You’ll notice most of my recipes I blog about are generally Sweet Treats/ Desserts. This is because when I cook I generally never measure anything or write down etc. Baking however, proves to be more of an exact art. Enjoy the recipe, I hope you love them as much as I do

Dough:

• 1 cup milk
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, divided
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 large egg
• 2 1/4 teaspoons yeast (from 2 envelopes yeast)
• 1 teaspoon salt

Filling:

• 3/4 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

Glaze:

• Around ½ cup cream cheese, room temperature (114grams)
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

For dough:
Combine milk and butter in glass bowl. Microwave on high until butter melts and mixture is just warmed, 30 to 45 seconds. Add 1 cup of the flour, sugar, egg, yeast, and salt. Beat on low speed 3 minutes, stopping occasionally to scrape down sides of bowl. Add 2 1/2 cups flour. Mix until flour is absorbed and dough is sticky. If dough is very sticky, add more flour by tablespoonful’s until dough begins to form ball and pulls away from sides of bowl. Turn dough out onto lightly floured work surface. Knead until smooth and elastic, adding more flour if sticky. Form into ball.

Lightly oil a large bowl. Transfer dough to bowl, turning to coat. Cover bowl with plastic wrap, then kitchen towel. Let dough rise in warm draft-free area until doubled in volume, about 2 hours.

For filling:
Mix brown sugar and cinnamon in medium bowl.

Punch down dough. Transfer to floured work surface. Roll out to 15×11-inch rectangle. Spread butter over dough, leaving 1/2-inch border. Sprinkle cinnamon sugar evenly over butter. Starting at 1 long side, roll dough into log, pinching gently to keep it rolled up. Cut dough at an angle with thin sharp knife into 18 equal slices

Spray two 9-inch square glass baking dishes with nonstick spray. Divide rolls between baking dishes, arranging cut side up (there will be almost no space between rolls). Cover baking dishes with plastic wrap, then kitchen towel. Let dough rise in warm draft-free area until almost doubled in volume, 40 to 45 minutes.

Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 180 Degrees Celsius. Bake rolls until tops are golden, about 20 minutes. Remove from oven and invert immediately onto rack. Cool 10 minutes. Turn rolls right side up.

For glaze:
Combine cream cheese, powdered sugar, butter, and vanilla in medium bowl. Beat until smooth. Spread glaze on rolls. Serve warm or at room temperature.

If these dont fill your entire body with a deliciously divine sensation… then there is no hope   They are Dii-freakin-vine, and play a round a bit, they are super yummy with Pecan Nuts too!

There’s something about summer and berries that goes hand in hand. Blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, strawberries, im addicted!

I love the “quintessential” look to tartlets. They are so easy to make and the reward is HUGE! Tarlets can make any amateur chef feel like a professional!
Sweet shortcrust pastry
2¼ cups plain flour
1/4 cup icing sugar
125g unsalted butter, softened
2 x large eggs eggs

3-4 punnets fresh raspberries

1. For sweet shortcrust pastry, combine flour and icing sugar in food processor, process to combine. Add butter and process to fine crumbly texture. Add eggs and process until pastry comes together. Knead lightly on floured surface until base is smooth, pat the top to flatten slightly then wrap in baking paper and refrigerate 20 minutes or until firm enough to roll out.
2. Preheat oven to 200°C (180°C fan forced).

3. Roll out dough on a lightly floured work surface, use pastry to line base and sides of 6-9 medium sized tartlet pans (I use the ones with removable bottoms) OR you can use a 3cm deep, 24cm loose-based tart tin. Trim off any excess pastry, prick the base all over with a fork, then refrigerate for 10 minutes.

4. Place sheet of baking paper over the pastry and three-quarters fill with raw rice or beans. Bake blind for 15 minutes or until edges are light golden. Remove paper and rice and bake further 10 minutes or until base is dry and pastry golden. Set aside to cool in tins. Transfer pastry cases to serving platter.

Creme patissiere is the smooth custard filling for fruit tarts. It is quite easy to make and you should get a really smooth custard with this method. I really like to play around and for an added touch of “exoticness” sometimes I use half milk, half coconut milk to add a zing!

Ingredients

• 2 egg yolks

• 50g castor sugar

• 25g plain four

• 1 1/4 cups milk (full cream) – feel free to play with coconut milk too!

