Benny's Big Bass and Lemon Wizzle

Today was pretty much a perfect day. Joa and I woke before dawn and had a quiet snuggle until everyone else awoke and we shared a lovely breakfast together followed by stories and play in the playroom. Joa had an early nap giving me time to clean the house, do three loads of washing and have a shower alone and in peace. After lunch Rebe and I went out with Joa in the sling and did 'my walk'. The sky was clear and blue and the sun brilliant and so warm we shed layers as we walked. We had a nice dinner, a calm bathtime and now the evening stretches ahead with another empty and free day stretching ahead of us tomorrow.

But today was not only perfect for me, it was for Benny too because Andy took him fishing. Rebe made him his favourite sandwiches (spam and cheese),

and packed them with a little flask of tea into his bag. Father and son set off to the harbour for a morning's busy fishing. It was one of those things that I would have loved to have witnessed but it was not my time or place to be there. This was a thing for men together ;-)

He described his experience to me in detail on return from my walk. How Andy helped him to put crab onto his little hook and lower his line down the side of the harbour. He described how his rod was dragged along the ground by the fish pulling at his bait, making daddy spill his coffee chasing after it. He told me (with full actions) how you 'tuuuuuug and reel, tuuuuuug and reel, tuuuuug and reel'. He described how hard and heavy it was to pull the fish up (out of the water infact) where Andy netted it. He told me how he didn't want to release it as they had done Andy's fish earlier, because he wanted to bring it home to show me, to cook it and eat it. He said that a group of men (also anglers) came over to admire his catch.

He told me how he and daddy did a high five and cheered themselves and their superior angling skills (well not in so many words lol). Oh this little boy is so proud, and his mama is so proud as, of course, is his daddy.

Benny's first bass weighed 3lb,

and I know it will make oh so good eating :-)

Talking of eating....

I haven't posted you a recipe for a while and I want to share this one. It is a variation of a recipe from 'Cooking for Life' by Linda Banchek, it is an Ayurvedic recipe that is supposed to be calming for Vata and Kapha but aggrivating for Pitta, although I am pretty sure that anything this tasty can't be Kapha reducing ;-) and the lemon sauce for sure isn't Kapha reducing. It is the new family favourite and we call it

Ginger and Lemon Wizzle Cake

Ingredients:

3/4 cup whole wheat flour

3/4 cups maize flour

3/4 tsp baking powder

3/4 tsp baking soda

1 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground cloves

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

1/4 cup melted ghee/ unsalted butter

1/4 cup date syrup

1/2 cup buttermilk

3 tbsp plain yoghurt

1 tsp fresh grated ginger

pinch of salt

Mix dry ingredients together. Melt together butter/ghee, buttermilk, syrup and ginger. Add this and the yoghurt to the dry ingredients. Mix until well combined. Bake in a preheated hot oven for about 30 mins until cake is coming away from tin and you can do knife test.

Allow to cool a little then pour on lemon sauce.

Lemon sauce

Melt in a sauce pan 3 tbsp icing sugar, juice of half a lemon, tbsp ghee/ unsalted butter, a pinch of salt, the rind of 1 lemon and about a tbsp of hot water. Mix until bubbling then pour over cake allowing to wizzle all over it.

Enjoy :-)

Hope you are having a wonderful weekend too :-)