Went to a Thermomix demo last night.
For those who haven't had the pleasure, a Thermomix is a very versitile kitchen appliance.
It seems to do most things you'll want a kitchen appliance to do in a very short space of time (well except roasting or grilling).
During the demo we had berry ice-cream; pizza; chickpea soup (mmm that was nice); sundried tomato and capsicum dip; steamed chicken with couscous and lemon pudding! (All in under 2 hours).
The demo was interspersed between discussion on guns and hunting - no the demonstrator wasn't a gun nut, but one of the other participants was. I'm actually not sure what the demonstrator thought - but she was raving on about raw, natural, unprocessed foods so hopefully she wasn't too shocked!
Anyway getting back to the post title. The cost of this little machine was $1939 ... but they only give a 2 year warranty. This worries me. Seriously. I mean you can tell me as often as you like about the reliability of your product BUT if you're only offering a 2 year warranty with no possibility of extension, I do tend to be more than sceptical.
Anyway, as a comparison, I've booked spot of a demo of the Thermochef - it still only comes with a 2 year warranty - but at under $800 that is slightly less worrying.
Thursday, September 8, 2011
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
Thrill Seeker's Bucket List
While perusing CNN I came across an article (and some very nice pics) of 50 ways to kill yourself as you're crossing them off your bucket list.
Well actually most of the 50 probably won't end in death but I'm convinced there's a few that would.
The 50 are:
1. Be a jet fighter pilot for a day (sounds fun and I think it would be basically safe);
2. Go volcano boarding, Nicaragua (80kms on your butt down the side of a volcano - um, no thanks);
3. Enter the Cage of Death, Australia (that's swimming with crocodiles folks!);
4. Cling to a cliff, China (and I quote "At one point one kilometer above the ground, you have to traverse a slim wooden plank stuck to the face of a vertical cliff.", enough said)
5. Ride Insanity, United States (yep, sure off the side of the 350-meter Stratosphere Tower, however being the US I think this is safer than #4);
6. Go Zapcat powerboating, United Kingdom (mmm, UK could be okay);
7. Climb the outside of CN Tower, Canada (nope!);
8. Perform an Everest skydive, Nepal (I'm thinking I might like to try this - but never having skydived before could be an issue);
9. Jump the Nevis Bungy, New Zealand (no, just no!);
10. Free dive at Dean's Blue Hole, Bahamas;
11. Ride the world's steepest roller coaster, Japan ("The world’s steepest steel roller coaster opened at the Fuji-Q Highland Amusement Park in Tamanash, Japan this year" - opened this year, not sure if that's good - as in it's all new - or bad - as in it's not had much time to iron out the wrinkles!);
12. Go Zorbing, worldwide (this one strikes me as inane rather than dangerous or thrilling);
13. Go water buffalo racing, Indonesia (as you're not allowed to race only watch, that sounds fine!);
14. Run with the bulls, Spain (don't see the appeal in this one);
15. Take part in an Office Chair Race, Germany (inane again);
16. Kayak over a waterfall, United States (nope!);
17. Take a motorcycle cab ride, Thailand (nope, again, nope!);
18. Run (or limp) the Marathon des Sables, Morocco (this one and the one above are two ways to quickly terminate progress on the bucket list);
19. Ride around the Nurburgring, Germany (this one sounds fun);
20. Go hot air ballooning, Turkey (again fun, but I'm not sure I'ld choose Turkey as the place to do it);
21. Go whitewater rafting, Zambia (I've heard that this is actually a lot of fun);
22. Dine in the sky, worldwide.. (Can't see the point of this one);
23. Climb Harbour Bridge, Australia (DONE this one - good fun, but it was windy up there);
24. Swim with great white sharks, South Africa (This is one I'ld like to try);
25. Ride the London Eye, United Kingdom (Another relatively safe one ... did a similar thing in Sydney);
26. Run the Wenger Patagonian Expedition Race, Chile (Sounds challenging and fun);
