Category: Musings

Celebrating An Event With Biltong

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In honor of my fellow SWP author Dawn Blume Hawkes who’s signing her upcoming cookbook, Away From the Kitchen, and giving a demonstration in Costa Mesa tomorrow, I’m re-posting my recipe for biltong, the South African version of jerky.

This is actually a good time to make biltong, cooler weather and all. This way the beef won’t get funky in the heat and kill me. Of course it might still, because as Wikipedia notes, biltong is a kind of cured meat from South Africa: the “curing” being salt and a brushing of cider vinegar. The word biltong comes from the Dutch words “bil” (rump) and “tong” (strip or tongue) from the days of yore when pioneering South Africans sun-dried their meat during The Great Trek of the 1830s, eastward and north-eastward away from British control in the Cape Colony. I wish I knew for sure, but I do believe my German grandfather and French grandmother were on that trip.

www.biltongmakers.com (Johannesburg)

I dry my “rumpstrip” in a wooden box with a 60-watt bulb in the bottom my ex built for me. I hang the beef for about three days using eight-inch cable ties. The hooks I used to employ rusted out, this is better. I like my biltong “wet,” that is to say, on the raw side, more taste, if you know what I mean. Of course, you’re probably making a face, unless you’re South African and then you’ll understand. The biltong back there is much tastier, not sure why—the beef isn’t as hormoned-out?—and the strips are much bigger than my dinky little Supermarket specials. The Americans who’ve tried my biltong love it. Of course, I have them sign a waiver—just kidding, but I probably should.

Recipe

  • Beef (Preferably Round steak)—1-2-inches thick
  • Rock Salt
  • Coarse Ground Black Pepper
  • Coarse Ground Coriander
  • Vinegar (preferably Apple Cider vinegar)

Sterilize all your hooks, knives, and working surfaces by washing well in hot water and soap.

Cover both sides of the meat with rock salt and let stand for an hour.  The longer you let it stand the saltier it will become.  Scrape off all the excess salt with a knife (don’t soak in water!).  Cut into two-inch strips, or wider, then brush (do not dip) with vinegar, just so the meat is covered. Let the excess vinegar drip off then sprinkle with pepper and coriander and hang.

Bon Appetit!  No wait, I need to express that in Afrikaans: Lekker eet!

 

 

Latest News on Monkey’s Wedding

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About a week ago I posted the first chapter of my Young Adult novel, Monkey’s Wedding on Jukepopserials. It’s a site where you, the reader, can read for free books, stories and serials, every genre possible. For authors, it’s where they can upload their chapters and ask readers to vote on them, with a cash prize going to the most popular works in fiction and nonfiction categories.

The reason I’m doing this is to test the waters, see what kind of response I get. No matter what though, I will get this bloody book published before I die. I already announced I was going to self-publish not too long ago. But then the events that prompted my memoir, Loveyoubye, interfered and I shelved the idea. I’ve had some heart-breaking near misses with getting Monkey’s Wedding published by a traditional publisher, agent and all; you can read about my travails here. I also want to get the sequel, Mine Dances out into the world, a coming-of-age for the sixteen-year-old white protagonist (there’s also a black protagonist).

These two books were my first tribute to Africa and the African boys and men who worked for us. So. Here I am trotting it out for your perusal. Whatever the reaction, I shall be publishing both books within the next year. Hopefully, my memoir, Loveyoubye, will give both books a leg-up in getting a little bit of notice.

Grilled Tuna, Cheddar, and Onion Sandwiches

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Yow! is all I can say about this sandwich. Trying to be a good little marketer (just so’s you know, I do NOT like this part of publishing), by sending out letters to magazines, setting up interviews and all that goes into the bullshit of getting my book noticed, I’ve been short on time to cook my evening meal. The thing is I refuse to eat take-out or consume a meal that doesn’t excite me in some way. So enter this sandwich. Yummy! (I halved this recipe as it serves 4).

1 large onion thinly sliced
1 clove garlic, minced or pressed
1/2 cup chicken broth or water
1/2 cup minced celery
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
8 slices dark rye bread (I used oat nut bread)
1/4 lb. cheddar cheese, thinly sliced

In a 10- to 12-inch frying nonstick frying pan, combine onion, garlic, and half the broth. Bring to a boil over high heat: stir often until liquid evaporates and browned bits stick in pan.

Add half the remaining broth, stir to scrape browned bits free, then boil again until liquid evaporates and browned bits form. Repeat step with remaining broth, cooking until liquid evaporates. Stir onion mixture aside.

In a bowl, mix together tuna, celery, and mayonnaise. Top 4 slices bread equally with tuna mixture, onion mixture, cheese, and remaining bread.

