Fresh Living August 2019

MILK MADE:  The pros and cons of almond, rice, oat, soya milks and more

freshliving | pnp.co.za/freshliving

A U G U S T 2019 ISSUE 131

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HALE & HEARTY WINTER’S BEST PASTAS, ROASTS AND BRAISES 2019/06/25 13:11

35 Go on, indulge…

HAPPY WOMEN’S DAY TO EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU. DON'T WAIT FOR IT TO HAPPEN – SPOIL YOURSELVES

FROM PNP’S FRESH TEAM GREENGROCER’S PROMISE We guarantee greatquality produce packed with flavour and nutritional goodness.

Responsibly sourced and grown with care.

BUTCHER’S PROMISE We’re proud to bring you expertly prepared, quality cuts sourced from responsible suppliers.

PHOTO OF JUSTINE: TOBY MURPHY

CHEF’S PROMISE Our homestyle dishes are prepared with care daily.

Fresh food made with quality ingredients from trusted suppliers.

We South Africans are partial to all things Italian – from feed-the-family bolognaise and Friday-night pizzas to soft clouds of mozzarella, sharp ‘n crumbly parmesan and paper-thin Parma ham. Oddly, though, despite the fact that we are a relatively adventurous bunch when it comes to food, in the case of Italy we tend to stick to everyday trusted favourites.

It was our slightly sad lack of open-mindedness that led the team to have a stab at changing this groundhog mentality. So this month we head to the culinary nirvana that is Tuscany where, among other things, we swap gnocchi for gnudi, minestrone for ribollita and focaccia for schiacciata. I hope the recipes will inspire you to expand your repertoire and discover a whole new set of Italian faves (page 30).

No matter the ever-growing number of pescatarians, vegetarians and vegans encouraging us to experiment with plant-based eating, meat – no matter the cut – remains enormously popular and a true cross-cultural delight. On page 38 we celebrate all things carnivorous and satisfying with our celebration of on-the-bone meat cuts. You will be sure to win friends and influence people!

There are loads of other things to cook (relishes, hearty breakfasts, pastas) and much to read – the pros and cons of milk alternatives, the move to working from home and how to create and decorate accordingly.

Curl up with our last official winter issue of the year and enjoy every indulgent minute.

Keep warm,

BAKER’S PROMISE We’ve perfected our methods and recipes to create breads and bakes with enhanced texture and flavour.

FISHMONGER’S PROMISE Our quality seafood is responsibly sourced, always fresh, full of flavour and expertly prepared the way you like it.

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JUSTINE DRAKE EDITOR, FRESH LIVING

FOLLOW ME ON  Twitter @justine_drake Instagram @justinedrakecooks  Facebook @JustineDrakeSA

2019/06/25 13:12

FEEDBACK

SAY IT, WRITE IT,

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WE ASKED, THEY SAID . . .

Winter means comfort food! We asked FL staffers to tell us what they’ve be gobbling up this chilly season.

They said…

WINNING LETTER MY RECIPE FOR LOVE I never miss an issue of Fresh Living but I’m not as good a cook as I would like to be: That’s why most of your recipes go untried. Recently, though, someone I had a crush on asked to borrow my copy of Fresh Living. Needless to say, I gave it to her. Long story short, she invited me over to try a meal she had whipped up using one of your delicious recipes. I loved it so much we set up a second date so that I could sample another one of her creations. I’m not promising anything but I may just invite you to a wedding soon. – ZITHULELE SIBANYONI



WE LOVE HEARING FROM YOU ONLINE!

 @winetourismza I can’t wait to try out the ‘Ultimate Soup-and-Toastie Combo’ recipes in the new June 2019 issue of the @PicknPay @Fresh_Living magazine. #realmencancook #wintercooking #freshlivingmagazine



@__dimakatso__ Yes I collect food magazines, yes I don’t throw away even a single one. The one thing I will never regret hoarding and I’m not the only one.

