Quick and Easy Pancake Recipe

Today is a cold, wet and miserable Winter's day.  The kids are on school holiday and I am sick with flu.  There really is nothing for it but to stay in our pj's and snuggle on the couch watching movies. Come lunchtime, I decided to make pancakes as it's something fun we could do together and which required minimal supervision from me. (as I'm feeling like some kind of snotty-nosed zombie)

The kids really loved making the mixture and then trying their hand at getting the pancake to spread out in the pan.  The trick is to start moving the frying pan in one hand before the mixture has had time to solidify.  You may get some really interesting shaped pancakes while they get the hang of it, but a misshapen pancake is still a pancake - and tastes just as good.

This recipe is from my Gran's old recipe book and makes a lovely light and fluffy pancake - provided you mix the batter well and don't pour too much batter into the pan.  You can double the recipe to make more, which I always do, as my kids REALLY like them and come back for more.

Quick and Easy Pancake Recipe - makes approx. 6 pancakes
1 cup flour
2 eggs
1½ cups milk
pinch of salt

Sift the flour into a bowl.  Add eggs, milk and salt.  Mix well (I use a whisk) to get all the lumps out.
Heat a teaspoon of oil in a frying pan.
Pour between a quarter to a half of a cup of the mix into the frying pan and with your other hand holding the pan handle, move the pan until the mixture has fully coated the pan. (this will take some trial and error - the amount of batter you pour will largely depend on the size of your frying pan)

Move the frying pan around until the batter spreads evenly. 

Wait a few minutes for the bottom to go brown, then lift the pancake with a spatula and flip it over.

Once this side is golden brown, your pancake is done!

You can fill your pancake with fruit, syrup, ice cream - anything really - and then roll it up.  We went for the traditional sugar and cinnamon:

One third of a cup of white sugar

One tablespoon of cinnamon.
Mix well.

                 

                                         

The brown mark on my finger in the last picture is from the cinnamon.  Just saying......

In praise of plodders...

Cripes!  It's been a while since I've been here.  I don't know why I find it so difficult to blog regularly.  It's not for lack of material - I have loads of unfinished, unpublished blogs lying in a folder on my laptop.  I can't really blame lack of time either, as if I really applied myself, I could make the time.

I guess I'm a "starter" rather than a "see-it-through-and-finish-it-er".  I ride the wave of blogging inspiration for only so long and then I crash and drown.

I take my hat off to all those mommy bloggers who plug away, day in and day out, churning out the interesting, inspiring and entertaining blog posts that I so enjoy reading.  Fair enough, in most cases it's the way they've chosen to make their living but even if this blog provided a source of income for me, I think I'd still be utterly useless at it.

And so, the challenge I have set myself is to be a plodder.  To plod on with the task at hand and not flit off to the next thing like some ADD butterfly.  And not only in blogging, as this "start and never finish" issue has crept in to every aspect of my life.  The number of sewing, DIY, decor and other projects lying, unfinished in various cupboards within my house is truly beyond belief.

I've decided that plodders get stuff done.  And I want to get stuff done.  So a plodder a shall attempt to become!  Let's see how it goes.....

A Tourist in my own Town...part 2

Right, so yesterday I posted the first installment of "A Tourist in my own Town" and here, as promised is the second….

Day Two:

We had so thoroughly enjoyed our last trip down to Durban that, a few days later, we donned our Tourist caps again and headed down the hill. This time I was super-organised and had compiled a List.

   

Our first stop was Mini Town.  I couldn't believe it was still there.  I can remember going there as a child.  We thoroughly enjoyed walking around and admiring the intricate detail and familiar buildings. 

Watching the game!

City Hall.

Utterly necessary re-enactment of Godzilla

Next, we visited the Old Court House Museum.  This too, brought back many fond memories of my childhood.  We used to visit quite a lot with my aunt and my favourite was the exhibit of all the clothing and outfits from a bygone era.  Disappointingly, these exhibits are all gone.  In fact, the entire downstairs was pretty much empty.  I guess the powers that be were not too keen on all the remnants from colonialism and got rid of them.  Fair enough, I suppose.  Heading upstairs (in the old fashioned lift!!) I was delighted to see that this section had remained mostly the same.  A depiction of West Street back in the day, complete with saddle resting on the balustrade of Miss Fann’s Haberdashery.

I presume this is Miss Fann.........

Ye Olde Pharmacy

Inside the Clairmont Sugar Mill exhibit.  I don't mind telling you that as I walked in, rounded the corner and saw this dude sitting there, I jumped out of my skin.  Was a bit creepy actually.

Below is a picture of Henry Francis Fynn's cottage.  Shows the kind of rustic conditions the first settlers had to deal with.  I pointed out the lack of wifi - the children were scandalised.

