Bran Date Muffins from Linette at Plum Tree Cottage

So where exactly is Plum Tree Cottage? .. that’s easy , it’s in Hanmer Springs.

….And where is Hanmer Springs? Well, first you need to head down under to New Zealand, once there , go to the South Island and if you are in the city of Christchurch then you take State Highway 1 North until you reach Waipara, turn left inland on State Highway 7 heading towards the Lewis Pass until you come to the Hanmer turnoff.

Once you have passed the bridge that straddles the gorge and checked out any bungy jumpers who may be about to leap off it, it’s then just a short drive into the village. So, what so Cool about Hanmer?

Well “ cool” isn’t exactly the right word for it.. “Hot” would be a far better one. This small alpine village with a permanent population of 900 souls play host to many visitors who flock to the town’s main attraction: geothermal hot pools, that occur naturally in the area.

There’s a large rectangular pool that’s a cool 25 C (77 F) and then the properly warm stuff: a multitude of smaller pools ranging in temperatures from 36 – 42 C ( 96- 107 F). That means no matter what kind of heat you can mange there will be a pool to suit your personal preference.

I can attest that these pools are simply divine in soaking away jet lag, and if you have been taking advantage of the many walking and mountain biking trails in the large forest areas that almost surround Hanmer, or the skiing in winter in the ski fields nearby,, then your tired and weary limbs will adore the respite of the soothing heat of the pools waters.

Linette , one of the permanent residents of Hanmer Springs makes the very best Bran Date Muffins…. … she and I swapped some recipes and I have made these for many a subsequent visitor to rave reviews.

If you don’t wish to make 18-20 muffins then this mix can be used to make 12 muffins and 1 small loaf. Sultanas can be mixed into the date amount if preferred. Mixture can be made up to 2 days in advance and covered, refrigerated until use. Thanks Linette!

(photo © kiwidutch)

2 ½ cups plain flour

2 teaspoons baking soda

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 cup sugar

3 ½ cups unprocessed natural bran

1 ½ cups pitted dates (chopped)

1 cup vegetable oil ( for example – light olive)

2 ½ cups low fat milk

2 eggs ( lightly beaten)

Pre-heat oven to 190 C (375 F)

Sift together the flour, baking soda and cinnamon.

Stir in the chopped dates, unprocessed bran and sugar.

Mix together the lightly beaten eggs, milk and vegetable oil, and then gently stir into the flour, dates etc mix until only just combined.

Spoon into a muffin pan and bake in a moderate to hot oven (190 C / 375 F) for about 20 minutes or until cooked.

Moi ? … I like my muffins warmly broken open and dubbed with a pat of real butter… yum!!!

What on Earth Processed Him to get Naked and….

One of the rules of Parenthood is: there is “quiet” and then there is ” Quiet”. The first kind quiet is fine, after all: kid has his mouth full, is spellbound by the cartoon on TV at the end of the day, or is asleep. Basically it’s quiet when you are not really expecting there to be much noise, if any, and all is well.

Then there is the second sort of Quiet.. that’s quiet when there shouldn’t really be… something that you can’t quite put your finger on is missing, actually it’s the noises that are missing that raise the red flags…and all at once you have a sense of panic and trepidation and you rush to find out what’s wrong, what’s happening and investigate this strange silence that makes parental alarm bells ring.

And so it happened one winter’s day, I played trains with young little Mister for a while and once the track was duly assembled ( by moi, 3 year olds prefering to sit and watch parents work) I shovelled my cramped self off the floor to go make pastry for the pie we would be having for dinner.

Whilst assembling all the ingredients and clearing the bench in readiness for pastry rolling, I popped back into the living room to check on the young Sir.

Good… he’s valiantly trying to get one tiny battery operated engine to pull every carriage in the box up the bridge that I built, the engine is making feeble noises and can’t make the grade with such an exorbitant load, I advise him to give it some help or to take off most of the carriages.. he mutters a half reply via a small conversation that he was having with himself and whoever was there in his imagination in this game and continues loading small blocks into the open wagons only increasing the load.

