HAPPENSTANCE, PANSIES AND WONTONS

This ‘Post A Day’ malarkey was not clever of WordPress. Firstly, it creates unnecessary pressure on the blogger to come up with meaningful content every day. Secondly, it is extremely stressful, if you are away from the internet for a single day, to catch up with your friends’ posts. I’ve decided not to worry too much about it …
No rose today, my lovelies, some pretty petunias and pansies instead. We’re not allowed to say ‘pansy’ in this country anymore, it was fine to say back in the day when pansy was a flower and gay meant happy, but nowadays the gay boys take umbrage. Better to call them – as Kathy in Canada does, ‘Johnny-jump-ups’ …

Fuchsia seems the leitmotif-palette for my life at the moment. This is my new ‘office’. Ain’t it pretty? From here I can watch summer unfold; on either side of the salon is a restaurant, one Italian and the other Asian, both busy all day.

Noun
1.
happenstance – an event that might have been arranged although it was really accidental
coincidence
chance event, fortuity, accident, stroke – anything that happens suddenly or by chance without an apparent cause; “winning the lottery was a happy accident”; “the pregnancy was a stroke of bad luck”; “it was due to an accident or fortuity …[Chambers Dictionary]

I feel so lucky; there is a Chinese supermarket right next door to the salon! Can you imagine how excited I was to discover this? I have befriended the owner and have already earmarked a number of items which I will buy with my first salary cheque.

After ages of searching, I finally have a source for wonton wrappers and was able to make sweet & sour pork wontons in the steamer I’ve owned for more than a year and have never used. They turned out a bit fiddly, but practice makes perfect. With a ginger and chilli dipping sauce, they went down a treat and Old Spouse managed to polish off 2 dozen. I am thinking of doing them again tonight, with peanut chicken filling.

But now I must dash; there is frivolity that must be attended to, I am thinking ‘mango’ is a good shade for my nails today…

FEED ‘EM IN COMPARTMENTS

“There’s no such thing as a tough child – if you parboil them for seven hours, they always come out tender.” W.C. Fields (1880-1946)
In the early pages of Mark Haddon’s novel ‘The curious incident of the dog in the night-time’ we learn – from the young protagonist, Christopher – that children with Asperger Syndrome will not eat their food if the peas or potatoes are touching the meat …
This aversion is not exclusive to children Christopher’s condition within the autism spectrum; most kids don’t like their food to mingle.

Another factor that may be daunting to children and cause them not to want to eat is the over-crowded plate. It is far better to use an outsize plate that will make the food appear to the child to be manageable.
Stick-foods are great, because they allow kids to eat with their hands. Lamb Kofta looks far less frightening than a bowl of curry and lets you introduce spices to their palate. They can be served cold and – so – are a handy item to have in the fridge to add to the school lunch box.

Easy lamb koftas: (Makes 8 / 2 each for a family of 4)
500g minced lamb
1 TBS Nomu Cajun Rub
2 large eggs
3 TBS breadcrumbs
Salt & pepper to taste
Oil for frying

Mix all ingredients together in a bowl, using your hands. Scoop handfuls of the mixture and form around 15cm long kebob skewers. Set on waxed paper and place in the fridge for thirty minutes. Remove from fridge and fry in hot oil until browned.
Set in a casserole dish and cover with tomato relish.
Will keep in the fridge for two days; eat cold or microwave to heat.

