A blog (updated daily) about my life on a remote farm in the foothills of Kilimanjaro, East Africa. With lots of East & South African recipes & talk about Tanzanian life, farm life, pets & gardening.
Our garden is looking very green at the moment (lots of rainfall before Christmas) and a little tangled and overgrown (our gardeners have been off a lot over the Christmas holidays). I look at my garden - which is around 3 acres in size - & often think that I really should make more of an effort with it, but to be honest I am not really a gardening person - it is enjoyable to garden, but not something I'm keen to do on a regular basis. (Not like cooking and baking, which I just couldn't live without doing at least daily !) Anyway, here my garden is as it looks today - warts and all - for you to enjoy ! The photo above is a view of our house taken from our fruit orchard area .... you can just make it out between all the foilage !
A few days before New Year, a large Kite suddenly started visiting our garden for water. He's been here every day since, & I wonder why he has suddenly appeared and hope that it isn't because the tree he lives in has been chopped down somewhere. At first glance, we thought he was a large bird of prey & my husband said to me "Watch out for the cats - especially the smaller ones" as birds of prey can carry cats off in their talons ! You can see him sitting above, perched on our bird bath.
My lifeline to the outside world - our internet satellite dish. No one dare touch it incase it's set off balance & I lose contact ! I once caught Hemmed happily washing it with a bucket of hot soapy water "STOP !" I shouted and he thought "Oh no, Mama's in one of those moods again !" It's as slow as dial-up *sigh* and we go online, offline, online, offline a hundred times a day. But I'll take it over no connection at all anyday !
Delicious Monsters (the cats love hiding under these !) - we had them growing in abundance in our garden in Rhodesia (Zimbabwe), and they grow really well here in East Africa, too. They bear an edible fruit which when ripe taste like a cross between a pineapple & a banana. Or so I'm told (I have no desire to try it !) They are most commonly potted as house plants, but these ones grow "wild" and the leaves are huge.
I'm trying to introduce some more colour into my garden, and am also going to be planting a whole batch of new herbs for the new year, so I'll post more about these in the future.
I hope you enjoyed the quick walk through my garden. Now would you like to join me on to the veranda for a nice cuppa tea ?
Plums start appearing here in our local markets at Christmastime each year and as a result, I always associate them with Christmas and call them a “Christmas fruit”. They are one of my favourite fruits and my best way to eat them is fresh.
As I had a glut of them recently, I decided to make some plum jam, thinking that it would be nice served on toast on Christmas morning, and would also make nice jarred gifts over the festive season.
This is a very simple jam recipe, and contains some tips on jam making in general, so you could adapt the recipe to use whatever fruit you happen to have on hand (see tips at end of recipe) -:
Plum Jam
500 gm Plums (halved, peeled & stones removed) 500 gm Sugar (I use brown)
Place the plums and the sugar into a heavy bottomed saucepan and stir on a low heat until the sugar has dissolved, then bring the mixture to the boil. (Do not bring to the boil before the sugar has dissolved). Simmer for around an hour, stirring as little as possible as frequent stirring can cause the mixture to crystallize. The jam is ready when a little poured onto a plate and quickly cooled goes thick. Pour into sterilized glass jars whilst the mixture is still warm (but not too hot), cover with paper rounds dipped in brandy & then seal the lids. It is best to warm the jars in the oven first, so that they do not crack when you pour the jam into them.
A Few Tips :
Don’t use plums which are too ripe, use ones which are just ripe as if they are over ripe the jam may not set properly.
Skim any foam which forms on the top of the mixture at the beginning of the cooking process when it is easier to remove.
I made the mistake this time (as the plums I used were really tiny) of leaving the skins on. The skins did not soften and I had to painstakingly remove them all by hand after the jam had cooked and cooled – ugh !
You can use any quantity of plums, just match their weight in sugar e.g. 1 kg plums plus 1 kg sugar.
If you use a sweeter fruit to make your jam (eg. figs, grapes, apples, peaches) then use 375 gm sugar for every 500 gm fruit. Four sour fruits like these plums
Mzee Ramadhani, a delightful old man who I had the pleasure of meeting along the road on our recent trip to Pangani. He gladly posed for a photo !
We hear it so often as children “You must respect your elders”. Of course people have to earn each other’s respect and you can’t respect everyone – no matter how old they are – especially if they are really criminal/evil old people, but in general, here in Africa, it is a very strong teaching in all communities to “respect your elders”.
