Bali Hut gets a makeover

My poolside Bali hut/cabana/gazebo had an African Reed Thatch roof I replaced this roof about 8 years ago, even paid extra for a treatment to prolong its life. It has been falling to bits for years making a terrible mess of the pool deck and pool. Providing no protection for the outdoor furniture which has deteriorated as a result. Time for a makeover. Not African reed this time, too expensive and fails miserably with a very short life span. Looks good for 2 years tops and then it creates enormous amount if work for you. This time I've opted for a hairy hut synthetic product. Looks authentic with a 20 year guarantee. Uv stabilised and won't mould rot or fly to bits, a tiny bit more expensive but should see us out!

First you have to remove the old tiles, what a mess! In your hair, eyes and cleavage;-(( me on the ladder Richo on the blower trying to keep the crud out of the pool. Dust off the bars and rails and ready for its new hat!

First rows on. Looks like Friar Tuck. The clips which are supposed to slip straight on like last time. They don't, each one has to be prized open and belted on. My hands took a hammering with that procedure, cuts scratches and bruises. Sweaty hands sipping off red hot tools, did I mention the temperature was 40 + degrees Celsius. What the hell was I thinking. Had to wrestle with each tile and there were 42 of them, 6 clips each and everyone of them extracted a curse from me. Jump into the pool frequently to try and cool off. Can't wear a hat to do it because a hat won't fit through the bars but a head will. I seriously don't remember it being this difficult last time. Mind you I didn't have a rebuilt ankle that wasn't happy about standing on a ladder then and it wasn't hot. The tiles were easier to manage and install. Everyone of the new ones had to be cajoled into

Place.

Second row on and the hut isn't the only thing with Hair on it  grrrrr!!!! Is it getting hotter or is it just me?

The break for lunch resulted in me laying under a fan with a wet washer to try and cool off. Head pounding from the heat, hands cut and bleeding and me wishing the gazebo roofing fairies would visit and make the project go away. Yay the last tiles are bing savaged into place time for the hairy top hat. How on earth are we going to get that up there? It's heavy and large there is a howling boiling hot nor'easter wind blowing. Richo decided to stick it circus juggling plate style on the end of the pool Cleaning wand handle and snooker it into place. I can't believe it worked, him On top Of the ladder, leaning over the structure with a hand full of hairy hut  hair and me trying to balance the heavy unstable top cone on the end of a 12' pole while the wind was trying to deposit it on my head. I can't believe Richo and I are still friends after that manoeuvre. The thing is built, we both have pounding headaches from the heat and the excercise. Richo fixed his with a couple of beers, while I tried to stay under water for as long as possible to cool my face and head. One of the few times I have wished for cooler water. But I did discover my fishing hat holds water and dumped on your head is quite cooling. We must've looked a sight.

There it is finished, doesn't look too bad hope my Christmas Visitors appreciate it. At least the new teak outdoor setting will be protected and it will provide a respite  from the northern summer sun.

Katsudon Japanese Fried Pork & Rice

We went to a Japanese Restaurant the other day and Richo wanted to order Katsudon, I talked him out of it as I planned to make it at home the following night, so he settled for something else and really enjoyed it but that's for a different recipe video. As promised I made this little number and he was delighted with it. He calls it Ninja Schnitzel! He does that sometimes, helps him to remember the name of the dish for future reference.  He is pickled gingers biggest fan and eats it with all Japanese food I cook, even calls that Nippon pickles, sometimes playfully abbreviated to nippickles, sincere apologies to our Japanese viewers! Richo has a wicked Aussie sence of humour.

Anyway we have enough left over for lunch today which is handy because I'm off to oil the huge back outdoor deck, to get ready for plenty of lazy weekend BBQ  alfresco dining. Plus it has to be done when there is no rain and out of the hot summer sun. Pretty tall order this time of year. Saturday was 42 degrees Celsius so the deck oiling was postponed. You couldn't even walk on it let alone kneel on it to paint it. 

So if you want to know what I will be eating for lunch just check out our cheekyricho YouTube video recipe for a delicious easy Japanese Classic Katsudon. http://youtu.be/37S-7mTwhQ

Cheekyricho Caesar Salad from scratch

We love a good Caesar Salad and this is a great one. The croutons are crisped to perfection, brown all over and flavoured with smoky crisp Pancetta, all in the Actofry in 6 minutes, that's less time than it takes to preheat your oven or grill. The paddle stirs them while you wiz zip the worlds easiest authentic idiot proof Caesar Salad Dressing. The crunchy fresh Cos lettuce gets a quick spin in the new flimsy cheap but effective salad spinner , give the Parmesan cheese a close shave and dinner is served. I tell you this literally took less than 20minutes from go to woah. Add chicken, prawns, crab or pork for the protein or else just enjoy one if the worlds simplest, classic salads. We have done it for you before but this is just perfect and so so easy. If you are coming into summer like we are it's time to think about some outside entertaining ideas, you will be the toast of the potluck if you rock up with this little number. Check it out and so much more in our cheekyricho YouTube channel.

http://youtu.be/n2HmAxF0aI0

Cheekyricho Vegan Chocolate Brownies

These easy to make brownies are gooey rich and really healthy, gluten free with the main ingredient being Black beans although you would never know it. We have a Chocolate Magic Bean cake on our Chanel but whilst gluten free it is definitely not vegan. This little number is both tasty, healthy and satisfying why not check it out and our other healthy vegan recipes. You might just get a pleasant surprise.