• A Vanilla Pod

• In a large bowl, beat the egg yolks with the sugar

1. Gradually beat in the flour with just one tablespoon of the milk.

2. Place the rest of the milk in a heavy bottomed saucepan, Cut Vanilla Pod in half and scrape out seeds. Bring this infusion to boil and remove Pod.

3. Whisk this into the egg mixture in a slow stream – ensuring that you whisk continuously so as it does not go lumpy. (by using a balloon whisk you should have no problems with this)

4. Return the mixture to the saucepan and place back on the heat. Continue to whisk until boiling (just a few seconds ) then remove from heat and continue whisking and cooking for 2 – 3 minutes.

Allow to cool.

Pour into a dish and keep in a refrigerator until you are ready to fill your pastry shells.

Allow shells to cool, feel with creamy yummy-ness and top with raspberries and icing sugar! Best served outside, in a garden, lying down, on a picinic blanket yummmmy I LOVE summer x

For me, moving to the city from the “bush”; being with Nature is probably something I miss the most. Things like having a proper garden, being surrounded by thick veld and waking up in the middle of the night because some bushbaby is making a weird noise :) So every year I try and get back to that. (Even though it involves close encounters with Snakes and Scorpions )

 This Blog is owed to “Beautiful Botswana”. My Heart, my Life, My soul is with this dusty, heat filled country

This year I want to encourage all people that live in Botswana to also “keep it local”. So often with small towns, all you want to do for a holiday is make a break for it overseas or out of the country. I realised after speaking to so many expats living there how incredibly blessed we are in Botswana, and how much by living there you take it for granted. We have the Okavango Delta, Chobe National Park, Nxai Pans and even the vast emptiness of the Tuli Block we literally are spoilt for choice when it comes to “Bush Breaks”.

Nxai (the x= a clicking sound) Pan is 2500 square kilometer game reserve. It is a large area of very flat savannah/grasslands. I shockingly have never even been there myself!
In Botswana, most places during the rainy season are not the time to go, but Nxai Pan blossoms. Thousands of Zebra migrate to the area with their young.
It is also the only place you will see both springbok and impala in the same area.
Nxai pan has many different species including: gemsbock, giraffe, impala, springbok, lions (lots of them) cheetahs
leopard,  Wildebeest, bat eared fox, jackals, honeybadgers, hearteebeast, etc… So for all the “mini-breaks” this year why not explore what we have? GOAL FOR THIS YEAR? GO CAMPING IN THE NXAI PANS! Anyone keen to join me?

I love Africa. I love Botswana.

Tuli Block is an area of land in the far Southeastern border of Botswana and South Africa. It acted a barrier between Bechuanaland (Botswana) and the South African Boer Farmers in 1895.In the Tuli block the Limpopo River and the Notwane River converge. Tuli today is made up of multiple private game reserves and private farms/residences. Little of the area is fences and the animals are allowed to roam . This is true Botswana, Red Soil, Miles of Thorn trees and random animals everywhere!

  Chobe National Park. Chobe is over 11700 square kilometres of protected area and rated one of the best safaries in Africa it has the largest population of elephants about 120,000. Infact they are causing a bit of a problem in the area ! Its also a bird lovers’ paradise. You’ll also probably get to see the most Hippo’s out of water you have ever seen!

I recently visited Chobe for the 2^nd year in a row in December. The Chobe River is the border between Botswana and Nambia. The people who live on the Botswana side are the Sibiya and the Namibian side are the Lozi. There is an island called Sidudu at the border between Botswana and Namibia where buffalos, impala, lechewe, Puku (if you are lucky) and elephants and Hippos graze.

Elephant casually crossing the Road

Fish Eagles galore

Hitching a Lift

The rare Puku

Finally, In Botswana there is not a single day that passes where we do not see an amazing sunrise or sunset.
During the day the sky is a crisp blue. Some days…..a clear blue sky that goes forever….Other days full of cute puffy cotton ball clouds.

The sky is even amazing during rain. The thunderstorms here are AWESOME displays of lighting and thunder with enormous clouds looming and you see rain falling kilometers off in the distance.

So Keep it Local Guys, we are truly blessed to live in such a beautiful place. For those readers that have never been to Botswana, it will change your world forever The people, the culture, the hot air. It gets under your skin and will never leave xx

PS: Two great websites about Botswana? www.gaboronecity.com and www.safaris-in-botswana.com

On Friday we fly to Cape Town for 4 days of utter RELAXATION! NOT THINKING ABOUT WORK! Enjoying the beautiful scenery, walking on beaches and just spending quality time, (hopefully I’ll spot a couple of sharks). This body needs to catch up on a whole year of summer so the weather better play along !

