‘RIP’: Australian media revels in ‘deeply lamented’ death of Bazball after Ashes woe
The sports sections of Australia’s major mastheads were on Monday largely dedicated to ridiculing pre-series predictions of an England Ashes victory, and announcing the end of the tourists’ now-compromised attacking philosophy.“Bazball is dead”, asserted the Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, quoting former Australian opener Simon Katich.The West Australian newspaper fully committed to the theme, mocking up a pronouncement of Bazball’s passing on ye olde parchment, “deeply lamented by Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes, but basically no one else”.However, the triumphal moment in the country’s greatest sporting rivalry was diluted in Monday’s newspapers, as a belated and ultimately hard-earned Ashes victory was pushed from the front pages by the fallout from the Bondi terror attack.In The Sydney Morning Herald, the match didn’t warrant a mention on either the front page or the news section, even though the series arrives at the SCG in less than two weeks.
Others carried page one photos with pointers to the sport sections, although the victory was the splash across the front of the hometown Advertiser in Adelaide, after the city broke its Test match attendance record.Much ink on the back pages was dedicated to mockery of comments by English observers in the lead-up – including from Stuart Broad – that this Australian team was the worst since 2011.“Rampant Aussies prove point,” splashed the Advertiser across two of its seven pages of coverage, a spread duplicated in New Corp’s other tabloids.“How the ‘worst Australian team in 15 years’ retained urn after just 11 days” was the subject of analysis in the The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald, as News Corp replicated the theme: “Cummins’ men beat odds to make mockery of Broad’s prediction”.Yet a sense of celebration pervaded the column inches, recognising the achievements of an Australian team that overcame the loss of key players to secure the urn in just 11 days, tying the record for the shortest number of days required with Steve Waugh’s greats of the noughties.
“Long live Ashes kings,” declared The Australian.Mitch Starc’s desire to play all five Tests and push for an Ashes whitewash threw forward towards the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne, where captain Pat Cummins and spinner Nathan Lyon are in danger of missing out.Melbourne’s Herald Sun warned: “Next stop, 5-0”.
A fresh take on wine pairings for Christmas dessert
It may well be that you already have a drink that you traditionally like to sip on after dinner (or lunch), and who am I to tell you that needs to change? Even so, I have a few ideas for drinks you might like to try instead.The Guardian’s journalism is independent. We will earn a commission if you buy something through an affiliate link. Learn more.Let’s start with the classics
How to eat, drink and be merry – while pregnant – at Christmas
For a festival with childbirth at its religious heart, it is perverse how much of our traditional Christmas spread isn’t recommended for pregnant women. Pre-pregnancy, this was not something I’d clocked. I was the soft cheese supremo, canape queen – at my happiest with a smoked trout blini in one hand and a champagne flute in the other. Then one day in October, two blue lines appeared on a test result and everything started to change: my body, my future and most pressingly my Christmas.The Guardian’s journalism is independent
Jeremy Lee’s recipe for almond, chocolate and prune tart
A recipe box was rifled through, but, alas, much like shopping for a present last minute, nothing leapt to the fore. Out of the corner of an eye I spied an old folder of pudding menus, all stained and tattered. A wonder at how this might have escaped notice was soon dispelled – unsurprising, really, given the usual state of my desk and shelves – and the page on which it fell open revealed the scribbles for a midwinter pudding menu. And, just like that, as if the scent rose from the page itself, came a memory of an almond, chocolate, walnut and prune tart being lifted from the oven, all mahogany hued and with a few bubbles bursting from the pieces of chocolate among the prunes peeking out.My appetite for almond tart has never waned; be it in a restaurant kitchen or at home, an almond tart is nigh-on inevitable
Creme brulee and chocolate bundt cake: Nicola Lamb’s Christmas crowdpleasers – recipes
Even though our to-do lists are longer and our homes busier than ever, there’s something about Christmas that gives us the extra chutzpah to bake. And not just any baking, but baking for a crowd. So, with this in mind, here are two crowdpleasing recipes – a rich hazelnut “Nutcracker” creme brulee and a resplendent chocolate fondant bundt cake – with a few make-ahead and shortcut secrets to give you a head start.Serve this rich, decadent dessert warm from the oven in the centre of the table, piled with ice-cream (and perhaps pouring cream, too – why not? It’s Christmas!). The batter can be made and kept in the fridge for up to 24 hours, then baked from chilled; add an extra 10 minutes to the cooking time if you do so, though
How to turn excess yoghurt into a silky-smooth dessert – recipe | Waste not
A delicious, gelatine-free panna cotta that saves yoghurt from the waste binI was really shocked to learn from environmental action NGO Wrap that, of the 51,000 tonnes of yoghurt that’s wasted in the UK every year, half of it is in unopened pots! The reason is our old arch enemy, date labels, which can cause confusion and trick us into thinking that perfectly safe yoghurt is not OK to eat. That’s one reason many supermarkets have scrapped use-by dates on the likes of yoghurt, but they still use best-before dates. Remember, if a product doesn’t have a use-by date, always do the sniff test before throwing it away.Today’s recipe is a light, gelatine-free version of panna cotta that’s instead set with agar agar (a type of seaweed), which gives it a soft-set texture. It’s refreshing, deliciously sour and simple to make
Benjamina Ebuehi’s pistachio and cherry meringue cake recipe | The sweet spot
I’m switching up my usual Christmas pavlova this year for a slightly different but equally delicious meringue-based dessert. Discs of pistachio meringue are baked until crisp, then layered with pistachio cream and cherry compote. The meringue softens a little under the cream as it sits, giving it a pleasingly chewy, cake-like texture. A very good option if you’re after a Christmas dessert without chocolate, alcohol or dried fruit.Thanks to the viral Dubai chocolate bar, pistachio creme is quite easy to come by in most supermarkets these days; it’s already sweetened and brings a lovely, soft green colour
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