#TOLAHCHEFS3: Rustic Lamb Shanks in Red Wine

I love lamb shank and have always prepared it as a treat/when hosting/trying to impress (don’t judge meJ). This week we experiment with cooking with wine as a way of enhancing the flavour.  It’s important to find a wine that compliments your dish, is of reasonable quality, tastes delicious on its own and is of good value.  As a general rule, try not to buy anything labelled as ‘cooking wine’ since it probably earned that title by being unfit to drink. Starter chefs, do tell me how easy you find this one…. 

Ingredients:

• 4  lamb shanks
• large carrots, roughly chopped
• 1 onion, sliced
• 3 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 sprigs rosemary
• 750 ml full-bodied red wine (1 bottle)
• 2 cups beef stock
• 1 tablespoon soft brown sugar
• 1 -2 teaspoon cornflour
• olive oil, for cooking
• salt & pepper

Method:

Preheat oven to 180 Degrees Celsius. Season the lamb shanks with salt and pepper. In a large frying pan brown the lamb shanks on all sides in the olive oil; remove from pan and put into a large casserole dish to keep warm. In the same frying pan put in the carrots, onions, garlic, bay leaves and rosemary and cook slowly until nicely coloured. Pour in the red wine, beef stock, and brown sugar into the frying pan and stir gently bringing it to a low boil.Pour the wine mixture over the lamb shanks; top up with water if needed. Cover; put in oven and cook for 2 1/2 – 3 hours until very tender. Remove the lamb shanks and keep warm and skim the fat off the top of the red wine juices. Mix together the cornflour with just a bit of cold water and whisk the cornflour mixture into the red wine juices until desired consistency. Serve up on individual plates and enjoy.

NB:

• Open, refrigerated wine is drinkable for up to a week and suitable for cooking for two weeks.
• You can also serve the dish with Mashed Potatoes (Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add potatoes and cook until tender but still firm, about 15 minutes; drain. In a small saucepan heat butter and milk over low heat until butter is melted. Using a potato masher or electric beater, slowly blend milk mixture into potatoes until smooth and creamy)

Until next time,

L now known as La Petit Chef (thanks Ma Femme..bzu)

Image Credit: realfood.tesco.com

TOLAH Book Club: Endings & Beginnings: A Story of Healing by Redi Tlhabi

A book about a complicated relationship between a tweeny and a notorious gangster. She was just a child he saw as a person that needed protection and he was a young man misunderstood by the very community he had grown up in. The hard hearts of the very people that were supposed to be his protectors led him to become a rebellious killer and rapist in order to be taken seriously, yet left him with enough humanity to be so gentle and loving to little Redi in want for nothing in return for protecting her in the harsh streets of apartheid South Africa. Theirs was a strange union yet they both knew they belonged in each other's company in the way that they jelled.

As the book takes you through their brother and sisterly relationship that most believed to be a sexual and sickly one, you get to understand the reasons why the streets that shaped him became the monster that swallowed him. You get to see the confusion that this relationship brews inside the mind of a young child that was Redi. To see the other side of a Gangster without going the remourseful route yet can connect with what a lot of us could refuse to relate to on a normal day when confronted with giving a tsotsi time of day.

So as it were, after the death of Mabegzo, the gangster in Redi's life. She takes it upon herself to go on a journey to help understand this young man that had been her first crush. The journey that reveals the reasons he was who he was to the world. Despite the fact that Mabegzo's name brought out memories they would rather get over, Redi pushed for answers, knocked on doors and put on her journalistic hat on. If not for herself as it turned out, but for his family. 

I was captured by this novel to a point of tears, especially when Mabegzo goes into hiding with no food and she had to provide for him by sharing his lunchbox. I felt like kicking someone when she managed to make him go to church just to have a mmamoruti chase him out of the Lord's house.

It is such a beautiful story, although I do wish Redi could have declared the real reason for wanting to find the truth about him which I think is because she loved him dearly since he was her first love.

by Queen Troll

{PICS} 2015 BET AWARDS

The BET Awards were held this past Sunday, 28^th June 2015 at Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles, California. We bring you the red carpet hits and misses!

Co-hosts Anthony Anderson and Tracee Ellis Ross..that toe-vage though

Brandy, Cassie, Eva Marcille and Sevyn Streeter. Love love Barndy’s hair and outfit!