Fresh Fish For Tea

Richo saw some Bass Fisherman on the river the other day, it was a nice morning so he and Tilly took a break from playing tug to have a breather and a sticky beak at the fisherman. After about 10 minutes he came running up to tell me "Those blokes just caught 3 big Perch in a few minutes!!!" After a quick scan through his lures (a collection that is so vast Tackleworld Australia would be envious) he and Tilly bolted back to the river. Now Richo   is a bit sun shy after a few skin cancer scares, he tends not to spend much time in the sun during the hottest part of the day. Frantically Slip Slop and Slapping and they were off. I had to go and check out the excitement and ended up catching a fish too. So peaceful sitting by the river in the morning air catching dinner. Richo concentrating on refining his tackle combinations and me quietly musing over the best way to cook the fish we hadn't even caught yet. Meanwhile Tilly pensively watching the line on the seat beside me whilst I absent mindedly tickle her ear much like a person would twiddle their hair, oblivious to the action, Portia the geriatric chihuahua wandering aimlessly around in her own little befuddled world. 

We only ever take what we can eat and even the fish scraps are fed to the grateful pelicans whilst the frames and skeletons go to crab bait. Nothing is wated.

The river is ever changing, the log that floated  past this morning floats back this afternoon in a different tide in a different direction, this time it's picked up a hitch hiker, a shag sits surveying his territory on the lookout for a meal too. One day I watched him try to eat a bream that was to big for him to pick up.  He wrestled with it for almost an hour before swimming off in a huff. His perseverance was admirable but he still swam away hungry.

A little houseboat pottered past and the skipper gave us a big wave, the friendly kind,  not the bank destroying deep wash that rams your boat into the jetty caused by noisy thoughtless ski boat drivers who are under some misguided illusion that I want to see them throw their skiers off while they slalom around destroying the river bank, cutting off our crab pot bouys with their propellers and thus interfering with the peaceful river life existence. The river is there for all to enjoy, not just a select few with total disregard for the safety and comfort of the rest of us. One moron went so close one day I thought his skier would hit the bank, instead he rooster tailed a huge sheet of water over my neighbour and myself thoroughly drenching us and the camera I was using to photograph little fish under the jetty. Funny?? I think not!! Such selfish, immature, show off behaviour is both destructive and illegal and is what gives responsible boaties a bad name.

Vegan 2 ingredient waffles

I underestimated the popularity of vegan and gluten free recipes. The need for easy, tasty, budget friendly menus is very apparent by the number of requests I receive and the positive response to our númerous vegan presentations on our cheekyricho YouTube channel, whatever the reason, we are always on the look out for tasty family friendly meals that even omnivores will enjoy, in fact most of our vegan recipes are impossible to tell they are in fact vegan. This latest edition to our vegan and gluten free family is a crispy light 2 ingredient waffle. So much easier to make than regular ones, they are cheap, healthy can be frozen or even packed into a lunch box for that mid afternoon snack. High in fibre,  Low in fat, dairy, egg, gluten and nut free You have to give them a try http://youtu.be/BQjf2pgs4BA

Ultralight Camping Trip

Last night we decided to try our ultralight camp gear. The whole set up weighed a few kilos. That included  the exploding 2 man tent, sleeping bag, 2 camping pillows 2 thermarest air beds, a can of insect repellent, bed sheet and a couple of ikea extra light but warm little blankets( these only cost about $3,warm without weight,  dry quick when wet and are perfect for layering)

The first problem we encountered was rain and plenty of it. Richo wanted to turn back. He is such a towel chucka! 

I wasn't keen on putting a new untested tent up on muddy ground so we put it up (or it put itself up) on the back of the ute. Great no snakes, water inundation or mud on the tent or more importantly inside it. Richo was sceptical at first but quickly saw the merit in my suggestion. We tucked our shoes under the fly which kept them Warm and dry and allowed ample airflow inside without rain. We were off to a better start.

Then we had to blow up the air beds and pillows in the dark, inside the tent in the drizzling rain with the dogs who were confused as to why we got out of the warm car. Tilly had never seen the air beds blown up before and as they unfolded thought is was some sort of new cramped game I had invented. By the time I got to the last inflatablable Richo stopped wingeing and decided his new Cpap machine ( which is the worlds smallest and lightest machine and was purchased for just such an occasion) would blow up the last air bed. I was dizzy from blowing up things and wrestling with an excited to terrier to even mention the fact he could've suggested THAT earlier.

Our girls enjoyed a hearty feed of sticky pork ribs on the back of the ute between showers before they decided this camping idea wasn't too shabby after all.

This is our entire kit. The tent was watertite, wind and mozzie proof. They reckon it takes 2 seconds to put it up, I doubt it took that long. A little longer to put down but it wasn't dark or raining so that didn't matter. We were well rested and everything performed perfectly. It was our first trip, just overnight and we stayed warm, dry, bug free and had a reasonable nights sleep. The chihuahua loves camping and Tilly treats everything as a new adventure. Everything packed up into 1 bag plus the tent which actually has backpack straps on it. Looking forward to Doing it again soon.

Apple Cake cheekyricho YouTube video recipe

Apple Cake, this is incredibly easy, with rich caramel, spice and tender apple flavours you will be making it time and again. No special equipment needed for this one made in a few short minutes and then baked for about half am hour. It's buttery light and smells amazing . For the video recipe just check out our cheekyricho YouTube channel http://youtu.be/zK1oPKleG3q