Tea and Travels

Although Wayne and I now live in Hawaii, our son David, along with all of our siblings, nieces and nephews live in California. This makes at least one yearly return trip to the golden state mandatory. California’s Mediterranean climate encompasses only two seasons, winter with six months of heavy rain leading to lush green foothills dotted with golden poppies, and summer, with no rain at all until around the end of October. The hillsides grow drier and drier until the characteristic “gold” of the dead grasses covers the entire state. But the glorious California live oaks and coastal redwoods with their deep roots survive the rhythms of rain and drought and stand as ancient giant totems from south to north in this beautiful land.

When we arrived this summer, California had endured a winter of historic rains that ended an agonizing seven-year drought. The oleanders along the freeways were in bloom, and the hillsides still retained a faint touch of green. As our home base, Wayne and I rely on the generous hospitality of my brother, John Murdock and his lady friend, Mari in his home in Milpitas, just north of San Jose, the busy and congested center of Silicon Valley. Our first order of business is always a drive over the coast range to Watsonville to see our sister Margaret and her family—husband Rudy Pedulla, their adult children Peter and Kathleen, and Peter’s wife Tiffany and daughters Amanda and Molly. 

​There is more than one route from Milpitas to Watsonville, the best known being Highway 17, which winds through the mountains from Los Gatos to Santa Cruz with breathtaking views of the redwood forest and the Pacific Ocean as the road connects with Highway 1, the quintessential road trip venue that runs the entire length of America’s west coast. But today, we decided to head south on Highway 101 through the center of Santa Clara County and on to Gilroy’s fragrant garlic fields then west on Highway 152, past the artichoke farms and up winding Hecker Pass to Mt. Madonna. This beautiful rural journey took us through redwoods, woodlands filled with oaks and areas of low growing manzanita where quail families nest and forage for food. Hawks soared overhead as we descended into the coastal farmlands of strawberries and lettuce on the outskirts of Watsonville, an old agricultural town that has changed little in the last fifty years.
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Watsonville is home to world famous Martinelli’s apple juice, and we are always treated to a glass of Martinelli’s Sparkling Cider the moment we arrive at my sister’s house. A tour of the Pedulla family rose garden is another treat. The roses were in beautiful bloom after a winter of generous rain, and the fig, lemon and orange trees in the yard were loaded with fruit. Watsonville’s proximity to the Pacific Ocean creates a cool and misty climate in contrast with the hot central valleys of California. Just about everything seems to grow in Watsonville, especially flowers and berries.

Our lunch reflected Watsonville’s agricultural abundance. To our delight, Kathleen, my niece and co-author of myteaplanner.com, drove down from her home in northern California near Redding, to join the family gathering. And she took on the responsibility of preparing the meal in her parents’ home. The dining room table, always set with cloth napkins and a tablecloth, was graced with a lovely bouquet of roses straight from the yard. The main dish, served from the table in a large colorful crock, was a local shrimp and vegetable stew, bursting with fresh herbs from the garden, summer tomatoes and squash, garlic and green onions. This lovely Mediterranean style creation was presented over a bed of couscous and other ancient grains. Plenty of California and French wine was offered along with the Sparkling Cider. While my brother was helping himself to second and third servings of the hearty shrimp stew, I spotted a gorgeous fruit cobbler in a vintage oval glass baking dish resting on the buffet. This was my cue to put down my fork and wait for dessert.
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To see Kathleen’s luscious Summer Cobbler for yourself, go to our website, myteaplanner.com and search for her July 2017 blog, “The Cherry Cupboard.” There you will find Kathleen’s photograph of the very cobbler we devoured that afternoon. The bright red juices oozing out of the home-made crust came from a combination of fresh summer blackberries, bottled Morello cherries, rhubarb from the garden and ripe plums. Served with hot coffee and vanilla ice cream, this cobbler was the very essence of good times with loved ones in the long California summer.

More good times were to come when the Higashi clan gathered at the home of Wayne’s sister Joyce on a shady street in an old San Jose neighborhood. Joyce’s forte is fresh fruit salads, which she creates like glittering mosaics of cut grapes, cherries, raspberries, peaches and every other summer fruit she can find. Joyce is also a fan of Trader Joe’s, a specialty California grocery chain which we miss in Hawaii almost as much as we miss our family. Trader Joe’s does not pretend to offer every food item available. Instead, they negotiate special prices on packaged foods such as nuts, dried fruits, cheeses, cookies and holiday pastries, wines and Belgian chocolates. In other stores, many of these products are quite costly, but Trader Joe’s offers these treats at a reasonable cost, adding to the quality of life for ordinary Californians. At our Higashi potluck, we devoured a sumptuous array of imported cheeses, crackers, and condiments, compliments of Trader Joe’s.

Since my mother-in-law Misa passed, we no longer enjoy home-made beef sukiyaki cooked at the table, but Wayne’s brother Steven and his family arrived with home-cooked prime rib to satisfy the meat loving Higashis. As the family member who is always assigned the task of bringing dessert, I was faced with a bit of a challenge, as I was my brother’s house guest and wanted to follow my own advice never to take over my host’s kitchen with a potentially messy and time-consuming cooking project. (See the “Guidelines for Guests” in myteaplanner.com.) I toyed with the idea of baking a pound cake and hauling it onto the plane in a tote bag, but thought better of it in light of today’s security restrictions.

Instead, I brought a large box of assorted Honolulu Cookie Company shortbread cookies. Then Wayne and I made our own pilgrimage to Trader Joe’s the day of the potluck. There we struck gold with Trader Joe’s own Cookie Butter Ice Cream and all the fixings for make-your-own sundaes. These included jars of caramel sauce and chocolate fudge sauce, which only need a few seconds of microwaving to create hot fudge or hot caramel sundaes. A bag of dry toasted sliced almonds provided the perfect topper along with the Hawaiian shortbread cookies. But back to the Cookie Butter Ice Cream. Trader Joe’s seems to have invented the guilty pleasure known as Cookie Butter, a concoction comprised of ground Speculaas (popular Dutch crispy, caramelized spice cookies,) combined with butter and sold in a jar like peanut butter. Trader Joe’s also sells the addictive Cookie Butter Cookies, crispy round sugar cookies sandwiched together with Cookie Butter. It was only a matter of time before the marketing wizards at Trader Joe’s figured out that Cookie Butter could be added as a swirl to premium vanilla ice cream. And without spending a single moment messing up my brother’s kitchen, Wayne and I scored a dessert triumph with which even the loveable but picky Higashi clan could not find fault.

In addition to quality time with David and outings with my brother to view the gorgeous Calaveras Reservoir and the historic Higuera Adobe, both tucked into the Milpitas foothills, Kathleen and I were able to schedule an overnight Girls’ Road Trip. Our destination was the quaint little town of Loomis, east and north of Sacramento in the Sierra foothills. We were invited to visit my dearest friend, Joan Moore, a colleague from my college teaching days, now a widow in her eighties living in a new casita which she personally designed as her final residence on a beautiful plot of virgin land in rural Loomis.

​The drive from Milpitas to Loomis takes only a little over two hours, depending on traffic conditions, so we took a leisurely approach. Kathleen first had to negotiate the traffic between Watsonville and Milpitas to pick me up at my brother’s house. Since she had to drive for well over an hour before our road trip even began, we decided that a respite at a tea room along the way was in order. We chose the charming town of Niles, a short distance north of Milpitas, just off Mission Boulevard. We passed the beautifully restored 1797 Mission San Jose, the fourteenth Franciscan mission built in California. Still active, the lovely old Spanish church serves as a chapel of the newer St. Joseph Church next door. Today, both the Town of Niles and the Mission neighborhood are subsumed into the busy modern city of Fremont.

The Victorian Town of Niles, located near Mission Boulevard and Alameda Creek, seems almost untouched by time as one strolls down the main street, Niles Boulevard. Niles was once home to the silent film industry, where Charlie Chaplin and Gloria Swanson made films before film making moved to Hollywood. Visitors can learn about the early history of cinema at the Silent Film Museum. The boarding platform for the Niles Canyon Railway is also located in the center of town. Another historic gem, the thirteen-mile round trip travels through scenic Niles Canyon along the first transcontinental rail connection from San Francisco east to the rest of the nation. However, our thoughts were on Afternoon Tea, and we chose Tyme for Tea, a charming traditional tea room right on Niles Boulevard.

My brother’s friend Mari joined us for this leg of the journey. A fun loving former kindergarten teacher, Mari enjoys tea parties almost as much as Kathleen and I do. She and my brother found each other as widowed retirees, and the relationship has sparked new life into both of these good-hearted people who suffered through tragedy with the illness and deaths of their spouses years ago. Kathleen and I had visited Tyme for Tea previously and knew we could count on them to deliver perfectly brewed hot tea, fresh warm scones with crème fraiche, lemon curd and raspberry jam, tasty savories and delicious little sweets. Although we found the décor a bit over the top, one cannot really hold that against a Victorian-themed establishment, as excess is the very essence of the Victorian aesthetic. We did appreciate the individual floral teapots and the charming mix of rose-patterned plates and teacups on the well-set tables. 

A high point of our Afternoon Tea was the attentive and very polite service. Our server brought us our hot tea from a wide selection of black, green and herbal teas, and offered to pour it for us. He was happy to provide additional hot water at our request. And he volunteered to bring us clean floral dessert plates when we switched from scones to sweets. The savories were especially tasty, particularly the mushroom pastries and the cucumber and radish sandwiches. Among the sweets were some very good petit fours filled with almond paste. Although not made on the premises, they were outstanding.

We also loved the tea-themed gift shop located in the same space as the tea room. This shop is for serious tea lovers, offering an extensive selection of china tea pots, plates, cups and saucers, attractive cake pedestals and other serving pieces, tea, stationary and cards. Many different china patterns are available, including items made by the Grace China company, which produces tea ware that is both beautiful and economically priced.

We said goodbye to Mari, who returned to Milpitas after our very satisfying Afternoon Tea, and Kathleen and I pressed on to Loomis. This cute, historic town, near the California gold country, lies between Sacramento and Auburn on Highway 80 in Placer County. Loomis was established in 1850 and was once home to the California Fruit Exchange on the Southern Pacific Railroad. In the old days, farmers brought their fruit from all over Northern California to Loomis, where the fruit was packed and shipped to far away destinations by rail. The old railway station and two of the historic fruit packing sheds, the Blue Goose and the High Hand, can still be found in the center of town. The High Hand is now a nursery and café, and well worth a visit. The nursery is famous for its gorgeous hydrangeas, but many other beautiful plants are available. The café offers good local farm food, weekend brunch and olive oils and vinegars for purchase.

​This quiet old town is where my friend Joan Moore intends to spend the rest of her life. Before building her casita, Joan, an historian whose mother and grandmother both lived into their nineties, did an extensive amount of research about gerontology and methods for seniors to live independently in safe and nurturing environments. The small home she designed for herself provides physical, spiritual and aesthetic nourishment. And it displays a profound sense of historic continuity and sensitivity to the natural landscape. Joan chose the Spanish colonial aesthetic as an affirmation of the fact that California was successively owned by Spain and Mexico before joining the United States. Her new home resembles a California Mission, complete with a bell tower at the entrance to the walled interior patio, open to the stars.
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​The interior patio is the jewel of Joan’s home. The adobe entrance wall, surrounded by bird feeders and hummingbirds, contains no stairs or changes of elevation. Once inside, sliding glass doors open onto the kitchen, dining and living area and a bathroom. One wall of the patio features a fire place flanked by two small waterfalls. There is also comfortable seating for reading and a table and chairs for breakfast. Flowers and succulents in containers thrive in this sunny interior space, but the patio is truly magical at night when guests can enjoy the stars and the moon after the heat of the day.

When we arrived for our overnight stay at the casita, Joan treated us to a tour of her herb and vegetable garden where she grows much of her own food. She has also planted lots of flowers, and there are some very old olive trees on the property. Joan’s daughter, Jill Walsh and her family have built a bigger home on the same large plot of land. The two homes are sited in different directions, providing both privacy and proximity. The Walsh section of the family compound includes a swimming pool to provide relief from the very hot and dry summers. This multi-generational living plan encourages family cooperation and bonding, allowing the extraverted Walshes to enjoy their sociable life style while preserving Joan’s quiet and contemplative way of life. 

On the day of our arrival, Joan had prepared a stunning Middle Eastern-themed vegetarian dinner in our honor. She based her menu on recipes from The Jerusalem Cookbook, by Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi, the Israeli and Palestinian chef team who offer harmony and cooperation through good healthy food. Gourmet cooking is another of Joan’s many talents, and among the dishes we really loved were the Butternut Squash Hummus topped with freshly toasted sesame seeds, fresh green bean salad and more squash roasted with summer vegetables and herbs. My very favorite was the starter, Tomato and Sourdough Soup, for which Joan generously provided the recipe, which you will find at the end of this blog.

Jill, her husband Jim and their son Justin joined us on the outdoor patio for this lovely and memorable dinner. Hummingbirds flocked to the feeders next to the al fresco dining table as the scent of rosemary from the herb garden filled the twilight. The pink glow of the sunset reflecting off the Sierra illuminated the evening as the stars came out and the full moon rose in the eastern sky. What a privilege it was for me and for Kathleen to spend this time together, with my dear friend and her family on this eternal California summer night.

Our Girls’ Road Trip was everything I hoped it would be, and I will treasure the time I spent with my family, my friends and my precious niece. After spending the majority of my adult life in California, the golden state will always be in my heart. As I bid goodbye for now, I would like to share a dramatic monologue I wrote many years ago that expresses some of the feelings I still cherish about California, a place like no other place on earth.

​This luscious soup, loaded with ripe summer tomatoes, onions and plenty of garlic, is perfect as a starter for a home-cooked Middle Eastern supper or as the star of a humble lunch. After our return to Hawaii, I served this wonderful soup with grilled cheese and sliced tomato sandwiches on sourdough for an everyday lunch that Wayne and I will not soon forget. What makes this soup so special is the inclusion of toasted cumin seeds and the fact that no traditional thickeners such as corn starch, flour or cream are used to enhance the texture. Instead, bits of fresh, soft sourdough bread are added when the soup is almost cooked, and the mixture is roughly pureed with an immersion blender, creating a thick, slightly chunky and very satisfying presentation. The original recipe calls for chopped cilantro as a topping, but I used Italian flat-leafed parsley, as not everyone in my family is fond of cilantro.

• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus extra to finish
• 1 large or two medium-sized yellow or white onions, finely chopped
• 1 ½ teaspoons fresh cumin seeds (or 1 ½ teaspoons ground cumin)
• 2-3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
• 3 cups of vegetable stock or chicken broth
• 4 large ripe tomatoes (or 6 medium-sized,) chopped
• 1 can (14 ounces) chopped Italian style tomatoes in juice
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons flat-leafed parsley (or cilantro,) chopped, plus more for garnish
• 3 slices of fresh, soft sourdough bread, crusts removed (or most of the soft center of a round loaf of sourdough bread)

 
Special equipment: large soup pot or Dutch oven with lid, kitchen knife, large spoon, immersion blender, ladle
 
Makes: six to eight servings, depending on serving size

1. Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil on medium in a soup pot or Dutch oven. Add the chopped onions and saute for about 5 minutes until translucent. Add the cumin and garlic and stir fry for about 2 more minutes, being careful not to burn the garlic.
2. Pour the stock or chicken broth into the pot. Add both the fresh and canned tomatoes, sugar, salt and pepper. Stir the mixture and bring it to a gentle simmer. Cook for about 20 minutes. Taste and add more salt, pepper or cumin if you wish.
3. Add the bread, torn into small chunks, and the parsley or cilantro, about half way through the cooking process. Using an immersion blender, roughly puree the soup, leaving the mixture a little coarse and chunky. To serve, ladle into bowls or cups, drizzle a little olive oil over the top, and sprinkle with additional chopped parsley or cilantro.
4. This soup can be made a day early without the bread, and refrigerated. To serve later, reheat the soup, add the bread, cook briefly, and puree.

Our time in South Africa focused on the areas around two of the country’s major cities—Johannesburg and Cape Town. As our plane approached, my first view of South Africa reminded me of a flat and even hazier version of California—golden fields and grasses dotted with bushy green trees, maybe acacias, and some scrubby pines. Unfortunately, the Johannesburg airport did little to lift our weary spirits or make us feel even a little bit welcome. The building is old, grimly gray, poorly lighted and claustrophobic, with heavy, low ceilings held up by squat square pillars covered with gray tiles. An ironic blessing was the fact that when we finally arrived at customs, the officers were standing in two large circles, facing inward and talking loudly among themselves, utterly ignoring the arriving passengers. 
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A taxi took us past generic looking new buildings and business districts in this vast metropolitan area of more than seven million people. We passed a surprising number of brick buildings that struck me as out of place in the African setting. I thought that perhaps the Dutch or the British had introduced brick as a building material although the current population is clearly primarily native African. Our destination was the Ten Bompas Hotel, a charming little boutique hotel in a tree-lined neighborhood which appeared to be an embassy row. 

The quiet, friendly little hotel had an old fashioned, almost Georgian décor with European style couches and chairs upholstered in plaid earth tones of ochre, brown and gold, evoking the colors of the African landscape we had glimpsed from the plane. Our room had some good looking African art on the walls, framed baskets and weavings in the same colors as the furniture. Our room was actually a very comfortable suite, and the furnishings gave us a hint as to the European version of the South African weather and life style. We had a living room with a large dark wood desk and a glassed, china cabinet-like liquor cupboard filled with bottles of hard liquor and a wood burning fireplace. The sleeping area contained a large bathtub with a steam shower and an outdoor patio with views of the peaceful, private garden filled with pine trees and pigeons.

The food at the Ten Bompas was remarkably good. Little bowls of Asian style noodles with vegetables appeared in our room in the evening, apparently just a little snack from the management. We also loved our breakfast and appreciated the friendly service from the very gracious staff. We enjoyed cappuccino, yogurt with fresh fruit and granola and freshly made juice, a wonderful blend of beet, carrot, ginger, apple and orange. We also indulged in the best oatmeal we had ever eaten. It contained peanut butter, honey and dried prunes and pears macerated in rooibos tea. We were well aware that we were not in the “real” South Africa, if there is such a place, but we enjoyed the comforts of the Ten Bompas nevertheless, as though we were in a very nice little Dutch hotel.

Wayne had arranged for us to take a road trip out into the countryside to visit a UNESCO World Heritage Site called the Cradle of Humankind. Our local guide, a young man named John, arrived in a Toyota van to drive us to this paleoanthropological site about fifty kilometers northwest of Johannesburg in the province of Gauteng. Along the way, we passed lots of new suburbs, car dealerships, a Microsoft campus and other signs of economic growth. As we eventually reached the countryside, I noticed many pine trees that appeared to be newly planted. John explained that pines are not native to South Africa and that much of the natural landscape had been deforested to accommodate various commercial ventures and were now being re-planted, not necessarily with native trees. He did point out several Jacarandas, the national tree of South Africa.

Although the landscape appeared to be a mix of farming and natural habitat, John told us that the Big Five South African animals: elephants, lions, cheetahs, zebras and buffalo do live in the area we were passing through. We saw a few zebras, some springboks and a monkey and noticed several wild animals in the same vicinity as domesticated animals.