27. Wingsuit Fly, Switzerland (No thanks!);
28. Go ice swimming, Finland (Sounds fun!);
29. Run the Spoelana Naturist Race, Spain (no, just no);
30. Paraglide over Neuschwanstein Castle, Germany (mmm, could be fun - however when I was last there you couldn't see anything at all due to fog);
31. Play bossaball, worldwide (yer, sounds fun - bet it kills your legs);
32. Ride the world’s longest zip line, South Africa (NO, seriously NO);
33. Go cheese rolling, United Kingdom (hehehe, I'll watch thanks);
34. Hang glide, United States (#30 sounds more fun);
35. Take part in a Rickshaw Run, India (now as long as you don't have to pass through any of the major Indian cities this could be enjoyable);
36. Go sea kayaking, Antarctica (YES PLEASE ... this, I would like);
37. Go dog-sled racing, United States (this would be fun too);
38. Dive the Great Barrier Reef, Australia (probably should get around to this sometime);
39. Do the Death Drop, Zambia (NO, NO, NO, NO and DOUBLE NO!);
40. Swim in the Dead Sea, Israel (funnily enough this has never appealed to me, probably explains why in my four trips to Israel I never did it);
41. Rally drive, Sydney (sounds fun, not sure why you'ld do it in Sydney though);
42. Cycle the Death Road, Bolivia (this is another one that falls in the "no thanks" category);
43. Walk a wing, United Kingdom (I'ld give this a go);
44. Drive the Himalayas, India (Another one I'ld like to try);
45. Surf Shipstern Bluff, Australia (Surfing has never appealed to me either);
46. Go cliff diving, Mexico (NO, NO, NO, NO, NO and NO!!!);
47. Rescue a hostage, United Kingdom (this is probably my #1 to do from this list - sounds fun);
48. Go snowmobiling, Canada (could be okay);
49. Climb some ice, United States (mmm ... yer, I'ld do it);
50. Take part in a rodeo, United States (nope!);
Interesting reading through a list like this and thinking about which ones you'ld do, or not as the case may be.
So what about you? Done any? Want to do any?
The full article and photos can be found here
http://www.cnngo.com/explorations/play/50-thrilling-experiences-116798?page=0,3&hpt=hp_bn10#ixzz1XFoIBL3F
Well actually most of the 50 probably won't end in death but I'm convinced there's a few that would.
The 50 are:
1. Be a jet fighter pilot for a day (sounds fun and I think it would be basically safe);
2. Go volcano boarding, Nicaragua (80kms on your butt down the side of a volcano - um, no thanks);
3. Enter the Cage of Death, Australia (that's swimming with crocodiles folks!);
4. Cling to a cliff, China (and I quote "At one point one kilometer above the ground, you have to traverse a slim wooden plank stuck to the face of a vertical cliff.", enough said)
5. Ride Insanity, United States (yep, sure off the side of the 350-meter Stratosphere Tower, however being the US I think this is safer than #4);
6. Go Zapcat powerboating, United Kingdom (mmm, UK could be okay);
7. Climb the outside of CN Tower, Canada (nope!);
8. Perform an Everest skydive, Nepal (I'm thinking I might like to try this - but never having skydived before could be an issue);
9. Jump the Nevis Bungy, New Zealand (no, just no!);
10. Free dive at Dean's Blue Hole, Bahamas;
11. Ride the world's steepest roller coaster, Japan ("The world’s steepest steel roller coaster opened at the Fuji-Q Highland Amusement Park in Tamanash, Japan this year" - opened this year, not sure if that's good - as in it's all new - or bad - as in it's not had much time to iron out the wrinkles!);
12. Go Zorbing, worldwide (this one strikes me as inane rather than dangerous or thrilling);
13. Go water buffalo racing, Indonesia (as you're not allowed to race only watch, that sounds fine!);
14. Run with the bulls, Spain (don't see the appeal in this one);
15. Take part in an Office Chair Race, Germany (inane again);
16. Kayak over a waterfall, United States (nope!);
17. Take a motorcycle cab ride, Thailand (nope, again, nope!);
18. Run (or limp) the Marathon des Sables, Morocco (this one and the one above are two ways to quickly terminate progress on the bucket list);
