It gets worse

I like the wagon!

Citroen C5

The Citroën C5 is a mid-size car produced by the French manufacturer Citroën since early 2001.

The C5 is available as a saloon/sedan or estate/station wagon, and replaced the Citroën Xantia in the large family car class. Power comes from by 1.8 L, 2.0 L and 3.0 L V6 petrol engines as well as 1.6 L, 2.0 L and 2.2 L direct injection Diesel engines with up to 136 hp (100 kW), capable of 127 mph (204 km/h) and a 10.2 second sprint to 0-60 mph (97 km/h). A comfortable interior and smooth ride are considered to be the C5's strongpoints, though customer satisfaction survey performances are frequently poor.

The C5 had a further development of Citroën's hydropneumatic suspension, now called Hydractive 3. The major change with this system was the use of electronic sensors to replace the mechanical height correctors seen in all previous hydropneumatic cars. This allowed the suspension computer to automatically control ride height: at high speed the suspension is lowered to reduce drag and at low speeds on bumpy roads the ride height is raised. Manual control of ride height was retained, though it was overridden by the computer if the car was driven at an inappropriate speed for the selected height. Certain cars also featured the computer controlled ride stiffness seen on Hydractive 2 Xantia and XM models.

In a major break with Citroën tradition, the brakes and steering were no longer powered by the same hydraulic system as the suspension. It has been speculated that the primary driver for this was the cost of developing electronic brake force distribution for the system when PSA already had an implementation for conventional brakes. Another factor may be the highly responsive nature of Citroën brakes, which some have found hard to adjust to on other hydropneumatic cars, though it is felt by some to be superior. It can be scary for a Citroën driver used to the instant reactions of an older hydropneumatic car to drive another vehicle and find an inch of pedal travel before any significant braking is achieved.

Unlike its predecessors, the C5 sedan is a "three-box" design, with a small portruding trunk. This form actually disguises a hatchback door, so Citroën has completely reversed design philosophy from the fastback sedan era of Robert Opron.

In 2004, the C5 got a major facelift (new front and rear ends; same centre section) to bring it into line with the look of the new Citroën C4. The car was lengthened from 4618 mm (182 in) to 4745 mm (187 in).

Second generation

The second generation C5 II is planned for the fall of 2007, which will retain the current concept of a sedan with a hatch. The range is predicted to include a V6 HDI version.

Yay, I am published!

I have had an article published in the Current Family Law journal!

Yes I wrote a law article. Yes me.

There is something quite exciting about having words you have written printed for everyone to see. I mean sure my article is very boring and I feel a little bit sorry for the legal types who have to read this sort of thing to try and keep up with current legislation but I wrote it.

So exciting!

Well I tried

I tried to make sultana biscuits for Tom....twice.

First time I put 3/4 cup of milk in instead of 2 tablespoons.

The second time I put 2 tablespoons of baking soda in instead of 1 teaspoon. Doh!

So I gave up and made a chocolate cake instead.

New Car?

I like the citroen C5s. The diesel engine is particularly efficent and the car is great looking.

Snickerdoodles

1 & 1/2 cups sugar

125 grams softened butter

125 grams copha

2 eggs

2 & 3/4 plain flour

2 teaspoons cream of tartar

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup sugar

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Heat oven to 200 degrees. Mix 1 1/2 cups sugar, the butter, shortening and eggs in large bowl. Stir in flour, cream of tartar, baking soda and salt. Shape dough into 1 1/4-inch balls. Mix 1/4 cup sugar and the cinnamon. Dip top of balls into cinnamon-sugar mixture. Place 2 inches apart on tray. Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until set. Remove immediately from tray to wire rack.

Caramel Mud Cake

Serving size: Serves 10 or more

Cooking time: More than 1 hour

INGREDIENTS

250g unsalted butter, chopped
200g good quality white chocolate, chopped
1¼ cups (255g) brown sugar
½ cup golden syrup
3 eggs, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups plain flour, sifted
2/3 cup self raising flour, sifted
300ml sour cream
60g unsalted butter, chopped
½ cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons cream
(approx) 1½ cups icing sugar, sifted

METHOD

Preheat oven to 160°C or 140°C fan forced. Grease and line a 22cm deep cake tin.

Place butter, chocolate, brown sugar and golden syrup in a medium sized saucepan. Cook over low heat until chocolate is melted and the sugar has dissolved. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly. Stir the mixture as it cools to ensure the sugar has all dissolved.

Beat in the eggs and the vanilla essence. Beat in the flour and sour cream. Pour into prepared tin.

Bake for 1½ hours, or until a skewer inserted comes out clean. Cover the cake with foil if it is browning too quickly. Cool the cake in tin before turning out.

To make the icing:
Melt butter in a saucepan. Add the brown sugar and cream and cook until butter melts Gradually add enough icing sugar to give a spreading consistency. Spread quickly over the cooled cake.

Chocolate plum puddings with Frangelico sauce

Prep: 10 mins
Cooking: 30 mins
Serves 4
20g butter, melted, plus extra to grease
1 large plum or 2 small plums, quartered, stone removed
1/3 cup (50g) self raising flour
1/4 cup (40g) plain flour
2 tbs cocoa
1/4 cup (55g) brown sugar
1 egg, lightly whisked
1/4 cup (60ml) milk
Double cream or ice cream, to serve
Sauce
1/4 cup (60ml) thickened cream
50g dark cooking chocolate, chopped up
1 1/2 tsp Frangelico

1 Preheat oven to 180°C. Grease 4 x 1/2 cup (125ml) ramekins with butter. Cut plum quarters into 4. Arrange over the base of the ramekins.

2 Sift the flours and cocoa into a bowl. Add sugar. Mix until combined.

3 Add the egg, milk and melted butter and mix. Divide the mixture over the plums. Bake in the oven for 25 mins. Set aside for 2 mins before turning out. (If the cakes dome, trim the tops to make a flat surface).

4 For the sauce, place the cream and chocolate in a bowl over a saucepan of simmering water. Stir until the mixture is smooth. Or, place in a bowl and melt in the microwave in 20 second intervals. Add the Frangelico and stir. Spoon the sauce over the top. Serve with cream or ice cream.