Personally, I can’t think of anything nicer than a corned beef pie on Saint Paddy’s Day! And thanks to Karla we have a wonderful picture to celebrate what we think is a real culinary golden pot at the end of the rainbow!
A few ‘facts on Saint Patrick you might not have known:
1) He was born in Roman Britain in the fifth century, at the age of sixteen, he was kidnapped by Irish raiders and taken captive to Ireland as a slave
2) Originally, the color associated with Saint Patrick was blue
3) New York’s first Saint Patrick’s Day Parade was held on 17 March 1762 by Irish soldiers in the British Army.The first celebration of Saint Patrick’s Day in New York City was held at the Crown and Thistle Tavern in 1766
4) Seattle and other cities paint the traffic stripe of their parade routes green. Wikipedia says Chicago dyes its river green and has done so since 1962 when sewer workers used green dye to check for sewer discharges and had the idea to turn the river green for Saint Patrick’s Day
As the folks at Guinness say,”everyone is GREEN on Saint Patrick’s Day!”
History is often written by the victors and so is the case of Sparta. Only now is Sparta recognized as the real birthplace of democracy and home to two of Greece’s greatest philosophers. Much has been made of Spartan’s military, however, this was a challenging time in the world and culture, society and civilization could not exist without protection.
Here are some of my favorite stories and quotes on Sparta:
1) Queen Gorgo ( Leonidas’ wife) asked why the only women in the world who could rule men were Spartan women ,said “Because we are the only women who give birth to men.”
Message for today: Choose the mother of your children wisely.
2) A beggar asked alms of a Spartan, who said, “If I should give to you, you will be the more a beggar; and for this unseemly conduct of yours he who first gave you is responsible, for he thus made you lazy.”
Message for today: charity comes at a cost to one’s soul
3) One man who came to Sparta, and observed the honor which the young render to the old, said, “Only in Sparta does it pay to grow old.”
Message for today: Honor & respect comes only to those who earn it.
4) When Philip of Macedon sent some orders to the Spartans by letter, they wrote in reply, “What you wrote about, ‘No.’ ” When he invaded the Spartans’ country, and all thought that they should be destroyed, he said to one of the Spartans, “What shall you do now, men of Sparta?” And the other said, “What else than die like men? For we alone of all the Greeks have learned to be free, and not to be subject to others.”
Message for today: better to die on your feet than live on your knees.
5) A Spartan, being asked if the road into Sparta were safe, said, “That depends on what kind of a man you are; for the lions gang about where they will, but the hares we hunt over that land.”
Message for today: don’t be a soft target
6) Some people, encountering Spartans on the road, said, “You are in luck, for robbers have just left this place,” but they said, “Egad, no, but it is they who are in luck for not encountering us.”
Message for today: there are reasons some folks have no fear.
8) When two brothers quarreled with each other, the Spartans fined the father because he permitted his sons to quarrel.
Message for today: parents are responsible for their children and their behavior
9) Someone on seeing a painting in which Spartans were depicted as slain by Athenians, kept repeating, “Brave, brave Athenians.” A Spartan cut in with, “Yes, in the picture!”
Message for today: history is often depicted inaccurately…. even today.
Brazil is a culinary wonder with a wide variety food offerings depending on where you are visiting. The world of Brazilian foods is divided into four distinct styles: from the North, North-East, South-East and the South.
In the South-East, Rio de Janeiro is known for their seafood. Also well known is ‘feijão com arroz’ or rice and beans. In São Paulo, the large Italian heritage expresses itself in pasta and pizza, while sushi is making a presents even in non-Japanese restaurants.
Below São Paulo, it the region referred to as South, churrasco (a Brazilian barbecue) is probably one of the best known Brazilian meals outside of Brazil.
In the North, Maniçoba is a distinctive dish served. It takes at least a week to make. One author describes it as such:
“…as the leaf of maniva (of the cassava plant), after ground, should be boiled for at least four days with the intent to remove the hydrocyanic acid that contains. After that is added charqui, fat, tripe, calf’s foot jelly, ear, foot and salted pork ribs, sausages, sausages and bunkers, basically the same ingredients of a feijoada completa. It is served with white rice, flour water and hot peppers to taste.”
In the North-East, the abundance of large cattle ranches and availability of fruit — mango, papaya, guava, orange, passion fruit, pineapple, and sweetsop – adds to the culinary uniqueness of the region. Vatapá (vat-a-pah) is a meal made from bread, shrimp, coconut milk, peanuts and palm oil all ground and mixed together (check out picture above).
Here’s an interesting recipe for Vatapa Soup on the net.
Brazil is a county of many choices, sounds and flavors and all to be savoured! Here is a link to more funBrazilian Recipes!
Whenever members of my family travel , we like to immerse ourselves into certain aspects of their culture. Since my daughters will be going to a convention in Rio de Janeiro, we thought it would be fun to look at some of the local fare. Charles Darwin ( I’ll cover that in another post) wrote in his ‘Journal’ about the two types of meals he found in parts of South America: roast meat or boiled meat and sometimes a little pumpkin. 😉 In the south of Brazil, they love barbecue or “Churrasco”. These were my kind of guys!
'Churrasco' or Brazilian Barbecue
Today, however, we will be talking about Brazil’s National drink… the ‘Caipirinha’ made with ‘Cachaça’ or Brazilian sugar cane rum. There are three types of rum you can buy from Brazil: 1) rum made purely for export 2) what they refer to as ‘industrial’ or from large operations and 3) the ‘artisian’. Personally, I like the sound of a smaller batch rum made and distilled in copper kettles, so the ‘artisian’ is what I was searching. I settled on “Cabana”.
Interestingly enough the name ‘Caipirinha’ means ‘from the country’ and some say it closely resembles our concept of ‘hillbilly’.
Here is their basic recipe:
2 oz. — Cachaça
2 teaspoons — crystal sugar
ice
lime
Process: take a few slices of lime and cover with the sugar and mash together, add ice, then the rum and stir! It is a simple yet nice drink… make one and it might become your favorite as well!
Nothing like having a hot and creamy cup of coffee and dipping a homemade biscotti in it! I have tried and experimented with lots of variations, but I like my original Macademia nut recipe best. I’ve tweaked the recipe here and there and often add a few extra things from time to time… like a little potato flour… but it is all good.
the right business cards make all the difference
This week Laura and I took a little time to enjoy Los Angeles at ‘El Cholo’s’ and also managed to help our daughters with a few of their travel plans. We were able to run their visa paperwork for them. This year they will be going to the Reputation Institute’s Convention in Rio de Janeiro. The folks at the Brazilian Consulatewere very efficient and the women working there were – let’s just say– attractive. I asked my daughters to bring me a t-shirt! 😉 With so many people ‘hunkering down’ in this tough economy, it is refreshing to see young people trying to make more of their life and build for their future. This is a lesson we all can learn.
Someone asked what I was doing lately… having a little fun on life’s journey. I hope you do too.