Then its off to the Beautiful Botswana to spend some quality time with my closest Friends and Family. I don’t know what it is about Botswana but I am always so so excited to go back! The heat, the bush, quality relationships… It’s the simple things.Rounding off the holidays is a trip to the incredible Chobe National Park. Two of my favourite places in the world are the Okavango Delta (probably one of the most majestic places ever) and Chobe National Park. Chobe is in the North of Botswana and Borders Zimbabwe, Zambia and Namibia. Never short of activities you can even take day trips to the Victoria Falls!! ( I will most certainly Blog about this trip)

Holidays, whether you Celebrate Christmas or not. It’s a time to always spend with Friends and Family, get togethers and beautiful memories. Of course with that comes Food Lots and Lots of food… This year there will only be 4 of us at the Christmas Table (And my brother is a strict Vegan) but trust me we will still have the whole “shebang” and probably end up cooking for 10!

So here are my two recipes for the festive season (Trust me in the last 2 weeks I have made these desserts 4 times!!!)

Strawberries-and-Cream-Cheesecake 

Recipe:

(Cake Days by The Hummingbird Bakery – Possibly the best baking book ever)

For the base:

220 g ground biscuits (tennis/ marie)

100g butter, melted

For the filling:

200gr fresh strawberries (chopped)

180gr castor sugar

600gr Cream Cheese

2 eggs

Place the strawberries in a saucepan with 80gr of the sugar and 30ml of water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and cook until the strawberries are soft and the liquid has reduced by half. Set aside until completely cold.

Preheat the oven to 160℃. Prepare the filling by beating together the CREAM CHEESE and the remaining sugar on a medium speed until smooth. Add the eggs one at a time. Pour in the cooked strawberries (plus the syrup!) and stir in by hand.

Pour the mixture into the prepared cake tin and bake for ca. 45mins. Allow the cheesecake to cool to room temperature still in the tin, then place in the fridge to chill and set for 1-2 hours.

For the topping:

100gr mascarpone

20gr icing sugar

100ml double cream

Beat the mascarpone and icing sugar on a medium speed until smooth. In a separate bowl, whisk the double cream until soft peaks form. Then fold the double cream into the mascarpone mixture. BE VERY CAREFUL HERE, YOU CAN OVERBEAT IT VERY EASILY.

Spread on top of the cheesecake and chill again for 1 hour. Decorate cheesecake with fresh strawberries.

BEST CHEESECAKE YOU WILL EVER TASTE (THAT’S A PROMISE)

AND PERFECT FOR A SUMMER DAY …. PAVLOVA!

3 egg whites

175g sugar

1 tsp cornflour

½ tsp vanilla essence

½ tsp white vinegar

1. Preheat the oven to 130 Degrees C and place the rack in middle of the oven. Line a baking tray with foil and draw a 7 inch circle on the foil OR just use a pie/ flan dish.
2. In a clean, medium-sized glass bowl, beat the egg whites with a clean electric mixer on medium speed. Beat until the whites form soft peaks.
3. Gently sprinkle the sugar into the egg whites, one teaspoon at a time. Returning egg white mixture to the same stiffness each time. Beat and Beat and Beat (the more you beat the better :) ) Your egg whites should now be glossy stiff peaks.
4. Sprinkle the cornstarch and vinegar on the meringue and fold in gently with a plastic spatula. Add the vanilla and gently fold the mixture again.
5. Spread the meringue in the container. Make sure the edges of the meringue are slightly higher then the centre so you have a very slight well in the middle.
6. Bake the meringue for about 1 hour and 15 minutes or until it goes a very pale, pinkish colour.
7. Turn the oven off and leave the door slightly ajar to let the meringue cool completely. As the meringue cools, it will crack slightly.
8. Whip the cream. Prepare the fruit by washing and slicing. (Two options: a beautiful combination of strawberries, bannanas and kiwis OR a berry Pavlova (strawberries, raspberries, blackberries etc)
9. Gently spread the cream to the top of the meringue with a spatula and arrange the fruit on top. Either Serve immediately or cool in the fridge a bit

Remember as well that it is definitely the season for giving! Even the smallest act of kindness can have a HUGE impact on anothers life, from a simple item of clothing to a soccer ball. Show your kindness to others by giving.

