#that the alcohol burns and caramelises the sugar

[candy-floss-crazy]

How Is Candy Floss Made

Have you ever wondered just how candy floss is made. That fluffy sweet treat, also known as cotton candy, papa's beard, fairy floss, suikerspin depending on where in the world you grew up. One of the world's favourite treats, there is even a national candy floss day. Bride With Candy Floss The Scientific Explanation Candy floss is almost, but not quite, 100% sugar. There is a minute amount of colouring and flavourings, and if you go for our alcoholic range there is actual vodka, tequila and such like, but its mainly sugar. Now a typical candy floss machine, has a cylindrical drum, with space in the centre to pour this sugar mixture into. This drum performs two important functions. It rotates at high speed, forcing the sugar outwards against a wire mesh. Secondly, this wire mesh heats up to 186 degrees centigrade. This just happens to be the melting point of sugar. Candy Floss Head At this temperature, the heat breaks the bonds of the sugar molecules Causing the hydrogen and oxygen atoms to rearrange and form water molecules. The water evaporates leaving carbon behind, which begins to burn and caramelises the sugar. As the drum is still rotating at high speed, this liquid is flung outwards at high speed. It solidifies as it streams out, but it happens so quickly and the strands are only 50 microns thick that you only really see it as it hits the inside of the bowl. This is collected by the operator using a stick, or as they often do in the states a paper cones. The result is the classic fluffy candy floss we all know and love. Making Candy Floss The Real Way Fairy Floss Is Made Of course you try telling this explanation to an average excited kid and just watch their eyes glaze over. So just for them we have a real explanation. Inside the bottom of our candy floss machines, live a band of Irish Faerie Folk, the Sidhe. These happy little folk sit there merrily knitting away to turn the mixture from sugar into fairy floss. Once they have knitted it they push it out through the little holes in the centre drum. Whereupon it is collected by the operator. Check Out Our FAQ's for more info on candy floss. Read the full article

[icryyoumercy]

I saw that anon ask about pancakes and I would actually be really interested in hearing how you make pancakes sufficiently interesting without getting fed up with them- the most adventurous I've ever managed to get is adding blueberries and occasionally substituting applesauce for an egg.

oooooh, pancakes are such a handy food to add stuff to!

basically, if you can cut it into small pieces, you can add it to pancakes

i'm a big fan of cheese, bacon, and/or onion-type vegetables. bell peppers are good, too, or mushrooms. or if you fancy, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, or any sort of nuts are nice, too

just put a bit of oil in a pan, add whatever non-pancake additives you want, sauté a bit, and then pour batter over it until everything is connected to the pancake. the resulting pancakes will break/tear apart far more easily and flipping them can get adventurous, so they won't look as pretty, but they're perfectly tasty

if you prefer them sweet, sliced bananas and grated apples are good additives, as well as most berries (cranberries and red currants may require additional sugar), and presumably any other fruit that goes acceptably well with milk (i don't think any sort of citrus fruit or pineapples would be very tasty, but who knows). if you can be bothered to slice the fruit, same approach of sauté and then pour batter on top works, if you don't want pieces but flavour (or the fruit is unsuitable for slicing like most berries), mix them directly into the batter

and if none of that appeals, once the pancakes are done, you can put so many things on top of them. jam is sometimes neat, as long as you have some with relatively little added sugar, otherwise it gets too sticky-sweet. applesauce is neat, too, as applesauce always is. any sort of fruit compote, though personally, i'm particular to cherry or apricot. sugar and lemon juice, if you want something a bit more simple. cream cheese or creme fraiche with either sugar or some sort of barbecue/grill spice is very tasty, too. basically, if the pancakes are already done, you can treat them like a rather strange slice of bread and just pile things on top of them that appeal. i'd advise against using butter for non-floofy types of pancakes or if you eat them cold, but that's a matter of taste

and the best thing is, you can just raid your kitchen for stuff that seems fun to add to pancakes, and then make a ton of tiny experimental pancakes to see what does and doesn't work, and then you get to eat so many different things that are still the same, so you get all the joy of discovering new foods while still having a back-up plan in case the new food doesn't appeal

[tiffanyachings]

a wholly unnecessary list of poldark characters as gbbo contestants

ross - can't bake to save his life but tries to make up for it by putting alcohol into every single dough. nobody knows how he got on the show in the first place. his attempt to caramelise sugar almost sets the tent on fire and he's kicked out in week 1.

demelza - that contestant you always knew was gonna win, but you’re still happy for her when she does. always talks about how she's made those special teacakes for her family before. panics easily just to be named starbaker yet again. will bring cornwall into everything.

elizabeth - prepared af in a way that really makes you wanna get your life together. always going for a classy, elegant style with her bakes. possibly the only baker to not struggle with time management. constantly talking about her kids who feature in every single of those quirky background videos.

george - has just about zero baking experience and only makes it to week two because he didn't set a tent on fire. okay at following a recipe, but absolutely hopeless when it comes to technicals. rumor has it he only got on the show to do business deals with the judges behind the scenes.

dwight - an average baker, really average, but you know he's a dashing junior doctor who talks a lot about how his mum inspired him to bake and abandons his pastry to take care of agatha when she burns her hand on the oven, so you're rooting for him anyway.

caroline - shamelessly fires out one innuendo after the other. the only baker who knows what a marjolaine is, she just can't bake it. great flavour combinations, not very good at anything else, but you still want her to make it through just to see what she's gonna do with her hair next time.

