Author Archives: Cathy Short

little miss

Late…

Posted on by

Im lateI wonder if you have ever been late for anything?  I know that it seems to be a character trait of youth workers, but I have always tried to get to places on time.  I don’t like being late.  I don’t like letting people down or causing stress or panic by not arriving on time.  So I would always set off early to endeavour to get to where I’m going on time.

I have however recently found myself being late for things.  Sometimes things are out of my control, like my drive into work.  It can take anything form 30-60 minutes to drive into work and the amount of traffic on the route depends on a number of things, the weather and the motorway.  If the weather is bad, then more people drive to work or school, more traffic means we end up stopped.  If there is any kind of problem on the motorway then all the traffic comes through town and so town stops too and I end up late for work.  This is outside of my control.

I find myself being later than normal now just because of the morning routine, trying to get myself, my husband and my child ready to leave the house by 7.30 is tough, it means that I have to be very prepared the night before, packing lunches and nappy bags and trying not to get the two confused!

Last week I was so late that I even missed an appointment at the dentist.  I really have no excuse for this, I just forgot.  But I felt awful after when I realised.

I bit like today when I realised that I should have posted a blog on Saturday and it’s now Tuesday.  I could give lots of reasons about how busy I’ve been or how tired I’ve been or that I’ve just had no time.  All of which would be true and actually tonight has been the first time I’ve been able to sit down and write it.  So I thought it would be good to write about being late.

Isabel handstandIt has made me think about some of the late experiences that we had in Chennai.  Some of the best team bonding time has been whilst we have been waiting for the minibus to take us to the Boys Town, two of my favourite moments are Isabel doing a head stand and counting the amount of mosquito bites on Rachel’s legs.  Another common late experience is waiting for buses to take us to or from Yelligiri, however again these seem to be some of the best time of just playing with the boys without a programme, being able to chat to them about their family, their like and dislikes and how they ended up living at Boys Town.  Some of my favourite moments have been because of lateness.

So maybe being late occasionally is a good thing?

What have you been late for?  Has it always been stressful or has is sometimes brought blessings?Imagine though if certain people had been late.  What if Rosa Parks had been late for the bus on the day she decided to campaign about segregation?  Would we remember her now?

Rosa_Parks_Booking

What if William Wilberforce had been late for parliament when presenting against the abolition of slavery?  Would it still be legal to own slaves? What if Jesus was late…what if he were late going to heal the daughter of a prominent leader because he was held up speaking to someone else, someone who wasn’t prominent?  What would happen then?  Then he would heal the woman who wasn’t important before going to see a dead girl and raising her to life.  Jesus uses he lateness to bring about a bigger miracle.

So maybe we should think a bit more about our timekeeping, because maybe just maybe there can be a bigger blessing due to our lateness.

Breakfast

Posted on by
English: Photograph was taken by me in Belfast...

English: Photograph was taken by me in Belfast, Northern Ireland, UK in 2007. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I love breakfast.  I thought this as I sat down to eat my freshly baked soda bread with scrambled eggs and bacon this morning.  I don’t just love ‘special’ breakfast times, this week we have been sitting down every morning at 7am to eat breakfast together as a family.  Normally we have had simple cereal and fruit or toast and fruit, but the act of eating together and eating the same things as Malachi has been really great.  The fact that Malachi can eat such great things now for breakfast is awesome.  We have had fruity pancakes, mini omlettes, freshly baked bread, different types of porridge, fruit salad and yoghurt, all of which are very tasty.  But after a conversation I had with someone last week, which went along the lines of ‘you can’t give him that for breakfast’, I wondered if there were any foods that should be off limits for breakfast?

Obviously breakfast food changes according to the culture in which we live.  In the society in which I live it is considered normal to eat cereals as our main breakfast food, either made into bread or a porridge or a packet of ‘breakfast’ cereal, on special occasions we may have the traditional Full English fry up of bacon and eggs.  But we don’t have to travel far for the breakfast foods to change, pop over to France and you have croissants, pain au chocolat or brioche, Spain and you have cafe con leche, magdelenas and churros, Germany and you have Brötchen with jam, marmalade, cheese and cold meats.  Whilst these dishes are very different, they are not so different that we would think twice about eating them for breakfast, but what about if we get outside of Europe.

