Triple J Hottest 100

Posted on by bekswhoknits

My Number 1 Song this year

Last years list
My Shortlist
Active Child – Hanging On
And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead – Weight Of The Sun (Or The Post-Modern Prometheus)
Arts Martial – Runaway
An Horse – Not Mine
Big Scary – Mix Tape
Black Keys, The – Lonely Boy
Clap Your Hands Say Yeah – Maniac
Cold War Kids – Mine Is Yours
Cut Off Your Hands – Fooling No One
Death Cab For Cutie – Codes And Keys
Decemberists, The – This Is Why We Fight
Drums, The – Money
Feist – Graveyard
Foster The People – I Would Do Anything For You
Girls – Honey Bunny
The Grates – Turn Me On
Grouplove – Tongue Tied
Goodnight Tiger – Jump Down
Jebediah – Apartment {Like A Version}
Kills, The – Future Starts Slow
M83 – Reunion
National, The – Exile Vilify
San Cisco – Awkward
TV On The Radio – Second Song
Unknown Mortal Orchestra – Ffunny Ffriends
Voltaire Twins – Animalia
Wild Flag – Romance

And the final 10
Big Scary – Mix Tape
Clap Your Hands Say Yeah – Maniac
Death Cab For Cutie – Codes And Keys
Decemberists, The – This Is Why We Fight
Drums, The – Money
Feist – Graveyard
Kills, The – Future Starts Slow
M83 – midnight city
San Cisco – Awkward
Wild Flag – Romance

Stuck in my head – Grouplove

Posted on by bekswhoknits

One of my blogging resolutions this year, and one of my strategies to maintaining this little blog’o’mine is a schedule.
I’m still working out the detail but one thing I didn’t like about last year was how music got left behind (which is funny as it used to be Musicfoodlife – music being high on the agenda).
So every Wednesday or hump day, to get me through the week, I’ll share a song.
Something to keep me going, or that’s been stuck in my head.

Music is such a massive part of my day, and even more so on a Wednesday.

So song number one for the year is by Grouplove.
A band I’ll be seeing at Southbound this weekend!!!
It’s catchy and poppy and all kinds of fun with a creepy creepy video clip. Enjoy!

cherry ripe cupcakes

Posted on by bekswhoknits

I work with cake lovers.
Every occasion is celebrated with cake.
You’re the new starter? You bring cake.
It’s your birthday? You bring cake.
You happened to swing past the cake shop on your way to work? You bring cake.
You do something noteworthy at work? You bring cake.

In my case, I’m leaving.
Which means I have to bring cake.

So I made a batch of Red Velvet cupcakes, and a batch of cherry ripe cupcakes.
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Taste.com.au has the super easy recipe which I made into a cherry ripe cupcakes.

What you need
The Cupcakes
2 cups Self Raising Flour
¾ cup castor sugar
2 tbsp cocoa powder
2 eggs
125 g melted butter
¾ cup milk
2 (50g) packets glace cherries (chopped)

The Icing
400g icing sugar
50g soft butter
200g cream cheese
½ cup desiccated coconut.

The Method
Mix dry ingredients (flour, sugar, cocoa powder) in a large bowl. Make a well in the center.
Mix wet ingredients (eggs, butter, milk) together and then pour into dry ingredients.
Stir until just combined and then add the glace cherries.

Pour into patty cake lined cupcake tray.
Place in 200deg oven for 20 – 25 minutes.

While that’s in the oven make the icing.

With a mixer beat the butter and the icing sugar together.
Once that’s started to cream together, add the cream cheese until it looks smooth.
Add the coconut.

You need to wait for the cupcakes to cool before you can ice them – but once they’re iced, mmmm.

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a not boring packed lunch or how to use schnitzel as a verb, an adjective, and a noun

Posted on by bekswhoknits

Who said a packed lunch has to be boring.

If you’re lucky enough to have a sandwich press in the office, you can have a lunch like this.
Chicken Schnitzel and salad.

It takes a little bit of effort to prepare. It really helps if you have a craving for chicken parma the night before and are schnitzeling chicken anyway.

So how to schnitzel a chicken.

In one bowl beat an egg.
In another pour in breadcrumbs.

Cover your rolling pin in glad wrap (so all the nasty raw chicken doesn’t seep into your wooden rolling pin – I don’t know if this is actually a thing but it helps me sleep at night), and take all your frustrations out on an unsuspecting chicken thigh.

Dip the beaten chicken thigh into the egg, then into the breadcrumbs (both sides), then into the sandwich press.

