Cultural Appropriation

When I went back to Cameroon last year for the Christmas holidays I noticed a lot of women wearing sarees and churidars. My immediate reaction (in my head of course) was “hmm na so Indian dem di cam take over pays, anyhow ie fine. Na wa own diversity be this”. Then one day I came across a group of women, still in Cameroon, gossiping about some Indian guy and “that their mop dem way di so so smell like garlic”. This really pissed me off and got me seriously thinking about cultural appropriation. So some of us Cameroonians think it is fashionable to wear sarees while stereotyping Indians for having bad breath.


I noticed that there are many examples in the west of white stars adopting certain aspects of black culture as cool and fashionable while failing to speak out on critical issues of white on black racism. Or everyday Britons wanting to go eat some authentic Caribbean food while making sure that the restaurant in question is not in a “shady” neighbourhood. Obviously there's nothing wrong with a white person wanting to enjoy proper jerk chicken or having their hair done in cornrows. But what does it say about that person if they don't want to go to or be seen in a neighbourhood which has predominantly black people in it; or if they go ahead and call black women “nappy headed hoes”?


Let's go ahead and consider these two examples: One, a teenage girl born to a Native American chief is kidnapped and forced to marry an Englishman. She is then taken to England and used as an icon to encourage the oppression of Native Americans by the English. Two, another teenage girl born to German Jews. Went into hiding with her family due to Hitler's oppression of Jews and wrote a diary that eventually became one of the most widely read books of our time.


Now these two young women have had deeply traumatic lives. However Walt Disney has warped and romanticised the story of pocahontas into a money making fairytale with a happy ending. Can we imagine what would happen if the same was done with Anne Frank's story, maybe depicting her as some Jewish girl who eloped and lived happily ever after with a Nazi officer?


Question is, where do we draw the line between cultural appreciation and appropriation? When does it become offensive for someone to adopt aspects of a culture that isn't theirs?

Dish of the day: Ekwang

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Ingredients: about 20 fingers of grated cocoyam (taro) wrapped in coco leaf, palm oil, scotch bonnet or ghost pepper, smoked fish (moru), diced beef, salt, maggi cube, half onion, crayfish (optional)
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Tip: Buy pre-wrapped / frozen ekwang to speed things up in the kitchen
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1 - Boil meat with onion, pepper, salt and maggi cube until tender
2 - Line the ekwang around the sides of the pot and leave a space in the middle
3 - Pour the palm oil into the middle of the pot and allow it to heat up
4 - Once the oil starts to separate, pour about half a litre of boiling water in to the oil
5 - Add the fish, cover the pot and allow to simmer on medium heat for 10 minutes
6 - Now add the meat stock and stir gently to avoid scattering the ekwang

7 - At this point add pepper,salt or maggi if required

8 - Allow to simmer on medium heat for 10 more minutes

9 - At this point the soup should start to thicken, add meat and crayfish

10 - Cook on medium heat for another 10 minutes before serving

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Dish of the day: Funky Pasta Omelette

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Ingredients: eggs, sardine, onions, boiled pasta, grated cheddar, green pepper, bell pepper, salt, maggi cube.
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Tip: Try replacing the sardines with tuna fish or use ghost pepper instead of bell peppers  to make the omelette more spicy.
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1 - Chop the vegetables, sprinkle with some maggi and keep in a separate bowl
2 - Beat the eggs, pasta and cheese in another bowl.
3 - Mash the sardines and add to the egg mixture, sprinkle salt to taste
4 - Stir fry the vegetables in a pan of hot oil for 2 -- 3 minutes
5 - Add the egg mixture and fry like a regular omelette

These ingredients yield two portions. Serve with some garlic bread or fried plantains
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Dish of the day: Minced Beef Bolognese

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Ingredients: onions, tomatoes, minced beef, ghost pepper, spring onions, oregano, basil, mushrooms, pasta sauce, maggi cube, salt to taste

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Tip: only wash the mushrooms right before they're about to enter the pot so that they don't become soggy 