If we travel to the Americas, then we have American pancakes, bacon and maple syrup, eggs, grits and waffles, Mexico you have chilaquiles, tacos, burritos and huevos rancheros, Cuba then you have strong coffee and corn bread.  In fact many of the Latin American countries traditionally have strong coffee, fruits and bread as their main breakfast food.  So the Americas are not so dissimilar to the European fare.

Ful medames - Egyptian cuisine

Ful medames – Egyptian cuisine (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

If we travel to Africa, then the breakfast food changes a little although still bread or some type of porridge with tea or coffee seems to be a staple.  There are some different breakfast options like in Tunisia you would find chakchouka (baked eggs in a spicy tomato sauce), in Egypt you may get ful medames (slow cooked fava beans), their national dish for breakfast, in Gambia you could get nyebbeh (beans in an oil gravy) or in  Morocco then you could have harira (spicy soup).  Whilst many of us may not think twice about eating these for our dinner, would we naturally put them on our breakfast table?

Masala Dosa

Masala Dosa (Photo credit: Kaustav Bhattacharya)

When we get to Asia, then breakfast changes to what we may be used to.  In China a traditional breakfast would include dim sum, crullers and congee, in Japan its traditional to have steamed rice with miso soup or natto served with green tea, in South India you would have idli, dosai and vadai’s served with sambar and chutneys.  These dishes on the other hand, even may seem unfamiliar for dinner let alone having them for breakfast.

However as a fan of breakfast and especially as a fan of Chennai, I would not think twice about eating dosa with potato curry and coconut chutney for breakfast.  In fact the perfect dosa is one thing I crave when I’m not in Chennai, especially as I struggle to make the perfect crisp dosa.  (Any tips or help would be greatly appreciated…)  Thank goodness for a few good South Indian restaurants in the UK like Chennai Dosa, Ganapati and Saravana Bhavan.  So my answer to the question at the start, is there any food that should be off limits at breakfast time?  I think the answer is no!  There is so much more to breakfast than cereal, different things are eaten all over the world.  Maybe we just need to expand our horizons and try something new on our breakfast plate.

Of course not not everyone has the option of eating breakfast, the statistics from the World Food Programme show that there are millions and millions of people in the world who are hungry.  I have never experienced what it’s like to be really hungry, I have never experienced what it is like to be limited in food options, I don’ know what it feels like, but I’ve seen it and I’ve wanted to make a difference.  I have made a difference, I have been travelling to Chennai over the last 12 years and I have been part of a team that has provided food for underprivileged children.  I continue to make a difference by raising money to support those children.

You could make a difference too.  Try one of the recipes below and enjoy them, then give the cost of that meal to support someone in the world that doesn’t have the same options as you.  Go on.

 

Recipe’s

Related articles

Eggs Benedict & Recipe

Posted on by

So this week in the news there has been the shock resignation of Pope Benedict XVI.  This would be the only papal resignation for 600 years and all the discussion are now how to appoint a new pope when the current one will still be around.  This is all because the pope is God‘s representative on Earth, can there be two? It must be an interesting discussion in St Peters.   So whilst it is an interesting discussion there, my view is that we are all chosen by God, that we are all his representatives.  However we are all chosen to do different things, we can’t all be called to be pope.  (Which is a good job, as I’m not sure they are accepting female pope‘s yet!)  So for me, God has called me to be a youth and childrens minister in Stafford, he has called me to be a wife and mother and he has called me to work with those living in poverty in Chennai.  It’s amazing how when you do what God calls you do, God really blesses you and the people that he calls you to work with.

So what about you?  What has God called you to do?  Is it to be the next pope?  Or bless others financially?  Or bless people by offering hospitality?  Or be a Christian in your school/college or workplace?  Or maybe to go on a short term mission to Chennai?  Want to come with us?  email projectleaders@chennaichallenge.com for more information and check out the rest of the website.

