Peace (Don’t we just wish!) Compassion, and a bit of Chutney!
23 Dec 2011 Leave a Comment
It’s madness out there and I admit to be one who finds it all too overwhelming. I have tried to have a green Christmas this year. We adults will not be exchanging gifts but instead giving each other details of our favourite charities. While I couldn’t quite persaude my children that the giving of gifts was unnecessary, I have tried not to give in too much to what Oliver James refers to as Affluenza! I have tried not to buy stuff for the sake of buying stuff. Oliver James believes that we in the western world are suffering from a consuming disease which doesn’t make us at all happy and I am with him on this. Having things doesn’t make us happy except for a brief time. Health, love, social interaction, being together, laughter, stories, tears and sharing a good meal – that’s what makes us happy, really, really!
As for our dinner, it will be fusiony eclectic and out there – feta and herb filo parcels, a scotch quails egg in a blanket of sagey, tofu stuffing, a white cabbage & fennel coleslaw with some hopefully sustainable seafood tidbits, followed by a light pavlova dressed with gaiety – pomergranates and vanilla seed cream. Will it all go together, well who really cares – it is a mix of all of our favourite foods and everyone will help to make it a delicious and social day. To finish probably very much later in the day we will have my favourite French brie liberally sprinkled with black pepper on a black sesame rice cracker and my recently made Cranberry Chutney. Making Chutney is easy. It is just throwing together some vinegar, something sugarly (haven’t tried subsitutes as yet but working on it), fruits, onions, and spices. You can use special jam sugar with pectin added to help setting but you cook it all down, tasting for a combination of sweet sourness, adding a bit of this or that as needed. Keep your old jars and sterilize them on a tray at 130 degrees for about 5 minutes and fill them up.
Ingredients
1 cup of water
3/4 cup of sugar
1 packet of cranberries
2-3 apples, peeled, cored and diced
half a cup of cider vinegar or balsamic (or whatever you have!)
half a cup of raisins
2 large pieces of cinnamon/some star anise, some ginger or garam masala/allspice, a pinch of cloves
1 chopped onion
Combine it all and bring to the boil over a medium heat
Simmer for approx 10 minutes stirring and tasting. You may like to add more sweet or more sour. Or more spices. If you think it is too thick then add a little more water. When it has thickened to your liking and cooled, pour into sterilized jars and eat with cheese, cold cuts, warm cuts and absolutely anything. Of course the longer you leave it, then better it is but it won’t last long at all I’ll bet!
One last thing – I would like to plug a local business which sells lovely gluten free products. Kamilla sells gorgeous things – see her website www.kamterra.com
She says the following: “At Kamterra Foods, it’s our mission to provide our customers with a fine selection of wheat and gluten free products from a variety of fantastic brands – many of which are organic and/or fairtrade.
Being gluten intolerant myself, I know how important it is to have a good choice of nutrient-rich, gluten-free products with which to make healthy, wholesome meals as well as delicious snacks and desserts.
All the products we stock are of the highest quality and are delivered worldwide from our premises here in The Netherlands.
If you have any questions or comments, please do not hesitate to contact us.
Kamilla Oribabor
Founder, Kamterra Foods”
Below my favourite shop window in The Hague on Molenstraat – you’ll spot it, there are always loads of kids staring at it full of wonder. Enjoy and be at peace!
Best of The Hague (part 2)
19 Dec 2011 Leave a Comment
Best Restaurant This is tricky because I find that most restaurants are simply not consistent. For me they have one chance and if they miss it then there is no second visit. I can forgive some things – a less than professional delivery of service is something I have almost come to expect in The Netherlands, but if the service is unfriendly then it’s goodbye! I expect to see food that I don’t prepare at home, food that is fresh, beautiful and served in a glorious way, not too fussy, not too much on a plate but a dance of colour, texture and above all flavour. I expect the front of house to be knowledgable and have passion for their foods and wines but to be able to take criticism if delivered politely. So, that cuts out 99 % of the restaurants in this town! Left in a class of their own are my three top picks for a decent celebratory meal out : Han Ting on Prinsestraat no. 33 delivers a special meal with it’s own brand of Asian fusion using Wagu beef & seafood and get this – they make a gorgeous vegetarian on request as well. Basaal on the Bierkade never fails to deliver on quality and has a strong and loyal following. Mochi (Mallemolen 12 a) with it’s strong Japanese and South American influences has always left me with a desire to eat more. Honourable mention C’est Ca Prinsestraat 130 with a French feel to the menu using local produce.
Best Breakfast. We are pretty nonplussed about the breakfasts on offer in this city. Should you be thinking of starting a cafe could we suggest Eggs Benedict, porridge with fresh raspberry sauce and greek yoghurt, homemade granola and fluffy scrambled eggs, hotcakes with fruit, morining glory muffins etc. But the best we think at present is Baklust on the Veenkade – ask them to toast their lovely sourdough bread though. Omlettes there are very good and the cakes we have already mentioned.
