Random Picture of the Day: When Was the Last Time You Tried Indian Dancing Lessons?

Anny Chih — Fri, 08 Jan 2010 04:56:05 +0000

The UQ Indian Student Society’s Garba Night 2009

During my last week in Brisbane, I met up with my pals from work one last time for lunch. Sara asked me what I was doing that night, and I told her I was going to Indian dancing lessons with my friend Sarah. She noted that I was always doing something fun and exciting while I was in Oz and said it was probably because I was travelling.

You know what? She was totally right.

When was the last time you said ‘no’ to something in your city (coffee / movie / whatever) when you could’ve said ‘yes’? I know I sound a little bit like I belong on the set of ‘Yes Man’ but whatever. The point is still good and valid!

If you’re living the role of a traveller, don’t you find yourself so much more receptive to new experiences than when you’re living your regular life at home? Don’t you ever wonder if that boredom you feel on your living room couch has something to do with that ‘I’ve seen everything there is to see and done everything there is to do in this town’ or ‘I’m too tired to go out’ mentality?

Well, if you want to shed that skin of negativity you might be pleasantly surprised. Go Indian dancing!

By the way, that last part was a metaphor — don’t ask me where they have Indian dancing lessons in Vancouver because I really don’t know. Today’s picture was taken at the University of Queensland campus where the Indian Student Society had their annual Garba night. We got to dance with sticks!

The Tim Tam Tasting Challenge

Anny Chih — Sun, 02 Aug 2009 03:28:32 +0000

I call it a tasting because I bought every type of Tim Tam available at the store. I call it a challenge because eating that many Tim Tams IS a challenge.

You guys might remember me going about town back home (Burnaby BC) trying to find all the different varieties of Tim Tams we have available in Canada. I could only find three: Original, Classic Dark and Caramel. The original Tim Tam Test can be found HERE.

All 10 varieties of Tim Tams + other Arnott’s products

In Oz though, the home of Tim Tams, you can find at least ten varieties:

Tim Tam Original
Tim Tam Classic Dark
Tim Tam Caramel
Tim Tam Double Coat
Tim Tam Crush Cookies and Cream
Tim Tam Crush Mint Crisp
Tim Tam Crush Honeycomb
Tim Tam Sweet Surrender Choc Hazelnut Flavoured Mousse
Tim Tam Sweet Surrender Black Forest Delight
Tim Tam Sweet Surrender Creme Caramel

…and we tried them all!

Introducing Our Judging Panel

Ehon: Don’t let his size fool you, he can (and will) beat you in an eating contest!

Ehon is an educational research whiz kid from Malaysia. His hobbies include watching and reviewing movies, eating cookies, and meeting random people who tell him that Canada is the best place on earth. I know surprisingly little about him actually now that I think about it, especially considering we’ve spent hours talking already! *making a mental note to dig for more details*

Sarah: Tea and Tim Tams are tea-rriffic

Sarah is THE media guru who you may have met on her travels around the world with Best Job in the World Finalist Hailey Turner. I wouldn’t be surprised if you have met her because I swear this girl knows EVERYONE. Her hobbies include looking for ‘50s inspired house decor at outdoor markets, working on a million really cool projects at the same time, and pole dancing. She’s seriously cool.

Simon attempts his first Tim Tam Slam *dunk*

Simon is a Kiwi doing his PhD in Brisbane on a ridiculously obscure topic (all PhD theses are on obscure topics aren’t they?). His hobbies include dissecting the behaviour of sweaters and the elderly, helping teenagers through a program called Break Free Now, and sheep (he’s a kiwi after all).

Me: Why do I always have my mouth open in pictures?

And then there’s me (Anny — did I really need to write that? Probably not.)! My hobbies include gorging on sweets, taking terrible photos with my mouth open, and writing posts about my encounters with new foods.

The Challenge

We began with the Original to remind ourselves how Tim Tams began.
Then came our first set: Classic Dark, Chewy Caramel, and Double Coat.

The results were unanimous: Original was definitely the best as a regular cookie as well as for a Tim Tam Slam, though the Classic Dark was noted as being very close to being just as good. The Chewy Caramel wasn’t a favourite but was still better for a Tim Tam Slam than the Double Coat. I thought the Double Coat was too sweet and was annoyed with it because it wouldn’t soak up coffee without leaving a mess of chocolate all over the sides of the cup.

Next up: the Sweet Surrender Series — Choc Hazelnut Flavoured Mousse, Black Forest Delight, and Creme Caramel.

