THE EVOLUTION OF THE HEALTH GRENADE

The Health Grenade - 'an explosion of goodness'                                                                                                            Charlie

 Me mate Stef and I, were on a little Sunday foraging outing under the expert guidance of Tracy Armbruster. Tracy was educating us on edible and medicinal plants. (Look for Tracy Armbruster on facebook – she offers regular foraging outings and other exciting ‘stuff’ too). Anyhow, it was on such an outing, that as we passed a huge patch of nasturtiums, Chef Stef suggested it would be a cool idea to make some ‘wraps’ with the big nasturtium leaves. "What a jolly good idea", I thought, while been slightly annoyed that I hadn't thought of such a cleaver thing myself. It wasn’t long before the first prototype was produced. We decided that, the sweetness of raw carrot and beetroot would take off the peppery edge of the nasturtium leaf, that a thin slither of spring onion would add an oniony flavour, without being overpowering and that a slice of avo would give it some body and a subtle smoothness, that only avo can give (man, I love avos, they go, with pretty much everything). Our first prototype was wrapped up ‘dolmades style’, the flavours worked, they were fresh, crunchy and gave you a feeling, that if you ate enough of them, you could heal just about any ailment you might be suffering from, or might ever suffer from. We tried a few dipping sauces and found that a sweet chilli, and a mix of soy and sour fig syrup (a simple sugar syrup will do the trick) were best with our little nasturtium nuggets. Our only problem was sealing our little parcels. That problem was soon solved, when our cleaver and practical mate, Ian Ian suggested, we tie them closed with a strip of sliced spring onion or a chive. Again, I was slightly annoyed that Ian Ian had come up with such a cunning idea and I hadn’t. When I told Stef about Ian Ian’s idea, which I probably claimed it as my own, he suggested we should leave the sides open, so that the contrasting colours of the carrot, beetroot, spring onion and the avo would be exposed in all their vibrant glory. "Just for once, why couldn’t I have been the cleaver one?" It wasn’t long before my big moment came, I figured that if you picked the leaves and left on a long stem, you could use that, with which to tie your nasturtium parcel closed. So that was it - my 'amazing' contribution in the evolution, of what is now called, The Health Grenade.

The Health Grenade in 'expert rolling hands'                                       Moose

The thing about a Health Grenade, is that in the dead of winter, when the dreaded colds and flues are doing their rounds, so to are all the necessary Health Grenade ingredients. Of course, having said that, you can pop whatever fits into a nasturtium leaf, to form whatever ‘grenade’ fits your fancy – smoked salmon and crème fresh is rather good, I might add.

A FEW FINE SPOTS

Sharing a moment with a local on the way to Atlas Trading in the Bokaap                                                                      Mans

Part of being an urban hunter-gatherer, is hunting down jolly fine outlets from which to buy your chow. Supermarkets are not my favourite places. I do acknowledge that they are annoyingly convenient and that I do frequent them - boooo, for me. When I walk out of supermarket, there usually isn’t a spring in my step, however there are other more charming options out there, where you can get quality produce for a good price and leave all bouncy and smiley, wotz more; you don’t end up with a mound of horrible, ugly, ugly packaging. Wherever you live these spots are out there, you just have to hunt them down.

Lucy filming in Atlas, with 'The Dood' lurking            Mans

There is massive range of spices at Atlas                       Mans

In Cape Town two of my favourite spots are Atlas Trading and Fargo Trading; I buy all my spices, pulses, grains, nuts, dried fruit and a whole bunch of other stuff from these two places. I first came across Atlas Trading when I was living in the Bokaap. It’s on Wale Str above Buitengracht Str, on the right, as you head up the hill. It’s a beautiful and nostalgic experience when you visit Atlas. You order at one window, pay at the next and then collect at the dispatch counter. Your goodies are usually scooped from wooden tea chests and poured into brown paper bags, which in the blink of an eye are folded skilfully and snugly by some dude. After a sneaky snack on the way home, never have I quite managed to reseal the packet of dried mangos/pistachios as neatly and tightly as ‘The Dood’ does, so I always get bust. Sometimes the goodies you buy can take on a generic incense smell, which is all charming and romantic, but there are times it would be better if it weren’t there. It’s worthwhile to ask for a little taste of what you are going to buy, just to check, that it hasn’t been lying at the bottom of a tea chest for too long. This place, I love.