francis - has years of experience from stress baking. constantly on the brink of having a meltdown, but accepts his fate with so much sarcasm he actually ends up being that #relatable twitter darling and you're super sad to see him go. all of his recipes call for a suspiciously high amount of alcohol.

verity - talks a lot about ancient family recipes and seems to have made everything about 200 times before. solid bakes, but could get more creative. always complimenting and helping other bakers and its probably half talent, half karma that gets her into the top five.

aunt agatha - The Old Lady (tm). tells great stories, but you're never entirely sure she's not making them up. totally took george's alaska out of the fridge on purpose. may have threatened someone with an electric mixer off-camera.

morwenna - just qualified as a school teacher and distributes all of the test bakes she makes prior to the show in her class, much to the delight of her pupils. REALLY into flower-themed show-stoppers. even paul hollywood can’t bring himself to be mean to her.

drake - that one contestant that made you look up the age restrictions for gbbo when he first appeared. cannot sit still, under no circumstances, and is constantly caught staring through the oven door or prodding his bakes to check if they’re ready yet (they never are). you know he's doing his best though.

sam - started baking for a christian charity that supports kids on the council estate he grew up in and now uses homebaked sunflower seed loaves for the eucharist. unexpectedly wins starbaker in bread week. he doesn't talk much, but his serenity while everyone is panicking is inspiring.

[whiskyaway]

Aberlour A’bunadh (Batch 66) Single Malt Scotch Whisky

 A Sherry-matured Whisky at Cask Strength for Great Value

The very first time I tasted an A’bunadh, my taste buds hadn’t gotten over the proverbial “wall” needed to enjoy high ABV drinks. Vaguely, I knew that it was good despite being painfully alcohol forward. I hadn’t expected the sheer immensity of a cask strength Aberlour. This bottle brought with it an intriguing blend of less than 10 year old to greater than 15 year old whiskies matured in oak sherry Oloroso butts. It’s only been this year –after having tasted more than a dozen other whiskies –that I’m able to fully appreciate why this is popular with everyone.

The A’bunadh (Batch 66) is the promise of effervescent laughter at the dinner table, the enjoyable apprehension before opening gifts, the fleeting and precious warmth of companionship and love when surrounded by friends or family you’d have to part with after the holidays. 

On the nose, it reminds me of fruit cake sliced on a large, wooden table –the hard wood polished by dozens of hands from many generations –laden with black cherries and ripe apples. Intense vanilla and honey waft from a newly opened oven, a warm sponge cake joining the feast. 

Kris recognises the quick pleasures of newly burnt creme brulee –cream and caramelised sugar. On the taste, the revelry continues, louder this time with a shout of varnish –strong alcohol giving way to even more cake and vanilla as water softens the blow. It reveals the warming tableau of revelers sitting back after a sumptuous meal, keen on conversation and dessert. 

When taken neat, the sugar sharpens and the burn is peppery toffee, lengthening to a medium-long, woody finish. Later, this oak-wide flavour tapers to the dry sweetness of grapes and then the bitterness of fresh grass.This is a favourite for many reasons. The Aberlour 12YO was the first whisky I ever liked and this is the cask strength expression of the intense magic which goes into the 12YO. It’s an exceptional drink to be enjoyed as a dessert whisky while loved ones open gifts to the background of pealing, infectious laughter. Just like friendships that last for years, it opens and deepens the longer it breathes in the bottle and in the glass. 

I give the A’bunadh a happy 8 out of 10. It’s been described as Christmas in a bottle and Batch 66 is a splendid whisky to open for similar, special occasions.

[sinthubakes]

Merry Christmas! Orange, Cranberry & White Chocolate Cake

Merry Christmas! Hope you are all enjoying the festivities with friends and family.

This cake is quite appropriately themed for the occasion; who doesn’t like cosying up to a fireplace (or, in my case, a radiator) during the cold winter months. It is also a good opportunity to go overboard with decorating.

While I kept mine quite simple (not that I was super tired and fed up or anything), you can really do a lot with this cake.

You could make miniature fondant Christmas cards, a candelabra, tinsel and other garlands all to adorn your cake fireplace.

The flavours are also quite Christmassy! The cake itself is orange with cranberries tossed into the mixture. It is then sandwiched with what I can only describe as the best buttercream I have ever tasted; white chocolate ganache is combined with a regular buttercream to make an incredibly fluffy and smooth frosting.

To be honest, even if you can’t be bothered to make this cake, just make a batch of this frosting and you’re set for a good night.

The fondant stones are also very beautiful. To make these, just marble some fondant with beige and black food colouring (or, really, any colour you desire) and get to rolling and moulding! While slightly tedious, it’s definitely worth it for the final appearance.

The gold cookie is also a nice touch to the fireplace. But, heads up, if you’re actually looking to eat the cookie, the alcohol taste from the rosewater extract is incredibly strong. The aesthetic is lovely but the taste is a bit vile.

To add, I made some peanut butter cookie dough and shaped it into presents. I then piped on a little bow on each and arranged them near the fireplace.

If you had a bigger serving board and enough willpower, you could even construct your own miniature cookie Christmas tree besides the fireplace to place these cute presents underneath.

With regards to that cookie dough recipe, it may end up being featured on this blog sometime in the future. I am considering doing ‘Veganuary’ so may spring up some tasty vegan recipes in the next year.

I have always wanted to turn vegan eventually so thought this would be a good opportunity to try it out. There are definitely some delicious vegan recipes out there I need to try.

There’ll probably be about 1 or 2 more recipe posts before I return back to university and until my inactivity most likely resumes, unfortunately.

But for now, let’s not think about work. It’s the holidays! And that calls for food.