Best Italian for Lunch – Pastanini on the Frederik Hendriklaan. no 79 or the Frederikstraat no 62. This is simple, no nonsense Italian food, pizza, pasta, salads and good coffee. Extremely popular with the international crowd on week day lunchtimes.
Best Pasta – tricky again but Da Braccini on Regentesselaan 24 probably just has it with their homemade truffle pasta. Heard very good things about Vino & Cucina from my Italian friends but alas haven’t made it there as yet. I have a few free nights in my agenda if anyone fancies a night out….
For a quick family meal before going to a film, I have no objections to popping into Vapianos and sharing a plate of pasta or a salad. I am quite fond of their berry mascapone desserty thingie.
Best Pizza – naturally I think it is at my house on a Friday night! I am still looking for the best pizza here and it’s not at Dominos, or Laterna, or VIP as far as I am concerned. La Luna never changes and is prefectly reasonable for a quick family meal on the run (Weissenbruchstraat 79)
Best Cafe for lunch – Naga Thai is my favourite followed by Pastanini on the Fred, Peppermint on the Frederickstraat if you can get a seat, Aan Tafel in Voorburg on the main street, Momiji Sushi on Rabbinjn Maarsenplein for sushi now that Dim Daily is no more!
Finally best place to work off all that food is Sorgvliet park – Go and buy your ticket now! Next post Cranberry chutney…
Sweet Potato Frittata, Fat Kittens, and Food dressed in pink!
19 Dec 2011 Leave a Comment
A plate of food and flowers
Eleanor Mills article “But it’s Yummy, Mummy” in the Sunday Times last week got me thinking. Eleanor like myself (and most of my family & friends) is awfully keen on food. One of her early family photos shows her tucking into a box of chocs, her face a vision of blissful ecstascy, eyes closed, rosebud lips parted in anticipation. So she started a blog http://fatkittens.wordpress.com to look at how we feed our kids and our own rather mixed up attitudes to food. India Knight recently tweeted on how her seven year old and friends were concerned about being fat and wondering about going on diets! I too am keenly aware of bringing up my kids in an obesigenic society where we are all bombarded with adverts about food, about sports drinks, and about how cool we are if we drink coke, pepsi and eat hamburgers. Supermarket food is dressed in pink icing and sprinkles, frozen yoghurts (which may or may not have dairy products in them) are served up from conveying machines in our schools and food techies are tempting our palates with conjured up chemically-created irrestible tastes. Help, what do we do? Easy, but not simple – buy simple ingredients and cook from scratch! Cook it simply and make it look good. Don’t go to supermarkets where both you and your child will be tempted by all those cakes, bars and sweets at child eye level. Go to markets instead if at all possible. Do make cookies and cakes yourself but limit them to weekends and special days. Yours will taste better, have less sugar and be an act of love! Please call them “sometimes” foods not treats!
Jack’s recent school party food list caused me some alarm with its list of chicken (ugh) nuggets, crisps and sweets! I took no notice of the list but found myself dithering on party day. Would I do kappa make, sweet potato frittata, or boil some quail’s eggs? I just couldn’t decide so made all three. I was very pleasantly surprised to see lots of homemade food arriving with the other kids. Yes, there was a packet or two of crisps, micro-wave popcorn and some brought cakes but we put out the fresh food first and our kids went for it. Well most of them did. I particularly like the sweet potato frittata which went beautifully with Ute’s low fat kwark and curry dip!
Roast Sweet Potato and basil frittata
Makes at least 12 muffin sized frittata
2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 large rosevale potato, chopped and cubed into small squares
1 sprig of rosemary to flavour oil in roasting pan
Roast the sweet potatoes and potato in olive oil with a sprig of rosemary, 1 tsp of ground cumin, freshly ground pepper and salt for 20 minutes in a pre-heated fan forced oven at 190 degrees.
In a small bowl beat 5 eggs, 160 mls of cream, half a cup of torn basil leaves, and half a cup of grated parmesan cheese until well mixed.
Place paper cupcake cases into a muffin pan and lower oven tempreture to 160 degrees
Divide the cooked cubes of potatoes evenly into muffin pans. Pour in the egg/cream/cheese/basil mixture on top. Bake for 20-25 minutes. Allow to stand for 5 minutes befor turning out. Serve with homemade chutney or simple Kwark dip below.
Ute’s Simple Kwark Dip
1 cup of low fat natural kwark mixed with half a teaspoon of curry powder to taste and a squeeze of lemon juice.