We are taught to respect our elders as they are older and wiser than us, they (generally !) know much more than us and can guide us in all decisions that we, the younger generation need to make. They are to be obeyed, looked after and treated with care. Respecting your elders – and showing them that respect – is never in question.
I have yet to see a local African child be cheeky, talk back or show any disrespect to an older person. (Which can’t be said for some of the children I’ve encountered in other countries – ha !)
All villages here have a “Monja Kiti” (excuse my Swahili spelling, not sure if this is the right way to spell it !) - this is the village chairman, who is almost always a village elder & he is looked upon whenever there are any problems that need addressing, or decisions to be made. For example, if we have a problem with villagers bringing cattle to graze illegally on the farm, we will go to the Monja Kiti of that particular village and ask for his help. If we are having problems with someone from the village (like a person who a few years ago attacked Justin when he was walking home one night) then we will go to the Monja Kiti & ask him to assist us with the discipline of this person/course of action to take. If the village need our help with something (access to grazing through the farm, water pipes etc) then the request will come to us through the Monja Kiti.
I don’t know about you, but I think that in the world today there is a terrible breakdown of family units and values, I am horrified to read – daily – of reports in the press from far flung countries of the elderly being beaten, mugged, robbed, killed (many times by the youth). Vicious attacks on the elderly by anyone – let alone those younger than them – are unheard of here - or very, very rare indeed. I believe that everything starts in the home, I cannot believe how a child could grow up not having the utmost respect for the elders around him/her and I believe that if we all respected - & took advice from - the elders in our community, the world would not have as many problems as it does.
It is our elders who have the wisdom, the knowledge, who can guide us and support us and be there with advice that just cannot be bought. Why are they so ignored, neglected in so many parts of the world ?
I am always very respectful of the elderly I encounter here, and when we went to Pangani recently we met a delightful elderly man called Mezee Ramadhani as we were crossing the Pangani River by ferry. My Dad actually got talking to him on the way over. He had pedaled into the village that day on his bicycle to sell some of the fruit he had harvested the day before from his small ‘shamba’ (farm), & was on his way back home.
After saying goodbye to him, several km’s up the road we stopped to repair a puncture, and he cycled past us again, stopping to offer his assistance. We thanked him, gave him an ice cold soda and said it was okay ! He told us how he had been born in Pangani and did not know how old he was. “I was born in 1920 … 1920 something … ahhhh …. 1920 so-long-past” he eventually said, as he could not recall the year. His age was not important to him, but what was important to him was having his family all around him, the fact that he had a small farm of his own, a roof over his head, food in his tummy, good health - and a bicycle to ride.
“Next time you are here” he said to us “Just ask anyone in the village where Mezee Ramadhani lives, and they will bring you to my home. Welcome !” What a wonderful old man, and maybe next time I am there, I will take him up on his offer. I’d love to spend an afternoon with him, asking about what life was like here in the 1920’s, how he came to speak such excellent English and a million other things.
Yes, the elderly amongst us are true blessings and I am honored to have met so many wonderful old people, and heard their fascinating stories, in the time I’ve lived in Tanzania - because my life is all the richer for it.
I think that when cooking fish in batter you have to have a really nice, light batter else the whole dish will be ruined. I always use Ainsley Harriott’s batter recipe as not only is he my favourite ‘celebrity’ cook, but I also love his recipes !
I used our locally brewed and great tasting (according to my husband, as I am not a beer drinker !) Kilimanjaro lager to make this batter. Of course I love to support local Tanzanian produce and if that weren’t enough, some of the barley used to make this lager is grown on our neighbours farm (the ones we spent Christmas day with)– I don’t think you get more local than that !
Tanzanian Red Snapper in Kilimanjaro Beer Batter(Ainsley Harriott’s Deep Fried Cod in Beer Batter, from his book “Gourmet Express”)
4 x 175 gm pieces of Cod (I used Red Snapper for this recipe) Salt & freshly ground black Pepper 200 gm plain Flour, plus extra for dusting ½ tsp Salt 1 Egg, beaten 330 ml bottle of Beer (I used a tin of our locally produced “Kilimanjaro Premium Lager”) Vegetable Oil, for deep frying Lemon wedges, to garnish
Lightly season the fish & dust with the flour. Sift the flour and the salt into a large bowl. Make a well in the centre, crack the egg & gradually add the beer, stirring continuously, to make a smooth, frothy batter.
Dip the fish in the batter, making sure it is well covered, and shake off any excess. Deep-fry in hot oil for 4-5 minutes until crisp & golden. Drain on kitchen paper & serve hot, garnished with the lemon wedges.