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At the Cradle of Humankind, we walked through the Sterkfontein Caves where some of the oldest human fossils were found. Walking through these caves was no easy task, as the excursion included very steep and narrow stairs, low ceilings and areas where we had to scoot along on our bottoms through narrow tunnels, bent completely in half. It was worth the discomfort, as we reached the site where a more than two-million-year-old fossil, nicknamed Mrs. Ples, was discovered in 1947. Fifty years later, an even older fossil, perhaps as old as three million years, was also found in these caves. It was discovered as a nearly complete skeleton called Little Foot, and we visited the site where his remains rested for so very, very long.

We also toured nearby Maropeng, an interactive museum and World Heritage Site built as a large mound covered with sod. This museum provides comprehensive information about the development of humankind over millions of years, based on archeological discoveries and ongoing studies in Africa. Displays which I think children would have loved included a boat ride and a strobe lighted vortex, which was visually stunning, though I did not quite grasp its educational purpose.

Before returning to Johannesburg, we made a stop at the Lesedi Cultural Village, a visitors’ center that features information about five of the tribes that lived in the area: Zulu, Ndebele, Sotho, Pedi and Xhosa. A film provides information about the origins of these cultures, and guests are then escorted on a guided tour of the individual “villages” that reenact the housing, styles of dress and customs of each tribe. Local people in tribal attire lead the tours. The experience concludes with energetic dancing and drumming in the various tribal styles. While Lesedi Cultural Village does provide some educational opportunities, I felt that it leaned heavily toward commercial tourism. In one of the villages, a woman was sitting in front of a loom to demonstrate traditional weaving techniques. However, I noticed that she was not really weaving at all, and as soon as the guests left for the next village, she got up and walked off. At the next stop, a woman who was supposed to be demonstrating how to grind corn with a stone mortar and pestle was not at her post when the tourists arrived, and after her tardy arrival made only the most half-hearted effort to grind a little corn. It was a little disheartening to observe that the “tribal people sharing their culture” were just employees who were not very excited about their jobs.

After a long day out in the country learning about pre-historic and more recent human life in South Africa, we returned to the cozy Ten Bompas for dinner in their excellent restaurant, the Winehouse. I enjoyed a three-course meal of gazpacho, an intermezzo of cassis sorbet with crumbled meringue, cauliflower with truffled macaroni and cheese, and a divine dessert of dark chocolate pudding on shortbread with caramel. Wayne relished his meal of pork belly with gorgonzola and figs. Again, we were reminded that South Africa is both a European and an African country.

We learned that Johannesburg is a relatively young city, having been established only in 1886 when gold was discovered on a farm in the area. Today, it is one of the world’s leading centers of commerce. Although gold mining no longer takes place in the city, most mining companies still have their headquarters in Johannesburg. The city also has Africa’s largest stock exchange, and is home to heavy industries such as steel and cement production as well as banking, real estate companies and retail outlets and shopping centers. Tourism, however, is not Johannesburg’s primary industry. 

Our next destination, Cape Town and the surrounding area, provided quite a contrast to sprawling, young and commercially oriented Johannesburg. Cape Town, with its lovely coastal setting attracts far more visitors than Johannesburg. In 2014, Cape Town was named the best place in the world to visit by both the New York Times and Britain’s Daily Telegraph. Established in 1652 as a Dutch outpost to provision trading ships sailing around Africa, Cape Town is a multi-cultural destination with a long and complex history. Our hotel, the One and Only, was located right on the waterfront in a very upscale shopping and dining area. The cool weather, hilly seaside terrain, sophistication and diversity of Cape Town reminded me of San Francisco, my favorite American city.

On arrival, we decided to seek out a truly African restaurant for dinner, as our previous meals had been European inspired. Wayne found a place called Mzansi, which was highly rated on Trip Advisor. Uber took us there, and it turned out to be located in one of the townships, the South African euphemism for a segregated slum populated only by black South Africans who live in extreme poverty. The townships seem to be left over from the old apartheid days when the races were strictly separated by law, and not much seems to have changed since. However, since America has an almost identical history, I will pass no judgments lest I be accused of hypocrisy, except to say the obvious: All lives matter.

As it turned out, we ate some of the best food in all our time in Africa at Mzansi and met a lot of interesting people. The restaurant is in the home of the owner and chef, who was born in the house. Her front room is set up with a long, communal table, able to accommodate about twenty, where all the guests eat together. The food is served as a buffet. Wayne and I were the first to arrive, so we had to wait for the other guests. The hostess and her staff were extremely hospitable and made us feel at home. Her restaurant seemed to be a neighborhood project with local women working in the kitchen cutting up vegetables, teenaged boys hanging around in the street in front as security guards, an artist working on his projects in the vestibule and a band playing in the adjoining room.

The other guests, all of whom (except us) appeared to be in their twenties, were quite an international lot. There was a group of young people from mainland China, two sisters from Denver, their friend from Norway, and others from various places around the globe. When the food was finally placed on the buffet table, I was delighted by the freshness and variety. As a vegetarian, I was in heaven, but a very tasty looking beef stew was also on the menu, as was fried chicken. Although the food we were served was clearly African, the ingredients were the same as those at any church supper or potluck in the American south. 

Here’s what we ate: lettuce and tomato salad, fresh broccoli and cranberry salad, coleslaw, baked beans, corn stew, creamed spinach with mushrooms (my favorite,) rice, crispy roasted potatoes, eggplant slices rolled up with chunks of pumpkin inside and the chicken and beef stew. Our dessert was served later, and it was a divine Malva Pudding with warm custard. For those of you who read all of my monthly blogs, you may recall that I included a recipe for Malva Pudding with Custard in my July 2017 blog on our adventures in Botswana. Malva Pudding is the go-to dessert throughout southern Africa.

As we ate, the band, which seemed to be a group of neighborhood guys, played African style jazz. There was a saxophone, two marimba phones and two drummers. When we finished eating, our hostess told us her life story, which was indeed a story that needed to be told. Some of the young people at the dinner might not have been all that familiar with the history of apartheid in South Africa, and they certainly got a history lesson. Among other details, our chef/ hostess told us how her husband was arrested and put in prison, like Nelson Mandela, for protesting the government’s oppressive racial policies.

After his wife’s very dramatic monologue, her husband joined us and invited everyone into the next room to have some fun playing the marimba phones and singing. The young international crowd were good sports and had a great old time. 

Our sumptuous breakfast buffet the next morning at the One and Only provided an interesting contrast. This unbelievably abundant spread included the expected breads, eggs and pastries such as hot cross buns and almond croissants, but also oysters and a huge round of parmesan cheese from which the guests could chop off big chunks. Fortified, we boarded our bus for the city tour of Cape Town, much of which included walking through some of the historic areas. We saw the Castle of Good Hope, built in the 1600s, the Company’s Garden, now a botanical garden but originally used by the Dutch Trading Company to supply its ships with fruits and vegetables.

After strolling through this lovely garden, we walked past the Parliament Building and visited St. George’s Cathedral, home church of Bishop Desmond Tutu. The church was decked out with large palm fronds for Palm Sunday the next day, and a cantor and chamber orchestra were practicing, presumably for the Easter services.

The next stop on our walking tour was the District Six Museum, housed in an old former church. There we had a living history experience that continued last night’s narrative about the horrible days of apartheid. Today’s speaker was seventy-three-year-old Noor, whose grandfather, a Muslim, immigrated from India and settled in District Six, once a multicultural and multi-religious neighborhood of Jews, Muslims, Christians, Black Africans, Whites and “Colored” people, including Indians and other Asians. Noor remembered his childhood in District Six as a happy time of cultural diversity, creativity and peaceful co-existence. Then he told us the story of the South African government’s decision, in 1966, to evict all of the residents of District Six and bulldoze the neighborhood to prevent inter-racial mixing. It is easy to see the stupidity of this policy in retrospect and to view it with righteous indignation. It is much more difficult to recognize stupid policies that are being implemented in real time before our very eyes.  But we must learn from Noor’s story, from the owner of Mzansi’s story, be vigilant and take appropriate action.

Our tour continued with a bus ride up Table Mountain, one of Cape Town’s most stunning landmarks.  This flat rock formation, high above the city, affords a spectacular view of the entire metropolitan area and the beautiful waterfront. Unfortunately, coastal fog had rolled in and obscured the view. Still, it was a lovely drive up and down the mountain among the pine trees.

​The sweets included homemade marshmallows, caramel eclairs topped with edible gold, milk tart cupcakes, flourless chocolate mini cakes topped with whipped cream and berries, a vast variety of colorful macarons, soft caramels wrapped in paper, pistachio and cranberry nougats, soft peanut butter cookies, pistachio, hazelnut and cranberry biscotti, amoretti cookies, small round vanilla bean cheesecakes, fried pastry bites called Koeksisters, a South African favorite, and the house specialty called O&O cookies—soft round chocolate sandwich cookies filled with chocolate ganache.

We were seated at a pretty table with a view of a picturesque and serene duck pond, canal and garden behind the hotel. We ordered Rooibos tea, which we had been drinking throughout our adventures in Zambia, Botswana and South Africa. This comforting, caffeine-free herbal elixir, also called bush tea, comes from a plant that is native to the Western Cape area of South Africa and has been a popular beverage for generations among the southern regions of the African continent. Ours arrived in an attractive square iron teapot. 

Overwhelmed by the number of choices at the buffet table, I asked our server what her favorite item was, and she recommended the O&O cookies, which did turn out to be a good recommendation with their luscious double dose of chocolate. The peanut butter cookies were also outstanding, as were the very fresh and perfect little scones, served in the traditional manner with Devonshire cream and strawberry jam. Wayne enjoyed the savory samosas, the gazpacho and the little burger sliders. Considering our meal at Mzansi, the sumptuous breakfast buffet and the astounding array at the Afternoon Tea buffet, it seems that abundance is a South African motif. I was also pleased with the multi-cultural aspect of the Afternoon Tea offerings, including traditional British and Dutch items along with African ingredients and Indian and European favorites.

Believe it or not, we still had another meal ahead of us that evening, where we would again experience the abundance theme in all its glory at the home of a local chef. And we would meet the Koeksisters and milk tart once more. We were invited, along with our travel companions from Zambia and Botswana, to a traditional South African braai, or barbeque. Our host was Brett, the owner of Stir Crazy Catering and Cooking School, who along with his wife, welcomed us into his home in the pretty coastal suburb of Hout Bay. Braai, is the Afrikaans word for “to grill,” and gathering for a braai is a widespread social custom throughout southern Africa. Cooking the meat is usually done by the men on their outdoor grills, and Brett was grilling chicken and sausages when we arrived. 

​The menu also included, for starters, samosas, curried pickled fish, corn bread with whole kernels of corn, focaccia, pickled pepper dews in a cream cheese spread, and pureed mushroom and cheese soup. In addition to the grilled meats, the main dishes were: angel fish baked in garlic butter, South African lamb stew with rice and raisins, coleslaw with raisins, carrots, apples and curry, garbanzo and lentil salad, roasted vegetables with sage, roasted potatoes and a very fresh tomato and lettuce salad. Among my favorites were the pickled pepper dew spread and the interesting and very flavorful coleslaw. I also enjoyed tasting some of the same items that we ate at Mzansi and noticing the similarities in cooking styles. I was charmed by the familiarity of these homey yet elegant dishes that reminded me of family potlucks back in the Ozarks.

For dessert, we were served freshly made Koeksisters, the ever-popular South African pastry of Dutch origin. These little dough fritters, soaked in homemade syrup, are ultra-addictive, and since I didn’t have room to try them at the Afternoon Tea buffet, I had my opportunity at the braai. Milk Tart was also on the menu, a simple, old fashioned comfort food, sort of a cross between flan and custard pie. Milk Tart is also one of South Africa’s favorite desserts, and Brett was kind enough to share his recipe, which I have adapted for American cooks. You will find Brett’s recipes for Milk Tart and South African Corn Bread at the end of this blog. If you make either of these for your next neighborhood potluck, I’m guessing no one will know they are from far away South Africa.

The icing on the cake, so to speak, was Brett’s version of Malva Pudding. We first tasted this southern African classic in Botswana, and also enjoyed it at Mzansi. I made Malva Pudding at home shortly after returning from Africa, and I hope to make it many more times in the future. You can find the recipe at the end of my July, 2017 blog, “Beautiful Botswana.” I also encourage you to review both the American Southern Tea and the Ozark Farm Harvest Tea in myteaplanner.com. The Southern Tea includes a recipe for cornmeal muffins, and the Ozark Tea has a cornbread recipe. In reviewing the menus for both teas, you will notice many of the same ingredients that we ate at Mzansi and at the Braai. There is a definite kinship between the home cooking of America and South Africa. 

We had only one more day in South Africa, and we were eager to spend our final few hours in a natural setting. We headed out of Cape Town toward the Cape of Good Hope, the continent’s most southern point. The bus ride with our travel companions was beautiful, the weather cool and balmy. It was autumn, moving into winter, and when we arrived at the Cape of Good Hope, the cool weather had turned chilly and the winds from the south Atlantic were strong. The shoreline was rocky, with lots of kelp in the water and vegetation along the shore.

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​Cape Point is a separate location nearby. Both the Cape of Good Hope and Cape Point are located in the Table Mountain National Park. There are monuments at Cape Point to honor both Bartolomeu Dias, the Portuguese explorer who in 1488 first sailed around the Cape but got lost in False Bay and returned to Portugal, and his countryman, Vasco da Gama, who gets most of the credit for sailing around the Cape in 1497 and finding the route all the way to India.

​From Cape Point we drove up the east side of the peninsula to Simon’s Town, a quaint historic village built by the Dutch in the 1600s and later taken over by the British. It is now the seat of the South African Navy. Here we visited a penguin colony that lives at the Boulders, a sheltered cove that is also part of the Table Mountain National Park. The penguins nest in the sand, wander around the beach and swim in the ocean. A boardwalk has been built just above the sand, so visitors can get a good close look at the penguins without disturbing them, and the penguins can walk freely under the boardwalk. There were lots of rocks and boulders around as well as cypress trees and manzanita, and the penguins didn’t seem to mind at all being stared at by the visitors leaning over the rail with their cameras. It was a large community of penguins. We saw mothers sitting on eggs in the sand, adolescent penguins, and fuzzy brown chicks.

​We are grateful for the time we spent in Zambia, Botswana and South Africa. South Africa has many similarities to America, especially the American South. Both have struggled and continue to struggle with the curse of racism, yet both embrace a capacity for reconciliation, compassion and resilience. All of the countries of southern Africa are beautiful beyond belief, and we were privileged to meet and appreciate some of the people and animals who live in this ancient cradle of civilization, where human beings first walked on this earth.
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South African Corn Bread
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​South African Corn Bread is sweeter and much moister than the more salty and drier corn bread we are used to in America. This one is almost like a dessert, but it really is wonderful served with savory dishes such as beans or meat stews. And we loved it with the mushroom and cheese soup we were served in South Africa at a braai, or family barbecue. I made this recipe at home, after our return from South Africa, and Wayne and I both loved it. This Corn Bread is extra delicious because it contains whole kernels of sweet corn in addition to corn meal.

• ​1 cup flour
• 1 cup yellow corn meal (fine grind)
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1 cup half and half
• 2 cups whole corn kernels (frozen and thawed or cut from 3 cobs of fresh corn)
• ¼ cup butter, melted
• ¼ cup honey
• ¼ cup sugar
• cooking spray for the pan
• butter for serving

 

Special equipment: large mixing bowl, medium sized mixing bowl, sieve or flour sifter, whisk, rubber spatula, glass measuring cup, 8”x8” square baking pan
 
Preheat oven to: 350°F
 
Makes: 8-10 servings

1. Spray an 8”x8” square baking pan with cooking spray and set aside. In a large mixing bowl, sift together the flour, corn meal, baking powder and salt. Set aside. Whisk the eggs in a medium sized mixing bowl until lightly beaten. Add the half and half, melted butter, honey and sugar, and whisk the mixture to combine thoroughly.
2. Add the corn to the egg mixture and stir with a rubber spatula until the kernels are evenly distributed. Pour the liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir with the spatula just until moistened, not more than 10 seconds. Do not beat. Do not worry if the batter is lumpy.
3. Pour the batter into the prepared pan, and bake for 30-40 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean and the edge of the bread has started to separate from the pan. Serve warm with butter.

​Milk Tart
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​Milk Tart is a favorite South African dessert. Called melktert in Afrikaans, this homey cross between custard pie and flan was brought to South Africa by Dutch settlers who came to the area around Cape Town in the 1600s. Many of these early arrivals were dairy farmers, which explains the large amount of milk in this recipe. This clever recipe produces a batter that creates its own crust on the bottom of the tart as it bakes. This tart is wonderful served plain with a cup of rooibos tea, or for special occasions, serve it with shortbread cookies and fresh berries.
 

• 2 tablespoons butter, melted
• 1/3 cup honey
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 3 large eggs, separated
• 4 ¼ cups whole milk
• 1 cup cake flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• cooking spray for the tart pan
• ground cinnamon for sprinkling

​Special equipment: large mixing bowl, 2 medium sized mixing bowls, hand held electric mixer, whisk or immersion blender with whisk attachment, flour sifter or sieve, 1 quart glass measure, measuring cups and spoons, rubber spatula, waxed paper, foil covered cookie sheet, 11-inch tart pan or pie pan or two 8-9- inch pie pans, wire rack
 
Preheat oven to: 350°F
 
Makes: 1 large round tart, 8-10 servings

1. Spray the tart pan(s) with cooking spray and set aside. Separate the eggs, placing the yolks and whites in two medium sized bowls. Bring the separated eggs to room temperature. Place the melted butter, honey, vanilla and sugar in a large mixing bowl and beat the mixture with an electric mixer until well combined. Beat the egg yolks for about 4 minutes until they are light yellow and foamy. Using a rubber spatula, add the egg yolks to the sugar mixture in the large mixing bowl, and beat lightly to combine.
2. Using a whisk rather than the electric mixer to avoid splashing, add the milk, a little at a time, whisking and scraping the sides of the bowl as needed. Sift together the flour, salt and baking powder onto a sheet of waxed paper. Gently add the flour mixture to the milk mixture in the large bowl, and whisk carefully until all lumps disappear.
3. Wash the beaters for the electric mixer, and beat the egg whites until soft peaks form, about 2 minutes. Gently whisk the egg whites into the milk mixture until well combined, but do not overbeat. Pour the mixture into 1 large or 2 smaller prepared tart pans, place them on a foil lined cookie sheet, and bake in the preheated oven for 1 hour for a large tart and 50 minutes for 2 smaller tarts.
4. Turn the oven off and leave the tarts in the oven for another 15 minutes to allow the custard to firm up. Remove the tarts from the oven, sprinkle them with cinnamon, and place them on a wire rack to cool. When cooled, refrigerate for 1-2 hours to allow the tarts to set before serving.

After ferrying across the Zambezi river from Zambia to Botswana, we were met at the border check station by Fuzzy, the ivory sniffing Cocker Spaniel, trained to detect illegal ivory in people’s luggage. This was our first indication that Botswana is serious about protecting its elephant population. Indeed, Botswana has the largest African elephant population on earth, with at least 50,000 elephants living along the Chobe River in the dry season and many more in other areas of the country, including the Okavango Delta. Elephants in Botswana receive military protection, and poaching is not tolerated. We were pleased to learn that Botswana is a safe and well-managed democracy, providing education and health care for all its citizens. Botswana is listed as the least corrupt country in Africa by the watchdog group, Transparency International. The diamonds that were discovered in Botswana in 1970 are mined and managed by public-private partnerships in which the government holds equity positions.

