Everyone worked in pairs to create their own delicious masterpiece.
The hardest thing was waiting for the pizza to cook ⏱️
The best part about making pizza was EATING it! 😁
Thanks everyone for signing up for the morning activity!
Learn English in Byron Bay. Lexis English students study General English, IELTS, FCE, CAE and English plus Surfing and Yoga in a friendly and professional school right in the heart of Byron Bay and only 15 minutes from the beach.
On Wednesday we had morning and afternoon Crepe Competitions!
We worked in two groups to follow the below simple crepe recipe:
INGREDIENTS
4 cups plain flour
A few pinches of salt
4 eggs
4 cups of milk
METHOD
Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Blend until smooth. Add a little water and mix to desired consistency. Cover and set aside to rest for 5 minutes.
Heat a medium non-stick frying pan over medium heat. Spray with cooking oil. Using 1/4 cup mixture per pancake, pour batter over pan, tilting from side to side so batter covers base in a thin film. Cook pancake for about 1 minute or until underside is golden, then use a spatula to flip. Cook other side for just under a minute until golden. Repeat with remaining mixture, spraying pan with cooking oil between pancakes.
Hongki impressed us all with his flipping skills, with Lisa and Laura also giving it a good go!
Once everyone had their own crepe, the competition started!
The students had strawberries, blueberries, bananas, honey, nutella, nuts and whipped cream at their disposal to help them create the winning crepe!
I couldn’t possibly try them all, so instead judged them on their appearance…
Talita and Busakorn took the win with their delicious looking creation, combining all the available ingredients!
Learn English in Byron Bay. Lexis English students study General English, IELTS, FCE, CAE and English plus Surfing and Yoga in a friendly and professional school right in the heart of Byron Bay and only 15 minutes from the beach
Yesterday we had so much fun in the kitchen for Crêpe making! 😀
Our Crêpe ingredients and delicious toppings: flour,eggs, milk, salt, cream, Nutella, honey, chopped nuts, strawberries, blueberries and bananas.
The first thing we had to do was make the batter for the crêpes – this involved blending the flour, eggs, pinch of salt and milk, until it was completely smooth.
Time to fry!!
Carina was impressing us all with her crêpe-flipping on the pan! (though it proved too fast to get a proper photo!)
Then it was time to add our delicious toppings…
The results were amazing – and delicious! 😀
Learn English in Byron Bay. Lexis English students study General English, IELTS, FCE, CAE and English plus Surfing and Yoga in a friendly and professional school right in the heart of Byron Bay and only 15 minutes from the beach
For our Cooking with Chocolate activity we made delicious Vegan Brownies!
We all worked as a team, following the below recipe:
5 tablespoons coconut oil
200g dark chocolate (dairy free if you want to make it vegan)
170g of self-raising flour
3 heaped teaspoons of cocoa powder
180g golden caster sugar
230ml coconut milk
200g raspberries
200g walnuts
Method
Preheat the oven to 180ºC/350ºF/gas 4. Grease a square baking tin (roughly 20cm) with a little oil, then line with greaseproof paper.
Place a heatproof bowl over a pan of simmering water, making sure the base doesn’t touch the water. Break 150g of chocolate into the bowl and allow it to melt, then set aside to cool slightly.
Meanwhile, sieve the flour and cocoa powder into a large bowl, then stir in the sugar. Stir in the oil, milk and melted chocolate until combined.
Chop and stir in the raspberries, remaining chocolate and most of the nuts reserving a few for the top. Pour the mixture into the prepared tin, spreading it out evenly. Sprinkle over the remaining walnuts, then place into the hot oven for 20 to 25 minutes, or until cooked on the outside, but still gooey in the middle.
Leave to cool for around 5 minutes, turn out onto a wire cooling rack.
We adapted it slightly by guessing how much of each ingredient to put in, rather than measuring it! We may have been slightly overgenerous with the sugar…
While we patiently waited the 25 minutes for them to bake in the oven, Maria entertained us by taking over the Happy Travels desk. I think selling travel could definitely be a future career for her!
After the timer went off we eagerly took the brownies out the oven and sat down to tuck in…
Much to our disappointment they were still very gooey in the middle. A few of us (myself included!) were so desperate for our chocolate fix that we were happy to eat them as they were, but the majority voted that we be patient and put them back in the oven for a further 15 minutes!
Back to passing the time we went…
Until they were ready 🙂 🙂 and definitely worth the wait!!
Learn English in Byron Bay. Lexis English students study General English, IELTS, FCE, CAE and English plus Surfing and Yoga in a friendly and professional school right in the heart of Byron Bay and only 15 minutes from the beach.
We have another great month of fun FREE activities exclusively for our LEXIS students!
