Food Discoveries

 We did it! We made our own PAVLOVA.

Oh my. Am I in trouble now. 

It was divine and I'm already itching to make another. The crisp, light, chewy nest filled with fresh, fluffy whipped cream and sliced fruit (w/ passionfruit drizzle of course) I COULD BARELY STOP shoveling it into my face. Recipe here.

Lamingtons are another famed dessert down under. And they are gooood. Super light, tasty "sponge" with or without cream/fruit filling, dunked in chocolate and rolled in coconut. Yessss.

And what to my wondering eyes did appear but "Choco-late Babies" (please tell me someone else has seen that classic SNL gameshow skit - I couldn't find a clip!) I absolutely had to buy them. Chocolate gummies? Weird. And good.

We've been busy in the kitchen. Did you know you can cook just about anything in the crock pot? We're now making our own yogurt in it - suuuuper simple (recipe here). And I even did creme brulee (here). Double yum.

Favorite new try though is homemade bagels. This was not done in the crock pot, but who ever thought of boiling bread? Now that was a stroke of genius. Used this recipe from the blogosphere. Of course the kids are strictly judging and rating each creation like the good old MasterChefs they are. No surprise they gave the cinnamon-sugar ones a 10.
 

And if you're looking for a pumpkin fix and have a soft spot for sweet potato pancakes like me, this might be your ticket to the perfect breakfast: pumpkin pancakes. Yeah, baby. Melt in your mouth.

Sydney: Round 2

Took the 3 hour drive north to attend the (LDS) temple in Sydney and had a spectacular time, yet again. We stayed an extra day and visited Oceanworld at Manly, Sydney Acquarium, Sydney Wildlife World and some gorgeous Manly beaches for some much appreciated fun in the sun. As luck would have it, our trip coincided with a fabulous Lego display at some of the sites, and the weather was a dream. Added bonus: downtown parking (right off Darling Harbor) for a mere $10 as opposed to the regular rate of $75/day. Score! Subtract the outrageous web of toll-roads that cost almost as much as our accommodations, and it was another great visit. I do miss having a temple 10 minutes away, but the drive's not so hard to swallow when the destination is freakin' Sydney, Australia :)

Had to document one of the four times in her life this lady has actually accepted a bottle. I'll tell ya what though  - I love a quick weekend getaway for that priceless concentrated family time.

I've never seen koalas do anything but sleep, until now. Whoa, nelly, they were all over the place eating, climbing, walking, I even saw one jump from one tree to another. Totally fell in love.

Leave it to McD's to snag prime downtown real estate.

Ever since visiting LegoLand in CA, I often wonder how it would feel being a professional Lego artist. Check out that wall sized lego mural - impressively artistic and very cool.

the sign reads "Manatees: the original mermaids" - wicked cool

Look closely - those are "water dragons" not seaweed

See those specks? People started dropping from the sky on our way home - now THAT'S the way to end a day: skydiving mid-sunset. That one's going on my bucket list.