The history and culture of Botswana have become better known to non-Africans through popular media, notably the film United Kingdom and the No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series of detective novels by Alexander McCall Smith. United Kingdom, starring two very handsome British actors, David Oyelowo (who portrayed Martin Luther King, Jr. in the film Selma,) and Rosamund Pike (Gone Girl,) chronicles the courtship and marriage of Botswana’s young king, Seretse Khama to a British woman, Ruth Williams. Their inter-racial marriage caused outrage in neighboring South Africa, which had established a policy of apartheid, or racial separation. At that time, Botswana (then called Bechuanaland,) was a British protectorate, and the degree to which the British government, based almost entirely on racism, persecuted and manipulated Seretse and Ruth, is shockingly portrayed in the film. The happy conclusion to this story is the fact that Seretse and Ruth ultimately returned to his homeland, where he helped to transform Bechuanaland from a kingdom and British protectorate into a Democracy, and in 1966 was elected the first President of Botswana. A bit ironically, Seretse was also knighted in 1966 by Queen Elizabeth II. Sir Seretse died in 1980, and in 2009, his and Ruth’s son Ian was elected President in a landslide.

The seventeen No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency novels, which have sold more than twenty million copies in English and have been translated into forty languages, provide a charming insight into the lives and values of the people of Botswana through the adventures of the heroine, Precious Ramotswe. Mma. Ramotswe is a compassionate, attractive, wise and very smart woman whom it is impossible to dislike. She solves mysteries by sitting in the shade under a tree, thinking and drinking bush (Rooibos) tea in front of her agency in Gaborone, Botswana’s capital. Readers also learn to love Precious’ gentleman admirer, Mr. JLB Matekoni, proprietor of the Tlokweng Road Speedy Motors Garage (the best auto mechanic in Botswana) and Precious’ energetic secretary, Grace Makutsi. People who like television more than books can meet all of these delightful characters and more in the 2008 BBC production which is now available from HBO Go. Sadly, the series lasted for only a year, but it is addictively decent and genuinely entertaining. Our friend, David Oyelowo, (Seretse Khama of United Kingdom) even appears in one of the episodes. The American blues singer and actress, Jill Scott, shines as Precious Ramotswe, and Lucian Msamati is perfection as Mr. JLB Matekoni. I must give a shout out to my cousin, Marny Pickett, who told me all about the No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency novels when I emailed her that I was preparing to go to Botswana. I was grateful that I had the time to read the first two novels and watch the entire television series before leaving on my journey. When I arrived in this friendly and peaceful country, I immediately felt right at home. 

Our time in Botswana was focused on experiencing the people and the wildlife in three specific areas: the Moremi Game Reserve on the Khwai River, the Eagle Island Camp on the Okavango Delta and the Makgadikgadi Pans National Park near the Khalahari Desert. Each area had its own unique human culture, wildlife and ecosystem. Our first adventure in Botswana was a riverboat safari which included lunch on the Chobe River. It was here, as we floated along admiring the elephants feasting on the long grasses in the river among the water lilies, that I had my first bite of Malva Pudding. 
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The woman who had prepared our lunch at a nearby lodge joined us on the boat to make sure the buffet was in order. After a tasty and healthy meal of baked river fish and steamed vegetables, I approached the dessert table and noticed a rather plain looking dark brown single-layer cake which no one had yet tried. I asked the cook what it was, and she said, “Malva Pudding.” I had never heard of this dessert and asked her what was in it. Her reply startled me, “Apricot jam.” Intrigued, I tried a slice, with pourable custard sauce (crème Anglaise in France) from a pitcher placed immediately in front of the cake. It was divine in a subtle, moist, and surprising way, and it was love at first bite. Fortunately, I had the opportunity to taste Malva Pudding on two future occasions before returning home from Africa, and I learned that it is southern Africa’s most popular dessert. At the end of this blog, you will find the recipe for Malva Pudding, which I made to add to the Easter dessert table immediately after our return home.
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​After our brief sojourn on the Chobe, we flew to Khwai, where we discovered that the airstrip at our next destination, the Khwai River Lodge at the Moremi Game Preserve, was flooded due to excessive rain. Our resourceful Tour Director, Susan Wahlen, had already arranged for us to fly to the camp by helicopter. It was thrilling to look out of the copter at elephants, not far below us, feeding with their babies in peaceful family groups. The lodge turned out to be a lovely place, with separate “cabins,” actually very comfortable lodgings right on the river. In a charming touch, our names were written on our bed with small river pebbles and encircled in a heart that read, “Welcome.” On our arrival at the lodge, we were greeted by the entire staff who sang, “Dumela,” which means, “hello and welcome,” in a rousing traditional African style call and response lead by a soprano with the other women and the men as her booming backup singers. They also sang the lyrical “Beautiful Botswana,” in the same antiphonal style. After the songs, every member of the staff shook hands with every guest and introduced him or herself, and we introduced ourselves as well. I felt as though we were long lost family members, and they were offering us enthusiastic and heart-felt hospitality.

As it turned out, we also arrived just in time for Afternoon Tea, which the chef had elegantly laid out in the community meeting area. We were treated to savory Sage Scones with grated cheddar cheese and unsweetened whipped cream, vegetable and mozzarella kabobs, apple pie pastries, and iced Rooibos tea. The British influence from the old protectorate days is still evident in the Afternoon Tea custom, celebrated throughout the country, as well as the decorous politeness, which may have been part of the culture before anyone from England ever arrived. In any case, the people of Botswana seem to have preserved the best of their former “protector’s” culture while eliminating the worst. Imagine Britain with all its quaint traditionalism and homey charm, without a whiff of class consciousness, snobbery or racism. Surprise! You’re in Botswana!
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We climbed into our open-sided safari vehicles for our afternoon into evening game viewing drive. Our driver and expert safari guide was a young man named Goms, who turned out to be very proactive and passionate about finding as many animals as possible and was willing to drive our fancy new vehicle off road and even through lakes to find the closest view. He also exhibited an encyclopedic knowledge of every species in the park. Just a sampling of the animals we saw included elephants, zebras, impalas, mongoose, warthogs, big cats and many gorgeous birds.
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Sunsets in Africa last for a long time; it was glorious to watch the deep pink glow filling the night sky along with the sound of the river and the evening insects.

​The next morning, we were off on another game drive, and this time we saw the lions who were sleeping yesterday afternoon, wide awake and ready to hunt. There were two females, working together, watching a herd of impalas and a nearby group of zebras. Stealthy and quiet, the lions crouched in the grasses, patiently waiting for their opportunity. Lions are not fast runners, and they need to attack from a very short distance. As a result, they often wait for long periods of time for their prey to move close enough for them to make their kill. I was relieved that we chose not to spend the entire morning waiting to see a lion kill an impala or a zebra.
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Lunch back at the lodge included locally grown beets served as a salad with feta cheese, white asparagus with sweet pickles and red peppers and a nice vegetable casserole with yellow squash. Dessert was squares of pineapple cake that looked exactly like American cornbread. We left this lovely lodge on the Khwai River and boarded our helicopters for our next destination, the Eagle Island Lodge on the Okavango Delta. As we were waiting to board the copters, two elephants came out of the foliage across the river, and we could see them browsing, flapping their ears, and facing us across the water. Looking down from the helicopter, we saw another elephant and two hippos in a pond. The helicopter afforded us a stunning view of the entire landscape, a vast flat terrain of mopane and acacia trees and wild sage bushes dotted with little pools and lakes created by the recent unexpectedly heavy rain. This unchanging landscape stretched all the way in every direction to the round horizon, with no variation, no hills. 

Our short flight took us to another world. The Okavango Delta is a lush, watery habitat fed by waters that move slowly south from Angola in the rainy season. This is a place where elephants, hippos, crocodiles and thousands of beautiful water birds, including the African Fish Eagle, thrive. After a familiar and comforting Afternoon Tea, we boarded a barge for close-up views of hippos, cormorants, herons, pygmy geese and the glorious malachite kingfisher, a small, brilliantly colored bird that perches in tall grasses, right on the water’s edge.
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​The sun set while we were returning to the lodge, and a luminous red glow covered the water and the entire horizon, creating stark silhouettes of the dark, bushy trees. Hundreds of dragon flies came out to feast on smaller insects right in front of our barge, just as the sun went down.
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Our time on the Delta included an early morning motor boat ride through the watery grasses among the hippos and crocodiles and another helicopter sightseeing ride, one of the highlights of our trip to Botswana. From the copter, from which the doors had been removed, we could view the entire landscape, populated with large numbers of land animals as well as aquatic. Botswana’s well-protected elephants, large herds of mothers and babies, were everywhere, as were many pods of hippos, family groups of giraffes, warthogs, baboons, wildebeest, zebras, antelope, saddle-billed storks and fish eagles and a large crocodile, swimming down a narrow channel. It was exhilarating to see so many healthy animals in their family units in a safe natural environment where they had generous amounts of space to thrive and reproduce.

​Our final adventure at the Eagle Island Lodge took us from the wide lens view of the helicopter to the microscopic perspective of a makoro. A makoro is a traditional dugout canoe that can carry two seated passengers with a man standing in the back wielding a long pole to push the boat through the shallow water and dense vegetation. A makoro not only provides transportation from one village to the next; it also allows for very close viewing of small animals, birds and insects that live among the aquatic plants near the water’s surface. We saw tiny painted reed frogs and long reed frogs, clinging to the plants right next to our canoe. We also spotted a red eyed dove and a woodland kingfisher. And as our little boat glided past a thorn tree, we saw that it was filled with gorgeous green parrots.

 During our leisurely float through the water world, our boatman, who introduced himself as Jimmy along with the customary handshakes and introductions on our part, explained in exact and scientific detail how the villagers in the surrounding area harvest large numbers of termites, cook, prepare and powder them to obtain a year’s supply of edible protein.
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​We left the Okavango Delta, flying for about an hour in a small plane, to the third ecosystem we planned to visit, the Makgadikgadi Pans National Park near the Kalahari Desert. This large area of salt pans, surrounded by dry savanna, was once covered by a salty lake that dried up thousands of years ago. Now it is home to hardy plants, animals and birds, as well as ancient tribal people who have learned to survive in this harsh landscape through adaptation and resourcefulness.
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Upon our arrival at Camp Kalahari, we were greeted by our three local guides, Bart, Bones and Jonas, who along with the rest of the staff, welcomed us with the now familiar handshakes and introductions all around. Our “tent” in this camp was elevated on a high platform with a wooden stairway leading up. There were canvas walls with zippers separating the bathroom area from the very comfortable sleeping room. We learned the importance of these zippers on our final morning in the camp when we carelessly left a zipper undone and a genet, escaping the chilly pre-dawn, sneaked in and jumped onto Wayne’s lap during our morning meditation. I don’t think Wayne had ever been so startled, but he did admit that the uninvited genet had very soft fur, like an oversized and very fluffy house cat.
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​Another pleasant surprise was the quality of the food at Camp Kalahari, where the chef makes her own chili sauce with local red and green peppers, and even bakes homemade crackers. Our first lunch was an elegant salade nicoise with fresh rosemary focaccia. For dessert, we enjoyed pears and grapes with very good cheeses, brie and bleu. We could almost have been in another dry landscape—the south of France. Throughout southern Africa we noticed an appreciation of European cuisine as well as local game and African style vegetable stews. 
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On our afternoon game drive with Bart, a Belgian who seems to have lived in the Makgadikgadi Pans for many years, we were surprised by a sudden downpour of rain with thunder and lightning. 
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I was intrigued by this desert landscape of salt pans, occasional little lakes and water holes, thorny acacia trees, thin tall palms and wildflowers. We saw an amazing amount of wildlife in this seemingly harsh environment, including ostriches, vultures, zebras, wildebeest, rare red hartebeest and springbok. As we drove along, the sky darkened and became hauntingly beautiful. We saw both a rainstorm and a sandstorm next to each other on the horizon. The thunder and lightning continued into the night.
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A high point of our time in the Makgadikgadi Pans was our morning visit with the meerkats. We had to rise very early to position ourselves on the dry and chilly ground near the holes leading to the subterranean tunnels that these little carnivores share with vegetarian ground squirrels and snake eating mongoose in a sort of underground inter-species apartment building. We learned that near a remote village there were several families of meerkats who had become accustomed to human beings wandering through their habitat. These are not tame animals, nor are they in captivity. They are completely wild, but as we learned, they will initiate interactions with humans if they feel so inclined, though we were strictly forbidden from touching them. We hoped they would interact with us as we waited for them to wake up and come out of their holes to greet the day. Our patience was rewarded.
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I was thrilled when the first meerkat came out of the hole right where I was sitting. Then, one at a time, all nine members of the family emerged, including the pregnant alpha female and four youngsters. I was sitting with Susan, our Tour Director, and the meerkat family stayed right around us for some time, standing up and looking around, soaking up the sunshine, chattering and even climbing up on Susan’s legs. Eventually they moved on into their morning routine. The youngsters played by running and jumping on each other, and after a brief play time, the adults began searching for food. The entire family spread out together, each youngster accompanied by an adult who was teaching him how to dig for beetles, grubs and small frogs. The adults shared the food they found with the babies. One youngster actually caught a frog on his own, and his patient mentor stood beside him as he ate it to make sure no one else from the family snatched the frog away from the little one.

Soon enough, the meerkats’ arch enemy, an eagle, appeared, circling overhead. All of the adult meerkats stood at attention while the young hid in the brownish grasses, the same color as their fur. They were prepared to scamper back down their holes, which dotted the landscape as their escape routes, but fortunately for this family, the eagle flew off elsewhere.
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​On our way back to the camp, Jonas, our guide, pointed out a large flock of about seventeen ostriches, black males and brown females, flapping their wings and “dancing” around to get rid of parasites. We also saw a large herd of zebras, several wildebeest, bustards, quail, lapwings and even some wild melons growing on the ground, having been planted by elephant droppings.
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Our time in Botswana, one of the most charming places I have ever visited, concluded with a late afternoon desert field trip accompanied by a group of local San Bushmen.  Their ancestors, among Africa’s first human residents, lived in the area as long ago as 200,000 years and survived in the Kalahari as hunter-gatherers. If possible, this extended family was even friendlier than the many other friendly and interesting people we had met in Botswana. This cheerful and fun loving group arrived in their traditional attire, animal skins tied around their bodies, hand-made sandals and beaded headdresses, necklaces and bracelets. The multi-generational family included infants carried by their mothers, grandmas and various adults, both male and female. There were greetings, introductions and handshakes among all of us. Then this energetic group lead us on a walking tour in the desert to demonstrate to us first-hand the ancient hunter-gatherer lifestyle of their ancestors.

​As we wandered through the desert, various members of the family showed us how to dig up tubers and bulbs that could be used as medicine or to provide drinking water during the dry season. They also showed us how to trap a bustard on the ground and how to use an egg to lure and catch an adult bird. Famous for their use of poisoned arrows to hunt kudu and springbok, they brought their arrows along and pointed out where they obtained the poison from caterpillars that live in a specific tree. We observed the San to be very chatty and sociable. They kept up a running conversation in their melodic language, filled with the famous clicking sounds, and some of them spoke to us in English. There appeared to be no specific leader in the group, and the women were clearly as important to the family as the men. 

​The group stopped at various points in our field trip just to entertain themselves and us and have a little fun. One young man insisted on digging up a scorpion from its hole in the ground and putting the scorpion in his mouth. Then he put the scorpion back in its hole unharmed. It was admirable and remarkable how small a footprint the San people left on the landscape. Every time they dug up a root or tuber to show us, they placed it back in the ground and covered it up again with dirt so it could continue to grow. Two men and a woman demonstrated how to make a fire by rubbing dried branches together, and after the fire had started, the entire family sat down around the campfire, sang and played a game similar to “Rock, Paper, Scissors,” leaning over the fire, laughing and responding to each other’s gestures and body language. The closest translation we could get to the name of this game was “Lightning and Springbok.” They got up and all started dancing just as the sun went down.

Our time in beautiful Botswana had come to an end, and the next morning, after Wayne’s encounter with the genet in our tent, the guides at our camp told us that the animals were responding to the coming of winter with its chilly nights. They said they heard jackals yelping during the night, and both a male and a female lion, roaring. 
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Malva Pudding is a popular dessert throughout the countries of southern Africa, although food historians say it is of Cape Dutch origin, and thus South African. However, we were served Malva Pudding on three different occasions during our African adventure, and the first time was in Botswana. Malva Pudding is one of those magical desserts, like Tres Leches Cake from Spain and Mexico, that is deceptively simple yet apparently complex and mysterious. It does not readily reveal its ingredients and simply looks like a dense, moist, plain looking brown cake. The woman who baked the Malva Pudding that we ate in Botswana revealed to me that the secret ingredient was apricot jam. Yes, Malva Pudding does contain apricot jam, but there is more to the story than that. For one thing, the pudding is infused with a syrup which contains Rooibos Tea, also called Bush Tea, a popular beverage in Botswana. And finally, Malva Pudding should always be served with homemade custard, preferably still warm.

For the Pudding:

• 1 cup milk, at room temperature (not low fat)
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup flour
• ¾ cup brown sugar
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 large egg, at room temperature
• 1 tablespoon vinegar
• 2 tablespoons apricot jam, plus 2-4 tablespoons more for glazing the cake
• cooking spray

 
For the Syrup:

•  1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 cup milk (not low fat)
• ½ cup boiling water or hot brewed Rooibos tea
• ¼ cup (half a stick) butter, at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

 
For the Homemade Custard:

•  6 large egg yolks
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 cups very hot milk or half and half (not low fat)
• ½ cup flour
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Special equipment: electric mixer, 2 medium sized mixing bowls, sieve or flour sifter, 2-cup glass measure, 8” square glass baking pan, rubber spatula, bamboo skewer, 4-cup glass measure, wire rack, medium sized cooking pot, immersion blender, plastic wrap
 
Preheat oven to 350°F
 
Makes: approximately 8 servings

1. Make the pudding: Spray an 8” square glass baking pan with cooking spray and set aside. Combine the milk and baking soda in a 2-cup glass measure and set aside. In a medium sized mixing bowl, sift together the flour, salt and baking powder.
2. In another medium sized bowl, with an electric mixer, beat the brown sugar and egg together until fluffy. Add the vinegar and 2 tablespoons apricot jam and mix well. Add the flour mixture and milk mixture alternately until well combined. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top with a rubber spatula.
3. Bake for 30 minutes or until a bamboo skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.
4. While the cake bakes, prepare the syrup: Combine all the syrup ingredients in a 4-cup glass measure and stir to dissolve the sugar. Microwave the mixture at 30 second intervals, stirring in between, until the syrup starts to boil. Remove from the microwave before the syrup boils over.
5. Place the baked cake on a wire rack and poke the hot cake all over with the bamboo skewer. Slowly pour the hot syrup over the entire cake. It will absorb all the liquid. When the pudding has cooled slightly, microwave 2-4 tablespoons of apricot jam and pour it carefully, a few drops at a time, over the pudding as a glaze. Serve the pudding warm with warm custard, or refrigerate overnight and bring it to room temperature before serving.
6. Make the custard: Pour 2 cups of milk or half and half into a 4-cup glass measure and heat in the microwave until it just starts to boil. Set aside. Place the egg yolks and sugar in a medium sized mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer until the mixture turns a pale yellow and forms a slowly falling ribbon when the beaters are lifted, about 4-6 minutes.
7. Add the flour and mix well. Slowly add the hot milk and continue beating on low speed, scraping the side of the bowl with a rubber spatula, until the mixture is smooth. Transfer the custard batter into a medium sized cooking pot and cook on medium heat, stirring continuously, until the mixture starts to boil. (I use an immersion blender to prevent the custard from sticking to the bottom of the pan and burning.)
8. Lower the heat and continue cooking and whisking for a few more minutes until the custard is boiling and very thick. Remove from the heat and stir in the butter and vanilla until the mixture is well blended and the butter has melted. Place a sheet of plastic wrap directly on the custard to prevent a skin from forming. If serving immediately, transfer the custard to a decorative bowl with a serving spoon and serve with the Malva Pudding. Custard can also be refrigerated and served cold.