19. Ride around the Nurburgring, Germany (this one sounds fun);
20. Go hot air ballooning, Turkey (again fun, but I'm not sure I'ld choose Turkey as the place to do it);
21. Go whitewater rafting, Zambia (I've heard that this is actually a lot of fun);
22. Dine in the sky, worldwide.. (Can't see the point of this one);
23. Climb Harbour Bridge, Australia (DONE this one - good fun, but it was windy up there);
24. Swim with great white sharks, South Africa (This is one I'ld like to try);
25. Ride the London Eye, United Kingdom (Another relatively safe one ... did a similar thing in Sydney);
26. Run the Wenger Patagonian Expedition Race, Chile (Sounds challenging and fun);
27. Wingsuit Fly, Switzerland (No thanks!);
28. Go ice swimming, Finland (Sounds fun!);
29. Run the Spoelana Naturist Race, Spain (no, just no);
30. Paraglide over Neuschwanstein Castle, Germany (mmm, could be fun - however when I was last there you couldn't see anything at all due to fog);
31. Play bossaball, worldwide (yer, sounds fun - bet it kills your legs);
32. Ride the world’s longest zip line, South Africa (NO, seriously NO);
33. Go cheese rolling, United Kingdom (hehehe, I'll watch thanks);
34. Hang glide, United States (#30 sounds more fun);
35. Take part in a Rickshaw Run, India (now as long as you don't have to pass through any of the major Indian cities this could be enjoyable);
36. Go sea kayaking, Antarctica (YES PLEASE ... this, I would like);
37. Go dog-sled racing, United States (this would be fun too);
38. Dive the Great Barrier Reef, Australia (probably should get around to this sometime);
39. Do the Death Drop, Zambia (NO, NO, NO, NO and DOUBLE NO!);
40. Swim in the Dead Sea, Israel (funnily enough this has never appealed to me, probably explains why in my four trips to Israel I never did it);
41. Rally drive, Sydney (sounds fun, not sure why you'ld do it in Sydney though);
42. Cycle the Death Road, Bolivia (this is another one that falls in the "no thanks" category);
43. Walk a wing, United Kingdom (I'ld give this a go);
44. Drive the Himalayas, India (Another one I'ld like to try);
45. Surf Shipstern Bluff, Australia (Surfing has never appealed to me either);
46. Go cliff diving, Mexico (NO, NO, NO, NO, NO and NO!!!);
47. Rescue a hostage, United Kingdom (this is probably my #1 to do from this list - sounds fun);
48. Go snowmobiling, Canada (could be okay);
49. Climb some ice, United States (mmm ... yer, I'ld do it);
50. Take part in a rodeo, United States (nope!);
Interesting reading through a list like this and thinking about which ones you'ld do, or not as the case may be.
So what about you? Done any? Want to do any?
The full article and photos can be found here
http://www.cnngo.com/explorations/play/50-thrilling-experiences-116798?page=0,3&hpt=hp_bn10#ixzz1XFoIBL3F
Tuesday, September 6, 2011
Impossible Pie - Take 2
Recently I blogged about an Impossible Pie that Miss 8 and I tried. Today, while working from home (with a sick daughter) I decided to whip up one for lunch.
I used the savoury recipe from the site that I found the sweet one at.
(We also made another sweet one - well I had lots of eggs that needed to be used and a couple of lemons AND some mini ones for school lunches at the request of Miss 9).
The main issue I have with these pies is that the base is extremely thin to the point of almost not being there. While reading a couple of other Impossible Pie recipes on the web and the associated comments I discovered that some people use Self Raising Flour (rather than Plain) AND butter.
So the recipe I ended up with (for the family to eat for dinner) was:
My Impossible Pie
* 1 cup self raising flour
* 1.5 cups milk
* 3 eggs
* 60gms butter
* 1 cup grated cheese
* 1 cup (drained) canned peas (they were in the fridge)
* 1 cup (drained) canned tuna
* Parsley
* Spray oil
Pre-heat oven to 180C. Spray a pie dish lightly with oil.
Place all ingredients in a bowl and mix until combined. Don't worry too much if the butter doesn't mix in - it will be okay.
Pour mixture into greased pie dish and place in oven.
