Before I am going to tell you when Father Xmas had a tractor, look what wonderful book I have uploaded at
http://www.booksmatic.com. To view this book and many more, go to
http://www.booksmatic.com
Home Cooking with Jean-Georges: My Favorite Simple Recipes [Hardcover]
Book Description
Release Date: November 1, 2011
Join one of the world’s greatest chefs in his most
personal book yet, as Jean-Georges Vongerichten shares his favorite
casual recipes in Home Cooking with Jean-Georges.
Though
he helms a worldwide restaurant empire—with locations in New York, Las
Vegas, London, Paris, and Shanghai—Jean-Georges counts his greatest joy
in life as family first, then food. In Home Cooking with Jean-Georges,
he brings readers into his weekend home, where he cooks simple,
delicious dishes that leave him plenty of time to enjoy the company of
friends and loved ones.
A few years ago, Jean-Georges decided to
give himself a gift that most of us take for granted: two-day weekends.
He and his wife, Marja, and their family retreat to their country home
in Waccabuc, New York. There, the renowned chef produces the masterful,
fresh flavors for which he is known—but with little effort and few
dishes to clean at the end. These quick, seasonal, Vongerichten-family
favorites include: Crab Toasts with Sriracha Mayonnaise, Watermelon and
Blue Cheese Salad, Herb ed Sea Bass and Potatoes in Broth, Lamb Chops
with Smoked Chile Glaze and Warm Fava Beans, Parmesan-Crusted Chicken,
Fresh Corn Pudding Cake, Tarte Tatin, and Buttermilk Pancakes with Warm
Berry Syrup.
With 100 recipes and 100 color photographs—all taken at his country house—Home Cooking with Jean-Georges will inspire home cooks with fantastic accessible dishes to add to their repertoires.
I have told you in an earlier post about the fact that I grew up on a farm in this secluded valley and being so close to Christmas, I have to tell you how we celebrated Christmas on the farm. This was before the days of television here in South Africa (only arrived in 1976), "cheap" money as it is today or cell phones or any fancy thing.
Have look on the map where this valley is. Find the town Villiersdorp. On route R43 going North East, you will see a road going to the left. This road goes over the mountain and leads to a valley. This is where I grew up. Zoom in.
A few weeks before Christmas, our house would be white washed. This was done every year. To white wash a house one uses diluted white paint and apply it with a brush. As soon as the walls were white washed, the us children knew that Christmas is around the corner. Then it is time for our Lucky Packet Boxes, biscuits, ginger beer and family.
Very little Christmas decorations were bought. Most of it we made ourselves with crinkle cut paper. The Christmas tree was a real pine tree and not these plastic trees used today. The "snow" was cotton placed on the branches and there was not such a thing as Christmas lights. The Christmas lights on the tree was a miniature candle holder with real candles in it, These candles were lit every evening and had to be extinguished every evening as well.
All the children on the farm received an OK Bazaars lucky dip. This usually was filled with masks, games such as Snakes and Ladders. sweets and plastic "Made in China" toys. The excitement was great and my brother and I had to go and stand in the queue with the children of the workers on the farm. Each one of us ran to the side as soon as we received the Lucky Dip to see what Father Christmas has given us this year. It amused me for days on end.
This was the time that the cousins, uncles. aunts and grandparents would come and visit so there was a lot of preparation to do. In between working down in the packing shed, my mom prepared home made ginger beer (see the recipe in an earlier post). This was when my mom baked biscuits and cookies of all sorts and the tins were running over with various types of cookies (not the computer type) Ginger cookies and Soetkoekies. The best was to go unnoticed into the pantry and to take a cookie and hoping that my mom will not see the pile getting less and less. These cookies and biscuits were not only kept for the visiting family, but also for the farm workers.
Now why the farm workers? Well on Christmas eve, the excitement was not only the arrival of Father Xmas, but also to be woken up with the sweet voices of the farm workers singing Christmas carols. Not only did it mean that it is nearly morning, but it was so wonderful to hear the harmonious voices. Initially the workers and their wives walked from house to house, but later years they used a tractor with a trailer behind. As soon as they have finished with the carol singing, then my mom will hand out cookies and ginger beer to each of them. The men who wanted something stronger was treated with a glass of wine by my dad.
Obviously the recipe I am placing today is called "Soetkoekies" in Afrikaans. it is an old favourite in South Africa and directly translated it means sweet cookies. It is easy to make and only take a few minutes.
Look at the photos of how delicious they look like
Here follows and enjoy!
Sweet Cookies/ Soetkoekies
About 3 dozen
500 g (4 cups) flour
2.5 ml (1/2 teaspoon) salt
2.5 ml (1/2 t) baking soda
2.5 ml (1/2 t) cream of tartar
2.5 ml (1/2 t) powder nutmeg
2.5 ml (1/2 t) fine cloves
ml (1 t) fine cinnamon
5 ml (1 t) ginger powder
200 g butter
1 large egg
375 ml (1 1/2 cup) brown sugar
30 ml (2 t) sweet wine/port or sherry
Sieve flour, salt, baking soda, cream of tartar and all the spices together
Mix butter with above using your finger tips (or use electric mixer)
Mix egg and brown sugar and add sweet wine. add to flour mixture and mix well to form a firm dough.
Make a ball with it and place in plastic bag which has been sprayed with non-stick spray
leave overnight in fridge
The Next Day!
Roll the dough out to a thickness of about 5 mm. Cut cookie shapes out with little forms.
Bake for twelve minutes in a preheated oven at 200 deg C.
Take out of oven and leave to cool down before placing in tins
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