Australian Treats

I decided that it was about time we explored the sweet side of Australia- the sweets side that is. We have tasted a few traditional treats over the months- Lamingtons and Friands were the big ones, but it was time to get down to business. So I began researching (here comes the teacher) the time-honored traditional desserts and treats, gathered them up and we started tasting.

Fairy Bread

Fairy Bread is white bread cut into triangles, spread with butter or margarine and sprinkled 100s and 1000s (aka sprinkles). Notice in my picture that I did not cut the bread into triangles as I had two little ones practically drooling while waiting to try them.  Fairy Bread is a popular treat at birthday parties here and in New Zealand.  The origin of Fairy Bread is not known, but it may come from the poem, 'Fairy Bread' by Robert Louis Stevenson. The boys loved it. I thought it was fine, but nothing to write home about. Hmm, but apparently it is something to blog about. Ha. Ha

ANZAC Biscuits

Honestly, when I first arrived here and saw these biscuits (here they are biscuits at home they are cookies) I had no desire what-so-ever to try them. I remember Corey asking me if I had tried them yet and told her no and really had no intention to try them.  I thought they looked too much like a dried-out, healthy, oatmeal cookie (which I am not such a fan of).  Oh boy, I was WRONG. I tasted these babies tonight and they were GOOOOOOOD! I ate several of them. The boys liked them, but preferred the Fairy Bread.

An ANZAC biscuit is really an oatmeal cookie with coconut and golden syrup (corn syrup?) in them.  In the past they were sent by wives to soldiers working abroad because the ingredients did not spoil easily and they traveled well.  For those of you who are wondering what ANZAC is, it stands for Australian and New Zealand Army Corps.

Tim Tams

We tried these the first week we were here. They are quite yummy and come in all different flavours and even different shapes. I prefer the dark chocolate mint ones. Ooo, the white chocolates ones are good too. Coop likes them, but Tucker does not. Interesting, huh?

The Tim Tam is a chocolate biscuit made of two layers of chocolate malted biscuits separated by a light cream filling and then coated in chocolate.  They were named after the winning horse, Tim Tam, at the 1964 Kentucky Derby.  Pepperidge Farm brought Tim Tams to the US and they could originally only be  sold at Target. How about that?

A funny bit (bit, hmm, where did that word come from??)-- Tim Tams was running a contest where you buy two packages, send in your UPC codes and have a chance at winning a Mini-Cooper. Well, Coop took one look at the advertisements and we had to enter. So now he keeps asking, "When will our car be here?" and telling others that we have ordered a car and it will be here soon.  It would be great to win, but chances are slimmer than slim. Poor kid.

Cherry Ripe

I saw this at stores for the first three months we were here and had no idea what it was. Finally one day I took the plunge and bought one. I snuck it into the house and tasted it. It is basically coconut and cherries covered in dark chocolate.  Not the best thing I have eaten and not the worst, but I think I have to say no to the Cherry Ripe.  

Violet Crumble

This seriously reminds me of something from Willy Wonka.  I have seen Violet Crumble Ice Cream and the candy bars themselves, but again had no idea what it was.  Well, it is a crumbly, honeycomb-like substance that is coated in chocolate. What it really is like is a Butterfinger gone seriously, seriously wrong. Coop and I both took a bite, looked at each other and spit it out.  Need I say more? 

I don't think so.

Jaffas

These were pretty good! They are chocolate balls covered in an orange-flavoured shell. Now, I am not a big fan of orange-flavoured foods or candies, but these we liked. It may have been that we tasted them right after the Violet Crumble and most anything would have been good in comparison, but maybe not.  Both boys loved these. They are called Jaffas because the orange flavour comes from the Jaffa Orange.  This is fascinating stuff, I know. 

Wagon Wheels

I have seen versions of this cookie everywhere.  I saw a single cookies being sold at 7/11 (yes, they are all over here) and bought one to try. It is a cookie sandwich with jam and marshmallows inside and then coated with chocolate. Seems Aussies really like to cover things in chocolate.  It was good, not fantastic. Would I eat them again. Sure.

So that is what we have tried so far.  There are a few others out there that we have yet to taste, but will, don't you worry.  And when we do, you will hear all about it!

Australian Treats

I decided that it was about time we explored the sweet side of Australia- the sweets side that is. We have tasted a few traditional treats over the months- Lamingtons and Friands were the big ones, but it was time to get down to business. So I began researching (here comes the teacher) the time-honored traditional desserts and treats, gathered them up and we started tasting.