 

This spring, Wayne and I embarked on an autumn encounter with three countries located in the southern hemisphere: Zambia, Botswana and South Africa. Our intention was three-fold, to interact with the people and learn something of their culture and values, to enjoy the animals in their natural habitats and to sample the local food. In all three countries, we ate well, saw hundreds of healthy animals living free and had the pleasure of meeting some of the most courteous and dignified human beings on earth. And we missed no opportunity to enjoy Afternoon Tea.
 

​Our journey began in Zambia in the town of Livingstone, a colonial looking place with lots of 1920-1930s buildings and women in traditional clothing carrying their parcels on their heads. We boarded a water taxi on the Zambezi River to take us to our lodging, The Royal Livingstone Hotel. On the way, a large male elephant with impressive tusks stepped out of the dense foliage along the river bank to get a drink of water. Our little boat almost ran into him, affording us a very close look at this handsome creature, the first of many elephants we were privileged to encounter in our three-country travels.
 

​The Royal Livingstone Hotel has an elegant ambience with colonial style architecture and wide, beautifully maintained lawns sloping down to the Zambezi River. Zebras and even giraffes quietly graze on the grassy grounds and among the shady trees that grace the setting. The hotel is located in the Mosi-oa-Tunya National Park and provides not only views of the resident animals and the mighty Zambezi, but also of Victoria Falls, a short distance away. Our first view of the falls was truly breathtaking, as we witnessed huge plumes of water spewing into the sky above the falls just at twilight. The Zambian name for the falls, Mosi-oa-Tunya, translates as “The Smoke that Thunders,” and indeed the copious amounts of skyward-moving water above the falls did resemble smoke.
 

​That evening, we had the old-fashioned fun of riding the Royal Livingstone Express, a restored 1920s steam train with a charming retro dining car. We chugged along on our sixteen-mile scenic journey to the Victoria Falls Bridge on the Zimbabwe border. Here we disembarked from the train and wandered along the railway bridge, viewing the truly thunderous falls below from a viscerally close angle. The spray was so massive that the rainbows it generated arched downward into the gorge below as well as up into the sky. On the trip back, we enjoyed a five-course dinner in the romantic dining car featuring some local fare. Wayne was served kudu, an African game meat, in two forms, a carpaccio with goat cheese and in a Zambian style pot pie. Wayne said the kudu, an antelope-like animal, tasted like very lean venison. I enjoyed barramundi, a river fish, and I was also served a vegetable curry with rice, an example of the wide spread Indian influence in the cuisines of southern Africa. Our dessert was coconut cake served with custard sauce in the British style along with minced fresh pineapple. Very good chocolate truffles and coffee concluded our meal.

​After our walk with the rhinos, we boarded an open sided safari vehicle which took us to another area of the park for animal viewing. But first we stopped by the Zambezi River for our morning snacks—fresh lemonade, very good homemade ginger cookies and pound cake served from the hood of the vehicle. As we enjoyed our refreshments, we spotted a monitor lizard and a crocodile near the riverbank. Other animals we were fortunate to see on our afternoon game drive included a group of giraffes including a mature female and three juveniles, a golden, fluffy vervet monkey, several herds of beautiful and graceful impalas, and a male puku, an impressive antelope-like animal with large curving horns graced with horizontal stripes.

​Bird watching was also exciting in the park. We saw majestic African fish eagles, Egyptian geese, hornbills, kingfishers and the ever-present melodious doves. Newton used an amusing phrase to describe the dove’s call, and I turned it into this haiku:
 

​At lunch time, we visited another hotel on the Zambezi River named after the famous Scottish explorer—The David Livingstone Hotel. We boarded a boat at the hotel’s dock and cruised along the river, eating fresh tilapia with nicely cooked vegetables and a very fresh Greek salad. I was not surprised by the prevalence of Afternoon Tea and custard laden desserts considering Britain’s influence throughout Africa from the Victorian era to the Twentieth Century. But I was startled to be served so much Greek, Italian and Indian food in all three of the countries we visited. Perhaps the African tourism industry is convinced that American tourists prefer European food, and Indian immigrants have added to the diversity of Zambian cuisine.
 

​During our luncheon cruise, we saw hippos, some making very loud noises, as we floated along. We saw more Egyptian geese and beautiful sacred Ibis with their curving beaks, feeding in the shallows of the river bank. While we were on the boat, one of our local guides, whose name happened to be David, enlightened us with the Zambian version of the life and achievements of David Livingstone, for whom almost everything in this part of the country is named. I remember learning about this famous Victorian explorer and medical missionary when I was in the fourth grade, a very long time ago. My take away from this elementary school history lesson was that David Livingstone “discovered” Victoria Falls and was later “discovered” himself, (after disappearing for several years in the heart of Africa) by the Welsh-American journalist, Henry Morton Stanley, who upon finding Livingstone, uttered the famous words, “Dr. Livingstone, I presume.”
 

​Clearly Livingstone did not discover the Mosi-oa-Tunya. He was simply the first European to see it and took it upon himself to re-name the falls after Queen Victoria. Everyone living in Zambia at the time of Livingstone’s arrival was obviously aware of the falls’ existence, as the sprays of water shooting into the sky are impossible to miss. But David, our local storyteller, was very kind to Dr. Livingstone, who is a hero in Africa, not because of the falls, but because he learned about the Arab slave trade, and carefully documented this odious activity in his journals. Though Livingstone died in Africa in 1873, Stanley protected his journals, and published an expose on the southern African slave trade, leading to its abolition. Livingstone was also apparently far kinder and more considerate in his treatment of Africans than can be said of most other Europeans of that era, including Henry Morton Stanley.
 

​Our final adventure in Zambia was a walking tour of Victoria Falls which took us directly into the torrent, soaking us to the very bone, and leaving a lasting impression of the falls’ power and grandeur. Our trek into the falls took place on a Sunday afternoon, and I was pleased to see many Zambian families enjoying an outing to their own world famous natural wonder. As we approached the falls on foot, we came to a stopping point where we donned waterproof shoes and two layers of plastic ponchos. Even with this protection, the rest of the journey resembled a walk through a cyclone. We were inundated, surrounded by rainbows and rocked by the relentless and reverberating sound of endless amounts of falling water. The volume of the downpour was so intense that we were walking, not just through puddles, but through rivers of moving water, over our feet and up our legs. Our trek took us over a bridge across the gorge where we witnessed more rainbows and glimpsed the enormity of the waterfall, twice the height of Niagara Falls, and gazed in awe down at the swirling gorges below.
 

​Our last Zambian dinner was at the restaurant of the Royal Livingston Hotel, where the menu featured a Eurocentric selection that included roast duck, roast lamb, and a rather nice pureed vegetable soup. I was embarrassed to order penne arrabiata in Africa but could find no other vegetarian entrée options. My dessert of chocolate lava cake with ice cream could have been on any American restaurant menu, but it was delicious.
 

​Zambians who prepare their own food, particularly those living in traditional villages, rely on river fish, chicken, beef and staples that they can grow in their own kitchen gardens. Corn, called “maize” in Zambia, (from “maiz,” the Spanish word for corn,) is the starch of choice, especially in the form of cornmeal mush (called nshima,) which can be served at any meal of the day. Popular garden vegetables include pumpkins, squash, spinach, onions, tomatoes, beans, cabbage, okra and sweet potatoes. Peanuts also grow in Zambia. Does this sound familiar? Those of you who live in the American South or have a southern heritage might recognize these foods as the ingredients in your grandmother’s everyday cooking. The African and Southern American culinary connection is a strong one, not surprising when one considers the powerful historic confluence between the two continents and the continuing creativity and vitality of African American culture. Contemporary African culture is also diverse and ever changing. And as I have already pointed out, Zambians are open to culinary influences from all over the world.

​As we prepare to ferry across the Zambezi river from Zambia to Botswana, I will leave you with the recipe for a very traditional Zambian meal which you can easily cook in your own kitchen—good old vegetable stew with corn meal mush. I made this delicious meal in my own kitchen shortly after returning home from Africa. Wayne and I both loved it, and I had no difficulty finding all of the ingredients in our local grocery store and farmers’ market.
 

 
Ifisashi with Nshima
(Zambian Peanut and Vegetable Stew with Corn Meal Mush)
​

​Ifisashi, or peanut and vegetable stew, is the go-to Zambian family meal. It is perfect for home gardeners, which many Zambians are, as the cook can simply go out in the back yard and harvest any of the vegetables that are ready to be picked. The inclusion of roasted peanuts makes this dish a nutritional powerhouse, and it is loaded with the green and yellow vegetables that we have all been taught to include in our daily diet. Ifisashi is traditionally served with nshima, the ubiquitous Zambian corn meal mush (or polenta, if you prefer.) Keep in mind that Zambia’s national dish is not fast food. It will take you some time to wash and cut up the vegetables. I expedited the process by oven roasting the squash and sweet potato the night before so they could be ready to be peeled, chopped and added to the stew the next day.
 
Ifisashi is a vegetarian dish, which is my preference, but I served Wayne’s ifisashi with sausages. You could turn your ifisashi into a family dinner, or even a special meal with friends, by adding another protein to the menu. Pan fried river fish, such as catfish or trout would be good with corn meal and vegetable stew, as would grilled chicken, pork chops or even broiled hamburger patties. These recipes will produce about eight servings, and we discovered that ifisashi is just as good, if not even better the next day. For a large group, both recipes can be doubled.
 

For the Nshima:

•  2 cups corn meal (fine grind)
• 4 cups water
• ½ teaspoon salt

 
Special equipment: measuring cups and spoon, large cooking pot with lid, whisk or immersion blender
 
Makes: approximately 8 servings 

1. Bring 4 cups of water and ½ teaspoon of salt to a boil over high heat in a large cooking pot. Make sure the pot is large, not medium sized, as the cornmeal can boil over and splatter on your stove and your hands.
2. Reduce the heat to medium and gradually add the cornmeal, whisking to avoid lumps. I use an immersion blender. The mixture will thicken.
3. Turn the heat down to low and continue to cook and whisk for an additional 3-4 minutes until the mixture is thick and smooth. Cover the pot with the lid and place it on the back burner of the stove without heat until the ifisashi is cooked and ready to serve.
4. Nshima is traditionally served in two or three torpedo shaped portions per person, not cut into squares. To create nshima “croquettes,” use a large serving spoon and twist it in a circular fashion through the cooked corn meal, releasing each nshima portion onto an individual plate.

 
For the Ifisashi: 

• 3-4 tablespoons peanut oil, divided
• 1 cup lightly salted roasted peanuts
• 1 large sweet onion, chopped
• 2 medium or 3 small tomatoes, chopped
• 1 small butternut squash
• 1 sweet potato
• 1 large bunch of spinach, carefully washed, stemmed and chopped
• 1 small head of cabbage, finely shredded
• 1 cup water or chicken broth
• salt and pepper to taste

 
Special equipment: large roasting pan, large skillet, wooden spoon, large cooking pot with lid, sharp knife
 
Makes: approximately 8 servings
 
Preheat oven to 350°F
 

1. Early in the day or the night before, cut the squash into 4 pieces with a sharp knife, cut the sweet potato in half and place the pieces, skin sides down, into a large roasting pan. Drizzle lightly with peanut oil, sprinkle with salt, and turn the pieces over, skin side up. Roast for approximately 1 hour, until the chunks have softened. Cool for about 1 hour, peel, seed the squash and cut all of the chunks into small pieces. Cover and refrigerate overnight, or reserve to add to the ifisashi in step #4 if making it immediately.
2. Place 2 tablespoons of peanut oil in a large skillet, add the chopped onion and cook on medium heat until the onion softens and turns a light golden color. Add the chopped tomatoes and peanuts and continue to cook, stirring with a wooden spoon until the tomatoes have softened. Transfer the vegetable mixture to a large cooking pot and continue to cook, stirring, on low heat.
3. As the onion mixture continues to cook, add 2 more tablespoons of peanut oil to the skillet and add the shredded cabbage. Stir fry over medium high heat until the cabbage turns a light golden, and transfer it to the large cooking pot. Add 1 cup of water or chicken broth to the large pot and stir the vegetables.
4. Add the cubed squash and sweet potato pieces and stir carefully. Cover and simmer for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the chopped spinach, stir and cook for another 10 minutes or more until all the vegetables are cooked and the stew is well blended. Sprinkle with salt and freshly ground pepper to taste.
5. To serve, place 3 rounded portions of nshima on each plate and place a generous serving of ifisashi next to the nshima. Add a small serving of cooked meat or fish to the plate, or eat as a vegetarian meal. I served my nshima and ifisashi with stir-fried fresh mushrooms.

 

Several months ago, Wayne and I decided that it might be fun to rent out the downstairs studio apartment in the home where we live as an Air B&B. The place has its own lanai, looking directly at the Pacific Ocean, and out the back window, guests can gaze at the stunning Koolau mountain chain immediately behind the house. We are situated on the eastern shore of Oahu, half way up the Kamehameha Highway between the bustling touristy beaches at Waikiki and the equally busy North Shore, surfing capital of the World.
 

​Kaaawa, where we live, is not only the only town in America whose name contains three consecutive letters. It is also an ancient Hawaiian village and an oasis of calm between the frenetic south and north shores of Oahu. Our little B&B, as we have discovered, attracts a variety of people for diverse and interesting reasons, and all of our guests, we are pleased to say, have been good company.
 

​Among our first visitors was a Hawaiian couple from Maui who came with their little daughter to attend the traditional memorial service for his uncle at Kaaawa beach. A military couple who had not seen each other for many months because of his deployment overseas, came for a romantic reunion in our quiet and very private hideaway. We have also welcomed several Mormon couples from Utah and Idaho who like our location because of its proximity to the Mormon Temple and the surrounding L.D.S. community in the town of Laie, just north of us.
 

​Then there have been the Canadians and the Minnesotans who have come to escape the sub-zero temperatures in their homelands. One of these refugees from the land-locked cold actually broke out in tears of joy when she arrived at our studio in soft afternoon sunlight, the balmy trade winds wafting in from the sea, just steps away, and the coconut palms swaying gently above the pink hibiscus blossoms in our front yard.
 

​It is our goal to offer our guests the kind of hospitality that Kathleen and I describe in our website: myteaplanner.com. And we want our Air B&B to be a living example of the Philosophy of Tea: a refuge of peace, tranquility and mutual respect between guests and hosts. Wayne and I have tried to think of everything our visitors might need to help them feel welcome, relaxed and at peace. On arrival, all of our guests will discover a loaf of Hawaiian Banana Bread which I have baked for them from the Hawaiian Tea Menu on myteaplanner.com. We also offer almond croissants from the local farmers’ market, chocolate covered macadamia nuts made on the island and a refrigerator stocked with bottles of water, juice and milk for the Hawaiian granola we provide for them.
 

​Our studio also contains a cappuccino machine and a massage chair, very popular with guests who arrive exhausted from months of over-work and hours on a cramped airplane. Before our guests leave, Wayne always asks them if there were anything further we could have done to make them even more comfortable. Their answers have been very interesting, and we have implemented all of their suggestions: a night light, more hangers in the closet, hair conditioner as well as shampoo and body wash, an extra set of fluffy pillows, a luggage rack for a guest who wanted to live out of his suitcase rather than unpacking, and a bulletin board on the wall outside the entrance where guests can leave behind pamphlets and brochures for the activities they have especially enjoyed as suggestions for future visitors.
 

​We also ask our guests what made them choose our B&B over the many others available on Oahu. Several of them said they liked Wayne’s photos on our website, and to our surprise, two guests mentioned the photo of our very cute little dog, Declan, standing on the lanai.
 

​When our guests arrive in their rental cars, Declan always comes downstairs with us to greet them, and we have discovered that many of our visitors are already missing their pets back home when they get to our B&B. On two occasions, our guests have asked if they could baby-sit Declan, and he was happy to come down and keep them company in the studio. Ultimately, we have learned that hospitality is really a form of healing, and it is our vocation as hosts, to discern what kind of healing our guests need and offer it to them.
 

A recent experience with Jenn and Anna, two delightful women from Minnesota, provides an example of how we celebrated with them the joy of hospitality and the Philosophy of Tea. Like many of our guests, Anna and Jenn came to Hawaii to escape the cold and to relax and refresh their spirits in nature after years of hard work. They own The Coffee Hag, a coffee house and community hub in Mankato, Minnesota. We discovered that both Jenn and Anna are creative artists as well as business women. Anna had just finished several commissions before leaving on vacation, and Jenn is a musician who does vocals and guitar in her own band. When I mentioned that baking and hosting tea parties is my creative outlet, Anna exclaimed, “Oh, wouldn’t it be fun to have a tea party while we’re here in Hawaii?”

Of course I said, “Yes,” and eagerly offered to host the event. This was on a Saturday afternoon, and we set the date for our tea party for Tuesday at 2:00 PM, the final day of their Hawaiian vacation. While Jenn and Anna spent the next three days relaxing on the beach and experiencing a shark adventure (the humans are in an underwater cage while the sharks swim freely in the ocean), I set about planning a Hawaiian Afternoon Tea that I hoped would express the spirit of Aloha for our guests to take home with them.

My first task was to check my cupboards to see what I already had on hand and develop the menu based on these staples plus fresh ingredients I could pick up at the Sunday farmers’ market. A search of my kitchen revealed the following treasures: two gifts from Kathleen, a tin of Twining’s Black Tea Blend in honor of Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II’s ninetieth birthday and a jar of Lady Wolf Marmalade Supreme, an orange, grapefruit and lemon marmalade made by Kathleen and her friend Ellen from fruit growing on Ellen’s property in Fresno. In the freezer I found a piece of salmon we bought from a fisherman at the farmers’ market and a large round of home-made Czech-style jalapeño sausage which we bought, also at the farmers’ market from the man who makes the sausage himself. Digging around in the refrigerator, I discovered, sour cream, cream cheese, a cucumber, some cheese slices, a very ripe papaya (a gift from a friend,) and a large jar of assorted Greek olives, both black and green, combined with strips of brined red peppers, tiny onions and cornichons.

A further exploration of my cupboards unearthed a package of Haupia (Hawaiian coconut pudding) mix, some candied ginger and a tiny jar of rare Ohelo Berry Jam, which we had bought from the woman who sells her home-made jams at the farmers’ market. And fortunately, I had some very ripe bananas in my fruit bowl, ready to be baked into a fresh batch of Hawaiian Banana Bread. We also had some chocolate covered macadamia nuts and a pretty fresh baguette laying around that we had been eating with olive oil to accompany a recent pot of Borscht.

