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Saturday, 7 April 2012
AMAZING OPPORTUNITY!
Sunday, 26 February 2012
The heavens have opened!!!
128 km Mackay Radar Loop
OMG! Its raining its pouring! We have been simply inundated by rain today! It is way too heavy to go out and check the gauge.... The tanks are overflowing and I can not see the kids being able to go to school in the morning. The water was over the road four hours ago and I imagine it will be MUCH worse in the a.m.
It cracks me up that this is supposed to be the Whitsundays, not the WETsundays! Sunny Queensland... yeah righto....
This would be the perfect weather for brewing up a delicious soup or curry! Not so much for us today though. We are still wading through the mountains of food left over from the party last night. Lasagne, chicken wings, rice salad, sausage rolls, cake, pavlovas.... to name just a few. I am thinking of having a post party party ... lol. I can see the kids with lunchboxes chock full of these yummy treats to share with their friends.
I am keeping this one short as the endless glass of champagne I consumed for a period of elevenish hours is beginning to catch up with me.
OMG! Its raining its pouring! We have been simply inundated by rain today! It is way too heavy to go out and check the gauge.... The tanks are overflowing and I can not see the kids being able to go to school in the morning. The water was over the road four hours ago and I imagine it will be MUCH worse in the a.m.
It cracks me up that this is supposed to be the Whitsundays, not the WETsundays! Sunny Queensland... yeah righto....
This would be the perfect weather for brewing up a delicious soup or curry! Not so much for us today though. We are still wading through the mountains of food left over from the party last night. Lasagne, chicken wings, rice salad, sausage rolls, cake, pavlovas.... to name just a few. I am thinking of having a post party party ... lol. I can see the kids with lunchboxes chock full of these yummy treats to share with their friends.
I am keeping this one short as the endless glass of champagne I consumed for a period of elevenish hours is beginning to catch up with me.
Wednesday, 8 February 2012
But Why?
Today is a bit of a strange one! I just couldn't get past it, nor understand it! My darling Mr Charming volunteered (my story and I will tell it how I want!) to take me out for lunch today at the local Tavern. It has been a while since we have been so I readily agreed, whilst pretending it wasn't my idea in the first place! lol
It must have been rush hour because there were already several groups there. It seems that we arrived just after EVERY one of those groups had placed their orders. Mr Charming and I sat sipping our soft drinks (yep, still on the wagon!) awaiting the arrival of our meals. Being the foodie I am, I was eyeballing everyone else's meal, to find out what I was missing out on by not ordering..... I was utterly ASTOUNDED with what 80% of the customers ordered!
TOASTED SANDWICHES!!!!!!!!!! Are you freaking serious?????? When I venture to an establishment that is not only willing to take my order, prepare the food to my requirements, deliver it to me and then do the dishes.... I AM NOT ORDERING A SANDWICH! I scour the menu for something I would not make myself at home!
Is it just me because I rarely have the opportunity to eat somewhere other than home? Or is it that others are so set in their comfort zones that they wouldn't dare order anything new when they go out?
When Mr Charming and I head out, you can be guaranteed on four out of five occasions to find seafood gracing our plates! Actually today, he had the Seafood Basket (which was cooked to perfection! Thanks chef!) and I dived heartily into a delicious Thai Fish Salad! On a steamy hot day there is nothing better than flavoursome seafood nestled in a bed of crispy salad!
If you have any ideas or thoughts on this bizarre phenomenon, PLEASE feel free to share! I am completely baffled by it! What do you order when YOU go out for lunch?
Until next time.... let's go Gourmet!
It must have been rush hour because there were already several groups there. It seems that we arrived just after EVERY one of those groups had placed their orders. Mr Charming and I sat sipping our soft drinks (yep, still on the wagon!) awaiting the arrival of our meals. Being the foodie I am, I was eyeballing everyone else's meal, to find out what I was missing out on by not ordering..... I was utterly ASTOUNDED with what 80% of the customers ordered!
TOASTED SANDWICHES!!!!!!!!!! Are you freaking serious?????? When I venture to an establishment that is not only willing to take my order, prepare the food to my requirements, deliver it to me and then do the dishes.... I AM NOT ORDERING A SANDWICH! I scour the menu for something I would not make myself at home!
Is it just me because I rarely have the opportunity to eat somewhere other than home? Or is it that others are so set in their comfort zones that they wouldn't dare order anything new when they go out?
When Mr Charming and I head out, you can be guaranteed on four out of five occasions to find seafood gracing our plates! Actually today, he had the Seafood Basket (which was cooked to perfection! Thanks chef!) and I dived heartily into a delicious Thai Fish Salad! On a steamy hot day there is nothing better than flavoursome seafood nestled in a bed of crispy salad!