And so the title said Eggs Benedict and so here is my recipe for this tasty dish, serves 2 people

  • 4 large free range eggs
  • 2 toasting muffins
  • 1 jar of hot hollandaise sauce
  • 4 slices ham or bacon
  • Spinach (optional)
  • Knob of butter

1. Toast your lovely muffins and grill the bacon(if using).

2. In a pan of gently boiling water, poach the eggs.

3.In another pan, add the butter and wilt the spinach.

4. Place toasted muffins on a plate, add a slice of ham or bacon, then a spoon of wilted spinach and the poached egg.  Top with hot hollandaise sauce.

Enjoy

Resolutions, baby food and giving

Posted on by

I don’t know about you but I find it very difficult to stick to my resolution to lose weight.  I’m sure that I make a similar resolution every year and somehow (mainly through food!) I never manage it.  I always end up at around about the same weight regardless of how much I eat or exercise, I even didn’t gain or lose any weight by being pregnant and giving birth, I feel that I am in the eternal struggle of the weight loss cycle.

But food has got me thinking.  Malachi is nearing the age when he can start to eat proper food and I’m not sure about what to do.  I wanRiverford_mini_vegboxt to make sure that he has good food with no nasties in, so whilst I was pregnant I reinstated our fruit and veg delivery from Riverford.  Each week I get a delivery of good organic, pesticide free fruit and vegetables and they are brilliant, even if I do have to think creatively about how I use them (fussy husband!).  I have for a number of years only had free range meat, which tends to be more organic, but now I also get my meat through Riverford too, ensuring that the meat I eat is also organic.

So I am stocked with good food, but what do I give him to eat.  He is five and a half months old and many other parents I know have or had already started weaning by this age, but we are trying to wait until he is six months because of the Department for Health guidelines, which were based on recommendations by UNICEF and the World Health Organisation from research they had done with babies from all over the world.  Before a baby is six months old, their digestive systems and kidneys are not mature enough to process the food and so it can lead to an increased risk of infections and the possibility of developing allergies.  So in my head it seems like a good idea to wait.  Not only that, but weaning information states that if you start earlier than six months, there are certain foods that you mustn’t give your baby, like wheat, meat and anything made with cow’s milk; so again, why not wait until they are old enough to have a mixed variety of foods.

So we are going to go with baby led weaning, where essentially you give them what you are having to eat, in chunks that they can pick up, hold, chew and munch.  This is great for finger foods and my research has told me that cucumber, apples and pears are good to eat raw and carrots, sweet potato and parsnip are good to eat lightly steamed.  But to be honest, we don’t normally these things just lightly steamed.  In fact we tend to use these veg in stews, soups and of course curries.  So I had to find out if it were possible to give him these things too…and it is!!  It sort of stands to reason that Malachi should like spicy food, since when I was pregnant and breastfeeding I didn’t stop eating these things.  So when we start giving him food, we are most certainly going to give him curry, we may not get the jalfrezi or madras out just yet, but we hope that the milder curries like a korma should be just fine.

I know that I am in a privileged position that I am able to choose these good things for my child and other parents do not always have the same options available to them.  The Oxfam tv advert has recently made an impact on me, you can watch it here: Jodie’s Film It’s the film where twins are being given flour and water at one month old because their mother doesn’t have enough milk to feed them properly.  It makes me  sad that the guidelines from the World Health Organisation are not being able to be followed because of poverty.  2004 (32)

I have been visiting Chennai for the last 12 years, I have seen first hand what a difference clean water and good food can give.  One of my memories from an early trip was visiting the boys town before they got up for the day, seeing their morning routine.  Part of this was them having breakfast, which that day was a kind of rice porridge, made in a huge pan.  It looked awful, like what the gruel looked like in the film Oliver, in fact it made me think very much of Oliver, and his question ‘Please Sir, can I have some more?’.  That was a defining moment for me and I decided that I wanted to make a difference to the lives of these children.  Since then I have seen changes to give them a better diet, clean water and better living conditions.