Wipe the pan clean. Place over medium heat and add 2 sandwiches. (If you have another nonstick frying pan, toast all the sandwiches at once.) Cook until sandwiches are toasted on the bottom, about 4 minutes. Turn over and toast tops, about 4 minutes more.

 

 

The Culmination of a Journey

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Three weeks ago, I arrived home to find a box tossed just inside my gate. (the beasties—my two Staffordshire Bull Terriers—can make a fuss if they spot a delivery man). I hadn’t ordered anything, it had to be for my body shop neighbor; it happens. I hefted up the box, headed down the street, and stopped. The box was addressed to me. From She Writes Press.  My book Loveyoubye: Holding Fast, Letting Go, and Then There’s the Dog, in print: Advance Reading Copies—ARCs as they’re called—for me to send out to local bookstores, reviewers, etc. Twenty of them. Twenty bright and shiny real books, all the stages finally put together.

With one eye peeled for errors, along with a mixture of butterflies, and a feeling I can only describe as out-of-body, I flipped through the pages. I created this thing, this chronicle of my journey into the core of my being as I tried to come to terms with my husband’s disappearing acts, a dreaded journey home to Africa to help my mentally impaired brother, and the worsening ill health of my beloved dog. I needed to give voice to my experience, to articulate my feelings, to let off steam, to “see” what I thought. With each of these words I found power and mobilization. And then it was done.

Two months after signing with SWP (you can read about my journey to publication here), I wondered what the hell I was doing. Sure, I had to write the book, an imperative, but did I really have to publish it? Did I really have to lay myself bare and vulnerable for all to witness? But then would I be satisfied to stuff an account that had changed my life, that had also become an homage to my brother and to my cherished pet into a drawer and forget about it? For three months I anguished, ready to pull the book, especially after a bad night. But then something began to settle deep inside of me, a feeling that I needed to finish what I started. I needed to complete my journey out into the light of day, to claim it and set it free.

I continued to flip through the book, coming upon one photo after another: me as a sixteen-year-old, me carrying my baby brother, him as an adult, my dad and me, my ex and me, and my beloved dog. I’d worried about putting my hokey little photos in the book, but now it felt right, it felt complete. A new journey begins.

Brewin’ Up Some Christmas Moonshine

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It’s Celebrate The Small Things Day. Something I’ve achieved each week, no matter how small. If you’re interested in doing the same thing sign up here at Vicki’s blog.

Today, I’m going to be completing the second step in something I started a month ago: a batch of moonshine–hooch, booze, white lightning. Actually, it’s yellow lightning: Limoncello to be exact, an Italian lemon liqueur traditionally made from the zest of Femminello St. Teresa lemons steeped in grain alcohol until the oil is released. Only I used vodka and Trader Joe’s lemons, fourteen of them, which I zested at night while watching TV.

Steeping Limoncello

This second step consists of boiling up a simple syrup (sugar and water) and adding it to the brew.  And then in 20 days or so I’ll strain the mixture through triple-folded cheesecloth into these cute little bottles and seal them. Voila! Christmas gifts for my family and friends. And a jar of vodka-steeped zest to jazz up my fish dishes. Maybe, I’ll even have a bottle of Limoncello left over for myself to add to the one I got from the friend who showed me how to seal the bottles. Check it out below, all nice and frosty from the freezer. Cheers!

Chilled Limoncello

By the way, Limoncello recipes abound on the web, mine is a three-page deal from said friend, if you like I can type it up and email it to you.

 

 

ANNOUNCEMENT

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My memoir, Loveyoubye, is due to be released by She Writes Press on April 8, 2014!

loveyoubye_Cover 19Sept2013.inddNot a good rendition of the cover, it really doesn’t do it justice.

Sweets in bed

And here’s Sweetpea, the dog in the story, a Staffordshire Bull Terrier, love of my life and a major player.

WHAT THE STORY’S ABOUT

Loveyoubye describes the beginning of the end of my twenty-five-year marriage and my healing journey home to South Africa to help my younger brother who has special needs. It is a story of life transitions, parallels, and journeys. It is also a love story for my dog Sweetpea, and reveals the unbreakable bond between humans and their pets, along with the grief of losing them. It is a story of revelations; Sweetpea was a vital emotional link in my dysfunctional marriage. With her letting go, I was able to as well.

Getting Closer to Publication

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It’s Celebrate The Small Things Day. Something I’ve achieved each week, no matter how small. If you’re interested in doing the same thing sign up here at Vicki’s blog. But before I launch into my celebratin’ I want to thank Vicki for having created a way for me to keep a hand in blogging while I sort through what is turning out to be a crazy-making journey to getting my memoir Loveyoubye published.

What I want to celebrate today is getting to the end of the second round of proofs. It was grueling, because I really want it to be mistake-free. Sure, the manuscript has been proofed by a professional, but hey, everyone makes mistakes. And now this second round is up to me (a friend helped). So there I was scouring every page for misplaced commas, correctly hyphenated words (“black-and-white eight by ten”–is that right?), missed corrections, spacing between words.