You now have two options.
You can put the schnitzeled chicken into a pan and cover with tinned tomatoes and cheese before plonking it in the oven.
OR
You can put the schnitzeled chicken into a plastic container for eating at work.

I chose both.

So here’s the chicken parma and here’s my work lunch.
I like to heat up my pre-cooked schnitzel in the sandwich press, but I suppose you could eat it cold or pop it in the microwave.

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a bow headband

Posted on by bekswhoknits

There are so many cute headbands around at the moment.

inspired by a bow headband that I found in one of those ‘oh so trendy’ shops which keep popping up around where I live, I took the design and went “I can totally recreate that!”

The original design looked something like bow headband

So I took my Moda Vera Marvel in black and a set of 4.5mm needles.

Cast On 25 stiches.

Knit in sockinette stitch (knit all rows) until headband is the desired length. I knit mine to be 45 cms. Don’t forget it will stretch a bit.

Bind Off and then use the tail to mattress stich the two ends together in a loop.

To make the bow shape

Cast On 10 stiches

Knit in garter stitch (alternate knit and purl rows) until the piece measures 10 cms.

Bind Off and mattress stich the two ends of that piece together, around the join of the first loop. This creates the bow.

It’s a subtle headband, but very effective at keeping the ears warm.

Have fun!

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Pasta to keep vampires away

Posted on by bekswhoknits

This was my signature dish when I was studying. It was during my teenage rebellion because it’s always had too much garlic in it (which I had to buy myself, as garlic was never in the house).
It’s not healthy but it will keep the vampires away. (Assuming your vampires subscribe to the common trait of disliking garlic. I like vampires that don’t like garlic.)

Step 1
Put grated cheese, crushed garlic, herbs, salt & pepper in a bowl.

Step 2
Cook angel hair pasta

Step 3
Add pasta to cheese & garlic using the starchy water as a sauce.

Step 4
Eat – preferably with white wine and big bang theory.

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chorizo macaroni

Posted on by bekswhoknits

This is a recipe made up of leftovers. The leftover macaroni was cooked as a result of a macaroni flood (I tipped the bag a little way and it all came flooding into the water). The chorizo was the only meat that was in the fridge (it’s almost shopping day), and all the other ingredients are all things I always have in the cupboard.

The Recipe

½ chopped onion
½ stick Chorizo chopped in slices and then in halfs.
400g tin Tomatoes
1 glug Worcestershire sauce
2 glugs Tomato sauce
½ cup peas (I used frozen)
Fresh parsley
3 cups cooked Macaroni
Cheese to garnish

The Method
Fry the onion and chorizo in hot oil.
Once that’s cooked, add the tinned tomatoes, Worcestershire, and tomato sauce. Let that bubble away before adding the frozen peas.
Add the chopped fresh parsley (or whatever herbs you have).
Add the macaroni (it doesn’t need to be heated, the sauce will heat it through).

Once the macaroni is warm, serve in bowls with grated cheese over the top.

Serves 4
One serve went as is for the Mister.
One serve went over steamed frozen vegetables for myself.
One serve went in the freezer for another day.
And the final serve went towards my lunch.

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Mad Monkey and Hollowmen

Posted on by bekswhoknits

A night at home with mad monkey.

I had a really late lunch (2:30!) so I wasn’t really hungry, and feeling very lazy.
So we ordered in. I had a Greek salad,with a garlic And rosemary pizza crust for carbs.
Mr Polka-dots had a Tom-Tom which isbacon, mushroom, creamy sauce with fettucine.

The salad was really fresh. It absolutely hit the spot. And I may have sneaked a couple of forks of pasta (and one sneaky dip of pasta on top of the pizza. One of the joys of eating at home). The pasta was pretty good. Nothing I couldn’t have made myself, but I didn’t want to cook now did I.

I have this weird thing about not watching sport whilst i eat (I always spill it, or end up not eating, or generally don’t enjoy it as much) so we always turn off whatever sport we’re watching and watch some entertainment.

Mister had an RDO today so he was home when I got home and was watching The Hollowmen. (Before I reminded him that there was a Chicago game taped and he promptly started watching that.) So once dinner arrived on went The Hollowmen again.
It’s an Australian comedy about Aussie politics. A bit like Yes Minister but dryer. It has some laugh out loud moments in this household, but it only lasted two seasons.

It revolves around the team behind the Prime Minister and the way they spin and make decisions for the country.
Here’s a clip, but I’m not sure it’s a program that really translates.
But then this household also loves Parks and Recreation which runs a similar premise.