Happy Happy Holidays to all! To my family spread around the world, I love and miss you all so so much, Holidays are never the same without you x

I got home from work at around 19h00 Friday night, thought i’d take a “quick nap” only to re-open my eyes at 23h00 still having to make my “trio of summer desserts” eek! Menu plan was Mini Pavlova’s, Mini Strawberry Cheesecake and a Mini Vanilla Pana Cotta drizzled with Raspberry Coulis.

Panna Cotta is easy breasy:

• 2 cups cream (I use one thick cream, one normal)
• ½ cup full cream milk
• ½ cup double cream greek yoghurt
• 1 Masterfoods vanilla bean
• 1/2 cup (115g) caster sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp gelatine powder

1. Place the cream and milk in a saucepan. Use a small sharp knife to split the vanilla bean lengthways, then scrape the seeds from inside the bean. Add the seeds and bean to the saucepan. Slowly bring to the boil over a medium heat.
2. Discard bean from cream mixture. Add sugar and return to a low heat. Cook, stirring, for 5 minutes, or until sugar dissolves.
3. Sprinkle gelatin over warmed milk (I pour it in a glass bowl and hold it above the steam from cream, adds to dissolving). Stir into cream mixture till dissolved, then add yoghurt
4. Lightly oil 6 x 1/2 cup (125ml) dariole moulds or ramekins. Place on a tray and pour in cream mixture. Refrigerate for 4 hours.
5. To serve, break the seal by inserting a small knife between the Panna cotta and the mould. Turn onto a serving plate and shake to release. Serve with Raspberry Coulis (basically just 300g raspberries plus about 1/3 cup icing sugar pureed together).

The Strawberry cheesecake is quite complex – I will need a whole blog just for that. Its got about 5 different steps from making the base, to making a strawberry syrup, to the topping (each stage needs to cool which is tedious). Pavolva is also quite simple.

Cut a long story short I went to sleep at around 05h00 am. Alarm set from 06h20 to get up and get ready to go through to auditions.

I bought a nifty cooler box on wheels from Cape Union Mart, along with around 10 ice bricks. Your dish HAD to be between 0-4 Degrees Celsius, if not then you get turned away. *Paranoid* I got there at almost 09h00 on the dot. The queue was INTENSE, I never thought I’d reach the front, however, I did meet some pretty awesome people in line. All of us abolutely focused on our “Ice” NOT melting, trying to keep cooler boxes in the shade. My 3rd dish was the Pavlova, and I had visions of getting to the front only to realise all the cream had melted and fallen off the meringue.

Props to all of the organizers of MasterChefSa, the auditions were exceptionally well organised. WoolworthsSA had people handed out free drinks and mixed snack packs (awesome thanks guys). There were some extremely theatrical ushers along the way to keep us entertained. The queue moved fairly quickly, reached the front at around 11h00. Plated up and entered the room of terror (now my hands were really shaking, did not aid me in trying to plate up the dish).

The Judges give NOTHING away, you cannot read their faces at all and all they do is tick a “symbol” (we are still trying to decode them  ) and then you move through to the next room! “CONGRATULATIONS YOU ARE THROUGH !” WOOO HOO! On to the next round! (That alone was enough for me ). 5 of us got clumped together and had a “Group Interview”, Not going into detail from this point as KZN and CPT still need to audition but finally finished at 21h00 that night.. Looong Day.

Typical me I forgot to take pic’s of my dishes plated up!! GourmetGuys, wish you could have caught me, I would have had backup!

I will tell you what the prize is though !!

1. R250 000 in Cash to realise your culinary dream
2. Hyundai Elantra 1.6 GLS
3. An all expenses paid trip to Italy for 7 days , including an Italian Cookery Course (read my previous blog to see how much I love Italy)
4. A Customised Sommelier course
5. And ….. The MondoVino restaurant at Southern Sun’s Monte Casino

Now the wait begins.. Final Results out around Christmas…Its going to be a long wait.

The Next day, Sunday the 4^th was my Love’s Birthday ! YAY! I love getting a whole day as an excuse to spoil someone !

Due to the lack of sleep the night before woke up LATE and went through to Cassalinga in Muildersdrift area. Beautiful long lunches, rolling green grass and fresh, fresh vegetables. Order of the day was a combination of Pesto Lasagne, Fresh Kingklip, Baby Marrow Soup and the most divine Crème Brulee. The glacèd Fruit they bring at the end is just the cherry on top!

