Well Kneaded Therapy…with a Touch of Pumpkin

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We are already in middle October. We’re two months away from Thanksgiving. We’re so close until the start of another year. Can we pause for a moment? Some days it feels like I am still stuck in the month of March, before Covid-19 entered our world. Now Christmas decorations line the grocery aisles and everywhere I turn to on social media,there are pumpkins of different colors, shapes and forms. And every recipe on Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest hero’s the pumpkin!

I just want to stay home, take a deep breath and make the time to cook homey food, homemade from scratch. Yes, cooking or baking something that requires my full attention… my love and care. I am a big fan of homemade bread. I love to bake it and I love to eat it ( fresh out of the oven). The process of kneading and working the dough is both a thrill and therapy and brings a big smile to my face! So today I am adding some mashed pumpkin to my bread dough. Yes, if you can’t beat the pumpkin movement…join them! ( Also see my delicious Pumpkin Pie recipe for more pumpkin inspiration.)

Peeling these warm pumpkin dinner rolls off one another is such a satisfying feeling, and slathering butter on the warm rolls and watch it melt, ahhhh. What is not to love?

Good bread is the most fundamentally satisfying of all foods;and good bread with fresh butter, the greatest of feasts.

James Beard

These pretty little (decently sized, actually) bread rolls are a perfect accompaniment to any meal… whatever it is you are cooking this season, the seasonal sage-squash combo just can’t be beat.

Whether you’re dipping them in gravy, using them to scoop up mashed potatoes, or simply spreading them thickly with the sage butter and a sprinkle of flaky sea salt as an after dinner snack, they’re utterly delicious pumpkin perfection. A bread roll that’s melt in your mouth good…and oh so impressive. Great for any night of the week from Sunday night supper to an upcoming fall dinner with friends. You can’t go wrong with these soft rolls.

So set out the time and roll up your sleeves. Bread- like real love- takes time, cultivation, strong loving hands and patience. Well kneaded ( excuse the pun) therapy in times like these.

Recipe page 2.

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All I need is more time… and pasta

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It was a crazy week! I miss the quiet days on the ranch… the slower pace…. the time for slow cooked dinners and long nights. This was a week of quick dinners, easy recipes and no time for grocery shopping, so it was a fall back on family favorites and basic ingredients. And what is better than a bowl of homemade pasta with an easy, quick, beautiful ( I eat with my eyes) and flavorful sauce.

We love Pasta Alla Vodka – perfectly hearty and tender spaghetti pasta ( it is usually made with penne pasta but the men in my kitchen love spaghetti), tossed with a creamy and vibrant tomato based and vodka infused sauce that’s seasoned with fresh herbs and parmesan. Talk about a delicious, quick and easy dinner recipe! You can make the sauce while the pasta is cooking! And if you have time, make some home made pasta.

Everything you see I owe to spaghetti.

Sophia Loren

So what flavor does the vodka add to the vodka sauce? Well, since a lot of the alcohol is cooked off you aren’t left with a alcoholic vodka taste, rather it just boosts and intensifies the flavors of the tomatoes. And then I really believe the key to making the vodka sauce extra amazing is using tomato paste. I’ve tried everything from fresh tomatoes to canned tomatoes (sometimes this is all I have in the pantry and it is also works and tastes great), but tomato paste (also known as tomato purée in some places) gives the best taste and consistency. It’s a vibrant and concentrated tomato flavor. And the added bonus is that you don’t need to spend ages cooking the sauce down.

So, looking for a quick & tasty weekend dinner?

Looking for the perfect meal for date night?

Want a dish with a little zing to it?

Then this Pasta alla Vodka is for you! Recipe on next page.

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Live Life with A Little Spice

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Midweek madness. Why do the days feel shorter (even though we are a month into Namibian spring and the days are getting longer)? I am so looking forward to a long weekend away at the coast with the family, a break from the ‘new normal’ that engulfs us so quietly yet so effectively. Time so slow down. Regather. Rest.

Sometimes our stop-doing list needs to be bigger than our to-do list.

Patti Digh

So today is for a quick lunch, before an afternoon of rugby and netbal practice and the never ending to-do-list. You call it Chili, we call it Chili Con Carne. Whatever you know this as, the alluring smell as a pot of Chili bubbles away on the stove is a universal language!!

Whip it this up as a quick meal, though if you have time to slow cook you’ll be rewarded with ultra tender beef and an extra luscious sauce. It looks like Bolognese ( see my Lasagna recipe) and is cooked like Bolognese – except there’s a load of Tex-Mex spices added.

My favourite way to serve Chili is with corn chips with sour cream, cheese and coriander, guacamole and fresh tomato salsa, because it’s a crazy good combination. It’s like a deconstructed Nachos – but saucier. You can also serve it with flour tortillas, rice, or on top of baked potatoes – whatever you have on hand on a Wednesday afternoon. This comforting and filling recipe for Classic Chili Con Carne is a great family meal or for serving to friends for a casual dinner party. I can assure it is a great crowd (and teenager) pleaser- perfect for game day!

Recipe on page 2

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Chocolate is happiness that you can eat.

