Keener than (wholegrain) mustard

23 January 202324 January 2023 ~ Fiona ~ Leave a comment

I have been making my own wholegrain mustard for a while, now. Well, until December 2022, I hadn’t made it for a while. The first time I made it was ahead of a Sunday supper. I cannot remember why I needed it, but none of the shops had any. For love nor money, we could find none anywhere. Whatever I was making (I don’t remember), needed it. I had to have a plan B. I made my own.
It was that good.
I’ve been meaning to do so, again. I also thought that those little jars might be a nice addition to my line of products and, potentially, a great ~~Christmas~~ gift. Last December, as I was planning my fare for the annual Christmas market in McGregor, I had the opportunity to get my hands on goodly quantity of spices and mustard seeds were on my list.
Recipe: lost
Of course, I had written the recipe down. Somewhere. Probably on a (s)crappy piece of paper. Given that it was probably some three – even – four years ago – I couldn’t find it. I did my research (again) – having remembered the basic ingredients, – to be sure of the quantities and ratios. The first time, of course, I needed it in a hurry, so I broke the rules – of making. It was a mistake.
It’s easy, but you need to plan and do the plan
I didn’t need to make that a heading. However, this is a note to self as much as it’s a strong recommendation to you. Because I learned the hard way. The first time I made mustard, I neither soaked the mustard seeds and nor did I stash it to “brew”. I should have. The soaking makes the mustard more creamy and the stashing – for a month if you can bear it – does significantly add to the flavour. Not only does the mustard get hotter, but the mustard mix gets more aromatic the flavour deepens.
Getting into the mustard

It’s a really simple recipe and when I made it, I had fun making pretty patterns with the yellow and brown seeds.
In addition to the seeds, the ingredient list is short: apple cider vinegar, honey (or sugar) some salt and turmeric. The latter does two things: it’s anti fungal and it helps to keep the mustard yellow. The colour tends to dull even though the flavour improves with time.
When I made it in December, I chose to make it in an extra large jar because I quadrupled the recipe and I knew that my immersion blender would fit into the jar.
Once I’d blended it to the consistency I wanted, I didn’t have to decant it. I could scrape down the sides and let it mature. After a couple of days I tasted it for flavour and also for consistency. I added a little more honey and some water so that it wasn’t quite so stiff and claggy.
The recipe – roughly
Equal quantities – 50 g – each yellow and brown mustard seeds, just under half a cup of apple cider vinegar and 1-2 tablespoons or water and half a teaspoon of salt. As I said, they say that the sugar (I use honey – and you could use a sugar substitute) and turmeric are optional. I don’t think so. That means, the same amount of turmeric as salt and then honey to taste. I recommend about double the amount of salt so you don’t have a sweet mustard. Unless, of course, that’s what you want.
What to (you must) do
Soak the mustard seeds – cover them with about two thirds of the vinegar. Stand for at least 1 hour or overnight – better. The following day, add and blend the remaining ingredients. Then pot in a sterilised jar and leave it alone for a month for the flavours to develop.
If you’d like a printable recipe, you’ll find it here. If you do download recipes, buy me a coffee. Or better yet, a glass of wine….?
Gifts

A selection of best selling products prepared for the Christmas market
I mentioned that I made a batch for the Christmas market. I’m delighted to say that it sold like hot cakes and I’m going to see if the next batch sells as quickly. One of the pots was booked even before I made it. The buyer will collect it tomorrow and I have to persuade her not to open it for at least four weeks…I’m not sure I’ll succeed!
Until next time, be well
Fiona
The Sandbag House
McGregor, South Africa

Photo: Selma
Post script
If this post might seem familiar, it’s because I’m doing two things:
re-vamping old recipes. As I do this, I am adding them in a file format that you can download and print. If you download recipes, buy me a coffee. Or better yet, a glass of wine….?
and “re-capturing” nearly two years’ worth of posts.
I blog to the Hive blockchain using a number of decentralised applications.
From WordPress, I use the Exxp WordPress plugin. If this rocks your socks, click here or on on the image below to sign up.

Join Hive using this link and then join us in the Silver Bloggers’ community.

Original artwork: @artywink
lastly, graphics are created using partly my own photographs and Canva.

Burger Blues

18 April 202218 April 2022 ~ Fiona ~ Leave a comment

It was with a bit of a start that I discovered I’ve been making these hamburgers for just short of twenty years. The original recipe came in the Good Taste magazine published by the Wine of the Month Club which I’d joined in about 1998. The publication is now defunct – gone the same way as many other printed publications. However, I digress, but indulge me a little longer: I realised that it had been more than fifteen years because I made them in Cape Town; we’re in our eleventh year in McGregor. Among other things, these burgers have featured as an offering for more than one Christmas market.

In March, I began my ninth year as a stallholder at the McGregor morning market. I now realise that I’m a die hard, now. A fixture. In more ways than one!

Regular feature

Folk who follow my social media – especially Instagram and Hive will know that burgers – meat and plant-based – are a pretty regular feature on our menu. Going through my photos, I discover that I had shared this recipe before: around October and in 2014; to be precise. That post, along with a body of preceding work disappeared into the ether when my erstwhile host disappeared, effectively killing my blog. On reflection, it was one of my very early posts and will only benefit from what I’ve learned – both blogging and in the kitchen – in the intervening eight years.

The Blues

Restaurants in Camps Bay, Cape Town | My Guide Cape Town — Blues – late 80s into the 2000s Cape Town iconic spot

When the recipe was published in 2003, it was part of a series of articles on – and recipes from – iconic restaurants around the country. This one was from Blues. For about twenty years, it was the place to go: real live sea views – from glossy magazines – and food to die for. I remember going there for the first time in 1990, and not long after Nelson Mandela was released and during my first “grown up” visit to Cape Town. I had to try the recipe. I did, and have both never looked back and have, of course, tweaked it to our taste and – to be honest – budget.

Making the best of the “blues”

One of the joys of being married to a former stock farmer (and being of a certain vintage) is that we both understand and value ~~cheaper~~ less popular cuts of meat. That means I’m not averse to using venison or ostrich mince (ground meat) if I can get it. I also don’t insist on sirloin or whatever was in the original recipe. On The Husband’s advice, and that of our Country Butcher friend, for a batch of patties I made for one of those pre-Covid Christmas markets, was to include 10% sheep’s fat.

