' When Coca-Cola isn't Coca-Cola...' The BUMPER Issue!

‘COOKINGWITHMAVIS’ #50      When Coca-Cola ISN'T Coca-Cola!

  

We  are so privileged to live on the doorstep of some amazing scenery and sights….

Cape Town  must easily be one of the most beautiful cities I  know.

With over 100 beaches, an assortment of glorious mountains in touching distance,  and the far-reaching lush winelands of Stellenbosch and surrounds, just 30 minutes away….

STELLENBOSCH
WINELANDS,
TEXTURES & LAYERS

But it takes a friend from Paris to get us going… to incentivize the turning of the ignition, to energize complacent us, who take our surroundings fore-granted….for us to explore and discover new epicurean havens and live the scenery of Cape Town’s out-lying region of Stellenbosch!

Gosh!  To travel to the winelands just for lunch!

It all began in the lobby of ‘ Her’ hotel, a glimpse at a small advert in a glossy tourist publication, eulogizing about Sunday lunch beneath the old oak trees…and a seed was sown in the tourist thoughts of “Friend-from- Paris” …after all, us Locals , why NOT also enjoy a leisurely Sunday out, in the countryside –just 30 minutes from Suburbia! And so it was to be – a Sunday jaunt for 4 friends…

We  turned off the N1 highway at ‘Klapmuts’…a farming community en-route to our destination, and couldn’t resist to stop and take some photos showing ‘when-Coca-Cola-is-just-NOT- Coca-Cola!’

 When-Coca-Cola-is-just-NOT- Coca-Cola! 

Who would have ever guessed what other wonderful sights we came upon: a winelands safari  – yes!, the “Big Five”  …….and-some!

The “Big Five”  …….and-some!

RAINBOW HYENA

PART OF THE SAFARI..." THE ODD COUPLE "

OH DEAR!...WE'RE RUNNING A LITTLE LATE!

PREY...W-W-WAIT FOR ME...

" THANK YOU    FOR   VISITING "

It was mid-Summer.  We’d made our restaurant reservation for lunch well in advance, instruction-specific:

“Outside, shade or dappled sunlight, not too hot, and definitely in a wind-free spot”…..and  that’s what we got!  

                

OUR  LUNCHEON VENUE

FROM THE WINELANDS OF STELLENBOSCH - 
SEE CAPE TOWN'S TABLE MOUNTAIN IN 
THE MID-DISTANT HORIZON... 
FLOATING IN THE CLOUDS

STELLENBOSCH WINELANDS -
HILLS & DALES

WHAT WE SAW IN STELLENBOSCH WINELANDS
 - JUST 30 MINUTES FROM CAPE TOWN!

STELLENBOSCH MOUNTAINS...LIKE NO OTHER!

And so to recipes…

   Mujaddarah

       …A Modern Take!

 For Gillian

  

For   ‘ Her ’ , a fond memory of my restaurant …

This scrumptious aromatic, simple dish was one of my most popular on ‘ Menu Past ’  –  as we made it , so we sold it!

I suppose because of the marrrrrvellous aromas wafting from our kitchen.  A whole meal it is!

Here I have a modern take on an ancient Middle-Eastern dish , origins of Syria and Egypt , comprising brown lentils and long-grain white rice, seasoned with turmeric and cumin, and generously garnished with caramelized onions, toasted sunflower seeds, a smidgeon of chopped parsley, and accompanied by thick Greek yoghurt.

    

Pronounced:  “Moo-JUHH-da-ra!”

INGREDIENTS:

2 cups long-grain white rice

1 cup brown lentils

1 teaspoon ground cumin

½ teaspoon turmeric

1 teaspoon salt

3 large onions

2 Tablespoons oil (to sauté  the rice and lentils), plus

2 Tablespoons oil + 2 Tablespoons butter (to sauté the onions)
3½ cups boiling water  

½ cup raw sunflower seeds - toasted

½ cup chopped parsley

1 litre fullcream thick Greek yoghurt to serve, (this is my preference), but you could use low-fat Bulgarian plain yoghurt instead.