Based on these available ingredients, I devised the following menu for:
 
​                                                    A Hawaiian Spring Tea

Now all I had to do was create my list for the Sunday farmers’ market in nearby Kaneohe to obtain the missing local ingredients, including smoked marlin from the guys who go out on their boat and catch the fish themselves, fresh chives and watercress from Waimanalo and the lovely taro rolls, guava bread and sprouted multi-grain bread sold at the French-Vietnamese bakery’s booth.

As I was visualizing the menu while sorting through the larder, I began to conceptualize the setting for our tea. It would be on our upstairs lanai, facing the Pacific Ocean; thus, Anna and Jenn would be guests in our home. And since I knew that they were dog lovers, Declan would also be invited. Our color scheme would be a casual mix of pink and green with a bouquet of pink ginger flowers augmented with greenery from our garden as a visual focal point. These colors would harmonize with my inherited collection of pink Depression Glass and my “good” china, the Lennox Charleston pattern, a soft blend of cream, pink and celadon green. I polished my silver tea pot and tray to serve the tea and used our Hawaiian koa wood tray for the sweets.

I rolled my three-tiered tea cart onto the lanai to serve the scones. The scones were on the top tier, the Devonshire cream, marmalade and butter on the second, and a photograph of Queen Liliuokalani rested on the third tier. We invited Hawaii’s last monarch to join us as we enjoyed our Queen Elizabeth II commemorative tea. I was also grateful for the opportunity to dig around in the linen closet for vintage napkins and tablecloths, waiting to be used.

Our guests had revealed themselves to be generous hearted, grateful and non-judgmental people, and their attitude made it easy for me to create the food and the setting with a relaxed and happy heart, knowing that my efforts would be appreciated. The guests’ participation at the tea party is crucial to the success of the event. If you are not quite familiar with tea party etiquette, I encourage you to read “Guidelines for the Host or Hostess” and “Guidelines for the Guest” in myteaplanner.com. I can honestly say that Jenn and Anna were perfect guests.

I hope there is a lesson here, as the celebration of Afternoon Tea is really a mini celebration of life itself. To be happy in life, one must be trusting and fearless, grateful for both friends and strangers, willing to be spontaneous and creative and also respectful of one’s own culture and surroundings. Can you see how the Hawaiian Spring Tea menu emerged from the ordinary staples and food items that are part of everyday life in rural Hawaii? Nothing on the menu was especially fancy or unusual, but I trusted my guests to enjoy these simple preparations that were unique to Hawaii.

I urge you to look around at your own environment with grateful eyes. What is unique about the foods you eat or the plants and flowers that surround you in Mankato, Minnesota, in Houston, in Utah, in Calgary? Idaho is known for its huckleberries, California for garlic and artichokes, Vermont for maple syrup and Kansas for its glorious corn. In its own environment, each of these items is ordinary, but it is the elevation of the ordinary into art that makes a tea party a memorable occasion. I hope you will support the farmers’ markets in your own community and take the time to welcome the produce that becomes available with each season as it arrives. Most of all, I wish for you a healthy enjoyment of the world in which you happen to live.

And finally, since May is the month in which we celebrate Mother’s Day, why not skip the over-crowded restaurant brunch this Mother’s Day and invite your mother or another older woman friend to tea in your own home? You can look at the Mother’s Day Tea menu in the Year of Tea Parties calendar section of myteaplanner.com for ideas. Kathleen’s Pink Champagne Cake is spectacular. Or, you can look in your own cupboards and refrigerator for inspiration and fill in the blanks with fresh May produce from the farmers’ market in your own neighborhood. Just to get you started, I leave you with the simple and very ordinary recipe for Hawaiian Banana Bread which the guests at our Air B&B seem to enjoy.

Hawaiian Banana Bread is often sold from trucks or roadside stands by women who have whipped up a batch using the bananas growing in their back yards. Hawaiian Banana Bread is not fancied up with the addition of nuts, chocolate chips, raisins or coconut. However, you can make a special tea party treat by slicing the loaf lengthwise and then into thin matching slices which you can sandwich together with cream cheese or peanut butter to create little banana bread tea sandwiches. The secret to perfect banana bread is to make sure that the bananas are very, very ripe, black and drippy preferred. 

• 1 ¾ cups flour
• 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
• ¾ teaspoon salt
• 3 large eggs
• 1 ½ cups sugar
• 1 cup mashed very ripe bananas (2-3 bananas)
• ¾ cup vegetable oil
• cooking spray for the pans

 
Preheat oven to 350° F
 
Special equipment: electric mixer, large mixing bowl, sieve or flour sifter, two 8” x 4” aluminum baking pans (or three 5 ¾” x 3 ½”,) sharp knife or wooden skewer
 
Makes: two 8” x 4” loaves (or three 5 ¾” x 3 ½” loaves)

1. Bring the eggs to room temperature. Spray 2 loaf pans with cooking spray. Beat the eggs, sugar, oil and bananas well in a large bowl with an electric mixer. Make sure that the bananas are thoroughly mashed. Place the flour, soda and salt in a sifter or sieve and sift the flour mixture into the banana mixture. Beat just until incorporated.
2. Pour the batter into the prepared pans and bake for 50 minutes for two loaves or 45 minutes for three loaves. Test for doneness by inserting a sharp knife or a wooden skewer into the center of one of the loaves. The bread is done when the knife comes out with no crumbs attached.
3. Serve warm or cool in the pans, remove, wrap tightly in plastic wrap or foil and store at room temperature for up to three days. Banana bread can also be frozen.

​Easter is a moveable feast, like Hanukkah and Passover. This means that these important religious holidays do not occur on the same date every year like Christmas. Instead, a complex system of calculations is used to determine that Easter will fall on the first Sunday after the paschal full moon that occurs on or after the vernal equinox. I’m sure this explanation is crystal clear. There is plenty of information on line for those who want to explore the astronomical occurrences that determine the date of Easter every year. In any case, Easter always falls between March 22 and April 25. This year, Easter will fall on April 16. Some of you will be thinking about your income taxes at that time. A comforting thought is that if you were a poet or other artist in Ireland, you would have to pay no income tax at all because of your invaluable contribution to Irish culture. If only artists in other countries were treasured as they are in the Emerald Isle!
​

​Here in Hawaii where I live, the local culture and Polynesian artists, musicians and dancers are very much appreciated, although I do believe that they have to pay taxes like all the rest of us. Almost everyone in Hawaii celebrates Easter, and Easter in the islands is a time to celebrate both traditional culture and European Easter customs imported by the various immigrants who have come to live in this beautiful place. Indeed, Hawaiians have been very generous in adopting cultural celebrations from all over the world. Although the climate here does not include the dramatic shifts from cold to warm that are emphasized in European and mainland American Christmas and Easter customs, the Easter Egg, an ancient symbol of fertility and new life after the bitterly cold winter, is nevertheless the central Easter symbol in Hawaii. Easter egg hunts will take place all over the island, outdoors of course, as will traditional Easter sunrise services.​

​On Oahu, it will not be cold and miserable at dawn on Easter Sunday, and anyone who can get even close to the eastern shore of the island will be able to experience the glorious joy of watching the bright pink sun emerge from the sea, spreading light across the waves and into the soft, balmy sky. Holy Saturday, the night before Easter, is also a lovely time to appreciate Oahu’s natural beauty. Evenings in the islands do not turn chilly as they do in California and many other places on the mainland. Usually the warm, gentle trade winds blow in from the sea at this time of year, and it is breathtaking to watch the full moon emerge from the shifting waves.
​

​The weeks before and after Easter are also a time to enjoy traditional Hawaiian cultural activities, including the Prince Kuhio Festival and the Merrie Monarch Festival, spring time events that celebrate ancient Hawaiian chants, music and hula. The Prince Kuhio Festival in late March celebrates the birthday of Prince Jonah Kuhio Kalaniana’ole, Prince of the House of Kalakaua, and March 26 is designated as a state holiday honoring his birth. Fondly referred to as the Citizen Prince, Prince Kuhio, who lived from 1871 to 1922, is revered for making the best of a bad situation following Queen Liliuokalani’s illegal ouster from the throne by a group of American businessmen.  After Hawaii was annexed as a territory by the United States, Prince Kuhio was elected as Delegate from Hawaii to the U.S. House of Representatives from 1902 through 1922 and was instrumental in the passage of the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act of 1921, which provides homesteads for Native Hawaiians.
​

​The free festival named after Prince Kuhio reflects his devotion to native Hawaiian arts and culture. The events include a parade, Native Hawaiian arts, music, hula and other cultural specialties and of course plenty of aloha and tasty food. It will conclude with a free Hawaiian a cappella singing concert in the historic Kawaiaha’o Church in Hoholulu, featuring many local choruses and choirs, including the University of Hawaii at Manoa Hawaiian Chorus. If you ever happen to be on Oahu during the last week of March, do not miss this authentic celebration of Hawaiian history and culture.​

​The Merrie Monarch Festival, a week-long celebration which begins on Easter Sunday, honors another member of the Hawaiian Royal Family, King David Kalakaua, the last king of the Kingdom of Hawaii, who reigned from 1874 to 1891. King David is appreciated as a patron of the arts, especially Native Hawaiian music and dance, and is remembered for sustaining many endangered Hawaiian traditions, including chant, mythology and medicine. The Merrie Monarch Festival, which takes place in Hilo on the island of Hawaii, includes the most prestigious hula competition in the world and is credited with helping to bring about the Hawaiian Renaissance of the 1970s, which continues to thrive today. ​

​Merrie Monarch events include exhibitions by halau (hula schools) from Hawaii, other Pacific islands, Japan and California, hula competitions for men (kane) and women (wahine,) and performances of modern and traditional hula and chant. Even if you can’t get to the Big Island of Hawaii for this event of worldwide historic and cultural significance, you can watch it on television throughout the Hawaiian Islands. Wayne and I glue ourselves to the television set, mesmerized by the beauty of the chanting and drumming, the elegance of the exquisite hand-made costumes, and most of all the grace and skill of the dancing.

​Since moving to Oahu, Wayne and I have had the honor of spending Easter with the Waiwaiole family, who have been kind enough to “adopt” us since our arrival. This large, multi-cultural family unit of Hawaiian, Portuguese, Japanese, Filipino and “Other” locals, gathers at the home of their octogenarian matriarch, Sylvia, for every holiday, and all of them bring food. The menu is always an eclectic microcosm of Hawaii’s population and the foods enjoyed all over the island. Sylvia herself prepares vinha d’alous (pronounced veenya dosh,) the mandatory main dish for every holiday. This preparation is the popular Portuguese style vinegar-marinated pork that one can order with rice and fried eggs at many coffee shops and pancake houses throughout the islands. Sylvia serves her vinha d’alous with steamed white rice and a huge pot of home-made chicken noodle soup, loaded with boiled eggs, chopped into big chunks. Scrambled eggs are also on the menu, keeping the Easter egg theme alive. Sylvia’s husband Tom makes them in a big electric wok, soft and golden, sprinkled with green spring onions.​

​A daughter-in-law brings home-made potato salad, as there is no such thing as winter food and summer food in Hawaii. Potato salad is always part of the Christmas menu also. Baked yams, fresh pineapple, and even a caprese salad with fresh ripe tomatoes and basil also find their way to the table, along with baked beans and a moist, juicy ham. I have found my niche in the family as the dessert lady, as in general Hawaiians seem to prefer purchasing their desserts at local bakeries or grocery stores. The number one favorite store-bought dessert all over Oahu is Ted’s Chocolate-Haupia Pie. Haupia is the Hawaiian word for coconut, and what could be more luscious than chocolate and coconut in a single cream pie, topped with chilled whipped cream?
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Ted Nakamura, a third generation Japanese Hawaiian, sells these and many other fabulous desserts, like Macadamia Nut Cheesecake, from his family-owned store on the North Shore at Sunset Beach, surfing capital of the world. All sorts of other local foods and snacks are also available at Ted’s to keep the surfers energized, and Ted’s pies are sold in local grocery stores. ​

​Since I know that three or four family members will undoubtedly show up with a Ted’s Pie, I will bring a cake that may not be quite so familiar to the Waiwaiole clan. So far, I have introduced the family to Tres Leches Cake, Danish Pastry Wreath, Spanish Almond Cake, Ellen’s Fabulous Coconut Cake, Lemon Bundt Cake, Texas Sheet Cake, Rum Cake with Caramel Icing, and a variety of other desserts from the mainland and beyond. Most of these can be found on our website, myteaplanner.com. I have been grateful for the enthusiastic responses and encouragement I have received from my adoptive family. Hawaiians are generous with compliments and not shy about eating. This year I plan to bring an Orange Poppy Seed Cake that I have been making for decades from a very old recipe that I adapted from Family Circle Magazine back in 1976. Poppy Seeds do not grow in Hawaii and are not part of the local cuisine, so I may need to make a special trip to Whole Foods in Kailua to find them, but I enjoy introducing desserts that are new to Hawaiians.

​As you plan your family’s Easter meal, I hope you will look at our Easter Tea in the April calendar section of myteaplanner.com. It is filled with spring time delights, including Kathleen’s charming recipes for Hot Cross Buns and Lemon Ring Cookies. I also encourage you to review our Hawaiian Tea in the World of Tea Parties section of our website. We have included a Hawaiian Easter Brunch menu along with the tea party recipes, and you can learn more about Hawaii’s famous coconut pudding, Haupia. You might even find the courage to make your own Chocolate-Haupia cream pie. Meanwhile, I am happy to share Sylvia’s Vinha d’ Alous recipe and my tried and true Orange Poppy Seed Cake.
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​Vinha d’ Alous is a Portuguese pork dish introduced to the Hawaiian Islands by the many Portuguese immigrants who came to Hawaii in the previous century to work in the pineapple and sugar cane fields or to labor as paniolos (Hawaiian cowboys) on the cattle ranches. Hawaiians love pork, and the popularity of this recipe has never diminished. The key ingredients, chunks of boneless pork, vinegar and garlic, become uniquely Hawaiian with the addition of Hawaiian sea salt and Hawaiian red peppers. If you cannot find these small red peppers, try substituting two medium sized jalapenos. You can remove some of the seeds while wearing disposable gloves if you want to control the heat in the marinade. Vinha d’ Alous is easy to make, but you will need plenty of time. The meat needs to marinate for at least twenty-four hours, and cooking the pork requires a two-step process of braising on the stove in a Dutch oven followed by browning, either in a skillet or in the oven. The recipe I offer here, from Hawaii Electric, includes potatoes, cooked in the marinade and browned along with the pork.
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• 6-8 pounds boneless pork butt, cut into 2” chunks
• 2 cups vinegar
• 2 cups sherry or white wine
• 2 cups water
• 2 tablespoons Hawaiian sea salt
• ½ teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 4 Hawaiian red chili peppers, chopped (Seed the peppers if you are nervous about the heat.)
• 2 bay leaves
• 12 whole cloves
• ½ teaspoon thyme
• ¼ teaspoon sage
• 6 russet potatoes
•  steamed white rice for serving

 
Preheat oven to 350° F (after step #1)
 
Special equipment: sharp knife, potato peeler, disposable gloves, glass measuring cup, large Dutch oven with lid, large roasting pan, large slotted spoon, large bowl or platter for serving
 
Makes: 6-8 servings
 
Cut the pork into 2” square pieces if the butcher has not already done so. Place the pork chunks and all of the marinade ingredients (except the potatoes) in a large Dutch oven and marinate in the refrigerator overnight or up to 24 hours. About 2 hours before serving time, remove the Dutch oven from the refrigerator and braise the pork in the marinade on medium heat for about 1 hour, turning the chunks occasionally.

1. Preheat the oven to 350° F. Using a large pierced spoon, lift the pork chunks out of the marinade and place them in a large roasting pan. Bake for about 30 minutes, until the chunks are brown. Reserve the marinade in the Dutch oven.
2. Peel the potatoes and chop them into medium sized chunks. Place the potato chunks into the marinade in the Dutch oven and cook them for about 30 minutes while the pork is roasting. Remove the potatoes with a slotted spoon and add them to the pork in the roasting pan. Continue cook the pork and the potatoes for another 30 minutes or until very tender.
3. Place the pork and potatoes in a large decorative bowl or platter and serve with steamed white rice.

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This cake has been a favorite Birthday Cake and all-purpose holiday cake in my family for many years, as poppy seeds and oranges span all the seasons. If you wish, you can make it a day in advance, add the orange syrup and store the cake at room temperature under a cake dome or wrapped in plastic wrap to allow the flavors to meld. Add the powdered sugar glaze the day you plan to serve it. You will need about three large, brightly colored navel oranges, as you will require orange zest for the cake and the glaze and orange juice for the glaze and the syrup. This recipe calls for quite a lot of orange zest, but it is entirely up to you how much orange zest you want to add. To serve this cake for Easter, place it on a cake pedestal or decorative plate and surround it with little chocolate Easter egg candies. Chocolate and orange are always happy together.

 
For the cake:

• 1/3 cup poppy seeds
• 1 cup buttermilk, at room temperature
• 2 ½ cups flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt
• grated zest of 1 orange
• 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, at room temperature
• 1 ½ cups sugar
• 4 eggs at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 tablespoons sugar, mixed with
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• cooking spray and extra flour for dusting the pan
• pastel colored chocolate covered almond Easter eggs for decoration

 
For the orange syrup:

• ¾ cup fresh orange juice from 2-3 oranges (include the zested orange used for the cake)
• ½ cup sugar

 
For the orange glaze:

• grated zest of 1 orange
• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 1-2 tablespoons fresh orange juice

 
Preheat oven to 350° F
 
Special equipment: 10” angel food cake pan or Bundt pan, 2-cup glass measure, waxed paper, large mixing bowl, medium sized mixing bowl, small bowl or cup, sieve or flour sifter, hand held electric mixer, rubber spatula, measuring spoons, thin knife or wooden skewer, wire rack, oven mitts, citrus zester, citrus juicer, 1-cup measuring cup, fork, decorative serving plate or cake pedestal
 
Makes: One 10”-11” cake, 10-12 servings

1. Spray the angel food cake pan or Bundt pan with cooking spray and dust with flour. Bring the buttermilk, butter and eggs to room temperature. Place the buttermilk in a 2-cup glass measure and stir in the poppy seeds. Set aside. Zest one of the oranges over a large sheet of waxed paper, and set aside. Mix the 2 tablespoons of sugar and 1 teaspoon of cinnamon together in a small bowl or cup and set aside.
2. Sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt together into a medium sized mixing bowl and set aside. Place the butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, beating for about 1 minute after adding each egg. Beat in the vanilla.
3. Sprinkle the orange zest evenly over the batter and gently stir it in with a rubber spatula. Add the flour mixture alternatively with the buttermilk and poppy seed mixture, in about four batches, beginning and ending with the flour, and mixing on low speed just until each addition is incorporated into the batter.
4. Pour half of the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top with a rubber spatula. Sprinkle the sugar and cinnamon mixture evenly over the batter. Add the remaining batter and smooth the top with the spatula until the batter is evenly distributed. Bake in the pre-heated 350° F oven for about 50 minutes, or until a thin knife or wooden skewer inserted into the center comes out clean.
5. Cool in the pan on a wire rack for 10-15 minutes. Using oven mitts, remove the cake from the angel food pan and place it on a decorative plate or cake pedestal. (If using a Bundt pan, invert the pan over the plate until the cake releases.)
6. While the cake bakes, make the orange syrup: Zest a second orange onto a large piece of waxed paper, and set aside to us the zest in the orange glaze. Wash the 2-cup glass measure and squeeze the oranges. Pour the juice into the measure until you have almost 1 cup of juice. Reserve 2-3 tablespoons of the juice in a small cup. Add ½ cup sugar to the remaining juice; you will have about ¾ cup. Stir and microwave for 30 seconds to 1 minute until the mixture is very hot.
7. After the cake has been removed from the pan, but while it is still warm, poke holes in the top of the cake with a wooden skewer and slowly pour the hot syrup all over the cake. Let the cake cool completely. Wrap or cover with a cake dome until shortly before ready to serve. (The cake can be wrapped and frozen at this point.)
8. Make the glaze: Place 2 cups of packed powdered sugar in a small bowl. Add the reserved orange zest and mix it into the powdered sugar with a fork. Add the reserved orange juice, 1 teaspoon at a time, and stir with the fork until the mixture reaches a thick but pourable consistency. Pour the glaze over the top of the cake, covering the entire top and allowing some of the glaze to drip over the sides. The cake is ready to serve as soon as the glaze has set. Sprinkle small chocolate Easter egg candies (I like the ones with almonds inside) around the cake just before serving.