Those were the best burgers I’ve ever made: moist and flavourful. Alas, that Country Butcher’s given up meat for mud.

Ahem…he now moves earth. Really!

In addition to exercising my right to budget-friendly, flavourful meat, I have also ditched the dried herbs in favour of fresh. I have not looked back.

The best hamburger patties

1,2 kg beef mince ((ground meat))
2 onions (chopped)
4 cloves garlic (finely chopped)
sunflower oil for frying
60 g mixed fresh herbs (or half if using dried) (chopped)
10 ml soy sauce
20 ml Worcestershire sauce
dash Tabasco
1 egg
salt & pepper

To serve – all optional

6/12 burger buns
Mayonnaise
rashers bacon – sufficient for the number of burgers
cheddar (grated)
sliced tomato
sliced onion
gherkin or pickle of choice
potato wedges

Finely chop the onion and garlic and sauté these in a little sunflower oil untiltranslucent.
Removefrom the heat; add the dried herbs and leave to cool.
Put the mince into a large bowl and season with the soy, Tabasco and Worcestershiresauces. Add the cooled onions and fresh herbs if using, along with the egg; season with salt and pepper.
Divide the burger mix into six (or 12) even balls and shape into patties. For bestresults, allow the burgers to sit in the fridge for at least 1 hour prior to cooking.
Grill the burgers to the degree you prefer them over hot coals or in a pan.

To serve

Grill or fry the bacon rashers until they are nice and crisp.
Place on a warm burgerbun with some sliced onions and juicy tomatoes.
Place the bacon on top of the burgers; then smother with grated cheese.

I use a range of different meats: venison, ostrich and have also introduced 10% mutton fat.
I make 12 patties (measured using a half-cup measure).
Adapted from: Good Taste No 168, November/December 2003

American

burgers, fast food,

If you’re on a platform that doesn’t give you the print recipe option you are welcome to download it here. If you do, buy me a coffee. Or better yet, a glass of wine ….?

As there are only two of us, I freeze what we don’t eat – in pairs. They store well and play equally well with potato wedges and lightly grilled sourdough buns (and, of course, commercial hamburger buns).

Until next time, be well
Fiona
The Sandbag House
McGregor, South Africa

Post script

I am participating in @traciyork‘s twice-yearly Hive Blog Posting Month.

If this post might seem familiar, it’s because I’m doing two things:

re-vamping old recipes. As I do this, I am adding them in a file format that you can download and print. If you download recipes, buy me a coffee. Or better yet, a glass of wine….?
and “re-capturing” nearly two years’ worth of posts.

I blog to the Hive blockchain using a number of decentralised applications.

From WordPress, I use the Exxp WordPress plugin. If this rocks your socks, click here or on on the image below to sign up.

Join Hive using this link and then join us in the Silver Bloggers’ community by clicking on the logo.

lastly, graphics are created using partly my own photographs and Canva.

Pickled Fish: a South African Tradition

13 April 202214 April 2022 ~ Fiona ~ Leave a comment

Pickled fish is an iconic traditional South African dish. I first ate pickled fish at the ripe old age of about seven. It was the starter for Christmas lunch: the first I really remember. I was instantly smitten. Auntie Doris made it every year and for all the years we “had Christmas” at number 10, I looked forward to it – more than the Christmas cake or the Christmas pudding. In the intervening years, I don’t remember eating it very often.

Regional traditions

I grew up in the Eastern Cape, and not in a coastal town. I think I’ve mentioned that although both my mother and I enjoyed eating fish, my father didn’t. Fish was not a regular menu item. I have no recollection of eating pickled fish other than at Christmas. It was only when I moved to the Western Cape that I was assailed with stories of the Easter pickled fish tradition.

Making pickled fish

I have no recollection of what spurred me on to making pickled fish. I do know that the first attempt was probably nearly 20 years ago. I don’t remember the occasion. I do remember two things:

Consulting the lovely lady in “our” spice shop who not only gave me a recipe, but a few tips.
Hearing celebrity chef, Jenny Morris talking on the radio about making pickled fish. Not long after, her regular newsetter – and recipe – arrived in my inbox.

I carefully copied, pasted and saved the email recipe. After printing it out, I filed it with the other. They still “live” together.

“My” recipe is “born”

I now make pickled fish twice a year. Before we moved to McGregor, it had become our standard Christmas starter and a tradition that continues. Because of this, in addition to the traditional Easter “season”, I also sell it at the market.

An lockdown-related aside

I know I’ve told this story elsewhere, but it bears telling again:

When we went into a hard lockdown, two years ago in March, Easter fell earlier than this year. Feeling the fear and now “un-normal” things were, l naively decided to try to retain some semblance of normality, if not cheer. So, I posted on our community notice board, something to the effect and that I was taking orders for pickled fish. As I had done, twice a year for the last several.

I say, naively, because ~~our~~ my understanding of the lockdown had not included word for word interrogation of the regulations. I discovered, thanks to vitriolic keyboard “police”, that even my suggestion could not be countenanced.

So, began for me, a very difficult patch. That was just one incident. Perhaps I will write about the others. Suffice it to say that I retreated, folded my wings and embraced the black that came with being locked down.

I recognise that, only now, am I beginning to re-emerge and really heal. Partly, too, because at least three of those self-appointed keepers of the village wellbeing have ~~been spat out~~ have left.

Back into the pickle

Over the years, and because I’m not a fan of deep fried foods, I decided that I would take Ms Simply Spice’s advice and bake my fish. Not fry it – either with or without batter – which is the most common way of doing it. That, and my use of fresh ginger and the ratios of curry powder are the result of trial and error. My go-to curry powder is a blend called mother-in-law. Yes, it has a bite as the name suggests. And it has good flavour. One of the women who cared for my ailing father, and of Cape Malay descent recommended it. I’ve not looked back.

