La Bella Maison

A bunch of us got together for an afternoon that really soothed all the senses ...
We were surrounded by beauty of stylish french decor with a quirky twist here and there.  The most scrumptious smells of baked chocolate cheesecake, lemon meringue, steaming savoury scones and of course delicious creamy cappuccinos and fragrant teas ...
But to me the most precious of all were the laughter, the sharing and the caring!
(more to follow on this gorgeous little gem of a shop called "La Bella Maison"

Broccolli for the soul...

I saw this printed on an apron at "The Old House Shop" in Pletteberg bay and loved it

thank goodness for having phones that can take pictures as well...

I love days like yesterday ... we had very dear friends over for lunch and somewhere between the laughter of our kids playing in tents, the clinging of glasses on a “cheers” between old buds, the smell of freshly brewed Gluwein and the sun feeling comfortably warm on my back ... I felt it ... a familiar feeling of loving this exact moment... the moment when you want the world to stop just long enough for you to really let it all in... family, our friends,  traditions, the weather, the sounds ...everything!

Sipping. Stirring. Laughing. Lounging. Lingering. Listening. Watching. Loving. Being...  

(words by kelle Hampton)

....Concentrated happiness! 

It is the intensity of moments like these that fuels me...( like broccoli for the soul!)  – moments that will carry me again when times are a bit difficult through the ebb and flow of life

  

Friendship to me equals comfort – yes, this might sound like a cliché but it is true that when you are with a good friend you can truly be comfortable with your surroundings, the way you look and more importantly the way you feel.  In this lies the one measure that I apply to all friendships ... how do I feel in this person’s presence – can I just be without feeling misunderstood, even judged? If the answer is yes then I think of you as a friend.

But in this friendship = comfort lies a trap ... Sometimes it is possible to become too comfortable in a friendship that one does not really put in enough effort in actually being with friends.  It is so easy just to let an organised visit slip by because of something else that came up with work or the kids etc. 

Especially in these busy lives that we have, we need to make the effort, plan the dates and stick to it!! 

If I realised anything after yesterday it was this:

Friendship is a feast celebrating laughter, dreams, plans, sorrows, achievements and plenty of memories...

It is always a grand occasion!

There will be many more of these occasions... Because there is much life to celebrate!!

"Lul" went by..

For the past few weeks I’v been in a “lul”  ...(somehow this was the only word I could think of to describe my lack of motivation)... it was like I just could not find the inspiration to do the things that I usually love doing.  Blogging for one ... sjoe,  how long has it been since my last post? (too long I know!). 

I can’t remember the last time I made a proper home cooked meal making and baking everything from scratch – I used to love that!  I do agree that having a “Woolies” nearby is so convenient – but is that another factor adding to my ‘lul’ in that it just made it easier to say: “ Ah whatever – let me just get a ready-made lasangne for supper tonight” ?

Could it be the winter weather? I don’t know, but I do know that I have to do something about this!  So tonight I am celebrating winter:  I’ve already brought in some logs for the fireplace, I went to “Woolies”, not for one of the gorgeous ready made meals but for a decadent bottle of red wine and I am cooking - 

“Ghoelasj-soup with sour cream and pesto”.

I got the recipe in one of my favourite magazines named "Idees" which means Ideas and trust me it is usually packed full of them. 

(see recipe – unfortunately it is in Afrikaans but if you are interested let me know and I will translate it)

Goodbye “lul”ing  and hallo to inspiration, to motivation and doing the 

stuff that I love..!!

Ghoelasj-sop met suurroom en pesto

Genoeg vir 8

Bereidingstyd: 20 minute

Gaarmaaktyd: omtrent 3 uur

Bestandele:

1.     30 ml olyfolie

2.     1 kg beesdikrib, in blokkies van sowat 4 cm gesny

3.     3 uie, gekap

4.     3 knoffelhuisies, fyngedruk

5.     30 ml koekmeel

6.     30 ml gerookte paprika

7.     2 x 410 g-blikke pruimtamaties

8.     1 liter beesvleisaftreksel

9.     2 rooi soetrissies, ontpit en in klein blokkies gesny

10.   250 ml suurroom

11.   80 ml roketpesto (sien die resep hieronder as jy dit self wil maak)

Metode:

1.     Verhit ’n swaarboomkastrol oor hoë hitte. Sodra dit warm is, moet jy ’n bietjie olyfolie ingooi en die vleis bietjies-bietjies oor hoë hitte bruin braai. Gooi, indien nodig, nog ’n bietjie olie in die kastrol om te keer dat die vleis brand en aan die kastrol vassit.

2.     Gooi die uie in die pan en soteer dit tot bruin. Voeg die knoffel by en gooi die vleis terug in die pan. Strooi die koekmeel en paprika oor. Roer dit goed en gooi dan die tamaties en die bereide beesvleisaftreksel by. Verhit tot kookpunt, verlaag die hitte en sit die deksel op. Laat dit saggies prut vir twee uur of tot die vleis baie sag is.

3.     Gooi die rooi soetrissies by en laat dit vir nog 30 minute prut. Geur na smaak met sout en vars gemaalde swartpeper. Sit voor met roketpesto en suurroom bo-oor, en rond dit af met nog ’n strooisel paprika.

Roketpesto

Meng 30 g (een pakkie) vars roket in ’n voedselverwerker saam met twee knoffelhuisies, 50 ml geroosterde amandels of dennepitte, 45 ml fyngerasperde parmesaankaas en 30 ml olyfolie. Pols dit tot dit ’n pasta vorm. Gooi nog 20 ml tot 30 ml olyfolie by en pols dit verder om deeglik te meng. As jy nie tyd het om dit self te maak nie, kan jy ook klaargemaakte pesto by jou deli of supermark koop.