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Greetings everyone!
And a special welcome to all the new subscribers!
New subscribers,
right click here
to download your free eBook. Are you a cat lover? Then right click to
get your catfood recipe book . Next time it will be dogfood recipes.
I would like to
start as section on my site featuring South Africans and ex seffricans now
living abroad and who have their own businesses selling South African food
and goods. I already have the
SA Food section, but this will be a more in-depth section with
pictures and a short article. If you fall in this category and would like
to have your business featured, please
email me and we can discuss. Who can say "NO" for free advertising!
Go visit my main
Recipes page!
I came across some
BBQ sauce recipes in my recipe collection, scroll down to take a look at
the recipe section.
The Health Benefits
Of Bananas
After reading this, you'll NEVER look at a banana in the same way again!
Bananas contain three natural sugars - sucrose, fructose and glucose
combined with fibre.
A banana gives an instant, sustained and substantial boost of energy.
Research has proven that just two bananas provide enough energy for a
strenuous 90-minute workout.
No wonder the banana is the number one fruit with the world's leading
athletes.
But energy isn't the only way a banana can help us keep fit.
It can also help overcome or prevent a substantial number of illnesses and
conditions, making it a must to add to our daily diet.
Depression:
According to a recent survey undertaken by MIND among people suffering
from depression, many felt
much better after eating a banana. This is because bananas contain
tryptophan, a type of protein that the
body converts into serotonin, known to make you relax, improve your mood
and generally make you feel happier.
PMS:
Forget the pills -- eat a banana. The vitamin B6 it contains regulates
blood glucose levels, which can affect your mood.
Anemia:
High in iron, bananas can stimulate the production of hemoglobin in the
blood and so helps in cases of anemia.
Blood Pressure:
This unique tropical fruit is extremely high in potassium yet low in salt,
making it the perfect way to beat blood pressure. So much so, the US Food
and Drug Administration has just allowed the banana industry to make
official claims for the fruit's ability to reduce the risk of blood
pressure and stroke.
Brain Power:
200 students at a Twickenham (Middlesex) school were helped through their
exams this year by eating bananas at breakfast, break, and lunch in a bid
to boost their brain power. Research has shown that the potassium-packed
fruit can assist learning by making pupils more alert.
Constipation:
High in fiber, including bananas in the diet can help restore normal bowel
action, helping to overcome the problem without resorting to laxatives.
Hangovers:
One of the quickest ways of curing a hangover is to make a banana
milkshake, sweetened with honey.
The banana calms the stomach and, with the help of the honey, builds up
depleted blood sugar levels,
while the milk soothes and re-hydrates your system.
Heartburn:
Bananas have a natural antacid effect in the body, so if you suffer from
heartburn, try eating a banana for soothing relief.
Morning Sickness:
Snacking on bananas between meals helps to keep blood sugar levels up and
avoid morning sickness.
Mosquito bites:
Before reaching for the insect bite cream, try rubbing the affected area
with the inside of a banana skin. Many people find it amazingly successful
at reducing swelling and irritation.
Nerves:
Bananas are high in B vitamins that help calm the nervous system.
Ulcers:
The banana is used as the dietary food against intestinal disorders
because of its soft texture
and smoothness. It also neutralizes over-acidity and reduces irritation by
coating the lining of the stomach.
Temperature control:
Many other cultures see bananas as a "cooling" fruit that can lower both
the physical and emotional temperature of expectant mothers. In Thailand,
for example, pregnant women eat bananas to ensure their baby is born with
a cool temperature.
Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD):
Bananas can help SAD sufferers because they contain the natural mood
enhancer tryptophan.
Smoking:
Bananas can also help people trying to give up smoking. The B6, B12 they
contain, as well as the potassium and magnesium found in them, help the
body recover from the effects of nicotine withdrawal.
Stress:
Potassium is a vital mineral, which helps normalize the heartbeat, sends
oxygen to the brain and regulates
your body's water balance. When we are stressed, our metabolic rate rises,
thereby reducing our potassium levels. These can be balanced with the help
of a high-potassium banana snack.
Strokes:
According to research in "The New England Journal of Medicine," eating
bananas as part of a regular diet can cut the risk of death by strokes by
as much as 40%!
So, a banana really is a natural remedy for many ills.
When you compare it to an apple, it has four times the protein, twice the
carbohydrates, three times the phosphorus, five times the vitamin A and
iron, and twice the other vitamins and minerals. It is also rich in
potassium and is
one of the best value foods around. So maybe its time to change that
well-known phrase so that we say, "A banana a day keeps the doctor away!"
