Roosters really do know what time it is

My rooster Artemis announcing the start of day 

Normally, at 4am like clock-work, I'm awakened by Artemis announcing the start of another day. In summer it can be as early as 3am! This sets off ALL Solly's roosters and I can assure you, NOTHING can sleep through that racket! Their crowing has now set MY internal clock and I'm normally awake just before the crowing starts.

The rooster's morning cock-a-doodle-doo is driven by an internal clock, finds new research, suggesting that male chickens really know the time of day.

The study, detailed in the journal Current Biology, found that roosters put under constant light conditions will still crow at the crack of dawn.

Past studies have found that a myriad of animal behaviors are driven by an internal clock: at night, a dip in insulin causes humans to process food more slowly, and even blind cave fish use a circadian clock to tell time.

"Cock-a-doodle-doo' symbolizes the break of dawn in many countries," said study author Takashi Yoshimura of Nagoya University, in a statement. "But it wasn't clear whether crowing is under the control of a biological clock or is simply a response to external stimuli."

Because stimuli throughout the day — such as car headlights — will set off a rooster's crow at any time, it was also possible that increasing light was the trigger for the cock's crows.

To find out Yoshimura and his colleagues put 40 roosters in a setting with constant light, then recorded when they crowed.

Sure enough, the chickens crowed at daybreak regardless of the light conditions. The roosters also crowed at other times of day and in response to light and the crows of their fellow chickens, but those behaviours were much stronger at daybreak. The findings suggest that an internal circadian clock, rather than external conditions, drive the behaviour.

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Earthworm interests

Collectively earthworms build the soil This makes them essential to all soil types used by man and animals. Very simply—no earthworms, no living environment. In nature, they will be found wherever there is decaying organic matter and uncontaminated soil.

How can we ensure that these valuable invertebrates continue to flourish?

Providing conditions in which they will do well.
Constantly feeding our soils with humus
Practice mulching with organic materials which will break down and enrich the soil.

Create our own natural fertilisers by starting to practice vermiculture :

• Set up own wormeries
• Practice trenching with worms and vermicompost
• Stop digging over the beds—rather add compost or mulch
• Make use of organic waste rather than sending it to landfills
• Join organisation like the EIGSA, to learn and to teach vermiculture

Did you know that there is an Earthworm Interest group in South Africa? EIGSA was founded in November 2004 by Carmen Nottingham, Ken Reid and Allison Barkhuizen. EIGSA’s aims are to promote interest, knowledge and research on earthworms both in South Africa and worldwide. It is a volunteer organization, and membership is free.

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Perfect Poached eggs

Serves 4

Ingredients

• 4 farm-fresh eggs
• 15 ml white grape vinegar

Method

Pour about 6 cm of water into a large pan and bring to a soft boil. Reduce the heat a little to prevent the water from boiling rapidly as this will cause the whites to detach from the yolks while poaching too fast and becoming rubbery. Now add the vinegar, which will help set the whites more easily.

Crack an egg into a cup. Hold the cup near the surface of the water and gently drop the egg into the water. With a spoon, nudge the egg white closer to the yolk to help the white adhere better to the yolk. Quickly continue doing the same with the rest of the eggs. In between additions, gently spoon some of the simmering liquid over the eggs to cook the tops evenly.

Poach the eggs according to your own taste: about 3 minutes for a soft yolk and up to 5 minutes for a firm yolk.

Remove the cooked eggs with a slotted spoon and dab the bottom of the spoon with kitchen paper before sliding the eggs onto a plate. If the eggs have any straggly white bits around them, use kitchen scissors to snip them off then serve at once.

Are paper books a thing of the past?

Now they say that the book is threatened, to be replaced by e-readers and morphed into multi-media presentations. So, what am I to do? Am I a dinosaur? Am I crippled by nostalgia? Does my wish that the book remain intact and strong take me down the road to irrelevancy? Should I adapt and become more media savvy? Should I blog and create miniature films for Youtube? Should I give up the life I have led, making a living and making sense of my life by books?

