Rainy Days And Sundays - Butternut Relish

Inclement weather is expected to ease in October. The rain running in rivulets down the window panes as I type surprises me.

(adapted from a Daily Maverick recipe TGIF)

1 butternut (reasonably large)
5ml curry powder
2 onions, sliced
45ml Olive oil
4 cloves of garlic, chopped
A handful of thyme leaves, scraped off
5ml ground Coriander
5ml ground nutmeg
30ml tomato paste
250ml white Balsamic vinegar (I used a delicious berry-flavoured white vinegar)
125ml brown sugar
125ml water
60ml apricot jam
Fresh Italian parsley, chopped

METHOD

Preheat the oven to 220°C. Peel and cut the butternut into dice-sized pieces, then massage with olive oil to coat. Sprinkle the curry powder over the pieces. Roast in the oven until cooked through and slightly charred. I moved my oven rack up one notch. Once cooked, remove from the oven and set aside.

Heat the olive oil in a saucepan and add the sliced onions. Stir-fry for a few minutes. Reduce the heat and add the chopped garlic. Add the spices, salt and pepper. Cover and simmer for 8 minutes. Add the brown sugar, stir through, replace the lid, and caramelize for 10 more minutes. Add the thyme and cook through. 

Add the vinegar, water, tomato, and apricot jam; return to a simmer and cook uncovered for 5 minutes, until some of the vinegar has reduced.

Lastly, add the butternut. Gently stir or shake the pan until the butternut is coated. Replace the lid and simmer for 10 more minutes.

Remove from the stove. Cool. Serve at room temperature with chopped parsley for colour.

This dish keeps for a few days in the refrigerator and can be served as a relish with any barbecued meat.

---oOo---

The rain stopped, and the late-afternoon sun highlighted a Clivia flower, not particularly striking, yet it caught my eye. Sometimes, ordinary moments become extraordinary, reminding us to find beauty in everyday life.

Spectacular fields of gold, purple, and orange are still visible as we travel here and there, especially in the Kgalagadi. This year has seen a bumper crop of blooms, inspiring us to head north to explore the area now that SANParks has reopened its gates, with plans to visit specific sites such as Mata Mata and Nossob in the coming weeks.

After much to-ing and fro-ing and cancelling reservations for better locations, we managed to secure our desired sites at Mata Mata and Nossob. The trick with reservations, I discovered, was to book the selected period, take up any campsites to secure a reservation, then… go back every morning at 03h00 (I became an insomniac) and take up reservations as they came back up on the website. It took two weeks of dedicated swopping until, at last, I had our bookings as we like them.

All reservations are paid for on the spot. Cancellations are not credited as promptly as payments. I am waiting for someone at SANParks to acknowledge my emails. It has been four weeks, and still no word. Fortunately, my credit appears on my account. We live in hope.

The Honey Badger is getting a mesh box for firewood, and the roof rack is being repaired. Very exciting. We’ve replaced the broken awning. I am searching high and low for someone to “wrap” her with our website address and a logo. The finishing touches are more arduous than the initial build.

We binge-watched Zac Efron's Down to Earth on Netflix in one sitting—an excellent travelogue with an educational slant. Drinking bottled water will never be the same again.