I tell him I’m rolling pastry and am in the kitchen. He’s absorbed with his game and I get no response.

Later …the bench floured, pastry rolled and my pie is taking shape… then that moment occurred, the hair on the back of my neck stood on end as it suddenly occurs to me that there is complete silence in the house.. not even the little murmur of Mister’s conversation with his imaginary playmate or the trains can be heard… I rush frantically to investigate.

I enter the living room to find that my little man is stark naked, worse still, he suddenly blurts out ” Ow ! Ow Mama ! Ow ! Ow Mama !”

I freak out for a nano second as I see that his privates are completely PURPLE ! Thoughts of his big sisters hair bands and constriction spring to mind, I rush closer… suddenly the penny drops, it’s not just his Privates that are a rich purple shade, but also all of his navel, and small parts of his legs, knees… Phew …it’s just purple felt-tipped pen, and he’s been colouring himself in, …     …. in detail.

The relief floods over me like a wave, the shock subsides and I start to giggle… Little Mister is not amused, having coloured in so much of his privates it’s now rather painful ( note to 3 year old boys: you really don’t yet have the dexterity to colour in yet without poking quite forcefully so take it from me, colouring in your softest spots completely isn’t really best idea you will ever have).

By now I’m actually amazed and in awe that he managed to get naked and achieve all this in such a short space of time. If only ordinary tasks with this kid could get done as fast.

Needless to say, Bathtime was bought forward, my pastry lay on the kitchen bench abandoned as for more than the next hour I sat next to the tub, trying to soak and wash off all the purple colour from all his personal nooks and crannies. Tomorrow he goes to Creche (Day Care) and I don’t want to give them the fright of their lives when the ladies who care for him help him go to the toilet.

I’m completely and totally in the dark as to how he went from playing sweetly with trains to finding one stray felt tipped pen on the floor, and having the mad brainwave to strip to his Birthday Suit and start adorning himself, but one thing is for certain…

… judging by the hue of his Sister’s artistic efforts on their bedroom walls, Purple felt-tipped pens in this house are definiately cursed.

So… … On ya bike !

(photo © kiwidutch)

Why do the Dutch have such an amazing love of the bicycle? Well for starters, the county is so flat that one of the national jokes translates into English: “The Netherlands is so flat: if you dropped a marble at one end of the country, it would roll to the other side ” .

As is completely normal in the majority of European towns and cities, the streets in the centers are often narrow, winding and difficult to navigate with modern day modes of transportation in large numbers. These cities took form centuries ago, horses, carriages or wagons were the largest forms of transport and most of the population got around on foot. Bricks or cobbles lined the streets and large areas reserved for things like car parks were strangely absent in the minds of the city planners of the ^{15th to 19th} centuries.

Of course these days, cars pack the highways… in fact traffic jams are not even reported if they are less than 3 kms (1 mile) long, and traffic jams between large cities often reach more than 25kms in length.

Add to that, that not all Dutch even own a car ( they are very expensive to buy, insure and pay road taxes on and after lot are paid, the petrol /gas prices will make you weep) Therefore it’s little wonder that Public Transport in this small country of 17 million people is indeed well used.

Trams, trains and buses provide the bulk of Dutch public transport, but if you commute to you work by train for instance, how do you get quickly and easily to the station? And from your end station to your workplace?

(photo © kiwidutch)

The solution is simple: you have two bicycles.. one that you take from home to the Station, (and leave locked there for the day) and another one parked up and locked at your journey’s end waiting to take you to your work. At the end of the working day you reverse the modes of transports, so in the Netherlands it is normal every day to see literally thousands of cyclists on the move on every cities “ fietspads” (cycleways).

“Parking” at stations is 90% for cycles and about 10% for cars ( the car spaces are usually for 30 minute parking only).