BASICS FOR MUJADDARAH :

WATER + OIL + ONIONS +
SEEDS + LENTILS + RICE +
CUMIN + TURMERIC + SALT    

THE SHAPE TO SLICE THE ONIONS

 METHOD

1) Sift through the lentils carefully, in case there are any tiny stones, to discard (you don’t want broken teeth!)

2) Peel the onions, and slice in half, then slice each into thin wedges.

3) Brown the onions in a heavy-based frying pan with 2 Tablespoons butter + 2 Tablespoons oil, on medium-high heat, then turn the heat low as they change colour…sauté  till they are dark golden brown (careful not to burn them).

4) In a large pot, heat 2 tablespoons oil, then add the raw rice and lentils, and reduce the heat to medium, stirring this regularly, turning until the rice begins to go a light golden and should give off a nutty aroma.(about 5 minutes)

5) Turn the heat down , and add the turmeric, cumin and salt, and quickly stir this to mix with the rice & lentils.

6) Carefully add 3½ cups boiling water (be careful of the steam), and switch the heat off - leave to cook 15 minutes WITH the lid ON, till all the water is absorbed.

7) Test the rice/lentils  – they should still be soft, but ‘chewy’…not over-cooked. You might need to add another ½ cup boiling water and let cook another 7 minutes with the lid on. No liquid to remain!

8) While the rice is cooking, put the raw sunflower seeds into a dry frying pan, and heat on medium constantly turning for about 10 minutes, until the seeds begin the change colour, and become golden , and toasted.  Set aside to use later.

9) When the rice is cooked, add the browned onions, toasted sunflower seeds, and chopped parsley. You may prefer to rather use these to garnish on top of each portion, instead of mixing into the rice.

Serve warm, with the yoghurt as an accompaniment to the Mujaddarah.

Note:

Do not put this into the fridge when warm , nor seal in a plastic container when warm as the rice will turn sour!

CARAMELIZED ONIONS

TOASTED SUNFLOWER SEEDS

CHOPPED PARSLEY

FULLCREAM GREEK YOGHURT

MUJADDARAH

Last week, I promised some WHEAT-FREE  recipes...

The wheat-free results :

1 ) Try making crepes:

Ingredients:

2 eggs

1¼ cups full-cream milk (can use low-fat)

2 Tablespoons sugar

½ cup my gluten-free flour mix

1 tablespoon melted butter

½ teaspoon vanilla essence

¼ teaspoon almond essence

Pinch of salt

2 Tablespoons butter – used in small bits to grease the pan

Method:

Make as you would usually do crepes, but the pan should not be as hot…a slightly less-than-medium heat is best, will take a little longer, and due to this mixture, the crepes will fry to a darker golden brown , rather than creamy yellow colour.

* For savoury (not sweet) crepes, omit the sugar, vanilla + almond essence.

2 ) See blog #27  how to make the crepes, and to make salmon blintzes.*

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3 ) AND….

To make my amazing wheat-free  Nutmeg Spice Cake … use that same recipe in (blog# 46) , just substitute for the flour mix and baking powder,  those wheat-free recipe mixes given in previous blog(#49)!

    

                

So as usual - ‘til next week,

    ‘COOKINGWITHMAVIS’

HEY!...D-DONT FORGET ME....

"GRAN'S BIRTHDAYS...AND A FLOURLESS CHOCOLATE & TOASTED ALMOND TORTA"

‘COOKINGWITHMAVIS’ #49         Gran’s birthdays….and a royal Chocolate-&-Toasted Almond cake, PLUS a bonus of wheat-free conversions!

I’ve spoken of  “ Granny Dolly ” in earlier blogs…

but I have never told you that NO-ONE  ever questioned “ Gran’s ”  decisions…

In those years, the Matriarch of our family, “ Granny Dolly ”  ruled with a rod of iron…well, more like a silver soup ladle, I suppose.

“ Gran ” had a very  Victorian  attitude, and Proper Morals too, and as long as there was wonderfully tasty food in her home, why would ‘Young-cookingwithmavis-to-be’  EVER  question , nor query?                