All activities will be twice a day (unless stated otherwise), so both our morning and afternoon students have the opportunity to participate. Afternoon students will have their activities at 11.30am and morning students will be at 2pm (unless stated otherwise).
Joining the activities is a great way to make new friends, practice your English in a social environment , and of course have fun!!
All activities are free except for surfing ($25 for the monthly 1 hour special or $55 any day for the 2 hour lesson)!
Throughout the month we always have a variety of different activities, with a mix of sports, cooking and craft, so there’s something for everyone!
Once a month we have a free Sausage Sizzle for all of our students during the lunch break (12.15pm in front of school); this month it will be for Valentine’s Day on Thursday the 14th! We also have an early evening activity one Friday a month so our morning and afternoon students can mingle and enjoy some time together; this month it will be Beer Tasting on the 22nd!
We have free Yoga every Monday at 2pm and Tuesday at 11am – with Suzie in Room 8.
Every Monday at 11.30am and Tuesday at 2pm we have Coffee Club; join me or Orla for coffee, Tim Tams, games and conversations!
GIL (Guided Individual Learning) runs every day from 12-1pm and 2-3pm in Room 8. Come along to get help with anything from homework to vocabulary to writing your resume.
Teacher Kristy runs a free guided meditation every Wednesday morning between 8-8.30am in room 8.
Job Club is every Wednesday in Room 8 (with GIL). A teacher will be able to help you write resumes/cover letters, look for jobs, apply for TFN’s and give you advice on gaining your RSA or Barista license!
Don’t forget that you can book your 2-hour Surf Lessons with us anytime at Reception for just $55! Lessons are at 9am and 2pm every day, and 3.30pm on request.
For all your weekend activities check out the Happy Travels February calendar:
Learn English in Byron Bay. Lexis English students study General English, IELTS, FCE, CAE and English plus Surfing in a friendly and professional school right in the heart of Byron Bay and only 15 minutes from the beach.
Last week, for our Brazilian Cooking activity, we made Brazilian dessert favourite brigadeiros <3
I printed out the below (very simple) recipe, but Brazilian student Lucas told me it wouldn’t be needed as he threw everything in the saucepan, using his judgement over measurements!
Recipe: Mix 1 tin of sweetened condensed milk, 15 grams of butter and 3 table spoons of cocoa powder over medium heat until thickened. Let it cool then roll into balls!
When rolling the mixture into balls it’s advised to put butter on your hands first to stop it sticking; this worked for everyone but me, who ended up in a real mess!
It was only a few of us making them but once we’d then covered them in chocolate sprinkles and nuts more students suddenly appeared to help us eat them!
Learn English in Byron Bay. Lexis English students study General English, IELTS, FCE, CAE and English plus Surfing and Yoga in a friendly and professional school right in the heart of Byron Bay and only 15 minutes from the beach.
We have another great month of fun FREE activities exclusively for our LEXIS students!
All activities will be twice a day (unless stated otherwise), so both our morning and afternoon students have the opportunity to participate. Afternoon students will have their activities at 11.30am and morning students will be at 2pm (unless stated otherwise).
Joining the activities is a great way to make new friends, practice your English in a social environment , and of course have fun!!
All activities are free except for surfing ($25 for the monthly 1 hour special or $55 any day for the 2 hour lesson)!
To welcome our new Cambridge students (as well as our new General English students and also welcome back our returning students!) we will be treating you all to FREE PIZZA! This will be in front of school during the lunch break (12.15pm) on December the 31st.
We are then closed on Tuesday the 1st for New Years Day (so you can all recover from your celebrations!) and then start off the new year with our popular Coffee Club on Wednesday the 2nd! Coffee Club will then be every Tuesday. Join Orla at 11.30am or me (Claire) at 2pm for coffee, Tim Tams and games!
Monday the 7th we have another big group of new starters so will be having a Sausage Sizzle for the whole school to enjoy together and meet some new friends! This will be at 12.15pm in front of school. Another free lunch on us!
From Monday the 14th we will start to have Yoga twice a day, at 11.30am and 2pm in Room 8.
Our first cooking activity of the month is Brazilian Cooking on the 3rd, where we’ll be making delicious brigadeiros, and then on the 17th we have Mexican Cooking, where we’ll be making tasty enchiladas and tacos!
As the beautiful summer weather continues we have some fun beach activities planned throughout the month: Volleyball on the 4th, Beach Games on the 18th, Body Boarding on the 24th and a Beach Picnic on the 30th.
For competitions we have our monthly Table Tennis Tournament on the 16th and a Soccer Match on the 23rd.
We’ll be getting arty, crafty and creative with Boomerang Painting on the 10th and Jewellery Making on the 31st.