Heading next door to the majestic City Hall Building, we climbed the vast staircase and entered the Natural Science Museum.  The children were mesmerised by all the animal exhibits, collections of eggs, insects and, not forgetting, the giant dinosaur!

Look out boys....there's something behind you.

All of this history and information gathering was hungry work.  So, off we set for Ushaka Beach (see how we've come full circle?) and down the pier to Moyo.

We love this place.  It is perched at the end of a long pier, so is surrounded by the ocean.  We sat out on the edge of the pier, sipping our “Mocktails”, watching the waves, and feeling very much like we were on a cruise ship.  

Until the wind got a bit much and we relocated inside for the very serious business of eating.  The food here is really good.  Not the cheapest place to eat, I’ll grant you, but well worth it.  The snoek pate, in particular, is my favourite.  We ordered a selection of yummy goodies and then sampled a little of everything.  Yum.

 Since African Cuisine is the order of the day at Moyo, they also come around and paint your paint. (Natch.)  Very touristy.  And since we were being tourists, we went all in.

 A leisurely stroll back to the car, and then we headed for home.  Tired, wind-swept but oh so happy.

Going away on holiday is lovely.  But sometimes, you can have just as much fun being a tourist in your own town.

A Tourist in my own Town

I often find blog posts that I've started and never finished.  Usually, they are no longer relevant or the mood has passed me, so they never see the light of day.  Today I found one and I was like, "Ah damn.  This would have been a good one."  I wrote it nearly a year ago, so it's quite outdated, but since I really enjoyed writing it, and reading it brought back such good memories, I thought I'd go ahead and post it anyway.  

So, here it is........"A Tourist in my own Town"

Ah, Summer holidays!  Swimming in the pool until 7pm.  Sitting outside and sipping ice-cold wine while dinner is cooking.  Saying goodnight to little sun-bronzed bodies and putting on the fan before turning out the light.  And usually, in our home, a trip to the Drakensberg.  Except this year, someone left the booking of said holiday to the last minute and, not surprisingly, our favourite spot was fully booked.  Every spot  actually.  But let me not dwell on that, in the interests of keeping the peace.

After a busy and stressful year there is nothing I love more than travelling up to the mountains and re-charging the old batteries.  Where at night, the only light comes from the stars and instead of traffic noise, you hear only the crickets and the rustling of wind through the trees.  (sigh).  Utter bliss.

Ahem.  So, back to my dilemma.  While I utterly adore having my children at home during the holidays, 5 weeks is a long time and keeping them entertained can be difficult.  The weeks leading up to Christmas are always manic – last minute shopping and planning for the Big Day keep us all busy and engaged.  Especially if you throw some holiday crafts at them.  It’s amazing what you can do with loo rolls and glitter if you have to.  Baking biscuits is always good as well, until they get bored and start throwing bits of dough at each other and making rude shapes.   

So, Christmas is over.  New Year has come and gone.  The last stretch of the school holiday looms, with every Fun and Interesting activity known to me, availed upon.  And I know if I let them sit and watch TV, they’ll be tearing each other’s faces off in 2 hours.  Plus, I suffer from “working-Mom guilt” which results in trying to create special holiday memories that they’ll remember through to adulthood.

I don’t know where I got the idea actually.  It was radical.  Especially for me.  While only living 30 minutes away from Durban, we hardly ever venture there.  Durban is a city, and as such, is Big and Dangerous.  Traffic abounds and criminals lurk around every corner.  Usually, the thought of entering the heaving mass of cars and people induces raised blood pressure and uncontrollable eye-twitching.  (I have no excuse.  I am a major wimp.)

I can only attribute severe cabin fever to the epiphany which struck me.  We will be Tourists in our own Town.  Yee-haa! 

Day One: A trial-run of sorts.  Testing the waters.  UShaka Beach is pretty crowded (thereby safer) and I know how to get there.  Get in and get out - piece of cake.  In the interests of travelling light, I took only a small camera bag stuffed with my driver’s licence, bank card, some cash, and of course, my camera.  I loaded 2 scooters and a skateboard into the boot and set off early.  By early, I mean before 9.  (it is holidays after all)  I walked the promenade while the kids scooted and skateboarded along.

We popped in to visit Big L at work.  He works on the 9^th floor, in the centre of town.  He took us to a balcony that offered a pretty awesome view of the city.  I realised that there are some really beautiful, old buildings in Durban, something I hadn't really noticed / thought about before.

And the view of the Harbour was amazing too.

Feeling emboldened, I decided, on a whim, to head off to Anstey’s Beach in the Bluff area.  My aunt and uncle used to live there and we would often spend time on the beach with them.  It’s a lovely beach for swimming as it’s decidedly less murky and polluted-looking than the Central Beaches. 