​Our adventures in Russia concluded in Moscow, the nation’s capital and a city of more than twelve million people. In very chilly weather, we disembarked from our river boat and drove for about two hours past thriving businesses and sturdy brick Stalin-era apartment buildings constructed to withstand the brutal weather. Our destination was the Moscow Metro, a bustling place with walls and interior ceilings decorated with Soviet era art and sculpture. After surviving the Metro’s long and nearly vertical escalators, we continued with a walking tour of about six miles around Moscow’s Red Square and the Kremlin.

​Red Square, a stunning and enormous public area surrounding the Kremlin, was hosting a harvest fair when we arrived. Booths decorated with pumpkins were selling all sorts of snacks, including sausages, meat kabobs, fish in many forms and the ever-popular piroshkies. We also had an awe inspiring up close view of St. Basil’s Cathedral, perhaps Russia’s most famous landmark, occupying one end of Red Square. Built between 1555 and 1560, this magnificent church consists of nine individual chapels constructed on a single foundation and topped by a set of intensely colored domes of varying heights. Commissioned by Russia’s first Tsar, Ivan the Terrible, this unique architectural masterpiece has loosely Byzantine origins but also may be influenced by the style of the domed wooden churches of northern Russia, such as the lovely wooden churches on Kizhi Island. St. Basil’s however, is built of red brick on a white stone foundation. Architectural historians can find no analog in the designs of other Russian churches, and some scholars conjecture that the gilded tin high rising domes, in red white and golden colors, are intended to depict flames rising toward heaven. Others surmise that the green and blue ceramic inserts on the domes suggest the Biblical rainbow.

​Whatever the architects’ intentions, St. Basil’s has captured the imaginations of artists, folklorists, and ordinary people for centuries, even influencing the “castles” at Disneyland. We returned at night for another view of St. Basil’s, and it was even more beautiful in darkness with its flaming domes lighting up the night sky. In ironic contrast, another famous occupant of Red Square is GUM department store, an elegant, over-the-top shopping center that rivals Harrods of London, Mitsukoshi of Tokyo and New York’s Fifth Avenue. We focused on the Food Hall, a massive and decorative array of meats of every kind, including whole cooked pigs, fish and caviar, cheeses, breads, wines and liquor, including Vodka of course, pastries and candies. 

We bought a large bag of assorted Red October chocolates, Russia’s favorite candies. They come in thirty different kinds of flavors and fillings, each individual piece in a bright, artistic wrapping. The most popular Red October candy is Alenka, a milk chocolate whose wrapping depicts an adorable little girl wearing a colorful headscarf. We found Red October candies quite delicious and indeed addictive. The huge six-story red brick factory where these historic candies were made for more than a hundred years is now a museum and trendy visitors’ hot spot. But not to worry; Red October chocolates are still being produced in a modern factory in one of Moscow’s suburbs, and one can even order Red October treats on line at Amazon.

Our walking tour took us from Red Square to the nearby Cathedral of Christ the Savior, a beautiful white church with gleaming golden domes. This massive structure, the tallest Orthodox Christian church in the world, has been completely rebuilt in the Russian Revival style after the original was blown up by the communists. Completed in 1999, the new church is decorated with elegant interior frescos and icons and is a functioning cathedral. On our tour of the interior, lured by the sound of glorious a cappella singing, we tiptoed downstairs to a chapel where mass was just starting. The priest in his gold-embroidered green vestments carried a golden thurible on a chain, spreading incense throughout the chapel as the congregation chanted in unison. We were privileged to witness this numinous, sacred moment.

That evening, we witnessed another example of the Russian love for beauty, reverence and artistic excellence on the highest level. We were treated to a Russian folk music recital by a very talented group of young people who played traditional instruments, many of which I did not recognize. We saw and heard balalaikas, dulcimer-like stringed instruments, an auto-harp or koto-like stringed instrument, accordions, drums and flutes. The performance was delightful, the music beautiful and the musicians obviously accomplished. I only wish I were less ignorant about the history of Russian folk music and traditional instruments.

The next morning, we drove once more past the Cathedral of Christ the Savior, gleaming in the very cold morning sun light, on our way to the Tretyakov Art Gallery to view an impressive collection of Russian art. We saw mostly Eighteenth to Twentieth Century portraits, landscapes, historical and allegorical paintings, but also some very fine icons. Once again I was reminded how tragic it is that Americans, perhaps because of the many years of the Cold War, are taught nothing about Russian art in our public education, and I was again embarrassed by my own ignorance yet determined to learn more. Let me share a brief listing of some of the paintings that seemed to me especially skillful and significant: Alexander Ivanoff’s The Appearance of Christ to the People, a huge canvas which 

The Tretyakov also has a comprehensive and well-presented collection of Russian icons from a variety of time periods and artistic styles. Among my favorites were painted icons of St. John in Patmos, St George and the Dragon, and a mosaic icon of Dmitry of Thessalonica. Subsequent to my visit to the Tretyakov Gallery, I researched all of the paintings mentioned above and other works by Russian artists on line. I encourage everyone to explore Russia’s monumental contribution to Art History. To begin, try googling the Tretyakov Gallery, as not surprisingly, this state owned museum houses the finest collection of Russian art in the world.

We returned to the modern age in the afternoon with a visit to the Cosmonaut Museum. This interesting and accessible museum is located in a pleasant park setting dominated by a large slender titanium obelisk entitled Monument to the Conquerors of Space. This sculptural giant depicting a rocket rising on its exhaust plume was erected in 1964 to celebrate the dawn of the space age, and indeed it was the Russians who first entered outer space. The two-story museum is well designed with a gentle ramp, allowing the disabled as well as the exhausted to view the exhibits on both levels without exertion. The collection included actual space crafts, space suits, part of a rocket that landed on the moon, meteors and even the packaged foods including the dehydrated sour cream that was deemed essential for the Russian cosmonauts to take with them into outer space.

We were startled by the two cute little taxidermy dogs who, while they were alive, were sent into orbit early in the Russian space program and returned safely. The notes on their exhibit assured visitors that both little females subsequently lived long and happy lives prior to becoming museum exhibits. As expected, there was also plenty of information about Yuri Gargarin, the Russian pilot and cosmonaut who in 1961 became the first man in outer space, orbiting the earth aboard the Vostok 1. We were charmed to see that the museum also displayed a collegial attitude toward the American space program with a large photograph of the three American astronauts who were the first to land on the moon, Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins, who took Apollo 11 to the moon in 1969. And a display in the Cosmonaut Museum admits that Russia has made four attempts to send a manned rocket to the moon, and all four efforts have failed. 

​After an evening of viewing the lights of Moscow from Sparrow Hill, the highest point in the city, enjoying the magnificent architecture of the University of Moscow, and taking in the lights of Red Square and the Kremlin at night by boat in the freezing cold, we had just enough energy for a daytime walking tour of the Kremlin, bitterly cold even in the morning sun. As we know, the word “kremlin” refers to the fortified governmental center of any Russian city, but “The Kremlin” always brings to mind Moscow’s Kremlin, the center of the Russian government. This massive walled area, protected by tall brick guard towers, overlooks the Moskva River to the south, St. Basil’s Cathedral and Red Square to the east and the Alexander Garden to the west. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Center. Occupied by ancient people since the Second Century B.C., the Kremlin now houses four cathedrals, five palaces, museums, government buildings and the official residence of the President of the Russian Federation.

Our tour of the Kremlin took us to two magnificent gold-domed cathedrals, St. Michael Archangel Cathedral and the Cathedral of the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary, also called the Assumption Cathedral. This latter cathedral was founded in 1406 and is filled with gloriously gilded icons covering all of the walls. The crown jewel of the Assumption Cathedral is an especially beautiful Dormition icon, painted in 1479, depicting Jesus and his Apostles calling the Virgin Mary to heaven. The equally beautiful Archangel Michael Cathedral contains a large number of tombs, including the tomb of Ivan the Terrible, Russia’s first Tsar. A little research leads us to conclude that the word “terrible” originally meant “inspiring fear or terror,” so a better title to describe Ivan might be Ivan the Formidable or perhaps even Ivan the Awesome. In any case, these two lovely Cathedrals in the Kremlin were significant in Ivan’s life, as he was crowned first Tsar of All Russia in the Dormition Cathedral in 1547 and buried in St. Michael Archangel in 1584. A fascinating figure in Russian history whose behavior was on occasion terrible, Ivan transformed Russia from a medieval collection of towns and cities to a major empire, symbolized even today by the Kremlin.

In the afternoon of our final day in Russia we visited one of the four buildings of the Pushkin Museum, the one containing a world class collection of Impressionist and Post-Impressionist paintings. Wayne and I both love the Impressionists and have seen excellent exhibits in the Louvre, in Holland, in Japan where the Impressionists are deeply appreciated, and in many other museums elsewhere in Europe and Asia and throughout the United States, but we felt that the Pushkin had an excellent selection by all of the best painters in this genre. Every name in the Impressionist and Post-Impressionist panoply was well represented, including works by Monet depicting a Japanese bridge with waterlilies and Rouen Cathedral, familiar motifs by this most beloved painter. I was also drawn to a deeply colorful and breathtaking painting by van Gough entitled “The Red Vineyard at Arles.” Painted in 1888, legend has it that this beautiful work is the only painting sold by van Gogh during his own lifetime. This painting alone is worth a visit to the Pushkin Museum.

We said a poignant farewell to Russia, a clean and orderly country filled with friendly, hard- working people, good food and a passion for painting, literature, music, dance and folk crafts of the very highest standards. As a concluding thought, I will share with you that while many North Americans have read the works of Dostoyevsky, Tolstoy or Chekov, either as college assignments or for personal pleasure, it is the writings of Alexander Pushkin that have captured and remain in the hearts of the Russian people. This poet, novelist, playwright and writer of folk tales of the Romantic era lived only briefly from 1799 to 1837, when he died in a duel defending his wife’s honor. But there are statues of Pushkin all over Russian, and he is loved throughout his native land as the founder of modern Russian literature. I have put Pushkin on my reading list. I think I’ll start with his Fairy Tales, and picture the beautiful Russian countryside as I read them.

Meanwhile, I will leave you with a recipe for Russian Apple Sponge Cake to eat with a cup of Russian Caravan Tea while you are reading Pushkin. This is the cake that we were served in Uglich by Rita the icon artist when we visited her and her husband Vladimir in their home. (See my February 2017 blog, Relishing Russia Part II: Along the Waterways.) It’s also perfectly all right to serve this cake with Irish Breakfast Tea (or even Irish Coffee) at your St. Patrick’s Day party this month, as both the Russians and the Irish live in cold countries where apples are plentiful and everyone loves good literature, good music and good food. Don’t forget that we have a lovely Russian Tea menu as well as a St. Patrick’s Day Tea menu at myteaplanner.com, the Road Back to Civilization. Finally, take a look at Kathleen’s blog this month on Cake Pedestals. This simple yet elegant Apple Cake would look gorgeous served on your best cake pedestal.

​This light, airy cake, filled with chopped apples, is like a little black dress or a navy blazer. It is welcome at any occasion, and its true charm is its simplicity. Called a Sharlotka Cake (Apple Charlotte) in Russia, this pastry is popular throughout the country and can be served at any time of the day, although it is traditional to serve it in the evening with hot tea after dinner. In its simplest form, Apple Sharlotka contains only four ingredients, eggs, sugar, flour and chopped apples, no butter, spices or nuts. Other versions call for the addition of vanilla, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, or even raisins and walnuts. I have chosen the middle road, and include very small amounts of almond extract, nutmeg, lemon juice and salt. A dusting of powdered sugar on top is all an Apple Sharlotka needs, although you could serve this delicious cake with sour cream or vanilla ice cream.
 
Please note that it is difficult to discern when this cake is done, as the batter can remain doughy as it mingles with the chopped apples. Using an oblong glass baking pan will make it easier to see when the cake is fully cooked, but a spring form pan makes a very attractive presentation. You will have to test carefully with a wooden skewer to determine when this cake is done.

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​Preheat oven to 350°F
 
Special equipment: large mixing bowl, 2 medium sized mixing bowls, sifter or sieve, parchment paper, aluminum foil, plastic wrap, electric mixer, citrus juicer, paring knife, wooden spoon, colander, rubber spatula, 10” or 11" spring form pan, (or 13” x 9” glass baking pan) large baking sheet, wooden skewer, wire rack, cake pedestal for presentation

Makes: one 10” cake, 8-12 servings

1. Spray the bottom and sides of a 10” or 11" spring form pan with cooking spray. Line the bottom with a round of parchment paper. Spray the parchment. Place the prepared pan on a foil lined baking sheet and set aside. If using a glass pan or Bundt pan, spray with cooking spray, but do not line with parchment.
2. Sift the flour, baking powder, salt and nutmeg into a medium sized bowl and set aside. In another medium sized bowl, mix 2 tablespoons of sugar and 1 tablespoon of lemon juice. Peel and core three apples, one at a time, and cut each apple into very small pieces, adding the apple pieces to the sugar and lemon juice and stirring the mixture with a wooden spoon to coat the apples as you proceed. Cover the bowl of apple pieces with plastic wrap and set aside.
3. Combine the eggs, 1 cup of sugar and almond extract in a large mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer for about 8 minutes until the mixture is thick, very foamy and light yellow in color. Add the flour, a small amount at a time, to the egg mixture and fold it in with a rubber spatula, using an over and under motion, until no flour is still visible.
4. Place the apple mixture in a colander to drain off the lemon juice. Gently fold the apple pieces into the batter to distribute evenly, and pour the mixture into the prepared pan.  Smooth the top of the cake with a spatula and bake it for approximately 1 hour or more until a wooden skewer comes out clean.
5. Cool on a wire rack for 15 minutes. If using a glass pan, sift powdered sugar over the cake and serve while still warm. If using a spring form pan, remove the cake from the pan, peel off the parchment and place the cake on a cake pedestal or serving plate. Sift powdered sugar over the warm cake.

 
Note: This cake can be served while warm or refrigerated and served chilled or at room temperature.

​We left St. Petersburg with memories of the cold autumn wind blowing through the willows on the Bay of Finland at glorious Peterhof Palace. Under puffy white clouds in pristine but chilly air, we boarded our cruise ship to begin our pilgrimage down Russia’s waterways toward Moscow. During the night we cruised through Lake Ladoga, Europe’s largest lake, apparently with a lot of rocking of the boat. We noticed none of the turbulence and slept like angels (if indeed angels sleep) with images of the luminous gold mosaic icons of St.  Petersburg’s Church of the Spilled Blood floating through our dreams. By morning we were on the gentle Svir River where forests of birch, aspen and pines, all the same height, stood along the banks, the leaves of the aspens and birches turning gold among the deep green and fragrant pines.
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​Our first stopping place was the charmingly reconstructed town of Mandrogy, utterly destroyed during the Second World War and now resurrected as a crafts village with lovely little nineteenth century style wooden buildings where the artists live and work. Visitors can observe the artisans carving or painting the famous Russian nesting dolls, called matryoshka, or “little matrons.” This quintessentially Russian art form was probably introduced from Japan well over a hundred years ago and has found a lasting home. Matryoshkas come in a vast variety of sizes, colors and designs. A set can include as many as ten wooden dolls, carved and hollowed out, with each holding a smaller doll. Each doll is sliced into two pieces horizontally, and the fun in is disassembling each doll to discover another doll within and another and another, each brightly and elaborately decorated and only slightly smaller than the doll in which it nests. Matryoshkas can be appreciated for their aesthetic beauty, but they are also fascinating to children, who love taking them apart and putting them back together again. This process is actually an intriguing learning device, helping children to recognize size contrasts and spatial relationships while enjoying artistic beauty.

Many other local arts and crafts are available in Mandrogy: jewelry made of Baltic amber, lacquered and beautifully decorated papier- mache boxes, elegant linen shawls, scarves and tablecloths, boxes made from birch bark and pottery. One can enjoy the entire town in a single gentle afternoon stroll. Attractions include a Vodka museum, a smithy, horse stables, a mill and a banya, a Russian style steam sauna. There is also a traditional restaurant in Mandrogy, and we discovered that they sell piroshkyies to go at a little counter in the back. A piroshky is a hand pie, similar to an English pasty, and it can be either savory or sweet. We sampled both, as fortunately, the kitchen continued to send out a steady stream of freshly baked piroshkies in a variety of different flavors. Wayne loved his pork piroshky, and I loved my mushroom version. Both were very fresh and delicious. Other available savory flavors included cabbage, cheese or potato. For dessert I had a cherry piroshky, as delicious as the cherry pies of my childhood, and Wayne ordered one called cowberry, which we later learned is another name for lingonberry, a wild fruit which grows in northern climates and is a frequent ingredient in Nordic cooking and baking. It too was fresh, sweet and memorable. One of the Russian guides who worked on our ship told us that she always gets piroshkies when the boat docks in Mandrogy because they are her favorites. We couldn’t disagree.

A cynic might accuse Mandrogy of being a tourist trap, and we would not argue with that assessment, but we found the place utterly charming, a bit like Colonial Williamsburg in Virginia. The artists were welcoming and gracious, happy to allow the tourists to observe them at their work. And the setting itself, with the authentically constructed wooden buildings surrounded by birch trees, pines, fresh air and the beautiful river, took us back in time to a simpler era when arts and crafts had a dignity and beauty based entirely on the natural world.
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​The larger of the two churches is unheated and is used in summer. The smaller nine-domed church contains a wood stove for winter heating. The churches are made of unpainted horizontal pine logs and share a single plot of land which includes a graveyard filled with Russian style wood crosses. The churches and the cemetery are enclosed by a low stone wall topped by more horizontal pine logs and aspen shingles to keep the cattle and other animals out of the sacred space. 