The history of
tomato sauce? Whenever I eat slap chips (french fries) I pour a dollop of
tomato sauce on the side of the plate and dip every chip into the sauce
before eating it! Of course, the Americans call it ketchup or catsup, but
to us seffricans it will remain tomato sauce!
Looking back to the
eighteenth century, ketchup started out as a sauce made of anchovies,
walnuts, mushrooms and kidney beans. Doesn't sound very tomato like, does
it? One popular theory is that the word ketchup is derived from the
koechiap or ke-tsiap which is from the Amoy dialect of China. Roughly
translated means the brine of pickled fish or shellfish. Around the late
seventeenth century the name and samples arrived in England where it
appeared in print as catchup and then finally as ketchup. It seems the
name has stuck and has been made popular throughout the world! The British
took in the idea and were soon using ketchup for pickling anchovies and
oysters.
So what about Heinz? Sources claim that Henry J Heinz began making ketchup
in 1876. The recipe has remained the same to this day. Heinz was neither
the inventor of ketchup nor the first to bottle it commercially. The
tomato is a native of the Andes, and early in the 1500's, while living in
Mexico a group of Spanish conquistadores discovered it and the tomato
followed them back to Europe.
Another source states that ketchup is a term derived from Asian cookery,
where it is known to be a sweet sauce made from tomatoes.
Ever fancy yourself
as a saucologist? Apparently the way we serve our ketchup is the key to
our personalities. So which type are you?
Dunker Methodical and trustworthy, but may have a bit of a Monica 'control
freak' streak.
Splodger Ambitious types splodge huge dollops of sauce in the middle of
their plates. They know what they want and how to get it. Don't get in
their way.
Swirler Flamboyant types who squirt and swirl their sauce in thin lines.
Watch out, they can be impatient and don't tolerate fools or time-wasters.
Dotters The dreamers of the sauce-world, they live conservatively but
dream of adventure. All mouth and no trousers.
Smotherers They're the life and soul of the party, living life on full
throttle. But be careful: they're also high-maintenance attention seekers.
Painters Draw ketchup faces and words on their food and have an easy-going
approach to life. Watch out, though they can be so laid-back they're
practically horizontal.
Gourmet Keep their ketchup in a cruet and may appear charming, but deep
down can be snobbish, social climbers.
From:
Planet Ketchup
Thinking of
visiting South Africa? This link below is mainly geared to the 2010 World
Cup, but is valid for a visit now as well,
go take a look.
Three
mischievous grandmas were sitting on a bench outside a nursing home. About
then a grandpa walked
by, and one of the old grandmas yelled out saying,
"We bet we can tell exactly how old you are."
The old man said, "There ain't no way you can guess it, you old fools."
One of the ornery grandmas said, "Sure we can! Just drop your under shorts
and we can tell your exact age."
Embarrassed just a little, he dropped his drawers. The grandmas stared at
him for a while, asked him to turn around a couple of times, asked him to
jump up and down for a little while and then they all piped up and said,
"You're 84 years old!"
"How in the world did you guess?!?"
The ornery old grandmas, snickered and laughed. Slapping their knees and
grinning from ear to ear, all three happily yelled in unison, "Because we
were at your birthday party yesterday!"
Never buy another recipe book
again.
I have put together my South African Traditional Recipes in English
and Afrikaans plus another 36 recipe eBooks on one CD.
Click here to take a look and also get your free Low Fat recipe
eBook
Top
Ten Reasons Why Dogs Are Better Pets Than Cats
1. Dogs will tilt their heads and try to understand every word you say.
Cats will ignore you and take a nap.
2. Cats look silly on a leash.
3. When you come home from work, your dog will be happy and lick your
face. Cats will still be mad at you for leaving in the first place.
4. Dogs will give you unconditional love until the day they die. Cats will
make you pay for every mistake you've ever made since the day you were
born.
5. A dog knows when you're sad. And he'll try to comfort you. Cats don't
care how you feel, as long as you remember where the can opener is.
6. Dogs will bring you your slippers. Cats will drop a dead mouse in your
slippers.
7. When you take them for a ride, dogs will sit on the seat next to you.
Cats have to have their own private basket, or they won't go at all.
8. Dogs will come when you call them. And they'll be happy. Cats will have
someone take a message and get back to you.
9. Dogs will play fetch with you all day long. The only thing cats will
play with all day long are small rodents or bugs, preferably ones that
look like they're in pain.
10. Dogs will wake you up if the house is on fire. Cats will quietly sneak
out the back door.
I have
started a Traveller's Forum (in Afrikaans). If you want to go take a look,
click
here.