On Malta Road in Salt River is Fargo Trading, this is the spot I go to most. Once you manage to wrestle past the thick plastic strips that cover the entrance you’ll find an authentic shop with a huge variety of quality products at very good prices. Just remember to ignore the white packets of MSG and go for the other stuff, like their thick rolled oats, the ones I just can’t seem to get anywhere else, coz these days every damn thing has to be instant, so only ‘thinly rolled’ are what’s on supermarket selves. Fargo’s chuncky oats are perfect for my ‘Damn Fine Granola’ recipe.

Yipppeee, Fargo has got oats that aren't instant                                                                                                                      Mans

For fresh produce, there is The Salt River Market’, which is pretty much off Salt River Circle, by the time you have driven a few times around the circle, you’d have figured it out. The regular fruit and veg, isn’t always a good deal though. It’s the stuff that’s just come into season, that I like to buy, like beautiful cress, rocket and asparagus and all for a good price. It’s also the spot to get unusual and exotic fruit and veg. ‘Fancy foodie stuff’ like, duck and quail eggs are also a volleyball, if it’s not here, you probably won’t find it in Cape Town. They are the same traders that have a stand at the Biscuit Mill on Saturday mornings. So remember they are just down the road from the Biscuit Mill and are open every weekday.  

A bit of banter at The Salt River Market                                                   Mans

It's gotta be autumn, coz there're pomegranates                                          Mans

After visiting any of these three spots, carrying you bags and boxes of goodies from the car to the kitchen won’t feel like the worst chore on the planet.

FRESH PASTA

'Old School Style Fettucini'                                                                                                                                                         Mans

For me, pasta is the definitive Italian chow. Only when I spent time with my Italian mate The  E-Man, did I start to check out the loving and simple approach Italians have towards food.

Here I go on another tangent...

My dad loved food more than just about anybody I know. He would love eating just about anything, anything but Italian food, which he would eat, but he didn’t love eating it, coz he didn’t like Italians. My Pop was the most kind natured and non-judgemental person ever, but I’m sure that was coz he saved all his horriblenss for the Italians. Maybe he was just grumpy that he didn’t win a medal for yachting at the Rome Olympics. He was the only person I knew, who would get a long face at the suggestion of a quick bite at a Pizzeria and this was, coz it was Italian (I mean, wotz not to love about Pizza). Anyhow, I think I have gone a long way to restoring a respectable relationship between the Standing’s and the Italian Nation. I love their simple and unpretentious food. From the way I’m going on you might think that I know an awful lot about all that is Italian, sadly this is not so. Most of what I know comes from Eugenio, aka The E-Man. Again, how he got his name, is a storey for another day.

Ian Ian, 'The Pasta Processing Unit'                                                           Mans

Making fresh pasta is not as big a mission as you may think. Nearly all kitchens have what you’ll need, and that is, flour, eggs and a pinch of salt. There are more complicated recipes around, but this one works just fine, for me. Ok, a pasta machine might be helpful, but lets face it, most middle class western kitchens have one proudly displayed somewhere on their shelves. My culinary mate Ian Ian, had one displayed in pride of place in his kitchen for about 2 years before he actually used it, but once he did, there has been no stopping him. He is now a pasta processing unit. Anyway, you don't even need a machine. If you are making it for only 2 people, I think it’s quicker to make it by hand and way more impressive. Usually when there are just 2 of you, being IMPRESSIVE is rather important.  All you need is a flat surface and a rolling pin, but a wine bottle will do just fine. 'Come on, go try make some right now. I DARE YOU."

