Month: April 2019

South Island New Zealand

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The South Island of New Zealand is a more popular tourist destination than the North Island. An ideal amount of time in the South Island would be at least two weeks. If you are thinking of doing any over night hikes especially for the Milford track, do remember to make bookings at least six months in advance because it is extremely popular during the Great Walks Season. Initially I had booked for the Routeburn track. Unfortunately, due to an accident in October, I was physically unable to complete a 3D2N hike so I had to make last minute changes to my itinerary. As it was over Christmas period, most of the accommodations were fully booked in Queenstown or ridiculously expensive, we ended up staying at Cardona Alpine Resort which has got to be one of the best places I’ve stayed in New Zealand! Here I am sharing my South Island itinerary, hope that you’ll enjoy it as much as I did!  Destination Duration of stay Distance to next destination Picton 2 nights (N) ~279km Waipara …

Gluten free hot cross buns

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The annual hot cross buns baking begins. This year, I’m making gluten-free hot cross buns so that Mr X can enjoy. Making gluten free bread is a real challenge. I analysed a couple of recipes and looked at the type of ingredients they had included before coming up with one. The first buns I made tasted good but resembled more like a scone then a bread. So I did more research and read about adding xanthan gum to give it more elasticity. On my second attempt, I’ve added Xanthan gum and there was a difference in texture of the dough as I was kneading it. The end result was softer and tasted so much better! I was on a baking craze yesterday and I made both gluten-free and non-gluten free hot cross buns. I still prefer my non-gluten free ones but the gluten free ones tasted good too! I’ve chosen to add dates instead of sultanas into the buns but feel free to add whatever ingredients you like. Both buns are best served heated up …