Flavour roots

As I’ve learned more about the smorgasbord of traditional cuisines with which South Africa is blessed, and as I’ve learned about cooking and preserving in general, I realise that pickled fish is deeply rooted in the miscellany of cultures that make us who we are: Malay and often Muslim, Dutch, Catholic and Protestant. The consumption of pickled fish on Good Friday has Catholic roots; the spices and sweet curry flavouring: Malay and Muslim. I love it.

Advance planning and long life

Last but not least: don’t decide to make pickled fish tonight for tomorrow. It needs to pickle. It needs at least three days. That means its a great dish for preparing ahead and copes well with being left over.

Market sales

I don’t know how long ago I started making pickled fish to sell at the market. Considering I’ve had a stall at the market for nearly ten years, it must be at least six or seven. This year, at least six weeks ahead of Easter, I had somebody asking if I’d be making pickled fish this year. Well, umm…is the duck’s…?

On the back of that, I canvassed my usual customers and had I made my regular batch, I’d have sold everything before it got to the market. This year’s batch is the largest I’ve made in years.

Pickled Fish

A traditional South African recipe

2 kg Firm fish (Yellow tail, kabeljou, snoek, hake, angel fish)
Oil (For baking/frying)
3 cups vinegar (red wine vinegar adds an extra depth of flavour)
1 cup water
25 ml turmeric
15 ml curry powder
25 ml black pepper corns
25 ml crushed, fresh ginger
4 large onions, finely sliced
6 lemon leaves
2 bay leaves
1 cup sultanas
40ml cake flour

Cut the fish into portions, season and dust with flour and a little of the curry powder.
Bake in a moderate oven for about 20 minutes or until cooked; turn half way through.
In a large, stainless steel, ceramic or enamel pot combine the vinegar, water, sugar, turmeric, curry powder, salt and pepper corns. Bring to a boil.
Add the onions, lemon and bay leaves. Simmer for about 10 minutes. Be careful not to overcook the onions – keep them crunchy.
Place the flour into a small bowl or jug and gradually add a little of the sauce to make a smooth paste. Add this to the sauce and stir over a high heat until it thickens.
Add the sultanas.
Starting with the onions layer them with the fish in a glass dish (do not use plastic or metal). Pour over the sauce. Cover and allow to cool before putting it into the fridge.
Allow to stand for at least three days before eating. Keeps for up to three months.
Serve at room temperature with brown bread and butter.

Appetizer, Main Course

South African

If you find that awkward to print, you’ll find a downloadable copy of the recipe here. If you download it, buy me a coffee. Or better yet, a glass of wine….?

To all are celebrating religious and cultural festivals over the next few days, I send blessings.

Until next time, be well
Fiona
The Sandbag House
McGregor, South Africa

Post script

I am participating in @traciyork‘s twice-yearly Hive Blog Posting Month.

If this post might seem familiar, it’s because I’m doing two things:

re-vamping old recipes. As I do this, I am adding them in a file format that you can download and print. If you download recipes, buy me a coffee. Or better yet, a glass of wine….?
and “re-capturing” nearly two years’ worth of posts.

I blog to the Hive blockchain using a number of decentralised applications.

From WordPress, I use the Exxp WordPress plugin. If this rocks your socks, click here or on on the image below to sign up.

Join Hive using this link and then join us in the Silver Bloggers’ community by clicking on the logo.

lastly, graphics are created using partly my own photographs and Canva.

Is it a scone? Is it a biscuit?

16 January 202216 January 2022 ~ Fiona ~ Leave a comment

Nearly two years ago, and when the world was first locked up, and as mother survived, I had to confront the very real possibility that I might have to actually bake something. Probably bread. I wasn’t ready. The entire process from the kneading to the proving and everything in between, terrified me. I’m also (if you didn’t already know), I’m a bit Scottish: I have great difficulty chucking things out. Quite a conundrum. However, with nothing but time and the greatest resource in the world, the interweb, I couldn’t get away with pretending I didn’t know. I needed to start with something simple.

I found a recipe for biscuits. I don’t recall whether or not there was a picture. It doesn’t matter because when I save recipes, I do save the URL, but I save them in text form – to save paper. Or I don’t even print them. I scribble them on a scrap of paper…

Learning curve

When one discovers a new interest, there’s always a learning curve. So it was, and continues to be, with sourdough. For example: sour dough is actually not sour. One allows the bread dough to ~~sour~~ ferment. It’s during the fermentation – the first and often long proving – that the dough sours. Mother, aka the starter, is not a dough. She really is just the host for the wild yeast that she’s collected from the atmosphere. The flour and the water that I feed mother feeds the yeast that grows. That’s what makes mother outgrow her clothes. So to speak.

If baking bread isn’t on the agenda, the “overflow” is the “discard”. I learned that by osmosis (my preferred way of learning) and when I was looking for ~~beginners’~~ easy recipes with sourdough. I wasn’t at all sure about the kneading, proving, resting – and stuff. My prerequisites ~~during my research~~ when I scanned recipes were that there shouldn’t be much kneading and proving.

Eventually I chose a recipe. For biscuits. Or so I thought.

You know what Thought did?

That was one of my father’s favourite questions. Of course, we all know the riposte to that childhood ~~question~~ admonishment:

…planted a feather and thought a hen would grow…

One of the things I love about the blogosphere is its cosmopolitan nature – a virtual Babel. I am not talking about the miscellany of languages, but specifically about English. My entire working life demanded that I pay attention to the English language. Bar a short stint in corporate, and during which I mastered Chamberese a version of bureaucrat-speak to which I can revert if the need to be ~~pompous~~ formal arises, and with ~~aplomb~~ great ease, I either wrote for people whose home language was not English or for an international audience. It made me pay even more attention; it also fed my fascination for words – and where they come from and how they are used.

I think, too, it’s a fascination that was fostered growing up in a home where neither parent had the same accent. Nor were their accents those of the country in which I was growing up and now live – South Africa – also the home of ten official languages other than English. My English mother hated it that I ~~might~~ would grow up with a regional accent and constantly corrected my pronunciation. She wasn’t aware, and I never told her, that when I started “big” school, I realised (was probably told) that I spoke ~~funny~~ differently from my peers. I didn’t like being different; I concentrated on mimicking my peers so that I spoke more like them. I still switch accents. It’s subconscious – until I hear myself. Even then, I can not. I gather it’s a thing that’s been studied…

Then there are words

English, as is any language, is a living, evolving thing. English communities around the world have their own versions of the language and I have a blog pal (@dandays) who always addresses me using my ubiquitous social media handle and follows it with the parenthetical comment: with a U.