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1 – Chop the mushrooms and keep in a separate bowl

2 – Stir fry your minced beef in a pan for 2 – 3 minutes and cover in a separate bowl

3 – Chop the tomatoes, pepper, spring onions and keep in a separate bowl

4 – Chop the onions and stir fry in hot oil until they start browning

5 – Add the chopped vegetables to the pot and sprinkle some salt, maggi, oregano and basil

6 – Cook on low heat until veggies are soft and brown, now add the mushrooms to the pot

7 – After about 3 minutes, pour in the pasta sauce and allow to simmer on medium heat

8 – Stir regularly for about 5 minutes before adding the minced beef

9 – Cover on low heat for 5 more minutes

Serve on pasta with grated cheese and some garlic bread

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Americanah

Source: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20939941-americanah

The first book i read from this author was 'Half of a Yellow Sun' and I absolutely loved it.

Unlike Half of a Yellow Sun, Chimamanda's Americanah is actually a love story. I was engrossed from the start with the story of Ifemelu's life in America and what she was ready to leave behind when she decided to move back to Nigeria. Most of us being in her shoes wouldn't have the courage to give up all that. I was so caught up in her love story with Obinze and their blind conviction that they would make it work when she moved to America. They had a plan and it would work! Well, haven't we all been there?

What makes this book special is the fact that it doesn't only concentrate on the two protagonists. There are other characters whose stories have been well developed and provide a deeper context with which to draw in the reader. It also gives a near-accurate description of the way race is perceived by most people in Nigeria, UK and USA.

I really loved Obinze's character and how he ironically got married to a woman whose qualities matched those of a girl he had previously refused to date back in high school. However the story of his life abroad almost brought tears to my eyes. It was heartbreaking and yet reflects how so many people struggle when they travel abroad to find a better life.

I was also intrigued by how Ifemelu dealt with race-related issues when she was abroad. She seemed so vocal at times, speaking her mind without restraint. However in other occasions she just holds back and decides to keep quiet about things that she clearly finds offensive.

Overall this book was wonderful and endearing. I would highly recommend.

Peanut Butter Cookies

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Ingredients: 125g butter, 100g dark muscovado sugar, 50g caster sugar, 1 egg, 1tsp vanilla, 1tsp nutmeg, 1tsp cinnamon, 250g self-raising flour, 3Tbsp peanut butter

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Tip: try replacing peanut butter with 200g white chocolate chips
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1 - Preheat oven to 180 Centigrades
2 - Cream butter, egg, sugars and vanilla
3 - Sift in flour, nutmeg and cinnamon
4 - Fold in peanut butter and cover with cling film
5 - Allow mixture to set in the fridge for 10 mins
6 - Roll out mixture and cut into desired shapes
7 - Bake for 10-15 mins and allow to cool

These ingredients yield about 18 large cookies
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Things Fall Apart

Source: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/37781.Things_Fall_Apart

Just finished reading this book by Chinua Achebe and I must admit it struck a chord.

I had actually read the simplified edition when I was younger and recently came across a really negative review of the book on goodreads website. This review prompted me to read the book again just to see things from the reviewer's point of view and I must say it felt like we both read two completely different books.

The story of Okonkwo the great warrior and how he fell from grace is such a compelling tragedy. In part one Achebe does a really good job of portraying the nature and practices of the Igbo tribes. Personally their practices seemed really extreme but I like the fact that he neither showers them with praise nor criticism. He simply states them as they are.

It is clear that Okonkwo has a lot of daddy issues. As a result he is very determined not to allow his father's short comings to ruin his life. Unfortunately arrogance is another vice that contributes greatly to his downfall. I especially like the parable of the tortoise attending a party in the sky which teaches a very good lesson about inter-personal relationships.

Things really begin to fall apart when the British missionaries come to spread the gospel in the surrounding villages. I believe that if the foreigners had stopped at spreading the word a lot of the ensuing conflict could have been averted. Unfortunately this was one of the ploys of colonialism / imperialism in which they used their religion to gain ground and confidence within the tribes and then started imposing their statutes and governance on the local people.