If you have any ideas or thoughts on this bizarre phenomenon, PLEASE feel free to share! I am completely baffled by it! What do you order when YOU go out for lunch?
Until next time.... let's go Gourmet!
Tuesday, 7 February 2012
Who nose?
Please explain to me what it is about the combination of onion, garlic and bacon sauteeing on the stovetop or bbq that reduces me to a slobbering mess on the kitchen floor?! There is simply NO BETTER aroma in the world!
Yet again, after completing all the mummy chores, tucking Miss C and Master R safely into their beds, I realised I was yet to fulfill my half of the standing agreement I have to fuel my body. Inclination and motivation levels were low and so I hit the pantry for my favourite 10 minute meal. The simple baked potato! Ok, I keep raw potatoes, not baked ones in the pantry....
After forking the potato like a crazed murderer in a Michael Connelly novel, I slipped it into the microwave and zapped it on high for ten minutes. Yes..... I CHEATED! I do prefer my potatoes wrapped in foil and baked in the oven but..... noone was watching. lol
Whilst the potato was contentedly spinning on the glass plate, soaking up those dreaded microwaves I took to the fridge. Garlic was located first, smashed, bruised and chopped and tossed into to pan with the Garlic Oil. Half an onion and a rasher of bacon were chopped an happily joined the garlic popping away. The aromas blended together, filling my airconditioned house, so when I next turn the aircon on... A couple of tomatoes were chopped and thrown in the pan for good measure.
PING PING PING! My dodgy potato alerted me that it was time to exit. Ow ow ow! Use tongs next time will ya! I did the Hot Potato dance to the plate on the bench on the other side of the kitchen. The spud was then again unceremoniously attacked with cutlery, exposing its perfectly cooked centre and letting the steam escape!
The contents of the pan were delicately (not) dumped onto the potato and topped with a little grated Tasty Cheese and a dollop of sour cream. Sweet Chilli Sauce topped it off perfectly! Whilst not a gourmet meal... it was absolutely delish!
If I was REALLY serious about this aroma stuff... maybe I should have had a batch of brownies baking for dessert! Or maybe a loaf of herb bread in the oven. GREAT! Now I am hungry again... I was given a recipe yesterday for some cream cheese muffins so maybe I owe it to the kids to test it out!
Later today, lets go gourmet.... x x
Yet again, after completing all the mummy chores, tucking Miss C and Master R safely into their beds, I realised I was yet to fulfill my half of the standing agreement I have to fuel my body. Inclination and motivation levels were low and so I hit the pantry for my favourite 10 minute meal. The simple baked potato! Ok, I keep raw potatoes, not baked ones in the pantry....
After forking the potato like a crazed murderer in a Michael Connelly novel, I slipped it into the microwave and zapped it on high for ten minutes. Yes..... I CHEATED! I do prefer my potatoes wrapped in foil and baked in the oven but..... noone was watching. lol
Whilst the potato was contentedly spinning on the glass plate, soaking up those dreaded microwaves I took to the fridge. Garlic was located first, smashed, bruised and chopped and tossed into to pan with the Garlic Oil. Half an onion and a rasher of bacon were chopped an happily joined the garlic popping away. The aromas blended together, filling my airconditioned house, so when I next turn the aircon on... A couple of tomatoes were chopped and thrown in the pan for good measure.
PING PING PING! My dodgy potato alerted me that it was time to exit. Ow ow ow! Use tongs next time will ya! I did the Hot Potato dance to the plate on the bench on the other side of the kitchen. The spud was then again unceremoniously attacked with cutlery, exposing its perfectly cooked centre and letting the steam escape!
The contents of the pan were delicately (not) dumped onto the potato and topped with a little grated Tasty Cheese and a dollop of sour cream. Sweet Chilli Sauce topped it off perfectly! Whilst not a gourmet meal... it was absolutely delish!
If I was REALLY serious about this aroma stuff... maybe I should have had a batch of brownies baking for dessert! Or maybe a loaf of herb bread in the oven. GREAT! Now I am hungry again... I was given a recipe yesterday for some cream cheese muffins so maybe I owe it to the kids to test it out!
Later today, lets go gourmet.... x x
Sunday, 5 February 2012
Winging It
Peri Peri Stuffed Chicken Wings
Definitely an inspired morning in the kitchen at Chez Laffin today! I have recently approached the local butcher to ask him to teach me how to 'pop' chicken wings to make my creations more presentable. Presentation is something I REALLY struggle with. After practicing with four kilos of wings, I got a little lazy, only popping off the mini drumstick. This left me with several tip portions, still attached to the bit with the two bones. *Please bear with the technical jargon! lol
I have always wanted to try stuffed wings and so I began to Google techniques and recipes. There were so many that I couldn't understand why I had never thought to try it before. After much research, it became apparent that I needed to remove the two bones... this is where it got interesting! I sharpened my knife and began hacking away, first removing the cartlidge and then gently pushing the meat down the bone, finally twisting the bones out. I was feeling pretty clever at this point... and then.... OUCH!!!! I managed to slice both my thumb and forefinger. On went the bandaids and I soldiered on... only wounding myself a further three times. *I highly recommend putting the bandaids on before you start! lol
I made the stuffing and filled each wing, sealing with a toothpick. I was careful not to overfill because exploding wings are not really my thing.