No skinny lightweight racing cycles here… the bricks and cobbles will eat a ten-speed for breakfast without crewing and spit them out… no, the Dutch opt for sturdy bikes, workhorses of the morning commute, able to stand up to the bone shaking bricked streets…

I’ve started yet another photographic theme: The Dutch and their bikes…

(photo © kiwidutch)

….Some of them are painted all bright colours… personal taste? possibly…. but more likely it’s so that they can find their bike at the station in amongst the zillions…

(photo © kiwidutch)

Cucumber Raita, a Super Simple, Quick and Easy Summer dish.

• This is a recipe that I have adapted over the years from one of my favourite cookbooks: “Salads and Summer dishes”.    I like this because there’s no mint, no tomato like in many other raita recipes and the addition of chili powder gives it extra zing.   Try give it at least 30 minutes chilling time so that the flavours have time to meld, this makes it an great dish to make ahead on a hot day.

• 

1 cucumber (grated)

salt (to taste)

140g plain yogurt (5 oz)

1 pinch chili powder

1 pinch ground cumin or roasted cumin seeds

fresh ground pepper (to taste)

1 slice cucumber (for garnish)

paprika (to garnish)

Drain the grated cucumber well so that you squeeze out as much moisture as possible.

Add the yogurt, chili powder, ground cumin (or toasted cumin seeds) and salt and pepper to taste.

Chill 30 minutes in refrigerator and stir well before serving.

Dust the single cucumber slice in paprika and garnish

Goes great with poppadoms.

Restaurant Review: Pirata Familie (Family) Restaurant

Pirata Owner and restaurant (photo © kiwidutch)

Agggh me hearties, This could indeed be a restaurant treasure. We gathered the smallest Mates and set sail for another dip into the turbulant waters of Kids and dining out.

Opened recently, Pirata’s is located in The Hague at Groot Hertoginnelaan 206 (Corner Groot Hertoginnelaan & Conradkade) and is a family owned and operated venture from former cafe owners in the nearby Reinkinstraat. Located next to the tramhalt of Line 11 and buses 20 and 21, the back room section of the restaurant has been transformed into a small child’s dream, colouring equipment, a TV (to my son’s delight a“Cars” DVD amongst others) and an array of games and toys on a Pirate theme.

For the older child there is not too much on offer, but the owners are well aware of that and hoped to build in more games for the bigger kids as the restaurant becomes more established. They also quite rightly said that older kids already generally have more options anyway for dining out and that it was the younger customer that was less catered for in the restaurant trade. I heartily agree with their thoughts.

Sails bedeck the rafters, and there are many Pirate surprises featured inside for all the little Hearties to discover… shiver me timbers, quake ye not if you look up high at the pirate that was dragged up from Davy Jones’s locker. Agggh, even the cannon outside on the pavement inspired squeals of delight from our littlest press-ganged Mate.

entree: Vegetable skewers, Pirata Restaurant (photo © kiwidutch)

Lets look at a few of the dishes on offer: Hubbies entree Calamaris homemade squid with garlic mayonnaise followed by Main Course marinaded mushroom salad.

My entree Vegetable skewers followed by Main Course fillet of sole with a butter sauce with capers shallot, lemon and potato wedges.

We shared a dessert (for 2 persons) dessert chocolate fondue with fresh fruit and marshmallows.

The kids opted for a kid meal of croquettes and fries, but there are also a variety of kid friendly meals on the menu.

So now , how does it rate? All in all the food is good… the menu is not overly long or complicated, the meals are very down to earth, flavours are good without being particularly exceptional with the excellent exception of the home made herb butter that is the best of any of it’s sort that I have ever tried so far in my 17 years in The Netherlands. I like to make both herb and garlic butters at home too, but have to concede: Well done ! the Pirata’s herb butter is better than my best efforts so far.

When rating a restaurant as a seriously addicted hobby chef I usually ask myself if I could make the same (or better) at home… Yes, with the exception of the butter , I could easily make this menu with a little practice…  But this restaurant is far less about Michelin Star cuisine and far more about successful dining out with small children, so a simple, well presented menu at a reasonable price is more than a result.  Having visited  Pirata’s now more than once in quick succession, I can also highly recommend the crème brûlée ( not too sweet with wonderful notes of vanilla) and also let you know that we have word from the owner that the menu will be updated regularly, firm favourites will stay on the menu, but new offerings will be available from time to time too in tune with seasonal availbility of ingredients.

