The Humble Sandwich

Well-made savoury sandwiches are tasty and nutritious

Last night it was my turn to provide eats for after our home cell group (Bible Study). I made my favourite: sandwiches, and of course have posted about it. Even the humble sandwich needs a little uplifting blogging!

Often we look forward to sandwiches on display and are horribly disappointed. Firstly the bread is white, with the crusts curling and the inside part of the sandwich soggy from the filling. Errgh!

I learnt to make a really tasty sandwich at the elbows of a dear friend in Zululand. Her secret, which she passed on to me, was to make them with a generous spirit and a loving heart.

Use only freshly baked brown bread. I prefer to buy what is known as a “round” loaf at our local bakery. It’s actually a normal shaped bought loaf with a raised crust. With an electric carving knife, I cut thin, even slices and place them under a damp cloth.

Meanwhile I place six eggs in a saucepan of cold water and bring to the boil. Then I set the timer and at 8 minutes I remove the pot from the stove, pour off the boiling water and refill with cold water to stop the eggs cooking further.

Drain that water off and peel the eggs. Place altogether in a soup bowl and mash well with a fork, adding a knob of butter. Season with salt and black pepper. Add two tablespoons of low-fat mayonnaise and a teaspoon of Hot English Mustard. Mix well.

Spread two slices of bread at a time with butter and add dollops of savoury egg onto one slice. Spread to edges and close with other slice. Place to the side. Continue until you have the required number of egg sandwiches.

Grate a small block of cheddar cheese and slice one or two firm tomatoes. Sprinkle cheese a slice of buttered bread. Gently blot tomato slices between layers of kitchen towel and lay across the cheese. Sprinkle a little more cheese over that and cover with the other buttered slice.

Using the electric knife again, cut the crust circle off the sandwich piles, and then carefully cut all the remaining crusts off. Cut the sandwiches into four diagonally across the bread. Cut the filled crusts in half.

Line a large platter with mulberry leaves or shredded lettuce. Place each quarter sandwich on the platter to form patterned rows. Sprinkle shredded lettuce over the sandwiches and cover with plastic wrap.

Refrigerate until needed.

Downpour!

On Friday afternoon last week, after several days of weather that built up, rumbled and flashed, yet never happened, the heavens eventually opened and the rain came down.

Regular readers of my blog will know how much rain, especially seasonal rain, means to the area where I live. This downpour, which I photographed to the point of getting my camera lense wet, lasted about twenty minutes.

The downpour was most welcome after almost a month of no rain; all we had before was dust, heat and exhausting closeness.

A total of ten millimeters of rain was measured.

Just as a good rainstorm should, it stopped when

the earth was soaked and the sun came out again.

Everyone came out to play and enjoy

the fresh cleanliness after the rain.

The lawn, which had become burnt and dry, now feels

spongy and thick after the good soaking rain

Angie she has no fear of storms thank goodness, and waited in the garage until the rain stopped. Then she followed me around the garden

"assisting" with photographs

High Tea in the Garden

Two weeks ago my younger daughter-in-law, Amanda, asked if she could celebrate her birthday with a tea party in my garden.

As you can imagine, the gardeners and I immediately jumped in and a major tidying up spree began. We pruned and cut back dead/dried shrub branches (we had no rain for the past few weeks) and filled dry patches of garden with Wild Garlic (Tulbaghia violacea), a quick-growing succulent species (Lampranthus spp), Hen and Chickens (Chlorophytum comosum) and Setaria spp. (ornamental grass)

The dainty snacks were delectable

I had nothing at all to do with the catering; Amanda had it all under control. She decided to have “High tea in the Garden” as her theme and served dainty eats: petite fours and other bite size snacks. She is very meticulous and pays attention to the finest detail. Her mum lent her a Noritake tea set for normal tea. She used my miniature plungers for filter coffee and one - cup teapot sets for those who preferred herbal teas. She bought Iced Tea in different flavours and served these in matching cut glass jugs filled with ice.

Beautiful Noritake tea sets and one-cup teapots; the attention to detail of Amanda's table setting was conducive to an original and refreshing tea party

Miniature plungers for coffee lovers

The Iced Tea came in three different flavours:

Rasperry, Lemon and Mango

The guests arrived at 3pm and were escorted to the garden area where Amanda had set out everything to perfection. Then she had a wonderful surprise: she turned around and saw her sister and favourite niece, who live in the city, (160 kms/100miles away) and whom Amanda had no idea, were in town, walk down the garden path. Great excitement as the two girls hugged and the little one jumped up and down calling for “Mica” – her name for Amanda.

A lovely afternoon ensued while friends chatted, children played with the dogs and Amanda, the perfect hostess, ensured everyone had enough to eat and drink.

Three special girls share a special love

Part of my menagerie,

Angie, Chip and Megan joined in the party

Young and old enjoyed themselves

Just as she thought all the excitement was over, Amanda looked up and saw her husband, Angus arrive in his dad’s open-top car. My husband had collected him from work and with much subterfuge between us and our neighbour, who hid the car in her garage, Angus managed to go home, change into evening clothes and drive back into our garden. Amanda, thrilled beyond words, ran to meet him.

After he had taken her home to change into an evening dress, they returned here and I managed capture a few more scenes before they went out to dinner.

Happy birthday Amanda. May you experience every blessing in 2009!