Friday 26 March 2010

NATTER: ADIOUS AMIGOS


Thank you to everyone who have visited my blog, written to me and some of you have also become my good friends. Due to personal reasons, I will no longer update my blog but I am most happy to hear from you or answer any questions you may have, via my e-mail address:

v-g@live.com.au

Take care and god bless.

Love, VG

Thursday 5 November 2009

NATTER: MY WILL


Last night, my husband and I were sitting in the living room, and I said to him, 'I never want to live in a vegetative state, dependent on some machine and fluids from a bottle. If that ever happens, just pull the plug.'

He got up, unplugged the computer and threw out my Jim Beam and Coke.

He's such a bastard!

Wednesday 28 October 2009

NATTER: WELCOME TO CANBERRA, SR!


My cousin SR, from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia is currently visiting me. It has been so great to have her here, especially since it has been 16 years since I last saw her.

On our outing to the War Memorial in Canberra, she was so fascinated with the suave Australian police patrolmen that were chaperoning the Macedonian President (on his visit there to place a wreath at the Memorial) that she got me to ask the boys for a picture with her. Don’t they all look great????

RECIPE: BEEF, POTATO AND ROSEMARY BRAISE


Okay, so I have been a little slack…..agreed. I think I am going through ‘blog fatigue’ - I saw this phrase coined somewhere on the net; apologies for the plagiarism…..but it is an apt phrase!!!

Also, I am still feeling so tired that I do not have the energy to take pictures, load them and type up recipes. Oh well, I guess I am just going to have to take it easy and only do a posting or two each week. So if I go AWOL again……you know blog fatigue has taken over…..again.

Not only this, I have a new toy and hobby at the moment too. Converting my old vinyls and songs into high quality cds and also restoring old bollywood vinyl covers and movie posters with the aid of ‘adobe photoshop’. I just love the art and to date, I have collected nearly 2000 pieces. But it is a slow and painstaking process. I MAY put up my pictures on my blog…..but I don’t know if that infringes copyright laws!!!!

Anyway, talking about pictures, here’s a ‘not very good attempt’ at taking them. Actually, it is because I forgot to take a picture of it served up nicely in a casserole. Don’t let my half hearted effort put you off. This is one easy and yummy dish, perfect for the cold winters. I got this off the Sunday Telegraph magazine and it is by Donna Hay. Enjoy.


Ingredients

2 tbsp veg oil
2 tbsp plain flour
1 kg chopped beef chuck steaks
1 brown onion – chopped
4 cloves garlic – chopped
2 carrots – chopped
2 celery sticks – chopped
2 sprigs rosemary
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
½ cup dry red wine
1 ½ cups beef stock
400 g can dice tomatoes
4 Sebago potatoes – peeled and sliced (see my GLOSSARY post on POTATOES)
Salt and Pepper to taste

Method

Place the flour and steak in a large bowl and toss to caoat, shaking off any excess flour. Heat oil in a large pot over high heat and cook the steak, in batches for 3 to 4 mins or until browned. Set aside.

Add the onion, garlic, carrot, celery and rosemary to the pan and cook, stirring for 8 to 10 mins until brown.

Stir in the Worcestershire sauce and wine and cook for 2 mins. Add the beef, stock and tomatoes and bring to the boil. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for 30 mins. Add in the potatoes and seasoning and simmer for a further 45 mins.

Check seasoning, remove from from heat and serve hot with fresh crusty bread.

Note: If there are leftovers, remove any leftover potatoes from the stew and freeze the stew for future. Serve with mash potatoes.