Cook for 30-40mins
The base seems much crispier ... here's what it looks like:
[UPDATE]I much preferred the crustiness of this version. I will use this as a base in the future.[/UPDATE]
I used the savoury recipe from the site that I found the sweet one at.
(We also made another sweet one - well I had lots of eggs that needed to be used and a couple of lemons AND some mini ones for school lunches at the request of Miss 9).
The main issue I have with these pies is that the base is extremely thin to the point of almost not being there. While reading a couple of other Impossible Pie recipes on the web and the associated comments I discovered that some people use Self Raising Flour (rather than Plain) AND butter.
So the recipe I ended up with (for the family to eat for dinner) was:
My Impossible Pie
* 1 cup self raising flour
* 1.5 cups milk
* 3 eggs
* 60gms butter
* 1 cup grated cheese
* 1 cup (drained) canned peas (they were in the fridge)
* 1 cup (drained) canned tuna
* Parsley
* Spray oil
Pre-heat oven to 180C. Spray a pie dish lightly with oil.
Place all ingredients in a bowl and mix until combined. Don't worry too much if the butter doesn't mix in - it will be okay.
Pour mixture into greased pie dish and place in oven.
Cook for 30-40mins
The base seems much crispier ... here's what it looks like:
[UPDATE]I much preferred the crustiness of this version. I will use this as a base in the future.[/UPDATE]
Sunday, September 4, 2011
Birthday Month
Miss 7's birthday was today, so she's now Miss 8:
Yes, that is a FANTASTIC birthday cake made by Shooting Buddy!
She had a bowling party yesterday with 6 friends. It went well and lots of fun was had.
Miss 9's birthday is next Saturday. However she's already had her "party" - a camping trip with 5 of her friends. She received a very special pressent:
It was a really nice campsite - here's a picture of it in the morning mist:
We had her party early as she really wanted to go camping but the campsite was booked out in September. Luckily we did, because next weekend she's been invited to a Scout camp (she's a cub).
Sunday, August 21, 2011
A weekend away
Shooting Buddy needed to drive his son back to Geraldton and he asked me to go with him as a co-driver. After discussing it with hubby, and him being willing to do the "mum's taxi" for the girls this weekend I agreed to go along.
Plans evolved and we decided to drive up to Geraldton to drop his son off on the Friday and then spend the weekend in Dongara where we have some good friends and drive back on Sunday. As it turned out our Dongara friends weren't there :( But we decided to stay anyway.
The drive to Geraldton was long - it's apparently 450kms north of Perth - I'm not sure what part of Perth they're measuring from as we left at 10am and arrived about 4pm and only stopped once.
However, after dropping Shooting Buddy's son off we did a bit of shopping and headed to Tides for dinner. We sat on the balcony and sipped sparkling wine while watching the sun set. The tasting plate went down a treat followed by entree sized serves of the main course. I had the Prawn Tagliatelle and SB had the Mini Surf and Turf without the Surf. They were amazingly accommodating (see Surf & Turf minus Surf) even though the restaurant was full. We also got a Sicilian Salad (Pumpkin, Red Onion, Tomato, Crumbled Feta, Lebanese Cucumber & Roasted Capsicum) which we struggled to finish.
Being full we decided to skip dessert and head back to Dongara for the evening.
On Saturday we headed up to the historic Greenough townsite, via the local rifle range - however there was no one there and no signage as to when there would be.
At the Greenough museum / shop we sat down to a delicious (and total unhealthy) breakfast of scones while enjoying the scenery.
Breakfast
View while eating breakfast
We then headed up the road to Geraldton to the tourist information centre as we had heard of a winery in the area that was worth a visit.
After a bit of investigation we found out that the winery was the Chapman Valley Winery. It is West Australia's northern most winery - oh and they serve lunch - so off we headed, 30kms or so north.
I haven't travelled north of Geraldton by car ever. I was totally amazed at the scenery we found once we entered the Chapman Valley. I took a number of photos but I don't think they do the scenery justice:
View from Mills Lookout
Looking to the right of the Lookout
On the way to the Winery we stopped off at the Lavender Farm, which seemed really nice but we were in the mood for "something different" - especially as there were LOTS of people there.