This time the photos had been inserted. Very weird actually seeing parts of your life on the page. Maybe that’s what made me come undone (again) at the thought that in just six months, me and mine are going to be . . . <gulp> Out There.

Okay, let’s get back to celebrating. That friend I mentioned above who helped me proof Loveyoubye . . . She loved it! The first pair of eyes other than my reader, my editor and SWP to read my story. Whoo-ya!

Lots To Celebrate

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It’s Celebrate The Small Things Day. Something I’ve achieved each week, no matter how small. If you’re interested in doing the same thing sign up here at Vicki’s blog. The idea is to post the blog on a Friday, but I’m doing it today, Thursday, because I’m taking off for the weekend.

What I’m celebrating is completing yet another couple of steps in getting my memoir, Loveyoubye, ready for its March 2014 publication. All of a sudden there were deadlines. I had proofs to finish, photos to copy and convert, and I also had to indicate where I wanted them in the manuscript. Then I had to come up with “comps”–books/authors that are similar to mine in some way–for booksellers to figure out what shelf it would go on.  I truly didn’t have a clue. So, I threw it out to my publicist (Gawd, that sounds hot, doesn’t it? Yes, I hired a publicist, one of the best decisions I’ve made) and bless her brilliant little heart, she came up with some doozies, in like half a day. Check ’em out:

  1. Follow My Lead: What Training My Dogs Taught Me About  Life, Love, and Happiness–Carol Quinn (July 2011)
  2. The Wrong Dog Dream: A True Romance–Jan Vandenburgh  (April 13)
  3. When A Crocodile Eats The Sun: A Memoir of  Africa–Peter Godwin (April 08)
  4. Falling: The Story of A Marriage–Alexandra Fuller  (March 12)

Next step was to send letters to famous authors asking them to please blurb my book, you know,  Loveyoubye is brilliant, honest, painful, funny and real, that type of thing, which will go on the back cover. It’s a long shot. That took coming up with tweaking the synopsis of Loveyoubye, a different angle. Those summaries are killer.

Oh. And then there’s the cover. I just got the final version back. Drum roll, please . . . I LOVE IT! Be prepared, it’s kinda wild.

Celebrating My Book Cover

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It’s Celebrate The Small Things Day. Something I’ve achieved each week, no matter how small. If you’re interested in doing the same thing sign up here at Vicki’s blog. But before I tell you what I’m celebrating today, I have a little catching up to do since I’ve been missing from this spot for an entire month. And I’ve got to thank Kate Larkindale over at Fiction and Film for commenting on my last blog and inspiring me to get back in the game. Thanks Kate!

I’m blaming my absence on summer. I just gave into it. I put off all my writing projects, including finishing the proofs for Loveyoubye and choosing the final cover for the book. Instead, I danced my ass off at Laguna’s “Music In The Park” every Sunday, sometimes after which me and my girlfriend Laural would stop at this or that little rooftop or beachside bar and have a nightcap before heading home. Then there were those sunset dinners with friends and that wonderful spur of the moment day spent in Studio City with my five brilliant writer girlfriends, the trip up to Sierra Buttes in northern California (woods and lakes and cooler than here) with my son and two granddaughters—damn those little girls are fun!

But then I got an email from She Writes Press; my decision on Loveyoubye’s cover was due on Friday. Time to call it. Now, I’m not that hot on making decisions anyway, but this one has been agonizing. What if it’s crap? But time was up. That’s where the celebrating comes in. Yesterday, I took a deep breath and in the early morning chill of approaching fall, I submitted my book cover proofs!

 

Yoga By The Whale

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It’s Celebrate The Small Things Day. Something I’ve achieved each week, no matter how small. If you’re interested in doing the same thing sign up here at Vicki’s blog.  This week I want to do more than celebrate, I want to extoll–from the Latin extollere, to praise, to lift up. I want to praise because I’ve been lifted up.

Yoga in The Park

So what am I going on about? “Yoga By The Whale,” a donation-based one-hour class led by the lovely, graceful Chanel that takes place at 9:15 in the morning, seven days a week in the little grass amphitheater behind “The Whale” sculpture you see in the photo.  Now keep in mind this area is on a bluff overlooking the ocean in Laguna Beach. Accompanied by the squawk of seagulls wheeling above, and the crash of waves below, this is where we glide through our asanas.

At the end, as we settle into Savasana–a relaxing posture intended to rejuvenate body, mind, and spirit–Chanel hands out eucalyptus-dampened hand towels which we place over our faces while she walks around spraying us lightly with lavender or lemongrass scented water. Aaah.

And here’s the bonus. Chanel donates part of her proceeds to Save The Bees.