I’m all for a small rotation of menu items on a regular basis, it gives returning  customers something to look forward to and helps establish a wider base of the most popular dishes. This in turn makes it easier to bring a larger party of guests here,  to celebrate a family event  or special occasion  with friends and to know that there will be something suitable  on the menu for even the most fussy of palates.

Pirata Restaurant (photo © kiwidutch)

TV's mean you can keep an eye on the kid play area at the back while you sit and enjoy your meal (photo © kiwidutch)

At the end of the day, Even better than the menu, is the relaxed atmosphere where adults can dine whilst their kids play happily before and after their meals.

Also, in a country where the service in both shops and restaurants is generally of the lower standard and staff often surly, it is a delight to finally find a restaurant where the staff are welcoming, helpful and friendly and want to make your evening out a pleasurable experience.

Our kids tend to run on low batteries later in the day so it is a small shame that the restaurant only opens at 16.00 and that meals can only be ordered from 16.30 onwards (a lunch time menu would suit our kids energy levels better) …but in the end, the play area keeps children distracted rather well as they reach their tired zone and at least they last for the duration of  the meal.

the best herb-butter I've had in NL so far... Pirata Restaurant (photo © kiwidutch)

Main Course marinaded mushroom salad, Pirata Restaurant (photo © kiwidutch)

Main Course fillet of sole with a butter sauce with capers /shallot, Pirata Restaurant (photo © kiwidutch)

Kid Meal, home made croquette and fries, Pirata Restaurant (photo © kiwidutch)

One thing is definitely sure, bring your appetite with you when you arrive because the portions are ample and and I can guarantee that you won’t come away hungry. Children will be delighted with various trick and treats on offer too (but I won’t show you photos of those… best leave those to be your nice surprise when you visit)

In the end to sum up: an Overall score of 9/10 and we will be very happy to go back to Pirata’s and to recommend this Family Restaurant to other parents with young children, because for the service, fun, food and atmosphere it’s well worth the visit.

Pirata Family Restaurant ( photo © kiwidutch)

Pirata’s Familie Restaurant ,

Groot Hertoginnelaan 206 (Corner Groot Hertoginnelaan & Conradkade) Den Haag (The Hague), The Netherlands. Website address: http://www.pirata-denhaag.nl

 

Billboard Archive Photos: Thorbeckelaan

(photo © kiwidutch)

The Haags Gemeentearchief (the Hague City Council Archive ) has in recent months placed many large billboards around the city. All of them are photos of various points in the city taken between 20 and 150 years ago… and all are situated as close to the spot as possible (and where practical) to where the original photos were taken, so that viewers can see both the past and present views.

The Dutch text below the old photo reads” A tank on Thorbeckelaan, shortly after the liberation. On the left houses with numbers 621-629.Photograph: J.Wolters, Collection G. Wolters (1945)”

On the Gemeentearchief website (link below, text only available in Dutch) website viewers are invited to write in with any memories, local knowledge and comments that they might have about any of the specific billboards. This particular billboard has had the following comment added ( translated into English it reads):

Mr Herman Rosenberg (Houses on Thorbeckelaan) “What’s so special about this photograph, apart from the Sherman tank of course, is the gap in the housing on the Thorbeckelaan. In the background you can see the houses of the Ananasstraat. Somewhere in the fifties new houses were built in the “gap”, but the style was slightly different. The children in this area, the Vruchtenbuurt ( Fruit district), called these patches of land without houses ” landjes” (little plots of land). Dutch author J.J. Voskuil writes about them in his autobiographical book “Onder andere”. Young Voskuil lived with his parents in the Ananasstraat.”