When we got to the winery we were pleasantly surprised to see that off the dozen tables scattered around only 3 were occupied. We entered the cellar door and got chatting to the owner while trying the wines. They had four wines on offer - two white and two red. Unusually I liked all four of them! SB likes sweet wines so wasn't keen on the reds. In the end we decided to get a bottle of the Classic White and the Classic Red (with the intent to drink the white and bring the red back). We ordered a "Grazing Platter" to go with the white and found ourselves a shady table to sit at.
About three hours and two bottles of wine, lots of water and coffee later we decided to head back to Dongara. We did stop at the Lavender Farm for another coffee (and a piece of cake) on the drive back.
- We decided to skip dinner and go for a walk in Dongara instead!
Sunday morning started out as a repeat of Saturday - with still no one at the rifle club :( We went back to the shop at the Greenough Historic village as I had seen something for Miss 7's birthday present and decided to go back to buy it.
However, this time instead of heading north we went East towards Mingenew.
The first town we drove through was Walkaway. It's a very pretty little town and is just on the edge of a HUGE windfarm. Some of the towers are right next to the road - which made me feel a touch nervous.
Rather than go directly to Mingenew we decided to take a side trip to Coalstream on the way.
I had been at Coalstream in January. This is what it looked like then:
and this is what it looks like now ...
Facing the other direction, we had this in January:
and this today
The yellow are wildflowers - here's few more pictures of wildflowers that we came across (it's the start of the wildflower season):
After the detour through Coalstream Park we drove to Mingenew then down through Three Springs, Carnamah and down to Bindoon.
The last time I was in the area was at the beginning of May before any rain had fallen in the area. It was wonderful to see green grass, healthy wheat and canola fields and water actually laying on the ground in many areas.
After we went through Bindoon we took another detour through the Chittering Valley. When I drove through there in May it was drier than dry. Now it was totally luscious - it was really amazing. I can see now why people live there.
Eventually we arrive home after a very restful weekend! Looking forward to getting back "up north" with the family in the October school holiday and hopefully camping at Coalstream for a couple of days for a really good look around.
Plans evolved and we decided to drive up to Geraldton to drop his son off on the Friday and then spend the weekend in Dongara where we have some good friends and drive back on Sunday. As it turned out our Dongara friends weren't there :( But we decided to stay anyway.
The drive to Geraldton was long - it's apparently 450kms north of Perth - I'm not sure what part of Perth they're measuring from as we left at 10am and arrived about 4pm and only stopped once.
However, after dropping Shooting Buddy's son off we did a bit of shopping and headed to Tides for dinner. We sat on the balcony and sipped sparkling wine while watching the sun set. The tasting plate went down a treat followed by entree sized serves of the main course. I had the Prawn Tagliatelle and SB had the Mini Surf and Turf without the Surf. They were amazingly accommodating (see Surf & Turf minus Surf) even though the restaurant was full. We also got a Sicilian Salad (Pumpkin, Red Onion, Tomato, Crumbled Feta, Lebanese Cucumber & Roasted Capsicum) which we struggled to finish.
Being full we decided to skip dessert and head back to Dongara for the evening.
On Saturday we headed up to the historic Greenough townsite, via the local rifle range - however there was no one there and no signage as to when there would be.
At the Greenough museum / shop we sat down to a delicious (and total unhealthy) breakfast of scones while enjoying the scenery.
Breakfast
View while eating breakfast
We then headed up the road to Geraldton to the tourist information centre as we had heard of a winery in the area that was worth a visit.
After a bit of investigation we found out that the winery was the Chapman Valley Winery. It is West Australia's northern most winery - oh and they serve lunch - so off we headed, 30kms or so north.
I haven't travelled north of Geraldton by car ever. I was totally amazed at the scenery we found once we entered the Chapman Valley. I took a number of photos but I don't think they do the scenery justice:
View from Mills Lookout
Looking to the right of the Lookout
On the way to the Winery we stopped off at the Lavender Farm, which seemed really nice but we were in the mood for "something different" - especially as there were LOTS of people there.