Currently enjoying this one. #magazinehoarder #Food#foodmagazine #FreshLiving

SHARE WITH US

Email letters@freshlivingmagazine.co.za Instagram @freshliving_pnp Twitter @Fresh_Living

TOP-CLASS VEGGIE DISHES My daughter went to America for four months and after chatting to her, I discovered just how difficult it is for her to find halaal meat and chicken in Washington DC. As an alternative, she cooks vegetarian dishes but finds herself repeating the same ones every other day.

I sensed her dismay so I went to my bookshelf and pulled out a few archived Fresh Living magazines. I took pictures of all the lovely vegetarian dishes I could find and sent them to my daughter. She was utterly surprised at how many exciting dishes she could prepare and how easy they were. I was thanked with, “Mum, you are the best.” I smiled and said, “Fresh Living is the best.”– FEROZA MOOSA

as I went through it, I came across the ‘Sweet Chilli Oyster Mushroom Kebabs’ in the Everyday Heroes feature. What a life-saving recipe this is!

Whenever we have braais at work, I often feel excluded due to my religious beliefs. I fast three times a week and abstain from animal products. I’ve tried the traditional vegetarian sausage with a roll but this isn’t very appealing especially after a few occasions. This recipe is the best idea for my office braai and will enable me to take part in the festivities on a regular basis. Thank you!

– JAY SALIKRAM

FRIDAY SWEET CHILLI OYSTER MUSHROOM KEBABS

The ultimate vegan braai dish.

Marinade: Juice (30ml) of 1 lime 5cm knob ginger, chopped 2 cloves garlic, chopped ¼ cup (60ml) PnP sweet chilli sauce Kebabs: 2 punnets (250g) oyster mushrooms, torn 4-8 bamboo skewers, soaked in water For serving: Chopped chilli (optional) Handful micro herbs SERVES 4 Combine marinade ingredients and set aside.

Thread mushrooms onto skewers.

Heat a griddle pan over medium heat or prepare medium-hot coals.

Pour marinade over mushrooms, turning to coat evenly in sauce.

Cook, turning frequently, until slightly charred and cooked through.

Serve scattered with chilli (if using) and micro herbs.

WHAT A TREAT I just picked up the May issue of Fresh Living and

❞

COOK'S NOTE Don't marinate mushrooms too far in advance as they will draw moisture and become too soft to hold their shape pnp.co.za

Minestrone – I eat it almost every week throughout winter, with crusty buttered ciabatta.

Healthy and hearty.

– Robyn MacLarty When it’s raining outside we always ensure we are stocked up with some good ol’ pancake mix. We whip up a pot of very saucy savoury mince and slap it into our pancakes and indulge until we can’t any more.

– Yolandi du Toit

Eating butter chicken and homemade rotis on a cold winter’s night feels like a hug from the inside.

– Chad January

❞

INGREDIENTS

Products and recipe ingredient availability may vary from store to store

ILLUSTRATION: SHUTTERSTOCK, PHOTO: SUPPLIED

Your chance to share your thoughts and ideas with other Fresh Living readers

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VEGGIE ALL-STARS Cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, potatoes: one could argue they’re not the most exciting vegetables, but we promise you’ll be asking for seconds with these recipes PHOTOS: TOBY MURPHY RECIPES AND STYLING: CHAD JANUARY STYLIST’S ASSISTANT: KRISTEN SCHEEPERS & LIZÉ BASSON

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R E A D Y T O E AT

DIJON AND CHILLI CAULIFLOWER CHEESE Serve this deliciously gooey, cheesy creation while steaming hot.

It’s the perfect winter side dish.

2 (about 850g each) cauliflowers, roughly broken into florets 2 Tbsp (30ml) olive oil 2 cloves garlic, chopped 2 red chillies, deseeded and chopped 1 tsp (5ml) smoked or regular paprika Salt and milled pepper

CAULIFLOWER The name is derived from the Italian word cavolfiore, which translates to ‘cabbage flower’.