One problem I have with e-books is that they are not books. They only look like books. Dictionaries say that the word "book" goes back to the word "beech," the wood first used for writing down ancient runes. A traditionalist like me would say that you need paper or another wood product to have a book.

In our modern way of thinking, we believe we can separate the contents of a book from the material it's written on and bound with. We think of a book as information. But anyone who loves books knows that the book is what you hold in your hand and put on a shelf. A library honours a book and easily turns into a sacred place, somewhere where you can pick and choose a book, be entranced by its leather-bound cover and feel the weight in your hands.

I hope libraries don't become museums for the old technologies of the book. I don't think they have to be. I hope we keep producing books. I think they can co-exist with e-readers because they are not just about information. They're like pianos and antiques and oil paintings - revered, collectable - superseded in some ways by new technologies, but not obliterated. I hope that bookstores will discover how to honour books and continue to sell them. Maybe our pragmatic use of the e-reader, easier to travel with and fun to play with for its media potential, will shift, and soon we'll realize what is so precious about a book. Maybe a book is easier to ensoul than a piece of electronic technology.

Salsa fresca

This is a very simple, quick and easy to make salsa that goes with absolutely everything - even bacon and eggs at breakfast.

4 Tomatoes, roughly chopped
1 Tablespoon fresh chopped Coriander or herb of your choice
Half a small onion, chopped
2 Fresh chillies, chopped
Juice of half a lemon
Half teaspoon salt
Pinch of sugar
1 teaspoon ground black pepper

Mix all the ingredients together and leave for 15 minutes before serving. Serve as an accompaniment to any bean, rice, egg or meat dish. This salsa does not keep long, so make sure you serve at as soon as possible.

Pilchards Salad with Cucumber, Cherry Tomatoes and Cottage Cheese

Pilchards, in any form!, is my latest craving and I've been looking for new ideas of how to enjoy them. This is one of the variations I came up with :

Ingredients:
1 1/2 pilchards,
3/4 cup chopped cucumber,
1/4 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1 tablespoon cottage cheese

Method:
Break the fish with a fork, coarsely. Add the tomatoes, cucumber and cottage cheese. season to taste. Mix through evenly, but do not mince the fish. Season to taste. Serve as is or on freshly baked bread. Yummy!

Kweek 'n Laventelbos

Elke tuin behoort ’n laventelbos te hê – dit is maklik om te kweek, het min water nodig en is ongelooflik bevredigend. En daar is soveel waarvoor mens dit kan gebruik, soos byvoorbeeld :

• Hang bosse laventel op om droog te word in ’n donker, droë plek. Wanneer dit droog is, kan jy dit in potpourri gebruik, in die vuurmaakplek gooi vir ’n heerlike reuk of sakkies van die gedroogte blomme in jou kaste sit om motte uit te hou.
• Laventel is ’n pragtige versiering vir koeke en nageregte, maar jy kan ook gedroogte laventelblomblaartjies by jou koekmengsel voeg. Die geur van laventel smelt baie lekker saam met sjokolade.
• Sukkel jy om te slaap? Sit ’n vaas met laventel in jou slaapkamer. Die geur van laventel het ’n kalmerende en ontspannende uitwerking.
•  Geborduurde sakkies met droë laventel en Laventelolie kan ook gebruik word vir vismotplae.

(Foto vanaf Pinterest)

Laventel en Byewaksseep

Hierdie is ‘n klein reseppie, maar jy kan natuurlik die mates vermeerder teen dieselfde verhoudinge soos wat jy nodig het:

• 114g Gliserien basis-seep
• 10 Druppels laventel botaniese (essential) olie (LW. Nie geurolie nie)
• 1 Druppel pers/laventel kleursel
• 1 Teelepel byewaks

Smelt die gliserien-seep op lae hitte of jy kan dit selfs in die mikrogolf doen. As dit gesmelt is, verwyder dit van die hitte, voeg die byewaks by en roer totdat dit gesmelt is en voeg dan die botaniese olie en kleursel by. Roer deur en gooi in jou gietvorms.