Specifically, cake. Lots of it. Slice upon slice.

Yum.

Yield: 1 square 9 inch cake

Ingredients:

For the cake:

100ml oil

100g butter/margarine

300g caster sugar

5 eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

Zest of 2 large oranges and the juice of 1

150g cranberries, tossed in 1 tbsp of flour

310g self-raising flour

For the ganache buttercream:

300g white chocolate

300ml double cream

250g butter/margarine

300g icing sugar

You will also need:

Your favourite sugar or any cut-out cookie made around 9 inches long and 3.5 inches wide (small-batch)

Fondant plus black and beige food colouring

Gold lustre + alcohol (I use rosewater extract)

Cocoa powder

Sugar for the fire, roughly 100g

Method:

Cake:

Preheat the oven to 350°F/177°C and grease and line a 9 inch square cake tin.

In the bowl of a stand-mixer with a paddle attachment, cream together the oil, butter or margarine and sugar until fluffy.

Next, beat in the eggs, one at a time, lemon zest and juice as well as the vanilla extract until fully combined.

After mixing, add in the flour and beat until no pockets of flour remain. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula and fold in the cranberries.

Pour the batter into the prepared square tin and bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour or until a cake tester comes out clean. You may need to cover the cake with some foil at some point during the hour to prevent it from browning too much on the top. Remove from the oven and leave to cool.

Buttercream:

In the bowl of a stand mixer with a whisk attachment, cream the butter/margarine and sugar until extremely light in colour and fluffy (5 or so minutes on high). Make sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl.

Break the white chocolate into a separate bowl and pour in the cream. Heat the mix in 30 second intervals for 2 minutes in the microwave, stirring in between. Once heated, set aside for 5 minutes and then stir until homogeneous. Leave to cool.

Once the ganache is cool, transfer it all into the buttercream and whisk the mixture on high for a further 5 minutes until combined. The buttercream will be very smooth so you may want to chill it until it sets up firmer.

Assembly:

Level the cake, if necessary, though it should not dome too much. Cut about 1.5 inches off the square so you have a more rectangular looking cake (it can be trimmed down more later on). Next, using a sharp knife, carve a smaller rectangle from the top of the cake about ½ a cm deep, leaving about 4cm either side of the rectangle. Trim the cake smaller so that it measures about 12 by 8 cm.

Slice the cake horizontally into 4 equal rectangles so that you essentially have 4 layers to stack. Affix the first base layer on its side onto the cake board with buttercream and continue to stack these layers up so that the cake is now standing up.

Use some buttercream to apply a thin crumb coat across the cake and chill for 30 minutes.

Once chilled, use an off-set spatula to apply a thicker cut of buttercream to the cake. It only needs to be fairly smooth as the fondant stones will cover the front of the cake. The inner rectangle does not need to be iced. Chill again.

Meanwhile, take about 300g of fondant and add both beige and black food colouring to it. Begin to knead the fondant just enough so that the colour marbles throughout the fondant. Make sure to leave some white spaces of fondant and some areas with more colour. Take small pieces of fondant and roll them into balls. Then, flatten them out and shape them into your desired shape. Repeat this until you have slightly more than you need to cover the front and sides of your cake.

Remove the cake and apply the fondant stones to the front and sides of the cake. Chill once more while you prepare the remaining decorations.

Take your baked cookie and trim it so that its size is perfect for your cake. My cookie only slightly hung over the sides of my cake. Mix some of the gold lustre with rosewater extract and paint the cookie you baked all over (except for the underneath) and leave to dry.

Take some of the remaining buttercream and mix in 4 or so tablespoons of cocoa powder. Transfer this into a piping bag with a leaf piping tip (or any that pipes a rectangular shape) and pipe rows of buttercream to cover the area of the small cut out rectangle (you can spread the sides with the buttercream instead). Return the cake to chilling while you make the sugar shards.

In a saucepan over medium heat, begin to heat about 100g of sugar (the exact amount doesn’t matter, you only need a small amount) and heat until it caramelises and turns a deep red-brown colour (i.e. beginning to burn around the sides). Pour this out onto parchment or foil and leave to harden before breaking into shards.

Dye some fondant black and use it to make small pieces of coal. Arrange these at the base of the fireplace (at the bottom of the smaller rectangle).

Finally, place the sugar cake on top of the cake and add as many decorations as you desire! I kept mine simple with a small holly and piped “Merry Xmas x” on top and some cookie dough presents at the side of the fireplace.

[beaumontwrites]

Aftermath, Chapter One.

patreon supported.

Fruit had become strangely bitter in the aftermath. The ashes had stained into the flesh of the apples that grew in great groves across the Illawarra, and the sulphur in the air permeated the winds across the entire state.

The scent of baking damper slowly overpowered that smell, mingling with the scent of roasting apple - caramelising butter and cane-sugar to sweeten it - and a herbal tea that steeped in a cast-iron pot.

The small camp-site on the edge of a small quickly desertifying town, in a small fenced in car-dealership lot. The rusted wrecks of the cars had already been stripped for useful parts. The heavily boarded up dealership was a safe-house for the Pathfinder patrols that crossed the suburbs. Forward scouts for the resistance against the living and the dead.

Sam leaned her head against her friend’s shoulder. Jess, too busy drinking to stop her. Patrol 36, eight unfortunate souls, sat around a campfire made from scavenge and dreams. It was mostly silent, until someone spoke, a long day had taken most of the joviality from them. A few ‘chem-lights’ - glow-sticks - lit the road beyond the dealership’s thick chain-link fence with bright yellow and orange lights. Nothing was out there yet. But it was probably due for some rain.