So everyone who reads this, keep sending positive thoughts my way (There is nothing more I can do except wait. Maybe if people Retweet the blog one of the producers will see it and ill get the “final” final cut :) ). And also HAPPY HAPPY Birthday Ahmed! You are my love, my life, (and without you saying “puulleaase I want to see you on MasterChef”, I would never have done it

One Step Close to living MY Dream !

xx

H – HAPPY – what I am right now and counting the days till the December break!
I – Ice – Cream – specifically Hagen Daaz ! Perfect for the Summer
J – Jewellery – statement pieces, rings, dangly earrings. I can’t get enough.
K -Kindness. Be kind to people. You never know what they are going through in their lives.
L – Laughing. My best is when you get a stitch from laughing and tears run down my cheeks. It’s simply the BEST. (although I always end up with Hiccups afterwards
M – Maldives – ah yes my dream destination that I will get to one day

N – Nature Reserves – There is nothing like heading back to nature for TRUE rest and relaxation.. T – 43 Days till I bask in the beautiful Botswana Heat of Chobe !

O – Oats. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day and I’m a big fan of oats. I also love adding blueberries, or strawberries
P – Photography. I really love seeing things through a lens. It’s a whole different view on life and add to beautiful memories
Q – Quality time with friends and loved ones.
R – Rainy days under a duvet.
S – Summer, Sun-Kissed Skin….
T – Tea !! What is better in life then curling up with a beautiful cup of tea
U – Underwear – it has to always match and it has to be comfortable.
V – Vision Boards. At work we call them Dream Boards. Create one for yourself every year and look back ! I love setting goals and dreams.
W – Watermelon. It’s slowly starting to come into season and I’m like a little girl at Christmas over this fruit.
X – Xenon Headlights – and my future car that will have them ………
Y – Yacht’s – some of my best memories have been island hopping on yachts. There is no other word to describe it other than Bliss!

Z – Zebra Print … infact any animal print. I always accessories to an extra feel of sexy-ness

It was an incredible successful visit, we are going back on the 19th of November. I cannot believe how much my babies have grown up!!

We took through some helium balloons, party packs and  yummy cakes, and spent the day playing; getting our hair done and bonding with the kids Its always humbling to see how little you have to give to receive in return. Your time is the most valuable you can give to any living thing.

Here’s some pictures to share:

One step closer to the dream xxx

I’m so delayed, I didn’t realise that there was a deadline to register your blog for the “SA’s blog awards”; sadly I missed this by about a week. C’est la Vie, there is no way ill forget next year!

So I have a completely jam packed weekend coming up and looking forward to every second! Tomorrow is our Christmas Party at work ( I cannot believe its that time of the year already),  and every year we have a theme. This year is “rock”, my leather jacket is ready, “pleather tights” are out! Oh yes its sure to be good…. I’ll post lots of pics!

On Saturday we are celebrating one of my friend’s birthday, and while I may not be gracing them with my presence for the cycling (there is a 2 hour cycle tour around Soweto before hand) I will be parting it up at the “after lunch”. I have always wanted to go to a restaurant in Soweto! Ill definitely give feedback!

Then on Sunday it’s time to celebrate Eid-Al-Adha which is directly translated into “The Festival of Sacrifice”. Every year Muslims across the world go off to Mecca in Saudi Arabia to voyage on the holy pilgrimage, or “Hajj” as it is known. At the very end of this pilgrimage all Muslims (those who have been lucky enough to make the trip as well as those who have not) celebrate Eid-Al-Adha. It is celebrated to commemorate the trials and triumphs of the Holy Prophet Abraham, peace be upon him (source) Muslims slaughter an animal on this day as the holy prophet Abraham did.

Its been a busy month in general; went to the Cold Play concert as well a few weeks ago.

The night was astounding, starting off with “hurts like heaven” accompanied by flying beach balls, psychedelic lights and confetti not to mention, an incredible atmosphere. We took a journey through all our favourite Coldplay anthems like “Yellow” and “Fix you”. Some 62,000 people packed into the stands and field to witness the band’s first tour in South Africa and I was two people from the front! Directly in front of the oh so good looking Guy Berryman.
Some other memorable moments include the crowd chanting “Viva La Vida” and Chris Martin screaming “you guys are fucking awesome”.
Martin told the Johannesburg crowd that they had been shooting a music video in South Africa, saying: “It’s so much sunnier and warmer than where we come from.” He then asked the crowd: “Would you like to be in the video?” The stadium exploded into cheers and screams. “Paradise” was part recorded in the Karoo and part at the Joburg concert (I still haven’t managed to watch it to spot me though)The mood remained upbeat through the set with a Mexican wave of cellphone lights around the calabash stadium, the same place used to host the Soccer World Cup final.