Coming up soon (hopefully after lunch – I am making roasted root veggies served with truffle pasta, blue cheese and nuts) Part 2 of The Best of The Hague – I being putting forward my picks for best Italian restaurant, best pizza, best restaurant, best gift store, best charity sites for gifts etc. Also my recipe for cranberry relish/chutney fit for a celebration table….. Oh gosh, could it Christmas coming up? I am feeling like Ethel the Unready! You?
Eat a Rainbow and The Best of The Hague (part 1)
05 Dec 2011 Leave a Comment
I was wondering if I needed to have a table at our school fair – quite often you end up speaking to those who are already “the converts”! And while that’s just lovely and honestly what could be more fun than talking food, sharing recipes and re-visiting food memories, that really wasn’t completely the idea. The idea is to inspire and spread the Eat a Rainbow word! We found out very late in the day that we had a table – 2 hours before the fair started but we packed our books, made a few quick samples (tapenade and beetroot/kwark dip, grabbed our emergency snack box staples and some of the quails eggs from the brekkie table and flew out the door. It was worth it. Worth it to chat to those who are well aware of the difficulties of bringing our kids up in an obesigenic world, aware of the food technologists who are endevouring to tempt our palates with combos of fats, sugars and salt to trigger our bliss points ( see David Kessler in the End of Overeating) but it was also great to talk to those who just wanted ideas for snack boxes & who wanted to do their best. Best of all, it was great to talk to kids about what they know about food! Some of them know a lot and many are game to try different things. Most of them love to cook so do please encourage them to cook up a rainbow because food is medicine and pretty yummy as well! We had some rather interesting and fun chats about their favourite foods so I had to share a few of mine too! That would be pretty well any recipe in the “Plenty” cookbook by Yottam Ottolenghi although I try not to over-indulge too much with the cheesy bits. Remembering that we started out with our last blog http://thelunchbox.blog.com by listing our snackbox and lunchbox favourites I am noting a few favourites below…
Favourite Sandwich fillings (for my kids anyway)
1. Boiled eggs mashed with milk and chives with lettuce and a thin scrapping of salted butter on dark brown wholewheat bread
2. Parma Ham with thinly sliced baby tomatoes (patted dry with a paper towel), lettuce, and a slice of cummin cheese on spelt bread from BROOD (homemade indian spiced chutney as well for me on that!)
3. Herby omlette, basil pesto spread, green lamb’s lettuce on an olive bread
4. Brie with chutney, spring onions finely sliced with crispy lettuce (and beetroots for me!)
5. Grated cheese mixed with 1 egg, spread on thinly spread marmite toast and grilled in the oven. Slice into fingers and serve with a salad of cucumber, tomatoes etc.
6. Organic mince made into mini burgers with salad on spelt buns – not to mention slow roasted tomatoe sauce with tofu mince and wholewheat spagetti with parmesan in a thermos and soups and wholewheat tortillas with coleslaw, refried beans, cheese etc. Those are some of my kid’s most favourite lunches and there are loads more variations, combinations and ideas etc.
Best of The Hague 2011 Part 1
Now for my Best of Awards 2011 part 1. For all those I mention I shall offer them a huge bunch of gorgeous organically grown summer flowers electronically of course…. and much thanks from me & my friends..
Best Market: Without a doubt it’s the Farmer’s Market (Boermarkt) Hofplaast on Wednesdays 9- 18.00 in The Hague – there is no competition.
Best Italian Deli: Italy on Piet Heinstraat for the caprino cheese, the wholewheat farina flour, bits and Italian bobs and such lovely people!
Best Indian Takeaway: Chef India on PrinsHendrikstraat – try their Tarka Dahl and chilli nan bread
Best Cheese Shop. Phew, this one is too tricky but in the end it had to go to Zuivelland, Bankastraat 44! One of the youngest cheese shop owners and how wonderful she is! Plus, the Cheesemen at the Boerenmarkt, so many cheeses, so little time, plus smoked tofu, soy products, various milk products, love that wild garlic cheese!
Best Sushi: This is very contentious: my Japanese friends think that Sushi Morikawa on Balistraat has very good sushi but I have heard both good and not so good reports from others. One thing is for certain it is expensive and not really for fidgety kids! Oni, a pretty restaurant on Prinsestraat also has a following & although I have had excellent morsels there, but have been let down by service and by the price of drinks! I really am not keen on the plethora of all you can stuff in Japanese sushi restaurants which seems to be a nasty throw back from the 70′s, So, with the sad demise of Dim Daily (high rentals apparently) we are looking for a good solid sushi/noodle restaurant so more reports please on good, consistent family friendly sushi restaurants please….
Best cakes for a afternooon tea or coffee: Baklust, it’s fun, funky and service is kind. We still love it and feel comfy there!
