTQwasT-nfALbQJ2i8QUqo4vjigUorWrnkOY__PAaIkH97MOMqfL5HnrE6DG6F7cLzlCZaaAovnpg/s320/V7.JPG" border="0" /><br /><br /><div align="center"><em>Two of my baking influences mentioned that they would now attempt a Vanilla Slice. I'm taking that as a compliment!</em><br /></div><br /><div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1101889889054554709.post-4342955416331019372009-08-22T21:08:00.005+09:302009-08-22T21:46:33.003+09:30The price of hunger<div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkkVa6szVcRfnpRpgYXNtjXIP2zLKXVTXlHnj33bkJ50yhCNVk-4f0EnlUvpeRd5UbJvxdu3uBwg99JEMyFPp1Yi4lOO3uTKzOLJxvgvkBYpwcOxlzcJc5XlFtwhvbKvDcQolyxsZpJQ/s1600-h/the+tiger+at+tea2.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5372760706346602354" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkkVa6szVcRfnpRpgYXNtjXIP2zLKXVTXlHnj33bkJ50yhCNVk-4f0EnlUvpeRd5UbJvxdu3uBwg99JEMyFPp1Yi4lOO3uTKzOLJxvgvkBYpwcOxlzcJc5XlFtwhvbKvDcQolyxsZpJQ/s320/the+tiger+at+tea2.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><div align="left"><br /><strong><em><span style="font-size:130%;">What's the most expensive meal you've ever eaten and what's the best meal you've ever had?</span></em></strong></div><br /><br /><div align="left">This is the question posted this week for the blog tour group which I belong to. </div><br /><p align="left"><br />At first I tried to think of what expensive restaurants I had visited but decided to look at the first part of the question differently. <strong><span style="font-size:130%;">If I think in terms of value for money one of the most expensesive meals I've eaten would have to have been at an airport.</span></strong> I am always fascinated by the crazy prices which airports charge for their food. A sandwich for $12? Sure! A bottle of water for $6? Why not. <strong><span style="font-size:130%;">What fascinates me more is the fact that I will always buy this over-priced food. </span></strong>The fact that the food is expensive seems to make it irrestiable to my purse strings. It goes against my normal shopping behaviour (I am by nature a bargain junkie and live for hunting down great bargains) but when it comes to food I will never, ever go without or take a cheaper option. I just can't do it. </p><p align="left"><br /> </p><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5372760784906526370" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-ADOL1_9HvmQUkJiAq7nwjoIPednEDT9o1I-Ypli4NR6P5qyIa-P7KqVFC1UICsrb73tfVV1TZ2lUSUJQiTssekK2I1IaBt-e5KK9hCHsX_0AOgGoMKDcqX72bUyGY4sZuQtL9gT1iQ/s320/tiger+at+tea.jpg" border="0" /><br /><div align="left">I'm stumped on the second part of the question. <strong><span style="font-size:130%;">Best. Meal. Ever?</span></strong> For someone who loves food and will eat quite a wide variety of it, <strong><span style="font-size:130%;">I consider pretty much every meal to be my best meal ever.</span></strong> Seriously. A bad meal or food envy literally ruins my day. <strong><span style="font-size:130%;">My sandwich at work on Thursday?</span> </strong>Grilled ham, cheese, avacado and sun-dried tomatoes on wholemeal and pumkin bread. Delicious! I looked forward to it all morning and it made my afternoon trapped in front of the computer a tad nicer than usual. <strong><span style="font-size:130%;">Breakfast this morning?</span></strong> Berry and banana smoothie with wholemeal toast and hard boiled eggs. I'm still smiling about it now. </div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1101889889054554709.post-52672415916117629382009-08-19T14:33:00.010+09:302009-08-19T15:03:25.390+09:30Cure a Craving with Cake<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0BNoCtGKGfI7dIM6y_DT64_c5n5EMIzELaVT_QV5ZgbwzLuQMp8WP4k2AEqKukDS9GosgP6Wq5RLl3KUx_7CGVAsoXFzpiQM_fKUBt_mcA_mgA84wPp4kqbb77OGBSmxJXRkNXLRJgQ/s1600-h/CC5.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5371540433821858290" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0BNoCtGKGfI7dIM6y_DT64_c5n5EMIzELaVT_QV5ZgbwzLuQMp8WP4k2AEqKukDS9GosgP6Wq5RLl3KUx_7CGVAsoXFzpiQM_fKUBt_mcA_mgA84wPp4kqbb77OGBSmxJXRkNXLRJgQ/s320/CC5.