Sarie-tydskrif het selfs 'n Laventel-skons resep :

• 500 ml koekmeel
• 15 ml bakpoeier
• 60 ml ongesoute botter
• 60 ml suiker
• 15 ml gekapte laventel
• 150 ml melk

Voorverhit die oond tot 180 °C. Sif die meel en bakpoeier saam. Vryf die botter in die meel tot dit soos broodkrummels lyk. Voeg die suiker en gekapte laventel by die meelmengsel.

Voeg nou genoeg melk by om ’n stywe deeg te vorm. Druk die deeg plat op ’n meelbestrooide oppervlak en sny die skons uit met ’n koekiedrukker. Plaas die skons op ’n gesmeerde bakplaat en smeer ’n bietjie melk oor elkeen.  Sprinkel met suiker en sit ’n takkie laventel bo-op.

Bak vir 10 tot 12 minute. Sit voor saam met konfyt of roosblaarjellie en geklopte room.

Laventel lyk ook pragtig in potte geplant en verhelder enige hoekie van die tuin, paadjie of die stoep. Dis maklik om steggies te neem van 'n laventelbos - pluk 'n takkie en doop in hormoonpoeier en plant dan in 'n pot gevul met goeie potgrond. Sit dit op 'n plek waar dit 'n paar uur oggendson kry totdat die plantjie mooi pos gevat het voor jy dit in vol son sit.

Laventel se natuurlike omgewing is oop, droë en klipperige aarde. Hulle is waterwys, vaar die beste in die vol sonlig en hou van goed gedreineerde grond. Hoewel Laventel (soos alle plante) sal baat by goeie kompos, hoef die grond nie té ryk te wees nie. Laventel hou glad nie van ‘n nat, bedompige klimaat nie en is geneig om gou vrot te word. Sommige soorte groei redelik uitspattig en moet in toom gehou word as dit in ‘n meer formele omgewing geplant is. Andersyds is dit ‘n plant wat min sorg verg. Die plante kan in die lente en herfs teruggesnoei word as dit stokkerig raak of in ‘n heiningvorm gesnoei moet word. Laventel kan ligte ryp hanteer en kan matige droogte hanteer. As ‘n gemiddelde reël is die gryser soorte meer gehard as die groener variëteite.

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South Africa: I think of her and I stay

I found this beautiful piece of penmanship in Issue 17 of "Biophile" Magazine, (Copyleft written by Sarah Unsworth), and just HAD to publish it here...



This place, South Africa, how do I describe what she means to me? There are days when my thoughts turn to those friends who have left, all for reasons they justify in this ever-changing land. Yet I choose to stay. When questioned, mostly by my own fears, I find myself thinking of her. My country. My home. 

After being born in Kenya, the next 20 years of my life were in South Africa, living here without truly knowing her. My energy spent on my own growing pains and joys, I was innocently oblivious of her and her conflicts. When I left to travel at 21, I did so with no hesitation. Strangely, it was from London that South Africa became unforgettable, looming large to become an undeniable part of my being. There was no forced exile for me, I chose to leave and I could choose to return. Yet not having consciously loved her I could not understand her pull. 

As the years went by there were times both in London and Australia when it seemed the earth of Africa held me together when I came closest to loosing my soul. Mother Africa, my spirit cried out. Still, I was young and knew that there would be time again to burn my feet on her soil, so I chose to ignore her calling for a while. Until one morning, early December in London. It was cold, the light drizzle turning bone marrow to ice. Dashing to the station, I grabbed my post from the box and unopened plunged it hastily into my bag.