Best quick meal on the run: Falafel from Falafel King, cheap, reasonably healthy and fill it up with good salads! Vlammingstraat 37 in the Centrum
Best Butcher: Now this is tricky for me as I don’t buy meat but I have had many votes for the butcher at the Organic Market, personal service, great meats and cold cuts! For game it is the Slagerij Matla on Bankastraat 48 (thanks Eva!) Eva also reccommends the Lidl for meats and organic veggies too!
Best Bread: have you noticed how many artisan bakers are suddenly springing up in our town. For me it’s a toss up between two. Phillipe Garlene’s patisserie on Aert van der Goestraat. They make a fab spelt bread that you finish baking at home. It is delicious. However newcomer BROOD also has a gorgeous spelt seed loaf, so good that we refer to it as spelt Cake in our house. I adore their little olive breads and the cheese and rosemary breads!! Keep me away, BROOD is a very dangerous place and you will find Audery making from scratch soups there as well! As I write the carrot and ginger is one of her most popular but she is constantly adding to her recipes.
Best Eko/organic shop: For personal service and food with integrity go to De Kruidentuin on Bankastraat, and they do great bread as well! Gaia on Aert van Goestraat also has an honourable mention and has loads of loyal customers and the large Ek0 Plaza in the centre of town has the largest range of orgnanic goods. By the way just because these goods are sold in an organic shop doesn’t mean they are good for you- check the labels for loads of hidden sugars particularly in bars targeted at kids – you will really be surprised at the (natural!) sugar content.
Best Supermarket: No award and is there more than one?Ok Lidl Eva will say. Me I like to shop in small places so I try and avoid supermarkets.
Best Wine Store: I know this is a school lunch box blog but there may be the odd parent out there who likes a glass of wine now and then! I only buy New Zealand wine online at 44degrees.nl but if in need I head to Wijnkoperij De Gouden Ton on Denneweg 81.
Best Tea and Coffee specialists: I like Simone Levelt and especially their Milano, mild, aromatic roast – see http://www.simonlevelt.nl for all their locations.
Asian Supermarket: Amazing Oriental for noodles, spices, sushi rice, rice vinegars, raw peanuts, Thai curry paste, rice paper for spring rolls etc. Grotemarktstraat below the movie complex right by the Ekoplaza
Best Cheesecake: Oh please, The Cheesecake Company http://www.cheesecakecompany.nl – there are no other contenders or pretenders. I won’t say it’s good for you but it is very, very delectable
Friendliest cafe: It’s Quirkys and not just because I am friends with the owner Christine. It is because just about every customer gives the owner a hug, and the friendliness is catchy! Plus her coffees are the bees knees.
Alas time has run out, it’s time to cook dinner and then do a late night interveiw with DutchBuzz, the radio people http://www.dutchbuzz.nl
Watch out for part 2, coming soon!
And our favourite mushroom lady at the market who is happy to share her huge knowledge!
Good Food Brings People Together – May your next meal be divine!
02 Dec 2011 Leave a Comment
I was feeling rather foodily despondent today looking back over two years of seeking to inspire kids and adults to be mindful about what they are eating, to celebrate fresh, local, delicioius food and to share meals with friends, family and learn more all the time! I had received the class party food list. It mentioned 2 things which I hoped not to see on such a list again. Words that strike some fear and trepidation to a food-lovers heart: chicken nuggets and crisps! We started The Food Forum because of such a list some 2 years ago. We (a loose group of foodies, parents, nutritionalists and parents) were determined to help kids learn about good food, to follow in Jamie Oliver’s footsteps by sharing our cooking skills and to have fun with beautiful ingredients and food. Observing what kids were buying at Albert Heijn for breakfast (cans of so-called Sports Drinks and large bags of crisps) and what was offered as celebratory food – the cheap of the cheapest hotdogs in white bread rolls, deep fried nasties etc. has led to a few sighs along the way. But for some reason after a visit to our local natuurwinkle (organic food market) and a chat to the very friendly Australian behind the counter, Rosy, I feel suddenly buoyed up by the past year and opportunities ahead. I also felt more optimistic after I talked to a teacher about bringing in some changes next year and reviewing the festve party list. So, if you will indulge me I would like to share some food photographs of the past year before I write my Best of The Hague 2011 blog. This time last year we were about to head to our other home Waiheke Island just off the coastline of New Zealand – I miss it most dreadfully but have great memories of sharing food with lovely people in glorious greenery. Here are some of the things I enjoyed in 2011… above walking the coastline on Waiheke
Beetroot dyed quails eggs for Easter
Birthday flowers picked in our Waiheke Garden, beauty for a day! As the sun goes down so they close and fade but for a brief day they are the stars of the show!
My favourite flavours of the year – lemons and pomergranates, simply divine!
