Zurie

about me

Dec. 2008 :

I am a very uninteresting person. I've been married for 41 years to the same great guy, whom I met when we both attended Stellenbosch University. That was way back when the world was young.

We live on the sea now, as my husband is retired. I still do the housework and cooking, so I doubt I've retired with him... Before that, we lived in Johannesburg where we spent 30 of our married years.

I was born and raised in the green and pleasant Western Cape, however.

Our seaside village is quiet and boring, but also very unspoilt and really beautiful. I like my own company — but it does get lonely here, which is why I can be found on Zaar often — my cyber social life!

We have tons of great friends, but unfortunately, by now, we are spread out all over South Africa and abroad!

In my working days I've graduated from teacher to journalist to food editor, and from there to college lecturer to writer ... a "checkered career", as they say, but very interesting!

Hobbies ... Is housework a hobby? You bet not. I love doing pottery (not doing it now), I like to relax doing sketching and aquarelles, and I am a voracious reader. Apart from the amount of money I spend on books I'm sure I'm keeping the magazine industry in SA alive single-handedly. And, of course, I am deeply interested in all food-related subjects!

Although we live on the sea, we have a small farm about 10 minutes' drive away. I try to keep my organic veggie garden going there. You'll see it is completely covered in green nylon shade-cloth, against the myriad wild birds, destructive monkeys, guinea fowl, porcupines and other little raiders.

We now also have a tiny cottage in lovely Stellenbosch, and we try to go there every 3 or 4 months to be close to our son and his wife. There's a lovely little grandson, and another is on the way.

The pictures in the slideshow are a very random, recent collection in no particular order! My mother and father (here with our grandson) are 90 and 97 respectively.





I have taken part in many tag games and other competitions, in PAC 2006, in RSC 8, 9 & 10 — but was too stupid to get the banners in here. At last I have some to show! Pity about the missing banners.

Favorite Foods:

I usually prepare plain but flavorful meals, preferring fresh vegetables and meats. We are not fond of anything pre-prepared except some very good bottled sauces and marinades. The only time I cook from recipes is when taking part in a Zaar tag or a cooking competition.

I like "developing" recipes, something I had to do a lot of as a food editor. Lots of my recipes are my own inventions.

Most of the time I cook with what I have at hand. Where we live, I don't always have the choice of "fine dining" ingredients, unless I go shopping far afield!

We almost never eat desserts, preferring a couple of glasses of wine with dinner. I'll make desserts and cake only for guests.

Preferred foods: Well-prepared whole roast chicken — please, no skinless breasts! Mom's roast potatoes. Fresh asparagus, green beans, mixed lettuces, garden-ripened tomatoes ... an endless list ...

A deeply-flavoured fish soup in winter, with home-made bread — peasant food. Sheep offal. (Oh, sorry about that, please don't puke!!)

Fresh Cape Rock Lobster, fresh oysters, fish just off the boats (we have a large variety). And cheeses! We have great cheeses in SA, and an endless choice of world-class wines.

HOW I RATE A RECIPE NOW:

I've learnt a lot about this delicate issue in the years I have been a Zaar member!

A very good, tasty, reliable recipe gets 4 stars, but a 5 really has to be an almost perfect recipe, no matter how simple.

I do tweak recipes sometimes, but in small ways, and I'll tell what I did.

If it's a 3, I'll spell out in the review exactly why, which at least gives the cook an idea why the recipe didn't rate higher with me.

If I test recipes in a cooking contest, I might make recipes worth no more than 1 or 2 stars — and I'll explain exactly why — but normally I would pass recipes by if I can see it will not work well for me.

But still — ratings and reviews can be tricky, as we are from all over the world, and tastes differ so much. I never realised how much until I've been on Zaar for a while.

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