A while later, in the stuffy heat of the tube I opened an envelope from home. It was a photograph, taken of the setting sun on a desolate beach on the West Coast. It was a photograph of solitude, of silence and of spectacular beauty. On the back my friend had written “another amazing day in paradise – where are you?” Where was I? I panicked as I gazed around me. In the artificial light of a train continuously underground this world seemed all the more surreal. I felt I needed to reach out and touch it yet I could find no substance. I was anonymous in this massive concrete jungle and turning inward, I realised I had no past or no future here, no bearings and no grounding. Instantly my time had come to go home.

Two weeks and a cheap one way ticket later I found myself on a plane heading south. Oh, my soul soared at the thought of it, lifted high above the clouds, 20, 30 thousand feet, I rose. 8 hours later we were flying over Zambia and Africa spread herself out beneath me like a patchwork quilt, a mass of red earth and rivers snaking their way over countless miles of untamed land. At Lusaka for a stopover, I stepped from the plane leaving the last of the English chill as a wall of heat enveloped me. Sweat trickled in rivulets down my shirt, challenged only by the tears flowing freely down my beaming face. Oh, how I had missed her. My Africa. She welcomed me.

Now years later I still think of it. There are moments when I miss my life overseas, I miss the high vibe, the continuous stream of people you meet from different countries, the feeling of safety and the excitement of being in an unfamiliar world. But I have come home. South Africa holds me tight and sometimes as hard as I try, I cannot fully understand why. Then at the height of my confusion, she opens and lets me in for a moment to witness her delights. And again, I am hooked. Perhaps it is just being able to take myself to a place close by where I can witness the magnificence of the end of the day, and then to be able to believe that this spectacle is all for me.

 It is the continuous smattering of gifts that overwhelms my meagre senses. I am a romantic about my country. Sometimes all I see is her beauty, it lingers with me constantly. The horrific statistics of Aids, the images of death, crime and violence seen daily are enough to crush the soul of the strongest yet somehow I manage to look past it. For it is the beauty that holds me. It is the beauty that moves me. 

Even in the death, the crime and the violence all I see is Africa. I see her journey, her history and her altered destiny. Sometimes it seems too much of her to ask her to contain the violence. I want her to, I urge her to. For her people to be greater than that, to move ahead, to be at peace. But I understand that time moves slowly in Africa and that it is I who needs to be patient. So I forgive her her violence and I love. 

 Imagines of her people reverberate around my brain. It is often something as simple as the petrol attendant who always cleans my daughters window with a beaming smile simply because it makes her smile and because I know, when asking him, that to do that is his pleasure, not just his job. It is his smile that is so freely given.

And so I think her and I ask myself, is this a gift I have been given to be here? Yet then I turn and it is the street kids, calling to me, testing my patience and my concern, asking for life, for money, for the next high, the next meal and I look on in sadness and despair, and mostly do nothing. It makes me ashamed and I think of her. It is my business and the fact that I am accepted as a business woman in a man’s world that makes me proud, and grateful, and makes me think of her.

It is the freedom of her open spaces, of being able to drive on an endless road from here to nowhere, that makes me think of her. It is taking my small child down to nearby beach at the dawn of the day, to let her play in the waves, for her to smell the ocean and to feel the sand between her toes moving with the tide. Incomprehensible beauty all around and it makes me think of her.

It is hearing a dozen different dialects, knowing no other than my own and feeling my inadequacy, my illiteracy and my limited knowledge of other cultures. It makes me wonder at it all, and it makes me think of her. It is her abundant colour and her tireless vibrancy. It is her music and the scope of it. Of kwela rhythm in a concert for freedom, the celebration of it and knowing that no other music can tell such a tale. A tale of strength. A tale of the power of good over bad, of love over hate and in her music hearing the surge of it under an African Sky.