A favourite of Banters, cauliflower is a member of the cruciferous vegetable family and boasts a high vitamin-C content, disease-fighting phytochemicals and fibre.

Its subtle flavour is perfect for punchy aromatics and spices and works well with salty elements like cheese, bacon and anchovies.

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Sauce: 3 Tbsp (45ml) butter 3 Tbsp (45ml) cake flour 1 cup (250ml) milk 1 cup (250ml) cream 1 block (170g) smoked gouda or mature cheddar, grated 2 tsp (10ml) Dijon mustard 1/

³ loaf (about 100g) sourdough, cut into chunks 2 Tbsp (30ml) chopped fresh parsley SERVES 4

Preheat oven to 180˚C. Place cauliflower florets in a single layer on a greased baking tray and drizzle with oil.

Sprinkle with garlic, chilli, paprika and seasoning, then roast for 15-20 minutes.

Melt butter for sauce in a saucepan over medium heat.

Whisk in cake flour vigorously until smooth, then slowly add milk and cream, continuing to whisk to smooth out any lumps.

Simmer gently while stirring constantly, until thickened (about 5-7 minutes).

Stir through half the cheese and the mustard and season.

Place roasted cauliflower florets in a 26cm cast-iron skillet or deep rectangular ovenproof dish and pour over sauce.

Sprinkle with remaining cheese and scatter over sourdough and parsley.

Bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden and cheese has melted.

Serve immediately with your main meal.

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Herby T-bone steak with garlic confit.

Recipe on page 40

bone On the

Meat cooked on the bone is so much more flavourful (and often more affordable). Liezl Vermeulen shares her recipes for lamb, beef, pork and chicken to make the perfect winter dinner PHOTOS: MICHAEL LE GRANGE

RECIPES AND STYLING: LIEZL VERMEULEN

STYLIST’S ASSISTANTS: EMMA NKUNZANA & LIZÉ BASSON

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LOVE ME TENDER

MUSTARD, PEAR AND CIDER PORK LEG ROAST And to boot, some darn good crackling...

1 (about 2kg) pork leg ¼ cup (60ml) salt flakes or coarse salt 2 tsp (10ml) each coriander seeds and fennel seeds 1 bottle (500ml) apple cider (such as Savanna) 1 Tbsp (15ml) wholegrain mustard

3 Tbsp (45ml) dark brown sugar ½ cup (125ml) beef or vegetable stock 1 bulb garlic, halved 6 Packham pears, line scored horizontally around each fruit 1 punnet (20g) fresh sage SERVES 6-8 Score rind on pork leg with a knife, cutting through the fat only (don’t pierce the meat).

Rub salt into rind and stand for 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 220°C. Brush off excess salt and pat rind dry with kitchen paper.

Toast seeds in a dry pan for a minute, then crush using a pestle and mortar.

Rub crushed seeds all over pork, making sure to get them into scored fat.

Place pork in a roasting pan and roast for 45 minutes.

Remove pork and arrange remaining ingredients in pan.

Reduce heat to 160°C, place pork on top of veg and roast for another 65-75 minutes.

Remove pork, pears and garlic from pan and rest meat for 15 minutes.

Pour roast juices into a saucepan and reduce to make a gravy.

Serve pork on a platter with pears and garlic, and gravy on the side.

GOOD IDEA No need to save this one for a dinner party – make the next day’s lunch sliced pork, mustard and gherkin sarmies

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Home truths Is working from home your ultimate dream? asks Kate Calnan. Here are the pros, cons and tips from experts and people who’ve been there, done that (and worn their PJs all day, while nailing a presentation)

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quite how suited I was to working remotely. And I appreciate all the benefits that come with it: I can pick up my kids from

school, I can ‘start work’ at 5am so I can make the 10am yoga class, or watch my son play soccer in the afternoon, I can be

at home to wait for the plumber without having to request half a day’s leave, and I relish not wasting time in traffic.

