Sunday 10 January 2016

Book Club meets Cook Club!



It was at one of our book club meet ups, after a couple of glasses of wine that I first heard about Tamara Samson. The name alone intrigued me and the description that followed completely drew me in. Tamara is a South African goddess-in-the-kitchen, who lives off-grid (yes, off-grid!) in Co. Leitrim with her son Tao. She is wild at heart and loves eating and living organically, has travelled the world and eventually decided to settle somewhere near Manorhamilton. She cooks jaw-droppingly delicious food, like nothing we've ever tasted before...and it's all organic! Naturally, we just had to meet her so we decided to ask her if she would come and cook for us in one of our houses and she agreed! 

So, on a very very stormy day in early December, we all (partners and kids too) plodded into Laragh's house by the sea in Barna. Laragh and her husband Dave were already at work helping Tamara to set up and before we knew it, we were perched on one side of the island watching Tamara work her magic on the other. 






The idea was that we would learn about this amazing food while watching, tasting, and helping out as needed. We nominated a note-taker, watched in wonder, and listened intently to everything Tamara had to say. My interest in food has always been about more than just the taste. I love to know where the food on my plate has come from and what it can do for my body, and Tamara talked us through every ingredient she used and why (for at least ten dishes!). She had asked us in advance for guidance on what we were particularly interested in, be it sugar/dairy-free treats, quick and healthy food for kids, gluten-free options etc. She incorporated all of our requests into her demonstration so that everyone got what they needed from the session and more. We were greeted with a 'taster' smoothie on arrival, which in addition to the usual smoothie ingredients like banana, avocado and nutmilk, also included turmeric and lots of ginger which added anti-inflammatory and digestive health benefits as well as a very decent kick!  She also made a tasty raw salad, mini bean burgers, mushroom and cashew nut cream pasta, a cream cheese substitute (recipe below), monkfish laksa and a very tasty cacao pudding for dessert! She also included an activity whereby one member of each couple made our own preserved lemons (recipe and uses below) to take home with us. There was so much to take in during the few hours we had her that I was very glad someone was taking notes...with a small baby who doesn't sleep much my attention span was not up to scratch! 




One of the issues many of us have when it comes to eating organic food is the cost of it. We can argue that it is worth paying for, and I believe that it is, but it would also be good to find cheaper ways of obtaining it, acknowledging that we can't all grow everything that we eat. Tamara recommended Suma, which is the UK’s largest independent wholefood wholesaler/distributor, specialising in vegetarian, fairly traded, organic, ethical and natural products. If you buy in bulk they will deliver to Irish addresses, so perfect for groups like ours who all like to buy organic - now we just need to merge our shopping lists!

I can't express how much we enjoyed the cook club and there really was so much more to it - too much to fit into a blog post. But the good news is, Tamara enjoyed it too and would be willing to do it again for other groups. So, if you're a member of a book club with a food slant, or just a group of friends keen on having a demonstration of cooking delicious, nutritious food, you should get in touch with her - [tamtravelling@hotmail.com/083-1944342]. We had several vegetarians in our group, hence the lack of meat but Tamara will cook to your tastes. 

We also brought a babysitter along to ensure the kids didn't get bored and the adults could focus on the cooking - I would recommend doing this if you take kids with you.

Tamara’s Travelling Cook Club

Here's a taster of the tips we got from Tamara....get in touch with her directly to arrange your own cook club event!


Raw Cacao Pudding
Ingredients: coconut oil; raw cacao powder x4 tbsp; avocado x1; vanilla pod; maple syrup ¾ tbspoon; bananas; pinch salt; 

Method: Blend the lot!

‘Cream cheese’ substitute
Method: Put some natural yoghurt into a J-cloth in a sieve overnight over a pot. In the morning there will be ‘cream cheese’ in the sieve and a pot full of whey (can be used later in fermenting). Add (optional): preserved lemons; chilli; garlic; olive oil

Preserved Lemons


Ingredients: 10 Lemons; Himalayan sea salt (big cup); Jar

Method: slice the lemon in to quarters. Put 1tsp salt into the bottom of the jar, then put 1tsp into the quartered lemon, trying to cover the whole inside of the lemon with salt. Put the lemons with the open end facing down into the jar, pressing them with your fingers towards the bottom so they can release juice. Keep adding lemons all the way to the top of the jar, while squishing them so that every part of the lemon is covered with juice. Close the jar and check that it is completely sealed. Leave the jar on your kitchen bench for three days (a few times a day you can turn it upside down to mix the salt into every part of the jar. Put it in the fridge for at least three weeks.

Uses for Preserved Lemons: any tomato based stew; risotto with kalamata tomatoes and olives; green beans/kale; chickpea stew with tomatoes.
 

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