We started with the Creme Caramel and everyone was disgusted. We should’ve taken the overwhelming sweet smell as a warning. The thing was like death by sugar. On Sarah’s first bite, she wondered where the caramel was (she bit off an end). I bit mine through to the middle and got a heap of caramel; thick — will make your cavities hurt — caramel. I did a Tim Tam Slam (as I did with all the Tim Tams) and chewed the gooey mess. I felt like a horse with dentures.

I was a bit more hesitant with the Black Forest Delight now that I knew what it’s sister Tim Tam was like. It also had a very strong smell, but it was a berry-like smell. This one was better and you could tell they were going for a Black Forest taste (unlike the Creme Caramel that has a picture of a light flan on the package but has the taste and texture of caramel flavoured glue). The mousse and chewy filling were still not conducive to a Tim Tam Slam, but it didn’t make me feel sick like the Creme Caramel did. More horse with denture chewing.

Finally came the Choc Hazelnut Flavoured Mousse. Much better. Still not as good as the Original or Classic Dark for a Tim Tam Slam and still has a chewy center. But, as a cookie on its own, you can eat several without feeling sick and it’s got a nice chocolatey hazelnut flavour. This was the hands down winner of the set.

Final Tim Tam Set: Tim Tam Crush — Cookies and Cream, Mint Crisp, and Honeycomb.

We tried the Cookies and Cream first and the first thought that came to mind (and subsequently blurted out) was “Oh my god it tastes like lard!” That cream is naaaasstty. I don’t think anyone else felt as strongly about this one but it wasn’t picked by anyone as their top choice from the group either.

In general, the Tim Tam Crush cookies are terrible for Tim Tam Slams. They just don’t have enough biscuit to soak up coffee. I think the end verdict was two votes for Mint Crisp and two votes for Honeycomb. I voted for the Honeycomb because I knew that Arnott’s Mint Slices are better as a mint cookie than the Mint Crisp. A biased decision I guess. The Mint Crisp was a nice way to end this set though — it was refreshing. The Honeycomb is a very simple chocolate cookie with honeycomb bits. You can’t go wrong with that combo.

Finally, we tried the non-Tim Tams Arnott’s products: Mandarin Slice, Mint Slice, Caramel Crown and Dark Chocolate Royals.

By this point we were feeling pretty gross and Sarah and Simon refused to try the Mandarin Slices. Those of you who know me personally know that I haven’t eaten an orange in well over five years — probably closer to ten years. I’m also not a fan of orange & chocolate combinations. But, in the name of taste testing, I bit into the Mandarin Slice. Meh.. not as bad as I thought it would be, but definitely not something I’d buy again. It’s flavour is not as strong as a Terry’s Orange, has the same consistency of a Mint Slice or Chocolate Covered Mint Cookie from Girl Guides, and is light in comparison to the Tim Tam products. Not horrible, but not good either. Ehon tried one too and was ok with it.

Everyone had a Mint Slice. It would’ve been a nice way to end the tasting but there were still two more to go…

The Caramel Crown was boring. It’s like a Cadbury Caramilk with a cookie base and less chocolate. I didn’t finish mine. Ehon on the other hand was on a roll! I’m still surprised that he was able to finish every cookie.

And lastly, there was the Dark Chocolate Royals. It’s like the Australian version of a smore, and in a miniature size. If I hadn’t been feeling so sick by this point, I might have enjoyed it. Arnott’s Royals have a very light cookie base with fluffy marshmallow covered in a thin layer of dark chocolate. The marshmallow cream could have been sweeter and lighter and the cookie was not authentically graham cracker like, but the Royal as a whole was decent.

The Results

Of the Tim Tams, the Original was the clear winner but the Classic Dark was a definite runner-up. The Sweet Surrender series should be avoided (except for maybe the Choc Hazelnut Flavoured Mousse if you feel like a slightly heavier Tim Tam), and are terrible for Tim Tam Slams because of their thick chewy centers. The Tim Tam Crush series are ok… but I wouldn’t eat another Cookies and Cream Crush — it was all cream with chunky bits; Honeycomb and Mint Crisp are the better ones. Finally of the other Arnott’s products, Mint Slices rule, Mandarin Slices drool and Caramel Crowns and Royals are just copycats of other products.

I hope you’ve enjoyed reading about the Tim Tam Tasting Challenge! If you’re bored and have $40 burning a whole through your pocket, have a Tim Tam party of your own and let me know what your verdict is.

Tip For Travellers:

The price of Tim Tams in a store is a good way of checking how much they generally charge for other products in comparison to other supermarkets. You shouldn’t pay more than $2.75 for a package of Tim Tams in Australia and if the price is over $3 / pack, go elsewhere for your standard packaged goods.

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