Crazy Tasty New Things.

I like trying new things. I like to think of it as a perk of being an overly curious person.
As a result, I found myself grabbing a tub of gaytime icecream during my woolies shop this morning. Then I saw banana m&m's - WHAT?! Of course I grabbed a packet of those too. And then I made the mistake of walking down the junk food aisle. So I grabbed the orange mars bar to try as well. For science, I told myself. *snort*

Obviously, I grabbed the more healthier items I needed as well, but the Woolworths lady who served me thought it appropriate to assume that because a decent portion of my items were chocolate, I must have PMS. Holy moly, when she made that comment I nearly raged. Possibly because I do have PMS, but mostly because that wasn't the reason for my purchasing the aforementioned chocolate items. I don't often crave chocolate when I have PMS; I'm more of a pineapple and strawberry addict.

Anyway, I digress. Something I'm good at, apparently.
Here lies my review of the fancy new products I bought to try.

Mars Bar brownie
Okay, so mars bars rock - no doubt about it. But this? This did not. It was like a chocolate overload, to the point where I has to eat some rye bread in the hope it would prevent me from throwing up. In a bittersweet move, it worked and so the cursed mars bar is still in my digestive system. Yay.
TONE DOWN THE SUGAR CONTENT, MARS.

Banana m&m's
I'm more of a crispy m&m lover, so off the bat, my review of these is going to be a little bias, but here we go.

Okay, these aren't bad! You definitely couldn't eat too many at once as they're a little on the 'too sweet' side, but they're tasty! I think they'd be okay as an accessory to popcorn. The saltiness might dilute the sweetness a little. Then they'd be yummy. So yummy.

Peters Golden Gaytime icecream
I'm a tad fussy with my icecream, so this will be interesting. I enjoy a Golden Gaytime on occasion, but they're definitely not my favourite icecream. Give me Weiss sorbet any day. 

On first look, the icecream looks ..meh. I cannot think of a better fitting adjective; apologies. Taste wise, it's not bad. It has that distinctive golden gaytime flavour, albeit a little mild. The biscuit pieces remind me of the stale biscuits that get forgotten about. They're okay, but I wouldn't get upset if they went missing. Overall, this icecream is okay. I wouldn't write home about it, nor would I buy it again. But it will be a welcome treat for Spawn, who doesn't get 'naughty food' very often! 

In conclusion, to loosely quote a certain badass (looking at you, Green Arrow), these companies have failed my taste buds. I'll stick with what I know, for now.

Peace out.

- L. x

Baked Beans

Beans, beans, the musical fruit
The more you eat, the more you toot.
The more you toot, the better you feel
So have baked beans for every meal!

Ahh, hello youth. We meet again.
So I don't actually like baked beans - something about the texture grosses me out, I think. (I only say this because they're similar to peas and I LOATHE peas!) However, Spawn loves them. Probably because they're gas inducing and well, he's a boy. He lives to toot. Charming little turd he is.

This recipe is not my own, but I have tweaked it a little to suit our tastes. I was hoping that if I tweaked the recipe a little, I might just like these beans! And what do you know, I DO like these beans. I do, I do, I do!
This tells me it may not be the texture after all. Or maybe it's just the texture of tinned baked beans. These beans are different, I think. I'm not entirely sure, but I'm not committed enough to confirm my thoughts either way.

INGREDIENTS:
4 cans cannellini beans
1 can crushed tomatoes
1 can tomato soup (Big Red is best, duh)
1 onion, diced finely
8 pieces shortcut bacon, diced
1 clove garlic, crushed
2 tbspn Worcestershire sauce
Approx 1 tspn Frank's hot sauce (or 8 drops tabasco sauce)

METHOD:
Rinse the beans then put all ingredients in slow cooker and cook on low for roughly four hours, stirring occasionally.

I intend on freezing a couple of servings of these for Spawn to eat on lazy days, and suspect they'd freeze okay for up to 1 month.

Enjoy!

- L. x

Dear Inventor of the Electric Blanket.

There are many times throughout winter where I send a silent praise to you, however this year, I'm sending thanks to you directly. Or possibly your family, depending on when the electric blanket was invented.

Actually, I feel I need to research this topic further before continuing. I also need to close my eyes and enjoy the warmth this glorious blanket is encasing me in on this cold, winter night.

So, the first electric blanket was invented in 1912 by American, Sidney I. Russell. Typically, an 'electric blanket' by American standards is a blanket that goes on top of your top sheet, but the blanket invented by Mr Russell was the 'electric blanket' us Australians (and other Commonwealth countries) know. Aka, the type that goes under the fitted sheet and warms from below.

Mmm, warmth.
Whilst I started writing this in the warm depths of electric blanket bliss, I am currently coming to you from my not-so cosy couch, waiting do Spawn to stop sooking and get ready for his shower. (Because who can be bothered arguing? I'm over it today!)

