OUT AND ABOUT

PTSD Dogs graduation

Hon David Littleproud MP and Llew O’Brien MP were welcome guests at the PTSD Dogs graduation on Tuesday 4 July at Cooroy RSL where a $3,000 grant for the organisation was announced.

Qld Garden Expo

The Qld Garden Expo at Nambour Showgrounds was abuzz over the weekend of 7-9 July with native and non-native bees. Thousands of eager gardeners attended looking for expertise, information and plants to take home.

National Lamington Day is on 21 July. No one knows exactly how the lamington came about but all stories involve Lord Lamington who was Governor of Qld from April 1896 until December 1901.

One story suggests that his chef was called on at short notice to feed unexpected guests. The chef made the cake with the limited number of ingredients he had on hand. The cake so impressed the guests that they asked for the recipe. Another story is that a maidservant accidentally dropped Lord Lamington’s favourite sponge cake into melted chocolate. Not wanting to waste the food Lord Lamington suggested covering the chocolate-covered sponge cake with coconut to make the cake less messy to eat.

There have been several variations to lamingtons over the years. One is to have a layer of cream or strawberry jam in between two halves of a lamington. Another is rolling the cake squares in red jelly instead of chocolate icing and then adding the coconut.

In 2009 as part of Qld’s 150th birthday celebrations the lamington was announced as one of the Q150 Icons of Qld for its role as an iconic innovation and invention. Celebrate National Lamington Day by inviting your friends over for a cuppa and a fresh batch of lamingtons!