So it really can make a difference just a few pounds a month to the lives of people who don’t have the same choices as us.  Please make a choice to help them and visit Oxfam to donate to them or help us at Chennai Challenge

Related articles

Cooking South Indian Breakfast

Posted on by

Five days ago I fractured my colcaneum, my heel bone.  I wasn’t expecting it to be as painful as it was, it seemed that it didn’t matter what position I had my foot it, it still really hurt. For three days I was unable to walk at all, not being able to put any pressure on my foot, but hopping round the house seemed quite funny.  It also meant that I was able to catch up on Waterloo Road, that I had recorded on the HD box.

What’s all this got to do with cooking I hear you cry?  Well yesterday, I was able to walk a little and so because I was going a little mad decided to do some cooking as this always makes me feel better.  Also because it was Good Friday and we fasting from meat (apart from the accidental chicken sandwich for lunch!) I decided to make some South Indian breakfast items.

I planned to make vadai, medhu vadai, sambar, rasam, coconut chutney, aloo masala and poori.  These are all foods that we would enjoy eatinig at Raj Bhavaan or Doveton Cafe in Vepery for breakfast, lunch, dinner or any time really.  Of course I had cooked all these items before (apart form the vadai and medhu vadai; I had previously always used an instant mix. Shame!) but not with a fractured foot.  I started by finding a recipe for real vadai and soaking my dals.  Easy! Now all I have to do is wait, which is good, because walking round the kitchen was already starting to make my foot ache.  Whilst I was waiting I tried to learn some more Tamil – sentence structure and use of negatives. Illai!

My urad dal was now ready for grinding, I hobbled into the kitchen and got my food processor ready.  This is not a grinder, but would do the same job, it may just take a little longer.  So I added my dal, chopped cheen chillies and a little water to the processor and turned on, and off to scrape the sides, and on, and off to scrape the side…repeat for what seemed a hundred times.  This process took ages to reach the right consistency, but it was now there, add salt, pepper and asafotida and we are ready to cook.  However, I am now back to hopping around and thinking ‘health and safety’ thought it best to not have hot oil and hopping.  Sit down, bag of frozen peas on my foot and a couple of ibuprofen should make it feel a little better.

I rested for an hour or two and got to work on the coconut chutney, coconut, green chilli and coriander into a food processor with a little water and blend.  Then add tempering of dried red chilli, mustard seeds, chana dal and curry leaves, and mix.  Time for making the sambar.  Toor dal in a pan with water and turmeric and boil until soft. Then chopping onions and getting spices ready.  I think I had bitten off more that I could chew.  I couldn’t stand any more, it hurt, I had to sit and rest, frozen peas to the rescue.  At this point Rob suggested that maybe we should get something else for dinner as he didn’t want to see me trying to cook in pain.  (I think he thought it may put me off cooking in the future!)  As I was in pain I agreed and chips from over the road it was.

So this morning having rested my foot all night, I got up to make the sambar.  Fry mustard seeds, chana dal, dried red chillies, fenugreek seeds and curry leaves until the pop, add in onion and cook until brown.  Add tamarind water, toor dal, tomato and veg (peas), salt and asafotida, cook for a little while and sambar is ready.

Now to the medhu vadai.  I beat the mixture I made yesterday to make it light and added some curry leaves. I then made the dough into doughnut shapes and fried them, easy.  Medhu vadai and sambar, done.  We sat down to a South Indian breakfast of medhu vadai, sambar and coconut chutney.  Rob commented that they weren’t as good as Raj Bhavaan, but I thought for a first attempt they were pretty good.

It did make me think how long, some of the Indian recipes take to cook, even simple things like sambar that are eaten everyday.  It made me think how long some women would spend cooking to prepare breakfast of vadai or dosai, especially when they do not have the same equipment.  I thought grinding in a food processor took a long time, imagine how long that would take in a traditional stone grinder.  Do our time saving devices, really give us more time to do other things or do we now rely so heavily on them that using traditional methods would just frustrate us? Perhaps we should stop and look at our instant, take-away lifestyle, and realise how priviledged we are.