I digressed, majorly.
To the family of Mr Sidney Russell; thank you. Thank you for having an amazing father/grandfather/great-grandfather/uncle/etc. Thank you to Mr Russell's parents (may they RIP) for raising a man who would come to bring joy to SO MANY PEOPLE. Such a simple joy, but joy nonetheless.

Peace out, fellow toasty crazies.

- L. x

Holy God in Heaven. [Churro Popcorn]

Get in my mouth.

I did a thing. I was googling random snack ideas yesterday and ended up on the topic of popcorn. Spawn LOVES popcorn. I'd almost say his obsession is borderline unhealthy, but he's not quite that bad, and he does enjoy it straight out of the popcorn popper thing.
Maker.
Popcorn maker.

Wait, where was I?

Right, popcorn. School snacks.
Anyway, Americans are crazy and do the weirdest things to the simplest of foods. Some are too bizarre for my lowly Australian self to comprehend, whilst others leave me with an, 'OMIGODINEEDTHATINMYMOUTHBEFOREIDIE!' face. I love that face.

Who loves churros? Who loves popcorn? Who loves cinnamony goodness? Who loves the idea of combining this into one orgasmic snack?!
Thought so. Me too, my friend. Me too.

So here we go. Churro popcorn!
This will be a little more complex for us Aussies as opposed to the lucky Americans, as we have to make our own cinnamon chips. But it's okay; they keep for ages and you'll inevitably use them in everything anyway.
Muahahahaha.

Cinnamon Chips!
INGREDIENTS:
2/3 cup sugar
3 tbspn ground cinnamon
2 tbspn vegetable shortening (could possibly use copha; not sure??)
2 tbspn light corn syrup
1/4 tspn vanilla extract - optional

METHOD:
Preheat oven to 95c. Line baking trap with baking paper and spray liberally with oil.
In a medium sized bowl, combine all ingredients until they have come together and are crumbly.
Spread onto baking paper using a spatula, shaping into a rough rectangular shape, about 5 mm thick.
Put in oven for 35 minutes, or until it is bubbly. You do not want it to crisp in the oven, it will do so when it cools.
Allow to cool completely and then chop into small square chips.
Store in an airtight container.

Well, there's one part done. Now for the fun part! POPCORRRRN!

Churro Popcorn.
INGREDIENTS:
6 cups popped popcorn
1/2 cup cinnamon chips, melted
2 tbspn caster sugar
2 tbspn sugar
1 tspn cinnamon

METHOD:
In a small bowl, combine powdered sugar, sugar, and cinnamon.
In a large bowl, drizzle the melted cinnamon chips over the popcorn. Toss to coat and then immediately sprinkle sugar mixture over popcorn. Toss again to coat.
Allow the popcorn cool completely before serving. Store in an airtight container.

I got this recipe from here.
http://www.melissas-cuisine.com/2012/04/churro-popcorn.html?m=1

Enjoy, fellow crazies! I know I have.

- L. x

Have You Ever?

Ever felt like this?
Have strange things happened?
Are you going round the twist?

Hahahaha. I didn't mean to go there, but sometimes it just happens when I think 'have you ever'. 90s Aussie kid life, I suppose.

So anyway, I've imposed a Facebook ban on myself. Today is day one so it hasn't really been too difficult, as yet. Feels weird to not see the pretty blue app on my phone's homescreen though. Nor to constantly receive Facebook notifications. I like it!

I'm hoping to reacquaint myself with the real world. Not that I'm not a part of it WITH Facebook; I just find myself checking Facebook on my phone when I could be embracing the sunshine at the park, or talking to mums whilst I wait to pick Spawn up from school. The little things. I miss those. I often wonder what life will be like for Spawn in the future; the way technology is going at the moment makes me wonder if everyone will live dormant in little pods, a la Matrix style. Sad thoughts, sad thoughts indeed.

So I'm going to show Spawn that I don't need my phone permanently attached to my hand. I don't want him growing up wondering if I somehow have the phone attached to my anatomy. I REFUSE TO BE THAT MUM.

Here I am. Hahahah. It's starting to get hard. For those of you who don't know, I have a couple of really awesome support groups on Facebook. Groups that help me maintain sanity when I feel all is lost in this world. Groups that make me realise I'm not alone when I wonder how I'm going to continue raising Spawn for the next 12+ years. Lord help me, that IS a scary thought. Spawn will be 18 in 12 years!!! YIKES!

I haven't lost my sanity yet. Sundays are a chill day here, so Spawn and I have been chilling. I'm just on here looking for recipes for school lunch snacks so we can spend the afternoon in the kitchen. Well, I will. Spawn will come and go as he pleases, in true male fashion. ;)

Peace out.

- L. x