The newcomer, a young woman a few years Sam’s junior, sat across from her, hand still clutching their rifle as they drank the thick soldier’s beer. Two meals a day, three litres of water and two bottles of the thing the commissariat was generously calling beer.

Jess: “Got any smokes still on you?”

Sam pulled a tin-box from her breast pocket and took a peek. Still a few left.

Sam: “Three.”

Jess was her second-in-command, her last remaining friend from before the end. Nearly as fucked up as she was. Jess rummaged through their pockets.

Sam: “Here.” She offered a cigarette, “Don’t worry about that shit.”

Jess: “You sure?”

Sam: “Yeah, I gotta quit anyway.”

Jess took the cigarette, those things’ll kill ya. Herbal cigarettes, half the time they were padded with saw-dust because it burned but didn’t fuck up your lungs or the taste quite as much.

Jess lit up, then wrapped an arm around her shoulders and held her close. Dinner took a long time, and most of it was just spent in silence staring at the flickering flames. A few sips of soldier’s beer and a bite to eat, then it was time to sleep. Nights out on patrol became bitterly cold, so it was always welcome to have Jess to share them with. The entire Greater Sydney Basin had started to turn into a desert, ashen and grey. The small town where they made camp was too small to retain much heat and she could feel the ache in her bones as she laid in the back of their truck to rest.

Had it only been five years? She had lived in this town once, her school was just down the road from here. Everything that had happened in the aftermath; death, misery, suffering, darkness. Everything from before felt like a dream, another reality. The only thing that reminded her it was real once upon a time was Jess.

It had begun with a cough. A small outbreak of an unknown virus in the heart of Manhattan.  It was entirely innocuous, life went on as everyone simply struggled through another bad flu season. Then people started to die, it spread so quickly that the world was on-fire before anyone had any clue what had happened. It went from a sniffle to a pandemic in a month. Governments went into crisis, the world locked down, quarantined the sick.

Whatever it was presented itself, bleeding membranes and bruising on the more delicate skin of the body.

In a month one percent of the entire world’s population was dead. Nearly eighty million people. And that would have been survivable, if they had stayed dead. In two months, five percent of the population had died. Then they stopped keeping track. It was pointless to quarantine the sick, so they quarantined the healthy.

Every single healthy person they could fine boarded the long-train west. The sick but not yet dead were rounded up and told to die fighting. Ten percent, the population of the world that was resistant enough to the virus that they weren’t killed outright. Half of one percent, those who seemed physically immune. It wasn’t immunity, they were carriers, with no symptoms and no need to fear.

Sam and Jess were two of them, they were torn from their family. They all died in the war as Sam and Jess boarded the long train.

Day Zero, the last day of the war, when the dead had overcome the living. A broadcast echoed out across the world, the final radio signal to reach out and transmit what little the Australian Government knew about the virus. It had broadcast on all frequencies, it cut through all the static, it interrupted broadcasts and it said the same thing for a week.

It is airborne, it is airborne, it is airborne.

There was no escape, simply breathing the air was enough to infect you. And you could tell if you were going to die just by how the bruising spread across your body. If it was only isolated to the eyes and mouth, you had a good chance of surviving.

The government was gone, and rather than descending into anarchy, fear brought the remnants of society together. Those that filled the power vacuum had a few ideas about how the world had come to end. As a punishment for the sins of the living; the queers, colours and heathens. Hedonism and addiction, the old world had to be eaten to cleanse it for the righteous.

Fire-brands in the shell of the old Commonwealth, the entire world started to burn.

“By the fires of the grace of the Fallen God, we are cleansed of the impurities of the soul. Be they called as Jehovah, Allah, or by any other name, the Fallen God lights the path to our salvation.”

They took root in the quarantine camps, and immediately began their reign of ‘correction’ and ‘cleansing’.

“It is upon us to correct the sins of those who do not walk in the light of the Fallen God.”

Being a young girl trapped in the confines of a cell, surrounded by monsters, having them know you are with another girl. Seeing the pyres they light, hoping that is your fate over the alternative - yet knowing the real fate for you.

“You are too precious to burn.”

Death is a kindness.

“Through the grace of the Fallen God, we were made. And yet by our hubris we rebelled and slew them. With no guide to take our souls to eternal paradise, instead we shall return to consume our own flesh and drink our own blood until the final body is devoured and nothing remains but the purgatory.”

Sam woke, she had missed her shift. A grumpy Ashley, one of her closer friends, had no issues taking over.

Ash: “Boss needed her sleep, she’s been running herself into the ground.”

Elizabeth: “What’s her deal anyway?”

Sam laid listening to them.

Elizabeth: “Why’s she hate them so much?”

Everyone here hated those pricks, that’s why they rebelled, why they fought two wars instead of one.

Ash: “It’s not my place to tell that story. But there are worse things you can do to someone than killing them.”

Sam got up, there was no point delaying it. It was nearly dawn, just the slightest hint of colour had made it into the sky. She approached the still burning fire and sat down. They noticed her, greeted her with a nod.

Elizabeth: “It’s not really the best I’ve ever made, but...”

Elizabeth was making something from the left over bread and apple. Tea was reboiling.

Elizabeth: “Beats the alternative.”

They offered her the first slice, it was toast. Toast with some kind of crushed apple spread.

She took a bite, it was surprisingly good. Crushed apple paste, a hint of something she couldn’t put her finger on, maybe some butter in there, nice and brown with a bit of a char to the ashen bread.