Giant couscous, sometimes available at the Fair Trade stores
Spinach and pesto pancakes, discovering Ottolenghi's in London
Discovering all sorts of noodles, rice, green tea, and loving them!
Soft Spring Rolls - small soft packages of fresh ingredients to taste, adore Vietamese Food
Berry fruit at Yvonnes stand in high summer
It’s been a grand year, and I’ll be hoping for an even better one next year! Learning never ends and brings great joy, may we all be receptive to new ideas and knowledge. I was going to add in a photograph of the typical picture of the “party” food available at most children’s party venues (chips, nuggets and processed sauces – nasty) but I have decided instead to add in a last photograph of our 2010 festive meal shared with family and friends because that’s what good food really does, it brings people together. Next blog I absolutely promise cross my cooking knives The Best of our City. See you at the school fair tomorrow? Or at Quirkys next Tuesday film night where I’ll be making wholewheat pizzas with Christine? In the meantime I hope your next meal is delicious, healthy and shared with someone else!
Friends share a festive meal
- Good Food Brings People Together
Glowing Greek Yoghurt and Black Bean Brownies – yep, that’s Beans!
18 Nov 2011 Leave a Comment
Two weeks ago I cooked at Quirkys making my version of a Whole foods Tex Mex Veggie dinner. The feedback was great and I have been asked to provide recipes for my fresh sauces, so Stephanie Ward, who runs the very excellent Firefly Coaching company (www.fireflycoaching.com) here you are! Enjoy!
Glowing Greek Yoghurt Dip
I always serve a simple Greek yoghurt dip type sauce with my Tex Mex. It takes all of 5 minutes.
Take a good cup of natural yoghurt or sour cream. Add some dried garlic powder or freshly minced mild garlic, a few chopped fresh herbs such as chives, coriander and mint, a squeeze of lemon or lime, salt and pepper, then mix well. A smattering of flaked chili wouldn’t go amiss either. The longer it is left to marinate the better it is. It goes well with mexican food, on roasted potatoes, as an alternative to mayo and tastes excellent. Make it glow by adding a splattering of prepared pomergranate seeds. Alternatively next time anyone goes to Greece pick up some dried Tzatziki sauce mix which is excellent for a quick dip, just add yoghurt and grated, drained cucumber.
Coriander Salsa or Green Goddess Dip to Die For….
I have posted this before but here it is again. Remove large stalks and place washed fresh coriander in a blender with fresh mint, half a seeded chili, a tablespoon of Thai Chilli sauce, the juice of a lime or a lemon. Add some cold water and blend. That’s it, easy huh! Serve with anything you want to, it is absolutely delicious. Needless to say if you are not a coridander fan, you will need to replace it with Thai holy basil or make a minty version.
Now thanks to Life coach, financial planner and nutritionalist Stefanie Thomas (www.stefaniethomas.com) for this delicious but totally unusual recipe! I went to a Productive Parenting talk given by Stefanie for Passionate Parenting and amongst the very excellent tips she gave us was a tasting of a lovely dark, moorish brownie, made with no flour or sugar!! Prefect for the gluten free diet.
With her permission I am posting it here. I, whom am no chocolate lover, found it very, very good indeed. And the kids were flabbergasted. What, you must be kidding they said. Beans, not beans!
Black Bean Brownies
Preheat your oven to 175 C or 350 F
Ingredients
One and a half cups of organic black beans, drained and rinsed
3 large organic eggs
3 tbsps of melted butter
2 tbsps of melted coconut oil
quarter of a cup cocoa powder
pinch of salt
2 tsps of a good vanilla essence
5 tbsp of Stevia powder (natural sweetner available at healthfood stores or use maple syrup, honey instead)
100 gms of good dark chocolate, grated or chopped into small pieices. I used the dark chocolate buttons from Australian
2 pinches of cayenne pepper which compliments the chocolate very well.
Place everything into a blender, adding the chocolate pieces at the very last moment. I blended for a few minutes and could still see beany bits. You could also add nuts of your choice.
Place mixture into a parchment lined swiss roll tin. Grease the baking paper with coconut oil and cooked for approx 30 minutes at 175. Mine was cooked in a fan forced oven for 25 and cut when cold. I have to say I am impressed. I made mine with Stevia powder which is sweeter than sugar. I will experiment with maple sugar or syrup next time.
Below, the Green Coriander Salsa. I think I will go and make some, it just looks too good. Next post will be my annual Best of The Hague 2011. I’ll be posting my top picks for the Best Carrot Cake in town, the best coffee, the friendliest cafe, the most family friendly cafe, best sushi, best park, best thing to do on a rainy, cold, grey day. If you have some special place, food, shop you would like to have mentioned do please send your comments in. There are two very strong contenders for the best carrot cake: Baklust and La Buena Vida. Looks like we will have to do a taste off, how wonderful. We will also have to taste Crunch’s raspberry and choc cake, Philppe’s choc pie and Quirky’s oreo cookie cheesecake, volunteers please?