Fairy Bread

Fairy Bread is white bread cut into triangles, spread with butter or margarine and sprinkled 100s and 1000s (aka sprinkles). Notice in my picture that I did not cut the bread into triangles as I had two little ones practically drooling while waiting to try them.  Fairy Bread is a popular treat at birthday parties here and in New Zealand.  The origin of Fairy Bread is not known, but it may come from the poem, 'Fairy Bread' by Robert Louis Stevenson. The boys loved it. I thought it was fine, but nothing to write home about. Hmm, but apparently it is something to blog about. Ha. Ha

ANZAC Biscuits

Honestly, when I first arrived here and saw these biscuits (here they are biscuits at home they are cookies) I had no desire what-so-ever to try them. I remember Corey asking me if I had tried them yet and told her no and really had no intention to try them.  I thought they looked too much like a dried-out, healthy, oatmeal cookie (which I am not such a fan of).  Oh boy, I was WRONG. I tasted these babies tonight and they were GOOOOOOOD! I ate several of them. The boys liked them, but preferred the Fairy Bread.

An ANZAC biscuit is really an oatmeal cookie with coconut and golden syrup (corn syrup?) in them.  In the past they were sent by wives to soldiers working abroad because the ingredients did not spoil easily and they traveled well.  For those of you who are wondering what ANZAC is, it stands for Australian and New Zealand Army Corps.

Tim Tams

We tried these the first week we were here. They are quite yummy and come in all different flavours and even different shapes. I prefer the dark chocolate mint ones. Ooo, the white chocolates ones are good too. Coop likes them, but Tucker does not. Interesting, huh?

The Tim Tam is a chocolate biscuit made of two layers of chocolate malted biscuits separated by a light cream filling and then coated in chocolate.  They were named after the winning horse, Tim Tam, at the 1964 Kentucky Derby.  Pepperidge Farm brought Tim Tams to the US and they could originally only be  sold at Target. How about that?

A funny bit (bit, hmm, where did that word come from??)-- Tim Tams was running a contest where you buy two packages, send in your UPC codes and have a chance at winning a Mini-Cooper. Well, Coop took one look at the advertisements and we had to enter. So now he keeps asking, "When will our car be here?" and telling others that we have ordered a car and it will be here soon.  It would be great to win, but chances are slimmer than slim. Poor kid.

Cherry Ripe

I saw this at stores for the first three months we were here and had no idea what it was. Finally one day I took the plunge and bought one. I snuck it into the house and tasted it. It is basically coconut and cherries covered in dark chocolate.  Not the best thing I have eaten and not the worst, but I think I have to say no to the Cherry Ripe.  

Violet Crumble

This seriously reminds me of something from Willy Wonka.  I have seen Violet Crumble Ice Cream and the candy bars themselves, but again had no idea what it was.  Well, it is a crumbly, honeycomb-like substance that is coated in chocolate. What it really is like is a Butterfinger gone seriously, seriously wrong. Coop and I both took a bite, looked at each other and spit it out.  Need I say more? 

I don't think so.

Jaffas

These were pretty good! They are chocolate balls covered in an orange-flavoured shell. Now, I am not a big fan of orange-flavoured foods or candies, but these we liked. It may have been that we tasted them right after the Violet Crumble and most anything would have been good in comparison, but maybe not.  Both boys loved these. They are called Jaffas because the orange flavour comes from the Jaffa Orange.  This is fascinating stuff, I know. 

Wagon Wheels

I have seen versions of this cookie everywhere.  I saw a single cookies being sold at 7/11 (yes, they are all over here) and bought one to try. It is a cookie sandwich with jam and marshmallows inside and then coated with chocolate. Seems Aussies really like to cover things in chocolate.  It was good, not fantastic. Would I eat them again. Sure.

So that is what we have tried so far.  There are a few others out there that we have yet to taste, but will, don't you worry.  And when we do, you will hear all about it!

Kids at Music

We had music class again this morning and it was a huge hit again. Cooper loves the drums and acting silly. Tucker just has to dance.  He basically spends the whole class smiling.  There is only one other child in the class that is Coop's age.  It is so nice to have him in the class with us to see that the things that Coop does and how he acts is how other 4 year old boys act as well.  

After class we walked for a while instead of getting right on the bus. We walked through the Paddington area where we found some neat shops and a great grocery store where we picked up some sandwiches for lunch and some chocolate covered bananas- they were really banana-flavoured chewy candies. I have to say they were quite tasty and the boys liked them too.  The stray cats were out as well.  Coop petted one of them and was thrilled. He told me that cats meow to tell you how much they love you. 

We stopped for a while at the park before going home. Coop played in the dirt for a bit and Tucker chased the birds.  Coop had to pee while we were there so he went in the bushes (ah, one of the many joys of having a boy) and Tucker watched in amazement.  I snapped a picture of it because it made me smile. :) See below...

Music Class Pictures

Kids at Music

We had music class again this morning and it was a huge hit again. Cooper loves the drums and acting silly. Tucker just has to dance.  He basically spends the whole class smiling.  There is only one other child in the class that is Coop's age.  It is so nice to have him in the class with us to see that the things that Coop does and how he acts is how other 4 year old boys act as well.  