But – and it’s a but not to be underestimated – I’m disciplined about getting my eight hours of work in every day, without

IMAGINING YOUR OFFICE CHAIR IS YOUR COUCH? There are plenty of pros and cons to working from home.

It’s up to you to decide which ones are more important to you and have a bigger impact on your wellbeing. If you want to go for remote work, you should have most of the following characteristics:  You need to be selfdisciplined and independent.

 You need to be able to stay focused and not get distracted easily – you won’t believe how distracting a full laundry basket is when you have a deadline looming!

working space that doesn’t encroach on your personal life – note that boundaries are vital.

 You need to be organised and structured at all times, including having a set

 You need to be ok with working alone and spending most of your day alone.

 Time management should be one of your strong points.

IMAGES: GALLO/GETTY IMAGES

If I was a bumpersticker kind of gal, I would have ‘I heart working from home’ made into a sticker for my car. I may even slap one across my Macbook Air. Working from home suits me.

I’m an introvert – not painfully so, but I think so much more clearly on my own, and am far more productive in my own space.

I’ve worked full-time in offices for most of my career, and was happy.

But when I finally started working from home – as an editor and writer – that’s when I realised

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SOUNDBITE

having to work until 11pm every night. I’m disciplined about getting showered and dressed every morning. And I’m disciplined about going into clients’ offices at least once a week so I stay front of mind, and don’t lose my mind on my own. As a freelancer, though, I’m my own boss – I can make these calls, and my field of work makes this set-up easy for me.

For companies – especially large ones – allowing remote working can be daunting and there’s a fear employees will abuse the opportunity and productivity will drop.

But there are ways to deal with this, says Terry Steenhuisen, people operations specialist at fintech company Kurtosys, and director of Culture Care, an organisation that guides

companies to create growth environments.

Steenhuisen suggests three elements that need to be in place for effective remote working:

MAKING WORK WORK, FROM ANYWHERE “Work will be outcomesbased, and this means a big paradigm shift from clock-watching your employees to ensuring they have clear work objectives and goals and are given the space and time to get these done, with regular check-ins with leaders.

THERE NEEDS TO BE TRUST “Allowing employees to work remotely means you trust them to do what they need to get done without being micro-managed – this is positively empowering for employees.”

CARINE VISAGIE: FREELANCE CONTENT MARKETER When I went freelance about two-and-half years ago, I wasn’t convinced that working from home would suit me. I’m extroverted and get my energy from other people.

I worried that I might get lonely.

And it did take a bit of time to adjust, but I know how to make it work for me, and I love it.

On days when I have to work in an office for a client, I can feel my stress levels inching up. While I do love meeting and seeing friends and colleagues in some of the offices I work in, my home office is definitely still my preferred work space. It’s quiet, I have my cat for company, and I’m more productive as there are no distractions. While offices can be fun, a lot of time is wasted on chatting, meetings, emails etc.

COMMUNCATION IS KEY “I cannot speak enough about the importance of effective communication

Carine’s tips:  At first, the quiet can be overwhelming. Work in a coffee shop for an hour or two every day and make sure you interact with people at least once or twice a day – schedule a meeting with clients, or go to the gym.  Don’t fall into the trap of working in your bed. It’s lovely at first, but then your body and productivity levels start to feel it – get up, get dressed and get going.  Check in with friends and ex-colleagues who also work remotely. Go for a walk or coffee, and chat about issues you’re struggling with. It’s always good – and important – to have a sounding board.

between company leaders and their employees,” says Steenhuisen.

“When everyone is kept up to date with what they

need to know and when they need to know it, you will go a long way in creating healthy, thriving work environments.”

CAN YOU GIG IT?

The global digital revolution has given rise to the “gig economy”, which is characterised by flexible, freelance job opportunities. Typically, workers in the gig economy find jobs by registering on websites or apps and signing up for what they want to do – think Uber and Upwork.