Related post:
http://theonlycin.wordpress.com/2010/08/12/nurture-healthy-food-relationships-for-your-kids/

You can’t hide mashed potatoes in your hat. Chris, age 9
When food tastes terrible, you can say you have a toothache and you won’t have to eat it. Nakia, age 9
You should never try to stick peas in your pocket at dinnertime. Renee, age 13
I can never get away with feeding my broccoli to the dog. Joanne, age 10
If there is something bad for dinner, your parents don’t have to eat it, but you do. Deanna, age 11
You can’t fake a stomachache right before you’re having spinach for dinner. Jessica, age 11
If you put your peas in your mashed potatoes, they don’t taste so bad. Jonah, age 10
Sometimes you take too much food at dinner and you can’t eat it. Always make sure you have a baked potato because you can eat the middle and use the skin to hide the food until you take it to the sink. Then shove it down the disposal. Chris, age 14
Putting your vegetables on your little sister’s plate doesn’t work. Nicole, age 11

BORER BEETLES AND CUSTARD MINGLES

Borer beetles are more interesting than custard! One species, the Death Watch Beetle, to attract mates, create a tapping or ticking sound that can be heard in the rafters of old buildings on quiet summer nights. They are therefore associated with quiet, sleepless nights and are named for the vigil (watch) kept beside the dying or dead, and by extension the superstitious have seen the death watch as an omen of impending death. How do I know this?
I’ve become familiar with boring lately; sitting on the internet, trying to stave off insomnia by searching for boring quotes to make me fall asleep. I found some very successful ones:
• The Lexmark Z25 Colour printer has a sound emission of 44dB.
• Did you know that St John’s Wood underground station is the only station in London that doesn’t contain letters from the word Mackerel?
• A Booby is a type of bird with webbed feet.
ARE YOU STILL WITH ME??? WAKE UP!

I also found that Fish Sticks and Custard is “a radio show on WVKC coming outta Galesburg every Tuesday at 8”, because I was searching for an interesting fact about custard with which to open my entry into Meeta’s Monthly Mingle, which is being hosted by Sally this month and features custard.

Alas, my custard tastes are boring too; I like it thin, pouring consistency, over a rich chocolate cake, or layered with preserved green figs from Granaat in the Karoo in a trifle that is a sublime mix of bitter and sweet …

Ps: Do you want to go back to sleep now? Okey dokey:
“Adopting a standard radius of curvature for the tines on a fork would allow 5% more cutlery to fit in a drawer, which for the whole of the UK would fill a football pitch the size of Wales with double decker buses.” Zzzzzzzzz….

NOVEMBER IN MY KITCHEN

And so begins November, also known as ‘Mo-vember’; thus explained by Wikipedia:
Movember (a portmanteau of “moustache” and “November”) is an annual, month-long event involving the growing of moustaches during the month of November. The event was conceived in 1999 by a group of Australian men from Adelaide.
Since 2004, the Movember Foundation charity has run Movember events to raise awareness and funds for men’s health issues, such as prostate cancer and depression, in Australia and New Zealand. In 2007, events were launched in Ireland, Canada, Czech Republic, Spain, the United Kingdom, Israel, and the United States. {My note: It is HUGE in South Africa!}
In 2010, Movember merged with the testicular cancer event Tacheback
RULES:
1. On “Shadowe’en” (October 31), the complete moustache region, including the entire upper lip and handlebar zones, must be completely shaved.
2. For the entire duration of Movember [November 1–30], no hair shall be allowed to grow in the goatee zone (any facial area below the bottom lip).
3. There is to be no joining of the moustache to sideburns.

November is also the month in which my roses show off shamelessly and I am able to have them constantly in my kitchen.

And so to Celia’s monthly initiative: November in my kitchen.

First off; Giorgio Locatelli’s book ‘Made in Italy / Food and stories’, which was sent to me by an anonymously generous person so long ago that I can’t remember the month. I’ve flipped through it, but took it up in earnest last night and ended up reading until after 3am. I am now so tired that I am having auditory hallucinations. (Unfortunately it is Manfred Mann’s song ‘Pretty Flamingo’ …)
I never much cared for Mr. Locatelli; his habit of running his food-stained hands through his hair did not make me love him. However, this book has made me change my mind drastically. Filled with delicious food, the recipes are interspersed with chapters of touching stories about Locatelli’s childhood and his journeys to the success he is today.