I will be at the Winter Fair on December 3 at the British School with a sample of recipes, lunch box favourite, containers and ideas to swap. Until then, happy, healthy and gorgeous eating.
Autumn Leaves are falling and soup is on the boil!
10 Nov 2011 4 Comments
Last week I enjoyed myself being pop up Chef at Quirkys cafe in The Hague. I started with a little invention of mine which my friends and I call Friday Night Soup. It has overtones of Mexico, India and cold clear autumn evenings. It is for cooking on a Friday night when you are just too tired to cook. It’s for eating with good friends, old and new. It’s tasty, hearty and simple to make. It takes very little time and can be made in roughly half an hour. I have listed it on other blogs and related it to many people who have in turn made it theirs. My friend Janet makes it with pesto. Something we all agree on is that we have never met anyone who doesn’t like it. So here it is again.
Mexian Red Lentil Soup (My Friday Night Soup as served at Quirkys last Friday!
1 large onion chopped finely
1 tsp channa masala spice mix or a blend of your favourite spices (we like Shan’s mix or to make our own)
1 can of Italian Passata or whole tomatoes – I like S&W Mexican tomatoes
2 cans V8 veggie juice
chilli powder (to suit taste) – I put in half a teaspoon of Ancho chillie
2 veggie stock cubes dissolved in 2 large cups hot water approx
1 -2 cups red lentils depending on how thick you like it!
A good dollop of Thai Chillie Sauce and some cummin seeds
To serve add greek yoghurt or natural soy yoghurt, grated cheese, tortilla chips, fresh herbs
Fry onion in large soup pan, add in spices and fry until fragrant.
Pour in tomatoes, V8, veggie stock and water plus lentils. Simmer until lentils are done, adjust liquid levels with water, V8 or stock, adjust seasonings to suit household tastes. Serve with warm fried tortilla strips, soured cream, fresh herbs, diced chilli peppers, grated cheese as desired. Enjoy and warm up the next day for the lunch box! Experiment and have fun!
A few of my favourite spices above which I will be adding to my Christmas Chutney pressies (making it next week with some elderly apples and pears) and here is my favourite rice. Prepare it with fried onions, cardamon pods, cinnamon sticks and you will be as happy as happy can be! Buy from the Natuur Winkels and enjoy!
The President’s Kitchen Garden – and a Year of Travel
03 Nov 2011 Leave a Comment
Variety is the Spice of Life as I repeat tirelessly to my kids. Try something new, you never know it may be the best thing you have ever tasted! I never cease to marvel at all the new tastes and foods I come across. For me traveling and meeting people is a cornucopia of new tastes, new ideas, viewpoints and surprises. I admit I have been very, very lucky this year to travel home to New Zealand where we saw a great bunch of home gardeners and producers showing off the fruits of their toils – veggies, eggs, cheeses, jams, chutneys, cordials, seed mixes, cereals, breads and chocolates at the local farmers markets. One of the best new ideas was the OOOOby concept started up by a Waiheke Islander called Peter Russell. OOOOby or Out of Our Own Backyards is a new and energetic way of trading surplus foods via markets and pickup systems. We then went to my favourite of all spots in the UK, Hay on Wye for a chlly camping experience to see a group of pop up chefs turning out lovely local delights. We visited Rick Stein’s deli in Cornwall and went fishing in Salcome finding small businesses along the way proudly serving well crafted food at pubs such as the Cricketers in Beesands in Devon. I write this not to show how well traveled we are (and how extraordinarily lucky) but to make a point that there is a quiet revolution going on – just as those tired of relentless money profiteering are gathering force so to are those of us who are championing the cause of simple, local, sustainably produced good food. It’s hard I know to get kids eating wholesome green food free from chemicals and overprocessing but we must fight back and we are. From First Lady Michele Obama to a very pleasant chap we met on our half term break, none other than the President of Malta who recently opened The President’s Kitchen Garden above the San Anton Palace Gardens. The Maltese have a big, big problem with obesity and thus Diabetes type 2 and are rightly fond of their food (as am I – surely the best sun dried tomatoes in the world come from Gozo!) but they need to start eating more greeny bits and pieces and get out of their cars! We met the president quite by accident but I took the opportunity to compliment him on his initiative and to hope it will help kids understand more about where their food comes from! Let us hope it helps. I would be delighted to go back one day and get those kids cooking up a storm.
