New Financial Year Resolutions

Broadening your culinary horizons

I haven’t had fast food from a major chain for more than three months. I stopped on July 1. It’s a pretty big effort because I love fast food. Especially KFC.

I was just reading an article about “secret menu items” that I’d kept in the blogging queue for a couple of months. I just hadn’t got around to posting it yet.

But the point of this post is to share with you my infinite fast food wisdom… some of you may know this already, but other people I’ve spoken to don’t…

You can literally create whatever you want at Maccas from the available menu items – and they’ll make it for you.

Some of my favourites included the Chicken Patty Big Mac, the Flake Shake with chocolate sundae sauce, double bacon cheeseburgers (before they were put back on the menu), and the legendary “pounder”… used in Christian bucks parties around the country.

If you really want to broaden your fast food horizons though – check out the Fancy Fast Food website I posted about a while back.

October 1, 2009

Moral Dilemma: What constitutes fast food

Readers who’ve been around for more than a couple of weeks will know that I swore off Fast Food as a new financial year resolution.

This presents me with an interesting dilemma. For years I have had a not so secret fixation with Nandos. Their Peri Peri spice is delicious.

Sadly, it has been an unrequited affair of the palate – there has not been a Nandos in Townsville. Until now. It opened pretty soon after I took my vow to forswear “fast food” – by which I meant the major chains – Maccas, KFC, Hungry Jacks and Red Rooster.

And so it comes to pass… I must decide whether Nandos is fast food, in the sense ruled out by the spirit of my self imposed ban.

What say you noble readers?

July 22, 2009

Move over MasterChef

This my friends is a McDonalds meal. But not an ordinary McDonalds meal. If you’ve ever marvelled at the difference between the picturesque presentation of a burger on the menu and the burger in hand then this site takes things to a new level.

If I hadn’t sworn off fast food for a year I would try this. It’s a post from this is why you’re fat.

Here are the instructions for converting a Big Mac into what is known as a McSteak.

Ingredients:

1 McDonald’s Big Mac Extra Value Meal (#1) with a large fries and large Coca-Cola

First deconstruct the Big mac into its parts: (sing along now) two all beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese,pickles, onions, and a sesame seed bun… plus the french fries, ice, and Coca-Cola. Dice the cheese, cube the middle and bottom buns, and extract the sesame seeds from the top bun. Take the french fries and some pieces of bun and purée them in a food processor with water (melted ice), then top it off with the diced cheese. Rinse the onions and lettuce in a colander and garnish it with “croutons” made from cubed bun pieces. Slice the beef patties, and then garnished it with sesame seeds and top it off with slices of pickles. Serve on a white rounded square plate with a dollop of Thousand Island dressing (the special sauce); serve the Coca-Cola in a wine glass.

July 3, 2009

Happy New Year

The new financial year starts today. You’re no doubt all very excited.

I am. I made some new financial year resolutions. They’re the only resolutions worth keeping (and I’ve managed twice in the past).

This year I’m giving up fast food and soft drink. Take that calories.

I thought about giving up beer and coffee too – but then I’d be grumpy all the time.

I did soft drink in 06/07 and fast food in 07/08 – and nothing in 08/09 – so this year is a combined effort.

Have you made any? Financial year resolutions are awesome.

July 1, 2009

Where there’s smoke…

Hello blog reader.

It has been a while since my last post and much has happened. I recently celebrated the one year anniversary of my new financial year resolution to not eat fast food. My definition of “fast food” included anything from McDonalds, Hungry Jacks, KFC and Red Rooster. I’m happy to announce that I made the whole year – plus some nine days as I’m yet to return. This year’s NFYR sees me forswear the joys of carbonated “soft” drink including the products of Coca Cola and Pepsi – but not extending to Bundaberg Ginger Beer or Lemon, Lime and Bitters at the pub.

I got all cultured and stuff in the last week with the Australian Festival of Chamber Music. I went to their gala “Chefs in the North” dinner as I did last year. The food was above average and the wine was superb. Robyn and I went to the Guv’nr’s Gala Concert on Saturday night featuring a string quartet from NZ, an opera performance, some improv didge and a pretentious “art” piece from the festival’s resident composer.

I spent Friday on a luxury charter boat circumnavigating Magnetic Island – I’ll post photos later. Wedding plans are continuing – we’re putting together a map so that people can find the farm. It’s exciting times people. That’s a little update from me…

And now, without further ado – the subject of my topic… Daniel Johns and Peter Garrett. The Australian media was briefly up in arms today, keen to see Garrett’s credibility go up in flames over allegations made that he’d been burning the Midnight Oil (and some THC) with the Silverchair singer and U2’s Bono.Johns was quick to hose down the speculation – claiming he’d made a spur of the moment, off the cuff, joke to lighten the mood on JJJ’s sullen breakfast program… from Crikey –

”In an interview I did this morning on Triple J I made a stupid joke. It’s just been brought to my attention that some people in the media have taken my dumb joke seriously so I want to set the record straight. At no time have I ever “smoked a joint” with Bono or Peter Garrett. They are both well known to be very anti-drugs so that’s why I assumed everybody would know I was joking when I made that comment. Clearly that wasn’t the case and I feel sick that I might have caused embarrassment to two people who I admire so much.”

“I was fortunate enough to once get to play them some of my demo’s but I swear that no joints were involved. I guess I felt a bit like a namedropper mentioning them on the radio so that’s why I added a silly throwaway joke. I accept that drug use is no laughing matter and I apologize sincerely for any confusion or harm I’ve caused. Just by the way, this is one of the reasons why I hate doing interviews. I really should just shut up and stick to singing.”

Convincing? I’m not so sure.

July 9, 2007