Sam: “You’re good at this.”

Elizabeth smiled warmly: “Thanks, I taught myself how to cook. I didn’t have much else to trade.”

Ash: “What’d you get for that sort of thing?”

Trade was pretty simple, if you didn’t have a service to offer, you needed a good to barter. The Pathfinders were a good place to scavenge up some stuff, but the Free Colonies of Sydney that the Pathfinders were a part of also gave them rations and a few luxuries for doing their job. Luxuries were basically the only thing worth trading because there was always a shortage.

Elizabeth struck Sam as a pragmatist: “Coffee, smokes, condoms, grog.”

Sam: “So why give that up?”

Elizabeth: “Boredom.”

Ashley drank a morning beer and stoked the flames: “Gotta do something ‘til you die.”

Ashley definitely was a pragmatist, the kind of girl that traded all her smokes for condoms so she could spend some time earning some more smokes.

Sam: “Thanks for letting me sleep in.”

Ash: “No worries, mate,” Ashley took the slice of bread offered to them, “I figured I’d get Jess on my good-side for once.”

Ashley was one of those country-town girls that had been rounded up for the long-train ride. Wouldn’t know it by looking at her though. A grimy, scarred, messy kind of a girl that scrubbed up alright with a bit of steel wool and elbow grease. They were all like that though, Sam supposed. Ugly young women in tattered repurposed clothes designed for a different world, torn and gnawed and cut into a thousand pieces. The only real difference was her hair. Digging through ruins, killing undead, crawling through mud and dirt and marching through rain. Sam had been such a delicate girl in her youth, Jess was the tomboy.

Ash: “This is pretty good, you should do some cooking back at base.”

Sam agreed: “I’ve got nothing to offer, but I know people that’d give an arm and a leg for something decent to eat.”

Plus people hoarded up cigarettes and alcohol just because they liked to feel like they’ve got something to their name. They’d definitely part with a little of their stash for some proper food.

Ash: “If I weren’t on the hook to Jess for fags-uh, sorry.”

Ashley chagrined. Sam shrugged.

Ash: “I already give her smokes.”

Sam was curious, she’d never actually bothered to ask: “What does she trade you anyway?”

Ash: “Rubber.”

Sam traded them the same thing for their coffee...: “Wait, then how are you always complaining you need more?”

Ashley shrugged: “Sun’s up, I’ll go wake everyone.”

Ashley dashed off before any more questions could be raised. Elizabeth poured herself a cup of tea. Coffee had been in short supply for a while now, whatever the substitute was they’d been having trouble getting more.

Sam: “She’s gonna be pissed when she finds out I’m giving up smoking.”

Elizabeth laughed, Sam chuckled.

Elizabeth: “She can have mine if she wants, I’ve got no use for ‘em.”

Sam: “I’ve still got no clue where they get half this shit from. Logistics is fucking magic to me.”

Elizabeth nodded thoughtfully: “I guess it’s no less impressive than the dead coming back to life.”

Sam: “Guess not.”

Elizabeth: “I bet you’ve seen some shit. You’re a career soldier right?”

As far as occupations go, she was a philosopher. She’d never actually trained to be a soldier, she just refused to die easily.

Sam: “Yeah, guess so.”

Elizabeth: “You’re a black-shield, right?”

Sam nodded. The whole shield thing always kind of bothered her. It was a pseudo-rank thing the Free Colonies did and all it really meant was that you had logged a lot of time out in the field. Every three months you got a different colour, from White which was untrained, Green which was trained but under three months. All the way to Black, which was an entire twelve months spent in the field. Her actual military rank was captain. Ashley who was a red-shield, nine-months, was also a captain and Jess who was second-in-command was a lieutenant but also a black-shield. Elizabeth was a green-shield, and a private. In the end, it meant fuck all, it was just some revolutionary bullshit the high-command was pulling because they were worried about any associations at all with the Commonwealth. They had even considered renaming Sydney but never came up with a good name for it.

Elizabeth: “How many times have you been bitten?”

Sam: “Twelve, maybe as high as fifteen.”

The others started showing up for breakfast. Elizabeth passed around the food and the tea. The eight women of Patrol 36, much more cheery than last night, but all still looking like death.

Jess: “So, where to next Boss?”

They wrapped an arm around her, hugged her to their side as they ate.

Sam: “Well, I’m out of cigarettes, so I say we head back to base.”

She offered Jess her last cigarette. They were getting low on supplies anyway.

[morethanamillennial]

Ten Ways to Feel Like an Australian Local This Summer

Everyone thinks about the sun, love and the beach when it comes to summer. But what can Australia offer you in the summer months? Grab a pen and make notes, because here are ten of the best things to do during summer, Down Under!

Go Cliffside for A Few Kms

The coastal track from Coogee to Bondi is a picturesque pleasure. Not only will it the 6km track help you burn off the excessive beers, lattes & seafood, but it is packed with so much to do. There are plenty of rock pools, hidden beaches, parks & picnic stops to check out. Most of the walk is cliffside pathways. Finish off your walk with a true Aussie lunch, fish and chips on the beach, just don’t forget the tomato sauce!

Watch the Aus Open with The Locals

January in Melbourne is all about the Australian Open. Everyone gets involved and you can’t do anything without hearing about it. Tickets for the main courts can get very pricey very quickly. Live like a local and grab a ground pass. This pass allows you to visit all the outdoor courts.

We’ve been early on during the tournament and watched the likes of Andy Roddick, Lleyton Hewitt & Roger Federer playing. Your next move should be towards the lawns. You will find some beautiful gardens with a big screen set up. As the days progresses you will get the Aussies getting into the spirit. Before you know you will be cheering along with some new best mates.