It is the memory of that day in 1994 when we all stood side by side, making history as we touched our collective soul, that makes me think of her. It is today, when I still hear her struggle and I still feel her hope and it makes me want so much more for her. So I know her to be special as I know I am special in being here. So I think of her and so I stay.
 ..... by Sarah Unsworth

Beesvleiskasserol met Kluitjies

BREDIE:
1,2 kg beesvleisblokkies
Sout en vars gemaalde swartpeper
45 ml olyfolie
1 groot ui, grof gekap
250 ml rooiwyn
1 liter goeie beesvleisaftreksel
2 x 410 g blikke gekapte tamatie
500 g groenbone, skoongemaak en gehalveer
1 x 250 g houer sampioene, grof gekap
250 ml room
Paar takkies vars roosmaryn

KLUITJIES:
310 ml bruismeel
Knippie sout
100 g botter
15 ml gekapte roosmarynblaartjies
180 ml karringmelk

Geur vleis met sout en peper en braai in ’n swaarboompot in warm olie tot bruin. Voeg die ui by en braai tot sag. Voeg die rooiwyn, beesvleisaftreksel en tamatie by en verhit tot kookpunt. Bedek en laat prut vir ongeveer 1½-2 uur, of tot vleis sag is.

Voeg bone en sampioene by en prut verder tot groente gaar is. Terwyl groente prut, meng meel en sout in ’n bak en vryf botter daarby in. Voeg roosmaryn by en sny karringmelk met ’n mes in (soos vir skondeeg) tot klam krummels vorm. Druk liggies bymekaar en skep eetlepelsvol van die deeg op die borrelende bredie.

Bedek en laat prut liggies vir 10-15 minute, tot deurgaar. Lewer ses porsies.


Roosmaryn is 'n goeie krui om saam met beesvleis te gebruik – verál in ’n bredie.

As jy nog nie kluitjies gemaak het nie – die deeg moet lekker sag wees (’n voedselverwerker maak dit maklik), weerstaan tog die versoeking om die deksel op te lig terwyl die kluitjies gaar word. Dis die konstante stoom wat hulle lig laat uitrys.

As jy die pot heeltyd oop- en toemaak, kan die kluitjies toeslaan en sal dit ’n digte, swaar tekstuur hê. As jy twyfel of die kluitjies gaar is, druk ’n sosatiestokkie in die grootste een – as dit skoon uitkom, is
die kluitjies reg.

Bron: Arina du Plessis
Plasing; Henriette Wessels / WATERTAND RESEPTE VIR OUD EN JONK

Romerige Aartappelgebak

Lewer 6-8 porsies

6-8 groot aartappels
45 ml. (3 e) olyf-of kookolie
125 g swoerdlose spekvleis, in stukkies gesny
125g knopiesampioene, in skywe gesny
60g-pakkie sampioensoppoeier of wit uiesoppoeier
750 ml (3 k) melk
gemaalde swartpeper na smaak
125 ml. (1/2 k) gerasperde Cheddarkaas

Metode:
1. Skil die aartappels en kook tot sag, maar steeds ferm. Sny aartappels in skywe en pak die helfte in ‘n lag in ‘n groot oondvaste bak.
2. Verhit die olie en braai die spek en sampioene tot gaar en skep die helfte oor die aartappels.
3. Meng die soppoeier met die melk in ‘n swaarboomkastrol. Bring tot kookpunt en roer aanhoudend vir ‘n paar minute tot dit begin verdik. Voeg peper by.
4. Giet die helfte van die sous oor die spek-en-sampioenlaag. Herhaal met die oorblywende aartappel, spek en sampioene en laastens die sous.
5. Sprinkel kaas bo-op. Bak vir 20- 30 min. in ‘n voorverhitte oond teen 180 grade C of tot goudbruin bo-op.

Common edible flowers: A guide

Edible flowers are all the rage at the moment, but not every blossom is palatable. Here's a helpful guide to which petals to plate, anything else can be left in the vase.

The subtle flavours of edible garden flowers impart an extra dimension to a dish with their delicacy and uniqueness. However, you can't just throw a handful of petals into your stew. To use them effectively one needs to understand the ideal use for each kind of flower. Something we have simplified with our guide below. 