He is clearly a kind man, a caring father and a chef who has a deep conscience about providing superb food in an ecologically friendly manner. The book is an absolute must for anybody who loves food and the history of ingredients.

I did remember – at around 2am, that I still had to use two ingredients that have long been waiting on my grocery shelf: Wild Hibiscus Flowers in Syrup (from Tandy) and Woolworths Marinated Artichokes Quarters. Watch this space!
Lastly, Amy commented on my salad servers yesterday:

When I owned a holiday home in Glencairn, in Simonstown / Cape Town, I would let my friends have free use of it for their holiday accommodation. No charge. The only condition was that they had to supply the one thing they felt they couldn’t have done without during their holiday. One couple bought a furry blanket to leave by the fireside, someone else left a copy of Roberts Birds of Southern Africa and once there was a set of steak knives and these salad servers.

MONDAY THINGS

I watch a fair whack of food programmes on TV and – instead of keeping a notebook handy to jot things down – I rely on my memory to come through when I eventually decide to cook the dish. Not a good idea.
I saw someone (most likely Ina Garten) make a warm pasta salad with smoked bacon and I had a beautiful package of Wiltshire back bacon, so – when Tandy issued rocket as her latest seasonal ingredient challenge – I knew exactly what I wanted to make.

I made the salad as a side dish for our steaks, but it would me perfect on its own as a Meatless Monday Meal.

2 cups cooked fusilli
6 rashers smoked bacon crisply fried and diced
1 can of chickpeas, drained
1 handful of mixed Tuscan herbs (I used Watercress, mizuna, rocket and red spinach)
Salt & pepper to taste
Juice of 1 lemon and a drizzle of olive oil

As is always the case, the simplest dishes always come out tops. We loved this salad, the bite of the rocket was a perfect playmate for the other ingredients.

From Wikipedia:

Eruca sativa (syn. E. vesicaria subsp. sativa (Miller) Thell., Brassica eruca L.), is an edible annual plant, commonly known as rocket, roquette, rucola or arugula, not to be confused with Wild rocket. It is a species of Eruca native to the Mediterranean region, from Morocco and Portugal east to Lebanon and Turkey.

And here are my answers to Mandy ‘s latest ‘Getting To Know You Challenge’:
1. Who would you be honoured to have cook in your kitchen?
Anthony Bourdain … naked.
2. What have you always wanted to cook or eat but never have?
Tripe
3. What is your favourite part of a chicken?
That little fillet of soft meat in the back.
4. Do you use a knife or a vegetable peeler to peel potatoes?
Most of a potato’s fibre is in the skin, peeling it is just silly.
5. What one item do you keep in the kitchen you know you shouldn’t use but do?
Ready-rolled frozen puff pastry. So sue me!
6. Do you like using the new culinary foam with your meals?
I don’t know anything about the product.
7. What 3 meals would you take to a friend who is sick in bed?
And catch their germs, are you crazy???

CHOCOLATE CAKE AND KISSING DOGS

Once upon a time……….
…………they all lived happily ever after.
That’s Sidey’s challenge this week. Unfortunately, tales of happy ever after are far and far between. Instead, we stumble over minutiae; electrical appliances die, as do loved ones. Bills arrive at inopportune moments and the car needs a service, but only after the cat has been neutered …
Life happens and that’s when chocolate cake helps …

Read these two chocolate-related posts:
http://johnell74.wordpress.com/2011/10/29/change/
http://paulatohlinecalhoun1951.wordpress.com/2011/10/28/fridays-fabulous-facts/
I’m off to my kitchen to cook lunch for my MIL’s birthday, I leave you with this piece of trivia, bet you didn’t know:
At least 63% of dog owners admitted to kissing their dogs. Of these, some 45% kissed them on the nose, 19% on the neck, 7% on the back, 5% on the stomach and 2% on the legs. An additional 29% listed the place they kiss their dog as other! (freakyanimals.com)

PUMPKIN GRINCH

A Google search for ‘pumpkin quotes’ yields “About 3,660,000 results (0.14 seconds).”
Yes, more than three-and-a-half million results. The world has gone bananas with Halloween fever, and that includes South Africa. Pumpkins are selling for between R70 and R100. I’ve no idea what today’s exchange rate to the US$ us, but – as a Facebook friend rightly commented – “…bloody hell…does it come with white horses and a coachman…?”

