Saturday, February 20, 2010

I Think I'm Thirsty

 http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/G/01/askville/2939565_3870573_mywrite/kiddie_cocktail.jpg

How come no one told me ginger beer was basically ginger ale? 
Americans in Australia--- did you know this and keep it from me?
I sure do like ginger ale.
And what's up with Australian Schwepp's Dry Ginger Ale?  And why it so dark?

I could totally go for a Shirley Temple right now,
if only there were maraschino cherries in Australia,
and I'm not sure if I've even seen grenadine here.

I can say one thing for sure,
if I tried to order a Shirley Temple here,
they would most certainly think I was crazy.

Three cheers for Bundaberg Ginger Beer, hip hip hooray, hip hip hooray, hip hip hooray.

Did I ever mention the triple "hip hip hooray" thing that's done after they sing "Happy Birthday" in Australia... like instead of the, "you look like a monkey and you smell like one too" part that Americans often add on. 

And I certainly couldn't hip hip hooray, without bragging that my baby has turned five.
To impress my gorgeous little five year old,  I made a cake, the second fancy iced cake I've made in my entire life!

*Warning:  prepare to be either startled, sympathetic, impressed, or scared.



And here is the first cake I ever made and iced... two years ago...



Why yes, of course--  it's a calculator cake!
It's probably clear now why I hadn't attempted another cake for so long.



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27 comments:

ChiTown Girl said...

Aw....the R2D2 cake is BEAUTIFUL!! Way to go, Mom!

Anonymous said...

geez r2d2? ur like the best mom eveeer.

jaja.i have a friend who just moved to alice springs in the northern territory in Australia and he says he has a koala infestation in his yard, and that its much cuter than the roach infestations we have in miami. =D jaja it made me think of u.

Melissa Blundell said...

Hi laura happy birthday to Bejamin I think.

Grenadine is sold here for sure we had it when we kids in lemonade it is called "pink lemonade" that is what we got when we were out on a special occassion wooooooo hoooo.
You can buy it in woolies or if not you may need to go to the bottle shop. also you can get diet ginger beer.
Have a great day the sun is shinning should be a nice one
x mel.

formerly fun said...

R2D2?? Awesome, I could tell right away.

I'm not so sure about the calculator cake though:)

PamelaRose said...

Excellent!

Laura said...

Chitown- Thanks!

COPHstudent- I wonder what's worse ant infestation or koalas? I've been down the ants road...

Melissa Blundell- Well helllooo there!! How are you?? I didn't even know you knew I had a blog! I can't believe I've never seen grenadine here!

FF- Yeah, not my most shining moment.

PamelaRose- Thanks mama!

suzinoz said...

Knew nothing of the Ginger Beer. Have always seen it, but never been moved to try it. Learn something new every day!

Jill Stevens, Licensed Acupuncturist, Chinese Herbalist said...

WOW! That cake is amazing! very impressive. i would say that is much improvement in 2 years time!

Laura said...

Suzinoz- it's like a cross between regular ginger ale and the all natural kind from like Whole Foods!

Jill- Why thank you very much.

Unknown said...

oh woops i thought R2D2 was one of things from Dr Who? a Darlic? or whatever its called... haha... good work though!
and yes we do always say hip hip horray three times... do americans not do this???
and i sing the smell like a monkey but sometimes too...
"happy birthday to you, your're one hundred and two, you look like a monkey and smell like one too"!
and im sure we have those cherrie thingos here... almost positive infact!
im sure you could find somewhere that does shirley temples... but you're right they are not something commonky ordered here!
:)
xx

hastamananbanana said...

i did not get that it was R2D2. I thought it was a rocket ship? The calculator cake is absolutely hilarious. good effort though.

I grew up drinking shirley temples when i went out for dinner when I was younger. (in australia) And grenedine is definately available along with the cherries. Most bars will serve a "pink lemonade" for the kids if you ask for it.

and bundaberg ginger beer is hands down, the best ginger beer in the world.

Laura said...

rinniez- I love it-- someone who know less about sci-fi stuff than I do!!

hastamananbanana- A rocket? Ok I can see that-- but once you knew it was r2d2 then you saw the resemblance, right?

