and Leapfrog Cafe - Joondalup

and I fed a horse
Leapfrog Cafe

On Sunday we put our bikes in the back of the car and drove up to meet my plus ones parents for an easy morning ride. We started from a carpark by Lake Joondalup and rode an easy but lovely 5km to Leapfrog Cafe, which is apart of the Wanneroo Botanical Garden and Mini Golf. Most of the path was through parkland or through bush and only the very last section was on a path by the road. We sat down and I ordered my favourite breakfast, pancakes!

Pancake berry compote, poached pear, maple syrup, 

mascarpone.

At the moment I am really loving Frappes so I had a chocolate one to help cool me down. The pancakes were quite crumbly but still very delicious and I loved the pear on top. The plus one ordered his standard Eggs Benedict but wasn't overwhelmed by it. 

Leapfrogs

Lovely sunflowers

On the way to the cafe I saw a few things I wanted to take some photos of, so I cycled ahead so I could stop and take some snaps.

Rundown house

Gorgeous horse

I stopped both ways to give him some green grass.

Some kids built timber forts in the pine forest

The ride was only a short one because my plus ones mum is only just starting to ride again after 30ish years. She is a bit wobbly and lacks confidence. But we cracked the double digit mark with this 10km and after a few more like that we will slowly increase the distance.

After the ride we went to a friends house for a barbecue and to play with their puppy Stirling. He is starting to resemble a Staffy more and more with his wide hind leg stance. He is adorable but likes to bite a little too much!

Stirling

Until next time.
Love, love Elle.

and Browned Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

and I browned the butter
Browned Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

Recipe adapted from Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

Preparation: 30 minutes plus 1 hour cooling

Cooking: 10 minutes for each tray

Ingredients:

• 1 cup unsalted butter
• 1 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1/3 cup white sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 large egg yolk
• 2 tablespoons milk
• 2 teaspoons vanilla paste/extract
• 2 1/4 cup plain flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups chocolate of choice (chopped up chocolate buttons, choc chips, chocolate blocks)

Method:

1. Place the butter in a saucepan. Simmer on medium heat until the butter begins to brown, 4-5 minutes. Transfer into a measuring jug. I scooped the melted butter from the top to leave the brown sediment behind. Leave to cool to room temperature.
2. In a large mixing bowl using an electric hand mixer or using your stand mixer, beat the browned butter and sugars together until light and fluffy. Add egg, egg yolk, milk, and vanilla. Beat on low speed until well blended.
3. In a separate bowl combine dry ingredients (sifted flour, baking soda, and salt) together with wire whisk. Gradually add these dry ingredients to the wet ingredients until a soft dough forms. Scraping the bowl a few times. Stir in the chocolate chips. Cover and chill for 1 hour.(If it chills for longer it will have to thaw a bit before it is soft enough to be scooped but still firm.)
4. Heat oven to 190°C Fan-forced. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Drop rounded tablespoons of cookie dough 5cm apart on prepared cookie sheet. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until golden brown. Let cool on cookie sheet for 2 minutes. Remove to a cooling rack. 

Notes. Uncooked cookie dough can be frozen. The easiest way is to freeze in prepared cookie balls.

For this recipe I used left over store brought truffles chopped up as well as left over white choc chips and a block of 70% dark chocolate. I doubled the recipe and this fitted nicely into my stand mixer. I used several cooling racks and 4 cooking trays of varying sizes. It was a production line. I brought them into work and they went down a treat. I am very pleased with the lovely taste browning the butter creates. It adds a nutty depth to the cookies.

Love, love Elle.

and it's been only 2 weeks

Days 1-14

This year myself and a bunch of my friends are attempting 'Project 365'. On new years eve last year I asked on my Facebook for people to join me on the project. I need to complete 'Project 365' for my 30 before 30 list and I am hoping that having my friends do it with me will help me keep on top of it. For those who don't know what 'Project 365' is, it is a personal quest to take a photo, every day, for a whole year. Some of my friends are just posting a photo everyday to document what happened that day, such as getting a friend to take of photo with them in it. I personally am taking each photo myself. I am hoping that this will help me improve my photography skills. Trying to keep it interesting for so long will be part of the challenge.

Day 1:

A pedestrian sign in the city after dinner with friends.

Day 2:

I was sick so I finally put together our holiday album.

Day 3:

We spent the day redoing the front garden. Working on my macro.

Day 4:

My plus one and I baked a Crusty Italian Herb loaf each.

Day 5:

Trip to Penguin Island with the family.

Day 6:

Friends leaving lunch at Clancy's Fishbar.

Day 7:

Some random things on my work desk for the first day back.

Day 8:

My gorgeous Dallas.

Day 9:

The stairs to my Kickboxing gym.

Day 10:

An abandoned warehouse near my work.