After class we walked for a while instead of getting right on the bus. We walked through the Paddington area where we found some neat shops and a great grocery store where we picked up some sandwiches for lunch and some chocolate covered bananas- they were really banana-flavoured chewy candies. I have to say they were quite tasty and the boys liked them too.  The stray cats were out as well.  Coop petted one of them and was thrilled. He told me that cats meow to tell you how much they love you. 

We stopped for a while at the park before going home. Coop played in the dirt for a bit and Tucker chased the birds.  Coop had to pee while we were there so he went in the bushes (ah, one of the many joys of having a boy) and Tucker watched in amazement.  I snapped a picture of it because it made me smile. :) See below...

Music Class Pictures

Help, My Blogging Skills Are Fading....

My blogging skills seem to be on hiatus.  I cannot seem to come up with witty ways to make our experiences as of late interesting at all.  Maybe we haven't been doing enough or maybe it is just because some of the glamour is gone and we are now just living life.  Hmmm.

I finally got my Deep Dish pizza to work.  I decided to nix the oil and replace it with-- da-da-da-da-- butter!  What isn't great with a 1/4 of melted butter in it, on it and on the pan?  The crust turned out perfectly and the toppings were quite good as well. If only I had some good Italian sausage or real pepperoni.  Can't seem to find the good stuff here. The best part was that neither of the boys wanted to eat it so more for me!! I even made a second one and put it in the freezer for later on.  I put a picture below, but I was so excited to try it that I ate two pieces before remembering to take a picture....

Not sure if I mentioned this in my blog or just on FB, but Manzie had taken to sleeping (probably more like hiding) in Doug's unpacked suitcase from his last trip to Singapore. Well, he headed back to Singapore on Sunday and took her beloved suitcase with him.  So, what is a Pug to do? Find the next best thing of course- the laundry basket!  It amazes me how a dog with only 80% of her vision and bad hips can still manage to climb into a laundry basket. 

Coop had another swim lesson this week. He loves it so much. He told me it was "Boom-tastic!"  Not really sure what that means, but I am taking it as something good.  He is improving so much each week.  While walking home, he said to me, "Mom, guess what I learned in swimming today?" I, of course, thought he was going to tell me about a new skill he learned, but no, this is Cooper, I should have expected what was coming.  He said, "I learned how to burp underwater so no one can hear me."  I guess this is what the future holds for me raising two boys.  Lovely.

Coop and I did an art project we found on Pinterest (Thank you, Karen).  Pinterest you ask?  Pinterest is an addictive website (Again, thank you Karen because I need more things to suck my time) where you can "pin" all your favourite  (damn that Aussie spelling) things you find on the web in one place and THEN, you get to organise (apparently I now have to spell organize with an "s" or my computer gets mad) them and share them with others. You also get to see what others have pinned and can re-pin what they pinned. Got it?  It is so fun especially for people who are shall we say "hyper-organised" like myself. Anyway, back to the art project. Isn't this cute?

Got my haircut today. Opted for the $39 haircut at Just Cuts instead of the $95 cut everywhere else (Rhonda, how I long for your haircutting skills...). The lady who cut my hair is here from Ireland. It was fun chatting with another "outsider." It was actually just nice to sit and not have to be responsible for anyone but myself. 

Last week I spent over an hour at the Apple Store's Genius Bar getting my hard drive replaced and hoping super, super hard that my photos and music could be salvaged. Well, they were. Not only were they saved, but they were all saved over and over and over again.  Each iTunes song was saved twice.  Not too difficult to deal with.  All my photos in iPhoto were saved 4-5  times.  That is difficult to deal with.  So, I went back to the Apple Store and met with another Genius (these people really are super smart) and spent another hour plus trying to rid my computer of all the duplicates.  Success was had with the iTunes. I am currently running an application to "annihilate" all my duplicated photos. Let's see-- began with 58,088 photos (remember multiple duplicates not obsessive mom who takes way too  many pictures of her udderly adorable and intelligent children and dogs), the programs has 52,566 images to go and has found 2,685 duplicates.  I have been running the program since noon today (now almost 9 pm). Gonna be a long, long night for my computer....

Help, My Blogging Skills Are Fading....

My blogging skills seem to be on hiatus.  I cannot seem to come up with witty ways to make our experiences as of late interesting at all.  Maybe we haven't been doing enough or maybe it is just because some of the glamour is gone and we are now just living life.  Hmmm.

I finally got my Deep Dish pizza to work.  I decided to nix the oil and replace it with-- da-da-da-da-- butter!  What isn't great with a 1/4 of melted butter in it, on it and on the pan?  The crust turned out perfectly and the toppings were quite good as well. If only I had some good Italian sausage or real pepperoni.  Can't seem to find the good stuff here. The best part was that neither of the boys wanted to eat it so more for me!! I even made a second one and put it in the freezer for later on.  I put a picture below, but I was so excited to try it that I ate two pieces before remembering to take a picture....