The children splashed around in the waves and body-surfed while I sat on the sand, looking out over the water and wondering, why on earth, we don’t come to the beach more often.  

And occasionally consoling a spluttering and freshly dunked child.

After a lovely day, we headed home – sun kissed and exhausted.  Day One was a success.  

)After spending three days sweeping sand out of every nook and cranny in the house, I remembered why we don't go to the beach more often.)

Look out for the second installment - Day Two - coming soon.

It all started with a quilt…

I am currently in the throes of what I like to call “The Creative Frenzy”.  It happens every now and then, and it turns my life upside down.  For the most part, I lead a normal life.  I go around doing normal stuff, sometimes for months at a time.  Then, it happens.  I get an idea.  Inspiration to do something Creative, or Crafty.  And it snowballs out of control.  My brain starts buzzing as more and more ideas come to me.  Sometimes it feels more like a fizz than a buzz, but either way, I lie awake at night as my mind gallops through the halls of possibility.

Let me tell you how it starts.  Imagine, if you will......

It’s March.  Autumn is upon us and Winter is coming.  I decide to make a quilt for my daughter’s bed.  To keep her warm and cosy during Winter.  I raid my fabric stash and buy some new fabric, design a basic block quilt and get cutting.  I cut out, like, a million squares and realise I will have to cut out a million more for the size quilt I want to make.  I decide to make a smaller quilt.  I think how nice it will look to have appliquéd shapes on some of the squares.  I painstakingly cut out fiddly little bird and flower shapes.  

This quilt is starting to look decidedly Country Chic.  I get a brainwave – I’ll decorate her whole room in a Country Chic theme.  She’ll need storage for under her bed though – to keep everything neat and tidy.  My mind goes to the wooden crates I have in the loft in the garage – they’d be perfect. 

We pull down the crates from the loft in the garage.  It takes all five of us to manage it.  Ladders and ropes are involved.  I measure the crates.  I measure the space under my daughter’s bed.  Thank goodness – they’ll fit.  The crates are filthy.  And they look pretty banged up.  I clean and stain them.  I’m going for a bleached wood kind of look.  They come out dark brown.  Tough, they’ll do.  I realise these crates are going to need wheels to move easily from under the bed.  I’ll have to buy castors or something.

In the meantime, I’ll get started on my sons’ room.  My foray into bleached wood gave me an idea for a nautical theme in there.   I’ll paint the back wall a navy blue and paint all their furniture white.  They already have navy bedding and nautical-looking striped cushions.  Bonus.

I dismantle the bunk bed and drag the top bed frame outside.  I sand the life out of it.  I use paint stripper to remove the ugly yellowy-pine varnish.  I want a whitewashed effect.  Very beachy.  It takes days to get down to the wood.  I accidentally splash paint stripper on my arm.  A few times.  It burns like all hell.  I whitewash the bed.  It looks terrible.  I fiddle around, trying to get it to look right.  I give up and decide to paint it solid white.  I am aware that a light sanding is all that is required for straight painting and that all those days spent sanding and stripping varnish were unnecessary.  I finish painting the bed and it looks great.  But I’m annoyed now, so I leave it propped up in the corner of the lounge.  To punish it.  Actually, I need to swap it with the bottom bed frame, which my youngest son sleeps on, so I can paint it.  But I’m sick of these beds.  I’ll do it at the weekend.

I’ll get started on painting the rest of their furniture in the meantime.  I sand and paint their toy box.  I think how awesome it would look with a toy box at the end of each of the single beds.  But my older son sleeps on a double bed.  I’ll have to get rid of it.  My mom calls and says she wants to come and visit at Christmas.  I’ll have to convert my office into a guest room.  I know - I’ll move the double bed in there!  Oh crap.  There’s not enough space for it at the moment.  I’d better reorganise the room.  I pull everything out in the office and start sorting through what I need to keep and what I can get rid of.  I sort everything into little piles. Man, this is boring.  I feel like painting something.  

I decide I’ll paint the boys’ bookshelf.  It’s a bit rickety.  Maybe I could turn it sideways, add some shelves and hang it on the wall.  Hey……… that would actually look really cool in the dining room.  But I already have a dark wood sideboard against that wall.  Oh. My. God!  That sideboard would totally make an awesome TV cabinet!  I’d have to customise it, to accommodate the DVD player and the satellite decoder, but it would provide ample space for all our CDs, DVDs and Wii Games, which our current TV-stand does not.  I plan where the sideboard-tv-cabinet will go in the TV room.  I’d have to move the couches around to make it work.  I look at the couches.  They are looking worn and tired.  One of them has a huge sagging bit in the seat where I think a spring has broken.  I really should take a look and see if I can fix it.  Might as well recover them all – they look awful.

I move the couch into the lounge and remove the feet and the dust sheet thing on the underside.  Yip.  A spring HAS broken.  Two springs actually.  I’m totally going to have to fix it.  