Meantime I am prepping today for a guest appearance at Quirkys Lunch room cafe with my own brand of veggie wholefoods Tex Mex. Quirkys cafe is the very first to pioneer Pop Up Chefs in our little city and you will find a different team cooking their every Friday evening. There’s be music and chat, laughter and fun if you care to join us but do please reserve a table as we are filling up fast (tel: 070 3808502.
I am making my Friday Night Red Lentil Mexican Soup followed by a wholewheat Quesidila served with organic brown basmatic spiced rice, fresh coriander chutney, greek yoghurt garlic sauce, and coleslaw followed by a choice of either egg free mascarpone tropical trifle or apple and strawberry crumble made with our own organic homegrown apples. Check out Quirky.com if you want to reserve. And if you want to make you own crumble please read below….
My Apple Crumble
Preheat oven to 175 fan c
serves 4-6 people
You will need
6- 8 good honest apples, cookers are best not to sweet! Peel if you like and core, chopping into small cubes of the same size
1 cup of frozen berry fruit or fresh if in season
half a cup of maple sugar or syrup or dark brown sugar
your favourite sweet spices such as nutmeg, cinnamon, allspice or cloves. I use about half a teaspooon of each but be careful about cloves they can be overwhelming.
1 and a half cup of wholewheat flour
3 good tablespoons of honest salted butter
a small handful of homemade museli or rolled oats, coconut etc to make your crumble mixture interesting.
Place apples in a pot with a very little hot water. Add in some sweetner such as maple syrup if they are sour. Add some spices to liven them up a little. Cook for about 8-10 minutes until they are tender. Place in ovenproof dish with frozen or fresh berry fruit. Taste for sweetness. I like them to be a little sour.
Mix your crumble. Mix flour, sugar, museli, oats, coconut, nuts, spices etc and rub in your butter using your fingertips. Your mixture should look like large crumbs. If you squeeze it together it should stay in clumps. If too dry add more butter. Taste for sweetness and to get the spices just to your taste. Pour onto the apple berry mixture and bake for around 25 minutes until the apple mixture is bubbling and the crumble top is golden and hard to the touch. Serve with ice cream, yoghurt, creme fraiche, creme anglais or just by itself! Yummy.
Jack and I have been making pasta with his friends. This is our pesto flavoured batch. We are gradually gettting the hang of it and look forward to more experimentation. It is fun but requires some time and a little prep but the end result if absolutely delicious. We are using Jamie Oliver’s basic pasta dough recipe which is working a treat. I am preparing The Food Forum’s Annual Best of Food Awards for my December Blog. In the meantime I wish you many a good meal, much chat and time to chew over the day! Heavens, I better get cooking!
Make Memories with Your Meals, Food to love and cherish….
16 Oct 2011 2 Comments
Today is World Blogging Day and the subject this year is food. This, as you may know is a subject dear to my heart, my soul and my very life. For to me food is more than just simple survival but a way of life, an act of love, of caring, sharing and a way of promoting a healthy, happy long life. I believe it is imperative that we teach all children in the world how to grow it sustainablity, how to cook it and how to understand its processing, packaging and what impact it has on our small & fragile world. There is so much I could write about this month but I will choose the wonderful article written for Time Magazine by Dr Mehmet Oz in which he dispells the myths, the fads and tells us (with latest research papers in mind) just what we should be eating. As a cardioligist he says that his first objective was to to “heal with steel” but he quickly realized that the biggest reasons that the patients were lying there on the operating table was “the food they ate”. Read the entire article (Time Magazine September 2011) if you can but put simply his daily menu consists of quinoa for high fibre and amino acids, sweet potatoes for vitamin A, loads of greens, walnuts for Omega 3 fats, tempeh, brown rice, greek yoghurt, salmon, steel cut oats and simply heaps of vegggies and herbs. And he brings us the very good news that raw chocolate (and those darker chocolates with high cocoa solids), coffee, eggs and milk in small qualities are beneficial in moderation! I taught (with others from the Food Forum) an Eat A Rainbow series of lessons at schools last year and would love to roll out a school calendar where we try a new vegetable or fruit each week beginning with A for Aubergine and ending with Z for Zucchini. Each week we would do real live research by examining it, looking at how it grows, finding recipes to try it, and then finally feast on it. The Eat a Rainbow was very successful and we are keen to keep teaching kids the joy of making salads, soups, simple sushi and yummy dips in more schools around the country.
To learn about food we eat should be one of the most important subjects on the cirriculum as we will all be affected by the intense pressure financially and healthwise that Diabetes type 2 will put on our generation and that of our offspring. For the first time ever the United Nations announced that more of us had died through obesity related issues than through famine. Half the world would appear to be eating too much of the wrong sort of foods and becoming ill, unfit and infirm and the other half is going to bed hungry. At the risk of ranting and raving too much I would ask all of you to take time to think about what you are preparing to eat this week and if you could try to sit down with your family and talk about food, famine and the act of sharing good food with love. Above is a simple bulgar salad which can be made with a mix a quinoa and/or chickpeas. This recipe was adapted from my very favourite recipe site – www.101cookbooks.com Heidi has a load of gorgeous recipes on her website if you want to start eating Super Natural Every Day (her latest book and lovely it is!).