When we got to the winery we were pleasantly surprised to see that off the dozen tables scattered around only 3 were occupied. We entered the cellar door and got chatting to the owner while trying the wines. They had four wines on offer - two white and two red. Unusually I liked all four of them! SB likes sweet wines so wasn't keen on the reds. In the end we decided to get a bottle of the Classic White and the Classic Red (with the intent to drink the white and bring the red back). We ordered a "Grazing Platter" to go with the white and found ourselves a shady table to sit at.
About three hours and two bottles of wine, lots of water and coffee later we decided to head back to Dongara. We did stop at the Lavender Farm for another coffee (and a piece of cake) on the drive back.
- We decided to skip dinner and go for a walk in Dongara instead!
Sunday morning started out as a repeat of Saturday - with still no one at the rifle club :( We went back to the shop at the Greenough Historic village as I had seen something for Miss 7's birthday present and decided to go back to buy it.
However, this time instead of heading north we went East towards Mingenew.
The first town we drove through was Walkaway. It's a very pretty little town and is just on the edge of a HUGE windfarm. Some of the towers are right next to the road - which made me feel a touch nervous.
Rather than go directly to Mingenew we decided to take a side trip to Coalstream on the way.
I had been at Coalstream in January. This is what it looked like then:
and this is what it looks like now ...
Facing the other direction, we had this in January:
and this today
The yellow are wildflowers - here's few more pictures of wildflowers that we came across (it's the start of the wildflower season):
After the detour through Coalstream Park we drove to Mingenew then down through Three Springs, Carnamah and down to Bindoon.
The last time I was in the area was at the beginning of May before any rain had fallen in the area. It was wonderful to see green grass, healthy wheat and canola fields and water actually laying on the ground in many areas.
After we went through Bindoon we took another detour through the Chittering Valley. When I drove through there in May it was drier than dry. Now it was totally luscious - it was really amazing. I can see now why people live there.
Eventually we arrive home after a very restful weekend! Looking forward to getting back "up north" with the family in the October school holiday and hopefully camping at Coalstream for a couple of days for a really good look around.
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
Well done!
From today's news:
Riverton robbers chased away by shopkeeper
TWO men got more than they bargained for last night when they tried to rob a grocery store in Riverton only to be chased out of the store by the shopkeeper.
The two men wearing balaclavas - one armed with a pistol - walked into the Go Nuts shop on Riverton Drive just before 9pm.
The pair threatened the shopkeeper, who responded by chasing them from the store.
Its understood the shop owner threw a bin at the robbers, who fled empty handed.
The balaclava clad men are described as fair skinned, one is 170cm tall and the other is 180cm tall.
------------------------------
I'm impressed with the shopkeeper standing up against the would-be robbers and I'm also glad it turned out so well for him! Taking on guys with a gun when your only weapon is a rubbish bin is a big ask!
I'm also surprised and pleased that there is no "We would like to remind people that while this situation worked out with no one injured it is not worth risking your life ... etc" type statements in the article.
Riverton robbers chased away by shopkeeper
TWO men got more than they bargained for last night when they tried to rob a grocery store in Riverton only to be chased out of the store by the shopkeeper.
The two men wearing balaclavas - one armed with a pistol - walked into the Go Nuts shop on Riverton Drive just before 9pm.
The pair threatened the shopkeeper, who responded by chasing them from the store.
Its understood the shop owner threw a bin at the robbers, who fled empty handed.
The balaclava clad men are described as fair skinned, one is 170cm tall and the other is 180cm tall.
Full story here:http://www.perthnow.com.au/riverton-robbers-chased-away-by-shopkeeper/story-fn8ou527-1226115675965
------------------------------
I'm impressed with the shopkeeper standing up against the would-be robbers and I'm also glad it turned out so well for him! Taking on guys with a gun when your only weapon is a rubbish bin is a big ask!
I'm also surprised and pleased that there is no "We would like to remind people that while this situation worked out with no one injured it is not worth risking your life ... etc" type statements in the article.
Monday, August 15, 2011
Can anyone identify this for me?
Apparently it's "a replica gun which had been modified to fire ammunition" found when police raided a number of homes in the northern suburbs.
Full story can be found at here
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