This Past Month in Review - May

“A man ought to carry himself in the world as an orange tree would if it could walk up and down in the garden, swinging perfume from every little censer it holds up to the air”

Henry Ward Beecher

This month I (re)discovered …

• … the joys of holidays at home. Allowing oneself to reconnect, to “synchronise body and soul” as a good friend says.
• … awareness, stillness. Not always rushing off to achieve something.
• … how much I like writing. I am not so good at it, but I do love the process.

This Month …

• This month, I passed the 100,000 hits mark!
• In the past month, I had a few other sites link to mine, more than normal, which drove up traffic significantly. The most popular post by far was Coffee in India, receiving twice as many hits as any other post. Tastespotting picked that one up too, but now the demise of Tastespotting js sure to impact many many blogs.
• This month, silver beet, chard and spinach are at their best, at least where I live. You can wilt them down slightly in oil and garlic with chilli, and then stir through some creme fraiche /Katte Malai.
• This month I cooked so much food (due to my holidays) that the freezer is overflowing.
• This month, I marvelled again at how wonderfully tasty is the classic combination of eggplant, onion, capsicum, zucchini and tomato. What grows together, goes together. Layer thin slices of them in a dish, salt and pepper in between layers. Drizzle over a tiny bit of oil – garlic oil if you have some – some rosemary or thyme, half a cup of stock and bake for 45 – 60 mins at 200C until the veggies are cooked. Serve with rice, drizzling the juices over the rice. Serve with some parsley, finely chopped, or make Nourish Me‘s Persillade.
• I also cooked Cherrapeno‘s Oaty Bran Muffins, but they disappeared too fast for me to photograph. Instead of the oat flakes and bran, I used home made (untoasted) muesli, as it contains both oats and bran, and a ton of other good things – crushed nuts, sesame seed, coconut, linseed …..
• This month I started yoga again, and it is so very good.

Fast Fast Food

• It is the weather here for long slow cooking in hot ovens, keeping the kitchen warm and putting food on the table. But when I want something quick, I have been using thick thick yoghurt, mixed with herbs, salt and a bit of garlic. Eat with crackers, or spread on some rye bread.
• If you keep your freezer full of good soups, stocks, curries, dals, it is very easy to grab a meal from the freezer, and cook some rice while the frozen meal is defrosting in the microwave. 10 minutes and you have a piping hot and delicious meal on the table. Better than a bag of chips any day.
• Or eat an orange….. luscious …. and have a glass of water. A good way to beat the mid afternoon munchies.

The Dozen Most Popular Posts this Month

Four perennial favourites show up regularly – can you pick which ones they are?

Favourites from May/June in previous years

Gradually as this site develops, these recipes will appear. They are favourites from my old old site (see About). If you are desperate for any of them now, let me know and I will make them available.

• Lemony Lentil Soup 0798
• Jenny’s 13 Treasure Happiness Soup (Provencale Vegetable Soup) 0603
• Soupe au Potiron (Cream of Pumpkin Soup to die for) 0698
• Spiced Rice with Cashew Nuts(Essential Madhur Jaffrey)0603
• Whole Unhulled Urad and Rajma Dhal(Essential Madhur Jaffrey)0603
• Bayagyaw (Burmese Spicy Split Pea Fritters) (SE Asian Cookbook) 0603
• Buttermilk or Yoghurt Curry 0603
• North African Carrot Dip 0699
• Jenny’s Clean out the Fridge Pasta for Sunday Lunch 0699
• Tofu, Black Cloud Ear Fungus, Asian Herb and Sesame Salad (Kylie Kwong)0503
  
• Indian Green Bean Curry 0602
• Russian Peasant Pie (Herb Cookery) 0697
• Kombu Baked Veges (Nourish) 0604
• Tarte aux Pommes Traditionelle (Traditional French apple tart) (Holuigue) 0697
• Pizza Dough 0602
• Schiacciata with Cheese Topping 0602
• Balinese Bawang Goreng (Fried Shallots) 0602

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Other Thoughts, Wonderful Food and Recipes:

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