​The larger summer Church of the Transfiguration was being restored, so we visited the smaller winter Church of the Intercession. Some of the icons, including the large Transfiguration icon from the larger church were on display in the narthex of the smaller winter church. The interior was decorated entirely with rows of icons and horizontal painted wooden panels. Many of the icons contained gold paint which glowed in the cool dim sanctuary. We were struck by the austere beauty of this remote and ancient place. 
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​Only a small human community remains on Kizhi island, caretakers of these exquisite wooden churches, a windmill and the former home of a merchant, his family and his livestock. As our ship sailed away toward Goritzy, near the White Lake, only a few mallards and sea gulls were at the dock to see us off. 
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On board, we enjoyed a Russian-style Afternoon Tea, presented as a buffet. The menu included hot Russian Breakfast Tea, served from a samovar with lemon and an array of pastries. These sweets included blini with sour cream and jam, an apple tart with custard on the bottom and a cherry tart, both served cold. There was also a spiral poppy seed pastry, doughnut-like treats with jam centers, and rolled, filled coconut and walnut pastries called Piroshnoye. I noted that there were no chocolate desserts of any kind, nor were there any savory items. We learned that although Russians serve bread with every meal, they do not like sandwiches, and do not even consider them food. This may explain the absence of the little sandwiches that are usually served with Afternoon Tea in other cultures.

​On October 4, the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi, we docked at Goritzy to visit the Kirillo-Belozersky Monastery, once the largest religious community in Russia. Founded in 1397 by St. Cyril (spelled Kirill in Russian,) by the Seventeenth Century, the complex included two monasteries and eleven churches, protected by thick walls and eight guard towers. This large community became a center of learning and a place of pilgrimage for Tsars, including Ivan the Terrible, a generous donor. The Kirillo-Belozersky Monastery preserved important religious documents and housed an extensive library. In the Eighteenth Century, the monks felt the wrath of Catherine the Great, who confiscated the monastery lands, and in the Twentieth Century, the Bolsheviks closed the monastery and executed many of the monks.

​Today, the monks have returned, the churches are functioning again, and guests are welcome to visit both the churches and the monastery’s museum, all filled with magnificent icons. We arrived in freezing wind and heavy rain, trekking over slippery cobblestones and through chilly puddles, yet the monastery, situated on the bank of the White Lake, was a beautiful beacon, surrounded by marigolds, red salvia and lilac bushes, its glorious green domes calling us through the cold. In the museum we viewed an impressive collection of icons in various styles. We saw a beautiful icon of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin, referred to as the Dormition in the Russian tradition, for which the monastery’s Dormition Cathedral is named. We also saw a gorgeous Transfiguration icon and two different icons of the Trinity. The traditional Russian Orthodox iconography for the Trinity depicts the three men (actually the Father, Son and Holy Spirit in disguise) who visited Abraham and Sarah as angelic figures. The other Trinity icon, more like the Roman Catholic version, showed the Father and Son as human-like persons and the Holy Spirit as a dove. We were also invited to visit the church, filled with lighted candles reflecting off the golden icons on the lovely iconostasis. St. Cyril is buried in this church under a beautiful gold sarcophagus.
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​We took a bus ride through the majestic national forest in which the monastery is located. We were told that elk, foxes, bears, eagles and falcons live in this cold, clean northern habitat, but we didn’t see any, just the familiar mallards and sea gulls. The bus took us on to the town of Kuzino, to which our ship had moved in our absence. In the chilly evening back on the boat, we enjoyed a hearty Russian dinner of very good borscht seasoned with a little cumin seed, stuffed cabbage on a beet puree, and a very nice Russian honey cake, sort of like squares of soft graham crackers stacked on top of each other with a honey buttercream filling. Our chef also treated us to a demonstration on how to make Pelmeni, which are little savory dumplings similar to tortellini or perhaps won tons, but served, as is the Russian tradition, with sour cream. If you would like to try making your own Pelmeni, the recipe appears at the end of this blog.
​

​Our next destination was the ancient city of Yaroslavl, a UNESCO World Heritage Site on the confluence of the Volga and Kotorosol Rivers. This charming and cultured city was established in 1010 by King Yaroslav to Christianize the “pagans” who lived along the two rivers and worshipped bears. Yaroslavl is home to the oldest theater in Russia, an excellent university and several of the most beautiful churches in the country. The old town center, where these churches are located, is the UNESCO Site. The Church of Saint John the Baptist is justly famous for its fifteen gorgeously glazed onion domes and its seven-story, elegantly designed bell tower. Constructed of carved red brick, this Fifteenth Century masterpiece is considered the pinnacle of the Yaroslavl School of Architecture.
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​Our final stop before cruising on to Moscow was the interesting town of Uglich on the Volga River. Established in 1148, this lovely city is home to 35,000 people and the magnificent Church of Saint Dmitry on the Blood. This memorial church was built to honor Dmitry, the eight-year-old son of Ivan the Terrible. The church is located on the exact spot where the little boy’s bleeding body was found in 1591, apparently killed by a sword. Numerous versions of the cause of the child’s death still abound, from accidentally falling on his sword during an epileptic seizure to murder by a power hungry member of his own family. The beautiful church named for Dmitry contains frescoes depicting the boy’s murder, gorgeous icons and an ancient bell, the one used to call the locals to arms after the boy’s death was discovered.

​Uglich was once the home of a busy watch factory which employed a large number of skilled jewelers and artisans. Now that the factory has closed, these workers are finding employment in other areas. We had the privilege of visiting one such couple, Vladimir and Rita, in their home, where we were welcomed with generous hospitality. We were greeted by the handsome family dog as we toured the extensive back yard garden where the couple grow their own cabbages and other vegetables for making Borscht. Inside, we were seated around the dining room table with other members of our small group where we were treated to glasses of homemade “moonshine” at nine o’clock in the morning, complemented by dark bread and homemade dill pickles. After three rounds of toasts, Vladimir, who spoke good English, told us about his and his wife’s new occupation as icon artists. With their training as jewelers, they make the silver filigree frames for very elegant icons that are painted by other artists. He showed us an example of one of the finished icons, which would sell for many thousands of dollars. Most of these are being purchased by wealthy Russians who then donate them to the many churches that are being reconstructed after years of religious persecution.
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​Rita served us excellent hot black tea with pieces of lovely apple sponge cake that she had baked that morning. And we learned a little about their domestic life. The couple showed us some charming paintings made by their young daughter. And their cozy home revealed the entire family’s resourcefulness and self-reliance, with stores of homemade jams and pickles in their pantry and jars of dried mushrooms, which they had picked in the nearby forests. Mushrooms are another important staple of Russian cooking. No doubt Vladimir and his family were compensated by Viking, as our visit was a shore excursion sponsored by our cruise ship, but we left with a sense of genuine friendship and cultural exchange. No matter what may be going on in the political worlds of our two giant countries, ordinary people can still share the simple joy of our shared humanity.
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Our final stop in Uglich before cruising down the Volga to Moscow was a visit to the city’s Kremlin, the Russian word for a major fortified central complex. Situated on the high bank of the river and accessible from an old stone bridge, this ancient gathering area houses Uglich’s Spaso-Preobrazhensky Cathedral. 

​Within the cathedral, we had the opportunity to hear a five-person a cappella choir perform a gloriously beautiful ancient church hymn. The high lyric soprano voice of the young girl, the only female in the group, reflected off the soaring golden walls of the cathedral, an aural complement to the glimmering icons. In another church in the Kremlin complex, now a museum, we heard an a cappella male quartet singing ancient liturgical chants in glorious harmonies.

​We said “goodbye” to the echoing voices and the cold, clear waterways of old Russia as we enjoyed a charming lunch of local foods back on our ship on our way to an even more famous Kremlin and the bustling city of Moscow. Our meal included Marinated Herring with Potatoes, Ucha, a Russian fish soup with potatoes and onions, and the familiar Blini, filled with sweetened cottage cheese and topped with lingonberries. Russian food and the Russian people themselves seemed not at all foreign to us. Russians are people who like to laugh, sing, dance, eat good food and fall in love, just as we do.
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​And speaking of love, Kathleen has reminded us in her February blog that this is the month to celebrate St. Valentine’s Day. While Valentine’s Day is not a traditional Russian holiday, it has come to our attention that many Russians in this post-Bolshevik era enjoy a little romance along with the rest of us, and Russians have been known to celebrate this special day with love letters, poems, flowers, candy and romantic walks in the park. Does this sound familiar? Taking an imaginative leap, I would like to leave you this month with a Russian-inspired Valentine’s Day Lunch menu, including the recipe for the promised Pelmeni. We can find the rest of the items for this menu in myteaplanner.com and in our various blogs. Happy Russian Valentine’s Day!
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​A Russian Valentine’s Day Lunch
Borscht with Pelmeni Garnished with Sour Cream and Dill
(Recipes below)
 
Charlotte’s Marinated Mushrooms
(A Russian Tea, myteaplanner.com)
 
Open-faced Smoked Salmon Sandwiches on Swirled Rye
(A Russian Tea, myteaplanner.com)
 
Charlotte Rousse
(A Russian Tea, myteaplanner.com)
 
Suzi’s Marbled Sugar Cookie Hearts
(Kathleen’s Blog: February 2017, “Valentine’s Day”
 
Russian Caravan Tea and or Vodka
 

Chef Oleg Zagorodnyk of Ha kyxhe restaurant and cooking school in St. Petersburg taught us to make this very delicious and healthy Borscht. We have made it several times since returning home to Hawaii. We hope you enjoy it as much as we do.  You can add protein and extra flavor to this already nutrition-packed soup by including freshly cooked Pelmeni, Russian meat dumplings. The recipe for Pelmeni follows.

• 2-3 medium sized beets, greens removed and peeled
• 1 large onion
• 2 medium sized russet potatoes
• 1 small head of cabbage
• 1 large carrot
• 4 tablespoons butter (or use olive oil, but the flavor will not be as good)
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 1 slice of lemon, peel cut off
• salt and pepper
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 large can (49.5 ounces) chicken broth
• sour cream for garnish
• chopped sprigs of fresh dill for garnish

​Special equipment: large sharp knife, wooden spoon or heat-proof rubber spatula, food grater, large Dutch oven or other cooking pot with lid, ladle
Makes: 6-8 servings

1. Thinly slice the onion, beets and potatoes; then cut them into small julienned pieces. Melt the butter in a large Dutch oven or cooking pot over medium low heat, and add the cut-up vegetables, stirring with a wooden spoon or rubber spatula until the onions start to turn golden.
2. As the vegetables continue to cook, grate the carrot and the cabbage and add them to the pot, stirring to make sure the vegetables do not stick to the bottom and burn. Add a little of the chicken broth if the mixture becomes too dry. Saute the vegetable mixture for about 20 minutes.
3. Season the vegetables in the pot with salt (about 1 teaspoon) and freshly ground pepper to taste and stir. Add the bay leaf. Finely mince 2 cloves of garlic and stir into the vegetable mixture. Cook briefly. Pour the remaining chicken broth into the pot, and bring the soup to a simmer on medium heat.
4. Chop the lemon slice into small pieces and add to the pot. (The purpose of adding lemon is to preserve the bright red color of the beets.) Place the lid on the pot at an angle so steam can escape and simmer on low heat for about half an hour.  Taste the soup and adjust the amount of salt and pepper if you wish.
5. To serve, ladle the Borscht into bowls, top with a dollop of sour cream, and sprinkle each bowl with a little chopped fresh dill. Add Pelmeni to the Borscht if you wish.

​
​Pelmeni
 
These little savory dumplings resemble tortellini or won ton and are delicious boiled and served in soups, like the Italian and Chinese versions. This recipe calls for a meat filling of ground beef, ground pork, onions and garlic. You can also make vegetarian Pelmeni by filling the pasta pockets with a mixture of ricotta cheese, black pepper and chopped chives. These Pelmeni will be boiled and added to a pot of hot Borscht for a hearty Russian lunch.
 
For the Pasta:

• 3 cups flour, plus more for rolling out the pasta
• 2 large eggs
• ¾ cup water
• ¼ teaspoon salt

 
For the Filling:

• ½ pound ground beef
• ½ pound ground pork
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 5 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 2 large egg whites, beaten

 
Garnish:

• Sour cream or
• Melted butter
• Sprigs of dill

 
Special equipment: large mixing bowl, fork, rolling pin, ruler, round 2-inch cookie cutter, medium sized mixing bowl, teaspoon, pastry brush, large cooking pot
 
Makes: 6 servings

1. Make the pasta. In a large bowl, combine 2 cups of the flour, 2 eggs, water and salt. Stir with a fork until the flour is moistened and the eggs have been incorporated into the mixture. Knead, adding the remaining flour, until the dough forms a ball.
2. Transfer the dough to a floured surface and roll it out until it is very thin, about 1/16”. Using a round 2”  cookie cutter, cut the dough into circles. Set aside. Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat.
3. Make the filling as the water comes to a boil. Combine all of the filling ingredients in a medium sized bowl and mix thoroughly with your hands.  Place a teaspoon of the filling in the center of each of the dough circles. Brush the edges with egg white and fold each dumpling in half, pressing the edges to seal.
4. Add the Pelmeni to the boiling water and cook for about 5 minutes until the filling is cooked through. Serve alone topped with sour cream and dill or melted butter, or add to a pot of hot Borscht for a hearty soup.

​Golden Autumn had already settled on St. Petersburg when we arrived in this glorious city at the end of September. The fluttering aspen along the Neva River and the linden trees in the spacious palace grounds were turning yellow; the air was crisp and cool. Our intention was to explore the artistic and culinary riches of St. Petersburg before boarding a river boat and cruising down the Neva, across Lake Ladoga, into the Baltic Waterway and finally down the Volga to Moscow.
 

​Russia’s artistic riches are almost too abundant to fathom. This vast country has produced literature, symphonic music, classical ballet, painting and architecture of the highest order. In addition, Russia’s folk art tradition brings color and depth of meaning to this ancient, diverse and complex culture. Russian folk music, folk dance, fairy tales and hand crafts reveal a dignity and respect for precision, detail and patience that only a culture of scarcity and brutal weather conditions can produce. The creation of icons, which combines, art, craft and ministry, is one of Russia’s greatest contributions to the world, and icons were everywhere to be seen during our time in Russia.
 

​People who have never been to Russia probably know at least one significant fact about St. Petersburg: It is the home of the Hermitage Museum, housing a world class art collection, second only to the Louvre in Paris in size and scope, deposited in five magnificent Classical and Baroque palaces, which are in themselves among the most beautiful buildings in the world. We visited the Hermitage on three separate occasions during our time in St. Petersburg, even touring the warehouse area in a separate location where large items such as entire suites of furniture and elaborately decorated Turkish tents, which are not on display at the museum, are kept. One cannot hope to see even a fraction of the contents of the Hermitage in three visits, but we saw what we could.
 

​And we were grateful that the works of even the world’s greatest artists, Leonardo da Vinci, Rembrandt, Michelangelo, and the other giants, are accessible to every viewer, who can stand right in front of each painting or sculpture and look at it up close, free from plastic shields and security buzzers. In the Gold and Diamond Rooms, of course, the items are displayed in glass cases for obvious reasons. We viewed beautifully worked gold crowns, headdresses, earrings and necklaces, some of very ancient origin, and an overwhelming collection of jewelry, swords and even decorative equipment for horses, encrusted with huge diamonds, rubies, sapphires, emeralds, pearls and other precious stones.

​These items belonged to various Tsars and Empresses, most notably Catherine the Great, who owned 15,000 dresses, almost all of which were decorated with jewels and gold embroidery, and many of which are on display in the Hermitage. The Gold and Diamond Rooms, if not the royal palaces, gardens and coaches themselves, are silent testimony to the inevitable necessity of the Russian Revolution. Indeed, the entire city of St.  Petersburg, founded by Peter the Great in 1703, is a monument to the excesses of the Baroque Era, beautiful though it was. Peter, whose personality combined equal parts of brilliance and cruelty, was determined to turn the heads of the Russian people away from the ancient Tartar culture and the influence of Turkey and toward France and Holland, whose “modern” ways he admired and envied. In Peter’s view, France was the most advanced and cultured country in the world, and it was through Peter that Russia’s love affair/obsession with all things French began.
 

​We visited Catherine Palace in nearby Pushkin Town, and Peterhof, Peter’s own estate on the Bay of Finland, both designed to outshine Versailles with room after room of gold encrusted carved columns, painted ceilings adorned with more gold, sparkling crystal chandeliers and suites of elaborately carved and gilded furniture. Peter, along with one of his very capable serfs, designed and engineered the complex series of fountains on the grounds of Peterhof, today a magnate for tourists until the winter months when snow and ice prevent the fountains from functioning.
 

​A bit satiated with the Baroque and Rococo glories of Eighteenth Century architecture, we welcomed our afternoon at Ha kyxhe (pronounced na kukchne, meaning “in the kitchen,”) a restaurant and cooking school where chefs Oleg Zagorodnyk and Aly Yakcheev introduced us to the hearty, down to earth charms of Russian cooking. We were greeted by the restaurant cat, a well-fed, fluffy white beauty who keeps the customers entertained while their food is being prepared in the open kitchen. In between cooking seared tuna and grilled vegetables for the lunch crowd, Chef Oleg taught us how to make Borscht, the national soup of Russia.
 

​Borscht is a healthy combination of finely chopped beets, potatoes, cabbage, carrots and onions, sautéed in butter and then simmered for about half an hour in broth, either beef, chicken or vegetable. A little garlic, salt and pepper are added for flavor, along with a slice of chopped lemon (or a little vinegar) to maintain the bright red color of the beets. Borscht is served with a dollop of sour cream and a sprig of fresh dill on top. We ate the Borscht we made with Chef Oleg, and it was beyond delicious. He told us that there are at least thirty different recipes for Borscht in Russia, depending on regional preferences. To make your own Borscht, which makes a perfect lunch along with some dark bread with butter or cheese, check Kathleen’s recipe in “A Russian Tea” in the World of Tea Parties section of myteaplanner.com. Chef Oleg gave Kathleen’s Borscht recipe his seal of approval, although he seemed to think that pureeing the soup after cooking the vegetables turned it into more of a “gourmet” dish. We ate Borscht a few days later on the cruise ship bound for Moscow. The chef on our ship added a little caraway seed to the Borscht, which I thought was quite tasty.
 

​Back at Ha kyxhe, we needed dessert, and Chef Aly taught us to make Blini, which are Russian Crepes. He insisted that a cook should develop a feeling for the correct consistency of the batter rather than measuring the ingredients exactly. Blini batter should resemble heavy cream in texture. The ingredients included flour, a little sugar, a little salt, equal amounts of milk and kefir, a dollop of sour cream, one or two eggs, and a little melted butter. These had to be whisked vigorously in a large mixing bowl with a large wire whisk, not an electric mixer. Chef Aly may be young, but his culinary training is old school. The Blini batter needs to be poured from a ladle into a lightly oiled skillet while one tilts the pan until the entire bottom is covered with a very thin layer of batter. As the Blini cooks briefly over medium heat, the chef watches the edges to see when they start to brown slightly. When this occurs, he picks the Blini up by the edges and flips it over, cooking it for a few more seconds until lightly browned. Somehow, Chef Aly manages this process without burning his fingers; I used disposable gloves to protect my fingertips. Blini should be brushed with melted butter as soon as they are removed from the pan and stacked on a plate until all the batter has been used.
 