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Since the children are back at school, the days and weeks merge into one big busyness. There are days that I miss our lockdown days on the ranch. No distractions except the call of the jackal. No early morning rush except for coffee and Rusks on the porch watching the sun rise over the Kalahari savannahs. No frantic driving from one appointment to another except for a late afternoon game drive and a relaxing sundowner under the old camelthorn tree.

Even with all the distractions and the hustle and bustle of our new so-called normal, I remind myself of what I have learned during these challenging months. Live attentively. Give attention to what you are giving attention to. Life simply. The little things matter.

Simplicity is ultimately a matter of focus.

Ann Voskamp

We so easily get caught up in the mundane routine of every day that we forget to celebrate life in its fullest! So on this Monday morning, I am thankful. Thankful for living a beautiful simple life with Janneman and my ( taller and wiser) than me kids, a life-changing faith that keeps me grounded and focused, friendships that nuture my soul and the love of food (and chocolate) that keeps me sane! And on this Monday morning we are baking a delicious, chocolatey, gooey, silky ( did I say delicious?) easy chocolate fondant cake. This is a recipe that I always fall back on, especially on a day like today when I want to celebrate life. And shout out: God is good. Life is good!

I bake this Chocolate Fondant cake in a 8” cake tin and not in individual moulds. It makes for a thick, dense, creamy and deeply chocolatey fondant that bears a signature crust on top. After cooling down, I place it in the refrigerator ( in the cake tin) until an hour before serving. This is to properly set and firm up. I then remove it from the fridge, overturn it on a beautiful dessert plate and top it with fresh berries, chocolate shavings or serve just as a simple slice of cake! Make sure it is served at room temperature. With the soft chocolate cake exterior and a mouth watering melted centre, you will dream of this fondant cake for days after making it. But guess what? It’s so easy and quick, you can make it again!

Serve as dessert with vanilla ice cream, or as a teatime treat with double whipped cream. Yes, I am thankful for the simple things. Something like Chocolate Fondant Cake on a Monday afternoon! Chocolate is for sure happiness you can eat!

Recipe on page 2

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All Fired Up about a Braaibroodjie

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Braai—the unifying tradition of good, old-fashioned, gather-round-the-fire barbecue. The word braai (pronounced “bry”, rhyming with the word “cry”; plural braais) is Afrikaans for “barbecue” or “roast” and is a social custom in South Africa and Namibia. Braai, a linguistic as well as cultural translation—it’s both a cuisine and a national past time. Whether you speak Afrikaans, English, Zulu, Xhosa or any of our native languages, we all braai! As with the word barbecue, you can throw a braai and braai a steak. Its usage is fluid, and omnipresent.

In backyards and on patios; in the suburbs and deep in the bush; atop shining new grills and on beds of thornbrush: To braai is to gather with friends, often on long, lazy afternoons, and grill meat. Okay yes, it’s similar to a barbecue, but it’s so much more than that. Traditional braai’s are cooked on local wood, such as kameeldoring wood, instead of coal or gas to give the meat a distinct flavour.

You can get more with a kind word and a braai than you can with a kind word alone.

Al Capone

Braaing is very much part of the Southern African DNA and it should come as no surprise that South Africans and Namibians have perfected the art of having a great braai. We even have a National Braai Day! This event, which takes place annually on National Heritage Day, 24 September, gives South Africans ( and Namibians… we need no excuse or encouragement to braai!) an opportunity to celebrate the country’s cultural heritage and diversity of traditions.Thousands of South Africans ( and Namibians!) will head outdoors, get the fires going and celebrate the nation’s favourite pastime on National Braai Day.

Learn from yesterday’s braai, live for today’s braai, hope for tomorrow’s braai. The important thing is not to stop questioning why people would boil ribs.

Albert Einstein

What do we braai? Lamb is popular and little can compare with a salty fatty lamb rib grilled slowly over the simmering coals. Then there are steaks of all cuts and sizes, grilled to perfection. Chicken is barbecued with or without peri-peri sauce. Side dishes are reliant on sausage ( here we call it boerewors or “farmers’ sausage) and an ingenious variation of the grilled cheese, the famous braaibroodjie.

The traditional South African braaibroodjie certainly deserves a few drum rolls, pom-pom shakes, whoops, and whistles as it enters the stage squarely in the spotlight. While the braaibroodjie will make no speeches of its own, many a long night around the fire has been enjoyed with one in hand. No braai is complete without the ultimate braai side and a braaibroodjie is just that!

Braaibroodjies, yes, grilled cheese sandwiches –South African/Namibian Style. It might just be your new favorite this season. Oeey, gooey, smokey, cheesy, creamy, spicy, sweet and crunchy. Need I say more? This sweet and savoury sandwich is inserted into a foldable grid with handles that keeps it contained and can easily be flipped and grilled to perfection.

A braaibroodjie tastes its best eaten outdoors at the end of a long day of barbecuing, but it is still pretty stellar indoors at lunchtime, and would also make a welcome surprise snack at the end of a cocktail party or as a late night snack.

So on National Braai Day, grab your family and friends, light the fire and braai! And remember to enjoy the humble braaibroodjie with its cheesy soul or give it a special gourmet twist. The choice is yours! From our Kalahari camel-thorn fire to yours, we wish you all a tasty Braai Day!

Recipe on next page.

Best Braaibroodjie ( African grilled cheese sandwich)

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