Christmas without Guilt?
• Maye West once said that “too much of a good thing can be wonderful” – but sometimes too much is just too much.
• Christmas can feel like too much food, too much money spent, too much, too much.
• But the problem is that the alternatives almost invariably feel a bit worthy and dull.
• Christmas presents that keep with the Christmas spirit without tasting like mung beans and ponchos…
Lovely book
• Seed to Table produced by the Harvest of Hope Team is a cook book/ gardening book/ series of biographies of gardeners.
• Harvest of Hope are the most eco-epicurean township food garden scheme.
• They grow fashionable, delicious, organic veg for box schemes in townships in and around the Western Cape.
• Feed the rich and the poor on beautiful slivers of asparagus, plump strawberries, super sexy herb bundles etc.
• Beautiful photographs, delicious proudly South African recipes (everything from bean bredies and pumpkin soups to Xhosa classics such as isophu maize soup). Fabulous gardening tips, lovely biographies of those involved.
• Ridiculously cheep - R100 order from Doreen Gowans gowsie@iAfrica.com
BUT WHO WANTS TO READ WHEN YOU CAN EAT YOURSELF INTO OBLIVION THIS XMAS?
We talked about how to eat yummy vegan and raw food last week (in case you missed it Chef Brittany Kesselman at Jozi Raw 084 200 3400)
FOR THOSE WANTING FISH:
If you are going to have smoked salmon make sure it is sustainably and kindly sourced
• There is nothing nicer for Christmas canapés than a sliver of smoked salmon and a scrape of horseradish cream.
• There is nothing more wonderful than a hunk of seared salmon with a grenobaise caper and lemon laden sauce.
• But actually a lot of salmon tastes terrible (slimy, too oily, unpleasantly ‘fishy’). It tastes nasty because it had a horrible life…
• Much of the salmon in our supermarkets comes from over stocked, disease ridden, pumped full of antibiotics, fed terrible cheep food too much too quickly so the flavour is foul.
• If you want nice salmon: Loch Duart – multi award winning Scottish salmon is the way to go.
• It tastes great - They recently won the Daily Telegraph Taste of Britain Award. It is the Salmon used at Rick Stein and Gordon Ramsay’s restaurants.
• Loch Duart salmon are farmed but under the most restful and elegant of conditions – they rotate the hatcheries and loch sites so as to allow for natural cleansing and regeneration.
• They won the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals award for “Outstanding Contribution to Animal Welfare”
• Low fish density allowing the fish to grow naturally.
• Feeding regime that mimics that of the natural environment so “the fish can have a slower more restful digestion”
• No antibiotics
• www.lochduart.com or la Marina 011 9970500 (the good news is they also do sustainable tuna and prawns)
FOR THOSE SEEKING A CARNIVOROUS CHRISTMAS …
I’m having a free range goat on a spit for xmas – which I ordered from Caroline McCann at the Braeside butchery in Parkhurst 011 7883613).
AND I think the ideal xmas present for the woman who has everything would be her braai making classes for girls.
BUT IF YOU DON’T FANCY A GOAT…
Organic Braai Bliss
• Badgeleur Organics (083 724 2491/ doug@compumail.co.za or at the Bryanston Organic Market at Michael Mount).
• Free roaming venison and boar in Mpumalanga.
• Certified as organic by the BDOCA in 2009.
• What could be nicer than traditional wild boar sausages and mini wors?
• Its wild boar fat and meat with fennel seeds, garlic and All-spice.
• They also do jolly nice eland fillet – less than 3% fat for those who are still watching such matters.
• The deboned leg of venison makes a very good Sunday roast.
• Damn fine venison pies.
AND WHAT IS XMAS WITHOUT BOOZE?
• Last week I got a bit over excited and I don’t think anyone would have been able to understand anything more than that I loved the Primitiv vodka from Jorgensen’s Distillery,
• I feel I owe it to them to reiterate that this is the best tasting vodka in South Africa
• That it is made by a South African micro-distillery which is committed to renewable energy (all bi-products are composted and recycled)
• And that you can call them on 082 920 2595 or order on line www.primitiv.co.za
• They say that if you order before the 20th they can guarantee it will be with you by Christmas.
DORAHTINI ANYONE?
• Everyone who has a township childhood will already know this but for girls like me this combination of umqombothi traditional beer and vanilla ice cream was a revelation.
• I have named my version after Dorah Sitole who first told me about it.
• First: don’t be a snob – booze that comes in a box can be fab.
• My favourite traditional African beer is Joburg Beer – because it is currently running a competition whereby you can win a bull on the side of the box. Yes, you heard me right – a real live farm animal. BUT ANY BRAND WILL DO.
• You will find it in most supermarkets in suburbia and all township shops and shebeens.
• Even if you don’t win the bull if you mix equal quantities of umqombothi and vanilla ice cream and wiz it up on the blender the nice flavour combination of sour tang of beer and sweet vanillay creaminess is great.
• Like a smoothy but with added sin…
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