Day 11:

Surprise earrings from Etsy, sent to my work from the plus one.

Day 12:

A photo of Fremantle taken on a breakfast pushbike ride.

Day 13:

Our friends brand new puppy, Stirling. A staffy x pug.

Day 14:

Choc Chip biscuits for work.

I have a long way to go and many more photos to take. I will just have to keep doing and seeing interesting things!

Love, love Elle.

and Taronga Zoo - Roar and Snore

and we slept with the lions
Taronga Zoo - Roar and Snore

Taronga Zoo

Earlier this year the plus one and I went on a 3 week driving holiday of NSW and the ACT. I wanted to visit Taronga zoo and we did a little research (looked at the website) and we found Roar and Snore. After we arrived back in Sydney from visiting Canberra, the Blue Mountains and the Central coast, we spent our first night at the zoo. We caught the ferry from the city and then a bus to the top of the zoo. It was just after closing and the courtyard out the front was empty. We were the first to arrive. Soon more and more guests arrived with their luggage. The guides let us in around 6.15pm. They placed our luggage on to a cart and escorted us to where we would be staying.

Never smile at a crocodile (for some reason)

Taronga zoo has a permanent camp site. We were in the end tent which contained a double and a single as well as a few camp chairs. All of the tents were powered and had a solid floor. The camp site also has an amenity block and there is a large tent were snacks and breakfast is served. One thing I noticed is that you never went hungry. After we settled into our tents we all met in the dining tent where platters of food were provided. The platters included vegetable sticks, dip, cheeses etc. The guides then brought in some animals to meet us. There were stick insects, lizards and a baby crocodile, as well as other animals. After this we headed to the food hall outside of the camp site were a buffet dinner was served. This was only an hour after the snacks! The buffet was great. There was a massive range of hot foods and salads as well as drinks.

I forgot to take a photo of our tent. 

This is off the Taronga website.

Once we ate all that we could, we met out the front and we were divided into two groups. We then headed of for a night tour of the zoo. It was raining and we were all in poncho's. The zoo was so quiet with only a few rustlings and calls from the animals. We visited the big cats as well as this cute little fox. A lot of the animals were hiding out of the rain but it was still an amazing experience. We then headed back to camp for some ice cream and tea and coffee before parting for bed. To be honest, my sleep wasn't brilliant. The rain on our tent was very loud. I woke up and found my Ipod and put the ear buds in my ears. I was also awaken by the lions roaring early in the morning. I am definitely not complaining about that. It was amazing to be so close to these magnificent animals. I know that I was sleeping somewhere special. Not as amazing as if I was really on Safari in Africa but close enough for me.

Morning Sydney!

I woke up early and headed to the showers. The amenities block has lots a bathrooms and are really new and clean. I then headed back to my tent and grabbed my camera took photo's one of the best views of Sydney. I went out onto the deck and took some beautiful shots of the harbour. We then enjoyed a continental breakfast. Afterwards we headed back to our tents to pack up and prepare for the next activities. We walked though the quiet zoo and went behind the scenes of the nocturnal house and met one of the keepers. He spoke to us about the dangers native animals face because of feral animals and human activities. We met a tiny native mouse. Don't worry. They look a lot cuter than the rodents most people are use to. They have big eyes and big ears. They are also nocturnal and do not go into houses. He was so adorable. He kept running up the arm of the keeper and onto his shoulder or head. After this we headed to the giraffe enclosure where we met another keeper. After a talk from the keeper about the animals we lined up and fed the giraffes carrots. They are hilarious with their long necks and huge tongues, licking the carrots out of your hands.

Me feeding a giraffe

From here we headed to the education center to meet even more animals. We patted an echidna, a koala and a quokka. All native Australian animals. So I highly recommend this to international travelers. There were heaps of photo opportunities. This was then end of the Roar and Snore aspect of the day. They held our luggage in the education center and we all headed our separate ways to explore the zoo. It was an amazing time. The weather was much better then the day before. There was just a few sprinkles of rain. It was still early in the morning and the gates hadn't quiet opened yet. The zoo wasn't that quiet though. All of the animals were very active. We even saw the elusive Snow Leopard. Although we failed to get a good photo of him. We spent half the day wandering around enjoying a really amazing zoo.

Native rat I think.... 

Quokka

Snow Leopard

Seal

Elephants (my favourite animal)

Lion

Himalayan Tahr

Francois' Leaf-monkey

I highly recommend the experience to everyone. Especially the animal lovers out there. All of the keepers, including our guides for the stay, were so friendly and informative. Taronga Zoo has a sister zoo, Taronga Western Plains Zoo. It is located in Dubbo, a 5 hour drive north west of Sydney. But don't worry. There are flights there. The Western Plains Zoo has it's own Roar and Snore as well as Zoofari lodges. My plus one went with his family when he was younger and stayed the night at the zoo.

