African Birthday Lunch and In the Middle of his Life

My sister chose an African theme for her son's 40th Birthday surprise lunch and tracked down recipes and ingredients reminiscent of our childhood and honouring our missionary ancestors.

 In Zambia we called them mealies - these corn on the cob - a much tougher variety than our English ones - but still sweet and smokey charred, cooked on an open fire.  I remember they used to sell them in small piles on a piece of sack cloth at the side of the road.  Exactly like these we served on Sunday -  wonderfully roasted by niece's husband in the fire built by the men in the family - and authentically dusted with grey ash and grit from the embers.

The traditional accompaniment to all African meals is Inchima - a  cooked white cornmeal known as mealie meal - called Sadza in Zimbabwe -  which is used to mop up the juice from the stews and relishes it is served with.   And always eaten with your fingers. Some of us took up the challenge  

and ate this tomato, onion and kale relish and this stew of little dried fishes called Kapenta, with our fingers and some of us stuck with our forks. The best of the stews was one made by my sister -unfortunately no photo - a Peanut and Sweet Potato Stew -  the flavour of the peanuts, turned soft and pink by long cooking, took me straight back to the one my mother used to make. 

And my father would have been tickled pink to see his great granddaughter tucking into a plate of inchima and asking for more. Even though she thought it was mashed potato!

I just wish I'd bought more mealies ( French ones from the International Stores) as she wanted more of those too.

But everyone, especially the birthday boy, enjoyed the Granadilla cake accompanied by the tropical fruit salad and vanilla coconut cream ...and ice cream of course for the little people.

Later on we sat round the mealies-fire in the field, avoiding the sheep shit, perching on cushions or logs or camping chairs and my nephew asked us to tell stories of any other 40th birthday parties and told us what it meant to him to be turning 40. In the middle of his life.

It all made me cry of course....we had sat round another fire in another field in this same ancient landscape 19 years ago when he turned 21. 

It completed another circle for me when I gave him a beautiful hand-crafted steel knife with an antler horn handle, snuggled into a leather sheath, made by a friend who is skilled woodsman. I had given  it to Robin as a birthday present a few years ago. I also gave him Robin's creased brown leather jacket which has been hanging in the cupboard waiting for a new owner....and which fits him perfectly.

I hope he will pass on the knife to his son when he turns 40. And pass on his memories of Robin....who was very much present with us in the circle round the fire on Sunday. 

Beaming his love on us through the blowing smoke. 

My knife - same craftsman.