I love food and am intensely grateful that I have access to an adbundant amount of it. I have almost eliminated shopping at supermarkets instead shopping at the local farmer’s market, small specialist shops and organic shops. I love all sorts of foods and indulge myself with gorgeous cheeses, by making the odd cake but also by attempting to make each meal a celebration even a very simple one. Sit at a table with family, new friends and old, make it slow, make it fun, do what you can be make it human and kind. Talk about food, think about it and love it. Be frugal with it and use all the leftovers or at least compost them! Make memories with your meals, not fast food trash. Can’t cook, oh yes, you can! All of you!
We all love to Jam with a Scone, Butter up to a Loaf….
23 Sep 2011 Leave a Comment
You may think that I am super strict about what I will allow my kids to eat. And you may be right. I certainly very, very rarely buy any sweets, lollipops or jammy dodgers (sorry Dr Who). I must be one of the few people in the world who would rather eat carrots than chocolate and brownies have no hold on me! Maybe it is because of my old profession and all the drilling and filling I did! See below my old office which I spotted in a New Zealand museum last time I went home. To think my former dental chair was in a musuem! Now how old does that make me feel?
Anyway I do allow myself and the kids to eat CAKE and COOKIES (or biscuits) but I much prefer it when they eat homemade baked goods. At least then you know what is in them and can “health” them up a little by using wholewheat organic flours, less sugar or even a sugar substitute such as maple sryup, apple puree or ripe bananas. I make scones once a week at least and vary them by adding apricots, fresh apple, grated pear, dates, cranberries and so on. Scones are easy as long as you stick to the basics of not over-mixing (leads to rubbery scones) remembering to add a little salt (very flat tasting without) and having an extremely hot oven. Hot from the oven with a very good jam or using the time tested frozen strawberries and maple syrup to create your own jam substance, how can they be beaten. I think too that the smell of baking brings comfort especially on a grey, grim day. We are also partial to ANZAC cookies which are excellent lunchbox fillers. And we all like a loaf, sliced and buttered up served on a lace doilly. Loaves remind me of my mum, morning teas for hay-makers down on the farm and lace table clothes. Loaves are really very, very easy to make and you can freeze half all ready for another week. They do stay fresh in a tin for a few days and are great for popping into that snack or lunch box. We have a lot of apples to use up as the harvest was excellent this year in our small urban space so here is a recipe I have adpated from Delia Smith to use up a few of ours.
Apple and Apricot and Nut Loaf
175 grams organic dark dried apricots cut into quarters
175 grams apples chopped into small chunks
175 grams pecan nuts
a pinch of salt
1 and half teaspoons of Baking powder
2 teaspoons of cinnamon
110 grams of whole wheat flour
110 grams of plain spelt flour
110 grams of softened butter
100 grams of brown sugar
2 eggs beaten
about half a cup of milk
To top dark brown sugar and cinnamon or a bit of museli
Heat oven to 180 c or 175 fan
Place raw nuts on a tray to roast for 8 minutes when oven is warmed up. Remove and set aside.
Sift into a mixing bowl the flours, the salt, cinnamon and baking powder – lift the sieve high to get some air in!
Add in sugar and butter and mix – can use an electric mixture or a spoon. Then add in the fruit and mix in lightly. Add a little more milk if you think it is too dry!
Spoon into your greased loaf tin or silicone loaf tray. Sprinkle some sugar or cranola on top.
Bake about 35 – 45 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean. Leave in tray for 5 minutes and then turn out onto cooler!
Serve this with Dutch cheeses, quince jelly, jams, butter! Delicious!
I love baking but I accept many people don’t so I will add this last little tip – go and try one of the cakes at Baklust on the Veenkade in The Hague where the charming ladies above turn out lovely Carrot cakes, rich cheesecakes and nice soups and omlettes. Lastly a word on the cake or is it a cookie of the moment, yes the rather wondeful macaroons that cost a fortune and melt in the mouth. I agree that even for a non sweet tooth like me, they are quite lucious and light. I haven’t attempted to make them as yet but I did use some of Phillipe Garlenes in a trifle inspired by Donna Hay and it seemed to be appreciated.
I continue to suggest we refer to these sweet things as “sometimes” foods rather than treats. The Food Forum’s take on cakes is the following: they are not for every mealtime but as we are only human we do eat them now and then. And when we do we only want the very best which is most often home-made with a few, a very few exceptions! Enjoy!
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