“ Gran ”  NEVER celebrated the“Christian”   holidays, and couldn’t condone us -  a traditional Jewish family - having a Christmas tree , such as we did, each year.  

So, for “ Gran ”, Christmas festivities were OUT-OF-THE-QUESTION, but when  “ Her ” birthday arrived every mid-January, We, the immediate family, would be treated by her, to a wonderful Birthday Lunch (welllll… “ dinner ”, to her).

A GRroaniNG table, adorned with streamers and paper hats..a-an-and those wonderful “Christmas Crackers”  – you know… those colourful cylindrical paper crackers filled with a trinket or toy, which two “Birthday  Guests  ”  would grab at end each, and >-*!-ya**nk -!*-<  as hard as can be  – towards themselves, hoping with all their might, that  THEY would be the receiver of that trinket at that very moment when the strand with gunpowder, would tear with a loud

* BANG!  *, and the toy would burst forth from the colourful ( Christmas ) cracker

And, together with that fun, her menu began with ½ a ruby grapefruit, sprinkled with a smidgeon of sugar, the segments neatly separated for easy eating, by ISAKHAYA her cook.

The point of eating the grapefruit, said “Gran ” , was “ to aid digestion prior to consuming a heavy midday dinner!”

Main course, at her Birthday  Dinner, was always the roast goose ( why not look at my very first blog#1 ), and the tasty accoutrements that accompany a roast.

But best of all   was dessert  - the homemade Steamed Christmas Pudding , having steamed in her kitchen for many long hours..steeped in brandy, and studded with a myriad of silver “tikkies”…  “ tikkies ” ??......yes, these were a tiny silver coin …in those days,  coin-operated Public Telephone booths used tikkies  –  so those telephone booths were referred to by All, as “Tikkie Boxes”…thank goodness this is a vague memory, and I haven’t a bluddy clue as to their value at the time… I was thankfully too young! ….although I can recall using Tikkie Boxes to make a telephone call-or-two!

But, getting back to “ Gran ”  and her Birthday  Dinner, in fact, back to her Steamed Christmas Pudding… she’d boil those tikkies to sterilize them first!...then hide them in the pudding, for us children to discover with great excitement.  So, for all those years, the uncelebrated secular festive dinner was enjoyed mid-January….

Of course, I must remember to mention her  Birthday  celebration to Fiddler-On-The-Roof, the musical…

The year when, with great excitement, that very, very new musical, Fiddler-On-The-Roof , came to town, tickets were chosen, yes -  at  “ Her ”  behest,  for us, the whole family to go to Cape Town’s glorious (now no more) ALhambra Theatre ….with it’s wonderfully fantasy decor of Rococo stucco, of fake balconies, and  theatrical pseudo buildings adorning the periphery of that interior…… Voluminously high ceiling with sparkling stars in painted trompe l'oeil, and the stepped ‘Stalls’ of balcony seating. It was a true theatrical wonderland fantasy, it was!

Yes, the best for “ Gran ”  was the FRONT row…and as NO-ONE EVER  questioned “ Gran ” , so we sat, us the whole family, in the FRONT row,  craninG  our necks from the deepest depths of the lowest level of the ALhambra Theatre , the most expensive seats in the house. Up…up to the nether regions of the floor-level of that stage, and the bottom halves and delectable ankles of the acting cast.

We saw the whites of Tevya’s  eyes, yes we did! ……..on “ Gran’s ”  Birthday, in the FRONT row……on “ Gran’s ”  Birthday .

And so to recipes…

We’re flourless this week! Yes, wheat-free…

                            plus……..  

Exciting substitutes for Gluten-free  / wheat-free  Basics…

I’ve been asked frequently about wheat-free recipes recently, and have successfully adapted some old tried and tested recipes, converting them very successfully, by using the following substitutes (all easily found at a good Healthfood store / or section in a supermarket too)

- Not to even mention the ‘brain gym’, how daunting, having to wrap your mind around baking with such different substitutes!