The pumpkins are selling out like nobody’s business and the toys shops are doing a roaring trade in expensive costumes; gone are the days of ‘make your own’. On Monday we’ll have brats-with-buckets begging for treats, I am thinking of tricking them with the water-hose instead.
Yes, if there was a Grinch-equivalent for Halloween, I am it and I don’t care who knows it. I’m giving my daughter a butternut I paid 50 cents for, she can have a gemsquash too, they’re only R10 a bag. And as for the begging-brigade, they can have slices of my butternut bread; I dare them to refuse …

I adapted a recipe I found here and omitted the nuts as O Bunn is not a fan of them, I also substituted butternut for the pumpkin:

VERY SHARP

“

Now we have heard how Mrs. Sedley had prepared a fine curry for her son, just as he liked it, and in the course of dinner a portion of this dish was offered to Rebecca. “What is it?” said she, turning an appealing look to Mr. Joseph.
“Capital,” said he. His mouth was full of it; his face quite red with the delightful exercise of gobbling. “Mother, it’s as good as my own curries in India.”
“Oh, I must try some, if it is an Indian dish,” said Miss Rebecca. “I am sure everything must be good that comes from there.”
“Give Miss Sharp some curry, my dear,” said Mr. Sedley, laughing.
Rebecca had never tasted the dish before.
“Do you find it as good as everything else from India?” said Mr. Sedley.
“Oh, excellent!” said Rebecca, who was suffering tortures with the cayenne pepper.
“Try a chili with it, Miss Sharp,” said Joseph, really interested.
“A chili,” said Rebecca, gasping. “Oh, yes!” She thought a chili was something cool, as its name imported, and was served with some. “How fresh and green they look,” she said, and put one into her mouth. It was hotter than the curry; flesh and blood could bear it no longer. She laid down her fork. “Water, for Heaven’s sake, water!” she cried. Mr. Sedley burst out laughing (he was a coarse man, from the Stock Exchange, where they love all sorts of practical jokes). “They are real Indian, I assure you,” said he. “Sambo, give Miss Sharp some water.”
The paternal laugh was echoed by Joseph, who thought the joke capital. The ladies only smiled a little. They thought poor Rebecca suffered too much. She would have liked to choke old Sedley, but she swallowed her mortification as well as she had the abominable curry before it, and as soon as she could speak, said, with a comical, good-humoured air—
“I ought to have remembered the pepper which the Princess of Persia puts in the cream-tarts in the Arabian Nights. Do you put cayenne into your cream-tarts in India, sir?”
” Vanity Fair – William Makepiece Thackeray

We’re having a heat-wave in South Africa and the weather forecasters are madly issuing warnings for people to stay adequately hydrated and stay out of the sun. ‘There’s a saying that ‘when even salamanders are fainting from the heat, there’s nothing like a good, hot Madras curry’, (sourced from BBC.co.uk) and that is just what I did yesterday as the temperatures reached over thirty degrees in Johannesburg.

chicken madras

Much hotter than Ms Sharp could ever have handled, it made for surprising relief from the heat.
I used Gordon Ramsay’s recipe. (But added mushrooms, peas and potatoes.)

