It is Giveaway Time !

On February 13th Greetings From Holland will be completing 2 years ! My sincere "thank you" to all followers and those bringing their "two cents" !

With my blog I have met virtually and/or personally many bubbling personalities and discovered many interesting blogs made by creative, enthusiastic, critic, passionate and very opinionated people around the world. I have done a lot of research and learned even more interesting things about the Dutch culture and myself...

In order to celebrate the two years of G.F.H. I will be giving away two books. The title is "Dutch Cooking Today" and has easy-to-prepare, modern interpretation of traditional Dutch recipes. Thus no granny food - although one can label Dutch food as "comfy food". The book is in ENGLISH. I have gotten one as a present many years ago and prepared so far many yummy recipes. So I bought two units and decided to give them as presents this month.

Above, zebras. It is a starter made of rye bread and a mixture paste consisting of cream cheese, dill and salm. No frying, no cooking - and you can prepare it with a certain advance in time. If you do not like to use salm you can use a white fish of cooked chicken instead - it is goingto look even whiter and become more "zebra-ish" !

Above: chicken and salm soup. Very low fat, very surprising ! Please explore my blog clicking on the labels "restaurants", "recipes", "food"  on the right side of this page if you are not familiar with Dutch foods/meals/delicacies/street food.

Above: pear stewed in red wine, cloves and cinnamon. I prefer curd with prunes - also found in the book !

"Poffertjes": tiny pancakes. Found in all Dutch supermarkets and also during fairs and quermesses around the country, during the whole year. Serve them topped with butter and sugar. Notice the recipe has three paragraphs. I told you: the Dutch recipes are simple AND the Dutch cuisine is so much more than just mashed dishes and pea soup ! The brilliant thing about this book concept is that there are NO Indonesian foods (it is a very strong ethnic cuisine in Holland), NO Belgian foods (which is very lovely cuisine from a neighbouring country and uses liqueurs and beers) or from other countries  at all - and these days Italian and French have lots of influence on Dutch cooking styles. The book is all about pure ingredients and honest flavors in a 1-2-3 step.

Book contents: classic basic sauces, breakfast/brunch/lunch, cakes with tea or coffee, appetizers and snacks, soups, one-pan dishes, main courses, vegetables and side dishes, desserts. All recipes come with a photo. There are also art photos in the book with Dutch themes / landscapes / sceneries.

And the lucky winners get also one plastified bookmarker with magnets, so that you can place it on your chosen recipe page. You can also write some notes inside the bookmarker.  Everyone, living in any part on planet Earth can participate on it. Here are the simple rules to participate in this draw, step-by-step:

1) Become a follower of Greetings from Holland right now if you are not one;

2) Place a quick comment in English (on this post only) up to 16th February, not forgetting to mention your name, city and country. Example:
Hi there Anita ! I just discovered your blog, and I already love it !  I also would love to win one of the books. I am really interested in preparing some Dutch food. My fingers are crossed ! Good luck with your blog. Nigella, London, UK;

3) You can also write about this giveaway on your blog, Facebook, Orkut page or Tweeter. After that you can come here and publish the link (do not forget to mention your name, city and country). Like that you can participate as many times as you wish !

4) When I publish on the lucky winners' names on the 16th February they have two days to react, placing a thank you comment. In case one or both winners do not react then I will make another draw. The presents will be sent via mail as soon as I get the winners addresses.

This is so exciting ! Good luck to all participants !

Change of Plans

"The world makes way for the man who knows where he is going."
Ralph Waldo Emerson

This may sound completely ridiculous, but I've never been a big time goal setter. I've never had to make big plans to achieve my dreams. It's not that everything has been handed to me, but I can't say I've been reaching for something outlandish. Of course I've had struggles to overcome, I've wanted and worked hard for what I have, but my goals have always been in line with what was already on its way to me. There is nothing wrong with this theory until you start looking for more. So here I am in a rut. This deep abyss that seems to some days swallow me whole, and still keep eating. Where once obstacles existed, I am no longer crippled. Today there is no reason not to set a goal for what I want. There is literally, nothing in my way. I have no excuse to sit here wanting. I am aware that the first step is monumental, that moving backward is not an option. First steps can be daunting, but this is a Zig Ziggler kind of plan. Goals don't go unrewarded.

Lesson #53: Take the first step 

LJ HOLMES PRESENTS: DIOSCURI

Myth,

Legend,

Reality.

Greece is steeped in all.

Myth: The ancient gods

with their Pantheon

of power.

Legend:

Something from days long past...no longer a part of the world today... 

...no longer relevant

in this age of automobiles and airplanes.

Reality...

man transforming what was, creating what will be.

The gods and the demons are gone, long buried in the annals of time...aren't they?

But suppose, just suppose Myth,

Legend, and Reality exist in this,

the current plane of man's existence?

What if the twin sons of the Mighty and Immortal Zeus

came forth to battle beside a few of the lesser immortals, satyrs,



griffins,

forest nymphs...

 

wood nymphs...

water nymphs...


to name a few?

And what of the demons brought forth from their hibernation by Man's fluid need to always change...improve on what history created before?

Polydeukes and Kastor, sons of the powerful King of the Gods, Zeus, one born into immortality, one not, bound together by more than the blood of a mortal mother and immortal father enter the fray.

Rising from the portals reopened by man are the Lamias...snake women...

harpies...

chimeras...


sirens,

all with lethal intent.

But when Kastor, the mortal son dies in battle, Polydeukes begs, borrows, and enters into a pact his father Zeus, and his uncle

Hades, Lord of the Underworld will take great exception to.

Can Polydeukes find a permanent solution to the current pact that allows Kastor to live one day and Polydeukes to live the next...each stepping into the life of Kastor, the mortal warrior?

Will Polydeukes find the answer before Kastor learns the truth invalidating the tenuous pact...and before either Dear Old Dad,

or Uncle Hades,

realize the crime no Immortal is allowed to commit has been committed...bringing the dead back to life? A crime that could mean spending forever in the land of horrors,

Tartarus, guarded by the stuff of nightmares

Cerberus, for both sons.

Dioscuri, by

Chrystalla Thoma

is an amazing journey into the Pantheon of the Greek Gods and the roles they play in our modern times.

Dioscuri

from

Muse It Up Publishing, Inc. cover by Muse's very own goddess,

Cover Art Goddess Delilah K. Stephans will be released on March 1st. 2011.

This is a must read for anyone fascinated by the

Greek gods and those who wonder what it would be like to have the gods monitoring the world of man today.

Click on the MUSE BOOK STORE link. You so will not regret it.

Ms. Thoma may also be reached at her BLOG.

And remember at Muse we are;