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><div align="center">I love <strong><span style="font-size:130%;">coffee</span></strong>. </div><div align="center">Whether it be made at home or a barrista is fine by me. </div><div align="center">So long as it's not instant <span style="font-size:130%;"><strong>I'll drink it in a heart beat</strong>.</span> </div><div align="center">Sadly I've had to cut coffee from my life as it's been </div><div align="center">adding to my sinus headache problems of late. </div><div align="center">Being half Italian has made this a <strong><span style="font-size:130%;">very difficult task</span></strong> indeed. </div><div align="center">The results are worth it as my head feels better </div><div align="center">but <strong><span style="font-size:130%;">I'm still craving coffee</span></strong> on a daily basis. </div><div align="center">I'm hoping that the<span style="font-size:130%;"> <strong>coffee cake</strong></span> below will help me somewhat.</div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center"> </div><div></div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5371540894083865362" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3b0Z00mEtJPf8KZoMJbwDx2YvbJ3Guj038Y1BqZrem1y29DQsdVSE6ohhY8QzefZGBz2YKJ-S0-O_j-JDr2hxkW0Ys5TtLFMDwKuy2CUH7ilP7uTjRw5UYuvRPlO73igiwg_hSkhyphenhyphenVQ/s320/CC6.JPG" border="0" /></div><div><br /></div><div align="center"><strong><span style="font-size:130%;">Melt 'N' Mix Coffee Cake</span></strong></div><div align="center"><em>(Recipe from The Australian Women's Weekly Quick Mix Cakes) </em><em><br /></div></em><div align="center">125g butter, chopped</div><div align="center">2/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar</div><div align="center">1/3 cup castor sugar</div><div align="center">1/2 cup milk</div><div align="center">2 teaspoons instant coffee powder (I used ground coffee beans)</div><div align="center">2 eggs</div><div align="center">1 + 1/2 cups self-raising flour</div><div align="center">Grease a 14cm by 21cm loaf pan</div><div align="center"><br /></div><div align="center">Combine butter, sugars, milk and coffee in medium sauce pan. Stir over low heat without boiling until butter in melted. Stand 10 minutes. Stir in eggs and flour. Pour into prepared pan. Bake in moderate over about 40 minutes. Turn onto wire rack to cool. Ice if desired.</div><div><br /><br /><br /></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5371541157040089474" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmY306jJ-AmnCMFQUGPEiwNE0b0w_64bq2KlYwFmz4LCsPDvpzWFHTuL2uv5whyphenhyphen379u6K7a-ogHFkwaKIsvTfisRF0tNxooD5DDVdIXNi-NySb6ajm0VFboPLnpyYtiPWKhYUe-BmfDg/s320/CCake1.JPG" border="0" /><br /><div></div><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5371540000369316562" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgj0YmfnCdZnxT8vSabl0YkAOhBr2hNJXArnWS0dkCrsFP-BwZHlvlLkEVIJP7OkG8XrbWL-EyLAd3P9f_YTTCKU2kD-UsIGZlGhTQcYFFn0eIDbh8ECZLVcMGBKeZQE7yOPKO6YKZwdA/s320/CC4.JPG" border="0" /><br /><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5371541433952614962" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2iSSUMP7u9JVf1vhqhtr-QaDuGkNKDf6hJ50Tpu7c3rfjLyiOrToqggOd0W2Tg0KQFbbm5cCmRORzpIk0cFBvfCQ97inKWmB68wFse1WbROTW8t8195rvtAs7YoaYYN1dujBLcCVfZQ/s320/Ccake2.JPG" border="0" /><br /><br /><div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1101889889054554709.post-72863042952828168022009-08-10T20:49:00.015+09:302009-08-10T21:41:18.784+09:30Scandinavia to Horsham<div align="center"><div align="center">The northern summer of 2005 I spent travelling in Scandinavia and Russia. I choose a tour that took up most of my six weeks of school holidays. I didn't know a single soul on the tour. I need not have worried so much about being a 'billy no mates' as I quickly made friends with six other hilariously funny and similarly minded girls. I was single at the time and a few of my friends back in London would text or email me asking if I'd found the love of my life on tour. I didn't. Instead I found six friends for life. We nicknamed our selves The Erectors which is a story in itself.