Beautiful dresses Letoya Luckett (TOP) and (Bottom) 

Naturi Naughton 

Sanaa Lathan, Christine Milian, Janelle Monae and Karu

    

(TOP) Angela Simmons…gaining weight nicely Bottom() RHOA’S Demetria

     

(TOP) Your gal Riri (Bottom) Empire’s Serayah

      

Hot mamas (TOP) Ciara (BOTTOM) Kelly Rowland

     

Justine Skye

Michelle Williams 

       

BMJ star Gabrielle Union 

Laverne Cox

     

Lala Anthony 

Lil Mama

    

(TOP) Jazmine brought her twins out to play… (BOTTOM) BMJ’s Raven Goodwin. @Confusedtroll I will leave this here….

The guys……..

  

(TOP)August Alsina and Bobby V   (BOTTOM) Khloe’s ex French Montana. What’s he wearing?

Coupling…Pairs….. 

(TOP) Nikky with Meek Mill…(BOTTOM) Omarion with girlfriend, Apryl Jones

          

(TOP) Cynthia Bailey’s daughter, Noel Robinson was accompanied by her daddy. Is that @Lufuno & @Aisha’s wedge sneaker?   (BOTTOM)  BFF’s Amber and Blac Chyna

And the Award for maponapona goes to:

(TOP) Love & Hip Hop’s Joseline Hernandez (MIDDLE) Singer Mila J (Jhene Aiko’’s sister) (BOTTOM) Raptress DJ Loaf

Fashion miss award goes to Dencia…What fuckery is this now? Attention seeker or too much Duromies?

And then this happened……African Artists fuming….

 

Bathi all the African awards we given  backstage….hours before the main event..they were not even mentioned during the live event!itjooo!  Why is BET doing this?

Enjoy  and troll away….

By TopTroll Aisha

TOLAH Cares: Thank you

Usindiso Ministries, a shelter for abused women and children takes in homeless women who have lost their homes due to various reasons mainly having run away from abusive homely situations. The Centre runs on donations and has no constant means of such hence they were over the moon after we contacted them wanting to donate blankets to them. (JPMD did not encourage giving blankets directly to homeless people in the CBD as they would just litter around or even sell said blankets, which would then render our exercise futile)

We had been requested to use the money we had been budgeting for blankets to rather buy them food as cold rooms were not so much a concern as hunger was. So, come Saturday morning, a handful of trolls braved the cold June morning and abandoned their warm homes to make the request of the centre a reality. First off I met up with Toffolux at Jumbo Cash and Carry to stock up some basic needs for the home. Of course the flies on the walls of Jumbo must have had the the perfect chuckle at the mini disagreements between me and Toffo about what is basic needs. At some point I found myself giving in to the idea that "pronutro" is a basic food requirement, SMH. In the end we got all the necessities and went off to meet a with the handful of trolls who had opted to meet us at the home.

After all the formalities, we were taken for a tour of the place. It has 4 floors. The ground floor is the main area where The dining area, kitchen and  admin office are situated. The first floor houses the homeless people. The second floor houses abused women and their children. The 3rd floor houses young women and also teenagers. Every room with a teenager has a mandatory full length mirror. This to at least keep one part of their teenagehood normal, we all know that as teens mirrors are similar to cellphones!

Stokvel Vibes: The Groceries including makip kip as basic items. As per Toffo: It's for the kids. Let the kids have some nice stuff. both our car boots were fully packed!!!

The ladies are encouraged to attend skills training classes (also a donated innitiative)at no cost to them and the couches & table below are made by the ladies who reside at the centre.

Each teenager's room has a full length Mirror

The Kitchen: empty shelves awaiting donations in faith

All Bedrooms have 2 single beds

A teen's room

The dining area

I would like to thank all the trolls who contributed towards making this day happen. It is because of you that the ladies and children of Usindiso Ministries have had and will have a few more meals. It is because of your contributions that a young lady will have an outfit to wear to an interview; They don't distribute donated clothes but keep them safe so that when one of the ladies gets a new job or interview, they can select and wear to the jobs / interview. It is because of your good hearts that a child had a few snacks that she might have not been able to enjoy for a while because of her situation. I cannot and will never thank you enough for being part of Saturday.

By Queen Troll