Our 1 hour Surf Special for $25 is on the 9th. This is a great option to give surfing a try and see if you’d like to book on to one of the 2 hour lessons for $55! Sign up and pay in reception. Picks up from school will be at 10am and 3pm. Limited spots available so be quick!
We will be having a couple of Friday evening activities so both our morning and afternoon students can enjoy together. This starts with Casino Royale on the 11th and then Wine Tasting on the 25th; both at 5.30pm.
School will be closed for another Public Holiday on Monday the 28th. This time for Australia Day!
GIL (Guided Individual Learning) runs every day from 12-1pm and 2-3pm in Room 8. Come along to get help with anything from homework to vocabulary to writing your resume.
Teacher Kristy runs a free guided meditation every Wednesday morning between 8-8.30am in room 8.
Job Club is every Wednesday in Room 8 (with GIL). A teacher will be able to help you write resumes/cover letters, look for jobs, apply for TFN’s and give you advice on gaining your RSA or Barista license!
Don’t forget that you can book your 2-hour Surf Lessons with us anytime at Reception for just $55! Lessons are at 9am and 2pm every day, and 3.30pm on request.
For all your weekend activities check out the Happy Travels January calendar:
Learn English in Byron Bay. Lexis English students study General English, IELTS, FCE, CAE and English plus Surfing in a friendly and professional school right in the heart of Byron Bay and only 15 minutes from the beach.
Last week to help get us in the festive spirit we had a Christmas themed cooking activity!
To start with we followed the below simple recipe to make bliss balls:
1 cup walnuts (100 grams)
1 cup almond meal (80 grams)
1/4 cup cacao or cocoa (20 grams)
12 dates, seeds removed (180 grams)
1 tablespoon honey (30 grams)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
pinch of salt
Place the ingredients into your processor and blend at high speed until the mixture resembles a fine, sticky crumb. Firmly press and shape the mixture into balls. Place in the fridge to set.
Eat and enjoy.
We then covered them in coconut flakes and icing sugar so they would resemble snowmen. They of course weren’t complete until they had their eyes (chocolate chips), nose (m&ms) and scarf (sour lace) though!
We also created some from marshmallows, even simpler than making the bliss balls!
What they may have lacked in appearance they certainly made up for in taste! The bliss balls were simply delicious!!
Learn English in Byron Bay. Lexis English students study General English, IELTS, FCE, CAE and English plus Surfing and Yoga in a friendly and professional school right in the heart of Byron Bay and only 15 minutes from the beach.
Last Thursday we had a Spanish Cooking day, with both our morning and afternoon classes having a turn in the kitchen 🙂
I did my research, looking at various different recipes for paella and then combining the most common ingredients from each into my own paella recipe. I was feeling pretty confident and was ready to impress the Spanish with my knowledge of their cuisine…
but sadly this was not the case! Despite 6 of the 10 recipes I looked at saying you put Spanish chorizo in, you in fact definitely do not put chorizo in a Spanish paella! You also do not put paprika in a Spanish paella, but should instead use saffron!
Despite it not being the paella they were quite expecting it was great to see the Spanish so passionate about one of their countries most popular dishes, and also learning from them the correct way to cook it! Next time I will definitely be asking them to check the recipe before I buy the ingredients!
Our Italian, Swiss, Czech, Belgian and Brazilian students that joined were happy to follow my recipe though and we ended up with what we thought was a delicious paella! However, the best response I got from our Spanish students was Rosario saying ‘it’s really nice tasting rice’!!
You can follow my recipe below for nice tasting rice, or ask one of our Spanish students for the proper way to make an authentic Spanish paella!
PAELLA!!
1 red onion, cut into thin wedges
1 brown onion, cut into thin wedges
1 red capsicum, coarsely chopped
1 tablespoon olive oil
3 garlic cloves, crushed
2 chorizo, thinly sliced
160g (1 cup) frozen peas, thawed
500g marinara mix
3 teaspoons paprika
3 cups arborio rice
800g can chopped Italian tomatoes
4 cups Massel chicken style liquid stock
1 cup fresh parsley leaves, roughly chopped
Step 1
Heat the oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add chorizo and onion. Stir for 2-3 minutes or until light golden. Add capsicum, garlic and paprika. Stir for 1 minute or until aromatic.
Step 2
Stir in the rice, tomatoes and chicken stock. Stir in the marinara mix. Bring to the boil. Reduce heat to low. Cook, covered, for 10 minutes or until rice is tender and seafood is just cooked.
Step 3
Stir in the peas. Rest for 5 minutes.
Step 4
Sprinkle with parsley. Serve.
Learn English in Byron Bay. Lexis English students study General English, IELTS, FCE, CAE and English plus Surfing and Yoga in a friendly and professional school right in the heart of Byron Bay and only 15 minutes from the beach