Then there are biscuits and scones. I grew up with both. I’ve written about the latter which were much my father’s domain. Literally and figuratively. My mother never made a scone that I can remember. I always understood them to be either of the potato or flour version or dropped. The last, drop scones, the English (and South Africans) call Flap Jacks; the Americans call them pancakes. In South Africa, a pancake is a crépe.

Confused yet? Welcome to my confusing entry into “sourdough world”.

The chosen one

The recipe I found, said I would be making biscuits. I understand biscuits as flat, often brown and always crunchy sometimes savoury, often sweet. Yes, they have a lot of butter in them, but no raising agent. I’d heard about biscuits ‘n gravy but hadn’t really bothered to investigate. Anyhow, in my ~~travels~~ web search, I came across this site and found a recipe for yes, you guessed it, biscuits.

I set about making it. There was no kneading, and no proving. Just mixing, rolling and cutting. Followed, of course, by a short stint in the oven.

The result. Not biscuits, I tell you, but in my ken, scones!

I admit to having been delighted. Scones are to me, a whole lot more versatile than crummy biscuits. I have subsequently made them a few times and they were a hit at our first ever in lockdown ~~slightly illegal~~ essential get together with friends. It turns out that these biscuit scones are excellent with savoury or sweet toppings and spreads. They also make great bases for canapés if one adjusts the size.

Buttery Sourdough Oven Scones

Scones, or what the Americans call biscuits using discard sourdough starter.

1 cup plain flour (120g)
2 tsp baking powder
¾ tsp salt (omit if using salted butter)
8 tbsp unsalted butter, cold (113g)
1 cup sourdough starter (unfed/discard)

Preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C) – best towards the upper third of the oven.
Grease a baking sheet, or line with parchment.
Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt if using. Rub/cut the butter into the flour until the mixture is resembles bread crumbs.
Addt he starter, mixing (pulse if using a food processor) gently until the dough pulls together.
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and gently pat it into a round and then roll gently to about 2,5cm thick.
Use a sharp 6 cm biscuit cutter to cut four rounds, cutting them as close to one another as possible. Gently push and pat the scraps into a rectangle. Cut two more scones. Finally, pull the last scraps together into round; the final scone will probably be slightly smaller than the others
Place the scones onto the prepared baking sheet, leaving about 5cm between them because they spread as they bake.
Bake in the upper third of the oven until they're golden brown (20 – 25 minutes)
Servewarm. When they’ve cooled and store atroom temperature for several days

They freeze well.
Freshly baked using a smaller cookie cutter, these make 12 fabulous canapé sized scones to serve with savoury or sweet accompaniments.

British

sourdough starter, sourdough discard, scones, biscuits, canape, snack

Moral to the story?

I’m not sure there is one. Since that first effort, Ursula’s approaching two years’ old, and come July, I’ll have been baking buns and bread (yes, you read right) for the local market for two years.

I promise I’ll share those recipes next.

The learning and the journey continues.

Until next time, be well
Fiona
The Sandbag House
McGregor, South Africa

Post script
If this post might seem familiar, it’s because I’m doing two things:

re-vamping old recipes. As I do this, I am adding them in a file format that you can download and print. If you download recipes, buy me a coffee. Or better yet, a glass of wine….?
and “re-capturing” nearly two years’ worth of posts.

I blog to the Hive blockchain using a number of decentralised appplications.

From WordPress, I use the Exxp WordPress plugin. If this rocks your socks, click here or on on the image below to sign up.

Join Hive using this link and then join us in the Silver Bloggers’ community by clicking on the logo.

lastly, graphics are created using partly my own photographs and Canva.

Decadent Mushroom Pâté

31 December 202131 December 2021 ~ Fiona ~ Leave a comment

I suppose I should be writing something about the festive season and how festive it was (it wasn’t really, but it was better than 2020) and/or what I’m resolving for the New Year. Resolutions seem moot given the curved ball that is Covid, and which has derailed the last resolutions I made at the beginning of 2020. Perhaps, instead of resolutions, there is a smidgen of hope.

In the meantime…

It’s no secret that I am very fond of things mushroom. It’s also no secret that I’m constantly on the look out for plant-based dishes that I could add to my repertoire(s) at home and at the market. This recipe was a lucky find for two, no, three, reasons: it’s a great market product, flavour combinations are heavenly and, best of all, it’s versatile.

Deep flavours

A miscellany of mushroom dishes (clockwise from the top left): stuffed, soup, omelette, pickled and risotto.

A restauranteur friend of ours, is of the opinion that fresh mushrooms have no flavour. Years ago, he shared his secret for flavour: mushroom soup – the powdered version. I didn’t understand. With hindsight, I realise that quality mushroom soop powder should have a goodly quanity of dried mushrooms. Now they do have flavour.

I’ve always, and instinctively avoided raw mushrooms. They have no flavour and worse, if they get wet develop the worst kind of slimy texture. A pet peeve: mushroom slices in a green salad. Pickled mushrooms? Well, that kind of ~~slimy~~ silky texture I’ll take any day. As a matter of fact, that reminds me of a salad that the chef at the hotel where I worked for a university vacation used to make, and which I must try to replicate (again) and write down next time we have a surfeit of mushrooms.

This pâté is a slow cook that both combines and develops deep flavours. The combination and the process.

Chunky Mushroom Pâté

Plant-based, easy, but not so quick mushroom pâté

skillet or wok
serving dish or 4 ramekin dishes

15 ml olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
500g mushrooms, sliced
15ml fresh thyme, finely chopped
¼ tsp salt
¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper
60g nuts (pecan, walnut, almond)*
125ml dry white wine

In a large skillet (use a wok), sauté the onion and garlic until glossy and beginning to caramelise, 7 to 10 minutes.
Add mushrooms, salt and pepper. Cook over a low heat until the liquid from the mushroom has evaporated, 18 to 20 minutes.
Add the wine and turn up the heat and simmer until the liquid evaporates, 8 to 10 minutes.
Then transfer mushroom mixture to a food processor, add the nuts and another tablespoon of olive oil. Blend for about 30 seconds, until the mixture is as smooth or as chunky as you would like.
Pot into a single bowl or three or four ramekin dishes. Chill before serving.