Apple blossoms have a delicate floral flavour and aroma and are a great accompaniment to fruit dishes. They can easily be candied to use as a garnish.

Calendula (or marigolds) can be spicy or bitter, tangy or peppery. Also known as poor man’s saffron, their petals are lovely sprinkled on soups, pastas and rice dishes.

Carnations can be steeped in wine, candied or used as cake decorations. To use the sweet petals in desserts, cut them away from the bitter white base of the flower.

Chrysanthemums range in taste from faintly peppery to something resembling mild cauliflower. They should be blanched and the petals scattered on salad.

Dandelion flowers are sweetest when picked young. They have a honey flavour and can be eaten raw or steamed.

Day lilies are slightly sweet with a mild vegetable flavour, somewhere between asparagus and baby marrow.

Fuchsia blooms have a slightly acidic flavour. Their explosive colours and graceful shape make them ideal for use as a garnish.

Hibiscus blooms have a cranberry-like flavour with citrus overtones. Use petals sparingly in salads or as a garnish.

Impatiens have a sweet flavour and look lovely floated in drinks.

Jasmine’stubular, waxy-white flowers are intensely fragrant and traditionally used for scenting tea.

Lavender flowers have a sweet, floral flavour, with lemon and citrus notes. They look beautiful – and taste good too – in a glass of champagne, with chocolate cake, or as a garnish for sorbets and ice creams.

Lilac flowers have a distinct lemony taste with strong floral overtones. They are great in salads and crystallised with egg whites and sugar.

Nasturtium blossoms have a sweet, spicy flavour, which is similar to watercress and are ideal on open sandwiches and savoury appetisers.

Roses vary in flavour according to soil type and colour, although the taste can be described as being reminiscent of strawberries and green apples.

Sunflowers are best eaten steamed at bud stage, when they taste like artichokes.

Tulip petals taste like sweet lettuce or fresh baby peas and have a cucumber-like texture and flavour. Note that some people have a strong allergic reaction to them.

Violets have a sweet, perfumed flavour and make pretty adornments to iced cakes and sorbets. They can also be crystallised.

This info from Woolworths TasteMag

Buttery baby spinach

150g baby spinach, cut into slivers
1-2 tsp butter
salt & pepper

Heat butter in a pan over medium low heat until foamy. When foam dies down,
add the spinach. Cook, stirring, for 2-3 minutes, just until tender. Add
salt and pepper to taste.

1-2 Servings (500g spinach = 3 tbs butter)

Grilled Asparagus and Goat's cheese

Ingredients:

200g asparagus, washed and dried
1 T olive oil
100g goat’s cheese, sliced

salt, coarse pepper

Cooking instructions:

Toss the washed and dried asparagus in olive oil and grill on a hot griddle pan for about 2 minutes a side.

Place in an ovenproof dish, top with the sliced goat’s cheese, and grill for 3 to 4 minutes, or until melted and golden.

Season and serve. 

Cheesy Potato bake

Serves: 4 

Category: Easy / Great value / Kid-friendly

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cooking time: 40 minutes

Ingredients:

2 kg Woolworths Everyday Large Potatoes

400 ml Woolworths Heat & Pour Cheese Sauce

400 g Gouda

Sprinkle of Parmesan (optional)

Cooking instructions:

Thinly slice 4 to 5 potatoes and arrange a layer in a greased ovenproof dish. Pour over 2 to 3 T Heat & Pour cheese sauce, then repeat with the remaining potatoes and cheese sauce.

Generously grate Gouda over the potato bake, adding a little Parmesan, too, if you like. Bake for 40 minutes or until golden brown and bubbling. 

Serve hot with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.

Easy Guacamole

3 ripe avocados
1 lime
1-2 gloves of garlic finely minced
pinch of salt

Cut avocados in half, discard pit and scoop out flesh into bowl. Add the juice of the lime, garlic and salt. Mash together and serve with tortilla chips.