Both of us agreed that it was the best part of our holidays. We were so lucky to be able to experience such a fantastic night. Hopefully it won't be a once in a life time experience!

Love, love Elle.

and Penguin Island, Rockingham

and a ferry to visit the little ones
Penguin Island, Rockingham

View from the jetty towards Penguin Island

Today some of my family and I headed to Penguin Island, just off the coast of Rockingham. Penguin Island is connected to the mainland via a sand bar. Last time I went to the Island I walked across but this time I took the ferry. It means you stay a lot dryer and you don't smell so much. There is a lot of seaweed about. We then jumped straight onto the Penguin and Sea Lion Cruise. The cruise was nice and fun. It took us past some little islands around Penguin Island and over to this one island which had around 6 or 7 seals resting on the beach. Apparently only the males ever use that island to rest.

Small rock islands

Sleeping seals

They woke up for a yawn then went back to sleep

Me on the back of the boat.

We then headed back to the jetty and we were just in time for the Little Penguin feeding in the Discovery Center. The penguins were so adorable. Some were constantly swimming around. Others didn't want to leave the rocks and one or two didn't want to leave the resting area. This one penguin, Nemo, was a huge show off. He kept swimming around on his side splashing about.

Little Penguins

He is waiting for his lunch 

'Nemo'

They look so cute swimming around

Hiding molting penguin. They can't swim until they have finished.

After the feeding was over we headed onto the lawn for a picnic lunch. I took the second herb roll I baked and made sandwiches under a tree. There are these large lizards which were scuttling around though the groups of picnickers trying to find food to steal. They were kind of cute but I didn't want them running over my lunch.

Lizard trying to steal food

There are a few look outs on the island and there is a nice walk around the island. We had a quick wander but we didn't go all of the way around.

View from Penguin Island to the locations of the seals.

It was a lovely day out and I can't believe that there is only one day left of the holidays. Where has the 2 weeks gone? Penguin Island is a great little location and I am glad I returned. Last time I didn't see the penguin feeding or go on any cruise. They were both awesome to do and see.

Until next time.
Love, love Elle.

and Crusty Italian Herb Bread

and the house smells amazing!
Crusty Italian Herb Bread

Today my plus one and I made some amazing smelling and tasting bread. I decided that I wanted to make the bread from scratch and completely my hand. No Kitchenaid or bread maker was used in the process. It was great fun kneading the dough and as the time went on we become hungrier and hungrier as we could smell the bread, first rising, and then baking.

Recipe from Allrecipes.

Preparation time: 1 hour 40 minutes
Cooking time: 35 minutes plus 15 minutes cooling (we couldn't wait this long)
Serves: 24

Ingredients:

• 2 (8g) packets yeast (I only had 7g packs and but managed to get 16g out of them, somehow...)
• 2 cups (500ml) warm water (45 C)
• 1 1/2 tablespoons caster sugar
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 3 teaspoons salt
• 1 tablespoon dried basil
• 1 tablespoon dried oregano
• 1 clove garlic, crushed
• 1/2 cup (60g) grated Pecorino Romano cheese
• 6 cups (875g) bread flour

Method:

1. Mix yeast, warm water and sugar together in a large bowl. Set aside for five minutes, or until mixture becomes foamy.
2. Stir olive oil, salt, herbs, garlic, cheese and about half of the flour into the yeast mixture. Gradually mix in the remaining flour. Dough will be stiff.
3. Knead dough for 5 to 10 minutes, or until it is smooth and rubbery. Place in an oiled bowl, and turn to cover the surface of the dough with oil. Cover with a damp cloth. Allow to rise for 1 hour, or until the dough has doubled in size.
4. Punch dough down to release all the air. Shape into two loaves. Place loaves on a greased baking tray. Allow to rise until doubled in size, about another 30 minutes.
5. Bake at 180 degrees C for 35 minutes. Remove loaves from the tray, and let cool on wire racks for at least 15 minutes before slicing.

Dough in a large bowl ready

Just out of the oven

Made into bruschetta

The bread is great eaten warm with butter but we liked it best toasted. It was prefect for bruschetta as it was already a bit garlicky. The garlic and herbs were quite subtle in the bread but I thought it was about right. It was not overpowering.

The recipe made two great sized loaves. The one still whole in the pictures was shaped by me and the wider one that we made into bruschetta was shaped by the plus one. This was our first every yeast bread. I have made Irish soda bread before and I have learnt not to be afraid of cutting nice deep slits into the top. I thought I had cut to deep but it turned out about right, while the plus one cut shallower slits which almost disappeared during the baking process.

Next on the bread baking list is Sourdough. I currently have the starter ripening? souring? in the spare room. So in a few days I will be baking another lot of bread. I would love to only eat home made bread but I think that's currently a little ambitious.

Love, love Elle.