Red lentil, chickpea & chilli soup
Method
Heat a large saucepan and dry-fry the cumin seeds and chilli flakes for 1 min, or until they start to jump around the pan and release their aromas. Add the oil and onion, and cook for 5 mins. Stir in the lentils, stock and tomatoes, then bring to the boil. Simmer for 15 mins until the lentils have softened.
Whizz the soup with a stick blender or in a food processor until it is a rough purée, pour back into the pan and add the chickpeas. Heat gently, season well and stir in the coriander. Finish with a dollop of yogurt and coriander leaves.Ingredients
2 tsp cumin seeds
large pinch chilli flakes
1 tbsp olive oil
1 red onion, chopped
140g red split lentils
850ml vegetable stock or water
400g can tomatoes, whole or chopped
200g carton chickpeas or ½ a can, rinsed and drained (freeze leftovers)
small bunch coriander, roughly chopped (save a few leaves, to serve)
4 tbsp 0% Greek yogurt, to serve
Big night, big pressure! - Paula Manoli-Gray
So, who will be going out on New Year's Eve to celebrate? Not me! It hasn't been me for nearly six years, which by some strange coincidence, coincides with when we first became parents…
Although I can't really go out and ring in 2015 with abandonment, I am not sure I would, even if I could. NYE is possibly one of the most pressure-laden nights out ever invented. First there is the decision of where and how to spend it out of all the many venues promising 'the best night of the year'. Then there is the inflated cost of it all; even if you are going to the same venue you have frequented every weekend for the whole of the year, you are suddenly paying through the nose for your usual bar stool. And finally, there is the work-up of how it is going to be 'mega, epic, legendary, amazing' etc, only to find that nine times out of ten, it is actually just the same as every other night out you have enjoyed – or endured – throughout the course of the year.
NYE is also the universal cut-off for seasonal gluttony! Everyone goes a little crazy with the calories, not worrying too much, as from January first, it will all end and good habits will be reinstated – or started. As such, December 31 is your one last, final, never-to-be-had-again chance to really push the calorie counter over the red before the 'fresh start'. In reality, you will probably consume too many calories again by the first weekend of January, thus making NYE's gluttony nothing but a con that you fall for every year.
When I was a teenager/young adult, I did have some memorable NYE nights out in Cyprus and London, and did indeed pay (gladly) through the nose for the pleasure of them, although all nights out were good back then, so it was probably just more expensive, rather than actually being better. Nonetheless, the memories are happily stored in my photo albums, but when I look at that young me, I wish I could jump into the photos and tell her to stop partying and start stocking up on some sleep, and warn her that motherhood would ensure that she could never stay up past 9pm again, let alone watch the sun rise.
Actually, it would be a lie to say that every NYE since becoming a parent have meant an early night from exhaustion and sleeping through the midnight clock chimes… some of them I have been awake for… either sat at the cot side of a screaming baby that will not go to sleep, or driving one around to get them to sleep. A couple of years back, as the fireworks could be heard in the distance with the faint sound of music and laughter, hubby and I were dealing with one or both of our non-sleepers when our bleary eyes met across the room. It was a tragic and poetic moment worthy of an 'Eastenders' episode ending drumbeat. For those who are not familiar with the English television series, it is full of miserable people leading depressing and overly-dramatic lives, with each episode ending at a particularly revealing or tragic part, signalled by a single drum, beating out the start of the theme tune.
If you are going out, I hope you have a wonderful time, and I will do what I do every January first; live vicariously through all the photographs of other people's nights out that are plastered all over the social media networks. So, have a good one for me. Cheers!
First appeared in The Cyprus Weekly 25/12/14
When it rains it pours - Paula Manoli-Gray
So, how did everyone enjoy our new car marina last weekend? And by 'car marina', I mean the floods that turned our cars into boats?
Joking aside, last weekend's flooding was horrendous – worse for some than others, depending on what area you live in.
Personally, I was parked in a side street of the Saint Lazarus area and watched in horror from the venue window as the water levels rose to cover half the height of the car. In the evening when I left, I managed to wade knee-deep to the car, squeeze into the driver's seat from the less-flooded passenger side, only to find myself sat in a puddle! The car had flooded inside. Okay, not the most tragic thing that could happen in a flood when you look at what people in other parts of the world suffer, but for a little Larnaca gal, it was traumatic enough, and I spent the evening with my feet in a bowl of warm water and a hot water bottle feeling rather sorry for myself!