DRIPS, DRAINS AND CANNELLONI TUBES

With the exception that it is full of ill people wearing drips, drains and dressings, the hospital I was at is much like a hotel. In the mornings, one is presented with the day’s menus from which to select the three meals of the day. For the first six days of my stay, I ate eggs for breakfast, being unaccustomed to being so spoiled for choice; poached, scrambled, boiled, fried … As I reached my final three days there, I felt my arteries clogging up and elected to go with the stewed fruit and yoghurt. My lunch choice was generally a chicken salad, although I did enjoy a beef curry one day. By far the best meal I had there was a lentil and butternut babotie; which I will recreate in the near future.
My ward was peopled with a riotous bunch and we laughed far too much; all things considered. The reality of coming home to Marmite toast was an anti-climax to say the least and – by Friday – I was champing at the bit to get back into my kitchen. First up I hauled a smoked chicken and some gypsy ham from my freezer, still feasting on the contents of my hamper from The Feinschmecker, chopped and mixed with a bit of sweetcorn and crumbled feta cheese and stuffed into cannelloni tubes,

before baking under a sauce of roasted tomatoes. I deliberately didn’t add any herbs because I wanted the smokiness of the meats to rule the dish.
Not a patch in comparison to being served in bed, but perfectly OK as first-meals-back-home go …

And on today’s foodreference.com calendar we find rather bleak offerings:
1817 Hippolyte Mege Mouries was born. A French scientist, he invented margarine and patented canned meat.

1836 Alonzo Dwight Philips patented the phosphorous friction safety match in the U.S.

1861 The first transcontinental telegraph was completed and went into operation. Within days the Pony Express ceased operations.

1911 Nathaniel Wyeth was born. A chemist and inventor, he patented the PET (polyethylene terephthalate). It was the first plastic strong enough to use to bottle carbonated beverages.

1929 ‘Black Thursday’ – the first day of the panic driven stock market crash that precipitated the Great Depression.

1939 Employees at DuPont’s factory in Wilmington, Delaware purchased the first nylon stockings for sale in the U.S. They were available nationally in May, 1940.

Have a good week, friends, it’s great to be back.

AJMO A-GO-GO

I gave Tandy three ingredients (four actually, but the black salt smells like dog poop and tastes like a fishpond, so we decided to ignore it) when she visited me back in August, and challenged her to a cook off using them. We’ve already done the dried lime leaves; Tandy’s here and mine here. Next on our list is ajmo; which Wikipedia explains as Trachyspermum ammi, commonly known as ajowan, bishop’s weed, ajwain, ajowan caraway, carom seeds, or thymol seeds, is a plant of India and the Near East whose seeds are used as a spice.
Raw ajwain smells almost exactly like thyme because it also contains thymol, but is more aromatic and less subtle in taste, as well as slightly bitter and pungent. Even a small amount of raw ajwain will completely dominate the flavor of a dish.

In Indian cuisine, ajwain is almost never used raw, but either dry-roasted or fried in ghee or oil. This develops a much more subtle and complex aroma, somewhat similar to caraway but “brighter”.
I decided to make individual curried fish pies for my take on the challenge. It was a lovely, sunny day and these were perfect for taking out into the garden for a picnic lunch on the lawn.

Serves 4 as a main course:

1kg firm white fish
Marinade for at least an hour in the fridge in a mixture of:
1 Tablespoon garam masala
1 Tablespoon mild curry powder
1 teaspoon ajmo
½ Teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 Teaspoon brown sugar
1 Tablespoon rice vinegar
Rind and juice of 2 lemons
2 Tablespoons grated ginger
1 Tablespoon fish sauce
2 Cloves garlic, chopped
1 Large onion, diced
2 Medium green chillies, chopped
Salt to taste.

12 sheets of phyllo pastry, cut to a size that will fall over the rims of 4 ramekins.
Lay each ramekin with 3 of the pastry layers one by one, so that the edges fall asymmetrically over the rims and use your fist to gently push down into the ramekins.
Spoon the fish curry mixture into the pastry, coat the edges with whipped egg. Wrap the ends over and twist into a pucker to seal.
Coat with egg mixture and bake at 180 until golden and firm, about 25 minutes.

Serve with chutney, steamed vegetables or a leafy green salad and a crisp, dry white wine; Sauvignon Blanc is perfect.