TRY THIS : This quantity of batter is more than enough for 4 pieces of fish, so why not try dipping a few extras, such as red onion rings, to serve on the side ?
Our farm drive took us on some roads which have not been used in a while !
We set the dinner table out on the veranda, where we saw the New Year in (don't you love the giraffe inspired Christmas crackers ? They are made by our local Leprosy Centre, & I buy them every year - much better than anything you'll find in the shops with such great handmade gifts inside, too !)
Well, I can hardly believe that it's 2009 already. These past 2 months have been a very busy time for me - what with my daughter's birthday party, Christmas concert, my parent's arrival and visit with us for 6 weeks, our holiday on the Tanzanian coast and then another holiday in Nairobi, plus visitors for the weekend, horseback safari clients staying in the farm guest house, people coming out to the farm for lunches etc plus Christmas and New Year and all the catering that went with that - I feel like I've squeezed a year's socializing into just 2 months, & I must admit that I am looking forward to a quiet(er) January !
My daughter starts school again on Tuesday. I just cannot get my head around the way the school terms work here for our school. Crazy, if you ask me as they actually start the school year in November, and the school Christmas holiday's are short and sweet. Which limits you a lot if you are travelling overseas for a long period, as many expats here do over the festive season (lots of kids will be starting school much later this year as a result of this). Our school year - when I was a child - used to start in January & end in December, with a good 6 week holiday over Christmas. Oh well ! (Can you tell I'm not looking forward to the return of the weekly school runs ?!)
My parents left back for South Africa yesterday, after having them here for 6 weeks & being so much a part of our lives & routines for those 6 weeks, I am feeling really sad and empty without them around ! My daughter, husband & even all our animals (my parents are both animal lovers, which is where I think I get it from !) are at a loss. Anyway, I console myself by thinking that we will all be together again in almost exactly 4 month's time, when my daughter and I fly to South Africa for a long stint to have the baby (hubby will join me a week before the birth).
Our last day of 2008 was spent relaxing and going for a nice drive around the farm. We took my parents to show them the old German Homestead and Country Club, as they had not seen either before. That night, we set the table on the veranda and saw midnight in with a gorgeous meal of honey mustard roasted gammon ham (with pinapple & cherries - yum !), cauliflower & broccoli in a cheese sauce, sweet peppered carrots, green beans and roast potatoes and we finished it all off with a delicious imported Christmas pudding and homemade brandy sauce.
The local people around our farm welcome the New Year in by beating all their cooking pots outside their homes (like drums) at midnight to chase away the evil spirits from the previous year, and clear the way for the good spirits to enter for the coming year. This is accompanied by much singing, chanting and rejoicing aswell as dancing. We could hear all the villages around the farm, aswell as our own staff quarters, trying to outdo one another with their singing, and at around 1 am a large group of women went singing from village to village, home to home and they also walked all the way over to our farm and sang outside our garden fence - it was really lovely (but of course very dark outside so I could not get any decent photos). They were singing a song like a blessing, singing in the local Kiswahili language about blessing the children in the new year, blessing the elderly, blessing all the people etc and it was really lovely.
(These people have so little yet they are still happy and joyous to see a new year in, and celebrating life and the future - yet we who have so much, are always quick to complain. Just listen to me above, complaining about the school terms when I should be grateful that we can even send out daughter to school, and give her an education !)
On New Years day we drove to one of the neighbouring towns and had lunch out at one of the Indian restaurants there, stopped for ice creams on the way home and got back to the farm just before nightfall. My parents had to pack for their 3 am start the following morning, so an early night was had by all after eating some of the cold leftover ham and watching "Fawlty Towers" on the BBC satellite station we get here.
So, that was our New Year on the farm and I look forward to visiting everyone's blogs to see what you all got up to, and how you all celebrated. Sorry I have not been around or commenting much on other blogs lately but I am slowly getting back into my normal routine and will have more time on my hands again in the coming weeks.
I hope that everyone has had a great start to 2009 so far !
Fruit Kebabs with a Chocolate Drizzle - a nice, healthy treat for the New Year !
I really feel like I’ve eaten quite a lot over the festive season – especially over New Year. Phew ! I’m sure that many people out there feel the same … why is it that we always seem to eat more, drink more and indulge in more rich, creamy foods over the festive season, most often justifying it all with “Well, I’ll start a healthy eating regime in the new year” ?!