</div><div align="center"><br /></div><div align="center">Four years on and five of the seven Erectors travelled to Horsham in country Victoria for our second reunion weekend. Here is the food that I sampled over the weekend: </div><div align="center"><br /><br /></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368295782382431538" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLpwQK29wrwSIDDaRfSsEnfPPaEVc86vuOkrnX1tnPok-f5JQosRMNovjgiLBRBtil5-_L6l_2XrC8CC-CRKZ6FppIeuojhJb_l2FkCmCqmkNr2cYgENeFCN-FSYfh6Cf9JfXd2f3MPw/s320/Danish1.JPG" border="0" /><em>First stop was Coonalpyn Bakery in country South Australia for a fruity Danish. Which was quite appropriate as The Erectors first met in Copenhagen, Denmark. I didn't get round to eating it in the car and it somehow disappeared from our apartment.<br /></em><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368295855469913410" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdIoEwuTI9IbQ7hp5hQQNfqpqAK5x5i_T2VRoNe2vFtDPm6zlKdz6Qk51hQ3u9Xjmn4hK8JMLjquKbYwq52sT73_RPy-BvQOmChSYNAN6klUCfuIWjG9Kcxqu1aFZ1ZIVxIQJjuK1Gsg/s320/Danish2.JPG" border="0" /><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368296013733378098" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3uJT8NJjtuSot65GveisYTZotfbhuLK89N0fOIxA7kz-dsut7oCn-AjCcb_iwPHnuAgO9rXq-H3CA2wAJ2mNPgnBvcZWt7EKLJXW4-rg-2GxDgk3Eqkm2E7amfcPFrLZa_TwovT1G1A/s320/Lemon+Meringe1.JPG" border="0" /><br /><em>Next up was this super sweet mini lemon meringue pie from a tiny town called Kaniva.<br /></em><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368295928011110178" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTvTRBsA4z_xMtKB-SYd8NAUyCNmS3qFf-oXrCjEoTl5TLtla-AV0rV5n43pGIRnzCazn3G5JRiaXuinmKPctVs6Oa_VjsOyOqsRQflwDwNuM7tYVi_SMIFiIsNv9-FPQbelFSA0w-nw/s320/Lemon+Merigne2.JPG" border="0" /><em>It was so sweet that it actually took me two tries to eat it all. Which is pretty rare for me.</em><br /><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368296146010202866" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCyoIof2u4Nz4Zy0OohJxgq85ZnlCjADrvmvZXlvtfQxb4VQZmSGCUAdcTwKGGi9BBl_vjMcElKV0avAABmnL5TxmosV321t2_DRVxKGIADBDyC0aqmWEpHNAGtetQCTYu57w_3V5DtA/s320/Nachos1.JPG" border="0" /><em>Tea on Friday night was some good Aussie nachos from Moe's. Who would have thought there'd be a Mexican restaurant in country Victoria?</em></div><div align="center"><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368296315425181490" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAzJ4qFFSPlToH1ZmwUIte3_UeirELdidy1f4q6t2YMA44uAxQ7hWP1pB34vTxk4e0V_Uh8xQjkzpXf6J8ujDsNchEDFjd1Nq3BeEagDe_BUn3008pq7ErKG1sM4I4bmYKqetuNxJKKA/s320/Nachso2.JPG" border="0" /><br /></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><p></p><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368296239011456242" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcbxjInI3G-ZEZEX_R4VK79dkmYfknf2G_WbPyuXkkmV8JcXhNwfiq00KUMCtUubk6wZLniOmXqlBnhi6GV3ySCOc6bTHqd7jyUcGWTO77xvoccFKQKnlxs_HEDDEgMff2eHJPvhDSXg/s320/Nachos3.JPG" border="0" /></p><p></p><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368296402766629394" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCqKHjOhW6m5UbhVimzQzKyb7I51YoxuDZ6bQ1LKuB4hCBxCgSZR4ZNTyfsgltK2tgz6yDDT27MJI60GETDBAAGj5IIBsfr7G93ECfY7nuyhMKkxdJWvXg2ePGkUJYAZpAASqerw801A/s320/Van+Slice1.JPG" border="0" /></p><p align="center"><em>I have saved the best for last. <strong>My dad is a huge country bakery fan and lives for vanilla slices.</strong> My dad and I share both a last name and a massive sweet tooth for baked goods. One of the bakeries in Horsham boasted 'Australia's Best Vanilla Slice'. </em><em><strong>I was sceptical.