Live the Life of Luxury

I bet you’ve heard that Australia is expensive. We have found that food is slightly pricier than the US but accommodation is where it will sting you! Most places you will be looking at least $50 a night in an Airbnb. That why you should try house sitting! It allows you to care for animals (some of the time) and stay in some absolutely beautiful locations. Everything from apartments overlooking Bondi beach to penthouses in the Gold Coast.

It may seem like an outrageous idea, however, the demand for this is hot! To get started you need to find the sits, head over to the best house sitting sites so you can make an informed decision

Grab a Beer and Head for Barefoot Bowls

You may have heard that Australians love their sport. This one isn’t physically demanding it more of a get together for a laugh and a beer. Bowls clubs were originally just reserved for the senior citizens however in recent years barefoot bowls has become the summer activity of choice.

You will find that most bowls clubs will have designated times that you and some friends just drop by for some barefoot bowls. You just slip off your shoes, grab a drink (at prices from the 1970s) and try to not let the alcohol affect your game.

It's Time To Sip The Best Coffee In Australia

Melbourne is world famous for their coffee culture. The lifeblood of  Melburnians is coffee and the roots to it run deep. To give you an idea, what Bordeaux is to wine, is Melbourne to coffee. They take it as seriously as there sport. Melbourne has an extensive population of Greeks and Italian, this is thought to have contributed to outstanding coffee.  If you want to sip coffee with the locals head to Flinders Lane in the city center or Lygon St in Carlton.

Host Your First Barbie Right

For your first Aussie BBQ  you need to head to the supermarket and grab some snags (sausages). You will find that snags & steak  are two of the most essential parts to an Aussie barbie as well as getting an authentic taste so much sure you use one of the best gas smokers!

When your grabbing the  snags make sure you’ve get bread, tomato sauce, and onions ready to go with them.  You will find that BBQ'd onions are also an integral part of the barbie. All you need to do is thinly slice a few onions, throw them on the barbie with some oil and sugar (only a tablespoon or so) and caramelise.

When your invited to an Aussie BBQ make sure you bring a salad. A red hot fav at all Aussie barbies,would be the Asian crunchy salad, everyone will have a story of how there mums used to make this classic.

See Sydneysiders Commute to Work (You Will Be Jealous, We Promise)

When you're in Sydney you have to use the local transportation. It’s much quicker for some Sydneysiders to catch the ferry to work rather than use the roads. It’s a beautiful and cheap way to explore the harbor.

Jump on board the Manly Ferry from Circular Quay to the beautiful and harbor and beachside suburb of Manly. Its half-hour trip that takes you past Kirribilli House (home of the Australian Prime Minister), under the harbor bridge, the Sydney Opera House and the Manly Esplanade.

Once in Manly Head to The Watering Hole

A local waterhole (Aussie slang for the bar) is the Manly Wharf Bar. It will be hard to miss, on the weekends it will be packed full of locals also taking in the beautiful vistas. Warning, this may make you extremely irrational and want to move immediately or make you bitter towards those living in such a beautiful location.

Witness Wildflowers

Wildflowers are abundant in Australia and it’s almost unbelievable that something so beautiful could grow from its own volition without any help from man. Witness the beauty of the wildflowers that are unique to this wonderful country.

Most of Australia’s best wildflowers are found in Western Australia; which is what’s so remarkable about these little guys. Despite Western Australia being notorious for some of the harshest weather and climate in the whole of Australia, the wildflowers found in WA are strong enough to withstand the tough conditions - thus it perfectly displays the Aussie battler spirit.

While Australia’s wildflowers are the best during spring, they’re still going strong throughout summer. So quickly visit them before they disappear during the autumn and winter months!

DO.NOT.MISS The Great Barrier Reef

This might sound like a touristic activity however many Aussie heads to explore their own coastline. It has been said that the Great Barrier Reef may disappear by 2050, so you will find many Australians also trying to enjoy the reef well they can. We recommend taking a day trip from Cairns (as it the cheapest option) and snorkel among the varied, multi-colored wildlife that lives beneath the crystal water's surface.

Australia is a playground for those you love the great outdoors, from the beaches to the rainforest to having a picnic cliffside along the Coogee trail. Ditch the tour bus and find out what us locals get up to. It is the best way to really get amongst an Aussie Summer

Thumbnail image source

[miya-mori-blog]

Nobu’s caramelised miso black cod

Serves 4

Ingredients

1/4 cup sake

1/4 cup mirin

4 tablespoons white miso paste

3 tablespoons sugar

4 black cod fillets, about 250 g each

Method

Two to 3 days beforehand, make the miso marinade and marinate the fish. Bring the sake and mirin to a boil in a medium saucepan over high heat. Boil for 20 seconds to evaporate the alcohol. Turn the heat down to low, add the miso paste, and whisk. When the miso has dissolved completely, turn the heat up to high again and add the sugar, whisking constantly to ensure that the sugar doesn't burn on the bottom of the pan. Remove from heat once the sugar is fully dissolved. Cool to room temperature.

Pat the black cod fillets thoroughly dry with paper towels. Slather the fish with the miso marinade and place in a non- reactive dish or bowl and cover tightly with plastic wrap. Leave to marinate in the refrigerator for 2 to 3 days.