I have made this with walnuts, pecan nuts and almonds. All work equally well although there are subtle differences in flavour. If using the pecans and/or walnuts, toast before adding them to the mixture.

Appetizer, Drinks, Snack

vegan

appetiser, plant-based, snack, tapas, vegan

Versatile

I mentioned that this is a versatile product. It is, for two reasons: the pate makes a great addition to a plant-based tapas platter (some say it’s a great substitute for chicken liver pâté. Others vehemently disagree. I tend to make it a little chunky which makes it fabulous to stir through pasta. Which brings me to my next point.

The process is the real secret

Mushrooms are like good wine and cheese: they need time to develop their flavour. If you read the recipe properly, the mushrooms are effectively cooked twice: the first time to release and allow all the liquid to reduce and effectively cook out. The second after adding the white wine which is also reduced so that there is little if no liquid left. While this is going on the onion caramelises, softens and releases its sugars. With the addition of garlic and fresh thyme, I’ve begun using this process for our regular pasta night.

The mixture is not puréed as it is for the pâté, but rather left chunky and the nuts are optional. With a good glug (or two) of olive oil, a bit more fresh thyme and a Parmesan style cheese. Or not.

Until next time, be well
Fiona
The Sandbag House
McGregor, South Africa

Post script
If this post might seem familiar, it’s because I’m doing two things:

re-vamping old recipes. As I do this, I am adding them in a file format that you can download and print. If you download recipes, buy me a coffee. Or better yet, a glass of wine….?
and “re-capturing” nearly two years’ worth of posts.

I blog to the Hive blockchain using a number of decentralised appplications.

From WordPress, I use the Exxp WordPress plugin. If this rocks your socks, click here or on on the image below to sign up.

Join Hive using this link and then join us in the Silver Bloggers’ community by clicking on the logo.

Jambalaya Juggle

15 August 202117 December 2023 ~ Fiona ~ Leave a comment

There were certain things about Sunday Suppers that were always a juggle: the kitchen arrangements, for starters. It’s an open plan space and in large part occupied by the stove and other appliances. Working surfaces are limited, so I have to be super organised. To begin with, there was a lot of juggling which, with practise and better organisation, became a lot easier. Like ensuring I’ve got all the bits out and don’t have to go thundering around the house to fish out dessert dishes or ice bowls or… It doesn’t really matter as long as didn’t have to make like a duck, diving for food in a pond when guests were enjoying supper.

One-size-fits-all

Different seasons also presented juggles of a different kind. Each week’s menu needed to suit carnivores, vegetarians and increasingly, vegans. Somehow, somehow, in summer this is easier to do. Not that I am complaining. I enjoy(ed) the challenge and I enjoy discovering dishes that are sufficiently versatile that they can accommodate a range of dietary requirements. One of these is the humble jambalaya.

A couple of years ago, I had a short stint doing street food type suppers for a friend of mine who had a little wine bar in the village. When winter approached, the type of fare had to shift from a boerewors roll (a type of hot dog) to something that might be a little more substantial and which would stay hot. For various reasons I canned the idea of stir fry (I don’t have the equipment and when the wind howls – as it does – the gas flame just blows out). Similarly, paella and risotto went the same way, but for different reasons, but my research – which was focused on the vegetarians – threw up a Jambalaya recipe.

Jambalaya

I had only ever heard or read about Jambalaya in novels set in Louisiana or New Orleans. The word had certain appeal. I liked the basic ingredients – onions, peppers, butternut squash – and, of course – herbs and spices including chilies. I had found a one-size-would-fit-all dish: with the addition of slices of chorizo or similar some cooked chicken or shrimp, I had found the solution.

That first attempt was a hit. I came home without as much as a grain of rice. I have since looked a little more into the origin of the dish and, like the bredie* I wrote about a while ago, it’s a great example of the fusion of foods from different cultures, and reflecting the history of Louisiana:

Jambalaya has its origins in several rice-based dishes well attested in the Mediterranean cuisines of Spain, West Africa and France, especially in the Spanish dish paella (native to Valencia), West African dish jollof and the French dish known as jambalaia (native to Provence). Other seasoned rice-based dishes from other cuisines include pilaf, risotto and Hoppin’ John. (Source)

I have, since making that the first time, made adjustments, some necessitated by my own preferences and others simply because of what may (or may not be available). One of the key changes is to replace the herbs with McGregor Herbes de Provence and to roast the butternut to add later and/or to use it as a garnish. A third change, for vegetarians, has been to add chickpeas (plain or spiced – recipe to follow in time) or lentils.

So, without further ado, here is my basic jambalaya:

Basic, slow cooked Jambalaya

meat or vegetarian proteins added later

Serves 8

The quantities are such that the basic dish, once prepared can be split into two, making it easy to do both meat and vegan meals at the same time. It’s also done in a slow cooker which is not just easy, but really encourages great flavour development.

Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil
2 onions, finely chopped
4 sweet bell peppers (all colours, chopped)
1 chilli (de-seeded if you don’t like heat) and chopped
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
½ bunch soup celery, finely chopped
1 tin peeled, chopped tomatoes or 2 – 3 fresh tomatoes, skinned and chopped
1 tsp vegan Worcestershire sauce
1 – 2 fresh or dried chillies, chopped
2 cups rice
2 cups vegetable stock
25g (sachet) tomato puree
2 tsp smoked paprika
2 tsp McGregor Herbes de Provence
½ tsp cayenne pepper (optional)
salt and pepper to taste

For vegans

1 tin of lentils or chickpeas or other spicy vegan substitute

For carnivores

1 large chorizo sausage and/or left-over bits of cooked chicken or frozen mixed seafood

What to do

In a large pan, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onions, peppers, and celery to oil.
Cook onions until they begin to soften, about three minutes then add in garlic, chilli and tomatoes. Continue to cook for 2-3 more minutes
Add the Worcestershire sauce and rice. Cook rice in mixture for 1-2 minutes before adding liquids.
Finally, add remaining ingredients.
Once combined, pour into the slow cooker and set to low.
Do not disturb for 3 – 4 hours, but watch the liquid. Once it’s all been absorbed, open the lid and stir. If the rice is not cooked, add more liquid and replace the lid and allow to cook until the rice is soft.
At this point, add your choice of additional ingredients, replace the lid and allow these to cook/heat through.