Why
not subscribe to my
Afrikaans newsletter?
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At long last my collection of South African Traditional Home
Remedies (Boererate) ( nearly 2000) have been translated into
English and they are now available on a CD together with my collection
of Traditional South African Recipes. This will make an ideal
gift or even an interesting collection for yourself! The CD only costs
R96 or US$22 (payment with Paypal).
Click here for payment details.
The Home Remedies are also available on their own by email in eBook
format at R60 (US$15).
Email me for the eBook payment details. |
Ever tried
Rooibos tea?
Here are some
Rooibos tea facts:
Scientists have
found that Rooibos Tea can protect against mutagenesis, the process
whereby the genetic materical of a cell is damaged. Mutagenesis is one of
the major causes of cancer and other diseases.
Rooibos Tea is full of polyphenols, flavonoids, and proanthocyanidins that
help protect the body from free radical damage.
The Japanese have found that Rooibos Tea helps suppress the occurrence of
herpes simplex in people who suffer from recurrent herpes.
Fights free
radicals with its high antioxidant content
Shown to provide Cancer reduction and/or cancer cure in animal studies
Helps lower cholesterol
Lowers blood pressure
Strengthens the immune system
Helps stabilize blood sugar for diabetics
Sooths stomach pains
Relieves allergies
Calms colicky babies
Helps in weight loss
I actualy prefer
Dry Wors to Biltong, probably because it's easier to bite and chew. I came
across this Traditional recipe on the
Biltongmaker's website do yourself a favour and go browse around
there. Check out their biltongmakers, now you can have great biltong
anywhere in the world!
Droë Wors
As mentioned previously, any good quality wors of the thin variety can be
hung out to dry. This particular recipe however, dates right back to the
era of the Great Trek in the early nineteenth century.
This is how Droë Wors (dried sausage) tasted hundreds of years ago!
Fundamentally the spice ingredients and the method of preparation remain
the same as the boerewors recipe but the meat ingredients differ.
For the Trekkers in those days venison, beef and mutton was abundantly
available, but pigs were not suitable company for them and their nomadic
lifestyle.
Therefore, we use the same spices and method as for making boerewors , but
the meat type and quantity is slightly different.
TRADITIONAL RECIPE
INGREDIENTS
2 kg venison (no pork or veal)
1 kg beef.
500 gr sheep tails fat (no pork or spek)
25 ml salt.
5 ml ground black pepper.
15 ml corriander, singed and ground (see hints and tips).
1 ml ground cloves.
2 ml nutmeg powder.
125 ml brown vinegar.
25 ml brandy (optional).
25 ml marsala (optional).
200 gr narrow (thin) sausage casings.
METHOD
Cube all meat.
Mix together thoroughly and mince coarsely.
Place meat in large bowl.
Add all dry spices, vinegar and brandy (if used).
Mix together lightly with a two pronged fork.
Place in fridge for +/- 2 hours to blend flavours.
Soak casings in water during this period.
Fit casings to sausage maker and fill with mixture.
Do not over- or under-stuff.
This wors is more suitable for drying than it is for cooking. Due to the
absence of pork and spek, and the inclusion of venison, it is not as
succulent as normal boerewors and many people find the cooked variety of
this recipe a bit to dry for their liking.
Also, hang this wors a bit longer than other types of wors as most people
prefer it drier than the rest. It should snap like a twig when bent.
Glenacres Superspar newsletter recipe.
HAKE CURRY
6 Hake Steaks
2 Tbsp Sliced Onions
4 Tbsp Butter
¾ Cup Cream
2 Level Tbsp Curry Powder
Pinch Salt
Ground Pepper
1. Fry the chopped onion in butter until transparent
2. Spread the onion in the bottom of a baking dish
3. Put the fish steaks on top of the onions, and season with salt & pepper
4. Mix the cream and the curry powder, and sprinkle on top of the fish
5. Bake at 200°C for 30 min. but as soon as it starts to boil, open the
oven door and allow to finish baking without boiling
Glenacres
Superspar sends out a really nice newsletter full of super recipes. To
subscribe,
click here and send the blank email.
Another Wacky Sarmie
Go take a look at
my
Wacky Sarmies page, there are some great sarmie ideas!
These ideas are
from a lady with a really kewl name!!
Pepper Ann ( not
kidding on my birth certificate maiden name Robertson ) ( ex zim )
Johannesburg
I have a couple of really delicious sarmies:
Two slices of white bread
Butter
Crushed garlic or sliced cloves of garlic
Salt and plenty of ground black pepper
My latest sarmie is a double layer:
Cheddar cheese
Biltong and banana
Three slices white bread , buttered on first slice put the cheese and half
of the banana and then a slice of bread and then biltong and banana on the
top and close it with the last slice of bread.