To cook the fish: Preheat oven to 400°F. Heat an oven-proof skillet over high heat on the stovetop. Lightly wipe off any excess miso clinging to the fillets, but don't rinse it off. Film the pan with a little oil, then place the fish skin-side-up on the pan and cook until the bottom of the fish browns and blackens in spots, about 3 minutes. Flip and continue cooking until the other side is browned, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer to the oven and bake for 5 to 10 minutes, until fish is opaque and flakes easily.

[zillowcondo]

The Top Things to Do for the New Year

Are you a fan of New Year resolutions? Do you find them easy to stick to? Here are some suggestions for little actions that could make a big difference to your life. These top things to do for the New Year should ensure that you make the most of the months ahead.

Make a Realistic New Year Resolutions List

It’s tricky changing old habits and sticking to new ones. If you simply write a list of negatives that you’re not allowed to do, such as eating sugar then you may be setting yourself up for failure. Instead, create a list of positives that you want to achieve such as drinking a glass of water 30 minutes before meal times. Try to make SMART goals – i.e. those that are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Timely. Tell a few close friends about your goals so that they can hold you accountable for them. Studies have shown that we’re far more likely to stick to a resolution when we’ve mentioned it to other people. It’s generally best to set one resolution only and to stick to that rather than a whole host of goals.

Focus on Healthy Eating

Are you getting your five a day – the minimum recommended intake of fruit and vegetables? It can be challenging to fit so many in but we have a few suggestions that may help. Rustle up healthy and delicious juice drinks to start the day right. Why not try a new fruit or vegetable every so often too. Jerusalem artichokes, Romanesco broccoli or dragonfruit are just a few examples.

If you find it hard to resist temptation when eating out, go to restaurants that only serve healthy food until you’ve achieved your ideal weight. For example, in London there’s Redemption which has branches in Notting Hill and Shoreditch. Billing themselves as the world’s healthiest restaurant, they serve sugar and wheat free vegan food and they’re also alcohol free. It’s pretty tasty and we particularly like their Buff Burger with shitake mushroom, black bean and ruby beet rather than meat in a gluten-free bun with lettuce, tomato and caramelised red onion marmalade. A jackfruit rendang coconut curry was another interesting option, and we finished with strawberry cheesecake and some Bliss Balls – a lovely blend of raw dark chocolate and medjool date truffles rolled in coconut. Their Shoreditch restaurant even has angel wings that you can pose in front of if you’re feeling virtuous after eating there!

Get Fighting Fit

It’s a popular time of year to join a gym but first ask yourself if that’s your favourite form of exercise. You’re more likely to stick to something that you really enjoy. Dance classes such as zumba are another good option for getting fit and they burn a lot of calories too. If you like being in the great outdoors then consider cycling, running or a bootcamp. Break your goal down into small, achievable steps for the best chance of success. For example, if you’ve always dreamed of running a marathon, start by alternating walking and running over short distances before working your way up to hill sprints to build up endurance. High intensity workouts are extremely effective – try our favourite plyometrics exercises if you want to see rapid improvement.

Apply the Pareto Principle

According to the Pareto Principle, 20% of your activities will give you 80% of your satisfaction. It’s also known as the 80/20 rule and holds that 20% of efforts give 80% of results. You might be wondering how this applies to things to do for the New Year – well, the rule can be applied to almost any element of your life. For example, you probably wear around 20% of your wardrobe most of the time. Therefore, think about decluttering your closet and keeping only the most frequently worn items. It’s a similar principle for your home and if you find getting rid of things difficult, ask yourself whether an item is beautiful or useful. If it’s neither and you haven’t used it in at least six months, then let it go. Objects that are in good condition will be welcomed by charity shops and old CDs or books can usually be donated to a local library. You can even apply the Pareto Principle to friendships – spend the most time with those who make you the happiest. We’re not advocating cutting all those who don’t fall into this category but simply focusing on those who are the most enthusiastic about meeting up with you and who contribute equally to the friendship.

Start Travel Planning

Now is the time to plan your trips for the year ahead. Whether you prefer to use a printed or online calendar, we suggest inputting key dates first like national vacations and school holidays. With careful planning, you can maximize your time away by booking off dates either side of some national holidays. Just make sure to reserve the flights and accommodation as soon as possible, since they’re likely to be expensive at these peak periods. Think about the trips that you’d like to make in the next couple of months – skiing is a must for all fans of Winter sports. If there’s a bucket list destination that you’re keen to travel to, start saving all articles about it that you can find online. One of the best ways to do so is on Pinterest, which is a mine of information for travel planning.

Each evening, jot down what you want to achieve the next day. It definitely helps to focus the mind. Don’t beat yourself up if your goals slip from time to time but give yourself a small reward each time you achieve one.

We hope you’ve found these suggestions for things to do for the New Year helpful. Here’s to a fantastic year ahead. What are you planning for 2018?

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[perthuncommon]

Perth breakfast by the sea: our top five spots for summer breakfast before beaching

With Perth renowned for its awesome beaches and ocean-front breakfast options, and summer in full swing, now is the time to take advantage of both.

There’s nothing quite like starting the day with a “good coffee”, hearty Perth breakfast (or brunch if you like a sleep in), and then hitting the beach.

Spoilt for choice for both, here’s five must-try places to have a delicious breakfast near Perth’s best beaches.

Breakfast by the Beach...

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Yelo, Trigg Beach

Something of an institution, the bright yellow Yelo overlooking Trigg Beach is the perfect spot to start your summer day. A true local’s local, you’ll often see it spilling over with people chilling on its verandah. Its menu focuses on healthy, ethically sourced options, so if you’re keen for some fresh, wholesome goodness before you catch some waves, you’ll be sorted. Big on local produce and sugar-free, gluten-free, chemical-free and additive-free goodness, Yelo’s breakky and brunch options will give you the energy boost you need before you hit the beach.