Serving suggestion

Serve with roasted vegetables like butternut, cauliflower and broccoli or a side salad to make a hearty, complete meal.

Download the recipe

A while ago, I decided (for my own convenience and yours, to create downloadable versions of the recipes I dream up. You’ll get the full jambalaya recipe here.

Post script

This is another of those posts that I’m finding and fixing. Brings back memories of a very different time. It seems so long ago, but it isn’t really. Just eighteen months.

Until next time, be well
Fiona
The Sandbag House
McGregor, South Africa

Post script
If this post might seem familiar, it’s because I’m doing two things:

re-vamping old recipes. As I do this, I am adding them in a file format that you can download and print. If you download recipes, buy me a coffee. Or better yet, a glass of wine….?
and “re-capturing” nearly two years’ worth of posts.

I blog to the Hive blockchain using a number of decentralised appplications.

- From WordPress, I use the Exxp WordPress plugin. If this rocks your socks, click here or on on the image below to sign up.

- Join Hive using this link and then join us in the Silver Bloggers’ community by clicking on the logo.

- I also share my ~~occasional~~ Instagram posts to the crypto blockchain using the new, and really nifty phone app, Dapplr. On your phone, click here or on the icon, and give it a go.

A stew is as stew – or is it?

12 August 202112 August 2021 ~ Fiona ~ Leave a comment

Words fascinate me and I confess to choosing to eat something – just because its name appeals to me. I live in a country with eleven official languages – plus dialects. Also, in South Africa, are peoples of Bushman descent whose languages are ancient and have either been lost, or are in danger of being lost; some have never been codified (written down). I ruminated about this when Jan Boer gave us oorskot (surplus) peaches. Because I have blogpals all over the world, I often wonder about the etymology of words, as I did when I decided to make a bredie a while back. Bredie is a winter favourite and typical of Dutch South African cuisine. Because my heritage is British, it’s not a word that was used in my childhood home. We would have a stew or a casserole – identified by it’s main ingredient, i.e. beef, chicken or ~~lamb~~ mutton.

Etymology

As is my wont, I began thinking about the etymology of bredie expecting it to have its roots in India or Malaysia. The dictionary, says that a bredie (n) is a

Southern African a meat and vegetable stew

Its etymology was unexpected, but when I thought about it, very obvious. It was the Portuguese – in the 15th Century – who first rounded the Cape, in the form of Bartolomeu Dias (or Bartholomew Dias, my primary school history taught me), on his way to the East. He was the first European to have anchored off the South African coast; there is a monument to his exploits in the Eastern Cape, near Alexandria, and not far from where I grew up. The Portuguese went on to colonise not only bits of Africa (like Angola and Mozambique), but also India. “Bredie” has its roots in the Portuguese word, bredos or “edible greens.”

Now I know why every bredie – in one incarnation or another – includes vegetables.

The most ~~common~~ popular, is a tomato bredie which, come to think of it, really does show its Portuguese roots. It’s not my favourite because it’s too reminiscent of boarding school and university cuisine . The two that I prefer, and make, are butternut and waterblommetjie. Waterblommetjies (little water flowers) are indigenous and grow in the natural waterways, ponds and dams in the Western Cape, and flower in spring.

An original fusion food

Stews are a fantastic, nutritious way to use inexpensive cuts of meat – and they are usually the most flavoursome. I am not fond of beef and I find that stewed beef can be like eating blocks of ~~soft~~ wood. It was also going to be a one-pot supper.

This brings me back to the bredie: traditionally it’s made with mutton or lamb – fat cuts like rib or neck. I prefer the latter – there’s less fat and more meat and it’s equally flavoursome. I’ve already alluded to the vegetable components that make the variations on the theme. The constituent vegetable determines the spice (or herb) flavourings that are added (which, incidentally, also cut the fat). This is the influence of the East – India and Malaysia – making the bredie an original fusion food.

The Boers were descendants of the Dutch colonists, and who trekked to the hinterland of South Africa; the Malay folk were slaves and religious exiles sent to Africa. Much of the food in South African homes is a fusion of our rich history.

Butternut Bredie

You will need an appropriate quantity of lamb or mutton stewing meat (I used neck), one or two onions, a green pepper (or a chilli if you like a bit of heat), a clove of garlic, a thumb-sized piece of fresh ginger and a stick of cinnamon; butternut – cut into cubes or chunks and potato, similarly prepared.

Sauté the chopped onion, pepper/chilli, garlic and ginger, and then seal the meat in the same pan. Put the meat into the slow cooker and then deglaze the pan with a little water or stock to make a gravy. Add the remaining vegetables and then pour the liquid over that and put on the lid.

“Fire up” the slow cooker and leave it alone to develop into a wonderful rich bredie – a good few hours. The vegetables will be tender and the meat will be soft and fall off the bones!

A note about the fat: for those who are Banting, it’s not a concern. For those who don’t like it – there was much less fat than I expected. Don’t shun fat – that’s where the flavour comes from!

Bredie served with rice and sambals for a Sunday Supper a couple of years ago or so.

Traditionally, bredies are served with boiled rice, but I’m sure it’s good with pap (corn porridge or grits (for my American readers) – a bit like polenta) and other vegetables.

Download the recipe

A while ago, I decided (for my own convenience and yours, to create downloadable versions of the recipes I dream up. Download a PDF version of the recipe (and its variations) here.

A last word

A stew is not a stew when it’s a bredie!

Disclaimer:

The original iteration of this was posted a couple of years ago. I’ve been able to “re-constitute it” because the original is stored for posterity on the blockchain and using the @exxp plugin, was able to download and tweak it to post back up here.