Initially this can be a change-of-‘mind-set’, having to purchase such specific ingredients, but, I’m sure it is worth that effort for those wanting the gluten-free/wheat-free option …

I’ll start with an easy, conventional ‘no-extra-hassle of specialized ingredients’ dessert/cake  - the Chocolate and Toasted-Almond “torta” , and then give you some easy basics too, to follow on a wheat-free/gluten-free journey…

   La P rincipessa’s ‘Flourless Chocolate & Toasted-Almond torta’

* The perfect dessert to impress! *..and WHEAT-FREE by ease!

INGREDIENTS

225g dark chocolate – chopped

225g toasted almonds / or hazelnuts

1 cup (250ml) castor sugar

6 extra-large eggs – separated yolks from whites

1 teaspoon vanilla essence

Pinch (⅛ teaspoon) cream of tartar

RICH CHOCOLATE & TOASTED ALMOND TORTE

METHOD

1)  Heat oven to 150*C (300*F)

2)  Spread the almonds (with their skins on) onto a baking sheet and lightly toast for 20 minutes. Remove and leave to cool.

3) Grease a 23cm round springform baking pan, covering the base with greased  foil / or baking paper.

4) Sift a Tablespoon cocoa powder into the pan and coat all over.

5) In a food processor, chop the chocolate, then add the cooled nuts, and sugar, and blend this all till grainy. Transfer to a large mixing bowl.

6) Beat egg yolks with the vanilla,  and mix into the grainy nut/choc/sugar mixture.

7) In a large, dry bowl, beat the eggwhites and cream of tartar till stiff peak stage.

8) With a large metal spoon, gently fold stiff eggwhites, a couple of spoonfuls at a time, into the chocolate mixture (See instruction for “folding-in” below… *)

9) Pour batter gently into the prepared baking pan, bake at 160* C (325*F) for 60 minutes.

10) Remove from oven and leave to cool, then loosen the edges very carefully with a flat knife, remove from pan and serve with whipped cream or icecream

* “Folding-in” mixtures:

To successfully “fold-in” one mixture into another,  best to do so with a large metal spoon, gradually adding a couple of spoonfuls at a time, and using a generous hand-movement lifting / ‘scooping’ from the bottom of the bowl of mixture, bringing up and over and down again, careful to keep the mixtures aerated.

Remember to always fold the lighter mixture into the heavier mixture…here, the whipped eggwhites into the chocolate mixture.

GraciePrincipessa,Gracie!GraciePrincipessa,Gracie!GraciePrincipessa,Gracie!GraciePrincipessa

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

A ROYAL DESSERT: CHOCOLATE & TOASTED ALMOND TORTE AND CREAM

THE CRUMBS

Here are some great gluten-free basics to start you off…  replace normal ingredients in recipes by adapting them with the following: 

1) Gluten-free/ wheat-free marvellous  flour mix:

             (Yield:  5 cups of flour)

Ingredients:

2 ½ cups rice flour

1 cup potato starch flour

1 cup tapioca flour

¼ chickpea(garbanzo bean) flour

¼ cup cornstarch(“Maizena”)

2 ½ Tablespoons xanthan gum

Method:

1)    Sift all the ingredients into a bowl

2)    Stir ingredients well with a whisk

3)    Spoon this mixture into an airtight container, or a self-seal freezer bag, until needed(can store in the freezer).

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2)  Gluten-free  baking powder

Ingredients:

½ cup cream of tartar

¼ cup bicarbonate of soda

¼ cup cornstarch(“Maizena”)

To store the baking powder:

 Mix well and keep in an airtight container

Note: If you are making a small quantity that you are going to use immediately:

Just use 2x quantity cream of tartar, to 1x quantity bicarb.

Basic :

2 teaspoons cream of tartar

1 teaspoon bicarb.

           This yields 3 teaspoons baking powder.

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3)  Gluten-free/wheat-free  Self-raising flour:

                          (Yield:  for 1 cup)

Ingredients:

1 teaspoon cream of tartar

½ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

1 cup of my flour mix (above)

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Next week, as well as my usual surprise recipe, there will be more wheat-free recipes options to follow!

    

So as usual - ‘til next week,

    ‘COOKINGWITHMAVIS’