Completely awesome night from start to finish.

Ending off is Thankful Thursday, what are you grateful for in your life? “Be Kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle.”. I’m thankful for all the people in my life who genuinely care for me and love me. “Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word or the smallest act of caring, all of which have potential to change someone’s life”

Pictures from coldplay below:

all the beach balls

filming for the Paradise Video

I used to day dream about having one of those cooking shows, the kind with a set that looks like a fully-equipped kitchen, even though it’s really no more than a stove, sink, and countertop surrounded by big cameras and people holding up cue cards just out of sight. I would have endless conversations “cooking” over the stove teaching “the wall” how to make some dish. Of course I’d have a crew that was responsible for all of the peeling, chopping, and washing (I’d volunteer my sister to do this job any day). They would prepare my ingredients for me and put them into separate bowls, so I could whip together any unbelievable dish in a matter of minutes and look like a master chef! Pulling out something that was “prepared before”,  I’d end with looking at the camera to tell my viewers at home: “For more delicious recipes, be sure to tune in next time”                    I LOVE COOKING!

Most recently, I came to a very important conclusion, I am just not a “flats” girl. I like my heels. For so long I have tried to deny myself this silly little truth, I couldn’t do it anymore. It got me thinking… Is it ever really about the “shoes”? Or am I one of those compulsive “Shopaholics?” It’s no coincidence that the Shopaholic Book is written about a young women named Rebecca, yep that’s me :) Although I may be in denial I am not a “shopaholic” I merely like to surround myself in “nice things” , luxury. (I think that’s a Leo trait).For me an outfit is based on the shoe, Entirely. It’s the first thing I think of when getting dressed, what shoe will I wear? The shoes signify accepting who I am and owning it. I LOVE SHOES!

For anyone that closely knows me they will know that I have a very “eclectic” Family. From family psychics to levitations, “singing to the sun”, “snake hunting” top if off with a Rasta brother and me, the Muslim daughter, we are pretty much a bunch of Hippies. We don’t “talk” we “shout” but hey it works for us. We also live on every continent in the world. We are pretty much proof that one family can have completely opposing viewpoints and general opinions.If we can disagree we will. But under all of that, is LOVE, a huge amount of it. Love for each other, love for fun, but mostly love for the family unit, and I can’t wait to have my own crazy family one day. I LOVE MY FAMILY

Then we have my partner….. He’s my best friend, a helping hand, a good listener, a comedian, and the love of my life. I met him high school, cliché right? Ten years on he still makes me laugh every single day. He is my right hand person for everything, yet we still have our own individual lives. We tease each other, we argue over who is making the tea (I always end up doing it), we argue over doing stuff on the weekend (he is a homebody and I need the outdoors, I need people) but more importantly my love for him grows every single day. Don’t get me wrong, no relationship is perfect, far far from it. However I’ve found the person that I want to fight with  The one that acts like a hard ass but is really the softest person ever. And yes I LOVE HIM :)

 With all this LOVE I also want to talk about GIVING BACK LOVE… This week I’m going back to Lambano Baby Sanctuary. Something that has been very close to my heart for many years. I’ve gotten caught up in “life” recently, and yes even though I have been involved in various projects none of them were constant or have been about “Building relationships”. So on Saturday I’m taking a couple of people from work to go and spend time with these orphaned kids, most of which are HIV+. What makes the most of “giving back” is “giving time”. More than anything underprivileged people deserve your time. I remember in University I did a research project on Homeless people in Johannesburg but above anything, when I approached these people to talk to them their faces lit up when someone took the time to acknowledge them.

So GIVE YOUR LOVE BACK! Be appreciative of your crazy family, don’t be afraid to Love. You will feel that no matter how big your problems are, the world is a better place! One step closer to living the dream x

So Major Trends in Africa this week?