With "go hard or go home" as one of my mottos I decided to test out another technique.... smoking! Don't get me wrong, I do have a camp smoker but I have never tried it in the oven. I popped a roasting pan on the hotplate and used the Russian Exotica Tea (you may substitute with any black tea and spices of choice) and covered with foil. I lay the wings on a rack under the foil and smoked for another ten minutes. I turned off the heat and left the wings to sit for a further fifteen minutes.
To complete this epic entree I dropped each wing into a deep fryer to crisp up the skin. This only took three or four minutes. Draining these golden wings on absorbant paper was my token way of decreasing the calorie count. The wings were served hot and Master R and Miss C were big fans!
I am well aware that my kids are spoiled in the culinery department, but I will not be whipping this treat up for a kids party or afternoon tea anytime soon. This particular delight is heading to my Adults Only recipe collection, as it is rather time consuming with the boning. That and I only have a limited amount of fingers!
Peri Peri Stuffing
100g Pork Mince
2 Spring Onions, finely sliced
1 tbs YIAH Peri Peri Seasoning
1 tbs Lime Juice
Zest of one lime
Combine all ingredients and insert into wings.
* You may use any combination of spices. I would recommend garlic, chilli, ginger, soy sauce, sesame oil.
I made a simple sauce using coconut cream, spices and lime juice for dipping but you can serve with any sauce you like.
I would like to acknowledge the Food Republic for their inspiration and technical advice regarding boning the chicken.
Until next time... I look forward to receiving your feedback. Don't forget to tell your friends about me x x
Hitting the Blogging Trail
What am I doing here? Fair question! It seems that I have too many ideas and opinions to share amongst my designated outlets, ie. friends, family, Webinars, fellow consultants, fellow leaders, FB page, Foodie column in local monthly paper.... I thought I would saddle up the blogging pony and take her for a ride. I do not vow to blog every day, although I also do not vow NOT to!
I fully expect my busy lifestyle (cough cough) to interfere with my incessant need to voice my view of the world on occasion.
This seems like the perfect time for a little background, because I do so love to talk about myself... haha. I am a work at home mother of two school aged cherubs. My husband is employed in the mining industry and graces us with his presence for six of every twelve days on a rotating roster. Whilst he is home, Mr Charming is subjected to endless taste trials. He seems pretty happy with this deal, as are Miss C and Master R, because it means that they dont have to eat ALL the stuffed artichoke hearts themselves.
We live in a rural community in North Queensland, Australia. I say community because it isnt even big enough to be considered a town. Sigh! The Whitsundays is a gorgeous place to live, although we are inundated by rain for five months of the year. You may find there is substantially more blogging done by me when I am trapped inside, hiding from the torrential rain, thunderstorms and cyclones, which make living in the WETSUNDAYS so entertaining!
I will sign off for now, to allow you to have enough time to prepare yourself for tomorrow's first step on our gastronomic adventure together.
Enjoy the rest of your day. Lets go gourmet tomorrow!
I fully expect my busy lifestyle (cough cough) to interfere with my incessant need to voice my view of the world on occasion.
This seems like the perfect time for a little background, because I do so love to talk about myself... haha. I am a work at home mother of two school aged cherubs. My husband is employed in the mining industry and graces us with his presence for six of every twelve days on a rotating roster. Whilst he is home, Mr Charming is subjected to endless taste trials. He seems pretty happy with this deal, as are Miss C and Master R, because it means that they dont have to eat ALL the stuffed artichoke hearts themselves.
My friends and neighbours are often summoned to my home to collectively evaluate the most recent of my creations. There have been some doozies I can assure you! Everything from crocodile to capsicum has been offered up on the tasting table. Meat dishes are often met with suspicion... because I never tell until AFTER they have tasted.... (*Insert evil laugh here)
We live in a rural community in North Queensland, Australia. I say community because it isnt even big enough to be considered a town. Sigh! The Whitsundays is a gorgeous place to live, although we are inundated by rain for five months of the year. You may find there is substantially more blogging done by me when I am trapped inside, hiding from the torrential rain, thunderstorms and cyclones, which make living in the WETSUNDAYS so entertaining!
I will sign off for now, to allow you to have enough time to prepare yourself for tomorrow's first step on our gastronomic adventure together.
Enjoy the rest of your day. Lets go gourmet tomorrow!
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