Pooch-friendly, and with Trigg Beach’s dog beach nearby, you can of course bring your four-legged pal for a pre- or post-beach snack.

Open from 6am-6pm every day, you can order anything from the menu all day, so if you’re a later starter or prefer a late-arvo surf or beach walk, you can still tuck into their all-day breakky or brunch before or after some beach action.

Try breakfast overlooking the sea...

[caption id="attachment_2806" align="alignnone" width="2048"] Image: Oddysea Facebook[/caption]

Odyssea, City Beach

Overlooking City Beach, Odyssea offers sophisticated dine-in breakky and brunch options, as well as on-the-fly snacks from its SSEA Kiosk.

Using modern Australian produce – with a twist, its breakfast menu is to-die-for. Go healthy or naughty – because you can always walk it off later. If you want to burn off the calories before you eat them, hit one of the trails to nearby Reabold Hill beforehand. You’ll not only be rewarded with killer panoramic views of Perth’s CBD, Freo, Rotto and beyond, you’ll have absolutely zero guilt when you hook into Odyssea’s “banana bread, buffalo milk ricotta, caramelised banana, strawberries, honey and toasted oats” later!

And, if you’re feeling really naughty – or need a hair of the dog – Odyssea has “adult breakfast drinks”, like the “Hugo ‘the morning’ Spritz”. Did you say elderflower, prosecco, mint, lime and soda? Oh, yes please.

Odyssea offers indoor and outdoor seating options – and is also a great little spot for a lazy group Sunday session or girly brunch.

Perth Breakfast with a view...

[caption id="attachment_2807" align="alignnone" width="2048"] Image: The Shorehouse Facebook[/caption]

The Shorehouse, Swanbourne Beach, Perth

Oh, you know, just swanning around Swanbourne. The converted Swanbourne Beach Lifesaving Club has been an evolving crowd please over the last couple of years.  Perched over Swanbourne Beach, you can’t miss its signature yellow-an-white-striped beach umbrellas gracing its deck. The Shorehouse is about as ‘on the beach’ as you can be without getting wet!

Pop in to The Deck for a casual bite before or after your morning jog or swim, or post-yoga bliss from Horizon Yoga, right next door. For something a bit more substantial, check into its booths inside, or prop yourself on one of its high-stool tables and enjoy views for days…

Its killer views are only matched by its serious drinks menu, including creative cocktails (I see you, violet champagne!) and zesty summer jugs to share. As well as breakfast and brunch options, with five different types of Blood Marys on offer, if you want bacon in your breakfast and your drink, this could be your time to try the BBQ Smoked Mary – bacon-washed bourbon, liquid-smoke, bbq sauce and chilli!

It's bookended by Swanbourne dog beach and the nudie – I mean, “clothing optional beach” – so depending on your jam, you can take Fido for a run, or, get up close and personal with, er, nature-ists.

It has set breakfast, lunch and dinner times, so be sure to check the website and book if you have a set agenda, but The Deck has walk-in, all-day snacks.

Eggs Florentine in Floreat...

[caption id="attachment_2808" align="alignnone" width="1440"] Image: The Kiosk Floreat[/caption]

The Kiosk, Floreat Beach, Perth

Smack bang on Floreat Beach, you’ll find everything you need for a relaxing breakfast or brunch date or post-workout fix.

Its simple breakfast menu offers classic breakky fare, including smashed avo (we won’t tell Bernard) and breakfast bruchetta and burgers, and healthy fresh juices to start your day right.

But if you prefer a post-walk sunset beach walk, you can always enjoy an after-five Aperol Spritz on its deck, or wind down for the week and get stuck right in on its BYO Thursdays.

Oh, and it’s also dog-friendly because these views are best shared with (wo)man’s bestie.

Active Perth breakky!!!

[caption id="attachment_2809" align="alignnone" width="2048"] Image via Bib and Tucker[/caption]

Bib & Tucker, Leighton Beach, Fremantle

Owned by former Olympic swimmer Eamon Sullivan, Bib & Tucker stands tall over Leighton Beach, and, fittingly, is surrounded by multiple fitness-oriented opps. You can swim, surf or paddle at your leisure, or get serious with stand-up paddle lessons and board hire from Elemental Kite, Surf & SUP.

And, just in time for summer, Bib & Tucker has teamed up with Statera Collective to bring a month of yoga at Leighton Beach. Check out the details and get your tickets here. You can also enjoy a post-yoga coffee on the house with your breakky. Cheers, Eamon.

Once you’ve worked up a sweat – and a hunger – tuck into Bib & Tucker’s extensive menu, which includes the classics like Eggs Benny or hello, breakfast pizza – charred bacon, eggs, mushroom, spinach, and, ooh la la, flor de latte! (that’s cheese!).

And, if you fancy undoing all that good with a naughty beverage, Bib & Tucker also has a sneaky alcoholic drinks menu. You’ve got your Bloody Mary and Mimosa options – or for something a little bit fancy, try their Hibiscus Prosecco – hello summer! Cin cin!

Where is your favourite brekkie in Perth?

If you have a favourite secret breakfast joint in Perth,  please tag #perthuncommonbreakfasts on Instagram or send us a message on Facebook. Now that you have had breakfast time to plan the rest of the day,  maybe a 2 hour adventure outside Perth  is on the cards?

The above blog post Perth breakfast by the sea: our top five spots for summer breakfast before beaching first appeared on Perth Uncommon