​Here is my guess at the ingredient measurements that Chef Aly and I used in preparing our Blini:
 
            2 cups of all-purpose flour
            1 cup milk
            1 cup kefir
            1 rounded tablespoon sour cream
            2 eggs
            1 teaspoon salt
            2-3 tablespoons sugar
            1-2 tablespoons cooking oil or melted butter
            2 tablespoons fresh poppy seeds
 

​Blini can be filled and folded over with savory fillings such as sautéed mushrooms, cheese, chopped cooked meat with fresh herbs, or even caviar and sour cream. Kathleen offers this latter combination in her Blini recipe in our Russian Tea Menu in myteaplanner.com. Kathleen’s Blini, by the way, are made with buckwheat flour, giving them an earthy, rustic quality. At Ha kyxhe, we ate our Blini with sour cream and honey, and Chef Aly added poppy seeds to the batter for some of the Blini to create an extra delicious and quintessentially Russian treat.
 

We learned as our travels continued that sour cream is the essential condiment at every Russian meal, dolloped on top of porridge and fresh fruit for breakfast, into the soup at lunch and on the potatoes, cabbage and meat at dinner time. Later, when touring the Cosmonaut Museum in Moscow, we learned that the Russian Cosmonauts, the first human beings in outer space, were sent on their mission with packages of dehydrated sour cream.

​Before leaving beautiful St. Petersburg, we had two more truly memorable experiences, a visit to the Church of the Spilled Blood, built between 1883 and 1907 to commemorate the 1881 assassination of Tsar Alexander II and an evening performance of Peter Ilych Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake in the Mikhailovsky Theatre. The Mikhailovsky Theatre, built in 1833 on St. Petersburg’s Arts Square, has an elegant Neo-classical exterior. Its interior, however, is a rococo confection with four tiers of box seats along the right and left walls and a charming parterre. The décor imitates a Romanov palace with velvet curtains, swags and chair upholstery, sparkling mirrors and crystal chandeliers and a stunning painted ceiling dome by the Italian artist, Giovanni Busato. Named after the Grand Duke Michael Pavlovich, and built by decree of Tsar Nicholas I, the Mikhailovshy is one of the oldest ballet and opera theaters in Russia.
 

​Our evening with Swan Lake was a delight for the senses and the spirit. The large cast of thirty-six very able dancers, led by Svetlana Bednenko as Odette-Odile and Victor Lebedev as Prince Siegfried, mesmerized us with their virtuosity, artistic sensitivity and warmth while the orchestra, conducted by Pavel Klinichev, brought the magic of Tchaikovsky’s music to life. And the costumes and sets were as gorgeous as the theater itself.
 

​People watching at the Mikhailosky was also a treat. No American style jeans and sweatshirts at the ballet for the Russian gentlemen, and certainly not for the ladies. These ballet attendees were out for a night of glamor in their chic and colorful dresses with just the right sparkling necklace to complete their costumes. They seemed to be channeling Catherine the Great herself! The snacks also fit the occasion and certainly eclipsed the intermission fare we have eaten at American ballet and opera events. Elegant couples snacked and sipped on open-faced caviar sandwiches and champagne, chocolate torte, mini Pavlovas and Napoleons. I noted a charming mother and young daughter, equally stylish in their attire, sitting at a café table where the girl was eating, with perfect table manners, a generous serving of chocolate gelato from a beautifully shaped dessert glass (no Styrofoam cups at the Mikhailovsky!)
 

​It was inspiring to witness the Russian people’s love and appreciation of the ballet for the glorious art form it is. Contemporary Russians also love their churches, and they are meticulously repairing those that were neglected during the soviet era. In some cases, the Russians are completely rebuilding the churches that were simply blown up by soviets in the dark days of religious persecution. Icon artists are also busily at work creating new Icons in both the ancient Byzantine style and in the more Western Realistic style of the French-obsessed Seventeenth century.
 

​The creation of Icons, visual depictions of Biblical events, particularly in the lives of Jesus and Mary, began around 988 when Russia embraced the Orthodox form of Christianity, imported through Greece from the Byzantine Empire in Constantinople. Because Christianity came to Russia from the East rather than from Western Europe, Russian Orthodox churches reflect the Eastern architectural style, which includes a square footprint with one to several onion-shaped domes topped with large gold crosses on the roof. The domes themselves are often covered with gold leaf, and gold leaf is used extensively in the creation of Icons, especially to depict the halos of the saints. Icons typically cover the interior walls of Russian Orthodox churches, especially the iconostasis, a screen with central double doors which separates the nave of the church, where the worshippers stand, from the sanctuary, where the altar is located.
 

​An excellent example of neo-Medieval Russian style church architecture is the Church of the Spilled blood, located on the Griboedov Canal in St. Petersburg. Funded by the Imperial Family and private donors, this magnificent memorial church was built on an old cobblestone road next to the canal on the exact spot where Tsar Alexander II was ambushed and murdered by two terrorists in March of 1881. The church, also referred to as The Church of the Savior on Spilled blood and The Cathedral of the Resurrection, was constructed during the reign of Alexander III. Instead of imitating the Western-style Baroque and Neo-Classical architecture prominent in St. Petersburg at the time, the architect, Alfred Parland, created a church reminiscent of Russia’s Romantic medieval churches such as St. Basil’s Cathedral in Moscow.
 

​The church is constructed of brown bricks, richly decorated with gold exterior mosaics and topped with gold, blue and green onion domes. The interior, however, is the Church of the Spilled Blood’s true glory. All of the walls and the ceiling, including the interior dome, are covered with elaborate and gorgeously created icons depicting significant Biblical events such as the Resurrection of Christ, the namesake of the church. The icon of Christ Pantocrator in the interior dome is breathtaking, but one is nearly overwhelmed by the glorious beauty of all of the shining icons, reflecting the shimmering light from the gold iconostasis illuminated by elaborate chandeliers.
 

​Across the mosaic floor, opposite the sanctuary, is the memorial shrine, built directly over the old cobblestones where Alexander II was mortally wounded. Shaped in the form of a ciborium, a canopy resembling the golden cup used to hold bread for the liturgy, the shrine reminds the visitor not just of bread, but also of blood, both human and divine. The spiritual solemnity of this place echoes everywhere, from floor to ceiling, wall to wall. And the amount of artistic energy, on the very highest level of which human beings are capable, is a gift to the world for all of time. Although The Church of the Spilled Blood was mistreated during the soviet era, it is truly a miracle that it was not destroyed and has survived for anyone who loves beauty to behold.
 

​It is time for us to say goodbye to St. Petersburg, one of the most beautiful cities in the world. I plan to share two more blogs with you in the upcoming months as we continue our journey along the waterways. Next month we will Relish Russia in several small and charming cities along the rivers, and the following month we will explore Moscow herself. Until we meet again, enjoy your Borscht and your Blini.
 

​The impulse to offer generous hospitality is one of the most ancient of human motivations. The Greek Classics are filled with stories of kings welcoming strangers from foreign lands with lavish food, wine and companionship. The familiar story of Abraham and his wife Sarah and their three visitors, later revealed to be angels, demonstrates this deeply felt urge to provide food and friendship to those who are away from the comforts of home. Note the tone of urgency as Abraham literally begs his guests to accept his hospitality:
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​The happy ending to this story is that God gives to the elderly and childless Abraham and Sarah, a son, Isaac, as a reward for their generosity and kindness to the three travelers. This priceless gift is also a reward for Abraham’s humility, his willingness to become a servant to the strangers, to put his own ego and status aside to provide food and comfort to those in need.
 

​This spirit of generous hospitality underlies Christmas celebrations throughout the world. Although our culture can certainly be accused of excess and ostentation in our often ridiculous yard and shopping mall displays of lighted Santas, reindeer, snowmen and even cartoon characters as a way of recognizing the season, let us look beneath the glitzy surface to discern a sense of welcome and shared friendship. There is indeed something addictive in the pleasure one derives from providing a little happiness to others, even if that delight is only bright colors and glittering lights. But as we learned from the story of Abraham’s generosity, there is always a deeper meaning embedded in every act of kindness. During this Christmas and Hanukkah Season, we might be wise to keep our judgments and “shoulds” to ourselves and look for the angels in disguise.
 

​I admit that I have succumbed to the heady addiction of getting carried away with holiday hospitality. It started when I was in my twenties, a young wife, mother and college student with no money at all to spend on Christmas gifts. Remembering the powerful childhood magic of Christmas morning when my sister, brother and I woke up to find what seemed to be hundreds of gifts, wrapped in bright colors, spreading out from under the tree in glittering piles, Iwanted to bring the same joy to my family members.
  

​In fact, my parents were not wealthy at all, and our gifts were small and inexpensive, but my parents had generous hearts and were willing to spend their own time and energy to surprise and delight their children. One Christmas, when we were just barely old enough to go to school, my mother stayed up late into the night to sew my brother John a Lone Ranger mask by hand from black velvet. Johnny was thrilled and wore that mask with his red flannel shirt for months as though he really were the Lone Ranger.
 

​I never learned how to sew, but the impulse to make something with my own hands to offer as Christmas gifts almost overpowered me in early adulthood. I couldn’t see any natural talents or artistic skills in myself, and I didn’t even know how to cook, but I turned to the Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook that someone gave me when I got married. As it turned out, my love for reading was my hidden talent, and I was able to follow the simple instructions in the cookbook to make cookies and simple candies like fudge. These I wrapped up and gave as gifts to my relatives and friends. Over time, I tried more complex recipes like Banana Bread and Fruitcake, and read with fascination all of the details associated with baking, like greasing and flouring the pans, pre-heating the oven and making sure that all of the ingredients were at room temperature before starting to make the batter.
 

​I made many mistakes and learned from almost all of them. My very kind family members were tolerant and forgiving when my gifts turned out to be overcooked, under baked, or just sort of mediocre. I will always be grateful to them for not criticizing me for my lack of baking expertise, and to this very day, it breaks my heart when I hear people badmouthing a family member’s cooking or belittling any gift which is freely given.
 

​Eventually, I became a pretty good home baker, and I was struck with the idea of hosting a Holiday Dessert Party before Christmas for my family members, friends and even for some of my students. Once this idea took hold, I could not stop myself. I read cooking magazines year-round and saved recipes that seemed to have promise. I started my menu planning in July, writing up lists of possible cakes, pies, puddings, candies and cookies to include. Then I would spend hours picturing how all of the finished desserts would look arranged on the lace table cloth, interspersed with Christmas candles and greenery. I would plan which bowls, platters and dishes to use, making sure to include treasured old plates and bowls I had inherited from my grandmother. I also thought about the various flavors, colors, sizes, shapes, textures and temperatures of the many desserts I wanted to offer and how they would complement each other.

​Then the idea of including international holiday desserts like German Spritz Cookies and Greek Baklava took hold, and I also started researching historic foods like Fruitcake and Plum Pudding. Each year the menu grew larger, and I started creating contrasting pairs such as two pies, two pound cakes, two puddings, two chocolate creations, etc. To manage all of this, I needed to obtain special equipment, such as candy molds, a cookie press and various Bundt and spring form pans, etc. I also had to do long-range planning, figuring out which desserts could be made early and aged, which could be frozen, which could be made the day before the party, and which had to be made just before the guests arrived. I derived hours of pleasure and joy in planning and anticipating my yearly Christmas dessert party, and this process continued for several decades until Wayne and I retired and moved to the small house on the ocean in Hawaii where we now live.
 

​I still bake for every holiday and offer my creations to neighbors and new friends here in Oahu, and I still mail my brother-in-law Rudy Pedulla, a Panforte for his birthday every year. I gave my complete set of Lennox Holiday china to my great-niece Amanda before I moved, and I only miss it a little bit. I still try at least one new recipe every Christmas, and I hope to continue baking as long as I live. I should not have been surprised when my niece, Kathleen Pedulla, suggested that we write a book on Afternoon Tea after I moved here to Hawaii. It has been my joy to share the recipes I have collected over my entire adult life with my readers, especially at Christmas time. I hope you will look at our Christmas Tea in the December calendar section of myteaplanner.com.
 

​As another gift to those of you who love to read, as I do, I recommend a poignant and beautiful Christmas story by the Irish writer, James Joyce, who lived from 1882 to 1941. Although it has the unfortunate title, “The Dead,” it is really a story about the living.  In this complex tale with many hidden meanings, we meet the shy, awkward, and self-conscious protagonist, Gabriel (an angelic person,) who attends a family Christmas party in Dublin with his wife and ultimately discovers the deeper significance of generosity, sacrifice and love. “The Dead” is the final story in Joyce’s famous collection, Dubliners, which should be available in any library.
 

​In this story, Joyce includes a description of the holiday party table prepared by Gabriel’s two elderly aunts. This gorgeous description has always resonated for me as an example of that “impulse to offer generous hospitality” that has motivated Abraham and so many other people of good will over the centuries.
 

​May your holiday table be as festive and hospitable as this fictional feast, written more than a hundred years ago. And finally, I would like to leave you with a composite menu from my many Christmas Dessert Parties over the years and a recipe for a Christmas Cake I plan to bake this year for the first time. In the menu, I have indicated the location in myteaplanner.com where some of the recipes can be found. Merry Christmas to you and your families, and may you always be generous in welcoming the stranger.
 

Aunt Rose’s Holiday Dessert Party
 
Traditional Fruitcakes
Old English Fruitcake with Hard Sauce (An American Southern Tea)
Panforte (An Italian Tea)
 
Pound Cakes
Ellen’s Fabulous Coconut Cake (An American Southern Tea)
Orange Poppy Seed Cake
 
Chocolate Cakes
Queen of California Cake (A California Tea)
Chocolate Biscuit Cake (A Classic British Afternoon Tea)
 
Caramel Cakes
Caramel Toffee Yule Log (A Christmas Tea)
Sticky Date Pudding with Caramel Sauce (A Tea for Our Elders)
 
Yeast Bread and Pastry
German Christmas Stollen
Danish Christmas Wreath (A Christmas Tea)
 
Pies
Lemon Chess Pie (August Family Reunion Tea)
Chocolate Almond Fudge Pie
 
Chilled Molded Desserts
Spiced Apple Gelatin (North American Family Reunion Tea)
Chestnut Bavarian with Chocolate Sauce (A Winter Afternoon Tea)
 
Cheesecakes
Pumpkin Sherry Cheesecake
Chocolate Mocha Cheesecake
 
Chilled Puddings
Christmas Trifle (A Christmas Tea)
Tiramisu
 
Rustic Puddings
Warm Bread Pudding with Lemon Sauce (Afternoon Tea for a Large Group)
Afghan Rice Pudding
 
Steamed Puddings
Steamed Pumpkin Pudding with Candied Cranberries (A Christmas Tea)
Steamed Gingerbread
 
Quick Breads
Lemon Tea Cake (Tea Menu Basics)
Persimmon Bread (Tea Menu Basics)
 
International Pastries
Baklava (A Greek or Middle Eastern Family Reunion Tea)
Madeleines (A French Afternoon Tea)
 
Christmas Cookies
Spritz Cookies (A Christmas Tea)
Orange Ginger Cookies (A Christmas Tea)
Shortbread Cookies (A Classic British Afternoon Tea)
Almond Butter Cookies (A California Tea)
Mexican Wedding Cookies (A Tea to Honor Our Ancestors)
Mexican Chocolate Cookies with Chili (A Tea to Honor Our Ancestors)
Chocolate Chip Cookies (A Tea for Our Elders)
 

 I am fascinated by the idea of a Lemon Fruitcake filled with golden raisins and nuts rather than the usual candied fruits. I found a similar recipe in the November 2004 edition of Gourmet Magazine and have been saving it for several years with the intention of making a few adaptations, adding a rum glaze and baking this cake as a Christmas gift for special friends. The recipe actually makes two large loaf cakes (9” x 5” x 3”,) but you could also make a large Bundt cake and perhaps a small loaf cake with the batter. Note that this cake bakes at a very low temperature for a long time—more than two hours. You will have to make adjustments if you choose to use different sizes of pans. As with all cakes, it is done when a thin knife or a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean, but you will want to start testing a little early if you use smaller pans.

​For the Cake:

• 1 pound golden raisins (3 cups)
• 4 ½ cups (1 pound) chopped toasted almonds
• 3 cups flour
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 2 cups (4 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 2 cups sugar
• grated rind of 1 lemon
• 6 large eggs, separated and at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 tablespoon warm water
• 1 (one-ounce) bottle pure lemon extract
• cooking spray containing flour
• For the Lemon-Rum glaze
• 2 cups sugar
• ½ cup light corn syrup
• ¾ cup water
• juice of 1 lemon
• 1 cup rum (or orange flavored liqueur)

​Preheat oven to 250° F
 
Special equipment: large mixing bowl, medium sized mixing bowl, small mixing bowl, small bowl, sieve or flour sifter, electric mixer, rubber spatula, aluminum foil, cookie sheet, citrus zester, citrus juicer, 2 (9” x 5” x 3”) loaf pans, parchment paper, thin knife, wooden skewer, 2-3-quart saucepan with lid, wire rack, plastic wrap
 
Makes: 2 large loaf cakes or 1 Bundt cake and 1 smaller loaf
 

1. Toast the chopped almonds in a 350°F oven on a foil lined baking sheet for 10 minutes, until lightly browned, stirring twice to prevent burning. Set aside to cool, and lower the oven temperature to 250° F.
2. Grate the zest from the lemon onto a paper towel and set aside. Squeeze the juice from the lemon and set it aside to use in the glaze. Spray the loaf pans with cooking spray and line with parchment paper. Spray the parchment and set the pans aside. Combine the raisins, lemon zest and nuts in a medium sized mixing bowl and toss with 1 cup of flour until well coated. Set aside.
3. In a small mixing bowl, sift together the remaining 2 cups of flour with ½ teaspoon of salt. Set aside. In a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer, beat the butter until light and fluffy. Add the sugar and beat again until very light and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Add the egg yolks and beat until well incorporated.
4. Add the flour and salt mixture at low speed, and beat until just combined. In a small bowl, stir the baking soda into 1 tablespoon of warm water until dissolved. Add the baking soda mixture and the lemon extract to the butter mixture and beat on low speed just until incorporated.
5. Using a rubber spatula, stir in the raisin and nut mixture, including the flour remaining in the bowl, until none of the flour is still visible. Clean and dry the beaters, and beat the egg whites in a clean medium sized bowl until stiff peaks form. Gently fold the egg whites into the batter until the mixture is well combined. (It will be lumpy.)
6. Divide the batter between the two prepared loaf pans and smooth the tops with a rubber spatula. Gently tap the bottoms of the pans against the counter to release any bubbles. Bake until the tops of the cakes are golden and a thin knife inserted into the center of each cake comes out clean, about 2 ¾ hours. When the cakes have almost finished baking, make the glaze.
7. Combine all of the glaze ingredients except the rum in a 2-3-quart saucepan. Stir slowly over medium high heat until the mixture boils. Cover and boil until the mixture is clear and the sugar has dissolved, about 1 minute. Remove the glaze from the heat, uncover and let the mixture stand for 5 minutes. Stir in the rum.
8. Cool the cakes on a wire rack for 10 minutes; carefully remove the cakes from the pans, and remove the parchment. Replace the cakes into the pans, and poke holes into the cakes with a thin wooden skewer. Carefully pour the warm glaze over both cakes and allow them to continue cooling on the wire rack.
9. When the cakes are completely cool, wrap them in plastic wrap and then in foil, and store them in an airtight container at room temperature for up to two weeks or freeze them for one month.  This cake is best when aged for at least one day to allow the flavors to develop.