Just talking about tomatoes makes me hungry; tomatoes are actually considered a fruit not a vegetable but due to its acidic taste we eat it with savories instead of sweets.I would like to share one of my favorite recipes for tomato bruschetta with you, try it out…
You need 5-6 big ripe flesh tomatoescut them into fine pieces (small cubes)
1 red onionfinely diced
I glove of garlic
Salt and pepper to the taste
1 teaspoon Turmeric &
3 tablespoon Olive oilwhizz to a paste in a food processor
A bunch of fresh basilchopped up
Combine well in a bowl and serve with freshly toasted Ciabatta bread.
This is an all time favorite for appetizers. You can sprinkle a bit of olive oil over your toasted bread or even make some garlic or herb bread bruschetta. If you want, you can store it in the fridge for a day, just make sure to get rid of the excess juices before serving.
Tomato bruschetta needs good, ripe tomatoes, otherwise it will not have much taste at all other then onion.
I always liked the thought of self sustainable living; I have been trying for years to set up some ways with the help of my family to come closer to this dream.
My mother loves her garden and even though I don’t seem to have her green thumb, I can grow some veggies, fruit and lettuce. There is nothing more rewarding then eating your own tomato fresh from the plant, a carrot out of the ground and the odd citrus fruit from the tree. Even if you don’t have your own backyard, there are ways in the city to grow your own herbs and vegetables. One thing everyone should try is to grow some tomatoes. You can even grow it in a pot on your balcony.
Here some steps you should follow, but try it your way and see what works best at your place.
Buy some seeds from the gardening store; there are many different varieties you could choose from so try different ones if you have the room to do so. Plant the seeds after the last frost of the year, if you have frost in your area, when the soil reaches about 15 degrees Celsius. Follow the guides on the back of the satchel of the seeds. Position the pot in a sunny spot with lots of air circulation.
If you have a yard which you want to plant them in, make sure to raise the seedlings in a little pot first and then put them into the ground when they are about 10-15cm high. Make sure to water them regular, neither letting them sit in too much water nor letting the soil dry completely. Healthy plants grow in good soil so make sure to have a rich compost soil or fertilize the soil before planting. If you keep the leaves off the ground the tomato plant will have less chance to get a disease or rot. To prevent little white flies on your plants, plant some basil next to the tomato, white flies hate basil and will not go anywhere close to it. Make sure to grow one basil plant to every tomato plant.
When the plant grows, tie it to a stick or trellis so it will stay up not touching the ground.
Once you have tasted your first tomato you will know the difference between home grown and shop tomatoes. Let the tomatoes ripen on the plant if possible to get as many nutrients as possible. If they are still green, but need to come off the plant you can ripen them in a dark, warm place inside the house. Keep one of your best tomatoes and keep the seeds to dry and then plant in the coming spring.
I hope I have inspired you to grow your own tomatoes this spring.
I read this sentence above in one of these inspirational emails that friends send me and I thought it was quite clever. I hope I can inspire some people in my lifetime.
Do you have someone in your life that truly inspires you? Someone you look up to and wish you could be that little bit more like him or her? Or maybe you are like me and get inspirations in different parts of life from different people.
A true inspiration to me was David Bussau. David Bussau is a social entrepreneur whose innovative approach to solving world poverty has been recognised world wide.
I watched a live interview with this man last weekend and was almost in tears listening to the story of how he is currently helping 1.8million people in 27 developing countries. He provides small loans to promising entrepreneurs, empowering them to start or expand their own small businesses. This enables whole families to get out of poverty by their own means not relying on charity for survival.
"Each of us has the capacity to be incredibly productive and those who realise this are the ones who make the difference in the world," says Bussau. "For me the challenge is to find ways to release that incredible potential in human beings, to enable that creative force and drive to be expressed."
His organisation has distributed over one million loans since it began 30 years ago. A Manchester University study has shown that for each job created, on average six people are permanently taken out of poverty and 13 people in the community benefit, so over five million people were potentially helped by David’s Organisation ‘Opportunity International’ in 2003 alone. He was named the Ernst & Angus Australian Entrepreneur of the year 2003.
What an inspiration!
I found the story of a young man to be very touching, which David shared on the weekend with his audience. This young man and his wife lived in poverty, expecting their third child. This child, the man told David, would as soon as it was born inherit three generations of debt. Even though the man was working on the fields of a rice farm all day, he could not provide enough money to his family and pay off the debt. So together they thought of a way the family could get out of this financial crisis which has been their reality all their lives. The wife was very talented in sewing gowns, so David gave a one hundred dollar loan to buy a sewing machine. Within three month the couple was able to give the money back, buy another machine and employ another lady. This business is still growing now, employing many people and making a huge profit.
Thank you David for sharing your story, I am very honoured to have been in your presences
I just bought an MP3 player a week ago, after long thoughts of the pros and cons I went with the pros and just did it. I know people say that the constant music straight into your ears are not suppose to be great for you and the vibes of electric devices affect you as well, but I really like music, especially when I can take it with me on my walks around the park. It seems, depending on the rhythm of the song, to speed me up and put a spring into my steps. It is great. If you exercise and I hope you take the time out to do so, I can only recommend bringing along some music. It makes it a whole lot more enjoyable.
I will also invest in some audio books to put onto my player. How good will it be to listen to a book whilst cooking your dinner, or whilst driving to work….?
So if you are like me, why not invest in a bit of fun in the form of a MP3 player?
