2019-09-01 Woolworths Taste

TASTE SEPTEMBER 2019 21

deliciouswares(suchas preserves),

to besoldin thecottages.

Asfortheparrots,theyappearto be

solelya pleasurablehobby.Still,there’s

quitea lotof otherinterestinglivestock

onthefarm.Thisincludessixturkeys,

“butwe’reonlykeepingthemaround

untilChristmas,”saysAdiwitha sly

lookin hiseye.Andthen,of course,

therearetherabbits.“Well,yes,”Adi

deadpans,“butanyonewilltellyou

thereis noartto farmingwithrabbits.”

“Howmanyhavewegotnow?”heasks

Cornelia.“Eighteen?”

“Noman,”answershisbrother-in-law

Hannes,whoalsoworksonthefarm.

“Thatwaslastweek.Thereare 27 now.”

Adijustlaughs.Thatis a concernfor

anotherday.He’llgetto it. Today,it’sjust

aboutthekuier.

Andwhatakuierit is.Therewillbe

lotsto eat,andplentyto laughabout.

Therewillbecheesybraaibroodjies, eaten

straightoffthegridin hungerbecause

thosewholemarinatedplaashoendersare

takingsolongto cook.Therewillbe

braaiedpotatoesanda quinoaandwild

ricesalad.Therewillbewholefilletof

beefwiththattangysalsaverde.There

willbecitrusyCaperitifcocktailsto start

andglassesandglassesof Adi’sfamed

Chenins.Andtherewillbedessert,

as theremustbeat anyproperSunday

lunch:bigcasserolesof bread-and-butter

pudding,warmedoverthefire,served

withCharl’samazingvanillaicecream

withhome-madekumquatpreserve.

Giventhemenu,therewillprobably

belongafternoonnapslater.Butthatis

later.Fornow,thepartyis in fullswing,

withtheadultsroaringwithlaughter

whilea troopof farmdogsmillsabout,

lookingfortreats.

Meanwhile,thegaggleof kidshave

finishedtheirmealandpeeledawayfrom

thetable,takingoffdownthegravelroad

onsomequest.Adiwatchesthemout

of thecornerof hiseye.

“I lovegatheringslikethis,”hesays.

“Bigkuiers. Wedoa bigSundaygathering

at leastoncea month.Charllightsthe

pizzaoven,weinviteallthefriendsand

family,thekidshaveajolonthewerf.

Thosearethebestdays.”Hesmiles.

“Todayis alsonotsobad,hey?”

No,notbad.Notbadat all.W

aabadenhorst.com

SALSA VERDE

Serves 12 to 15

EASY

GREAT VALUE

Preparation: 30 minutes

parsley 1 cup chopped

chervil or fresh coriander ½ cup chopped

basil 1 cup chopped

mint 1 cup chopped

fresh thyme 1 T chopped

chives ½ cup chopped

spring onions 2 bunches, chopped

baby capers 60 g

anchovy 6 fillets, chopped

Maldon salt 2 t or to taste

freshly ground black pepper, to taste

wholegrain mustard 1 T

olive oil 1½ cups

lemon juice ½ cup

Chop all the herbs by hand fairly finely

or put everything except the olive oil

and lemon juice into a food processor

and chop fairly roughly. Add the lemon

juice and olive oil, taste and adjust

the seasoning.

CARB-CONSCIOUS, HEALTH-CONSCIOUS,

DAIRY-FREE, WHEAT- AND GLUTEN-FREE

BEEF FILLET ON THE BRAAI

Serves 8

EASY

Preparation: 5 minutes, plus overnight

marinating time

Cooking: 25–30 minutes

whole beef fillet 1.6 –2 kg

sea salt and freshly ground black

pepper, to taste

olive oil

fresh rosemary (or other fresh herbs

such as thyme also work well) 4–6 sprigs

butter 150 g

for doing as many interesting things as
possible. (He does in fact breed parrots.)
But while there is a lot going on at
Kalmoesfontein, in terms of business
ventures, no one seems the least bit
frazzled. Hein, just shakes his head and
laughs: “I can’t keep up with this bunch,”
he says. “Every time I come here,
they’ve got some new project.”
“Ja, we have a few things going,”
says Adi with a shrug of the shoulders.
“We make a bit of wine, we make some
mezcal-like agave, we do some events,
we’ve added accommodation. One has
to keep busy, you know?”
He gestures to the vineyards and fields
surrounding the cellar, where today’s
braai has been set up: “I think you have
to use everything there is here. The aim
is to make money yes, but it’s also a
creative outlet. And I like to have the
whole family involved.”

Adi has certainly achieved
his goal. Since launching AA
Badenhorst wines 10 years ago, after
convincing Hein to buy the farm with
him, the family business has grown
by leaps and bounds. Apart from their
celebrated wines, which are known for
their distinctive and rebellious Swartland
character, these days the Badenhorst
clan also produces the popular Caperitif
fortified wine (a Cape heritage drink,
“a ghost” as Adi calls it, that they
resurrected), as well as a local tonic
called Swaan to complement it. Recently,
they’ve also started working with Signal
Hill Products to distill a tasty mezcal-like
agave named The 4th Rabbit.
But there’s more. About 18 months
ago, Adi’s brother Charl and his family
joined operations to lend their expertise.
After 20 years of running lodges in
Botswana, Charl and Semma now oversee
hospitality on the farm. Charl (who is
purportedly a pizza boss) has the run
of the kitchen, while Semma organises
tastings, events and accommodation
for the three guest cottages.
And that’s just the “main business”,
so to speak – we’ve not even touched on
all the sidelines going on here. There are
plans to produce some farm goods – such
as the salted capers going into today’s salsa
verde for the steak, harvested from the
1 500 plants now growing in the field
above the main house – and other

“I love gatherings

like this. Big kuiers.

We do a big Sunday

gathering at least

once a month”

• Adi Badenhorst

SUNDAY BRAAI