Until next time, be well
Fiona
The Sandbag House
McGregor, South Africa

Post script
If this post might seem familiar, it’s because I’m doing two things:

re-vamping old recipes. As I do this, I am adding them in a file format that you can download and print. If you download recipes, buy me a coffee. Or better yet, a glass of wine….?
and “re-capturing” nearly two years’ worth of posts.

I blog to the Hive blockchain using a number of decentralised applications.

- From WordPress, I use the Exxp WordPress plugin. If this rocks your socks, click here or on on the image below to sign up.

- Join Hive using this link and then join us in the Silver Bloggers’ community by clicking on the logo.

- I also share my ~~occasional~~ Instagram posts to the crypto blockchain using the new, and really nifty phone app, Dapplr. On your phone, click here or on the icon, and give it a go.

It’s no bull…

9 August 202110 August 2021 ~ Fiona ~ Leave a comment

It’s a funny old world we live in. As I write, we are in day 501 of South Africa’s National State of Emergency (aka lockdown), and thanks to the vagaries of the Interweb and erstwhile hosts, this is the second iteration of a post with this recipe. The original post was three years ago.

How things have changed since then.

Back in the day

It’s strange looking back. Those days seem, in so many ways, so carefree. We invited strangers into our home. Weekly.

As you know, I have, for the past eight or so years had a food stall at the local pop-up market, and for those who are not familiar with where we live: McGregor is a village in the heart of the winelands and with about 650 households, dependent on tourism and agriculture. It’s somewhat off the beaten track (you can read a bit more about it here). Four or so years ago, there was no eating establishment open on a Sunday evening, so I suggested to The Husband that we host simple (ha!) Sunday Suppers in our home. A service to the community.

The groups would have to be small – the house is small and we’d have to re-arrange things to make it work as a pop-up restaurant. Also, we are not fans of being forced to sit with strangers, so we were not going to do a long table. That also presented certain challenges. Especially in winter when we couldn’t possibly have people spilling on to the veranda and into the garden.

Well, you know, there are two old sayings:

You’ll never know until you try it

and

Be careful what you wish for

Sunday Suppers @ The Sandbag House

Then using yet another idiom, be careful of words spoken in jest: Sunday Suppers, for a while, became a regular and expected thing in the village. But I run ahead of myself.

Camera shy

About a week into this new adventure, good friend and fabulous photographer, Selma sent me a message.

“I’d love to document one of your Sunday Suppers. Can I?”

“WHAT? Are you out of your mind? It’s complete and utter chaos. I don’t think I want all that sin exposed. Besides, I’m camera shy and most certainly won’t be dressed for success.”

“No, man,” says she, “It’ll be of your hands and the food, the table, and, of course, the cats. Mostly the cats. We do weddings, you know. You cannot imagine the mess that goes on there, hahaha!”

That last bit is, of course, the most believable part of the statement. So I discovered. After I was convinced.

“I’m going to be in the village because…, blah, blah, fish paste….”

I was persuaded. Anyhow, she arrived in the village and said, “I’ll see you on Sunday. What time do you start prepping?”

“Well, actually, I’m going to be doing quite a lot on Friday so that things are a bit more manageable on Sunday.”

“I’m on my way!”

So began my first (and only) ever experience of being in front of the camera and I do admit that I had fun. Mostly because Selma loves what she does, is more than good at it, particularly persuading reluctant subjects to conform to her whims. The results of the two days’ shoot are here and also appear in this and many of my other posts where they are duly acknowledged. She has given me a gazillion fabulous photographs to use. And I did (and do): virtually every time I put together the weekly menu which was posted in the local online newsletter and in the social media.

All photos: Selma’s and of that Sunday Supper earlier in July 2017.

Then, the food

Putting out the menus also meant that I got requests for recipes – from a Swedish guest (more of that another time), and from friends, as happened here:

So think about it I did, and here’s what I sent:

Slow cooker Oxtail

(serves 4 with mash)

1 oxtail (probably about 800g to 1kg)
4 – 8 carrots (peeled (or not) but left whole) – makes for prettier presentation (and they don’t turn to mush)
1 onion finely chopped
1 or 2 cloves garlic
vegetable oil
1 cup beef stock (250ml)
1 glass red wine (125 – 175ml)
1 bay leaf
Fresh / dried herbs of choice: thyme, rosemary/McGregor Herbes de Provence
2 tablespoons seasoned flour (+ extra to thicken towards the end of cooking)
Salt & pepper

What to do

Roll the oxtail pieces in the seasoned flour to cover and then brown in a large frying pan or skillet, with a little oil. Place in the slow cooker. top with the carrots. In the pan, add a little more oil if necessary and sauté the onion until glossy and transparent.

Add the herbs of choice and sauté for a little longer. Then add the stock to de-glaze the pan. Then add all the liquids to the slow cooker. If the oxtail isn’t just about covered, add a little more water.

Cover and cook on high for about 5 hours. If you have more time (like 7 hours), set the cooker to on auto or low, and let it be.

About an hour before serving, check the consistency of the gravy. If not to your liking, remove a little of the liquid and add it slowly to a dessertspoon (or more) of flour until you have a smooth paste. Gradually add this to the stew and leave for an hour. If you are using commercial stock (cubes), only add salt at this stage, but if you add the potatoes, wait until just before serving because potatoes tend to absorb the salt.

Serve with mashed potatoes, the whole carrots and a green vegetable like beans or broccoli.

Download the recipe

A while ago, I decided (for my own convenience and yours, to create downloadable versions of the recipes I dream up. The Slow Cooked Oxtail recipe’s available for downloading here.

If you download recipes, please follow the link buy me a virtual coffee. Or better yet, a glass of wine….?

Of course, one could serve this with polenta or rice. My friend served hers with rice (one of the children doesn’t like potatoes). If you serve with mashed potatoes, give them a zing, and which I did last time I served oxtail for Sunday Supper, by adding about a tablespoon of wholegrain mustard to the mash.

So it was

For nearly three years, we opened our home to anyone, at least once a week and it’s no bull that, for a while, Sunday Suppers became a village fixture.

In the kitchen ahead of “Selma’s Sunday Supper” and in front of her camera that July 2017.