But as it turns out, our car got off lightly! From all over the town, we heard and saw horror stories of houses flooded, shop stock destroyed, cars completely submerged or swimming in 'lakes', electricity outages, and residents who could not get to their homes as their roads had been cordoned off by police – accompanied by a soundtrack of wailing emergency vehicles. And although it was not on a par with the devastating floods that other countries have experienced, it was a very tiny but scary glimpse into what those battling catastrophic floods contend with, and not one I would like to experience again.
It goes without saying that we cannot control weather conditions, hence why there is always a 'force majeure' / 'act of God' clause in insurance policies, and it is not the fault of our powers-that-be that it rains. Last weekend was a particularly severe case of flooding – of the worse we have had – so it would not be fair to come down too hard on those who govern us. But, the truth is, it doesn't take much rain for Larnaca to flood, and so therefore I believe it is their fault that they cannot provide their citizens with decent roads that can cope with rain.
Am I being ignorant on this matter to believe that there are methods to prevent flooding and that they should be implemented, or is it far more complicated than that? Maybe there is a valid reason for why we continue to have to put up with this very dangerous occurrence, almost every time it rains? Thankfully, last weekend's floods were damaging enough to have an impact, and on Monday a meeting was held with the mayor, emergency services, civil engineers and others on putting together a contingency plan so we do not end up in the same situation, as well as the setting up of a helpline and practical and financial assistance to those worse hit. For the time being, I will allow my faith to be restored, but how much faith I do have in their words is debatable.
On the plus side, the dams had a good injection of water, the flamingos at the salt lake are very happy, my rather neglected trees have finally had a really good, long drink, and the wash that the car was desperately in need of has been nicely taken care of, although I didn't really plan on giving it a hosing on the inside too!
First appeared in They Cyprus Weekly, 19/12/14
Ignorance is bliss? - Paula Manoli-Gray
"…and it's Christmas…" Oh I how I hate hearing that phrase in connection with something bad that has happened!
You hear it a lot during the festive season. If someone loses their job, it is made all the worse 'because it is Christmas'. If someone is ill or has a bereavement, it is all the more painful 'because if it Christmas'. If there is war, a large-scale accident, a catastrophic natural disaster, all of these become even more unbearable just 'because it is Christmas'.
I understand that Christmas brings out the good in some people; hatchets are buried, families are reunited and everyone wants world peace – so there is a feeling that this time of year shouldn't bring anything negative – but bad things are bad things, and their timing does not lessen or worsen them.
Which leads on to the debate of whether we should be trying to filter out the negative news that dominates our media, or if we should make a conscious effort to keep up-to-date with the horrors of the world.
This is something that troubles me greatly, and I am not sure which side of the coin to fall on. On the one hand, I don't want to be ignorant to what is going on, as closing it out could be perceived as not caring, or being inwards. I don't want to feel – or seem to others – as though I am only concerned about my little world and that if I am alright and not affected by the suffering of others, then that is okay. Also, by ignoring some injustices, we allow them to continue, and I certainly do not want to contribute to that…
…But on the other hand, I cannot save the world just by knowing all of its flaws, and if I keep allowing myself to feel the pain of the universe, then I will go insane – I am an emotional wreck as it is! As a parent especially, I cannot cope with knowing of the heinous crimes committed against children, or acknowledging the reality that not all children are healthy or safe. It is too unbearable. But that doesn't mean I am not sensitive to the plight of others, it just means that sometimes I want to pretend that we are not freefalling into a bottomless pit of evil and self-destruction. So, is ignorance bliss or is it the easier and lazier option?
As for Christmas, if it brings out the best in people and it makes everyone stand united, then I am all for it, but I wish with all my heart that people felt like this all year round. We save our goodwill for once a year, just like we buy those shiny tins of Christmas confectionary once a year. We suddenly open our eyes and see that there are homeless people; that there are abused people; that there are old people left to rot, all alone; that there are animals mistreated; that there are parts of the world where clean water is not available and food is scarce; that humans are trafficked; that war doesn't just affect those who are fighting it; that we are far more fragile than we can possibly imagine - or have time to realise - as we go about our daily life, stressing over the insignificant.
And yet, I am still undecided about whether I should make the time and effort to know about all of the world's injustices, or if I should concentrate more on ensuring that the people I know and love don't ever have to experience them for themselves. Where do you stand?
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