The Dutch original Dutch text: “Door Gast: Herman Rosenberg, Bebouwing Thorbeckelaan” “Bijzonder aan deze foto is, behalve natuurlijk de Sherman-tank, het gat in de bebouwing van de Thorbeckelaan. Op de achtergrond zijn de huizen van de Ananasstraat zichtbaar. Het gat is rond 1950 in een enigszins vergelijkbare, maar toch duidelijk andere stijl opgevuld. In de Vruchtenbuurt noemden de kinderen de onbebouwde terreinen ‘landjes’. J.J. Voskuil schrijft hierover in zijn autobiografische bundel ‘Onder andere’. De jonge Voskuil woonde met zijn ouders in de Ananasstraat.”

The houses that be seen in the same view as the original photo, as seen today:

(photo © kiwidutch)

… and views along the Thorbeckelaan: note the round windows in the portiek (stairwells) and that the rest of the houses have been added to complete the row. The large building on the right side of the street is an indoor swimming pool.

(photo © kiwidutch)

Gemeentearchief website address is: “http://www.haagsebillboards.nl/?b=1&/home_-_de_kaart” (text only available in Dutch)

I have taken many photos of the billboards placed around town… watch this space as I get them all organised, translated and posted.

Fresh fruits, the taste of Summer…

fresh melon (photo © kiwidutch)

The best desserts are often the most simple. Summer fruits bring out the very best possibilities for many desserts, strawberries, apricots, melon, cherries, raspberries, peaches to name just a very few. Let your imagination run wild, let the taste of fresh fruit delight your palate, refresh you and be kind to your waistline. In future posts I will be cooking up some scrummy desserts using fresh fruit, making some amazing smoothies and dazzling your tastebuds with some brilliant flavour combinations.

Summer Dessert (photo © kiwidutch)

Watch this space…

What makes people emigrate ?

Herculean problems in European economy after WWII meant that unemployment was high, food and commodities short and entire nations were struggling to recover.

In the meantime, New Zealand, Australia, Canada had lost many  men of fighting age helping the Empire in both WWI and WWII and when these numbers were converted into a percentage of their still small populations the effects of the gap this left in the remaining populations were a truly savage.

Each of these countries had massive land areas and few people, and needed roads, hospitals, bridges, and had  housing shortages…  all were building in countries that were reaching their developing arms steadily into their rural areas, whilst at the same time updating and expanding their urban centers. Demand for skilled workers, entrepreneurs and tradespeople soured. Added to that it was quickly recognised that under-population would make any country face serious viability problems, so Governments appear to have sensibly put their heads together and recognized that they could solve each others problems.

(photo © kiwidutch)

The Dutch Government offered Assisted Passage (basically that’s a one way boat ticket) to people with the necessary skills who were willing to embark on the six week voyage and emigrate and in due course between 1945 until 1975 roughly 20,000 Dutch nationals found themselves New Zealand bound.

My father tells me how it all happened… apparently once he had the necessary paperwork he simply turned up at a Rotterdam wharf to take a ship… and on one side of the wharf there was ship bound for Canada, on the other, one bound for New Zealand. He said he intended to take the one for Canada, simply because although he knew very little indeed about Canada, he knew even less about New Zealand.

He walked towards it and was surprised to see a former school friend descend the gangplank… this friend was returning to The Netherlands to visit family after several years in Canada.

They chatted, yes Canada was wonderful,  stunning in fact, the space and opportunities amazing, all the work and overtime you wanted and he earned enough in a few short years to be able to come home for a visit and to bring money back to help his parents and his little brothers and sisters… the downside was that Canada was cold. Very cold. And that as a carpenter his work was seasonal, as a single chap he worked like a madman every hour he could in the warmer months and then struggled to get much work outside his trade in the winter, the money was excellent, overtime was available as much as you wanted in summer, but you had to save and plan for the winter months. How cold were the winters? The snow covered the fences around the fields, you could ski right over the fences in winter he said…..

My father was also a carpenter, he said that the money sounded wonderfully enticing but the thought of long cold winter months and the prospect of having to find work outside his trade for part of the year was not something he relished.

He said they chatted a bit more and after the conversation ended, my Father turned and walked instead to the ship bound for New Zealand.