I spend a couple of days researching upholstery.  There’s no way we can afford to get it done professionally – I’m going to have to do this myself.   It might actually be fun to learn a new skill.  I strip off all the fabric from the couch.  The foam is toast.  It’s all crumbly and gross.  I start repairing the springs and decide to add webbing for extra support.  I shop around for upholstery fabric.  I have no idea what colour to choose.  I sit in the TV room and try to divine a colour scheme.  Geez, this red feature wall really limits my options.  I think we should paint it.  It wasn't our choice anyway – it was like this when we moved in.  I plaster paint swatches all over the wall.  I scour Pinterest for décor ideas.  That go with dark wood.  Hey, grey and white goes nicely.  I create a TV-room mood board.  Epic.

I hit a snag.  I can’t seem to find ANY grey upholstery fabric.   I visit every fabric shop in Durban.  Nothing.  Mild panic sets in.  I’ll have to just keep looking.  

In the meantime……. In order for the tv-cabinet-sideboard project to happen, I will have to find space in the kitchen cupboards for all the stuff that it currently holds.  Things like antique tea sets, placemats, votive candle holders.  There’s quite a lot of stuff in here.  And my kitchen cupboards are bursting at the seams.  I’ll have to declutter the kitchen and make some space.  I pull everything out of the cupboards and sort through what I need and what I can get rid of.  I end up with three boxes of pyrex dishes, plates, glasses and vases sitting on the kitchen floor; and a great big bag of plastic containers.  I arrange my remaining kitchen goods neatly in the cupboards.  Man, it feels good to declutter and have organised cupboards! 

You know what doesn't make me feel good?  These kitchen cupboard doors.  God, they’re ugly. 

I've lived with them like this for FOUR YEARS.  I hate them.  I’ve waited patiently for a new kitchen and I suddenly come to the sickening realisation that I may never, ever get it.  Well, damned if I’m living with the kitchen like this for even one more day.  I’ll paint them.  I google “How to paint melamine” on the way to the hardware shop.  I buy everything I need and head home.  I unattach all of the cupboard doors and drag them outside.  It takes me three whole days to finish.  My back is in spasm and every part of my body aches.  But it is totally worth it.  These cupboards look amazing!  All white and modern-looking.  

But now the countertops look a bit shabby.  We should replace them.  Granite would be nice.  Also, I’m not wild about the layout.  I go online and look for ideas on a layout that would work.  I ponder the feasibility of incorporating the dining room and making the whole space one big kitchen.  When I share this Brilliant Plan with Big L his left eye twitches a bit.  He disappears into his office to “work”.  I think he’s quietly weeping.  That, or he’s researching local psychiatric hospitals.  (He’ll have a job finding a doctor that can help me – this is a special kind of crazy.)

It’s now September. Six.  Months.  Later.  Spring is here.  The house looks like a bomb went off.  There is a white bed frame propped up in the corner of the lounge and an entirely gutted 2-seater couch sitting in the centre of the room, with crumbs of foam lying on the floor.  There are three boxes of crockery and glassware on the floor in the kitchen, and little piles of paperwork all over my office.  In a basket in the corner are all the fabric squares I cut out for the quilt.  Damn it!  The quilt!  I forgot all about it.  It’s too bloody hot for a quilt now……

If you read this right to the end, thank you.  Go make yourself a cup of tea – you've earned it.  Before you go, please leave a comment – it would be utterly thrilling.

PS.  Please excuse the abundant use of the words “like” and “totally” in this post.  It was, like, totally deliberate.

Country Roads.....

We are in the middle of a long and busy school term.  The children are working hard and have so much homework and extra projects to do.  They are tired and ratty and I can’t say I blame them.

We are all taking a bit of strain and desperately need a holiday.  We have booked our December trip and are eagerly looking forward to it, but December feels so very far away.

My favourite destination is always the Drakensberg region.  There is just something about the wide open spaces; the towering mountains; the fresh country air; and the seemingly slower pace of life; that feeds my soul.

As there is very little chance of a getaway in our immediate future, I took a little meander through photographs of holidays past.  It is lovely to look at the scenic images, close my eyes and imagine myself there again.  Sigh.  A virtual mini-holiday of sorts.

I don’t know what it is about the Drakensberg area, but whenever I am there, I get the feeling that I am home.  I guess it’s a yearning for a simpler life, surrounded by beautiful scenery, that is satisfied in the foothills of those mountains.  I often dream of one day buying a farm out there and living off the land, with nowhere to be and no deadlines to meet.  But for now, I must be satisfied with my hectic suburban life and our periodic visits to the countryside.

How about you?  Where do you go to nourish your soul?  Are there any places that you feel a strong connection with?  I'd love to know.