Daisy Chains and Picnics

These pancakes are a bit denser than pancakes made with eggs, the sweet potato through the mixture gives them a delicious flavour and lovely rich colour. I used soy milk but you can use whichever milk you prefer. The quinoa flour can be substituted for chickpea flour if preferred. Ingredients 100 ml soy milk 25 g plain flour 25 g quinoa flour 50 g sweet potato, peeled, grated 1/4 onion, finely chopped salt & pepper to season 2 tbsp olive oil 50 g baby spinach 15 g pine nuts Method 1.  In a bowl, add milk, sift both flours into bowl and whisk together until combined. Stir in sweet potato and onion, season with salt & pepper, mix until well combined. 2.  Heat 1 tbsp oil in a frying pan over a medium/high heat. Pour 1/2 mixture into pan, spread mixture into a thin layer using the back of a spoon. Cook for 2-3 minutes on both sides. Remove to a plate lined with paper towels, keep warm. Add the other tbsp oil and repeat with remaining mixture. 3.  Meanwhile, place spin...

I wanted pink elevated planters just outside the cabana entrance for some cacti. I couldn't find any pink plant pots I liked, then I found these green ones for $10 each in shiploads, they were just the sort of style I was looking for, all they needed was a respray into the pink I was after. Scott then drilled more holes in the base for drainage. After they were painted and dried, Scott attached them to different height rods, initially I had only planned on putting 2 pots there then I thought another would add more character. I planted some cacti and then Scott cut the edging to fit and filled it in with landscaping chips. I added some pink pot topper chips in the cacti pots, then it was time to add the garden flamingo ornaments. It turned out better than I envisaged, I am absolutely thrilled with the finished result. January 2021 I decided to separate the cacti in 2 of the pots as they were growing really well and taking over each others space. I was lucky enough to get the last 2 ...

A delicious salad done on the barbecue, enjoy warm or cold. The heat and spice from the chilli makes this an ideal winter salad, but also equally enjoyed at any season. Ingredients 1/3 cup sun dried tomatoes 1/4 cup sun dried tomato oil juice of 1/2 lemon 1 garlic clove, crushed 1 1/2 tsp dried oregano 1/2 small chilli, seeded, finely chopped 400 g haloumi with chilli, sliced 200 g mushrooms, thickly sliced 60 g baby spinach Method 1.  Drain tomatoes and reserve a 1/4 cup of the oil. Roughly chop tomatoes. Set aside. 2.  Combine reserved oil, lemon juice, crushed garlic, oregano & chilli in a bowl, season with salt & pepper. Whisk until well combined. Use some of the oil marinade to brush both sides of haloumi. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes. 3.  Add mushrooms to the oil marinade and stir, coating the mushrooms in the marinade. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes. 4.  Preheat barbecue plate on medi...

Scott has always wanted a neat barbeque area with lots of storage and work top space. We bought a charcoal kettle bbq a few months ago which we love using as the charcoal gives the food a real bbq taste and as the very first barbie we bought when we moved here over 10 years ago has seen better days we planned to buy a new one so this would be the perfect opportunity to incorporate them both into one space with as much storage as possible. Our BBQ used to be up where the pool area now is, but obviously had to be moved during our garden renovation. We wanted it to be under cover and sheltered from the winds that tend to howl around the side of our house, we also wanted storage to keep the utensils etc, so Scott built a storage unit to house the BBQ and pizza oven in the same area. These photos were taken just prior to demolishing to make the pool area. Scott started by fencing off the part of the garden down the side of the house that is quite unusable as a garden and also the wind howls...

Jodie came home from work with 2 small prickly pears she had purchased, so the first thing I thought was to look up how to make prickly pear juice. There were a variety of options on how to prepare the fruit from blending the whole fruit, burning off the small spiky hairs to brushing them off, but the one piece of advice they all had was to tread carefully with these bad boys. They have tiny almost unnoticeable hairs that can irritate your skin greatly if you happen to get the lodge in your hands or fingers. It's best to avoid them by wearing thick leather gloves whilst handling or a pair of tongs. What I did with mine was to pick them up with tongs, place them in a colander, rinse a few times, then using the tongs, pick them up and scrubbed them with a potato brush.  Place the washed fruit onto a chopping board, I still took precautions while preparing the fruit by holding them with tongs or a fork. Using a small sharp knife, cut both ends off and discard. Make a small incision th...