Curried Butternut soup

Two butternuts peeled and diced,
two chicken stock cubes,
4 cheese wedges,
two long leeks washed and sliced,
a heaped teaspoon of curry powder,
salt and pepper to taste.

Cook it all up until veggies are tender then put in blender. Serve hot with fresh warm bread and a swirl of sour cream or even some crumbed feta.

Corn fritters

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cooking time: 10 minutes

Ingredients:
3 corn cobs
140 g cake flour
2 free-range eggs
½ cup milk
100 g mature Cheddar cheese, grated
2 T Italian parsley, chopped
1 T chives, chopped
1 t baking powder
sea salt, to taste
oil, to deep-fry

Cooking instructions:

Cook the corn in boiling water until soft. Cut the corn off the cob.

Mix together the flour, eggs, milk, cheese, herbs, baking powder and salt.

Add the corn. Heat the oil in a saucepan until hot. Drop spoonfuls of batter into the oil.

Cook until puffed up and golden brown. Drain on absorbent paper.

Keep warm until ready to eat.

Cook’s tip: You can also use 1 x 410g can of sweetcorn kernels instead of fresh corn.

Cauliflower Tabbouleh (raw, vegan, gluten-free)

Salad


1 medium Cauliflower – broken into florets

1 large handful (40g) Fresh Flat Leaf parsley, Chopped

1 small handful(20g) fresh Mint, Chopped

½ (200g) Cucumber diced

1 (190g) red onion, finely chopped

6 (600g) tomatoes diced

1 (200g)green pepper diced

Dressing


Juice of 2 Medium lemons (±150ml)

½ Cup (125ml) Olive oil

½ tsp (2g)ground garam masala

½ tsp (1g) freshly ground cumin

Vegetable salt and black pepper to taste

- In small batches, pulse the cauliflower florets until they are riced.

- Combine the dressing and toss through the cauliflower rice and allow to stand for 10 minutes.

- Add the rest of the salad ingredients and mix thoroughly.

- Garnish with shredded cucumber or romaine lettuce

Serves 6

70k Cal per 100g

BLT Sandwich

Ingredients:
2 slices Monterey Jack cheese or mild Cheddar
2 thick slices rustic, farmhouse loaf or sourdough bread
1 T mayonnaise
4 pieces of streaky bacon, fried
4 slices of tomato
2 leaves butter lettuce
1 free-range egg

Cooking instructions:

Place the slices of cheese on 1 piece of the toasted bread and place under the grill until the cheese has melted.

Spread the mayonnaise on the other slice of bread, then top with fried bacon, tomato and lettuce.

Slide the egg, crisp around the edges with a runny yolk, on top of the lettuce, close the sandwich and indulge right away.

Avocado-Cherry Tomato Salad with Lime Vinaigrette

Ingredients:

• 4 firm-ripe avocados, halved, pitted, peeled and cut into chunks

• 1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes, halved crosswise

• 1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted

• 1/4 cup Lime Vinaigrette (See recipe below.)

• Coarse salt

• Freshly ground black pepper

Instructions:

1. In a mixing bowl, combine avocados, tomatoes, pine nuts and vinaigrette. Toss gently, taking care not to smash the pieces of avocado—you are not making guacamole!
2. Season generously with salt and pepper.

Serve chilled. Makes 4 cups.

Lime Vinaigrette
A sweet tangy blend of lime, honey and cilantro, this versatile Lime Vinaigrette lends pizzazz to a salad, or makes a great basic marinade for fish or chicken.

Ingredients:

• Juice of 2 to 3 limes, (about 1/4 cup)

• 1 tablespoon honey or agave nectar

• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

• 1 garlic clove, minced

• 1 teaspoon coarse salt

• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

• 2/3 cup canola oil

• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves

Instructions:
 
1. In a blender, combine lime juice, honey, mustard, garlic, salt and pepper. Blend on medium speed for a few seconds, and then reduce the speed to low.