The fact that some of the clans men weren't united to a common cause also contributed to their downfall. This can be seen in the situation where the court messengers (local people working for the white people) disrespected their own elders who where held in custody and collected bribes from the villagers in addition to the initial fine required to release the elders.

Conclusion: Overall a very good read, I would highly recommend.

Lovely Decor

Source: http://tiaraless.com/post/50075194251

Cute Cupcake

Source: http://foxhe.tk/post/65151243300/ahhh-my-cupcake-yum

Dish of the day: Fried Rice & Jerk Chicken

Chicken - chicken thighs and drum sticks, maggi cubes, scotch bonnet peppers, coriander, thyme, allspice, cloves, nutmeg, garlic, spring onions

Rice - basmati rice, peas, carrots, sweet corn, coconut milk, chicken stock, onions, maggi cubes, scotch bonnet peppers.

Steps - coming soon

Dolphin

Source: http://plasmatics-life.tumblr.com/

Dish of the day: Eru

Eru: Eru leaves, spinach, palm oil, crayfish, scotch bonnet peppers, maggi cubes, oxtail, snails, beef tripe, beef hide

Fireworks

Source: http://laussieh.tumblr.com/

Birmingham New Street

Source: Fujifilm FinePix S4500

The Secret Life of Bees

Source: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/832098.The_Secret_Life_of_Bees

Review: Coming soon

Dish of the day: Spaghetti and Chicken

Chicken stew: chopped tomatoes, blended ginger garlic and spring onions, maggi cubes, onion, celery, scotch bonnet pepper, rosemary, thyme, ground white pepper. 

I Love Mondays

Breakfast: Almond croissant, Cinnamon roll, Orange juice, Strawberry, Onken yoghurt

So I'm back with my blog. Had a lovely Christmas vacation and since then I've been too lazy to get back to my blog. Rest assured there are lots more recipes to come up in the weeks ahead.

So before I started working I always wondered why people hated Mondays. I was quite keen to find out if I would feel the same but funny enough, I actually love Mondays. The rare occasions where I've been grumpy on a Monday happened when I had a really bad weekend or when I felt a bit ill.

Today I'm happy to be back at work, weekend was lovely. Had a lovely breakfast pictured above. Also tried something new: Strawberries and white wine! This was awesome, it tasted divine. It's like my taste buds were having a revelation!

My worst day of the week is actually Wednesday! Yeah I know, a bit weird. But usually on Monday and Tuesday I'm pumped up and full of weekend energy but by Wednesday I run out of steam and I'm already looking forward to the next weekend.

Go try strawberries and white wine. Hope you enjoy it like I did!

Dish of the day: Beans

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Ingredients: 600g pre-boiled beans, 6 medium tomatoes, 3 heaped tbsp crayfish, 12 beef meatballs, 6 garlic cloves, ghost peppers, onions, salt, maggi, thumb-sized root ginger

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Tip: fried fish can be used instead of meatballs.

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1 - Blend ginger, garlic, 1 ghost pepper and half onion

2 - Combine the mixture with half a cup of water and add salt and maggi to taste

3 - Add to the meatballs and cook in a sauce pan for 10 mins

4 - Separate meatballs from the stock and fry them in shallow oil until brown

5 - Stir fry the onions and tomatoes in a pot for about 10 mins or until the tomatoes start to dry out

6 - Add the meat stock to the pot, cook for a further 10 mins

7 - At this point another ghost pepper or more maggi can be added as required

8 - Put in the beans and meatballs and stir occasionally until the consistency begins to thicken

9 - Stir in the crayfish and cover for about 5 mins

10 - 300ml of hot vegetable oil can be added at the end if desired

This serves 5-6 people. Can be eaten with plantains, rice, yam or puff-puff

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Christmas pictures

I don't sleep around on the first date . . .

Source: Je Wanda magazine
Lady: I'm warning you, I don't sleep around on the first date
Man: What about the last date? Right now we can agree to stop seeing each other from tomorrow . . .