Hermanus Times
Algemeen General
5 December, 2013
Still Cooking for Izibusiso KERRY VAN RENSBURG Platbank mussel soup, Kwaaiwater prawn curry and sesame yoghurt cardamon cake. Recipes for these tempting dishes and desserts, and a whole lot more can be found in the pages of the new Izibusiso cookbook Still Cooking. The book, with its lovingly shared and collected recipes with cameos of Hermanus introducing each delicious chapter, was launched at The Deli on Wednesday 27 November. Dr Michele van Niekerk, who has been involved with Izibusiso – a foster home in Zwelihle for babies and toddlers – arranged the
Still Cooking features an insert and a recipe or two for abalone from Abagold. At the launch Christo du Plessis, managing director of Abagold (left) read out a recipe for La Hei – a traditional Chinese dish usually pre pared as part of a New Year ritual – while Rudolf van der Berg combined all the ingre dients for the guests to enjoy. Each ingredient has symbolic significance, for example the salmon pieces symbolise abundance and ex cess throughout the year, carrots symbolise blessings of good luck, shredded cucumber symbolises eternal youth and sesame seeds symbolise a flourishing business.
Still Cooking launch event. Glenda Furst, the quiet driving force behind Izibusio, says: “The reason we produced this recipe book is simple to explain – we need funds to run the home. Our first recipe book, Hermanus Cooks served us well for almost three years as a major source of income, even going to two reprints. “When the last copy was sold but the demand for the book continued, we began to ponder about a third reprint, but finally decided that a new book would be a better long-term source of income.” “We went through a long process of collecting recipes from Hermanus residents, collating these recipes, combining them with articles on Hermanus, and adding appropriate photographs and artwork. What we have managed to create by weaving all these aspects together is , I think, a small but beautiful tapestry which faithfully reflects how we live and eat in Hermanus,” says Glenda. Still Cooking is available at selected bookstores, hotels and lifestyle shops at a retail selling price of R160.
Joining forces for the wellbeing of the little children cared for at Izibusiso Foster Home, and an integral part of the launch of Still Cooking are (from left) Glenda Furst, Dr Michele van Niekerk and Rina Louw (manag er of Child Welfare Hermanus).
PHOTOS: KERRY VAN RENSBURG
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GAME RANGER, extracts from a Game Ranger’s Notebook by Rodney Henwood Here is an opportunity to armchair-snack on wildlife conservation and adventures, delivered in bite-size escapades and incidents of a career that spanned over 30 years. Tasters include: Harry Tennison (of Coca-Cola fame in the USA) being approached by the Natal Parks Board (NPB) in 1983 to export a breeding group of endangered black rhino. Rodney Henwood was the man in charge of this mission. It’s fascinating reading – catching the group of five rhinos, preparing them for travel, transporting them to Johannesburg, loading them onto the plane and then the trip itself. The journey from Umfolozi to the ranches in Texas took 4½ days and culminated with Henwood on a celebratory over-the-border to Mexico tequila outing. In another, he is tasked with transporting animals to the Karoo game farms of Dr Chris Barnard and author Wilbur Smith. Henwood now lives in Hermanus but spent his formative years in the Eastern Cape where as a learner at Dale College, he realised scholastics was not his forté. He started his career in the early 70s as a section ranger in the Mkuzi Game Reserve with his wife, Barbara, and their two children. His final posting was that of Warden of Game Capture. Henwood had in his
heyday caught as many as 17 white rhino in a day, and also pioneered a capture method for giraffes that is still standard practice today. With some melancholy, he says in the conclusion that his bush career was at a time when “everyone was passionate about their work and would happily work a 24hour day with little or no encouragement if it meant saving a single animal’s life.” It is clear that Henwood knew his trade, and loved it. After he resigned from the NPB he was still often approached to assist in game-related escapades, one of which was to help source and capture numerous species of African game for a park in mainland China. This was a huge operation, involving a Singapore Airlines Boeing 747400F ‘mega ark’, 14 lowbed trucks, and ultimately 43 army trucks filled with wild animals traversing roads and passes in a country where not much English was spoken. This is a hands-on read, written with dry and wry wit. It is highly informative, educational, entertaining and easy to read with B/W photos throughout. – Cilene Bekker
Hermanus Art Circle presents exhibition at new gallery The Hermanus Art Circle celebrates its 10th birthday – and its new name – with an exhibition that opens at their new gallery in Village Square on Friday 13 December at 17:30 for 18:00. Secretary Annette Solomon says they decided to change their name from Vermont Art Circle to Hermanus Art Circle because their members are no longer primarily from Vermont. The Vermont Art Circle was established in 2003 by a group of enthusiastic local artists, many of whom had been members of the Hermanus Art Society, which operated from the Old Station Gallery. Two years ago they opened The Little Gal-
lery in the Eastcliff Village Centre before moving to their present gallery on the first floor of Village Square (behind Ocean Basket) in June this year. The group has grown from a modest six artists in 2003 to a membership of over 20. Throughout the years they have held annual exhibitions and members’ competitions, as well as several workshops, art courses and visits to established artists’ studios. They also meet regularly for coffee morning crits and DVD afternoons. There are many treats in store for guests at their birthday exhibition, says Solomon. “Wine and snacks will be served, we’ll have
olive tasting, a raffle for a Mother and Child sculpture in support of Child Welfare and a Bid and Buy auction.” At a Bid and Buy exhibition each artist is assigned a letter (e.g. A, B, C) and each of his/ her paintings is numbered A1, A2, A3, etc. Envelopes are marked A, B, C, etc and when an interested buyer wants to bid on an artwork he/she fills in a form (name and contact details of buyer, bid amount, name of artist and number of painting), which is then placed in the relevant envelop. On the closing day of the auction, 20 December, each artist decides if the bid is acceptable.” The gallery is open from 10:00 to 16:00 daily.
Local artist Carol Carver, one of the members of the Hermanus Art Circle who will be tak ing part in their upcoming exhibition.
PHOTO: HEDDA MITTNER
Art Valuation Days with Stephan Welz & Colleagues We are currently inviting consignments for our March 2014 auction. Should you be thinking of selling, we would be delighted to assist you with a free and confidential valuation. Entries close mid-December Cape Town – Monday 9 December Strauss & Co, The Oval 1 Oakdale Road, Newlands Stephan Welz, Managing Director of Strauss & Co
Indulge in the fruits of success – be part of Strauss & Co’s superior yield Walter Battiss Watermelon Eater Sold for R909 440, November 2013
Hermanus – Tuesday 10 December The Marine Hotel, 9 Marine Drive Somerset West – Wednesday 11 December The Lord Charles Hotel cnr Main Road M9 & Broadway Blvd R44 To book an appointment, please call: 021 683 6560 / 078 044 8185
www.straussart.co.za