He know only one thing about the country,      …it was not as cold as Canada.

Restaurant Review: Strandtent Lekker !, Scheveningen.

(photo © kiwidutch)

The promise of a beautiful summer Sunday prompted a walk to the beach at Scheveningen, quite a hike for the youngest family members, but the promise of an ice cream if a decent lunch was consumed, and the bribe of playing in the sand worked the necessary magic to get us there.

We spied a menu that offered tapas at Strandtent “Lekker” (Strandweg 32) and since the adults of the family are keen to find the best tapas available in the Netherlands, we thought we would give it a go.

The children wanted a croquette, I fancied some onion soup and my husband, with a chronic case of the munchies ordered an Uitsmijter as well as the tapas. An Uitsmijter is the semi-Dutch equivalent of a fry-up… and typically consists of ham, cheese and fried eggs layered onto slices of bread. The Tapas consisted of a list of possibilities of which you could choose a selection for a set price.

For me the fact that the eggs typically arrive sunny side up puts me off this dish, I prefer my eggs cooked to death due to spending my entire childhood suffering my mother’s penchant for breaking eggs into a pan of hot water to poach them, letting the hot water barely cook the white for a full 10 or maybe 20 seconds and then scooping them out, depositing them on a plate and expecting me to adore the almost completely raw liquid mess.

Strandtent Lekker (Photo © kiwidutch)

In early efforts to enjoy the Uitsmijter experience, I asked for the eggs to be cooked for longer, ….much longer, but sadly the best results even then were too rare for my liking. Himself however, likes Uitsmijters every now and again and well, he’s most welcome to them.

Uitsmijter verdict came back as “ nice enough”… The kids ate their croquettes, so they also passed muster and my onion soup was actually fairly tasty, nothing outstanding .. more a case of worse-than-some-better-than-most.

Strandtent Lekker (Photo © kiwidutch)

Strandtent Lekker (Photo © kiwidutch)

The Tapas arrived and looked great… sadly we were rather disappointed to say the least.. the chunks of chorizo were just the type of thing that hubby adores.. but these were very fatty, tough and lacked real flavour.

The Squid rings were OK… hubby and son ate them but didn’t break out in expressions of rapture, and the stuffed peppers had such hard and chewy skins that neither of us actually managed to eat more than a bite. The meatballs, feta cheese, bread and herb butter were left to fill the gaps and did so well enough, not bad at all in fact, but nothing exceptional either.

Strandtent Lekker (Photo © kiwidutch)

All in all, having enjoyed tapas in Spain and making recipes myself from Spanish cookbooks, I had hoped for more. To be fair, a beach-front restaurant in The Netherlands can not hope to compare in quality, style and flavour to an authentic, experienced Spanish tapa establishment, but I had hoped for more authenticity than was provided. The staff were friendly enough, the kids were well entertained, but I wouldn’t be ordering the tapas again if I were to eat there again… or at least not the peppers or the chorizo options.

That said, this is also not Michelin Star dining and so Himself has warned me to lower my expectations when eating out at a beach restaurant… but as a foodie I DO live in real hope that whenever I pay to eat out, I hope to get food where I wouldn’t think, “ I can definitely do this better than this at home”.

All in all we gave this one 4 out of 10, mainly for the nice restful dining with kids, the onion soup and for the smile and nice friendly word I got from the staff when I paid the bill.

(photo © Kiwidutch)

More Cool Bakfiets…

More cool bakfiets for my collection… I’ve been taking lots of photos lately whilst out and about, and literally making photos whilst the sun shines. Heck remembering that this is the Netherlands, famous for their very very fickle summers: so I should phrase that more accurately: taking photos whilst daylight exisits… the winters are long and if not dark, then a very decent shade of grey. Consequently, I’m now need to urgently spend some serious time sorting photos out before the hard drive on my computer has an anurism from the sheer volume. ( I don’t even want to think about that) please bear with me, many more photo treats are on the way!

bakfiets (photo © kiwidutch)

(photo © kiwidutch)

(photo © kiwidutch)