2. With the motor running, slowly add the oil until emulsified. Pour into a container or jar and mix in cilantro.

3. Keep any left-over vinaigrette covered in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. Makes 1 cup.

Potato puffs

Ingredients
3 cups of mashed potatoes
2 eggs
1/3 cup sour cream (optional extra for serving)
1 heaping cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan
2 tablespoons chopped chives or parsley
Salt and black pepper, to taste

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Lightly grease with butter 8 - 9 of the wells of a nonstick muffin pan.

In a medium mixing bowl, whisk the eggs then mix in the sour cream. Stir in both cheeses and the chives. Add potatoes and mix well. Spoon them into the pan filling the cups to slightly below the top. Bake 25- 35 minutes until they pull away from the sides of the cup and are golden brown.

Remove from oven and let them cool 5 minutes in pan. Serve with sour cream if desired.

Traditional Frikkadel with garlic and Chermoula

Cooking time - 25 minutes

Ingredients:
500 g free-range beef mince
4 ripe tomatoes finely diced
1 grated onion
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1/4 cup breadcrumbs

1 egg
1 T worcester sauce
1 T brown vinegar
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 T olive oil
2 T garlic cloves thinly sliced
cos lettuce leaves, for serving
tomato and red onion salsa, for serving
chermoula paste, for dipping

Cooking instructions:

Preheat the oven to 180°C.

Combine the mince, tomato, onion, parsley, breadcrumbs, egg, Worcester sauce and brown vinegar.

Season to taste, then mould the mixture into large balls. Place a nonstick pan over a medium to high heat and add the olive oil.

When hot, fry the garlic and frikkadels, until the latter are browned on all sides. 

Transfer to an ovenproof dish and bake for 10 to 15 minutes, or until firm and cooked through.

Serve nestled in crisp cos lettuce leaves with a tomato-and-red onion salsa and a small bowl of chermoula paste, for dipping, on the side.

Cook’s note: Chermoulais a fragrant spiced paste available from selected Woolworths stores and delis.

Spicy Tuna pasta

Serves 4-5

Nutritional content per serving:

2010kj | 77g carbohydrate | 27g protein | 7g fat | 7g fibre

Ingredients:

15 ml olive oil

1 red onion, finely chopped

5-10 ml crushed chili from a jar – John West

2 x 400 g cans of cut, peeled & diced tomatoes (Garlic, Basil and Oregano flavour)

15 ml capers

a hand full of black olives, pitted and chopped

5 ml brown sugar

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

500 g penne pasta

2 x 170 g tuna in oil, drained

Handful fresh basil leaves

Instructions:

1. Heat the oil in a pan and fry the onion and chili until soft and translucent.

2. Add the fresh cut tomatoes, capers, olives and sugar and simmer for 15 minutes. Season to taste.

3. Cook the pasta according to the pack instructions. Drain the pasta and stir the tomato sauce through.

4. Lastly, drain the tuna and scatter over the pasta.

5. Scatter with basil leaves.

Soft fudge

Prep time : 15 plus 2 hrs. settling time

Cooking time : 10-15 minutes

Ingredients:
4 cups soft brown sugar
3 cups double-thick cream
1/2 a vanilla pod

Cooking instructions:

Pour the brown sugar into a deep saucepan and add the double-thick cream. Melt over medium heat.

Bring to a boil and simmer over a low heat for 5 - 10 minutes, stirring with a wooden spoon until the sugar has completely dissolved.

Remove from the heat, add salt and seeds from half a vanilla pod.

Beat the caramel sauce with a wooden spoon for 5 minutes to cool slightly. Pour it into a greaseproof container and allow at least 2 hours to settle.

Serve the soft fudge as a snack with fresh figs and a glass of bubbly, or as a desert with a glass of ice-cold sherry.

Cook's note: You can also serve the caramel sauce as is with fresh figs.

Replace the vanilla by adding flavours such as chocolate, candied ginger, lemon rind, freshly ground black pepper or freshly chopped thyme, or add a handful of chopped walnuts or macadamia nuts.