Not sure if I mentioned this in my blog or just on FB, but Manzie had taken to sleeping (probably more like hiding) in Doug's unpacked suitcase from his last trip to Singapore. Well, he headed back to Singapore on Sunday and took her beloved suitcase with him.  So, what is a Pug to do? Find the next best thing of course- the laundry basket!  It amazes me how a dog with only 80% of her vision and bad hips can still manage to climb into a laundry basket. 

Coop had another swim lesson this week. He loves it so much. He told me it was "Boom-tastic!"  Not really sure what that means, but I am taking it as something good.  He is improving so much each week.  While walking home, he said to me, "Mom, guess what I learned in swimming today?" I, of course, thought he was going to tell me about a new skill he learned, but no, this is Cooper, I should have expected what was coming.  He said, "I learned how to burp underwater so no one can hear me."  I guess this is what the future holds for me raising two boys.  Lovely.

Coop and I did an art project we found on Pinterest (Thank you, Karen).  Pinterest you ask?  Pinterest is an addictive website (Again, thank you Karen because I need more things to suck my time) where you can "pin" all your favourite  (damn that Aussie spelling) things you find on the web in one place and THEN, you get to organise (apparently I now have to spell organize with an "s" or my computer gets mad) them and share them with others. You also get to see what others have pinned and can re-pin what they pinned. Got it?  It is so fun especially for people who are shall we say "hyper-organised" like myself. Anyway, back to the art project. Isn't this cute?

Got my haircut today. Opted for the $39 haircut at Just Cuts instead of the $95 cut everywhere else (Rhonda, how I long for your haircutting skills...). The lady who cut my hair is here from Ireland. It was fun chatting with another "outsider." It was actually just nice to sit and not have to be responsible for anyone but myself. 

Last week I spent over an hour at the Apple Store's Genius Bar getting my hard drive replaced and hoping super, super hard that my photos and music could be salvaged. Well, they were. Not only were they saved, but they were all saved over and over and over again.  Each iTunes song was saved twice.  Not too difficult to deal with.  All my photos in iPhoto were saved 4-5  times.  That is difficult to deal with.  So, I went back to the Apple Store and met with another Genius (these people really are super smart) and spent another hour plus trying to rid my computer of all the duplicates.  Success was had with the iTunes. I am currently running an application to "annihilate" all my duplicated photos. Let's see-- began with 58,088 photos (remember multiple duplicates not obsessive mom who takes way too  many pictures of her udderly adorable and intelligent children and dogs), the programs has 52,566 images to go and has found 2,685 duplicates.  I have been running the program since noon today (now almost 9 pm). Gonna be a long, long night for my computer....

Did you know that every bird that is sitting down in Australia is laying an egg?  It is an amazing and not widely known fact.... Coop cracks me up sometimes. A lot of the time actually.

We have concierges in our building and we have gotten to know each one of them and their personalities. Some are GREAT with the kids others, not so much. Our favourite (here we go with the Australian spelling again) is definitely Darren. He is about 25 with short, dark hair that is spiked a bit on top (this is important momentarily). He is the morning guy and he always greets the kids by name and he humours Cooper with all of his questions and ideas.  We brought him some homemade cookies the other day and he did the whole get super excited for the kids thing. So the other night, Coop got out of the bath and looked in the mirror at his new haircut. His hair was a bit spiked on top and he said, "I look just like Darren!"  Too cute.

Speaking of the building we are living in-- a scary thing happened yesterday. Tuck and I were out on a walk and came back to see the building cordoned off with police tape and tons of police cars and ambulances parked in front.  It turns out someone jumped from one of the windows. I do not know any details, it was very freaky and sad. Really do not want to know any more than that....

On a lighter note, I am making some Chicago style deep dish pizza tonight (thanks for the recipe Karen). I hope, hope it tastes good. I am still trying to find the right ingredients and make the right conversions when cooking.  So far Coop has told me dinner smells like candles and something yucky and something yummy. I am going for the yummy idea.

Tucker is mending slowly. The green elevens are still there and he is still cranky (yes Tucker is cranky), but I think he is getting better. If not, we will head back to the doctor and reassess the situation.

Pizza update- I did not have the right pan so the crust was WAY too thick and did not have much flavor and I did not like the sauce, but the recipe has potential. I am thinking about putting butter in the dough instead of oil- any thoughts?

Doug is off to Singapore again for two weeks so we are going at it alone again, but this time I found a great sitter to help out.  We met her last week and the boys already love her.  I am so happy!

This is kind of a lame blog entry so I am going to end it here. Hopefully tomorrow will bring some excitement for you all to read about.  :)