According to McKinsey, some 64 million people in the US and EU use gig work to supplement their main income by choice rather than necessity.

Locally, Statistics SA’s employment outlook has found that temporary employment rose from 2.6 million in 2017 to 3.9 million in 2018.

For a country like SA that’s facing massive unemployment challenges, the growth of the gig economy carries with it many benefits, providing job opportunities while boosting productivity. But there are risks that come with the gig economy. For some, temporary work is not a first choice, but a necessity. Your salary is determined by the work you find each month – it’s not a steady income, and you’re missing out on benefits such as holiday pay, sick leave, unemployment insurance or protection from unfair dismissal.

Fresh Living – August 2019 | 51

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a t as P LA VISTA Using just five ingredients in these classic pastas makes for mouthwatering meals your mamma would be proud of PHOTOS: TOBY MURPHY & JUSTIN THOMSON RECIPES AND STYLING: CHAD JANUARY STYLIST’S ASSISTANT: KRISTEN SCHEEPERS & LIZÉ BASSON

BEEF AND MOZZARELLA CANNELLONI Heat 2 Tbsp (30ml) olive oil in a pan and fry 1 chopped onion until golden. Add ½ packet (250g) beef mince and cook over medium heat until cooked through. Season and set aside to cool. Wilt ½ packet (150g) shredded Swiss chard in a pan. Add 1 cup (250ml) cream and season. Blitz until smooth and set aside. Fill 8-10 raw cannelloni tubes with cooled mince mixture and arrange at the bottom of a greased rectangular ovenproof dish. Pour over cream sauce and sprinkle with 1 cup (125g) grated mozzarella.

Bake for 20 minutes at 180°C or until cooked through and golden.

Garnish with parsley (optional).

SERVES 2

VEGETARIAN FARFALLE Heat 2 Tbsp (30ml) olive oil in a pan and fry 1 punnet (250g) sliced mixed mushrooms for 2-3 minutes. Add 1 packet (300g) baby spinach, wilt for 2 minutes and set aside.

Heat ¼ cup (60ml) butter, 1 sliced red chilli and a handful sage leaves in a pan until butter starts to brown slightly.

Add a squeeze of lemon juice and season.

Toss ½ packet (200g) cooked farfalle with spinach, mushrooms and browned butter sauce. SERVES 2

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MAMMA MIA

TUNA AND CAPER MACARONI Heat 1 Tbsp (15ml) canola oil in a large pan and fry 2 chopped onions until golden. Add 1 can (400g) chopped tomatoes with a pinch of sugar and a dash of lemon juice (optional).

Toss through ½ packet (200g) cooked macaroni, season and divide between 2 bowls. Top with 1 can (170g) drained tuna chunks, 1 Tbsp (15ml) capers and chopped parsley. SERVES 2

FYI...

We've left pantry basics such as seasoning, lemon juice, sugar and oil out of our five-ingredient count

BACON AND PARMESAN TAGLIATELLE Heat 1½ cups (375ml) cream and 1 Tbsp (15ml) Dijon or wholegrain mustard in a pan. Simmer until reduced and slightly thickened (about 5 minutes). Season and toss ½ packet (250g) cooked tagliatelle through sauce. Add 1 packet (200g) chopped and cooked-until-crispy bacon and 3 sliced spring onions. Stir through 1 cup (125g) grated parmesan and season. Serve immediately. SERVES 2

CHICKEN AND TOMATO BAKED FUSILLI Combine ½ packet (200g) cooked fusilli and ¼ cup (60ml) red pepper pesto.

Season and spoon into a rectangular ovenproof dish.

Top with 2 (about 100g each) seared and sliced chicken breasts, ½ punnet (100g) vine tomatoes and 1 cup (125g) grated cheddar.

Sprinkle with chopped rosemary and bake for 15 minutes at 180°C or until cheese melts. SERVES 2

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