This last one needs a really large bread roll
Layer:
Cream cheese
Lettuce
Cucumber / pickles
Ham
Tomatoes
Beetroot ( pickled )
Goes down really well with a nice brown cow ( coke and icecream float )
And my mom's fav is pork sausage and marmalade ( I think it stems from
boarding school )
Ham cheese and strawberry jam
Toasted tomatoe and fruit chutney
And the last one or I will take up too much space
My sister and I used to make smorgasborga’s ( open Samies ) we used to put
what ever was on the plate on a slice of bread when we had “bits and
pieces ( any thing from a salad to cold meats and boiled eggs avo and
pickles with crisps on top
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A Blast
From the Past |
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1929 - Wall street crashes, the Vatican established as a State,
Table Mountain gets a cableway, Wyatt Earp (gunfighter) dies, the
first Edgars store opens in Johannesburg, Tintin and Popeye make their
debuts, the first Oscars are awarded,
Source:
Sunday Times. |
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Bush Buzz
Nature is wonderful. I envy
the jobs of the game rangers and their wealth of bush knowledge. I
have often wondered where one can read up on all the interesting
facts. I would like to make this a regular feature of this newsletter,
if you are able to contribute or would like to comment on the
contribution below, please
email me. |
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The Giraffe |
The Giraffe is the
tallest living land animal. Its height is up to 5.5 meters (18 feet)
while its shoulders are at the height of 2.5 meters! Therefore you can
easily spot any giraffe even from the long distance. It has got a long
tail measuring up to 90 cm. Its weight ranges from 600 kg to 1 800 kg
(2 500 lb on average). The Giraffe has got a typical brownish and
yellowish colour with reticulated pattern. Thank to their specific
colour and pattern we can divide giraffes into several groups.
From the anatomical point of view, this animal is a unique creature.
Despite its long neck it has got the same number of the cervical
vertebrae as humans have. As a mammal it has got 7 cervical vertebrae.
Its neck is exceptionally flexible and moves from side to side when
giraffes are running. Arteries in its neck have got valves in order to
bring enough blood up to the head. Valves enable blood to move only in
one way – up to the head. On its small head, there are few small
horns. Its sight is extremely good as well as its hearing sense. The
giraffes have got very long legs too. They can reach the speed of 50
km per hour (30 mph). When drinking, giraffes have to spread their
legs so the head can reach the water level.
This long-necked mammal lives in Africa, but mainly in the southern
parts of the Sahara. Plains and woodlands are their natural habitat.
Breeding usually occurs from July till September. Gestation period
lasts approximately 15 months with one offspring born.
The Giraffes feed on leaves, fruit etc. Their long (50 cm) and
flexible tongue can reach almost every leave. In case of emergence
they can use their forefeet to defend themselves. Generally the
giraffes live up to 20 years long.
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The Herb
Section - ASPARAGUS |
Asparagus (Asparagus officinalis) is a highly regarded herb
worldwide. Chinese pharmacists save the best roots of the
asparagus plant for their families and friends in the belief that
it will increase feelings of compassion and love. In India, this
herb is used to promote fertility, reduce menstrual cramping, and
increase milk production in nursing mothers. In the Western world,
it has been touted as an aphrodisiac.
These customs and beliefs are not mere superstition: Asparagus
root contains compounds called steroid glycosides that directly
affect hormone production and may very well influence emotions. An
excellent diuretic, asparagus is also very nutritious. It is high
in folic acid, which is essential for the production of new red
blood cells. Many herbal healers recommend Asparagus root for
rheumatism, due to the anti-inflammatory action of the steroidal
glycosides. Powdered seed from the Asparagus plant is effective
for calming an upset stomach.
Possible benefits in the uses of Asparagus are: stimulation of
hormone production, helps rid the body of excess water and salt,
and helps prevent anemia due to folic acid deficiency. Asparagus
also soothes pain and swelling of joints due to rheumatism or
arthritis.
There are many oral uses of the Asparagus plant. One use is to eat
the young shoots and seeds. The seed is also available in powdered
form. Take 1 teaspoon of powder daily in juice. There is one
exception to the use of Asparagus: do not use if your kidneys are
inflamed, because it increases the rate of urinary production.
More links to herbs on my
Herb Page
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Thanks to everyone who has mailed us fridge magnets depicting your
State, City or Country. If you collect fridge magnets, I will gladly
swop with you!
Please
email me
and we can make arrangements. Thanx a lot! |
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