Heidi Sue said...

Great job on the R2D2!! You've come long, cake-decorating way since the calculator cake (which was hilarious!). AND...ginger beer is DEEElicious. But, now I want a Shirley Temple! I could drink grenadine with a straw. Yummy.

p.s. My favorite thing I've heard (but not quite understood) today: "You can buy it in woolies or if not you may need to go to the bottle shop." Awesome.

Stereos and Souffles said...

A calculator cake...what the? LOL

elizabeth said...

It is possible to OD on the ginger beer. Go easy on the stuff lest you tire of it. It's also good for morning sickness during pregnancy if you should ever need that information again...

I don't understand why a country with so many lemons fails to make good old fashioned (um, American?) lemonade!

Laura said...

Heidi Sue- Hi! Your my scumito forever. Mwah.

Stereos and Souffles- Exactly! Who does that???

Elizabeth- Yes! It's anti-nausea properties are what make it so incredible-- it was already delicious right?

A Free Man said...

Ginger beer is nothing like American ginger ale! First of all it tastes of ginger and it's sweeter. I love ginger beer. And ginger ale. But for different applications.

Captain Dumbass said...

R2D2 cake? Seriously? Your mom coolness factor went through the roof with that one.

Kate said...

A calculator cake? What a great idea and so simple for mums-without-one-iota-of-artistic-prowess, ie me. Thanks for the tip!

Duyvken said...

The cordial section of the supermarket or your local bottle shop will have grenadine. And I can get maraschino cherries at my neighbourhood deli. Keep hunting and you'll find them. Shirley Temple's are worth the hunt!

Laura said...

Free Man- Nothing like Ginger Ale??? I soo disagree-- but then again the longer I live here the more I forget how things really taste in the US.

Captain- Why thank you very much.

Kate- Hopefully other people can make theirs look a little better than mine.

Duyvken- I'm going to find it!!

Implosion said...

The cake is so creative- your kids will look back nostalgically at the cakes they had in their childhood.... one day when you've hung up your apron and retire from kitchen duty, they'll ask you for one again. :))

I have a friend with a similar name to yours and I stumbled upon your blog.

You know I've always thought that Sydney was by far better for American expats just as Melbourne is for European expats.

Have a great day!

I've always had

Tan said...

I didn't even know you knew I had a blog! I can't believe I've never seen grenadine here!

Laura said...

Implosion- I haven't even been to Melbourne yet, but we are going in October!

Tan- Do I know you?

Cassandra said...

Hmmm I'm not sure (as a born and raised Australian) what type of Grenadine you're after.

You can buy a sweet carbonated - what I'd call a soft drink - called Creaming Soda that sounds a bit like what Melissa is describing.

But "Grenadine" in my book is a sweet berry syrup that is only used in cocktails - like Vodka Sunrises and Tequila Sunrises - and you can buy it in a glass bottle from a good alcohol store as a mixer. Sometimes you need to ask for it.

About $10.

Margie said...

Hi Florida Girl,

I am currently obsessed with all things Mad Men, including of course the cocktails. Quite a few of the recipes require maraschino cherries e.g Manhattan and Old-Fashioned. Probably not essential, but i want to be authentic and those cherries are damn tasty.

In the David Jones Food Hall on Market St in the city, there is an American wall. It's a whole wall dedicated to American food products. They have "Mario Maraschino Cherries with Stems" (283g) for $7.95. I bought these.

Alternatively, you can get a HUGE jar from The Essential Ingredient, 731-735 Darling St, Rozelle. It's a 2 litre Jar of Sandhurst Maraschino Cherries for $30.95.
That's a whole lot of cherries by the way.

This info is current, i was at both places today. I went with the Mario one's because i really didn't want to spend 30 bucks on cherries even if it is better value. We'll see how i go with the drinking ... and whether i need to upgrade.

Lynda said...

This just made me LOLLL so much. I'm an Aussie living in Florida and I was just whinging to my American co-workers that it is so strange that they don't say hip hip hooray after singing Happy Birthday!