</strong> </em><em>I am South Australian and always take the Victorians with a grain of salt. I was sceptical for no reason. <strong>These vanilla slices are the best I've ever eaten.</strong> I'm not going to gush as there are no words that will do justice <strong>to the magnificence of these vanilla slices.</strong></em><strong> </strong></p><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368296490890375442" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIGGt071xShrQK137ZoxuvrC4-H3GwuDf_fZcbbRhJV93RMrOl0cCPunXO2xhFNTJkE9Tiv2eqbYSjLbCAic6XWUYqxe26ZtfJVo4fXuIa4VVLZzuv5sSWFsCbMZO0qZMWIwD9JMiLBA/s320/Van+Slice2.JPG" border="0" /></p><p align="center"><em>Hands down the Victorians have beaten the South Australians in the vanilla slice stakes. The pasty, custard and icing were all superb.</em> </p><p align="center"> </p><p align="center"><strong>Thank you girls for a great weekend. We missed you RR and JB!</strong></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1101889889054554709.post-30024127953758205592009-08-06T20:17:00.001+09:302009-08-10T20:49:05.910+09:30As Aussie as Pavlova<div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8My-svOvab-WCmonT6NN1iL-4CeBSW2rzGuqYEEWndW5_xNHr50ihkbaxDhXjYVye7nQW7Ts_U-LPchYNFWatfFav-ZBRNvppXM_4jU8uTO_dAA7aO3bUXvRD83kNQW4oPAadD54zgQ/s1600-h/Pav1.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368289987090832306" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8My-svOvab-WCmonT6NN1iL-4CeBSW2rzGuqYEEWndW5_xNHr50ihkbaxDhXjYVye7nQW7Ts_U-LPchYNFWatfFav-ZBRNvppXM_4jU8uTO_dAA7aO3bUXvRD83kNQW4oPAadD54zgQ/s320/Pav1.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><div align="center">I love pavlova. </div><div align="center">It can't be the soft, mushy, marshmallow type. </div><div align="center">Or the cheats type that comes from the </div><div align="center">abnormally large plastic egg in Coles supermarket. </div><div align="center">It has to come from a simple recipe from </div><div align="center">The Australian Women's Weekly Cooking Class cookbook. </div><div align="center">It requires egg whites from free range hens. </div><div align="center">It delivers a crispy, crunchy pavlova with just the tiniest hint of mushiness. </div><br /><div align="center">The pavlova below was made for a very good friend </div><div align="center">who was visiting from London, Netball Queen. </div><div align="center">Netball Queen has spent the last 6 years in London </div><div align="center">but maintains one of the best Australian accents I've ever heard.</div><div align="center">She'll never lose it. </div><div align="center">A strong, Australian accent that can survive 6 years </div><div align="center">under the influence of the English deserves a medal, a green and gold medal that is.</div><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368290295961279698" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaUmJohj3gu-hTy99H_j5c4A0utBanpBN9l3g53w0thJz_6z4wfhSBBiYYJPxd1o7dNNlDARN9lFKis6M58v__O8LrJ3DBA1NWJ_HM4NglsOB-banTmRKBDjpC9dDQ8-3rwTPgQ4a4oA/s320/Pav3.JPG" border="0" /><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368290856755542194" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPyZ-rdLr__fEUjMPg5ZP56EDOvd7XwJvR0Q6kWQiYomgViu5DdhYMm27fA8dgjRnJ14wrNmhdN-ZzyIFQqxfoqUjZg0u9irRigQG2K_7JqbT6gmXmCsHT9Ksvvb9pWW8twP65uw9iGg/s320/Pav6.JPG" border="0" /><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368291254759415890" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuPlAKrHs36HoKkmG9X92BlG4kAlxP3XwHf02LkiBFa2BBmH9TL8UIn81HgxnEw3tEpBKWPj0FBmfGhaG1K_7BdY5oo8yvc770E-HL82cvOuv93mschSgt-OLOcNfQLodLowa52dwltQ/s320/Pav7.JPG" border="0" /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368291512709819938" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifs8WZHKuX2w_ARUQGCZOHfg_S85uN5aYiFsjY7I44aQ8N4FHXtQul93WxGp6n61PVve-CiM72YmNf5cUzEc_VrOdIpeCwxl4wkAF12YzhA_mnKJazT0RflxGFppkB5WdxQuWXNvYIdA/s320/Pav+8.JPG" border="0" /><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368290138993294722" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2snqJee_9mMoXOcfg2-Nlltp6ywxjmUGK9FxyHoCIG7_xVIOif0RaBxujQ_OlO7dzAI1M26VZ2zxjUOjL44mkl9foSTivaVxX1TySBZp6YFY_E2-vTKzhuNmGccdhn7Yr6y8T6j_7Hg/s320/Pav2.JPG" border="0" /><br /><div align="center"></div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1101889889054554709.post-77818608019019596152009-08-02T21:53:00.009+09:302009-08-02T22:25:53.001+09:30Waffles are just as good as Cupcakes<div align="center">The last year has seen a cupcake explosion of sorts in my little part of Australia. It seems that more and more cupcake shops are opening every week. Since late January I have been visiting different cupcake shops to do a series of posts. Today I was meant to visit the last shop on my review list. Guess who needs to check opening times a little more carefully in future? Luckily a few doors down from the cupcake place is <a href="http://www.bracegirdles.com.au/">this dessert establishment</a>. So my outing with my sister and my 'adopted sister' wasn't wasted.</div><div align="center"><br />They are well known for their chocolate based desserts and drinks but have recently branched out to include light meals. My sensible sisters both ordered rolls seeing as it was lunch time.<br /><br /><br /></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5365344693985018018" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihU3scf41f2s2qAEuFE4i8Jjip9DywK_-r6h7qccNs-AT6CUqJwDm2drDwuJ5oP-GAIZGdK9c6pKky3QjLSo7zETI1Ph2jdgT6HJ_vTWHNWAyCAGGLGDswR0KcB-23_5zuJ3QMdQAOEg/s320/BG3.JPG" border="0" /> <p align="center"><em><span style="font-size:85%;">Salmon salad roll. It was apparently quite tasty.</span></em></p><div align="center"><br /><br /></div><p align="center"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5365344864461963282" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMQdaa8vm4WNqRUJJTsDdaiq1zjBTyaRTrHvm3mIcOKymZOCWiiVRJd1Gs7wo-79XGxiyDBCise5bM3nLGhYyApW-bI_Jk9F45D_i3x91-eLdXBTT7jiRKdOvZPI-afHC1fyQL4YsbkQ/s320/BG@.JPG" border="0" /><em><span style="font-size:85%;">Turkey roll which my sources also tell me was kind to the tastebuds.</span></em> </p><p><br /><br /></p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5365344548185630418" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht8DpuJ6H6oqJ8cIa8Qnmg3eAZ7Y76NXyoHCCCwLriKGHrMZTLICjhCJ9SFR1EHpANrzrDO6n_w0DkWSw3SBV0BV2gmehuxinotscZuoLVDF6ngcDUtQ7jOxG6s_Hx5GUanN2oFfhxsg/s320/BG1.JPG" border="0" /> <p align="center"><em><span style="font-size:85%;">Signature hot chocolate.</span></em></p><br /><br /><div align="center"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5365345730764618930" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho22M-8u5ECRq4RH4T2WIF1qXsMfpQCm_SlQCtfGaew4IkeVpaRP1ZSPWZo2Xw4m4-xeYUKYjk2a3F0a2gA4KRSy3Csjklt0VYD7qC5h3VMlRYrYK2KFMqV44jpJPeH_VbDxX9eXDSvA/s320/BG8.JPG" border="0" /><span style="font-size:85%;"><em>I of course ordered dessert for lunch: soft yet crispy waffles with melted chocolate, strawberries and vanilla ice-cream.</em></span></div><div align="center"> </div><div align="center"><br /><br /></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5365345555313409442" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkEyh8XxsOmWfLcaxeVKd_CQz070QjYfksnwWhyphenhyphenaMgwUWsjBTYm8Q1TZlwoRu8t9zlnHVuzBtTKEXZJo4BGRjW60yytH9-MPgHrMy6TVhMEABHKRsB9hDyS1MbK9TM3XFtzBD0i5-UIA/s320/BG7.JPG" border="0" /> <p align="center"><em><span style="font-size:85%;">With a green tea to balance it all out.</span></em></p><br /><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5365345335649358482" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-S1LquFUEZHjgMSfHKxRSQvdQpRQWtyMqPE4ocQZTNpui-vIxX4o5VEK_j5Zdw5nD4AFXnrz65Aug6t3Gsvy9wRYrzxLrvrSJFLCWwogOcoZH07c_T6BKhh6-_yuiGfPZk86V7F52Pg/s320/BG5.JPG" border="0" />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2