• First of all EVERYONE has been talking about the man that got bitten by a white shark  on Fish Hoek Beach yesterday in Cape Town. I have a weird fascination with all things gory, I always have. Things like Sharks and Snakes I am obsessed with. I devour any programme or bit of news on these creatures.
• One of the things I love about Cape Town is the fact they have “shark spotters”. I LOVE THIS! Instead of damaging the ecological environment they have these dedicated spotters who sit at strategic points and keep their eyes out for sharks, the second a shark is “spotted” the white flags go up and the beach is closed. So the beach was closed yesterday when this man decided to go swimming, he knew the risk. I also follow “SharkSpotters” on twitter (follow me on BecksMCWilson) and you can see on their tweets at 09h25  it read “sharks spotted in FishHoek, Beaches Closed”, then at 12h20 “Beach still closed” then at 12h35 “shark attack confirmed on Clovelly beach, Fish Hoek”. Why would you swim KNOWING there have been sharks spotted?BUT did you know this shark was literally 15 m off shore?? that is so close.. Big Ups to the Shark Spotters, they do an amazing job. I would love to go and spend a day with them!

• The other thing that’s made the news is Kim Kardashian! No suprises there, but she voted as most annoying celebrity! (It’s still Paris Hilton in my eyes). There’s no denying that the Kardashian’s are extremely famous, with their faces plastered almost everywhere you turn. Yet I am one of those peoples who catch the omnibuses and have the Kardashian book. Kim, in particular, has been even more so in the spotlight with her recent wedding and honeymoon. Is there such a thing as over-exposure? Perhaps, as Kim as been voted the Most Annoying Celebrity around. Out of 60,000 people polled, she earned a whopping 29% of the votes.
  Charlie Sheen was a close second with 27% of the votes. Except this poll is just another piece of publicity so it can’t hurt?

1. Kim Kardashian 29%
2. Charlie Sheen 27%
3. Snooki 21%
4. Lindsay Lohan 16%
5. Donald Trump 5%
6. Brad Womack 1%  - (WHO IS HE?)

• Rumor has it Jessica Simpson is pregnant. But who really cares?

• Trends popping up everywhere seem to be Celebrities releasing books! From Cook Books to “kiddie’s books” the latest to jump on this band wagon is Taye Diggs! (Bet you never would have guessed that)
• “Chocolate Me” is about fitting in and excepting those who are different. Diggs said he wants kids to know that, “You should be proud and embrace your differences regardless if its race or religion or if something is looked upon as a handicap.”

• 3 of Nelson Mandela’s grandchildren are also set to star in their own “reality show”. “This is about three women… breaking away from the (Mandela) legacy to find their own feet,” said director Graeme Swanepoel. I think this is what you call “riding on a wave”.

• The last thing I want to mention this week is “staying young”. Not in the mind-set sense (I think I’m one of those eternal 17 yr olds). But more in the “body and aging” sense. I recently started Gym again after taking a 10 month “sabbatical”. I can never understand, I LOVE gym when I go back, I love that I can feel results after 1 trip (that’s not in my head, I can seriously feel a difference J ), so why then do we stop going? It’s the million dollar question I never have the answer to. I put it down to the laziness of getting in your car and driving there.
  Its simple! Work. Out. More. – A lot of young people get plenty of exercise but if you’re one of those naturally skinny types that doesn’t need exercise you’ll want to start now.  They “say” a person should walk 4 days a week. These walks should take a person around 40 minutes to complete because this is sufficient for losing weight and increasing energy. A person should maintain a brisk speed when they walk. Getting into a daily exercise routine tends to be easier when a person exercises daily with another person. This will help them stay motivated, energized and make the workout go by a lot faster than if they were doing it all alone. This year both gym “spurts” I’ve had a gym “buddy”. Yoga sessions were the best with my friend as together we would walk out in fits of laughter in the way the instructor spoke in her “soft” “sexual” voice… you are the light, and the light is you”

• OH BY THE WAY! Good Food and Wine Show was AMAZING, so glad I went! Came back a little bit “broke-r” than I intended on being  but I did come back with some very cool tools. I bought a potato-miller! Those Food puree thingys they used on Masterchef to make super fine mashed potato (amongst other things). A super cool Jamie Oliver Knife (I have a thing for good knives), a pan, and a very cool cupcake “Core-r”. See pictures below:

Filling the Core with Caramel

Iced Cupcake with "Hidden" Caramel Core

Recipe of the week

 Fare thee well friends, if there are any suggestions or you want any recipes. Until then one step closer to living your dreams ……xx