By the time guests arrived, the sin is mostly dealt with and guests were greeted with a warm fire (in winter) and pretty tables.

Just one of Selma’s awesome shots from that shoot.

A last word –

We still get asked if we do Sunday Suppers. We haven’t since February 2020 because we’ve wanted to preserve our (mercifully Covid-free) bubble. For the moment, our stock answer is that we might. That said, the village now has Sunday dining offerings, so there’s no real need. For those who really, really want a Sunday Supper experience, we’ll make a plan: with the proviso that there must be between four and ten to make it viable.

Until next time, be well
Fiona
The Sandbag House
McGregor, South Africa

Post script
If this post might seem familiar, it’s because I’m doing two things:

re-vamping old recipes. As I do this, I am adding them in a file format that you can download and print. If you download recipes, buy me a coffee. Or better yet, a glass of wine….?
and “re-capturing” nearly two years’ worth of posts.

I blog to the Hive blockchain using a number of decentralised appplications.

- From WordPress, I use the Exxp WordPress plugin. If this rocks your socks, click here or on on the image below to sign up.

- Join Hive using this link and then join us in the Silver Bloggers’ community by clicking on the logo.

- I also share my ~~occasional~~ Instagram posts to the crypto blockchain using the new, and really nifty phone app, Dapplr. On your phone, click here or on the icon, and give it a go.

Comfort food in a time of Covid-19 – I

23 May 202023 May 2020 ~ Fiona ~ Leave a comment

I started revising this 2014 post as we entered month two of lockdown in South Africa. Although we moved from level 5 to level 4 on the first of May, for many, there was no material change to our lives. Speaking for myself: the novelty has worn off. Reserves – of all types – are wearing thin. We now approach the end of month two and the promise of level 3 in eight days’ time. There’s a lot about it we don’t know. Some we do: social and physical distancing will continue.

So

Not knowing when we’ll be able to break bread with friends, let alone give up virtual hugs, is beginning to tell. Not to mention not being able to trot down the road to extend physical birthday wishes with real hugs and kisses. I’m feeling it. For the birthday girl whose birthday it is, as I write, and who lives alone. I cannot imagine.

For her:

A bunch of brightness and that went with a brief over-the-gate conversation

Autumn is glorious. I always say it’s my favourite season. It is. This year, ~~it’s passing us by~~ we must ignore it. It’s the colours.

It’s the odd rain shower that washes everything clean and leaves the last of the summer brightness covered in sparkles.

I am sure that in the Northern Hemisphere, there are folk feeling the same way about spring. The kitchen, unlike in other households, is getting less. Although I cook every day, as usual, I’ve not been cooking as much or spending quite so much time in the kitchen. Also, given the funk, there’s been a lot of comfort food. I’ve already shared one of my favourites. Cottage pie is another.

Tatties and neeps

I grew up with tatties and mince. It was not my favourite meal because it was always accompanied by heaps of grey, watery, mashed neeps. Occasionally, they included the odd carrot. And mashed potatoes. I’m not fond of them either – on their own. Actually, I’m not that fond of mash. Period. In combination with mince (ground beef for my American readers), tatties and neeps made for a meal of slop. Only good for invalids. In my then childish, and now, adult, opinion.

Tatties and neeps – is probably one of the few combinations in my Scottish heritage, that I don’t get. Neeps (turnips, for the uninitiated….) Turnips are one of the very few vegetables I dislike. Also, if you’re wondering, I have eaten, and do, like haggis. I keep on threatening to make it. We shall see.

Turnips, under the influence of my accidental vegan blogpal, Katie (@plantstoplanks), I’m planning to give another try. In a guise other than mashed or in copious quantities in soup. Watch this space.

I digress.

So, now I’ve had a mini melt-down, let me get back to cottage pie. (No, I”m not going to entertain the discussion about the difference between this and Shepherd’s pie….)

Tatties and neeps – for grown-ups

I prepare my mince with braised onions and herbs – either rosemary or thyme – not both, and the choice depends on the mood. If neither is available, a half to a teaspoon of McGregor Herbes de Provence does just as well. Some would say, better.

Don’t forget to add the essential crushed clove of garlic. I always include grated carrot and courgette if I have a lot of them – a great way to con those with a vegetable aversion…), and let this mixture simmer for quite a long time. Depending on how quickly the liquid reduces, add a bit of water and towards the end of the cook, a good glug of red wine. This last gives your meat a lovely rich flavour.

Topping it off

The topping is not just mashed potato: I often use cauliflower – with mashed with a generous quantity of salty butter and pepper.

Oh, and that cauliflower is from our garden…before the drought. This year’s crop is planted….

Occasionally, I’ll do a combination of cauliflower and butternut. This depends on the size of the cauliflower. Rarely is it just potato which I also usually combine with butternut and ooccasionally add a good dollop of yoghurt.

For mashing, depending on your preference and how creamy, rustic or chunky you like your topping, the toppings can be hand mashed, puréed or creamed. My choices vary and are often dictated by the day’s mood.

Finally, layer the mince in the bottom of an oven proof dish and then pile the mashed vegetables on top. Spread this over the meat to the edges of the dish. Dot with knobs of butter. Bake in a moderate oven until the top is brown.

Dot this with knobs of butter and cook in the oven until it’s golden brown and beginning to crisp on top.

Covid-19 comfort food served with homemade chutney.

Last but not least, if you want a “proper” recipe, you are welcome to download a printable file here. If you do, consider buying me a coffee?

Until next time, be well
Fiona
The Sandbag House
McGregor, South Africa

Post Script

In yet another aspect of my life, I offer

online English tutoring services

every day conversation and formal presentations
writing – emails and reports, academic and white papers
formal grammar, spelling and punctuation
more information here

And then there’s more:

If this post might seem familiar, it’s because I’m doing two things:
- re-vamping old recipes. As I do this, I plan to add them in a file format that you can download and print. If you download recipes, buy me a ko-fi?
- and “re-capturing” nearly two years’ worth of posts because of this.
If you’re interested in a soft entry into the world of crypto currency and monetising WordPress blog, use the fantastic Steempress plugin to post directly to the Hive blockchain. Click on the image below to sign up
I’m still blogging on Steem with the occasional post on Medium.