Ingredients

- 1 egg per 2 people

- about 2 handfuls (more or less 100g of flour, duppio 00 is best, but white bread flour will do just fine)

- 1 pinch of salt.

How to make the dough

Break the eggs into a large mixing bowl and add the flour a bit at a time while stirring until you have loose dough. Now its time to get stuck with your hands. Sprinkle the work surface with flour and get kneading, this is my favourite part. You may want to add a bit more flour if it’s too sticky, or a bit of water if it is too dry. Give the dough a solid working over, until its soft, shiny and pliable. Cover it with a damp cloth or cling film and pop it in the fridge to rest for about 20 mins. Now it’s ready for rolling, or you can save it for another day. It’ll keep in the fridge for few days
Fettuccine, the ‘old school way

Making Fettuccine 'old School'.                               Mans

Chop about an inch thick slice off your dough, and cover the rest til you need it. This'll stop it from drying out. Dust the surface and your slice with flour to stop it sticking to everything - don't hold back with the dusting. Now, roll it out with your 'rolling pin', keep lifting and turning it, to stop the 'dreaded stick'. When you dough sheet is as thin as you patience allows, dust the top of it and fold in half, repeat this til your folded pasta is a manageable size to slice into 1/4 inch pieces. Give the little sliced pasta nuggets a joyful jiggle to separate them. Cook them straight away, or if you want to cook them later, hang them up, so they don't stick together. When it's time, chuck them into boiling water for about 5 mins, or til they are just tender.

'New School Style' getz it a lot thinner. Old school or New School? It'z your choice.                                                Mans

SNOEK

Come hell or high water, we are gonna have fun                                                                                                                Mans

For me a Snoek is the quintessential Cape Town meal, it embodies all that is Cape Town. Everyone who lives here, knows what a Snoek is, but for those of you who don’t, it is a ‘Barracuda like’ looking fish (with vicious finger removing teeth) It’s actually no relative, but they are referred to in NZ and OZ as Barracouta. I know it’s all a bit confusing, but that’s just the way it is, so lets move on.

A yummy no frills chomp                              Mans

Nobody likes a ‘pap (mushy) Snoek’, not even me. So to avoid any ‘papness’ don’t get any during the months that have an R in them (the hot months). Anyhow, it was during one of the months, without an R that Ian Ian and I decided, coz it was such an awesome day, we would go for a sail on Deep Magic, our friend, Mark Mark’s yacht. With excitement bubbling over, we fired up the engine, so we could motor out of the harbour before we set the sails. Our bubbling excitement turned to a simmering excitement, when we found that the throttle cable had snapped. So like all good engineers Ian Ian pointed and explained what had to be done, while I sardined myself into the engine compartment and covered myself with grease. Under instruction, I managed to jury rig the cable with some dental floss. Excitement was again bubbling over, only for it to soon to return to a simmer, coz now the motor would rev, but the boat was still not going anywhere. We were as ‘pap’ as a Snoek caught in February. Our excitement was stone cold, but hey, come hell or high water we were going to have fun.  So it was decided, coz we were at the harbour and the fishing boats were coming in, we would have a Snoek Braai (barbeque) on the mooring. It was a no frills affair, apart from the fish, everything was bought at the local café. Government issue white bread, iceberg lettuce, mayo, tomatoes, and, of course the classic apricot jam, butter and garlic baste. Soon our excitement returned to the boil and we were chomping down yummy Snoek sarmies, while listening to squawking gulls and the familiar sounds the yachts rigging tinkling in the breeze. Who needs a working vessel to enjoy a good chomp on the ocean anyway?

The engineer with a clean white shirt                                Mans

The finale garnish to our storey, 'the cherry on the top', one may say, happened a month or two later, when Mark Mark took Deep Magic out of the water for maintenance and discovered why we weren’t going anywhere. The naughty propeller had fallen off.

Just the way we like it                                                                                   Mans